Ice and Lightning — Breaking Down Alolan Ninetales-GX / Tapu Koko
Hey PokeBeach, I’ve been doing a lot lately with this new set and have had some renewed interest among some old playtesting partners that have come back into the game. There’s a lot of exciting things in this new set, and I cannot wait to explore it with you all. A lot of our writers have chosen their own exciting topics to write about in the coming weeks. Believe me, I may be one of the first to write about this set, but there will be much more to follow.
This set breaks apart our format better than any other I’ve seen in a while. There is so many great cards in this set, that it almost re-establishes and changes the metagame completely. What I mean by that, is that so many groundbreaking things came out of this set, that the metagame is going to be completely different. Different facets of the game not existing (more on this later) in the past have allowed some decks to be incredibly strong, but now their power will be incredibly diminished. Different cards are so powerful in this set that entire decks can be made around them.
I think that every player should take a good hard look at the decks in the past format, and see how they stack up now with the new set out. Certain decks are going to be still played, however, can they beat these new decks and cards? I’m going to go into detail on five decks that I think will be real winners with the next set out. Of course, we can add [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] to our old decks and they will just be better but that doesn’t mean they will beat these new decks. As the title may also suggest, I will go into detail with one of the more prominent cards of the set.
The New Standard
[cardimg name=”Oricorio” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”56″ align=”right” c=”custom”]Can’t wait to try this in Expanded![/cardimg]
I’m not going to beat around the bush. There is a clear best deck to arrive from this current format. My good friend Jordan Nelle gave me a lot of information on what has been doing well in Japan. Japan has a different format than us, with them playing XY-on. However, for once, their decks at the moment aren’t really playing old cards. This next set is so good that their decks are essentially the same as our format. However, their [card name=”Oricorio” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] inclusion is an obvious way to beat Night March, which still has a pull on their metagame. We won’t have to include this particular card in our decks, unless [card name=”Vespiquen” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card] is still seen as a huge problem.
Having said that, I believe that the majority of the lists that they play can translate well here. There have been multiple adaptations of the [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] deck I will write about soon, but the most popular way to run it in Japan will actually play well here.
I’m not going to go into detail on why [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is a good card. It’s incredibly obvious why a [card name=”Mewtwo-EX” set=”Next Destinies” no=”54″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Jirachi-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”98″ c=”name”][/card]’s Ability that doesn’t have a Weakness is good. [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] is already starting to go down to a one-of or two-of in my current decks in favor of more Tapu Lele because it’s just such a good attacker as well.
I have a few decks that I want to discuss that become powerful with the arrival of Guardians Rising. Let’s get the obvious one out of the way first.
Garbodor / Tapu Lele-GX / Tauros-GX
There’s so much hype out there for this deck, and for good reason. [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] sits at 120 HP and is an amazing late game attacker because it exploits one of the biggest ways to make decks consistent. Take a step back and take a good look at just how many Items are played in decks right now. Add that in with one of the best attackers in the game right now in [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card]. Tapu Lele-GX does so well as an early attacker since there’s a lot out there that cannot hit 170 HP early without the help of Weakness. [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] helps Tapu Lele hit hard early as well.
The older [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] can also make an appearance in here, however [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] greatly diminishes that card’s overall use. Ideally this deck will attack with Tapu Lele-GX early and maybe use [card name=”Tauros-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”100″ c=”name”][/card] to attack as well. By the time the late game comes in, your opponent will likely have used so many Items that OHKOs will come easily. It only takes nine Items in the discard pile to OHKO a 180 HP Pokemon. With Choice Band, you can hit 210. I normally don’t like to play cards that have dependent damage based on what your opponent plays and uses, but like [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”from”][/card], its damage is just too good, even when there’s just a few Items in the discard pile or in [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card]’s case, they have few Pokemon on the Bench.
Be on the lookout for articles from our other writers about this deck. To me, this deck will shape and define our format and how we build decks. In my opinion, it is the next best deck and new deck to try and beat. There’s just so many different ways to build the deck and so many backup attackers that can go with it. A whole article can be devoted to this deck and the ways it can fit into other decks.
