Shaymin VSTAR, Lumineon V, Sinnoh Starters, and More from ‘Star Birth!’

More cards have been revealed from January’s Star Birth, which will release in February as Brilliant Stars! Thanks goes to Toine L. and Franco T. for the translations!

Turtwig – Grass – HP80
Basic Pokemon

[G] Bite: 10 damage.

[G][C] Headbutt Bounce: 20 damage.

Weakness: Fire (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 2


Grotle – Grass – HP100
Stage 1 – Evolves from Turtwig

Ability: Sunlit Shell
Once during your turn, you may search your deck for a [G] Pokémon, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then, shuffle your deck.

[G][C][C] Razor Leaf: 50 damage.

Weakness: Fire (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 3


Torterra – Grass – HP190
Stage 2  – Evolves from Grotle

[G][C] Evopress: 50x damage. This attack does 50 damage for each of your Evolution Pokemon in play.

[G][C][C][C] Hammer In: 160 damage.

Weakness: Fire (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 4


Shaymin V – Grass – HP190
Basic Pokemon

[G] Wing Flap: 30 damage.

[G][C] Revenge Burst: 60+ damage. This attack does 40 more damage for each Prize card your opponent has already taken.

When your Pokemon V is Knocked Out, your opponent takes 2 Prize cards.

Weakness: Fire (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Shaymin VSTAR – Grass – HP250
VSTAR – Evolves from Shaymin V

[G][C] Revenge Burst: 120+ damage. This attack does 40 more damage for each Prize card your opponent has already taken.

Ability (VSTAR Power): Star Bloom
You may use this Ability during your turn. Heal 120 damage from each of your Benched [G] Pokemon. (You can’t use more than 1 VSTAR Power in a game.)

When your Pokemon VSTAR is Knocked Out, your opponent takes 2 Prize cards.

Weakness: Fire (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Chimchar – Fire – HP50
Basic Pokemon

[R] Ember: 30 damage. Discard an Energy from this Pokemon.

Weakness: Water (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Monferno – Fire – HP80
Stage 1 – Evolves from Chimchar

[R] Flame: 30 damage.

[R][C] Flamethrower: 50 damage. Discard an Energy from this Pokemon.

Weakness: Water (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Infernape – Fire – HP150
Stage 2 – Evolves from Monferno

[R] Fire Vortex: 80x damage. Reveal the top 5 cards of your deck. This attack does 80 damage for each Energy card revealed in this way. Then discard those Energy cards and shuffle the other cards back into your deck.

[R][C] Burning Kick: 160 damage. Discard all Energy from this Pokemon.

Weakness: Water (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Piplup – Water – HP60
Basic Pokemon

[W] Bubble: 10 damage. Flip a coin. If heads, your opponent’s Active Pokemon is now Paralyzed.

Weakness: Lightning (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Prinplup – Water – HP90
Stage 1 – Evolves from Prinplup

[W] Peck: 30 damage.

Weakness: Lightning (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Empoleon – Water – HP160
Stage 2 – Evolves from Prinplup

Ability: Emergency Ascent
Once during your turn, if this card is in your discard pile and you have no cards in your hand, you can play this card onto your Bench then draw 3 cards.

[W] Water Arrow: This attack does 60 damage to 1 of your opponent’s Pokemon (don’t apply Weakness and Resistance).

Weakness: Lightning (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 2


Lumineon V – Water – HP170
Basic Pokemon

Ability: Luminous Sign
When you play this Pokemon from your hand onto your Bench during your turn, you may search your deck for a Supporter card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then, shuffle your deck.

[W][C][C] Aqua Return: 120 damage. Shuffle this Pokemon and all cards attached into your deck.

When your Pokemon V is Knocked Out, your opponent takes 2 Prize cards.

Weakness: Lightning (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 1


Cynthia’s Aspiration – Trainer
Supporter

Draw cards until you have 5 cards in your hand. If any of your Pokemon were Knocked Out during your opponent’s last turn, draw until you have 8 cards instead.

You may play only 1 Supporter card during your turn.

It is workable in any Water deck that runs Frosmoth or Melony. Lapras VMax is going to love Lumineon V's attack.
 
I don't think that's their thought process when they design the cards. If they didn't want a card to be expensive, they would just put it in a promo box or something.
And they way they've been doing lately, they may yet.
 
I feel like people are missing the forest for the trees here. Tapu Lele was much stronger in a far slower format where two Energy Drive attacks would be enough to 2HKO most targets, and Lumineon's attack is only there to allow for its ability to be re-used or remove it as a gust target. If your deck already has the chance to use its attack, only do so if it's actually going to help you achieve your win condition. As fun as hit & run decks are, there's too many moving pieces here and the format is too fast. The selling point is obviously the fact that Wonder Tag is back.

