What is an oripa?
An oripa is a pack of trading cards that a seller makes from their own cards. The name is short for “original pack.” In the US it’s often called a mystery pack.
An oripa, in one paragraph
An oripa is a pack put together by a seller, not by a card publisher. The seller picks the cards, sets the price per pack and decides how many of each card go in. Players buy a pack on the seller’s site, see their pull right away and get the card shipped to them. Every prize and the odds are shown before anyone buys.
Where the name comes from
Oripa sites are an established way to sell cards in Japan: the OripaOS team observed more than 47,000 pack listings on ten leading Japanese oripa sites. OripaOS was built under the supervision of the operators of one of them.
Last updated November 12, 2026.
How a pack works
On an OripaOS store, a pack goes from cards to shipped pulls in five steps:
- The store picks the cards. A pack has a fixed number of spots, and every spot is a card: a few top cards, more mid-tier cards and base cards in the rest.
- The store sets the price. Before publishing, the store sees its estimated margin and return rate.
- Players open packs. Each purchase draws one card from the cards still in the pack, and the player sees it right away.
- The pull goes to the player’s vault. When the player asks for shipping, the store sends the card.
- The pack ends. Cards nobody pulled go back to the store’s card list for the next pack.
How the odds work
Odds come only from the cards left in the pack. Each pull removes a card, so the odds change with every pull. Before every purchase, the store shows each prize tier, how many cards are left in it and the current odds.
A worked example
A pack has 200 spots: 2 top cards, 18 mid-tier cards and 180 base cards. The first buyer has a 2 in 200 chance at a top card, or 1 in 100. After 100 pulls with no top card pulled, 2 of the 100 spots left are top cards, so the next buyer’s chance is 2 in 100.
That is the main difference from a sealed booster pack, where the publisher sets the odds and nobody can see how many hits are left. For how oripa stores compare with live breaks and mystery box apps, see ways to sell mystery packs online.
Rules every OripaOS store follows
- Every pack shows its prize list, the cards left and the odds before purchase. Pulls only come from what players see.
- Every pull ships by default. A store can turn on instant sell-back, which turns a pulled card into balance in that store. Store balance can’t be cashed out.
- Adults only: 18+, or older where required. Players give their birthdate before they can top up.
- Players in New York, Washington, Nevada and New Jersey can’t buy. Stores can block more states.
- Players pay into the store’s own payment account. OripaOS never holds a store’s funds.
- The pack builder blocks listings described as counterfeit or unofficial cards, ungraded cards described as graded, cash and gift card prizes, and regulated goods.
Rules on selling packs with random prizes differ by state and country. Each store is run by an independent operator who is responsible for the laws that apply, so speak to a lawyer licensed where you plan to sell before you launch.
Run your own oripa store
OripaOS is software for card shops to run an oripa store on their own site. Setup is a one-time fee, then the monthly fee is 3.99% of your store’s sales, with a $99 minimum and a $3,999 maximum.