A Beginner’s Guide to Disney’s Lorcana

Reuben Galenzoga
Jul 11
3 min read

New to the Inklands? Here’s everything you need to know to start playing. 🧙‍♂️

Lorcana isn’t just another trading card game — it’s a gateway into the Disney universe like you’ve never seen before. From the timeless heroes you grew up with to the modern icons you’ve come to love, Lorcana brings them all together in a realm where imagination fuels every move. Whether you're a Disney devotee or a curious newcomer, this game blends nostalgia with strategy in a way that’s both welcoming and wildly fun.

Ready to discover how it all works? Let this beginner's guide walk you through the enchanting world of Lorcana — one chapter at a time.

🎴 What’s in a Lorcana Game?

Before you dive in, it’s important to understand the main types of cards in Disney Lorcana and what each does:

Characters – These are your allies in the game. They can quest for lore, challenge, and sometimes have special abilities.

Items – These stay in play and provide ongoing effects or activated abilities.

Actions – These are one-time-use cards that have immediate effects.

Songs – A type of Action card that can be "sung" for free by certain characters.

Locations – These provide unique boosts and sometimes lore when characters are placed there.

Inkable cards – Some cards have a glowing border and can be turned into "ink" (your resource). Cards without this glowing border cannot be turned into "ink".

A standard deck contains 60 cards, and each card belongs to an Ink color (like Amethyst, Sapphire, Ruby, etc.), each with unique themes and playstyles.

🥇 What’s the Goal of Lorcana?

The objective is simple:➡️ Be the first to gain 20 Lore.

Lore represents your progress in discovering and retelling the stories of beloved Disney characters—kind of like experience points in a video game.

*This app is available for IOS and Android devices. The app also has a guide and a catalogue to mark your owned cards!*

🛠️ How Do You Win?

To gain Lore and win the game, you’ll need to:

Build and play your deck strategically
Use Characters to Quest for Lore
Manage your resources (Ink) efficiently
Defend your field and challenge opponent characters

Let’s break this down.

🧩 Step-by-Step: Playing Lorcana

1. Set Up the Game

Each player has a 60-card deck.
Draw 7 cards. You may mulligan (shuffle and redraw) any number of cards once.
Decide who goes first.

2. Turn Structure

Each turn goes through 6 phases:

(1) Ready – Unexert all your cards (stand them back up).

(2) Set – Draw a card (skip this if you're the first player on turn 1).

(3) Ink – You may place one card face down as Ink (if it has the glowing border).

(4) Main – Play cards, use abilities, or move characters to locations.

(5) Challenge – Use exerted characters to challenge other exerted characters.

(6) End – Pass the turn.

3. Using Characters

Questing = Gain Lore by exerting a character (turning it sideways).

Mulan - Disguised Soldier has only 1 lore. Other cards can have multiple lores as shown in the photo under Inkable cards with the Bolt - Dependable Friend having 2 lores. — Mulan - Disguised Soldier has only 1 lore. Other cards can have multiple lores as shown in the photo under **Inkable cards** with the Bolt - Dependable Friend having 2 lores.

Challenging = Exert your character to fight another exerted character.
Damage is persistent, so characters with enough damage equal to or beyond their Willpower get banished.

4. Managing Ink

Ink works like mana or energy. Cards used as Ink go to your Ink Well (only one per turn).
You spend Ink to play cards from your hand.

⚠️ Disclaimers and Nuances

You can only challenge exerted characters.
Songs are free to play if you have a character of equal or greater cost exerted to sing it.
Multiple deck styles exist depending on what colors you combine (called Ink combinations). You are only allowed to combine a maximum of 2 colors in a deck.
Lorcana has two-player and multiplayer formats, but standard is 1v1.
Damage stays unless healed—strategic memory of damage is key.

🎯 Final Thought

Disney Lorcana is both beginner-friendly and deep enough for competitive play. It combines familiar characters, strategic deck building, and a smooth game flow perfect for all ages. Whether you're in it for fun, collecting, or future tourneys, this guide should help you cast your first ink with confidence.

If you have any further questions about the game, or if you are looking for a viable place to play with other people near you, slide a DM in our social media accounts. We'd love to help you out!