Can 4th Print Packs Contain Shadowless Cards? The short answer is no, they cannot. Shadowless cards come only from the very first print runs of the Pokémon Base Set, and by the time the 4th print run happened, Wizards of the Coast had already added drop shadows back to all cards. Let me explain this step by step in a way that’s easy to follow, like we’re just chatting about old Pokémon packs over coffee, and we’ll dive deep into the history, the prints, what makes Shadowless special, collector stories, and why this mix-up happens so often among fans.
First off, picture this: It’s 1999, and Pokémon trading cards are exploding in popularity in the English-speaking world. Wizards of the Coast, the company behind Magic: The Gathering, gets the license to print and sell these cards outside Japan. They release the Base Set, which has 102 cards, including icons like Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur in holographic glory. The very first batches of these booster packs hit stores without any “shadow” on the card text boxes or artwork borders. That’s what makes them Shadowless – no little black drop shadow under the Pokémon name, energy costs, or attack text. These early prints are super clean-looking and rare because Wizards quickly fixed the printing plates after just a few weeks or months to add those shadows. Why? Some say it was to make the cards easier to read or to prevent wear on the printing equipment, but the key point is, Shadowless stopped appearing early on.
Now, those print runs. Wizards didn’t label their packs with “1st print” or anything fancy back then. Collectors figured it out later by looking at tiny clues on the cards and packs themselves. The 1st Edition packs have a gold stamp saying “Edition 1” on the bottom left of the pack art. Inside those, you get Shadowless cards guaranteed, because they were the absolute first wave printed in late 1999. Then come the unlimited prints, but even those split into four main runs based on a code in the fine print at the bottom of each card. It looks like “1-102” for the card number, but right below that is a line with Wizards’ address and a code like “©1995, 96, 98, 99 Nintendo…” followed by something like “A” or numbers. Here’s where it gets detailed:
– 1st Print (Shadowless): The code ends with just “A”. These are pure Shadowless, from the earliest unlimited packs after the true 1st Edition sold out fast.
– 2nd Print (Shadowless): Code has “1” after the copyright, like “©1995…1”. Still Shadowless, but slightly more common than 1st print.
– 3rd Print (Shadowless fading out): Code shows “2”. Most are Shadowless, but towards the end of this run, some cards start showing faint shadows as the plates transitioned.
– 4th Print (Shaded): Code has “3”. All cards here have full drop shadows. No exceptions. These packs came out around mid-2000, when demand was still huge but printing had stabilized.
So, straight up, 4th print packs cannot contain Shadowless cards. If you crack open a sealed 4th print booster pack today – and yeah, some still exist unopened because collectors hoard them – every single card inside will have those shadows. It’s physically impossible based on how the printing worked. Wizards printed massive quantities by the 4th run, maybe millions of packs, to keep up with kids everywhere begging parents for more Charizards. But those plates were updated, and Shadowless was a thing of the past.
Why do people even ask this? Misinformation spreads like wildfire in collector forums. Newbies buy old packs on sites like eBay or TCGPlayer, see “Base Set” and dream of Shadowless pulls, but don’t check the print code on the pack’s expansion symbol or bottom text. Packs have their own print indicators too – a small number like “1” or “2” near the Wizards logo inside the pack wrapper. 4th prints clearly mark as later runs. Plus, resealed packs are a huge scam issue. Shady sellers take junk shaded packs, swap in fake or low-grade Shadowless singles, reseal them with heat tools to look mint, and charge thousands. Real 4th print packs are worth $200 to $500 sealed today, depending on condition, but popping one yields nothing but shaded commons and maybe a holos that’ll fetch $10-20 each on a good day.
Let’s talk value, because that’s what hooks most folks. A Shadowless holographic Charizard from 1st or 2nd print in near-mint shape can sell for $1,000 to $5,000, and PSA 10 gems hit $200,000 or more at auction, like that one Fanatics Collect sale in 2023 for a Base Set Shadowless 1st Edition Holo Mewtwo, which had the holographic shine, nostalgia, and that clean shadowless look. Shaded versions from 4th print? Maybe $100-300 for the same Charizard. The difference is rarity – Shadowless make up less than 10% of all Base Set cards ever printed, per collector estimates from tearing thousands of packs over decades. Stories abound: One guy on Reddit in 2022 cracked a 1st Edition pack live on YouTube and pulled three holos including a Shadowless Venusaur – instant $10k value. But 4th prints? Pull rates are the same – one rare holo per three packs on average – but no shadows mean no payday.
Digging deeper into the printing process helps explain why no crossover happens. Back then, offset lithography was king. Wizards used metal plates etched with the card images. Early plates lacked the shadow layer, so first runs came out crisp. They etched new plates mid-production, adding shadows digitally before burning them. Once 4th print plates were in use, every sheet off the press had shadows. No mixing sheets between runs – factories don’t do that; it’d ruin quality control. Proof comes from bulk openings: Vintage collectors have opened hundreds of confirmed 4th print booster boxes (those big 36-pack cases with print codes matching), and zero Shadowless cards ever reported. Sites like TCGPlayer list Base Set Shadowless singles separately from shaded, and booster boxes are priced accordingly – a sealed 4th print BB might go for $5,000-$8,000, while early Shadowless ones touch $100,000+ if authenticated.
What about misprints or errors? Rare, but they exist. Some 3rd print cards have partial shadows, called “shadow borders” or transitions, worth a premium over full shaded but not true Shadowless. Full no-shadow in 4th? Never documented. Pokémon’s official database and Wizards’ old catalogs don’t mention it. Japanese prints were different – no shadows at all until later sets – but English Base Set followed this strict progression.
Collector tips if you’re hunting: Buy sealed packs from reputable spots like local game stores with pack-fresh guarantees, not random online marketplaces full of fakes
