It’s a blast to the past! Retro Pokémon format tournaments are coming to Full Grip Games! We’re excited to support a community favorite way to collect and play with old cards. We plan to hold multiple events a year, and to have each tournament’s format advertised in advance so that players have plenty of time to build decks.

2025 Event Schedule:
- April 26: 2018 - SUM-LOT
- July: 2002 - Base Neo
- October: RS-PK
- December: 2010 Worlds

Some event dates TBA. We aim to post full details, including specific date, a few months in advance. Check back for the rest of the year's events in the coming months.

Card Legality:
Since our events will be produced live, we strive for a certain level of quality for that content. However, we do understand retro Pokémon can be expensive. Below are the guidelines to follow when building your deck.

The following WILL be legal:
- Modern reprints of cards with the same effect (i.e., playing Rare Candy from SVI instead of Rare Candy from Sandstorm.)
- World Championship Deck cards
- Celebrations Classic Collection and Pokémon TCG Classic reprints
- Non-English cards
- Up to 6 proxies only from the printing service https://printingproxies.com. Proxies cost $2 each, or less based on quantity ordered. We recommend not customizing the backside of the proxies for better image quality.

If your deck contains any cards with a different card back, your deck’s sleeves MUST be completely opaque.

The following WILL NOT be legal:
- Computer paper printed proxies
- Sharpie proxies
- Fake cards

Many of Full Grip’s employees are retro enthusiasts, as well as our local players, and may have decks to lend. Get in touch via our community Discord!

Full Grip has a large online catalog of cards. Check them out on our website, and if something you need is out of stock, add it to your wishlist for an automatic email when it’s back in stock. We are always adding cards to our inventory! If you are looking to save money, all of our Heavy Play and better cards are guaranteed playable in a sleeve, and many of our Damaged cards are. If you’re considering a damaged card and want to confirm playability, send an email over to natalie@fullgripgames.com. Orders can be placed for in-store pickup for no additional cost. Full Grip also has a stock of non-English and World Championship Deck cards in our physical store that you can take a look at!

EVENT DETAILS:
Check out our Discord and the Events Calendar for full information on each event as they are posted. We aim to post full dates and details a few months in advance. Each event will have best-of-one Swiss rounds based on attendance followed by a best-of-three top cut, and 100% store credit prizing payout. Round time may vary depending on format. Please see individual event information when it is posted.

If you are new or unfamiliar with a format and would like to learn, these websites are some great resources:

https://www.ptcglegends.com/
https://jklaczpokemon.com/


The Full Grip Games cash tournament release weekends are BACK! Come down to compete for $4,000 between both tournaments while trying out the new post-rotation format and the new Journey Together cards before any other event.

- Saturday, March 29: Post-Rotation Standard Format $3k
- Sunday, March 30: Gym Leader Challenge $1k

- Friday, March 28: League Challenge
Say goodbye to F Block cards at our Friday night League League Challenge! Please note: this will be pre-rotation, no Journey Together permitted. 100% store credit payout to the winners. View full event information here.

Both tournaments will be streamed live on Tricky Gym's Youtube and Twitch channels. Tune in if you can't make it!

Journey Together $4k Double Header Information

Preregister online here. Players may sign up the morning of the events if space allows, but we encourage preregistration.

Saturday 3/29 - Post-Rotation Standard $3k
Registration: 9am-9:50am
Entry: $40 (or $70 for both weekend events)
Tournament Structure: Best of 3 Swiss (50 minutes) followed by Top 8 cut (75 minutes).
Format: Post-rotation, G-block onwards with Journey Together.
Deck lists will be required. You may print one out ahead of time or fill one out on site (blank sheets provided). Please allow yourself enough time to do so if you need to fill one out the morning of the event. Paper or custom proxies are not permitted, but players may use Japanese cards provided their deck is in completely opaque sleeves. If you choose to play with Japanese cards, please print out a reference image of the card in English and keep it on you for translation purposes.

