Tag Team is a quick, two-player auto battler that plays out in around 10–15 minutes. The rules are easy to pick up, but the real depth comes from the characters themselves. Each fighter has their own abilities, strengths, and weaknesses, meaning the match can feel very different depending on who you bring into the ring.
A lot of the strategy happens before the first card is even played. Picking the right pair of characters (and understanding how they work together) is just as important as what happens during the fight. With twelve characters in the current roster, and more on promises with expansions, there’s plenty of room to experiment with different playstyles and matchups.
Tag Team is a quick, two-player auto battler that plays out in around 10–15 minutes. The rules are easy to pick up, but the real depth comes from the characters themselves. Each fighter has their own abilities, strengths, and weaknesses, meaning the match can feel very different depending on who you bring into the ring.
A lot of the strategy happens before the first card is even played. Picking the right pair of characters (and understanding how they work together) is just as important as what happens during the fight. With twelve characters in the current roster, and more on promises with expansions, there’s plenty of room to experiment with different playstyles and matchups.
Core Concepts
In Tag Team, each player controls two characters who take turns fighting as a team. Over the course of the match, players build a fight deck that drives all actions in combat. Once cards are added to the deck, their order is locked in, so everything resolves in a known sequence.
This fixed order is where most of the decision-making comes from. You’re not just choosing what to add to the deck, but when it will happen. Good play is about timing your attacks, managing your characters’ abilities, and setting things up so your opponent can’t respond in time.
Components Overview
The game keeps components to a minimum. Each character has a card that shows their abilities and health, with additional cards used to build the fight deck during play. A small number of tokens track health and any ongoing effects, keeping the focus on the characters rather than bookkeeping.
Setup
First, players choose the two characters that will make up their Tag Team. There are a few different ways to handle this, depending on how experienced (or competitive) you want the game to be.
Beginner Pick
For your first game, it’s recommended to stick with one of the suggested pairings: Ching-Shih and Joan, or Bodvar and Wong Fei Hung. These teams are straightforward, forgiving, and a good way to learn how the game flows.
Regular Draft
Deal the draft cards evenly between both players. Each player picks one character, then passes their remaining cards to the other player and chooses their second character from that new hand.
Competitive Draft
This works the same way as the Regular Draft, except before passing the remaining cards to the other player, each player secretly discards one card face down. This adds a bit of mind games and denial to the draft.
Just Pick Them
Ignore all of the above and pick whoever you feel like playing. Simple as that.
Once you’ve chosen your characters, set up their player boards. Place each character’s health counter, starting power (shown at the top of the card), and any other character-specific tokens or trackers listed on their board.
Next, take the decks for both of your characters. Remove each character’s starting card (the one with the black border), then shuffle the remaining cards together to form a single draw pile.
Finally, using your starting cards, decide the order they’ll resolve and place them face down in front of you as your fight deck. Cards are always played from the top of this deck, so whatever’s on top will trigger first.
Gameplay
Gameplay in Tag Team is quick and straightforward, alternating between two phases: the Fight Phase and the Build Phase.
During the Fight Phase, both players flip the top card of their fight deck at the same time and resolve its effect. This counts as a turn. The character on the revealed card is your active character for that turn, while your other character acts as their partner. Unless a card says otherwise, all attacks and effects target your opponent’s active character. The strength of an attack is based on the active character’s current power, which builds up over the course of the game and carries over between turns.
Once the turn is resolved, both players flip the next card and repeat the process, stacking cards as they go. The Fight Phase continues until there are no cards left in your fight deck. As the game goes on and decks get bigger, this phase naturally takes longer each round.
After that, you move into the Build Phase. Draw the top three cards from your build deck, choose one to add to your fight deck, and discard the other two to the bottom of the build deck in any order. You can’t reorder your fight deck, so the key decision here is where you slot that new card in, timing is everything.
How the Game Ends
The aim of the game is simple: knock out one of your opponent’s characters. A character is KO’d when their HP is reduced to the KO marker on their health track.
