Attach an Energy card to a Pok�mon
Take an Energy card from your hand and attach it to one of your Pok�mon in play (put it under the Pok�mon card).
Unlike most of the other things you can do during your turn, you may do this only once during your turn. Also, remember that you can attach an Energy card to a Pok�mon on your Bench. After all, that's "in play," too!
Play a Trainer card
When you want to play a Trainer card, do what it says, then put it in the discard pile.
Retreat your Active Pok�mon
You may switch your Active Pok�mon with one of the Pok�mon on your Bench. To do this, you must discard Energy attached to the Active Pok�mon equal to the Retreat Cost that's written in the lower right-hand corner. (You'll read more about costs in the "Attack with Your Active Pok�mon" section.) If you can't do that, then you can't retreat. Pok�mon with no Retreat Cost don't need to get rid of any Energy when they retreat-they can retreat "for free."
A Pok�mon that is Asleep or Paralyzed can't retreat. A Confused Pok�mon can try to retreat, but it might not succeed. (Why this might happen will be explained later on in the rules.)
When your Active Pok�mon goes to your Bench (whether it retreated or got there some other way), it keeps any Energy cards, any Evolution cards, and any damage counters it might already have. All other things about the Pok�mon go away-Sleep, Confusion, Paralysis, Poison, or anything else that might be the result of an attack some Pok�mon made earlier. All of these things go away.
If you retreat, you can still attack that turn with the new Active Pok�mon.
Use a Pok�mon Power
Some Pok�mon have a special "Pok�mon Power" that they can use when they're in play. (Remember, Benched Pok�mon are "in play," too.) Many of these Powers can be used before you attack. Each Pok�mon Power is different, though, so you should read carefully to see how each Power works.
A Pok�mon Power isn't the same as a Pok�mon's attack, so if you use the Pok�mon Power, you can still attack!
3) ATTACK with your Active Pok�mon
If you wish, you may have your Active Pok�mon attack your opponent's Active Pok�mon (also called the "Defending Pok�mon"). This is the last thing you can do during your turn-you can't do anything else afterward. You can only attack one time during your turn, and your Pok�mon can only use one of its attacks each turn. To attack, just tell your opponent which one of your Pok�mon's attacks you're using. You can only use an attack if you have at least the required amount of Energy attached to your Active Pok�mon.
The required amount is written to the left of the attack name.
�Energy
Any kind of Energy-
,
,
,
,
,
, or
-can count toward Colorless Energy requirements (
). But only Energy of the appropriate kind counts toward Energy requirements of that kind. For example, you can use at attack with
next to it only if that Pok�mon has at least 3 Energy attached to it, at least 2 of which are
Energy.
You have to have the required amount of Energy attached to a Pok�mon to use its attack, but you don't have to discard those cards to attack. The cards stay attached to your Pok�mon unless the card says otherwise!
Damage
When you attack, read the attack you're using and do what it says. For each 10 damage a Pok�mon takes, put one damage counter on it. If a Pok�mon ever has total damage at least equal to its Hit Points (for example, 4 or more damage counters on a Pok�mon with 40 HP), it's immediately Knocked Out.
Weakness and Resistance
Some Pok�mon have a Weakness or Resistance to Pok�mon of certain other types. (For example, Charmander has a Weakness to , Pok�mon.) A Defending Pok�mon takes double damage from a Pok�mon that it has a Weakness to, and it takes 30 less damage from a Pok�mon that it has Resistance to.
Usually the attack won't depend on the order you do this in, but if it does, then this is how you'll figure it out! First, you pay any costs (discarding Energy cards, for example) before seeing what the attack does. Then damage comes before any other effects. Also, Weakness is applied before other things that might change the amount of damage.
What happens when your Pok�mon is Knocked Out?
Whenever one of your Pok�mon is Knocked Out, put its Basic Pok�mon card and all cards attached to it (Evolution cards, Energy cards, etc.) in your discard pile. Your opponent then chooses one of his or her Prizes (even if you Knocked Out your Pok�mon yourself!) and puts it into his or her hand. After that, you must replace your Active Pok�mon with a Pok�mon from your Bench. (If you can't do this because your Bench is empty, you lose.) If your Active Pok�mon and your opponent's Active Pok�mon are Knocked Out at the same time, the player whose turn it is replaces his or her Pok�mon last. The player whose turn it is chooses his or her Prize last as well.
4) Your turn is OVER now
Sometimes there are things to do after your turn is over but before your opponent's turn begins. After you've done those things, your opponent's turn begins.
After each player's turn, if either player's Active Pok�mon is Poisoned, it'll take damage, and if it's Asleep or Paralyzed it might recover. Then the next player's turn begins.
How Do Sleep, Confusion, Paralysis, and Poison Work?
Some attacks cause the Defending Pok�mon to be Asleep, Confused, Paralyzed, or Poisoned. These things don't happen to a Benched Pok�mon, only to an Active Pok�mon-in fact, if a Pok�mon goes to the Bench, these things are removed from it. And evolving a Pok�mon also means it's no longer Asleep, Confused, Paralyzed, or Poisoned.
Asleep
If a Pok�mon is Asleep, it can't attack or retreat. As soon as a Pok�mon is Asleep, turn it sideways to show that it's Asleep. After each player's turn, flip a coin. On a heads, the Pok�mon wakes up (turn the card back right-side up), but on a tails it's still Asleep, and you'll have to wait until after the next turn to try to wake it up again.
Confused
If a Pok�mon is Confused, you have to flip a coin whenever you try to attack with it or whenever you try to make it retreat. Turn a Confused Pok�mon with its head pointed toward you to show it's Confused.
When you try to make a Confused Pok�mon retreat, you first have to pay the Retreat Cost by discarding Energy cards. Then flip a coin. On heads, you retreat the Pok�mon as normal. On tails, the retreat fails, and that Pok�mon can't try to retreat again that turn.
When you attack with a Confused Pok�mon, you flip a coin. On heads, the attack works normally, but on tails your Pok�mon attacks itself with an attack that does 20 damage. (If your Pok�mon has a Weakness or Resistance to its own type, or if there's some other effect that would alter the attack, apply these things as usual.)
On tails, the Active Pok�mon does 20 damage to itself even if its attack normally doesn't do damage (like Squirtle's Withdraw attack).
Paralyzed
If a Pok�mon is Paralyzed, it can't attack or retreat. Turn the Pok�mon sideways to show it's Paralyzed. If an Active Pok�mon is Paralyzed, it recovers after its player's next turn. Turn the card right-side up again.
What this means is that if your Pok�mon gets Paralyzed, it will be out of action on your next turn, and then it will be okay again.
Card Positions
Poisoned
If a Pok�mon is Poisoned, place a "poison marker" on it to show that it's Poisoned.
As long as it's still Poisoned, the Pok�mon takes 10 damage after each player's turn, ignoring Weakness and Resistance. If an attack would Poison a Pok�mon that's already Poisoned, it doesn't get doubly Poisoned; instead, the new Poison condition replaces the old one.
Make sure whatever you use for a poison marker looks different from a damage counter.