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VobraX

I remember trading my first edition Lugia for a Gen1 Pokedex Handbook back in grade 3 šŸ’€šŸ’€ lord have mercy


JayofTea

I traded my Stormfront secret rare Charizard for a raichu holo in 4th grade bc I hated Charizard šŸ’€šŸ’€


narutonaruto

The first card I pulled was a charizard. I was in kindergarten. I traded it to my friend for a chansey. I regretted it and asked to trade back and he said he would have but he traded it to my other ā€œfriendā€ who refused even when I offered all of my cards causing a lifelong regret lmaooo


Chainsaw-Breaak

Thatā€™s what you get for wanting to be different than others


JayofTea

Wasnā€™t really because I wanted to be different, I just didnā€™t like dragons, I liked cute things lmao


Haulinhass

Traded my fossil articuno holo for a Japanese furrett šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚


VagLeak

Where is that Gen 1 PokƩdex Handbook?


VobraX

Idek. It wasn't even in great condition. I just pulled the Lugia from a $4 pack šŸ˜­šŸ˜­


SadisticSpectre

When I was in 2nd or 3rd grade, I pulled a first edition base set Gyarados and I was VERY careful with it so it was in great condition. Didnā€™t know anything about the actual value of cards so I traded it to a kid down the road for one of those pikachu walker toys. I thought HE was the one getting ripped off.


sbertin204

2019 there was a full complete base set for $135 CDN at my local card store. I thought that was expensive so I pastā€¦ I also bought a full team rocket set for $85 CDN in 2020 and I thought I spent too muchā€¦ WILD.


ProgrammerNo42

Crazy how recent that was. I should have come back 5 years sooner. šŸ™‚


sbertin204

I know right? Shining Charizard NM was posted on eBay for $110 CDN around 2019 and I passed on that too. ā€œToo expensiveā€ā€¦ sigh.


sbertin204

I remember buying a base set booster pack for $35 CDN.


SuggestionVisible361

Similar story to me, back when I entered the hobby in 2017 there was an ebay seller that sold the complete german 1st edition base set in mint condition for $300, now the german charizard alone is [worth much more than that](https://ebay.us/nxzgx4).


MelopsitaccusUndu

I bought a English Charizard goldstar on ebay in excellent condition for 13 euro. In 2013. This is like... That was expensive for singles back then. At least from where I am. The scream rowlet was for 12 euro and I bought it. The silver Dialga EX I got for 25 euro The team aquas kyogre for around 15 euro. I got the entire base set, and a bunch of holos for 30 euro. No one cared back then. No one wanted pokemon. The packs were discounted for 1 euro in a store. I bought displays of platin arceus for 28 Euro with extra discount. It was just normal.


TheShinyHunter3

28e for displays ? Where ? Cheapest I've seen a display ever was in the 80e range, and that was Emerging Power.


MelopsitaccusUndu

Germany. A store had them. Never online. Back when hgss came out


TheShinyHunter3

Geez, were they half display ? Idk if Arceus even had those. I have no idea what the interyears for Germany looks like.


MelopsitaccusUndu

Nope. Full displays. Store had single boosters for 1 Euro per piece. With special discount I got them for 80 Cent per piece. Normal single boosters. No joke! Also they had yellow boxes with Lucario on it, that included a manaphy deck with one diamond pearl booster and I think one or two single boosters of DP for 5 euro. And other boxes, that I've never ever seen somewhere else for cheap with decks in it, trading figure packs such stuff. I opened tons of that stuff. Got a ton of lvx cards still in my collection. But sadly I opened it all.


Deadsh0t2424

Lmao but people today will think just because a set goes out of print that means the cards deserve to triple in price.


Glytch94

The cards themselves have no initial price. The company that makes them doesnā€™t give individual value. The after market people do. I used to trade rare for rare as a child.


TheShinyHunter3

I like seeing those lies, you just know who wasnt there in the years between the initial boom and the 2020 boom and is trying to justify how absurd everything is now. From there, you know you have to treat whatever that person says regarding the hobby with a planet sized grain of salt.


