The One Piece Card Game is a card game for two players. Each player has one Leader card, a 50-card deck and 10 DON!! cards. You win by landing a hit on your opponent's Leader when they have no Life cards left. On your turn you stand your cards back up, draw a card, add DON!! cards, play your Characters and attack. This guide walks you through it one step at a time, with no experience needed.
Download the free printable quick guide (PDF)
Two pages you can print and keep next to your cards while you learn.
Want the full official rules? Get Bandai's Official Rule Manual (PDF).
Prefer to watch? Official how-to-play video
Bandai, the company that makes the game, has an official video that teaches you how to play. Watch it before or after reading this guide.
Video: "[OFFICIAL] Learn how to play the ONE PIECE CARD GAME!" Official Bandai Card Games Channel.
What do you need to play?
- 1 Leader card. This is your main character.
- A deck of exactly 50 cards. Characters, Events and Stages.
- 10 DON!! cards. A separate small deck you use to pay for cards and power up.
Easiest way to start: buy a Starter Deck. It comes with a ready-to-play deck, a Leader and DON!! cards. Open it and you can play right away.
What do the cards do?
There are five kinds of cards.
| Card | What it is | What to look at |
|---|---|---|
| Leader | Your main character. It stays out the whole game and can attack. | Power, and its Life number, which is how many Life cards you start with. |
| Character | Fighters you play to attack and defend. You can have up to 5 out at once. | Cost (top left), power and Counter (the extra power it gives when you use it to defend). |
| Event | A one-time effect. Some can be used during your opponent's attack. | Cost and what the card says it does. |
| Stage | A place that stays out and helps you. Only 1 at a time. | Cost and what the card says it does. |
| DON!! | Your energy. You use it to pay for cards or to power up your Leader and Characters. | Nothing to read. Every DON!! card works the same. |
Power is the big number on a Leader or Character. When two cards fight, the higher power wins.
Deck rules (only three)
- Your deck is exactly 50 cards, plus your Leader and 10 DON!! cards.
- Every card must be a color your Leader has. The colors are red, green, blue, purple, black and yellow.
- No more than 4 copies of the same card.
Playing in a store tournament? Bandai also has a banned card list and a Standard format that uses the newest sets. Ask us at the counter, or check the official rules page.
Where do the cards go?
Each player's side of the table has eight spots. The play sheet in a starter deck shows them.
| Area | What goes there |
|---|---|
| Character Area | Your Characters. Up to 5. |
| Leader | Your Leader, face up. It stays here all game. |
| Stage | Your Stage card. Only 1. |
| Deck | Your 50-card deck, face down. |
| Trash | Your discard pile: K.O.'d Characters and used Events. |
| Cost Area | Your DON!! cards that are ready to use. |
| DON!! deck | Your 10 DON!! cards waiting to come into play. |
| Life | Your Life cards, face down. |
No play sheet? Print Bandai's official play sheet (PDF) for free.
How do you set up a game?
- Shuffle your deck and put it face down in the Deck spot. Put your Leader face up and your DON!! deck in their spots.
- Play rock-paper-scissors. The winner decides who goes first.
- Draw 5 cards. Don't like your hand? You can shuffle all 5 back and draw 5 new ones, but only once.
- Make your Life. Look at the Life number on your Leader. Put that many cards from the top of your deck face down in your Life spot, without looking at them.
- Start! The first player takes the first turn.
How do you win?
You win if either of these happens:
- You hit your opponent's Leader when they have 0 Life cards left.
- Your opponent's deck runs out of cards.
What happens on your turn?
Every turn has five parts, always in this order.
- Refresh Phase: any DON!! cards you gave to your cards come back to your Cost Area, and every sideways card stands back up.
- Draw Phase: draw 1 card. The player who goes first skips this on their very first turn.
- DON!! Phase: move 2 DON!! cards from your DON!! deck to your Cost Area. The player who goes first only moves 1 on their very first turn.
- Main Phase: do any of these, in any order, as many times as you can: play Characters, Events and Stages, give DON!! to your cards, and attack.
- End Phase: any "end of turn" effects happen, and your opponent takes their turn.
Two first-turn rules: nobody can attack on their own first turn, and a Character can't attack on the turn you play it (unless it has [Rush]).
What are DON!! cards?
DON!! cards are your energy. You get 2 more every turn, up to all 10. There are two ways to use them.
- Pay a cost. Every Character, Event and Stage has a cost in the top left corner. To play it, turn that many DON!! cards in your Cost Area sideways. DON!! cards have no color, so any DON!! can pay for any card.
- Give for power. During your Main Phase, tuck an upright DON!! card under your Leader or a Character. That card gets +1000 power for each DON!!, but only during your turn. The DON!! comes back at the start of your next turn.
Already have 5 Characters? To play a new one, put one of your 5 in the trash first.
What do "active" and "rested" mean?
- Active means the card is standing upright. It's ready to use.
- Rested means the card is turned sideways. It's been used this turn, to attack, block or pay for something.
Your cards stand back up at the start of your next turn.
How do attacks work?
Attacking is how you take away your opponent's Life. Here's what happens, step by step.
- Attack. Turn your Leader or a Character sideways. Pick your target: your opponent's Leader, or one of their Characters that's sideways. You can't attack a Character that's standing upright.
- Block. Your opponent may turn a Character with [Blocker] sideways. That Character becomes the new target.
- Counter. Your opponent may power up the card being attacked by trashing cards from their hand that have a Counter number, or by using a [Counter] Event.
- Damage. Compare power. If the attacker's power is equal to or higher, the attacker wins. Ties go to the attacker.
- End. Any power from Counters wears off.
What happens next:
- You beat their Leader: they take 1 damage and move the top card of their Life into their hand.
- You beat their Leader and they had 0 Life: you win the game.
- You beat a Character: it's K.O.'d and goes to their trash.
- You lose: nothing happens. The fight is over.
How do Blockers and Counters work?
These are your two ways to defend when your opponent attacks.
- [Blocker]: turn this Character sideways to take the attack instead of your Leader or another Character. You can only block once per attack.
- Counter: many Characters have a Counter number, like +1000 or +2000, printed on the side. When you're attacked, you can trash that card from your hand to add its Counter number to the card being attacked for that fight.
Example: your Leader has 5000 power and you give it 2 DON!!, so it attacks with 7000. Your opponent's Leader has 5000 power. They trash a card with a +2000 Counter, so they're at 7000 too. It's a tie, and ties go to the attacker, so your hit lands and they take 1 damage.
What happens when you take damage?
When your Leader is hit, the top card of your Life goes into your hand. That means taking damage also gives you more cards to use.
Some cards have a [Trigger]. If one of those comes off your Life as damage, you can show it and use its free effect instead of putting it in your hand.
What do the common keywords mean?
| Keyword | In plain English |
|---|---|
| Blocker | When your opponent attacks, you can turn this card sideways to make it the new target instead. |
| Rush | This Character can attack on the same turn you play it. |
| Double Attack | When this card hits a Leader, it deals 2 damage instead of 1. |
| Banish | When this card deals damage, the Life card goes to the trash instead of your opponent's hand, and they can't use its Trigger. |
| Trigger | A free effect you can use when this card comes off your Life as damage. |
| On Play | Happens when you play the card. |
| When Attacking | Happens when this card attacks. |
| On K.O. | Happens when this card is K.O.'d. |
| DON!! x1 | This effect only works if the card has at least 1 DON!! given to it. |
| Once Per Turn | You can only use this effect once each turn. |
What are the best tips for your first game?
- Ties go to the attacker. Give DON!! to match your opponent's power instead of beating it by a lot.
- Know your Counters. Check the Counter numbers in your hand before your opponent attacks.
- Taking damage isn't all bad. Every Life card you lose goes into your hand, which gives you more cards to use.
- Sideways Characters are targets. After a Character attacks, it stays sideways through your opponent's turn, so they can attack it.
- Watch your deck. If it runs out, you lose.
Quick reference
| Deck | 1 Leader + exactly 50 cards + 10 DON!!, Leader's colors only, max 4 copies |
| Start | Draw 5 (one redraw allowed), Life cards equal to your Leader's Life number |
| Your turn | Refresh, draw 1, add 2 DON!!, play cards and attack, end |
| First turn | First player: no draw and only 1 DON!!. Nobody attacks on their first turn. |
| Attack | Leader or a sideways Character. Ties go to the attacker. |
| Win | Hit their Leader at 0 Life, or their deck runs out |
Printable quick guide
Everything above fits on two printable pages. Print it double-sided and keep it at the table.
Download the printable guide (PDF)
Official Bandai rules and tools (free)
Bandai, the company that makes the One Piece Card Game, posts its official rules for free.
- Official Rule Manual (PDF): the basic rules with pictures. Start here.
- Rule Overview Sheet (PDF): a one-page summary of the rules.
- Play sheet (PDF): a printable mat that shows where every card goes.
- Comprehensive Rules (PDF): every rule in full detail, for when a card does something tricky.
- Play Guide: Bandai's one-page guide to keep handy while you play.
- Teaching App: a free app that walks you through a practice game.
Bandai updates these from time to time. The newest versions, the banned card list and card FAQs are always on the official One Piece Card Game rules page.
Where can you learn and play One Piece near Newport, TN?
Landfall Outpost hosts One Piece Card Game every Saturday from 5 to 8 PM at 138 North St, Newport, TN 37821. New players are welcome, and we're happy to teach you your first game. Pick up One Piece starter decks and booster packs in our One Piece Card Game collection, or stop in Friday and Saturday 12–8 or Sunday 12–6. Free on-site parking. See all events.