(These are some of the simple effects you should be able to figure out after reading this guide.)
It can be daunting to look at an interesting Japanese tcg and see a sea of foreign language characters, and it can be inconvenient to print out a sheet of translations that you need to constantly reference. Fortunately, tcgs tend to be very structured both in how the cards are worded, and the terms used. Even with only a very moderate understanding of Japanese, you can save a ton of time looking up effects in reference sheets and wikis by learning just a few simple words and phrases. Most of these will be broadly applicable to other tcgs, but tcgs sometimes use slightly different wording for common concepts (ie. for “opponent”, some tcgs just use 相手, while Wixoss uses 対戦相手 - battle opponent).
If you have no knowledge of the Japanese language at all, there is a bit of homework you’ll need to do from the start: it will be next to impossible to understand anything without being able to read the Japanese phonetic alphabets (katakana and hiragana). They’ll be used for everything from basic grammar (の, を), to Wixoss specific terms (ルリグ - LRIG, シグニ - Signi, バニッシュ - banish), to more general tcg terms (デッキ - deck, レベル - level, カード - card). Being able to look at ルリグ, read it as ru-ri-gu, and understand it as referring to LRIG is the baseline of competency you’ll need to be able to start using this guide (or really any guide, this is really important, foundational stuff). Fortunately, you should be able to get a solid grasp on this within a month of easy study - you can probably get away with less than a half-hour a day. If you’re more ambitious, you should be able to manage it in half that time.
Once you’ve learned katakana and hiragana, and know the basic game terms of Wixoss (or the game you’re looking to read), you’ll be able to recognize close to half the text on the average card. The other half will be kanji, which is the tricky bit, and where this guide aims to give you a helping hand. (This list is in no real order, but it generally goes from more common to less common, so the most important kanji should be near the top of the list.)
枚 (まい - mai)
A numerical classifier for flat things such as paper, plates, coins. As a classifier, it doesn’t have any meaning on its own, you’ll just see it after a number like １枚.
引く (ひく - hiku)
To pull, to draw. In tcgs, it’s used when you draw a card, like in カードを１枚引く (Caado o ichimai hiku - Draw 1 card). Since this is a common life burst effect (along with エナチャージ # - or ener charge #), these first two kanji alone will let you quickly read a majority of your life burst effects without reference.
対戦相手 (たいせん あいて - taisen aite)
Opponent. (対戦 is taisen - or battle, and 相手 is aite - opponent, or companion.) Knowing 対戦相手 and あなた (anata - you) lets you know who is performing an effect.
終了時 (しゅうりょう じ - shuuryou ji)
When finished. Usually found with ‘end of turn’ effects (あなたのターン終了時 - at the end of your turn). ターン終了時まで is “until end of turn.”
以下 (いか - ika)
Less than, or ‘not more than’. Used after a number, it means ‘that number, or less’, for example: パワー10000以下 is power 10000 or less. Knowing this, you should be able to fully read 対戦相手のパワー10000以下のシグニ１体をバニッシュする。This is a common type of effect on red cards, especially their life bursts. This kanji can also mean “the following; the [something] below," ie. “choose 1 of the following:”.
得る (える - eru)
To get, to gain, to obtain. Used when a card gains an effect, such as 「アタックできない。」(can’t attack), or 「バニッシュされない。」(can’t be banished).
色 (いろ - iro)
Colour. と同じ色 (onaji iro) is “same colour.”
手札 (てふだ - tefuda)
Hand (of cards).
捨て (すて - sute)
Discard, throw away. Used when a player discards cards from their hand. 捨てさせる is used when a player is forced to discard (ie. must discard).
公開 (こうかい - koukai)
Open to the public, to exhibit. In tcgs, it means to reveal to all players.
見 (み - mi)
To see, to look at. A general-use kanji that pops up in effects like あなたのデッキの上からカードを３枚見る (look at the top 3 cards of your deck - 上 is top, 下 is bottom, 一番上 - ichiban jou - is the topmost, the one right on top), and effects like １枚見ないで選び (ichi-mai minaide erabi - choose a card without looking - used when discarding random cards from an opponent’s hand).
場 (ば - ba)
Place, or field. Your in-play zone.
加える (くわえる - kuwaeru)
To add (ie. 手札に加える - add to your hand).
置く (おく - oku)
Put (ie. トラッシュに置く - put into the trash).
戻す (もどす - modosu)
Return. 手札に戻す - return to hand.
This is far from a complete list of kanji you’ll find on Wixoss cards, or japanese tcg cards in general, but this should be enough to cover most general effects and save you some time checking wikis or reference sheets. Many decks will also have archetype specific terms you should familiarize yourself with (such as 乗 - jou - drive / ドライブ状態 - doraibu joutai - drive state for Layra, or learning 偶数 - guusuu - even / 奇数 - kisuu - odd for Guzuko). Generally, you can find these easily on the wiki.
Hopefully you’ve found this useful, and if there’s any kanji I’ve missed that would be useful to include, just let me know and I’ll add them to the list.
