Help If you buy online. Where do you buy?

Justin Lamont

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Obviously tcgplayer is the king of most card game purchases. But is there anywhere else on the net I can look for Pokémon cards? Was thinking about buying into a Turbo Dark deck soon and need 4 dark patches. Tcgplayer doesn’t seem to have a ton of options for that card. Can I buy it somewhere else?
 

Vom

livin' in a lonely world
Forum Mod
Member
If tcgplayer doesn't have a card I want, my best bet would be eBay since my local stores don't have a very large stock. You could also try Troll and Toad or Collector's Cache, though I've heard both good and bad things on different occasions for both of them.
 

Scoop

Literally a sheep
Member
Just about what @Vom said. A few added points:

T&T usually isn't bad, but sometimes when you order a Near Mint card you'll get Lightly Played instead, and vice-versa. It's a bit of a gamble sometimes. They're usually a bit higher-priced than everyone else, but you can get what you need (just make sure you're paying about the right price for what you need, some of the merchants they now have on there are wack with their prices). Never dealt with Collector's Cache though, so I wouldn't know much on that.
 

Justin Lamont

Aspiring Trainer
Member
If tcgplayer doesn't have a card I want, my best bet would be eBay since my local stores don't have a very large stock. You could also try Troll and Toad or Collector's Cache, though I've heard both good and bad things on different occasions for both of them.
Thanks for the advice. Do we ever fear older cards like Dark Patch could be incredibly scarce at one point even though it’s still very relevant in expanded?
 

Vom

livin' in a lonely world
Forum Mod
Member
Thanks for the advice. Do we ever fear older cards like Dark Patch could be incredibly scarce at one point even though it’s still very relevant in expanded?
Not really, actually. If anything I'd be more worried about the more obscure stuff–very niche cards that people don't think to put up for sale. Although they are certainly harder to get than newer cards, cards from the best decks of the DPPT era are still very much available and not overly expensive, and those came out many years ago.

If you're worried about it for competitive reasons, I think it will stay relevant as long as it remains legal, and if it's relevant, someone is bound to put it up for sale at some point, unless it reaches Tropical Beach levels of rarity (which...I doubt). If you're worried for collecting reasons, the Expanded format is bound to rotate at some point, and an influx of older cards should flood the market soon after the announcement, increasing the supply substantially and therefore reducing the prize.

TL;DR: don't feel like you have to rush to buy older cards like that unless you have an event coming up. Even if the card gets scarce, the price won't go up that much unless it's something like a Charizard.
 

Justin Lamont

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Not really, actually. If anything I'd be more worried about the more obscure stuff–very niche cards that people don't think to put up for sale. Although they are certainly harder to get than newer cards, cards from the best decks of the DPPT era are still very much available and not overly expensive, and those came out many years ago.

If you're worried about it for competitive reasons, I think it will stay relevant as long as it remains legal, and if it's relevant, someone is bound to put it up for sale at some point, unless it reaches Tropical Beach levels of rarity (which...I doubt). If you're worried for collecting reasons, the Expanded format is bound to rotate at some point, and an influx of older cards should flood the market soon after the announcement, increasing the supply substantially and therefore reducing the prize.

TL;DR: don't feel like you have to rush to buy older cards like that unless you have an event coming up. Even if the card gets scarce, the price won't go up that much unless it's something like a Charizard.
Yeah it’s for competitive play. Really wanna build Turbo Dark but don’t wanna buy it just yet unless I can find a shop I can get to regularly that holds expanded tournaments. Nothing but standard around me unless I wanna go for a drive
 

Vom

livin' in a lonely world
Forum Mod
Member
Yeah it’s for competitive play. Really wanna build Turbo Dark but don’t wanna buy it just yet unless I can find a shop I can get to regularly that holds expanded tournaments. Nothing but standard around me unless I wanna go for a drive
Oh, yeah in that case I'd just hold off until there is foreseeable need because of shipping delays and whatnot.
 

WaterTrainer

Water types, unite!
Member
I usually buy from TCGPlayer or eBay. Amazon is a mixed bag; I've gotten cards in a short amount of time, but there's also the risk that a card might not arrive until nearly a month later.
 
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