Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: giratina, Lost Origin, pokemon, pokemon cards, Pokemon TCG

Pokémon TCG Pull Rate Quest: Lost Origin Booster Box Opening #2

Too often, Pokémon TCG influencers will rush to make a sweeping statement about a new set's pull rates. It's going to be interesting to see how the latest set, Sword & Shield – Lost Origin, is seen because it is the second main series set in a row that has a special Trainer Gallery subset consisting of Character Cards, Character Super Rares, Full Art Trainers, and Black and Gold VMAXes that can be pulled in the Reverse Holo slot along with the new card type Radiant Pokémon. This increases the number of pulls that one can expect to get in a Sword & Shield – Lost Origin opening. In the interest of dispelling the idea that we can establish pull rates so early in a set's existence, I'm here with Pull Rate Quest, a series at Bleeding Cool where I open Pokémon TCG sets to show that you win some… and you lose some. I love the idea that openings like this can help show people what to expect in a set, but remember… a lot of it comes down to the luck of the draw. Let's open another booster box of Sword & Shield – Lost Origin and see what we can get in this installment of Pull Rate Quest.

I purchased this Pokémon TCG box from Brothers Grim Games and Collectibles in Selden, NY. Here's the spread of the box:

• Holo Rare: 6
• Pokémon-V: 4
• Pokémon VMAX: 0
• Pokémon VSTAR: 2
• Radiant Pokémon: 1
• Full Art V: 0
• Alternate Art V: 0
• Full Art Trainer (Main Set): 1
• Rainbow Rare: 1
• Gold VSTAR: 0
• Gold Trainer or Special Energy: 0
• Trainer Gallery Hits: 3
  • Character Rare: 3
  • Character Super Rare: 0
  • Full Art TG Trainer: 0
  • Black & Gold VMAX: 0

This is a solid box when it comes to the main set pulls. We ended up with a Full Art Trainer and a Rainbow Rare VSTAR, which is a Secret Rare pull. Now, are they the most exciting Full Art and Secret Rare options in the set? Not nearly, which could perhaps color the perception of the booster box's pull rate, so let's try to stick to the actual number of hits. I'm noting so far in this opening, as well as others I've done but not documented, that VSTARs seem far more common in Sword & Shield – Lost Origin than in Brilliant Stars or Astral Radiance where they felt more like they were using the Full Art rarity.

The only downside of the box was the reverse holo slot. It was simply not firing. Three Trainer Gallery hits is the absolute lowest I've seen from a set with this special subset, and for them all to be Character Rares without any greater hits made this box feel like a dud when it comes to subset pulls. Radiant cards also come in the reverse slot, and I ended up with a single Radiant Sneasler.

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