Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift (Japanese: 古代の咆哮Ancient Roar and 未来の一閃Future Flash) is the name given to the set that makes up the fourth expansion of cards from the Scarlet & Violet Series of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. It was released in English on November 3, 2023, and in Japanese on October 27, 2023.
Dive into the clouds and explore a land that appears to be unbound by time! With ferocious attacks, Ancient Pokémon like Roaring Moon ex and Sandy Shocks ex appear alongside artificial Future Pokémon like Iron Valiant ex and Iron Hands ex. Meanwhile, Garchomp ex, Mewtwo ex, and others Terastallize to gain new types, as Armarouge ex, Gholdengo ex, and more Pokémon ex join the fray. Adventure awaits as timelines collide in the Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift expansion!
Information
Ancient Roar & Future Flash logos
Paradox Rift and the Japanese Ancient Roar and Future Flash feature Paradox Pokémon, which have previously only appeared in the Scarlet & Violet and Obsidian Flames expansions. The set was first previewed on August 11, 2023, when the Canadian Pokémon Center website briefly showed off one of the Elite Trainer Boxes for the set featuring Iron Valiant. More information about the set was revealed during the closing ceremony of the 2023 Pokémon World Championships on August 13, 2023.
Two new variants of cards are introduced in this expansion: Ancient and Future, which are both available as Pokémon and Trainer cards. Both card variants feature unique text icons on the top right corner of the artwork, and unique backgrounds adorning the right half of the cards: Ancient cards have a layered strata background, while Future cards have a pixelated background. Ancient Pokémon cards tend to have direct attacks that deal a large amount of damage, while being difficult to Knock Out. Future Pokémon cards tend to have Abilities and attacks with extra effects, allowing for craftier strategies. Ancient and Future Trainer cards have effects that tend to assist their respective Pokémon counterparts.
Paradox Rift is available in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese. Ancient Roar and Future Flash were released in Japanese on October 27, 2023, followed by localized releases in Traditional Chinese on November 10, 2023, and in Thai on December 15, 2023. The Indonesian set equivalent, Paradox Encounters, also released on December 15, 2023.
The pack artworks for the English Paradox Rift expansion and the Japanese Ancient Roar and Future Flash expansions were illustrated by N-DESIGN Inc.[1][2][3] The Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift logo was designed by Gwen Machan.[1]