If, at the end of a turn, one of your opponent’s characters has been knocked out, the game immediately ends and you win. If both players score a KO on the same turn, the match ends in a draw.
In the rare case that a player completely runs out of cards in their build deck and can’t draw during the Build Phase, the game also ends in a draw.
Character Overview
The Golem, The Colossal Protector
Tank, protector, and all-around big guy, The Golem is a force you don’t want to mess with. With the highest base HP in the game at 20, he can take some hits and afford to take a few risks.
His signature ability, Protect the Innocent, gives your partner a free shield to block incoming attacks, but it costs The Golem 3 damage. Then there’s Reanimation, which lets the next card you play activate twice. Between these two abilities, it’s tempting to just play him as support, but with three basic attack cards in his deck and solid power generation, The Golem can quickly turn into a heavy hitter. Most of his power comes from losing health, so by soaking damage for his partner with Protection, he’ll build up power fast.
The Golem pairs really well with characters who can heal him, letting him generate even more power safely. Joan and The Fey Folks are great examples, especially since Protection adds an extra safety layer for them. You can also use Protection to help fragile characters like Bödvar survive longer. Other solid pairings include Milady and The Wild Bunch, but honestly, The Golem is flexible enough that he often ends up picked, or banned, in just about every game.
Bödvar, The Berserker
This beastly berserker is the very definition of a glass cannon. Starting with low HP and 3 power, your goal early in the game is simple: survive long enough to build up rage and power, then transform into your bear form and unleash all that stored-up fury. When your rage tracker is full, you instantly gain 3 power, flip your board to the bear side, and set your HP equal to your current power. Most of Bödvar’s cards have two actions, one for human form and one for bear form, with the bear actions dealing some truly devastating hits.
Bödvar’s playstyle is all about timing. You need to stay alive long enough to transform with enough power to really dominate your opponent. That makes him a risky pick, if you can’t block effectively or survive the early turns, he can be tough to use.
To help him thrive, pair Bödvar with characters who can protect or heal him. The Golem and Joan are great options, with Joan also helping build his power faster. Other solid partners include The Wild Bunch and Wong Fei-Hung, who help him generate power quickly while offering a little healing or protection. But when everything comes together and Bödvar transforms into bear form with a good stock of power, there’s nothing more satisfying than stomping your opponent into submission. Joan, The Divine Shield
If you had to sum up Joan in one word, it would be reliable. With plenty of healing, ways to build power for both herself and her partner through her divine voice, a solid handful of blocks, and even some attacking options, Joan is the definition of an all-round support character. She’s probably the single most flexible character in Tag Team, able to slot comfortably into almost any pairing.
Abilities like Divine Vision, which heals both characters, and Sword of St Michael, which heals Joan while she attacks, make her surprisingly hard to take down, all while she’s steadily building power for the whole team. She rarely feels like a weak link, and even when she’s not dealing big damage herself, she’s always doing something useful.
When it comes to pairing Joan with other characters, you really can’t go wrong. She works especially well with heavy hitters like Mordred, The Golem, Bödvar, and Milady, keeping them healthy and powered up while they do the dirty work. She’s also a great safety net for trickier characters like Shango, as her constant healing gives them the time they need to get set up. Realistically, if Joan is on your team, you’re already in a good spot, no matter who you pair her with.
Ching-Shih, The Pirate Queen
As her signature ability suggests, Ching-Shih is very much the terror of the seas. Starting with an attack already on her starting card gives her an immediate edge, letting her apply pressure early while she begins building her fleet. One look at her player board and you’ll notice the large tracker that climbs all the way to 20. Starting at 0 ships, the Pirate Queen slowly builds her armada, with her abilities changing depending on how many ships she has.
