Sun & Moon Era Guide: GX Cards and the Alola Region

The Sun & Moon era (2017 to 2019) brought the Alola region to the TCG and introduced two card types collectors still adore: GX cards and the dazzling rainbow rares.

GX cards take center stage

Pokémon-GX cards offered powerful one-time GX attacks and came in standard, Full Art, and secret rare versions. The Full Art and rainbow rare GX cards became the era's most desirable pulls.

Rainbow rares and beyond

The era popularized the rainbow rare — a hyper rare with a pastel, textured finish — along with gold secret rares. These cards are visually striking and remain popular targets for collectors chasing complete master sets.

Sets in the era

Sun & Moon includes the base set, Guardians Rising, Burning Shadows, Crimson Invasion, Ultra Prism, Forbidden Light, Celestial Storm, Lost Thunder, Team Up, Unbroken Bonds, Unified Minds, Cosmic Eclipse, and the Hidden Fates and Shining Legends specials.

Condition notes

Textured rainbow and Full Art cards can show surface scuffing and edge wear, so inspect them closely even though they are modern. Centering still matters for top grades.

Chase the rainbow

Rainbow rare GX cards are some of the most fun cards to collect and look superb in a high grade. Scan them in Cardemon to confirm the exact card and variant and to estimate condition before grading. The app makes building a Sun & Moon master set far easier to manage.