If you’re a fan of interesting Pokemon cards with full art designs, 2024 is going to be a good year for you. The Pokemon TCG release schedule is as busy as ever, with a mountain of expansion sets, products, and special sets to watch out for.
Night Wanderer follows up Twilight Masquerade’s DLC-inspired extravaganza and gives fans a glimpse of what Shrouded Fable could be like.
Here are 10 cards to watch from Pokemon TCG Night Wanderer – ranking them based on competitive viability and potential long-term value for collectors.
There’s a minor spoiler in here relating to the Pokemon Scarlet & Violet games. If you’ve not played them fully, please note that we’ll be referencing the identity of a key mystery character.
10. Iron Moth (009/064)
Firstly, this Iron Moth card stands out as one of the most viable additions to a Future Deck from the Night Wanderer expansion set. It’s likely we’ll see this card getting a lot of attention from Paradox players, as its Attacks hold a lot of weight.
Its first Attack, Suction, deals 30 base damage – but heals Iron Moth for the same amount of damage that it dealt. If you have a way of boosting your damage output, like creative ACE SPEC plays, you could secure an easy heal by playing this card.
Wild Rejector is a situational Attack that becomes very useful if you’re playing against Ancient Pokemon. It deals 120 damage, but during your opponent’s turn, all damage dealt to Iron Moth from Ancient Pokemon is instantly blocked.
9. Colress’s Tenacity (083/064)
This Colress card caused a stir when it was revealed, as Colress originated in Black 2 & White 2 and some fans feel that he’s been forgotten about. A selection of cards were shown off online and fans were stunned to see Colress, tagging each other to get a glimpse of the new full art.
This card nails his aesthetic perfectly, allowing his gesturing hand to slightly peek over the border to create an illusion of depth.
It’s a useful card, too, letting players search their deck for a Stadium and an Energy card. They must shuffle their deck afterward, but it’s a simple card that can help set up a deck quickly.
8. Horsea (067/064)
Night Wanderer isn’t exclusively geared toward art collectors, but there are some seriously breath-taking full arts to watch. This Horsea has the potential to be one of the priciest full art cards in the set, so make sure to sleeve it if you come across it.
It’s not a particularly punchy card (although it’s useful to have on hand if you have the Kingdra Special Illustration Collection) but it has a 30 HP healing Ability that could be useful in the early stages of a match.
Aside from this, the value will spike purely based on the level of detail in the full art design. It’s immersive and rich, and it pays homage to a Pokemon that’s arguably quite underrated in the community.
7. Cassiopeia (091/064)
Cassiopeia – or Penny, as some players might know her – is an iconic character from Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. This card has an immense level of depth to it, placing the viewer inside her computer screen and scattering holofoil code across the front of the card.
This card can only be played if it’s the last one in your hand. You can use it to search your deck for 2 cards and put them into your hand before shuffling. It is somewhat of a situational Supporter that will vary from match to match in its usefulness, but in some cases, it could be a get-out-of-jail-free card.
6. Pecharunt ex (090/064)
In the same way that Ogerpon was the star of Twilight Masquerade, Pecharunt is the star of Night Wanderer.
While this card will likely spike in popularity thanks to its interesting Ability and Attack, it’s hard to mention it without referencing the dynamic, multi-layered artwork. This is undoubtedly a piece for art collectors and could end up being one of the most valuable full art cards from the set.
Pecharunt ex has the Ability Chains of Command which allows you to swap in a Benched Dark-type with Pecharunt ex. This Poisons the Pokemon, which sets up the next card in this list perfectly – but we’ll get to that in a moment.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
Alongside this, Pecharunt ex has the Irritating Burst Attack which deals 60 damage and then adds an extra 60 damage for every Prize Card that your opponent has taken, making it work as an equalizer.
5. Okidogi ex (036/064)
There are several cards in Night Wanderer that have unique Abilities and Attacks relating to Special Conditions, and Okidogi ex is one of the most interesting from a competitive player’s standpoint – especially with the Janine Supporter and Binding Mochi card to hand.
Okidogi ex’s main draw is its Attacks. It has a 130 damage Attack – which is heavy-hitting enough – but it deals an extra 130 damage on top of this if it’s Poisoned. The non-damaging Ability on the card allows players to deck search for 2 Dark Energy and attach them to Okidogi ex, which inflicts Poison and sets up the 260 attack.
All of the Loyal Three cards from this special set are likely to go down well with fans, but this particular card stands out as a gem.
4. Zorua (072/064)
REND is arguably one of the most popular Pokemon TCG artists out there right now. Ever since Mask of Change, they’ve been slowly but steadily building up a cult following online thanks to their instantly recognizable art style and talent.
This Zorua was received immensely positively by the community when it was announced. It’s not hugely viable for tournament play, but from an art collector’s standpoint, this is gold.
The holo effect mixes perfectly with the almost photo-realistic art style, creating an overall aesthetic that makes it a must-have for fans of unique full art pieces.
3. Bewear (076/064)
This card caused an absolute riot on social media when it was revealed, thanks to the strangely ominous pose that the Bewear is striking. One Pokemon fan on X jokingly asked, “Why does that Bewear card radiate so much menacing energy?”
It is a mildly unsettling card, but it captures the Pokemon’s energy perfectly. The artwork itself is likely to go down well with collectors and resellers, as it has some beautiful lighting effects and depth to it. Alongside this, it has a 130 damage Attack and a 30 damage Attack that offers Energy movement.
2. Houndoom (066/064)
This Houndoom Art Rare is one of the most striking full art pieces in the Night Wanderer special set. It’s dynamic and dark, showing a truly ferocious side to this fan-favorite Pokemon.
The main draw for this card is its Snarl Attack. It deals 100 damage, then during your opponent’s turn, their Pokemon’s Attacks do 100 less damage. This sort of damage mitigation has the potential to be utterly game-changing in a Pokemon card match.
Fans were ecstatic about this card when it was revealed, with one Reddit user praising it as, “so badass”, and another excitedly saying, “This set is gonna be so good. That Houndoom is getting purchased asap.”
1. Duskull evolution chain
It’s technically cheating to include 3 cards in the number one spot, but it just wouldn’t feel right picking a single card out of the trio. These are arguably some of the most striking pieces with the Duskull evolution chain in the Pokemon TCG, rivaling the legendary Duskull full art from Crown Zenith.
There are some punchy Abilities and Attacks here. Duskull can use Meet Up to put 3 Discarded Duskull back onto the bench, which can be a fantastic set-up move.
Both Dusclops and Dusknoir have the Ability Cursed Bomb. This Knocks Out the user but allows them to place 5 or 13 Damage Counters on 1 of their opponent’s Pokemon – which is risky but can be a game-changer in a tricky match.
Night Wanderer is a must-have set for both collectors and competitive players. There are some beautiful full art pieces to snag, but plenty of cards that offer meta-defying Abilities and hard-hitting Attacks, too. The potential for creative deck builds is high with this special set.
Make sure to check out our guides to Shrouded Fable so you know what to expect in August, too. There’s an Elite Trainer Box as usual, but there will be stunning Illustration Collections with new art styles, too.
