The Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game is a two-player card game from Konami. Each player brings a deck of monsters, spells and traps, and the two of you take turns summoning monsters, attacking and setting up surprises. A game is called a duel. Both players start with 8000 Life Points, and you win by reducing your opponent to 0.
The easiest way to learn is with a ready-made deck and someone who already plays. Many Official Tournament Stores host weekly Local Tournaments, usually called “locals”, which are a great way to meet other players and make new friends.
Find shops near you on our Yu-Gi-Oh! page.
What you need to play
Each player needs their own deck. The official rules for a deck are:
- Main Deck: 40 to 60 cards. Most players stay close to 40, so their key cards turn up more often.
- Extra Deck: up to 15 cards. This holds special monsters you summon from outside your hand (more on these below).
- Side Deck: up to 15 cards. In a tournament match you can swap these in between games.
- Up to three copies of any one card across all three, unless the Forbidden and Limited List says otherwise.
You will also want card sleeves (all matching, so no card stands out), a calculator or app to track Life Points, which change quickly, and a coin and a dice for the cards that call for them.
The card types
- Monsters: they attack, defend and win the game for you. Each has a Level (shown as stars), an attack value (ATK) and a defence value (DEF).
- Spells: cards with a single-use or lasting effect. Most can only be activated during your own Main Phase.
- Traps: cards you Set face down first. From the next turn onwards, including your opponent’s turn, you can activate them to spring a surprise.
Extra Deck monsters come in four kinds, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz and Link. Each has its own way of being summoned, often by using monsters you already have on the field as materials. You can ignore these for your first few games and learn them as your deck uses them.
Setting up a duel
- Shuffle your Main Deck, then shuffle and cut your opponent’s deck as they cut yours.
- Play rock-paper-scissors or flip a coin. The winner decides who goes first.
- Both players draw 5 cards.
- Set your Life Points to 8000.
The player going first does not draw on their first turn and cannot enter the Battle Phase on that turn. In later duels of a match, the loser of the previous duel decides who goes first.
How a turn works
Every turn follows the same six phases:
- Draw Phase: draw 1 card.
- Standby Phase: some card effects or costs happen here. Often nothing does.
- Main Phase 1: summon monsters, play spells and set cards face down.
- Battle Phase: attack with your monsters if you want to.
- Main Phase 2: another chance to set cards, or to summon if you did not in Main Phase 1.
- End Phase: tell your opponent you are finished and resolve any effects that happen “during the End Phase”. If you hold more than 6 cards, discard down to 6.
Summoning monsters
Once per turn you can Normal Summon a monster from your hand, face-up in attack position, or Set it face down in defence position. Bigger monsters need a sacrifice, called a Tribute:
| Monster Level | Tributes needed |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | None |
| 5 or 6 | 1 monster |
| 7 or higher | 2 monsters |
On top of that one Normal Summon, card effects and the Extra Deck let you make Special Summons, and there is no limit on how many of these you can make in a turn. Many decks lean on Special Summons, so some turns involve a lot of cards. When a turn gets busy, ask your opponent to talk you through it.
Battle
When you attack, compare your monster’s ATK with the target:
- Against a monster in attack position: the one with lower ATK is destroyed, and its owner loses Life Points equal to the difference. If the ATK values are equal, both monsters are destroyed and nobody loses Life Points.
- Against a monster in defence position: if your ATK is higher than its DEF, it is destroyed but no Life Points are lost. If its DEF is higher, neither monster is destroyed and you lose the difference.
- No monsters to block: you hit your opponent directly and they lose Life Points equal to your monster’s ATK.
Winning
You win when your opponent’s Life Points reach 0, or when they have to draw and cannot. A few cards also carry their own special win condition. Duels are played in sets of three called a Match, and the first player to win two duels takes the Match.
What to buy first
The simplest start is a ready-made deck, so you are learning the rules rather than deckbuilding. Konami sells a few kinds:
- Structure Decks: decks built around one theme, and alongside booster packs one of the main ways players build their collections.
- Legendary Modern Decks 2026: launched by Konami on 23 April 2026, a box of three ready-to-play decks (“Sky Strikers”, “X-Sabers” and “Mitsurugi”), each with a full Main Deck and Extra Deck, aimed at new, returning and experienced players alike.
