Selected Rulings for the Eternal Format

Below are a handful of rulings that have come up in gameplay or in deckbuilding when exploring the Eternal format. This page is a supplement to the official Compendium at PokéGym. If an official ruling at PokéGym contradicts one of the rulings below that is not specifically marked with [ETERNAL] below, the Compendium’s ruling should be followed instead and the erroneous ruling should be reported to JustInBasil on Discord.

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— Jump List —

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TBA: Distinctions between Pokémon Powers, Poké-Powers, Poké-Bodies, and Abilities.

TBA: Cards that interact with your “Supporter in play.”

TBA: Jirachi RR

TBA: First Ticket

TBA: Special Darkness/Metal

TBA: Rule Box / Pokémon ex (old) and Pokémon ex (new)

Evolution Incense and LV.X.

Q. Can Mew TM 97’s Poké-Body Lost Link copy the attacks of Pokémon LEGEND, Pokémon BREAK, or Pokémon V-UNION in the Lost Zone? For example, can Lost Link copy Raticate BREAK BKP 89’s Super Fang attack for [C][C] when Raticate BREAK BKP 89 is in the Lost Zone?

A. No, it cannot. Pokémon BREAK, Pokémon LEGEND, and Pokémon V-UNION are not complete Pokémon when not in play and thus cannot have their attacks copied by Lost Link. (Official Ruling for Pokémon LEGEND.)

Q. Can Mew TM 97’s Poké-Body Lost Link copy the attacks of Pokémon LV.X in the Lost Zone? For example, can Lost Link copy Luxray GL LV.X RR 109’s Flash Impact attack for [L][C] when Luxray GL LV.X RR 109 is in the Lost Zone?

A. Yes, it can, provided you fulfill the attack’s Energy requirements. (Official ruling can be located in the Compendium LV.X.)

Q. Can Alakazam Star’s Skill Copy attack copy the attacks of a discarded Pokémon LEGEND, Pokémon BREAK, or Pokémon V-UNION? For example, can Skill Copy copy Yanmega BREAK BKP 89’s Barrier Break attack for [C][C][C] when Yanmega BREAK STS 8 is discarded?

A. No, it cannot. Pokémon BREAK, Pokémon LEGEND, and Pokémon V-UNION are not complete Pokémon when not in play and thus cannot have their attacks copied by Alakazam Star. (See this PokéGym Forum post.)

Q. Can Alakazam Star’s Skill Copy attack copy the attacks of a discarded Pokémon LV.X? For example, can Skill Copy copy Luxray GL LV.X RR 109’s Flash Impact attack for [L][C] when Luxray GL LV.X RR 109 is discarded?

A. Yes, you can, despite Pokémon LV.X being incomplete Pokémon. (See this PokéGym Forum post.)

Q. In the Eternal format, how do Unown from the Diamond & Pearl era and Unown from the Neo era interact? For example, does Unown [E] N2 67 count as an “Unown E” for the purposes of Unown [S]’s SET Poké-Power?

A. Yes. Any Unown with a letter in its name (as printed on the card) will count as such. However, Unown without the letter in their name, like Unown LOT 92, do not count for such a purpose since the Unown’s letter is not part of the name.

Q. The Unown from the Neo era have the text “You may have up to 4 Basic Pokémon cards in your deck with Unown in their names.” printed on them. How does this work with other Unown in the Eternal format?

A. If any of the Unown in your deck have this rule printed on them, then the rule applies to your deck. You are limited to a total of 4 Basic Pokémon with “Unown” in their name. (See this PokéGym Forum post.)

Q. Can I evolve Unown [V] LA 79 or Unown [V] N4 89 into Unown VSTAR SIT 66?

A. No, you can’t. There’s an official ruling on this specific situation. In short, the Unown [V] that aren’t the Unown V from Silver Tempest are not “Unown V” but “Unown [V]” and are treated as having a different name from Unown V. As such, they cannot evolve into Unown VSTAR, which evolves only from “Unown V.”

Q. For the purposes of card effects, how do new and old Pokémon ex interact with one another and with cards from one another’s eras? For example, could I use Celio’s Network RG 88 to search for Miraidon ex SVI 81?

A. New Pokémon ex and old Pokémon ex are both Pokémon ex. Restrictions on card effects from one era affect interactions with those in the other. In this example, Celio’s Network specifically excludes the possibility of searching for a Pokémon ex, so it cannot be used to search for Miraidon ex.

Q. If I level up Shaymin LOT 33 into Shaymin LV.X PL 126, can I still use Shaymin’s “Floral Heal” Ability?

A. Yes, you can. Although not specified on the LV.X card (likely because Abilities did not exist at the time), Pokémon also retain any Abilities they may have upon leveling up.

Q. Can Mew TM 97’s Poké-Body Lost Link copy the attacks of Pokémon LV.X in the Lost Zone? For example, can Lost Link copy Luxray GL LV.X RR 109’s Flash Impact attack for [L][C] when Luxray GL LV.X RR 109 is in the Lost Zone?

A. Yes, it can, provided you fulfill the attack’s Energy requirements. (Official ruling can be located in the Compendium LV.X.)

Q. Can I search my deck for a Pokémon LV.X using the effect of Evolution Incense?

A. No, you can’t. Pokémon LV.X are not Evolution Pokémon but are instead Pokémon Level-Up cards, a category separate from the categories of Basic Pokémon and Evolution Pokémon.

Q. The text of Nightly Garbage Run from Team Rocket says, “Choose up to 3 Basic Pokémon cards, Evolution cards, and/or basic Energy cards from your discard pile. Show them to your opponent and shuffle them into your deck.” With this wording, can I shuffle back a Baby Pokémon, a Pokémon, LV.X or a Pokémon V-UNION into my deck?

A. Yes, you can. At the start of the Diamond & Pearl block, the older phrase “Basic Pokémon or Evolution card” was changed to “Pokémon” and cards that use the older phrasing should be treated as though they say “Pokémon” in place of “Basic Pokémon or Evolution card.” So, in this example, interpret Nightly Garbage Run as if it says, “Choose up to 3 Pokémon cards and/or Basic Energy cards from your discard pile. Show them to your opponent and shuffle them into your deck.” See also this post on the rules changes made at the start of the Diamond & Pearl era and this ruling from the Compendium LV.X regarding how the card Celio’s Network works after the change.

Q. Can I rearrange the order of my Prize cards after using the “Time Walk” Poké-Power on Azelf LA 19?

A. Yes, you can. (Official ruling can be located in the Compendium LV.X.)

Q. Can I use Claydol's Cosmic Power Poké-Power if I already have more than 6 cards in my hand?

A. Yes, you can. If you have 6 or more cards in your hand after putting 1 or 2 on the bottom of your deck, you simply do not draw anything at that point. (Official ruling can be located in the Compendium LV.X.)