Destined Rivals Pokémon cards are plummeting in price – except for these two
The much-awaited Pokémon TCG release Destined Rivals came out for English-speaking audiences on May 30, and as we see every time a set drops, prices tanked immediately to way below their presale levels.
However, while the value of some cards have cratered, others have bounced back surprisingly quickly, even surpassing the original estimates. Below, you’ll find the details on the two cards from the set which are currently spiking, not dropping in price.
The first of these cards beating the odds is Cynthia’s Garchomp ex. There’s no surprise that this is one of the most popular cards in the newest Pokémon set. While it’s functionally a somewhat playable ex card, we all know that form matters more than function when it comes to Pokémon card prices.
And this SAR has fantastic form! It’s probably the most action-packed Garchomp card we’ve ever seen, lunging to attack with its bladelike arms. Featuring an extremely popular Pokémon and an extremely popular character in Cynthia is probably helping the card too – we saw how it did wonders for Lillie’s Clefairy last set.
Before release, Cynthia’s Garchomp ex was estimated at around $220. It briefly dipped to $190 after the set came out, but since then has come back with a vengeance, with copies selling for as much as $225.
The second Destined Rivals card that’s performing spectacularly is a little more surprising: it’s Team Rocket’s Nidoking ex. This card was valued at $110 initially and after dropping to $90 has started to see sales of as much as $130.
This is less easily explained because when you look at Rocket’s Crobat ex – which I consider a partner to Nidoking as they’re both badass evil team poison types with good-but-not-spectacular artwork – you’ll see it’s fallen far and continues to drop.
But Nidoking does have two things that give it a slight edge over Crobat. Firstly, it’s a first generation Pokémon. Secondly, the art features Giovanni, everyone’s favorite bad boss.
It’s possible we’ll see more of the rare Pokémon cards from this set gain some value over time, but these are the initial couple that seem to have been accurately, or even under, valued prior to release.
Share your best Destined Rivals pulls (or just the cards you wished you’d opened) over at our Discord. And don’t miss our guide to legendary Pokémon cards and all Pokémon sets in order.
