Empoleon 29 — what does this card actually do?

Name: Empoleon 29
Brand: Pokémon
Author: Naoki Saito

This card has 140 HP, a top attack printed at 10 damage and a Lightning weakness.

Water · Stage 2 · Dark Explorers · measured against 20,444 cards on file — card data read July 28, 2026

What does Empoleon 29 do in a game?

Empoleon 29 is a Water Pokémon card with 140 HP, printed as Stage 2.

Its strongest attack, Attack Command, is printed at 10 damage for 1 Energy — 10 damage per Energy card.

Because of the Lightning weakness, any Lightning attack printed at 70 damage or more removes it in a single turn.

Water Stage 2 Rare Holo Unlimited and Expanded #395 Empoleon

Empoleon 29Dark Explorers

140 HP · Water · Stage 2 · retreat 2 · Lightning weakness ×2

Top printed damage1010 per Energy Attack Command10 damage for 1 Energy
as of July 28, 2026

Hit points140 HP15.5% of 17,290 in the 130~180 band

Printed damage1042.7% of 16,246 in the ~30 band

Retreat cost2 Energy28.6% of 17,240 in the 2 band

Energy efficiencyBelow typicalAboveTypicalBelowThis card 10 · typical 49.0
damage per Energy card, among cards whose cheapest attack costs 1

Price trackRare HoloDark Explorers24 printsranked among Stage 2 cardsWhat it costs today, how it moved, and where to buy it

Card classStage 2

RarityRare Holo

SetDark Explorers

Card number29

AbilityDiving Draw

Card data readJuly 28, 2026

What it sells for now$9.92Opens the price page — daily prices, every print variant, where to buy · read August 14, 2026 Removed in one hit by70 damage140 HP against a Lightning ×2 weakness Turns of setup1 turnEnergy attaches once a turn, so the top attack waits that long Cards that can do it562 cardsCounted across the whole card archive Other prints of this name24 printsPrinted HP and legality move from print to print Cards in the same line21 moreEvery print carrying Pokédex #395 Where it can be playedUnlimited and ExpandedRead from the official format list

How Empoleon 29 is built, on five measures

Strongest on Attack cost lightness — top 1.8% of the archive. Weakest on Top printed damage — bottom 0.1%.

Each spoke is this card's place among every card in the archive that prints that figure. Further out is stronger — retreat and attack cost are shown as lightness, so a cheap card reaches outward. Counted July 28, 2026.

How Empoleon 29 is built, on five measures
Measure	Percentile	Printed value
Hit points	76.7%	140 HP
Top printed damage	0.0%	10 damage
Energy efficiency	3.1%	10 per Energy
Retreat lightness	45.3%	2 Energy
Attack cost lightness	98.2%	1 Energy

What it can do

Attack record

1EAttack Command10 damage per Energy card · has printed text10damage

1 attack printed on the card. The badge is the Energy it asks for.

Where it stands

No. 3,522of 17,290 cards ranked by printed HP

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Among the 17,290 cards in every card in the archive that carry printed HP, this one is number 3,522 at 140 HP.

Water cardsNo. 465of 2,435 by printed HP Stage 2 cardsNo. 861of 1,749 by printed HP

This cardEmpoleon 29Dark Explorers140 HP

Printed HP

The ceiling of this archive is 380 HP — 240 HP above this card.

Highest printed HPMega Emboar ex 273Ascended Heroes380 HP

What stands out on Empoleon 29

Hit points 140 HP puts it in the 130~180 band, where 15.5% of 17,290 cards with printed HP sit.
Energy It returns 10 damage per Energy card against 49.0 for cards whose cheapest attack costs 1.
Weakness A Lightning attack printed at 70 damage or more removes it in a single turn.
Legality 3 of the 22 prints that carry this name are legal in Standard play.

Empoleon 29 at a glance

What it is. A Water Pokémon card with 140 HP printed as Stage 2, printed in Dark Explorers.
What it can do. 1 attack printed on the card, the strongest at 10 damage for 1 Energy.
What it fears. A Lightning weakness at ×2, which means 70 printed damage is enough to remove it.
What it costs to move. 2 Energy to retreat, discarded from the card itself.
Where it can be played. Unlimited and Expanded only.
What this page does not claim. Deck lists, tournament results and win rates are not published here, because the card files this site reads do not contain them.

Source: Card facts are read once from openly published card files and change only when a source corrects them.

