What you need to know
  • Release date: May 22, 2026 (global retail). Build & Battle Box pre-release: from May 9.
  • Set size: 120+ cards including 20+ Trainers and 35+ Special Illustration Rares.
  • Headline Megas: Mega Greninja ex, Mega Pyroar ex, Mega Floette ex, Mega Dragalge ex. League Battle Deck: Mega Lucario ex. Premium Collection: Mega Zygarde ex.
  • Retailer promo: Spend $15+ on any Pokemon TCG product = one of Ho-Oh, Keldeo or Delphox promo cards (random).
  • Where to buy in Europe: Cardmarket for singles after release; major hobby chains for sealed; Pokemon Center EU online for the Premium Collection direct.

Chaos Rising is the next expansion in the Pokemon TCG Mega Evolution era, dropping globally on May 22, 2026. The set leans hard into the Mega ex mechanic introduced earlier in the year and brings four new Mega Evolutions to print: Greninja, Pyroar, Floette and Dragalge. For competitive players, the League Battle Deck featuring Mega Lucario ex makes it onto the meta radar from day one. For collectors, the Special Illustration Rares — over 35 of them — are where this set's long-term value will land. This guide is the practical walkthrough of every product, every chase card, and how to actually get the free retailer promos when they drop.

Track Mega Evolution chase cards across eBay, Cardmarket, TCGPlayer and Vinted in real time. Separate raw vs PSA 10 prices so you know when to grade. Try CardPulse free →

When Does Mega Evolution—Chaos Rising Release?

The expansion releases globally on May 22, 2026. Pre-release events with Build & Battle Boxes begin May 9, 2026 at participating local game stores — these are the earliest legal way to play with Chaos Rising cards and the cheapest way to get a small set of Mega Evolution era cards. Build & Battle Box contents include four 10-card booster packs, a 40-card prerelease deck, and one of four foil prerelease promo cards.

All Mega ex Cards in Chaos Rising

Four new Mega Evolutions debut in this set, each headline Special Illustration Rare card the chase of its respective package:

  • Mega Greninja ex — the Water-type flagship. Expected to be the most-pulled Mega card overall.
  • Mega Pyroar ex — Fire-type Mega Evolution. Distinctive male/female form artwork.
  • Mega Floette ex — Fairy-type Mega. Aesthetically the most photographed card of the set in pre-release leaks.
  • Mega Dragalge ex — Dragon/Poison-type. Lowest-print Mega in the set, likely the highest secondary-market premium.

Each Mega ex prints in standard rare, holo, full-art, and Special Illustration Rare versions, plus parallels (Hyper Rare gold etched on select cards). The Special Illustration Rare of Mega Dragalge ex is the secondary-market headline.

League Battle Deck: Mega Lucario ex

Released alongside the main set, the Mega Lucario ex League Battle Deck is a 60-card competition-ready Standard format deck. It includes a foil version of Mega Lucario ex, supporting cards optimized for tournament play, six damage counter dice, condition markers and a 60-card sleeve set. Retail price: $24.99 in the US, €24.99 in Europe. For competitive players new to the format or anyone wanting a turnkey Mega deck, this is the lowest barrier to entry.

Mega Zygarde ex Premium Collection

The premium product of the Chaos Rising window. The Mega Zygarde ex Premium Collection includes an oversized foil Mega Zygarde ex card, a regular Mega Zygarde ex with promo treatment, four Pokemon TCG booster packs from recent sets, three booster packs from Mega Evolution—Chaos Rising, and a coin. Retail price expected around $39.99–$44.99. Pokemon Center EU online typically gets dedicated allocation for European collectors; physical hobby stores receive smaller quantities. Sells out within hours at peak launch.

How to Get the Free Ho-Oh, Keldeo and Delphox Promo Cards

Starting May 22, 2026, participating retailers will run a "Pokemon TCG: Get $15 in product, get a free promo" promotion. Spend $15 or more on Pokemon TCG products in a single transaction and you receive one of three foil promo cards at random while supplies last:

  • Ho-Oh — classic Johto legendary, fan-favorite art for foil collectors.
  • Keldeo — Unova Mythical, the rarest of the three based on Pokemon Company release history.
  • Delphox — Kalos Fire-type starter evolution, ties to the Mega Evolution Kalos theme of the set.

The promos are not guaranteed availability at every retailer — the program is "participating retailers, while supplies last." Major chains (Target, Walmart, GameStop in the US; major UK and EU hobby chains) typically receive the largest allocations. If you're chasing all three, plan multiple $15+ purchases at different retailers in the first week.

