Trading cards are crazy expensive. We didn’t know that back then at the playground, so old cards often look very worn out. To prevent this from happening today, card sleeves and the right play mat are an absolute must. You can read here what you should know before buying a Playmat and where you can find the best offers.

Playmat: Mandatory for Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic and Pokémon

Of course, you can also show up at tournaments without a playing mat, but your irresponsibility will at least be commented on with evil looks. Even the paper playmat used in Yu-Gi-Oh! Included in starter and structure decks, it at least protects your cards somewhat from the not-so-clean table. If you want your cards to retain their value over a longer period of time, you should definitely invest in a play mat. There is plenty to choose from.

The main differences between play mats

Not every mat is the same, even if you leave the motif aside. You should definitely take the following differences into account when making your purchase.

• The size: There are hardly any differences in the size of the game mat between individual trading card games. Much more likely is here between mats for one and two players to distinguish. A normal playmat for one player measures approximately 65 centimeters x 34 centimeters, a double mat usually measures 80 x 60 centimeters. However, you should take into account that your opponent may not want to share the mat with you. This is therefore not always the best solution for a tournament.

• Map zones: Once you have decided on a size, it is up to you whether you want to buy a game mat with printed map zones or whether you would prefer to do without them. These are particularly recommended for beginners. If you don’t want to do this and don’t want to deface the artwork of the game mat with card zones, then you should communicate very clearly in the gamein which zone he plays a card. Especially in Yu-Gi-Oh! The placement of a card can make a big difference. If you knowingly mislead your opponent, this can have serious consequences in a tournament. If you choose map zones, make sure that they comply with Master Rule 5 and that the link zones are shown above the 5 monster zones.

• Reinforced edge & material differences: Your mat is a commodity. The more you use it, the more likely it is to deteriorate. The edges are fraying, perhaps sooner or later a coffee stain will appear on them. This means that you will have to replace them sooner or later if you don’t take care of it. A solution could be direct into a more expensive pad to invest. Not only does the surface have a better material, the edges of higher-quality mats are sometimes sewn and thus reinforced. Plus, you might take better care of it if you paid a little more money for it.

If you want to clean your play mat, you can use robust mats put in the washing machine. This will then be really soaked; you can put it in the sun with the motif facing down for several hours to dry.

Konami or Custom? The best suppliers for play mats

There are numerous offers for play mats on Amazon. Not all of them are really worth the money. The artwork is often on cheap mats in a low resolution printed, which can look very ugly, especially with map zones. You are safe if you buy a mat licensed by Konami. You can find these in hobby shops or card shops, on Amazon and other online shops like “Gate to the Games” or Trader-Online.de.

Cardmarket and classifieds are the best addresses, if you are interested in special matswhich are only given out to tournament winners, judges or at Gamescom. These do not differ in quality from the normal, licensed mats, but the artwork is rarer and there is usually a lettering indicating the success of the original owner.

A third option is self-designed play mats. You can either find these on websites like “Custom Playmat“ Customize and order or you can look for a suitable base on Etsy. Some artists are quite popular and the products are in high demand; some documents can be found on classified ads several hundred euros cost. They are particularly sought after “Spellground” fabric mats. So you can really show off on the next game night.