The Road to Victory — A World Championship Review and a Rainbow Road Breakdown

By: Alex Koch · Posted Aug 31, 2016 at 1:44 PM · 0 Comments

Hello everyone! I’m back at you with a quick World Championship recap, a PokeBeach Battle Royale recap, and a look at Rainbow Road in the next Standard format! I’m really excited to get this next season underway, as I see many possibilities for cool rogue decks. Also, I can’t wait to start traveling to every Regional Championship I can!

There are so many great things about attending the World Championships. This year I was able to meet a lot of cool people face to face for the first time, as well as catch up with some friends from countries around the world. The tournament wasn’t bad, the side tournaments were awesome, and the fun I had playing Cube with all of my buddies is something that can not be taken for granted.

[cardimg name=”Primal Groudon-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”86″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

But you want to know one of my favorite parts of World Championships? It’s coming home. I tell myself every year right after the World Championships is over that I’m going to take a week or two off of Pokemon to reset my head and get prepared for the mental focus that a deep run in a Pokemon season can take. What did I end up doing this year? The same thing I end up doing every year. Sort cards. Nothing can compare to that massive reset button. I enjoy taking the time out of my day to put back all of the practice decks Grady and I made for the World Championships. It brings closure to a great season. A season that saw Team Spokane make deep runs at multiple Regional Championships. A season that saw over 100 hours spent in a car traveling around the country. A season that saw our testing group put together a meta breaking [card name=”Primal Groudon-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] list, as well as the first Expanded Rainbow Road list to win a City Championships.

Speaking of Rainbow Road, if any of you missed the PokeBeach Invitational, go check that out. There were some fantastic games played on live stream. It’s definitely a good recourse to see some of the game’s best battle it out! But more on that later.

Instead, let’s dive in to the quick recap of the biggest tournament of the year, and the reason many of us play this game: the World Championships!

World Championships

Preperation

Coming off of a day two National Championships finish isn’t always easy. On one hand, you know you have a proven deck that can work in your favor that you know performs very well at a high level. On the other hand, falling short of the ultimate prizes causes you to really take a look at all of your decisions critically. I made the big mistake of underestimating how well Night March was going to do at U.S. National Championships, even though I knew it was a fantastic deck.

Steam Siege didn’t do a whole lot to the meta in terms of adding new concepts or adjusting old lists. The two big changes I overlooked going into San Francisco were [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Greninja” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card]. Volcanion was a deck concept that we here in Spokane tested day in and day out. We knew there was a way to get it to work, we just were never able to find that right combination of cards. Greninja with [card name=”Bursting Balloon” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Talonflame” set=”Steam Siege” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card] was something that we had grabbed whispers of from online testing groups, but also something that we weren’t too scared of, and weren’t too confident in to test. Boy were we wrong.

So with that in mind, we took the results of U.S. National Championships as gold. I wanted to be able to craft a deck that had a decent Night March matchup, a decent [card name=”Trevenant” set=”XY” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] matchup, and a way to hang in there against [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] and Dark. The deck that I, and many others, ended up settling on for day one was Water Box. I liked the deck’s ability to go 50 / 50 with almost every other list, as well as stay consistent enough to not lose to itself. However, if you know what I ended up playing, you know that somewhere along the line I ditched Water Box. For the sake of me being me, and the fact that this list did not get played, here is what I would have played at 2016 World Championships.

[decklist name=”Water Box” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Seismitoad-EX” set=”Furious Fists” no=”20″][pokemon amt=”11″]3x [card name=”Seismitoad-EX” set=”Furious Fists” no=”20″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”32″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”36″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Glaceon-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”20″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Articuno” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”17″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Suicune” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”38″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”XY” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Flashfire” no=”90″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”AZ” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Xerosic” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Furious Fists” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Startling Megaphone” set=”Flashfire” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”11″]11x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Black and White” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”11″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

This list was based heavily on Paul Johnston’s list from the U.S. National Championships. If you’re familiar with that list, you’ll notice there is only about three or four cards difference between the two. He made a very deep run, so in my mind, if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it! I don’t want to dive too far into this list, since it isn’t what I played but let’s take a look at a couple of unusual inclusions.

