If you've been grinding Pokemon TCG Pocket lately, you’ve definitely seen it. That bright, pink notification popping up over the Wonder Pick icon. The Chansey Pick. It looks like a gift, but then you see the cost: 2 Wonder Stamina. For a couple of basic cards? It feels like a total bait.
I get it. Most players see a "Special" pick and assume it's a fast track to a Mewtwo ex or some secret god pack. Then they tap in and see... a bunch of common Magnemites or Togepis. But honestly, if you're ignoring these because they don't have shiny borders, you're missing the point of how the economy in this game actually works in 2026.
What is the Chansey Pick anyway?
Basically, the Chansey Pick is a specific type of Wonder Pick event. It’s not just a random selection of what your friends pulled. It’s a curated "mini-pack" that contains exclusive Promo-A cards. These cards are marked with a tiny Chansey stamp in the corner of the artwork.
Here’s the thing: you can’t pull these from regular booster packs. If you want to complete your Dex or finish those event missions for the shop tickets, this is your only path.
How it actually spawns
It’s not purely random. There is roughly a 2.5% chance for a Chansey Pick to replace one of your standard Wonder Pick slots whenever the list refreshes. Since the game refreshes these about every 30 minutes, checking in frequently is the only real "strategy" to finding them.
You’ve probably also seen the Bonus Pick. That’s the free version. It has a 20% spawn rate and costs 0 stamina. But the Chansey Pick is the "guaranteed" version where every card in the five-card spread is an event-relevant card.
The Stamina Trap: Is it worth 2 points?
This is where the community gets heated. Two stamina points is a lot. That’s 24 hours of waiting or 24 Wonder Hourglasses down the drain. If you’re a f2p player, that feels like a massive investment for a card that might just have 60 HP and a mediocre attack.
But you have to look at the Event Shop.
The tickets you get from completing the "Collect 1 Chansey" or "Collect 2 Promo" missions are the only way to get the high-end cosmetics. We're talking about the custom playmats, the Mewtwo-themed binder covers, and those sleek card sleeves.
- Standard Wonder Pick: Random chance at a card you likely already have.
- Chansey Pick: Guaranteed progress toward event-exclusive rewards and limited-time promos.
If you’re competitive, you probably don’t care about a pink backdrop for your profile. But if you’re a collector? Passing on a Chansey Pick is a mistake you’ll regret when the event ends and those cards become "Legacy" items that you can only get through rare Rewind Watch usage.
A Nuanced Look at the Strategy
Don't just mash the button the second it appears.
You need to check the timer. These picks usually last between 30 minutes and 4 hours. If you just spent your stamina on a friend's rare pull, you might be sitting at 0 stamina with a Chansey Pick staring you in the face. This is why most high-level players keep at least 2 Wonder Stamina in the bank at all times during an event week.
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The Friend Factor
Did you know your friend list affects your spawn rates? It’s true. The game reserves up to four slots for picks from your friends. If your friend list is empty or your friends haven't opened packs in 72 hours, those slots stay empty. Fewer slots means fewer chances for the 2.5% Chansey Pick logic to trigger.
Basically, keep your friend list active. Delete the people who haven't logged in for a week. They are literally nerfing your pull rates.
What Cards Are We Actually Hunting?
In the current rotation, the Chansey (Promo-A) is the star, but the supporting cast matters too. Usually, these events pair a heavy hitter with a utility card. For example, the early events paired Chansey with Meowth or even Pidgeot.
In the 2026 meta, the Blissey ex decks have actually made these base Chansey cards somewhat relevant again. Even though the promo version has the same stats as the Genetic Apex version ($120$ HP, Gentle Slap for $60$ damage), having the promo stamp is a flex.
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More importantly, some of these events feature cards like Heliolisk or Buneary with unique "Lucky Bonus" abilities.
Expert Tip: If you already have two copies of the promo card, stop spending stamina. The missions usually top out at two copies. After that, you're just throwing away stamina that could be used to snipe an Articuno ex from a friend's pack.
Common Misconceptions
People think the Chansey Pick is "rigged" to give you the worst card. It's not. It's the same 1-in-5 shuffle as every other Wonder Pick. The "shuffling" animation is just a visual—the card you get is determined the moment you hit "Pick."
Another myth is that you can only get the promo cards from the 2-stamina version. You can get them from the free Bonus Picks, but the odds are abysmal. I've gone through ten Bonus Picks without seeing a single stamped card. If you're serious about the missions, the 2-stamina investment is the only reliable way.
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How to Min-Max the Event
- Hoard Hourglasses: Save your Wonder Hourglasses specifically for the last 48 hours of an event.
- Check Every 2 Hours: You don't need to be obsessed, but checking 4-5 times a day ensures you don't miss a spawn.
- Prioritize Missions: Check your mission board first. If you only need one more Meowth to get 3 Shop Tickets, wait for a pick that actually has Meowth in it.
- Ignore the "Genetic Apex" Versions: If the pick shows the standard A1 set icon instead of the Promo star, it won't count for your event missions. Watch the icons closely.
The Pokemon TCG Pocket Chansey Pick isn't a scam, it's just a different kind of currency exchange. You aren't paying for the power of the card; you're paying for the rarity and the event tickets. If you want that gold-border profile icon, start saving your stamina.
To make the most of your next login, go to your friend list right now and clear out anyone who hasn't been active for more than 3 days to maximize your refresh slots. Check your mission log to see exactly how many stamped promos you still need before the timer hits zero.