How to Play Gundam Card Game: A Beginner's Guide

The GUNDAM CARD GAME is a competitive trading card game from Bandai based on the Gundam franchise.

It brings together characters and Mobile Suits from different Gundam universes within a single card game.

That means your collection can include characters, Mobile Suits and factions from series such as:

• Mobile Suit Gundam
• Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
• Mobile Suit Gundam 00
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans
• Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury
• And many more

From a gameplay perspective, Gundam combines several familiar TCG concepts:

• Units → your primary fighting forces
• Pilots → characters that can be paired with Units
• Commands → cards that create immediate effects
• Bases → defensive or supporting cards
• Resources → used to pay card costs

You deploy your forces, strengthen them with Pilots and abilities, and attack your opponent while protecting yourself from their counterattack.

Bandai describes one of the game's central concepts as pairing Units and Pilots to defeat enemy forces.

Your objective is to defeat your opponent.

Players protect themselves using Shields.

Each Shield effectively acts as one layer of protection between your opponent's forces and your defeat.

When an opposing Unit successfully deals battle damage to you, your defenses are gradually broken down.

Once you have no Shields remaining, another successful Unit attack dealing battle damage to you causes you to lose the game. So the basic flow is: Deploy Units → attack → destroy Shields → break through → deliver the final attack.

There is also another way to lose: If your deck has no cards remaining, you lose. This means deck management can matter in particularly long games.

For standard constructed play, each player prepares:

• 1 Main Deck: exactly 50 cards
• 1 Resource Deck: exactly 10 Resource cards

You may also need the appropriate token cards, including an EX Base and EX Resource.

The important thing for beginners to understand is that your Resources are not shuffled into your Main Deck.

Gundam uses two separate decks.

Your 50-card Main Deck contains your playable cards.

Your 10-card Resource Deck contains the Resources used to pay costs.

This makes resource development much more predictable than in TCGs where resource cards are mixed into the Main Deck.

Your Main Deck can contain four primary card types:

Units are the foundation of combat.

A Unit card contains several pieces of information that determine when you can play it and how effective it is.

Two particularly important combat values are:

• AP: Attack Power.
• HP: Hit Points.

AP determines how much damage the Unit can deal.

HP represents how much damage it can withstand.

For example, imagine your Unit has 4 AP / 5 HP and battles an opposing Unit with 3 AP / 3 HP.

Your Unit's attack may be strong enough to destroy the opposing Unit.

However, abilities, Pilots, Commands and other effects can change combat dramatically.

Printed stats are therefore only part of the equation.

Pilots are one of the mechanics that makes the Gundam Card Game feel distinctly Gundam.

You can pair a Pilot with a Unit.

Think of this thematically as a Mobile Suit plus a Pilot.

For example, a Gundam Unit may become considerably more dangerous once paired with an appropriate Pilot.

Pairing can modify how a Unit performs and may enable abilities associated with that Unit, Pilot or combination.

This creates an important strategic decision.

You are not simply asking which Unit should I play.

You may also need to consider which Pilot should I pair with it.

The correct pairing can turn an ordinary Unit into a much more significant threat.

Command cards represent tactical actions and effects.

Depending on the individual card, Commands can help you:

• Strengthen a Unit
• Affect combat
• Remove or weaken threats
• Generate card advantage
• Protect your forces
• Manipulate the board
• Create unexpected interactions

Commands are particularly important because they can make combat less predictable.

An opponent with available resources may still have ways to alter a battle.

Therefore, simply having the strongest visible Unit does not necessarily mean an attack is safe.

Bases occupy a special role in Gundam.

Unlike ordinary Units, Bases are placed in the Base section of your Shield Area, and you can normally have up to one Base there at a time. Bases can provide defensive or strategic benefits depending on their abilities.

This adds another layer to the game because attacking an opponent is not always simply a matter of dealing with their Units.

Their Base may also affect how effectively you can break through their defenses.

