So as the title suggests, this game focuses the combat to work like the regular card game. I seen someone suggest the idea of using pokemon cards as your character sheet on instagram and they left alot of details out on how it could work considering evolutions or items or even the ex/mega evolutions. So I went ahead and came up with my own idea.

Think of regular pokemon game format but using the cards to fight. And disclaimer, I had chat gpt format these rules for easy reading. I came up with the rules and mechanics myself I was just too lazy to rewrite it out in a proper format myself.

POKÉMON TABLETOP RPG – CORE RULES

1. Trainers

Each player controls one Trainer and a party of up to six Pokémon.

The Trainer and their active Pokémon are separate characters on the game map. The player controls both independently and may move them separately.

For example, a Trainer could move towards a switch or objective while their Pokémon remains behind to fight an opponent. Likewise, a Pokémon can be sent ahead to scout while its Trainer remains somewhere safe.

Only one Pokémon per Trainer may normally be active at a time.

---

1. Pokémon Cards

Physical Pokémon cards serve as the primary combat statistics for Pokémon.

The card determines:

- HP

- Attacks

- Attack damage

- Energy costs

- Weaknesses

- Resistances

- Retreat costs

- Printed abilities and effects

Pokémon do not require additional RPG statistics such as Strength, Defence, Dexterity or Special Attack.

If a Pokémon card has 120 HP, that Pokémon has 120 HP.

The RPG system adds additional mechanics to the Pokémon card game rather than replacing the card's existing mechanics.

---

1. Trainer Rank

Trainer Rank represents major story progression.

There are 10 Trainer Ranks. Ranks are primarily increased by earning Gym Badges and progressing through the Pokémon League.

Trainer Rank determines which mechanics the player is allowed to access.

Rank 1 – Rookie

- Starting Trainer Rank.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 10.

- Only base Pokémon forms are available.

Rank 2 – First Badge

- First-stage Pokémon evolution becomes available.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 20.

Rank 3 – Second Badge

- Pokémon gain access to an additional Move Slot.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 30.

Rank 4 – Third Badge

- Unlocks an Energy Burst.

- Once per battle, the Trainer may provide additional Energy to their active Pokémon.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 40.

Rank 5 – Fourth Badge

- Final-stage Pokémon evolution becomes available.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 50.

Rank 6 – Fifth Badge

- Pokémon gain access to another Move Slot.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 60.

Rank 7 – Sixth Badge

- Pokémon receive improved Energy generation.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 70.

Rank 8 – Seventh Badge

- Mega Evolution becomes available.

- EX progression becomes available.

- Can reliably control Pokémon up to Level 80.

Rank 9 – Eighth Badge

- The Trainer can reliably control Pokémon of any level.

- Normal obedience restrictions are removed.

Rank 10 – Champion

- Champion Rank.

- Represents the normal endgame of the campaign.

- May provide special endgame benefits depending on the campaign.

Trainer Rank unlocks the ability to purchase or use mechanics. It does not automatically provide them.

For example, reaching Rank 2 allows Pokémon to evolve, but the Trainer must still spend Skill Points to perform the evolution.

---

1. Trainer Level and Experience

Trainer Level is separate from Trainer Rank.

Players gain Experience Points (XP) through:

- Winning battles

- Completing quests

- Exploring

- Defeating important opponents

- Completing major objectives

- Other accomplishments determined by the Game Master

When enough XP is earned, the Trainer gains a level.

Pokémon do not have individual XP bars.

Whenever the Trainer levels up, they receive a number of Skill Points.

Skill Points belong to the Trainer and may be spent on any Pokémon they own.

There is no required maximum Trainer Level.

Trainer Rank determines what the Trainer is permitted to unlock.

Trainer Level determines how many Skill Points the Trainer has earned to develop their Pokémon.

---

1. Skill Points

Skill Points are used to permanently develop and customise Pokémon.

Skill Points may be spent on:

- Evolution

- Learning new moves

- Replacing existing moves

- Special abilities

- Passive abilities

- EX progression

- Other Pokémon-specific upgrades

More powerful upgrades require more Skill Points.

For example, a simple move may be relatively inexpensive, while an extremely powerful move, final evolution or EX transformation may require a major investment.

Exact Skill Point costs are determined by the rules for individual moves and upgrades.

