Pokemon Set Tier List: Scarlet & Violet Ranked

Most Pokemon set tier lists fixate on one thing: how much the top chase card sells for. That approach misses the point for anyone actually opening packs. A set with a $500 chase and nothing else worth pulling is a worse experience than a set with five $80 cards spread across the rarity curve. The best Scarlet & Violet sets for Australian collectors balance three things: the strength of the top chase, the depth of hits across the full set list, and sealed-product availability at local prices. Paldean Fates and Twilight Masquerade lead because they score on all three axes. Base Scarlet & Violet and Obsidian Flames lag despite having recognizable names.

The Scarlet & Violet Era at a Glance

The Scarlet & Violet series began with the base set in March 2023 and has grown to 16 main-series sets through White Flare in July 2025, plus the Mega Evolution series that followed. That pace is relentless. The S&V era arrived on the heels of Sword & Shield, which had built a massive collector base around alternate art cards and the Trainer Gallery. Expectations were high, and the new era had to deliver something different.

It did. The S&V era introduced Illustration Rares and Special Illustration Rares as the primary chase-card rarity, replacing Sword & Shield's alternate arts. These full-art cards feature artwork extending across the entire card face, and the best SIRs have become the defining collectibles of the modern era. Every set now has a handful of SIRs collectors chase, and the gap between a set with strong SIRs and one with weak ones is the difference between a box worth opening and one you should skip.

How We Ranked Them

This ranking draws on two established evaluation frameworks. The Ludex ranking evaluates sets based on pack-ripping value and how compelling the cards are, using each expansion's Elite Trainer Box market value as a reference. The MegaCards ranking evaluates sets on collectability and investment potential, with tier ratings from C to S.

We weight four factors for each set:

Chase card strength. What does the top hit sell for, and how many cards in the set can return the cost of an ETB or booster box?
Depth of hits. A set with one great card and nothing else is a trap. Sets that spread value across multiple IRs and SIRs rank higher.
Pull-rate satisfaction. Does opening packs feel rewarding, or is it a grind where hits are so rare the experience becomes punishing?
Sealed-product trajectory. What has happened to sealed ETB and booster box prices over time? This matters for anyone buying to hold.

Prices are in USD, the TCGplayer standard, and reflect the global market Australian collectors compete in.

S-Tier: The Best of the Best

Twilight Masquerade (May 2024, 226 cards)

Twilight Masquerade is the set that keeps rewarding collectors. The top chase card, Greninja ex SIR, is valued at $319.23. It sits at card #214, deep in the secret-rare numbering beyond the 167-card printed checklist. It gets pulled less often than anything in the regular set. The second-most-valuable card, Perrin SIR, comes in at $129.33, and the Eevee IR is third at $78.71. Four cards in this set can return the cost of an ETB.

The set is not just about the top end. It has 14 different Ogerpon cards including ex, Special Illustration Rares, and a Hyper Rare gold card. That depth, combined with the Greninja ex anchor, is why Ludex ranks Twilight Masquerade #1 overall for collectors. The ETB sits around $72, and the top chase is worth more than four times that. That ratio is rare in modern Pokemon.

CardTracker tracks live Twilight Masquerade booster box prices for Australian buyers.

Paldean Fates (January 2024, 245 cards)

Paldean Fates brought back shiny Pokemon as a core mechanic, and the set delivered. The community-named "Bubble Mew" (Mew ex SIR) is the set's most expensive card, and the Charizard ex SIR has risen to $275-$300 in recent sold listings. That Charizard was dismissed as disappointing for a long time. The market changed its mind.

The sealed product story is even more dramatic. The Paldean Fates Pokemon Center ETB rose from $70 to over $570 between May and October 2024. That kind of appreciation makes it one of the strongest sealed investments in the entire S&V era.

Paldean Fates ranks #2 overall by Ludex for collectors. The pull rates are excellent, and the set has three of the best chase cards in the S&V era: Mew ex, Gardevoir ex, and Charizard ex. MegaCards places it at #2, A tier, behind only Paldea Evolved among the sets they ranked. For anyone who wants to open packs and actually feel good about what they pull, Paldean Fates is the benchmark.

A-Tier: Strong Contenders

Scarlet & Violet 151 (September 2023, 207 cards)

151 is the set everyone has an opinion about. It reprints the original 151 Pokemon in modern artwork, and nostalgia drives demand to levels most sets cannot touch. Ludex ranks it #5, noting that high pack prices and flat art on some top cards hold it back. When the Charizard ex SIR, the main chase, has art that some collectors find underwhelming, that matters for a set trading at a premium.

