5"x7.5" - History
5"x7.5" (fivebysevenpointfive) is a TCG for all anime, manga and game series. The name originates from the fact that most manga (well, the Tokyopop-esque English language releases) are that big. Originally, 5"x7.5" opened in April 2004 but, for various reasons - including my increasing hatred of the old card design - I had to close it in April 2006. At its peak, 5"x7.5" had almost 100 members and 5000 cards in 235 different sets. Over the last few years I've tried several times to remake the TCG - redesigning the cards, rethinking game ideas - but it's never stuck and I've never managed to reopen. Until now! So, yes: five years to the day 5"x7.5" first opened, we're back.

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Help! - I'm a Beginner!
If you're new to online trading card games, you should read this section.
It helps to explain what a TCG is, how to set up a trade log and how to trade with other members VISIT

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The Cards
To make things simple, every card is worth one. Always. However, this doesn't mean that there aren't different kinds of cards at 5"x7.5" - the cards here are modelled closely on real trading cards, and so each set is made up of several kinds of cards. However, instead of measuring a card's value by worth, we have rarity instead. This literally means that certain cards are rarer than others: you won't win them as easily or get as many of them in prizes and games.

At present, there are five different kinds of cards:

		PROMO CARDS - 5 per set [rarity PROMO]
		BASE CARDS - 20 per set [rarity 1/BASE]
		RARE CARDS - 10 per set [rarity 2/RARE]
		SWATCH CARDS - 5+* per set [rarity 3/SWATCH] *Some swatch cards (1-3 per set) have variants, as shown. These cards have different names - s01 and s01_var - but for collection purposes, they are classed as being the same: you only need to get one of them (s01 or s01_var) to master the set.
		SCENE CARDS - 5 per set [rarity 3/SCENE]

Every card is laid out in such a way that everything you need to know about it is on the front:

When you trade cards you can only trade them if they have the same number rarity
eg. a base card (1) for another base card (1); a promo card (/) for another promo card (/); a scene card (3) for a swatch card (3)

You cannot ever trade one card for more than one other card - two base cards do not equal one rare card & etc.

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The Post Office
What? Yes. An important thing to know as a member is that the majority of your card rewards & etc. at 5"x7.5" will not actually be emailed to you (because I'm lazy! :P) You'll have to pick them up from your postbox at the Post Office. You can find a quick link to your postbox at the very top of every page. There are some cards, rewards and messages that will be emailed to you, so you still need to have a contact email that you check regularly, but for most of them you'll need to get into the habit of visiting your postbox ^__^

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Rarity? Packs, Boxes & Promo Cards
When you collect real trading cards, chances are that you buy them in packs or boxes. In every pack, there's a certain number of cards; in every box there's a certain number of packs. The same is true at 5"x7.5"!
This is a pack:

When you get one, you click on it to open it. In it, there are three cards. Every time you find, earn or win a pack, you will have the option to open it (by clicking on it) to get the cards or to keep it - packs function as a semi-currency at 5"x7.5" and can be used on The Black Market to buy better things & enter games. If you choose to keep it (save the pack image and post it on you tradepost) you cannot change your mind and open it later. So choose carefully. If you decide to open the pack, you'll get three cards. It's a gamble, because you never know which cards are in your pack until you open it, but the rarity of different cards allows you to guess what might be in there. How? Like this:

Rarity 1 (base cards) : This means that there will always be at least one card of this rarity in a pack - a lot of the time, all three cards will have this rarity. It's got a 100% probability.
Rarity 2 (rare cards) : This means that, on average, you'll find one card of this rarity for every 2 packs you open. You will never get more than one per pack. It's got a 50% probability.
Rarity 3 (swatch/scene cards) : This means that, on average, you'll find one card of this rarity for every 3 packs you open - but never more than one per pack. It's got a 33% probability.

It should be noted that this is a random thing. It's totally possible that if you have 10 packs there might be no rare, scene or swatch cards in them. So, if you really want cards with rarity 2 or 3, how do you get them?

The safest way is to get a box:

You cannot save boxes, you must open them when you get them. Boxes are pretty rare - you can win them or earn them, but it's not easy. The quickest way to get them is to buy them with some of your saved packs (they are expensive though). However, in any box there are three packs of cards, so nine cards total. To find out which cards, of course you have to open the box and then open all the packs in it, but one thing you can be sure of with a box is that there will be one card of rarity 3 and at least one card of rarity 2.

What if you want promo cards? Unfortunately, promo cards are different - you'll never find one in a pack or a box. The only way you can get hold of them is through special events, contests, levelling & mastering or giveaways. Sorry ;P

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The Levels
As a member, you go up levels as you collect more cards. At 5"x7.5", there are ten different levels - called Pages - and they are as follows:

Whenever you go up a level, remember to fill in the form to let me know - you get a reward for it!

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The Ranks
One difference from most TCGs is that, at 5"x7.5", in addition to having a 'level' you also have a 'rank'. This depends on how many card sets you master. There are ten ranks, called Volumes, and they are as follows:

Whenever you master a set, remember to fill in the form to let me know & I'll send your reward.

To give you examples of how this system works, all members start out on the First Page of Volume 1. A member with 650 cards and 3 mastered sets is on the Third Page of Volume 2.

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Mastering
Now it's time for the bad news...
To master a card set at 5"x7.5" you have to collect all the cards of all the different types in the set. So, that's 45 cards.
To help you keep track of your progress, you should pick up a checklist (found in the card directory), which looks similar to this:

Every time you collect all the cards of one type in a set (eg. all 20 base cards), you can tick off one of the boxes on the checklist -- this is called Partial Mastery. Every time you partially master a set, you can send in a form and you'll receive a choice card of the same rarity as the set you just partially mastered! In the same way, if you collect all the swatch cards in the set (the regular ones + the variants), you'll get a pack. This is called Variant Mastery

Once you've partially mastered all 5 card types for one card set, your checklist should look like this:

When it does, you've mastered the set! Fill in the master form and trade in your checklist for a master badge! Be aware, once you've mastered a set, you cannot trade any of the cards in it.

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Earning Cards
When you join, you'll receive a starter pack containing 8 cards. The majority of the cards you'll earn at 5"x7.5", you'll get from playing games, entering contests and donating. You'll also earn cards for going up a level or rank and mastering card sets. You'll also get cards for the following:

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Stickers
Stickers are an additional feature at 5"x7.5" - they are not worth anything and do not count towards trades but can be collected from a variety of different activities. To find out more VISIT

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Otaku
The Otaku system is a game/activity that runs at 5"x7.5", where members gain special rewards for participation. Like any other game, it's totally voluntary. To find out more VISIT

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Update Schedule
The current schedule is as follows:
MONDAY (Weekly Games/Monthly Games) & FRIDAY (Bi-weekly Games/Cards) with additional updates on most Wednesdays (Monthly Games/Cards)

During the week, you should find that you get a response to any emails or forms you send me within 12-48 hours - quite often it's quicker even than that as I do spend a lot of time near my computer with my Gmail account open. On the weekends, usually my response time will be slower - if you send anything to me late on Friday or on Saturday/Sunday, sometimes it will be Monday before I manage to reply to you. Be aware of this when contacting me. As a general rule, if you haven't received a reply within a week, please resend ^__^

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Staff
At present (& probably always) it's just me, Cate. I am also a member. As I cannot play the majority of the games or contests, I take this weekly payment