Lost Zone
The Lost Zone is a zone in the Pokémon Trading Card Game, first introduced in the Platinum expansion. It is strongly associated with the Pokémon Giratina. Unlike other game zones, there is only a single Lost Zone, shared by both players. No game rule causes a card to be moved to the Lost Zone. Some card effects cause cards to be moved to the Lost Zone from other zones of the game. Like the Discard Pile, cards in the Lost Zone cannot be used, rendering them unplayable. However, unlike the Discard Pile, cards that are in the Lost Zone cannot be retrieved from the Lost Zone in any manner. No effect exists that can circumvent this property of the Lost Zone. No cards have effects that can be used while in the Lost Zone. However, many cards care about the cards that are in the Lost Zone, either asking about the properties of cards in the Lost Zone or the number of cards in the Lost Zone. While some cards send a player's cards to the Lost Zone as a downside, other cards send the opponent's cards to the Lost Zone as an upside.
Prism Star cards are moved to the Lost Zone if they would be moved to the Discard Pile. Cards from the Sun & Moon Series do not include Prism Star Pokémon in their counts, likely due to the ease of getting Prism Star cards into the Lost Zone through this rule.
Location
The place on the playfield where the Lost Zone is placed is often disputed. Rulebooks advise that cards in the Lost Zone should be placed face up outside of the play area. Meanwhile, players in tournaments often put cards in the Lost Zone underneath their GX or VSTAR markers. While the Lost Zone is a single zone that both players use, players usually keep the cards that they own separate from the opponent's cards while in the Lost Zone.
Digital implementations of the Trading Card Game present the Lost Zone in a more dramatic manner. Pokémon Trading Card Game Online represents the Lost Zone as a _____________________________. Pokémon Trading Card Game Live represents the Lost Zone as a purple void that cards are sucked into, located to the left of the Active Spots. There is one void for both players, but the contents of the Lost Zone can be sorted by each player.
Sets
Cards with text referring to the Lost Zone are in the following sets:
- Platinum
- Supreme Victors
- Arceus
- Triumphant
- Call of Legends
- Forbidden Light
- Lost Thunder
- Team Up
- Cosmic Eclipse
- Lost Origin
- Crown Zenith
(This list excludes the Prism Star rule. For those cards, see the Prism Star page.)
Artwork
Different sets use different trends in the art to indicate that the card cares about the Lost Zone. Cards from the HeartGold & SoulSilver Series have spheres of purple, crackling energy in the artwork. Cards from the Sun & Moon Series expand this association to any kind of purple or blue energy, including lightning. Cards from the Sword & Shield Series have wisps of purple, pink, and blue gas emanate from the frame of the art, or incorporate the gas into the art in the case of Pokémon V cards.
Backstory
In Lost Origin, Giratina tore a hole in the fabric of space that leads to the Lost Zone. [1]
The art of the cards Lost World and Lost City may reflect what the Lost Zone looks like.
Cards
The following is a list of all cards which have an effect referring to the Lost Zone.
(This list excludes the Prism Star rule. For those cards, see the Prism Star page.)
