Cosmic Eclipse Player's Guide (TCG)

The Cosmic Eclipse Player's Guide is a booklet included within the detailing the expansion of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. The booklet is written by Wolfgang Baur and was published by The Pokémon Company International in 2019. The content features strategy for the new cards introduced within the Cosmic Eclipse expansion as well as a complete checklist for the expansion.
==Contents==
===Welcome to the Pokémon TCG: Cosmic Eclipse Elite Trainer Box!===
This Elite Trainer Box contains a great combination of boosters, Energy cards, dice, card sleeves, and extras—congrats on stepping up your game to the Elite level. The Pokémon Trading Card Game: Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse expansion adds more than 230 cards to the Pokémon TCG, expands the options for all types of Pokémon—and features new TAG TEAM cards as well, including TAG TEAM Supporter cards that combine two Trainers on a single card for maximum effect!
Train hard, choose your Pokémon companions, and take the journey of an Elite Trainer!
===New TAG TEAM Pokémon-GX!===
This expansion includes nine new TAG TEAM Pokémon-GX. Each features multiple Pokémon working together, and eack follows the GX style of big HP, big powers, and one big GX attack! These cards are all subject to the TAG TEAM rule, which says that if your TAG TEAM is ever Knocked Out, your opponent takes 3 Prize cards—so all that team-up power does have a bit of risk to it!
:Venusaur & Snivy-GX has 270 HP and the Shining Vine Ability, which lets you pull 1 of your opponent's Pokémon up off the Bench when you attach a Energy to Venusaur & Snivy-GX. This TAG TEAM must be your Active Pokémon for its ability to work, but wow! It can be a game changer to pull out a little Pokémon without any Energy attached—and send your opponent's big bruiser TAG TEAM back to the locker room! In addition, the Forest Dump attack sounds kind of straightforward, and it is! For , you do 160 damage. Finally, Solar Plant-GX costs and does 50 damage to each of your opponent's Pokémon. As we've seen in previous expansions, each TAG TEAM's GX attack comes with a special team bonus—most of them get better with extra Energy attached. So to get a bit more oomph out of this attack, attach 2 extra Energy (of any type), and then heal all damage from all of your Pokémon! Get ready for your big comeback!
:Charizard & Braixen-GX is a TAG TEAM with 270 HP and great power at a cost! The Brilliant Flare attack requires for 180 damage, and it also lets you search your deck for any 3 cards! Fantastic for a late-game combo deck—you just pull all the parts of your combo at once. The Crimson Flame Pillar-GX attack costs and lets you instantly refuel—grab 5 basic Energy cards from your discard pile and attach them to your Pokémon however you like. If this TAG TEAM has any extra Energy attached, your opponent's Active Pokémon is also Burned and Confused. That's great for refueling your deck while leaving your opponent struggling to respond to the sudden conflagration!
:Blastoise & Piplup-GX also has 270 HP, plus the useful Splash Maker attack that for does 150 damage and attaches up to 3 Energy cards from your hand to your Pokémon however you like. Those Pokémon might as well be using Super Potions, because for each Energy you attach to them in this way, you get to heal 50 damage from them. What a great way to refresh and restore and get ready to attack! In addition, this TAG TEAM has the Bubble Launcher-GX attack for . It does 100 damage and leaves the opposing Pokémon Paralyzed, but if you have attached at least 3 more Energy to Blastoise & Piplup-GX, the attack does 250 damage instead of 100. That's the kind of big wave that Knocks Out almost any opposing Pokémon!
:Solgaleo & Lunala-GX is a Psychic type with the Cosmic Burn attack for , delivering 230 damage but leaving the TAG TEAM unable to use the attack on the following turn (so be ready to retreat or have a backup plan!). In addition, it has the Light of the Protector-GX attack that does 200 damage for . This is an unusual GX attack, because in order to get the team bonus, this TAG TEAM has to partner up with a Trainer card. If you play Lillie's Full Force from your hand the same turn you use this GX attack, all your Pokémon become immune to all effects of attacks during your opponent's next turn. Yes, that includes damage!
:Togepi & Cleffa & Igglybuff-GX is a three-Pokémon TAG TEAM and an amazingly good time for those who like tricks and impossible combos. Its 240 HP is respectable, and the 120 damage from Rolling Panic is OK for , especially if you add 30, 60, or more by flipping heads. But the real joy of this TAG TEAM is its Supreme Puff-GX attack for , which lets you take an extra turn—that's pretty cool on its own. However, if you have (SOMEHOW) managed to attach 14 additional Energy to this Pokémon—that's 16 Energy total!—then your opponent must shuffle all their Benched Pokémon back into their deck, along with all cards attached to them. That's...probably never going to happen in a tournament game, but with Pokémon, we should never say never! An amazing GX attack that's just so unlikely! We'll dream about pulling this off with a trick deck. Somehow.
