Build Your Deck
Build a 75-card singleton deck around one Master, one Apex, and one external Paragon.
Main Phase
Players may play Creatures, evolve Creatures, play one Energy Source, play Support cards, deploy their Master, and deploy their Paragon.
RULES
Search the MT Battles rules from one clean reference page. For the complete handbook, download the full rulebook PDF.
Beginner
Build a 75-card singleton deck around one Master, one Apex, and one external Paragon.
Begin with 200 Player Life in a 2–4 player pod. Each player draws 7 cards and places 1 Basic Energy Source into play.
Energy Sources generate temporary Energy into your Energy Pool instead of attaching Energy in the traditional way.
Positioning, timing, threat assessment, and table politics matter.
Your once-per-game finisher defines the late game.
Core
Card text overrides the rulebook. If “can” conflicts with “cannot,” the “cannot” effect takes priority. Fractions are rounded down. Infinite loops are prohibited.
Players may not recycle the same combination of cards from the discard pile to the deck more than three times per match.
A player loses by Life Depletion, Deck-Out, or Field Break.
Deckbuilding
Each deck uses 1 Master Creature, a 74-card main deck, and 1 external Paragon. Recommended main deck structure is 1 Apex, 23 Creatures, 30 Support Cards, and 20 Energy.
Except for Basic Energy, no duplicate cards may be included. Creatures are checked by base species name. Trainers, Items, Stadiums, and Energy cards are checked by exact printed name.
Decks may only include one Support card with “Professor” in its name.
Each deck may contain only one high-tier evolution class Creature: V, GX, ex, or EX. It must be the designated Apex Creature.
Each deck must designate exactly one Apex Creature. The Apex must share evolution line, species identity, or printed Energy type with the Master.
Setup
Players may include Creatures and Energy of any type regardless of Master identity. All Creatures may evolve into their printed evolutions without restriction.
Reveal Masters, shuffle decks, determine turn order, draw 7 cards, and place 1 Basic Energy Source into play.
The game uses an Active Spot, Bench, Master Zone, Energy Field, Discard Pile, Lost Zone, and Paragon Zone.
Master
Your Master may be played during your Main Phase.
If your Master would be discarded, enter the Lost Zone, or leave play, it instead returns to the Master Zone exhausted.
Each time your Master returns to the Master Zone, its deployment cost increases by +2 Colorless Energy. This increase is cumulative.
When your Master returns to the Master Zone, it retains its highest evolution stage. Damage, counters, and status conditions are removed.
A Master returning to the Master Zone cannot return to the Active Spot until the start of your next turn.
Your Master, Apex, and Paragon must share at least one evolution line, species identity, or printed Energy type.
Energy
Energy is generated through Energy Sources instead of attachments. There is no maximum number of Energy Sources a player may control. Players may play one Energy Source per turn unless an effect allows otherwise.
At the start of your turn, gain 1 baseline Energy and each Energy Source generates 1 Energy. Newly played Sources do not generate Energy until your next turn.
Generated Energy enters your Energy Pool and may be spent for attacks, abilities, retreats, and effects. At the end of each turn, unused Energy disappears.
If an Energy Source would be discarded, it becomes Exhausted instead unless specifically sent to the Lost Zone. Exhausted Sources do not generate Energy during your next turn and recover afterward.
Turns
Generate Energy, then draw 1 card.
Players may play Creatures, evolve Creatures, play one Energy Source, play Support cards, deploy their Master, and deploy their Paragon.
Declare one attack, then resolve combat.
Resolve effects, check Knockouts, empty Energy Pools, then draw one card.
Timing
Item cards may be played during any player’s turn, during combat, during movement, and in response to effects.
Supporters, Stadiums, and non-Item Support cards may only be played during your Main Phase on your turn.
Whenever a player performs an action, priority passes clockwise beginning with the next player. Each player may respond with one Item card or Ability. Once all players pass, the effect resolves.
Once attack damage begins resolving, Item cards may not be played until the attack fully resolves.
Creature Tools may only be attached during your Main Phase on your turn. Tool attachments cannot occur during combat or response windows.
Combat
Benched Creatures cannot be chosen as attack targets and cannot receive attack damage. Damage counters, status effects, and non-damage effects may still affect them. Damage counters are not attack damage.
When your Active Creature takes attack damage, your Player Life takes damage equal to 50% of the final damage dealt, rounded down. Life Link damage is capped at 50 Player Life per attack instance.
Whenever an Item or Support card restores HP or removes damage counters from one of your Creatures, heal Player Life equal to 50% of the amount healed, rounded down, up to 50 Player Life per turn.
Players may perform up to two movement actions per turn. Movement includes retreating, switching, and forced movement.
If a Creature moves to the Bench, it cannot return to the Active Spot until your next turn.
During your Main Phase, if your Bench is full, you may release one Benched Creature. Released Creatures enter the Lost Zone with all attached cards and cannot be recovered.
Interaction
Players may perform up to three Support card actions per turn.
Only one Stadium may exist in play at a time. Players may play one Stadium per turn. When a new Stadium enters play, discard the previous Stadium immediately.
Only one Status Condition may affect Creatures at a time. Status Conditions last a maximum of two turns and cannot be immediately reapplied after removal.
Paragon
Paragons are external endgame entities. Each player may deploy only one Paragon per game.
Paragons exist outside the deck, are not shuffled, and do not begin in play.
Paragons must share evolution line, species identity, or printed Energy type with the Master or Apex. They may only be Mega, VMAX, or VSTAR.
To deploy a Paragon, control at least 8 Energy Sources and exhaust 4 Energy from your Energy Pool. The Paragon enters the Active Spot.
At the end of your turn, send 1 Energy Source you control to the Lost Zone. If you cannot, the Paragon is Knocked Out.
If a Paragon is Knocked Out, it enters the Lost Zone permanently. Paragons cannot be recovered, replayed, or replaced.
Paragons are considered endgame entities and may not be devolved by card effects.
Loss
When a Creature reaches 0 HP, it is Knocked Out and sent to the Discard Pile. Masters instead return to the Master Zone.
You lose the game if you control no Active Creatures, no Benched Creatures, and cannot immediately play one.
Whenever a player’s Active Pokémon is Knocked Out, that player must immediately choose a Benched Pokémon they control and move it to the Active Spot if able.
Glossary
The deck’s designated high-tier centerpiece Creature.
A restriction preventing immediate return to the Active Spot.
A temporary shutdown of Energy generation.
Temporary generated Energy available each turn.
Permanent field card that generates Energy.
Player Life healing generated from Creature healing.
Protection granted to Benched Creatures from attack damage.
Damage transferred from Active Creatures to Player Life.
External once-per-game endgame Creature.
Mandatory upkeep cost required to maintain a Paragon.
Increasing deployment cost for Masters.