Scans: リーダーズポケモン [Japanese]
Set Name: リーダーズポケモン (Leader's Pokemon)
Set Logo:
Number of Cards: 142
Checklist: Download (PDF)
Notes: VS is a crazy, crazy era. The era consists of the sole set, and that sole set I think was born to kill the hands of people who scan them. Leader's Pokemon consists of a grand 142 cards, without energy cards, which makes it the largest set in the history of the Japanese TCG. The set has a very interesting mechanic in that all the cards are, by modern day playing equivalents, SP cards. There are cards in this set for every Johto Gym Leader, the Kanto Leaders, and members of the Elite Four. I slowly pieced together my set of this across three years, acquiring cards wherever I could and from whoever I could. The hardest card to get was one of Falkner's Technical Machine 02 card, and the most expensive (though not by much, since I did a bit of bargain hunting) was Lance's Charizard.
The one really nice recurring theme in all of VS is that there is a set artist for every trainer, so all the illustrations of their team Pokemon is in the same style, and that creates a really strong aesthetic that came back in the LEGEND era when single artists were tasked with whole evolutionary lines to keep a consistence across the board.
Also of note, card 142/141 is a special secret card in the set. Unlike most recent secret rare cards, this card could only be specially obtained by purchasing a VS deck at the theatres that was released in commemoration of the 4th movie. This card is the only unique card to that deck, all others are randomised cards from the rest of the set.
Perhaps in due time I'll scan the energies that go for this set. They're unnumbered so are of a lower priority, but the steel, dark, and rainbow energy are a gorgeous holo. One day.
Trivia:
• This set was released in Japan on the 19th of July 2001.
• Of all sets released in Japan, this set had the most unique packs overall with the 2007 World Championships set following it. There were three variants: Grass & Electric, Psychic & Fighting, and Fire & Water. Each pack came with 30 cards and were essentially advertised as 'half deck' packs when released, and depending on which variant was bought there were a few key unique cards released in those packs only.
• Boxes and single packs command great prices on eBay now, especially for Fire & Water packs -- those have a chance of holding Lance's Charizard, or Karen's Umbreon, some of the more coveted cards of the set.
• Completing this set is often quite difficult due to the sheer number of trainer cards released, and arguably those cards are often the bane of the set for collectors, followed by some of the harder to find holos.
• This set never made a full official English release. There exist test cards in English for some of them, but their numbers are very limited, and they are quite hard to get.
Last Updated: 24/08/14 Set Complete
Set Logo:
Number of Cards: 142
Checklist: Download (PDF)
Notes: VS is a crazy, crazy era. The era consists of the sole set, and that sole set I think was born to kill the hands of people who scan them. Leader's Pokemon consists of a grand 142 cards, without energy cards, which makes it the largest set in the history of the Japanese TCG. The set has a very interesting mechanic in that all the cards are, by modern day playing equivalents, SP cards. There are cards in this set for every Johto Gym Leader, the Kanto Leaders, and members of the Elite Four. I slowly pieced together my set of this across three years, acquiring cards wherever I could and from whoever I could. The hardest card to get was one of Falkner's Technical Machine 02 card, and the most expensive (though not by much, since I did a bit of bargain hunting) was Lance's Charizard.
The one really nice recurring theme in all of VS is that there is a set artist for every trainer, so all the illustrations of their team Pokemon is in the same style, and that creates a really strong aesthetic that came back in the LEGEND era when single artists were tasked with whole evolutionary lines to keep a consistence across the board.
Also of note, card 142/141 is a special secret card in the set. Unlike most recent secret rare cards, this card could only be specially obtained by purchasing a VS deck at the theatres that was released in commemoration of the 4th movie. This card is the only unique card to that deck, all others are randomised cards from the rest of the set.
Perhaps in due time I'll scan the energies that go for this set. They're unnumbered so are of a lower priority, but the steel, dark, and rainbow energy are a gorgeous holo. One day.
Trivia:
• This set was released in Japan on the 19th of July 2001.
• Of all sets released in Japan, this set had the most unique packs overall with the 2007 World Championships set following it. There were three variants: Grass & Electric, Psychic & Fighting, and Fire & Water. Each pack came with 30 cards and were essentially advertised as 'half deck' packs when released, and depending on which variant was bought there were a few key unique cards released in those packs only.
• Boxes and single packs command great prices on eBay now, especially for Fire & Water packs -- those have a chance of holding Lance's Charizard, or Karen's Umbreon, some of the more coveted cards of the set.
• Completing this set is often quite difficult due to the sheer number of trainer cards released, and arguably those cards are often the bane of the set for collectors, followed by some of the harder to find holos.
• This set never made a full official English release. There exist test cards in English for some of them, but their numbers are very limited, and they are quite hard to get.
Last Updated: 24/08/14 Set Complete