What do the attacks on Empoleon 29 cost, and what do they hit for?

The card prints 1 attack. The strongest asks for 1 Energy and returns 10 damage, which is 10 damage for every Energy card attached.

Empoleon 29 — every printed attack, its cost and its damage
Attack	Energy cost	Cards of Energy	Printed damage	Damage per Energy	Effect
Attack Command	1 Water	1	10×	10	Does 10 damage times the number of Pokémon in play (both yours and your opponent's).

Retreating costs a further 2 Energy, discarded from this card, and that cost is paid on top of anything in the table.

Attack Command1 Energy card

The Energy this attack asks a deck to attach before it can be used, drawn as the symbols printed on the card.

One Energy card attaches per turn, so the number of symbols is also the number of turns the attack waits.

Attack Command 1 Energy10 damage for 1 Energy — 10 per Energy card10

Bars are printed damage against this card's own highest attack (10).

Why one of these damage figures carries a symbol

A number on a Pokémon card is not always the number that lands.

Attack Command is printed as 10×, so the printed number is multiplied — the attack deals that much for each thing the sentence beside it counts.

Back to summary

How does Empoleon 29 compare with every other card?

Each bar below is the whole archive cut by one printed figure, with the band this card falls into marked. A number on its own says nothing about whether it is high or low — the shape of the archive does.

Empoleon 29 — Dark Explorers — EmpoleonDark Explorers 29

No.3,522by HP in the archive

Empoleon 29 prints 140 HP, which puts it at number 3,522 of the 17,290 cards in this archive that print an HP figure at all. The tallest figure printed on any card is 380 HP (Mega Emboar ex).

0% on printed damage — it out-hits that share of the 16,246 cards that print damage

Top 20%Where it sits on printed HP

This card140 HP
Middle half of the archive60–130 HP
Strongest Stage 2 card380 HP
Strongest Empoleon printed160 HP

The ceiling of this archive is Mega Emboar ex at 380 HP — every bar here is measured against it.

This card prints 140 HP, which is 37% of that ceiling.

Every figure in this panel is counted the same way: from the card files this site reads, read July 28, 2026, over the 17,290 cards that print an HP figure. Each bar is measured against the tallest HP in the archive, 380 HP.

Hit points — where this card sits

~7038.6%6,669 cards

80~12033.1%5,725 cards

130~180 — this card15.5%2,679 cards

190~2306.6%1,148 cards

240~2803.3%567 cards

290~3302.4%412 cards

340+0.5%90 cards

17,290 cards in the archive carry a printed HP figure. This one has 140 HP.

Cards in the 130~180 band typically print 104 damage and ask 2 Energy to retreat.

Hit points — where this card sits
Group	Share	Value
~70	38.6%	6,669 cards
80~120	33.1%	5,725 cards
130~180 — this card	15.5%	2,679 cards
190~230	6.6%	1,148 cards
240~280	3.3%	567 cards
290~330	2.4%	412 cards
340+	0.5%	90 cards

Top printed damage — where this card sits

~30 — this card42.7%6,938 cards

40~6022.0%3,566 cards

70~12021.8%3,535 cards

130~1809.0%1,461 cards

190~2503.8%621 cards

260+0.8%125 cards

16,246 cards print damage on at least one attack. The highest on this card is 10.

Cards in the ~30 band typically have 70 HP and ask 1 Energy to retreat.

Top printed damage — where this card sits
Group	Share	Value
~30 — this card	42.7%	6,938 cards
40~60	22.0%	3,566 cards
70~120	21.8%	3,535 cards
130~180	9.0%	1,461 cards
190~250	3.8%	621 cards
260+	0.8%	125 cards

Cheapest attack cost — where this card sits

01.8%304 cards

1 — this card54.4%9,392 cards

226.4%4,565 cards

314.7%2,533 cards

42.4%421 cards

50.3%47 cards

17,262 cards have at least one attack with an Energy cost. The cheapest on this card asks 1 Energy.

Cards whose cheapest attack costs 1 typically have 93 HP and print 49 damage.

Cheapest attack cost — where this card sits
Group	Share	Value
0	1.8%	304 cards
1 — this card	54.4%	9,392 cards
2	26.4%	4,565 cards
3	14.7%	2,533 cards
4	2.4%	421 cards
5	0.3%	47 cards

Retreat cost — where this card sits

05.3%914 cards

149.3%8,503 cards

2 — this card28.6%4,926 cards

312.6%2,168 cards

44.2%729 cards

17,240 cards carry a retreat cost. This one costs 2 Energy to retreat.