Resources are what allow you to pay the costs required to play cards and use certain abilities.

Your Resource cards are kept in a separate 10-card Resource Deck.

This is important.

Unlike Magic: The Gathering, for example, you do not shuffle your equivalent of "lands" into your normal deck.

Instead, your resource development is handled separately.

That means you are much less likely to experience a game where you draw nothing but resources or cannot find any resources at all.

Your Main Deck can concentrate on the cards that actually execute your strategy.

Gundam also uses EX Resources.

EX Resources provide additional resource functionality and are represented using token cards.

However, there is a limit to how many you can maintain.

Under the rules, you can have up to five EX Resources in your Resource Area. Certain cards and effects interact with EX Resources, making them another strategic resource to manage.

For your first games, concentrate on understanding normal resource progression first.

Once you are comfortable with that system, EX Resources become much easier to understand.

Your Shields are effectively your defensive barrier.

Shield cards are placed face down, and their contents are private information. Each Shield is treated as having 1 HP. As your opponent successfully attacks you, your Shield defenses are broken down.

Eventually you may reach 0 Shields remaining.

At that point, you are extremely vulnerable.

If an opposing Unit deals battle damage to you while you have no Shields, you lose the game.

This makes Shield pressure one of the easiest ways for beginners to understand the state of a game.

More Shields generally means more breathing room.

No Shields means the next successful hit can end the game.

Before beginning, both players prepare their legal 50-card decks and 10-card Resource Decks.

Each player shuffles their Main Deck and places it face down.

The Resource Deck is placed separately.

Players determine who will be Player One and Player Two using an agreed random method such as dice or rock-paper-scissors.

Each player then draws five cards for their opening hand. The remaining game setup, including Shields and starting resources, is then completed according to the game's setup procedure.

Once both players are ready, the game begins.

After drawing your opening five cards, you have an opportunity to redraw.

If you choose to redraw, you return your entire opening hand to the bottom of your deck and draw five new cards.

You then shuffle your deck.

You can do this only once. This means Gundam does not use a selective mulligan where you simply replace one or two unwanted cards.

You have a decision: Keep all five or replace all five.

When evaluating your opening hand, look for a reasonable early resource curve and cards you can actually use during the first few turns.

A Gundam Card Game turn is divided into several phases.

The core structure includes:

• Start Phase
• Draw Phase
• Resource Phase
• Main Phase
• End Phase

The Main Phase is where most of your important strategic decisions happen.

You can play cards, activate effects and attack with Units when the rules allow.

For beginners, the general rhythm can be remembered as: Ready → Draw → Gain Resources → Play and Attack → End Turn.

Once you understand that basic sequence, the individual rules become much easier to learn.

At the beginning of your turn, cards that need to become active again are prepared for use.

During the previous turn, you may have rested cards to attack or perform other actions.

The Start Phase resets your position so those cards can potentially be used again.

If you have played other Bandai card games, this general ready/rest system will feel familiar.

During the Draw Phase, you draw a card from your Main Deck.

Drawing cards gives you additional Units, Pilots, Commands and Bases to work with.

Remember that your Resource cards come from a completely separate deck.

So when you draw from your Main Deck, you are drawing actual gameplay options rather than ordinary Resource cards.

This separation is one of Gundam's most beginner-friendly design choices.

During your Resource Phase, you develop the resources available to you.

Resources are critical because stronger cards generally require greater investment.

Early in the game, your options are limited.

As the game progresses, your available resources increase, allowing you to deploy increasingly powerful Units and combinations.

This creates a natural progression:

• Early game → establish your board
• Mid game → deploy stronger threats
• Late game → powerful Units, Pilots and combinations become available

Managing this progression effectively is a major part of deck building.

The Main Phase is where most of the game happens.

