The Scarlet and Violet era Japanese Pokemon cards run to twenty-five expansion codes over two and a half years, with one rarity system replacing the last one halfway through. Each Japanese Scarlet & Violet booster box fits somewhere in that span.
The Scarlet & Violet era began in Japan with Scarlet ex and Violet ex, and ran through eleven main-numbered expansions before Black Bolt and White Flare closed it out. In between, the game introduced Pokemon ex, Tera ex, and a whole new top-end rarity tier — then quietly retired the rainbow-foil era that came before it.
The Scarlet & Violet era ran from SV1S/SV1V (January 20, 2023) through SV11B/SV11W Black Bolt/White Flare (June 6, 2025), which carries the era’s final main set number, SV11, closing out the line.
- Set reference: Japanese Pokemon card list.
Listing prices are in JPY. USD figures convert at ¥154/USD, approximate.
What Changed: Pokemon ex, Tera ex & the New Rarity Tiers
Scarlet & Violet didn’t just rename the chase mechanic — it rebuilt the pack around it. Three changes define the era from a collector’s perspective.
Pokemon ex replaced Pokemon-EX in name, but not in rule. The new ex cards give up two prize cards when knocked out, exactly like the original Pokemon-ex of the 2003–2007 EX Series. Bulbapedia notes that Pokemon ex “are considered to be the same as the Pokemon-ex from the EX Series” — the only real difference is how the rule box is presented on the card.
Tera ex cards turned the Terastal phenomenon into a card mechanic. These are a Pokemon ex subtype built around the games’ type-changing Terastal effect, and they behave similarly to older Ancient Trait cards. SV3 Ruler of the Black Flame introduced the first type-changing Tera ex cards, and by SV8 the mechanic had expanded into Stellar-type Tera ex as well.
Pack math changed too. Starting with SV1S/V, every Rare-rarity card in a booster pack became holofoil, and the guaranteed holo count per pack rose from two to three.
| Rarity | Abbrev. | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Double Rare | RR | Pokemon ex cards that can appear in place of a standard Rare slot |
| Ultra Rare | — | Full-art Pokemon ex or Supporter cards |
| Illustration Rare | AR | Full-art Pokemon (non-ex) illustrations |
| Special Illustration Rare | SAR | Full-art Pokemon ex and Supporter illustrations |
| Hyper Rare | UR | Any card type except Supporters, in a gold-foil treatment |
| Shiny Rare / Shiny Ultra Rare | — | Shiny Pokemon printed in the reverse-holo or UR-equivalent slot |
Two new tiers — AR and SAR — arrived with the era, while the old SM/SwSh-era Rainbow Rare and its associated HR label were phased out. One naming wrinkle worth flagging: the “UR” abbreviation is tied to Hyper Rare in Bulbapedia’s rarity reference, but Japanese-market shop listings commonly use “UR” to mean a full gold-metallic Ultra Rare finish. Both usages show up in the wild, so treat “UR” as context-dependent rather than a single fixed label. For the full breakdown of every SV-era rarity tier with visual examples, see our Japanese Pokemon card rarities guide, and for the alt-art chase tier specifically, our AR/SAR alt-art guide.
The Scarlet and Violet Era Japanese Pokemon Cards Timeline, Set by Set
Twenty main and sub-expansions released in Japan across roughly two and a half years.
Looking for the fuller story on Pokemon 151 specifically? Our SV2A Pokemon Card 151 pull-rate guide covers that set on its own.
SV3 Ruler of the Black Flame: The Charizard ex Set
SV3 Ruler of the Black Flame released in Japan on July 28, 2023, with 141 cards in the Japanese print run (the English Obsidian Flames counterpart runs to a different total of 230). It’s the set that introduced type-changing Tera ex cards to the game, built around a Charizard ex that turned the set into one of the era’s most recognized early chases.
Set-wide, SV3 carries 15 Pokemon ex, 6 Tera Pokemon ex, 12 AR, 6 SAR, 12 full-art SR, and 3 gold-etched UR slots — a dense chase list.