Shop staff can point you to the current decks and which suit a new player. Booster packs come later, once you know which cards your deck needs.
Konami also runs Demo Events at participating Official Tournament Stores across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania, from September 2026. New players learn the basics of a first duel and receive a Demo Deck to keep, a Quick-Start Guide to practise at home, an Activity Book and, after completing a first Demo, a Standee. Afterwards, the Duel Academy programme offers beginner sessions at your own pace. The NEURON app and the official store locator show which shops are taking part.
The Forbidden and Limited List
Konami publishes a Forbidden and Limited List for official tournaments. Forbidden cards cannot be used at all, Limited cards are restricted to one copy and Semi-Limited cards to two. The list is updated regularly and the official Yu-Gi-Oh! website always shows the current version, so check it before an event. Casual games at home can use whatever cards you both agree on.
Locals and organised play in the UK
Official Yu-Gi-Oh! play centres on Official Tournament Stores (OTS): shops set up for official support through Konami’s Organised Play partners. The store locator on the official Yu-Gi-Oh! website shows the OTS near you. Alongside weekly locals, these stores host Premiere Events to try new cards before release, Release Events, seasonal events and, for higher-level players, OTS Championships and Regional Qualifiers on the road to the World Championship.
Konami’s organised play uses a KONAMI Card Game Network (KCGN) ID, which you connect to the NEURON app. Bigger events such as the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series need it for registration and deck lists, so setting one up early keeps you ready, and shop staff can explain how they handle sign-up for their own events.
At an OTS Local Tournament, every player receives booster packs equal to the value of their entry fee, and OTS Tournament Packs are only available from these stores. Start times and entry fees vary from shop to shop, and each listing has its own details.
The biggest Yu-Gi-Oh! scenes on our listings include Manchester, Cardiff and Southampton. The Cardiff events calendar shows what is on each week, and our trading card games page covers the other card games the same shops run.
What a first locals night is like
A typical locals is a small tournament of a few rounds, with each round a best-of-three match against a different player. You sign in, pay at the counter and are paired against an opponent for each round, with prizes on offer for the players who do well.
Locals are friendly community events. People talk through their plays, and asking “what does that card do?” is a normal part of learning. If you would rather not play a tournament straight away, ask whether the shop has a casual night or a Demo Event.
Your first night checklist
- Play a few practice duels at home with a ready-made deck.
- Check the shop’s listing for the start time, entry fee and whether to book.
- Set up a KCGN ID in the NEURON app, or ask staff how their sign-up works.
- Bring your deck in sleeves, a dice or coin, and a way to track Life Points.
- Arrive a little early and tell the organiser it is your first event.
- Announce your summons and attacks clearly, and ask your opponent or a staff member whenever something is unclear.
If you enjoy Yu-Gi-Oh!, our guides on how to play Magic: The Gathering and how to play the Pokémon TCG cover two more card games you can play at the same shops.
Common questions
How many cards are in a Yu-Gi-Oh! deck?
Your Main Deck holds 40 to 60 cards, and most players stay close to 40 so they draw their best cards more often. You can also have an Extra Deck of up to 15 cards and a Side Deck of up to 15 cards for swapping between games in a match.
How many Life Points do you start with in Yu-Gi-Oh!?
Each player starts a duel with 8000 Life Points. You win by bringing your opponent down to 0, if they need to draw a card and cannot, or if a card's effect says you win.
Is Yu-Gi-Oh! hard to learn?
The basic turn is simple once you have played a few games, and most of the depth comes from what individual cards say. A ready-made deck and a patient opponent at a shop will get you playing in an evening.
What is an OTS in Yu-Gi-Oh!?
OTS stands for Official Tournament Store. These shops host official Yu-Gi-Oh! tournaments (many run weekly Local Tournaments), and you can find them with the store locator on the official Yu-Gi-Oh! website.
Do I need an ID to play at a Yu-Gi-Oh! locals?
Konami's organised play uses a KONAMI Card Game Network (KCGN) ID, which you connect to the NEURON app. Bigger events such as the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series need it to register, so ask your local shop how they handle sign-up for their own events.