Discussion New to Pokemon TCG

famous57

famous57

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Hey everyone, new here. I've been thinking about starting to play tcg and don't know where to start. I'd like to play competitivly at local tournaments hopefully. I play tcg online but what would be a good start physically? Any certain theme decks, packs, or elite boxes I should start with? Any tips or input? Thanks!
 
Who do you have to play with IRL? Theme decks are a great way to get into the game, that's how me and my OH got into it. The newest Sceptile celestial storm one looks good, even has a Guzma in it.
 
My suggestion is, don’t buy packs. From experience. You get the equilelent of $2 in cards from each pack( which cost $5 in Canada), with the majority of packs giving only 50 cents worth of cards, though some can cointain rare GX and Full art cards, which can cost from $2 to 20, and secret rare/rainbow cards which cost from $5 to $200. On the other hand, most hobby stores, particularly ones with pokemon leagues will sell individual cards, at a far better price than packs.
Other than that, start out with an idea of a finished deck in mind, and start off with either a theme deck that contains many cards for your final deck, or a dumbed down/lower cost version of the deck, and build up to the final deck you want
 
MilesEX said:
Who do you have to play with IRL? Theme decks are a great way to get into the game, that's how me and my OH got into it. The newest Sceptile celestial storm one looks good, even has a Guzma in it.
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My wife said that if I could teach her, she would play lol so thats a start. I also have a cousin and nephew who play but not seriously. I figured I could start there until I got the hang and confidence before I visit my local card shops.

pikachuuuu101 said:
My suggestion is, don’t buy packs. From experience. You get the equilelent of $2 in cards from each pack( which cost $5 in Canada), with the majority of packs giving only 50 cents worth of cards, though some can cointain rare GX and Full art cards, which can cost from $2 to 20, and secret rare/rainbow cards which cost from $5 to $200. On the other hand, most hobby stores, particularly ones with pokemon leagues will sell individual cards, at a far better price than packs.
Other than that, start out with an idea of a finished deck in mind, and start off with either a theme deck that contains many cards for your final deck, or a dumbed down/lower cost version of the deck, and build up to the final deck you want
Click to expand...
Thanks a lot! Are there certain types I should stick to? How many EX, GX, or prisms should a deck use?
 
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pokebeach has a deck garage and premium articles with deck lists as well. Also, keep in mind that each year at the end of august cards rotate (from the standard format (which is what around 70% of all tournaments are) , but there is an un-rotating expanded format that is black and white onward) meaning some of the cards that can currently brought to competitive leagues will not be able to be played.
The new format will be sun and moon on, meaning only cards that look like the cards below will be allowed, and GXs are playable, but EXs are not

 
pikachuuuu101 said:
pokebeach has a deck garage and premium articles with deck lists as well. Also, keep in mind that each year at the end of august cards rotate (from the standard format (which is what around 70% of all tournaments are) , but there is an un-rotating expanded format that is black and white onward) meaning some of the cards that can currently brought to competitive leagues will not be able to be played.
The new format will be sun and moon on, meaning only cards that look like the cards below will be allowed, and GXs are playable, but EXs are not

Click to expand...
So if I'm buying, only go with sun and moon products? So don't get the mega charizard elite box?
 
@famous57 maybe consider the Charizard GX premium collection if you really want a charizard.
https://www.target.com/p/pokemon-ch...mbBZYaiDvg-gYix7hL4aAjjuEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Unfortunately, this card hasn't seen play, but most, if not all of the included packs are series that will remain in the standard format.

Are you familiar with the 'staple' cards? That is, those that are good to have 2-4 of on hand for deck construction, typically regardless of what deck you're playing?
 
friendfriend said:
@famous57 maybe consider the Charizard GX premium
collection if you really want a charizard.
https://www.target.com/p/pokemon-ch...mbBZYaiDvg-gYix7hL4aAjjuEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Unfortunately, this card hasn't seen play, but most, if not all of the included packs are series that will remain in the standard format.

Are you familiar with the 'staple' cards? That is, those that are good to have 2-4 of on hand for deck construction, typically regardless of what deck you're playing?
Click to expand...
I havent heard of them. Do they pretty much work in any deck?
 
famous57 said:
I havent heard of them. Do they pretty much work in any deck?
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Not only do they work, but they are pretty much required. For example, if you are going to make a competitive deck right now, you basically need to play at least 2 or 3 copies of Cynithia.
 
