Cardfight!! Vanguard

Cardfight!! Vanguard
Promotional image of Cardfight!! Vanguard
カードファイト!! ヴァンガード (Kādofaito!! Vangādo)
Genre	Game, Action, Supernatural fiction, Science fantasy
Anime television series
Directed by	Hatsuki Tsuji
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Tatsuhiko Urahata
Music by	Takayuki Negishi
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X, Cartoon Network Korea
English network	SEA Animax Asia
Original run	January 8, 2011 – March 31, 2012
Episodes	65
Manga
Written by	Akira Itō
Published by	Kadokawa Shoten
English publisher	Vertical
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Kerokero Ace, Monthly Bushiroad
Original run	March 26, 2011 – August 26, 2014
Volumes	8
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard: Asia Circuit
Directed by	Hatsuki Tsuji
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Tatsuhiko Urahata
Music by	Takayuki Negishi
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X
English network	SEA Animax Asia
Original run	April 8, 2012 – January 2, 2013
Episodes	39
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard: Link Joker
Directed by	Hatsuki Tsuji
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Tatsuhiko Urahata
Music by	Takayuki Negishi
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X
English network	SEA Animax Asia
Original run	January 13, 2013 – March 2, 2014
Episodes	59
Manga
Mini Vanguard
Written by	Quily
Published by	Kadokawa Shoten
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Kerokero Ace, Monthly Bushiroad
Original run	September 2013 – present
Volumes	3
Anime television series
Studio	DLE
Original run	April 6, 2013 – December 14, 2013
Episodes	37
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard: Legion Mate
Directed by	Hatsuki Tsuji
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Tatsuhiko Urahata
Music by	Takayuki Negishi
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X
Original run	March 9, 2014 – October 19, 2014
Episodes	33
Anime film
Cardfight!! Vanguard: The Movie
Directed by	Takashi Motoki (live-action) Shin Itagaki (animation)
Written by	Mayori Sekijima
Studio	Ultra Super Pictures/Liden Films (animation) Ace Crew Entertainment (live action)
Released	September 13, 2014 (2014-09-13)
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard G
Directed by	Yui Umemoto
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Kiyoko Yoshimura
Music by	Mamoru Mori
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X
Original run	October 26, 2014 – October 4, 2015
Episodes	48
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard G: GIRS Crisis
Directed by	Yui Umemoto
Produced by	Atsuyuki Takada Hayato Saga Ryōta Katō Shigeru Saitō Shigeto Nihei
Written by	Kiyoko Yoshimura
Music by	Mamoru Mori
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Network	TV Tokyo, TV Aichi, AT-X
Original run	October 11, 2015 – April 10, 2016
Episodes	26
Anime television series
Cardfight!! Vanguard G: Stride Gate
Studio	TMS Entertainment
Original run	April 17, 2016 – present
Episodes	7

Cardfight!! Vanguard (Japanese: カードファイト!! ヴァンガード, Hepburn: Kādofaito!! Vangādo) is a Japanese media franchise created in collaboration among Akira Itō (Yu-Gi-Oh! R), Satoshi Nakamura (Duel Masters), and Bushiroad president Takāki Kidani. An anime television series was produced by TMS Entertainment and aired in Japan on TV Tokyo starting on January 8, 2011. An official trading card game by Bushiroad began releasing in Japan on February 26, 2011, in Singapore on May 5, 2011, and internationally on May 12, 2011. A manga series was also announced and began publishing in Kerokero Ace magazine on March 26, 2011.

The series continued for thee additional seasons: Cardfight!! Vanguard: Asia Circuit (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード アジアサーキット編, Kādofaito!! Vangādo Ajia Sākito Hen, lit. Cardfight!! Vanguard Asia Circuit Chapter), which began airing on April 8, 2012; Cardfight!! Vanguard: Link Joker (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード リンクジョーカー編, Kādofaito!! Vangādo Rinku Jōkā Hen, lit. Cardfight!! Vanguard Link Joker Chapter) on January 13, 2013; and Legion Mate (レギオンメイト編, Region Meito Hen, lit. Legion Mate Chapter) on March 9, 2014. An anime/live action film was released on September 13, 2014 in Japan.

Cardfight!! Vanguard G ran from October 26, 2014 to October 5, 2015. It was followed by Cardfight!! Vanguard G GIRS Crisis on October 11, 2015. Cardfight!! Vanguard G Stride Gate started airing on April 17, 2016.

Anime

In July 2010, an anime television series was green-lit by TMS Entertainment under the directorial supervision of Hatsuki Tsuji. Music is composed by Takayuki Negishi while Mari Tominaga provided the character designs. The series began airing in Japan on TV Aichi beginning on January 8, 2011 and rebroadcast by AT-X, TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, and TV Setouchi systems. The media-streaming website Crunchyroll simulcasted the first season to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. Crunchyroll began streaming the second season to the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom on June 30, 2012 and continues to stream the series. It was announced on November 17, 2013 that Hanabee Entertainment has licensed the anime and will release it on March 5, 2014 in Australia and New Zealand.

A common theme among Bushiroad franchises are crossover cameo appearances of characters from other series. The four main characters (Sherlock, Nero, Hercule, and Cordelia) of Tantei Opera Milky Holmes appear in various episodes and during the credit sequences of the fifth opening and ending themes. Certain Cardfight!! Vanguard characters make special cameo appearances in episode 4 of the Future Card Buddyfight anime. Misaki Tokura (who is voiced by Izumi Kitta in Japanese and Carol-Anne Day in English (both of whom also voice roles in the Japanese and English versions of Buddyfight)) is the only one who has a spoken line.

Episodes 83 and 119 of the anime feature actor/musician Daigo playing a caricature of himself. Daigo is a major contributor to the Cardfight!! Vanguard franchise as he stars in the live-action drama Stand Up! Vanguard and many live-action Vanguard commercials. He also features as a performer the fifth and seventh opening theme songs and sometimes appears at certain official Vanguard events. In the English dub, Daigo's voice is provided by Phil Fulton.

English dub

An English dub co-produced by Ocean Productions (recorded at Blue Water Studios) began airing on Singapore's Okto channel from October 16, 2011, on Animax Asia from January 22, 2012, and on Malaysia's RTM-TV2 channel from November 18, 2012. Dubbed episodes also began being released on YouTube from May 29, 2012. The series can be seen officially on a dedicated channel for it created by Bushiroad, and as of June 25 is available for viewing in most countries without "geo-blocking". An English dub of the fifth season G began airing on YouTube on January 3, 2015, thus skipping over the fourth season Legion Mate. Hulu began hosting the English-dubbed version on August 26, 2013 in partnership with Aniplex of America.

While there are a few changes, the English dub adaption is mostly faithful to the original Japanese version. However, the most notable change in the English dub is that four opening themes and four ending themes are used. The only openings are English versions of the first opening theme "Vanguard" (from eps. 1-65), the third opening theme "Limit Break" (from eps. 66-104), the fourth opening theme "Vanguard Fight" (from eps. 105-163), and the ninth opening theme "Break It" (from eps. 197 onwards), all of which are still performed by their original respective artists. The first ending theme used in the dub is an English version of the third ending theme "Dream Shooter" (from eps. 1-65) while the second ending theme is a unique song titled "Way To Victory" (from eps. 66-104), both of which are performed by Sea☆A. The ending credit sequence for this exclusive theme is the one used for the original sixth ending theme "Jōnetsu-ism". The third ending theme used in the dub is an English version of the original ninth ending song "Endless☆Fighter" (from eps. 105-163), which is performed only by Aimi Terakawa in the dub. The fourth ending theme used is an English version of the original fifteenth ending theme "Cheering On for You" (from eps. 197 onward). Similarly, the Ultra Rare insert songs are performed in English by Suzuko Mimori, Yoshino Nanjō, and Aimi Terakawa (the original Japanese voice actresses of Kourin, Rekka, and Suiko). There are currently no plans for the show to be aired on television in western countries.