Sylveon-GX
Remember that great article our own Eric Gansman wrote about [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]? [card name=”Sylveon-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] is just been a better [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]. Sure, it doesn’t have the healing that [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] had, but [card name=”Fairy Drop” set=”Fates Collide” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Max Potion” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] are still good cards. Eric is writing an article on Sylveon-GX as well, and I can’t think of a better player to write on that topic since he’s had success with [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card].
Sylveon-GX will play almost exactly the same as [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] does. Heavy disruption with an attack here and there to win the game. This deck is a lock and control deck unlike [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] decks in many regards. With this deck, you get a free three card search every turn with a 200 HP hitter. This deck was really overwhelming for me to play, since I felt like I was misplaying with every search. This deck should be able to disrupt more than [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] ever did. Where [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] was already formidable, Sylveon-GX will seem borderline overpowered, being able to easily defeat decks that have to attach more than one Energy to an attacker.
Another reason to start playing Sylveon-GX over [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] now is the GX attack. A common strategy against [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] is to power up a Benched Pokemon with a lot of Energy, since [card name=”Team Flare Grunt” set=”XY” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card] cannot target the Bench and [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Emerging Powers” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] is unreliable. However, Plea-GX will allow Sylveon-GX decks to get an extra turn or two to hit their Hammers or take Prizes. Be expecting this deck to show up in force as players practice and get the hang of a deck that lets you play three [card name=”Computer Search” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] for an attack.
[cardimg name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
Volcanion
That’s weird, I’m writing about this old deck that has been beaten into the dirt with the amount of coverage on it. Hear me out, this deck gets a lot better with this new set. Where [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] beat or annoyed this deck in the past, depending on who you talked to, [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] gets rid of two problems [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] struggled with: [card name=”Parallel City” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]. Ability-lock will not be a sure thing anymore. There’s no need to OHKO the [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card] to get your Abilities back now. I can see two copies of Field Blower making it into this deck easily.
[card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”name”][/card] is another almost auto include in this deck. However, the first attack seems like it wants to be your early game attacker, but [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] needs the help from baby [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] to help it power up. [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] also doesn’t have to play too many Items to execute its strategy, giving it some resistance against Garbodor. That Weakness still sucks though, with [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card]’s printing, we will see many more Water decks spring up. Regardless, I do feel [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] is an incredibly powerful deck in the right meta. The only other bad thing I see with this deck, is that [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] is so much easier for players to get their hands on now with [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card].
Greninja BREAK
Okay, here’s another old one. A lot of players are sleeping on this deck, and I think that [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card]’s strengths haven’t changed in this new set. In fact, [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] fixes the [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] problem easily. One Field Blower and a pair of Giant Water Shuriken and [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] is toast. [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] giving easily accessible [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] is the only argument I can see as to how anything makes this deck worse in the coming set.
That alone may be a reason not to play this, but hear me out, don’t sleep on [card name=”Greninja” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card]. The deck is still incredibly solid. [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card] helps you not rely on Items so much against that other Garbodor deck I mentioned earlier.
Ninetales-GX / Tapu Koko
The gist of my article is on this deck. I’ve been testing this a ton. Unfortunately, Tapu Koko is not going to be out in time for Seattle’s Regional Championships, but it will be out in time for Madison. I’ll be going into detail soon of why these two cards are just incredible on their own. [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] makes an appearance in this deck too, same with [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]. With the deck playing [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Legendary Treasures” no=”113″ c=”name”][/card], you can play a multitude of backup attackers. [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is the obvious one, but there’s a few others that we can include. I’ll be showing off my personal deck list for this deck and explain the choices of the cards. I will also go over this deck’s matchups against new and old decks.
Let’s go over the cards first.
Key Cards
Alolan Ninetales-GX
What a card! Solid first attack, solid second attack, amazing GX attack and good health and typing. This isn’t [card name=”Yveltal-EX” set=”XY” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] levels of a great, but it’s close. Its only real downside to me is the fact that it needs to evolve.
