Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: houndour, Obsidian Flames, pokemon, pokemon cards

Cards Of Pokémon TCG: Obsidian Flames Part 29: Houndour Illustration

Two Johto species, Larvitar and Houndoom, get Illustration Rares in Pokémon TCG's third main Scarlet & Violet set, Obsidian Flames.

With Sword & Shield officially concluded, the Scarlet & Violet era of the Pokémon TCG kicked off in March 2023 with a focus on the ninth generation of Pokémon games and the new region: Paldea. It all began with the Scarlet & Violet base set, which introduced major, lasting changes to the hobby. Now, the borders of the cards have become silver, matching the Japanese releases. Another major change is that now, each pack culminates in at least a holo-rare and two reverse holos. The major mechanic of this era is the lowercase ex, which features a double holographic pattern of a horizontal shine and a starry sparkle. Full Art exs now use a green, foil outline around the Pokémon. The Secret Rare section of expansions going forward features Full Arts, Illustration Rares and Special Illustration Rare exs, Full Art Trainers, Special Illustration Rare Trainers, and Gold Hyper Rares. On August 11, 2023, the Pokémon TCG released the third set of this era, Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames, which introduced Tera Pokémon with a Tera type differing from their base type. The chase card is a Dark-type Tera Charizard ex. In today's installment of this Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames art spotlight, we continue with the Illustration Rares.

The artwork on the Larvitar Illustration Rare by Miki Tanaka ties directly into Larvitar's original Dex entries from the Gold and Silver versions:

• It feeds on the soil. After it has eaten a large mountain, it will fall asleep so it can grow.
• It is born deep underground. It can't emerge until it has entirely consumed the soil around it.

Tanaka has been delivering iconic cards since the Wizards of the Coast days, beginning in Fossil. Read Tanaka's history with the hobby here.

The Houndour Illustration Rare shows a group of this canine Pokémon hanging around in a backyard. Could it be a breeder's yard? Or is this just a group of newborns from a Hondoom that isn't pictured here? I love how busy and lived-in this image looks while still conveying a cute and simple idea. The artist is KYUPIYAMA, who makes their Pokémon TCG debut in Obsidian Flames with this card and the standard Larvitar.

Stay tuned for the journey through this special set as we continue to spotlight the cards and artwork of Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames. Next time, the spotlight continues with the Secret Rare section of the set. You can read more about this iconic trading card game right here at Bleeding Cool.

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