Card Choices

Suicune

[cardimg name=”Suicune” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”30″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Many people quickly pointed to this card as one of the more confusing choices. There are three big reasons why this card is fantastic in this deck. It can OHKO [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] for the same amount of Energy that it takes a [card name=”Seismitoad-EX” set=”Furious Fists” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card] to do the same thing. Getting ahead on that Prize-trade against decks that can’t handle going to uneven Prizes is an amazing thing. I don’t like Articuno. Yeah, I know all of the benefits that Alpha Plus brings, especially against the Night March matchup. I feel like with two [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] and Quaking Punch, your Night March matchup is fine anyway. The deck can handle itself with just one Articuno. I saw a lot of Water Box lists opt to run the Promo [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY148″ c=”name”][/card] from the Generations Elite Trainer Box, and while that tech was a great way to deal with Trevenant, it was a liability against other matchups if you managed to start with it. I’m not the biggest fan of having two [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] Benched, along with a [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] Benched for easy Prizes. Wind Charm is a great Ability for buying you two or more turns of no spread damage, while putting a good amount of pressure on Trevenant with no real downside.

Two Enhanced Hammer

Like most people, in testing we found that this deck struggled against speedy decks like Night March and [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]. With the extra copies of [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card], combined with Quaking Punch, we found it easy to limit the amount of [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Fates Collide” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] drops from our opponent. Barring a well timed [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card], which is hard to get out under Item-lock, we found much ease in denying Night March of at least a couple turns of attacking. Even with a well timed Pokemon Ranger, the Night March player would also need to draw into [card name=”Puzzle of Time” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”109″ c=”name”][/card]. And with all of those early game resources gone, the discarded targets for Puzzle proved to be difficult to figure out. It was definitely the correct play for countering one of the biggest expected decks.

Fourth Energy Switch

This one brought with it a lot of flack and debate. I saw multiple lists drop down to as low as two copies of this amazing card. Now, the argument for playing a low amount of this card is that of early game clumping. People seemed to be okay settling with the turn two Quaking Punch, instead of trying to hit that magical turn one. And that’s the exact reason I opted to play four. The strategies that most decks used to counter the turn one Item-lock of [card name=”Trevenant” set=”XY” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] don’t work against a turn one Quaking Punch. [card name=”Aegislash-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card], and cards of the like don’t really help against the turn one lock from [card name=”Seismitoad-EX” set=”Furious Fists” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]. Trevenant decks have always been known for “stealing” games that they had no business of winning simply by locking turn one. With the fourth [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Generations” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card], I found that I was achieving similar results.

The Day Before

Water Box was sleeved, swagged, and ready to go for the big dance. I had practiced an absurd amount with this deck, both online, at local tournaments, and in my own house. I knew Water Box was going to be the play that would get me to day two of World Championships. The Thursday before the big day I was invited with a couple of friends to play in a invitational tournament for cash prizes. Not wanting to be a loser, I decided to go and tune up a little bit. However, I feared playing Water Box at the small tournament for one reason: what if I failed? What if my deck decided not to do well at all and I had to spend the hours leading up to World Championships changing my entire game plan. I didn’t want to put myself in that situation, so I decided to make some tweaks to the deck I played for National Championships. I ended up going undefeated in the tournament, even taking out a Night March deck, which was historically a bad matchup for me. Because of my performance in this tournament, and the comfort level I felt with the deck, I decided to perform a last minute switch over to [card name=”M Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card], which proved to be the best decision I ever made! Here is the list I used for day one and day two of the World Championships.

[premium]

[decklist name=”M Manectric ” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”23″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x [card name=”M Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”24″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”23″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Lugia-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Trevenant-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”19″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”35″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Xerosic” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”AZ” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Flashfire” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Manectric Spirit Link” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”100″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”11″]7x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”Generations” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”7″][/card]3x [card name=”Grass Energy” set=”Generations” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Generations” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

If you remember my last article, you’ll notice a lot of similarities. The main change here is the bump up to three [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card] and the lack of [card name=”Jolteon-EX” set=”Generations” no=”28″ c=”name”][/card]. I knew there would be a lot of [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card] played, and I knew my Night March strategy was going to have to be a tad bit different. So instead of trying to wall against the deck, I was going to try and trade with Mew, copying Assault Laser for one Energy using my opponent’s [card name=”Dimension Valley” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], since [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] is all but useless in that matchup. It worked in games leading up to it, but when I played against Night March in day two, it didn’t work quite as planned.

This format has come and past, so I won’t bore you with my decisions for each card and such. Also, seeing as how I am writing this at 5:00 in the morning I also won’t go over how every single one of my matches went. Instead, let me hit you with the names and decks of people I played so we can move on to some juicy stuff!

