Identifying the set of a Pokemon card is an essential part of being a collector. Like other trading card games, Pokemon TCG releases new cards in sets, and each set often follows a certain theme, as well as a featured Pokemon.
Knowing which set a Pokemon card belongs to makes it much easier to organize your collection. If you are still searching for a specific card, you can also tell a local card shop the set it comes from to check whether they have a single in stock.
Moreover, if you are a new player looking to play casually or competitively, learning the set of your cards can be helpful. This makes it easier to determine whether they are legal in a particular format.
For this post, we’ll give you a complete guide on how to tell the set of a Pokemon card and how card sets work in general. Since this article will cover some things about sets, you might also want to read our previous content about cool ways to organize your Pokemon cards.
Key highlights:
- To know the set of a card, look at its set symbol.
- Look for online card catalogs like the ones we have here at PokeCardHQ to learn the respective set symbol of each modern set.
What Are Sets in Pokemon TCG?
In the context of Pokemon TCG, sets are groups of cards periodically released for the trading card game. As already mentioned, each set has a certain theme to it, which usually involves a specific Pokemon.
There’s no telling if a Pokemon might become a featured card in an upcoming set, but the likeliest ones are legendaries, mythicals, and sometimes, some regular Pokemon with large fan bases. As of writing, Pokemon TCG has already released sets that highlight popular Pokemon like Charizard, Pikachu, and Eevee.
Sets vs. Era/Series
Pokemon TCG sets vary in size, with each expansion containing a different number of cards. In addition to individual sets, expansions are also grouped into larger categories known as series or eras.
Typically, whenever a new generation of Pokemon is introduced to the franchise, the Pokemon TCG begins releasing expansions centered around those new species. These expansions are then grouped under a new era or series.
For example, after the release of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet on the Nintendo Switch, the Pokemon TCG soon launched the Scarlet & Violet Base Set, which introduced cards featuring many Paldean Pokemon. The expansions that followed continued to highlight Pokemon and themes from the Paldea region, marking the start of the Scarlet & Violet era of the Pokemon TCG.
The Pokemon TCG ultimately decides when a particular era of cards comes to an end. For example, the release of the Black Bolt and White Flare dual sets signaled the close of one period, alongside the announcement of the upcoming Mega Evolution Base Set, which marked the start of a new era.
Fortunately, it is fairly easy to identify where a set belongs by looking at its logo. Starting from the Pokemon Black & White era, most set logos also include the logo of their respective era.
For example, the logo of the Phantasmal Flames set includes a small Mega Evolution emblem within it. Because of this, you can quickly identify it as one of the sets from the Mega Evolution era.
Special expansions
Some sets, while still part of a specific era, often deviate from the usual themes of the main expansions. These sets typically do not include the era logo in their set symbol and are instead classified as special expansions.
Special expansions also tend to have fewer cards than standard sets. Examples include Crown Zenith, Shrouded Fable, and Prismatic Evolutions.
That said, special expansions can sometimes be quite large. For instance, the Ascended Heroes set features 217 cards, along with 78 secret cards, making it one of the more sizable special expansions.
Telling the Set of a Pokemon Card
To identify the set of a modern Pokemon card, simply check the lower-left section of the card. This area usually includes the card’s illustrator, regulation mark, set symbol, and card number.
The set symbol is the easiest way to determine which expansion a card comes from. The very first Pokemon TCG Base Set did not include a set symbol, but starting with the Jungle set in 1999, all cards have featured one, although its position on the card has changed over the years.
For example, in earlier sets like Jungle, the set symbol appears on the middle-right side of the card, next to the information about the Pokemon’s height and weight. In later sets, such as those from the Black & White era, the symbol moved to the lower-right corner.
In more recent expansions, including the Scarlet & Violet series and the Mega Evolution series, the set symbol is printed on the lower-left corner of the card.
If you are unsure which expansion a particular symbol represents, you can check online databases that catalog every Pokemon TCG set, such as the set list available on Bulbapedia, or if the set symbol belongs to a modern set, our card list section at PokeCardHQ.
From the Jungle set through the Sword & Shield era, set symbols were typically illustrated icons representing each expansion. However, beginning with the Scarlet & Violet era and continuing into the Mega Evolution era, these symbols were replaced with three-letter acronyms, making them much easier for players and collectors to identify.
Set Number
Keep in mind that a set symbol is different from a set number. While the set symbol appears on the card itself, the set number does not. Instead, set numbers are used to identify the order in which expansions are released within a particular era.
For example, the Mega Evolution Base Set has a set number of ME1. The number “1” means it is the first set released for that era. Special expansions, for some reason, only add a 0.5 in their set symbols, like the Ascended Heroes set, which has a set number of ME2.1.
Conclusion
Every modern Pokemon card is already printed with information enough for you to learn everything about it, including its set. While it’s easy to find the set symbol in a Pokemon card, the challenge comes in identifying what set a set symbol represents, so you’ll need to look for sources online.
Still, as long as you know the set of a Pokemon card, you should have no trouble completing your collection of a particular set or checking if it is legal for tournament play.
If you want to learn more about Pokemon TCG regardless of you’re a collector or a player, check out more of our articles here at PokeCardHQ.
