Poliwag
Poliwag — Base Set #59/102
Water Common · Basic
Print variants & how to tell them apart
1st Edition
The 'Edition 1' stamp — a black circle containing the number 1 — sits just left of the artwork, below the art box. Shadowless template (no drop shadow). Rarest / most valuable.
Shadowless
Same first-print template as 1st Edition but WITHOUT the stamp. No drop shadow behind the art box; brighter, more zoomed-in art. Key tell vs Unlimited: the extra '99' in the copyright line.
Unlimited
No stamp; a drop shadow appears behind the right edge of the art box (Pokémon only — Trainers never got the shadow). Bolder HP text, slightly zoomed-out art. Copyright omits the '99'. By far the most common (print runs 2–7).
1999–2000 (4th Print)
Visually identical to Unlimited EXCEPT the copyright reads ©1999-2000. The eighth and final (smallest) English print run — collector shorthand calls it the '4th print'. Distributed mainly in the UK, also Australia and the USA.
Shown: the Unlimited scan -- the 1999-2000 print is identical except the (c)1999-2000 date. A true scan is coming.
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 2–6 | 1 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Edition | ||||||||
| PSA | 2,724 | 812 | 961 | 508 | 216 | 221 | 4 | 2 |
| SGC | 11 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Shadowless | ||||||||
| PSA | 894 | 237 | 306 | 160 | 82 | 101 | 7 | 1 |
| SGC | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unlimited | ||||||||
| PSA | 1,702 | 484 | 672 | 297 | 120 | 127 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 15 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1999–2000 (4th Print) | ||||||||
| PSA | 150 | 41 | 78 | 13 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
PSA & SGC graded population by printing & grade. PSA Unlimited includes copies graded before PSA flagged the 1st Edition / Shadowless varieties; SGC does not separate the 1999-2000 print.
Card details
Type
Water
Stage
Basic
HP
40
Weakness
Grass ×2
Retreat
1
Artist
Ken Sugimori
Pokedex #
60
Attacks
10+Water Gun [Water]
Does 10 damage plus 10 more damage for each Water Energy attached to Poliwag but not used to pay for this attack's Energy cost. Extra Water Energy after the 2nd don't count.
Its newly grown legs prevent it from running. It appears to prefer swimming over trying to stand.
Prices & where to buy
Unlimited market $0.71 via TCGplayer
| Variant | Market | TCGplayer | eBay |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Edition | TCGplayer | eBay | |
| Shadowless | TCGplayer | eBay | |
| Unlimited | $0.71 | TCGplayer | eBay |
| 1999–2000 (4th Print) | — | eBay |
Market = the Unlimited printing, live from TCGplayer. As an eBay Partner & affiliate we may earn from qualifying purchases.
About the print variants
Base Set cards come in four printings: 1st Edition (Edition-1 stamp), Shadowless (no stamp, no drop shadow, the extra '99' in the copyright), Unlimited (drop shadow, most common), and the 1999-2000 (4th print) (like Unlimited but the copyright reads (c)1999-2000). Machamp is the exception -- it is always 1st-Edition-stamped.