:Arceus & Dialga & Palkia-GX is a nore serious and dangerous contender, befitting the Alpha Pokémon and the Legendary Pokémon of time and space. This Dragon-type TAG TEAM has 280 HP and the Ultimate Ray attack that costs , does 150 damage, and lets your search your deck for up to 3 basic Energy cards and attach them anywhere you like. A huge power boost, for sure! Altered Creation-GX is another story entirely. For just , it boosts all your Pokémon's attacks by 30 damage for the rest of the game! And if there's an extra Energy attached for the team bonus, then you take an extra Prize card every time you Knock Out your opponent's Active Pokémon with those boosted attacks. This seems very much like something we want in our tournament decks—and our collection!
:Reshiram & Zekrom-GX provides a different take on Dragon-type awesomeness, but with undeniable appeal of its own. Its Fabled Firebolts attack puts down 90 damage for each basic or Energy you discard from any of your Benched Pokémon (up to 3 discards). The Cross Break-GX attack is a stunner—for , you do 170 damage to a Benched Pokémon. And like Solgaleo & Lunala-GX, this Legendary pair must call upon their favourite Trainer to activate the team bonus: If you played N's Resolve the same turn, the GX attack also does 170 damage to a second Benched Pokémon. it's a great way to Knock Out both big and little Pokémon before your opponent has a chance to evolve them—and it could be a great way to end an opponent's game for good!
:Naganadel & Guzzlord-GX is one of those rare Ultra Beast TAG TEAM cards. It has 280 HP and the Violent Appetite Ability, which lets you discard any Pokémon from your hand to heal itself for 60 damage. Not only is it big, but it can also continue to be healed as long as you have Pokémon to discard! In addition, it has the Jet Pierce attack that does 180 damage for , as well as the Chaotic Order-GX attack for . This one takes some explaining: You turn all your Prize Cards face up and leave them that way for the rest of the game. Even better, if Naganadel & Guzzlord-GX has at least 1 extra and 1 extra Energy attached (which it probably still does, if you've used Jet Pierce), you get to TAKE 2 PRIZE CARDS! This is a huge, game-ending move that doesn't require a Knock Out or anything else. If you just need two more Prize cards, then this team can deliver the win to you, all wrapped up in ribbons and bows! Ultra Beasts are amazing that way—and so generous with Prizes!
:Mega Lopunny & Jigglypuff-GX! SQUEE! Ahem, OK, first of all, let's just be clear that this is among the cutest TAG TEAM pairs we've ever seen. It's just a fact. In addition, this TAG TEAM has the Jumping Balloon attack for that does 60 damage plus 60 more for every Pokémon-GX and Pokémon-EX your opponent has in play. If you're facing a Bench full of tough Pokémon, this could easily be 180, 240, or even 300 damage! Their Puffy Smashers-GX attack is a different thing entirely. For , your opponent's Active Pokémon falls Asleep, and if you have 4 extra Energy attached, you do 200 damage to a Benched Pokémon as well. This might be a cute set of fluffy Pokémon—but they've definitely got enough special moves to leave the competition counting stars!
===More New TAG TEAM Cards—But They're Not Pokémon!===
That's nine TAG TEAM Pokémon-GX, and we're not done yet, because Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse introduces TAG TEAM Supporter cards. These cards combine two Trainers into one powerful card that's perfect for keeping the momentum on your side. Each one comes with a team bonus that you can activate by discarding other cards from your hand when you play it. Let's look at some of these and see what all the excitement is about!
:Bellelba & Brycen-Man is a discard dream. When you play it, both players discard 3 cards from the top of their decks. If you also discard 3 cards from your hand, then each player must trin their Bench down to just 3 Benched Pokémon! Your opponent discards first!
:Cynthia & Caitlyn is a TAG TEAM that understands the value of recycling. When you play it, you take a Supporter card from the discard pile and add it to your hand. If you discard another card when you play Cynthia & Caitlyn, you can draw 3 cards as well. Just remember, you can't use this card to get itself (or your extra discard) back!
:Guzma & Hala clearly love Stadium cards, because when you play this card, you can search for one in your deck. If you discard 2 other cards from your hand, you can also grab a Pokémon Tool and a Special Energy card while you're searching your deck. Keep your game moving right along!
