Buried Treasure - Rediscovering Lv.X Answers

April 12, 2009 – 12:14 pm

Now that the EX series cards, with their different meanings for the terms “Trainer” and “Basic Pokémon or Evolution card”, have been removed from the modified format allowed at Premier events, there are fewer posted questions about basic rules changes introduced by Diamond and Pearl. We premiere event players and Pokémon League members are now so used to the rules changes introduced by the Diamond and Pearl expansion, that we’ve moved on to wondering about format changes and working on our understanding of the Platinum changes (SP Pokémon and the like). However, people still ask the Rules Team members basic questions about Lv.X cards.

When the awesome Diamond and Pearl expansion first came out a New Additions document was published describing most of the changes to the game rules. Google claims that this document is not linked anywhere anymore (we’ll fix that). Some of the points in that document are still being asked about in 2009, but those points were not fully reproduced in the “What’s new in the Diamond & Pearl expansion?” summary in the basic online rulebook. Most of the points from the Lv.X section of the above document ARE covered in the printed rule books that come with the pre-constructed theme decks in each expansion.

As an aside, did we mention that judges should buy a theme deck or trade their players to obtain a recent rule book? Well, I recommend doing that and also keeping it with you during tournaments… it resolves some questions that your other references do not!

Back to our Lv.X archaeology, here is a quote of the Lv.X section from the New Additions document:

Pokémon LV. X

The Diamond & Pearl expansion introduces a new type of Pokémon—Pokémon LV. X! These cards represent the most powerful extremes that a Pokémon can reach, granting extra abilities, attacks, and more HP. They are played similarly to an Evolution card but have special rules as well.

  • A Pokémon LV. X can’t be played on a Pokémon that evolved that turn or on a LV. X already in play. (For example, if you evolved your Pokémon to Torterra this turn, you could not play Torterra LV. X on that Pokémon.)
  • When a Pokémon LV. X is played, it keeps all cards attached to it as well as any damage counters it already had. It also keeps all attacks, Poké‐Powers, and Poké‐Bodies from the earlier level.
  • When a Pokémon LV. X is played, it removes all Special Conditions and other effects from that Pokémon.
  • A Pokémon LV. X shares the same name as the Pokémon it is put on top of. (For example, you can only have 4 Torterra in your deck—you could have 2 Torterra and 2 Torterra LV. X but not 4 of each.)
  • A Pokémon LV. X is not considered an Evolution card. Cards that allow a player to search his or her deck for an Evolution card only (such as Professor Elm’s Training Method) cannot be used to retrieve a Pokémon LV. X. If an effect removes the highest Stage Evolution card from a Pokémon LV. X, both the earlier evolution that the Pokémon LV. X is on top of and the Pokémon LV. X are removed.

Some of those statements are irrelevant to the current format (i.e. Professor Elm’s Training Method), but others relate to questions that are still being asked in 2009.

  1. Can I level up one Shaymin Lv.X card with the other, and if I do, can I use the attacks on the previous card?
    This seemed like a head-scratcher at first, but it seems it’s addressed directly in the first bullet in the New Additions document: No.
  2. Can I Level-up a Pokémon I just evolved or was just played this turn?
    No.

As far as I can tell, you can’t find rules statement related to question #1 in a document anywhere online, other than this the New Additions and a somewhat oblique reference in the Compendium Lv.X. And, statements answering question #2 is found nowhere online outside the New Additions document (and maybe Ask the Rules Team forum). Please post links that I didn’t find!

So, above, for your enjoyment is a link the “New Additions” document. Enjoy! It should show up soon on a Rules Team agenda to see what items need to be submitted for rulings; any rulings received will, of course, be recorded in the Compendium Lv.X.

By bulbasnore | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (0)

New Compendium Site Theme and Review of 2008 Projects

January 4, 2009 – 5:18 pm

We had a lot of changes for the Rulings Compendium and its website in 2008: the Compendium leveled up, gaining a hyperlinked index, links to relevant scans from the gallery and shifting to cover all the most relevant rulings for modified format. Last Fall we moved the Compendium back to its own site, at a URL separate from the main PokéGym site, where you can find articles about the latest rulings as well as an RSS feed for the rulings updates as we get them from Pokémon USA.

The Pokémon TCG Rulings Compendium continues to be available in 3 editions, the original (WotC rulings), the EX version (with the first four years of PUI rulings) and the current LvX edition. You can find them all linked on one page at the Compendium Site — just click the “The Compendium” link.

If you haven’t had a chance to look at the “For Judges” or “For Players” tabs yet, we encourage you to do so and provide us with some feedback. The intent is to provide each audience with a short list of essential rulings resources and supplement that with a longer list of useful additional resources.

The Compendium LvX is currently available in two formats, HTML & iSilo (for your PDA). We hope to return to having PDF available soon. Some kind friends of the Compendium have offered to create and upload a PDF, and we’ll be going to that before States if we haven’t completed the project to create it automatically when we update (just like the iSilo version).

