So, you’ve maxed out all your characters, cleared the Spiral Abyss with ease, and are running out of quests. Now you’re looking for something to do besides hanging out in Liyue Harbor and listening to Zhongli’s Osmanthus wine rant a million times. Luckily, you don’t have to look any further because there’s a new craze that’s sweeping Teyvat.
Genius Invokation, the trading card game, is a permanent game mode introduced in Patch 3.3. This card duelling game designed by the brilliant minds of the Sumeru Akademiya lets you collect cards, build decks, and go toe-to-toe with Genshin Impact characters and players in co-op. Want to give it a try? Here’s a Genshin Impact Genius Invokation TCG Beginner’s Guide for you!
How to unlock Genius Invokation TCG
To unlock this new game mode, players need to meet the following criteria:
- Be Adventure Rank 32 or higher
- Have completed the Archon Quest Prologue: Act III – Song of the Dragon and Freedom, and;
- Have completed the “Come Try Genius Invokation TCG” quest.
How a duel works
Before a duel starts, both players will draw a starting hand of 5 random cards from their deck. Both players will get a chance to switch out any number of cards in their starting hand. Genius Invokation TCG has 3 phases: the Roll Phase, the Action Phase, and the End Phase:
- During the Roll Phase, both players will get 8 Elemental Dice to roll and one chance to reroll.
- In the Action Phase, players will take turns until they declare their round is over.
- Both sides will draw two cards to add to their hand in the End Phase.
How to build a deck
Each player will have 3 Character Cards and 30 Action Cards in their deck. Character Cards are used to deal and take damage, while Support Cards give them enhanced abilities, healing, and other advantages. Genius Invokation also makes use of Elemental Reactions, so if you’re wondering which types of decks are the best, you can check our guide here.
The Genius Invokation TCG Board
Before we begin our first match, let’s get to know the different areas of the board:
- Draw Pile: your Draw Pile consists of 30 Character Cards. You can use the Casket of Tomes to customize the composition of your deck as you unlock new cards.
- Support Cards: Support Cards give different kinds of advantages to your deck. Players can use up to 4 Support Cards at a time.
- Character Cards: before the match begins, you’ll be asked to choose an active character. Only active characters can perform character skills.
- Hand: you can see the cards you’ve drawn here. The numbers on top of the cards determine how many Elemental Dice they require to be activated. You can hold up to 10 cards at once.
- Summons: summons like Fischl’s Oz and Xiangling’s Guoba add more damage to your every turn. Only four summons can be used at once, so plan your moves carefully.
- Elemental Dice: each Elemental Dice can have one of the seven elements or the Omni Element, which can be used in place of any element. You can expand this board area to choose which elements to use for every card.
- Character Skills: here, you can see the skills of the active character together with the dice requirements.
How to unlock more cards
Invitation Board
To obtain new Character Cards, you must defeat the featured Genshin Impact characters in a TCG duel. You can invite them through the Invitation Board at the Cat’s Tail Bar with a Match Invitation Letter.
Open-world matches
Scattered across Teyvat are avid players of Genius Invokation. Yes, they actually gave non-playing characters (NPCs) a chance to play. Use your Casket of Tomes to search for players in your world.
Prince, the Duel Saint of Cats
Remember that cat you were tasked to find during Jean’s story quest? It turns out that he’s Cat’s Tail Bar’s master TCG duelist! Find him at the bar counter to buy Support Cards, Match Invitation Letters, and Card Skins. He’s also tasked to monitor your Player Level, so visit him occasionally to receive Primogems and new designs for boards and cards.
Ready to test your skills, Traveler? Don’t forget to top up Genesis Crystals for Genshin Impact only at Codashop. It’s easier and faster, with plenty of safe and convenient payment methods available.
