Pokemon TCG's New Set is Biggest Ever

The Pokemon Trading Card Game's new set is the largest ever. Today, The Pokemon Company officially releases "Fusion Strike," the latest expansion for the Pokemon Trading Card Game's "Sword & Shield" era. This new set is the largest in the card game's history, in part because it contains cards from multiple Japanese releases that were omitted from international releases throughout the year. "Fusion Strike" contains 284 cards, including numerous Secret Rare and Alternate Art cards. The set not only contains 129 cards from the "Fusion Arts" set recently released in Japan, but also cards cut from Evolving Skies and multiple promo cards previously released only in Japan. Japan has a different release schedule than the rest of the world, with more sets that tend to be released a few months than their international counterparts.

The main draw of "Fusion Strike" is that the card introduces a third "Battle Style" to the Pokemon Trading Card Game. While Battle Styles don't have any unique mechanics on their own, many cards have moves or abilities that synergize with other cards of the same Battle Style, meaning there is a benefit to building a deck around a specific Battle Style.

On the plus side, "Fusion Strike" should be the last mega-set released for the Pokemon Trading Card Game in the short term. This set brings the Japanese and international sets more or less in sync with each other, setting up the 2022 releases quite nicely.

"Fusion Strike" is the last card set that will be released this year. The next set after "Fusion Strike" is "Brilliant Stars," which will introduce the new VSTAR mechanic. Pokemon VSTAR cards have a VSTAR move or ability that can only be used once per game. VSTAR cards can only be played on top of Pokemon V cards, meaning they act as a hybrid of VMAX cards and GX cards from the "Sun & Moon" era of the game. 

You can purchase "Fusion Strike" booster packs and other products from your local hobby store or retailer starting today.