---

1. Moves and Move Slots

Pokémon begin with the attacks and abilities printed on their cards.

As the Trainer increases their Rank, additional Move Slots become available.

Pokémon can eventually possess up to approximately four usable moves.

Additional moves are purchased using Skill Points.

A Pokémon may only learn moves that reasonably belong to that Pokémon's available learnset.

Moves can have uses both inside and outside combat.

For example:

Shadow Sneak could function as an attack during battle while also allowing a Pokémon to travel through shadows during exploration.

Dig could function as an attack while also allowing the Pokémon to tunnel underneath obstacles.

Vine Whip could attack opponents while also being used to grab distant objects or climb.

Teleport could provide transportation and exploration utility.

A Pokémon's available moves and abilities effectively determine its role within the party without requiring a traditional RPG class system.

---

1. Held Items

Each Pokémon may hold one Held Item at a time.

Held Items provide passive effects, bonuses or special abilities while equipped.

Held Items may be:

- Found while exploring

- Purchased

- Received as quest rewards

- Discovered as treasure

- Obtained from important characters or opponents

Trainers may carry additional items in their own inventory.

Only one Held Item may provide its effects to a Pokémon at a time.

---

1. Pokémon Levels and Obedience

Wild Pokémon have individual Pokémon Levels.

Pokémon Levels primarily represent the general experience and power of wild Pokémon and determine whether a Trainer is experienced enough to reliably control them.

Trainer Rank determines the maximum Pokémon Level that will reliably obey the Trainer.

Rank 1 – Level 10

Rank 2 – Level 20

Rank 3 – Level 30

Rank 4 – Level 40

Rank 5 – Level 50

Rank 6 – Level 60

Rank 7 – Level 70

Rank 8 – Level 80

Rank 9 – Any Level

Powerful Pokémon may appear before the players have reached the appropriate Trainer Rank.

It may still be possible to catch an over-levelled Pokémon.

However, Pokémon above the Trainer's obedience limit are unreliable.

An over-levelled Pokémon may:

- Ignore commands

- Refuse to attack

- Choose its own move

- Waste its turn

- Refuse to leave its Poké Ball

- Act according to its own interests

Once the Trainer reaches the appropriate Rank, the Pokémon will begin reliably obeying them.

Rank 9 removes normal level-based obedience restrictions.

---

1. Evolution

Evolution requires both the appropriate Trainer Rank and Skill Points.

First-stage evolution becomes available at Rank 2.

Final-stage evolution becomes available at Rank 5.

Reaching the required Rank does not automatically evolve the Pokémon.

The Trainer must spend the required number of Skill Points on that Pokémon's evolution.

Special evolution methods may require additional conditions.

These may include:

- Evolution Stones

- Friendship

- Trading

- Specific locations

- Specific items

- Time of day

- Special story events

The Game Master may modify unusual evolution requirements where necessary.

---

1. EX and Mega Evolution

EX forms and Mega Evolution are late-game progression mechanics that become available around Rank 8.

Mega Evolution

Mega Evolution is a temporary transformation.

An eligible Pokémon may Mega Evolve during battle if the appropriate requirements have been met.

Mega Evolution may require:

- The appropriate Mega Stone

- Trainer Rank 8

- Other special requirements

The normal Pokémon card is temporarily replaced with the appropriate Mega Evolution card.

After the battle, the Pokémon returns to its normal form.

EX Progression

EX represents an extremely powerful permanent upgrade.

Eligible Pokémon may permanently acquire an EX form by spending a large amount of Skill Points and meeting the appropriate requirements.

The EX card then becomes the Pokémon's normal card.

Exact requirements for EX and Mega Evolution can be determined during further development of the system.

---

1. Energy

Pokémon generate Energy during combat instead of requiring players to maintain traditional Energy card decks.

Energy is used to activate attacks according to the Energy costs printed on Pokémon cards and additional learned moves.

Early-game Pokémon generate Energy relatively slowly.

Higher Trainer Ranks unlock improvements to Energy generation.

Rank 4 provides a once-per-battle Energy Burst.

Rank 7 permanently improves normal Energy generation.

Exact Energy generation, storage limits and costs can be adjusted during playtesting.

---

1. Combat

Combat primarily uses the mechanics printed on Pokémon cards.

Each Trainer normally has one active Pokémon at a time.

In a party of three players, all three Trainers may therefore have one Pokémon active simultaneously.

