Harry Potter Trading Card Game

Created by Wizards of the Coast in August of 2001, the Harry Potter Trading Card Game is a strategy game and collectible card game based in the magical world created by JK Rowling. Similar to the popular Magic: The Gathering, the Harry Potter Trading Card Game invites players to customize their own 60 card decks in an attempt to become a master dueller. While the cards have since gone out of print, they remain a fun and easy way for fans to immerse themselves in the Harry Potter world.

Brief history
On August 7, 2001 the first set of 116 cards (now called the base set) was introduced. Around November of 2001 the Quidditch Cup expansion of 80 cards, which introduces the Quidditch types to the game, was released. This was followed by Diagon Alley in March 2002, then Adventure at Hogwarts on June 14, 2002, at 80 cards each. The last expansion, Chamber of Secrets, at 140 cards, came out on October 7, 2002. From its conception in 2001, through 2003, the Harry Potter Trading Card Game (HPTCG) was popular among many people and age ranges and several gaming leagues were formed. Wizards of the Coast has announced they will no longer make HPTCG cards, but many fans remain hopeful that there will be more expansions in the future.

How to play
The Play Mat: For anyone who has purchased the Harry Potter Trading Card Game Starter Set, they will find a handy "play mat," which is literally a map that players can use to guide them through a match. While it is suggested to anyone learning the HPTCG to use it, the rules from the "play mat" are transcribed here:

"Start Here!

You and your opponent are wizards duelling at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Many spells and magical creatures you play will 'damage' your opponent, which means your opponent has to discard cards from his or her deck.

You win the game when your opponent's deck runs out of cards.

Before You Play:

- Pick which deck you want.

- Put your Wizard or Witch card in the 'Wizard/Witch' spot.

- Shuffle your deck and put it in the 'Deck' spot.

- Draw 7 cards for your starting hand.

- Decide who goes first."

Your goal is to damage your opponent's deck to reduce it to zero cards before they can reduce your deck to zero cards. The "play mat" goes over the steps of your turn and what you do. Just a note on the aforementioned steps, when it says, "pick which deck you want," this refers to one of two decks that come in the starter pack (A charms/creature and a transfiguration/creature). However, once you make your own decks, you can pick whatever deck you want.

"Steps of Your Turn

Step 1. ''Draw a card from your deck and put it into your hand. Do this first every turn!''

Step 2. ''Damage your opponent with your Creatures that are already on the table. (Don't worry about this on your first turn -- you won't have any Creatures on the table yet.)''

Step 3. You have 2 Actions.

You can use an Action to:

- Play a Lesson card; or

- Play a Creature card (you'll need enough Lesson cards on the table -- see 'Types of Cards' on p. 12); or

- Play a Spell card (you'll need enough Lesson cards on the table -- see 'Types of Cards' on p. 12); or

- Draw an extra card.

You may do the same Action twice instead of doing two different Actions."

You can use two Actions to:

- Play a Character card; or

- Play an Adventure card.

The page numbers refer to pages in the Harry Potter Trading Card Game Rule Book. However, the playmat is quite adequate in getting you started.

Types of cards
There are seven types of cards in the Harry Potter Trading Card Game. Some information is directly from the "play mat."

1. Character Cards

2. Lesson Cards

3. Creature Cards

4. Spell Cards

5. Adventure Cards

6. Item Cards

7. Location Cards

1. Character Cards

Your starting Wizard/Witch card is your Hogwarts personality. It does not count towards the 60 card limit in your deck, and remains in play throughout the entire game. Many character cards have special abilities that can be used in the place of actions. For example, one character card may say, "During your turn, you may use this card to draw two lessons every action." Other Character cards have abilities that may only be used once, so you must use it wisely! Character cards may also be placed in your deck. You do not need any lesson cards in play to play character cards, but it requires 2 actions to play a card of this type.

2. Lesson Cards

''Lessons give you the power you need to play other cards. When you play a Lesson card you use one action and all you need to do is take it from your hand and put it on the table. Lessons stay on the table ('in play') after you play them. ''

Unlike other strategic card games, you can use the same lesson twice for playing your actions. For example, if you have one lesson card in play, and two cards in your hand that both take one lesson card to play, you may use your single lesson card for both actions.

