Krookodile
Quick take
- Illustration Rare of a popular Black and White-era Pokemon, illustrated by Uninori
- Part of the July 2025 Black Bolt set where every Unova Pokemon got art-card treatment
- Mid-pack pricing makes it an accessible master set piece, not a chase trophy
- Uninori's retro manga style fits the nostalgia theme of the set
Collector's readWhat it means for your master set
Set landscapeWhere this card sits in Black Bolt
VariantsCard variants
Holofoil 137/86 · $44.47 — 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 clean Uninori IR of a beloved Unova heavy hitter, priced to actually collect
Black Bolt landed in July 2025 as one half of the Unova revival, paired with White Flare. The hook was simple and it worked. Every Unova Pokemon got an Illustration Rare or Special Illustration Rare, so the set runs long on art cards. Krookodile is one of them, number 137 of the 086 base set, illustrated by Uninori.
“Illustration Rare of a popular Black and White-era Pokemon, illustrated by Uninori”
Krookodile carries weight because the Pokemon does. It was a staple of the original Black and White era, a Ground/Dark line that showed up in the games, the anime, and plenty of competitive teams. Pulling its IR scratches the same nostalgia itch the whole set was built around. The card is not a top-tier chase, and that is part of the appeal. It is a recognizable favorite you can land without going after the dragons.
For master set builders this is a required slot rather than a trophy. You need it to finish the IR run, and it tends to be one of the friendlier purchases in that pursuit.
By the numbersMarket analysis
This sits in the lower middle of Black Bolt's Illustration Rare pricing. The set has a large IR count and a handful of headline chase cards that soak up most of the spend, so a secondary species like Krookodile lands well below the set's top end. The price page on this site shows the current live number.
Like most cards from the set, it ran hot at release in July 2025 when packs were fresh and supply was thin, then settled as Black Bolt product kept printing through late 2025. It now trades in a stable, accessible band. Movement from here tracks the broader set more than anything Krookodile-specific.
Treat this as a collecting buy, not an investment. It is a mid-tier IR in a heavily printed set, so big appreciation is unlikely while product is still flowing. Any realistic upside is slow and tied to long-term affection for the Black and White era. If you want appreciation potential in this set, the dragons and top SIRs are the cards to look at, not Krookodile.
A clean PSA 10 or CGC 10 carries a premium over raw, as it does with any modern IR, but on a card at this price point the grading fee often eats most of the gap. Graded copies make sense for a display master set or if you already have a near-perfect pull, less so as a value play.
Black Bolt follows Scarlet and Violet-era odds. Across the set, any Double Rare comes about one in five packs, any Illustration Rare roughly one in twelve, any Ultra Rare around one in fifteen, any Special Illustration Rare near one in ninety, and the top Hyper Rares anywhere from one in three hundred to one in seven hundred. Those are the odds for hitting any card of that tier, not a specific one. Because Black Bolt packs in dozens of Illustration Rares, the odds of pulling this specific Krookodile run far longer, easily into the hundreds of packs for one targeted copy. Buying the single is the sane path for a master set.
With dozens of Illustration Rares in Black Bolt, no single IR is hard to find on the secondary market. Krookodile is no rarer than its IR shelf-mates. What separates the expensive IRs from the cheap ones here is the Pokemon and the art, not the pull odds, and Krookodile sits in the accessible group.
ArtworkWhy the art matters
Uninori is a newer name in the TCG. Their first published card was Grotle in Temporal Forces in 2024, though they had been submitting to Pokemon's Illustration Contests since around 2018. Pokemon's own artist feature described their work as evoking the manga and anime look of the 1990s, and Uninori has cited Ken Sugimori, Kagemaru Himeno, and Akira Toriyama as influences. That lineage is easy to see in the linework.
The full-art Illustration Rare frames Krookodile as the predator the Pokedex describes. Uninori leans into bold, confident outlines and an action-forward pose rather than a soft scenic backdrop, which fits the species and the set's nostalgia angle.
This is the Illustration Rare (Art Rare) treatment, a full-art card with holo finish and no text box cutting into the scene. It is numbered 137/086, above the base set count, which marks it as part of the IR run rather than the main numbered set.
A 90s-flavored art style on a Pokemon that debuted in the Black and White generation makes this feel of a piece with the whole Black Bolt project. It is one of the cleaner examples of Uninori's style on a species collectors actually have history with.
BackgroundAbout Krookodile
Krookodile is the final form of the Sandile line, introduced in Pokemon Black and White in 2010. The Ground/Dark typing and the Intimidate and Moxie abilities made it a recurring pick on competitive teams. It also had a memorable anime run as one of Ash's Pokemon during the Unova arc, first appearing as a sunglasses-wearing Sandile.
- ›Strong, distinctive design that has aged well
- ›Competitive and in-game relevance across the Black and White era
- ›Anime exposure as one of Ash's Unova team members
- ›Ground/Dark typing appeals to players who like aggressive, intimidating Pokemon
- ›Ash's Krookodile in the Pokemon Black and White anime series
- ›Common competitive pick in Black and White and later generations
In this set the card is a Darkness-type Stage 2 with 170 HP that evolves from Krokorok. Its attacks are Tighten Up, which forces the opponent to discard cards from hand, and Cursed Slug, which does extra damage when the opponent is low on cards. It is a fine casual or rogue-deck piece, but the Illustration Rare is collected for the art, not for tournament play.
Own it wellCollector guide
Modern full-art holos show edge whitening and surface scratches easily, especially on dark borders like the ones this card uses. Check the corners and the holo field under raking light before buying raw. Pack-fresh and well-stored copies are plentiful given how recent the set is.
Grade only if you pulled a strong copy and want it for a display set, or if you are chasing a clean PSA or CGC 10 run of the whole IR list. On a card at this price, grading fees usually outweigh the premium, so most collectors are better off keeping it raw in a sleeve and toploader. Read the grading guide →
Sleeve and toploader for singles, or run it in penny sleeves inside a side-loading binder page if you are building the set visually. Keep it out of direct light and away from humidity to protect the dark borders from any color shift. See the storage guide →
This is a buy-the-single card. Targeting it in packs is a losing game given the IR count in Black Bolt. Raw near-mint copies are easy to find from reputable sellers, so buy on condition photos rather than rushing. There is no reason to pay a premium for a card this available. See the singles buying guide →
Modern Scarlet and Violet-era IRs are far less faked than vintage chase cards, so authentication risk here is low. Still, buy from established sellers, confirm the 137/086 number and the Uninori credit, and check that the holo pattern and texture match other Black Bolt IRs you can reference online.
Protect your card
Low Chase Score — basic protection is plenty. · Amazon affiliate links · Storage guideWord on the streetCommunity sentiment
Reception of Black Bolt as a whole has been warm, driven by the Unova nostalgia and the sheer volume of art cards. Krookodile is liked but is not one of the cards collectors single out as a top chase. The headline attention in this set goes to the legendary dragons and a few standout IRs.
Most online discussion of Krookodile comes up in the context of completing the Black Bolt master set or appreciating Uninori's art style rather than as a value or hype card. It is a steady, well-regarded inclusion rather than a card people are flipping.
Good to knowFrequently asked questions
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