The quick version
- Pitch Black is the English release of Japan's Abyss Eye, out July 17, 2026, and the fifth set in the Mega Evolution era.
- A booster box is 36 packs, and about 4 in 10 packs hold an ex or better.
- Hitting any Special Illustration Rare runs about 1 in 3 to 4 boxes. Hitting the specific one you want, like Mega Darkrai ex, takes far longer.
- If you only want one specific chase card, buying the single is usually cheaper and more reliable than opening packs for it.
Pitch Black is the fifth mainline set in the Mega Evolution era, and it landed on shelves July 17, 2026 as the English release of Japan's Abyss Eye. If you have been chasing the Mega Evolution mechanic since it debuted last September, Pitch Black is where the era's pull rates get genuinely difficult, and where the chase list gets genuinely expensive.
Here is what is actually in the box, what you are likely to pull, and what to know before you commit to a case.
What's in a Pitch Black booster box?
A booster box holds 36 packs, 10 cards per pack. Roughly 4 in 10 packs (about 41%) contain a Pokémon ex or better. Across a full box you can expect around 9 standard ex cards and 4 to 5 illustration rares, figures independently confirmed by two separate community trackers.
That sounds generous, and relative to older sets it is. The catch is at the very top of the rarity ladder, where Mega Evolution has consistently run harder than any set before it.
Pull rates, rarity by rarity
| Rarity | Odds per box | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pokémon ex / IR (combined) | ~41% of packs | About 9 ex cards and 4 to 5 illustration rares per box, on average |
| Any Special Illustration Rare (SIR) | Roughly 1 in every 3 to 4 boxes | This is your chance at some SIR, not a specific one |
| One specific SIR you are chasing (for example Mega Darkrai ex) | Much longer odds | In one tracked sample, the Mega Darkrai ex SIR appeared once across 753 packs (about 21 boxes), and two separate hunts of 500 and 100 packs pulled it zero times. Any single named SIR carries similar long odds, not Darkrai alone |
| Gold Master Hyper Rare | Roughly 1 in 20 to 30 boxes | The set's rarest tier |
One thing worth being clear about: the set has several Special Illustration Rares. The 1-in-3-to-4-boxes figure is your chance at any SIR. The odds of the one specific card you are chasing are much longer, and that is what the Mega Darkrai numbers illustrate. Darkrai is just the card most people happen to chase.
A rough case (6 boxes) pushes your odds of pulling some SIR close to even, but it does not meaningfully change your odds of one specific chase card. That is the honest math: if you are opening for a particular card, budget for variance, not certainty. If a single card is the goal, buying that single is usually the cheaper and more reliable path than opening packs for it.
The chase cards
- Mega Darkrai ex (Special Illustration Rare) is the set's headline chase and the hardest card to land relative to its value. It has corrected sharply from its pre-release peak, which is normal once a set is widely available.
- Gold Mega Darkrai ex (Master Hyper Rare) is the set's rarest tier, pulling at roughly 1 per 20 to 30 boxes. Interestingly, it currently trades below the Special Illustration Rare above it. Rarity and market price don't always move together, and right now the SIR's artwork is winning that contest.
- Mega Zeraora ex, Mega Chandelure ex, and Mega Excadrill ex are the next tier of chase pulls, all Special Illustration Rares with real demand, and all more attainable than the two Darkrai pulls.
Card values move constantly, so check the current market before you buy or sell. We would rather point you at live pricing than quote a number that is stale by next week.
Booster box or Elite Trainer Box?
If your goal is genuinely chasing the SIR and Hyper Rare tier, the booster box gives you more shots per dollar. If you want a lower-variance way into the set, with guaranteed packs plus sleeves and accessories for less commitment, the Elite Trainer Box is the better entry point, though your odds at the top-tier pulls drop with fewer packs opened.
Neither is the "correct" choice on its own. It comes down to whether you are buying to open for value, to build a competitive deck, or simply to own a sealed piece of the set. All three are legitimate, and none of them require chasing the same card.
Bottom line: Pitch Black is a fun box to rip, but the top chase cards are genuinely hard to pull. If you want a specific card, price the single against a box first. If you just want to open, the box and the ETB are both good, they just serve different appetites for risk.
Shop Pitch Black
Browse the set and check live prices and availability:
Reviewed and edited by TCGGuy.
Set details are from the official Pokémon TCG site, tcg.pokemon.com. Pull-rate figures are community-tracked, not official Pokémon numbers, and card values change constantly.