Cards with a retreat cost of 2 typically have 132 HP and print 79 damage.

Retreat cost — where this card sits
Group	Share	Value
0	5.3%	914 cards
1	49.3%	8,503 cards
2 — this card	28.6%	4,926 cards
3	12.6%	2,168 cards
4	4.2%	729 cards

No. 14of 98

That is where Empoleon 29 stands highest on HP — number 14 of 98 cards in Dark Explorers. Cut the archive a different way and the answer moves, which is what the bars below are for.

Every card in the archive — 20,444 cards No. 3,522 of 17,290 by HP · No. 14,164 of 16,246 by damage · top by HP: Mega Emboar ex, 380

top 87% on damage
Water cards — 2,435 cards No. 465 of 2,435 by HP · No. 1,995 of 2,316 by damage · top by HP: Wailord ex, 380

top 86% on damage
Stage 2 cards — 1,749 cards No. 861 of 1,749 by HP · No. 1,701 of 1,721 by damage · top by HP: Mega Emboar ex, 380

top 99% on damage
Dark Explorers — 111 cards No. 14 of 98 by HP · No. 87 of 96 by damage · top by HP: Entei-EX, 180

top 90% on damage

Each bar is how far up this card sits when the archive is cut a different way. The bar is its place on HP; the tick is its place on printed damage. Counted from the card files this site reads, read July 28, 2026.

Hit points 140 HP~~middle half 60–130 HP~~
this card 140
Top printed damage 10 damage~~middle half 20–90 damage~~
this card 10

Lowest to highest printed in the archive
Middle half of the archive
This card

Each row is stretched from the lowest printed figure to the highest, so the two rows are not on one shared scale — read each row on its own.

Read from the card files this site reads, July 28, 2026. The archive tops out at 380 HP and 350 printed damage.

Cards printed as Stage 2

1,749 on record

Cards in the same HP band

2,679 of 17,290 (15.5%)

Cards with this much printed damage

6,938 of 16,246 (42.7%)

Counted from the card files this site reads, one card at a time.

Open the group this card falls into

Back to summary

What Empoleon 29 does without attacking

Empoleon 29 carries 1 printed effect that work outside the attack step, so it can matter on a turn the card never attacks.

Printed effects

Capped at once a turn

1 of 1

Read from the printed text quoted below, not counted anywhere else.

Diving Draw — Ability · once a turn

Once during your turn (before your attack), you may discard 1 card from your hand. If you do, draw 2 cards.

Quoted from the card face. The label after the dash is how the card itself names the effect.

Why this sits apart from the attacks

An attack costs Energy and ends your turn. What is printed above does neither — it is available while the card is in play, so it is a different kind of cost to a deck. Attack costs are in the section above.

Diving Draw can only be used once a turn

The words once during your turn are printed in it, which caps it at one use per turn on that one card. Two copies of the card in play are two separate Pokémon, so each carries its own use.

Every card mechanic in the archive

Back to summary

Is Empoleon 29 efficient for the Energy it asks for?

Printed damage on its own says nothing — a 10 damage attack that needs 1 Energy and one that needs two are different cards. Dividing one by the other puts every attack on the same scale.

Damage per Energy card, across the whole archive

1 Energy9,392 cards49.049 damage typical

2 Energy4,565 cards32.565 damage typical

3 Energy2,533 cards34.7104 damage typical

4 Energy421 cards27.8111 damage typical

5 Energy47 cards41.8209 damage typical

Empoleon 29 — this card10.010 damage for 1 Energy

Each bar is what cards asking that much Energy typically print, divided by the Energy they ask for. The number beside the bar is that figure.

Cards whose cheapest attack costs 1 typically return 49.0 damage per Energy card. This card returns 10.

Damage per Energy card, across the whole archive
Group	Share	Value
1 Energy	49.0	49 damage typical
2 Energy	32.5	65 damage typical
3 Energy	34.7	104 damage typical
4 Energy	27.8	111 damage typical
5 Energy	41.8	209 damage typical
Empoleon 29 — this card	10.0	10 damage for 1 Energy

2501250 damage

012345 Energy

Typical for that Energy cost 6 groupsAttack Command 10 / 1

Further right is a costlier attack, further up is a harder-hitting one, so the cheap and heavy corner is top left. The size of a grey dot is how many cards sit at that Energy cost.

