Pokémon Tool card (TCG)
Pokémon Tool cards (Japanese: ポケモンのどうぐ Pokémon Tool), sometimes referred to as Tool cards[1] are one of the four primary types of Trainer cards in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. The other types are Item cards, Supporter cards, and Stadium cards. Pokémon Tools depict held items, typically from the Pokémon games such as the Exp. Share and Leftovers. Pokémon Tool cards are color-coded as purple, as shown on the name of the card type and the card's infobox.
Pokémon Tool cards were first introduced in the Neo Genesis expansion. From the Black & White Series up to the Sword & Shield Series of expansions, Pokémon Tool cards were further considered a subtype of Item cards. (In the Japanese TCG, during the LEGEND era, Trainer cards that were not Supporter cards or Stadium cards were considered Items. However, no Pokémon Tools were printed in the LEGEND era, so this classification only applied when interacting with older cards.)
From the Scarlet & Violet expansion onward, Pokémon Tool cards are their own category of Trainer cards, distinct from Item cards.[2] All Pokémon Tool cards introduced in prior expansions received errata, so they are not Item cards anymore. This errata means that cards that affected Item cards no longer affect Pokémon Tool cards. Further signifying the division between Pokémon Tool cards and Item cards, Pokémon Tool cards as of the Scarlet & Violet Series are given a distinct purple color code on their card type name and infobox. There are currently 243 different Pokémon Tool cards, although many have seen multiple rereleases with different illustrations.
Pokémon Tool cards are played by attaching them to a Pokémon. Once a player attaches a Pokémon Tool to a Pokémon, they may not remove the Pokémon Tool unless with the effects of certain cards or if the Pokémon Tool has a clause allowing it to be removed; removed Pokémon Tools are typically discarded. Pokémon Tools typically provide a positive effect to the Pokémon it is attached to as long as they remain attached. Players are allowed to play as many Pokémon Tool cards from their hand as they wish during their turn. However, each Pokémon can only have one Pokémon Tool attached to it. There are some exceptions that allow more than Pokémon Tool to be attached to a Pokémon. One such exception is the Ancient Trait "θ Double" from the Ancient Origins set.
Information
Pokémon Tool cards can be attached to a Benched or Active Pokémon, and provide a positive effect to that Pokémon as long as they remain attached. Some effects are passively applied to the Pokémon, such as increasing their HP or reducing their Retreat Cost. Others only activate when something happens to the Pokémon that a Pokémon Tool is attached to, or when that Pokémon is in the Active Spot. Many early Pokémon Tools are discarded after having their effect, but this has largely been phased out as in favor of the majority of Tools remaining in play even after activating. (Some Tools, such as Sitrus Berry and Bursting Balloon do have self-discard clauses based upon being consumed or otherwise spent.) When a Pokémon is Knocked Out, Pokémon Tools attached to them move to the discard pile as well.
Some Pokémon Tools, such as the Scrolls, have an attack or Ability printed on them. While such a Pokémon Tool is attached to a Pokémon, that Pokémon can use the attack or Ability on the Pokémon Tool instead of an attack or Ability on their own card. Usually, there is an additional criteria that also has to be met. Some examples of criteria that are used are the name of the Pokémon the Pokémon Tool is attached to or the classification of Pokémon the Pokémon Tool is attached to.
Starting from Paradox Rift, Technical Machine cards are a subset of Pokémon Tools instead of a subtype of Trainer cards. They allow the Pokémon that they are attached to to use the attack printed on the Technical Machine card. However, they act similarly to previously released Technical Machine cards in which they are discarded from play at the end of the turn.
Team Flare Hyper Gear
Team Flare Hyper Gear (occasionally also known as Pokémon Tool F and once identified as Pokémon Tool Flare[3]) are a subtype of Pokémon Tool found in the Phantom Forces expansion. There are only two Team Flare Hyper Gear cards: Head Ringer Team Flare Hyper Gear and Jamming Net Team Flare Hyper Gear. Unlike regular Pokémon Tools, these cards have a negative effect on the Pokémon that they are attached to. This is because Team Flare Hyper Gear cards are attached to the opponent's Pokémon-EX instead of a player's own Pokémon. This is governed by what has once been identified as the Pokémon Tool Flare Rule, printed below the artwork in place of the usual Pokémon Tool ruleset. [3] Team Flare Hyper Gear cannot be attached to any other kind of Pokémon, including regular Pokémon, and discard themselves if they are ever somehow attached to a Pokémon that is not a Pokémon-EX. (Usually, this is due to an effect that switches a Pokémon in play for a Pokémon out of play, such as that of Ninja Boy.)
As Pokémon can only have one Pokémon Tool attached to them at a time, attaching a Team Flare Hyper Gear to a Pokémon prevents them from having a different Tool attached by their owner. However, if a Team Flare Hyper Gear becomes unattached from a Pokémon for any reason, it moves to the discard pile of the owner of the Team Flare Hyper Gear instead of going anywhere else.
Team Flare Hyper Gear cards are visually very distinct from Item cards, likely to help players remember if a Team Flare Hyper Gear is attached to an opponent's Pokémon and retrieve the card from their opponent when necessary. (Team Flare Hyper Gear cards have not been printed after the Scarlet & Violet Pokémon Tool errata.) They have a red border and the frame of the card is tinted red. Both cards have a "Flare" watermark over their text box. The normal section containing the Pokémon Tool ruleset is replaced by a Pokémon Tool F section, which is reddened compared to a Pokémon Tool section.
Pokémon Trading Card Game Online and Pokémon Trading Card Game Live
In Pokémon Trading Card Game Online, Pokémon Tool cards shrink down to a rectangular icon of their artwork when attached to a Pokémon, and return to normal otherwise. If a Pokémon Tool has no effect for any reason, be that because the card's criteria is not met or because an effect of a different card is removing the effect of the Pokémon Tool, the icon for the Tool will be greyed out and a red "X" is displayed over it. In the former case, an "effect" represented this state of having no effect.
Pokémon Trading Card Game Live, is broadly similar, except that the visual effect for Pokémon Tools that have no effect is removed. In cases where a Pokémon has two Pokémon Tools attached at the same time, the second Pokémon Tool is displayed mostly underneath the first, with only the lower border and the lowest part of the artwork peeking out. When a Pokémon has more than two Pokémon Tools attached at once, the game displays a number next to the two visible Pokémon Tool icons. When a card is focused on, a row in the interface is dedicated to displaying the number of attached Pokémon Tools and an icon for each.
List of Pokémon Tool cards
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The following is a dynamic list. Its subject matter requires frequent updates to remain current and complete. This list should typically be updated every month. The last time this page was edited was on November 16, 2024. |
References
- ↑ TCG Live
- ↑ 2023 Pokémon TCG Standard Format Rotation and Pokémon Tool Errata, Pokémon.com
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Head Ringer Team Flare Hyper Gear on the Trading Card Database, Pokémon.com. This is not true of Jamming Net.
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This article is part of Project TCG, a Bulbapedia project that aims to report on every aspect of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. |