It is also fairly obvious that this competes in both bench space and deckspace with Inteleon. I wonder if this + Mew will become the new consistency engine - much more splashable, Mew searches items while Lumineon searches supporters - that doesn't use up as much deckspace as Inteleon does, at the cost of not searching what you want on demand. The fact that Ultra Ball is back also massively helps as it's an additional search alongside Quick Ball.
 
Never said it wouldn't, just that now there's the option to consistently search for supporters while not using Shady Dealings. Not being able to search supporters was Mew's main drawback, but now you can fit Lumineon in your deck instead of the 4 Pokegears you were likely using if playing Mew.
 
So Lumineon, Charizard and Whimsicott all get Vs, and even Vstars, instead of the Sinnoh starters? They genuinely do not care about any starter other than charizard. If you don't believe me, the last Infernape card was printed in Forbidden Light. Besides that the Empoleon seems really cool.
 
Calm down. Star Birth is the "Legends" promotion set, hence Arceus being the star of the set. The Sinnoh Starters already have their baby forms here, and they all are viable to some extent, so they are already in mind for Creatures. The japanese march sets are Space Juggler and Time Gazer, so they just moved their schedule around. We will probably see the V starters and Dialga/Palkia V in those sets.

The only shame in all this is that VMAX seems to have been already discarded, and we never got to see Melmetal, Machamp and Hatterene VMAX. Their best hope is getting a VStar that references their Gigantamax formes now...
 
So Lumineon, Charizard and Whimsicott all get Vs, and even Vstars, instead of the Sinnoh starters? They genuinely do not care about any starter other than charizard. If you don't believe me, the last Infernape card was printed in Forbidden Light. Besides that the Empoleon seems really cool.
Well Empoleon was one of the first alternate arts at least.

And Lumineon is part of Gen 4. Whimsicott is the weird one.

They weren't going to give the starters Vs because then the two pre-evos wouldn't be needed in the set.

Serperior and Chesnaught I think are still in XY lol.
 
Well Empoleon was one of the first alternate arts at least.

And Lumineon is part of Gen 4. Whimsicott is the weird one.

They weren't going to give the starters Vs because then the two pre-evos wouldn't be needed in the set.

Serperior and Chesnaught I think are still in XY lol.
Chesnaught makes sense as to why he's not been printer since XY but, like... Serperior is one or the most popular gen 5 Pokemon? At least it seems like it due to how much gen 5 fans use it. Poor guy, he just wanted to be a regal snake but Megas and the TCG said no :(
 
Lumineon V - What's better than Tapu Lele is in Expanded we have Dive Ball. (C'mon, I know P has Fog Crystal, I get it.) In Standard.... Ultra Ball will do. 5 Geodudes. Pretty weird thst this ability was reprinted on a forgotten Pokemon.

Turtwig/Grotle/Torterra - Ehh?! Not impressed. 3/3/3

Chimchar/Monferno/Infernape - Fire types has weak energy accel. We only have Magma Basin and Kindler and that's it. Plus, common stage 2 issue, you know what it is. 3/3/4

Piplup/Monferno/Empoleon - draw card, way to snipe Sobbles (cries in Sobble), techable card. 3/3/5

Cynthia's Aspiration - Compare this to Bruno. 4
 
Calm down. Star Birth is the "Legends" promotion set, hence Arceus being the star of the set. The Sinnoh Starters already have their baby forms here, and they all are viable to some extent, so they are already in mind for Creatures. The japanese march sets are Space Juggler and Time Gazer, so they just moved their schedule around. We will probably see the V starters and Dialga/Palkia V in those sets.

The only shame in all this is that VMAX seems to have been already discarded, and we never got to see Melmetal, Machamp and Hatterene VMAX. Their best hope is getting a VStar that references their Gigantamax formes now...

They really should have given Hatterene and Machamp ones so that Bea & Bede could get their eventual CHR with VMAX arts in. No idea why they always do this.

Melmetal could've replaced Aggron that just released.
 
I feel like the only reason we didn't get Machamp VMAX was because they didn't want anything to possibly steal the Urshifu's thunder post-Battle Styles. Something similar can be said about Hatterene possibly stepping on the toes of Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX. Melmetal is the only one that I can't find a good reason for its absence. Melmetal had a card back in Darkness Ablaze, so what stopped them from simply printing it as a promo VMAX? No idea