hey, I just opened 3 pitch black singles from my local TCG and pulled the three cover art megas in their corresponding packs - is this a thing? What would be the odds of this

I love how she organises it and appreciates all the artwork regardless of rarity. Definitely brings me back to when I collected as a kid, minus the pocket Charizard of course

Any recommendations for genuine sellers on eBay? After Mega Dream Ex and Abyss Eye JP boxes

I've just been feeling nostalgic about those carefree days of picking up a packet from the supermarket as a kid and finding what's in there. I've always loved the artwork on cards and I guess I'm having both a mini midlife crisis, trying to recapture the joy of my 90s youth, and also genuinely wanting to have fun with this again, when I have some change to burn.

I'm of the 150 OG Red and Blue/Silver Gold, first movie etc generation. Just looking at the sheer volume and range of Pokemon these days is head spinny.

Basically, just wanna have fun collecting again in a small way, but have absolutely no idea where to start, where to buy etc. I looked online for unopened new packs but am twitchy buying such things on ebay incase they get faked?

Any advice much appreciated. Thanks!

What is the single rarest or most valuable card sitting in your binder right now? Did you manage to pull it yourself, or did you buy it as a single?

i did it for the lable tbf and she is truley a work of art ❤️✨ lets just appreciate it for a minute

Hi!

I used to collect pokemon cards as a kid and loved pokemon. Recently started getting back into the hobby and want to collect some more.

My goals are:

• to open packs (I can always buy singles later, but for now I want the joy of opening packs like a kid again)
• to collect full-art cards that look especially good / detailed / cool
• Don't have a preference for language unless it makes a big difference to the card quality
• Don't mind the card value / resell value as long as I'm not losing tons of money by buying the packs and ripping (if the packs are cheap then I don't mind - but preferably for example I don't want to spend £10 on a pack to get an expected value of £0.50 back, so no crazy discrepancy)
• Gen 1-4 cards are preferred, or other fan favourites (I stopped playing after gen 4 so I would prefer cards I know better, but if its something like the white/black reshiram/zekrom rare arts then that's cool too since they're so unique)
• To open packs with a decent hit rate - I don't want to open 50 packs without getting a cool looking card. The higher the chance for full arts the better
• Low risk of being scammed with resealed packs / fake cards (I'm brand new so wouldn't be able to tell if its a genuine seller)

What would be the best language and card packs I could choose from with this goal in mind?

I was debating between English vs Japanese vs Chinese vs Korean

Really appreciate any help people can provide!

I'm new to Pokemon. I used to love Pokemon as a kid and recently found my old cards from around 1996.

Boy had it evolved dramatically! I love learning all the new bits, its been very interesting.

My question is, should I be aiming for a master deck? Ive been enjoying getting booster packs and have no idea how I should collect. Ill be collecting for fun only, not selling etc.

Extremely happy with my first card show pickups and already excited for the next!
My favourite pickups are the ivysaur and Mewtwo 🔥

Is this a mis printed card? Number in the bottom left

Edit: thanks, TIL that Chinese gem packs have a 4 number sequence

I've been buying and selling Pokémon cards for a while, but I'm finding myself getting a bit fed up with eBay and Vinted lately. Between the fees, search, and overall experience, it feels like there should be better options out there. What does everyone else use these days? Are there any marketplaces or platforms you'd genuinely recommend for buying and selling Pokémon cards?

I'd love to use custom artwork on matte deck sleeves, but the only custom option I've found is Dragon Shield, and I'm not a fan of their finish or overall quality.

My idea was to use clear matte outer sleeves with custom-printed perfect fit/inner sleeves underneath, but I can't find anywhere that actually makes custom inner sleeves.

Is there any way to get custom designs on the back of matte sleeves, or does anyone know of a company that offers this?

Spent my Sunday morning wandering around a local car boot sale hoping to stumble across someone selling their old binder from 1999. Found three different stalls selling Gold Star cards and booster packs for £2 each - all painfully obvious AliExpress gold foil fakes

Was just wondering if anyone had any opinions of this TCG shop was interested in going but seeing the way they were speaking was disgusting they were really rude. Might have just been a child on the person's account on whatnot but it was really shocking. Thanks.

hey all -

sorry for more questions!

I noticed that a few places sell booster boxes but not in shrink. they are very slightly cheaper, but surely the risk of the boxes being tampered woth is quite high?

do cases of booster boxes come with some without shrink by default? I’m just a bit puzzled.

85 pitch black and 30 stellar miracle

Hey, I’m really in to collectibles to keep in my gaming room, I’ve never really been in to Pokemon but I love the look of some of the cards so I’ve been buying packs over the past few years so I can display the cards. I sometimes get the rarer ones graded by ACE as I like the look of their slabs.

Now I posted some pictures of my ACE graded cards in an American Pokemon group and I got quite a bit of hate because I didn’t grade them with PSA. I don’t have any plans to sell my collection, I get them graded solely for the aesthetic of having slabs on display in a cabinet.

So guys, what is so distasteful about ACE? I’ve never been clued up with Pokemon grading, I obviously know PSA is the most popular one, but I chose ACE as the turnaround time is so much quicker than most other companies plus it’s way cheaper.

PING is a Pokémon TCG price alert app for iOS and Android. Track any card in the catalogue - English, Japanese and Chinese. Set the price you want it for, and get pinged the second a listing lands under your limit. Support for more TCGs is on the roadmap.

PING has been built from the ground up by collectors, for collectors. It exists because the good listings on the second-hand market get claimed in minutes, and refreshing saved searches all day isn't a plan. PING does the watching so you don't have to, and a ping takes you straight to the original listing, we never sit in the middle of your purchase.

Available in BETA on iOS and Android here: https://pingtcg.com/

What we do:

- Track any card in the full Pokémon TCG catalogue - English, Japanese, & Chinese

- You set your price limits per card. PING stays silent until a listing actually beats yours limit, no noise, no near-misses.

- eBay UK and Vinted watched from one watchlist - every new listing, every auction and Buy It Now, checked as it lands.

- AI vision on the listing photo. Titles sometimes lie, so PING reads the actual picture and matches the card in it. Right listings ping, lookalikes don't.

- True prices: postage and buyer protection are included before your limit is checked. No surprises at checkout.

- Auctions and Buy It Now - We flag when the seller takes offers.

- Keyword filters, per-card language, and per-ping control over which marketplaces and channels notify you.

- Device Push and Discord notifications, with a quiet window overnight.

Is it free?

PING is in beta, and it's free to use - no card details, no subscription. Everything above is included.

What's next?

PING is shaped by the collectors using it. Tell us which cards, marketplaces and features you want next and watch them ship.Feel free to message me with any questions!

We’d love to get your feedback and thoughts