Pokémon TCG Tournament Rules: Time, Deck Lists, and Best of Three

Welcome to Level 4. You can build a deck, count the Prize trade, read the odds, and read your opponent. A tournament asks you to do all of that under a few extra rules. None of them are hard, but the ones about time and ties surprise new players more than any card does.

This lesson is drawn from the Play! Pokémon Tournament Rules Handbook. Rules documents are updated during the season, so read the current version on the official site before your first event.

Your deck and deck list

At Championship Series events, you hand in a deck list before play: every card in your deck, clearly written. Judges use it to check that your deck has not changed during the event, and they run deck checks at random. If your list and your deck disagree, the list wins and you may receive a penalty, so write it carefully, including each card’s set and number.

Sleeves must all match within your deck and must not mark any card. The rules recommend sleeves with an opaque back. Damaged or worn sleeves that make cards identifiable count as marked, so bring a fresh set and a few spares.

Shuffling

Shuffle your deck fully, in front of your opponent, then offer it to them to cut once. They may shuffle it briefly instead, and you then cut. If either player is not happy with a shuffle, a judge shuffles, and nobody cuts after that. Practice a shuffle that is quick and thorough; not randomizing enough is a rules violation.

Coins and dice

You may use a coin or a die as a randomizer, and you may always use your opponent’s. Flip a coin at shoulder height so it turns at least three times. A die must be a standard, see-through six-sided die; even numbers count as heads and odd numbers as tails.

Matches and best of three

A match is played against one opponent. It can be a single game, but most events use best of three. At Championship Series events, rounds get at least 30 minutes for a single game and at least 50 minutes for best of three. Store events announce their format before round one.

In best of three, the loser of each game chooses who goes first in the next one.

When time is called

Games do not stop when the timer ends. The player whose turn it is finishes that turn. Then the players take three more turns, called +3 turns. If the game still is not over, the result depends on the round:

• Swiss rounds, best of three: if one player has won game one and time is called before game two ends, that player wins the match. Otherwise the match is a tie.
• Swiss rounds, single game: an unfinished game is a tie.
• Single elimination (the top cut): there is no tie. If one player has won game one and time is called before game two ends, that player wins. If time is called during the only game or during game three, the player with fewer Prize cards left wins. At one game each with no time for game three, a short tiebreaker game decides it.

A tie is worth 1 match point; a win is worth 3 and a loss 0. Two players fighting to a tie in Swiss both lose ground, so a steady pace helps both of you.

Pace and notes

The rules ask for a lively pace: about two minutes to shuffle and set up, a few seconds to start your turn, and short pauses to think. Stalling is penalized. You may take written notes during a match, on a sheet that starts blank, and you may not use a phone or other messaging device for them. Notes are handy for tracking Prize cards and the cards your opponent has used.

The time left in a round is public, and you can ask a judge for a time check.

A card released is a card played

When you put a card into the play area from your hand and let go of it, it counts as played. If you are not sure, keep it in your hand until you decide.

The play area

Keep your board tidy: Energy lined up under each Pokémon, Benched Pokémon clearly apart, the Stadium between both Active Pokémon, and your Prize cards spread so anyone can count them at a glance.

Penalties

When something goes wrong, judges fix the game and may give a penalty. From least to most serious: a Caution, a Warning, a Double Prize Card penalty, a Quadruple Prize Card penalty, a Game Loss, a Match Loss, and Disqualification. A Prize card penalty means your opponent needs to take 2 or 4 fewer Prize cards to win that game. Most honest mistakes earn a Caution or Warning. Call a judge the moment something goes wrong; fixing it early is easier for everyone.