Plot

Main article: List of Cardfight!! Vanguard episodes

See also: List of Cardfight!! Vanguard characters

Season 1

Aichi Sendou is a timid young boy in his third year of junior high school. The one thing that keeps him going is his trading card Blaster Blade from Cardfight!! Vanguard, a trading card game that takes place on a different planet called "Cray" and is popular throughout the world. When Aichi's Blaster Blade is stolen by his classmate Katsumi Morikawa, he chases him to a local card shop named Card Capital. There, Aichi has his first cardfight with Toshiki Kai, an aloof and cold-hearted high schooler who has outstanding abilities and who originally gave Aichi his Blaster Blade when Aichi was little. Aichi wins the fight, reclaiming Blaster Blade, and begins to enjoy a fulfilling life as he delves deeper into Vanguard. Aichi's primary goal throughout the series is to become a stronger fighter, so he can once again battle Kai and have him recognize his worth. Aichi eventually places high enough at a local tournament to join with Kai, Misaki Tokura, and Kamui Katsuragi to form Team Quadrifoglio ("Q4" for short). Together, they enter regional and national tournaments to test their skills against fighters from all over Japan. Aichi's principal rival becomes Ren Suzugamori, a powerful but despicable cardfighter who is the leader of the reigning national champion team. Ren eventually makes Aichi awaken a power that Ren also possesses: Psyqualia, a psychic-like ability that lets its user foresee victory in cardfights. However, Aichi’s usage of Psyqualia slowly distorts him into becoming a dark person like Ren. Thanks to Kai’s efforts, Aichi decides to no longer use Psyqualia and reverts to his normal self. When Aichi battles Ren at the finals of the national championships, it is revealed that Cray is real, and Psyqualia is the power given to those who will determine Cray's future. Aichi manages to reconcile his good-natured personality with his dark desires to become stronger. Simultaneously on Cray, the Royal Paladin characters depicted in Aichi's cards resolve their conflict with Ren's Shadow Paladins. Aichi defeats Ren, and Team Q4 becomes the national champions of Japan. The season concludes with Aichi's Psyqualia mysteriously vanishing and Kai fulfilling Aichi's wish to cardfight him again.

Season 2: Asia Circuit

Shortly after Q4 wins the national tournament, a strange phenomenon occurs when Aichi meets a young boy named Takuto Tatsunagi. The Royal Paladin, Shadow Paladin, and Kagero clans of Vanguard have been wiped from existence, and due to this, Aichi’s Royal Paladin deck has been changed to Gold Paladin. Aichi reunites with Q4 (excluding Kai) and travels across Asia to participate in the Vanguard Fight Circuit, an invitational multi-stage tournament featuring the world’s best cardfighters, for the opportunity to meet and seek answers from the sponsor, Takuto. Throughout the circuit, Aichi, whose Psyqualia has reactivated, encounters a mix of familiar friends and new rivals. One noteworthy rival is Team Dreadnought’s Leon Soryu, a man possessing Psyqualia who is on a mission to lead the second coming of both his family and the long-lost Aqua Force clan. After losing at the Singapore, Seoul, and Hong Kong Stages of the VF Circuit, Q4 finally manages to win the Japan Stage and meet with Takuto, who reveals that a dark entity known as Void is currently threatening the planet Cray. Furthermore, Leon is exposed as having made an alliance with Void, allowing the three clans to be sealed away in exchange for Void's promise to return Aqua Force to power. In a final confrontation, Aichi defeats Leon, who had absorbed Void’s power. With a reformed Leon’s help, Aichi uses his Gold Paladins to drive Void out of Cray and subsequently free the captured clans. The VF Circuit concludes with Q4 crowned as the winning team. Afterward, life returns to normal, except that Aichi now has a new deck featuring his signature Royal Paladin units as Gold Paladins.

Season 3: Link Joker

Months have passed after the VF Circuit, and the members of Team Q4 have drifted apart. Aichi enters his first year of high school at Miyaji Academy, where the instructors and students focus on looking towards the future and studying. Aichi thinks Vanguard can be a future that people can believe in, and he tries to establish a Cardfight Club on campus. Despite the interference of the Student Council, he manages to recruit the requisite five members for the club: Kourin Tatsunagi, Naoki Ishida, Shingo Komoi, and Misaki, who is also a Miyaji Academy student but was reluctant to join the club. During Aichi's inaugural appearance at the VF High School Championship, his team defeats Kai's team but loses to Ren's team. Kai remarks on how much stronger both Aichi and Ren have become. The second major story arc of the season revolves around an extraterrestrial entity called "Link Joker", the clan which is the avatar of Void. Various fighters become corrupted by Void's power and turn into "Reversed" fighters driven to seek out stronger opponents and bring them under Void's influence. Kai visits Takuto to seek answers, and in a moment of weakness while cardfighting the Reversed Takuto, he allows himself to become Reversed in exchange for additional power. More and more cardfighters around the world become Reversed, including several of Aichi's friends. Although Ren and Leon manage to fend off and free their respective comrades from Reverse, Aichi is unaware of what is happening until he sees Reversed Takuto announcing the end of the world. At first hesitant to face his Reversed friends, especially Kai, Aichi eventually resolves himself to fight them to save the world. After many battles, Aichi and his friends emerge victorious over Link Joker, but at the cost of losing the original Takuto. Moreover, Aichi faces Kai in one last fight to decide the strongest fighter. In the end, Aichi wins after Kai realizes what a true friend Aichi has been for him.

Season 4: Legion Mate

Several days after the mortal battle against Link Joker, life seems to have returned to normal. However, Aichi Sendou, the hero who saved the earth from the invasion of Link Joker and Void, has disappeared, and Kai, his closest friend ("mate"), seems to be the only person who remembers him. After receiving a Royal Paladin deck containing a new version of Aichi's avatar card Blaster Blade, Kai sets out not only to remind everyone about Aichi but also find him. Kai manages to gather other comrades who remember Aichi: Naoki, Misaki, his classmate Miwa, and Kamui. However, Kai realizes that Kourin is also missing. His investigation leads to the discovery of four magically-gifted cardfighters called the Quatre Knights: Olivier Gaillard, Phillip Neve, Rati Curti, and Raul Serra, who intend to stop anyone finding Aichi. Ren gives Kai a tip to Aichi's location where he discovers that Kourin is allied with the Quatre Knights, and Aichi was behind both the memory loss and the Quatre Knights. Kourin defeats Kai using her Link Joker deck and takes Blaster Blade. During training with Leon, Kai gains new resolve and returns to using a Kagero deck.

Naoki spies Serra's butler Morris entering a portal leading to a sanctuary on the moon where Aichi is located. Kai and his friends are confronted by Serra when they enter the sanctuary. They learn that in order to awaken Aichi they must defeat the four Quatre knights to break the four seals, but if they lose in the sanctuary they lose their memories of Aichi. Naoki defeats Serra, but Misaki, Kamui, and Miwa all lose to the three other Knights. With only Kai and Naoki remaining, Kai battles Gaillard, who blames Kai for the Link Joker incident and will not allow him to free Aichi because of it. Despite this, Kai defeats Gaillard, releasing the second seal. Suddenly, Serra arrives and uses his ice magic to imprison Kai, Naoki, and Gaillard. It is then that Gaillard reveals the truth; a Link Joker "seed" was implanted inside Aichi's body after he defeated Reversed Takuto. To contain the seed, Aichi now wants to seal himself away in the sanctuary with the Quatre Knights as his guardians. However, Serra reveals that his plan all along was to use Kai and his friends to weaken the seals, release the seed within Aichi, and obtain its power all for himself. Ren and Leon arrive and free Kai, Gaillard, and Naoki, but not before Serra has Neve fight Aichi while he battles Rati, releasing the remaining seals. Having discovered the meaning of "mates" thanks to Kai and Aichi, Gaillard finds new resolve and defeats Serra, stripping him of his powers and banishing him from the sanctuary. With Serra gone, Gaillard resets his sights towards Kai and fights him again. Kai defeats Gaillard again and then faces Aichi for a final battle. After Kai makes Aichi realize that sealing himself away was wrong, Kai defeats him. The Link Joker seed then tries to implant itself into Kai's body but is then broken apart by Blaster Blade. Nevertheless, the shattered pieces of the seed enter the bodies of each of Aichi's friends and will grow benign over time. Afterwards, Aichi, Kai, and the rest of their friends return to their normal lives. Aichi and Kai face each other in one last shop tournament, and despite the different paths they will take in the future, they know they will meet again as long as they keep playing Vanguard.

G Season 1

Set 3 years later, the story now follows Chrono Shindou, an apathetic teenager who finds a Vanguard deck and a map in his school locker one day. Following the map, he is led to Card Capital 2, a card shop where he meets an older Kamui Katsuragi who works part-time there. After being taught how to play Vanguard and winning his first fight against Kamui, Chrono begins his ventures in the world of Vanguard.

