This is the information on how to play the 2020 Digimon Card Game.
Card Information[]
- Digi-Egg cards have a different card back.
- Digi-Egg cards are treated as Digimon after they are hatched from the Breeding Area.
Reading Card Information[]
The Playing Field[]
Decks[]
- Deck: A deck with a total of 50 cards, made up of Digimon cards, Tamer cards, and Option cards.
- A deck can contain no more than four copies of cards with the same card number.
- Digi-Egg Deck: A deck made up of 0-5 Digi-Egg Cards.
- A Digi-Egg deck can contain no more than four copies of cards with the same card number.
- A Digi-Egg deck is not required.
- Memory Gauge & Counter: The gauge displays both players' memory. A single gauge is shared between opponents.
Game Basics[]
Setting up the Game[]
- Shuffle your deck and Digi-Egg deck, then place it in the Deck Zone and Digi-Egg Deck Zone respectively.
- Determine who goes first by any random method. (Rock-Paper-Scissors/Coin Toss/Dice Roll) Winner must always go first.
- Draw 5 cards from your main deck.
- Look at your hand, and decide whether to put them back into your deck. If you do, shuffle your main deck again, and draw 5 cards.
- Put 5 cards from the top of your deck into your Security Stack without looking at them.
- Place the counter on the number 0 on the Memory Gauge.
- Start the Game!
Paying Memory Costs[]
This game uses a Memory Gauge (memory) system to pay the memory costs of cards. For example, to pay a memory cost of 3, you would need to move your memory counter 3 spaces to the right.
During your turn, if the memory counter lands on a number greater than 0 on your opponent's side of the Memory Gauge due to costs or other effects, your turn ends and it becomes your opponent's turn after all other cards and effects resolve.
Neither player can have more than 10 memory. To pay a memory cost exceeding 10, you must be able to move the memory counter that many spaces. For example, you won't be able to play a card with a memory cost of 13 unless you have at least 3 memory.
Suspending and Unsuspended States[]
Digimon that are played are typically placed upright in the unsuspended state. After performing an action such as attacking or blocking, they are rotated sideways to show they are in the suspended state.
Returning a suspended card to the unsuspended state is called unsuspending, changing an unsuspended card to the suspended state is called suspending.
Game Flow[]
Gameplay consists of the following four phases, starting with the player who goes first.
- Unsuspend Phase
- Unsuspend all of your suspended cards.
- Draw Phase
- Draw one card from your deck.
- The player who goes first does not draw during the Draw Phase of their first turn.
- If a player can't draw because there are no cards left in their deck, that player loses the game.
- Breeding Phase
- Players can do only one of the following:
- Hatch a Digi-Egg
- Can only be done when there are no Digimon in the Breeding Area. Flip one card face up from the top of the Digi-Egg deck and place it in the breeding area.
- Move a Digimon out of the Breeding Area.
- A Digimon can be moved from the breeding area to the battle area once they have digivolved into a level 3 or higher Digimon.
- Digimon that are level 2 or lower can't enter the battle area.
- Moving Digimon from the breeding area to the battle area is not considered to be playing the Digimon, so On Play effects won't activate.
- It's possible for a Digimon to perform an attack on the same turn they were moved to the battle area.
- Do Nothing
- Hatch a Digi-Egg
- This can only be done once per turn.
- Players can do only one of the following:
- Main Phase
- The primary phase of the game.
- During this phase, players can perform as many of the following actions as they like, in any order:
- A. Playing Digimon
- B. Digivolving
- C. Playing Tamers
- D. Using Option Cards
- E. Attacking
- End of the Turn
- if the memory counter lands on a number greater than 0 on your opponent's side due to costs or other effects, your turn ends and it becomes your opponent's turn. (After all effects are resolved, your opponent's turn begins.
Main Phase[]
A. Playing Digimon[]
Players can play Digimon cards from their hand to their battle area.
First, place the Digimon card you want to play in the battle area unsuspended.
Next, pay the play cost of that Digimon card. The Digimon is now played in the battle area.
Digimon can't attack on the turn they were played. There's no limit to how many Digimon can be placed in the battle area.
B. Digivolving[]
Players can digivolve the Digimon in their battle area or breeding area.
Check the digivolution conditions listed on a card in your hand. If you have a Digimon in play that matches the required colour and level, it can digivolve into the Digimon card you have in your hand. If a card has multiple digivolution conditions, a Digimon must only satisfy one of those conditions to digivolve into it.
Place the digivolved Digimon card from your hand on top of the card that meets its digivolution conditions. Stack them so that any inherited effects of the card below it are visible. Next, pay the digivolve cost written on the card. Once digivolution is complete, draw 1 card as a digivolution bonus.
- The cards below a digivolved Digimon become digivolution cards.
- The inherited effects of those cards can be used after digivolving with them.
- The digivolution card and digivolved Digimon are treated as a single Digimon.
