Dark Vaporeon

Numbered 45 of 83 in Team Rocket, released in April 2000, Dark Vaporeon is an Uncommon, a Stage 1 Water-type carrying 60 HP.

It evolves from Eevee, so Dark Vaporeon is a later-stage card that set-builders usually slot into a full evolution run rather than buy alone.

Team Rocket darkened Vaporeon under its control for the set's villain arc, a grittier repaint of the familiar Pokémon with an altered attack profile.

Illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita. Arita painted the Base Set Charizard and much of the early holo run, and his work has a painterly weight that set the visual tone of the Wizards era.

Dark Vaporeon carries this Pokédex flavor text: "A Pokémon capable of controlling water, so it is capable of creating giant whirlpools."

The Water Eeveelution. Aquatic, mermaid-like silhouette. Jungle holo Vaporeon is one of the three Eeveelution chase cards in the set. Strong collector demand.

Dark Vaporeon is an Uncommon, so raw copies are inexpensive and easy to find. The value is in condition: a genuine PSA 10, especially 1st Edition, can still reach a surprising figure for an otherwise common card. The live price above breaks it down by grade.

Team Rocket shipped in 1st Edition and Unlimited, with no Shadowless print. The 1st Edition Dark Vaporeon carries the Edition 1 stamp under the artwork and trades above the Unlimited copy in matching grade. The set is also home to Dark Raichu, the first Secret Rare ever printed.

Dark Vaporeon grades forgivingly, but the same centering and edge standards apply. Pack-fresh raw copies are easy to find, which makes a clean PSA 10 submission a low-cost way to learn how the cardstock behaves under grading.

Raw copies of Dark Vaporeon are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Dark Vaporeon is the practical move.