Theme music

Cardfight Vanguard!! Songs

Opening themes

1. "Vanguard" by JAM Project (eps. 1-33) (eps. 1-65 in English dub)
2. "Believe In My Existence" by JAM Project (eps. 34-65)
3. "Limit Break" by JAM Project (eps. 66-104)
4. "Vanguard Fight" by Psychic Lover (eps. 105-128)
5. "Infinite∞REBIRTH" (無限∞REBIRTH, Mugen∞RIBĀSU) by DAIGO (eps. 129-148)
6. "Break your spell" by Psychic Lover (eps. 149-163)
7. "V-ROAD" by BUSHI★7 (Daigo, Psychic Lover, Suzuko Mimori, Izumi Kitta, Suara, and Shūta Morishima) (eps. 164-179)
8. "KNOCK ON YOUR GATE!" by Masatoshi Ono (eps. 180-196)

Ending themes

1. "Diamond Stars☆" (ダイヤモンドスター☆, "Daiyamondo Sutā☆") by Natsuko Aso (eps. 1-15)
2. "Smash Up!!" by Shīna Hekīru (eps. 16-25)
3. "Dream Shooter" by Sea☆A (eps. 25-38) (eps. 1-65 in English dub)
4. "Starting Again" by Sayaka Sasaki (eps. 39-52)
5. "Nakimushi Treasures" (泣き虫 TREASURES) by Saori Kodama featuring Milky Holmes (Suzuko Mimori, Izumi Kitta, Sora Tokui, and Mikoi Sasaki) (eps. 53-65)
6. "Jōnetsu-ism" (情熱イズム, Jōnetsu-izumu) by Rin (eps. 66-78)
7. "Fighting Growing Diary" by Natsuko Aso (eps. 79-91)
8. "Entry!" by Sea☆A (eps. 92-104)
9. "Endless☆Fighter" by Suzuko Mimori, Yoshino Nanjō, and Aimi Terakawa (eps. 105-119)
10. "Yume Yume Express" by Milky Holmes (Suzuko Mimori, Izumi Kitta, Sora Tokui, and Mikoi Sasaki) (eps. 120-138)
11. "Ride on fight!" by (Izumi Kitta and Suzuko Mimori) (eps. 139-150)
12. "Fly away -Ōzora e-" (Fly away -大空へ-, Fly away -To the Great Sky-) by Suara (eps. 151-163)
13. "Get Up" by FAKY (eps. 164-179)
14. "Get back yourself" by CERASUS (eps. 180-196)

Insert songs

1. "Miracle Trigger ~Tomorrow Will Be Ultra Rare!~" (ミラクルトリガー ~きっと明日はウルトラレア!~) by Ultra Rare (Mimori, Nanjō, and Terakawa) (eps. 18, 26, and 115; simply known as "Miracle Trigger" in English dub)
2. "Stand Up! DREAM" (スタンドアップ! DREAM) by Ultra Rare (Mimori, Nanjō, and Terakawa) (eps. 39, 115, and 118)

English dub ending theme

1. "Way To Victory" by Sea☆A (eps. 66-104 in English dub)

Cardfight Vanguard!! G Songs

Opening themes

1. "BREAK IT!" by (Mamoru Miyano) (eps. 1-26)
2. "Generation!" by JAM Project (eps. 27-48)
3. "YAIBA" by BREAKERZ (eps. 49-74)
4. "SHOUT" by Mamoru Miyano (eps.75-current)

Ending themes

1. "Cheering On for You" (だから元気 for YOU, "Dakara Genki For YOU") by Izumi Kitta (eps. 1-13)
2. "NEXT PHASE" by Emi Nitta (eps. 14-26)
3. "flower" by Ayako Nanakomori (eps. 27-36)
4. "Dazzling Bravery!" (メクルメク勇気!, "Mekurumeku Yūki!") by Starmarie (eps. 37-48)
5. "Don't Look Back" by Rummy Labyrinth (eps. 49-74)
6. "High-Touch☆Memory" by Yui Ogura (eps.75-current)

Trading card game

An official card game by Bushiroad was released on February 26, 2011. An English version of the game is produced in Singapore, first released in that region on May 5, 2011. It has also been released internationally, starting on May 12, 2011.

Gameplay

The basic premise of the trading card game, as explained in the anime, is that the two players represent astral spirits dueling on the fictional planet Cray. The cards in players' decks, called "Units", represent characters from Cray that players can "Call" to the field to fight for them. Players alternate turns calling, attacking, and defending with units. When one player reaches six damage, or there are no more cards in his or her deck, that player loses the game.

Each unit has a Name, Clan, Power Level, Critical Value, and "Grade", which ranges from 0 to 4. Grades 0 to 2 have a shield value, and most units have one or more skills, with exceptions. Overall strength of units increases with grade, but a unit can only be called if the player's vanguard is of that grade or higher. A deck must contain exactly fifty cards, including exactly sixteen "Trigger Units." There can be no more than four copies of the same card, no more than four total Heal Triggers, and no more than four cards with the keyword Sentinel (守護者, Senchineru) in a deck. There is otherwise no restriction on how many cards of a certain clan or grade must be used. There may also be an extra eight cards, but they all have to be G-units, and they do not count in your deck. They are placed in a separate place called the Generation Zone located above the damage.

The game begins when the players place a grade 0 unit, the Starting "Vanguard", face-down in the Vanguard Circle the center of their playing area, and each draw five cards. Each player is allowed one "Redraw" by shuffling any number of cards from the starting hand into the deck and drawing the same number of cards. Players randomly decide who goes first and reveal their starting Vanguards; the player who goes first cannot attack during the first turn. To use a unit to attack or activate certain skills, the player must rotate it from its normal position ("Standing") to 90 degrees clockwise ("Resting"). At the beginning of a player's turn, during the Stand Phase, that player stands all his or her rested units, so they can be used again. During the Draw Phase, the player draws a card. Then, during the G-Assist Phase, the player can reveal their hand, look at the top 5 cards of their deck, then "Ride" on to a card from them. If they do, they then put two "G units" and two cards from their hand in to the out of the play area (can be known as the "Bind" zone). However, to G-assist, the player can not have any cards with a higher grade by one in his hand. Next, during the Ride Phase, the player can choose a unit from the hand that is either the same grade or one grade higher than the current vanguard, which rides over top of the former vanguard(the card stack underneath the Vanguard is called the "Soul"). If there was a G-assist and you successfully rode earlier, this phase is skipped. Afterwards is the Stride Step in which the player can put cards in a discard pile called the "Drop Zone" whose grades sum up to three or higher, choose a G-unit from the Generation Zone, and put in on top of the current vanguard, the previous vanguard considered a "heart." The strided card gets the hearts' name and power and adds it to its own. During the Main Phase, the player can call "Rear-Guard" units to five additional spaces: one each to the left and right of the vanguard, and three to the back row. The player can move rear-guards between the front and back row in that column and can "Retire" a rear-guard to call a new one in that space. Retired units are put into the discard pile ("Drop Zone").

The next part of the turn is the Battle Phase. The player can conduct any number of battles in sequence, and can attack with the same unit more than once as long as it is standing when the attack is declared. A battle is conducted by resting a front-row unit and choosing an opposing front-row unit to be attacked. If there is a standing grade 0 or 1 unit behind the attacker, it can "Boost" by resting, which adds its power to the attacker's. Then, the defending player has the chance to either take the attack or "Guard" with units from his or her hand and/or to "Intercept" by guarding with grade 2 rear-guards in the front row. Guarding units add their shield value to the defender's power, but are retired immediately when the battle ends. After guards are declared, if the attacker is a vanguard, the attacking player performs a "Drive Trigger Check": the player reveals the top card of his or her deck in the "Trigger Zone" and then adds it to his or her hand. Attacking grade 3 vanguards have the "Twin Drive!!" skill, which causes an additional drive check to occur after the first check is completed. G-units have a Triple Drive!!!" skill, causing three drive checks. If a trigger unit that matches the clan of one of the checking player's units is revealed during a Drive Check, one of that player's units gains +5000 power, and one of four possible effects may occur:

• Critical (Yellow): a unit gets +1 critical value.
• Draw (Red): the player draws one more card from the deck.
• Stand (Blue): a rested rear-guard unit stands.
• Heal (Green): the player "Heals" by moving a card from the damage zone to the drop zone, but only if his or her damage is equal to or higher than the opponent's before checking the trigger.

The power boost and additional trigger effect can either be given to one unit or divided amongst two units.

When the attacker's power is equal to or greater than the defender's, the attack hits; otherwise, nothing happens. If a rear-guard unit is hit by the attack, it is retired. If a vanguard is hit, however, it remains in play and the defending player makes a number of "Damage Trigger Checks" equal to the attacker's critical value. The process works exactly like a Drive Check, but the revealed card is put into the "Damage Zone" instead of the hand. After the attacking player has finished conducting battles, the turn enters the End Phase, where certain effects may happen, and the stridden unit (if the player strode) goes back to the Generation zone face up (Face-up G-units cannot be used to stride), before going on the next player's turn.

Card Types

These are the 4 different type of cards in the game.

• Normal Unit - All grade 1-3 cards are normal units. As well as this, some grade 4's and some grade 0's are as well. They have power, critical, shield (Grade's 0-2), may have ability text, may have flavor text, card art, their clan, their type, a name, a skill icon (Boost, Intercept ect.) and a grade.
• Trigger Unit - These are grade 0's with triggers. They have everything a normal unit has, and also have a trigger icon.
• G-Unit - These are grade 4's that you stride on to from the G-Zone. They have everything a normal unit has, save a shield.
• G-Guardian - These are Grade 4's in the G-zone that you can guard with by taking a heal trigger from your hand and discarding it. They have everything a normal unit has, save the power and critical. They just have the word "G-Guardian" where that should be.

