The Basics Of Duel Masters Trading Card Game

Fire Creature: Bolmeteus Steel Dragon

Fire Creature: Bolmeteus Steel Dragon

If you are interested in trading card games, then you are surely going to enjoy playing this one. Duel Masters is a collectible card game (CCG), and can be played with two or more players. Each player must have a minimum of 40 cards in his deck.

Before you can start, you need to learn the game play, and the terminologies used in the game, some of which I will describe here that should help you getting started.

The Game play

In Duel Masters, two players play the role of duelists, using the ‘art’ of “kaijudo”, which supposedly describes the “art of battling with giant monsters”. Players battle each other by playing cards in their “mana zone” (read below), and then using that mana to pay the cost of summoning creatures or casting spells. Each player has five shields that protect the player from damage, once all shields have been broken; it only takes a one successful attack to win the duel. In other scenario, as soon as a player draws his last card from his deck, that player loses the game automatically. Does not this sound interesting?

Duel Masters Game Play Mat

DM Game Play Mat - Courtesy of DM Wiki

The Game Play Mat

–    The library
The play area to the right of the Shields Zone is called the Library. This is where your deck is placed.

–    The Shields Zone
At the start of the game play, each player takes top five cards from his deck without looking, and places them in front of him faced down. These cards are called shields, and the zone is thus called the ‘Shields Zone’.

–    The Mana Zone
The zone below the shields zone is called the mana zone. The cards placed in this zone are used to generate mana, and thus a player uses it to pay the cost of summoning creatures and casting spells. The cards are placed here upside down, so that the mana-number faces towards you.

–    The Battle Zone
The battle zone is where the creatures are put when they are summoned after paying their cost. Only creatures can be put in the battle zone, spells are casted, not summoned. This battle zone is above the shields zone.

–    The Graveyard
The graveyard is where the destroyed creatures or casted spells are placed. The graveyard is to the right of the ‘library’.

–    The Hand
Once the top 5 cards have been placed in the shields zone, each player draws another five cards, which form a ‘Hand’. The hand is for the player to see, but do not show it to the opposing player.

Type of Cards:
There are two types of cards in Duel Masters, creatures and spells. Creatures are put into the battle zones when summoned. Each creature has a race to which it belongs such as Dragon, Earth Eater, and Guardian. Spells go to the graveyard after they have been casted.

The Five Civilizations:
Duel Masters Cards represent five different civilizations in the Duel Masters world namely: Fire, Light, Nature, Water and Darkness. Each civilization has its own type of cards (creatures and spells), and each have their own advantages and disadvantages. You can build a deck with one, two or even three civilizations. If used properly, the civilizations can complement each other nicely.

Each civilization has a zone that most cards of that civilization affect: Fire – Battle Zone, Light – Shields Zone, Nature – Mana Zone, Water – The Hand, and Darkness – The Graveyard.

Siri Glory Elemental

Light Creature: Siri Glory Elemental

The Duel Masters Card:
As briefed already that a Duel Masters card could be either a creature or a spell. Let us talk about the creature card first, see the image on the right.

–    The card name
The card name is mentioned at the top-middle section of the card.

–    The mana cost
The mana cost is at the top left corner of the card. This digit represents the price of summoning the creature, i.e. the number of cards you need to tap in the mana zone. You need to tap (tapping refers to rotating the card 90 degrees to the right, indicating that it is being used) at least one card of that civilization, and rest can be of any other civilization in order to summon a creature. Same method applies to paying costs for spells.

–    The mana number
A card when put in the mana zone, generates one mana. This 1 digit is written at the lower-mid section of the card.

–    The creature’s race
Each creature has a race to which it belongs. This is mentioned just below the card name. This does not apply to spell cards.

–    The power
Each creature has a power, which is mentioned in the lower left corner of the card. This term does not apply to the spell cards.

–    The Color
The color of the card represents the civilization to which it belongs. Fire cards are red, Light cards are yellow, Water cards are blue, Darkness cards are black, and Nature cards are green in color.

I think, this is enough information about Duel Masters Trading Card Game for now. I will talk about the civilizations in another post, the card effects, and the setup of the game once more. Then we will move onto how each player plays his turn. Until then, collect some Duel Masters Cards, and get familiar with the game a little bit.

By the way, I am a collector myself, and own around 5000+ cards. Moreover, I am willing to sell my Duel Masters Cards. Are you interested in buying some?

Below are some useful links that should also help you in understanding the game:

Duel Masters Wiki
Learn about Duel Masters Trading Card Game

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