Cipher Merchandise Guide
Contents
Fundamental Merchandise
Booster Boxes
Booster boxes are the mainstay of the products in the TCG. Each booster box comes with sixteen packs of the respective set, with ten cards to a pack. This is the best way to obtain a large quantity of cards for the cheapest price; though you're subjected to luck. When trying to obtain playsets of Normal or High-Normal cards, booster boxes are recommended. Though if looking for specific cards, namely Rares and Super-Rares, resorting to singles is recommended. Most players start a set with a couple booster boxes, then purchase singles to complete playsets.
Each booster pack itself comes with 6N cards and 3HN cards (In series 1 through 4, it was 7N and 2HN), and a single R, R+, SR, or SR+. Boxes have set ratio's for the Holo cards. Out of the Booster Box (16 packs), you are guaranteed all N and HN cards, 4SR cards, and 12R cards. After Series 4, A box also has a single (+) rarity, which will take up the slot of one of the R's, making it possible to get 5 SR-tier cards in a box. In Series 1-4, the (+) rarity will be applied to one R or SR in the box. From Series 5 onwards, (+) rarity cards have alternate arts with a few exceptions. Also from Series 4 onwards, R+X cards were introduced to preview a R card from upcoming sets with alternate art and a special gold border. These can take up the (+) slot in a box. Lastly, each box comes with a small assortment of promotional items, which are listed on each of the box's pages.
B01 Warblade of Heroes (英雄たちの戦刃 Eiyuu-tachi no Senjin)
B02 Soulful Flames of Light and Dark (光と闇の神焔 Hikari to Yami no Shinen)
B03 Twin Swords of Hope (希望への雙剣 Souen no Kiseki Hen)
B04 Shimmering Illusongs (煌めき幻奏 Kirameki Gensou)
B05 Overcoming Rivalry (相剋を越えて Soukoku no Koete)
B06 Storm of the Knights' Shadows (閃駆ノ騎影 Senku no Kiei)
B07 Rise To Honor (士道を征く Shidou wo Yuku)
B08 (生と死-運命の先へ Sei to Shi-Unmei no Saki e)
B09 Thunderous Earth (響地轟轟 Hibike Chi Gougou)
B10 Crossroads (クロスローズ Kurosurouzu)
B11 Glorious Twinstrike (赫赫たる双撃 Kakutaru Sougeki)
B12 Raging Deluge (荒れ狂う破濤 Arekurruu Hanami)
Recommended Shop: AmiAmi MSRP: 5000 yen
Starter Decks
Starter decks are available for a quick-start into the game. These 50-card decks come with 5 starter-deck exclusive cards. The cover card has a full playset and one holographic with a gold trim. Additionally, 4 other cards in the deck will be holographic, most of the time being the exclusives. The rest of the deck is made up of N, HN, and R cards from the related set, except their series number is SXX-XXX(ST) instead of BXX-XXX. There are only 2-3 R rarity cards, however they are non-holographic. The decks can contain staple cards that are prominent in the metagame, and can make them a very worth-while pickup. Series 6 is the only dual-color deck, for which there are two lord characters. They also come with a coloured marker card (主人公/Main Character), rulebook, and paper playmat with a quick start guide on the reverse.
S01 War of Darkness - Marth / Red
S02 Awakening - Chrom / Blue
S03 White Night - Corrin M / White
S04 Black Night - Corrin F / Black
S05 Path of Radiance - Ike / Green
S06 Illusory Revelations - Itsuki + Tsubasa / Blue + Red
S07 Binding Blade - Roy / Purple
S08 Genealogy of the Holy War - Sigurd / Yellow
S09 Land of the Gods - Alm + Celica / Red
Recommended Shop: AmiAmi MSRP: 1200 yen
Secondary Merchandise
Sleeves
Intelligent Systems sells packs of 65 standard-size sleeves with character art on them. They release a new set of 4 twice a season. Starting set 2 and onwards, these sleeves will have metallic effects on them that give off an extra shine. The inside of the sleeves are a bright metallic silver. A good thematic way to stylize your decks.
Recommended Shop: AmiAmi MSRP: 700 yen
Cipher Guidebooks
With every set until Series 7, Intelligent Systems released a new guidebook that promotes the current set as well as more advanced tactics for the game. However, most players are interested in the promotional cards included in the books. Each guide comes with two copies of a holographic card that boast very tactical skills. Note that some of these cards are highly desirable and the guides are often sold out, making them expensive cards to obtain.