Depending on the cards and resources available, you can perform actions such as:

• Play Units
• Play Pilots
• Pair Pilots with Units
• Play Commands
• Play Bases
• Activate abilities
• Attack opposing Units
• Attack your opponent

You are generally deciding how to divide your resources between: developing your board and applying pressure.

Playing every card immediately is not always the correct choice.

Sometimes keeping resources available for another effect or developing a stronger future turn is more valuable.

Your Units and Pilots operate within your Battle Area.

There is an important board limit: You can normally have up to six Units in your Battle Area at one time. This prevents players from building infinitely wide boards.

Once your Battle Area begins filling up, each Unit slot becomes strategically important.

You may need to decide whether an older Unit is still valuable enough to occupy space or whether your strategy needs to make room for a stronger threat.

Your Units are your primary attackers.

During your Main Phase, eligible Units can attack valid targets.

Depending on the situation, you may attack: your opponent or an opposing Unit.

When you attack your opponent, you begin applying pressure to their Shields and ultimately threaten to win the game.

When you attack an opposing Unit, you are fighting for control of the board.

This creates one of the game's fundamental decisions: Do I attack their defenses or their forces?

Attacking the opponent advances you toward victory.

Attacking their Units may prevent them from defeating you first.

Combat revolves heavily around AP and HP.

AP represents how much damage a Unit can deal.

HP represents how much damage it can withstand.

Imagine:

• Your Unit: 5 AP / 5 HP
• Opponent's Unit: 4 AP / 4 HP

Your Unit has enough AP to overcome the opposing Unit's HP.

But combat does not happen in a vacuum.

Pilots, Commands, keywords and triggered effects can alter the result.

This is why experienced players pay attention not only to visible Units but also to: available resources and cards that could potentially be played.

If you attack your opponent successfully, their Shield Area protects them.

Breaking through Shields gradually removes that protection.

As their Shield count falls, your opponent becomes increasingly vulnerable.

For example:

• Several Shields remaining: You still have work to do.
• One Shield remaining: Your opponent is approaching danger.
• Zero Shields remaining: Your next successful Unit attack dealing battle damage can win the game.

This creates escalating pressure as the match progresses.

Removing the final Shield does not itself mean you have automatically won.

The critical rule is what happens afterward.

If your opponent has no Shields and one of your Units successfully deals battle damage to them, they are defeated. So the overall progression is: Break Shields → expose opponent → land the finishing attack.

This makes the final stages of a Gundam match particularly tactical.

A player with no Shields may still be able to survive by controlling your Units, defending effectively or preventing your attacks from connecting.

New players often want to attack the opponent every possible turn.

That is not always optimal.

Imagine your opponent has a powerful Unit capable of threatening you next turn.

You have two choices: Attack their Shields or destroy their dangerous Unit.

Taking another Shield moves you closer to victory.

Destroying the Unit may protect your board and prevent a major counterattack.

The correct choice depends on:

• Current Shield totals
• Your Units
• Their Units
• Available resources
• Cards in hand
• Potential abilities
• How close either player is to winning

This is where Gundam becomes much more strategic than simply "attack whenever possible."

One of the most thematic aspects of Gundam is combining a Mobile Suit with its Pilot.

A Unit can become significantly more effective when paired correctly.

Some effects specifically reward or require a Unit to be paired.

This means deck construction often involves thinking about packages rather than individual cards.

Instead of asking: \"Is this Unit good?\" you may ask: \"How good is this Unit with the Pilots and other cards in my deck?\" A card that looks average by itself may become extremely powerful within the correct combination.

Gundam contains numerous abilities and keywords that modify normal gameplay.

Current official rules and FAQs include mechanics such as:

• Blocker
• Support
• First Strike
• High-Maneuver
• Repair
• Breach
• Suppression
• Deploy
• Attack
• Destroyed
• When Paired and others.

You do not need to memorize every keyword before your first game.

Learn them as they appear in your deck.

The important part is understanding that card text can override or modify the normal rules.

Blocker is an important defensive concept.

