Booster pack
Encyclopedia
In collectible card game
s and collectible miniature wargames
, a booster pack is a sealed package of cards or figurines, designed to add to a player's collection.
Booster packs generally contain a relatively small number of items (6–19 for cards; 3–8 for figurines), randomly assorted. Booster packs are the smaller, cheaper counterparts of starter pack
s, though many expansion sets are sold only in boosters. While booster packs are cheaper than starter packs, the price per item is typically higher.
Booster packs are generally priced to serve as good impulse purchase
s, with prices comparable to a comic book
and somewhat lower than those of most magazine
s, paperback
book
s, and other such items.
In many games, there is a fixed distribution based on rarity, while others use truly random assortments. When the distribution is based on rarity, booster packs usually contain one or two rares, depending on the game, while the remainder are of lesser rarity.
Collectible card game
thumb|Players and their decksA collectible card game , also called a trading card game or customizable card game, is a game played using specially designed sets of playing cards...
s and collectible miniature wargames
Miniature wargaming
Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming that incorporates miniature figures, miniature armor and modeled terrain as the main components of play...
, a booster pack is a sealed package of cards or figurines, designed to add to a player's collection.
Booster packs generally contain a relatively small number of items (6–19 for cards; 3–8 for figurines), randomly assorted. Booster packs are the smaller, cheaper counterparts of starter pack
Starter pack
A starter pack is a sealed package of cards or figurines, designed to serve as the beginning of a collection, in collectible card games and collectible miniature wargames....
s, though many expansion sets are sold only in boosters. While booster packs are cheaper than starter packs, the price per item is typically higher.
Booster packs are generally priced to serve as good impulse purchase
Impulse purchase
An impulse purchase or impulse buy is an unplanned decision to buy a product or service, made just before a purchase. One who tends to make such purchases is referred to as an impulse purchaser or impulse buyer...
s, with prices comparable to a comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
and somewhat lower than those of most magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
s, paperback
Paperback
Paperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
s, and other such items.
In many games, there is a fixed distribution based on rarity, while others use truly random assortments. When the distribution is based on rarity, booster packs usually contain one or two rares, depending on the game, while the remainder are of lesser rarity.
Examples of booster pack sizes of different collectible games
- Magic: The GatheringMagic: The GatheringMagic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...
- 15 cards per booster: 1 rare, 3 uncommons and 11 commons; Core Set boosters contain a basic land as one of the commons. Starting with the Shards of Alara block, booster packs for both Core Sets and Expansions began to contain 1 land, 10 commons, 3 uncommons, either 1 rare (7/8 chance) or 1 mythic rare (1/8 chance), and either a tip card (which explains the new rules in the set, such as exalted in the Alara Block or Infect in the Scars of Mirrodin Block) or a token (which is of a type produced by a card in the set). Also, roughly one in every four booster packs contain a foil card, which can be of any rarity, including basic land. Since foil cards replace a common, no matter what the rarity of the foil, it means that there is a chance that a booster pack could contain 2 rares, a rare and a mythic rare, or even 2 mythic rares. Also, the presence of a foil card means that there is a chance that there are two of the same card in the booster pack (one foil and one regular), which would not occur otherwise.
- Note: Innistrad boosters, first released in September of 2011, contain a slightly different proportion of cards due to the introduction of double-faced cards. In Innistrad boosters one of the 10 commons is replaced by a double-sided card. This double-sided card can be of any rarity and either regular or foil, with the likelihood of a specific card being present depending on its rarity. Also, there is roughly a 3/4 chance that the basic land will be replaced by a checklist. Finally, non-double-sided foil cards may still be present, probably still in roughly 1/4 of the boosters.
- 6 cards booster: 5 random cards which may be common, uncommon, rare, or mythic rare. Includes 1 basic land and either a card containing an explanation of a magic the gathering keyword (i.e. first strike, chroma, hybrid mana symbols) or a token creature card.
- The Spoils
- 13 cards per booster: 1 rare, 3 uncommons and 9 commons with each card available as a foil (randomly replacing a common) in each set except Seed 2. In Seed 2 there are still 13 cards per booster: 1 rare, 12 commons with the rare being randomly replaced with a foil version about 1 in every 6 packs. Seed 3 (TBA) will be a fix set, meaning there are no randomized boosters. This set will contain 30 cards. The following set (TBA) will resume randomized booster packs.
- Call of Cthulhu Collectible Card GameCall of Cthulhu Collectible Card GameThe Call of Cthulhu Collectible Card Game or Call of Cthulhu Living Card Game is a collectible card game marketed by Fantasy Flight Games. It is based on the fiction of the Cthulhu Mythos, primarily the writings of H. P. Lovecraft and Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu role-playing game...
