Sinnoh Starters and the 30th Celebration: Three Ways to Own Chimchar, Turtwig, and Piplup Right Now
By Dexhaul Team · September 15, 2026
The 30th Celebration English set launches September 16 with Chimchar as its Sinnoh representative: a foil base-form promo card available through select products. That is where English coverage stops. Monferno and Infernape have no dedicated 30th Celebration English product to call their own.
For collectors who want the complete Gen 4 fire-starter arc, the gap is intentional. Chimchar's evolutionary line across TCG history includes cards from the Diamond and Pearl era through the Sword and Shield V-era, but the English 30th Celebration set prioritizes base-form starters as the promo card across all nine regions. The evolutions are for you to track down separately.
There are three meaningful ways to build the Sinnoh starter arc right now. They serve different collectors and different budgets. Here is what each path actually delivers.
Option 1: The Japanese 30th Celebration Card Set
The cleanest starter-trio solution is the official Japanese 30th Celebration Card Set for Sinnoh.
This product delivers all three base-form Sinnoh starters as foil promo cards in one sealed package: Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup each get their own anniversary illustration, numbered under the M-P (Mega Pack) promo designation used for Pokémon Company Japan's celebration releases. It is the only product in the 30th Celebration lineup that gives you all three Sinnoh starters simultaneously. No English equivalent exists.
The price spread on this product is unusually wide. The same sealed set ranges from $46 at European import stores to $106 at Japanese specialty retailers, with $64 and $94 being the most common USD price points.
That is a 2.3x range on identical product. The gap is entirely about seller channel and shipping origin, not product condition or version differences. Comparing listings before buying saves real money here.
The cards are Japanese-language, which affects playability in English-format events but has no impact on display collecting. The anniversary illustration style matches the broader 30th Celebration visual language regardless of language.
30th CELEBRATION Card Set: Turtwig / Chimchar / Piplup (M-P Sinnoh) Japanese
$94.00 USD
This path suits collectors who want the all-three-starters format in a single transaction. It is the only route to all three Sinnoh anniversary promos in one box.
Option 2: The Infernape V Box
Collectors who want an English sealed product with Infernape at the center have exactly one answer: the Infernape V Box.
Released during the Sword and Shield era, the Infernape V Box is the only English TCG product that has ever headlined Infernape as the primary promo card. No Infernape ETB, no Special Collection, no Battle Deck has appeared in English at any point in the franchise's history. That fact alone makes the V Box structurally distinct from most collector boxes, which usually appear alongside a broader product lineup for the same Pokémon.
Secondary market pricing currently runs from $63 to $130 for sealed copies, with $63 being the lowest confirmed ask from a listed US seller. The sealed premium over the 2022 MSRP reflects the narrow supply: V Collection Boxes produced in lower volumes than ETBs, and Infernape does not command the mass-market demand of Pikachu or Charizard boxes. Both factors work in the buyer's favor: the box is obtainable at a reasonable price without the froth that surrounds the highest-profile SWSH-era sealed product.
The key distinction between this and the Japanese set: the Infernape V Box delivers the final evolution as the focal card. If you are building an Infernape-specific collection rather than a Sinnoh-starter-trio collection, the V Box is the correct product. They solve different problems.
Option 3: Figures and Plush for Non-TCG Collectors
Not every Sinnoh starter collector wants cards. The figure and soft-goods tier has two in-stock options worth knowing.
The Ichiban Kuji 30th Anniversary Vol. 1 F Prize set delivers Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup as a trio of plush toys in a single listing at $44. These are Banpresto Ichiban Kuji prizes, originally distributed through Japanese arcade lottery machines.
The Western price of $44 for all three is an import premium over the arcade cost in Japan. It is still considerably cheaper than acquiring three separate officially licensed starter plush through standard retail channels.
The Gen 4 Sinnoh region produced one of the most discussed starter lines in the franchise's history, with Chimchar's animated series arc alongside Ash driving ongoing collector interest well past the Diamond and Pearl era. That demand holds across product categories: TCG singles, sealed product, and plush all reflect elevated Sinnoh interest relative to some later generations.
The Moncolle Sinnoh Starter Trio Set at $38 takes a different approach: Bandai's Moncolle line produces high-detail PVC figures rather than soft goods, and this 30th Anniversary set brings all three base-form Sinnoh starters in one package. For collectors who display rather than play, the figure tier and the card tier both deliver complete Sinnoh starter coverage that no single English TCG product manages on its own.
Which Path Is Right for You
The answer comes down to what gap you are filling.
If you are a TCG collector buying into the 30th Celebration launch and want the full Sinnoh starter card set in anniversary format: the Japanese 30th Celebration Card Set is your only option. No English product covers Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup together. Buy from a seller whose USD price is in the lower part of the $46–$94 range; the cards are identical across all listings.
If you want English sealed product specifically, and Infernape is your focus: the Infernape V Box at $63 is the right call. It is the only English TCG sealed product to ever center Infernape, and sealed copies are available now. That structural scarcity (one English product, ever) is what makes it worth noting alongside the 30th Celebration launch even though the two are unrelated product lines.
If TCG is not your format: the Ichiban Kuji plush trio at $44 and the Moncolle figure set at $38 both deliver all three Sinnoh starters. The plush set is softer and oriented toward display or gifting; the Moncolle set is figure-scale and better suited to shelf display alongside other Bandai Moncolle pieces.
Browse all Sinnoh starter products across independent shops at DexHaul, where cards, figures, and plush from the Gen 4 lineup are searchable in one place. DexHaul is independent and unofficial, not affiliated with The Pokémon Company.