About

Table of Contents
1)What is a "trading card game" (or "TCG" for short)?
2)What kind of TCG is Horcrux?
3)What is a trading post?
4)What is a starter pack?
5) How do I earn cards and other rewards?
6) How do I trade cards?
7) How do I level up, and what happens when I do?
8) How do I master a deck, and what happens when I do?
9) How do I refer a member?
10) What's an Affiliate and how do I become one?
11) What happens if I want to leave Horcrux?
12) I have a question not answered by this list.

What is a "trading card game"?
An online trading card game is just like a trading card game in real life, only you don't have to buy the cards. Instead, you win them in a series of games. And instead of displaying your cards in a binder, you will need a website. No, you don't have to pay for your own website, or have to be a master at coding, see below. Members of online trading card game communities display their collected cards on their websites, and e-mail each other with trade offers. Remember, as in real life, please be respectful if another player doesn't want to trade. Trading card games can cover any subject, so if you find you like trading card games, please visit our Site section for links to other wonderful trading card games.

So what is Horcrux about?
Horcrux TCG is dedicated to all things Harry Potter, be it the books, the movies, the fanart and music, the video games, even the plastic Dobbys (yes, they make those). Horcrux was founded on May 24th, 2006 by Korey and Avery. The co-owners had known each other online for many years: Korey was a die-hard Ron/Hermione shipper and Avery was a hardcore Snape-a-holic. Korey had gotten Avery hooked on an inordinate number of Harry Potter trading card games, the first of which was Gobstones, owned by Kerri. Korey and Avery once joked that Avery was becoming a TCG Whore-crux, and the two immediately decided Horcrux would be a good name for a Harry Potter TCG. When Gobstones folded, Korey and Avery were devastated, and decided to make Horcrux an official TCG. As an homage to their fallen favorite, Korey asked Kerri's permission in recycling the old Gobstones template. She agreed, so long as the Horcrux template didn't use the old Gobstones drop-shadow. A little graphics work later and Horcrux TCG was born. Korey has since stepped down from management, but Avery has kept Horcrux running two-years strong, and doesn't plan to stop any time soon.

Your Trade Post
A trading post is a website where you display which cards you have, how you got them, and whether you are trading them or collecting them. To make your trading post you can use any type of page (freewebs, geocities, ect...). We only ask that you do not use sites which require Students to log in or sign up before they can see your trade post (for example, Neopets). Remember, the most important part of your trade post is that it be viewable to the rest of the members of the TCG.
Every trade post is different, but the following are things you must have on on your trading post.

  • Cards/Items which you are collecting.
  • Cards/Items which you are trading.
  • A link back to Horcrux TCG
  • A card log, showing how you got your cards. Logs should include which cards you won, from what specific game/trade, and the date (ex. 01/15/2008 - Draco's Birthday Freebie - Snide-02)
    In addition, you might want to include a section for Cards/Items which you might consider trading, a section for mastered decks, and a section for special banners like Trade Stamps Cards or Contest rewards.

    Your Starter Pack
    When you first join a TCG, you usually gain a package of free cards to jump-start your collection.When you join Horcrux, if you've read all the Rules you will receive the following:

  • 3 cards from the set that you've chosen to collect first.
  • 7 random cards. (Depending if you've read the Rules or not)

    Earning Cards
    There are a number of ways to earn cards:

  • Playing Games.
  • Freebies (such as your Birthday).
  • Leveling Up.
  • Mastering A Set.
  • Donating deck images, links, or level badges.
  • Refering A Member.
  • And of course, trading with other members.
    Besides cards, you can also win special rewards, such as:
  • Items and Money (ex. Harry's wand or 1 galleon)
  • Custom Badges (for Contests and Masteries)
  • House Points (only available during Special Events)

