---
key: mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175
type: mechanic
id: tabletop-systems--t175
lang: en
title: Pre-game deck construction
summary: >-
  Decks are built before play under format constraints, setting tool ratios and
  the likelihood of useful combinations.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175.md
aliases: []
tags:
  - 'Cards, dice and tabletop mechanics'
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-eceba0e40b661634
  - source-1701f69d697ae522
  - source-bca404420c00fc3e
sources:
  - id: source-eceba0e40b661634
    title: 'PuzzleScript: Rules'
    url: 'https://www.puzzlescript.net/Documentation/rules.html'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-1701f69d697ae522
    title: 'Wizards of the Coast: Magic rules'
    url: 'https://magic.wizards.com/en/rules'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-bca404420c00fc3e
    title: Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: tabletop-systems
    id: t175
    title: 'Cards, dice and tabletop mechanics'
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/tabletop-systems/#t175'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: Pre-game deck construction
    description: >-
      Decks are built before play under format constraints, setting tool ratios
      and the likelihood of useful combinations.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/general-yugioh-master-07.webp
      width: 1440
      height: 810
      game: Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel
      sourceUrl: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/'
      originalUrl: >-
        https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1449850/ss_3c0f0434fcbbe2f552f3f7978754e980d26cb686.1920x1080.jpg?t=1788064919
      credit: KONAMI / KONAMI
      rights: >-
        Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed
        screenshot from Steam; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY
        4.0.
      caption: A deck editor assembles a deck from the available collection
      alt: A deck editor assembles a deck from the available collection
      markers:
        - x: 42
          'y': 45
          label: The main deck contains the selected cards
        - x: 86
          'y': 43
          label: The collection and filters help locate the desired card
    tips:
      - Show format restrictions and deck composition before the match begins.
    examples:
      - title: Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel
        url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/'
endsAt: null
provenance: >-
  Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on
  2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design
  examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests.
  Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not
  every proposed variant.
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
catalogKey: catalog/tabletop-systems
---
# Pre-game deck construction

id: tabletop-systems--t175
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/tabletop-systems--t175/

Decks are built before play under format constraints, setting tool ratios and the likelihood of useful combinations.

## At a glance

![A deck editor assembles a deck from the available collection](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/general-yugioh-master-07.webp)

[Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed screenshot from Steam; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.

1. The main deck contains the selected cards
2. The collection and filters help locate the desired card

- Show format restrictions and deck composition before the match begins.

- [Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/)

## How it works

Decks are built before play under format constraints, setting tool ratios and the likelihood of useful combinations.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t175-variants"></a>

- Copy limits restrict repeated powerful cards. <a id="t175-v1"></a>
- Cost curves determine early-turn tempo. <a id="t175-v2"></a>
- Sideboards change composition between games. <a id="t175-v3"></a>
- Leader rules restrict eligible card choices. <a id="t175-v4"></a>

## Design example

A fast deck adds cheap responses at the expense of powerful finishing cards.

Prototype check: Test opening hands and the share of games lacking a meaningful first action with a legal starting deck.

## Context and limits

Tabletop mechanisms allocate limited actions and hidden information through cards, dice, positions and commitments. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map.

## Connected materials


## Sources and provenance

Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.

- [PuzzleScript: Rules](https://www.puzzlescript.net/Documentation/rules.html) (id: source-eceba0e40b661634)
- [Wizards of the Coast: Magic rules](https://magic.wizards.com/en/rules) (id: source-1701f69d697ae522)
- [Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1449850/) (id: source-bca404420c00fc3e)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors