Neo Revelation

What Neo Revelation is

Neo Revelation is the third main expansion of the Neo Series, released in English on September 21, 2001 under the set code N3. It has 64 cards in the numbered set plus 2 secret rares, 66 in total, and comes from the Japanese Awakening Legends, released on November 23, 2000 with 57 cards as the first Japanese expansion released by The Pokémon Company. The set continues the Generation II roster and is built around the Legendary beasts, Raikou, Entei and Suicune, who emerge from the fire ravaged tower of the set's tagline.

Neo Revelation introduced Shining Pokémon, Pokémon whose coloring differs from the usual for their species. Shining Gyarados 65 and Shining Magikarp 66 sit past the numbered set as the game's first two, both Basic Pokémon and limited to one Shining Pokémon per name in a deck, a rule every later Shining Pokémon kept.

The set was also the first expansion released without Theme Decks. Mike Gills of Wizards of the Coast said earlier Theme Decks had sold poorly and retailers had refused to carry them, so Neo Revelation came only in packs and boxes, in both 1st Edition and Unlimited print runs.

What makes Neo Revelation different

• The first Shining Pokémon Shining Gyarados 65 and Shining Magikarp 66 introduced Shining Pokémon to the card game, alternate color Basic Pokémon restricted to one per name in a deck, and the 1st Edition Shining Gyarados is the most valuable card in the set.
• The Legendary beasts Raikou 13, Entei 6 and Suicune 14 make their card game debut as holofoil rares, and all three sit in the set's top ten in 1st Edition.
• No Theme Decks Neo Revelation was the first expansion sold without preconstructed Theme Decks, after Wizards of the Coast said earlier decks had sold poorly and retailers would not carry them.
• A small, holofoil heavy set With 64 numbered cards, Neo Revelation is one of the smallest main expansions, and its holofoil rares include Ampharos 1, Blissey 2, Celebi 3, Ho-Oh 7, Houndoom 8 and Misdreavus 11 alongside the beasts.
• The Pokémon Company's first set Its Japanese source, Awakening Legends, was the first expansion released by The Pokémon Company, a change that shaped the Japanese game from then on.

How Neo Revelation arrived

Neo Revelation released in English on September 21, 2001, seven weeks after the Southern Islands promotional set on July 31, 2001 and five months before Neo Destiny closed the Neo Series on February 28, 2002. In Japan, Awakening Legends released on November 23, 2000, following Crossing the Ruins... and preceding Darkness, and to Light..., the sources of Neo Discovery and Neo Destiny.

The English set arrived in the last year of Wizards of the Coast's license, when the company was trimming its product line. Dropping Theme Decks left packs and booster boxes as the only products, and the 1st Edition print run of those packs is the one collectors chase today.

The Shining Pokémon idea introduced here returned in later sets, and the Legendary beasts have come back to the card game in almost every era since.

Neo Revelation products

Neo Revelation was sold only in booster packs, booster boxes and blisters, in 1st Edition and Unlimited print runs. The sealed table above tracks each product.

Collecting and grading Neo Revelation

The 1st Edition Shining Gyarados 65 leads the set by a wide margin, with the 1st Edition Suicune 14, Raikou 13, Shining Magikarp 66, Ampharos 1, Houndoom 8 and Entei 6 behind it and the 1st Edition Ho-Oh 7, Blissey 2 and Celebi 3 rounding out the top of the market. Unlimited copies of the Shining Gyarados, Entei and Houndoom also rank high, and a double holofoil error print of Shining Gyarados trades as its own collectible. The live chase list above ranks every tracked card by PSA 10 value.

Neo Series holofoils are prone to surface scratches, print lines and edge whitening, and the Shining Pokémon holofoil pattern is especially unforgiving, so PSA 10 copies of the two Shining cards carry a very wide premium over PSA 9. 1st Edition stamps roughly multiply the graded prices across the set.

Sealed Neo Revelation is among the most expensive Neo Series product, and the sealed table above tracks what 1st Edition and Unlimited boxes, packs and blisters trade for today.