Pokemon TCG Pocket: 8 Unreleased Item Cards That Could Shake the Meta

In Pokemon TCG Pocket, Item Cards fall under the Trainer category. Players can use as many of these cards as they want per turn, but they’re limited to just two copies of each Item Card in their decks.

While Pokemon TCG Pocket has already included several Item Cards from the physical game, many are still missing. Judging by the game’s current pace, each expansion seems to introduce only a few new Item Cards, likely because they have the potential to be game-breaking and need to be added carefully.

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But what if players could access any of the unreleased Item Cards from the physical game? Which of these could balance, shake up, or even break TCG Pocket’s current metagame? The following list highlights the most impactful candidates that could reshape the digital TCG’s PvP and possibly make it even more engaging for fans.

8

First Ticket

Reason: It Could Introduce a New Checkup Phase

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Before you flip a coin to decide who goes first in a game, you may play this card. Don’t flip that coin, and you go first. If both players play First Ticket, flip the coin as normal. (You may play only 1 First Ticket before you flip that coin.)
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: Dragon Vault

Since its launch, Pokemon TCG Pocket has sparked some controversy around its setup rounds. Currently, the first player is decided by an automated coin flip at the start of each match. The issue with this system is that the player going first can’t attach Energy or attack, while the second player can do both, leading some fans to criticize the imbalance. But what if an Item Card could change that?

In the physical Pokemon TCG, First Ticket is a card that lets players guarantee they go first, as doing so comes with key advantages. That dynamic doesn’t fully translate to TCG Pocket, where going second is often more beneficial. Still, adding a near-guaranteed way to go first could incentivize players to build decks that benefit from opening turns.

The challenge with First Ticket is that it introduces a new pre-match checkup step. Players would draw their opening hand, then play First Ticket or opt for the coin flip. In other words, adding this Item Card to TCG Pocket might be unlikely, especially since the developers have shown little interest in overhauling core combat mechanics.

7

Delivery Drone (or Victory Cup)

Reason: It Could Revolutionize Deck-Building

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Flip 2 coins. If both of them are heads, search your deck for a card and put it into your hand. Then, shuffle your deck.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: Paldea Evolved

One common criticism of TCG Pocket’s deck-building mechanics is the lack of “search” cards. In the physical Pokemon Trading Card Game, there are dozens of cards that let players search their deck for a specific card and add it to their hand. Pocket, however, has yet to introduce a true search card. At the moment, there are only a few limited ways to manipulate the deck, such as Pokemon Communication, Mythical Slab, and Ion, but none are as effective as Delivery Drone could be.

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Veteran players know that a deck-search Item Card with no restrictions could easily break the game, especially given TCG Pocket’s much smaller deck sizes compared to the physical version. That said, Delivery Drone has a built-in safeguard: it relies on a double coin flip. The odds of it consistently working are low, which could help maintain gameplay balance while still offering players a useful search tool.

6

Energy Removal 2 (or Crushing Hammer)

Reason: It Could Balance Energy-Generating Cards

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Flip a coin. If heads, choose one Energy card attached to one of your opponent’s Pokemon and discard it.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: EX Power Keepers

Energy-generating cards have shown they can disrupt TCG Pocket’s metagame. A recent example is Giratina ex, which dominated PvP thanks to its self-charging ability. Leafeon ex also played a key role in pushing Celebi ex to the top of the meta—until similar decks eventually dethroned it. With the clear advantage these cards provide, it only makes sense to introduce more counters. One strong candidate is the physical Pokemon TCG’s notorious Item Card, Energy Removal 2.

Energy Removal 2 gives players a chance to disrupt their opponent’s Energy setup. After playing it, the user flips a coin, and on heads, they can remove one Energy from any of the opponent’s Pokemon. This effect becomes especially valuable against decks using hard-to-ramp Energy-draining cards, like Shining Revelry’s Pikachu ex, which discards its Energy after every attack.

While TCG Pocket does include one Energy-removal card—Team Rocket Grunt—the issue is that it’s a Supporter, meaning only one can be used per turn. The advantage of Energy Removal 2 is that it’s an Item Card, allowing players to play multiple copies in a single turn.

