Deck formats — Pokémon

Rules

• Legality is determined by the regulation mark printed in the lower-left corner.
• Cards without a regulation mark can be used if a legal reprint exists (with a valid mark).
• Rotation removes one letter annually — cards with old marks leave Standard.
• Pokémon TCG Live and physical events use the same rotation schedule.
• Main format for Regionals, Nationals, and Worlds.

Rules

• Includes all cards from the Black & White series onward.
• A much larger pool allows powerful combos — actively monitored by TPCi.
• Has its own ban list, separate from Standard, to control broken interactions.
• Appears in some Regionals and selected League Challenges.
• Older card versions may be used with updated text from the most recent version.

Rules

• Any card from any expansion or promo is legal — no regulation mark restrictions.
• No copy limit on any card (including non-Energy).
• No ban list.
• Used exclusively in casual play — huge power gap between card generations.
• Deck still has exactly 60 cards and at least 1 Basic Pokémon.

Rules

• Deck built only from cards opened in boosters.
• Exactly 40 cards — remaining cards form the sideboard (swappable between games).
• Basic Energy provided by organizers without limit.
• No copy limit on opened cards.

Rules

• Booster Draft: minimum 40 cards, 4 prize cards, cards drafted from boosters shared in a pod.
• Team Sealed: teams of 3 players share a larger booster pool and divide cards; 40 cards per deck, 4 prize cards.
• Basic Energy provided without limit by the organizer in both formats.
• Sideboard works like Sealed — all unused cards from the pool.