Energy cost against printed damage. Each grey dot is what cards asking that much Energy typically print; the coloured dots are the attacks on Empoleon 29.
Group	Typical printed damage	Damage per Energy card	Cards in this group
Cheapest attack costs 0 Energy	45	—	304
Cheapest attack costs 1 Energy	49	49	9,392
Cheapest attack costs 2 Energy	65	33	4,565
Cheapest attack costs 3 Energy	104	35	2,533
Cheapest attack costs 4 Energy	111	28	421
Cheapest attack costs 5 Energy	209	42	47
Attack Command	—	10	—

This card, per Energy card

10 damage

Typical for a 1 Energy attack

49.0 damage

Difference

-39.0 damage

Both figures are damage divided by Energy cost, counted the same way.

Where this sits once the archive is cut by damage instead

The bars above cut the archive by what an attack asks for. Cut the same archive by what an attack prints and the groups come out differently — the damage ranges on record are gathered on one page, which is where a figure like 10 is read as high or low rather than merely large.

Back to summary

What does being a Water card do for Empoleon 29?

Type decides two things at once — which cards take double damage from this one, and which cards deal double to it. Both are read from the weakness printed on each group, not from a rule of thumb.

Deals double to this card 1,520 Lightning cards carry that type A Lightning attack printed at 70 damage is enough to remove this card in one turn.

Empoleon 29 · Stage 2 140 HP Its hardest attack is printed at 10 damage.

Takes double from this card 1,574 cards in groups that print a Water weakness Against Fire, printed damage from this card counts double.

How the archive splits by energy type

Psychicmost often weak to Psychic13.5%2,335 cards

Water — this cardmost often weak to Lightning14.1%2,435 cards

Colorlessmost often weak to Fighting12.6%2,173 cards

Firemost often weak to Water9.1%1,574 cards

Fightingmost often weak to Grass10.9%1,884 cards

Lightningmost often weak to Fighting8.8%1,520 cards

Grassmost often weak to Fire13.8%2,387 cards

Metalmost often weak to Fire5.4%925 cards

Darknessmost often weak to Fighting7.2%1,249 cards

Dragonmost often weak to Fairy3.1%530 cards

Fairymost often weak to Metal1.4%237 cards

17,249 cards carry an energy type. The note under each name is the weakness printed most often on that group.

How the archive splits by energy type
Group	Share	Value
Psychic	13.5%	2,335 cards
Water — this card	14.1%	2,435 cards
Colorless	12.6%	2,173 cards
Fire	9.1%	1,574 cards
Fighting	10.9%	1,884 cards
Lightning	8.8%	1,520 cards
Grass	13.8%	2,387 cards
Metal	5.4%	925 cards
Darkness	7.2%	1,249 cards
Dragon	3.1%	530 cards
Fairy	1.4%	237 cards

Waterweak to Lightning

Fireweak to Water

Read from the weakness printed on each group. The first row is this card; the rest are groups that most often print a Water weakness.

What being a Water card is worth

Groups that most often print a Water weakness: Fire (1,574 cards). Against those, this card's printed damage counts double. Going the other way, Water cards are themselves most exposed to Lightning.

Every energy type in the archive

Back to summary

What knocks out Empoleon 29 in one hit, and what does it knock out?

Weakness doubles the damage a Lightning attack deals to this card, so the bar it has to clear is 70 printed damage rather than 140.

Cards that remove it in one attack

562

Lightning damage needed to knock it out

Counted across the whole card archive. 140 HP against a Lightning weakness at ×2 decides all three figures.

Removes it in one attackHelioliskMega Evolution 5370 damage

×2Lightning weakness · 70 printed damage is enough
70 damage becomes 140 against this card

This cardEmpoleon 29Dark Explorers 29140 HP

Why this card was picked to stand opposite

Of the 560 cards in the archive that can remove Empoleon 29 in a single attack, this one clears the bar by the smallest margin — 70 printed damage against a bar of 70. Anything printed higher removes it just as surely, so this is where the line actually sits, and this print is legal in Standard play today.

Empoleonweak to Lightning ×2

Read from the weakness printed in the lower-left corner of the card.

