Charizard's Breath

Getting a little more familiar with the treasure item

The Pokémon trading card world (and perhaps most of the modern trading card practice) was the least familiar to me going into this hunt. Bitcoin and cryptocurrency would probably be a close second. Certainly I was aware of these markets and societal interest, but it’s just not something that I feel super close to or that I had any prior knowledge of and experience with. I guess what I am saying that if the author was adding treasure items to appeal to a wide range of potential hunter interests, neither Pokémon nor Bitcoin would have been what drew me in (I really just like the idea of a book based puzzling-hunt).

Many, including myself, have speculated what the lines about the Charizard in the “fictional story” might mean - “The air felt hotter than a Charizard’s breath.”

This is the third placement of a Charizard in the chapter (perhaps of 4?)

Charizard Placement 1

The first time we see the word Charizard occurs in the chapter opening photo where the two treasure item cards are shown photographed.

Because of the lighting and angle of the photo, it’s hard to see that there is a bit of fiery breath on the card. I was wondering if there was anything suspicious on this area of the card as the author would have had the chance to subtly manipulate it, but I didn’t see anything. On the other card there looks to be an “X” on the surface, but that just might be some markings on the slab which that card is in (i.e. wear over time).

Charizard Placement 2

I went down a mini-rabbit hole as I was trying to see what the fire on the holo card might look like and found this video that helps contextualize the rarity and value of the card included in the treasure. What I appreciate the most is that the card was sought after early on even just in terms of the game as it had some high playing value (this was also mentioned in the book the second time Charizard is mentioned). So unlike some modern trading situations where value is only made via scarcity (some sports cards have “1/1” designations to make them extra unique and hopefully more valuable), this card was valued by people (kids) playing the game and then as Pokémon got more popular, the rarity aspect kicked in as new printings emerged.

Back to the fiery breath. I also learned that there is a legitimate way (I think/hope?) to watch old Pokémon episodes on YouTube. I took a screenshot of a moment where Charizard is breathing fire. The art/animation is different than on the card (not sure if same artist or not), but that’s to be expected.

Charizard Placement 3

In the context of the chapter (3rd appearance) and “unlikely that we would encounter any fire Pokémon”, I feel like this could mean one of many things.

1. In Pokémon lore, there is someway to know by region or landscape where fire Pokémon don’t live (I don’t know enough about Pokémon to figure this out, yet)

2. In the PokémonGO augmented reality game, somehow there are places where fire Pokémon are not found (also don’t know enough about this)

3. It is in a park/area where campfires / open fires are not permitted wither at a campground, at designated campsites, and/or for backcountry camping (i.e. following the roles for choosing any place to camp).

4. It is in a park/area where smoking is explicitly not permitted (for example seen on a trailhead sign).

Charizard Placement 4?

At the Seeking Treasure Conference, one of the hosts of TTI: Unofficial Podcast asked the audience about their opinions of some Pokémon-like heads being woven into the background of the expanded reality photo. I was too slow to raise my hand but I am a supporter of this concept, even if its just a bit of fun (i.e. not a clue) by the author. The same podcast host asked the author this question during the Q&A and the author declined to answer (which I take as a good sign).

I can’t remember which figures the podcast host suggested as being the various evolutions of the Charizard. In the annotated image above, I think the circled figure on the right most resembles a Charizard.

I grabbed a screenshot from a Pokémon resource site. Maybe the one of the left is more like the ‘fully evolved’ Charizard.

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This was an interesting exploration, but in the end I don’t think I am going to go too deep on the Pokémon details in the context of the whole story. I think the “no open fire” element might be the most relevant to things that the author would have seen and noted during his excursion to hide the box (or perhaps it was an earlier recon trip).