Trading Card Game Starter Kits
A hardcore obsession with trading card games has to start somewhere, and for most people this starting point is called the starter deck.
The starter deck is, obviously, the one you start off with, and it’s the one you build on top of as you gain more experience – and more cards. If you know someone who is into Role Playing Games (RPGs), tabletop games or card decks, here’s your best bet for finding them a starter deck.
Pokemon Original 2-Player Base
The Pokémon original 2-player base deck was first introduced in 1999 and published by Wizards of the Coast. This formed as a first starting deck for thousands of players – and it’s still one of the best starting decks today, especially if you want to get into the great world of trading card games but you have no idea where to start.
The set contains 61 trading card games (some sources incorrectly note 60!). You can find a full list of the cards included here. Many of the decks available are reprints, but if you dig around you can still find the odd original deck for sale on Amazon.
Yu-Gi-Oh!
If you’re not familiar with the format, many of the starter decks for Yu-Gi-Oh! are based around individual players, and many players started with the beginning decks for either Yugior Kaiba, some of the very first starting decks to be introduced.
There are several more starter decks available for the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, including Destiny Masters and Codebreaker. They also offered a 2009 Starter Deck containing special foil cards.
Of course, you can also take a look at some accessories like the official Duel Disk, because it just feels so much damn cooler! (We’re still waiting for an option that offers a holographic view of battling monsters…)
Vampire: The Eternal Struggle
Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (also sometimes called VTES) is one of the most legendary TCG’s (Trading Card Games) of all time. Just the sheer work that went into the artwork for this game makes it one of the top choices for trading card games.
Like many trading card games, the starter decks are based around deck selections for individual game clans (or groups) – Amazon is a greatly useful resource for decks like the Tzimisce Starter Deck or the Bruja Antitribu Starter Deck.
Harry Potter
When most people think of trading card games, they think of options like Magic: The Gathering First – and options like Harry Potter: The Trading Card Game last. But it’s a great way to introduce fans of a certain series into the wonder of TCG’s! This makes the Harry Potter TCG Two-Player Starter an option worth including on this list. Interestingly, it’s also published by Wizards of the Coast.
Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering (MTG for short) is one of the most popular trading card games of all time, with regular tournaments and a huge worldwide following that’s still on the rise decades after it all started. Also published by TCG legends Wizards of the Coast, several options are available for your MTG starter deck, including Origins, the 2015 Core Set or Shadows Over Innistrad.
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft is an immensely popular TCG with thousands of different expansions – in fact, there are so many of them that it often confuses new fans. There are many starter decks available, and for this game we’d suggest you start with a list of different starter decks to choose from – WowCards has an especially comprehensive list here.
