Tournament Basics
Whether it's your first tournament or you're just not sure how this specific tournament will work, we've broken down the entire structure here!
Before the tournament
Get familiar with Pokémon TCG Live
This tournament takes place online through Pokémon TCG Live. This is an official app made by Pokémon for iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows, and is completely free to play! You'll get a handful of decks to get started with, and can get additional cards by playing more and redeeming the codes that come with most Pokémon TCG products.
Build a Standard-legal deck
Like most in-person tournaments, this tournament uses the Standard format. This means that only cards from the past few years are playable. Currently, the Standard format includes all cards with a regulation mark of "F" or later (e.g. "G" and "H").
Pokémon TCG Live does a great job at letting you know if your deck is legal for Standard, so if you get no errors when saving a deck, you're good to go!
Practice!
As they say, practice makes perfect - so play some games! You can play either in the ranked mode, where you'll be matched against players with a similar skill level, or casual mode, where you'll be matched against anyone (often people testing out new deck ideas).
Submit your deck list
When we get closer to the tournament, you'll submit your list to us so we can validate that your deck is legal. You can't change your deck during the tournament, so make sure you're happy with your list!
Pokémon TCG Live has an easy "Export" button when editing your deck, so simply click that to grab your deck list. Stay tuned for information on how to submit your list!
During the tournament
Announcements
Before the first round starts, we'll have announcements in the Chicagoland Pokémon TCG Discord server right at 12pm on June 22nd. This will include information like the final number of players, number of rounds, etc., so be sure to pay attention!
Swiss rounds
The first part of the tournament will be several rounds of Swiss, which means that everyone will play every round, win or lose! The total number of these rounds will depend on the number of players participating in the tournament.
Single Elimination rounds
After the Swiss rounds are complete, the highest-placing player for each store will move on to a Single Elimination round (also known as "top cut") - think March Madness brackets, where the winners of each round move on until just one remains.
Normally, outside help during a tournament isn't allowed, but for this tournament, it's encouraged! If you make it to Single Elimination, we suggest hopping on a call with the other players from your store so they can help you make gameplay decisions.
Prizing!
Once the tournament is complete, we'll distribute prizing to teams as listed on the main tournament page. Be sure your Discord DMs are open, as we'll message you directly if needed!
