A few days ago, I realised that it’d been over two months, nearly three, since I last shared an update on my Pokémon Trading Card Game journey. It’s probably about time I brought you all up to speed as to where I am and what has been going on so far this year.
It has been slightly chaotic already for the first few months of the year in the world of trading cards. With multiple new sets releasing already this year, it’s also the thirtieth anniversary of the Pokémon franchise. There’s really just so much going on currently that it seems a little daunting at times, knowing what to do and even collect. Not only am I still collecting, I’m also on the lookout for cards so I can continue to learn and play the card game.
The best place to start is a quick update with how I’m progressing with my personal project, Project Pikachu.
Project Pikachu
Back in January, I revealed my small but mighty Pokémon Trading Card Game challenge. Entitled Project Pikachu, I aimed to simply build up a collection of Pikachu cards from across the numerous card sets and languages. There’s no end goal, no time frame and no financial rules, just a fun little challenge to do here and there. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of very expensive cards for Pikachu. Some of which cost hundreds, if not thousands, and while they would be lovely, I’m focusing on those that are much more affordable for my budget.
I’ll be honest, I’ve lost count of just how many I’ve added to the collection since January, but I’ve probably added about fifteen at least since I started. Maybe a few more. Yeah, definitely a few more than that!
Now, most of these have only cost me a couple of pounds here and there. The most expensive one I’ve added recently, which I traded some cards for, was a promotional card from the HeartGold and SoulSilver era. It was about £14 but has since gone up slightly in value. This particular card I spotted at a local card show at the end of February. It’s also where I added a few Sword and Shield era V and VMAX cards, which again were at very reasonable prices.
As well as these new additions to my ongoing personal project, I also went back through my folders that contained many cards from my childhood collection. To my surprise, I discovered a few more cards that I had overlooked, and I promptly added them into my ever growing collection of Pikachu cards.
Card Shows & Trades
I mentioned that I attended a couple of smaller local card shows as well as taking part in a few trades. I’ll admit both of these felt pretty daunting to start with. I talked with various vendors at the card shows as well as at some local independent stores I go to. They talked me through everything. They explained their process, how they price cards, their trade in values, what to look out for, and good trade etiquette. This was really helpful for me, and it also gave me the opportunity to ask any questions in a safe and helpful way.
Having vendors and fellow collectors/players share their tips, tricks and overall advice is something I’m grateful for and has helped me feel a little less overwhelmed and a bit more confident when it comes to trades and card shows in general.
It has also allowed me to trade some cards that no longer fit my collection or that I have acquired multiples of in exchange for cards that I am more interested in instead.
Pikachu at the Museum
As part of the thirtieth birthday celebrations for Pokémon, the Natural History Museum in London was hosting a special pop-up store experience. I somehow managed to get tickets back towards the end of last year and finally went to my assigned slot last month.
Now, before my time slot, I explored the museum, which was enjoyable despite how busy it was. Walking through the various exhibits and looking back through history. It has been a while since I last visited the Natural History Museum, and it’s definitely something I should do more often.
As for the pop-up itself, I didn’t have my hopes set on picking up anything in particular, knowing how popular and busy the event would be. After a quick look around, I ended up picking up one of the tote bags and the Natural History and Pokemon collaboration plush. In turn, this meant I was also eligible for picking up the jumbo Pikachu at the Museum trading card.
Playing the Trading Card Game
When I dived back into the Pokémon card universe, one thing I wanted to do was learn to actually play the game as well as just collect cards. I started doing so back at the end of last year but haven’t done much until recently. I decided it was time to start over, revisit the decks I had, look at my options and get back to playing.
So far, I’ve got two decks running. One is a pre-built one, the Mega Battle Deck featuring Mega Diancie, the other is a custom Perfect Order deck I’ve been working on lately. It’s been a great way to utilise a lot of my extra bulk cards but also look in more detail at what cards do what and how to use them together with the various Supporter cards and Pokémon Abilities.
I have a second custom deck idea in mind and will be working on that soon, but I want to get used to the two decks I have running currently. I know I have some work to do to become more confident and to understand the game mechanics in more detail however, I feel I’m making good progress.
Ultimately, I’d like to one day start attending local events and play against others. I know I have a few local options, but for now, that’s a long-term goal for me at the moment.
Looking Ahead
There’s certainly a lot to look forward to over the next few months. While Perfect Order has released recently, there’s still plenty to come. Chaos Rising, releases in just over a month, with the battle of pre-ordering via the Pokémon Center on the same level as battling Ticketmaster. I’m also hoping to pick up one of the First Partner Illustration box sets at the retail price of £14.99, but so far, luck has not been on my side for that side quest.
Sharing this hobby with my partner, too, has been so much fun since we got back into it last year. It’s just nice to have someone to talk about it with who understands. We both have our own collection projects, want to collect different cards, build different kinds of decks to play and also master sets we want to complete next.
Personally, my plans are to continue working on my skills and knowledge of the card game itself while continuing to work on Project Pikachu and hopefully start Project Pokédex. More on that sometime in the future.
Have you been getting back into Pokémon card collecting or the trading card game recently? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments!
Image Credits: Collectr & The Pokémon Company International
