Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: Dratini, pokemon, Pokemon TCG, Sword & Shield

The Cards Of Pokémon TCG: Silver Tempest Part 27: Dratini Line

Published Sat, 31 Dec 2022 08:12:11 -0600

In November 2022, Pokémon TCG released the final main series set of the Sword & Shield era. The expansion, Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest, came out on September 9th, 2022. It is the twelfth set under the Sword & Shield banner and it adapts the Japanese sets Incandescent Arcana and Paradigm Trigger, with its Trainer Gallery subset adapting cards from VMAX Climax. The Lugia-themed Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest also continues both Radiant Pokémon as well as the Trainer Gallery, a special subset of Character Rares, Character Super Rares, Full Art Trainers, and Black & Gold VMAXes that began in the first set of the year, Sword & Shield – Brilliant Stars. Follow me on a journey through this latest set as we appreciate the artwork, discuss the card's place in the set, and theorize as to what certain elements of the expansion may imply for the future of the Pokémon TCG. Today, we move onto the Dragon-type cards from Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest.

Silver Tempest cards. Credit: Pokémon TCG — Silver Tempest cards. Credit: *Pokémon TCG*

The Dratini evolutionary line begins with an adorable, cartoony Dratini from artist kurumitsu. The use of color here, with Dratini rendered in thick line art and the background using no black lines, works perfectly to make the Pokémon pop in this image. Dratini evolves into the graceful, serpentine Dragonaire. Illustrator Shinya Komatsu delivers an icy Dragonair image, showing this draconic evolved form curled up on a bed of frost floating in snowy water. Finally, the line culminates with a beautiful and pensive holographic Dragonite by Naoyo Kimura, who depicts the final form of this line floating over an expanse of water. Kimura has been with the hobby since the days of Wizards of the Coast, with their first contribution being cards in the Southern Islands special collection.

Stay tuned for the continuing journey through this Lugia and Alolan Vulpix-themed set as we continue to spotlight the cards and artwork of Pokémon TCG: Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest. Next time, the spotlight continues with the main set of this expansion.

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