mantimon-tcg/docs/GAME_RULES.md

Mantimon TCG - Game Rules

This document defines the home-rule modifications for Mantimon TCG, based on a custom hybrid of Pokemon TCG eras. The game features an RPG-style campaign inspired by the Gameboy Color Pokemon Trading Card Game.

Note

: This is a template. Sections marked with [TBD] need to be filled in with your specific rule choices.

Table of Contents

1. Campaign Structure
2. Base Ruleset
3. Energy System Modifications
4. Deck Building Rules
5. Win Conditions
6. Turn Structure
7. Card Types
8. Status Conditions
9. Glossary

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Campaign Structure

The core gameplay loop is a single-player campaign where you challenge NPCs, build your collection, and progress toward becoming the champion.

Inspiration

The campaign is inspired by Pokemon Trading Card Game for Gameboy Color (1998):

• Visit themed "Clubs" (Fire Club, Water Club, etc.)
• Challenge club members to earn booster packs
• Defeat Club Leaders to earn medals
• Collect all medals to challenge the Grand Masters
• Defeat the Grand Masters to become Champion

Clubs

Club	Theme	Leader	Medal
[TBD]	Fire-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Water-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Grass-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Lightning-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Psychic-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Fighting-type focused	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Mixed/balanced	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal
[TBD]	Mixed/balanced	[TBD]	[TBD] Medal

NPC Types

Type	Description	Rewards
Club Member	Regular NPCs in each club	1-2 booster packs
Club Leader	Boss of each club, must defeat to earn medal	Medal + 2-4 booster packs
Grand Master	Elite opponents, require all medals to challenge	Special rewards
Champion	Final opponent	Champion title

Progression

1. New Player: Start with a starter deck, can challenge any club
2. Club Progression: Defeat club members to practice, then challenge the leader
3. Medal Collection: Earn medals by defeating Club Leaders
4. Grand Masters: Once all medals collected, Grand Masters become available
5. Champion: Defeat all Grand Masters to face the Champion

Match Rewards

Outcome	Reward
Victory vs Club Member	1-2 booster packs (based on NPC difficulty)
Victory vs Club Leader	Medal + 2-4 booster packs
Victory vs Grand Master	[TBD] special reward
Defeat	No reward, can retry immediately

Rematch Rules

• Club Members can be rechallenged anytime for pack rewards
• Club Leaders can be rechallenged after defeat (for packs, medal already earned)
• Grand Masters and Champion can be rechallenged for bragging rights

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Base Ruleset

Mantimon TCG uses a custom hybrid ruleset, cherry-picking mechanics from multiple Pokemon TCG eras.

Era Influences

Mechanic	Era Source	Notes
Basic turn structure	Classic (Base-Neo)	[TBD]
Pokemon stages	Support for Stage 2, EX, V, GX	Campaign will have fixed ruleset, but engine is flexible
Trainer card types	Modern item/supporter/stadium split
Energy types	Modern	10 types: Colorless, Darkness, Dragon, Fighting, Fire, Grass, Lightning, Metal, Psychic, and Water

What's NOT Included

List of official mechanics that are explicitly excluded:

• No mechanics are explicitly unsupported because the game should be infinitely customizable

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Energy System Modifications

Home Rule Focus Area: Energy attachment rules

Standard Rule (for reference)

In standard Pokemon TCG, you may attach one energy card per turn from your hand to one of your Pokemon.

Modified Rule

Default ruleset will be similar to Pokemon Pocket:

• Energy deck: Players build a deck of 20 energy cards to go with each deck; no energy cards are included in main deck
• Energy generation: At start of turn, flip top card of energy deck; may play it any time before attacking

Energy Types in Use

Type	Symbol	Description
[TBD]
[TBD]
Colorless		Any energy satisfies colorless requirements

Special Energy

Name	Effect
[TBD]
[TBD]

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Deck Building Rules

Home Rule Focus Area: Card limits and restrictions

Deck Size

Rule	Value
Minimum deck size	40 cards
Maximum deck size	40 cards
Exact size required?	Yes
Energy cards included?	No
Energy deck size	20 cards

Card Limits

Card Type	Max Copies	Notes
Pokemon (same name)	40	Configurable outside of defaults
Trainer cards (same name)	4	Configurable

Required Cards

Requirement	Value
Minimum Basic Pokemon	1
Other requirements	[TBD]

Banned/Restricted Cards

Card Name	Status	Reason
[TBD]	Banned
[TBD]	Limited to 1

Format Rotations

• No rotating format at launch, but should be configurable

Set Name	Set Code	Status
[TBD]		Legal
[TBD]		Banned

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Win Conditions

Home Rule Focus Area: Victory conditions

Standard Win Conditions (for reference)