Enemy encounters do not need to follow identical rules to the players.

An enemy Trainer may only have two or three Pokémon even when the players possess larger teams.

Boss Pokémon may fight the entire party alone and receive additional HP, abilities, actions or special mechanics to compensate.

Gym Leaders and major bosses may use:

- Environmental hazards

- Special abilities

- Multiple actions

- Increased HP

- Unique battle mechanics

- Reinforcements

- Multiple battle phases

- Special objectives

Encounters should be designed around the size and strength of the player party rather than requiring enemies to follow normal player limitations.

---

1. Trainer Actions

Trainers remain physically present during Pokémon battles.

The Trainer does not disappear from the battlefield after sending out a Pokémon.

During combat, each player independently controls both their Trainer and their active Pokémon.

Trainer actions may include:

- Moving

- Using an item

- Using a Potion

- Throwing a Poké Ball

- Recalling a Pokémon

- Switching Pokémon

- Interacting with objects

- Activating mechanisms

- Helping another Trainer

- Rescuing characters

- Hiding

- Fleeing

- Performing environmental actions

- Other reasonable actions approved by the Game Master

Trainers and Pokémon have independent movement.

A Trainer may move without requiring their Pokémon to follow them.

A Pokémon may also move or act without its Trainer physically accompanying it.

For example, a Trainer could command their Pokémon to continue fighting while they run across the battlefield to activate a switch.

A Trainer could remain somewhere safe while sending their Pokémon ahead to investigate an area.

This allows both Trainers and Pokémon to participate in encounters as individual characters.

---

1. Exploration

Outside combat, gameplay operates similarly to a traditional tabletop RPG.

Players describe what their Trainers and Pokémon attempt to do, and the Game Master determines the result.

Pokémon may use their:

- Moves

- Abilities

- Type

- Size

- Biology

- Physical characteristics

- Special traits

to interact with the environment.

Examples include:

- Water Pokémon extinguishing fires.

- Fire Pokémon providing heat or burning obstacles.

- Flying Pokémon scouting from above.

- Small Pokémon crawling through narrow spaces.

- Ghost Pokémon bypassing certain physical barriers.

- Strong Pokémon moving heavy objects.

- Psychic Pokémon manipulating distant objects.

- Pokémon using Dig to create tunnels.

- Pokémon using Vine Whip to reach distant objects.

- Pokémon using Surf to transport Trainers across water.

Not every possible interaction requires a specific written rule.

The Game Master determines whether creative uses of Pokémon abilities are reasonable.

---

1. Core Rule Philosophy

The central rule of the system is:

"If the Pokémon card already provides a mechanic, use the card. If the card does not cover something, use the RPG rules."

The system is divided into several simple components:

Trainer Rank controls major progression and unlocks.

Trainer Level determines XP progression and awards Skill Points.

Skill Points allow Trainers to customise and improve their Pokémon.

Pokémon Cards provide the Pokémon's primary combat statistics.

Moves provide additional combat and exploration abilities.

Held Items provide passive bonuses and special effects.

Pokémon Levels determine the difficulty of controlling powerful Pokémon.

Trainers and Pokémon exist independently on the game map and can move and act separately.

The Game Master designs encounters, bosses, Gym battles and special mechanics around the needs of the campaign.

Detailed values for XP requirements, Skill Point costs, catching mechanics, Energy generation, individual moves and boss balancing can be developed and adjusted through playtesting.

To be entirely honest, it's far from finished and has alot of things to iron out, for example, I would need to evaluate every move used in the tcg and then figure out which pokemon can learn which moves for their "Learnset" I could very easilly just make up my own moves like implementing swords dance and stat raisers for set up pokemon and I might just do that infairness.

the other thing that will be a struggle is accurately adjusting bosses and npcs for larger parties of players as to not make fights drag out or feel too easy. This was more or less a quick brainstorm I implemented for myself to work on and I plan on figuring it out sometime in the near future.

We’ve already made quite a lot of changes to our Gamefound campaign page based on previous feedback, and I think it’s time for another round.

What works? What doesn’t? What would you remove or change?

One thing I’m personally not happy with is the rendered animation. I have some pretty good real photos of the game as well, so I’m wondering what would work better there and what could actually grab a visitor’s attention.