Day One

Round 1: Jon Blair playing [card name=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] – Loss
Round 2: Julius Brunfeldt playing [card name=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] – Win
Round 3: Joe Bernard playing [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card] / Dark – Win
Round 4: Kenneth Tan playing [card name=”M Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Wobbuffet” set=”Radiant Collection 2″ no=”RC11″ c=”name”][/card] – Win
Round 5: Vito Flinker playing Water Box – Win
Round 6: Eli Covitz playing Dark / [card name=”Yanmega” set=”Steam Siege” no=”7″ c=”name”][/card] – Win
Round 7: Marc Lutz playing Dark – Win

Day Two

Round 1: Haruki Satoyama playing Metal – Tie
Round 2: Ross Cawthon playing [card name=”Vespiquen” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card] / Dark – Loss
Round 3: Joseph Philip playing Water Box – Win
Round 4: Jimmy O’Brien playing Night March / [card name=”Vespiquen” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card] – Loss
Round 5: Fatih Akdemir playing Water Box – Tie
Round 6: Clifton Goh playing Dark / [card name=”Gallade” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”84″ c=”name”][/card] – Loss
Round 7: Cody Graham playing Night March – Loss

Some people may say that I got a little bit lucky with my day one matchups and I was able to walk into day two with ease. While that may be true, I believe I made the correct meta call for that exact situation to happen. The other [card name=”M Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] player I faced in round four also managed to make it to day two. I figured I could take two losses to Night March, and be able to win all of my other matchups against the field. The deck does incredibly well against the Night March counter decks, so I basically ran the counter to the counter. [card name=”Trevenant-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”19″ c=”name”][/card] was the MVP of the entire tournament, since it got me many wins against Water Box, and also gave me the game one win against Metal day two.

Over all, I think [card name=”M Manectric-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] was the correct play for both days. This format is very matchup-dependent, and I feel like M Manectric-EX has the best over all matchups across the board, only taking a heavy loss to Night March. I say only since Night March was nowhere near as popular in San Francisco as it was in Columbus. In the end, I played what I was comfortable with, and I feel like that propelled me to a day two finish that I can be proud of. The 102nd placement is worse than my 87th from Boston, but I can’t complain about a day two finish.

PokeBeach Battle Royale

There were so many cool things that happened outside of the World Championships for me. I met up with a friend from college that I hadn’t seen in two years, I went to both a Giants game and a Athletics game, and I played a whole bunch of Cube. But easily the highlight of my time spent in California had to be the PokeBeach Battle Royale. If you’re unfamiliar, the PokeBeach staff hosted an All-Star invitational with the best of the best competing for two boxes of Steam Siege. This was going to be the first tournament using the PRC – STS format, so all of the pressure was on to perform well. Naturally, I did absolutely no testing for the event, since I put such a large stress on doing well at World Championships. I figured that if I made it to day two, I was going to be happy enough with my time in San Fran to not worry about this tournament, and if I missed day two, I would have a day free to prepare for the event.

After round seven finished, I was all ready to casually throw together a deck and have some fun with my new friends from PokeBeach. I say new since this was my first time meeting a lot of them face to face. Quickly the trash talk started flowing and my competitive side started to kick in. I knew I wasn’t going to be happy with anything but first in this tournament. But I didn’t have a single thing prepared, so I decided to fall back on an old Spokane favorite, Rainbow Road.

I literally sprinted back to my hotel room to throw a list together, seeing as I only had half an hour to come up with a list. Thankfully, Grady and I had brainstormed some ideas and put together this grossness of a list.

[decklist name=”Rainbow Road” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″][pokemon amt=”14″]4x [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”36″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY67″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Celebi” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Regirock” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY49″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”36″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”XY” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ninja Boy” set=”Steam Siege” no=”103″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Flashfire” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Captivating Poké Puff” set=”Steam Siege” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”M Catcher” set=”Fates Collide” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]6x [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”XY” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”6″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”XY” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

We here in the Lilac City have come up with our fair share of crazy deck lists. From heavy Energy denial [card name=”Primal Groudon-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card], to VespiBox, to the original Rainbow Road. But seriously, this list is so weird. There is so much I love about the deck, and so much I hate about the deck. So as a nod to all my Fantasy Football peeps out there, I’m going to do my best to throw a Matthew Berry Love / Hate at you.