Lightning cards that remove Empoleon in one attack
Card	Set	HP	Printed damage	After weakness
Pikachu ex (57)	Ascended Heroes	200	300	600
Pikachu ex (277)	Ascended Heroes	200	300	600
Pikachu ex (57)	Surging Sparks	200	300	600
Pikachu ex (219)	Surging Sparks	200	300	600
Pikachu ex (238)	Surging Sparks	200	300	600
Pikachu ex (247)	Surging Sparks	200	300	600

140 HP against a Lightning ×2 weakness means any Lightning attack printed at 70 damage or more is enough. 562 cards in the archive clear that bar.

Back to summary

What is Empoleon as a Pokémon, across every card it has been printed on?

Empoleon 29 is one print of Empoleon. The figures below are about the Pokémon rather than this single card — how many times it has been printed, how tough those prints run, and how many of them can still be played.

Empoleon has been printed 24 times, and the printed numbers move from one print to the next. Point at a card to see it full size.Tap a card to open its page.

The three toughest Empoleon cards ever printedPokédex #395Prints on record 24Toughest print 320 HPThis card 140 HP

24prints

Legal in Standard3Older prints, not in Standard21

Every Empoleon print on record, split by whether it can still be entered in Standard play.

Legality is read from the print rather than from the Pokémon, so an older copy of the same Pokémon is a different card for tournament purposes.

The toughest Empoleon printed is 320 HP, and this card is 43.8% of it

Bars are printed HP, measured against the record for this Pokémon

Empoleon ex 114/094the toughest Empoleon ever printedME02: Phantasmal Flames320 HP
Empoleon 29against that record43.8% of the record140 HP

Read from the printed card face of every Empoleon print on record. Printed HP does not change after a card is issued.

Back to summary

What has to be in play before Empoleon 29 can be?

Empoleon evolves from Prinplup, so the whole line has to be built before this card reaches the field.

The Empoleon line, oldest stage first

Piplup17 prints on record · Legendary Treasures

+30 HP

Prinplup11 prints on record · Diamond and Pearl

+60 HP · +80 damage

Empoleon12 prints on record · Diamond and Pearl

Piplup → Prinplup → Empoleon

This card cannot be played from your hand onto an empty spot — it goes on top of Prinplup.
The line runs 3 stages, so the first card has to be in play 2 turns before this one can be.

1PiplupHardest attack printed at this stage: 80 damage70 HP
2PrinplupHardest attack printed at this stage: 50 damage. Evolving here adds 30 HP over the stage before it100 HP
3EmpoleonHardest attack printed at this stage: 130 damage. Evolving here adds 60 HP over the stage before it160 HP

Bars are the highest HP ever printed on that stage, measured against the top of this line (160 HP). The note beside each bar is the hardest attack printed at that stage.

Every print of a stage is counted, not just the one shown in the chain above, so the bar is the ceiling that stage has reached rather than one card from it.

Back to summary

Is this the strongest Empoleon print, and can the older ones still be played?

24 prints carry this name in the archive, and 22 of them are laid out below. They share a Pokémon but not a card — printed HP, printed damage and tournament legality all move from one print to the next.

Bar height and the number above each bar = highest HP that year; the two digits below = the year.

Rows run from the toughest print down. Bars are printed HP, measured against the toughest print of this name shown here (320 HP), and the highlighted row is the card this page is about.

22 rows are shown of the 24 prints counted under this name.

Empoleon prints — can each one still be played?
Print	Set	Regulation mark	Standard
Empoleon ex 114/094	ME02: Phantasmal Flames	Mark I	Legal in Standard
Empoleon ex 070/094	ME02: Phantasmal Flames	Mark I	Legal in Standard
Empoleon V 146/163	SWSH05: Battle Styles	Mark E	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon V 040/163	Prize Pack Series Cards	Mark E	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon V 145/163	SWSH05: Battle Styles	Mark E	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon V SWSH108	SWSH: Sword & Shield Promo Cards	Mark E	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 034/156	Deck Exclusives	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 037/172	Miscellaneous Cards & Products	Mark F	Legal in Standard
Empoleon 56/236	SM - Cosmic Eclipse	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 81/131	SM - Forbidden Light	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 117/116	Plasma Freeze	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon LV.X DP11	Diamond and Pearl Promos	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon LV.X 120/130	Diamond and Pearl	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon BW56	Black and White Promos	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 35/113	Legendary Treasures	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 29/108	Dark Explorers	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 38/162	XY - BREAKthrough	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 4/130	Diamond and Pearl	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 17/100	Majestic Dawn	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 2/100	Stormfront	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon 26/127	Platinum	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard
Empoleon FB 027/147	League & Championship Cards	No mark printed	Not legal in Standard

3 of the 22 prints listed here are legal in Standard play. An older print of the same Pokémon is a different card for legality, because legality is read from the print rather than from the name — so owning the cheap old copy does not always mean you can enter with it.

