Orbs CCG is a digital collectible card game that combines the strategy of traditional card games with the convenience and excitement of online gaming. Players can build decks of cards, battle other players, and earn new cards to improve their decks. Additionally, Orbs CCG has an optional asynchronous mode that allows players to take one turn at a time over the course of many days, similar to correspondence chess.

Orbs CCG has a special game mode called asynchronous play that allows you to take one turn at a time over the course of many days. This is similar to correspondence chess, where players can play on their own schedule, without having to be online at the same time.

Live play is the traditional way to play card games, where both players are online at the same time and take turns in real time. This mode is faster and more interactive than asynchronous play, and better for users who want to play a number of games in a single play session.

In asynchronous play, you can only play during your own turn. At the start of your turn, if you are being attacked, you can use your Defense phase to block any attackers. After the Defense phase, there is a Clear phase (where temporary effects and damage are removed), followed by the rest of your turn to play cards and attack, if you so choose.

Since you can only play during your own turn, you'll want to use secret cards with a "secret trap" ability to try to disrupt your opponent's plans during their turn. Secrets can be played during your turn, and in asynchronous play, their secret trap ability will be used automatically on your behalf during your opponent's turn.

In Orbs CCG, there are four main types of cards: objects, minions, actions, and locations. In addition, there are two card types that are not played directly: secrets and energizers. Objects (like River Canoe) are permanents that stay in play. Minions (like Angry Bear) are permanents too, but unlike objects, they can attack and block. They have stats like power and full health. Actions (like Forecast) are cards that have some effect, then go directly to the graveyard. Locations are somewhat like objects, in that they're permanents that don't participate in battles, but there can only be one location in play at a time. Further, the playing going second may start the game by placing a Homeland location of their choice from their deck into play.

Locations are one of the card types in Orbs CCG. They are permanents that do not participate in battle, but have some effect of their own. There can only be one location in play at a time. If you play a location while there is already a location in play, the new location will replace the old one.

In most card games, you almost always want to go first, due to the tempo advantage that provides. However, in Orbs CCG, the second player gets to start the game by placing a Homeland location of their choice from their deck into play. This gives the second player with something extra for going second.

Note that the second player already gets an extra card (since the first player skips their first draw), however experience with other card games has shown this single card advantage is not sufficient to balance the play-draw disparity. Even in Hearthstone, where you get an extra "Coin" card, there is still a strong play-draw disparity. By getting a free Homeland, we are hoping to bring the play-draw disparity closer to zero. The choice of whether to play or draw first is now more important than ever!

Once per turn, you may energize a card from your hand. This means that you can put the card into play upside down. Instead of the actual card, it is an energizer card that has no abilities or stats, with the ability to exhaust to generate one energy of its color. If it is a multicolor card, it does not contain a full amount of any single color, so it can only make colorless energy. The energizers are technically permanents with their original colors, no energy value, and have name "Energized [original card name]."

A face down card is considered a card of type "secret" instead of its actual card type. The player who controls the secret can look at it at any time, but everyone else will have to guess what it is. Secrets may actually be an object, an action, or a minion, but you won't know until it is revealed. Secrets can only be played during your turn, much like you'd play an object card, except they all cost 2 generic energy.

You may invoke a secret later at any time it could be invoked by revealing it and paying its secret cost.

Some secrets have a "secret trap" ability that allows them to be invoked from a secret for less energy if certain conditions are met. For example, if a minion entered play under your opponent's control this turn, you may use Swinging Axe Trap to destroy that minion for just one black energy. It fell into the trap!

In asynchronous play, when its not your turn, secret traps will trigger as soon as they legally could for their secret trap cost. This allows you to use them on your opponent's turn, even when you otherwise couldn't take game actions.

Whenever you play a card, you are technically "invoking" it. Instead of going into play directly, the card goes onto the stack as an invocation. This gives your opponent (and their secrets) a chance to respond to the invocation before it actually becomes a card in play. Once both players pass priority, the invocation resolves and the card enters play.

Players start the game with 30 health. When a player's health reaches 0, they lose the game. Minions have a health stat that represents how much damage they can take before they are destroyed. When a minion takes damage, it is marked with that much damage. If a minion has damage equal to or greater than its health, it is destroyed. Damage is removed from minions at the end of each Clear phase.

There is an important difference between a minion's current health and its full health. A minion's full health is the amount of health it starts with, according to its stats, while its current health is how much health it has after having taken damage. The UI will show the card's current health, not its full health. Cards may refer to either "health" or "full health."

Constructed decks have exactly 50 cards. Limited decks have exactly 40 cards. If for some reason you did not draft 40 cards in your limited deck, don't worry, you can still play! Just save your deck with fewer cards, and when you start a game, it will fill up with Empty Vessel cards to make up the difference. (The Empty Vessel card does not do anything, so this is not something you'd actually want.)

The card title's background indicates the card's rarity. Commons have a wooden title background. Uncommons have a silver title background. Rares have a golden title background. Rarity determines how often a card appears in a fresh booster pack. This is important for drafting, for example.

You can read much more about the rules and strategy on the official Orbs CCG wiki.

The game is currently in alpha, which means that we are still developing and testing the game. During this period, we will be adding new features, balancing the game, and fixing bugs. Cards are subject to change during this period, although we will try to avoid drastic changes. We appreciate your feedback and patience as we work to make Orbs CCG the best game it can be.

Orbs CCG will always be free-to-play, and we will add optional paid features in the future.

You buy cards from the online online store. This is the quickest way to get more cards. Buying cards gives you more variety and lets experience more facets of the game.

When a friend signs up with your referral link, you'll earn a free booster pack (capped at 5 booster packs from referrals, to prevent abuse). This is the second quickest way to get cards, besides purchasing them.

Yes, you can view all the cards in the game at the Cardopedia.

Orbs CCG is based in Mountain View, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley.

To get in touch, visit our contact page or email us at hello@orbsccg.com.