TCG players talk a lot about the meta game, which is the game outside of the game that directs how you play the game. A Water-type deck might be the definitive strongest archetype in Pokemon TCG Pocket, but if everyone’s playing it, you can get an advantage by playing a Lightning-type deck – that’s the meta game. But there’s actually a meta game outside of the meta game – a super-meta game that plays an even bigger role in how you play a TCG: managing your card game budget.
Related
Has Druddigon Effectively Replaced Kangaskhan In Pokemon TCG Pocket?
I’m not going to pretend that I know whether you still use Kangaskhan, but increasingly, it seems like decks that would have tossed Kangaskhan in there as a staller have elected to tap into Druddigon’s Rough Skin ability, instead.
Kangaskhan’s better for getting some potential early damage rolling, but that requires hooking it up with an Energy. Druddigon, meanwhile, doesn’t often serve a role as an attacker (although I do have a mostly-Colorless deck that happens to deploy Fire and Water Energy for precisely this purpose). Rough Skin does its job, though. It’s also got a cheaper retreat cost, at two, rather than Kangaskhan’s three.
Does Kangaskhan still fit a niche that Druddigon doesn’t?
Everyone I know in the TCG hobby has a method for getting new cards. Many splurge on a new set release day to give themselves a good foundation of new cards, then slowly fill in the gaps over time. Others set a weekly budget for themselves and collect new cards at a steady rate. A lot of people don’t open packs at all and instead just buy singles, paying close attention to shifts in the market to ensure they get the best deal.
Collecting Cards The Right Way
For collectors, the way you collect is just as important as the collection itself. You want to time things out so that your collection is as complete as possible before the next set comes and it’s time to reinvest, but you also don’t want to complete your collection too soon and leave yourself without any goals until the next set comes along. As we discover the unique release pattern of Pokemon TCG Pocket, I’ve already made the second mistake in Mythical Island.
Part of the fun of collecting cards in Pocket is building your collection as efficiently as possible. Unlike normal TCGs, acquiring singles in Pocket is fairly difficult. You may only get the chance to craft one or two cards for any given set, which means you have to rely on opening packs and making Wonder Picks for the vast majority of your collection – two mechanics that rely heavily on luck.
I min-maxed my butt off to finish my Genetic Apex collection in time for the release of Mythical Island. I completed every challenge and grinded battles for Shop tickets to make sure I had every free hourglass I could possibly get. I always prioritized opening the pack that had the highest statistical probability of giving me a new card. And when I did spend money on Poke Gold, I made smart use of Google Play Point and discount offers to stretch my dollars as far as they could go. When it came time to craft the last two cards I needed, I had exactly enough Pack Points to do it.
When Min-Maxing Goes Too Far
With Genetic Apex complete, I did what I always do at the tail end of a card game expansion: I started saving for the next one. I diligently completed my dalies and collected every hourglass I could, stockpiling them for the upcoming release of Mythical Island. When the new set launched at the end of December, I had enough resources saved up to open 40 packs.
Ripping Mythical Island was glorious; it was everything a TCG player dreams of. Pack after pack my collection grew, expanding with brand new cards and mechanics to spice up my deck lists. For 15 breathtaking minutes, I filled my Poke Pulls group chat with screenshots of every Alternate Art and Full Art card I found. I could tell that everyone was jealous.
But once it was over, and I was sitting quietly in a pile of digital wrappers, I realized the disservice I’d just done to myself.
My card library read 64/68, meaning in those 40 packs I’d pulled all but four cards from the new set. Over the next week I managed to find the last four, completing my collection before December was even over.
With no confirmation of a new set, I’m aimlessly opening packs every day with no goals in mind. I’m saving up all my hourglasses for the next one, but I’m not sure I’ll blow them all at once again. For a game all about collecting, it’s important to leave yourself something to collect.
Mythical Island is a mini-set with just one pack and 68 cards, so it’s likely the next set will be a full expansion similar to the size of Genetic Apex. I probably won’t have this problem again – at least not until the next mini-set comes along – but it’s a good reminder that delayed gratification is often a good thing. I was so eager to finish my collection that I didn’t consider how it would feel when the collection was complete. I’m still opening packs, but it doesn’t give me the same spark of joy, and with each passing day I risk losing interest in a game I love.
The next Pokemon TCG Pocket set can’t come soon enough, which is a feeling I hope to never have again.
Experience the fun of collecting Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG) cards with Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket, an upcoming game for iOS and Android devices from Creatures Inc., the original developers of the Pokémon TCG, and DeNA Co., Ltd.
In this game, you will be able to open two booster packs every day at no cost. You can collect digital cards featuring nostalgic artwork from the past as well as brand-new cards that are exclusive to Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket.
Be on the lookout for new “immersive cards,” which will make you feel as though you’ve leapt into the world of the card’s illustration.