Blaine's Charizard, card 2/132 from Gym Challenge, is the headline card of the set. It also carries an error that most owners never notice, because the error version is the normal one.
The error
Blaine's Charizard has an attack called Roaring Flames. The attack cost should begin with a Fire energy symbol. On the original printing it shows a Fighting symbol instead. The attack text was affected too, so the error copies read discard all Fighting energy where they should read discard all Fire energy.
Wizards of the Coast corrected the symbol partway through the Unlimited print run. Crucially, the 1st Edition version was never corrected, so a corrected Blaine's Charizard is always an Unlimited card. If somebody offers you a corrected 1st Edition, something is wrong.
How to check yours
Look at the first symbol in the Roaring Flames attack cost, on the left hand side of the attack line. A Fire symbol is a flame. A Fighting symbol is a fist. Then read the attack text underneath and see which energy type it names. The two will agree with each other, so either check works on its own.
| Version | Roaring Flames cost | Print runs it exists in |
|---|---|---|
| Error, the common one | Fighting symbol | 1st Edition and Unlimited |
| Corrected | Fire symbol | Unlimited only |
Is the corrected version worth more
Here is where the internet will mislead you. The corrected version is genuinely much harder to find, because the overwhelming majority of copies produced were the error version. Collectors will tell you the corrected card is the rarer chase, and on scarcity alone they are right.
The market does not follow that logic cleanly. Price tracking data does not consistently place the misprint above the standard card, and in some listings the energy misprint variant trades below a regular copy. Rarity and price are two different things, and with a card this heavily traded you should check recent sold prices for the exact variant and grade rather than assuming scarce means expensive.
The practical advice: buy the version you want for your binder, do not pay a large premium on the assumption that corrected automatically means valuable, and if you are selling, photograph the attack line clearly so buyers can see which one they are getting.
Why it matters for a Gym Challenge master set
If you are chasing every variant, Blaine's Charizard alone needs three slots: 1st Edition error, Unlimited error, and Unlimited corrected. That is the kind of detail that turns a 132 card set into a much longer project, and it is why a plain one tick per card checklist will not survive Gym Challenge.
A checklist built for the corrected variants
Our Gym Challenge kit tracks 1st Edition, Unlimited and Corrected as separate columns, with 135 printable placeholders and a five page checklist. Available on its own or in the Gym two set bundle.
Free download
The WOTC Variant Cheat Sheet
One printable page covering all six English sets of 1999 and 2000: the four Base Set print runs, holo counts, release dates, the checklist columns you actually need and the errors worth knowing. Keep it in the front of your binder. No email required.
Download A4 (PDF)Download US Letter (PDF)
Want the next guide before anyone else?
We are working through the WOTC era set by set. Drop your email and we will send each new guide as it goes live. No spam, unsubscribe any time.
Related guides
- Dark Dragonite 5/82 with no holo is a real card
- Base Set print runs: 1st Edition, Shadowless and Unlimited
Sources and further reading
- Collexy: holofoil overview, WOTC era
- PriceCharting: Pokemon Gym Challenge card prices
- r/pkmntcgcollections discussion on error versus corrected
Made by Pokemom is an independent fan project. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Nintendo, Creatures Inc., GAME FREAK, The Pokemon Company or Wizards of the Coast. Card names and set names are used only to describe which cards a checklist covers.