1. Take all 6 prize cards
2. Knock out opponent's last Pokemon in play
3. Opponent cannot draw at start of turn

Modified Win Conditions

All settings should be configurable, below are core game defaults

• Prize count change: Take 4 prizes instead of 6
• Alternative win conditions:
  • field control, opponent runs out of pokemon on the board
  • deck depletion, players who cannot draw a card from their deck lose
  • multiplayer only: turn timer, after 90 seconds player forfeits; winning player may choose to allow extra time
• Tiebreaker: Player with most points after completion of game timer wins; draw if players are tied on points

Prize Cards

In core gameplay, prize cards are removed in favor of scoring points. Any time a prize card would be taken in standard rules, player instead scores a point

Rule	Value
Number of prizes/points	4
Prizes taken per knockout	Standard: 1 for basic, 2 for EX/V
Prize card selection	Configurable, not used in core rules

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Turn Structure

Turn Overview

1. DRAW PHASE
   - Draw 1 card from deck
   
2. MAIN PHASE (any order, as many times as allowed)
   - Attach energy (once per turn)
   - Play Basic Pokemon to bench
   - Evolve Pokemon
   - Play Trainer cards
   - Use Abilities
   - Retreat Active Pokemon (once per turn)
   
3. ATTACK PHASE
   - Declare attack (ends turn)
   - OR pass without attacking
   
4. END PHASE
   - Apply end-of-turn effects
   - Check for knockouts
   - Take prize cards/score points if applicable
   - Flip top card of energy deck

Turn Modifications

Modification	Description
New step to flip top card of energy deck

First Turn Rules

Rule	Value
First player draws on turn 1?	Yes
First player can attack turn 1?	Yes
First player can play Supporters turn 1?	Yes
First player can attach energy turn 1?	No

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Card Types

Pokemon Cards

Term	Definition
Basic Pokemon	Can be played directly from hand to bench
Stage 1	Evolves from a Basic Pokemon
Stage 2	Evolves from a Stage 1 Pokemon
EX	Worth 2 knockout points, could be basic, stage 1, or stage 2
V	Can be played directly from hand to bench
V-Max	Evolves from a V pokemon

Evolution Rules

Rule	Value
Can evolve same turn played?	No (unless card effect allows)
Can evolve same turn as previous evolution?	No (unless card effect allows)
Evolution on first turn of game?	No (unless card effect allows)

Trainer Cards

All trainer card subtypes are in use

Type	Rules
Item	Unlimited per turn
Supporter	One per turn
Stadium	Stays in play, can play one per turn
Tool	Attach to Pokemon, unlimited per turn

Energy Cards

Type	Description
Basic Energy	Provides 1 energy of its type
Special Energy	Custom effects, no limits to enrgy deck by default

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Status Conditions

Active Status Conditions

Conditions stack unless otherwise boted

Condition	Effect	Removal
Poisoned	10 damage between turns	Specific card effect, evolution, retreat
Burned	20 damage + flip to continue	Removed on heads flip
Asleep	Cannot attack or retreat; overrides paralysis and confusion	Removed on heads flip
Paralyzed	Cannot attack or retreat for 1 turn; overrides sleep and confusion	End of next turn
Confused	Flip to attack, 30 damage self on tails; overrides sleep and paralysis	Evolution, retreat

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Glossary

Term	Definition
Active Pokemon	The Pokemon currently in the battle position
Bench	Area for up to 5 Pokemon not currently active
Discard Pile	Where knocked out Pokemon and used cards go
Prize Cards	Cards set aside at game start, taken on knockouts
Retreat	Switching active Pokemon with a benched Pokemon
[TBD]	[Add game-specific terms]

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Changelog

Track rule changes over time:

Date	Change	Reason
[Date]	Initial rules document created	Project start

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Notes for Implementation

This section is for developer reference when implementing rules in code.

Rule Configuration Schema

Rules should be configurable via a JSON/YAML file for easy iteration:

{
  "deck": {
    "min_size": 60,
    "max_size": 60,
    "max_copies_per_card": 4,
    "min_basic_pokemon": 1
  },
  "prizes": {
    "count": 6,
    "per_knockout_basic": 1,
    "per_knockout_ex": 2
  },
  "energy": {
    "attachments_per_turn": 1
  },
  "first_turn": {
    "can_draw": true,
    "can_attack": false,
    "can_play_supporter": false
  },
  "win_conditions": {
    "all_prizes_taken": true,
    "no_pokemon_in_play": true,
    "cannot_draw": true
  }
}

Validation Hooks

When implementing rules engine, create validation hooks for:

• validate_deck(deck) -> ValidationResult
• validate_action(game_state, action) -> ValidationResult
• check_win_conditions(game_state) -> Optional[WinResult]
• calculate_prizes_for_knockout(pokemon) -> int