Dark Golduck 37/82 Pokémon Base Set Team Rocket Raw

Character: Golduck

Set: Base Set

Series: Team Rocket

Card Number: 37

Rarity: R

Condition: N/A

Grade: Raw

Year: 1999

Illustrator: Mitsuhiro Arita

The Dark Golduck 37/82 is an Uncommon Water-type Stage 1 Pokémon card from the Team Rocket expansion, released on April 24, 2000 by Wizards of the Coast and illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita, the prolific Japanese artist whose clean, expressive linework defined much of the original Pokémon TCG's "Dark" subset artwork. As a 60 HP Pokémon that evolves from Psyduck, it carries a Weakness to Lightning-type attacks (×2), no Resistance, and a Retreat Cost of two Colorless Energy. The Team Rocket set was the fifth English expansion of the Base era, introducing a roster of shadowy "Dark" variants of popular Pokémon that reimagined familiar species through a villainous lens, and this non-holo Uncommon printing sits alongside the Holo Rare Dark Golduck (13/82) as one of two distinct treatments of the same species within the 82-card master set.

In terms of decks and strategy, Dark Golduck's Pokémon Power Third Eye is a powerful card-draw engine: discard one Energy card attached to Dark Golduck to draw up to three cards. In 2000-era competitive formats, this made it a critical inclusion in Water-type and Psychic-hybrid decks, as the ability to flood the hand with three cards at the cost of a single Energy created a massive tempo swing that could recover from poor draws or set up devastating follow-up turns. Its sole attack, Super Psy, costs two Psychic and one Colorless Energy and deals 50 damage—a solid mid-range strike that pairs well with the card's Psychic typing despite its Water classification. In modern Unlimited and Vintage formats, Dark Golduck finds utility in Water/Psychic hybrid strategies as a mid-board presence that provides both card advantage and consistent damage output, and its Lightning Weakness (×2) makes it a natural counter to Zapdos-heavy decks by incentivizing opponents to keep their Lightning attackers benched rather than promoting them into a super-effective matchup.

Collectors love the Dark Golduck for its unique position as one of the most mechanically interesting "Dark" Pokémon ever produced, a card whose Third Eye power represented a design philosophy of resource conversion—trading a tangible asset (Energy) for intangible advantage (card draw)—that was remarkably ahead of its time. Mitsuhiro Arita's illustration, depicting the darkened Golduck with glowing red eyes and a menacing psychic aura rendered in his signature bold-outline style, gives the card a visually striking identity that stands out among the more conventional artwork of the set's standard Pokémon. As a member of the "Dark" subset, it appeals to collectors who specifically seek out the villainous reimaginings that defined Team Rocket's thematic identity, and its permanently fixed supply—combined with over 25 years of natural wear from the massive population of Team Rocket cards that were opened, played, and traded in the early 2000s—ensures that quality raw copies remain a steady target for both set completionists and players of Unlimited format tournaments who still appreciate the creative card-draw mechanics of the Base era's most imaginative "Dark" Pokémon.

Product Details

Card Number / Rarity:37/82 / Uncommon

Card Type / HP / Stage:Water / 60 / Stage 1

Attack 1:[P] Third Eye
Discard 1 Energy card attached to Dark Golduck in order to draw up to 3 cards.

Attack 2:[1PP] Super Psy (50)

Weakness / Resistance / Retreat Cost:L / / 2

Tip:Dark Golduck is one of the first Dark Pokemon to be released in the Pokemon TCG. Dark Golduck can trade a single energy to allow you to draw three cards or power up to deal 50 damage, making it a powerhouse of its format.

Stock Image Shown.

All Cards Come Sleeved & Toploaded