Achieving Your Moment of Triumph:
Getting Started in the Star Wars CCG
(February 2000)

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by Joshua J. Radke

    The Star Wars Customizable Card Game is basically a game played with two 60-card decks (one Light Side and one Dark Side). One player plays his Light deck against another player’s Dark deck. A player wins by forcing the other player to lose all their cards in their deck (called a player’s Life Force). Though this may sound very basic, a player can employ any number of countless strategies against their opponent by customizing their decks using any cards from their collection. This article will focus on this aspect of the game since all the rules of gameplay are fully covered in the rulebook and glossary (which come included in the Light and Dark Side Special Edition Starter Decks).

    Getting started in the Star Wars CCG is fairly simple and inexpensive. All you need is about fifteen bucks and somebody else to play with. My suggestion for any first time player is to get the one of the Special Edition Starter Decks. These decks, as stated above, come with the easy-to-read rulebook and a glossary, which contains terms and gameplay and card rulings. The starters also come with a basic assortment of 38 cards and 22 fixed cards (found only in the Special Edition Starters). All the cards come from the Special Edition expansion set, which contains a total of 324 cards, and which focus on all three movies from the Star Wars: Special Edition trilogy. The beauty of the Starter Decks is that they can be played right out of the box against somebody else’s Light or Dark deck (depending on the side that you buy).

    Finding someone to play with isn’t all that hard either. There are several thousand players in the U.S. alone, but finding players in your own area is as easy as going to Decipher’s Player Registry or Tournaments area at Decipher.com. Another good idea is to learn the game with a friend or ask your local comic shop if they know anybody who can teach you how to play.

    Even if finding other players proves difficult, you can take advantage of the game’s other unique quality: its collectibility. The image on each card is carefully chosen from the movies and uses the best optical technology to ensure a crystal clear picture that is ideal for play or collecting. There are also hundreds of cards which address many aspects of the Star Wars universe that are not shown in the movies (i.e. background characters, bounty hunter starships, planet locations, etc.). The images for these cards are created through the use of computers and their quality make them hard to distinguish from actual movie footage. What also makes these cards of particular interest to players and collectors alike, is the way Decipher’s game designers take an unheard of character (i.e. the pilot of Red 10) and give him a name and his own little history; or they take a weapon or device and describe its use in the vast galaxy of Star Wars. Whatever the card, all "lores" and pictures are approved by Lucasfilm and are considered official Star Wars canon--and all this is just the beginning.

    As you get comfortable with playing the Star Wars Customizable Card Game, you will most certainly want to expand your collection. There are seven other expansion sets in the Star Wars CCG (Premiere, A New Hope, Hoth, Dagobah, Cloud City, Jabba’s Palace, and Endor) all which deal with other aspects of the Star Wars trilogy, plus more expansion sets to come. And what about Episode I: The Phantom Menace? Don’t worry Decipher has that covered as well as the new movies will also get their own card game.

    Finally, in order to get the best playing experience as well as to test and improve your skill, I strongly urge you to attend the Star Wars tournaments which are held in your area. These tournaments, run by Decipher’s official tournament directors, provide you with a competitive, but friendly and enjoyable environment with which to play, trade, and talk about your three (well, now four) favorite movies. They are also there to answer any and all questions that you may have concerning the world of the Star Wars Customizable Card Game. Even though you probably won’t win your first tournament, the experience, knowledge, and confidence you gain will be invaluable in helping you in starting your quest to achieve your Moment Of Triumph.

    Happy gaming and may the Force be with you!