Love / Hate

Love: Three Float Stone

This was an idea that I had originally got from Grant Manley. When Team Spokane had created the Big Basics version of this list back in December, we were able to play it in an Expanded format and abuse both [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”63″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Prism Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], as well as [card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”45″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] in the same deck. With the emphasis on using [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card], playing [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] just seems counter productive. Having flexibility in a non-EX based deck is actually incredibly important. Think about all of the non-EX decks in recent times. Outside of [card name=”Trevenant” set=”XY” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] decks, which want to be in the Active, all non-EX decks want to be able to move about freely. With three Float Stone, I never have to worry about something gross being trapped in the Active. Throw in [card name=”Ninja Boy” set=”Steam Siege” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card], and you have yourself plenty of outs to sticky situations.

Hate: One Ninja Boy

Ninja Boy proved to be one of the most fantastic inclusions in the deck. With a whopping three [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card], and only four [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] for them to go on to, odds were that at least one of the Exp. Share will be winding up on a non-attacker. Plus, with the rotation of [card name=”Battle Compressor” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card], one-of Supporters take a hit, since you almost never draw in to them when you need them. I knew that this was my thought going into the tournament, and I really wanted to play two [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] and two Ninja Boy, but I figured that against non-EX decks, I would want to use my Supporter for the turn to draw and not switch. This way I wouldn’t have to commit [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] to the Bench early in that sort of matchup. And even if I did, I still had the out to switch it back into my deck. I don’t know where the spot will come from, but I know I want two of these guys in the deck.

[cardimg name=”Celebi” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY93″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Love: Celebi Promo

Leap Through Time is such a cool Ability. Sure, a little gimmicky at times, but if you’re trying to win a non-EX trade battle, and you fall behind early, it can be hard to catch back up, especially in a deck that has to use two turns attaching to attack. Leap Through Time saved my bacon in the PokeBeach tournament at least two times, putting me back in an even playing field against the slew of [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Fates Collide” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] heavy decks. The main reason I included it in the deck was because of the lack of easily teched Grass Basics in the Standard format. Moving forward, I would consider [card name=”Beedrill-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY157″ c=”name”][/card] for Tool removal if that becomes a big thing.

Hate: Hoopa-EX

When we first played Rainbow Road way back when, I loved having [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”36″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck to search out my backup attacker, a [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card], and either a [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Black and White Black Star Promos” no=”BW46″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”45″ c=”name”][/card], or a [card name=”Virizion-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”9″ c=”name”][/card]. If you’ll notice, none of those exist in the current Standard meta so really it’s used strictly to get damage on the board, and then sits there like the big dumb liability that it is. Hoopa-EX doesn’t add any more speed to the deck, it just gets you that one quick explosive turn, which if you play the deck correctly, isn’t needed in my opinion. Instead, I would have loved to have [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck as a “fifth [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card],” so to speak. But more on that later!

Love: Captivating Poke Puff

At first, I was never really sold on this card. It seemed way too situational to just splash into any random deck. But against my opponents in the tournament, it proved its worth by forcing multiple [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] down to the bench to swing Prize-trades into my favor. [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] was originally put into the deck to increase the odds of me hitting a turn one Captivating Poke Puff and crippling my opponent. Rainbow Road doesn’t need much on the first turn. A simple Energy attachment to a [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] is a more than ideal. So if you have to burn the turn one Supporter on a Skyla to grab the [card name=”Captivating Poké Puff” set=”Steam Siege” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card], it’s not the end of the world. I don’t know if I would go as far as to say I would add in a second Captivating Poke Puff, but I wouldn’t drop to zero.

Hate: Mega Catcher

I will admit, I was getting a little bit bold here. I figured I would try and make a meta call and use Mega Catcher to grab some cheap Prizes on the expected meta. Instead, I played against a field of non Mega decks, and drew into a useless card over and over again. While I was frantically throwing my deck together before the tournament, the spot was going to be used for either an [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] or a [card name=”Special Charge” set=”Steam Siege” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card]. The Enhanced Hammer would have been the correct call for the meta, but over all I think the Special Charge would be the correct play if you don’t know what decks you’ll be expecting.

Love: Skyla

Now, I know what you’re thinking, “But Alex, you said that you didn’t like one-of Supporters in the current meta.” That statement is mostly still true, but I like [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card]. This format feels a lot slower right off the bat, and Skyla may just find her way back into the meta. Grabbing an [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Fates Collide” no=”113″ c=”name”][/card] to use [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] is perfectly viable going into a slower paced game. Heck, even the classic Skyla for [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] is still a viable strategy in a slower meta game. While it remains as a one-of Supporter, it gives you just a little bit added consistency in the early game, while still being able to give you that late game power of grabbing the clutch [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”name”][/card], or [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] you need to finish a game off. My stance on this is likely to not change, so expect to see the one of Skyla coming into many of my lists in the near future.