The main graphic theme of the site is build around the Compendium Pokédex, created for us by Julia Hedberg, Purity of Pokemon ZEO fame. Matt Riddle, aka Prime on pokegym.net has reworked this ‘dex in vector graphic format, allowing us to use it at various resolutions and giving it a 3D look. And, today, for those with small monitors (or slow connections), we’ve added a second theme to the site (Vesper) and a theme chooser you can use to select it.

We do appreciate webmasters linking to the main Compendium web site. Now that it has its own domain again, that URL shouldn’t change in the future. If you have a link to the old cpdmhome or pkcompendium URLs we appreciate you updating them to http://compendium.pokegym.net .  Whether you’re a webmaster or just have a personal website or social networking page, we encourage you to link to us at the top level address and, if possible, use our cool web button. See the instructions on our “Link Us” page for super-simple copy/paste way to link the Compendium site. We appreciate you linking the site top-level URL, as the URL to the latest Compendium is subject to change.

Thank you for your support of the changes to the Pokemon TCG Rulings Compendium in 2008! We forward to making further improvements to the usability of this compendium of official Pokémon TCG rulings in 2009.

By bulbasnore | Posted in Site News | Comments (0)

Judges - heads up heading into City Championships

November 26, 2008 – 9:16 pm

Now that we have rulings back from PUI and posted in time for City Championships, let’s take a quick look at a few things that could come up and would be good to have worked out ahead of time.

Gengar

This beastie’s Poké-POWER, Fainting Spell, is going to be one you will encounter and need to be sharp about. In no particular order:

  • Psychic Lock doesn’t interact with Fainting Spell anymore than it did with Phoenix Turn.
  • Fainting Spell is not turned off by special conditions.
  • Fainting Spell is not triggered by:
    • being devolved
    • KO by special conditions
    • KO by placing damage counters
  • It is NOT a mandatory game action (no POWER is)
    • watch out for rushing by the opponent to short-circuit the activation
    • don’t force it to be applied or rewind to it when someone legitimately forgot to apply it

Tyranitar

Ttar’s Poké-BODY, Darkness Drive, happens AFTER the effect of any Poké-POWER, so of course it can pick up a Darkness energy discarded from your deck by a POWER.

Type Casting

As you know, Stormfront Infernape and Torterra don’t get the benefit of abilities like Wild Growth and Heat Metal because of their type… until they level up. The Lv.X card’s type applies when it is in play.

Our old friend Charizard, in like manner gets the benefit of Heat Metal when it is Fire type, even if the attached energy is natively, say Darkness type. However, if you change Charizard’s type, say with Weavile, then you can’t get the benefit of Heat Metal.

1 time, 2 times and half a time

Luxury Ball can’t be used if another copy is in the discard. Using the effect one time is good but using the effect of a second copy is bad. You might want to huddle up with the HJ & TO and decide your approaches to this, if it happens. In my opinion, it’s not quite as game breaking as past abuses, such as a double Quick Search or POW! Hand Extension while ahead on prizes. It is kind of on the order of leaving a Protective Orb on a basic while you Rocket’s Admin… a little *illegal* edge.

Raichu’s Link Lightning let’s your players attack twice in a turn. Players can use Voltage Shoot twice, if they have the requirements. However, if there are two KO’s from the attacks, the opponent replaces his or her active after the first KO and the Raichu player takes a prize before the second attack!

The Poke … + cards — Healer, Blower, Drawer — can be played for ‘half the effect’. Again, what if a player drops one Poke Blower + and summons his opponent’s Pokemon from the bench? This is something, like flipping cards for Gallade’s Psychic Cut, which needs to be done all at once. Again, you might huddle up ahead of time and decide how you’re going to work through the situation if it comes up… either accidentally or on purpose.

If you want to follow up on any of these things, look up the italicized terms in the index of the Rulings Compendium LvX and reference the cards themselves in the Researching Tower.

By bulbasnore | Posted in Rulings News | Tagged | Comments (0)

Tell us what you think…

October 31, 2008 – 12:17 pm

Tell us what you think of the new Pokemon Rulings Compendium site!

What do you like about it? What would make it more useful?

Read More »

By bulbasnore | Posted in Site News | Comments (0)

The Finer Points

October 21, 2008 – 2:23 pm

Over the course of the season, Team Compendium, the PTOs and judges at big events often hear directly from the POP leadership on how the game should be played; those rulings are often put into place for big events, such as National Championships or Worlds. At my Battle Roads, I found myself coaching my players on some of these rulings so that they would be ready to compete in big events. As I travelled this fall, I collected these rulings into a document. This collection was recently submitted to the Rules Team and POP for review. After a few changes, we created the Q/A you find in the document below. Enjoy.

Read More »

By bulbasnore | Posted in Rulings News | Comments (0)

New Compendium Site

September 28, 2008 – 8:24 pm

Ah! We’re once again in the midst of making the Compendium site more accessible and more feature-filled. Please bear with us. The basics are all here… Read More »

By bulbasnore | Posted in Site News | Tagged | Comments (0)

Rulings Compendium Update September 11, 2008

September 11, 2008 – 8:33 pm

Recent PUI Rulings on PokéGym member questions about Unown G teach us a few things. None of what we learn is really focused Unown G, but that card makes a good test for several cases.

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By admin | Posted in Rulings News | Comments (0)