Hydreigon ex
Quick take
- Special Illustration Rare at 240/191, the chase print of three Hydreigon ex versions in the set
- Illustrated by Akira Egawa, separate from the 5ban Graphics regular and Full Art prints
- Sits below Pikachu ex and Latias in set value, the accessible SIR for the set
- Depicts a Terastallized Hydreigon with the Stellar Tera type
Collector's readWhat it means for your master set
Set landscapeWhere this card sits in Surging Sparks
VariantsCard variants
Holofoil 240/191 · $35.80 — the only variant this card was printed in (no reverse holo or special pattern), so a master set needs just this one copy.
The storyA menacing dragon SIR that anchors the affordable end of Surging Sparks
Hydreigon ex appears three times in Surging Sparks: a regular Double Rare, a Full Art Ultra Rare, and this Special Illustration Rare at 240/191. The first two use 5ban Graphics renders. The SIR is the one collectors chase, and it carries Akira Egawa's hand-drawn art instead.
“Special Illustration Rare at 240/191, the chase print of three Hydreigon ex versions in the set”
The card matters for master-set builders because it's a complete-the-set requirement without being a budget wrecker. Pikachu ex runs the show in this set, and the Latias SIR has its own cult following. Hydreigon sits below both. That gap is the point. If you want a proper Special Illustration Rare from Surging Sparks and you're not ready to spend on the headliners, this is usually the entry door.
It also reads as a Dark and Dragon-type collector favorite. The art leans hard into menace rather than cuteness, which gives it a different audience from most of the set's pulls.
By the numbersMarket analysis
This is a mid-tier Special Illustration Rare for Surging Sparks. Pikachu ex sits at the top of the set by a wide margin, with Latias and a couple of other SIRs above Hydreigon. Hydreigon lands in the lower-to-middle band of the set's SIR pricing, which makes it the cheapest comfortable way into the SIR tier here.
Raw copies settled in not long after release and gave back a modest slice of their early price, then held. No dramatic spikes, no collapse. It trades as a steady, liquid mid-tier SIR rather than a momentum card.
Treat it as a stable hold, not a flipper. Modern SIR supply is large and Hydreigon lacks the mainstream pull of the set's headliners, so big appreciation is unlikely in the near term. The upside is that it rarely loses much either. A clean graded gem carries a real premium over raw, so condition is where the money is.
Gem-grade copies command a strong multiple over raw, which is typical for a centered modern SIR. Sealed-fresh, well-centered copies are the ones worth grading. Off-center or edge-worn copies are better left raw.
In Scarlet & Violet sets, any Special Illustration Rare lands at roughly 1 in 90 packs. That figure is for hitting any SIR in the set, though, and Surging Sparks has a long list of them. The odds of pulling this specific Hydreigon ex are far longer, deep into the hundreds of packs. For context, in the same sets a Double Rare comes about 1 in 5 packs, an Illustration Rare about 1 in 12, an Ultra Rare about 1 in 15, and a Hyper Rare anywhere from 1 in 300 to 1 in 700. Most collectors are better off buying the single than chasing it in packs.
Far rarer than the regular Double Rare or the Full Art Ultra Rare versions of the same Hydreigon ex. It's the top tier of the three prints. Within the SIR tier itself, supply is still large by vintage standards, which is why pricing stays grounded.
ArtworkWhy the art matters
Akira Egawa is a Pokemon TCG illustrator who has contributed art across recent Scarlet & Violet era sets. The regular and Full Art prints of this Hydreigon ex use 5ban Graphics digital renders instead, so the Egawa illustration is exclusive to this Special Illustration Rare.
Hydreigon rears up mid-roar inside a cosmic, crystalline burst. Its dark body picks up prismatic color from the surrounding energy, and the three heads are spread wide as it launches an attack into a star-filled void. The composition is built around motion and threat rather than a calm portrait.
Special Illustration Rare with full-art holo treatment and the extended SIR border. The 240/191 number sits above the set's 191-card base count, which marks it as a secret-rarity chase pull.
It ties the art to the card's mechanic. This is a Terastallized Hydreigon with the Stellar Tera type, and Egawa frames that crystalline transformation as the whole scene instead of a background detail. The result is one of the more genuinely intimidating SIRs in the set.
BackgroundAbout Hydreigon ex
Hydreigon is the pseudo-legendary Dark/Dragon from the Unova region, the final form of Deino through Zweilous. It has shown up across many TCG eras as a heavy-hitting Dragon, and it carries a loyal fanbase that gravitates to the darker, more aggressive Pokemon rather than the mascots.
- ›Pseudo-legendary status gives it built-in fan loyalty
- ›Dark and Dragon typing appeals to collectors who avoid the cuter cards
- ›Distinctive three-headed design that reads well in full-art format
- ›Long history of strong Hydreigon cards across past sets
- ›Pseudo-legendary line introduced in the Unova-region games
- ›Recurring competitive and collectible TCG cards across multiple eras
Own it wellCollector guide
Full-art holo SIRs show edge whitening and surface scratches easily, and the dark body makes scuffs visible. Check the corners and the holo surface under angled light. Centering varies on this print, so eyeball the left-right and top-bottom borders before paying a premium.
Worth grading only if it's well centered and pulled clean. The gem premium over raw is meaningful, but a 9 or an off-center slab often won't clear the grading cost plus the gap to a raw copy. Pack-fresh, centered copies are the candidates. Read the grading guide →
Penny sleeve plus a top loader at minimum, or a graded slab for a long-term hold. Keep it out of direct light and away from humidity. The dark holo surface marks up fast once it's loose in a binder, so sleeve it before it goes anywhere. See the storage guide →
This is a buy-the-single card, not a pull-it-yourself card. Raw near-mint copies are the value play for set builders. If you want it graded, buy an already-slabbed gem rather than gambling on a raw copy and grading fees. Watch centering in the listing photos, since that's the single biggest swing on this print. See the singles buying guide →
Modern SIRs are far less faked than vintage chase cards, but counterfeits exist. Check the texture: genuine SIRs have the embossed full-art feel across the card face. Confirm the holo pattern behaves correctly under tilt, that the 240/191 number and set marks are crisp, and that the back gradient and font match a known-good card. For higher-dollar copies, buying graded removes the guesswork.
Protect your card
High Chase Score — protect and consider grading. · Amazon affiliate links · Storage guideWord on the streetCommunity sentiment
Collectors generally like the art and treat the card as the sensible SIR pickup for the set. It doesn't generate the hype of Pikachu ex, but it gets steady respect for being menacing and affordable. Dragon and Dark-type collectors are its core audience.
Discussion tends to frame it as the entry-point SIR for Surging Sparks rather than a headline chase. It comes up most often in set-completion threads and in best-of lists as a value SIR, not as a card people are racing to pull.
Good to knowFrequently asked questions
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