Pokémon 30th is Getting a Salamence ex Chase Card – Plus Moltres, Morpeko and Maushold
It’s been a relatively slow week for Pokémon TCG: 30th Celebration card reveals. While Sunday saw a huge news drop for the future of the Pokémon TCG, since then it’s been crickets. People over at Pokémon are probably just recovering from their massive and successful event that drew 54,000 fans to San Francisco for Pokémon Worlds (myself included).
Well, the embargo must be lifted because in the late hours of the night (or early hours of the morning depending on where you are located), several massive 30th Celebration hits were revealed for the first time.
Salamence ex Special Illustration Rare is a 30th Celebration top chase
First up we have the biggest reveal from late tonight: Salamence ex Special Illustration Rare. Salamence ex is a card that frequently prints cash for those lucky enough to pull it – especially when it gets an SIR print. I’m not talking BIG money, but the Salamence ex released in Journey Together was instantly one of the top chase cards from that set.
Salamence ex - 187/159
SV09: Journey Together • Special Illustration Rare
Market Value
Loading...
While that Salamence ex SIR contains an ethereal quality, this Salamence ex will likely be worth more. Other than being from a more popular set, the artwork here has a ton of character.
Instead of being depicted over a more generic, mountainous landscape, Salamence is right in the middle of the party. It’s seen floating over a city with an unmistakable European design. The balloons all around are likely part of the party: everyone’s celebrating Pokémon’s 30th anniversary.
Will Salamence ex SIR be the most expensive 30th Celebration card? Not likely. However, it will still be a top chase card from the set, even if its value ends up humble relative to the massive chase cards available in this set.
Moltres Illustration Rare
While less overtly celebratory in nature than the Salamence ex SIR revealed at the same time, you can’t ignore the literal sparkle this card possesses.
We’ve seen several different versions of this card now as both the main set card and a promo which you can get in the poster collection have already been revealed. None of those hold a candle to this serene artwork by mushu that depicts Moltres caught in a fiery dance mid-flight – its wings and fire blending together into the swirls of light and color in the background.
Don’t underestimate Morpeko
Salamence ex is an SIR, and Moltres is one of the original legendary Pokémon. You can see why both of those cards are ones to watch. However, don’t underestimate Morpeko. Morpeko does quite well on the secondary market when things are right.
It’s a relatively popular misfit Pokémon. This is evidenced by its relatively high price tag when released in alternate arts. We saw this with Pitch Blackwhere it consistently ranks amongst the set’s top chase cards. And we saw it way back in Paradox Rift where a simple Morpeko IR proved it can be a desirable hit due to its cuteness and resemblance to Pokémon’s most popular mouse.
All of this to say that there may be an incredible range of desirable chase cards in 30th Celebration – but one should never count out Morpeko!
Maushold Illustration Rare
Last we have the Maushold Illustration Rare. This card is cute and fun rather than a must-have. Yet there might be enough fans of this kind of artwork and/or Pokémon to get excited at pulling it from their packs.
The slight grace period for spoilers following Pokémon Worlds 2026 seems to be over. Expect many more spoilers to be revealed as we close in on Pokémon TCG: 30th Celebration’s big release day! Until then, check out my complete 30th Celebration card list for the latest updates as they are revealed.