Hate: No Pokemon with Free Retreat

This one was openly my fault. Right off the bat in the first series of the PokeBeach tournament, I played a Ninja Boy, and searched for a free retreater, only to find none in my deck. I can’t believe I didn’t see that before going in, but we all make mistakes right? Free Retreat is amazing in combination with [card name=”Ninja Boy” set=”Steam Siege” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card], as it acts as a semi-“[card name=”AZ” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card]” effect when something gets [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] stalled. Or, even better, when a bad starter finds its way into the Active and you can’t find yourself a Float Stone. [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card], as mentioned earlier, fits the bill perfectly for everything this deck wants and needs. As of right now, the [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”36″ c=”name”][/card] is definitely being removed for a Mew.

Now, openly I’ll admit I have done very little playing and testing since World Championships concluded. I like being able to have one or two weeks free to sort cards and clear my head for the next season, so the following list is changes I would make based purely off my performance in San Francisco at the invitational. Here is the current updated list for Rainbow Road.

[decklist name=”Rainbow Road 2″ amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″][pokemon amt=”14″]4x [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew” set=”Fates Collide” no=”29″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY67″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Celebi” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Regirock” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY49″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”36″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”XY” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Ninja Boy” set=”Steam Siege” no=”103″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Fates Collide” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Special Charge” set=”Steam Siege” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Captivating Poké Puff” set=”Steam Siege” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]6x [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”Generations” no=”83″ c=”deck2″ amt=”6″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Fates Collide” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

There’s not too many drastic changes, but this is what I am going to start testing once I get back into the swing of things.

You should really go and check out the VoDs from the PokeBeach tournament. There are some great games! I love all my fellow writers, and they all played fantastically, but if you are feeling lazy, here is the quick play-by-play of how I fared in the eight person All-Star game!

Tournament Report

Round 1 versus Andrew Mahone playing Vespiquen / Zoroark

[cardimg name=”Vespiquen” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”10″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

This matchup was probably one of the best series I have ever played in my entire life, and I don’t say that lightly. On one hand, it’s really hard for [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] to trade efficiently against [card name=”Vespiquen” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card], since Rainbow Road needs two attachments to attack, and Vespiquen just needs one. On the other hand, it’s also hard for Vespiquen to take one shots early on in the matchup with the lack of [card name=”Battle Compressor” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card]. So early game is very tricky to manage. Also, Bench space is key in this matchup, seeing as how three benched Pokemon on my side leads to a Rainbow Force KO, while staying out of range of [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card]. Ultimately, the presence of [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] in Andrew’s deck lead to his downfall, and I took the series.

Round 2 versus Treynor Wolfe playing Primal Kygore

Before the game, both Treynor and I went over the idea of the matchup, and we decided that it probably favored Rainbow Road. Boy were we wrong. All three games basically came down to the wire. I was able to lead [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] in two of the three games, which prompted Treynor to Water Pulse me into oblivion. I think I failed sleep check at least five times during game one. Either way, the matchup basically is me trying to get enough Pokemon to OHKO [card name=”Primal Kyogre-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card], and him trying to use his [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] every turn to take Pokemon-EX Knock Outs. If I had played a version of Rainbow Road with [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card], this matchup would have gone completely different. Thankfully I was able to pull out a victory in time of game three to move on.

Round 3 versus JW Kriewall playing M Rayquaza-EX

Since we were both 2-0, an ID got us into top cut. JW went to go get some food, and I stayed around to scout ahead to my next games!

Top 4 versus Dalen Dockery playing Giratina-EX / Xerneas BREAK

This deck is very similar to the [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] deck of the World Championship format. Using both Geomancy from [card name=”Xerneas” set=”Steam Siege” no=”81″ c=”name”][/card], as well as [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card], the damage from [card name=”Xerneas BREAK” set=”Steam Siege” no=”82″ c=”name”][/card] can ramp up very quickly. However, all of his Dragon Pokemon are weak to Fairy, making the Prize-trade very unfavorable for him. Sprinkle in the fact that he missed a lot of early game Max Elixir, and you have yourself a fairly one sided matchup. An early game Chaos Wheel can help mitigate the utility of Rainbow Road a little bit, but at best Giratina-EX is two shotting Xerneas. It’s a tricky matchup no matter how you slice it.