- 11 cards per booster: 1 rare, 3 uncommons and 7 commons. Recently, the game switched to non-collectable expansion packs called Asylum Decks.
- Lord of the Rings, TheThe Lord of the Rings Trading Card GameThe Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game is a collectible card game produced by Decipher, Inc. Released November 2001, it is based on Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and the J. R. R. Tolkien novel on which the films were based. Decipher also have the rights to The Hobbit novel...
- 11 cards per booster: 1 rare, 3 uncommons, 7 commons. There is a one in seven chance that a special foil card takes the place of the rare.
- Duel MastersDuel Mastersis a franchise based on a manga, anime and a trading card game. There is also a video game.-Trading Card Game:The card game originated in Japan, marketed by Takara Tomy. It was produced in English by Wizards of the Coast, who purchased the rights to the name Duel Masters from , which ran a...
- 10 cards per booster: guaranteed to contain rare cards, 2 is also possible in a booster. If a booster does contain 2, one will be rare while the other will be very rare, or super rare. In the Japanese version, there is only 5 cards per booster pack and there is no guarantee to have rare cards, however, it is possible to get holographic cards of any type.
- HeroclixHeroClixHeroClix is a collectible miniatures game that uses the Clix system. Originally designed and produced by WizKids, it is now owned and marketed by NECA. Players construct teams of comic book heroes, villains, and other characters from popular video games such as Street Fighter, Gears of War, and Halo...
- Recent sets use 5 figure boosters. A booster contains 2 or 3 commons, 1 or 2 uncommons, and 1 rare, but super-rare or chase figures may replace one of the other figures in the box (which is replaced varies based on the set). Prior to the Avengers set, HeroClix typically used 4 figure boosters with a much more complicated six-tier rarity scheme, with a few exceptions such as the Fantastic Forces set, which had three figures boosters because of the larger size of many of the pieces, and the 1 or 2 figure boosters formerly marketed at retail stores.
- PokémonPokémon Trading Card GameThe Pokémon Trading Card Game is a collectible card game based on the Pokémon video game series, first introduced in Japan in October 1996, then North America in December 1998...
- Originally 11 cards per booster pack - 1 rare card, 3 uncommons, and 7 commons. With the release of the E-Series, it became 9 cards per booster - 5 commons, 2 uncommons, 1 reverse holo, and 1 rare. Became 10 cards after the release of Diamond and Pearl with 3 uncommons instead of 2.
- World of WarcraftWorld of Warcraft Trading Card GameThe World of Warcraft Trading Card Game is a collectible card game based on Blizzard Entertainment's MMORPG, World of Warcraft. The game was announced by Upper Deck Entertainment on August 18, 2005, and released on October 25, 2006...
- 15 random cards - 10 commons, 3 uncommons, 1 rare or epic, and 1 hero card or loot card. Booster packs also have one UDE point card redeemable online. Boosters are available for all released card sets. Starting with March of the Legion, Booster packs will contain 19 random cards: 3 extra commons and 1 extra uncommon.
- Yu-Gi-Oh!Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card GameThe is a Japanese collectible card game developed and published by Konami. It is based on the fictional game of Duel Monsters created by manga artist Kazuki Takahashi, which is the main plot device during the majority of his popular manga franchise, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and its various anime adaptations...
- Normal OCG booster pack: 5 cards per booster, not guaranteed to have rare cards.
- Normal TCG booster pack: 9 cards per booster, 1 non-common card (can be rare, super rare, ultra rare, and in some cases, secret rare or ultimate rare) and 8 commons. From The Duelist Genesis onwards, the 100% guaranteed rare had NOT been substituted for a rarer card, rather instead replacing 1 of the common cards. In other words, there are still 9 cards in lucky packs: but with 7 commons, 1 rare, and 1 super, ultra, ultimate or secret rare.
- Doctor Who - Battles in TimeDoctor Who - Battles in TimeDoctor Who – Battles in Time is a trading card game and fortnightly magazine from the partwork publishers, GE Fabbri, who acquired the license to produce Battles in Time...
- Normally 9 cards per pack: 8 commons and 1 rare, with a 1 per 6 packs chance of a super-rare card, a 1 per 24 packs chance of an ultra-rare card, and a 1 per 1000 packs chance of the Golden Ticket.
- ChaoticChaotic Trading Card GameChaotic is a Danish trading card game brought to the United States by Chaotic USA and 4Kids Entertainment, and distributed by TC Digital Games. It was released along with the open beta version of the online game on October 24, 2007...
- Normally 9 cards, 2 rares (sometimes 1 super or ultra, then a rare) and an assortment of uncommons and commons.