Symbols

Some parts of effect text are symbolized. These are the things you will need to know.

Costs

Certain abilities have costs to pay. This is a list of the most common costs to pay. Other costs with be shown in text in the cost part of the effect. Note that a number next to a cost show how many you have to pay.

• Counter Blast: This cost is paid by turning cards in the damage zone from face up to face down. Unless an effect says so, you can't flip damage face up. This looks like a card with a purple arrow towards a purple card.
• Counter Charge: The opposite of Counter Blast, this is when you take cards face down in the damage zone, and turn them face up. This is shown by a green card with a green arrow towards a card.
• Soul Charge: This is when you take cards from the top of the deck and add them to the soul. This is shown by a yellow arrow towards a card.
• Soul Blast: The opposite of soul charge, you take cards from the soul and put them into the drop zone. This is shown by a card with a blue arrow towards more cards.

Other Symbols

These are other symbols that appear very often.

• Act: This is a type of effect. Unless specified, this are only played in the main phase, but can be used as many times as you can pay the cost, unless otherwise stated. This is indicated by a blue rectangle with "ACT" in it.
• Auto: This is another type of effect. They can be used when a condition is meet. Indicated by a green rectangle with "AUTO" in it.
• Continuous: This is the third type of effect. Unless specified, this is always active while in the correct zone. This is shown by a red rectangle wit "CONT" in it.
• Vanguard Circle: The ability can be used/ is active while in the Vanguard Circle. As well, sometimes text will refer to the Vanguard Circle. An example is, "When it is placed on the Vanguard Circle icon, all units gain +2000 power until the end of the turn. Shown with a V in a circle.
• Rear Guard Circle: The same as the way an effect with the Vanguard Circle works, except with a Rear Guard Circle instead. Shown with a R in a circle.
• Guardian Circle: The effect is usable in the Guard Circle. An example is a perfect guard. When this unit is placed on Guard Circle Icon, you may pay this cost. Shown with a G in a circle.
• Limit Break: This kind of ability can only be used when the amount of cards in your damage zone is the number stated (normally 4 or 5) or higher. Shown with a LB then 4 or 5.
• Legion: This kind of ability allows you to return 4 cards from your drop zone to your deck, look for the 'Legion Mate' (Name shown in red) and put it on the Vanguard Circle with the Legion Seeker. Usually, this well be a Grade 3 and a Grade 2, adding up to 20000 power when it attacks. Most legion seekers have an ability that actives when it legions, or while it is in legion, as well as another ability. Shown with the word 'LEGION' in text.
• Stride: When a G-Unit Strides, some abilities can active. This are Stride Bonuses. Shown with the word STRIDE in text.
• Generation Break: This type of ability can be used while the number of units face up in the G Zone or the Vanguard Circle is equal to or higher that the number stated. Shown with GB and then a number(1, 2, 3 or 4).
• Stand and Rest: This is shown by a card in portrait (Stand) or landscape (Rest).
• Once a turn: This is a type of effect that can only be used by that card once in any given turn. Shown by 1/Turn in a purple rectangle.

Nations and Clans

Units in Vanguard are organized in Nations and Clans. Nations are the different countries that Planet Cray is divided in, with a total of six nations. Each nation is subsequently subdivided in clans, which are groups of units that band together to form an alliance. Each clan usually has its own unique aesthetic, and bases its play style around a certain skill.

