How to Start a Game | Pokemon

Watch more Pokemon Trading Cards videos: http://www.howcast.com/videos/497347-What-Happens-in-a-Turn-in-Pokemon-TCG-PokemonLearn how to start a game from the Pokemon Trading Card Game pros at Comic Cafe in this Howcast video.Hi, I'm Joe D'Andrea, a Pokemon professor at Comic Cafe in Warren New Jersey, and we're here to show you how to play the Pokemon trading card game.First, setup your play area, get out your counters and coins or dice, and your sixty-card deck. Shuffle your deck, and place it on the right side. This deck must be facing in a north-south direction. Don't look at the cards unless you're told to later by other cards in the game. Flip a coin to see who goes first. Draw seven cards into your hand. Now look at your hand to see if you have any if you have any basic Pokemon. If you do, you're in good shape, but if you don't, you need to show your hand to the other player. This is called having no basics. If you have no basics, take your seven cards, shuffle them back into your deck, and draw seven new cards. Set up your active Pokemon, and then set up your bench with some basic Pokemon. Your active Pokemon is the Pokemon that does battle. You must have an active Pokemon at all times. If you don't, your opponent wins. You don't have to place all your basics on your bench right away, but if you don't put any basics on bench, be careful. You don't want to get dunked. Next, draw six more cards, but don't look at them. Place them on your left side—these are your prize cards. Remember, if you knock out enough Pokemon to take all your prize cards, you'll win. If both players don't have basics at the beginning, then neither player gets to take an extra card, they just shuffle and start over again.