Palworld Dawn of Palpagos Set Review: Did Palworld Nail Its First Set?

Bushiroad says every card in Dawn of Palpagos uses an originally drawn illustration, and the higher rarity cards are where that effort really pays off. SSP, SP, OSR, and SR treatments give Pals such as Chillet, Jormuntide Ignis, Lyleen, Helzephyr, Shadowbeak, Relaxaurus, and Petallia more elaborate compositions that feel designed to live on cardboard rather than simply reproduce their game appearances.

The gold Soul ESOUL-002 pushes the presentation even further, using Cattiva as the focus of a card that looks immediately separate from the rest of the set. Not every illustration hits that level. Some still have the smooth 3D appearance of the video game, and beside the best premium artwork those cards can feel a little safe. Still, there is much more original illustration here than a quick glance at the base cards might suggest. The bones are excellent. I just want future sets to lean even harder into the artists.

Dawn of Palpagos understands that the first card set needs to feel unmistakably like Palworld. Chillet, Cattiva, Relaxaurus, Lyleen, Shadowbeak, Jormuntide Ignis, Helzephyr, Zoe, Lily, and dozens of other familiar faces make the transition from the game into physical cards, so existing players are not staring at a checklist full of secondary characters while waiting for their favorites to arrive later.

Cattiva getting the lone gold SSS is especially fitting because it gives one of the franchise’s most recognizable early Pals an outsized role in the history of the TCG. The limitation is simply that Palworld is still young. There are no decades of old card sets or childhood binders to tap into yet. This set is creating that history rather than revisiting it. For people already attached to these Pals, though, seeing the cast establish itself in cardboard form carries plenty of franchise appeal.

Dawn of Palpagos has enough going on that the checklist does not live or die with one card. Bushiroad formally lists 100 base card types plus 61 parallels and more than 50 types of Pals, while the current official database returns 162 entries for the booster. The rarity ladder includes SR, OSR, SP, and four SSP Pals, then Soul ESOUL-002 at SSS sitting above them as an additional centerpiece. That gives collectors several levels of cards to care about rather than one enormous chase followed by a cliff.

The set also has to establish an entire playable game, so Pals share space with strategies, equipment, structures, and the broader framework needed for a first release. Naturally, parallel treatments account for a large amount of the numerical depth, and not every one of those 162 database entries represents a completely different subject. Even with that caveat, this is a healthy debut checklist with considerably more texture than a cautious first set needed.

Dawn of Palpagos gives its opening experience several levels of excitement. Seven cards per pack and twelve packs per box keep the format compact, while SR, OSR, SP, SSP, and the SSS Soul create a ladder of increasingly ambitious reveals. The stronger illustrations on the premium cards make those upgrades worth noticing. A different rarity stamp is one thing. A card that immediately looks special is a much better payoff.

The secret gold Cattiva SSS adds a particularly memorable surprise beyond the originally advertised lineup. It gives the set a thrilling top end, although that single chase cannot carry the entire opening experience. Twelve packs make for a relatively brief box opening, so there is less room to settle into exploring the sizable base checklist. Still, the variety of rarity treatments and the visual appeal of the premium cards give Dawn of Palpagos a strong opening identity, with plenty of reasons to look forward to the next reveal.

Soul ESOUL-002 is exactly the kind of ridiculous centerpiece a first set benefits from. The SSS card features Cattiva in an all gold treatment and sits above the four SSP Pals in the rarity hierarchy, immediately giving Dawn of Palpagos one card that looks and feels unlike anything else in the booster. That matters more than simply having an expensive card. It gives the set an identity.

Beneath it, Jormuntide Ignis – Savage Lava Dragon, Chillet – Dragon Whisperer, Lyleen – Blessing of the Goddess, and Helzephyr – Wings of the Moonless Night form a strong SSP tier, with SP and OSR treatments extending the chase structure further down. Cattiva supplies the outrageous top end while the SSP cards stop the set from becoming completely dependent on one pull. That is a very good arrangement for a debut product, and it makes the chase lineup one of Dawn of Palpagos’ strongest qualities.