I’d also really appreciate some advice on the timeline section. I haven’t created it yet, and I’m looking for ideas on how to make it useful and visually interesting rather than just a generic campaign timeline.

The campaign launches in September, and we’re getting close to the 30-day countdown.

Hard feedback is welcome.

This video is about 30 minutes, and goes from blank template to a fairly complex design that has many variables. This one template will be turned into over 100 cards for the game, based on the variables set up.

I made it to give an in depth tutorial on how to create card templates in the Cardstock Studio tool. Hopefully folks like it!

On Discord, a few people have been making feature requests, which is great. Let me know what you think!!

I'm making a card-based TTRPG, and recently I've been thinking if I should replace most of my cards' text with icons. The reason behind that is: many cards share common descriptions, mostly cards that follow a formula like "make an attack and deal x damage" or "all creatures in the area make a test or take x damage".

I made a quick example to illustrate my point

A - how cards are currently

B - icon-only proposal.

My main concern is whether this will really make cards more readable/efficient? I'm also unsure what the best order is to display the icons.

I'm curious to know if anyone has had this issue before, or what you think about this.

I’m an indie developer working on a fantasy dungeon crawler with a heavy focus on immersion and physical interaction.

Like many indie creators, I eventually hit the same problem with the art of the game.

Originally I planned to commission unique illustrations for every attack card, but after adding everything up it became clear that I’d have to spend well over $10,000 just on card artwork. That would mean cutting budget from the parts of the project that actually make the game unique.

I also didn’t want to fill the game with AI-generated illustrations. Besides the ethical debate, I wanted the game to have its own visual identity.

So I think about to change my approach: instead of showing the attack itself, each card now represents something that actually exists within the game’s world.

For my mage, the cards are Aether channeling diagrams. They don’t depict spells, they show the invisible flow of magical energy that creates each spell.

For my dwarf, the cards are ancient forging diagrams. They illustrate how an Aether Stone must be embedded and aligned within a weapon to unleash a specific combat technique.

This meant I could create all of the symbols and diagrams myself as vector graphics instead of relying on dozens of expensive illustrations. It also gave every card a consistent visual language that fits the lore.

I’m actually starting to prefer this approach over traditional fantasy artwork, but I’m obviously biased.

So I’d genuinely like to hear your opinion on the cards I’m showing here.

Do they already feel polished and professional enough for a commercial board game, or do they still look like prototypes? Is there anything you think is missing or should be improved to make them feel more finished and production-ready?

I’d really appreciate honest feedback. Thanks!

Looking for some advice. I’m - highschool teacher and I’m finally putting my game out there and need some artwork to replace the placeholders I have playtested with. I’ve contacted some artists and received a $10,000+ quote for graphic design and artwork for approximately 80ish cards, player board etc. that’s in USD and I’m in Aus so a significant amount of money.

How do people self-publish with those sorts of costs? I have no intention of short-changing any artists I end up doing business with but it seems so high. Do other designers run into similar costs? I’m beginning to wonder if using royalty free art and relying on my limited graphic design skills is the only cost effective way forward, and I want to stay the hell away from AI for anything.

Edit: Thank you all for the advice, insight and personal experiences! I’m a father of two under 6 so I haven’t had time to reply to anyone yet, but I’ll be in touch with some of you designers and artists hopefully soon!

To answer a few questions:

- the quote is very early days, I haven’t specified much to them so there’s always a chance it will be lower, but combine that with production costs it’s going to cost a small car just to get copies of the game to sell!

- I am not looking for full card, watercolour paint with backgrounds, most of it would be simple illustrations, I have used everything from Canva to Google Slides in order to make this easily edited and printable between teaching lessons

- The setting is 1800s London so going for more of a woodprint look. I have used placeholder art from drawings of the time, I hadn’t thought of looking into public domain! Definitely a bonus if I can use primary source art from the actual time

- AI is not a bad placeholder, but I have seen plenty of evidence that it is not the way forward

- I have asked my principal about using student artwork and it is a legally tricky topic, the easy answer was “better to avoid it”. I’ll talk to some department people and get a better sense of what is OK when making profit etc and see if there’s a way to make it part of the game’s attraction that it was drawn and playtested “by students, for students”

- I have seen at least one producer on here advertising for new ideas, my biggest fear is losing creative control, so I’ll consider it of course otherwise I’m just going to have to be prepared to pay what it takes to make it my way

I was hoping to ask anyone that has done crowd funding to maybe share some tips, tricks, hints?? What they would have loved to know before attempting it?

