Roaring Skies: the 2015 Pokémon set explained
Pokémon's XY Roaring Skies of May 2015: its cards block by block, its 11 Pokémon-EX and 11 full-art cards, and how its two Rayquaza-EX pairs differ.
By the Rip.fan Editorial Team.
Published 6 min read
Roaring Skies is the XY series expansion of May 2015 whose launch alert led with Mega Rayquaza-EX, saying the card first appeared in this set. It came out in the UK on May 6, 2015. The main run holds 11 Pokémon-EX, four of them Mega Evolution, and nine of them come back as full-art cards. Rayquaza comes as two different pairs, one Dragon type and one Colorless, and only the Colorless pair has full-art versions. The set has 112 entries: 108 numbered up to the printed total, 2 numbered above it, and 2 lettered entries, 77a and 92a.
When did Roaring Skies come out?
Roaring Skies reached UK stores on May 6, 2015. Pokémon’s UK notice of April 7, 2015 said booster packs and two theme decks would be in stores that day, and its media alert of May 6 said the set reached shops that day.
The sets just before it are two XY Trainer Kits and the 34-card Double Crisis, and before them comes Primal Clash, which was in UK shops on February 4, 2015. Ancient Origins, the next expansion, came out August 12, 2015. Our guide to Pokémon card eras places the XY series in the longer history.
How many cards are in Roaring Skies?
The number blocks run like this:
| Numbers | Cards | What they are |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 82 | 82 | Pokémon, including 7 Pokémon-EX and 4 M Pokémon-EX |
| 83 to 96 | 14 | Trainer cards: 5 Tools, 5 Items, 3 Supporters and 1 Stadium |
| 97 | 1 | Double Dragon Energy, a Special Energy card |
| 98 to 106 | 9 | Full-art Pokémon-EX |
| 107 to 108 | 2 | Full-art Supporters: Wally and Winona |
| 109 to 110 | 2 | Above the printed total: Energy Switch and VS Seeker, both Items |
There is also a second Shaymin-EX entry numbered 77a and a second Trainers’ Mail entry numbered 92a, which makes 112. The two cards above 108 are secret rares, cards numbered higher than the set number. Across cards 1 to 110, there are 18 Trainer cards and one Energy card.
On Rip.fan’s price pages, cards 1 to 110 carry these labels:
| Label on Rip.fan’s page | Cards | Where they sit |
|---|---|---|
| Common | 26 | Within 1 to 82 |
| Uncommon | 32 | Within 2 to 97, including all 15 cards at 83 to 97 |
| Rare | 18 | Within 8 to 81 |
| Rare Holo | 10 | Within 5 to 72 |
| Rare Holo EX | 11 | The Pokémon-EX within 1 to 82 |
| Rare Ultra | 11 | 98 to 108 |
| Rare Secret | 2 | 109 and 110 |
Where are the Pokémon-EX and Trainer cards in Roaring Skies?
| Card group | Cards | Where they sit |
|---|---|---|
| Pokémon-EX in the main run, four of them Mega Evolution | 11 | Within 1 to 82: 7 Pokémon-EX and 4 M Pokémon-EX |
| Full-art Pokémon-EX | 9 | 98 to 106 |
| Full-art Trainer cards | 2 | Wally at 107 and Winona at 108 |
| Special Energy | 1 | Double Dragon Energy at 97 |
Deoxys sits at 33, Dragonite at 51 and 52, Zekrom at 64, and the Mega Turbo Item at 86. Capital EX cards carried on into XY, where they tied in with Mega Evolution. Our guide to Pokémon ex, EX and GX cards explains the labels.
Which Pokémon-EX have full-art versions?
Nine of the eleven. Unlike the XY base set, Roaring Skies gives three of its Mega cards a full-art version:
| Pokémon-EX | Type | Main run | Full art |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thundurus-EX | Lightning | 26 | 98 |
| Gallade-EX | Psychic | 34 | 99 |
| M Gallade-EX | Psychic | 35 | 100 |
| Latios-EX | Dragon | 58 | 101 |
| M Latios-EX | Dragon | 59 | 102 |
| Rayquaza-EX | Dragon | 60 | None |
| M Rayquaza-EX | Dragon | 61 | None |
| Hydreigon-EX | Dragon | 62 | 103 |
| Rayquaza-EX | Colorless | 75 | 104 |
| M Rayquaza-EX | Colorless | 76 | 105 |
| Shaymin-EX | Colorless | 77 | 106 |
How do the two Rayquaza-EX pairs differ?
