Where are the hits in a pack?
The cards in a pack come in a set order, not at random. The common cards come first and the rare ones last. The order exists for production reasons: the cards are gathered from different print sheets one after another as the pack is filled. That does not mean you can know what is in an unopened pack, and that matters more than it sounds.
Quick facts
| Is the order random? | No, it is fixed within an edition |
|---|---|
| Why? | The cards are gathered from different print sheets in order |
| Does it tell you what you get? | No. Only where in the pack the card sits |
| Use for you | You avoid flicking through and risking bent corners |
| Misuse | Pack searching and weighing, which is cheating |
Pokémon
An English pack contains ten cards plus an energy and a code card, and the order is the same pack after pack. In the Scarlet & Violet era it normally looks like this:
- Four common cards.
- Three uncommon cards.
- Two cards with a foil background, known as reverse holo. The second of the two is sometimes replaced by an illustration rare or special illustration rare.
- One rare card: a separate slot of its own for another hit, for example an ex card or a hyper rare.
- One basic energy card.
- One code card.
So a pack can give two hits at once: an illustration rare in place of the second reverse holo card, plus a hit of its own in the last slot among the game cards. The foil cards sit in the same place in every pack. The exact distribution has changed between generations, so older packs follow a different but equally fixed order.
Magic: The Gathering
Here too, packs have historically had a fixed order with the rare card at one end. There was also long a pattern in how displays were packed, where certain positions in the box more often held the most valuable cards. That is the background to the saying that the last pack would be the best.
Wizards has worked actively to break such patterns, among other things by changing how packs and boxes are put together. Counting on a certain position is therefore not reliable, and it was never more than a tendency even when it held.
Sports cards
In sports card boxes the guarantee is printed on the box instead, for example one autographed card per box. Which pack it is in is not fixed in the same way, but many series have a pattern where the most premium cards sit in a certain part of the box. What is actually fixed is the number per box, not the position.
Why the order doesn't help you
- The order determines the position, not the contents.
- One pack is just as likely to give an ordinary rare card as the next.
- The odds for the truly sought-after cards are printed on the packaging of sports cards. Pokémon publishes no odds.
- Knowing where the hit sits says nothing about which card it is.
The only thing the order gives you is practical use when you open: if you know the hit comes last, you avoid flicking through the stack and risking bent corners. Open, let the cards slide out, and go through them one at a time. Read more about how to open packs without damaging the cards.
Searched packs and weighed boxes
Because the order is known, people try to work out a pack's contents without opening it, by weighing it or feeling it. This is called pack searching and weighing, and it is cheating. A pack that someone has searched and put back looks unopened but has already been emptied of what was worth anything.
- Serious shops don't sell loose packs from boxes that have stood open.
- An unopened box from a known supply chain is worth more than the same number of loose packs.
- If you buy loose packs: buy from a box opened in front of you or from someone you trust.
- Leave alone any pack that feels lighter or looks resealed.
Read more about how to assess a sealed box.
God packs
In some series there are packs where every card is of unusually high rarity instead of the usual, often called god packs. They are extremely rare and appear mainly in Japanese Pokémon editions. They are part of the manufacturer's own odds, not an error, and they cannot be found in advance.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I feel which pack has the hit? No, and trying is cheating.
- Is the last pack the best? No. There have been patterns historically, but they can't be relied on.
- Why are the cards in order? For production reasons, not to favour anyone.
- Should I open from the front or the back? It makes no difference to the contents. Open along the short side for the cards' sake.
- What is a god pack? A pack where all cards are of unusually high rarity instead of the usual. Very rare.
See also how to read the odds and the rarity levels.
Shop: boosters and displays at Bangerpack.
Written by those of us who run Bangerpack. Range and prices change continuously. What applies when you read this is shown in the category.
