After starting up hobby leagues in 2 different stores, we've heard a lot of the same questions time and time again, so we aim to address some of these questions today so you can have a better understanding of what's going to happen before you turn up to your first Pokemon Tournament!
What is a Pokemon Tournament?
It sounds a bit big and scary when called a tournament, so think of it more as a Pokemon event. Basically these events are where people can come together to play some games with some new people and hopefully make some new friends along the way! They're usually hosted by stores at a set time every week / month but are also sometimes run by individuals.
What do I need to watch out for?
If you're going to league and want to ensure yourself or your children are safe, the best way to do this is to visit the store before the day. Check out the surroundings and get yourself familiar with staff. If you're looking for a reliable league, find one where there is a Tournament Organiser (TO) registered with The Pokemon Company International as there are background checks and tests that have to be passed before these people are certified. If you're not sure, just ask the staff if they have a certified TO or ask Pokemon by submitting a form here.
What do I need?
For most tournaments, you'll need to bring your own 60-card deck. The deck must be exactly 60 cards to play. Most tournament organisers strongly suggest the use of sleeves to protect your cards while playing although it is not a requirement.
Now is where it gets a little tricky, most leagues in New Zealand use the "standard format", which means only certain cards are legal to be used in tournaments. The current format is that you can use any card from Sun and Moon onwards (Ultra Prism onwards from August 15, 2019). This can be a little confusing for new players, so if you have any questions, just turn up a little early on the day of the event and ask the tournament organiser or judge to help you out as most people struggle with this, so just get the staff to help.
We play some tournaments as standard, but our Sunday hobby league is usually "unlimited format", which means you can use any cards (with a couple of exceptions) as long as they're genuine cards.
How does it work?
There will be a set start time for the event, so make sure you turn up at least 15 minutes early in order to register in time. Late entrants may have penalties, so make sure you're on time. For the weekly tournaments, just turn up with your deck, register with the staff and then wait for the first round to begin.
Once everyone has registered, the staff will tell you how many rounds there will be and who you're playing against.
Each round has a time limit (for casual tournaments, usually 40 minutes, for competitive tournaments, usually 45 minutes) for you to do a best-of-three match, meaning the first person to win 2 games wins. Once someone has won 2 games, go and tell the staff who has won and wait for the next round. If you don't complete your match in time, the tournament organiser or judge will explain what to do next.
Generally, weekly leagues are 2-4 rounds which means they'll take 1.5-4 hours, depending on turnout. Most tournament organisers allow children to be left unattended if the parents leave a contact number and are in the area, however you'll need to check with staff first and be aware that children causing issues will be required to be picked up immediately.
Most leagues have a good mix of ages that turn up, but if you want to know how old most players are that go each week, just ask staff.
How competitive are these?
This depends on what type of event you go to. If you go to a "hobby league" or "games day" or similar, these are generally pretty causal events. This still means you have to follow the rules set out by The Pokemon Company International, but just means people generally are pretty relaxed and will help you to learn the game better.
Anything with "Championship" in the title (e.g. Regional Championship) is a lot more competitive as these have points up for grabs that you need if you want to go to the world championships, so people are generally a lot more serious at these events. I'd advise attending a few hobby leagues before you try one of these events.
What can't I do?
These are public events so a certain standard is expected, below are a list of general tournament rules:
- Only use genuine Pokemon cards
- No swearing / abuse
- No eating at gaming tables (unless otherwise specified)
- Be respectful of fellow players
- Show honesty and integrity at all times
Basically, just be considerate to those around you and you should be fine. Just relax and have fun!
The most important thing to remember is that these are meant to be fun and casual tournaments. so just have some fun and make some new friends, enjoy your time playing!
Other handy links
The Pokemon Company International also has some handy articles on Pokemon tournaments. This one is a parents guide. Also there is this list of handy resources for anyone looking to start going to larger tournaments.