There are five lesson varieties: Care of Magical Creatures, Charms, Potions, Transfiguration and Quidditch. Each card variety has special abilities that are innate to its type. For example, potions cards will invlove healing and poisoning spells, while charms cards will utilize spell cards that do direct damage.

It's important as a HPTCG player to find what works best for you. While there is not any particular variety which works exceedingly well against any other, part of the strategy of this game is the meticulous calcution of what card combinations will do the most damage to your opponent, while keeping you alive. Transfiguration, for example, has a number of cards that can remove creatures from the game, but playing just transfigurations alone against say, a Potions, Charms and Creatures deck may not work well. Find what works best for you, and don't be afraid to experiment a few times! The best deck you'll ever make will look nothing like your first deck!

3. Creature Cards

"Creatures damage your opponent's deck -- not other Creatures. They stay on the table ('in play') after you play them.

''Power needed: You must have this many Lessons already on the table to play this card. At least one of your Lessons in play must match the Lesson symbol.''

''For example, Surly Hound has a cost of 3 Lesson cards. To play it, you'd need 3 Lessons on the table, and at least 1 of them would have to be a Care of Magical Creatures Lesson card.''

''Health: If your opponent's spell card does this much damage or more to your Creature, discard it." Note that the damage done to your creatures does not 'heal' at the end of the turn.''

"Damage each turn: Your opponent discards this many cards from his or her deck on step 2 of your turn (so your Creature doesn't do damage on the turn that you play it)."

Creature cards can be a powerful resource in this game. It is especially recommended to new players to include creatures in their decks until they learn to play other cards effectively. Since there is no limit to the number of creatures you can have in play, even 10 "one damage each turn" creatures can be quite damaging.

4. Spell Cards

"To play a Spell card, show it to your opponent, do what it says and put it in your discard pile. Spell cards don't stay on the table like the other cards do.

''Power needed: You must have this many Lessons already on the table to use this card. Only one of your Lessons has to match the symbol.''

''What the card does: This is what happens when you play the card. Some cards do damage to your opponent (which makes your opponent discard that many cards from his or her deck) or to one Creature that's on the table.''"

Spell cards come in a wide variety. Everything from rendering your opponent obsolete their next turn, dealing heavy damage, or healing yourself, they are certainly the most versatile cards in the game. But remember you can only have up to four of any non-lesson card in your deck!

5. Adventure Cards

"Adventure cards are a new kind of card you can play to give your opponent a challenge to overcome. You don't need any Lessons on the table to play Adventure cards, but you do have to use 2 Actions to play them instead of 1. Each player can have only one Adventure on the table ('in play') at a time, so if you already have an Adventure in play, you cannot play another one. An Adventure card has three parts:

Effect: This is what the Adventure does as long as it's in play.

''To Solve: This is what your opponent needs to do to solve the Adventure. She can do this any time during her turn after she's drawn her first card, but she has to solve the Adventure all at once -- not one piece at a time (unless the card specifically says otherwise).''

''Opponent's Reward: If your opponent solves the Adventure, she's the school hero! The Adventure card will say what her reward is. Then you put the Adventure card in your discard pile.''"

6. Item Cards

"Item cards are a new kind of card that are a lot like Creatures: you need to have a certain amount of Power to play them, and then once you play them they stay on the table (unless some card tells you to discard them). Some Items (Wands and Cauldrons) give you extra Power -- just like Lessons, but even better. Other Items have all sorts of different effects."

The explanation for the Adventure and Item card types were taken from the "Advanced Rules" Booklet, and are not included amongst the card types in the Basic Starter Set.

7. Location Cards

Location Cards may be played by either player if they have the appropriate amount and type of lesson power to play them. A player uses one action to play this card type. When any Location card is played, all other location cards in play are discarded. Location cards were not included in the base set, so they are not mentioned in the original "Advanced Rules" Booklet.

List of Card Sets (in order of release)
1. Base Set - Harry Potter Trading Card Game (116 cards)

2. Expansion - Quidditch Cup (80 cards)

3. Expansion - Diagon Alley (80 cards)

4. Expansion - Adventures at Hogwarts (80 cards)

5. Expansion - Chamber of Secrets (140 cards)