Genshin Impact's in-game card battler Genius Invokation TCG didn't exist at launch, but was added in later as a new way for players to enjoy the game. While it’s not necessarily what most players focus on, Hoyoverse occasionally hosts Genius Invokation TCG events that reward primogems, Genshin Impact's most lucrative gacha resource. Additionally, leveling up your TCG Player Level also rewards primogems, so Genius Invokation TCG is something every player will eventually want to look into to earn some extra premium currency.

If you’re starting to dip your toe into Genshin Impact's Genius Invokation TCG, our guide contains everything you need to know to triumph.

 

How to play Genius Invokation TCG

Genius Invokation TCG is located inside of Genshin Impact—meaning that in order to play the card game, you’ll need to open Genshin Impact first and head to The Cat’s Tail in Mondstadt City after reaching Adventure Rank 32. The Cat's Tail is the hub of Genius Invokation TCG, and it’s where you’ll obtain cards in the future. (More on that later.)

Once you’ve done the prerequisite quests and have your first deck, then you’ll be able to play against visitors at The Cat’s Tail as well as random NPCs around the world. You can see whether NPCs want to play Genius Invokation TCG by equipping your Casket of Tomes (the name of your deck box) from your inventory.

Genius Invokation TCG itself generally consists of two players with 30-card decks and three character cards. (Generally—some NPCs have differing numbers of character cards.) The goal is to defeat the opponent’s character cards by getting their HP to zero.

When you first get into a match, you’ll draw five cards from your deck during the Preparation Phase. You’ll be able to switch out any of these cards before picking which of your three character cards you want to be your active character.

After you’ve picked an active character, you’ll move on to the Roll Phase. Here, you’ll roll eight Elemental Dice. These dice fuel everything you do in Genius Invokation TCG. Like your cards, you’ll be able to pick which dice to keep or reroll before moving on to the Action Phase.

In the Action Phase, you’ll be able to use the cards in your hand and attack with your active character. For every action you take, you’ll need the correct number and type of Elemental Dice. The Elemental Dice correspond with the seven elements in Genshin Impact (Anemo, Geo, Electro, Dendro, Hydro, Cryo, and Pyro). There’s also an Omni Element dice that can substitute for any element you need.

The requirements for playing a card or using an attack are signified by hexagons with numbers in them. The number signifies how many Elemental Dice you’ll need. The hexagon itself will either be light- or dark-colored, signifying whether or not the Elemental Dice need to be the same element. Light-colored means the Elemental Dice need to be the same element—and if you’re attacking, that they need to be the same element as your active character. Dark-colored means the elements on the dice don’t matter at all. These can be combined, so a light-colored "2" hexagon paired with a dark-colored "1" hexagon.

While every action you take is decided by the dice you roll in the Roll Phase, there is a way to get more matching dice. You can discard any card in your hand for an Elemental Dice that matches the element of your active character.

You can play whatever cards you want during the Action Phase as long as you have the dice for it, but the turn will end in one of three ways: when you attack, if you change your active character, or if you choose to end your turn.

After you attack or switch characters, it will be your opponent's Action Phase. From there, the game will bounce between the two players as they attack and/or switch out their characters. Ending your turn will forfeit any remaining chances you have to attack until your opponent also ends their turn, so the only time you’ll want to choose that option is when you don’t have any more dice. Once both players have decided to end their turn, the game moves onto the End Phase.

The End Phase starts with the player who went first, and it’ll trigger any summons or support cards that have triggers for the End Phase. Each card is different, so you’ll want to read the descriptions of the cards in your deck to see what your own cards do.

After that, players draw two cards and then go on to another Roll Phase, and the cycle repeats.
 

Your first Genius Invokation TCG deck

Every player starts out with a Genius Invokation TCG deck that features Sucrose, Kaeya, and Diluc. These three synergize well, as they can trigger various Elemental Reactions that dish out tons of damage.

Elemental Reactions in Genius Invokation TCG work the same way that they do in Genshin Impact proper. For example, in the starter deck, Kaeya’s attacks apply Cryo. Using a Pyro attack from Diluc afterward will trigger Melt, while Sucrose’s Anemo attacks with Pyro will prompt Swirl.

Elemental Reactions are key to winning Genius Invokation TCG matches. At the beginning, your focus will be on getting Melt or Swirl to trigger. Sucrose excels at spreading different elementals, so using her to apply one element and then switching to Diluc or Kaeya to apply the other is your best bet.

The cards in your deck can help you do more damage, but they’re also really great for getting the Elemental Dice you need. The starting deck deals a lot of damage as long as you have the right dice, so don’t be afraid to sacrifice cards to deal your damage.
 

How to get more Genius Invokation TCG cards

If you want to build your own deck, then you’ll need to get more cards. For cards that go in your deck, you’ll want to talk to Prince at The Cat’s Tail. You can get any card you’d like there. Cards are sorted by their function, so you can scroll through Support cards, Equipment cards, and Event cards.

Note: While the different card types in Genius Invokation TCG matter, they aren’t immediately necessary to learn. In general, cards do different things based on their type—but all you need to do is pay attention to what each single card does. The overarching categories help sort the cards, but they’re all able to be played during the Action Phase.

You can also buy cosmetics at The Cat's Tail, including card backs and dynamic skins for your character cards that are animated. If you find a deck you enjoy playing, this can be a fun way to make it feel special.

Getting character cards is a bit more tricky. First, you’ll need to obtain a Match Invitation Letter. You can buy these from Prince or earn them through events or leveling up your Player Level. Once you have one, you can go to the billboard directly to the left when you walk into The Cat’s Tail.

From there, choose Invite Character. Then you can pick which character to invite for a battle. Once you’ve beaten them, you’ll gain their character card. You can also get their specialized Equipment cards by winning under certain circumstances, which are explained when you invite each character.

You can also talk to Prince to attempt Tavern Challenges. These unlock other character cards, like the Fatui Pyro Agent and Dvalin. Tavern Challenges can be pretty difficult though, so you may want to do them once you’ve gotten more comfortable with Genius Invokation TCG.
 

The best Genius Invokation TCG deck archetype

There are several different Genius Invokation TCG deck archetypes, but there’s one mechanic in particular that’s a bit overpowered: Frozen.

Using a Cryo attack and a Hydro attack will Freeze opponents, forcing them to spend their turns swapping out characters instead of attacking you. This is very easy to do with Mona—her basic attack deals Hydro damage, so it’s a cheap way to consistently apply Hydro to enemies. From there, all you have to do is switch to and attack with a character that deals Cryo like Ganyu, Eula, or Kamisato Ayaka.

Using an Anemo character like Sucrose or the Wanderer, you can spread these elements to all of the enemies’ characters to speed up the process. If you’re just trying to build a deck for primogems, then this is a great way to start. Use whatever cards and/or characters you like that fit the description, and win away.

That’s everything you need to know about Genius Invokation TCG, Genshin Impact's built-in card game. If you haven’t downloaded Genshin Impact yet, you can do so for free on the Epic Games Store.