Hello everyone! This is Elena from Gaia Storm TCG and welcome to another article here at CCG Castle. As you probably know now (the Internet is filled with shiny Charizard pictures), Champions Path has been officially released and it had been a while since a set created so much hype among the fans as Champions Path has. To provide a bit of more context, Champions Path is the newest Pokémon TCG mini-set. Not being part of one of the core expansions that are released through the year cycle (E.g. Sword & Shield, Rebel Clash, Darkness Ablaze…), this means that packs are more difficult to get. The November mini-sets are always coveted but everyone seems to be now in a buying frenzy. What are the best cards in the set and why is everyone losing their minds about getting packs?

The first and most obvious reason is because the monetary value that certain Champions Path items have. Combine the exclusivity of the set with hyper rare versions of popular Pokemon (which is almost always the same first-gen starter) and… there you have it, a new card worth several hundreds of dollars! And precisely Champions Path features not just one amazing Charizard card but two: a shiny version of Charizard V and a Hyper rare card of the Charizard VMAX that was released in Darkenss Ablaze. Pulling one of them is basically like winning the lottery so no wonder why packs are disappearing very quickly from the stores.

Next reason is because there are very interesting cards that have the potential to be part of the metagame in the future and not getting them now could result in needing to pay much more in the mid-term. For instance, Gardevoir VMAX is a very interesting Psychic Pokémon that heals HP every time it attacks. Combined with the new item card Suspicious Food Tin, it can remain in the field for a lot of turns. Drednaw VMAX has a similar strength thanks to its ability to take -30 damage in every hit and even if it is not one of the strongest VMAX in the format, its ability can force your opponent into difficult situations.

Speaking of sturdiness, probably one of the best cards in the entire set is Wailord V. This massive water Pokémon has 280 HP (yes, you read that right) and if you attach a Roughness Cape to it, it suddenly becomes an absolute monster, only surpassed by some VMAX Pokémon like Eternatus. And not only that, Wailord has some very good partners that can help it succeed in the metagame despite its massive attacking costs. Frosmoth from Sword and Shield powers Wailord up and Glimwood Tangle allows the player to repeat the attack. Not bad at all!

And of course, there are a lot of other exclusive V and VMAX Pokémon that are worth keeping an eye on. Lucario V hits Eternatus hard, Galarian Cursola can be a pain for decks that abuse energy attachmets and Incineroar V might be a nice alternative to Victini V in certain decks.

All in all, Champions Path hype is more than justified, both for collectors and competitive players. I strongly recommend getting your cards soon and, in case you are going to open some packs, may the Charizards be with you! Thanks for reading.