Leaders Stadium Decks

[4sh_0]

6 Japanese-exclusive theme decks released on April 26, 1998 complementing the Leaders’ Stadium expansion. These decks apparently have cards that aren’t part of the main expansion and no-rarity versions of each card. I was wondering: are these extra cards exclusive to this deck? Should I count no-rarity as a distinct version of each card?

[Quuador]

@4sh_0

are these extra cards exclusive to this deck?

If we’re only looking at the Japanese side, there are indeed a couple cards exclusive to the theme decks. Probably about halve the cards were exclusive to one of the decks, and the other halve were also available in the sets.
To give an example: Brock’s Zubat was only available in the Nivi City Gym theme deck, and not in either of the two Gym sets (Leaders’ Stadium and Challenge from the Darkness).

You could open the individual links on Bulbapedia on each of the deck pages and see which Japanese sets/deck the card has been released in. The six decks pages are: Nivi City Gym (Brock); Hanada City Gym (Misty); Kuchiba City Gym (Lt. Surge); Tamamushi City Gym (Erika); Yamabuki City Gym (Sabrina); and Guren Town Gym (Blaine).
To use the same example again, Brock’s Zubat was only available in the Nivi City Gym theme deck, and Brock’s Vulpix was available in both the Leaders’ Stadium set and Nivi City Gym deck:

@4sh_0

Should I count no-rarity as a distinct version of each card?

What you should and shouldn’t count for your own collection goals is completely up to you. I personally do count the no rarity versions of the theme decks as different versions, just like I’d do with the Japanese no rarity Base Set cards. It’s fairly similar to collecting both a 1st edition and unlimited edition version for the English sets imo.

Here are the Pikachu (two from the Lt. Surge’s theme deck and one from the Leaders’ Stadium set) from my own Pikachu collection:

@Quuador

On July 25th, 1998, the Kuchiba City Gym Deck was released. Kuchiba is the Japanese name for Lt. Surge’s. This theme deck contained two Pikachu cards, both lacking the rarity symbol.
One of those Pikachu cards (the one with the English Gym Challenge artwork) was reprinted in the first Gym set, Leaders’ Stadium, released on October 24th, 1998. This Pikachu did have a rarity symbol.

But it’s your collection, so collect however and whatever you want.

@4sh_0

6 Japanese-exclusive theme decks released on April 26, 1998

Small correction, only the first two theme decks (Brock’s and Misty’s) were released on that date. The Lt. Surge’s and Erika’s theme decks were released on July 25th, 1998 and the Sabrina’s and Blaine’s theme decks on February 26th, 1999.

Greetz,
Quuador

[4sh_0]

So, for example, are the trainers like Energy Retrieval in Brock’s Deck exclusive to that deck?

[mthursty]

I am unsure if this post captures any offenders from the gym decks. It seems to only reference the starter set.

The No Rarity cards that weren't, and the lying POP report

Background Always on the lookout for no rarity base set Japanese cards, I’ve run countless times into sellers or collectors who mistakenly (or on purpose?) label some trainer cards as "No Rarity Base Set _____ " although they are not. And although this might be common knowledge for many collectors, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to write down a few tips about how to differentiate the real no rarity base set cards from their less rare – but very similar in look – variants. The main reason? I’ve rec…

[Quuador]

No(ish), the gym print of the Energy Retrieval is not exclusive to just Brock’s Deck, since it can also be found in Erika’s and Sabrina’s decks.
But it isn’t available in the Stadiums’ Leader nor Challenge from the Darkness sets, so the Energy Retrieval with gym set symbol is indeed only available as no rarity symbol version, if that was what you implied with your question.

If you go to the Energy Retrieval Bulbapedia page: https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Energy_Retrieval_(Base_Set_81) (and click on the show below its artwork on the right), it shows all three of those decks (and neither of the two Japanese Gym sets):

Greetz,
Quuador

[Quuador]

That one indeed only refers to the Base Set and Quick Starter Gift Set decks, so aren’t too relevant for the Japanese cards with gym set symbols.

It’s still cool nonetheless, to see textual changes between two otherwise similar no rarity cards prints from the No Rarity Base Set of October 20th, 1996 and Quick Starter Gift Set decks of December 4th, 1998.

Greetz,
Quuador

[4sh_0]

Are all cards in the deck no-rarity?

[Quuador]

Yeah. All cards in all six of the theme decks are without rarity symbols.

Greetz,
Quuador

[4sh_0]

ok, thanks! i will make your response as the solution, and btw, i heard you’re a pikachu collector… do you have the corrected illustrator pikachu? there was only like 2k copies ever printed out i hear

[Quuador]

@4sh_0

ok, thanks! i will make your response as the solution

Glad I could help.

@4sh_0

nd btw, i heard youre a pikachu collector… do you have the corrected illustrator pikachu? there was only like 2k copies ever printed out i hear

I think you mean the corrected glossy Ivy Pikachu? That one, from a CoroCoro magazine lottery in 1998, indeed had just 2k copies given. And yes, I do have that one. I’ve added it to my Pikachu collection back in 2021 (but I’m still missing the same glossy card with shifted artwork unfortunately):

@Quuador

Also a rare non-misprinted Pikachu was added to the collection: the Japanese Glossy Keiji Kinebuchi Ivy Pikachu from the 1998 lottery reprint. There is also another Glossy Keiji Kinebuchi Ivy Pikachu with off-set artwork from still unknown origin, which I’m still looking for. That one I consider an unofficial release until we know where it’s from however, so I’m happy to add this 1998 reprint to the collection, and be one step closer of owning all officially released Pikachu cards.

The Illustrator Pikachu is usually a reference to the Pokémon Illustrator card, an illustration trophy card known as the most expensive Pokémon TCG card. (And no, I don’t have that trophy card, haha. I’m not a millionaire. That card, and all the trophy cards, are the main reason why I never wanted to collect cameos for Pikachu.)

Greetz,
Quuador

[4sh_0]

yeah, one day i wish to do the same as you for pikachu but with bulbasaur… darn that pesky snap bulbasaur!
and also, there might be some pop series pikachus on eBay