>>43883620>>43883505Some final words:
-The REALLY old cards from base set have a few reprints that are significantly cheaper. Look up Base Set 2 prices for Gen 1 cards to get them for cheaper.
-Avoid Holofoils if you want to save money; the old ones look pretty but are overpriced and show scuffs/scratches to a significant degree.
-Some cards like pic related are fairly expensive and lack meaningful reprints. If you don't mind memorizing the words on the card, the Japanese prints of some cards are cheaper, even after shipping. I don't suggest loading an entire deck up with foreign language cards, but 1 or 2 copies of a card here and there can save $
-Sleeve your cards. Even if you end up buying cards in played condition, sleeves will make shuffling easier and protect your purchases from degrading any further. You'll want to buy Standard-size Sleeves, not anime-size (Yugioh-size)
-You can also just enjoy the experience by playing online with your friends. There's a few free sites with Pokemon TCG, including one mentioned on the Wordpress website I stated previously. Tabletop Simulator, etc. Do some minor testing with a deck and make sure this is an activity you AND your friends still want to invest in.
-A lot of the cool cards, like Charizard, are expensive for reasons other than usefulness. Just because a card is expensive, that doesn't mean it's good in a deck. And for those really really high end cards, try and look into collector trade groups or search for PSA/Beckett graded cards on EBay. Those that cased and graded are collector's pieces, not game pieces anymore...but they might just scratch that itch for you. Make sure you actually want to play the game itself, and don't just want a holo charizard to have on a shelf.
