How to Play Locals / Tournaments in Japan: A very humble Guide

Introduction Hello everyone! A few months ago, I found myself in a situation where I wanted to find out more about Japanese Locals online, how to play in them and so on. However, information is scarce, so I put together this short, humble guide of my personal experiences after playing here for about two months . I want to help all interested players learn a little about Japanese TCG culture and make it as easy as possible for them to enter a tournament. In the best case scenario, it will be a small guidebook for all future travelers to Japan who want to find out more in advance. Maybe you read this text months after I've published it and I'll be happy to help you out :D Important disclaimer : I cannot and will not guarantee that all Japanese sentences are grammatically correct and perfect. I'm not Japanese and only speak basic Japanese. Nevertheless, I want to provide you with sentences and words that are as easy to understand as possible and that have enabled me to communicate on site. I also recommend the following page as a further reference work for looking up important terms and their Japanese equivalents: https://thejapanhobbyist.com/current-magic-the-gathering-vocabulary-in-japanese/ Quick disclaimer – who is this guide for? For all OPTCG players who want to participate in locals in Japan/Tokyo. This is explicitly a guide for participating in locals, not flagships , for which, to my knowledge, you must be a Japanese citizen. What requirements do I need to meet? Do I need to be able to speak Japanese? There are roughly two scenarios that can occur: Scenario 1 : You know the game well enough to memorize 95% of all cards. For all remaining cards—especially newer cards that still exist in Japan before the merger of NA/EU and JP—it helps to communicate with your game partner so that you can look up the cards in English on your cell phone in case of doubt. Scenario 2 : You are new to the game and do not know most of the cards. In this case, your Japanese should be good enough to at least roughly read and understand the cards, otherwise it will disrupt the flow of the game too much. Otherwise, as in Europe, you will need the Bandai TCG+ app and a deck in Japanese. How can I get hold of a Japanese deck? Which stores can you recommend in Tokyo? A real insider tip these days is a store in Akihabara called カードショップ トレカラフテル ( https://www.tcg-raftel.com /). This shop has become my first port of call, as it has an excellent selection of sleeves and a great range of cards. The prices may be slightly above average in some cases, but you can conveniently order and pay online and then pick up your order in the store the next day. Otherwise, any other store in Tokyo will certainly be able to help you. Other stores I love over here: One Happy OPTCG Store ( https://www.onehappy.co.jp/ ) Batroco Tournament Center Takadanobaba (Close to One Happy) I have a Japanese deck and am on site – what do I need to do now? It's as simple as it sounds: In the Bandai app, go to Event Search and set the country (“Event State/Province”) to "Japan". That's it. In my case, I didn't need to create a new account or make any changes. It also helps to search for an specific entry under “Event Series” that reads as follows: スタンダ-ドバテル（X 月 ) This reads as “Standard Battle” and is the equivalent of a local in Japan. Please note : In the drop-down menu, you will see “Standard Battle” with additional options, because there are locals only for children, for example—simply select the shortest option. Replace the X in the title with the current month in which you are in Japan. In December, for example (12月). After logging into the app, go to the store and check-in at the reception as usual. My very simple version is to ask: “Kyou wa koko de ”Standado Batteru“ ga arimasu ka” → Is there a Standard Battle here today? It is probably even easier to put it this way: „”Standado Batteru“ ga arimasu ka“ → Is there a Standard Battle? + hold your app ready. They'll get it. It's not a regular thing, but it happens every now and then: some stores expect you to buy something small, like a booster pack, to take part in the tournament. In the worst case, I had to buy a Japanese OP13 booster pack for 220 yen, which is about 1,30€, to participate. Nihongo no dekki ga arimasu - "I have a japanese deck" helps as well sometimes And that's it. You are ready and can wait for your pairings. How to prepare the Game. Once you are seated at your tables, prepare the game as usual. Shuffle the cards, lay out the playmat, and place the leader cards. As is customary in Europe, it is customary to offer your deck to the player opposite you to perform the cut. Choosing the order can sometimes be a little tricky. Personally, I'm too bad at timing the Japanese rock-paper-scissors :D I usually try to take out some dice and ask: Saikoro wa daijoubu desu ka? → Are dices okay? Most of the time they understand what I mean. Sometimes, to be fair, they don't, especially when it comes to high rol