Zapdos (Fossil 15)

Zapdos LV.40
サンダー Thunder

Fossil print
Illus. Mitsuhiro Arita

Evolution stage

Card name

HP

80

weakness None	resistance -30	retreat cost

English expansion	Fossil
Rarity
English card no.	15/62
Japanese expansion	Mystery of the Fossils
Japanese rarity

Expansion	Fossil
Rarity
English card no.	30/62

Japanese expansion	Unnumbered Promotional cards

TCG GB1 set	Mystery
TCG GB1 ID	C27
TCG GB2 set	Sky Flying Pokémon
TCG GB2 ID	F27

For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Zapdos.

Zapdos (Japanese: サンダー Thunder) is a Lightning-type Basic Pokémon card. It was first released as part of the Fossil expansion.

Card text

Thunderstorm

サンダーストーム

40

For each of your opponent's Benched Pokémon, flip a coin. If heads, this attack does 20 damage to that Pokémon. (Don't apply Weakness and Resistance for Benched Pokémon.) Then, Zapdos does 10 damage times the number of tails to itself.

Pokédex data

Zapdos - Electric Pokémon

No.

145

Height

5'3" (1.6 m)

Weight

116 lbs. (52.6 kg)

Pokédex entry

A legendary thunderbird Pokémon whose anger is said to cause storms. Some say it has lived above the clouds for thousands of years.

天を司る神の鳥として、雲の上で数千年の時を過ごしている。雷はサンダーの怒りか？！

Release Information

This card was included in the Fossil expansion as both a Star Holofoil and Non Holofoil card, first released in the Japanese Mystery of the Fossils as a Cosmos Holofoil card. In Japan, it was reprinted with different artwork by Ken Sugimori, available as a prize at the 1999 Tropical Mega Battle tournament. Those who were not in the main event could still battle each other, earning stamps for every battle they participated in. Those who completed their stamp booklet were awarded either a Zapdos, Articuno, or Moltres phone card at random in a sealed envelope. An alternate Cosmos Holofoil print was included in the English Thunderstorm Theme Deck. This print changes the final copyright from ©1999 Wizards to ©1999-2000 Wizards.

Gallery

Fossil print
Illus. Mitsuhiro Arita

Phone card print
Illus. Ken Sugimori

TCG GB1 Mystery sprite

TCG GB2 Sky Flying Pokémon sprite

Trivia

The Phone card promo is slightly longer than a normal trading card, as the print had to adopt the same dimensions as a regular Japanese phone card. That print utilizes the same stock Sugimori artwork of Zapdos that was later used on the Zapdos Legendary Card from Pokémon Trading Card Game.
All prints of the English Holofoil Zapdos contain an error where they lack Holofoil where the Evolutionary Box for Stage 1 Pokémon and Stage 2 Pokémon normally is.

Origin

This article is part of Project TCG, a Bulbapedia project that aims to report on every aspect of the Pokémon Trading Card Game.