Unveiling the Magic: Dive into Pokémon TCG’s Scarlet and Violet 4.5 - Paldean Fates

Scarlet and Violet 4.5 has been unveiled, and we know that it is going to be called Paldean Fates. Following the trend of Hidden Fates from the Sun and Moon era and Shining Fates from the Sword and Shield era, Paldean Fates will feature all your favourite Pokémon as shiny versions. These shiny sets are always amazing and feature so many Pokémon as ‘baby’ shinies and full art shinies that catching them all can be a pretty mean feat. This set is definitely one for the collectors, and we’re going to take a look at all the information we know about it so far.

Overview and Release Date

First things first, when is this set going to be released? Like lots of the special sets of recent years, you can expect a slightly staggered release on this one. The first wave of products will be released on 26th January 2024, with the second batch coming two weeks later. This looks to be a massive set featuring over 240 cards, with the majority of those being the shiny cards, which all feature as secret rares in this set.

The official Pokémon website gives us a sneak preview of some of the cards we can expect to see, including Pikachu, Ceruledge, Dondozo and Tinkaton as ‘baby’ shinies.

We also see Great Tusk ex and Iron Treads ex making their debuts as Ancient and Future Pokémon, and Espathra, Charizard and Forretress will be in the set as shiny Tera ex Pokémon. There are over 100 different shiny Pokémon, including some brand new Pokémon ex, lots of new full art Supporters and 6 Hyper Rare Gold cards. This is looking like the hottest set in a while, maybe even as hyped as Pokémon 151 was back in the Summer of 2023.

The Story Behind Scarlet & Violet 4.5 - Paldean Fates

As we know, English sets follow the path set by the Japanese set releases. Paldean Fates will be our equivalent of Shiny Treasures ex, the Japanese set that was released in early December 2023. It is classed as a ‘High Class’ set in Japan, meaning the layout of booster boxes and booster packs is a lot different.

Each year, they do a high-class set to end the year, which features all the best and most popular Pokémon from that year, which they then reprint and make into shiny, alternate, or art rare cards. This follows in our English set, which will be released in January next year. Take Hidden Fates, for example, from the Sun and Moon Series, which was released the previous year in Japan as Ultra Shiny GX and was our first shiny set.

They like to follow this pattern and give us a nice round-up of the best cards of the year, which translates nicely into our January Special set each year.

Unpacking the Elite Trainer Box and Tech Sticker Collection

Let’s take a look at what you can expect to find in some of the upcoming products for Paldean Fates. Of course, we will be getting the trusty Elite Trainer Box, which is jam-packed full of goodies for you to get your hands on. It contains everything you have come to expect from an ETB, including 9 booster packs, an amazing promo card featuring Mimikyu, 65 card sleeves also showing off Mimikyu, a players guide, a pack of energy cards, damage counter and coin flip dice, poison and burn markers and a code card for the Pokémon Trading Card Game Live. These boxes are great value and contain everything you need to get playing the game straight away.

Pokémon have also announced a new product for this set, one that we have never seen before. It is called the Tech Sticker Collection and is a new version of the 3-pack blisters. Each one contains 3 packs of Paldean Fates, a promo card featuring either Fidough, Maschiff or Greavard and a massive sticker featuring the same Pokémon that is on the promo card. It’s something a little different, and I like the giant stickers to be able to stick on my laptop or decorate my workbooks. I think this will prove to be a popular product as it gives us something different that we have not had too much of from Pokémon.

There are a whole heap of other products coming out with the release of Paldean Fates, including Premium Collection Boxes featuring all of the Paldean starter Pokémon, tins featuring Charizard, Great Tusk and Iron Treads as ex Pokémon, a Booster Bundle Box which simply contain 6 booster packs and a whole load of Mini Tins. There really is something for everyone in this set, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it.

Shiny Pokémon: A Glimmering Addition

Shiny Pokémon are not a new phenomenon in the Pokémon world, but they are, and always have been, one of the most popular types of Pokémon. The shiny cards which are being released in the set have a slightly updated design compared to Hidden Fates and Shining Fates, which really makes the featured Pokémon stand out.

They always look amazing in every collection and are always massively popular. Remember, from a playability point of view, these are mostly not new cards. The majority of them are reprints of cards that we have had in the last few sets, which means they are all legal for tournament play and are a great way to make your deck stand out from the crowd.

Expected Shiny Pokémon and Some Key Highlights From the Set

We have already seen lots of Japanese products on the market, so we have a good idea of what to expect from this set. There are so many ‘baby’ shinies to collect in this set, including loads of fan favourites. Scyther, Charmander, Entei and Slowbro will all be getting shiny cards, as well as Starmie, Paladin, Pikachu and Kadabra.

The Kadabra card could be interesting to collect because, as we know, Kadabra made its long-awaited return to Pokémon in the 151 set this year, so this will be its first shiny version. There are so many more gems, and it would be too long to list them all, but you can also expect to find Kirlia, Lucario, MImikyu and Snorlax.

We are also being treated to lots of Shiny Pokémon ex, including all the Paldean starter evolutions as promo cards in the premium collection boxes, Alakazam, Mew, Gardevoir, Noivern, Pidgeot and Squawkabily. These all look incredible! We also know that we will be getting Charizard ex, Great Tusk ex and Iron Treads ex as promo cards in tins.

There will also be 3 Illustration Rare cards of Palafin, Pawmi and Wugtrio, plus the promo card we are getting for Mimikyu in the Elite Trainer Box. We are getting some beautiful full-art Supporter cards, including Judge, which has been a staple of the competitive format for some time now. We will also see Nemona, Clive and two different versions of Students in Paldea.

The main attraction from this set reveal is the Special Art Rares. These are alternate art versions of some cards from the set, and they are all stunning in their own right. The cards which are being given Special Art cards are Mew ex, Gardevoir ex, Charizard ex, Iono, Nemona, Clive, Arven and Penny. These cards are sought-after collector's pieces and will look superb in any collection.

Let’s Get Excited For Scarlet and Violet 4.5: Paldean Fates

Paldean Fates looks set to be the hottest set from the Scarlet and Violet series and is going to be a massive hit with collectors and players. The cards from it look amazing, and you will want to pick up these shinies for your decks and binders!

The wheels are turning on this hype train, and I cannot wait to get my hands on this new set. I am most looking forward to the Mew ex, Gardevoir ex and Charizard ex-Special Art Rare cards and will grab them immediately for my collection.

Check out our store to see what you can expect from each of the products, and get as excited for the set as we are!