Exclusive: New Pokemon cards set up powerful combos with huge damage

A man wheels a trolley carrying a Pokemon inside an apple past a cart
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)

There are some weird and wonderful pocket monsters these days (sentient bin bag, anyone?), and we can reveal two new Pokemon cards that immortalize a pair of the strangest but most loveable ones.

Unveiled as part of the Scarlet & Violet – Twilight Masquerade expansion preview season, the new Pokemon cards feature apple-dwelling lizard-slug thing Applin and its evolution, Dipplin (which is two Applins sharing one apple). Besides being quirky additions to one of the best card games, they're powerful too; both can up their damage significantly if you get lucky.

To be more precise, Applin has the 'Tumbling Attack' which lets you add 10 to damage if you flip a coin and get heads. Meanwhile, Dipplin has 'Festival Lead' alongside 'Do the Wave' that should cause chaos for your foes. The latter does 20 damage for each of your Benched Pokemon, while the former allows you to use the attack twice. Ouch.

While Applin has a standard card depicting the creature hiding on a table amongst real apples, this take on Dipplin is a little different from the standard version you may have seen elsewhere. Illustrated by Akira Komayama, this borderless design shows the Pokemon on a trolley being wheeled past a stand of toffee apples and other candied fruit. It's a vibrant and distinct design, so should leap off the table.

Scarlet & Violet – Twilight Masquerade will hit shelves on May 24, 2024. You can get your pre-orders in now at Amazon.


For recommendations on what to play next, check out our guide to the best board games. Looking for presents, on the other hand? Don't miss these essential gifts for gamers.

Benjamin Abbott
Tabletop & Merch Editor

I've been writing about games in one form or another since 2012, and now manage GamesRadar+'s tabletop gaming and toy coverage. You'll find my grubby paws on everything from board game reviews to the latest Lego news.

Read more
Pokemon TCG Pocket Space-Time Smackdown expansion
Pokemon TCG Pocket Space-Time Smackdown release date and details
Palkia ex in Pokemon TCG Pocket, between Vaporeon and Manaphy
Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks tier list (March 2025)
Zoomed in art of the Sudowoodo illustration rare card in Pokemon TCG Pocket.
Pokemon's literal god of the universe is almost unstoppable in TCG Pocket – the only thing that can save us is a smiley tree and a concussed dinosaur
Pokemon Destined Rivals booster box and Elite Trainer box against a blue and purple background
Where to buy Pokemon Destined Rivals before resellers snap up the latest TCG set
Pokemon TCG Pocket Promo Cards
All Pokemon TCG Pocket Promo Cards and how to get them
Dragonite Variant card in Pokemon TCG Pocket
Pokemon TCG Pocket players are furious at the new trading system: "They should probably remove 'Trading Card Game' from the title screen"
Latest in Tabletop Gaming
Stardew Valley: The Board Game being played
Roll up farming sim lovers, Stardew Valley: The Board Game is 25% off as we trundle into the spring sales
Quacks: All-In Edition box art
Fellow witchcore weirdos, prepare your cauldrons for a classic potion-making board game refresh with Quacks: All-In Edition
Pokemon Destined Rivals booster box and Elite Trainer box against a blue and purple background
Where to buy Pokemon Destined Rivals before resellers snap up the latest TCG set
Zombicide box featuring stylized art of survivors fighting zombies
Zombicide 2nd Edition review: "Like a zombie flick brought to tabletop"
Giovanni and Mewtwo from Pokemon Destined Rivals
Team Rocket is blasting off again in new Pokemon TCG expansion, Destined Rivals
Screenshots from Tekken: The Board Game teaser trailer
I hope your affairs are in order, because Bandai Namco just dropped Tekken: The Board Game
Latest in News
Ben Affleck in Zack Snyder's Justice League
Ben Affleck reflects on the "excruciating experience" playing Batman in the Zack Snyder movies: "A lot of it was misalignment of agendas, understandings, expectations"
Assassin's Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows has been the series' best launch since Valhalla, but that was "a perfect storm we may never see again," says Ubisoft
Monster Hunter Wilds
Monster Hunter Wilds' first major update rights its greatest wrong by adding a proper Palico cooking animation, and it's letting you change Alma's glasses
Hideo Kojima
Death Stranding 2 Japanese voice recording has officially "wrapped," director Hideo Kojima says: "Thank you so much"
Moana in Moana 2
Disney Plus finally adds heavily requested feature, and we're surprised it took this long
Kaitlyn Dever as Abby in The Last Of Us season 2
Abby star Kaitlyn Dever played the Last of Us games with her dad and has been a fan "for a very long time"