With the Pokémon TCG bringing its Sword and Shield series to a close, we can make a fully-formed judgement on what the best Pokémon Sword and Shield cards are from recent expansions. Below you’ll find a handful of the very best selected from the Sword and Shield card list. Here stand the most powerful, beautiful, valuable, and playable cards Sword and Shield has to offer.
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Here are some of the best Pokémon Sword and Shield cards:
- Umbreon VMAX
- Zamazenta V
- Quick Ball
- Marnie
- Arceus VSTAR
- Mew VMAX
Umbreon VMAX
Set: Evolving Skies
According to the trading card marketplace TCGPlayer, Umbreon VMAX is the most valuable non-promo Sword and Shield card on the market. At the time of writing, the market price for the alt art version is well over $500. Scarcity and some stunning art of one of the most collectable Pokémon groups (the Eeveelutions) mean the card’s value has been flying high for quite some time.
If you prefer to play Pokémon rather than simply invest in it, Umbreon VMAX is still pretty handy to have. When you play Umbreon VMAX from your hand to evolve a Pokémon, its Dark Signal ability lets you switch an opponent’s active Pokémon with a benched one.
Zamazenta V
Set: Sword and Shield Base Set
As one of the two legendary Pokémon for Sword and Shield, Zamazenta is already pretty iconic. It also happens to have a particularly potent card in the Pokémon TCG: Zamazenta V.
Its Dauntless Shield ability means your opponent’s VMAX cards can’t deal any damage to this doggie. In a world where VMAX cards are getting increasingly powerful, Zamazenta can help disrupt an opponent’s beefiest plays. And if that wasn’t enough, its Assault Tackle attack is nothing to be sniffed at either, removing a Special Energy from enemy Pokémon while dealing damage at the same time.
Quick Ball
Set: Sword & Shield Base Set
Quick Ball certainly isn’t winning any prizes for striking card art, and it’s probably worth less than the change in your pocket right now. So why include it in this list? Quick Ball earns its place by being such a solid deck staple, allowing you to search your deck for a Pokémon card and place it in your hand.
Quick Ball does make you discard a card from your hand to go Pokémon hunting, but this is a relatively cheap cost to pay for your pick of any Pokémon in your deck. Plus, for decks that rely on discarded cards, Quick Ball has plenty of synergy.
Marnie
Set: Sword and Shield Base Set
Marnie was one of the most popular trainers to come out of the Sword and Shield videogames, so it’s no surprise that full-art cards of her are highly sought after. High-quality art of our anime faves aside, Marnie’s trainer card sees regular play thanks to its disruptive capabilities.
Marnie forces each player to shuffle their hand and place it on the bottom of their deck. If either player bottom-decks their hand like this, the person that played Marnie gets to draw five new cards, with their opponent drawing four. Although you can’t guarantee the quality of your new hand, you’re automatically at an advantage in terms of hand size. Whether you want to get rid of a poor opening hand or bin an opponent’s strong one, Marnie is great to have on board.
Arceus VSTAR
Set: Brilliant Stars
VSTAR Pokémon cards are the slightly less chunky cousins of VMAX Pokémon, and they offer a one-off superpower that makes up for their weaker attack and health stats. Arceus VSTAR is arguably better than its VMAX counterpart thanks to its ability.
Starbirth lets you search your deck for two cards and place them in your hand, and then it asks you to shuffle your remaining deck. That’s it. It may not sound like much, but the ability to search for two cards at any time, with no strings attached, is so powerful that you’re only allowed to do it once in the entire game.
Mew VMAX
Set: Fusion Strike
Mew VMAX took the meta by storm when it first appeared in Fusion Strike, and its decks are still a hugely popular choice for players. This is mainly down to its Cross Fusion Strike attack. For just two Colourless Energy, you can copy the attack of any Fusion Strike Pokémon you have benched. This is an incredibly cheap way to deal massive damage, as well as switch up your attacks as needed.
Mew offers further flexibility by having a sturdy HP count and zero retreat cost. It also has several art variations that are all equally beautiful.