This shifting power curve is what makes Ching-Shih tricky to play. Her starting card, Terror of the Seas, loses its attack once she reaches 8 ships, switching focus to healing instead, and then changes again at 16 ships. The real hail-mary comes at 20 ships, when Terror of the Seas sets both opposing characters to 1 HP, usually putting victory firmly within reach. Play her cards right and Ching-Shih is a serious threat; misjudge the timing and she can end up feeling like a sitting duck.
Ideally, Ching-Shih wants a fast game and shouldn’t rely on ever hitting 20 ships. Winning within the first few rounds is often the plan, which makes her a great fit alongside aggressive partners like Mephisto, Maman Brijit, and The Wild Bunch, all of whom want to close the game out quickly. On the flip side, it’s usually best to avoid pairing her into characters like Mordred or Wong Fei-Hung, who thrive in longer games and want time to build power, especially if Wong Fei-Hung manages to remove her starting card with his crippling touch.
Mordred, The Black Knight
Personally, Mordred is one of my favourite characters to play. He’s an absolute tank, starting with 19 base health and packing a kit full of blocks. Mordred wants to slow the game right down while he steadily builds power. His starting card, Dark Power, won’t even attack until he’s reached 8 power, until then, it simply generates 1 power each time it’s played.
Most of Mordred’s damage (and healing) actually comes from blocking. Depending on the card, a successful block will either heal him back up or trigger a heavy retaliatory hit. His Hidden Blade attacks can be tricky to land, as they’re fairly easy to counter, but when timed well they can still swing a fight. There’s also Execution, which instantly KOs any opponent on 4 HP or less. It’s not his main win condition, but it’s always a threat your opponent has to respect.
Mordred really shines when you can pile power onto him, so his best partners are characters who help accelerate that game plan. Wong Fei-Hung, The Wild Bunch, The Fey Folk, and Joan all work well, offering faster power generation alongside their own sustain. That said, Mordred is very self-sufficient and can realistically be paired with just about anyone, he’s happy to sit back, soak hits, and wait for the perfect moment to strike.
The Wild Bunch, The Band of Outlaws
Heavily dependent on perfect timing and playing your cards just right, The Wild Bunch are some of the hardest, but most rewarding, characters to play in Tag Team. At first glance they look incredibly fragile, starting with just 5 HP. However, each space on their health track has a stop, meaning they can never take more than 1 damage in a single turn (or heal more than 1 HP). This makes them deceptively durable if played well.
True to their theme as a band of outlaws, their core mechanic revolves around keeping the Sheriff on their side. Their starting card, Corrupted Lawman, sets the tone: if you control the Sheriff, you attack and then pass the Sheriff to your opponent; if your opponent has it, you both gain 1 power and the Sheriff returns to you. Several of their cards only work if the Sheriff is on your side, while others will actively help your opponent if they control him when the card resolves. This is why timing is absolutely key, knowing when to give up the Sheriff and when to pull him back is what separates good Wild Bunch play from great Wild Bunch play.
With access to some team healing and surprisingly heavy damage, The Wild Bunch can be fairly flexible when everything lines up. They won’t forgive sloppy play, but when you’re in control, they feel fantastic.
Starting with 1 power—and giving their partner 1 starting power as well—The Wild Bunch pair nicely with characters who benefit from early momentum, like Ching-Shih or Maman Brijit. They also work well alongside characters who appreciate extra durability, such as Bödvar and The Golem. The Wild Bunch are incredibly fun once they click, but expect them to take a few games before you really get a feel for how to use the Sheriff to your advantage.
Milady, The Cloak and Dagger
As one of the most setup-reliant characters in the game, Milady can easily catch opponents off guard, often leaving them wondering what just happened. Throughout the match, Milady plants Schemes face down. These come from a stack of 11 tiles unique to her, which you shuffle together at the start of the game. The effects vary wildly, granting power to you and/or your partner, attacking, healing your partner, or, most commonly, Poison.