The set prints two different Rayquaza lines, and the type tells them apart. Rayquaza-EX 60 and M Rayquaza-EX 61 are Dragon type and sit in the Dragon run. Rayquaza-EX 75 and M Rayquaza-EX 76 are Colorless and sit in the Colorless run. Rayquaza-EX 60 is credited to PLANETA and Rayquaza-EX 75 to Ryota Murayama. The full-art pair at 104 and 105 is Colorless, so it matches 75 and 76. The Dragon pair has no full-art version in the set.
Three Tool cards carry the names of the set’s Mega lines: Gallade Spirit Link at 83, Latios Spirit Link at 85 and Rayquaza Spirit Link at 87. Our guide to Mega Evolution cards shows how these M Pokémon-EX differ from the Mega ex cards of 2025 on.
In card number order. Images from Scrydex.
Which types fill the main run?
Dragon and Colorless. As in the XY base set and Flashfire, the Pokémon run is grouped by type, from Grass at 1 to 12 to Colorless at 65 to 82. Dragon-type Pokémon take 16 numbers, 49 to 64, and Colorless takes 18, so the two runs hold 34 of the 82 Pokémon cards. Fire has three cards and Metal one.
Which names appear on two different cards?
Twelve names in the main run appear on two separate cards: Dustox, Articuno, Natu, Banette, Togekiss, Dragonite, Altaria, Bagon, Swellow and Unfezant, plus the two Rayquaza-EX names. Several pairs carry different labels on Rip.fan’s price pages: Togekiss 45 is Rare and Togekiss 46 Rare Holo, Dragonite 51 Rare and Dragonite 52 Rare Holo, and Swellow 71 Rare and Swellow 72 Rare Holo. Wally and Winona each have a card in the Trainer run, at 94 and 96, besides the full-art cards at 107 and 108.
What products held Roaring Skies?
The set came in 10-card booster packs and two 60-card theme decks, named Storm Rider and Aurora Blast. Check the wrapper of any sealed pack from 2015. Our guide to spotting resealed Pokémon packs covers the signs of a pack that was opened and sealed again.
How do you check Roaring Skies card prices?
Roaring Skies has its own page in Rip.fan’s Pokémon price pages, under the XY series heading, abbreviated ROS. It shows each card with its number, rarity and NM market price. Filter it by Rare Holo EX for the 11 Pokémon-EX of the main run, or by Rare Secret for the two Items above 108, and sort it by card number to see both Rayquaza pairs. For a single card, the card price lookup searches by name, set or number and shows which printing each price is for. The price changes page compares prices between Rip.fan’s weekly checks.
What should you check before buying a Roaring Skies card?
- Which Rayquaza. A listing titled Rayquaza-EX could be the Dragon card at 60 or the Colorless card at 75, and a full-art one is always the Colorless line. The card number settles it.
- The total of 108. Evolutions, from 2016, also prints its cards out of 108, so read the set name too. Our guide to Evolutions covers that set.
- The full-art version. Shaymin-EX 77/108 and 106/108 are different cards. Our guide to Pokémon card finishes explains full art.
- Genuine cards. Our guide to spotting fake Pokémon cards walks through checks that leave a card unharmed.
The Pokémon hub has the rest of our coverage. Our guides to the XY base set, Flashfire and Generations cover three more sets from the series.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most expensive Roaring Skies card?
It was M Rayquaza-EX (105/108), at a Near Mint market price of $550.70 on October 21, 2026. Shaymin-EX (77a/108) was second, at $288.83.
Which Rare Holo EX in Roaring Skies has the highest price?
M Rayquaza-EX (61/108) had the highest Near Mint market price among the Roaring Skies cards marked Rare Holo EX on October 21, 2026, at $160.99.
What is the top-priced Rare Holo card in Roaring Skies?
On October 21, 2026, Dragonite (52/108) led the Rare Holo cards of Roaring Skies, with a Near Mint market price of $14.56.
How much is M Rayquaza-EX from Roaring Skies?
On October 21, 2026, the 3 M Rayquaza-EX cards in Roaring Skies had Near Mint market prices of $109.75 for 76/108 (Rare Holo EX), $160.99 for 61/108 (Rare Holo EX) and $550.70 for 105/108 (Rare Ultra).