Units with defensive capabilities can help protect you from opposing attacks.

This means your opponent may not always be able to simply attack your Shields freely.

A strategically positioned defensive Unit can force them to reconsider how they sequence their attacks.

This is particularly valuable when: your Shield count is low or you are trying to survive long enough to execute your own winning turn.

Breach is an aggressive keyword associated with pushing through your opponent's defenses.

It rewards strategies focused on Shield pressure and offensive momentum.

Cards with Breach can make certain attacks against an opponent more punishing.

If you are playing an aggressive deck, mechanics such as Breach may help accelerate your path toward the final attack.

Repair operates on the defensive side of the game.

As the name suggests, it can help restore or reinforce your defenses under the appropriate circumstances.

That can be extremely important because Shields effectively determine how many successful attacks separate you from defeat.

A strategy capable of recovering defensive value can force an aggressive opponent to spend additional turns breaking through.

Imagine you control three Units.

Your opponent has one defensive threat.

You intend to attack with all three.

The order in which you attack can matter enormously.

Your first attack might force your opponent to:

• Use a defensive effect
• Commit a Unit
• Spend resources
• Use a Command
• Reveal information about their plan

Your second and third attacks can then take advantage of that information.

Instead of thinking I have three attacks, think which attack should happen first.

Attack sequencing is an important skill in Bandai-style card games.

Resources determine how much you can accomplish during your turn.

A common beginner mistake is spending everything immediately simply because it is available.

Suppose you have enough resources to play one large Unit.

Alternatively, you could play a smaller Unit, a Pilot and a Command.

The second option may create a stronger overall board.

The reverse can also be true.

Sometimes deploying one major threat is far more valuable than playing several weaker cards.

Good resource management means thinking beyond the current action and considering the entire turn.

Under the standard construction rules, your Main Deck contains exactly 50 cards.

Your deck may use cards from one or two colors.

You can normally include up to four copies of cards with the same card number. Separately, you prepare a 10-card Resource Deck.

That gives you:

• Main Deck: 50 cards
• Resource Deck: 10 cards

Your Main Deck can contain:

• Units
• Pilots
• Commands
• Bases

Your Resource Deck contains Resources.

This separation is fundamental to Gundam deck construction.

Gundam decks are built around card colors.

Your constructed deck can use one or two colors under the standard rules. Different colors tend to support different strategies and combinations.

Rather than choosing a color simply because you like how it looks, think about:

• Which Gundam series you want to play
• Which Units you want to build around
• Which Pilots support those Units
• How aggressive or defensive you want your deck to be
• Which Commands support your strategy

For beginners, starting with a preconstructed Starter Deck makes this much easier.

You can normally include up to four copies of a card with the same card number in your Main Deck. If a card is essential to your strategy, running more copies makes it more likely you will draw it.

For example:

• 4 copies: highly important
• 3 copies: want to see regularly
• 2 copies: useful but situational
• 1 copy: specialized or rarely needed

These are not mandatory ratios, but they are a useful way for beginners to think about deck consistency.

Tournament restrictions can override the normal copy limit for particular cards, so competitive players should always check Bandai's current banned/restricted list. As of July 24, 2026, Bandai maintains banned cards, restricted cards and banned-pair combinations.

A strong Gundam deck is not simply a collection of individually powerful cards.

Your Units, Pilots, Commands and Bases should support each other.

For example, if your strategy revolves around a particular type of Unit, you may want Pilots that strengthen those Units and Commands that support the same game plan.

Think: Unit + Pilot + support cards + strategy rather than: 50 powerful cards.

Consistency usually beats randomness.

Powerful Gundams are exciting.

Naturally, new players often want to fill their deck with the strongest Mobile Suits they own.

But expensive cards require resources.

If your opening hand contains nothing you can realistically play during the early game, your opponent may establish a major advantage before you can respond.

A good deck needs a resource curve.

