Sun and Moon Ultra Prism Collector’s Dossier

The latest booster expansion for the Pokemon TCG, Ultra Prism, officially releases on February 2, 2018. Other than sounding like a special attack by the Power Rangers, Ultra Prism, introduces a number of new mechanics and card types into the TCG. What follows is a brief dossier of the information collectors will find important for tracking down and completing this set. Information related to the previously released Sun and Moon era sets is also provided below by way of comparison. You can read my Collector’s Dossier to those sets here , here and here. Note, since this set has not been officially released, some of the information in this article may be subject to change once the cards have hit stores and are readily available. 

Let’s take a look at the set’s contents:

Dossier:

Observations:

            Ultra Prism is yet another absolutely massive Pokemon TCG expansion. Weighing in at a ridiculous 173 cards, this set basically ignores the more reasonable set size of Crimson Invasion and returns to the more established Sun and Moon era theme of gigantic expansions with copious amounts of premium rare cards. While that will undoubtedly frustrate many collectors, the good news is that Ultra Prism’s choice of ultra and secret rare cards are, overall, excellent. In previous Sun and Moon era expansions, the standard GX rares released in the expansion are also released as ultra rare and secret rare cards. In Ultra Prism, there is a greater degree of variance between standard GX rares and ultra rares and secret rares. For example, Silvally GX is as standard GX rare, but not an ultra rare or secret rare cards. Similarly, Pheromosa GX and Celesteela GX are featured as ultra rare and secret rare cards, but not standard GX rares. These divergences are the result of certain variants of these cards being released as promotional cards in ancillary TCG products in the West. Still, the variance between standard GX rares, ultra rares, and secret rares is appreciated, even if it is minimal.

Even better for collectors, nine of the ultra rare cards are full art supporter cards, which are almost always among the more popular cards in an expansion. On the secret rare side, two of the cards from the popular Japanese exclusive GX Battle Boost expansion are making their English debut in this expansion: the full art gold Lunala GX and Solgaleo GX. Full art gold cards have been featured in only two prior English expansions (Legendary Treasures: Reshiram EX and Zekrom EX, and Phantom Forces: Dialga EX – although Dialga’s foil pattern was platinum instead of gold) but they have proven to be very popular cards with collectors, and their return to the TCG is a welcome one. Collectors will also be pleased with the inclusion of new Pokemon from the Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon video games, including the mascots Dawn Wings Necrozma and Dusk Mane Necrozma, as well as the inclusion of new secret rare energy cards.

Full art gold Lunala GX from GX Battle Boost. The English version of this card is a secret rare in Ultra Prism

Ultra Prism also introduces a new card type and rarity to the TCG: Prism Rares. Normally, when a player plays a very powerful Pokemon card such as a Pokemon EX or GX, they do so with the understanding that if that Pokemon is knocked out, their opponent will take two prize cards for defeating it. With Prism Pokemon, players can take advantage of using powerful Pokemon (and trainer/supporter cards) without this downside. To limit the potential abuse of these cards, only 1 of each prism card may be included in a deck and when those cards are discarded, they are sent to the lost zone instead of the discard pile.  Current prices for Prism Rares on the secondary market appear to be on par with prices for standard GX rare cards from the expansion, so perhaps the pull rates for these cards are about on par with standard GX rares from the set.  As more collectors and players report pull rates from this expansion, it will be interesting to see how rare Prism cards actually are.

English print of Solgaleo Prism from the Ultra Sun expansion.

What are your thoughts on Ultra Prism? Let me know in the comments below.