Surging Sparks is about to deliver several thousand volts of fun to every part of the Pokémon fan base.

After a few hits and a couple misses, The Pokémon Company International is closing out 2024 with one of the most stacked sets in recent memory, bested only by Scarlet & Violet—151 last year. You want generic tournament staples? You got 'em. All-new build-arounds? In the bag. Gorgeous cards at low rarities? No problem. Glittering chase rares? Only the best.

Not only does Surging Sparks cater generously to players and collectors of every stripe, but it's capped off with cards that manage to hit every quadrant at once. You could easily list 20 or 30 cards in this set that somebody's going to be stoked to open. But these are the best of the best—the 10 cards that everybody wants from the Surging Sparks.

#10 Alolan Exeggutor ex 242/191

This card is simply gorgeous. What could be better than a sunset on a tropical island? How about a giant, sparkling tree that blazes in the evening light and wants to be your friend? Stellar-type Pokémon are probably the only Pokémon forms capable of keeping up with a literal sunset in terms of colors and vibrancy, and this card puts that fact on full display.

Alolan Exeggutor ex ranks a little low compared to the other Pokémon ex in Stellar Crown, but that just goes to show how dense the field is with new attackers. When a Pokémon can accelerate any amount of Energy with its attack and still miss the podium, you know the competition is fierce.

#9 Hydreigon ex 240/191

From dazzling light to sparkling darkness, Hydreigon ex's art takes the beauty of Stellar-type Pokémon in a different direction. The nighttime colors behind Hydreigon and its naturally dark palette form a murky backdrop that makes the center of its crown shine even brighter by comparison. We've never seen a Hydreigon card this beautiful, and it's not close.

Competitively, Hydreigon ex also falls a little short of the top attackers in Surging Sparks, but if you ever pull off its Obsidian attack you're going to feel mad with power as you deal just shy of 400 damage across three Pokémon. This is one of only a handful of Pokémon that could plausibly earn you six Prize cards with a single attack.

#8 Archaludon ex 241/191

For me, Archaludon's art doesn't inspire quite as much awe as Alolan Exeggutor ex's or Hydreigon ex's, but its Assemble Alloy Ability makes up for everything. When you evolve into Archaludon you get to accelerate two Metal Energy. Together with your one attachment per turn, you get to attack with Metal Defender immediately, one-shotting most Basic Pokémon ex and two-shotting anything else you might face.

You aren't restricted to this linear game plan either—you can accelerate to another Metal-type attacker instead, or pull a damaged Archaludon ex back to your hand so you can evolve, accelerate, and get right back to attacking with a fresh Pokémon without missing a beat. Whether it's taking a solo or just playing backup, Archaludon is a reliable bandmate that every metal deck will want in its lineup.

#7 Sylveon ex 086/191

For the last three years, Pokémon fans have been waiting with baited breath for the second coming of Evolving Skies—an Eeveelution-focused set with high-rarity versions of the entire fox squad to collect. It looks like we're finally going to get that sequel next year with Prismatic Evolutions. But if January feels too far away, here's one Eeveelution to tide you over!

Sylveon ex earns its spot here purely as a collectible, but its attacks aren't bad either. Magical Charm makes Sylveon impervious to all but the hardest-hitting attacks, and if we weren't all living in fear of Dusknoir, Sylveon ex could be the backbone of a tanky deck. Angelite also recalls the kinds of effects we saw on Fairy cards before the type was discontinued after the Sun & Moon Series, which is a nice nod to those old mechanics.

All in all, Sylveon ex will be a delight to open (and not too difficult, as a Double Rare), and might inspire some collectors to build their first decks so Sylveon can shine as brightly as possible.

#6 Latios 203/191

Every Scarlet & Violet Series set has at least one standout Illustration Rare that rivals the higher-rarity cards in the set for attention and price. Sometimes it's hard to anticipate which card will rise above the rest. Not this time.

Latios and Latias are a package deal, both in canon and in collectors' binders, and there's no way fans are going to be satisfied with picking up the Latias card coming later in this list until they have this Latios to complete the picture.

#5 Lisia's Appeal 246/191

If this were earlier in the Scarlet & Violet Series, Lisia's Appeal could have easily been the top chase card of the set. It's got all the appeal of cards like Miriam from Scarlet & Violet Base Set—in that it's a very rare card featuring a very pretty girl, earning it the full power of the waifu effect. That's not enough to stand out in Surging Sparks, where the actual Pokémon are so desirable for both players and collectors, but Lisia's Appeal will still be a solid pull with a sizable fan base. And If The Pokémon Company International declines to reprint Boss's Orders in a few years, Lisia's Appeal could wind up being a sleeper hit among players too.

#4 Milotic ex 237/191

The last couple Pokémon sets have all featured powerful Tera Pokémon, which means Milotic has plenty of potential victims for its Sparkling Scales Ability. In the right metagame, it'll reap Prize cards left and right as it sets up perfect two-shots with Hypno Splash.

But playability is the lesser half of the equation. Milotic is canonically one of the most beautiful Pokémon, and this illustration by Kuroimori lives up to that reputation with its gentle curves and the dynamic view it shows both above and below the water. You simply have to stop to admire this card—especially if you see it with its linked pre-evolution.

#3 Ceruledge ex 036/191

Ceruledge isn't an especially popular Pokémon, and this card isn't especially rare, but hoo boy is it powerful. Ignore that second attack for the moment and focus instead of Abyssal Flames. Now picture yourself Knocking Out a Charizard ex with a Stage 1 Pokémon for a single Energy.

Of course, you have to get 15 Energy into your discard pile to do that much damage, but it's not like you need those Energy for anything else when Ceruledge only asks for one attachment. Earthen Vessel, Ultra Ball, Professor's Research, and the new ACE SPEC Brilliant Blender give you more than enough ways to stock your discard pile so you can land Knock Outs turn after turn. And like all Stellar Pokémon, this card looks gorgeous, even though it's just a Double Rare.

#2 Latias ex 239/191

Connected art cards give collectors a mini-challenge of finding two or more specific cards that combine to form a complete image. They've been a huge hit in the Scarlet & Violet Series, but I don't think we've seen a pair of connected arts cards that fans will be as desperate to unite as Latios and this card. Latias & Latios-GX has risen from $20 in 2019 to become the most valuable card in the entire Sun & Moon Series, and collectors aren't going to let these two lovebirds pass them by ever again.

As if its collectibility wasn't enough, Latias ex also has game competitively. When all of your Basic Pokémon retreat for free, you can switch out attackers at will and force your opponent to waste attacks dealing damage that doesn't add up to Knock Outs.

It's hard to imagine a card that players or collectors would want more than Special Illustration Rare Latias ex. Thankfully, we don't have to imagine.

#1 Pikachu ex 238/191

What can we say but "wow." Pikachu ex does everything right: gorgeous art, the most iconic Pokémon, the most popular rarity, and an Ability and attack combo that ensure Pikachu will be lighting up competitive tables for years. The closest comparison I can make is to Tera Charizard ex, a card so obviously destined for greatness that it saved an otherwise mediocre set from being totally overshadowed by 151.

Surging Sparks would have been an above-average Pokémon set without Pikachu ex. With it? We're looking at a modern classic. It's a good thing Prismatic Evolutions is coming in 2025, because nothing else could follow a set this electrifying.