https://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-tcg/product-gallery/pokemon-trading-card-game-classic/
This looks soo good! Set to release late 2023, this collection features three decks consisting of Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur!
The cards seem to have the Celebrations classic collection holo pattern.
Any speculation on which cards may be included in the decks?
The Japanese product will cost 35,000 yen (about $275). It will be available via lottery starting in February.
Hope they print it to order instead of this.
Also very weird to get two direct reprints of Base set cards within two years, they could’ve saved something like this for another year or two if you ask me.
Going to be great and I’m really wanting to get my hands on it to play more than anything. Base set once again gets a nice product.
Not sure how to feel about this — a base celebration collection box with non base/jungle/fossil cards, and the big three reprinted yet again so close to the 25th cards? Seems weird. Love that Chansey is getting some love though and I bet @qwachansey agrees, and the gold borders do look great
Anyway, when does the lottery go live? lol
Here’s what’s confirmed so far, either shown in the trailer or listed on one of the official pages:
Venusaur Deck / CLV
003/034 Venusaur (Base Set)
???/034 Chansey (Base Set)
???/034 Lugia ex (NEW!)
024/034 Professor Oak (Base Set)
???/034 Grass Energy
Charizard Deck / CLC
???/034 Charmander (Base Set)
003/034 Charizard (Base Set)
???/034 Rapidash (Astral Radiance)
???/034 Ho-Oh ex (NEW!)
???/034 Double Colorless Energy
???/034 Fire Energy
Blastoise Deck / CLB
003/034 Blastoise (Base Set)
Venusaur Deck / CLF
003/032 Venusaur (Base Set)
015/032 Chansey (Base Set)
017/032 Lugia ex (NEW!)
025/032 Seed of the Sun (NEW!)
026/032 Professor Oak (Base Set)
Charizard Deck / CLL
003/032 Charizard (Base Set)
007/032 Ho-Oh ex (NEW!)
008/032 Pikachu (Base Set)
021/032 Computer Search (Base Set)
026/032 Scorching Charcoal (NEW!)
Blastoise Deck / CLK
003/032 Blastoise (Base Set)
010/032 Suicune ex (NEW!)
014/032 Mewtwo (Base Set)
025/032 Ocean Drops (NEW!)
031/032 Rocket’s Admin (EX Team Rocket Returns)
Note the different set numbering; 034 for ENG, 032 for JPN. This probably points to the JPN Basic Energy cards not being numbered (as each deck contains two Basic Energy types), rather than any material difference in the cards contained. Putting everything together (and making some reasonable assumptions) gets us the following provisional lists;
Bulbasaur (Base Set)
Ivysaur (Base Set)
Venusaur (Base Set)
Chansey (Base Set)
Lugia ex (NEW!)
Professor Oak (Base Set)
Seed of the Sun (NEW!)
Fighting Energy (Base Set)
Grass Energy (Base Set)
+25 Others
Charmander (Base Set)
Charmeleon (Base Set)
Charizard (Base Set)
Pikachu (Base Set)
Ponyta (???)
Rapidash (Astral Radiance)
Ho-Oh ex (NEW!)
Computer Search (Base Set)
Scorching Charcoal (NEW!)
Double Colorless Energy (Base Set)
Fire Energy (Base Set)
Lightning Energy (Base Set)
+22 Others
Squirtle (Base Set)
Wartortle (Base Set)
Blastoise (Base Set)
Mewtwo (Base Set)
Suicune ex (NEW!)
Rocket’s Admin (EX Team Rocket Returns)
Ocean Drops (NEW!)
Psychic Energy
Water Energy
+25 Others
Any speculation on which cards may be included in the decks?
I think Pokebeach released this? I would link it, but it’s blocked on my work PC.
As someone that pretty much has all these decks built with proxies and none of the cards will be legal in any Pokemon format, this doesn’t appeal to me at all. I’ll definitely be buying the accessories that come with this though
Separating this out into its own post. Here’s the shot from the trailer;
That’s Rapidash 022/189 from Sword & Shield: Astral Radiance;
Not sure how I feel about bulk modern cards making it into this ‘premium’ product marketing itself on classic cards. Probably great for the actual playability of the decks, but it feels quite at odds with the premium branding.
The pricepoint feels off for this. Realistically it should be no more than retail $100-125usd for this product. $15 per deck, premium playtop/storage case is realistically $30-50, accessories $20. So $115 “value” based on costs for similar items. A guaranteed charizard means that the decks themselves can understandably be broken down to $50 charizard, $30 blastoise, $20 venusaur. Maybe with the “premium” label on it, it is realistically $200 but more than that is just milking it from collectors and stonkers who are going to horde it in hopes that in a year values will quadruple because the base set pokemon collectors need it for their collections. Im not quite sure who it’s for beyond collectors since it says that the cards it comes with have no regulation marks so they arent game legal cards, leaving no chance of expanding the decks or customizing with game legal cards, only unofficial gameplay unless it has its own rules. Mix of modern and classic cards gives it a rather odd look and gamestyle. If anything it’s similar to the battle academy but a premium version, which makes it an even more drastic difference in price. I get strong magic the gathering moneygrab feelings from it.
I hope Im completely wrong about it and the english version art changes to include amazing foil as well.
idk much about the company that is partnering with pokemon, but my assumption is that at least 75% of the cost is attributed to the accessories. i’m guessing this is moreso a luxury product with cards meant for people who want to splurge and have some curated collector’s piece for their home (like a fancy chess set)
cant wait for Rudy’s very informed and not overly dramatic take on this
Im getting really tired of base set reprints, where is Gen 2-3-4? And getting another base set trio just after Celebrations is strange
You know, when you put it that way I want it all of a sudden
I really want a Pokémon VS kind of set again. Gens 2-4 related preferably 
Gens 2-4 are right there! Lugia, Ho-oh, and Suicune. Doesn’t that remind you of the Neo era? And they’re all ‘ex’ - see, that mechanic was introduced during the Gen 3 TCG. Oh, and notice how each of these three Pokémon have art extended past the border of the art box…that’s actually a little-known reference to Gen 4, where regular ultra rare cards extended the art past the box for the first time, a right previously held only by Gold Stars. This premium product truly represents Gens 1-4 equally!
Not saying the cards with the gold foil don’t look great but it seems like a lot of wasted material and pointless expenditure to me. How many people are actually going to play this long-term and not siphon the valuable cards for their binder, grading or just selling off. The entire game could be boring without certain cards. Imagine playing chess without a queen lol
The price point and lottery sale in Japan is also not ideal. It really should be made-to-order with the 6 month + release window and that price point. Releasing in multiple languages is good though.
Luckily it’s not essential, and more than likely will be easy enough to get yet another Base Set Charizard if I ever have the desire to do that (I don’t.)
I don’t have any desire to own it even if it was cheap but it’ll be interesting to see who likes it. I don’t know how many more times you can reprint the big three in the exact same way. They have so many other great “classic” options and sets - I don’t quite understand the obsession with the same stuff over and over. You make that artwork less special by reprinting it a gazillion times. Also the other items are cool - so just have it be the accessories and maybe some modern - why just throw yet another base set reprint in there. The product could be fine on its own.
It is so upsetting other countries outside of Japan didn’t get the VS series! Gen 2 is my all time favorite and having the trainers Pokémon are so cool. Hopefully one day they bring it back!!!
Lottery instead of Build to order…Bye bye MSRP.