• United Sanctuary: A righteous holy nation with a strong emphasis on honor and justice, the armies of the United Sanctuary use both ancient magic and new scientific traditions in combat. Represented by the color yellow.
  • Royal Paladin: A chivalrous army of knights, holy dragons, angels and mages who act as the Sanctuary's main standing army. Their play-style is based around strength in numbers, searching and calling allies from the deck and gaining power by controlling many rear-guards. During the G-Era, they gain a particular emphasis on calling Grade 2 units from the deck, as well as the specific keyword Brave, which grants their units powerful effects when the number of cards in the player's hand is three or less, letting them come back from the brink of defeat with even greater strength. Introduced in Trial Deck 1: Blaster Blade.
  • Shadow Paladin: A group of dissenters and outcasts from the United Sanctuary, they are the dark counterpart and enemies of the Royal Paladins. After the War of Liberation, however, they turn a new leaf, putting their ruthless battle tactics and dark sorcery in service of the United Sanctuary instead of against it. A dark twist of their rival's play-style, they focus on the same mechanic of searching and calling units from the deck as Royal Paladins, but their boss units instead sacrifice their allies to fuel the costs of their powerful abilities. During the G-Era, they gain a particular emphasis on calling Grade 1 units from the deck. Introduced in Booster Set 4: Eclipse of Illusionary Shadows.
  • Gold Paladin: A new clan created by the remaining members of the Royal and Shadow Paladin after their respective leaders were sealed during the events of the War of Liberation. Thus, they incorporate the same mechanic of searching and calling units from the Deck, but focus on speed over consistency: whereas their Paladin predecessors use expensive skills that search out specific units, Gold Paladins use cheaper skills that instead call random units from the top of the deck. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Unite, which grants their units bonus effects if the player has called at least two units during their turn. Introduced in Trial Deck 5: Slash of Silver Wolf.
  • Oracle Think Tank: A corporation of magically-gifted individuals that use their powers to predict the future and support their Paladin allies with information. Their play-style strongly revolves around hand advantage, using skills that draw additional cards from the deck, as well as checking and rearranging cards from the top of the deck, allowing them to "predict" the future and manipulate their draws. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Oracle, which grants their units bonus effects if the player has five or more cards in their hand. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Genesis: After foreseeing a doomed future for the Planet Cray, the CEO of Oracle Think Tank created this second conglomerate of magically-talented individuals to protect the future. Their play-style focuses on increasing the number of cards in the Soul with effects that Soul Charge from the deck, and then remove these cards as a cost to activate powerful abilities. Some of their units also activate their effects when they're removed from the Soul. Introduced in Booster Set 10: Triumphant Return of the King of Knights.
  • Angel Feather: A medical institution directed by angels who are masters of healing magic and technology, they are dispatched to battlefields all over Planet Cray to heal the wounded. Their play-style revolves around manipulation of the damage zone: they can swap cards between it and the hand, field or deck, gain effects when a card is placed in the damage zone, and even outright heal damage. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Rescue, which heals a card from the damage zone, then performs one damage check on their vanguard, which can activate triggers. Introduced in Booster Set 6: Breaker of Limits.
• Dragon Empire: The largest of the nations, the Dragon Empire is a militaristic monarchy that is bent on conquering the other nations. Represented by the color red.
  • Kagerō: A group of fire dragons and their human servants, they are the ruling clan within the Dragon Empire and act as its Aerial Assault Unit. Their play-style is heavily focused around retiring and destroying the opponent's rear-guards, as well as re-standing their Vanguard for extra attacks. In the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Blaze, which grants their units bonus effects if the number of rear-guards they control is greater than the opponent's, which synergizes with their retiring capabilities. Introduced in Trial Deck 2: Dragonic Overlord".
  • Narukami: A group of lightning dragons who replaced the Kagero when they were sealed away during the War of Liberation and kept the Empire together in those times of strife. Similar to Gold Paladins, their play-style is a twist of their original counterpart's: like Kagero, they focus on retiring the opponent's rear-guards, but prefer raw power over control, usually only being able to retire front-row units, but gaining power boosts and criticals in exchange. During the G-Era, they gain a new emphasis on permanently binding the units they retire, which synergizes with their specific keyword Thunderstrike, which grants their units bonus effects if the opponent has a certain number of bound cards. Introduced in Trial Deck 6: Resonance of Thunder Dragon.
  • Nubatama: A group of ninja animals, spirits and shadow dragons who use mysterious dark arts and act as the Dragon Empire's Espionage Corps. Their play-style is focused aroung depleting the opponent's defenses by forcing them to discard cards from their hand, as well as temporarily binding cards from their field and hand, with some units having the ability of sending bounds cards to the drop zone to make their temporary gains permanent. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Afterimage, which allows their units to bounce back to the hand when a bound card is returned to the opponent's hand, allowing them to re-use on-call skills or protect their units from retaliation. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights, they didn't get additional support until Booster Set 13: Catastrophic Outbreak.
  • Murakumo: Another group of ninja animals, spirits and shadow dragons, sister clan to the Nubatama, who act as the Empire's Black Ops Agency. A highly technical clan, their play-style focuses on hit-and-run tactics, with abilities that call copies of their units from the deck that return to it at the end of turn, allowing them to exert on-field pressure without wasting cards from their hand. This hand-conserving focus is enhanced by some of their boss units, who have defensive skills that enhance the player's ability to guard attacks. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Shadowstitch, which activates extra effects or abilities when a unit's attack does not hit the opponent's Vanguard. Introduced in Extra Booster: Comic Style vol.1.
  • Tachikaze: An army of mechanically-enhanced dinosaurs and primitive humans who act as the Empire's Ground Assault Unit and main infantry force. They have a highly aggressive playstyle, overpowering the opponent with extremely high-powered attacks that come at the expense of retiring their own units, many of which have some way of returning to the hand or field upon being retired to offset these costs. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Engorge, which is a state a unit becomes after retiring a certain number of their own rear-guards, granting them powerful effects. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
• Dark Zone: A dark and mysterious nation whose leadership is constantly disputed between the various demonic and magical creatures that inhabit it. Represented by the color purple.
  • Dark Irregulars: A lawless group composed of demons, vampires and mutant humans who use mysterious powers fueled by sorcery, plagued by constant in-fighting due to their might makes right mentality. Their play-style is focused around Soul Charging massive amounts of cards from the Deck, gaining enormous power boosts and incredibly powerful abilities if the number of cards in their Soul is high enough. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Darkness, which grants units extra powers or bonus effects if a card has been put into the Soul during their turn. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Spike Brothers: The current reigning champions of the extremely violent Cray version of American Football, Gallows Ball, they believe that no tactic is brutal or underhanded enough in order to achieve victory. An extremely aggressive clan, they feature units that gain power boosts when they attack but must return to the deck after doing so, as well as boss units that sacrifice cards in hand to call even more attackers to the field to keep the assault going. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Charge, which activates when a unit is called to the field by an effect, granting it extra power or bonus effects but forcing the unit to return to the deck after it battles. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Pale Moon: A highly mysterious travelling circus who gives highly popular and mesmerizing performances all over Planet Cray, but secretly houses a guild of elite assassins who serve whomever pays for their services. Like the Dark Irregulars and Genesis clans, their play-style focuses around increasing the Soul by Soul Charging cards from the deck, but they instead use the Soul to swap units between it and the field to attack multiple times. During the G-era, they gain the specific keyword Magia, which calls units from the Soul for extremely cheap costs or grants called units bonus effects, but forces them to return to the Soul at the end of turn. Introduced in Booster Set 3: Demonic Lord Invasion.
  • Gear Chronicle: A mysterious group lead by steam-empowered gear dragons who are able to travel through space and time and have taken residence in the ancient ruins of the Dark Zone. Their initial play-style focused around sending enemy units back into the deck and preventing the opponent from guarding with units of a certain grade. They later gained the specific keyword Time Leap, which allows them to bind their own rear-guards to call units of a higher grade from the deck to gain extra attacks or effects, then putting the called units back into the deck and the bound units back into the hand at the end of turn. Introduced in G Trial Deck 1: Awakening of the Interdimensional Dragon.
• Magallanica: A nation that is chiefly located in the seas and oceans of Cray, with its only land mass being an archipelago of small islands, and thus mainly inhabited by underwater creatures. Represented by the color blue.
  • Granblue: A large crew of undead pirates, ghosts, vampires and zombies who sail around the seas of Cray in their ghost ships, raiding and plundering wherever they go. Their play-style is focused around reviving fallen units from the drop zone back to the field, along with skills that send units directly from the deck to the drop zone to supplement these effects. In the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Hollow, which grants their units extra effects when called to the field, at the cost of being sent to the drop zone at the end of turn, ready to be revived again. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Bermuda Triangle: A clan of mermaid pop idols and singers who are the biggest stars in Planet Cray, and whose highly expensive concerts are attended by members of every clan. Their play-style focuses around skills that bounce their units from the field back to the hand, triggering a variety of effects from drawing extra cards to granting power boosts. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Harmony, which grants a unit bonus effects when another unit is called in the same column as it, synergizing with their return-to-hand abilities to activate these effects multiple times. Introduced in Booster Set 2: Onslaught of Dragon Souls, the clan is unique in that additional cards for it have never been released outside of Extra Booster or promotional cards, beginning with their first unique Extra Booster, Banquet of Divas.
  • Aqua Force: A naval military clan who once ruled all of Cray thanks to their dominance over the sea and their belief in absolute justice, they once fell to oblivion but have recently returned to the Planet. A highly technical clan, they focus on increasing the number of their attacks via different means in order to enable the skills of some of their units, which gain powerful effects when they are the 3rd, 4th or even 5th attack in a turn. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Wave, which indicates the number they need to attack in (Wave 3, for example, means the unit needs to attack 3rd to unlock its effect). Introduced in Trial Deck 7: Descendants of the Marine Emperor.
• Zoo: An extremely fertile and nature-attuned nation situated in the east of Cray that houses a variety of life, from highly-intelligent animals to sentient vegetation or heinous criminal insects. Represented by the color green.
  • Megacolony: An insect mafia ruled by a mysterious Queen and the main criminal organization in Cray, their armies of loyal, genetically-enhanced insects and mutants raze Planet Cray committing every imaginable crime. Their play-style is focused around paralyzing the opponent's resting units, disallowing them from standing at the beginning of their turn, which in turn prevents those units from attacking or boosting; some of their boss units can even paralyze the opponent's Vanguard. Starting in the G-Era, some of their units gain the giga-paralyze ability, which allows the player to draw cards if the paralyzed units are still at rest on the opponent's field at the end of their turn, or prevents paralyzed Grade 2 units from intercepting. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Great Nature: A clan of sentient and extremely intelligent animals that study in the Great Nature University, the highest educational institution on Planet Cray. Their play-style is a mix of aggression and hand advantage, focusing on granting power boosts to their rear-guards at the cost of being forced to retire them at the end of the turn. These costs are offset by skills that draw cards or search the deck for additional copies of units when they are retired. Introduced in Booster Set 2: Onslaught of Dragon Souls.
  • Neo Nectar: A clan of sentient plants, bioroids and forest dragons who produce the largest amount of grain and food in Cray, which in turn grants them great influence in nations with low self-sufficiency of food. Their play-style focuses on calling copies of their units from the deck, as well as granting them high power boosts if the player controls many units with the same name. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Bloom, which grants a unit power boosts or extra effects when a unit with the same name as it is called to the field. Introduced in Booster Set 5: Awakening of Twin Blades.
• Star Gate: A nation situated in Cray's southern pole, in which a spaceport operated by the Commercial Wrestling Federation attracts all kind of visitors from outer space and alternate realities. Represented by the color gray.
  • Nova Grappler: A no-holds-barred fighting league that attracts the toughest fighters in the galaxy, their fighting matches retransmitted as a competitive sport in all of Cray. They have a highly aggressive play-style, focused around re-standing their own units during the Battle Phase to gain extra attacks, often accompanied by power boosts. During the G-Era, they gain the specific keyword Rush, which grants their units bonus power or extra effects when they are re-stood by an effect during the Battle Phase. Introduced in Booster Set 1: Descent of the King of Knights.
  • Dimension Police: An intergalactic vigilante corp whose heroes travel the galaxy fighting powerful alien supervillains, who are also considered part of the same clan. Their general play style focuses around manipulating the power of Vanguard units. The heroes focus around increasing the power of the own Vanguard, which often gains extra effects when its power breaks a certain threshold, while the villains instead focus around decreasing the power of the opponent's Vanguard, with some of their units gaining extra effects if the power of their opponent's Vanguard is low enough. During the G-Era, the hero side of the clan gains the specific keyword Burst, which grants units extra power or bonus effects if their Vanguard's power reaches a certain threshold. Introduced in Booster Set 3: Demonic Lord Invasion.
  • Link Joker: A group of highly advanced extraterrestrials who launch a full-scale invasion of Cray, starting with the territory of Star Gate. Their arrival forces the various nations of Cray to band together and defend the planet. At the end of the war, however, a splinter group, lead by Alter Ego Messiah, become allies of Planet Cray. They have the unique ability of Locking (turning face-down) the opponent's rear-guards, disallowing the opponent from attacking, using their abilities or even replacing them with new units until the end of their next turn. The Deletor archetype focuses around Deleting the opponent's Vanguard, which turns it face-down, robbing it of its skills and reducing its power to 0 until the end the opponent's next turn. Starting in the G-Era, the Messiah archetype focuses on locking their own units, then unlocking them to gain benefits. In the G-Era, the Deletor archetype also gains the Vanish Delete ability, permanently binding face-down cards from the opponent's drop-zone; their boss unit, Original Deletor, Eigorg, can outright win the game if the opponent has enough face-down bound cards. Introduced in Trial Deck 11: Star-Vader Invasion.
  • Etranger: Not a full-fledged clan, but instead cards which feature real people or cameos from other franchises are assigned to Etranger, which means "foreigner" in French. Examples of characters that have been featured include Spider-Man, Keroro from Sgt. Frog, and "Baron Kidani", an alter-ego of Takaaki Kidani. Etranger has only appeared on Japanese promotional cards.