:Mallow & Lana is a Switch card with an option to do more. Swapping your Active Pokémon out for a Benched Pokémon is super useful and often a game changer. If you like, you can also discard 2 other cards from your hand to heal 120 damage from the Pokémon you just moved to the Bench. It's like taking it out of the heat of battle and straight to the Pokémon Center!
:Misty & Lorelei work together to search your deck for 3 Energy cards and put them into your hand. But if you discard 5 more cards, you can use a Pokémon's GX attack this turn—even if you've already used up your GX attack for the game. Your opponent may be a bit taken aback and demand to read this card, but it's totally true: more than one GX attack in a game! Possibly as many as three or more!
:Red & Blue team up to let you search for your big Pokémon. You can search for a Pokémon-GX that evolves from 1 of your Pokémon and evolve it right away (under the normal Evolution timing rules, that is). If you discard 2 other cards, you can search up 2 basic Energy cards, and attach them to the Pokémon you just evolved. You go from scrawny Basic to powered-up battler, just like that! That's the power of a TAG TEAM Supporter for you.
===Big Moves with New Pokémon-GX!===
OK, TAG TEAM cards are terrific, but let's not forget that Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse'also delivers an incredible set of seven solo Pokémon-GX ready to shake up the game with power moves. Here's an overview of some familiar Pokémon with amped-up new looks, including both Basic Pokémon and Evolution Pokémon!
:Vileplume-GX is a Stage 2 Pokémon with 240 HP and the Fragrant Flower Garden Ability. That means when Vileplume-GX is around, you can heal 30 damage from each of your Pokémon every turn. This definitely makes it tougher for your opponent to get a Knock Out! The Massive Bloom attack for does 180 damage if Vileplume-GX is at full health, but each damage counter on it reduces that number by 10—damage definitely makes this Pokémon wilt! Finally, Allergic Explosion-GX costs just for 50 damage, and it leaves the opposing Pokémon Burned, Paralyzed, and Poisoned. This Grass type packs a big pollen punch!
:Volcarona-GX is a Stage 1 Pokémon with 210 HP and the Flaming Shot Ability, which lets you discard a Energy card from your hand to put 2 damage counters on any opposing Pokémon once per turn. Sometimes that's all you need, right? In addition, the Backfire attack costs for 160 damage and puts 2 Energy attached to Volcarona-GX back into your hand. Hmm, what could you use that for—maybe a Flaming Shot activation next turn? Finally, Massive Heat Wave-GX costs and lets you discard an Energy from each of your opponent's Pokémon! Nice way to give their whole team heat exhaustion!
:Wishiwashi-GX is a Basic Pokémon with a modest 130 HP and a love of crowds. Its School Storm attack for does 20 damage for each Wishiwashi and Wishiwashi-GX you have in play. Not much if it's on its own, but fill a Bench and it's another story! For , its Massive Catch-GX attack lets you look at the top 12 cards of your deck and put as many Basic Pokémon as you like onto your Bench. That seems like a great way to, just for example, power up your School Storm from "not much" to "WOW!"
:Oricorio-GX is a Basic Pokémon with 170 HP and the Dance of Tribute Ability that honors the fallen. Once a turn, this ability lets you draw 3 cards if any of your Pokémon were Knocked Out the turn before. You can't combine the Abilities from multiple Oricorio-GX, though; just one dancer rules the roost each turn. In addition, for , Oricorio-GX can use the Razor Wing attack for 80 damage, or the Strafe-GX attack for 100 damage and a fly-away trick that switches Oricorio-GX with one of your Benched Pokémon.
:Flygon-GX is a Stage 2 Pokémon with 240 HP and the Dusty Defense Ability. So long as Flygon-GX is your Active Pokémon, this defense protects your whole team, cutting downall your opponent's attacks by 30 damage. Its Desert Hurricane attack for does 120 damage, or 240 damage if there's a Stadium card in play. (It also discards the Stadium, so use that Hurricane with care!) Finally, the Sonic Edge-GX attack does 220 damage for , and that damage is unaffected by any effects on the opposing Active Pokémon. Sonic Edge just doesn't miss, so Flygon damage is reliable damage!