@famous57 Staple cards are those that are in a high percentage of decks, and consequentially are considered worth owning a playset of (typical 4x copies of a card). For instance, if you've looked at deck lists around here you might have noticed that most decks play a four-count of Ultra Ball. This because that card is universally useful, as it allows you to search out Pokemon from your deck - something almost every deck is going to need.

Staples are frequently :

Items, such as Ultra Ball, Choice Band, Field Blower, or Rescue Stretcher

Supporters, such as Cynthia, Guzma, N, and Sycamore (the latter two are going to be 'rotated out' here in a few months. There have been some decent predictions as to what will replace them by players much more qualified to speak on the issue; consequentially I will keep my mouth shut. Predicting future metagames requires a deep understanding of the current environment - something that I am sure you are working on, but there is no need to worry about all of the complexities for the sake of this post)

And occasionally :

Stadiums, such as Brooklet Hill (for anyone considering playing Water or Fighting decks) and Parallel City (also being lost to rotation)

Pokemon, such as Oranguru (Sun and Moon Base Set - although this is typically a 'one-of'), Tapu Lele GX (which will hopefully go down in price from it's current $30 once the new alternate art version is released), Tapu Koko (the promo SM31 - again, not often a 'four-of', but it sees play in a decent amount of decks that rely on spread damage or that just need an extra 20 damage to hit good numbers), and Vulpix (the Guardians Rising card with the 'Beacon' attack. It's fluctuated in popularity, but it's sometimes a 1-2 of in decks centered around Stage 2 Pokemon).

Arguably the best way to figure out what cards are good to own is to pay attention to what sites like Pokebeach seem to point out as useful, or that are often seen in championship-level decks (even if you aren't planning on rushing out to your next Regionals, it can be worthwhile and a lot of fun to check out http://limitlesstcg.com/tournaments/ to see what's good and what has been good in the past). Just keep an eye out while you play or read about the game - you'll get a sense of what's good and what isn't in no time.
 
friendfriend said:
@famous57 Staple cards are those that are in a high percentage of decks, and consequentially are considered worth owning a playset of (typical 4x copies of a card). For instance, if you've looked at deck lists around here you might have noticed that most decks play a four-count of Ultra Ball. This because that card is universally useful, as it allows you to search out Pokemon from your deck - something almost every deck is going to need.

Staples are frequently :

Items, such as Ultra Ball, Choice Band, Field Blower, or Rescue Stretcher

Supporters, such as Cynthia, Guzma, N, and Sycamore (the latter two are going to be 'rotated out' here in a few months. There have been some decent predictions as to what will replace them by players much more qualified to speak on the issue; consequentially I will keep my mouth shut. Predicting future metagames requires a deep understanding of the current environment - something that I am sure you are working on, but there is no need to worry about all of the complexities for the sake of this post)

And occasionally :

Stadiums, such as Brooklet Hill (for anyone considering playing Water or Fighting decks) and Parallel City (also being lost to rotation)

Pokemon, such as Oranguru (Sun and Moon Base Set - although this is typically a 'one-of'), Tapu Lele GX (which will hopefully go down in price from it's current $30 once the new alternate art version is released), Tapu Koko (the promo SM31 - again, not often a 'four-of', but it sees play in a decent amount of decks that rely on spread damage or that just need an extra 20 damage to hit good numbers), and Vulpix (the Guardians Rising card with the 'Beacon' attack. It's fluctuated in popularity, but it's sometimes a 1-2 of in decks centered around Stage 2 Pokemon).

Arguably the best way to figure out what cards are good to own is to pay attention to what sites like Pokebeach seem to point out as useful, or that are often seen in championship-level decks (even if you aren't planning on rushing out to your next Regionals, it can be worthwhile and a lot of fun to check out http://limitlesstcg.com/tournaments/ to see what's good and what has been good in the past). Just keep an eye out while you play or read about the game - you'll get a sense of what's good and what isn't in no time.
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Thanks! Very informative. Ill start out slow then and build my way up. So xy and up is standard and the cards you mentioned are must haves. Awesome!
 
famous57 said:
Hey everyone, new here. I've been thinking about starting to play tcg and don't know where to start. I'd like to play competitivly at local tournaments hopefully. I play tcg online but what would be a good start physically? Any certain theme decks, packs, or elite boxes I should start with? Any tips or input? Thanks!
Click to expand...
I recommend Mach Strike simply because it is easy to play and the max damage from Garchomp can be up to 200. You can find out more here to how to play that decks and other theme decks.
 
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