The Ultimate Pokemon 1999 WotC Base Set Guide

Base Set is the first Pokémon expansion released for the Pokémon Trading Card Game. It was first released on October 20th, 1996 in Japan, and January 9th, 1999, for the rest of the world. The cards were produced under contracts by Media Factory and Wizards of the Coast (WotC). Media Factory produced the Japanese versions of the cards. Because of this Base Set is known to many collectors as a WotC era set.

In this guide, I will answer many questions including:

How to Identify a Base Set Card
What Cards are in Base Set?
What Languages was Base Set Printed In?
What Variants Did Base Set Have?
Sealed Product

The goal of this guide is to take anyone from beginner to expert on Pokémon Base Set. While not everything can be covered, I will provide extra links to help get just about the information you could possibly want.

How to Identify a Base Set Card

A Base Set card is easily recognized by the absence of a set symbol and its set number, which appears as “/102” at the bottom right corner of the card. You can refer to the image below, where I have highlighted these two key features.

It’s important to note that Base Set cards aren’t the only ones missing set symbols. A printing error led to some English Jungle cards being printed without set symbols, but the difference is easy to spot since Jungle cards have a set number of “/64.”

Japanese Base Set cards don’t feature a set number at all; the only way to identify them is by the lack of a set symbol.

What Cards are in Base Set?
The Base Set comprises a total of 102 cards. These include 69 Pokémon, 26 Trainer cards, and 6 Energy cards. Among them, 16 are Holographic Foil rares, 16 are regular rares, 32 are uncommons, 32 are commons, and 6 are no-rarity Energy cards. You’ll find the full list of these cards in the table below:

Image	Card Name	Card Type	Rarity	Set Number
	Alakazam	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	1/102
	Blastoise	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	2/102
	Chansey	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	3/102
	Charizard	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	4/102
	Clefairy	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	5/102
	Gyarados	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	6/102
	Hitmonchan	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	7/102
	Machamp	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	8/102
	Magneton	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	9/102
	Mewtwo	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	10/102
	Nidoking	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	11/102
	Ninetales	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	12/102
	Poliwrath	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	13/102
	Raichu	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	14/102
	Venusaur	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	15/102
	Zapdos	Pokémon	Holographic Foil Rare	16/102
	Beedrill	Pokémon	Rare	17/102
	Dragonair	Pokémon	Rare	18/102
	Dugtrio	Pokémon	Rare	19/102
	Electabuzz	Pokémon	Rare	20/102
	Electrode	Pokémon	Rare	21/102
	Pidgeotto	Pokémon	Rare	22/102
	Arcanine	Pokémon	Uncommon	23/102
	Charmeleon	Pokémon	Uncommon	24/102
	Dewgong	Pokémon	Uncommon	25/102
	Dratini	Pokémon	Uncommon	26/102
	Farfetch’d	Pokémon	Uncommon	27/102
	Growlithe	Pokémon	Uncommon	28/102
	Haunter	Pokémon	Uncommon	29/102
	Ivysaur	Pokémon	Uncommon	30/102
	Jynx	Pokémon	Uncommon	31/102
	Kadabra	Pokémon	Uncommon	32/102
	Kakuna	Pokémon	Uncommon	33/102
	Machoke	Pokémon	Uncommon	34/102
	Magikarp	Pokémon	Uncommon	35/102
	Magmar	Pokémon	Uncommon	36/102
	Nidorino	Pokémon	Uncommon	37/102
	Poliwhirl	Pokémon	Uncommon	38/102
	Porygon	Pokémon	Uncommon	39/102
	Raticate	Pokémon	Uncommon	40/102
	Seel	Pokémon	Uncommon	41/102
	Wartortle	Pokémon	Uncommon	42/102
	Abra	Pokémon	Common	43/102
	Bulbasaur	Pokémon	Common	44/102
	Caterpie	Pokémon	Common	45/102
	Charmander	Pokémon	Common	46/102
	Diglett	Pokémon	Common	47/102
	Doduo	Pokémon	Common	48/102
	Drowzee	Pokémon	Common	49/102
	Gastly	Pokémon	Common	50/102
	Koffing	Pokémon	Common	51/102
	Machop	Pokémon	Common	52/102
	Magnemite	Pokémon	Common	53/102
	Metapod	Pokémon	Common	54/102
	Nidoran♂	Pokémon	Common	55/102
	Onix	Pokémon	Common	56/102
	Pidgey	Pokémon	Common	57/102
	Pikachu	Pokémon	Common	58/102
	Poliwag	Pokémon	Common	59/102
	Ponyta	Pokémon	Common	60/102
	Rattata	Pokémon	Common	61/102
	Sandshrew	Pokémon	Common	62/102
	Squirtle	Pokémon	Common	63/102
	Starmie	Pokémon	Common	64/102
	Staryu	Pokémon	Common	65/102
	Tangela	Pokémon	Common	66/102
	Voltorb	Pokémon	Common	67/102
	Vulpix	Pokémon	Common	68/102
	Weedle	Pokémon	Common	69/102
	Clefairy Doll	Trainer	Rare	70/102
	Computer Search	Trainer	Rare	71/102
	Devolution Spray	Trainer	Rare	72/102
	Imposter Professor Oak	Trainer	Rare	73/102
	Itemfinder	Trainer	Rare	74/102
	Lass	Trainer	Rare	75/102
	Pokémon Breeder	Trainer	Rare	76/102
	Pokémon Trader	Trainer	Rare	77/102
	Scoop Up	Trainer	Rare	78/102
	Super Energy Removal	Trainer	Rare	79/102
	Defender	Trainer	Uncommon	80/102
	Energy Retrieval	Trainer	Uncommon	81/102
	Full Heal	Trainer	Uncommon	82/102
	Maintenance	Trainer	Uncommon	83/102
	Plus Power	Trainer	Uncommon	84/102
	Pokémon Center	Trainer	Uncommon	85/102
	Pokémon Flute	Trainer	Uncommon	86/102
	Professor Oak	Trainer	Uncommon	87/102
	Pokédex	Trainer	Uncommon	88/102
	Revive	Trainer	Uncommon	89/102
	Super Potion	Trainer	Uncommon	90/102
	Bill	Trainer	Common	91/102
	Energy Removal	Trainer	Common	92/102
	Gust of Wind	Trainer	Common	93/102
	Potion	Trainer	Common	94/102
	Switch	Trainer	Common	95/102
	Double Colorless	Energy	Uncommon	96/102
	Fighting	Energy		97/102
	Fire	Energy		98/102
	Grass	Energy		99/102
	Lightning	Energy		100/102
	Psychic	Energy		101/102
	Water	Energy		102/102