:Alolan Persian-GX is a Stage 1 Pokémon with 200 HP and an attitude! Let's start with the Smug Face Ability, which prevents all effects of attacks, including damage, done by your opponent's TAG TEAM Pokémon and Ultra Beasts—and any opposing Pokémon with Special Energy attached. Given how many decks rely on Special Energy, this is a potentially a wide range of Pokémon that just can't touch Alolan Persian-GX. Reason to be smug, for sure! In addition, the Claw Slash attack does 120 damage for , and Stalking Claws-GX costs and does 120 damage to 1 opposing Pokémon (Benched or Active, doesn't matter). Better yet, that GX attack does not care at all about Weakness, Resistance, or any other effect on the opposing Pokémon—if it has 120 HP or less remaining, you get the Knock Out and the Prize card!
:Silvally-GX is a Stage 1 Pokémon with 210 HP. Its Disk Reload Ability means you'll never find yourself low on cards; once per turn, you may draw until you have 5 cards in hand. The Brave Buddies attack for does 50 damage, or 120 if you played a Supporter card from your hand this turn. (Conveniently, you probably already have a full hand of cards!) The Silver Knight-GX attack for is super clear and useful: If the opponent's Active Pokémon is an Ultra Beast, this is an instant Knock Out! Nice way to snag an easy Prize card...or two...or three! (Look out, Naganadel & Guzzlord-GX!)
===Terrific Combos!===
The Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse expansion has some great combinations, both with cards from earlier expansions and within the new set itself! Here are some big moves you could pull off with a little planning—and a little luck!
:Time to Get Buzzy
Buzzwole's Beast Boost Ability makes its attacks do 20 more damage for each Prize card you've already taken, so you do 20 more after 1 Prize card, 40 more with 2 Prize cards, and so on. That's great, but why not double down with Beastite, which adds 10 more damage for each Prize card you've taken? The Touchdown attack can go from 60 damage to 210 damage if you've taken 5 Prize cards!
:Cheerful Power of Eevee
Vaporeon, Flareon, and Jolteon all have a Cheer Ability to support your Pokémon-GX that evolve from Eevee—increasing their damage or HP, or reducing their attack cost. That means your Flareon-GX, Vaporeon-GX, Jolteon-GX, Leafeon-GX, and all the rest can benefit from these great Abilities. Powering up a Pokémon-GX even further is always a good idea—and while you can't "stack" multiple copies of the same Ability, all three of these Cheers do work together! Rah, rah, rah!
:School 'Em with Wishiwashi
Wishiwashi-GX's School Storm attack does 20 damage from each of your Wishiwashi and Wishiwashi-GX in play, but it only has a meager 130 HP. But if you can get 4 Wishiwashi from the Dragon Majesty expansion into play, their Meet Up Abilities will combine to give your Wishiwashi-GX +80 HP and add an extra 80 damage to School Storm. Go figure—Wishiwashi work better in large groups!
:Disappearing Little Dolls
Use Clefairy's Doll Swap attack to do 60 damage and leave a Lillie's Poké Doll decoy in its place. Your Clefairy is safe in your hand, and if your opponent Knocks Out Lillie's Poké Doll, they won't get a Prize Card for it!
:Magnetic Surge Switcheroo
Use Magneton's Call Signal Ability to search your deck for 3 Supporter cards and put them into your hand—strong move! This means Magneton will get Knocked Out, but you can make this work in your favor—because if that Knock Out means you now have more Prize cards remaining than your opponent, you can play Lt. Surge's Strategy along with some of the Supporter Cards you just grabbed. Just think of the possibilities!
:Cough, Wheeze, BOOM
Use Roxie to discard Koffing and/or Weezing from your hand. When you do, you can use the Blow-Away Bomb Ability, which puts 1 damage counter on each of your opponent's Pokémon. Plus, you get the benefit of Roxie's "discard 1 to draw 3" effect!
:Sunne & Moone
When you have Solgaleo in play, Lunala's Blessing of the Moone Ability allows you to search your deck for 2 Energy cards and attach them to your Solgaleo or Lunala. And this combo gets even better, because if you have Lunala in play, Solgaleo's Armor of the Sunne Ability makes your Solgaleo and Lunala take 50 less damage from opposing attacks. Two Legendary Pokémon working together for a total eclipse of your opponent!
:Steelix ♥ Poké Maniac
This one takes a tiny bit of preparation, but it pays off. Use Poké Maniac to search for 3 Pokémon with a retreat cost of exactly 4. Then drop them right onto your opponent's Active Pokémon with Steelix's Thumping Fall attack—that's 150 damage!
===Top Trainer Cards!===
The Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse expansion offers a few great Trainer cards with tricks and tactics and ways to turn a losing game into a clear win! These are five of our favourite Trainer cards from the set, both for power decks and for fun.
