Pokémon TCG glossary

A special power on a Pokémon that is not an attack. Many can be used from the Bench, and using one doesn't end your turn.

Exceptionally powerful cards. Your deck can include only one ACE SPEC card in total.

The single Pokémon in front of you that attacks and receives most attacks. Only your Active Pokémon can attack.

The Pokémon can't attack or retreat. Flip a coin during Pokémon Checkup; if heads, it wakes up.

Standard Energy cards (Grass, Fire, Water, and so on). A deck can contain any number of them.

A Pokémon that can be put into play directly from your hand. You must start the game with at least one.

The row behind your Active Pokémon where up to 5 Pokémon wait. Benched Pokémon can use Abilities but cannot attack.

During Pokémon Checkup, put 2 damage counters on the Pokémon, then flip a coin; if heads, it recovers.

When attacking, flip a coin. If tails, the attack fails and the Pokémon puts 3 damage counters on itself.

A marker representing 10 damage. Some effects place damage counters directly, ignoring Weakness and Resistance.

Drawing a hand with nothing useful to do, usually from too few draw or search cards.

Losing because you must draw a card at the start of your turn but have no cards left in your deck.

Where used Trainers, Knocked Out Pokémon, and discarded Energy go. Some cards can recover cards from it.

Placing an Evolution card on top of the matching Pokémon. You can't evolve on your first turn or evolve a Pokémon that came into play that turn.

Any effect that switches your opponent's Active Pokémon with one of their Benched Pokémon, like Boss's Orders.

Hit Points: how much damage a Pokémon can take. When its damage equals or exceeds its HP, it is Knocked Out.

A Trainer card you can play as many times as you like during your turn.

When a Pokémon has damage equal to or greater than its HP, it is Knocked Out and discarded. The opponent takes Prize cards.

An evolution family in your deck, written as counts. For example "4-2-3" means 4 Basics, 2 Stage 1s, and 3 Stage 2s.

A zone for cards removed from play permanently. Cards sent to the Lost Zone cannot be recovered.

Short for metagame: the decks that are popular and successful at a given time.

If your opening 7 cards have no Basic Pokémon, you reveal them, shuffle and redraw. Your opponent may draw an extra card for each mulligan.

Copying a deck list from the internet, usually from a tournament result.

Cards left in your deck that can solve your current problem.

The Pokémon can't attack or retreat. It recovers during the Pokémon Checkup after its owner's next turn.

During each Pokémon Checkup, put 1 damage counter on the Poisoned Pokémon.

The step between turns where Special Conditions take effect (Poison, Burn, Sleep, Paralysis).

Powerful Rule Box Pokémon. When one is Knocked Out, your opponent takes 2 Prize cards (Mega Evolution Pokémon ex give 3).

A Trainer card you attach to a Pokémon for an ongoing effect. Each Pokémon can have one Tool.

Rule Box Pokémon from the Sword & Shield era. They give up 2 Prizes; VMAX give 3, VSTAR give 2.

Six face-down cards set aside at the start of the game. Take one (or more) each time you Knock Out an opponent's Pokémon. Take your last Prize to win.

Comparing how many Knock Outs each player needs to win. Single-Prize attackers trading into two-Prize Pokémon "win the trade."

Special Rule Box Pokémon that give up only 1 Prize, but you can have only one Radiant Pokémon in your deck.

A letter in the bottom-left corner of modern cards that determines Standard legality.

If the attacker's type matches the defender's Resistance, the damage is reduced (usually −30).

The number of Energy you must discard from your Active Pokémon to switch it with a Benched Pokémon. You can retreat once per turn.

The yearly removal of older regulation marks from the Standard format.

A box on certain powerful Pokémon (ex, V, GX, Radiant and more) listing a special rule. Many effects and formats, like GLC, single these out.

A deck rule allowing only one copy of each card (except basic Energy), used in Gym Leader Challenge.

Asleep, Burned, Confused, Paralyzed and Poisoned. They only affect the Active Pokémon and are removed when it retreats or evolves.

Energy cards with extra effects. They follow the normal 4-copy limit.

Damage dealt to multiple Pokémon at once, often to the Bench, setting up multiple Knock Outs.

A Trainer card that stays in play and affects both players. Only one Stadium can be in play; playing a new one discards the old one.

A Pokémon that evolves from a specific Basic Pokémon already in play.

A Pokémon that evolves from a specific Stage 1 Pokémon (or directly from the Basic using Rare Candy).

A powerful Trainer card; you may play only one per turn. The player going first can't play one on their first turn.

A card included to handle a specific matchup or situation, often as a single copy.

Cards that help you during your turn. Subtypes are Item, Supporter, Stadium and Pokémon Tool.

If the attacker's type matches the defender's Weakness, the damage is increased (usually ×2).