Tabletop GamingPokemon Trading Card GameStellar Crown sets up the next era of the Pokemon TCG beautifullyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Tabletop GamingPokemon Trading Card GameStellar Crown sets up the next era of the Pokemon TCG beautifullyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Christian Hoffer)
The Pokemon Trading Card Game ushers in a new era with its Stellar Crown expansion thanks to several new and intriguing cards that should form the foundation of brand-new decks or help keep popular decks relevant for a while longer. At the heart of the set are the new Stellar Tera Pokemon ex cards, based on the Stellar Tera-type Pokemon seen in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Indigo Disc expansion. These new cards require three different types of energy to activate their main moves, which is generally counterintuitive to modern Pokemon deck-building techniques. Luckily, with plenty of Energy draw cards available in the current Pokemon TCG rotation, savvy players shouldn’t have too many issues getting these cards in play to wreck their opponent. One of thebest card gamesjust got more savage.
Favorable matchup
(Image credit: Christian Hoffer)
While Terapagos ex and other Stellar Tera Pokemon ex cards require three kinds of Energy cards to use their signature moves, there are enough Pokemon and Trainer cards that specialize in pulling the right Energy cards out of a deck that fans shouldn’t shy away from trying to make them the centerpiece of a new deck build.
Another intriguing card that should immediately make an impact is Noctowl, a Stage 1 card with a powerful ability. When a player uses Noctowl to evolve one of their existing Pokemon and they have a Tera Pokemon in play, they can pull two Trainer cards from their deck and place them into their hand. Noctowl will instantly make an impact in several tech-heavy decks, with the card helping players to get the cards they need to either maintain a favorable matchup or keep their deck humming.
Just right
(Image credit: Christian Hoffer)
While the meta implications for Stellar Crown are notable, it also contains several gorgeous cards that should be popular among collectors. In addition to the gorgeous Terapagos ex Secret Illustration Rare card, there’s also the Bulbasaur and Squirtle Illustration Rare cards, which complete the thematic triptych of Kanto Starter Pokemon in cozy spots that was started way back in the Obsidian Flames set.
Stellar Crown is the Pokemon TCG at its finest – a reasonably-sized set that introduces new deck possibilities and expands on existing ones. The cards are gorgeous, the set isn’t bloated (it comes in at 175 cards with variants), and it isn’t too dependent on one type of card to be effective. Stellar Crown sets up the next era of the Pokemon TCG nicely and caps off the end of the pure Scarlet and Violet era of content.
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It’s been a big few weeks for trading card games; thenext Lorcana set feels like a tribute to the most underrated Disney movie, and Magic’s new expansion is almost here (we’re pretty excited about it, so exploredhow MTG Duskmourn captures the ’80s horror vibe).
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3
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4
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