How to Play

What is an online trading card game?

In an online trading card game, you earn virtual cards by playing games and doing various tasks. You won't always get the cards you want, so you'll have to trade with other players to complete your decks! Trading is highly encouraged!

Colors TCG

Colors TCG is a multifandom character TCG that features decks using mostly animanga-influenced art. Characters can be from the following sources:

-Anime
-Manga, Manhwa, Manhua
-Video games from East Asian sources (illustrations preferred over in-game art)
-Light novels that use Anime/Manga-styled art

Sources may not be fan productions, unpublished sources, or Western sources.

How do I play at Colors TCG?

First, you need to read the basic rules. After that, join the TCG! Colors TCG is a little different from normal TCGs because all of the games and updates will be handled in the Colors LJ community. I highly advise you to watch the community, but it is not required. I expect that most members will use LJ posts for their card posts (which means trading will occur on the card posts themselves through comments), but if you would like to join with a website, that is fine too! In this case, I still recommend that you make an LJ post to accept trade offers as I will not be asking you for your email. If you have any questions, feel free to ask over at the FAQs. Updates with new decks will be monthly near the beginning of each month. There will be lots of freebies involved! Consider joining the trading community as well to interact with other members!

Your Card Post

Card posts should have a section with your information (name, join date, number of cards, current level), a section for cards you're collecting, a section for cards you're trading, and a trading log. You may add other sections as you find the need to, such as a pending section or a keeps section.

Trading logs should be detailed and include specific cards you earned or traded and the date on which this happened!

If you don't know how to set up a card post, check out this lovely post!

Character Decks

Character decks feature 20 images of a single character in the cards and 1 extra image in the master badge. All decks have an official color assigned to them that is displayed on the deck list. The color of the border is generally taken from the character's hair, clothes, eyes, or a prominent accessory that is seen among several images used in the deck. Character decks feature a dotted white border and use two shades of the same color for the border.

Special Decks

Special decks ideally feature minor characters that don't have enough art for their own deck or perhaps aren't prominent enough to warrant their own deck (but you may still see some main characters in these decks to fill the rest of the slots if there aren't enough minor characters for a complete deck of 20). They can also be decks of series that have a huge cast where having separate decks for every single character might be a bit much. Since this is a character TCG, each special card will still feature only 1 character each in most cases. With series that have way more than 20 characters, themed decks are also possible, such as the Shugo Chara! one where we have a deck of Guardian Characters or the Prince of Tennis one where we have a deck of characters wearing glasses. Special decks have a solid white border instead of a dotted one, and they have two colors assigned to them.

Special cards are obtainable from the randomizer like any other card. The possibility of getting a special card as a reward is the same as getting a normal card. The difference, however, is in how we'd go about acquiring choice cards of special decks.

Special cards can be acquired at the Art Shop using 2 crayons, 1 of each color assigned to the deck. You can also acquire them at the Art Studio at a different rate from other cards. You'll have to check the Art Studio post for the current rate, as it is subject to change. Mastering special decks earns you slightly higher rewards than mastering a character deck, but currently, you cannot ask for a choice special card from mastering a character deck, nor can you ask for a choice character card for mastering a special deck. You also cannot ask for a special card as a choice card from leveling.

Special cards aren't considered worth 2 because the probability of earning them randomly is the same as any other card. In this TCG, one card is one card. Special cards can be traded for character cards and character cards can be traded for special cards among members. The rate of exchange is up to the players. For sketchpad purposes, you get to mark down the number of cards you trade away.

Oh, but special decks do have other perks! They can be used to fill two slots on the same Palette Portfolio. If you want to use a special deck to qualify for different Portfolios, that is possible too, but like usual, you must follow the less than three previously mastered decks rule.

Special decks cannot be donated at the Donate a Deck post because they take a bit more thought and will require players and deckmakers to work closely together. Players will be able to earn the ability to suggest (and donate) a special deck through certain games. Keep an eye out for what games will allow you to earn this ability each month!

Signature Cards

Signatures are what member cards at Colors are called. They are displayed here on the website. To get your own Signature, please apply for one here in the community. You start off with 3 copies, but you can trade for more through the Art Shop (you can trade for your signatures using crayons with the same color as your border) and the Art Studio (you can trade three cards for 1 copy of your Signature). Signatures are only tradable for other Signatures, you can only trade your own, and they cannot be gifted. This is the only deck with this rule because Signatures cannot be obtained from the randomizer.

These count as 1 towards your card count like any other card. They're masterable every 20 unique Signatures, but there is currently no master badge for mastering a Signature deck. Rewards are the same as mastering special decks other than Signature cards.

Portfolios

You can register for a Portfolio here, where detailed rules can be found. Since our theme is "colors", you're encouraged to collect decks of different colors with the Palette Portfolio or decks of all the same color with the Monochrome Portfolio! By collecting 1 deck from each of the colors featured at Colors TCG, or 8 decks of the same color, you will get special prizes. Turn your Portfolio in at Masteries to get your rewards.