Product information

Vanguard cards are sold in Booster Sets, Extra Boosters, and Trial Decks, each containing a selection of new cards and sometimes reprints of older cards. A typical booster pack contains five cards: four common (C) cards and one rare (R) card. Sometimes, the rare card will be replaced by a double rare (RR), triple rare (RRR), or Special Parallel (SP). SP cards are alternate versions of lower-rarity cards in the same set, but have different flavor text and sometimes artwork. Cards of R rarity or higher also have special holographic foiling patterns, which vary depending on set and rarity.

Most common are Booster Sets, which are sold in boxes of 30 randomized booster packs. Booster sets contain support for 6 or more clans.

List of Booster Sets

• BT01 - Descent of the King of Knights (騎士王降臨, Kishiō Kōrin): Cards appearing in season 1.
• BT02 - Onslaught of Dragon Souls (竜魂乱舞, Ryūkon Ranbu): Cards appearing in season 1.
• BT03 - Demonic Lord Invasion (魔侯襲来, Makō Shūrai): Cards appearing in season 1.
• BT04 - Eclipse of Illusionary Shadows (虚影神蝕, Kyoei Shinshoku): Cards appearing in season 1.
• BT05 - Awakening of Twin Blades (双剣覚醒, Sōken Kakusei): Cards appearing in season 1.
• BT06 - Breaker of Limits (極限突破, Kyokugen Toppa): Cards appearing in season 2.
• BT07 - Rampage of the Beast King (獣王爆進, Jūō Bakushin): Cards appearing in season 2.
• BT08 - Blue Storm Armada (蒼嵐艦隊, Sōran Kantai): Cards appearing in season 2.
• BT09 - Clash of the Knights & Dragons (竜騎激突, Ryūki Geki Totsu): Cards appearing in Season 2.
• BT10 - Triumphant Return of the King of Knights (騎士王凱旋, Kishiō Gaisen): Cards appearing in season 3.
• BT11 - Seal Dragons Unleashed (封竜解放, Fūryū Kaihō): Cards appearing in season 3.
• BT12 - Binding Force of the Black Rings (黒輪縛鎖, Kokurin Bakusa): Cards appearing in season 3. Introduces the "Reverse" mechanic.
• BT13 - Catastrophic Outbreak (絶禍繚乱, Zekka Ryōran): Cards appearing in season 3.
• BT14 - Brilliant Strike (光輝迅雷, Kōki Jinrai, lit. Radiant Thunderclap): Cards appearing in season 3.
• BT15 - Infinite Rebirth (無限転生, Mugen Tensei, lit. Infinite Reincarnation): Cards appearing in season 3. Introduces the Triple Reverse Rare (ЯЯЯ) rarity, which is rarer than SP and appears only on one card - Star-vader, "Omega" Glendios.
• BT16 - Legion of Dragons & Blades (竜剣双闘, Ryūken Sōtō, lit. Dual Battle of Dragons & Blades): Cards appearing in season 4. Introduces the Legion Rare (LR) rarity.
• BT17 - Blazing Perdition (煉獄焔舞, Rengoku Homura Mai, lit. Purgatory Flame Dance): Cards appearing in season 4.

List of G Booster Sets

• G-BT01 - Generation Stride (時空超越（ストライドジェネレーション）, Sutoraido Jenerēshon, lit. Stride Generation): Introduces the Generation Rare (GR) rarity.
• G-BT02 - Soaring Ascent of Gale & Blossom (ふう華が天てん翔, Fūga Tenshō, lit. Soaring Petal Wind)
• G-BT03 - Sovereign Star Dragon (はどう竜星, Hadō Ryūsei, lit. Star Dragon of Supreme Road): First set to feature two Generation Rare (GR) rarity cards in one set.
• G-BT04 - Soul Strike Against The Supreme (ふう華が天てん翔, Fūga Tenshō, lit. Conquer Divine Spirits Strike)
• G-BT05 - Moonlit Dragonfang (月煌竜牙 （げっこうりゅうが）, Gekkō Ryūga)
• G-BT06 - Transcension of Blade and Blossom (刃華超克 （ジンカチョウコク）, Jinga Chōkoku)

Extra Boosters are sold in boxes of 15 booster packs and contain a lower number of cards to collect. Extra boosters contain support for only a few clans, and often only for one clan.

List of Extra Boosters

• EB01 - Comic Style Vol. 1 (コミックスタイル Vol.1, Komikku Sutairu Vol. 1): Cards appearing in the manga.
• EB02 - Banquet of Divas (歌姫の饗宴, Utahime no Kyōen): Cards from the Bermuda Triangle clan, appearing in season 1.
• EB03 - Cavalry of Black Steel (黒鋼の戦騎, Kurogane no Senki): Cards from older clans not present in BT06-BT08, appearing in season 2.
• EB04 - Infinite Phantom Legion (無幻の兵団, Mugen no Heidan): Cards from Kamui's Nova Grappler clan, appearing in season 2.
• EB05 - Celestial Valkyries (神託の戦乙女, Shintaku no Ikusa Otome): Cards from Misaki's Oracle Think Tank clan, appearing in season 2.
• EB06 - Dazzling Divas (綺羅の歌姫, Kira no Utahime): Cards from the Bermuda Triangle clan, appearing in season 3.
• EB07 - Mystical Magus (神秘の預言者, Shinpi no Yogensha, lit. Mystical Prophet): Cards from Misaki's Oracle Think Tank clan, appearing in the manga.
• EB08 - Champions of the Cosmos (銀河の闘士, Ginga no Tōshi, lit. Fighters of the Galaxy): Cards from Kamui's Nova Grappler clan, appearing in the anime and manga.
• EB09 - Divine Dragon Progression (創世の竜神, Sōsei no Ryūjin, lit. Genesis of Divine Dragon): Cards from Kai's Kagero clan, appearing in the manga.
• EB10 - Divas Duet (歌姫の二重奏, Utahime no Dyuetto): Cards from the Bermuda Triangle clan, appearing in season 4. This set features "Black" and "White" alternate arts of cards.
• EB11 - Requiem at Dusk (宵闇の鎮魂歌, Yoiyami no Rekuiemu): Cards from Ren's Shadow Paladin clan, appearing in season 4.
• EB12 - Waltz of the Goddess (女神の円舞曲, Megami no Warutsu): Cards from Misaki's Genesis clan, appearing in season 4.

List of G Extra Boosters

• G-EB01 - Cosmic Roar (宇宙の咆哮, Sora no Hōkō): Cards from the Dimension Police clan.

Trial Decks are 50-card decks designed as an introduction to the game. They contain a fixed selection of cards, including one RR and two R cards. At the start of each season, a pair of Trial Decks is released which introduce that season's signature mechanic to the game. Season 2 introduced "Limit Break," which gives a vanguard extra effects when the player is at 4 or more damage. Season 3 introduced "Break Ride", which gives bonus effects for riding one Grade 3 vanguard on top of another one. Season 4 introduced "Legion", which allows two cards to combine into a single vanguard.

Starting from the "G" series, Trial Decks contain 52 cards, including four RRR cards and two "G Unit" cards which begin the game in the "Generation Zone." These cards can only enter play by "Striding" them over a grade 3 vanguard until end of turn. The G Unit retains the name and power of the previous vanguard, known as the "Heart".

List of Trial Decks

• TD01 - Blaster Blade (聖域の光剣士, lit. Shining Swordsman of the Holy Land): Cards from Aichi's Royal Paladin clan, appearing in season 1.
• TD02 - Dragonic Overlord (帝国の暴竜, lit. Raging Dragon of the Empire): Cards from Kai's Kagero clan, appearing in season 1.
• TD03 - Golden Mechanical Soldier (黄金の機兵): Cards from Kamui's Nova Grappler clan, appearing in season 1.
• TD04 - Maiden Princess of the Cherry Blossoms (桜花の姫巫女): Cards from Misaki's Oracle Think Tank clan, appearing in season 1.
• TD05 - Slash of Silver Wolf (銀狼の爪撃): Cards from Aichi's Gold Paladin clan, appearing in season 2.
• TD06 - Resonance of Thunder Dragon (雷竜の鳴動): Cards from Kai's Narukami clan, appearing in season 2.
• TD07 - Descendants of the Marine Emperor (海皇の末裔, Kaiō no Matsuei): Cards from Leon's Aqua Force clan, appearing in season 2.
• TD08 - Liberator of the Sanctuary (聖域の解放者, Seīki no Ribereitā): Cards from Aichi's Gold Paladin clan, appearing in season 3.
• TD09 - Eradicator of the Empire (帝国の抹消者, Teikoku no Ireizā, lit. Eraser of the Empire): Cards from Naoki's Narukami clan, appearing in season 3.
• TD10 - Purgatory Revenger (奈落の撃退者, Naraku no Ribenjā): Cards from Ren's Shadow Paladin clan, appearing in season 3.
• TD11 - Star-Vader Invasion (侵略の星騎兵, Shinryaku no Sutāveidā): Cards from Kai's Link Joker clan, appearing in season 3. Introduces the "Lock" mechanic.
• TD12 - Dimensional Brave Kaiser (超次元の勇者, Chōjigen no Yūsha, lit. Super Dimensional Hero): Cards from Kenji's Dimension Police clan, appearing in season 3.
• TD13 - Successor of the Sacred Regalia (神器の伝承者, Jingi no Denshōsha): Cards from Misaki's Genesis clan, appearing in season 3.
• TD14 - Seeker of Hope (希望の探索者(シーカー), Kibō no Shīkā): Cards from Kai's Royal Paladin clan, appearing in season 4. Introduces the "Legion" mechanic.
• TD15 - Brawler of Friendship (友情の喧嘩屋(ブロウラー), Yūjō no Burourā): Cards from Naoki's Narukami clan, appearing in season 4. Introduces the "Legion" mechanic.
• TD16 - Divine Judgment of the Bluish Flames (聖裁の青き炎（せいさいのあおきほのお）, Seisai no Aokihonō): Cards from Gaillard's Gold Paladin clan, appearing in season 4.
• TD17 - Will of the Locked Dragon (決意の呪縛竜（けついのじゅばくりゅう）, Ketsui no Jubakuryū): Cards from Kourin's Link Joker clan, appearing in season 4.

