Caterpie

Numbered 53 of 75 in Neo Discovery, released in June 2001, Caterpie is a Common, a Basic Grass-type carrying 50 HP.

As a Basic Pokémon, Caterpie needs no prior evolution to put into play, which made it a practical card in the era's decks.

Illustrated by Yuka Morii.

Printed on the card, the Caterpie Pokédex entry reads: "For protection, it releases a horrible stench from the antennae on its head to drive away enemies."

The most basic bug Pokémon in the original Pokédex. Used as a tutorial-level catch in the games. A Common card with no special variants. Pack-fresh raw copies are easy to find; centered PSA 10s are not.

Caterpie is a Common, so raw copies trade for very little and most of the print run survives. The only real value is in pristine, high-grade copies, where even a Common can reach low triple digits in 1st Edition PSA 10. See the live price above for the current figure by grade.

Neo Discovery produced 1st Edition, Unlimited prints. For Caterpie, the print variant can change the price several times over, so identify it before you buy.

Caterpie is the most forgiving tier to grade in the set. Centering on the framed border is the usual cap, and the soft Wizards-era cardstock picks up edge whitening easily, but high print runs keep clean copies affordable.

Raw copies of Caterpie are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Caterpie is the practical move.