How to Spot an Authentic Charizard Base Set

The fake Charizard problem

The 1999 Charizard Base Set is not a Pokemon card like any other. It is THE card. The absolute icon of the TCG, the one every collector dreams of owning, and the one whose PSA 10 copies today reach five or six figures. Such value obviously attracts counterfeiters, and for over twenty years, fakers have been competing in ingenuity to produce ever more convincing copies.

It is estimated that about 30 to 40 percent of Charizard Base Set cards sold outside professional channels are fake. The figure may seem enormous, but it reflects market reality: on generalist platforms, at yard sales, or on Asian marketplaces, the odds of running into a counterfeit are extremely high. And unlike the crude fakes of ten years ago, modern imitations are formidable: similar textures, convincing holograms, nearly identical fonts.

The good news is that no counterfeit passes every test. Even the best imitations betray themselves on at least two or three observable details. You just need to know where to look. This guide brings together the seven essential checks we run at Pokeval on every Charizard submitted to us.

The 7 tests to verify authenticity

Each of these tests takes less than a minute. None are destructive, meaning you can apply all of them to your card without any risk to its value. Start with the light test, it is the most revealing.

Test 1: The light (non-destructive rip test alternative)

The famous "rip test" involves tearing a corner of the card to verify the presence of a thin black layer in the middle of the cardstock, characteristic of real Pokemon cards printed on multilayer paper. The problem is that it destroys the card. We therefore recommend a non-destructive alternative: the lamp test.

Place your Charizard in front of a strong light source (desk lamp, phone flashlight pressed against the back of the card). A genuine card is totally opaque: light does not pass through, or only in a barely perceptible way. A counterfeit, on the other hand, lets through much more light because the cardstock used is generally less dense and does not contain the famous central black layer.

If you clearly see the outline of Charizard through transparency, or if the card lights up like a stained-glass window, you probably have a fake in your hands.

Test 2: The border texture

The yellow borders of a genuine Charizard Base Set have a perfectly smooth, slightly satin finish, with a clean and regular cut. Run your finger along the edges: you should feel a continuous surface, with no ridges or visible fibers.

Fakes often show slightly rough borders, sometimes fluffy, with paper fibers visible on the edges. Also look very closely at the corners: on a real card, they are rounded with millimeter precision, while counterfeits often show corners that are too sharp or, on the contrary, too blunt.

Test 3: Font and spacing

This is one of the most reliable tests. In 1999 Wizards of the Coast used a very specific font for attack names, HP, and descriptions. Counterfeiters rarely reproduce this font with perfect accuracy.

On an authentic Charizard:

• The "HP 120" in the top right uses a bold font with tight spacing between the digits
• The name "Charizard" at the top is precisely aligned with the name bar
• The "Fire Spin" attack description is left-justified with consistent line spacing
• The "©1995, 96, 98, 99 Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK" at the bottom must be perfectly legible even to the naked eye

On a fake, you will almost always find an anomaly: an "O" that is slightly too round, different spacing, or worse, a spelling mistake in the copyright. A classic: fakes sometimes write "Nintedo" or "Gamefrek".

Test 4: Colors and saturation

Real Base Set cards have a very particular chromatic rendering: yellows are warm and slightly creamy, Charizard's reds lean toward a brick orange, and the blues on the back are deep without ever being fluorescent.

Counterfeits almost always suffer from one of two flaws: either the colors are too vivid (aggressive lemon yellow, neon red), or they are too dull (washed-out tones, low saturation). Always compare your card to a Pokeval reference photo or a verified PSA sale. The human eye picks up colorimetric differences very quickly.

Test 5: The back of the card (exact blue, centered Pokeball)

The back of a Pokemon card is paradoxically the best indicator of authenticity. Counterfeiters often spend hours on the front and neglect the back. Here is what to check:

• The shade of blue: a deep royal blue, neither too dark (almost black on fakes), nor too light (washed-out sky blue)
• The central Pokeball: perfectly circular and aligned with the "Pokemon" logo
• The "Pokemon" logo: the yellow letters must have a clean dark blue outline, no bleed
• The two Pokemon in the background: the silhouettes of a Charizard and a Mewtwo must be clearly drawn, not blurry
• The repeated "POKEMON" text: it must be perfectly straight, never tilted

A killer trick: turn the card 180 degrees and look at the symmetry. The back of a real card is nearly symmetrical, whereas fakes often show a visible offset in the position of the central Pokeball.