    Trading Cards
    So now we get to the meat and potatoes of a trading card game: trades. To see other Students' trading posts, just go to the Students page, and click any of the trading post links. When you find someone you want to trade with, their e-mail should also be linked from the Students page. E-mail them saying which cards of theirs you would like, and which cards of your own you are willing to offer in exchange (remember to consider what your fellow Student is collecting). Pay attention to card worth when determining your trade. Every Student has the right to refuse or negotiate a trade, so please refrain from rudeness should your trade fall through. Card worth can be found on the Cards page, and denotes what value a trade should be. For example, Prisoner is a Worth 1 deck, so each Prisoner card is worth 1 other card in exchange. However, SS Cover is a Worth 3 deck, so each SS Cover card is worth 3 Worth 1 cards, or a Worth 1 and a Worth 2, or another Worth 3. Yes, you'll have to do some math, but card worths do not go above 4, and there are very few decks with worth specifications.

    Leveling Up
    Your level is determined by how many cards you have in your entire collection (not just the ones you are saving, but ALL of your cards). You can see the break-down of levels in the list below. Once you've leveled up, fill out the Leveling Up form for a reward. You will receive one card of choice, two random cards and 20 house points. Remember, leveling up goes by card count! which is different from card worth.

  • Level Zero- Awaiting Your Hogwarts Letter
  • Level One- First Year: 0-40 cards.
  • Level Two- Second Year: 41-60 cards.
  • Level Three- Third Year: 61-110 cards.
  • Level Four- Fourth Year: 111-150 cards.
  • Level Five- Fifth Year: 151-230 cards.
  • Level Six- Sixth Year: 231-310 cards.
  • Level Seven- Seventh Year: 311-401 cards.
  • Level Eight- Graduate: 402-500 cards.
  • Level Nine- Professor's Assistant: 501-600 cards.
  • Level Ten- Professor: 601-699 cards.
  • Level Eleven- Headmaster: 700-799 cards.
  • Level Twelve- Minister: 800+ cards.
  • Once you reach the "Minister" rank you can no longer level up. However, every 100 cards you gain after that gives you two choice cards instead of one. They too can be redeemed by level up form.

    Mastering A Deck
    One you've collected all the cards from a certain deck you are considered a master of that deck. As soon as you have added the final card you need to your trading post you can fill out the Mastery Form to redeem your prize, which will include:

  • 2 cards of choice
  • 4 random cards
  • A custom badge
  • 40 house points.
  • First masters will receive a special first mastery card for being the first to master that particular deck. (Note, First Masteries can be reavailable should a member quit and forfeit their cards).
  • Ultimate masters will receive an additional custom badge for mastering all cards (could be multiple decks) of a particular theme (ex. all Weasley Character cards). Themes can be user-defined, but must include at least 15 cards.

    Please Note:Once you've mastered a set you can not trade those cards, or else that would defeat the purpose of mastering a set now wouldn't it? ;)

    Referring a Member
    If you tell someone about Horcrux, make sure they put your Student name in the Referrer section of their Join form. You will be awarded 1 random card and 10 house points for every new Student you refer.

    Affiliation
    An Affiliate is like a sister site; we link back to each other and promote each other's sites. Horcrux generally only affiliates with other TCGs. If you want your Trading Card Game promoted on our site, simply fill out an Affiliate Form.

    Quitting
    If you don't have time for Horcrux anymore, and don't want to keep your cards, than you can fill out a Quitting Form. Your cards and items will be added to the Room of Requirement as prizes for other Students. You may delete your trade post any time after your belongings have been added to the Room of Requirement. The loss of your cards also means the forfeiture of your masteries. If you don't have time for Horcrux, but don't want to give up your cards, than you may simply fill out a Contact Form and your status will be changed to "Hiatus" on the Students page. Both forms can be found on the Forms page. Remember, you are always welcome back to Horcrux at any time, but Quit members will have to reapply and start their card collection from the beginning. Hiatus members will be able to redeem their level and mastery status from before their Hiatus.

    Other
    Do you need to change your Student information? Is a Game glitching for you? Are you going on vacation for a few weeks? Whatever your question or concern is, let the staff know by filling out a Contact Form.