Energy card (TCG)
Energy cards (Japanese:エネルギーEnergy) are the cards that power aPokémon'sattacks in thePokémon Trading Card Game. Once per turn, a player can attach one Energy card from theirhand to one of their Pokémon. Pokémon cannot use an attack without having at least the Energy of the cost of that attack attached to it.
Energy cards provide Energy of a specifiedEnergy type. In order to meet costs of attacks that include specific types, the type of the Energy attached to the Pokémon must match the type of the Energy in the cost. The exception to this is costs ofColorless Energy, which can be met with Energy of any type.
There are multiple effects that can change these parameters.
- Some Pokémon have effects that allow them to ignore the Energy in the costs of their attacks, or ignore specific Energytypes in those costs.
- Cards can allow for attaching Energy from theDiscard Pile ordeck to Pokémon, or even allow for attaching one or more energy from the hand to a Pokémon. (A card's effect attaching Energy from the hand is separate from the once per turn attachment.)
- Cards can allow for moving Energy already attached to one Pokémon to another Pokémon, or removing that Energy from play fully by sending it to another zone.
- Some effects can change the amount of Energy that a single Energy card provides, or change the type of Energy that an Energy card provides.
There are two different classes of Energy cards: Basic and Special.
Basic Energy cards
Basic Energy cards (Japanese:基本エネルギーBasic Energy) are the basic form of Energy cards. They provide one unit of Energy of their specifictype to the Pokémon they are attached to and grant no other effects. Except for specificArceus cards with a special ruling released in thePlatinum Series, Basic Energy cards are the only cards that players are permitted to have more than four copies of in their decks. These cards do not bearregulation marks and are always permitted for use in official tournaments.
There are 9 Basic Energy cards:Basic Grass Energy,Basic Fire Energy,Basic Water Energy,Basic Lightning Energy,Basic Psychic Energy,Basic Fighting Energy,Basic Darkness Energy,Basic Metal Energy, andBasic Fairy Energy. No Basic Energy card provides onlyColorless Energy, because Colorless Energy costs can be paid for by any Energy type. There also are no Basic Energy cards that provideDragon Energy, because Dragon Energy does not exist within the rules of the game. The attacks ofDragon-type Pokémon have costs that include other Energy types.
| Card name | Provides |
|---|---|
| Basic Grass Energy |  |
| Basic Fire Energy |  |
| Basic Water Energy |  |
| Basic Lightning Energy |  |
| Basic Psychic Energy |  |
| Basic Fighting Energy |  |
| Basic Darkness Energy |  |
| Basic Metal Energy |  |
| Basic Fairy Energy |  |
From theBase Set through to theEX Power Keepers expansion, the TCG featured six basic Energy cards:Grass Energy,Fire Energy,Water Energy,Lightning Energy,Psychic Energy, andFighting Energy. That was one card for each of the Trading Card Game'sEnergy types, excluding Colorless. WhenDarkness Energy andMetal Energy were introduced with theDarkness andMetal types inNeo Genesis to tie in withGeneration IIvideo games, the Energy of those types could only be provided by Special Energy cards. Six and a half years afterward, the release of theDiamond & Pearl expansion came with new Basic versions ofDarkness Energy andMetal Energy. BasicFairy Energy cards and theFairy type as a whole were added starting with theXY expansion, following theFairy-type's debut in theGeneration VI video games. Basic Fairy Energy cards are no longer included in expansions starting fromSword & Shield following the discontinuation of new Fairy-type Pokémon in the TCG.[1]
Special Energy cards
Special Energy cards (Japanese:特殊エネルギー) are cards with additional benefits compared to Basic Energy cards. Unlike basic Energy cards, Special Energy cards haveregulation marks, and those with the same name are restricted to four per deck.
One possible benefit is providing more than one Energy of a specific type to thePokémon they are attached to, such as howDouble Colorless Energy provides two Colorless Energy despite only being one card.