What Languages was Base Set Printed In?

Base Set was released in several languages, including Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Korean. From a collector’s perspective, Korean cards are the rarest to find, while English and Japanese cards are the most widely collected.

What Variants Did Base Set Have?

The Base Set stands out for having the most variants of any released set. These include:

No rarity symbol Japanese cards
1st Edition cards
Shadowless English cards
Unlimited cards
1999-2000 English cards
Trainer Deck cards
Error/Misprint cards

These variations occurred across multiple languages. For example, 1st Edition cards exist for every language except Japanese. Japanese is also the only language to feature no rarity symbol cards. Meanwhile, 1999-2000 cards are unique to English and Spanish sets, and Trainer Deck cards were only made in English. More details about these variants are covered in the following sections.

What is a No Rarity Symbol Base Set Card?

During the initial production of Japanese Base Set cards, 96 were printed without rarity symbols, making them highly sought after by collectors. These “no rarity symbol” cards were part of the first print run, after which all Japanese Base Set cards were printed with rarity symbols (except for Energy cards).

You can find the rarity symbol on the bottom right corner of most cards, denoted by a star (rare), diamond (uncommon), or circle (common). To help you spot a no rarity symbol card, check the image below.

What is a 1st Edition Base Set Card?

The term “1st Edition” refers to the very first release of a Base Set card. You can identify a 1st Edition card by the stamp located on the right side of the card, featuring a circle with the number “1” inside. If the card lacks this stamp, it falls into one of the other variants, such as Shadowless or Unlimited.

The one exception to this rule is the Base Set Machamp, which was always printed with a 1st Edition stamp, except for its Trainer Deck A version. Although Machamp cards always carry the 1st Edition stamp, the shadowless version is considered the first print. This applies to all languages except Japanese, where 1st Edition cards were never produced. However, it’s still possible to determine the first print of Japanese Base Set cards, as explained earlier.

What is a Shadowless Base Set Card?

The first print run of English Base Set cards used a template that became known as “Shadowless.” These Shadowless cards are distinctive because they lack the shadow box seen in later prints. While 1st Edition cards were created using this template, the remaining cards without the stamp were dubbed Shadowless.

Wizards of the Coast (WotC) altered the template in the second print run, adding shadows and slightly changing the card layout. Shadowless cards are known for having brighter colors, a more zoomed-in card image, and bolder HP text. The copyright date on Shadowless cards reads “©1995 96 98 99 Nintendo Creatures GAMEFREAK ©1999,” which differs from Unlimited cards. Shadowless cards are the first print run of Base Set but lack the 1st Edition stamp, making them highly collectible.

