The Pokémon Trading Card Game is a battle game for two players. Each player builds a 60-card deck, and the aim is to take six Prize cards by Knocking Out the other player's Pokémon. The cards your child collects are also the pieces the game is played with.
This page follows the official rulebook from The Pokémon Company, with extra detail from Bulbapedia where we name it.
The three kinds of card
Every card in a deck is one of three kinds.
| Kind | What it does |
|---|---|
| Pokémon | The fighters. Most are Basic, Stage 1 or Stage 2. Stage 1 and Stage 2 cards are evolutions of a Basic card |
| Energy | Pays the cost of an attack. Most Pokémon cannot attack without it |
| Trainer | A one-off effect: an Item, a Supporter, a Stadium or a Pokémon Tool |
A Pokémon card shows a name, a type, HP (how much damage it can take), its Stage, its attacks, a retreat cost, and a Weakness or Resistance. The idea of a Stage is the same as evolution in the video games: a Stage 1 card says which Pokémon it evolves from.
Energy and types
Energy cards come in types, and an attack lists which Energy it needs. The official rulebook says the card game has 11 Energy types, which is fewer than the 18 types in the video games. It also notes that the Scarlet and Violet card series has no Fairy-type Pokémon cards, although older sets do.
Weakness works like the video-game type chart. If an attack does damage and the defending Pokémon has a Weakness to the attacker's type, it takes more. A Resistance means it takes less. In the games, for example, Water moves are strong against Fire. Your child can use what they know from the games, but the card rules differ in detail, and each card lists its own Weakness.
How a game starts
According to the official rules, each player:
- Shuffles a 60-card deck and draws 7 cards.
- Puts one Basic Pokémon face down as their Active Pokémon.
- Puts up to 5 more Basic Pokémon face down on the Bench.
- Sets the top 6 cards of the deck to the side, face down. These are the Prize cards.
- Turns the Pokémon face up and begins.
A coin flip decides who goes first. The Active Pokémon is the one in the fight, and the Bench holds the others.
What happens on a turn
A turn has three parts: draw a card, do any of your actions in any order, then attack and end the turn. The actions are:
- put Basic Pokémon from your hand on the Bench
- evolve your Pokémon
- attach one Energy card from your hand (once per turn)
- play Trainer cards, with one Supporter and one Stadium per turn
- retreat your Active Pokémon (once per turn)
- use Abilities
There are a few limits. Neither player can evolve a Pokémon on its first turn in play, or on their own first turn of the game. The player who goes first cannot play a Supporter card on that first turn, and skips the attack on it too.
Prize cards and how you win
When one of your opponent's Pokémon is Knocked Out, you take one of your Prize cards into your hand. Some stronger cards give two Prize cards when they are Knocked Out: Pokémon ex in the current sets, and older kinds such as Pokémon-EX, Pokémon-GX and Pokémon V. The player who lost a Pokémon picks a new Active Pokémon from the Bench.
There are three ways to win.
- Take all of your Prize cards.
- Knock Out all of your opponent's Pokémon in play.
- Your opponent has no cards left in their deck at the start of their turn.
Booster packs and rarity
A booster pack is a sealed packet of cards that you open to see what you got. What is inside is random, so you cannot pick the cards.
Each card has a rarity symbol at the bottom, and Bulbapedia lists the three main ones.
| Symbol | Rarity | What Bulbapedia says |
|---|---|---|
| Circle | Common | Usually basic, unevolved Pokémon |
| Diamond | Uncommon | Evolved and unevolved Pokémon and most Trainer cards |
| Star | Rare | Some more exclusive Rare cards are called Ultra Rare |
Newer sets add more kinds of rare card, and how many of each a pack holds changes from set to set. Check the details for the set your child has.
The easiest way to start
The official rulebook says that if you need more help, an ex Battle Deck comes with everything needed to play, including a quick-start version of the rules. Booster packs are for later, once your child wants to build their own deck. The official Pokémon TCG site recommends Pokémon Trading Card Game Live, an app with an interactive tutorial that teaches the basics. The app is rated PEGI 3, as the parent's guide to Pokémon shows.
How cards connect to the games
Cards use the same Pokémon, names and types as the video games, so a child who knows Charmander from a game will meet the same Pokémon on a card. They may also like to learn how to say the names that appear on cards. Every name on pokee.si has an audio clip, and the Say It Right quiz pack tests them. For more on how the games work, see the parent's guide.