Test 6: Weight and thickness

This test requires a precision scale (to the hundredth of a gram), but it is decisive. An authentic Pokemon Base Set card weighs between 1.7 and 1.8 grams, and its thickness is precisely 0.3 mm.

Counterfeits, due to the different cardstock used, generally fall outside this range:

• Less than 1.6 g: stock too thin, obvious fake
• More than 1.9 g: stock too thick, almost certain fake
• Thickness above 0.35 mm: to be measured with calipers, a good indicator

If you do not have a scale, simply compare the weight to that of another Base Set common you know is real. The difference, if there is one, is immediately felt between your fingers.

Test 7: Illustration details (eyes, flames)

Mitsuhiro Arita's artwork for the original Charizard is a masterpiece of precision. Counterfeiters, on the other hand, work from digital scans that lose sharpness when printed. Here are the areas to inspect with a magnifying glass:

• Charizard's eyes: two perfectly defined green dots, with a single white highlight. On fakes, the eyes are often blurry, too big, or misaligned
• The flames on the tail: a fine orange-yellow gradient, with sharp tips. Counterfeits tend to produce "mushy" flames, with abrupt gradients
• The belly scales: each scale is clearly outlined on a real card. On a fake, they often merge into an indistinct mass
• The "Mitsuhiro Arita" signature at the bottom right of the illustration: it must be perfectly legible, even though tiny

Differences between versions

Not all Charizard Base Set cards are created equal, and counterfeiters take advantage of this to deliberately blur the versions. Here is what you need to know to avoid being fooled.

1st Edition (1999)

The rarest and most expensive version. It is recognizable by the small "Edition 1" logo (a circle with a "1" and "Edition" below) printed to the left of the illustration, just under the "Fire Spin" attack name. Beware: this logo is often digitally added to counterfeits. Always check that it is perfectly aligned and has the same ink density as the rest of the card.

Shadowless (1999)

An intermediate version, printed right after 1st Edition. It does not have the Edition 1 logo, but is distinguished by the absence of a drop shadow to the right of the illustration frame. On the Unlimited version, you will see a clean gray shadow to the right of the image frame; on the Shadowless, the frame is clean with no such shadow. That is the key detail.

Unlimited (1999-2000)

The most common version, and paradoxically the one most targeted by counterfeiters today due to its accessible price in low condition. It features the characteristic drop shadow and no Edition 1 logo. This is the version where most fakes are circulating today.

Where to buy safely

The best way to avoid counterfeits is still to buy from reliable sources. Here is our ranking of platforms and channels by trust level.

Note: other valuable Base Set cards are also heavily counterfeited. The same tests apply for example to Mewtwo Base Set and Blastoise Base Set, which are among the favorite targets of counterfeiters alongside Charizard.

What to do if you think you have a fake

You ran the tests and doubt persists, or worse, several clues clearly point to a counterfeit. Here is the procedure to follow depending on your situation.

If you just bought it online:

1. Do not handle the card more than necessary and photograph it from every angle (front, back, edges, with a ruler for scale)
2. Contact the seller immediately via the platform, without going through a direct private message
3. Calmly explain your findings, citing the tests that failed
4. If the seller refuses the return, open an official dispute attaching all your photos
5. On Cardmarket and eBay, request that the card be examined by a third party (mediation service)

If you have had the card for a long time:

1. Send it in for grading at PSA or CGC. If it is fake, it will be returned with the "Evidence of Trimming" or "Not Authentic" notation. This service costs between 20 and 50 euros but gives you definitive certainty
2. Free alternative: submit it to the Pokeval scan, which uses a database of over 100,000 authenticated cards to automatically detect anomalies
3. Join specialized communities (subreddit r/pkmntcgcollections, Pokemon forums) and ask for input from volunteer experts

One last piece of advice, and probably the most important: never resell a card you suspect to be fake. Even when fully transparent, you expose yourself to legal trouble and harm the whole community. If you are certain it is a fake, mark it discreetly (marker on the back) and keep it as a reference piece, or destroy it.