Reading a deck list

Every competitive Pokémon TCG community shares decks the same way — a plain text list, one card per line, with a count, a name, a set abbreviation, and a collector number. Once you can read this format, you can read every deck on Reddit, every tournament report, every share link.

The basic format

Each line looks like this:

3 N's Zoroark ex JTG 175

That's: quantity + card name + set code + collector number.

  • 3 — how many copies are in the deck
  • N's Zoroark ex — the card name
  • JTG — the set abbreviation (Journey Together, in this case)
  • 175 — the card's number in that set

The set code and number are there because some cards have been printed in multiple sets — and even within the same name, different printings count toward the same 4-copy limit. Specifying which version helps tournament software (and Dexter) know exactly which printing you mean.

Sections

A full deck list usually has three sections — Pokémon, Trainer, and Energy:

Pokémon: 13
3 N's Zoroark ex JTG 175
3 N's Zorua ASC 136
2 N's Reshiram ASC 154
2 N's Zekrom ASC 155
... (and so on)

Trainer: 15
4 Ultra Ball MEG 131
4 N's PP Up ASC 195
4 Buddy-Buddy Poffin MEG 167
3 Lillie's Determination ASC 192
... (and so on)

Energy: 1
8 Basic {D} Energy MEE 7

The numbers next to each section header are informational. Some exports (like the one above) count distinct entries in the section; others count total cards. Either way, the only count that has to be exact is the deck's overall 60 cards — most lists include a Total Cards: 60 line at the bottom to confirm.

The 4-copy rule

You can have at most 4 copies of any card with the same name. Two exceptions:

  • Basic Energy — unlimited copies allowed
  • ACE SPEC cards — only 1 ACE SPEC per deck, total (not per name)

Why deck lists matter for Dexter

Dexter is built around this format. When you paste a deck list on the home page, Dexter parses every line, looks up each card, and runs analysis on:

  • Rotation legality — any cards leaving Standard?
  • Energy ratios
  • Evolution lines — do you have the right Basics for your Stage 1s/2s?
  • Archetype match — does this look like a known meta deck?
  • Price

In the next lesson, we'll actually do it.

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