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Gym Challenge Strategy Guide is the official companion book to the Gym Challenge expansion of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Published by Wizards of the Coast in August 2000, it was written by Teeuwynn Woodruff, who was also the creator of the Gym Heroes Strategy Guide published by Wizards of the Coast.
Contents
The World of Pokémon
After a brief foreword by Giovanni, there is an introductory section called "The World of Pokémon". This serves as a brief overview of the rules of the Pokémon Trading Card Game and an explanation of how to identify Energy symbols, Weakness, Resistance, etc.
The Challenges of the Gym
This section introduces the premise of the Gym Challenge expansion set and an overview of some of the new cards included. It also reviews concepts like Owner's Pokémon. The section closes with the writers' "10 Cards That WIll Challenge Your Opponents", which the author considers the best of the set.
Cool Decks You Can Build
This section focuses on "Cool Decks You Can Build", custom deck configurations focusing on the new Gym Challenge cards. There are two types of decks included - "hard-core" decks that use a variety of cards including Rare and Holo versions, and "easy to build" decks that contain mainly common and uncommon cards, which are easier for a beginning player to construct themselves.
List of decks
Hard-core decks
Easy-to-build decks
Gym Challenge Card Encyclopedia
This section provides an image, description and strategy guide for every card in the Gym Challenge expansion. All cards are presented in alphabetical order.
Complete Pokémon TCG Checklist
The closing section of the book is a collectors' checklist of all the Pokémon cards released in English up to the time of publication. This includes Base Set, Base Set 2, Jungle, Fossil, Team Rocket, Gym Heroes, Gym Challenge and Wizards Black Star Promos.
Trivia
Errors
- In the deck list for Brock's Mining Crew, one of the listed cards is a Brock's Sandshrew card from the Gym Challenge expansion. This card does not actually exist. While there are two Brock's Sandshrew cards, they are both part of the Gym Heroes expansion (card 71 and card 72, respectively).
- In the deck list for Jaws, one of the listed cards is Misty's Goldeen from the Gym Heroes expansion. However, the book fails to specify which Misty's Goldeen from the expansion - there are two, a Common one and a Rare one.
- In the deck list for Erika's Weed Garden, one of the listed cards is Erika's Gloom from the Gym Heroes expansion. However, the book fails to specify which Erika's Gloom from the expansion - there are two, card 45 and card 46.
- In the deck list for Saffron Pokémon Center, the book erroneously refers to a Lv. 10 Sabrina's Gastly as part of the Gym Heroes expansion. There is a Lv. 10 Sabrina's Gastly card, but it is part of the Gym Challenge expansion. The Sabrina's Gastly card from Gym Heroes is actually Lv. 16.
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