Ever since its release in the late 90s, Pokémon has become an integral part of the childhood of many children worldwide. The show aired in most countries in the world at some point or another and has branched out as a media franchise with the likes of Nintendo and Game Freak.
A massive part of the craze for Pokémon was due to the trading card games. Presently, Pokémon trading cards are a massive activity for serious card collectors, with Twitch streamers often investing thousands of dollars in packs in hopes of finding a rare card. The resale value of these cards has attracted so much attention from professionals to it.
This article will help you understand Pokemon Cards and where you can get them for free.
What are Pokémon Cards?
The cards originate from the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which came out years ago in 1996 and eventually, Nintendo took the rights for it in America. PTCG became extremely popular due to its creative gameplay and unique art design. It is played like other card games, but Pokémon’s work in the field kickstarted many other card games in the vein of animated franchises.
There are different types of cards in the packs, and each set has different characteristics. The first type that builds the foundation for any deck is the Basic Pokémon cards. Players use these to start their game with a Pokémon that hasn’t evolved.
The next type is Evolved Pokémon, which you can only place on top of a basic Pokémon, or a lower stage Pokémon. These Pokémon have levels of evolution and gain strength or defense as per their abilities. There is a complex system to create a hierarchy amongst the various types of Pokémon, and these cards are the most sought after by traders.
Additionally, we have Trainer and Energy Cards in the deck. While Energy Cards are to enhance the abilities or powers of your Pokemon redeem, the Trainer Cards provide a more administrative service for your deck. You can use it to heal or discard a Pokémon, among other uses.
Collecting Pokémon Trading cards
There are many ways to buy or obtain Pokémon Cards in the present time. In several countries like the USA, entire stores are dedicated to selling and trading Pokémon card packs and special decks. Several players have opened packs from these stores and found extremely expensive cards to be a part of them. It is a mixed bag of luck and success, and buying from these stores is usually advisable.
Other options include buying from the official website, but the cards there will be at a fixed price, and opening packs can be a rare opportunity. However, we caution you against fake cards since the internet has an abundance of scammers looking to make money off of enthusiastic collectors. Always buy from legitimate sources, and if you are trading, then make sure you check the validity of those cards.
Can I get Pokémon cards for free?
Well, the answer is a mix of yes and no. While there are ways to get decks for free, they don’t offer a great chance of you getting a super rare collection or a legendary card. However, for people who are happy in the collection and not in the profits they can make, here are some ways to get your own free ones:
- There are free booster packs available on Amazon, usually just basic cards. These decks aren’t always free, but there are many products available online that you don’t have to pay for.
- Sellers/traders on Etsy and eBay often sell their collections to people online for money. However, many of their basic collections often cost little to nothing, and you can request them to send it to you.
- The final way is a much simpler one. All you need is a printer and some cardstock paper to print upon. Go to the Pokémon site, and explore through the catalogue. Pick any card and save the image on your computer. Once you have the image, you can print the card on paper and cut out the description from underneath.
In addition to the ways mentioned above, you can also look for online giveaways and contests to win a free deck. Often, tournaments and championships give out Pokémon cards to the participants.
The Takeaway
Building your collection of amazing and rare Pokémon cards is a great hobby and one worth investing in. We recommend passionate Pokémon fans invest a little money and try out their hand at opening packs. You never know when your luck might favor you. Plus, you can always collect cards freely if you’re only interested in deck building.
Have you been a long time collector of Pokémon cards? Do you trade or sell decks online? Share your experience in the comments below, and let us know if this article helped you find free decks!