The first print run was used for both 1st Edition and Shadowless cards. According to the story, Wizards of the Coast (WotC) produced the initial batch of Pokémon cards. Some of these cards were stamped with the 1st Edition symbol, which we discussed earlier. The rest, which didn’t receive the stamp, became known as Shadowless cards. When WotC began the second print run, they made changes to the card template. Collectors quickly noticed differences between the two. The most obvious change was the addition of a shadow around the card artwork. As a result, cards without the shadow box were labeled as Shadowless, while the ones with it became known as Unlimited Edition. There are several key differences between Shadowless and Unlimited cards.

The HP text is bolder for Unlimited
On Unlimited, the image of the card is zoomed out
Shadowless has more vibrant colors
To the right of the image’s art box, there’s no drop shadow for shadowless
The copyright date reads ©1995, 96, 98 Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK, ©1999 on Unlimited and ©1995, 96, 98, 99 Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK, ©1999 for shadowless. Notice the added 99 in the text, this is the best identifying characteristic for all shadowless cards.

So, the reality is Shadowless cards are the first print run of the Base Set but lack the 1st edition stamps. They’re best identified by their copyright date of ©1995, 96, 98, 99 Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK, © 1999. Shadowless cards only occurred for English Base Set.

What is a 1999-2000 Base Set Card?

The eighth print run of English Base Set cards is referred to as the 1999-2000 set, as the copyright on these cards reads “©1995 96 98 Nintendo Creatures GAMEFREAK ©1999-2000.” While visually similar to Unlimited cards, this small copyright date change is significant for collectors.

This set is sometimes called the “4th print” by those who assume there are only four prints of the Pokémon Base Set: 1st Edition, Shadowless, Unlimited, and 1999-2000. However, the Base Set had eight print runs in total. These cards were also known as the “UK release” initially, but this term is misleading, as they were distributed in Australia and the United States as well. Other languages, including Chinese, Dutch, Italian, Korean, and Spanish, also have versions with the 1999-2000 copyright.

Notably, Spanish Base Set cards feature four different variants, including those with both 1999 and 1999-2000 copyright dates.

1^st edition 1999 copyright
1^st edition 1999-2000 copyright
Unlimited 1999 copyright
Unlimited 1999-2000 copyright

What is an Unlimited Base Set Card?

Unlimited Base Set cards are the most commonly found variant, as they were produced in every language and accounted for the second through seventh print runs of the English set. They are easily identified by their lack of a 1st Edition symbol and the shadowed border around the card’s image.

The only exception is the Base Set Machamp, which always carried a 1st Edition stamp despite being printed in Unlimited quantities. In the technical sense, any card without a 1st Edition stamp is considered Unlimited. However, this guide treats Unlimited cards separately from Shadowless and other variants.

What is a Trainer Deck Card?

Trainer Deck cards come in two variations: Trainer Deck A and Trainer Deck B. These special cards were originally produced to help players learn the Pokémon Trading Card Game at official Pokémon Leagues, often hosted in stores like Toys “R” Us. When the leagues no longer needed these decks, many organizers sold or gave away the cards, making them available to the public.

Trainer Deck A was more commonly used, and thus, cards from this deck often show wear. Trainer Deck B cards, on the other hand, are usually found in better condition due to their limited use. The key differences between these cards and regular Base Set cards are on the back: Trainer Deck cards have a red border and either “Trainer Deck A” or “Trainer Deck B” printed on the back in red. The Machamp from Trainer Deck A and the Blastoise from Trainer Deck B were printed without holographic foil, further distinguishing them from their standard Base Set counterparts.

Only the following carry this Trainer Deck A/B writing on the back as listed below:

Trainer Deck A	Trainer Deck B
1 Machamp	1 Blastoise
2 Machoke	2 Pidgeotto
2 Raticate	2 Wartortle
4 Machop	4 Seel
4 Onix	4 Pidgey
4 Rattata	4 Squirtle
4 Sandshrew	3 Starmie
4 Defender	4 Staryu
2 Super Potion	1 Computer Search
4 Potion	2 Pokémon Trader
2 Switch	3 Energy Removal
27 Fighting Energy	3 Switch
	27 Water Energy

What are the Error/Misprint Cards in Base Set?

As the first released set, Base Set contains numerous errors and misprints, some of which are highly sought after by collectors. These can be grouped into two categories:

Errors/misprints that occurred on every card within a specific variant
Errors/misprints found on only a select number of cards

Cards with errors that are exclusive to a limited number of prints tend to be more valuable to collectors. Examples of such desirable errors include:

No Stage Blastoise: A printing error omitted the word “stage” from Blastoise’s text. These were found in Unlimited booster packs.

