Going First or Second in the Pokémon TCG, and Your First Two Turns

Every game starts with a coin flip, and the winner of the flip chooses who goes first. In a best-of-three match, the official tournament rules hand that choice to the loser of the previous game instead. Either way, it is a real decision, and choosing well starts with knowing exactly what each side gets.

The first-turn rules

From the current rulebook:

• The player who goes first cannot attack on their first turn.
• The player who goes first cannot play a Supporter card on their first turn.
• Neither player can evolve a Pokémon on their own first turn, unless a card says so.

Both players draw a card at the start of their first turn. Both can Bench Basic Pokémon, attach an Energy, and play Items, Tools, and Stadiums.

What going first gives you

• A free turn of setup. You Bench Pokémon and attach Energy before your opponent can touch your board.
• The first evolution. Your second turn comes before your opponent’s second turn, so you evolve first.
• The first attack with a powered-up Pokémon, if your deck needs two attachments to attack.

What it costs: no Supporter on turn one, so your first turn runs only on your opening hand, your draw, Items, and Abilities.

What going second gives you

• A Supporter on your first turn, which often means more cards and a better setup.
• The first attack. If you have a Pokémon that can attack for one Energy, you hit first.
• Information. You see your opponent’s opening board before you commit yours.

What it costs: your opponent evolves first, and their Pokémon reach their big attacks a turn earlier.

How to choose

Ask what your deck needs in its first two turns.

• Your deck needs to evolve, or needs a Pokémon with an Ability set up early: going first often helps, because your evolutions come a turn sooner.
• Your deck relies on its Supporters to find its pieces, or has a strong one-Energy attack: going second often helps.
• You are not sure: test it. Play several games each way and keep notes, as in this lesson’s practice task.

Choices also shift with what the other player is doing. If your opponent’s deck can attack hard on its first turn, going first gives them that chance against an unprepared board. No answer is right for every deck, and players argue about it at every League. What matters is that you choose for a reason.

Your first turn: build the base

Whichever side you are on, the first turn has the same goals:

1. Get Basic Pokémon onto your Bench. At least two if you can, so one Knock Out never ends the game. Prefer the Basics that start your main Evolution lines.
2. Attach your Energy to the right Pokémon. Usually the one that will attack first, or the one that will evolve into your attacker.
3. Search before you bench. If you have an Item that searches for Basics, play it first.
4. Do not overexpose. A Pokémon ex in the Active Spot with no Energy is a big Prize target. If you can, lead with something sturdier.

Your second turn: start the plan

The second turn is where decks pull ahead.

• Evolve the Pokémon you benched last turn. This is why benching the right Basics on turn one matters so much.
• Make the second attachment that lets your attacker attack next turn, or this turn.
• Attack if it is worth it, and think about the Prize trade from the last lesson: what will your opponent knock out in return?

The opening hand you get

All of this depends on your opening seven cards. Some hands are slow no matter what. Do the best you can, and remember that a slow start is not a lost game; the game is six Prize cards long. The Level 3 lesson on opening hand odds shows how deck building changes which hands you see.