- If that Digimon is deleted, all of its digivolution cards are placed in the trash.
C. Playing Tamers[]
Players can play Tamer cards from their hand to their battle area. There is no limit to how many Tamers can be placed in the battle area. Tamers can't attack or block.
- Place the Tamer card you want to play in the battle area unsuspended.
- Pay the play cost of the Tamer card. The Tamer is now played to the battle area.
D. Using Option Cards[]
Players can activate the main effect of Option cards from their hand. To use an Option card, you must have at least one Digimon or Tamer of the same colour as the Option card in your battle area or breeding area.
E. Attacking[]
Digimon in the battle area can make attacks.
- Suspend an unsuspended Digimon you want to attack with and declare your attack.
- Choose the target of your attack. You can either target one of your opponent's suspended Digimon in the battle area, or the opposing player.
- Any [When Attacking] and "when suspended" effects are activated at this point.†
†From Card Rulings:BT2-079
Attacking the Opponent's Digimon[]
- The attacking Digimon and the target Digimon battle each other.
- The winner of the battle is determined by which Digimon has the higher DP.
- The defeated Digimon is deleted and gets placed in its owner's trash.
- If both Digimon have equal DP, the battle is a draw, and both Digimon are deleted.
Attacking the Opposing Player[]
If the opposing player has at least 1 security card in their security stack, flip over their top security card. Flipping a security card face up during an attack is called checking.
If the checked card has a security effect, that effect is activated.
You don't need to pay any memory cost to activate a security effect, and security effects on Option cards ignore normal colour restrictions for Option cards. Proceed after the security effect has been resolved, or if the card has no security effect. Cards are resolved as follows, depending on what type was turned over.
Digimon Cards[]
If a Digimon card is flipped over, that card becomes a Security Digimon, and does battle with the attacking Digimon. Just like when a Digimon is attacked in the battle area, the Digimon with the higher DP wins.
Security Digimon are not considered regular Digimon, and effects that are effective on regular Digimon can't be activated against them.
Security Digimon also can't activate any of their effects, with the exception of [Security] effects.
If the attacking Digimon is defeated, they are deleted, and the attack ends.
Regardless of the battle's outcome, the Security Digimon is placed in the trash after the battle ends.
Option and Tamer Cards[]
The card is placed in the trash unless the card has a security effect that allows it to be played or added to the player's hand.
Passing[]
Explanation of Passing
If there is nothing left for you to do during a turn, you can pass the turn to your opponent. When you pass your turn, the memory counter automatically moves to 3 on your opponent's side regardless of where it was before passing.
Ending a Turn[]
During your turn, if the memory counter goes to 1 or above on your opponent's side due to costs or other effects, your turn ends and it becomes your opponent's turn. (If any effects or actions are mid-resolution, it becomes your opponent's turn only once those effects have resolved. If the resolution of those effects brings the memory counter to 0 or above on your side, your turn continues.)
The memory counter remains where it was at the end of the turn.
Ending the Game[]
If one of the following occurs, you win the game:
- If you attack your opponent when they have zero security cards remaining.
- If your opponent can't draw during their draw phase because there are no cards left in their deck.
Extras[]
What happens if a Digimon's DP falls to 0?[]
Digimon don't lose DP when they are attacked, but they can temporarily lose DP from effects. If a Digimon's DP drops to 0 from an effect (it can't drop below zero), that Digimon is deleted and placed in the trash.
When a Single Attack requires multiple Checks[]
For a Digimon with abilities such as ＜Security Attack +1＞, where a single attack requires checking multiple security cards, perform one check at a time.
If the attacking Digimon loses the battle with the first card checked, or leaves the battle area the attack ends.
What happens when a player has no Security Cards?[]
If there are no remaining security cards, yet an effect such as ＜Security Attack +1＞ allows for further security checks, the attack ends there. The game continues even if a player has 0 security cards at this point.
The opponent must make another successful attack against the player that has 0 security cards in order to win.
Defend Yourself with <Blocker>[]
Some Digimon have ＜Blocker＞ ability. Digimon with this ability are able to block an opponent's attack, taking the attack themselves.
When a ＜Blocker＞ is used, the target of the attacking Digimon's attack switches to the blocking Digimon and they do battle.
What happens when a Lv. 2 Digimon enters the Battle Area?[]
Certain combinations of effects may cause a level 2 or lower Digimon to enter the battle area. If that happens, the level 2 or lower Digimon is placed in the trash immediately, since level 2 or lower Digimon can't exist in the battle area. This is not treated as that Digimon being deleted.
Effects that make you Gain or Lose Memory[]
There are certain effects that can cause you to gain or lose memory. The memory gained or lost is gained or lost by the player who uses the card.
For example, Hammer Spark has a security effect that says "Gain 2 memory" If that card is checked by your opponent's attack, you gain 2 memory. From your opponent's point of view, they lose 2 memory.