No Damage Ninetales: Some Shadowless Ninetales cards are missing the damage value for the Fire Blast attack. These were distributed in Bushfire Theme Decks.

Ghost Stamp Pikachu: Certain Shadowless Pikachu cards have an outline where the 1st Edition stamp would normally be, creating a “ghost” appearance. These can be found in Zap theme decks.

English Evolution Box Wartortle: Unlimited versions of English Wartortle had a printing error/misprint where the evolution box contains Wartortle instead of Squirtle. To find these cards you need to get lucky and find one in a booster pack. There is also a Portuguese version of this so take care to look at the text if you plan on buying one to price it right.

Margin Spacing Water Energy: Unlimited Water Energy cards had a large number of their cards printed with a lack of space in the top margin of the card’s name. These cards were found in booster packs.

Cards With Errors/Misprint Printed on Every Card Within the Same Variant(s):

Japanese Evolution Box Holographic Foil Error

Every Japanese Holographic card that contains an evolution box was printed with the evolution box being covered with holographic foil.

Height and Weight Box Charizard

All No Rarity Charizard cards have their height and weight box misprinted. It reads かしいりきボケモン: 身長1.5m. 体重70.5kg. The correct text is かえんボケモン: 身長1.7m. 体重90.5Kg.

Wrong Pokédex Number Raichu

All No Rarity Raichu Cards have the wrong Pokédex number of 25 instead of 26.

Wrong Pokédex Number Vensaur

All No Rarity Venusaur cards have the wrong Pokédex number of 68 instead of 3.

6/102 Spacing Error Gyarados

All unlimited and 1999-2000 Gyarados have their set number spaced too far left.

Length Instead of Weight Kakuna

All 1^st edition and shadowless Kakuna cards have their weight printed as length.

Portuguese Evolution Box Wartortle

All 1^st edition and unlimited versions of Portuguese Wartortle had a printing where the evolution box contains Wartortle instead of Squirtle.

Length instead of Weight Bulbasaur

All 1^st edition and shadowless Bulbasaur cards have their weight printed as length.

HP 40 Caterpie

All 1^st edition and shadowless Caterpie cards have their HP printed as HP 40 instead of 40 HP.

Wrong Text On Destiny Bond Attack Gastly

All No Rarity Gastly cards have the wrong text for their Destiny Bond attack it reads みちずれ instead of the correct みちづれ.

HP 70 Metapod

All 1^st edition and shadowless Metapod cards have their HP printed as HP 70 instead of 70 HP.

Spacing in name Nidoran♂

Every Nidoran card, except Chinese, Japanese, and Korean prints, have a space between the n and ♂.

“this attack does nothing” Sandshrew

All 1^st edition and shadowless Sanshrew cards have text that reads “this attack does nothing” instead of “that attack does nothing”

Monster Ball Voltorb

All 1^st edition and shadowless Voltorb cards have Monster Ball printed instead of the properly translated Poké Ball.

HP 50 Vulpix

All 1^st edition, shadowless, and unlimited Vulpix cards have their HP printed as HP 50 instead of 50 HP.

Impostor Imposter Professor Oak

All 1^st edition and shadowless Imposter Professor Oak cards were printed as Impostor Professor Oak, while the Unlimited and 1999-2000 were printed as Imposter Professor Oak.

“your own Bench Pokémon” Switch

All 1^st edition and shadowless Switch cards have text that reads “Switch 1 of your own Bench Pokémon” instead of “Switch 1 of your Bench Pokémon”

Other Error/Misprint Cards

There are a bunch of one-off errors like Pokémon cards being printed with the backs upside down, crimps on cards caused by factory machinery leaving indents, and so many more that aren’t going to be mentioned in this article. I’ve decided to only include well-known errors and ignore the huge list of cards that have surfaced over the years. With that said I will mention some of the errors that have occurred enough that might interest individuals to know about them:

There are a number of Base Set cards that have been come from the factory without their corners properly-rounded, this is known as square cut cards and can occur one to all four corners. Most of these cards aren’t created in a Wizards of the Coast factory and instead were cut directly from an uncut sheet.
A good number of Base Set cards have minor ink stains, these stains come from the factory accidentally dripping ink on the cards.
A few Dragonair cards have what looks like a rainbow printed on their Slam attack, blocking the u in number from being fully printed.
Off-Center cards. Many cards when they were getting cut weren’t cut correctly resulting in their yellow borders being very wide and thin.
Text Error/Misprints. A lot of cards have had ink not print correctly resulting in text not printing properly.
Missing color cards. When going through the printing process sometimes one of the inks will become empty, the result will be a card printed without that color. The three colors used for the printing process was magenta, cyan, yellow, and black. There have even been cards found to be missing all except black ink resulting in black and white cards. Note, the borders of these cards are still yellow, the boarders are done on a different machine printing process.