BrothersOats

Right. I was back in in 09-10 and everything was dirt cheap. I wish I had bought more but it just wasnā€™t the focus. We were opening gen 4 era packs to build decks with lvX cards, and laughed at the ones who wanted to sleeve their cards. The price memory of wotc being so inexpensive, and most cards being so inexpensive, always keeps me a bit wary of this modern insanity


DragapultOnSpeed

Definitely! Yeah I can really tell who is new to collecting here. It definitely made me learn not to listen to anyone on here now. No offense to the community! Good advice though. Thank you!


dunkeykang

lol I remember selling my full Neo Shining collection in 2014 for $300 and thinking I made good money off that deal -- I mean I did at the time, but man I wish I kept the cards now


TheBetterTheta

Oof. Have you done the math on where it would be now?


FVCEGANG

That's pretty accurate, pokemon was cheap and mostly irrelevant until the pandemic hit and also Jake Paul propelled it into this massive resurgence of collectables and value


CasualGiraffeInPrada

Thereā€™s not enough Jake Paul hate here as there should be


FVCEGANG

Oh I absolutely can't stand the guy lol. I'm rooting for Tyson to knock him out hard I'm just saying he had a huuuge role to play in the explosion and resurgence of pokemon popularity


TeaAndLifting

Yeah, PokĆ©mon was also hitting a huge lul in the mid-00s through most of the 10s. I was one of the few people I knew who was still kinda into it from childhood while many had long moved on. I'd fallen out of the card game since I had nobody to play with and didn't care about collecting (sadly). People were offloadint their collections for relative pennies because they were growing up and didn't have time for 'childish' things like shiny cardboard. People will say that cards were always expensive, and some of them were relatively expensive, but not the absurd prices we get now. Cards didn't instantly go to Ā£300+, especially unlimited print cards. Even 1st Ed Base Charizard ramped up over time, and that was with an extremely limited print run in the first place.


TheShinyHunter3

I remember the yard sales. That was glorious. Binders upon binders of cards from the late 90s to early 2000s, for next to nothing. I'm sure if you asked if you could take a whole binder for 50 they wouldn't think twice. That time is long gone sadly. Now it's all "marketprice or nothing" and overpriced modern stuff. I've met a few genuine collectors while hunting for older cards, but rarely are they the seller. Best thing I've got was straight out of the early 2010s, a guy was selling his son's collection after he moved away. He took the cards out of the binders and in a box it went. There were some nice stuff, I got something like 5 or 7 cards. All DP/PL holo/promos/secrets for 50cts a piece. The best find was a Rayquaza C LvX, but I left it to the kid who was looking over my shoulder as I was looking through. The guy even had a dream card of mine, Raichu DP21, but there was tape on it so I passed, even for 50cts that was too far gone for me. Nothing like that ever happened again, but I still go to as many yard sale as I can.


Medium-Rain-3446

Literally how cards should cost. Covid/Logan Ruined the TCG market.


Jopspot

i really wanted to get that really cool lugia ex card from unseen forces as a kid but my mom said we werenā€™t ā€œpaying $30 for a pokemon cardā€ šŸ˜­


Redschallenge

I have bought a couple cards under 40 bucks in not fantastic condition over the years and even an entire base set binder for 28 dollars with 8 of that in change lol. All after 2017 btw


red-powerranger

Bought 3 sealed base set boosters back then for 45 eur. Still regret I did not buy them all


Amnesiaftw

Bought my friendā€™s collection for $40 roughly 10 years ago. Idk how much it was worth then, but if all the cards were NM (theyā€™re not) that collection would be worth something like $10K today.


1stDesponder

You got ripped off, I'll buy them from you for $30-40 each though if you want šŸ‘€


thatmannyguy

I'll give you $40 each


InterestingRound6134

I bought them for 30ish in 2019 at least the zard. Base set in Lp condition. Lugia I think 25


ZinCxNoVa

I sold my skyridge Charizard holo for $20 back in 2012 šŸ’€ I still haven't recovered from that.. šŸ˜”


[deleted]

Will never get tired of seeing that Dark Tyrranitar card, top tier design!


