Destined Rivals will go down in history as one of the biggest Pokemon TCG sets of the Scarlet and Violet era. Comprised of cards from Japanese sets Heat Wave Arena and The Glory of Team Rocket, this set focuses on iconic trainer’s Pokemon belonging to the likes of Cynthia, Ethan, and Misty as well as the notorious Team Rocket – the first set to include Rocket’s Pokemon in decades. Below, let’s look at the most expensive Destined Rivals Pokemon cards of them all based on real market data.

#1 Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex SIR is the most expensive Destined Rivals card

In the future, when we look back on the Scarlet & Violet era of the Pokemon TCG, we’ll remember Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex SIR as one of its most defining cards. While it may not possess the kind of market value an Umbreon ex SIR, it’s still up there as one of the top chase cards of the era, as well as the single most valuable Destined Rivals card you can pull.

I suppose that makes sense. After all, Mewtwo is one of the most iconic Pokemon of all time, and we’ve not seen it featured prominently in the Pokemon TCG in a while (although it did get a pretty awesome extended artwork card in the digital version, Pokemon TCG Pocket). Getting paired with Giovanni (who is also heavily highlighted in the artwork) only ups the ante for this chase, calling to mind the original Pokemon movie that saw these two working side-by-side as partners in crime.

What really excites me about Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex beyond its value, however, is just how fun this card looks to play. A basic Pokemon with 280 HP and an attack that scales to 280+, the Mewtwo ex deck looks very solid and could be a fun way to counter the increasingly challenging Pokemon TCG meta.

#2 Cynthia's Garchomp ex – Special Illustration Rare

Without a doubt, Destined Rival’s runner-up for top card is Cynthia’s Garchomp ex. One of the most iconic duos in all of Pokemon, Cynthia has a massive following – being known as one of the strongest trainers in the universe. This card’s artwork is heavily tied to the in-universe lore, featuring Cynthia’s Garchomp using its ground attacks to demolish the competition.

#3 Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex – Special Illustration Rare

Ethan is the playable trainer from the Gold and Silver games, as well as his own character in the Pokemon Anime. Here he’s depicted alongside Ho-Oh – one of the main legendaries you could capture in those games. Ho-Oh also stands out in the Pokemon lore as the first legendary Ash Ketchum ever sees – flying in the skies overhead as he leaves Pallet Town on his adventure for the very first time.

The artwork here is pretty gorgeous, and just the fact that a Pokemon as legendary as Ho-Oh gets featured alongside a trainer in a card like this feels pretty historic. While it won’t be worth as much as the Garchomp, the card’s rarity, potential playability, and nostalgic appeal should push it to the upper echelons of value for the set.

#4 Team Rocket’s Moltres ex – Special Illustration Rare

This isn’t the first time that the Legendary Birds have been included in a Rocket set. Indeed, some of the most expensive Team Rocket Pokemon cards of all time feature the legendary trio of birds that were a vital part of the original 151 Pokemon.

That being said, even those epic cards don’t hold a candle to the incredible beauty on display in this SIR. Moltres is often referred to mockingly as a “fire chicken” because of its looks. However, there’s nothing joking about this gorgeous illustration. Indeed, this card design by Akira Egawa single handedly up-levels Moltres, creating what is arguably the most beautiful Rocket’s card from the set.

And people have noticed, which could be partly the reason for this card’s solid market price. If you’re looking for Destined Rivals cards with future value potential, Moltres ex SIR is one of your best bets.

#5 Team Rocket’s Nidoking ex – Special Illustration Rare

Getting a heavily stylized Nidoking ex SIR was not necessarily on my bingo card for Destined Rivals, but it makes sense. If you remember from the early days of Pokemon, Giovani does use Nidoking in battle against Red, so there’s certainly some nostalgia here.

Nidoking itself was something of a powerhouse back in the day – I remember using this Pokemon to take down the Elite Four when playing Pokemon Yellow several times. Here though we see Nidoking using what appears to be an Earthquake attack, which is one of the stronger attacks from that era.

In addition to the nostalgia angle, Nidoking’s captivating comic book artwork hard carries this card, catapulting it to the top of the list.

#6 Team Rocket’s Crobat ex – Special Illustration Rare

It’s hard to get more Team Rocket than Crobat. In the games, Zubat and its evolved forms are frequently used by Team Rocket grunts. In this SIR, Crobat is pictured surrounded by its bad brethren and (surprise) a Rocket Grunt in the background. It’s fitting tributes like these that take into consideration even the minute details of the earlier days of Pokemon that help sets like Destined Rivals build their own world – almost an immersive experience for players and collectors to dive into, even if only to get just a hint of that Pokemon magic.

