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

The Cards Of Pokémon TCG: Sword & Shield – Fusion Strike Part 24

The Pokémon TCG has outdone itself with its latest release, Sword & Shield – Fusion Strike. Fusion Strike, which was released in November 2021, is the largest expansion that the Pokémon TCG has ever released with a whopping 264 cards before Secret Rares. The set is partly based on the Japanese expansion Fusion Arts but also adapts several key Japanese promo cards as well as cards from sets like Eevee Heroes that were left out of that set's English equivalent, Sword & Shield – Evolving Skies. Sword & Shield – Fusion Strike is notable for its focus on the Mythical Pokémon Mew and Gengar VMAX, as well as its introduction of a new Battle Style to the competitive TCG with Fusion Pokémon now joining Rapid Strike and Single Strike. Now, let's take a journey through the best cards in this staggeringly large set of Pokémon cards.

2021 saw a major surge of interest in and value of Full Art Trainers. This phenomenon seemed to have two targets: cards featuring iconic trainers that the fanbase knows and loves and cards featuring female trainers. The latter was so pervasive that the phenomenon began to be referred to as the "Waifu Tax," as completionist collectors now had to pay extreme prices to afford a card that had, in the past, been obtainable. This crazy has dramatically dropped off with the dawn of Alternate Arts, with interest shifting to those and Full Art trainers rarely trending to become chase cards. In Fusion Strike, the closest thing to a chase Full Art Trainer is Elesa's Sparkle. Still, at a market value of just over $20 USD, this card is thankfully much more affordable for collectors than it would've been earlier this year. Elesa also deserves this terrifically illustrated Full Art, as she is one of the rare Gym Leaders that has only ever previously appeared on one card!

Next time, the spotlight on Pokémon TCG: Sword & Shield – Fusion Strike continues with more cards from the set. You can follow this spotlight series by clicking our Fusion Strike tag.

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