You want useful cards at different stages of the game:

• Early game: Establish your board.
• Mid game: Develop stronger Units and combinations.
• Late game: Deploy your biggest threats and finish the battle.

Imagine you begin your turn with several Resources available.

Several mistakes are particularly common when learning Gundam:

The fundamental rules are relatively approachable.

You need to understand:

• Resources
• Units
• Pilots
• AP and HP
• Shields
• Attacking
• Card effects

Once those concepts make sense, you can already play a basic game.

The deeper complexity comes from:

• Pilot combinations
• Keywords
• Attack sequencing
• Resource efficiency
• Deck construction
• Matchups
• Card interactions
• Knowing when to attack Units instead of Shields

This makes Gundam relatively easy to begin playing while still providing considerable strategic depth.

For a completely new player, a Starter Deck is the easiest entry point.

Bandai's Starter Deck products contain a ready-to-play 50-card deck and 10 Resource cards, along with the necessary accessories for play. This allows you to learn without worrying about deck construction immediately.

During your first few games, concentrate on:

• Understanding Resources
• Playing Units
• Pairing Pilots
• Learning AP and HP
• Attacking Units
• Attacking Shields
• Understanding your deck's main keywords
• Learning when to defend and when to attack

Once these mechanics become natural, you can start modifying the Starter Deck or building your own 50-card deck.

Bandai also provides an official Teaching App for learning the basic rules interactively.

The Gundam Card Game also has significant appeal beyond competitive play.

Gundam has decades of characters, Mobile Suits, factions and series for collectors to explore.

Some collectors may focus on:

• Favourite Gundams
• Favourite Pilots
• Particular Gundam series
• Alternate-art cards
• Foil cards
• Promotional cards
• High-rarity cards
• Complete sets
• Sealed booster products
• Professionally graded cards

A collector may want a particular Gundam, Char, Amuro, Wing Gundam or Strike Freedom card because of its artwork or character rather than its competitive strength.

Competitive players may instead prioritize obtaining multiple copies of cards needed for their decks.

Neither approach is wrong.

TCGs sit at the intersection of game and collectible, and Gundam fits naturally into both sides.

Sleevd allows Gundam players and collectors to discover cards from marketplace sellers alongside other major trading card games.

Whether you are upgrading a Starter Deck, building a competitive deck, searching for a favourite Mobile Suit or collecting high-rarity Gundam cards, buying singles allows you to target the exact cards you need rather than relying entirely on booster packs.

When purchasing Gundam cards, pay attention to the exact:

• Card name
• Card number
• Set
• Rarity
• Language
• Artwork or printing
• Condition

This is especially important when multiple versions of the same popular Mobile Suit or Pilot exist.

If you are buying raw cards, see our Trading Card Condition Guide for an explanation of how condition affects collectible cards.

If you are deciding whether to collect raw or professionally graded cards, see our Raw vs Graded Trading Cards guide.

The Gundam catalog here holds 1,546 cards, and no seller has listed one of them yet. The card pages work as a price index in the meantime, and a wish list entry is the way to hear about the first copy.

The Gundam Card Game takes one of the world's largest mecha franchises and translates it into a tactical TCG built around Units, Pilots, Resources and Shields.

The core gameplay loop is easy to remember: Build Resources → deploy Units → pair Pilots → battle enemy forces → break Shields → land the final attack.

For beginners, one of the most important lessons is that attacking your opponent every turn is not automatically the best strategy.

Sometimes destroying an opposing Unit creates a much larger advantage.

Sometimes preserving your own forces matters more than breaking another Shield.

And sometimes pairing the right Pilot with the right Unit creates the opening you need to win the game.

Start with a Starter Deck, learn how its Units and Pilots interact, and concentrate on understanding the Resource and Shield systems.

Once those fundamentals become familiar, deck building, card combinations and combat sequencing are where the Gundam Card Game begins to reveal its deeper strategy.