Back to summary

What can you use instead of Empoleon 29?

Every card below asks a deck for the same kind of slot, so the comparison is between what they print, not what they cost.

Cards that fill the same slot as Empoleon 29
Card	Set	HP	Top damage	Retreat
Blastoise	Base	100	40	3
Salamence ex δ	Dragon Frontiers	160	80	2
Blastoise	Expedition Base Set	100	40	2
Blastoise	Plasma Storm	140	60	4
Politoed	Skyridge	110	70	2
Feraligatr	Expedition Base Set	120	70	3

This card itself is 140 HP, 10 top damage and 2 retreat, and every card here is Water like it.

Back to summary

Every card below carries the same Pokédex number as this one, so they are the same Pokémon printed as different cards — different stages, different mechanics and different names all sit in this group.

Back to summary

What was printed next to Empoleon 29 in Dark Explorers?

A card is met inside a set, not on its own, and the number on it is the order that set gave it. The cards either side are the ones a collector actually turns past to reach this one.

Cards printed either side of this one

These are the cards numbered either side of #29 in Dark Explorers. The badge on each card is its printed HP. Point at a card to see it full size.Tap a card to open its page.

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Which rules apply to Empoleon 29, and where can it be played?

Two kinds of rule meet on one card — the sentence printed on the card face, and the rulebook clauses that apply because of what the card carries.

Rulebook clauses that apply to Empoleon 29
Clause	What the rulebook says	Cards it applies to	Share of the archive
Weakness	Some Pokemon have Weakness or Resistance to Pokemon of certain types, marked in the lower-left corner of the card.	16,744 cards	81.9%
Retreat	Retreat your Active Pokemon (only once per turn).	17,244 cards	84.3%
Energy per turn	You can attach Energy just once each turn!	17,180 cards	84.0%

Counted across 20,444 English cards. A clause applies to this card because the card carries the property the clause names, not because we judged it to.

Empoleon 29 — tournament formats
Format	Status	What that means
Standard	Not listed	This card is not listed for this format
Expanded	Legal	Can be played in this format
Unlimited	Legal	Can be played in this format

Read from the format list recorded with the card. Formats rotate on a schedule set by the organiser, and that schedule is not published on this page.

Where this card can be played

This card is legal in Unlimited and Expanded play. It was released on May 9, 2012.

Back to summary

Empoleon 29 in depth — what these figures add up to

Three readings of the same card, side by side: what it costs to get going, where it sits among the cards it will be compared with, and what takes it off the field.

What it asks a deck for

Its hardest attack, Attack Command, needs 1 Energy attached. Energy attaches once a turn, so that attack waits 1 turn from an empty card.
That works out at 10 damage for every Energy card attached.
Moving it out of the active spot costs 2 more Energy, discarded from the card itself.
It cannot start the game in play — Prinplup has to be on the field first.

Where its HP stands, cut four ways

Every card in the archiveNo. 3,522 of 17,290

Water cardsNo. 465 of 2,435

Stage 2 cardsNo. 861 of 1,749

Dark ExplorersNo. 14 of 98

What actually removes it

A Lightning attack printed at 70 damage removes it in a single turn — that is the bar, not its 140 HP.
562 cards in the archive clear that bar.

Back to summary

Empoleon 29 card record

Empoleon 29 — the printed record, field by field
Hit points	140 HP	Type	Water
Weakness	Lightning ×2	Retreat cost	2 Energy
Evolves from	Prinplup	Card type	Stage 2
Pokédex number	#395	Set	Dark Explorers
Card number	29 of 108	Series	Black & White
Released	May 9, 2012	Rarity	Rare Holo
Illustrator	Naoki Saito
Tournament legality	Unlimited and Expanded only

Read from the printed card face, the set listing and the official format list.

Back to summary

What does Empoleon 29 cost?

