is that chinese exclusive? first time looking at that
Believe one of the Japan-located eBay stores has a TMB articuno.
Either way, old back promos or design contest 2010 (and 2009) are great choices.
The art is not exclusive unfortunately. It was printed in several Japanese products. I think it was in Sword and Shield base sets and start Deck 100. But without the stamp.
The stamps on the simplified Chinese cards (Top 64, Top 32, Top 16 and Top 8 and so on) are indeed exclusive.
The Shenzhen Masters 2024 had some stamped cards too.
I think they look all really cool and are relatively affordable.
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Frankly I would stay away from other languages unless you have a connection to that language/that country, etc otherwise it will likely serve as a placeholder for you and you wonāt be as satisfied.
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Tamamushi university magikarp is pretty affordable right now. Has very rich history on how it was obtained back in the day. I believe you can get a psa 7 or psa 6 for around 6k
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this is a very good tip tho! thanks
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But since the art is not unique to that card, Iām not sure itās the best purchase.
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Thereās still a difference between holo and non holo cards. Many people donāt like non holo english espeon/umbreon gold stars for that reason.
However, the the thing about Tamamushi University Magikarp is that the artwork is still a language exclusive. The history of the release is just the finest and it is hard to find cards having better or even similar releases. I also think when people see the artwork, they never call it the WEB Magikarp but always as the University Magikarp.
In my personal opinion also a very solid choice.
Cheers!
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Yeah, because itās called the āCommunity College Magikarpā instead
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Of course, itās a really nice trophy card. Magikarp with the Dragon Rage move is emblematic in the world of PokĆ©mon, making the card even more desirable. But I believe that cards with unique artwork tend to be more desirable, though not all of them, for sure. Thatās something to keep in mind before making such a tough decision.
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I dont think one web series print would take away anything from a Unikarp though. Its a good point to bring up but the Unikarp history is a real life pokemon journey. From having to get perfect scores consecutively on all the monthly shogakukan tests and being accepted into a real life tournament where youre competing against other top rivals to win the trophy card is pretty epic. And the fact its was created by sugimori for this specific tournament with a clever and unique art is amazing. Its history makes it a top trophy pick for me. Regardless if they reprinted it once and cut the artwork. The Tamamushi University was one of the first pokemon tournament ever in pokemon history in 1998 right after the parent child kangaskhan tourny. World Champions started in 2000 I believe.
Just like the tropical wind has some other variations with slight changes, doesnt take away from the actual trophy card. Any trophy card he decides to get will be awesome. I just think the history behind the Tamamushi Unikarp is top tier and above a lot of other trophy cards. Just epic all around.
edit: illustrator contest came before in may 1998 but that was a drawing contest
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there are tons around that price or below these days in non-10 grades or even 10 for some of the lower tier ones 
At those price range, there are trophy level cards with unique artwork like design contest and art academy cards.
I think some of the trophy cards from my region (Indonesia) should be in your range.
This is the top 4 card, i think they are similar to the one you get in Japan and other TPC region. Just different language.
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Excellent choice! A 15 year old promo with unique artwork thatās also a Japanese exclusive. Plus it has an interesting and fun creation history with a mysterious distribution method. The card can also be a stand alone piece in a collection or paired within a set. Simply, you canāt go wrong.
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āLOL itās not too expensive like 3-4Kā
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Thereās one in otachuu in Akihabara for ~Ā„800,000