The Full Grip Games Event Series is back! Compete for $6,000 in cash with cards from Destined Rivals before any other event!

- Saturday, May 31: Standard $3k
- Sunday, June 1: Gym Leader Challenge $3k

Join us on Friday, May 30th, at 6 PM for our May League Challenge (Destined Rivals will not be permitted at this event). 100% store credit will be award to the top finishers at this event.

Destined Rivals Event Weekend Information

Preregister online here. Registration is strongly encouraged. We will have very limited space at the door. 

Saturday May 31st @ 10 AM - Standard $3k

Check-In: 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)

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. Non-English cards will be allowed. Completely opaque sleeves must be used when playing with these cards.

Cash Prizing:
1st Place - $1000
2nd Place - $700
3rd & 4th Place - $350
5th - 8th Place - $150

Sunday June 1st @ 10 AM - Gym Leader Challenge $3k

Check-In: 9am-9:50am
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. Non-English cards and World Championship cards will be allowed. Completely opaque sleeves must be used when playing with these cards.

Cash Prizing:
1st Place - $1000
2nd Place - $700
3rd & 4th Place - $350
5th - 8th Place - $150

Travel:
Full Grip Games is 40 minutes from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE). This is the closest major airport to Akron. Akron-Canton Airport (CAK) is a smaller airport and only 15 minutes away, but prices may be higher.

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

We have a hotel block set up for the Courtyard Akron Downtown with a special rate. Book using this link by May 2nd, or until the rooms sell out!

- BLU-Tique Akron Hotel (0.2 miles away)

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

Online Check-In and Pairings:
We will email competitors a Google Form they can use to check in closer to event. In addition, we will send out information to join our Discord to access mobile pairings and event announcements. We recommend checking the email you registered with leading up to the event for important information.

Junior and Senior Division Players:
For these events, every player will be playing as a Masters Division player so that they can compete for the grand prize, regardless of age. Please keep this in mind if you are signing up a Junior or Senior.

Order Pickup:
Players may order singles and product online and pick them up at our location. We hold orders for a long time, so feel free to place orders as early as you'd like in order to save on shipping!

Preorders:
We will not be opening product for Destined Rivals. In order to give people the opportunity to play new cards, official Japanese cards will be allowed. Proxies will not. Anything we have from Destined Rivals will be available to purchase over the weekend. However, we cannot guarantee availability.

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

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!

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, 2025: 2018 - SUM-LOT
- July 26, 2025: 2002 - Base Neo
- October 2025: RS-PK
- December 2025: 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 and local players are retro enthusiasts 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. Entry fees for the events will typically be $10, but may be subject to change. Decklists will be required for each event. If you do not bring your own, you can fill one out onsite - just allow yourself enough time to do so during registration.

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/


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.