New player hub

How to get into Disney Lorcana

Lorcana is a race: the first player to 20 lore wins. It is easy to learn, cheap to start, and one of the best-selling card games in the world right now. This page is the whole route in, from your first rules read to your first real deck, without wasting a dollar.

Learn to play, taught by Lorcana’s co-designer

Ryan Miller co-designed the game, and this walkthrough with TheGamer is the fastest way to see a full turn in motion. Watch a game, then everything below will click.

New player guideNew here? Read this firstA No-Pressure Way to Start Playing Lorcana In PersonStarter decks, pack rush events, and how to get your first upgrades for free.

Step 01

Learn the game

Each turn you may put one card face down into your inkwell. Inked cards pay for everything, every turn, forever. Then you play characters and send them questing to collect lore, or challenging to knock out the characters your opponent left exerted. That is the entire loop: build ink, deploy, quest, defend the race to 20.

Every card belongs to one or two of six inks. Your deck may use at most two, so the first real decision in Lorcana is which pair fits how you like to play:

Amber

Wide boards, healing, and singers. Plays to the board and protects it.

Amethyst

Magic, card movement, and evasive questers. Wins at odd angles.

Emerald

Discard, misdirection, and tempo. Makes opponents play your game.

Ruby

Removal and reckless speed. The best answer is usually a challenge.

Sapphire

Ramp, items, and card draw. Spends turn three building turn six.

Steel

Board wipes and tough bodies. Survives everything, then wins slowly.

Six terms cover most of the game

Inkwell
Your resource pool. Once per turn you may play a card face down into it; each inked card pays for one ink of cost, every turn, forever.
Inkable
Cards with the inkwell symbol around their cost can be placed in your inkwell. Uninkable cards can only ever be played.
Quest
Tap (exert) a character to gain its lore value. First player to 20 lore wins, and questing is how you get there.
Challenge
Attack an exerted opposing character. Both deal damage equal to their strength; reach willpower and the character is banished.
Lore
The victory resource. The diamond number on a character is how much lore it earns per quest. Race to 20.
Shift
Play a bigger version of a character on top of a smaller one for a discount. It keeps its damage and can act immediately.

Want the full rules walkthrough? The official How to Play tutorial takes about five minutes.

Step 02

Grab a starter, then upgrade

Skip the display box. The current 2-Player Starter Set is two legal, playable 60-card decks in one box for about the price of two of the old starters. Unlike the previous single-set starters, its lists span multiple sets, so both decks come out more well-rounded. No set-13 starter has been announced, so this is the box to get: play either deck as-is, then swap toward its linked list piece by piece as your budget allows.

2-Player Starter Set

Two legal 60-card decks in one box. Unlike the old single-set starters, both lists pull from multiple sets, so each deck comes out more well-rounded.

Shop this set
  • Toys Deck (Ruby/Amber)

    A Ruby/Amber toys aggro-tempo shell: cheap threats early, quest hard, and keep the pressure on.

    Upgrade path Ruby Amber Toys

  • Super Family Deck (Amethyst/Ruby)

    The Incredibles shell: an Amethyst/Ruby midrange that teaches characters, tempo, and when to race.

    Upgrade path Super Family Upgrade

Step 03

Budget brews under $30

Rather build from scratch than upgrade a starter? We keep two budget brews stocked at all times: 60 cards, two inks, built entirely from the current Core sets, and under $30 at live market prices. Open a deck for the full list, card-by-card pricing, and a one-click TCGplayer cart.

Step 04

Bring a friend

Card games stick when someone across the table is learning with you. The 2-Player Starter Set from Step 02 already covers game night: hand the second deck across the table and play. One purchase, two players.

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest way to start playing Lorcana?

A starter deck is the cheapest playable option: it comes ready to play out of the box. From there, budget 60-card lists built from inexpensive singles are the next step up — the budget decks on this page are priced from live market data.

How many cards do you need in a Lorcana deck?

A deck needs at least 60 cards, with no more than 4 copies of any one card and cards from at most two inks. There is no maximum size, but almost all competitive decks play exactly 60.

Are starter decks tournament legal?

Starter decks from current sets are legal in the Core format as-is. Older sets rotate out of Core over time, so check each card's legality before bringing an older starter to an event.

Do you need foil or Enchanted cards to compete?

No. Foil and Enchanted versions play identically to the regular printing — rarity of the finish only affects the card's price, never its power in a game.