A recurring effect for Special Energy is providing more than one Energy type. Each Special Energy provides only a certain "amount" of Energy, but the provided Energy will count as all applicable types. For example,Unit Energy acts as both Fighting and Darkness Energy, activatingOkidogi's Ability and allowing it to use Good Punch for 170 with only one other Fighting Energy attached.
Another benefit is having additional effect besides providing Energy. For example, some Special Energy make the attacks of the Pokémon it is attached to deal more damage.
Other Special Energy cards act more like Trainer cards, having an immediate effect when played. For instance,Jet Energy switches theActive Pokémon with theBenched Pokémon the Energy is attached to, essentially serving as an Energy version ofSwitch. (Remember, however, that only one Energy card can be played per turn, unlike manyTrainer cards.)
The cardsReact Energy andPlasma Energy are special exceptions, only providing a single Colorless Energy with no additional rules text. Instead, some cards (such asEX Legend Maker Kecleon andPlasma Storm Lugia) reference them by name, essentially giving them an effect.
Special Energy cards can only have a non-Colorless type while attached to a Pokémon. This means that effects referring to Energy types of Energy cards that are not in play can never apply to Special Energy. Starting withScarlet & Violet, these effects specifically refer to Basic Energy, removing the confusion.[2]
Some Special Energy cards only have their additional effect when they are attached to a Pokémon that meets a certain criteria. (The criteria is usually itsType, but other properties have been used.) A subset of these Special Energy cards can only be attached to Pokémon that meet the criteria, and are immediatelydiscarded if they are somehow attached to a Pokémon that does not meet the criteria. (Usually, this occurs because a Pokémon that did meet the criteriaevolves into a Pokémon which does not meet the criteria.)
List
Trivia
- The designs for the Grass, Fire, Water, Lightning, Psychic, and Fighting Energy symbols were made byMitsuhiro Arita.[3]
In other languages
- Energy
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | エネルギーEnergy | |
| Chinese | Cantonese | 能量Nàhngleuhng |
| Mandarin | 能量Néngliàng | |
| French | Énergie | |
| German | Energie | |
| Indonesian | Energi | |
| Italian | Energia | |
| Korean | 에너지Energy | |
| Polish | Energia | |
| Brazilian Portuguese | Energia | |
| Russian | ЭнергияEnergiya | |
| Spanish | Latin America | Energía |
| Spain | Energía | |
| Thai | พลังงานPhalangngan เอนเนอร์จี้Energy | |
- Basic Energy
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | 基本エネルギーKihon Energy | |
| Chinese | Cantonese | 基本能量Gēibún Nàhngleuhng |
| Mandarin | 基本能量Jīběn Néngliàng | |
| French | Énergie de base | |
| German | Basis-Energie | |
| Indonesian | Energi Dasar | |
| Italian | Energia base | |
| Korean | 기본 에너지Gibon Energy | |
| Polish | Podstawowa Energia | |
| Brazilian Portuguese | Energia Básica | |
| Russian | Базовая ЭнергияBazovaya Energiya | |
| Spanish | Latin America | Energía Básica |
| Spain | Energía Básica | |
| Thai | พลังงานพื้นฐานPhalangngan Phuenthan | |
- Special Energy
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | 特殊エネルギーTokushu Energy | |
| Chinese | Cantonese | 特殊能量Dahksyùh Nàhngleuhng |
| Mandarin | 特殊能量Tèshū Néngliàng | |
| French | Énergie spéciale | |
| German | Spezial-Energie | |
| Indonesian | Energi Spesial | |
| Italian | Energia speciale | |
| Korean | 특수 에너지Teuksu Energy | |
| Polish | Specjalna Energia | |
| Brazilian Portuguese | Energia Especial | |
| Russian | Особая ЭнергияOsobaya Energiya | |
| Spanish | Latin America | Energía Especial |
| Spain | Energía Especial | |
| Thai | พลังงานพิเศษPhalangngan Phiset | |
References
 | This article is part ofProject TCG, aBulbapedia project that aims to report on every aspect of thePokémon Trading Card Game. |