:Dragonium Z: Dragon Claw
Wouldn't it be nice if every Pokémon had a GX attack? Dragonium Z makes that dream a reality, at least for some Pokémon. If your Pokémon has the Dragon Claw attack, this Pokémon Tool upgrades it to Destructive drake-GX, doing 80 damage for each basic Energy card you discard!
:Great Catcher
This requires aa 2-card discard, but it's completely worth it! Drag your opponent's Pokémon-GX off the Bench and into the battle before it's ready, and put their bigger, most capable Pokémon on the back burner. This may become a tournament staple to knock Pokémon-GX down to size and take double Prize cards!
:Professor Oak's Setup
The famous Pokémon Professor of Pallet Town is happy to get your Bench in order, diving into your deck to fish out 3 Basic Pokémon of different types. Of course, this is Professor Oak we're talking about, and he's always ready to wrangle even the biggest Pokémon...which means he can search up Basic Pokémon-GX for you, too!
:Rosa
If 1 of your Pokémon was Knocked Out during your opponent's last turn, you get to search your deck for a Pokémon, a Trainer Card, and a basic Energy card. For example, you could grab a Stage 2 Pokémon and a Rare Candy at the same time, along with a basic Energy to attach for the turn!
:Tag Call
Search your deck for up to 2 TAG TEAM cards—and that can include Pokémon-GX or the new TAG TEAM Supporter cards! Teams are power cards, and being able to find them when you want them is a smart play.
===Pokémon TCG: Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse Card List===
This section lists out the 236 cards of the Cosmic Eclipse expansion, and their rarities, in addition to the Rare Secret and Rare Rainbow cards of the set. 
===Credits===
====Original Japanese Game====
* Executive Producer: Tsunekazu Ishihara
* Producer: Yuji Kitano
* Original Game Design: Tsunekazu Ishihara, Kouichi Ooyama, and Takumi Akabane
* Game Development: Creatures Inc.
* Game Director: Atsushi Nagashima
* Art Direction: Kenshi Koga
* Special Thanks To: Satoshi Tajiri, Ken Sugimori, Junichi Masuda, Takao Unno, GAME FREAK inc., and Milky Isobe
====English-Language Version====
The Pokémon Company International
* Producer: Kenji Okubo
* Director of Production: Richard Simpson
* Product Development: Yasuhiro Usui, Jim Lin, and Doug Ferguson
* Production Coordination: Russ Foster, Jay Moon, Doug Storms, David Hoskinson, and Ross Garrett
* Game Development: Dylan "ExoByte" Mayo, Kyle Sucevich, Nik Davidson, and Paul Peterson
* Project Coordination: Mikiko Ryu, Yoshi Uemura, Noriko Tseng, Jen McNulty, and Ryan Stofer
* Translation: Ben Regal, Bryson Clark, and Satoko Deas
* Theme Deck Development: Kyle Sucevich
* Elite Trainer Box Booklet Writing: Wolfgang Baur
* Rulebook Writing: TPCi Editing Staff and Kyle Sucevich
* Editing Coordination: Anja Weinbach
* Editing: Hollie Beg, Wolfgang Baur, and Holly Bowen
* Design Direction: Chriis Franc
* Graphic Design (Creative): Doug Wohlfeil, Adam Law, Kumi Okada, Cara Weiss, Anupa Patel, Huy Cao, and Kevin Fish
* Graphic Design (Card Localization): Ginny Baldwin
* Graphic Design (Logos): Cara Weiss and Adam Law
* Booster Pack Illustrations: Mitsuhiro Arita
* Theme Deck Illustrations: Ryota Murayama
* Special Thanks To: Creatures Inc., The Pokémon Company, and The Pokémon Company International
===Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse Showcase!===
There's more to Sun & Moon—Cosmic Eclipse than the booster packs. Check out the theme decks, ready to play right out of the box!
:Towering Heights Theme Deck
::Take the High Ground!
The Legendary Groudon is ready to smash foes, with Garchomp at its side! Use Seismitoad's Bulldoze Ability for power searches, and call on Lady for extra Energy and Throh for big attacks. Strike from above with the Towering Heights theme deck!
:Unseen Depths Theme Deck
::Dive Deep and Strike from Below!
Call the swirling waves with Kyogre, a Legendary Pokémon of the ocean. Use Empoleon's powerful Recall to strike from the sea, and spin opponents around with Phione's Whirlpool Suction. Command the surf and roll on to victory with the Unseen Depths theme deck!
Category:Pokémon Trading Card Game publications