MegaCards takes the opposite view, ranking 151 #3 in S tier, making it a top-tier set by their investment-focused criteria. Both perspectives are right in their own way. The Alakazam SIR, the Bulbasaur-Ivysaur-Venusaur SIR line, and the Dragonair SIR are genuinely beautiful cards. But the cost to rip is high, and if you pull the main chase from an ETB, you are still underwater on the box. For Australian collectors, 151 sealed product commands a premium that rarely makes sense for pack-opening value alone.

Surging Sparks (November 2024, 252 cards)

Surging Sparks changed the conversation. The top chase card, Pikachu ex SIR (238/191), is the most valuable card in the set. Ludex ranks it #4 and describes it as having settled the rivalry between Paldean Fates and Twilight Masquerade by proving that neither of them can pretend to be the best Pokemon set of 2024. That title now belongs to Surging Sparks.

The set is loaded. Beyond the Pikachu ex SIR, you have Latias ex SIR, Milotic ex SIR, Hydreigon ex SIR, and the connected-art pair of Latios and Latias. The depth of high-value cards means an ETB at roughly $99 has multiple paths to pay for itself. The Pikachu ex SIR alone sells for more than triple the ETB cost. For collectors who want a premium rip with real upside, Surging Sparks is the A-tier set that nearly cracks S.

Paldea Evolved (June 2023, 279 cards)

Paldea Evolved has the Magikarp SIR as its chase card and is ranked #2 (S tier) by MegaCards as the top main-set release of the S&V era. Ludex is more measured, ranking it #8 with an ETB price of $83.01 and a value score of 6.5/10. The difference between the two rankings tells you something about the set. MegaCards values the depth of the set list and the quality of the card designs. Ludex weighs the raw value proposition more heavily.

The cards have held their value. The Magikarp SIR remains a beautiful chase, and the supporting cast (Raichu, Tyranitar, Fuecoco, Heracross SIRs) gives the set broad appeal. Paldea Evolved is a mammoth set with over 200 cards and enormous variety. It rewards collectors who appreciate the full SIR roster rather than hunting a single grail.

B-Tier: Solid but Not Standout

Paradox Rift (November 2023, 266 cards)

Paradox Rift introduced the Ancient and Future mechanic with distinct visual treatments, and the set is packed with strong SIRs. Ludex ranks it #7 with a value score of 6.7/10 and an ETB price of $64.59. The Groudon IR is the main chase at around $81, which is not spectacular for a top card, but the depth of the set compensates. Garchomp ex SIR, Steelix IR, and the trainer SIRs (Parasol Lady, Professor Turo's Scenario, Mela, Tulip) give the set a broad hit list.

MegaCards ranks it #5, High B tier, praising the breadth of the set as much broader than earlier S&V releases. At $64.59 per ETB, Paradox Rift is one of the better value propositions in the era. The top chase is not a home run, but the number of cards worth pulling makes it a solid rip.

Temporal Forces (March 2024, 218 cards)

Temporal Forces is a value play. The ETB sits at $61.46, and Ludex ranks it #6 with a value score of 7/10. The Raging Bolt ex SIR is the chase at roughly $93, and the set has a lot of well-designed cards including the Gastly SIR, Lickitung SIR, and Morty's Conviction SIR. The lower entry cost and the wide variety of hits make it a set that does not punish you for opening it.

MegaCards placed Temporal Forces in A tier, noting that the new Paradox Pokemon (Raging Bolt, Walking Wake, Gouging Fire, Iron Crown) received some of the most exciting SIR artwork in the era. The set caters more to the new Pokemon than to nostalgia, which is either a strength or a weakness depending on what you collect.

Stellar Crown (September 2024, 175 cards)

Stellar Crown is a better value rip than its reputation suggests. Ludex ranks it #11 with an ETB price of $64.57 and a Squirtle SIR chase that is basically equal to the cost of the ETB. That means pulling the top card breaks even, which is better than most sets manage. The set has a lot of nice-looking cards including Terapagos, Bulbasaur, Zeraora, Milcery, and Gulpin SIRs.

The value score of 4.2/10 reflects that the chase card ceiling is low. But for a casual rip at a reasonable price, Stellar Crown delivers more than its ranking suggests. The Bulbasaur SIR and Squirtle SIR are starter Pokemon cards collectors will want long after the S&V era ends.

C-Tier: Skip or Buy Singles

Scarlet & Violet Base Set (March 2023, 258 cards)

The set that launched the era is also the weakest. Ludex ranks it dead last at #13, with an ETB price of $66.76 and a value score of 3/10. The best hit you can pull, the Gardevoir ex SIR, is worth less than the cost of the ETB. When the ceiling is below the entry price, opening packs is a losing proposition from the start.