Best Chase Cards from Mega Evolution—Chaos Rising

With 35+ Special Illustration Rares, the chase pool is broad. The cards most likely to retain premium pricing six months after release:

  1. Mega Dragalge ex SIR — lowest Mega print rate in the set + dragon/poison typing rarely gets Mega treatment.
  2. Mega Floette ex SIR — strongest art rumors from pre-release; Fairy-type Megas remain undervalued historically.
  3. Mega Greninja ex SIR — Greninja is one of the most-collected Pokemon overall; SIR demand is built in.
  4. Mega Lucario ex (Promo from League Battle Deck) — limited initial print, ties to a popular competitive deck.
  5. Mega Zygarde ex (Premium Collection foil) — exclusivity through one product channel concentrates supply.

Standard rares and holos of the same cards are largely commodity products and trade for $1–$8 at release; Special Illustration Rares range from $30–$200+ at release depending on the card and PSA 10 ceiling.

Where to Buy Pokemon TCG in Europe

Geography matters for Pokemon TCG distribution. The most reliable channels by region:

  • Cardmarket — deepest single-card pool in Europe. Best for singles 1–4 weeks after release once the initial price spike normalizes. See our Cardmarket complete guide for fees, condition grading and shipping.
  • Pokemon Center EU — official direct, best for the Mega Zygarde ex Premium Collection and Elite Trainer Box equivalents.
  • Local Game Stores (LGS) — for Build & Battle Box prerelease events from May 9. Worth visiting even if you're not playing.
  • Major hobby chains (Magic Madhouse UK, Cardmonster, Total Cards UK, Cardmarket Pro Shop) — sealed product at retail or near-retail in the first 48 hours; expect price markup after that.
  • eBay UK / eBay.es — for graded singles and after-market sealed boxes.
  • Wallapop, Vinted — Spanish/EU collectors increasingly list Pokemon singles here. Cross-reference with Cardmarket prices to avoid overpaying.

How to Value Mega Evolution Cards in 2026

Mega Evolution era cards have shown a consistent pricing pattern across Pokemon's release cycle: launch spike, two-week normalization, six-month price floor, slow appreciation over 2–4 years for the headline SIRs. The fastest gains have come from cards that hit the competitive meta — when a Pokemon becomes a tournament staple, its full-art prices rebound quickly. Mega Lucario ex and Mega Greninja ex are the two cards most likely to see meta-driven appreciation in this set.

For collectors holding cards long-term, the SIR layer is where value accrues. A Mega Dragalge ex SIR at $80 raw at release may sit at $120–$180 in 12 months and $200–$350 in 36 months in PSA 10. Graded Pokemon TCG cards continue to outperform raw at a wider spread than soccer or basketball — partly because Pokemon collectors have stronger sentiment for the grade. Card Ladder data shows Pokemon up 116% year-over-year in 2025 — broadly the strongest growth segment in the hobby right now.

Should You Grade Mega Evolution Cards?

For Special Illustration Rares of Mega Greninja ex, Mega Dragalge ex and Mega Lucario ex (Promo): probably yes, if they grade gem mint and you're willing to wait 5–7 months. PSA 10 premiums on Pokemon SIRs frequently run 5–15× raw — clearly profitable even with the May 2026 PSA price increase. See our PSA May 2026 changes breakdown for the new economics.

For standard rares and holos: no. The PSA 10 premium on a $4 holo is rarely worth the cost. For European collectors, CGC is increasingly the cost-effective grader for Pokemon — CGC's European intake center reduces shipping cost and time meaningfully, and CGC slabs trade at premiums comparable to PSA for Pokemon TCG specifically. Our complete grading-from-Europe guide covers the trade-offs in detail.

Tracking Mega Evolution—Chaos Rising in CardPulse

A complete Chaos Rising chase rainbow — base, holo, full art, SIR, hyper rare, plus the League Battle Deck and Premium Collection promos — is a meaningful tracking problem. CardPulse logs each card with its rarity, condition, language and acquisition source, and pulls live secondary-market values from Cardmarket, eBay, TCGPlayer and Vinted daily. Raw and graded (PSA 10, CGC 10) prices track separately, so when a Mega Dragalge ex SIR PSA 10 premium opens up against its raw price, you see it on the dashboard rather than discovering it after the spike. Free for up to 50 cards.

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