Pokémon TCG Early Opening: Crown Zenith Regieleki Box

Today, we have a very special Pokémon TCG series of openings here at Bleeding Cool. The Pokémon International has provided an early look at products from the new special set Crown Zenith releasing tomorrow, January 20th. The art-themed Crown Zenith closes out the Sword & Shield era with a bang, as the Scarlet & Violet series block will launch in March 2023. Crown Zenith introduces two new card types: Illustrator Rares and Special Illustrator Rares, called Art Rares and Special Art Rares in Japan. Illustrator Rares are much like Illustrator Rares, but they do not show Pokémon with Trainers, rather showing them in their environments or sometimes even interacting with other species in interesting ways. Special Illustrator Rares are like Alternate Arts, combining the idea of Illustrator Rares with mechanics like V, VMAX, and VSTAR. These cards make Crown Zenith one of the most beautiful art-driven sets of all time… so I couldn’t be more excited to start opening and showing you all the cards. This opening will focus on the Crown Zenith Regieleki Box.

Here’s what you get in the Crown Zenith Regieleki Box:

• Four packs of Crown Zenith
• SWSH Black Star Promo card: Regieleki V
• Regidrago bonus card reprint with galaxy foil
• Jumbo Regieleki V

My pulls included…

• Standard set: 2 hits, including
  • One holo-rare: Zacian
  • One Radiant Pokémon: Charizard
• Galarian Gallery subset: 1 hit, including:
  • One Special Illustrator Rare Trainer: Cynthia’s Ambition

While not as stunning as an Elite Trainer Box, this still shows the strong pull rate of Crown Zenith. I have opened a few products beyond what the Pokémon TCG sent, and so far their hasn’t been a single opening without at least one Special Illustrator Rare. That’s likely a streak of luck. I find that the Special Illustrator Rare Trainers tend to be rarer than the Special Illustrator Rare Pokémon due to the lower number of those, so I found myself lucky to pull this Cynthia. Let’s take a closer look at the texture on this card as well as the Radiant Charizard.

Stay tuned for more Pokémon TCG openings and news.