#7 Ethan’s Adventure – Special Illustration Rare

Ethan's Adventure SIR — Market price: $103.68

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Ethan’s Adventure in its SIR artwork features the iconic trainer paired with both Pichu and Cyndaquil: popular Pokemon in their own right. The card is fairly strong, making up the backbone of the hyped Ethan’s Typhlosion single-prize deck. Otherwise, Ethan’s Adventure looks like something out of a storybook, capturing that joie de vivre and the spirit of adventure that has helped make Pokemon the biggest media franchise ever.

#8 Misty’s Psyduck – Illustration Rare

Getting a Misty’s Psyduck IR is pretty epic, and the first time in a long time we’ve seen Misty featured on any card in the Pokemon TCG. The last one I remember is the Starmie V alternate art we got back in the Sword and Shield era. While that card artwork was pretty slick, there’s something extra tranquil about this portrait of Misty carelessly drifting beside one of her most recognizable partners.

Clearly, rarity isn’t the only thing that influences the card prices of modern Pokemon cards. Despite being only an Illustration Rare, Misty’s Psyduck outperforms many rarer SIR cards thanks to a combination of fantastic art and trainer popularity.

#9 Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex – Hyper Rare

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – hyper rare “gold” cards have done very well in Scarlet & Violet, and this Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex is no exception. While it is significantly less valuable than the SIR counterpart of the same card, its value is still high enough to land it in the top ten for the set. How will the card’s value fare in the future? Typically, the more valuable an SIR the more valuable its Hyper Rare version.

#10 Ethan’s Typhlosion – Illustration Rare

Although being an Illustration Rare gives it less intrinsic value than Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex, in some ways this artwork is even more dynamic. Who doesn’t remember getting Cyndaquil as a basic when playing Gold and Silver and evolving it overtime into the formidable Typhlosion? Gold and Silver were notorious for being too easy to beat, and I knew people (myself included) who could clear the entire thing with just a single, hyper-powered Typhlosion.

I mention the nostalgia for early Pokemon video games because that’s the primary appeal of this card beyond its fabulous artwork. Few Pokemon cards have the kind of nostalgic appeal as Ethan paired with Typhlosion taking on their foes. Despite being only an Illustration Rare, this card should be a highly desired pull.

#11 Team Rocket’s Giovanni – Special Illustration Rare

Giovanni is featured a whopping 10 times in the secret rare cards from this set. Clearly he’s the main antagonist of Destined Rivals. And while the SIR version of the supporter card bearing his name may not be worth a fortune, it’s a decent hit landing it in the Destined Rivals top 20, as well as a fantastic collector’s item to commemorate a monumental set.

#12 Team Rocket’s Ariana – Special Illustration Rare

Ariana is a Team Rocket executive originally introduced in the Gold/Silver era. That’s a pretty solid tie-in with Ethan from Destined Rivals, and she’s the only other member of team rocket to get an SIR outside of Giovanni himself.

#13 Cynthia’s Garchomp ex – Hyper Rare

If you’re looking for an easier-to-find Cynthia’s Garchomp ex alt art, this Garchomp ex Hyper Rare may not be for you. It’s almost as hard to find as the SIR, despite being worth only a fraction of the price. Regardless, it’s a pretty cool card featuring the dynamic duo who are at the core of the set.

#14 Team Rocket’s Meowth – Illustration Rare

As far as iconic Pokemon go, it’s hard to get more Iconic than Team Rocket’s Meowth. This guy's been a key component of the Pokemon universe since the beginning. Although here he’s depicted next to Giovanni meaning it’s probably a different Meowth than the one we know and love from the anime, it’s still a nice allusion to our beloved character that collectors will go nuts for.

#15 Arven's Mabosstiff ex – Special Illustration Rare

Mabostiff ex — Listed price: $31.12

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Getting an Arven’s Pokemon in this set is notable as this set is otherwise devoid of the latest trainers from Scarlet & Violet. I suppose that makes sense since so much of the Scarlet and Violet era was focused on the latest and greatest, with several sets even focusing on specific DLCs like Twilight Masquerade etc.

Otherwise, Arven and his Mabosstiff ex share a pretty emotional story – even a bit sad. Will that be enough to catapult this card’s value? I think the greatest thing that will lend value to this particular card will be the fact it is an SIR. Otherwise, it won’t be quite as popular (or valuable) as the other trainer’s Pokemon you can pull from Destined Rivals.

