Tell me about Pokemon...

[Twolittleboys 1,974]

Never thought I would say that - older ds talks about little else. However, he only plays on his DS and I was thinking about getting some cards for his advent calendar. I looked on Amazon but have no clue what to get. You can play a game with them, right? Or do you just collect them? Either way, if someone could give me some tips on which would make a good starter set it would be highly appreciated!

[LMD 7,736]

You do both, collect and play! Check which game he plays and try to match the kind of cards, or go for the original ones. There's about eleventy billion games/seasons and each has their own Pokemon. You'll want a 'deck' for each player to play, they're just paper. We store some cards in a folder (collection) and some in a big box (to play with).

 

My dh and his brother lived on the original Pokemon, now my kids love it too.

That's about the extent of my personal knowledge!

[LMD 7,736]

Just had a look on Amazon. I'd search with the name of the game they play (black/white, x/y, alpha/omega- though I don't see that many of these). Or search by their favorite Pokemon.

But honestly, you're probably pretty safe with a random pack!

[Farrar 57,494]

You can both play and collect. Most kids collect and don't play though, at least in my experience. If you think he'll want to play (and will have other kids to play with or you're willing to play with him), start with a deck. If you think he'd rather collect, the booster packs are better.

 

My experience trying to buy online was that it's harder because the market is all messed up because some things are collector items, some aren't and the prices are all messed up as a result. And if you're just buying for a kid and not some Pokemon expert, it's confusing. Just go to Target (or Wal-Mart - I assume Wal-Mart has a section like this too) or go to a toy store and buy from the collectible cards section. Sometimes they even have the booster packs at dollar stores like Five Below for a little cheaper. And just get whatever. There are all these different generations that match the different games that have come out over the years, but the basic Pokemon don't change. Just pick some and have at it.

[Twolittleboys 1,974]

Thanks - I did look on Amazon but did find it quite confusing. He has several different games but I think would pretty much like any. I guess I was wondering if there is some sort of starter pack you need first? How many cards do you need if you want to play?

[StellaM 94,950]

Here's a joke for your boy.

 

How do you get Pikachu on a bus ?

 

You Pokemon.

 

We used to do what Farrar said - just go to the store and choose a pack at a time. Sometimes you can get bigger packs with little mini-figs - they are good for Xmas presents. Ds had special Pokemon folders to store cards that we just got at the store.

 

Tbh, we just got whatever. Nothing special. If a games shop nearby hosts a tournament you could ask them for recommendations ?

[Bug's Mom 725]

Pokemon has been the best thing ever for dd. She's been playing for about 1.5 years. She goes to the local game shop 1-2 times a week to play. She's made friends there, and usually spends Sundays with them.
To play, he'll need a deck. When first getting started, it's best to just go with a premade deck. If you look on amazon, look for "theme deck". The most recent release is "Break Through".

If you go to http://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-tcg/play-online/ and click "download and start playing", he can play against the computer or others, and learn the game. This helped dd a lot at the beginning.

[Mergath 34,636]

I know that when dd wanted to try Pokemon after playing Yugioh for several months, we went to Walmart and found a special set that teaches you to play.  It had two half-decks so you can have two people play, and then if you want to play someone for real you could combine them into one whole deck, along with all the other little bits you need. There was an instruction book that walked you step-by-step through a game, too. It's very handy if you're new to playing the real-life card game.

 

Here we go, I think this is the same type we got, though ours was probably the 2014 set: http://www.walmart.com/ip/44886132?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227033022044&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=67308904832&wl4=&wl5=pla&wl6=131208884192&veh=sem

 

We still like Yugioh better, though. All the little pieces with Pokemon drove me nuts.

[kirstenhill 851]

My boys all have cards, and I have encouraged them to learn how to play the game and not just have the cards for the sake of collecting.  If all they do is collect them, they are just paper collecting dust and an excuse to try and "one up" friends and talk them into trades.  ;-).  The actual game is pretty interesting and enjoyable, however. 

 

A good way to start out playing the game is with a theme deck, like this:  http://amzn.com/B00LHRR32S

 

If you search "pokemon theme deck" on amazon, you'll get a lot of options and any of them are decent.  A lot of the ones on amazon are packs of two decks, which is good if you want to play games at home with a parent or sibling.  You should be looking at spending about $13 per deck on a theme deck.  There are a lot of options in store at places like Target.

 

Individual booster packs are a good way to get more cards, or my boys also like to get tins, like this: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=pokemon+tin

 

They have one really powerful card, plus four booster packs.  Anywhere from $15-$20 is how much you'll expect to pay (usually $20 in store at Target unless there is a special sale or coupon).  If you see ones over $20 on amazon, they are more collector items and not as good of a deal.

 

If you want to actually play the game, you don't want to get all tins/booster packs, because you won't have the cards called "energies", which are required for a regulation game.  Starting with a theme deck also gives you a playing mat that explains the rules really well.

 

ETA: Once you get going and you need more energies, buying just a "lot" of energy cards on amazon or ebay can be helpful as well to get the energy cards needed to add in new cards that were found in booster packs, etc.

[Where's Toto? 12,222]

If he is going to play with other kids at a hobby shop somewhere, definitely call them and ask what to get.  Some sets cannot be used in the games (the Dollar Store ones usually can't) because they use a different scale of numbers.   My son played for a while at a local comic shop, plays the online game but also just likes to collect and make up his own games with the cards.

 

[Holly 825]

We have these types of decks:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TT8MDBI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00

 

Several of them came from Walmart, and they have different types of decks, but still play together.  Each player has their own theme deck.  My kids are all playing right now actually!  

 

 

We still like Yugioh better, though. All the little pieces with Pokemon drove me nuts.

 

My DH and DC play with regular dice instead of the little cardboard pieces...don't ask my what exactly they do, because I have yet to play the game.   :lol:  I think they just place the dice on top of the cards to keep track of points?

 

 

[Mergath 34,636]

We have these types of decks: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TT8MDBI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00

 

Several of them came from Walmart, and they have different types of decks, but still play together. Each player has their own theme deck. My kids are all playing right now actually!

 

 

 

My DH and DC play with regular dice instead of the little cardboard pieces...don't ask my what exactly they do, because I have yet to play the game. :lol: I think they just place the dice on top of the cards to keep track of points?

Yeah, I don't remember exactly, but it was really annoying. There were some kind of effect pieces too, I think? I just have an app on my phone to keep track of the life points when we play Yugioh, which is nice.

[Twolittleboys 1,974]

Thanks so much. I think I have a much better idea now. Not sure he will get to play much (other than at home) as we live in a small town and I don't think there will be many opportunities. Still, I would rather keep the options open so will try to get something that would work well if he does find others to play with!