Poison is where Milady really shines. Instead of normal damage, Poison deals direct damage by halving your opponent’s current health, which, at the right moment, can be absolutely devastating. Milady has several ways to unleash her Schemes. Cards like Checkmate trigger one immediately, while So Predictable unleashes a Scheme if you successfully block an attack. More often than not, though, Schemes are triggered by passing certain checkmarks on her health tracker, meaning taking a hit can suddenly turn into an even bigger blow for your opponent.
Because she needs time to set things up, Milady benefits from partners who can give her a bit of breathing room. The Golem, The Wild Bunch, and The Fey Folk all provide durability or protection that lets her get her plans in motion. That said, I often find myself pairing Milady with just about anyone, she’s more than capable of holding her own once her engine is running.
Milady is a strong pick and a lot of fun to play, but my one gripe with her is how unpredictable her Schemes can feel. When everything lines up, she’s incredible—but sometimes you’re left hoping the right tile flips at the right time. Mephisto, The Agent of Darkness
Mephisto offers some of the most satisfying gameplay in Tag Team, as long as you can get the timing right. Their entire kit revolves around the Serpent token, which has two sides: White Serpent and Black Serpent. During setup, you flip it like a coin and start on whichever side it lands on. Most of Mephisto’s cards have different effects depending on which side is showing, and many will flip the token as part of their resolution.
The White Serpent side focuses on healing and building power, while the Black Serpent is all about dealing damage and ending the game quickly. With only one block card in their deck, Mephisto isn’t built to play defensively. They want to apply pressure early and keep it up, carefully managing the Serpent token to stay on the right side at the right time. One of their standout cards, Drag You to Hell, can instantly win the game if Mephisto would otherwise be KO’d that turn, making for some incredibly tense moments.
Mephisto is one of the most self-sufficient characters in the game and barely interacts with their partner at all. You can pair them with almost anyone, but characters like The Fey Folk or The Wild Bunch are particularly useful for the extra starting power. Just be careful around the midpoint of their health track, where a forced Serpent flip can completely derail your plans if you’re not paying attention.
Wong Fei-Hung, The Old Master
This Kung Fu master channels his chi, manipulating both his own power and his partner’s to strike fast and hit hard. His starting card, The Harder They Fall, places a Concentration token on the opponent. If they already have one, Wong Fei-Hung instead attacks using the opponent’s current power, which can be surprisingly effective when timed well.
A big part of Wong Fei-Hung’s kit revolves around power manipulation. Many of his abilities let him transfer power directly to his partner, allowing them to ramp up very quickly. On top of that, Ging Balance lets him set his power equal to his partner’s after a successful block, keeping him relevant even without many direct attacks of his own. Crippling Touch is his most disruptive tool, a one-time card that removes the card it’s played against from the game entirely, though you need to be careful when using it against The Fey Folk, as it can accidentally make them invincible.
I really like running Wong Fei-Hung alongside heavy hitters like Mordred and Bödvar, where his ability to funnel power into his partner can completely change the pace of the game. He’s a character I initially overlooked, as the Concentration mechanic is easily countered and he lacks consistent attacks, but once I leaned into his power manipulation, he quickly became one of my favourite characters to play and pair with others.
The Fey Folk, The People of the Forest
What’s better than one character? Three. The Fey Folk are easily one of the most unique picks in Tag Team. With three separate health tracks and a Spirit tracker, they might look fragile at first glance, but they’re far tougher than they appear.
At the start of the game, you choose one Fey Folk to activate, moving the health marker to their track and gaining that character’s activation bonus, which is either power for yourself or your partner. When an active Fey Folk is knocked out, you gain one Spirit and activate the next character. The key thing to understand is that The Fey Folk don’t actually lose the game just because all three characters are knocked out. The only way they can be fully KO’d is if their starter card, All Legends Must Pass, is played while all three are already Spirits. Until that happens, you’re still in the game.
Their deck also includes three powerful summon cards. Each one starts inactive and must be successfully blocked with before it flips into its summoned state for the rest of the game. Once active, these summons can heal both characters, build power on both characters, or attack with both characters. On top of that, The Fey Folk have access to attacks and heals that scale with the number of Spirits you have, as well as a very strong card cancel in Entanglement.
