Team Rocket's Moltres ex #229 — Destined Rivals Pokémon card

Team Rocket's Moltres ex #229 Value

Name: Team Rocket's Moltres ex #229 — Destined Rivals
Brand: Pokémon

Destined Rivals · Card 229/244 · Special illustration rare · 2025

Team Rocket's Moltres ex #229 is one of those cards that stops people mid-scroll, a special illustration rare from the 2025 Destined Rivals set with artwork from AKIRA EGAWA that really does the fiery bird justice. If you're looking up Team Rocket's Moltres ex value, here's the short version: raw copies are sitting around $105, which is solid for a card this new and this pretty. Collectors love it not just for the price, but because SIRs like this one tend to be the chase cards of a set, the reason people keep ripping packs long after they've pulled everything else.

See all Destined Rivals chase cards →

Market value & price

Raw / Ungraded

$105

Grade 9

$102

PSA 10

$350

PSA 10 is 3.3× the raw price

Value by grade

Where it drops

Pulled 47× on PackSpy across Courtyard, Collector Crypt, Tilt Rips, Mnstr, Lastpack · biggest hit $144.

Found in packs: Pokémon Basic Pack · Pokémon Starter Pack · Wildcard Basic Pack · Pokémon Pro Pack · Starter Pokémon Gacha Pack …

Want to pull Team Rocket's Moltres ex?

Rip a live pack on the sites that drop cards like this:

Rip on Courtyard →Rip on Collector Crypt →Rip on Tilt Rips →Rip on Monster (MNSTR) →

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PriceCharting history ↗eBay sold listings ↗PSA price guide ↗

Card details

Set: Destined Rivals
Card number: 229 of 244
Rarity: Special illustration rare
Type: Fire
HP: 220
Stage: Basic
Weakness: Lightning ×2
Retreat cost: 2
Illustrator: AKIRA EGAWA
Released: 2025

Attacks

Flame Screen110
Fire · Colorless · Colorless
During your opponent's next turn, this Pokémon takes 50 less damage from attacks (after applying Weakness and Resistance).
Evil Incineration
Fire · Colorless · Colorless · Colorless
Discard a Team Rocket's Energy from this Pokémon. If you do, discard your opponent's Active Pokémon and all attached cards.

Team Rocket's Moltres ex — collector's take

Is Team Rocket's Moltres ex worth grading?

So is it worth sending in? Let's talk numbers. A raw copy runs about $105, a Grade 9 comes in a touch lower at $102, and a true PSA 10 jumps up to $350, which works out to roughly 3.3 times the raw price. That gap tells you everything: gem mint is where the real money lives, but it's also the hardest grade to hit. Centering on illustration rares can be unforgiving, and a single edge ding or print line can knock you down to that Grade 9 tier where you barely break even after grading fees. If your copy looks flawless under a loupe, it's worth the gamble. If you're on the fence, it might be smarter to just enjoy the card raw or sell it as-is.

How rare is it?

We don't have official population figures to lean on here, but the price spread alone tells a story. When a PSA 10 sells for more than triple the raw card, that usually means gem mint copies aren't showing up in bulk, special illustration rares are already a scarce tier by design, printed in smaller numbers than your standard holos, and Destined Rivals being a 2025 release means the grading population is still building. Early scarcity like this is part of why the value holds, and why patient collectors often see it climb rather than dip.

Where to pull it

This is where PackSpy actually earns its keep, because we don't guess, we track. Team Rocket's Moltres ex has been pulled 46 times across real pack-opening sites we monitor, including courtyard, collector-crypt, tilt-rips, mnstr, and lastpack. The biggest single pull we've recorded came in at $144, which shows the kind of upside that's possible even before grading. We've seen it come out of Pokémon Starter Pack, Wildcard Basic Pack, Pokémon Basic Pack, Pokémon Pro Pack, and Starter Pokémon Gacha Pack, so if you're chasing this one, those are the products worth watching. Just remember, pack opening is a gamble by nature, most rips don't cover their cost, so treat any pull of this card as a nice surprise, not an expectation.

Questions people ask

How much is Team Rocket's Moltres ex worth?

Raw, ungraded copies are valued around $105 right now. Graded copies shift that number: a Grade 9 sits close to raw at $102, while a PSA 10 climbs to $350. So the real answer depends on the condition and whether it's been graded.

Is Team Rocket's Moltres ex worth grading?

It can be, since a PSA 10 is worth about 3.3 times the raw price. But gem mint is tough to land on illustration rares, and a Grade 9 basically matches raw value once you factor in grading costs, so only send in copies you genuinely believe are flawless.

What set is Team Rocket's Moltres ex from?

It's card #229 from Destined Rivals, released in 2025. It's a special illustration rare illustrated by AKIRA EGAWA, which is why it's such a standout pull from that set.