No printed number. No rarity symbol. No set logo you can look up on a checklist. And still, this Lucario promo is one of the more quietly interesting cards to come out of the Pokemon TCG’s Japanese movie-era promos — because it was never meant to be pulled from a pack in the first place.
Collectors know it informally as the “Hero of Waves Lucario.” Bulbapedia’s catalogued English name is Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario — a direct translation of its Japanese name, 波導の勇者ルカリオ (Hadō no Yūsha Lucario). It was handed out as part of a Japan-only album product tied to the movie that made Lucario a household name in the franchise, and it carries the 10th Movie Commemoration Set’s “Premium Seat” branding rather than a standard set code.
This guide covers what the card actually is, where it came from, why it isn’t a tournament-legal Pokemon card, and where it sits if you’re already collecting Lucario prints.
The Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario is a Japan-exclusive promo from the 10th Movie Commemoration Set (2007), tied to the 8th Pokemon movie, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. It has no printed card number or rarity symbol and is explicitly unreleased for competitive play — it’s a collectible, not a deck piece. Our own graded copy, PSA10 Hero of Waves Lucario [10th] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), is currently listed at ¥61,692 (~$388 at ¥159/USD).
Prices shown are current Samurai Sword Tokyo listings as of September 2026, converted at ¥159/USD. No competitor or auction price data is included here.
Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario: Card Profile
The card is a Basic Fighting-type Lucario, 80 HP, with a Weakness to Psychic-type attacks (+20). Its two attacks are straightforward for the era:
- Aura Sphere (はどうだん) — 20 damage to the Defending Pokemon, plus 10 damage to one of the opponent’s Benched Pokemon.
- Close Combat (インファイト) — 60 damage, with a self-damage drawback typical of the attack’s other printings.
Illustration is credited to Kagemaru Himeno. Unlike most Japanese promos from surrounding sets, this card was never assigned a printed card number, level indicator, or rarity symbol — a detail that immediately marks it as coming from an album/commemoration product rather than a numbered booster set or standard promo line.
Our own graded copy, PSA10 Hero of Waves Lucario [10th] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), is a PSA 10 example of this exact promo, currently listed at ¥61,692 (~$388).
“Hero of Waves Lucario” is the informal English name most commonly used by collectors and listings. The official catalogued name is Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario, translated directly from the Japanese 波導の勇者ルカリオ.
The 8th Movie Connection: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew
The card’s design directly references Lucario’s role as the title Pokemon of the franchise’s 8th movie, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew (Japanese: ミュウと波導の勇者 ルカリオ, “Mew and the Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario”). That film introduced Lucario’s Aura-sensing ability to a mainstream audience and remains one of the more fondly remembered entries from that stretch of the anime movie run.
The card isn’t a movie tie-in reprint of an existing set card — it’s a purpose-made illustration built around that film’s version of Lucario, which is part of why it circulates outside the normal set-and-number system collectors use for everything else from this era.
Inside the 10th Movie Commemoration Set
This Lucario card belongs to the 10th Movie Commemoration Set, a Japan-exclusive, unlimited-edition product built around the franchise’s 10th anniversary (the anime debuted in 1997). It shipped as an 11-card album, with a 12th card — this Lucario, tied to the “Movie 10th Anniversary Premium Seat” promotion — given out separately to cinema patrons.
The set reused artwork themes from past movie-legendary Pokemon across three release phases:
| Date | Phase |
|---|---|
| January 14, 2007 | World Hobby Fair prerelease |
| July 14, 2007 | Theatrical release distribution |
| August 3, 2007 | Commercial release |
The set’s companion cards each pair a legendary or mythical Pokemon with its own movie appearance: Explosive Birth Lugia (referencing the second movie), Striking Back Mewtwo (referencing the first), Tree of Beginning’s Mew, Crystal Tower’s Entei, Prince of the Sea Manaphy, Timeless Celebi, and Visitor Deoxys — eight cards in total across the set, each drawing its name and artwork from a specific movie appearance. None of these companion cards are currently listed on our site, so we aren’t including photos of them here.
Collectible Promo, Not a Tournament Card
Bulbapedia’s own reference marks this card as “TCG Unreleased” — meaning it was never made legal for Standard or Expanded tournament play. That’s worth stating plainly before anyone buys one expecting a deck piece: this is a display and collection card, not a competitive one, in line with several other movie-anniversary promos from the same period.
That framing doesn’t diminish what the card is. Album-exclusive movie promos with no printed number sit in their own collecting lane — closer to a commemorative item than a set chase — and demand for them tends to come from Lucario collectors and movie-era promo collectors specifically, rather than from players building a competitive binder.
Where This Card Fits in a Lucario Collection
Lucario has one of the deeper promo and chase-card histories in the Japanese TCG, spanning everything from early-2000s movie promos like this one through to the modern MEGA era. If you’re building out a Lucario collection, this 2007 promo sits at the older end of that timeline — a fundamentally different collecting category from the newer Mega Lucario ex chase cards.
These are different cards from the 2007 movie promo above — shown here only to illustrate how far the Lucario print line has moved since then, not as alternates for the album-exclusive promo itself.
For the modern side of that lineup, our Mega Lucario Cards Value Guide prices every current printing, and our broader Mega Lucario ex & Lucario Cards: Japan Price Guide covers the character across eras. If you’re specifically comparing Japanese movie- and campaign-era promos more generally, our M-P Promo Cards Guide and PSA 10 Japanese Pokemon Promo Cards Guide are useful starting points.
One naming note worth flagging: Lucario’s “Aura” ability is also referenced in the much newer “Hadou Seeker” (Aura Seeker) card line, which is a separate and considerably more recent release. Our Aura Seeker (Hadou Seeker) Complete Guide covers that card specifically — don’t confuse the two just because both reference Lucario’s Aura/Hadou naming.
Where to Buy the Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario Promo
We source and grade Japanese cards out of Tokyo, and a PSA 10 copy of this exact promo is currently listed on our site.
If this specific listing shows as sold out when you check, it’s still worth a look — sourcing requests for graded Japanese movie promos like this one can be placed through our Quick Order page, and it’s also the fastest route if you want to combine it with other Lucario cards or Japanese promos in one order.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario card?
It’s a Japan-exclusive Basic Fighting-type Lucario promo card, informally known as “Hero of Waves Lucario,” released as part of the 10th Movie Commemoration Set in 2007. It has 80 HP, the attacks Aura Sphere and Close Combat, and carries no printed card number or rarity symbol.
Is the Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario tournament legal?
No. It’s catalogued as “TCG Unreleased,” meaning it was never made legal for Standard or Expanded competitive play. It’s a collectible/commemorative promo rather than a playable card.
What movie is this Lucario card from?
It references Lucario’s role as the title Pokemon of the franchise’s 8th movie, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew, released in Japan in 2007.
What other cards were released in the 10th Movie Commemoration Set?
Seven companion cards, each tied to a different movie-legendary or mythical Pokemon: Explosive Birth Lugia, Striking Back Mewtwo, Tree of Beginning’s Mew, Crystal Tower’s Entei, Prince of the Sea Manaphy, Timeless Celebi, and Visitor Deoxys — eight cards in total including this Lucario.
How much is a PSA 10 Wave-Guiding Hero Lucario worth?
Our own graded copy, PSA10 Hero of Waves Lucario [10th] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), is currently listed at ¥61,692 (about $388 at ¥159/USD, September 2026). No independent auction or competitor pricing data has been collected for this specific promo.
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