I started this collection a few years ago when I got back into the hobby in 2015. I sold my entire childhood English and French card collection and decided to go full Japanese.
At the time, doing Master sets wasn’t something that I wanted do, so, I decided to start doing Various generation Pokedex that ultimately turned into this giant “One binder to Rule 'em all” type binder.
This binder is a collection of some of my favourite Japanese cards from every era.
The Goal was to capture the variety of Art that makes the Pokemon universe truly unique 1 Pokemon at a time ! I decided to settle on using only 1 version of a Pokemon, meaning that regional forms, various gender, Gigantamax and Megas were all allowed but I had to pick only 1 card per Pokedex entry. (the reason for this was mainly to avoid rearranging the binder when new versions of a Pokemon would ultimately be released in the future, I am not that patient).
Best way to collect (in my opinion):
You don’t have to break the bank to make your binder cool and unique.
Ever-changing - Meaning that you can always upgrade your cards with arts or rarities that you prefer. I still do it to this day even though I have technically completed ages ago.
Perfect for beginner collectors to get into the hobby (especially nowadays with the crazy market, it will allow you bulk cards to shine and they deserve it).
Tips for starting your Own Pokedex Binder:
Go about it 1 Generation at a time (breaks the Journey into smaller goals, which makes it even more fun and fulfilling as you progress through the various benchmarks).
Grab a nice side-loading 1080+ card binder. (your wrists will thank you for it)
Make it personal - My favourite cards in the binder aren’t necessarily the rarest, but rather the ones with a strong memory attached to them.
Make it a fun challenge with friends or family.
My collection is all Near-Mint but it didn’t start that way. I sugest you go after the Art that you prefer regardless of condition, you can always upgrade the cards later if condition is something that is important to you.
Some Memorable Finds:
The Lugia and Ho-Oh Play Promos which are Japan exclusives. (My first cards that I added to Gen 2)
Bulbasaur McDonald’s which is the first card I added to the binder and the first card I picked up when I first went to Japan.
Any B&W Secret Rare Shiny (Most underrated shinies in my opinion, and, extremely rare to find in NM condition).
I hope you guys will enjoy it and do not hesitate to hit me up if you have cards for sale or for trade, I am always looking to improve my collection.
I would spend way too much time picking out the card to get for each species.
If I were to do a dex, I would get the rookie card for each species to make it simple, and to highlight the transition of card styles and layouts across time
This is an amazing binder and a really cool collection. I really love your choice of some of the cards. This way of collecting must be very fulfilling and also very inspiring and great entry point to newer collectors and those who are on a budget.
Thnk you so much for sharing!
Do you happen to have any other collection goals or do you plan to continuously refine this binder itself?
Thank you so much, it has definitely been a labour of love.
I am definitely going to keep upgrading the Dex binder. But on the side I also have Generations specific binders from gen 1 to Gen 9 where I showcase 3 different arts per pokemon entry. That goal is nearly complete, I am only missing about 20 cards.
And after that I guess I’ll have to find another collection goal haha.
I had a National dex through SV base until last year when I decided to downsize and sold it off. It’s a fun collection to create. I like the variety of arts you picked
I’m pretty sure it’s a limitation for new users. I’ve just increased your level from 0 to 1, so iirc you should now be able to edit your main post to add more pictures.
Welcome to the forum btw! I always enjoy seeing National Index collections, especially when they appear so random with cards from all the different eras. Cool that you stick with just Japanese though, for some consistency.
It’s pretty outdated nowadays, but I had a National Index collection where I used cards from all eras and even all languages as well. I did decide to include all forms/shiny Pokémon, but especially the shinies made the collection a lot more expensive to complete.. It’s also the main reason why I haven’t continued it, but perhaps I might again one day.
I think your question carries the answer, it’s not easy. I split it up and sold off the high value cards (mostly on reddit) to fund my Eevee collection and pay for a stroller and car seat, and then because I have a young cousin who’s very into Pokémon but whose parents that don’t have the same means, I gifted the rest of my collection to him for Christmas. He inherited a still ~80% full national dex binder
Perfect thank you, yeah I have managed to add the rest of the pages.
Yes I remember your collection, very extensive with all the forms and shinies. You should start it up again, it is so much fun. Did you keep all the cards from you dex collection btw ?
Maybe one day. I have a bit too many collection goals at once, and with the current market prices for modern, I have to choose which collection goals to focus on.
But yes, I still have my entire National Index collection of that thread in two separated binders. I’m not expecting to anytime soon, but I might update it with all the new cards since halfway through the SwSh era; entire SV era; and likely next era after that, one day.
And likely in two steps, by skipping the new shiny Pokémon at first and only focusing on all regular new Pokémon and their forms.
I have started a collection with a similar approach. I call it “Chase-Dex” or “Art-Dex”. I try to choose the one best artwork that exists per Pokemon (in my opinion) no matter the market price. I focus on the cheaper cards first, cause new sets might have new best artworks that are cheaper. Of course this collection will never be finished. Some cards are just way to expensive. All languages are allowed but I prefer japanese, english and german cards.
I want to start every generation with a cover page of DIY cards displaying the region and a second page with informations about geography, history, culture and famous Pokemon trainer.
and only focusing on all regular new Pokémon and their forms.