Black Bolt has 76 Illustration Rares and Special Illustration Rares.
Illustration Rares in Black Bolt
Illustration Rares (IR) and Special Illustration Rares (SIR) are the full-art, scene-style cards collectors chase hardest. Black Bolt packs 76 of them into its 172 cards: 69 standard IRs and 7 larger-art SIRs. That puts the full-art count at roughly 44% of the set — a meaningful share of why Black Bolt is fun to open.
The Black Bolt full-art cards to hunt
- Zekrom ex (#166) — Special Illustration Rare (~$273.53)
- Seismitoad (#105) — Illustration Rare (~$235.70)
- Kyurem ex (#165) — Special Illustration Rare (~$82.12)
- Haxorus (#147) — Illustration Rare (~$75.74)
Star Pokémon with full-art cards in Black Bolt
The marquee Pokémon getting the IR/SIR treatment here, with their prints:
- Zekrom — Zekrom ex (#34), Zekrom ex (#158), Zekrom ex (#166)
- Seismitoad — Seismitoad (#105)
- Kyurem — Kyurem ex (#28), Kyurem ex (#157), Kyurem ex (#165)
- Haxorus — Haxorus (#147)
- Volcarona — Volcarona (#100)
These cards drive much of Black Bolt's secondary-market value and help push a full master set to 404 cards. The rarest card overall, Genesect ex (#169) (Special Illustration Rare), sits just above them on the rarity ladder.
IR vs SIR in Black Bolt
If you're prioritising, the 7 Special Illustration Rares are the scarcer, pricier tier — full-bleed art and lower pull rates — while the 69 standard Illustration Rares are more attainable but still some of the best-looking cards in Black Bolt. Together those 76 full-art cards are the heart of the set's chase and the reason a master set climbs to 404 cards.
Figures are from the pokemontcg.io dataset (TCGplayer pricing), as of June 2026.