Completing Ranked Matches in Pokémon TCG Pocket: A Guide to Solving

Ranked Matches have landed in the Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket, signaling an exciting transformation in the competitive landscape. It’s safe to say that we now finally have a genuine competitive atmosphere, as the previous sporadic emblem events didn’t really measure up to that standard.

This new gameplay format is quite intricate. We’re here to break down how Ranked Battles operate in Pokemon TCG Pocket, from basic overviews you can find in the app’s tutorials to deeper insights that The Pokemon Company and DeNA haven’t fully explored in their official guides.

Overview of Ranked Matches

With Ranked Matches, players can strive to ascend through various competitive ranks to earn exclusive emblems and season-ending rewards. These rewards can make all the effort worthwhile. We’ll delve into that later, but let’s start with the fundamentals.

Ranks

A ranking system wouldn’t make much sense without ranks, and Pokemon TCG Pocket has a total of five ranks to conquer.

Moreover, during the first two tiers—Beginner and Poke Ball—you will earn bonus points for achieving winning streaks. This means you earn points not just for winning matches but more points for consecutive victories.

After reaching Poke Ball, you’ll gain points for wins, but also lose points when defeated. Therefore, Beginner is the only tier where point gain is assured.

Match Opponents

You will be matched up against opponents of the same rank. It’s unclear whether tiers play a role in matchups, but we’ll update this information if we receive confirmation.

Typically, your opponents will be other players, but you may also encounter AI opponents in certain ranks, assuming this refers primarily to the lower ranks.

We’ve faced a few AI opponents while climbing through the Beginner Rank. Facing AI can be advantageous as they tend to be easier, and battle animations tend to be shorter.

Rewards in Ranked Matches

While testing your skills against skilled players can be rewarding in itself, there are also real benefits to participating in Ranked Matches.

An Overview of Rewards

Every season comes with its own unique rewards. Currently, Ranked Matches are a fresh addition to Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket. Therefore, we can only discuss the inaugural season: Season A2b.

Season A2b will take place from March 28, 2025, to April 27, 2025, and results will be revealed shortly after. Future seasons are expected to follow a similar timeline.

With the start of each season, your progress resets partially. This means that when the next season begins, you’re likely to start back at Beginner Rank (or whatever the top level is if ranks are renamed).

Rewards for Season A2b

Now, let’s discuss the prizes for this opening season. If you are reading this during a future season, this part can be ignored. Unless, of course, the rewards happen to be the same!

You’ll receive an Emblem for each rank and their respective tiers. Additionally, you will also earn a predetermined number of Pack Hourglasses based on your final rank once the season wraps up. The breakdown is as follows:

Tips for Success

Winning in Ranked Matches is crucial. Here are a few tips to help you enhance your chances.

Stick to What Works

Versus Battles, or standard competitive matches, are a great space for deck testing. Solo Battles also serve well, though you are guaranteed to earn a bit of EXP from regular matches, which will help prepare you against real opponents.

… but Experiment When Necessary

That said, it’s wise to enter most ranks with unique decks. By the time you reach Master Rank, you’re likely to encounter players using standard meta decks, leaving you with limited options.

Before that stage, though, playing around with classic archetypes can significantly boost your success rate. For instance, I’ve been using a deck featuring two Weavile ex and two Honchkrow in several matches. No Darkrai ex or other popular cards.

Often, opponents don’t take the time to read the attacks of unfamiliar Pokemon, and you can exploit this. In the above example, Honchkrow can inflict 50 damage to one of your opponent’s Pokemon. This creates an element of surprise.

Polish your skills elsewhere, and when you find unique approaches to established strategies in Pokemon TCG, unleash them effectively. Good luck!