Guide

Reading a card's set record before you buy

What a card's own record says about the set it belongs to in TCG Card Shop Simulator, so packs and singles are bought with the set list in view.

Applies to

no version stated by this build (see the sources page)

Before you start

• Cards in the shop or in a pack
• A set worth collecting
• The pack screen or a shelf to check against

Steps

1. Start from the set a card names rather than from its picture.
   a card's record names the expansion it belongs to
2. Treat the set list as fixed rather than as a label you can invent.
   cards are grouped into a fixed list of named expansions that the game ships
3. Read the finish as a second, separate list.
   a card's finish is a separate fixed list of border styles
4. Expect the artwork to follow the finish.
   the game ships a border image for each finish, including the full-art frames
5. Check whether a pack can even use the card's rarity before chasing it.
   a record says whether an opened pack can use the card's rarity
6. Check whether a pack can contain a duplicate.
   a record says whether an opened pack can contain a duplicate
7. Know that the artist, the icon and the background are recorded as indices rather than as names.
   a record carries an artist name index, an icon index and a background index
8. Expect an evolution's icon to be able to come from a different set.
   a record names a separate expansion for the previous evolution stage's icon

Common mistakes

• Assuming a card's set from its border colour alone.
• Chasing a rarity the pack you are buying cannot use.
• Forgetting that a duplicate is a property of the pack rather than of the card.
• Treating the evolution icon as part of the same set as the card.

Related entries

Cards and rarityWhat a card's set record saysA card's record names the expansion it belongs to.Cards and rarityCard sets and expansionsCards are grouped into a fixed list of named expansions.Packs and openingPack tiers and what the names meanPacks are a fixed list of named types rather than one generic product.

Sources

A local copy of the game, read only. Grounding for each step is on the technical reference pages; no number is estimated.