It’s now been five years since Rising Rampage made its debut. Featuring cards used by several characters in the spin-off anime series Yu-Gi-Oh VRAINS, the ninth Core Booster of Series 10 of the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG went slightly under the radar upon its release back in April 2019 but has since established itself as a set full of highlights—both from a collection and gameplay perspective.
Rarest/Most Expensive Rising Rampage Cards
Of the 80 cards in this set, 16 of them came in the Secret Rare rarity. All 16 of these cards also had a version in 20th Secret Rare—a rarity level created in honor of the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG’s 20th anniversary. Six cards came in Ultimate Rare while just one—cover card Borreload eXcharge Dragon—could be a Holographic Rare.
Interestingly, despite its unique status, Borreload eXcharge Dragon was nowhere near the most valuable card of this set. While its highest price tag of around US$70 per card was nothing to mock by any means, its price does not even come close to that of the set’s most expensive card—Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess.
In its 20th Secret Rare form, this Effect Link Monster card is capable of fetching over US$1,800 in its PSA 10 form, making it one of the most expensive and coveted Yu-Gi-Oh TCG cards of all time. Such was this card’s appeal that two years later, Konami re-released it in the form of a Prismatic Secret Rare card which was part of the Prismatic Art Collection.
Another highly valuable card from Rising Rampage turned out to be the 20th Secret Rare version of Wynn the Wind Charmer, Verdant. Among the six Charmers, Wynn has always been the most popular—and this is clearly reflected in this card’s value. PSA 10 copies of the 20th Secret Rare version of the set’s Wynn the Wind Charmer, Verdant card have been known to go for more than US$1,000 on the open market.
Unfortunately for those seeking to use this set as a means to make money, Wynn the Wind Charmer, Verdant and Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess are the only notable high-value cards in Rising Rampage. Even mega-rare cards like Borreload eXcharge Dragon, Linkmail Archfiend, and Gizmek Orochi, the Serpentron Sky Slasher don’t even break the US$100 barrier.
Despite this, the 20th Secret Rare cards do retain a degree of prestige owing to their status as cards commemorating one of the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG’s milestone anniversaries.
Rising Rampage and the Metagame
Arguably the one card from Rising Rampage which proved to be the most impactful upon the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG metagame was Marincess Marbled Rock. To maximize the capabilities of this powerhouse, players could start by summoning Marincess Sea Horse and Marincess Blue Slug. This could be followed by using an extender card such as Sea Archiver before summoning Marincess Coral Anemone.
After summoning Marincess Coral Anemone, the player would then use its effect, create Crystal Heart using water monsters, and finally link into Marincess Marbled Rock. If done correctly, Marincess Marbled Rock would have 4500 ATK as well as a Field Spell. For this reason, Marincess-archetype decks were among the most dominant of the era’s meta.
A card of another newly-introduced archetype, Shaman of the Tenyi was the lynchpin of some of the most powerful Tenyi-archetype decks. It was best paired with the Mare Mare card from the Extra Pack 2015 set. Shaman of the Tenyi could retrieve Mare Mare from the Graveyard, allowing the creation of a Mini Mare Mare Token.
Additionally, Shaman of the Tenyi could be used to destroy one of the opponent’s controlled cards following an attack declaration involving the player’s face-up non-Effect monster. Many decks featuring Shaman of the Tenyi also made use of another major staple of the meta: Vessel for the Dragon Cycle. It could be used to send a Wyrm monster from the player’s deck to the Graveyard in exchange for a Tenyi monster, allowing players to get the jump on opponents almost immediately.
Further Information About Rising Rampage
When Rising Rampage was released internationally, it came as a larger set than the Japanese version. The international version of Rising Rampage contained 100 cards. However, none of the international version’s cards came in 20th Secret Rare. Instead, select first-edition copies of four of the set’s cards came in Starlight Rare.
On a related note, two months after the set’s international release, Rising Rampage Special Edition was released in North America, Europe, and Oceania. This product contained three 9-card booster packs; among all the cards in it, two would be Super Rare variant cards. One would be either Salamangreat Coyote or Marincess Battle Ocean; the second would be either Marincess Wonder Heart or Marincess Sea Angel.
An interesting point about Rising Rampage was that after its release, the overwhelming consensus from the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG community was to buy its single cards rather than box sets. This was because the box sets had notoriously unimpressive pull rates—which only served to make the big pulls all the more appealing and valuable.
And with that, our look back on Rising Rampage comes to a close. Stay with us as we continue to bring you further deep dives into past TCG sets in TCG Throwback articles to come.
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