Is Lorcana a Good Game?
Disney fans and card game players are raving about the hottest new game: Lorcana. Disney Lorcana pairs the wondrous lore of Disney with fast-paced and engaging gameplay, creating an unforgettable trading card game.
But is Lorcana a good game for everyone, or just fans of TCGs and Disney?
The magic of Lorcana is that it appeals to practically everyone. Lorcana offers a unique experience, whether you’re a seasoned pro of TCGs like Magic, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh, or you’ve never touched a playing card in your life.
Lorcana is also an excellent game for collectors and investors. Rare cards, such as Mufasa - Ruler of Pride (217/204) and Elsa - Spirit of Winter (207/204), are worth hundreds of dollars and feature never-before-seen artwork of iconic Disney characters and settings.
We’ll cover everything you need to know about why Lorcana is a fantastic game for you. If you want to join in on the fun of playing and collecting Disney Lorcana cards, visit our card store!
At Danireon, we have every Disney Lorcana set and starter deck, along with plenty of single cards to help you grow your collection. We provide best-in-class customer support, speedy shipping, and a friendly community to help you learn the game.
What is Disney Lorcana TCG?
Disney is over a century old, with classic tales like Steamboat Willie and modern masterpieces like Frozen.
Yet despite Disney’s long history, the company only recently entered the TCG world. Lorcana entered the scene and immediately carved out a niche for itself. Its beginner-friendly nature is far more accessible than established games like Magic, while the splendor of Disney’s lore appeals to a new fanbase.
Lorcana puts you in the role of an “Ilumineer”, a sorcerer bringing characters, settings, and songs to life. You play cards by casting “ink”, which is equivalent to mana or energy in other TCGs.
Your goal is to reach 20 ink, which you can do by challenging your opponent, going on quests, or even singing classic Disney songs like A Whole New World (195/204).
Disney Lorcana showcases brand-new sides of characters. Even if you know Mickey’s friends and family well, you’ve never seen Donald Duck throwing pastries (Donald Duck - Pie Slinger (107/204)) or Minnie Mouse leading a marching band (Minnie Mouse - Drum Major (15/204)).
Is Lorcana a Good Game?
Disney Lorcana is incredibly popular. But is Lorcana a good game for you? What about for your friends and family members?
Lorcana is better than good–it’s a masterpiece of a game that appeals to everyone. The game has a low barrier to entry and deep skill ceiling, giving it a well-developed niche in the TCG industry.
Disney Lorcana’s art and lore make it a fan favorite. We find that many players try out the game after picking up a few cards or a deck with their favorite characters, and later end up fully immersed in the gameplay and storylines.
Easy to Learn, Hard to Master
Is Lorcana a good game for beginners, including those who have never played a TCG before?
Absolutely! You can learn the rules of Disney Lorcana in just a single session of playing or watching. The gameplay loop, which involves playing cards, adding ink to your pool, and increasing your lore points, is straightforward to understand.
While we love games like Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh, they have a higher barrier to entry that can be overwhelming for beginners. Disney Lorcana also appeals to seasoned pros. All of Lorcana’s cards also provide mana.
For example, say you draw Hercules - Divine Hero (181/204) in your opening hand. Should you play for a 6-ink timing by playing and inking small cards as you watch your opponent acquire lore? Or do you ink your Hercules right away and risk missing one of your win conditions?
The good news is that experimenting with complex strategies and playstyles is engaging, so you have plenty to look forward to.
Appeal to All Ages
Is Lorcana a good game for children? What about for adults?
Disney Lorcana occupies a unique niche, appealing to a broad audience. Young children love Lorcana for its iconic characters and settings, like Mulan’s Reflection (65/204) and Ariel - Whoseit Collector (137/204).
It’s much easier for kids to engage and learn gameplay when they recognize cards from Disney’s lore. Other card games like Magic: The Gathering also have fantastic lore, but there aren’t as many recognizable characters.
For teens and adults, the strategy and gameplay loops of Lorcana are fantastic. Disney Lorcana isn’t something you would play with your youngsters just to humor them–it’s an exciting, fast-paced game that everyone can enjoy.
Even if you aren’t planning to play the game, Lorcana has plenty of appeal for collectors. Cards like 99 Puppies (24/204) and Scrooge McDuck - Richest Duck in the World (154/204) take characters from Disney’s lore and paint them in a new light.
Unique Win Condition
Is Lorcana a good game for players who are used to the established gameplay loops of other TCGs like One Piece and Yu-Gi-Oh?
Absolutely! Lorcana gives a fresh spin on card games. While most TCGs involve lowering the health of your opponent, Disney Lorcana has you counting upwards. This creates less direct conflict with your rival, allowing for a greater focus on implementing your strategies.
For example, you can create decks with a focus on character combinations, like Chip - Ranger Leader (12/204) and Dale - Friend in Need (7/204). If you prefer songs, you can use a card like Cinderella - Melody Weaver (4/204) with other princesses to gain a bunch of lore in a single turn.
Each playstyle is equally viable. Lorcana has six different ink “colors”, each with distinct viable win conditions, such as the defensive gameplay of Steel or the early aggression of Ruby.
A New Way to Enjoy Your Favorite Characters and Settings
Your favorite Disney characters appear in Lorcana in new and unique situations. For example, if you love the 101 Dalmatians series, you can build a deck with all of your favorite puppies. Patch - Intimidating Pup (14/204), Rolly - Hungry Pup (21/204), and Lucky - The 15th Puppy (8/204) create a formidable, aggressive strategy, which should be enough to stop villains like Cruella de Vil - Miserable as Usual (72/204).