List of G Trial Decks

• G-TD01 - Awakening Of The Interdimensional Dragon (覚醒の時空竜（かくせいのじくうりゅう）, Kakusei no Jikūryū): Cards from Chrono's Gear Chronicle clan.
• G-TD02 - Divine Swordsman of the Shiny Star (明光の聖剣士（みょうじょうのせいけんし）, Myōjō no Seikenshi): Cards from Shion's Royal Paladin clan.
• G-TD03 - Flower Maiden of Purity (純真の花乙女 (じゅんしんのはなおとめ), Ji ~yunshin' no Hanaotome): Cards from Tokoha's Neo Nectar clan.
• G-TD04 - Blue Cavalry of the Divine Marine Spirits (海神の蒼騎兵 (わだつみのそうきへい), Wadatsumi no Sōkihei): Cards from the Aqua Force clan.
• G-TD05 - Fateful Star Messiah (宿星(しゅくせい)の救世竜(メサイア), Shukusei no Mesaia): Cards from the Link Joker clan.
• G-TD06 - Rallying Call of the Interspectral Dragon (鳴導の時幻竜 (めいどうのじげんりゅう), Meidō no Jigenryū): Cards from Chrono's Gear Chronicle clan in G season 2. Introduces the "Time Leap" keyword.
• G-TD07 - Illusionist of the Crescent Moon (弧月の奇術師 (こげつのきじゅつし), Kogetsu no Kijutsushi): Cards from Luna's Pale Moon clan in G season 2. Introduces the "Magia" keyword.
• G-TD08 - Vampire Princess of the Nether Hour (冥刻の吸血姫 (めいこくのきゅうけつき), Mei Koku no Kyūketsuki): Cards from Am's Granblue clan in G season 2. Introduces the "Hollow" keyword.

Legend Decks are pre-constructed decks contains 54 cards, including fifteen RRR cards (one of each unique card type) and four "G-Unit" cards. All Legend Decks focus on a single character from the anime and the units strongly associated with them. The units have been retrained, given skills and abilities found in Vanguard G.

List of G Legend Decks

• G-LD01 - The Dark "Ren Suzugamori" (The Dark "Ren Suzugamori", Za Dāku "Ren Suzugamori"): Cards from Ren's Shadow Paladin clan.
• G-LD02 - The Overlord blaze "Toshiki Kai" (The Overlord blaze "Toshiki Kai", Za Obārōdo bureizu "Toshiki Kai"): Cards from Kai's Kagero clan.

List of Special Sets

• FC01 - Fighter's Collection 2013 (ファイターズコレクション 2013, Faitāzu Korekushon 2013): Cards appearing in seasons 1-3.
• FC02 - Fighter's Collection 2014 (ファイターズコレクション 2014, Faitāzu Korekushon 2014): Cards featuring support for all clans.
• DG01 - DAIGO Special Set (DAIGOスペシャルセット, DAIGO Supesharu Setto): Cards from Daigo's Royal Paladin clan, appearing in season 3. Released in English as MT01 (Mega Trial Deck 1) - Rise to Royalty.
• MB01 - Movie Booster 1: Neon Messiah (ネオンメサイア, Neon Mesaia): Cards appearing in the Neon Messiah movie. Released in Japan only with cards distributed to Booster Set 16: Legion of Dragons & Blades ver.E and Booster Set 17: Blazing Perdition ver.E in English.
• MTD01 - Movie Trial Deck 1: Malefic Deletor (凶きょう星せいの根絶者デリーター, Kyōsei no Derītā): Cards from Kouji's Link Joker clan, appearing in the Neon Messiah movie. Released in Japan only with cards distributed to Booster Set 16: Legion of Dragons & Blades ver.E in English.

List of G Special Sets

• G-FC01 - Fighter's Collection 2015 (ファイターズコレクション 2015, Faitāzu Korekushon 2015): Cards featuring G-Unit support for all clans.
• G-FC02 - Fighter's Collection 2015 Winter Cards featuring 1 G-Unit and 1 normal unit for all clans except Touken Ranbu.
• G-FC03 - Fighter's Collection 2016 Cards featuring 1 G-Unit and 1 G-Guardian for all clans except Touken Ranbu.

Other media

Manga

A manga series written and illustrated by Akira Itō was announced along with the anime. The first chapter was published on March 26, 2011 in Kerokero Ace magazine. With Kerokero Ace ceasing publication with its September 2013 issue, new chapters of the manga continued starting with the first issue of Monthly Bushiroad magazine. While the manga shares the same characters as the anime, it follows an original storyline and contains many differences from the anime version. Vertical has licensed the manga series and began releasing it in North America on April 29, 2014.

A sidestory referred as Episode 0 was released on May 23, 2013. It is also illustrated by Itō. Its storyline follows Toshiki Kai's childhood.

Spin-offs

A spin-off manga series titled Mini Vanguard, also known as Mini Van (みにヴぁん), began publishing in Kerokero Ace alongside the original manga. The first chapter of the spinoff was released with the sixth chapter of the main manga series. Mini Vanguard is a short yonkoma comedy manga by Quily featuring all of the characters as super deformed. Like the original manga series, Mini Vanguard continued in the first issue of Monthly Bushiroad magazine after the final September 2013 issue of Kerokero Ace magazine. Mini Vanguard was adapted into a flash anime series produced by DLE. It aired from April 6, 2013 to December 14, 2013. The ending theme song of this series is "Mirai Sketch" by Ultra Rare (Suzuko Mimori, Yoshino Nanjō, and Aimi Terakawa).

Another spin-off manga series titled Cardfight!! Vanguard Gaiden: Swordsman of Light (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード外伝　光の剣士, Kādofaito!! Vangādo Gaiden Hikari no Kenshi) began publishing in Monthly Bushiroad magazine. It is supervised by Akira Itō and illustrated by Makoto Kishimizu. Its story focuses on the lore of the Cardfight!! Vanguard trading card game.

Radio show

A talk radio show titled Stand Up Our Vanguard (立ち上がれ僕らのヴァンガード, Tachiagare Bokura no Vangādo), also known as TachiVan, began airing in 2011 on Hibiki Radio. It is currently split into two shows: the main show which changes its subtitle to coincide with the current anime season and airs on Saturdays, and TachiVan Sunday. It is hosted by Tsubasa Yonaga and Takuya Satō, the voice actors of Aichi and Kai respectively, with occasional guest appearances by various other Japanese voice actors and actresses from the anime series.

Novel

A 224-page novel based on the anime series was released in Japan on May 15, 2013. It is written by Bandana Aoi, and the internal illustrations are done by Yōsuke Adachi. The story follows Aichi reaching out to a lonely young boy named Hiro Hamane (浜音ヒロ, Hamane Hiro).

Video games

A mobile app game titled Cardfight!! Vanguard: Cray Wars (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード 惑星大戦, Kādofaito!! Vangādo Wakusei Taisen, lit. Cardfight!! Vanguard Planet Wars) was released on March 12, 2013. It is a strategy role-playing game and is region-locked to prevent devices outside Japan from installing it. The game introduces an original character named Navica, who acts as the player's guide in the world of Cray and explains the game mechanics. The game's storyline is based around the Virtual Vanguard System (VVS), which generates a virtual space in which people experience the world of Cray, an earthlike planet where magic and science have progressed hand in hand. Each continent of Cray is dominated by one of six prospering nations. Through the VVS, the player's avatar dives into this dreamlike world and fights daily battles for one of these nations. However, a sudden abnormality upsets this scenario. Players move their avatars about the world map of Cray using a six-sided die, accepting and completing quests to receive items and gold to advance the storyline. Two types of deck are composed for use within the game: one to be used in battle and one with which to besiege dungeons. Each deck has six cards; skills are triggered in the battle deck based on the position of cards in relation to one another, while the dungeon deck makes use of skills related to manipulating dice and avoiding traps. In addition to the player's avatar having a level, individual cards have levels. Increasing the cards' levels enhances skills. Leveling up and skill synthesis allows cards to be customized so that two players may have the same card but different abilities.

