Upcoming Sets: Next Destinies

I'm going to be trying something a little bit different with this post, and have a look at an upcoming set of Pokémon cards - this time, the soon-to-be-released Next Destinies.

Next Destinies will be released on February 8th, and the release of this set will have huge effects on how the competitive Pokémon TCG is played. This is largely due to the release of the Pokémon-EX, which are incredibly powerful basic Pokémon that far outstrip the HP and damage output of any other cards in the format. The downside of a Pokémon-EX is that if it is knocked out, your opponent draws two prize cards rather than one, so these Pokémon might be a risky proposition. In particular,  Mewtwo-EX is currently dominating the competitive scene in Japan, and we can expect to see similar effects here post-release. But we also have Regigigas-EX, Kyurem-EX, Zekrom-EX, and Reshiram-EX confirmed for the set and they will certainly make their mark.

Next Destinies actually includes cards from two different Japanese sets, called Hail Blizzard and Psycho Drive. Because we don't have the full details of Next Destinies confirmed, we can't know precisely what cards will be included, but it looks like we may be getting all of them, including some cards such as Skyarrow Bridge and Prism Energy that will further increase the power and playability of Basic Pokémon, and by extension Pokémon-EX.

The good news is that I'm meeting with Gordon from Cumbernauld Pokémon League tomorrow about him organizing a prerelease event and tournament for Edinburgh Pokémon League before the 8th next month, so that will be an excellent opportunity to grab some of the newest cards at a very reasonable price, trade with other players, and potentially win some additional cards in a tournament. I'll give details and dates as soon as I have them!

So, if you have any questions or comments regarding Next Destinies or any other upcoming sets or cards, I will do my best to answer them in the comments here!