Is Lorcana a good game if you don’t know Disney’s lore? Knowing the inner workings of every movie or show is not required to have a blast playing the game. Lorcana actively encourages you to get creative with character and setting combinations.
You can have Jafar - Tyrannical Hypnotist (172/204) and Gantu - Galactic Federation Captain (178/204) working together in a Steel deck, or let Aladdin - Heroic Outlaw (104/204) sing along to Scar’s Teeth and Ambitions (130/204).
Disney Lorcana releases new sets of cards multiple times per year, only adding to the endless combination of cards you can dream up.
How to Make the Most of Your Disney Lorcana TCG Adventure
Lorcana is accessible enough that you can experiment with what works best for you, but there are a few key considerations to optimize your experience.
Getting Started With the Right Decks and Sets
Disney Lorcana will have 10 card sets by the end of 2025, along with a handful of promotional releases. Each main set contains 204 cards (plus extra rare alternate art entries), but don’t worry about learning every card at first.
We recommend buying Disney Lorcana starter decks to help you learn the mechanics. These decks feature 60 pre-arranged cards and an extra booster pack. When you invest in a starter deck, you don’t have to worry about Lorcana deck building rules or trying to optimize your collection for the perfect win condition.
For example, the Disney Lorcana First Chapter Starter Deck (Sapphire & Steel) has a simple mid- and late-game strategy centered around Aurora and Mufasa. As you play with your starter decks, you’ll learn how essential mechanics like ink, lore, and questing work.
That will give you all the information you need to build personalized decks and strategies later on.
We recommend selecting a starter deck with the characters that appeal to you. Alternatively, you can talk to us or members of our community for advice on how to replicate playstyles from other TCGs.
Take the Next Step at Danireon!
To start your Lorcana journey correctly, you need to find a reliable card shop that you can trust.
Collectors across Canada agree that Danireon is the premier destination for Disney Lorcana products.
Thousands of collectors trust us, thanks to our extensive inventory of TCG products, fast shipping, and attentive customer support. We’re the #1 home for Disney Lorcana singles, thanks to a constant influx of cards from community trade-ins.
If you want sealed products, including starter decks and boosters from the newest sets, we’ve got you covered. We offer pre-orders for all Lorcana releases, allowing you to secure unique cards in your collection before others snatch them up on the secondary market.
We also offer TCG accessories, such as binders and sleeves, that fit the standard Lorcana card sizes to ensure your collection remains in peak condition.
We inspect all of our products to ensure authenticity and accurate condition information. This creates a safe and secure shopping experience you won’t find on secondhand websites like eBay or Amazon.
You’re welcome to visit our Ottawa store or place an order online. You can also join our free Discord server to socialize with a friendly community of fellow collectors and players.
Building a Fun and Functional Deck
Whether you pick up starter decks to experiment or you want to jump right into deckbuilding, Lorcana offers you plenty of options.
Lorcana decks require at least 60 cards, with no more than 4 copies of any individual card. You choose 1 or 2 ink colors, depending on your strategy.
Since every card in Lorcana is inkable, you aren’t including “energy” or “land” cards like in Pokémon and MTG.
We recommend around 16 to 24 character cards. All of them should have synergy with your overall strategy. It’s a good idea to use 4x copies of these cards for consistency.
You’ll then want to add a similar number of action cards, such as songs, locations, and items. We recommend selecting actions that align with your strategy. For example, Musketeer Tabard (203/204) has excellent synergy when using characters that have the “bodyguard” keyword, but will fall flat in singing-focused decks.
For the remaining 20 or so cards, you want a selection of “back-up” cards that you will primarily use as ink. This is a good spot for situational cards that might only be good against one particular strategy. If your opponent is playing something different, you can always convert them to ink.
Playing With Friends or at Your Local Game Store
You can play Lorcana by yourself, but there’s something special about enjoying it with others. Playing casual games with friends and family, or heading to your local game store, is the ideal way to learn the game. Each time you play, you’ll learn how to implement your strategy better and get better insights on your deck’s viability.
Many game stores host Lorcana nights, including both casual and competitive play.
Collecting Lorcana: Beyond the Gameplay
Many Lorcana cards are worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. We recommend learning the 6 Lorcana rarity symbols before you begin opening booster packs.
Cards with special features, such as foil or the “enchanted” variant, are particularly valuable. If you open these cards in packs, especially at the start of a set release, you might be sitting on a nice sum of cash.
If you’re hesitant about Lorcana’s gameplay but love Disney, you can still collect cards of your favorite characters. Filling a binder full of Mickey Mouse cards like Mickey Mouse - Pirate Captain (103/204) and Mickey Mouse - Musketeer Captain (16/204) can be an exciting challenge.
Final Thoughts on Why We Love Disney Lorcana (And You Will Too!)
Is Lorcana a good game?
It isn’t just good–it’s a fantastic experience! Lorcana’s blend of Disney lore and a smooth, engaging gameplay loop makes it a fan favorite.
Lorcana is simple to pick up. We recommend picking up a starter deck featuring your favorite characters and getting started right away. You’ll find the cards you need, along with accessories, here at Danireon.
We’re Canada’s top trading card game store, with speedy shipping, an extensive inventory, and a friendly customer support team. Visit our website to find your favorite Disney characters, and join our Discord server to connect with our community today!