A Nintendo 3DS video game adaption titled Cardfight!! Vanguard: Ride to Victory!! (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード ライド トゥ ビクトリー!!, Kādofaito!! Vangādo Raido tu Bikutorī!!) was released in Japan on April 11, 2013. It was developed by FuRyu. The game features an original story which stars a new cardfighter protagonist who is aiming to win at a national tournament. Players choose one of six possible original characters to play as, one male and one female each of three personality types: hot-blooded (熱血系), cool (クール), and dark (ダーク). The game features appearances by at least 30 characters from the anime such as Aichi Sendou, Toshiki Kai, Ren Suzugamori, Misaki Tokura, and Shin Nitta. There is a tutorial mode for those who are new to playing the TCG. The main story takes the player through a series of fights against rivals, ending with the national tournament championship. There are also optional missions, which challenge the player to win with a predetermined set of cards, and free play, where the player can duel against any opponent previously encountered in the story. Winning a fight earns the player points, which can then be spent at the Card Capital shop to purchase booster packs to build a stronger deck. The game also features wireless online play.

A second 3DS game adaption titled Cardfight!! Vanguard: Lock on Victory!! (カードファイト!! ヴァンガード ロック オン ビクトリー!! , Kādofaito!! Vangādo Roku On Bikutorī!!) was released in Japan on June 5, 2014. It was also developed by FuRyu. This game's story is based on the Link Joker arc of the anime series. Similar to the first game, players will choose to play as one of the previous game's six original characters (albeit older) plus four more original characters and will attend one of the high schools depicted in the anime. The game's wireless battle mode will be greatly expanded. For example, the game's AI will continue an online match if a disconnection occurs. The game will support a wireless link-up method similar to Nintendogs.

A downloadable game for Microsoft Windows titled Cardfight!! Online will be released in early 2016. It is developed by DELiGHTWORKS and CrossGames. The game will be free-to-play with in-game transactions. Cardfight!! Vanguard G series and later cards will be available. Older cards will be added later. Cardfight!! Online will feature unranked matches, ranked matches, and tournaments. There will also be tutorials for new players. New cards can be obtained from the in-game shop or from crafting. A closed beta will be available to select players before the game's public release.

Live-action drama

A live-action 90-minute drama titled Stand Up! Vanguard was aired on May 3, 2012. It is directed by Takashi Motoki, who describes this project as the "first-ever live-action card-game program". It stars Daigo, Shinta Sōma, Haruki Uchiyama, Suzuko Mimori, Nao Nagasawa, Kazuki Namioka, and Kazuhiko Kanayama. Two of Breakerz's songs, "Climber x Climber" and "Nonai Survivor", are used as background music for this drama as well as some live-action Cardfight!! Vanguard commercials. Much like in the anime, this drama features cameo appearances of the main characters of Tantei Opera Milky Holmes. In this case, three girls cosplay as Nero, Cordelia, and Hercule as one of the teams in the Vanguard team tournament.

Daigo is a wanderer who claims to be a genius and strongly believes in justice. One day, at a playground, he sees Hiroki Miura being bullied by other kids, including his classmate Teru Minamihara. Daigo attempts to save the day, but he gets beaten up in Hiroki's place. The kids' homeroom teacher, Maria Kagami, arrives to the scene and scares the bullies away. As Hiroki walks back home, Maria explains to Daigo about how Hiroki is a timid boy who never speaks his mind, which has warranted him to be picked on. To help Hiroki (and win Maria's affection), Daigo gets a job as a special teacher at the school. As Daigo tries to get closer to Hiroki, he learns that while Hiroki may be reserved, he is actually passionate about and confident in himself when it comes to playing the game of Cardfight!! Vanguard. Little by little, as Daigo has Hiroki teach him more about the game, he opens up Hiroki's heart while teaching him to have courage. However, he also learns that several factors all inhibit Hiroki from coming out of his shell: Hiroki havs a fear of losing, Hiroki's busy working father Shigehiro looks down on his hobby, and Hiroki's mother Kumiko, who got him into playing Vanguard, is deceased. Eventually, Daigo convinces Hiroki to play against Teru in a cardfight. However, Teru wins and insults Hiroki, causing him to lock himself in his room out of frustration. Daigo tries to have a match with Teru but instead finds himself challenging Teru's supremacist home tutor and a greater genius, Eiji Satomi. He ends up losing to Eiji multiple times, with Hiroki secretly watching. Hiroki asks Daigo why he tries so hard, to which Daigo answers "losing is frustrating, but what comes after is most important."

Hiroki declares to Teru that he will get his revenge at a city-wide Vanguard team tournament. The tournament commences with Hiroki, Daigo, and Maria teaming up. Defeating many colorful teams along the way, both Hiroki's and Teru's teams advance to the finals, which are to be held the next day. However, the night before the tournament finals, Maria gets hit by a car and is hospitalized as a result. With no one else to turn to, Daigo asks Shigehiro to be Maria's replacement, but he refuses due to his work. The next day, despite Hiroki not believing his father would come, Shigehiro does in fact make it in time before Hiroki's team gets disqualified. The finals begin with Shigehiro using his deceased wife Kumiko's deck against one of Teru's team members. Although Shigehiro ends up losing, he remembers the last conversation he had with Kumiko before she died. After the fight, he apologizes to Hiroki for all the mean things he said and gives him Kumiko's necklace, telling him to have courage. With Teru's team leading 1-0, the next fight between Daigo and Eiji starts. Despite Eiji's genius-level play, Daigo refuses to give up. He miraculously defeats Eiji, who runs away crying. With the score now 1-1, it comes down to the last match between Hiroki and Teru. Although Hiroki tries his absolute best and never gives up, Teru ultimately wins. Hiroki, Shigehiro, and Daigo all cry in frustration, but during the awards ceremony, Teru recognizes Hiroki and gives him his respect and friendship. Afterwards, when Daigo goes to the hospital to give flowers to the injured Maria, he unfortunately sees her with another man, assuming that he is Maria's significant other. Believing that his love for Maria is over before it started, he runs off. In the end, Hiroki is now more confident in himself and has many friends. Daigo decides to go back to being a wanderer, but not before he and Hiroki have one last cardfight.

Live-action/anime film

A hybrid live-action/anime film was released on September 13, 2014. The live-action segment, A Game of Three (３つのゲーム, Mitsu no Gēmu), was directed by Takashi Motoki at Ace Crew Entertainment, and stars Daigo, Suzuko Mimori, Taizō Shīna, Takuma Sueno, and others. The anime portion, Neon Messiah (ネオンメサイア, Neon Mesaia), was directed by Shin Itagaki at Ultra Super Pictures, and screenplay was made by Mayori Sekijima. It features the animated debut of the character Kouji Ibuki (voiced by Mamoru Miyano). Neon Messiah made its US premiere on July 4, 2015 at Anime Expo.

Reception

In its Winter 2011 Anime Preview Guide, the staff of Anime News Network had a poor impression of the anime series. Carl Kimlinger complained about the crass commercialism of the trading card game shows and was glad that the series (in his view) flopped. Carlo Santos and Bamboo Dong gave equally scathing reviews. Chris Beveridge of Mania.com compares the series with other trading card game based shows such as Yu-Gi-Oh! and states that, while he sees lots of kids using the series to take notes and getting their game plan, he feels the series still needs to work on being engaging and entertaining.

As for the trading card game, it has received praise for its marketing through the animated television show and various media, which has caused its popularity to rise immensely. On December 14, 2012, the company Interface in Design created a survey for which trading card game had the most fulfilling playing experience for the "Trading Card Game Award of 2012". Cardfight!! Vanguard was bestowed awards for the most excellent game in both Elementary School and General categories. It also received honorable mentions under the Junior High School, High School, and Adult categories. These awards were bestowed to Cardfight!! Vanguard due to the high praise the game received for its tournament events and ease of access to important updates in the Vanguard culture through magazines and websites. The ease of learning the game for new players was also an incredibly appealing aspect of the game.

External links

• Official website
• Cardfight!! Vanguard at TV Aichi
• Cardfight!! Vanguard Season 2 at TV Tokyo
• Cardfight!! Vanguard Season 3 at TV Tokyo
• Cardfight!! Vanguard Season 4 at TV Tokyo
• Cardfight!! Vanguard (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia