Base–Fossil Cube

What is a Cube?

A cube is a pre-assembled collection of cards made for drafting into decks to then battle against the other players you have drafted with. Unlike a traditional draft, where players are opening booster packs (and also keeping the cards they draft), a cube is meant for one thing: battling. All cubes are preconstructed to ensure the drafting pool contains a balanced mix of cards. In Pokémon, this means a card pool with complete Evolution lines (something you can’t guarantee will be present in booster packs). Cubing is particularly fun in Pokémon because it offers cards that were previously overshadowed in competitive play the opportunity to shine.

Base–Fossil Cube (360 cards)

Water (40)	Fire (35)	Grass (41)	Psychic (36)
4️⃣ Squirtle 3️⃣ Wartortle 2️⃣ Blastoise 4️⃣ Poliwag 3️⃣ Poliwhirl 2️⃣ Poliwrath 3️⃣ Magikarp 2️⃣ Gyarados 3️⃣ Seel 3️⃣ Dewgong 3️⃣ Psyduck 2️⃣ Golduck 2️⃣ Articuno 2️⃣ Lapras 2️⃣ Vaporeon	4️⃣ Charmander 3️⃣ Charmeleon 2️⃣ Charizard 4️⃣ Vulpix 2️⃣ Ninetales 3️⃣ Growlithe 3️⃣ Arcanine 4️⃣ Ponyta 3️⃣ Rapidash 3️⃣ Magmar 2️⃣ Moltres 2️⃣ Flareon	4️⃣ Bulbasaur 3️⃣ Ivysaur 2️⃣ Venusaur 4️⃣ Nidoran♂ 3️⃣ Nidorino 2️⃣ Nidoking 4️⃣ Venonat 2️⃣ Venomoth 4️⃣ Exeggcute 3️⃣ Exeggutor 4️⃣ Grimer 2️⃣ Muk 2️⃣ Scyther 2️⃣ Pinsir	4️⃣ Abra 3️⃣ Kadabra 2️⃣ Alakazam 3️⃣ Gastly 2️⃣ Haunter 2️⃣ Gengar 4️⃣ Drowzee 2️⃣ Hypno 4️⃣ Slowpoke 3️⃣ Slowbro 2️⃣ Mewtwo 3️⃣ Jynx 2️⃣ Mr. Mime
Fighting (31)	Lightning (24)	Colorless (80)	Trainers (73)
4️⃣ Machop 3️⃣ Machoke 2️⃣ Machamp 4️⃣ Sandshrew 3️⃣ Sandslash 4️⃣ Mankey 3️⃣ Primeape 2️⃣ Hitmonchan 2️⃣ Hitmonlee 4️⃣ Onix	4️⃣ Magnemite 2️⃣ Magneton 4️⃣ Pikachu 2️⃣ Raichu 4️⃣ Voltorb 2️⃣ Electrode 2️⃣ Zapdos 2️⃣ Electabuzz 2️⃣ Jolteon	3️⃣ Dratini 2️⃣ Dragonair 2️⃣ Dragonite 4️⃣ Pidgey 2️⃣ Pidgeotto 2️⃣ Pidgeot 4️⃣ Rattata 3️⃣ Raticate 4️⃣ Doduo 3️⃣ Dodrio 2️⃣ Clefairy 2️⃣ Clefable 4️⃣ Jigglypuff 2️⃣ Wigglytuff 4️⃣ Spearow 3️⃣ Fearow 4️⃣ Meowth 3️⃣ Persian 2️⃣ Chansey 3️⃣ Farfetch’d 3️⃣ Porygon 2️⃣ Kangaskhan 2️⃣ Snorlax 3️⃣ Lickitung 3️⃣ Tauros 4️⃣ Eevee 2️⃣ Ditto 3️⃣ Double Colorless Energy	4️⃣ Bill 2️⃣ Clefairy Doll 2️⃣ Computer Search 3️⃣ Defender 4️⃣ Energy Removal 3️⃣ Energy Retrieval 4️⃣ Energy Search 3️⃣ Full Heal 4️⃣ Gust of Wind 2️⃣ Imposter Professor Oak 2️⃣ Item Finder 2️⃣ Lass 3️⃣ Mr. Fuji 3️⃣ PlusPower 4️⃣ Poké Ball 3️⃣ Pokédex 2️⃣ Pokémon Breeder 3️⃣ Pokémon Center 2️⃣ Pokémon Trader 4️⃣ Potion 3️⃣ Professor Oak 2️⃣ Scoop Up 2️⃣ Super Energy Removal 3️⃣ Super Potion 4️⃣ Switch

In addition to the 360 cards listed above, I recommend having 40 each of Fire, Lightning and Fighting Energy, and 45 each of Water, Grass and Psychic Energy cards so that players have access to the Basic Energy cards needed to build their decks.

The Design

This cube was designed with simplicity in mind, but not at the expense of being extremely fun to play. While other Pokémon cubes contain cards that span across decades, I purposely limited the cards in this cube to the game’s first three sets, which are full of iconic and well-known cards that don’t have a lot of text to read or memorize. And while other cubes contain unpredictable amounts of cards, I used consistent card counts based on each card’s rarity: if a card is common, there are 4 copies, uncommon there are 3, rare there are 2. This helps players better know what to expect and to not be overwhelmed by the drafting process. With less surprises, the drafting process goes by quickly, since players will not need to constantly pause to read cards and ask questions. This saved time means more games of Pokémon! (And isn’t that the main goal in life?)

How to Play

Setting Up

This cube is designed to be drafted by exactly 8 players. Drafting works the same as a typical booster draft, with players each receiving 45 cards and dividing them into three 15-card “packs.” If you already know how to draft, you can skip past this part.

1. Seat each player at the same table. (Note: Seats should be assigned randomly for the most fair gameplay.)
2. Perform a thorough shuffle of all 360 cards.
3. Deal each player 45 cards face-down. There should be no leftover cards if done properly.
4. Have each player divide their 45 cards into three 15-card “packs” (without looking at any of the cards).

Drafting

Once players have their cards divided into three 15-card packs, it’s time to draft! There are three drafting phases: one for each pack.

1. Each player picks up or “opens” one of their 15-card packs by looking at the cards (without showing anyone else the cards)
2. Each player chooses one card from their pack, then places it face-down into what will become their collection
3. Each player passes the remaining cards to the player to their left
4. Each player chooses a second card from the remaining 14 cards passed to them, adding it to their collection
5. Each player passes the remaining 13 cards to the left, repeating this process until each player is passed the single remaining card in a pack
6. Give players a moment to review the cards they drafted (each player should now have 15 cards total in their collection) before opening the second pack
7. Each player opens their second 15-card pack, again choosing one card to add to their collection
8. The second pack is drafted the same way except it is passed to the right each turn
9. When the second round of drafting is complete, let players again review the cards they have selected
10. The third and final pack is drafted identically to the first, being passed to the left each turn

Deck Construction

After the third and final round of drafting is complete, each player will have 45 cards total (the same amount of cards they had in their three packs to begin). Players can then use as many of these cards as they choose combined with unlimited access to Basic Energy cards to build a 40-card deck. These 40-card decks will be used to battle 4-Prize games.

Tournament Structure

Any tournament structure (Swiss, Single Elimination, Double Elimination, etc.) can be used in a cube, though I recommend against Single Elimination, as it can be disappointing to spend the time drafting and constructing a deck only to play a single game with it. My personal favorite playing structure for this cube is Double Elimination since it works great for eight players and also ensures everyone will get to play at least two games. I also recommend Best-of-1 over match play. Players enjoy opportunities to draft the perfect deck and will generally enjoy a second round of cubing over one lengthy tournament that is drawn-out by match play.

Finishing Playing

When you are finished playing, remove the Basic Energy cards from your deck, keeping them separate from the draftable cards. Restore the rest of the cards to the cube. Once all 360 cards have been regathered, you’re ready to play again!

Embracing the Imperfections

While the earliest sets don’t give equal love to each of the types (Grass type has a lot more Pokémon than Lightning type, for example), that’s okay! Just as every Pokémon format has its own overpowered and underpowered cards, the game manages to finds a natural balance. This under-representation of certain types adds a level of strategy to the drafting process that wouldn’t otherwise be present if all types were equally represented. That’s because players may be hesitant to draft a weak type, which can enable another player to easily obtain that type and in turn build a strong and consistent deck.

And while Base Set contains many overpowered Trainer cards, you’ll hardly mind them in the small doses they are present in this cube. For example, there’s only 2 Super Energy Removals total, so you won’t find it challenging to build up those Stage 2 monsters that you never could playing the Removal-filled Base–Fossil format. Sure, there’s no denying that a player lucky enough to draft a Professor Oak Trainer card is going to have an advantage over opponents who aren’t fortunate enough to find one, but what fun would Pokémon be without these strong cards to root for when opening packs?