#16 Misty’s Lapras – Illustration Rare

I honestly don’t know how you could look at this IR version of Misty’s Lapras and not feel warm and fuzzy inside – unless you aren’t a Pokemon fan, that is. As my son pointed out when he caught a glimpse of this card over my shoulder “Lapras is Ash’s Pokemon! Not Misty’s!”

As true as that is to lore, that doesn’t really matter all that much when it comes to the card itself. It perfectly invokes the fun and laid back nature that made up the Orange Island era of the Pokemon anime – one in which Misty played a pivotal role riding from island to island on the back of this well-loved Pokemon.

She may or may not have had a Lapras, but this card certainly paints the two as a dynamic duo nonetheless.

#17 Yanmega ex – Special Illustration Rare

Not that anyone was asking for a Yanmega ex SIR surging across the water to challenge an opposing Pokemon – but here it is. This card certainly has a vibe, and if you replaced the dragonfly Pokemon with Latios or Latias and you’d have a hot card. As it is, the card still looks nice and it’s high degree of rarity lend value to an otherwise overlooked Pokemon.

#18 Ethan’s Ho-oh ex – Hyper Rare

Of the hyper rare cards in this set, Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex might be my favorite. Ethan’s figure is boxier than his anime version, calling to mind the old style of the characters in Pokemon games. Ho-Oh ex has some serious attitude in this card as well, and its colors work well when combined with the golden outline.

#19 Team Rocket’s Crobat ex – Hyper Rare

Team Rocket’s Crobot ex is the final Hyper Rare Pokemon card on this list. The main selling point of me for this card isn’t actually the Crobat the way it is in the SIR – in this card it’s the Team Rocket’s Grunt getting such huge amounts of visibility in the background.

#20 Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex – Ultra Rare

Here we have essentially the same design as the Hyper Rare version of the card only with even more compelling colors in the background – the notorious red/black of Team Rocket. Mewtwo looks like he’s huddled up inside his water casing he was born in, about to break free. Although a far cry in value from the hyper rare version of the card, this is one pull I’d be very, very happy with.

#21 Shaymin – Illustration Rare

Shaymin is going to be a widely played card in the Pokemon TCG standard format, which is the predominate reason for this card being worth the kind of money it is. Containing the ability that blocks benched Pokemon from being sniped by attacked from your opponent’s Pokemon is badly needed in the game right now to help make Stage 2 decks more viable.

For collectors, let’s be real – it’s Shaymin’s cuteness that makes this a second-tier hit.

#22 Team Rocket’s Houndoom – Illustration Rare

This incredibly exciting Illustration Rare card features the notorious Houndoom. Houndoom is easily recognizeable as a Team Rocket Pokemon with a dark typing that makes it an excellent choice for these hardened Pokemon criminals. While this card won’t see the same kind of value as the SIRs on this list due to its lower rarity, as we’ve seen time-and-time again, IRs can often upset expectations with how much value they are capable of drawing, especially when they feature beloved characters or phenomenal artwork like this.

#23 Jamming Tower – Hyper Rare

Jamming Tower sees consistent play in the Pokemon TCG, and as you may know from reading my previous lists, gold versions of staples for the competitive game do well on the secondary card market. Jamming Tower isn’t as universally used as a card like Earthen Vessel which curves this card’s potential value, but still a noteworthy inclusion to this list.

#24 Blaziken – Illustration Rare

This Blaziken Illustration Rare slightly slips under the radar. There are so many gorgeous and valuable cards to chase in this set that it’s easy to overlook the Blaziken. However, it’s a pretty phenomenal card if you think about it, catching the Blaziken mid-fiery kick while matching that action with a serene backdrop.

#25 Cynthia's Roserade – Illustration Rare

I’m very surprised by this gorgeous card ending up so far down the list, and I don’t expect it to remain this way longterm. Longterm, this card should fare much better in regards to value than many of the other cards on this list due to it being a Cynthia’s Trainer Pokemon card combined with it being just a really aesthetically pleasing card.

Additionally, I appreciate the difference in mood from the Garchomp ex SIR also featuring Cynthia. Here, she’s much more serene, showing her dynamism as a character.

It may be at the very bottom of this list, but look for this card to appreciate well overtime.

Destined Rivals has been met with huge demand similar to what we saw for Prismatic Evolutions as excitement for the nostalgic appeal of Team Rocket and other iconic trainers included in the set sends fans and opportunists alike into a frenzy as they try to bag hard-to-find products and even harder to find chase cards. It’s clear this set is destined to be an absolutely massive set for players and collectors, and an excellent way to help send the Scarlet and Violet era off with a bang.

The 25 Most Expensive Destined Rivals Pokemon Cards