Finals versus John Kettler playing Vespiquen / Zoroark / Zebstrika / Octillery

This matchup was very similar to the one I played against Andrew with one major difference: John didn’t play any Pokemon-EX at all. Instead, he opted to use [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] for his draw power, along with four [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] to get the ball rolling. I’m glad this tournament was streamed, and I’m glad this game was streamed since it was truly a heavy weight bout. Crazy moves from John, crazy moves from myself. Misplays, outplays, the whole nine yards. In the end, game three came down to two unlucky circumstances for both players. I started no Supporter and dead draw, where John prized both [card name=”Remoraid” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card]. Time was called and I was able to scrap through enough Prizes to take home the win for Rainbow Road!

Other Rainbow Road Ideas

By no means is the above version the correct way to go about building Rainbow Road. I’ve seen and heard of a few extra ways to consider going about building a deck around [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]. The version I outlined just now I refer to as “The Exp. Share,” version. There’s the [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] version, the Big Basics version, the Stage 1 version, and the [card name=”Ho-Oh-EX” set=”Dragons Exalted” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] version. Two Expanded, two Standard for your convenience!

Big Basics (Expanded)

This version is all about the techs. Instead of using some fancy way of accelerating Energy, either by [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Generations” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card], or [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card], we use big tech attackers to cover the pace of the deck. This was the original way we had built the deck back in December. This deck is very good if you know exactly what meta you’re going to be facing. Having a bunch of specific ways to deal with matchups, while having that ever looming threat of a one shot in a non-EX form is a very good way to cut through a tournament. You realistically have answers to everything that would be thrown at you. The only decks this version takes a hard loss to is anything with Energy denial.

Ho-Oh-EX (Expanded)

[cardimg name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Eli Covitz was the first to pilot this deck to a 2nd place finish at Seattle Regionals. If I’m not mistaken, he was the first one to take this concept into battle and perform well with it. The idea is similar to the Big Basics version, just with more Energy acceleration and less tech attackers. This version focuses a bit more on using Rainbow Force, with only a few fall back options. I feel like this is the way to build the deck moving forward in Expanded because of the consistency and power. If the meta is right, this deck can easy make some deep runs at Regional Championships. I feel like this deck has been slept on, since right after Seattle Regionals, everyone started gearing up for National Championships and World Championships. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this version do well at the first couple of events this season.

Max Elixir (Standard)

Much like the [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] version, this deck’s purpose is to only attack with [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card], and merely use the rainbow of Bench sitters to add to the damage. There are a lot of pluses and minuses with this build versus the [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] build. First off, you’re generally going to be a bit more speedy with a version like this, being able to hit that turn one or two Rainbow Force really easily. Second, since your Tool cards don’t have to include Exp. Share, those spots can be used for [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card], a card that makes Xerneas a giant tank and threat for the early stages of the game. But the reason I chose to not go with this build is the space issues. You have to commit four spaces to [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card], and at least nine spaces to Fairy Energy to make this engine work. I like having a lot of different options in a Rainbow deck like this, so I chose not to take that gamble. Moving forward I will definitely be testing this deck out a lot more, since I like the added consistency value.

Stage 1 (Standard)

With this version, you can either run [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Primal Clash” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card], or even both! This version doesn’t have to rely on the use of [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card], since you can play a multitude of Stage 1 Bench sitters that are dual type to provide the big damage. I feel like this is by and far the most inconsistent version, because of the high counts of Pokemon in the deck. I have seen a lot of people trying out this build because of the fear of the Stadium war. Counter Stadiums are going to become less of a factor in my opinion, since most of the big Mega decks and Vespiquen decks that we’ve seen don’t rely on a Stadium at all. [card name=”M Mewtwo-EX” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”64″ c=”name”][/card] likes to have [card name=”Shrine of Memories” set=”Primal Clash” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] out, but those decks aren’t playing a high count of the card. This version is a lot of fun, and definitely plays into Rainbow Force, but is definitely the weakest. Back in City Championships, you could run this version with [card name=”Smeargle” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Bronzong” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] and those sorts of engines, but with [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card], I feel like that sort of consistency is unnecessary.

Conclusion

To sum up, I love Rainbow Road, no matter how you slice it. It has a great matchups against all of the big name Mega decks that people are hyping up, which makes it a fantastic pocket pick going into Standard events. I’m still not sold on playing this deck in Expanded, but that all might change once I start grinding out testing again.

As always, make sure to ask if you have any questions at all! I’m more than willing to help out anyone!

Until next time,

Alex

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