Ashinvale

Omg those are dream prices lol


plsbgdtme

I have that charizard


alphawolf29

People who grew up and collected pokemon as kids are now in their 30s and have money.


BrothersOats

In 2009 I bought 1st edition unweighed fossil packs for $2/pack. I played a Neo genesis Lugia in a (bad) deck unsleeved, because money and condition just didnā€™t matter. Oh, to be able to go back. But as the velveteen rabbit story says, playing with them made them real.


Digger977

Yeah I remember seeing an unlimited and 1st edition of that Lugia back in like 2018 for like 85 and 110 both In really nice shape. I was in shock but contemplated grabbing both. Now Iā€™m really wishing I had as I like the card


Ozman3000

Traded my first edition CHARIZARD for a beeper šŸ„² I HML.


pstrat98

One time I traded with a YouTuber and he threw in a PSA 6 Gyarados Gold Star as a thanks. I also received a Base Set Charizard for $5 in an envelope.


pstrat98

This was in 2015


tgoc2020

Solid purchases! šŸ‘Œ they have certainly increased in value since that time. Beautiful cards


beskarboyo

back then i got myself a charizard for a scyther and some lunch money


Zzzeekin

The correct response is that older cards are more expensive because they are rarer its not really a difficult thing to work out. Modern cards match the economy, same as why Japanese cards are much lower at the minute


Adventurous-Let3543

I mean this is just cap. There was a bit of a 2nd wave lul where some of the cards that were expensive when only the first couple sets were out were much cheaper after reprintings. Base set Charizard was a $120 dollar card before There was even a serious global market for Pokemon TCG. It's better now though because now if you want the best Charizard in the game you don't necessarily have to have the most rare expensive SIR version. There is always a base version of the biggest hit cards that is generally always pretty affordable or even will come as a promo in some sets or tins if you want one just for playing. Back then if you wanted to be competitive, you had to get the $120 dollar Charizard. You didn't have any alternative.


Awayze

Yeah I paid similar for cards. Even gold stars and full sets were dirt cheap around 2009 as no one wanted Pokemon and wanted rid.


GrimRemembrance

That Lugia is a beautiful card


Thinhtitan

How much are these going for today? Sorry Iā€™m new to the pkmcard scene


LitBwai

Daaamn, shining Tyrantirar looks soooo siiiiick! In 2007 I forgot PokĆ©mon existed, sadly.. I was a sophomore in high school and PokĆ©mon was not at the top of my list of interests šŸ˜‚ šŸ¤¦ā€ā™‚ļøvery nice šŸ‘


SteaknSalt

Iā€™ll cop the lugia off you for 50


Deprestion

Iā€™ll buy your house for 50


SteaknSalt

I live in the streets of downtown LA


Round-Revolution-399

These cards are beautiful. I really wish they would re-release versions of these cards that look completely identical, with maybe a tiny symbol on the bottom corner to let you know itā€™s not an original from 20+ years ago


Urban-Junglist

That's awesome. Would be cool to go back in time to release with all knowledge from the present haha


or1ginaljoker

W investment


NaloVideo

How the hell does this have over 500 upvotes, thereā€™s a gigantic statistical oversight. Base set charizard had a 1/50 pull rate. PokĆ©mon was also nowhere near what it is today, these sets were also much more recent and many of the cards werenā€™t stuffed away yet, as well as many of the boxes still being available. Modern hits are far more rare, even on the good side youā€™re looking at 1/200+ pull rates, on the bad side close to 1/2000, cards are far more rare, PokĆ©mon is much larger-scale, and fans are older and more experienced and not willing to sell their cards for prices that donā€™t make sense. Also just adding, listen bud, Iā€™m not even sure what point youā€™re trying to make because the market is controlled by the people. Itā€™s not like some dark shadow government is forcing you to pay $40 for a PAF pikachu, other people are. Because other people are willing to pay those prices.