What Other Variants are in Base Set?

The Base Set also contains other variants, each bringing something unique to the set. Some of these include Galaxy Machamp, which can be found in the 2-Player CD-ROM Starter Set. This version of Machamp has a cosmic or galaxy foil background instead of the regular starry foil seen on other holographic cards. While some people might think of it as an error or misprint, this was an intentional design choice.

Another notable variant is the Red Cheeks Pikachu. The early 1st Edition and Shadowless versions of Pikachu featured red cheeks instead of the yellow cheeks later used. These cards were only available in booster packs, making them harder to find.

The Red Cheeks Shadowless E3 Pikachu is even rarer, as it was distributed at the 1999 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). It features the same red cheeks as the earlier Pikachu card but includes an “E3” stamp where the set symbol would normally be. This makes it distinct from other Shadowless Pikachu cards.

Additionally, there’s an Unlimited Yellow Cheeks E3 Pikachu variant, which was given out in Nintendo Power magazine in September 1999. Although it has corrected yellow cheeks, it retains the “E3” stamp.

The PokéTour Pikachu is another variant, given out during the 1999 Australian PokéTour. It also has a unique stamp, this time in the top right corner of the card’s artwork, distinguishing it from other Unlimited Pikachu cards.

Lastly, there’s the CD Promo Shadowless Pikachu. This card is practically indistinguishable from regular Shadowless Pikachu cards, but its smoother card stock gives it away. This card was produced by Media Factory in Japan and was included with the Pokémon Song Best Collection CD.

This card is had to tell a difference between any other shadowless Pikachu; however, this card was produced by Media Factory in Japan and was included in the Pokémon Song Best Collection CD. The difference between this card and it’s shadowless counterpart is the card stock used. The Japanese card stock is smoother and less grainy. It can’t be seen well without proper lighting angles, I’ve done my best to highlight this in the image below.

1st Edition Stamp Variants

The 1st Edition stamp on Base Set cards is also subject to various inconsistencies, creating collectible variations. The primary variations are the Thick and Thin 1st Edition stamps, which refer to the thickness of the “1” inside the circle of the stamp. The difference in thickness is due to the varying pressure applied during the stamping process. Thin stamps are more common on holographic cards, while thick stamps are rarer.

There are also Gray 1st Edition Stamps, caused by ink transfer between card sheets during production. This results in a faint, gray appearance of the stamp. These stamps are much less common and highly sought after by collectors.

Here’s an image of some of the stamp ink getting on the back of another card.

Another interesting variant is the Off-Aligned 1st Edition Stamp, where the stamp is not correctly aligned with its intended placement. This misalignment gives the stamp a slightly “3D” effect and is more noticeable on non-holographic cards. While off-aligned stamps aren’t rarer than their correctly aligned counterparts, they are still a notable variant.

To understand how this stamp got like this, let’s first look at the Pikachu ghost stamp

As you can see there is an outline, now lets look at a close up of the off-aligned 1st edition stamp and you’ll see this same outline.

When soomed out, you can see the stamp looks “3D”

I’m unaware of why these outlines are there, but they are only on non-holographic foil cards. If the 1^st edition stamp is applied directly on this outline you’ll get an aligned 1^stedition stamp, and if you not you’ll get an off-aligned 1^st edition stamp.

In my experience, off-aligned 1^st edition stamps aren’t any rarer than an aligned 1^stedition stamp.

Sealed Product

Base Set cards were released in a variety of sealed products, including booster boxes, booster packs, blister packs, theme decks, gift boxes, and starter decks. These products contained different combinations of Base Set cards, and the packaging often provides clues about the specific cards that could be found inside.

Due to the complexity and the large number of products released, I will be creating a separate guide to cover all the sealed product variants. This guide will provide detailed information on how to identify each type of product and what cards might be included.

Thank You

Thank you for taking the time to read this guide! I hope it has provided valuable insights into the Pokémon Base Set. If you found this information useful, feel free to share it with others who may also be interested in learning more about Pokémon cards. Should you spot any corrections that need to be made, please reach out to me via the contact page. Also, be sure to check out my other guides, as I put a lot of effort into creating comprehensive and informative content.

~Giovanni