Games

Games at Colors are handled over at the LJ community. Feel free to check out the game tag. Game mods will post the games on a weekly or biweekly basis. There will also be monthly games and contests! After you participate, awards will usually be handed out on the day the game closes.

Masteries

Masteries are handled at this post. Once you collect all 20 cards in a deck, comment over at that post to claim your rewards! You get a shiny badge, and your name will get listed on the card page! Portfolios are also turned in at the Masteries post.

Rewards (check the Masteries post for the most up-to-date rewards):
Character deck: 2 random cards, 1 choice character card, and 1 crayon
Special deck: 3 random cards, 1 choice special card, 1 crayon
Completed Portfolio: 4 random cards, 4 random crayons

Levels

Levels are handled at this post. Levels at Colors are as follows:

Cards in the Primary Set are 100 cards per level. You receive 2 random cards, 1 character choice card, and 1 crayon per level.

Primary Set
Red: 1-100 cards
Orange: 101-200 cards
Yellow: 201-300 cards
Green: 301-400 cards
Blue: 401-500 cards
Purple: 501-600 cards
Brown: 601-700 cards
Gray: 701-800 cards

Levels in the Fruits Set are 200 cards per level. You receive 3 random cards, 1 character choice card, and 1 crayon per level.

Fruits Set
Strawberry: 801-1000 cards
Tangerine: 1001-1200 cards
Lemon: 1201-1400 cards
Lime: 1401-1600 cards
Blueberry: 1601-1800 cards
Grape: 1801-2000 cards
Apricot: 2001-2200 cards
Dragon Fruit: 2201-2400 cards

Levels in the Precious Set are 300 cards per level. You receive 4 random cards, 1 character choice card, and 1 crayon per level.

Precious Stone and Metal Set
Ruby: 2401-2700 cards
Amber: 2701-3000 cards
Gold: 3001-3300 cards
Emerald: 3301-3600 cards
Sapphire: 3601-3900 cards
Amethyst: 3901-4200 cards
Bronze: 4201-4500 cards
Silver: 4501-4800 cards

Levels in the Flowers Set continue at 300 cards per level. You receive 4 random cards, 1 character choice card, and 1 crayon per level.

Flowers Set
Sakura: 4801-5100 cards
Tiger Lily: 5100-5400 cards
Daffodil: 5401-5700 cards
Clover: 5701-6000 cards
Hydrangea: 6001-6300 cards
Lilac: 6301-6600 cards
Chocolate Cosmos: 6601-6900 cards
Magnolia: 6901-7200 cards

Once players near the end of the Flowers set, a new set of levels will be added!

Art Shop

IOUs at Colors come in the shape of...crayons! You may trade crayons for decks that fall under that color. The color each deck belongs to is displayed on the deck list. 1 crayon redeems 1 character card of that color.

If you'd like more copies of your Signature, you may also trade in crayons for that! For 1 copy of your Signature, please trade in 1 crayon of the same color as the border of your Signature.

To redeem special cards that are not part of the Signature deck, you must trade in 2 crayons, 1 for each color the deck is assigned.

You can also trade in your completed Sketchpads here. You get 2 random cards and 1 random crayon for completing a Sketchpad.

To trade in your crayons and sketchpads, comment here.

Art Studio

Tired of your colored cards? Never fear! You can trade them in for other cards here! Maybe some other artist will like your cards. ;) Your cards will end up at Recycled Art.

The Art Studio can be found here! Current rates for exchanges are displayed over at that post.

Recycled Art

Leftover cards from members who have left the TCG and from other sources can be found here. The post is updated throughout the week, but you may only claim once a week. The number of cards you can claim from here changes every so often depending on the number of cards that are availabe. The mod will let you know the number!

Deck Donation

What's a TCG without cards to collect? Donate character decks over here at this post. That post will include the newest requirements for donating decks.

Donate special decks over here.

Graphics Donation

Donated graphics will be displayed here at the website. To donate graphics, please go to this post. Donations are needed for level badges, link buttons, and trading cards. More information can be found over at the graphics page.

Sketchpads

Sketchpads are like those stamp cards you fill out at restaurants and shops. Here at Colors, for every card you trade away to another player, you get to mark down one box on your Sketchpad! If you trade 2 cards for 1 card from another player, you mark down 2 boxes while the other player marks down 1. If you trade away 1 card for a crayon from another player, you mark down 1 box while the other person marks down nothing because a crayon is not a card.

After filling out all 20 boxes, turn your completed Sketchpad in over at the Art Shop for rewards! You can grab an empty Sketchpad from here, and if you'd like to donate Sketchpads for other people to use, please donate over here.

Contact

If you need to contact me for any reason, head over to the contact page.