Romance Dawn (OP01): The Set Every One Piece Collector Needs to Know
The Set That Started Everything
Romance Dawn — set code OP01 — is the foundation of the entire One Piece Card Game.
Bandai released it in Japan in July 2022, with the English edition following in December 2022. It introduced the game's core mechanics: the eight-color attribute system, the DON!! energy resource, and the Leader card format that every subsequent set has built on. Four years later, it is still the most traded, most discussed, and most valuable set in the English One Piece TCG secondary market.
If you're new to One Piece TCG collecting, OP01 is where the conversation always starts. If you've been in for a while, it's the set you keep coming back to.
Set Architecture: 121 Cards, Six Rarity Tiers
OP01 contains 121 base cards spread across six rarity tiers:
| Rarity | Count |
|---|---|
| Leader (L) | 8 |
| Common (C) | 45 |
| Uncommon (UC) | 30 |
| Rare (R) | 26 |
| Super Rare (SR) | 10 |
| Secret Rare (SEC) | 2 |
On top of the base set, OP01 includes 27 Alt Art cards — the rarest of which are designated Manga Rare (MR), a Bandai-exclusive rarity that uses original manga panel artwork rather than anime-style illustration. The Manga Rare format was introduced with OP01 and Bandai has carried it through every subsequent set; they remain the highest-demand pulls in the game.
Each English booster pack contains 12 cards: 7 Commons, 3 Uncommons, and one slot that can land a Rare, Super Rare, Secret Rare, or Alt Art. Every pack also includes one DON!! card.
The Chase Cards
OP01's top end is dominated by Manga Rare alt arts of the franchise's biggest characters. The four you need to know:
- Shanks (OP01-120) — Manga Rare Alt Art. The first card in the game to use original manga panel artwork, and four years on, still the one that defines OP01 for collectors. Its significance is partly historical — it set the template for every Manga Rare that followed — and partly just Shanks, one of the most beloved characters in the franchise, never reprinted in this art.
- Monkey D. Luffy (OP01-060) — Leader Parallel. The Luffy Leader alt art is the emotional anchor of the set: iconic character, iconic image, fixed supply.
- Roronoa Zoro (OP01-025) — Alternate Art. The Zoro alt art is the entry-level chase from OP01's upper tier, currently $7.53 ungraded and $107.25 for a PSA 10 on Cardbrd. It's one of the most approachable ways to own a premium OP01 single.
- Dracule Mihawk — Manga Rare. Frequently cited as the set's top-dollar card; its MR art is the perennial reference point for what OP01 can command at the very top.
Top Mover Spotlight: Shanks (OP01-120)
Shanks (OP01-120) is the defining card of OP01 — and right now it sits at $8.70 ungraded and $95.00 for a PSA 10 on Cardbrd. That PSA 10 premium (roughly 11x raw) reflects how thin the population of gem-mint copies is on a card that has been in circulation since late 2022. Cards get handled, shuffled, and traded. High-grade copies of OP01's key Manga Rares are a shrinking pool.
Three factors keep Shanks relevant beyond nostalgia. First, the Manga Rare format he originated now appears in every set Bandai releases — whenever a new MR drops and generates buzz, collectors trace the lineage back to OP01-120. Second, Shanks has an outsized role in the broader One Piece narrative, and as the IP continues expanding across the manga, the anime, and other media, character-linked cards from the earliest sets historically hold value. Third, OP01 was a limited early English print run; there is no reprint path for Manga Rares in this set.
If you're grading OP01 cards, Shanks is the one most worth submitting. The jump from raw to PSA 10 is meaningful, and the population of 10s is genuinely constrained.
Sealed Product: What It Costs Now
OP01 sealed product has split into two distinct tiers based on print wave:
| Product | Notes | Approx. Market (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Booster Box — Wave 1 (blue packaging) | First print run, lowest supply | ~$5,675 |
| Booster Box — Wave 2 (white packaging) | Later reprint wave | ~$1,790 |
| Single Booster Pack | Secondary market only | $40–80+ |
The original MSRP at launch was approximately $95–100 per booster box (24 packs of 12 cards). The gap between that retail price and today's market is the starkest illustration of what four years of collector demand does to a fixed print run on a foundational TCG set.
One major development: OP01 (along with OP02–OP04 and Starter Decks 1–10) rotated out of Standard competitive play on April 1, 2026. The community broadly anticipated this would depress prices. It hasn't. Sealed OP01 is driven by collector demand, not tournament play, and rotation may actually reinforce the set's vintage status over time.
Bottom line on sealed: Opening a Wave 2 box at $1,790 is an EV-negative proposition for most collectors. The singles market is more surgical — you know exactly what you're buying and at what price.
Which Singles Are Worth Chasing Now
With OP01 out of competitive rotation, the singles market is a pure collector conversation. Here's how to think about each tier:
High-conviction:
- Shanks (OP01-120) raw or PSA 10 — the card that defined the Manga Rare format, on the set's most iconic non-Luffy character, with no reprint risk. At $8.70 raw and $95 for a PSA 10 on Cardbrd, the graded premium is real and the population is not growing.
- Roronoa Zoro (OP01-025) — at $7.53 raw and $107.25 for a PSA 10, this is arguably the best-value OP01 alt art for collectors who want meaningful exposure to the set's upper tier without committing to four-figure outlays.
Watch and wait:
- Leader Parallels (Luffy, Zoro, Nami) — these trade on franchise momentum. A new major arc, a film, a live-action season — any of those events can move them sharply. Set price alerts rather than buying at peak attention.
Skip for now:
- Base Rare and Super Rare singles from OP01 have limited upside. They're not scarce enough to be collector trophies, and competitive rotation removed the demand floor. The Manga Rares and alt arts are where the collector thesis lives.
Value your full collection on Cardbrd — scanning your OP01 cards takes about two minutes, and you'll have a live portfolio number that updates as the market moves.
The Takeaway
Romance Dawn is not a set you wait on. The print run is fixed, the Manga Rare population is not growing, and every new collector entering One Piece TCG eventually gravitates toward OP01. The entry points on Zoro and Shanks in raw condition are still within reach. PSA 10 copies of both cards carry a meaningful premium over raw — and that premium is likely to widen, not narrow, as more copies cycle through grading and only a fraction return gem-mint.
If you have any OP01 cards in your binder, find out what they're actually worth today — start for free on Cardbrd.
Sources
- OP01: Romance Dawn — One Piece Card Game Wiki (Fandom)
- OP01 Romance Dawn Set Guide — Haki TCG (March 2026, updated May 2026)
- Best One Piece TCG Booster Boxes 2026 — Bang For Your Buck TCG
- All One Piece TCG Sets OP-01 to OP-16 (2026) — ShonenTCG
Cover photo: Photo by CC PD on Unsplash.