This page is about what the card does. The figure below is the one number worth carrying across, read on August 14, 2026.

Market price today

$9.92

Read on

August 14, 2026

One figure only — the price record, the daily chart and the marketplaces live on the price page.

Empoleon 29 priceOne year of daily prices, every print variant, and where to buy it.Open the price page

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Empoleon 29 — frequently asked questions

How much damage does it take to knock out Empoleon 29?

Empoleon 29 has 140 HP and a Lightning weakness at ×2, so a Lightning attack printed at 70 damage or more removes it in one turn. Any other type has to print the full 140.

What is the strongest attack on Empoleon 29?

Attack Command, printed at 10 damage for 1 Energy — 10 damage per Energy card. Does 10 damage times the number of Pokémon in play (both yours and your opponent's).

What is the retreat cost of Empoleon 29?

2 Energy, discarded from this card to move it out of the active spot. Retreating is allowed once per turn.

What does the × after the damage on Attack Command mean?

It marks the damage as conditional: the printed figure is dealt once for each thing the sentence on the card counts. The full sentence is printed on the card and quoted in the attack table on this page — "Does 10 damage times the number of Pokémon in play (both yours and your opponent's)."

How often can you use Diving Draw?

Once during your turn. The limit is printed in the ability itself, and it is counted per Pokémon — a second copy of Empoleon in play carries its own use.

Can an older Empoleon print be played in a tournament?

Legality is read from the print, not from the Pokémon. Of the 22 prints listed on this page, 3 are legal in Standard play. The rest can still be played in formats that accept them, and the table on this page names the regulation mark each print carries.

What does Empoleon evolve from?

Prinplup. It cannot be played straight from your hand onto an empty spot — the earlier stage has to be in play first.

Can Empoleon 29 be played in a tournament?

It is legal in Unlimited and Expanded play. Standard events run on a rotating list of sets, so check the current rotation before entering one.

Does this page say how good Empoleon 29 is in a deck?

No. Every figure here is read from the printed card. Deck lists, tournament results and win rates are not published on this site, because the card files it reads do not contain them.

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Where these card facts come from

Card facts are read once from openly published card files and do not change between readings — a printed card cannot gain HP. The places below are where the same information can be checked. Last updated: July 28, 2026 — the counts and rankings on this page were taken from the card files read on that day.

Primary official source

First-party official sources — the body that issues the data itself, such as a government agency, a statutory register or a rights holder publishing its own records.

The Pokémon Company International — official rules, tournament format and rotation announcements www.pokemon.com

Industry source

Second-party sources — marketplaces, trade associations, research institutes and companies that compile data about the market.

Pokémon TCG Data — openly published card files (card text, HP, attacks, weakness, retreat cost, illustrator credits) github.com

TCGdex card database — openly licensed card files (set membership and card numbering) github.com

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Empoleon 29 — what does this card actually do?

What does Empoleon 29 do in a game?

Empoleon 29 performance summary

What it can do

Where it stands

Empoleon 29 at a glance

What do the attacks on Empoleon 29 cost, and what do they hit for?

How does Empoleon 29 compare with every other card?

What Empoleon 29 does without attacking

Is Empoleon 29 efficient for the Energy it asks for?

What does being a Water card do for Empoleon 29?

What knocks out Empoleon 29 in one hit, and what does it knock out?

What is Empoleon as a Pokémon, across every card it has been printed on?

What has to be in play before Empoleon 29 can be?

Is this the strongest Empoleon print, and can the older ones still be played?

What can you use instead of Empoleon 29?

Which other cards share the Pokémon behind Empoleon 29?

What was printed next to Empoleon 29 in Dark Explorers?

Which rules apply to Empoleon 29, and where can it be played?

Empoleon 29 in depth — what these figures add up to

What it asks a deck for

Where its HP stands, cut four ways

What actually removes it

Empoleon 29 card record

What does Empoleon 29 cost?

Empoleon 29 — frequently asked questions

How much damage does it take to knock out Empoleon 29?

What is the strongest attack on Empoleon 29?

What is the retreat cost of Empoleon 29?

What does the × after the damage on Attack Command mean?

How often can you use Diving Draw?

Can an older Empoleon print be played in a tournament?

What does Empoleon evolve from?

Can Empoleon 29 be played in a tournament?

Does this page say how good Empoleon 29 is in a deck?

Where these card facts come from

Before you rely on these figures

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