Star Wars Trading Card Game
Star Wars Trading Card Game (SWTCG) is the collectible card game Wizards of the Coast published from April 2002 under the Star Wars trading-card license that Lucasfilm moved from Decipher. Magic: The Gathering creator Richard Garfield designed it.[2][3] It used all-new mechanics and was not compatible with Star Wars CCG.[3] Players fight for control of three arenas (Space, Ground and Character) and win by controlling two.[2]
Sets
| Set | Release | Cards | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attack of the Clones | April 2002 | 180 | [4] |
| Sith Rising | July 2002 | 90 | [5] |
| A New Hope | October 2002 | 180 | [6] |
| Battle of Yavin | February 2003 | 105 | [7] |
| Jedi Guardians | June 2003 | 105 | [8] |
| The Empire Strikes Back | October 2003 | 210 | [9] |
| Rogues and Scoundrels | March 2004 | 105 | [10] |
| The Phantom Menace | May 2004 | 90 | [11] |
| Return of the Jedi | October 2004 | 110 | [12] |
| Revenge of the Sith | March 2005 | 110 | [13] |
Organized play
Wizards ran SWTCG through DCI-sanctioned tournaments and championship events, with the second annual championship at Gen Con in July 2003 and $20,000 in prize support.[14]
| Year | Event | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Gen Con, Milwaukee (10 August) | Joseph H. Leake[15] |
| 2003 | Gen Con (98 qualified players) | Mike Bickford[16] |
| 2004 | Star Wars TCG Championships | Adam Dittmer[17] |
The 2003 field of 98 had qualified at regional tournaments.[18]
End
On 31 October 2005 Wizards confirmed that SWTCG was on "indefinite hold", cancelling unreleased sets including Rise of the Empire. A spokesperson said fans' attention had shifted to the Star Wars miniatures.[19] Wizards let its Star Wars license expire in 2010.[20] A fan Independent Development Committee has released free SWTCG sets since.[2][21]
SWCCG players and SWTCG
Decipher's Warren Holland called the new game "totally incompatible" with Decipher's and the move "disrespectful" to existing customers.[3] A TheForce.Net preview described SWCCG fans' reactions as ranging from outrage to reluctant acceptance, with most taking a "wait and see" attitude.[22] Early SWCCG players on TheForce.Net boards called it a possible "side game" rather than a replacement.[23] Meanwhile the Players Committee kept SWCCG going with Virtual cards; see History of Star Wars CCG.
Relationship to SWCCG
Before SWTCG was released, Wizards of the Coast flew several SWCCG players, among them Jonny Chu and Paul Todd Feldman, out for a weekend of playtesting. Both later described the playtest in 2025 video interviews.[24][25]
Chu said the players met Richard Garfield and toured the Hasbro library. At the end of the weekend Wizards asked each player whether they would play the game, and the players answered no, one by one. He said the game was "all premised on dice", so a player could invest a lot of time and still lose to bad rolls. His verdict was that it was "total trash", though he said Wizards "rolled out the red carpet" for the testers.[26]
Feldman said he gave Wizards "neutral feedback" and that they used it, but his own view was that the game "was horrible. It was nothing like this. This is strategy", comparing it with SWCCG.[25]
See also
- Decipher and the Star Wars CCG Lucasfilm license
- History of Star Wars CCG
- Richard Garfield · Jonny Chu · Paul Todd Feldman · Bill Bisco
- WARS Trading Card Game · Young Jedi · Star Wars: Unlimited
References
- ↑ Attack of the Clones product shot, wizards.com. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Star Wars Trading Card Game, Wikipedia. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Wizards of the Coast Gets Star Wars CCG, ICv2 (1 January 2002). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ Attack of the Clones expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Sith Rising expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ A New Hope expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Battle of Yavin expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Jedi Guardians expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ The Empire Strikes Back expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Rogues and Scoundrels expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ The Phantom Menace expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Return of the Jedi expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Revenge of the Sith expansion page, wizards.com (Internet Archive)
- ↑ Star Wars Trading Card Game – Battle of Yavin, Toymania, Toy Fair 2003. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ TCG Championship Results, TheForce.Net (2002). Preserved copy: none yet (Wayback save failed 13 October 2026)
- ↑ Star Wars Trading Card Game: GenCon Results, TheForce.Net (30 July 2003). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ 2004 Championships: 3rd Place, swtcg.over-blog.com. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ GenCon SWTCG Championship Pictures, TheForce.Net (28 July 2003). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ Star Wars TCG on 'Indefinite Hold', ICv2 (31 October 2005). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ WotC Drops Star Wars License, ICv2 (31 January 2010). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ Star Wars Trading Card Game: Independent Development Committee. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ Star Wars TCG Review, TheForce.Net (2002). Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ First Impression of SW:TCG, TheForce.Net boards (2002). Preserved copy: none yet (Wayback save failed 13 October 2026)
- ↑ SWCCG PDS2: Jonny Chu Interview & HB X-wings, Bill Bisco, YouTube (28 April 2025), 17:52–18:19. Preserved copy: none yet (Wayback save failed 13 October 2026)
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 SWCCG PDS2: DRTORCH Worlds Finalist 1996,1997,1999,2000 Interview, MWYHL 2Test, Bill Bisco, YouTube (29 May 2025), 3:27–4:10. Preserved copy: Internet Archive
- ↑ SWCCG PDS2: Jonny Chu Interview & HB X-wings, Bill Bisco, YouTube (28 April 2025), 18:37–19:04. Preserved copy: none yet (Wayback save failed 13 October 2026)
