Scarlet & Violet Era Enters Its Final Stretch

Journey Together kicks off the final stretch of the Pokémon Trading Card Game‘s current era, although the game’s newest gimmick is surprisingly muted. With Mega Evolutions quickly approaching in a matter of months, the Pokémon TCG is ending the Scarlet & Violet era of cards with several sets focused on Trainer’s Pokémon. This gimmick, which dates back to the early Gym Heroes and Gym Leaders sets, features Pokémon cards that “belong” to a specific trainer from the game. While the cards themselves have no unique gimmick on their own, some cards and abilities only affect specific Trainer’s Pokémon.

Journey Together is the first set to feature these new Trainer’s Pokémon cards. Four trainers are featured in the new set – Iono from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, Hop from Pokémon Sword and Shield, Lillie from Pokémon Sun and Moon, and N from Pokémon Black and White. Three of the trainers form nice synergies with their Pokémon, providing the foundation of a few different deck styles. However, the surprising MVP of the set is Lillie’s Clefairy ex, which should be a meta-busting card that could shake up the entire game.

What’s Included In The Pokémon TCG Journey Together Elite Trainer Box?

Everything To Expect

The Pokémon Trading Card Game Scarlet & Violet Journey Together ETB includes the following:

• 9 Booster Packs (The Pokémon Center ETB includes 11 Booster Packs)
• x1 Full-Art Promo Card (N’s Zorua)
• x65 Card Sleeves
• x45 Energy Cards
• Damage Counter Dice
• Condition Markers
• Coin-flip Die
• Box

The retail price is $49.99 USD for the Scarlet & Violet Journey Together ETB, while the Pokémon Center version retails for $59.99.

New Set Adds Powerful New Tool To Tera Box Deck Archetype

The biggest card in the set is a Trainer’s Pokémon card that doesn’t need to synergize with other Trainer’s Pokémon cards to be successful. Due to the current strength of Dragon-type Pokémon cards in the current metagame, Lillie’s Clefairy ex immediately becomes the must-have card for the set. This new card’s passive ability adds a Psychic-type weakness to all Dragon-type Pokémon, providing a massive counter to the popular Dragapult ex deck that’s currently all the rage at tournaments.

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Lillie’s Clefairy ex looks to slot into the Tera Box deck very well, providing another tool for the versatile deck option. The Tera Box provides multiple options with a variety of Pokémon cards, although it also requires players to pivot to respond to different deck threats. I expect Tera Box to become immensely popular in the coming months, although the complicated deck build makes it hard for casual players to enjoy.

The other three Trainer’s Pokémon cards offer more straightforward styles of play. Hop’s Pokémon are built around damage boosts using different synergies. Iono’s Pokémon offers some Electric Energy acceleration and card draw effects, and N’s Pokémon utilizes N’s Zoroark’s Night Joker ability to line up a variety of different attacks via Benched Pokémon. I’m guessing that N’s Pokémon will likely see some use, solely because Zoroark was previously a popular choice in earlier eras of the game. However, the weakness of all of these synergies is that there’s no room for growth as the trainers won’t be brought back in future sets.

Journey Together Has Absolutely Gorgeous Chase Cards

Almost Every Secret Rare Card Is A Highlight Of The New Set

Another highlight of Journey Together is the absolutely stunning selection of chase cards in the new set. All six Pokémon ex Special Illustration Rare cards are an absolute joy to look at, as are many of the new Illustration Rare cards in the set. Even the Full Art cards have gotten an upgrade, with Trainer’s Pokémon having new backgrounds that show off the Pokémon’s respective trainer. This makes the Full Art cards look a lot more alive than in previous sets and hopefully will spur on some big design perks in the future.

I personally got lucky with my pulls, as I snagged the Articuno Illustration Rare and Volcanion Special Illustration Rare cards I was hoping to get. I also managed to snag full art variants of Lillie’s Clefairy ex and Iono’s Bellibolt ex, both of which seem to be in hot demand on secondary markets. Compared to some earlier Scarlet & Violet sets, I’ll also add that none of my secret rare cards had any printing issues, which helps the art pop even more.

My only real complaint about the new chase cards is that pull rates (based on the review product provided to me) still feel artifically low. The new set contains only 190 cards, which led to me pulling a ton of duplicate Rare cards but relatively few alternate art cards. This isn’t a new trend for the Pokémon TCG, but it does continue an issue that’s plagued the Pokémon TCG for over a year, with lower pull rates for most chase cards. Given the scarcity of product impacting the Pokémon TCG as of late, I personally want better pull rates in my sets.

The Elephant In The Room: Scalping And Journey Together

Resellers Will Be The Biggest Obstacle Faced By The New Set

As much as I’d love to skip over the major elephant in the room, no review of the Pokémon Trading Card Game right now can come without a mention of the immense reselling issues that are plaguing the game. To be blunt, I‘m worried that a lot of casual players and collectors won’t be able to get any Journey Together product because of the heightened demand being exploited by resellers right now. It’s time for The Pokémon Company to do something beyond the minor controls in place in-store.

Although resellers continue to be an issue for the Pokémon TCG, Journey Together is a fine addition to the game. The cards are powerful but not overpowered, and Trainer’s Pokémon are a fun way to advance the game and end the Scarlet & Violet era with a bang, If you can get your hands on this new set, definitely crack open some cards and let your nostalgia run wild. Seeing trainers like N and Lillie brought a smile to my face and made me remember Pokémon games of old.

Digital Card Game

Strategy

Released

April 10, 2000

ESRB

e

Developer(s)

Hudson Soft