Expanded uses cards starting with each black and white base set, including Black Star promotional cards released during this period. In addition to the standard legal sets listed above, it also includes: Standard is one of the two main formats for the TCG Pokémon and is the most commonly played. In Standard, only cards from recent years are legal to ensure the long-term balance of the game. Unlike Magic: The Gathering, which uses the release of its fall set as the cut-off point for “rotation,” Pokémon has a much more flexible schedule and uses “regulation marks” to decide what`s legal and what`s not. The tables below indicate the first date on which upcoming cards can be used, as well as promotional cards introduced from 1 January 2017 that are already legally available in a Play! Pokémon competitive event. In recent years, the rotation of the Pokémon TCG standard format has taken place in August or September. However, the next rotation will not take place until early 2023. This means that cards with the character of the “D” rule can be used in the 2022 Pokémon TCG World Championships. The last expansion that will be legal for this event is the Pokémon TCG: Pokémon GO. For the 2022 season, cards with rule signs “D” and “Eâ” are legal (as well as any future regulatory signs that may be published). Now this includes all cards in the Sword & Shield expansion. New cards still have to meet the proper waiting period to become legal for the tournament, which is usually two weeks after their release.
This rotation means that many cards that were familiar to players and common in decks are no longer available to build standard-sized decks. As of September 10, 2021, the current standard will only include cards with a D or E rule character in the lower left corner. That means cards from: We can`t stress enough how important it is for coach cards to have exactly the same words. There have been different versions of the poke ball card over generations. However, the text has changed slightly each time. For example, you wouldn`t be able to play a basic poke ball set in the sun; Lunar epoch. Yes. There are places that allow it. Just read the map as if it were the modern map.
However, it is very rare that such a thing is allowed in official tournaments. Basic energy cards are cards on which “Energy” is printed in the upper left corner of the card, but do not have text that explains an additional effect that a special energy card would provide. Unlike basic energy cards, special energy cards are limited by the rule of four. Although Fairy Energy is also a Basic Energy card, Fairy Energy is not legal in the standard format. You know that a Pokémon deck is legal if it has 60 cards, no more than 4 of a card (without energies), and consists of cards that are legal in the format you play. The Pokémon trading card company maintains a listing on its website. This way, you will always know which cards you can legally play with. All cards that have not been rotated from the standard format are legal to play in standard decks. In contrast, there are a handful of cards that make up the ban list for the extended format, where the pool of cards is large enough that the cards occasionally interact with each other in ways that weren`t intended – even in a way that interrupts play. Expanded is the main perpetual (non-rotating) format for official organized play. Unlike the unofficial Unlimited format, which allows cards from any point in Pokémon`s history, Expanded still tries to organize the experience by having a limited pool of cards. In 90% of cases, it will probably be standard.
This means that you can only use Pokémon cards from recent expansions. Since sets rotate quite frequently, it is not possible for us to give you here a complete list of current standard or extended legal sets. It could become obsolete in a few months. You can always find the most up-to-date list here: After the introduction of a new Pokémon TCG, there is a short wait before it can be used in the game! Pokémon Contest. This waiting period gives players the opportunity to understand and practice with the new map. Pokémon trading card playing cards, such as those found in special collections, are legal on the first or third Friday of the month following the product`s release. Other cards that explicitly state that they are not legal for the tournament on the card itself or on the packaging of their product are also not legal in the sanctioned game! Pokémon tournaments. www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-tcg-banned-card-list/ Any card used in your deck must be legal in the format for which you are building your deck. The maps of the sets listed below are legal in standard format. You can compare the game symbol of each deck with the game symbols on the cards you want to include in your deck. Pokemon will maintain a list of currently legal cards on their website.
It is important that you check this and the blacklist to make sure that the cards you want to play with can be used. In cases where a card is reprinted with significant text changes, the player playing the card must have a new copy of the card in hand, separate from his deck, for reference. For example, the energy harvesting effect printed in black and white is different from the original print in the base game. A player may include the basic impression of the energy recovery in their deck for the tournament, but must provide a copy of the black and white print for reference. Starting with this year`s rotation, Quick Ball will no longer be legal in the standard format – not even the new print in Fusion Strike. One of the most radical formats that differs from the normal TCG is U150. Inspired by the commander of Magic the Gathering, it is a singleton format of 100 cards (meaning only one of each non-basic energy card is allowed) and uses a vast pool of cards that contains most of the cards from any set ever printed. The main problem with U150 is that no base Pokémon can have an HP greater than 150, forcing you to creatively play with smaller Pokémon instead of relying on the usual heavy rackets.
Of the four official formats, Standard is the only one to run. Similar to the standard format in Magic The Gathering, Pokémon TCG expansions in Standard only remain legal for a few years at most before spinning and being replaced. In a standard deck, you can only use cards from the latest versions – once an expansion has been removed from the standard, each deck with its cards is no longer legal. The Pokémon Company International, the company that makes Pokémon maps for the United States and many other regions, maintains a list of prohibited cards for standard, extensive, and unlimited formats Pokemon.com. While no reason has been given for the delay, it`s likely related to the upcoming ninth generation, with the launch of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet in November. It makes little sense to shoot Standard to remove half of the Sword & Shield era without having the Scarlet & Violet Base Set to replace them. Keeping the Sword & Shield base set and the first half of the standard-legal era until the release of Scarlet & Violet prevents the upheaval from removing the D-regulation cards and leaving a void in the metagame.