Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Set List Leaks Early

⚠️ Heads up: This article is based on leaked or unofficial information. Details may change before any official announcement.

Scans of the Pokémon 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box set list have surfaced online, and if they’re legitimate, they give us our best look yet at the chase cards ahead of the set’s September 16 launch.

The images circulating appear to be photos of the set list booklet that ships inside the Elite Trainer Box. Someone seems to have gotten their hands on one early. A good portion of the list matches what has already been officially revealed, but The Pokémon Company has not published the set list itself, so treat the unconfirmed specifics as rumour for now.

Classic Reprints Anchor the Set

The headline for older collectors is the run of vintage reprints. The leaked list includes:

• Shining Celebi (originally Neo Destiny)
• Crystal Lugia (originally Aquapolis)
• Dark Tyranitar (originally Team Rocket Returns)
• Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND – Top (originally Triumphant)
• Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND – Bottom (originally Triumphant)

That LEGEND pairing is a proper deep cut. If those reprints land as shown, this set is leaning hard into anniversary nostalgia rather than just recycling recent hits.

The booklet pages show a mix of eras side by side. You’ve got Misty, Erika’s Jigglypuff, and a classic Charizard sitting near modern ex cards like Mewtwo ex and Mew ex. That blend is exactly what you’d want from a 30th anniversary product.

The Chase Cards: 10 SIRs and the Futuristic Rares

The part getting the most attention is the modern chase lineup. According to the leaks, there are 10 Special Illustration Rares in play, reportedly featuring Fuecoco, Greninja ex, Pikachu ex, Mewtwo ex, Mew ex, Sylveon ex, Gengar ex, Jirachi, and Salamence. Plenty of familiar names in that list: new Greninja ex and Sylveon ex cards were confirmed in the official set reveal, and both headline their own ex Boxes in the launch lineup.

The list also places Mewtwo ex and Mew ex in the set’s new Futuristic Rare tier. Those two cards are already official: The Pokémon Company unveiled Futuristic Rare as the set’s debut rarity at the start of June, with Mewtwo ex (157/128) and Mew ex (158/128) as the first two cards, both illustrated by Japanese artist YOSHIROTTEN and sitting at the very top of the set’s numbering. Japan has since announced a Futuristic Box with two Pikachu ex promos in the same rarity style. Debut rarities tend to draw heavy first-print demand, so both are worth watching as the top pulls in the set.

The Illustration Rare tier is stacked too. The legendary birds all show up here, with Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno getting IR treatment. There’s also a set of connecting Meowth cards, with Alolan Meowth, Galarian Meowth, and regular Meowth designed to link together as Illustration Rares. Connecting art like that tends to get chased hard as a full trio.

How Much to Trust This

Enough of the leaked list lines up with official reveals that most of it looks plausible:

• The Futuristic Rare Mewtwo ex and Mew ex match the cards The Pokémon Company showed when the set was officially revealed in early June.
• The SIR list is built from Pokémon we already know are in the set. Greninja ex and Sylveon ex are officially confirmed as ex cards, and giving a set’s headline ex Pokémon SIR alt-arts is standard practice in modern sets. The anniversary line already has official Special Illustration Rares too, with Espeon ex and Umbreon ex SIRs coming as promos.
• The vintage cards fit the 30 classic reprints The Pokémon Company announced as one of the set’s three collecting angles, alongside the already-shown Base Set Charizard and Pikachu & Zekrom-GX reprints. As with those two, expect the reprints to be playable only in formats that allow the original printings, not Standard.

The specific reprint names beyond the officially shown ones are the part that still needs confirmation. The scans aren’t high quality, and in an era where AI can fake almost anything, keep expectations grounded on anything that hasn’t been shown officially.

That said, the pattern here fits everything we know about this anniversary set: vintage reprints for the older crowd, a heavy SIR count, connecting art, and a debut rarity to give people a reason to open packs. September 16 isn’t far off, so official reveals should start filling in the gaps soon.

If you’re planning purchases, our complete 30th Celebration buying guide covers every announced product with MSRPs and the full wave schedule. And if you’d rather target specific pulls, keep an eye on upcoming Pokémon TCG singles so you can grab the chase cards you want without gambling on packs.