OK. I have played the TCG for about 2 years now, ever since Jungle came out.
I have seen every kind of deck you can think of. With these decks come many,
many different kinds of people. OK, now I have played some very experienced
people in my life. I myself, am experienced. How do you become a good player
though? Not just because you're good. Here are some things I have noticed
from people that really upset me:

1.  Claiming your deck is unbeatable
If you say that you're deck is unbeatable and that it is the best deck ever
created, you are unexperienced. Anyone who says this is NOT a good player.
Sure they may be good, but what good does that do if no one respects you?
Every deck is beatable. The absolute worst thing you can do is claim that
your deck is unbeatable because it's not true. Doing this just proves your
inexperience and immaturity.

2. Cheating
This really upsets me. Many older kids take advantage of younger kids this
way. What you usually see are: Automatically using Rocket's Trap without
flipping a coin, using Itemfinder/Computer Search without discarding cards.
Using Professor Oak but shuffling your hand into your deck instead of
discarding it. People who do this are obviously the most inexperienced and
should have no right to compete in tournaments because they obviously cannot
hold their own against little kids, so what chance do they have against
experienced players?

3. Bragging
Urgh. I can't stand braggers. I remember one in a tourny, I lost to thise kid
in the semi-finals due to a bad hand. He went on and won the finals and
started dancing around, telling everyone that he had the unbeatable deck. I
challenged him to a match an beat him on first turn. If you beat someone, do
not brag. This shows you're immaturity more than anything. If you beat
someone with a deck that just isn't working, help them out. Show them which
cards work and which cards don't. This is an action shown by MANY experienced
players.

4. Not making Dumb Mistakes
ALWAYS see what you have in your hand before you use something. This is a
common mistake made by rookie players. For example, you have an Oak, 2 Grass
Energy, and an Itemfinder in your hand. You have a Scyther active and have
already attatched energy this turn. You need more cards. You do not Oak right
away!Use the Itemfinder! Get some card that could be of some use back in your
hand. Before you use a card like Oak, use up as many cards in your hand as
you can so you do not waste them. This is if they are of use. Here, the
itemfinder was of use, so you use it, then Oak. I know this may not be made
by experienced players, but It's still done often.

5. Haters
These are the people who always have to say something to someone who bad
mouths a certain card. These people say stuff like: "HOW THE HECK COULD YOU
SAY THAT ABOUT (enter Pokemon name here)!?!?! HE RULES. YOU BETTER STOP
BADMOUTHING (enter Pokemon name here) BEFORE HE COMES AND TEARS YOU UP!!!!"
Or something like that. This is among the most moronic things one can do. If
you disagree with someone, tell them in a mature and positive way. Explain to
them why you disagree. Do not act like you are on the Jerry Springer show.

6. Losing
Face it people. Losing is part of the TCG. Everyone has lost some time. I
can't stress this enough, if you lose, congratulate your opponent. At least
take it like a human being, do not get all mad and storm off because his
little Erika's Jigglypuff knocked out your TR Zapdos on first turn. Do not
forget, it is just a game! Don't take it so serious!

I believe that covers it. In conclusion, being a good player does not always
mean having the best deck. Being a good person to other players is also an
important factor in being good. Please think of this next time you go to a
tourny. It may earn you just a little more respect.

Thank you for your time. No hate mail please. Read number 5.
Juan Ayala
ChevySilverado01@aol.com