Guide 1 - Enigmatic Tactician, Robin M
Guide 2 - Fervent Princess of Hoshido, Hinoka
Guide 3 - Virtuous Songstress, Azura
Guide 4 - Passionate Background Entertainer, Itsuki
Guide 5 - Lady of Dawn, Micaiah
Guide 6 - Young King of Nordion, Eldigan
Guide 7 - Daughter of the Lorca Tribe, Lyn
Recommended Shop: AmiAmi, Tokyo Otaku Mode or Amazon JP MSRP: 1450 yen
Magazines
The Dengeki Nintendo and Nintendo Dream monthly's magazine can sometimes contain two copies of a holographic promotional card for the game. These magazine issues have limited runs and will be hard to obtain after it's months production, which can make the promotional cards highly desirable and expensive. Keep track of the official twitter to know when certain cards are coming to a magazine. Also check this wiki's Promo Card page for specifics.
Recommended Shop: Tokyo Otaku Mode MSRP: ~1000 yen
Comiket & Event
Oh, Comiket, the wonderful event held in Japan twice a year, boasting overflowing amounts of doujin and otaku culture. The Cipher team sets up a booth at this event and offers limited products which aren't sold anywhere else. This makes their value on the aftermarket absurdly high, and hard to obtain. It is recommended that if you have a friend attending the event, have them pick you up what you want. Sometimes people are willing to take mass orders, often not because of the confusion. If you can't directly obtain the items, the aftermarket prices can so much as triple. Be wary of your funds, Tactician.
To the right here, is Cipher's promotional banner for C91 (December 2016)
The Lyn promotional card is given out to anyone who attends.
The Character Boxes are the most desirable products of Comiket, and come with a deckbox, storage box with separator, 2 exclusive packs of 65 sleeves, 4 unique marker cards, and a promotional card. Aftermarket, these boxes can vary in price considerably, though being upward of 10,000 yen is very likely. The individual items broken down can cost a lot themselves, as the promotional cards can be upwards of 3500 yen themselves.
Singles
As with any TCG, singles are the best way to complete decks for the cheapest price. The card market is a fickle thing, as prices fluctuate with changes in the demand. We suggest if you're searching out lots of N and HN cards, purchasing boxes will get you a chance for some great cards for less cost as well as packing up on the N's and HN's. However, if you're set on obtaining certain cards, it's best to check up on their individual price.
Recommended Store
Dragon Star on Rakuten
- Unfornuately, from March 10th, 2018, Dragon Star has stopped selling singles on the rakuten website.***
- Unfornuately, from March 10th, 2018, Dragon Star has stopped selling singles on the rakuten website.***
Fire Emblem Cipher at Dragon Star on Rakuten
Another company, Fullahead seems to have replaced Dragon Star as the 'Singles' seller on Global Rakuten
Other Stores
Bigweb
+ Reasonable prices
+ Good stock
o Japanese
- Requires proxy shipping (More expensive / complicated)
Amenity Dream
+ Reasonable prices
+ Good stock
o Japanese
- Requires proxy shipping (More expensive / complicated)
TCG Republic
+ Easy to navigate
+ Paypal
+ Good stock
+ Free shipping
+ Bonus assorted N's and HN's, and rarely, some packs with certain orders (They don't specify, and aren't consistent)
o English
- Inflated pricing
- Since each card is priced with their own shipping cost, buying bulk cards is highly not recommended
Note: A limited number of SR cards are reasonable; if you're looking for a 1-off card, you may want to use this site.
Note: It looks like they use our translations for the card titles. If you guys end up reading it, thank you. We mean no offense to your store, though by simple comparison we have come up with these points.
Ebay
Ebay is not recommended because of inflated prices, private sellers, and shipping prices. Rarely will a reasonable deal appear.
Amazon.com
Amazon US is not recommended because of inflated prices. Only recommended for buying boxes and starter decks with Amazon Prime.
Amazon.jp
+ Reasonable Prices
+ Decent stock
+ Periodically Booster Boxes and Starter Decks go on sale
o English / Japanese
- Requires proxy shipping all singles as they are from 3rd seller parties (More expensive / complicated)