SV4a Shiny Treasure ex: The Era’s First Mega-Set
SV4a Shiny Treasure ex released December 1, 2023, with 360 cards — the largest Japanese Pokemon TCG booster expansion at the time, though the 2021 Start Deck 100 deck product had already topped it overall with 414 cards. It’s a Shiny Pokemon-focused set, built entirely around shiny-colored reprints and new shiny chases rather than a single flagship Pokemon ex.
SV8 & SV8a: Stellar Types and the Master Ball Holo
SV8 Super Electric Breaker (October 18, 2024, 138 cards including secrets) is where the Tera ex mechanic expanded into Stellar-type territory, headlined by a Terastal Pikachu ex and built around a Blueberry Academy theme.
Two months later, SV8a Terastal Fest ex (December 6, 2024, 237 cards) turned Eevee and its evolutions into Tera ex cards and re-printed a large chunk of 2023–2024’s key cards alongside them. It also introduced a new mirror-holo treatment styled after a Master Ball pattern. For the full pull-rate breakdown on this set, see our SV8a Terastal Fest ex guide.
SV9 & SV9a: Trainer’s Pokemon Return
SV9 Battle Partners (January 24, 2025, 132 cards) brought back the “Trainer’s Pokemon” concept — cards pairing a named trainer with a specific Pokemon, this time built around duos like N & Zoroark, Lillie & Clefairy, Hop & Zacian, and Iono & Bellibolt.
SV9a Heat Wave Arena followed with 92 cards centered on four trainers — Ethan, Cynthia, Arven, and Misty — and it lined up with an official Sealed Battle event that ran from March 14 through May 31, 2025.
SV10 & SV11B/W: Team Rocket and the Final Chapter
SV10 Glory of the Rocket Gang (April 18, 2025, 132 cards including secrets) introduced “Team Rocket’s Pokemon” — a mechanic that mirrors the earlier Trainer’s Pokemon pairing but ties Pokemon to the Rocket Gang instead of a named trainer. Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex, Crobat ex, Nidoking ex, and Persian ex are the chase cards collectors are drawn to. For the full pull-rate breakdown, see our SV10 Glory of the Rocket Gang guide.
Then SV11B Black Bolt and SV11W White Flare closed out the era, carrying the era’s final main set number, SV11. The two sets take a Generation 5 (Unova) theme — Black Bolt built around Zekrom, White Flare around Reshiram, which is the reverse pairing from the original English Black/White games. The sets also introduced a new top rarity, BWR (BW Rare), reserved specifically for the Zekrom ex and Reshiram ex chase cards. Limitless TCG’s numbering for Black Bolt runs at least as high as card #174.
The four Black Bolt/White Flare box variants are SV11B Black Bolt Sealed ¥26,602 (~$173), SV11B Black Bolt DX Sealed ¥28,186 (~$183), SV11W White Flare Sealed ¥23,752 (~$154), and SV11W White Flare DX Sealed ¥25,441 (~$165).
SV6 Transformation Mask also has a separate No Shrink listing at ¥11,612 (~$75); No Shrink and standard boxes are listed separately by name.
Where to Buy Scarlet & Violet Era Boxes from Japan
Whether you’re chasing a specific era mechanic or just want to start a Scarlet & Violet collection, sealed Japanese boxes map directly to those mechanics. If the Tera ex mechanic is the draw, SV3 Ruler of the Black Flame is where the type-changing Tera ex cards were introduced; SV9 Battle Partners Sealed ¥11,687 (~$76) brought back the Trainer’s Pokemon concept.
Boxes ship from Tokyo with tracked delivery. Browse the full lineup in our Scarlet & Violet booster box collection. Requests for a specific product go through Quick Order.
If you’re mapping out the eras before this one, our Sword & Shield era guide covers the expansion line that came right before SV1S/V.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between Pokemon ex and the older Pokemon-EX?
Functionally, none — both give up two prize cards when knocked out, and Bulbapedia treats them as the same mechanic. The difference is presentation: Pokemon ex cards don’t carry the same rule-box label the EX Series cards used.
What is a Tera ex card?
A Pokemon ex built around the Terastal phenomenon from the Scarlet & Violet video games, first introduced with type-changing versions in SV3 Ruler of the Black Flame and later expanded into Stellar-type Tera ex starting with SV8.
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