Cash Prizing:
1st Place - $1,000
2nd Place - $700
3rd & 4th Place - $350
5th - 8th Place - $150

Sunday 3/30 - Gym Leader Challenge $1k
Registration: 9am-9:50
Entry: $40 (or $70 for both weekend events)
Tournament Structure: Best of 1 Swiss (40 minutes) followed by Top 8 cut (90 minutes)

Deck lists will be required. You may print one out ahead of time or fill one out on site (blank sheets provided). Please allow yourself enough time to do so if you need to fill one out the morning of the event. If you'd like to use a custom decklist sheet, you can print the one on the GLC website here.
Paper or custom proxies are not permitted. Non-English language and World Championship Deck cards will be allowed provided their deck is in completely opaque sleeves.

Cash Prizing:
1st Place - $400
2nd Place - $200
3rd & 4th Place - $100
5th - 8th Place - $50

Journey Together Preorders:
Preorders for our Journey Together product and singles will be available at a later date. Preorders can be picked up in store for the event. We will have a limited amount of singles available in the store for the event, however, we recommend preordering as well as utilizing the pickup option for any other cards you need to guarantee you get them for the event. Our website stock is updated regularly and you can wishlist cards for notifications by email when they come back in stock.

Travel

Full Grip Games is a 40 minute drive from Cleveland-Hopkins airport (CLE), which is the closest major airport. There is also the Akron-Canton airport (CAK) which is 15 minutes away, but prices and routes tend to be worse.

Hotels:
There are a few convenient walking distance hotels:
- BLU-Tique Akron Hotel (0.2 miles away)
- Courtyard Akron Downtown (0.5 miles away)

Some other close by options:
- Hilton Garden Inn Akron (2 miles away)
- Comfort Inn Cuyahoga Falls (3 miles away)

Additional Prizing Info:

Prizing will be in cash. No attendance requirement in order to reach the payouts posted here, however, additional prizing may be added at Full Grip's discretion. Winners may also choose to take store credit as their prizing for a 20% increase.

Junior and Senior Players:

Players of all ages are welcome to play in the event. However, parents should be aware that the event will be long, similar to a Regional day one. Juniors and Seniors will play with the Masters division if they do not get enough players to have their own division.

Don't forget to bring us your extra cards, we'll be buying and selling all weekend!

If you have questions after reading this information, please email natalie@fullgripgames.com.

Compete for the title of 2025 Gym Leader Challenge Champion at Full Grip Games!

Starting in July of 2024, winners of the Full Grip Games Gym Leader Challenge weekly event will be tracked to determine which player wins with the most different types of decks throughout the year! When a player wins an event, they are rewarded with a personalized Trainer Card which is marked with the type they won with and posted on the GLC leader board located in the play area at Full Grip Games. Each time that player wins with a different type, it is marked on their Trainer Card with a badge (sticker). The season will conclude the weekend of July 14th 2025. The player who has won with the most different types at the end of the season will win a booster box of the most recent Pokémon TCG set as a sign of their accomplishment. In additon, an invitational-style tournament will be held in August 2025 for all players who won at least one badge during the season to compete for another champion title. All players will be able to retrieve their Trainer Cards to take them home as a memento of what they accomplished throughout the year at league! Good luck Gym Leaders!

Gym Leader Challenge is a singleton, monotype, non-rule box format with a cardpool of Black & White (2011) and onwards. For full format rules, details, and tips, check out the Gym Leader Challenge website.

 FGG Weekly Gym Leader Challenge - Thursdays @ 7pm!

Details:

Registration: 6:00-6:55pm

Entry Fee: $5

Tournament Structure: 40 minute best-of-1 Swiss rounds. 3 to 5 rounds total, depending on attendance.

Prizing: 100% store credit payout to the top players. Pokémon Prize Packs and promo cards are awarded to top finishers and/or as participation prizes, while supplies last.

Other Notes:

•  Printed or handmade proxies are not permitted at our weekly events. However, players may use foreign language cards, and World Championship Deck cards. If any cards in your deck have a different card back, please ensure your sleeves are completely opaque! Players using foreign language cards are encouraged to save a screenshot of the English card on their phone should a player need a reference. If they don't, FGG staff can provide the card text.
  
•  Players must use the same 60-card deck through the tournament. Adjustments are not permitted once round 1 begins!
•  When the 40-minute time limit is called, each player has two additional turns to finish the game. If the game does not conclude, the match is ruled a tie.
  
•  The Gym Leader Challenge leaderboard allows all players to keep track of their badges, even if they are not local to Akron. However, should someone playing at the event win who is visting from out of town and will not be back to the store, they may choose to take their Trainer Card home with them.