The Fey Folk work extremely well as a support pick and can slot into a lot of different pairings. The Golem is a standout partner, creating a duo that’s incredibly hard to kill while steadily ramping up damage. Timing your cancel cards properly can completely shut down your opponent’s plans, so don’t overlook these small but mighty heroes.
Maman Brijit, The Immortal Sorceress
Immortal isn’t used lightly here. The first thing you’ll notice about Maman Brijit’s health tracker is that there are two KO spaces, but below them sits another space entirely. If her health ends on one of the KO spaces, she’s properly knocked out. But if she takes more damage than needed and drops past those spaces, she instead gains 1 power and heals back up to 4 health. Against characters with 6 or more power, this can turn into an endless loop of almost dying, gaining power, and standing straight back up again.
Maman Brijit’s starting card, Chili Pepper Rum, is a basic attack that costs her 1 direct damage, and having early access to an attack is always great for applying pressure. Most of her abilities follow a similar pattern, costing 1 direct damage to herself or her partner in exchange for healing, gaining power, or attacking. Like The Fey Folk, she also has access to cancel cards, letting her disrupt her opponent’s plays. On top of that, she has two block cards that, if successful, reflect all incoming damage straight back at the attacker.
As a beatdown character who wants to win quickly, Maman Brijit pairs well with others looking to do the same. Ching-Shih is a great partner, especially since she can heal off the damage Maman Brijit deals to her. Avoid pairing her with characters that suffer heavily from direct damage, such as The Fey Folk or The Wild Bunch, as it’s very easy to knock them out yourself if you’re not careful. Maman Brijit is an incredibly versatile fighter and can end games fast, just be careful not to accidentally KO your own team, something I may have done a few times.
Shango, The Keeper of Fire and Thunder
If fire is your thing, Shango might be right up your alley. His big gimmick is the Aflame tokens: place all five on a single fighter and you instantly win, even if you get KO’d the same turn. Sounds simple, right? Except every time you place an Aflame token on an opponent, it removes all tokens from the other enemy character, so pulling off this win condition takes careful reading of your opponent and perfectly timed plays.
Beyond stacking fire, Shango can build power and deal solid damage. Breath of Fire includes any Aflame tokens on your opponent in its damage, while Lightning Strike is a big AOE attack that hits all fighters, including your partner. Thankfully, Cauterize lets you heal your partner afterward, assuming they’re still alive.
When I play Shango, I like pairing him with someone who can generate power so that even when Aflame tokens aren’t lining up, you can still hit hard. Wong Fei-Hung and Joan are great options, both providing extra power and some healing. Shango’s complexity rating of 5 is spot-on: if you focus solely on stacking Aflame, it’s easy to miss his other damage options and get stuck in awkward turns. But once you master him, Shango really makes you feel like the keeper of fire and thunder.
Final Thoughts
Tag Team has quickly jumped to the top of my favourite board games. With its super quick playtime, simple rules, beautiful artwork, and surprisingly deep strategic possibilities, there’s so much this game has to offer. The first expansion has already been revealed, bringing six new characters from Arthurian legend into the mix, and I can see myself playing this game for a long time. I’m excited to dive deeper, explore new strategies, and see what the future holds for Tag Team.
Experience the thrill of classic arcade-fighting games with Tag Team, an innovative auto battler and deck-building game. Choose two fighters from a selection of twelve, each with their own unique techniques and special moves. Create the ultimate synergy by combining their individual decks for unbeatable gameplay!
Starting with a deck of just two cards, watch as the battle unfolds automatically with each card flip. Strategically add new cards at the end of each round to enhance your deck without changing the existing order. Discover what drives your tag team, unleash powerful combos, and outmanoeuvre your opponent with expertly timed blocks. Victory is within reach as you aim to knock out your adversary in this exciting gaming experience.