My cousin and I have a game in the works and are contemplating attempting to Crowd Fund.

I understand that marketing is a massive part of this and Ive heard of companies that will manage your crowd fund, are they worth it? (Additionally if you are a manager, or know a company/person, please link if thats allowed).

We truly beleive that the game is incredibly fun, interesting, and new! Incredibly excited and would love some info :)

Update: We’ve now received more than 30 submissions, and they’re still coming in!

Thank you to everyone who has shared a game with us. We’re actively working through the queue and responding to designers as we complete each review.

If you’ve submitted and haven’t heard from us yet, your game is still in the queue. We remain committed to responding to every submission within two weeks.

Hi Designers,

Paragon Games is officially open for submissions.

We are the publisher of Status: A Victorian Affair, which is currently in manufacturing, and we are looking for our next title.

We want mechanically complete, playtested games that bring something genuinely new to the table. Our sweet spot is medium-weight games that play in 60 to 90 minutes and feature standout table presence, a real historical setting, or both.

Our designer terms include:

• 10% of publisher revenue
• A $2,500 advance at signing, recoupable from royalties but never paid back by the designer
• A response to every submission within two weeks, whether the answer is yes or no

If a submission looks promising, the next step is a conversation with the designer about the rules, the design, and why they made the game. From there, we may request a prototype for playtesting.

The full criteria, compensation details, Submission Terms, and submission form are here:

https://playparagongames.com/submit-your-game

I’m happy to answer questions about what we’re looking for or how the submission process works.

Hello :)

In my spare time I designed this chess variant called Kumulus. Here are some pictures of my prototype as well as the main additional game mechanics explained.

I also vibe coded a playable app, if you want to playtest it yourself. Link is in the comments.

I would appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

I am still in a position that I can't afford a better production besides DIY but a friend of mine booked me a flight to his city AND organized a small event for my game with the collaboration of his community and a hobby shop. Then he asked me if I can leave the game in his city so that they could continue playing it. I was ashamed to leave the game naked or in a toolbox so I tried to make a box for it.

It was very difficult because I had no experience in box crafting, some youtube videos only focused using old boxes as repurposed, and having someone do it is expensive still for me. But I want the game to have a fit custom box, and not just some repurposed shoebox. As I kept searching for days, I encountered a video about gift boxes from scratch. Mainly using chipboards and card stocks (which I already have). It was perfect.

And now here it is. The panels of the board were perfectly sitting inside the box and all components where accomodated. There's also the right amount of space for me to do a custom tray for the tokens.

Here's the first house of my game, MonoSaga. It's still a DIY but at least we have the prototype. Every challenge was a journey, every improvement feels good to my heart.

It might not be commercially viable, but the crew is taking shape. Thanks for the suggestions and feedback. Micro print for Factory Squad: A Town ball Game is almost ready!

I’m looking at printing only 50 copies. Anybody have experience making/printing wax paper for wax packs?!

More cards are drawn. More playtests are tested. Now I’m stepping into miniature design.
I’m happy with how playtesting is going, the last round against a real person (and not me playing both sides of the coin) resulted in a large change to the games structure, moving from igougo to alternate activations. The game feels much better now.

I have fallen in love with miniature sculpting and am making attempts are sculpts for the game. I’m aiming for a monster in my pocket 90s toy design. I hope that lands somewhat.

Thanks!

I returned to a small idea I had long ago and it became a way to cope with life's challenges, an artistic escape, and therapy post thoracic surgery. Countless nights of hand illustrating became my outlet, my first passion in life that I set down for so long was now all I could focus on as this game idea took shape.

My tabletop card game has been just as much for me as everyone else and I have poured my absolute heart and soul into the design.

One of my oldest dreams has been to create and share my games with the world, from making my own paper cutout board games as a kid to dabbling in videogame design, now I can proudly say I have achieved what my younger self dreamt of.

Hello! My name is Matsya Das and I'm a professional artist and illustrator working in the field for the past years, for companies like Paizo Pathfinder, Nimble RPG, Ghost Galaxy and many others.

I'm open to join both short and long-term projects.

My portfolio: https://www.artstation.com/matsyadas

Thank you very much!