Tactical Game Cards
Welcome to the Exciting world of Tactical Game Cards!
Sponsored by Nanotrasen Edu-tainment Devision.
Core Rules:
Tactical Game Cards (Also known as /TG/C) is a traditional trading card game. It's played between two players, each with a deck or collection of cards.
Each player's deck contains a set of 30 cards. For each individual card, you can have a maximum of 3 cards in your deck. Each player's hand can hold a maximum of 7 cards. At the end of your turn, if you have more than 7 cards, you must choose cards to discard to your disposal pile until you have 7 cards.
To begin a match, both players must flip a coin to decide who goes first. The winner of the coin toss then decides if they go first or second. Before the match begins each player draws 5 cards each with the ability to mulligan cards from their hand facedown once.
What You Need
In order to play the TCG, a deck is required. As stated above, decks must contain a minimum of 30 cards and a maximum of 60 cards.
Additionally, to save cards you require access to the TCG CardStore in the library or a modular computer loaded with a holoprojector and the TCG CardStore app.
Finally, a stock of Thunderdome Flippers to use for coin tosses and counter effects is recommended- these can be obtained occasionally from cardpacks.
Gameplay Phases
A single turn of the game goes as follows, and the order of card effects is very similar to other card games. Within a single turn, the following phases are gone through, in order, unless otherwise altered by a card effect. Turn Phases are the Draw Phase, Effect Phase 1, Play Phase, Combat Phase, Effect Phase 2, and the End Phase.
During the draw phase, the player whose turn it is draws a single card.
During the First Effect Phase, this is when effects that take place at the start of your turn would occur. If an opponent's effect takes place at the start of your turn, their effects will always take place first, then yours, unless otherwise stated by a card effect. If an opponent's effect would cause you to lose the game, and your effects would prevent that condition from happening afterwards, you would lose the game.
During the Play Phase, this is when you can play, summon, or activate your own cards. Card Effects that don't state when they're activated MUST be activated during the Play Phase. Your opponent can also activate their own card effects in response to one of your actions during your play phase if able. Any card played during the play phase can activate its effect as soon as it's played. More details within the Card Breakdown section.
During the Battle Phase, a creature card is able to battle other creature cards, or attack their opponent once per turn. Neither player can attack on their first turn, and all cards that enter the field can attack as soon as they can, unless it is the first turn, or they are prevented by a card effect. More details within the Card Combat section.
During the End Phase, end of turn effects will occur. If the active player has more than 7 cards in their hand by this point, this is when they must discard cards. All of the player's cards who used an effect at any point in the turn are refreshed, and able to use their effect again going into the opponent's turn. By the end of their turn, if the player has more than 7 cards, they must discard cards from their hand until 7 remain.
After all 5 phases have passed, the players turn officially ends, and the opponent begins their turn, starting from the draw phase.
Card Breakdown
Within the game, there are 3 kinds of cards (So far), Creature, Item, and Department cards.
Creature Cards.
All creature cards have 4 core values to keep in mind, Power, Resolve, Faction, and Summoning Cost. Power serves as a card's offensive value in combat. Resolve serves as a card's defensive value in combat, and doubles as a card's health. Factions are groupings of cards that can often share effects and traits together. Summoning Cost is how much energy a card needs in order to be summoned. All department cards provide a single point of energy, that is lost at the end of the turn if not used. Item Cards. All item cards similarly to Creature Cards have Power, Resolve, and Summon Cost values, but for items, these values are added to the attached card's values. Items can only be attached to creatures, and they last until the creature dies, or otherwise leaves the field, following it's equipt card. If returned to the hand, send to the disposal pile, or otherwise leaves the field, it is detatched from the equipt card. Department Cards.
Department cards each provide one point of power to the player starting from Effect Phase 1. Some department cards have effects that can be activated instead of gaining energy, and may choose to activate that effect instead of gaining energy during Effect Phase 1.
Maintaining a healthy ratio of department cards, creature cards, and item cards is important to being able to activate the cards you want in the order you want to to be activated.
| Special Effects | Many cards possess special effects. Some of these effects exist as on several cards as keywords, which are listed below: |
|---|---|
| Asimov | Creatures possessing this trait cannot attack or defend against creatures with the Human subtype. |
| Changeling | This creature possesses all subtypes simultaneously. Any effects which affect a specific subtype apply to Changelings. |
| Graytide | Gains +1/+1 for all creatures on the same side possessing Greytide. |
| Holy | Immunity to all event cards. |
| Taunt |
All opposing creature attacks must be directed towards the creature with Taunt. |
| First Strike | This creature has attack priority in combat. |
| Deadeye | This creature can always hit opponents, regardless of effects or immunities. |
| Squad Tactics | When attacking alongside creatures with Squad Tactics, this creature gains +1/0. |
| Immunity | The creature cannot be affected by cards of its immunity type. This includes both friendly and opposing effects. |
| Fury | The creature must attack at every possibility. |
| Blocker | The creature cannot attack, but can defend. |
| Hivemind | The creature receives 0/+1 while defending for each creature with Hivemind on the battlefield. |
How to Win
This part is simple. Each player starts the match with 10 Life Shards. When an opponent attacks you directly, you will lose 2 lifeshards (unless otherwise stated). When you destroy an opponent's creature, and your power is more than double the creature's Resolve, your opponent loses 1 lifeshard as collateral. Alternatively, when either player attempts to draw a card from their deck and has nothing else remaining, the drawing player must lose 1 lift shard, but may draw a card from their disposal pile instead. You win the match by reducing your opponent's lifeshards to zero.
Tips N Tricks!
Follows these Tips N Tricks to become the ultimate /TG/C player on the station!
- There are several rarities of cards! Every Pack comes with 5 common cards, 1 guaranteed rare or better, and occasionally a coin for flipping!
- A wise man once said, "the card game is deep". Experiment with card effects, combos, and strategies!
- Did you know that 2% of all profits of /TG/C cards is sent to charity?*
- Building a deck that revolves around multiple departments can be the key to victory against some strategies!
- The Quartermaster will never be a head of staff. Not even in fiction.
- /TG/C cards are individually printed on paper made from the last of the California Redwoods!
- We've never heard of 'magic' or 'porkmen' or 'yumigoes'. Stop Emailing us about it.
- There are some clever ways to activate once-per-turn effects a second time.
- Playing /TG/C while driving or operating heavy machinery is not advised, if you want to look like a DORK that is.
- By charity, we mean we literally just throw it away.