The set's place in history matters more than its collectability. It introduced Illustration Rares and Special Illustration Rares as the new chase-card format. But the actual card designs are modest compared to what followed. The Greavard SIR and Riolu SIR are cool but not enough to carry a set. Buy the Gardevoir ex SIR as a single and move on.

Obsidian Flames (August 2023, 230 cards)

Obsidian Flames is the Charizard set, and that is both its appeal and its limitation. Ludex ranks it #12 with an ETB price of $90.51 and a value score of 3.4/10. The set contains 4 Charizards including a Full Art, Special Illustration Rare, and Hyper Rare Gold Card. If you collect Charizard, this is your set. If you do not, there is not much else.

The Pidgey, Pidgeotto, and Pidgeot ex SIR evolution line is a nice nostalgic touch, but the cards are not expensive. Obsidian Flames is the most Charizard-dependent set in the S&V era. The ETB price at $90.51 is high for what you get, and the value score of 3.4/10 reflects how flat the set is beyond the Charizards. Buy the Charizard ex SIR as a single rather than chasing it in packs.

Shrouded Fable (August 2024, 99 cards)

Shrouded Fable is the set collectors love to dismiss, but the numbers tell a different story. Ludex ranks it #9 with an ETB price of $54.81 and a value score of 5/10. The chase Persian SIR basically gets you your money back, and there are multiple other $50 cards including Houndoom SIR, Duskull SIR, Dusclops SIR, and Bewear SIR.

At $54.81 per ETB, Shrouded Fable is the cheapest entry point in the S&V era. The set has no Charizards, no Pikachus, and no Eeveelutions. What it has is a tight, focused card list where the hits are accessible and the value proposition actually works. For a value rip, Shrouded Fable outperforms sets with twice the card count and twice the price.

Special Sets: Prismatic Evolutions and the Rest

Prismatic Evolutions is the set that caused mayhem at retail. It has 180 cards and released on January 17, 2025. Ludex ranks it #10, calling it a very expensive set with tough pull rates. The ETB price sits at $130.11, the highest in the S&V era, and the value score is 4.5/10. The chase card score, however, is 9.5/10.

The Eeveelution SIRs carry the set. When you hit, you hit big. The problem is that you almost never hit. The pull rates are punishing, and the sealed product premium means every pack you open is a high-stakes gamble. Prismatic Evolutions is a set for sealed collectors and singles buyers. Opening it is an exercise in frustration unless you get extraordinarily lucky.

The special-set format (no booster boxes, packs only available in collection products) creates scarcity that drives up sealed prices. Paldean Fates followed the same model, and its Pokemon Center ETB appreciated from $70 to $570. Prismatic Evolutions is on a similar trajectory, but the higher starting price means the percentage upside is narrower.

Full Set Reference Table

Set	Release Date	Cards	Type
Scarlet & Violet	Mar 31, 2023	258	Main
Paldea Evolved	Jun 9, 2023	279	Main
Obsidian Flames	Aug 11, 2023	230	Main
Scarlet & Violet 151	Sep 22, 2023	207	Special
Paradox Rift	Nov 3, 2023	266	Main
Paldean Fates	Jan 26, 2024	245	Special
Temporal Forces	Mar 22, 2024	218	Main
Twilight Masquerade	May 24, 2024	226	Main
Shrouded Fable	Aug 2, 2024	99	Special
Stellar Crown	Sep 13, 2024	175	Main
Surging Sparks	Nov 8, 2024	252	Main
Prismatic Evolutions	Jan 17, 2025	180	Special
Journey Together	Mar 28, 2025	190	Main
Destined Rivals	May 30, 2025	244	Main
Black Bolt	Jul 18, 2025	172	Special
White Flare	Jul 18, 2025	173	Special

All data sourced from TCGplayer's complete set list.

Where to Buy Scarlet & Violet Sets in Australia

CardTracker tracks live prices on sealed Pokemon products across Australian retailers. The booster box deals page covers every S&V-era set with current pricing from eBay Australia, and individual set pages let you drill into specific expansions.

For the sets ranked highest here, start with the Twilight Masquerade booster box page and the Paldean Fates booster box page. Both update with live listings so you can see what Australian sellers are actually charging, not what American price guides say a card is worth.

The S&V era is deep enough now that pricing varies significantly between sets. A Surging Sparks booster box and a Temporal Forces booster box sit at very different price points, and the gap between them reflects the market's collective judgment about which sets are worth more. CardTracker's set-specific pages let you compare those prices side by side without hunting through individual eBay listings.