The set

Base Set

The set that started everything. Released by Wizards of the Coast in January 1999, Base Set introduced the West to the Pokémon Trading Card Game and produced four print runs that collectors still chase a quarter century later.

Released

January 9, 1999

Cards

102

Rare Holos

Variants

Browse all cards Print history

The story

Base Set in the timeline.

Base Set is the first English-language Pokémon TCG release. Wizards of the Coast translated the Japanese Base set and printed it in the United States starting January 9, 1999. It is the foundational document of the Western Pokémon collectible market.

The set runs 102 cards: 16 Rare Holos, 16 Rares, 32 Uncommons, and 32 Commons, plus 6 Energy cards. Every starter line is represented, and the flagship holo, Charizard, became the single most-recognizable trading card of the modern era.

Print runs

How Base Set was produced.

Three production waves shaped the secondary market. 1st Edition shipped first, identifiable by a small Edition-1 stamp under the Pokémon's artwork. It ran for roughly two months.

Wizards then moved to a transitional print known as Shadowless: no Edition stamp, no drop shadow on the right side of the artwork, and a lighter, thinner HP font. The Shadowless print is the rarest of the three Base Set variants by some distance and the easiest to overlook.

Unlimited followed and ran for years. The drop shadow returned, the holo printing settled, and the volume of cards in the world grew dramatically. Unlimited holos are the most accessible piece of Wizards-era Pokémon you can pick up in graded condition.

1st EditionShadowlessUnlimited

Collector notes

Centering is the universal grade cap on Base Set holos. The print registration on holo windows was inconsistent enough that PSA 10s are genuinely rare across the entire set, with Charizard the most punishing. Surface scratches on the holo are the second-most-common problem.

Base Set

Base Set in the timeline.

How Base Set was produced.

Every Pokémon in Base Set.

Open Base Set in the app.