5

VS Seeker (or Pal Pad)

Reason: It Could Popularize More Supporter Cards

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Put a Supporter card from your discard pile into your hand.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: XY—Phantom Forces

Being able to play more than two copies of a Supporter card in Pokemon TCG Pocket could be a game-changer. Right now, the game’s Supporter lineup is dominated by a few high-consistency options, except in the 18-Trainer archetype, which makes use of a broader range. One reason is the two-per-deck restriction, which makes risky cards like Misty that are tied to coin flips less appealing due to the hit to consistency. As a result, many players leave them out of their setups.

That’s where an Item Card like VS Seeker could make a difference. In the physical Pokemon TCG, VS Seeker lets players retrieve a used Supporter, effectively allowing more than two plays of the same card per match. It’s a strong utility option, and the mechanic fits TCG Pocket’s format, where each deck is limited to just two copies of any card. Even with two uses of VS Seeker, a player would only be able to play the same Supporter up to four times per match.

4

Damage Mover

Reason: It Could Add a New Strategic Layer

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Move three damage counters from one of your Pokemon to another of your Pokemon.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: Shining Legends

Healing is one thing, but being able to shift damage from one Pokemon to another is an entirely different kind of strategy. If a card like Damage Mover were added to TCG Pocket, battles could become far more tactical. It wouldn’t just help prevent knockouts; it could also open up plays where self-destruction becomes the better option, especially when the retreat cost isn’t worth paying.

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Damage Mover also pairs well with cards like Mars. Imagine a play where a player uses Damage Mover to self-destruct one of their own Pokemon, giving the opponent an extra point, only to follow up with Mars and restrict their hand for the rest of the game. It’s risky, sure—but calculated plays like that could make PvP combat much more dynamic.

3

Toy Catcher

Reason: It Could Create a Deadly Triangle with Sabrina and Cyrus

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Switch one of your opponent’s Benched Pokemon that has 50 HP or less remaining with your opponent’s Active Pokemon.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: Evolving Skies

Toy Catcher is essentially a less demanding version of Cyrus. While it only works on Pokemon with 50 HP or less, its key advantage is that the target doesn’t need to be damaged. That means players could use Toy Catcher early in the match to pull a low-HP Benched Pokemon into the Active Spot and knock it out before it has a chance to evolve. With Cyrus, the target must first be damaged before it can be pulled in.

Introducing Toy Catcher as an Item Card could form one of the deadliest counter-strategy triangles in TCG Pocket. If the opponent is stalling, use Toy Catcher to ditch their tank and eliminate a key pre-evolution; if they’re hiding an injured Pokemon on the Bench, drop Cyrus to pull and finish it off; and if they’re applying pressure with their Active Pokemon, play Sabrina to push them back for a turn and recover. It’s a flexible, layered strategy with real potential.

2

Devolution Spray

Reason: It Could Intensify the Combat

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Devolve one of your evolved Pokemon and put the highest Stage Evolution card on it into your hand. (That Pokemon can’t evolve this turn.)
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: XY—Fates Collide

Picture this: The defending Active Pokemon is an ex card hanging on with low HP. But before it gets knocked out, the opponent uses Devolution Spray to revert it to its Basic form, dodging the two-point loss entirely. Plays like this could become a reality in Pokemon TCG Pocket if Devolution Spray were introduced.

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Devolution Spray could also help lower the forfeiture rate. Right now, many players concede when a match feels out of reach. But with a card like this, they’d gain a pivot option, removing an ex or Stage One or Two Pokemon from play and setting it up again for another chance to strike back. It’s the kind of tool that keeps comeback potential alive.

1

Rare Candy (or Evosoda)

Reason: It Could Fix the Stage Two Pokemon Problem

• Card Text in Pokemon TCG: Choose one of your Basic Pokemon in play. If you have a Stage Two card in your hand that evolves from that Pokemon, put that card onto the Basic Pokemon to evolve it, skipping the Stage One. You can’t use this card during your first turn or on a Basic Pokemon that was put into play this turn.
• Pokemon TCG Expansion: Sword & Shield

Pokemon TCG Pocket has an evolution problem: It often takes too long to reach a Stage Two Pokemon. With each deck limited to only two copies of any card and no reliable search options, finding and evolving into Stage Two can be painfully slow. Rare Candy could fix that instantly.

This Item Card lets players skip a stage and evolve straight into Stage Two. That’s a big deal, especially considering how many Stage Two Pokemon in TCG Pocket are currently overlooked due to clunky setups. Rare Candy could shake things up by giving those cards a real shot and adding more variety to the metagame.