[cardimg name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
Ice Blade is [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]’s first attack. A straight 50 damage anywhere you want for a [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”XY” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card]. This is perfect for sniping off small Pokemon such as [card name=”Trubbish” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] when paired with Tapu Koko. It’s also a good attack to combine with a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] for 80 damage to the Active. Snipe damage has been less and less useful since the original [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Emerging Powers” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] was printed. With [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] now, no Bench is safe. But before these cards were printed, [card name=”Garchomp C LV.X” set=”Supreme Victors” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] was so good because it did 80 damage to any Pokemon of your choosing. The power level is much higher now, but Alolan Ninetales-GX can very easily soften Pokemon up before using Blizzard Edge.
Now let’s discuss that second attack. A flat 160 for three Energy, but discard two Energy to use the attack. Not Energy cards. Energy. This means that you can just discard that [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] you used for that first attack. The second attack takes some time to get to, however, with [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card], it’s not out of reach. With Choice Band, this attack OHKOs all Basic Pokemon-GX and Pokemon-EX. Tapu Koko alleviates the need to have a Choice Band, and it also allows you to hit other evolved Pokemon-GX for Knock Outs with some softening damage down.
The GX attack is probably the most powerful one yet printed. It’s like Damage Swap from [card name=”Mewtwo-EX” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”62″ c=”name”][/card], but it only costs one Energy and it completely heals your Ninetales while dealing damage to the opposing Pokemon. With this attack, your opponent has to play very carefully to not set themselves up to getting Knocked Out back with the damage from their last attack erased.
Oh and having a gorgeous full art version of the card is nice too.
Tapu Koko
This comes as a Promo as part of a collection deal, so it comes out a little after Guardians Rising. Let’s start at the top. Lightning typing means this card uses [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card].
110 HP means this thing can tank a hit. It has the advantage that [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] has in that it is hard to Knock Out in one hit early. This is also your early game attacker. The first attack is what we want in this card. 20 spread to everything for a single [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Fates Collide” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] sets up Alolan Ninetales-GX super well. That means that Ninetales will hit 180 with one attack from Tapu Koko. But the advantage here, is that Tapu Koko has the HP and healing so that he can attack multiple times. This means that he might get two or three attacks off before you get fully set up. Ninetales’ Ice Blade attack looks really good once Pokemon has 60 damage on them. His second attack is unremarkable.
Did you guys notice this Pokemon has free Retreat? This attacker can cycle between other ones to keep attacking until you can hit 110. Then an [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] can get involved to finish what Tapu Koko started.
[premium]
So now that I’ve gone over the two attackers and their synergy together, let’s talk about the deck.
[decklist name=”alolan ” amt=”56″ caption=”” cname=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x Tapu Koko (PRSM)2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Olympia” set=”Generations” no=”66″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Supreme Victors” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Multi Switch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
Lots of new cards made it into my deck. Let’s go over them.
Card Explanations
4-3 Alolan Ninetales-GX
This is our main attacker, but I don’t see myself playing more than three copies of [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] here. Prizing two would be really awful, but one Ninetales and your [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] should be able to take a Prize here or there.
Let me also take the time here to say that the [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card] is solid. The first attack is free and allows you to search for Pokemon. Not a bad starter, although Tapu Koko is our ideal starter.
Three Tapu Koko
A free retreating Pokemon that we want to start with should merit three or four copies in a deck. In this one, I want three just because of that free Retreat Cost and high HP. I also want to be able to attack on the first turn if I go second and this allows me to. Tapu Koko should be played as a three-of in this deck at a minimum. Starting it or Tapu Lele-GX is ideal for this deck. Even though Alolan Vulpix has a good first attack, I don’t want to start it and lose it before it could evolve.
Two Tapu Lele-GX, One Shaymin-EX
Did you ever think that [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] would ever become a one-of in a popular meta deck? Most players have been playing two, but I just love Tapu Lele so much more than [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card]. I’ve gone on in the past of how I hate this “draw more cards to be consistent” thing that we had going with two to three copies of [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] in every deck. Now I can play a [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] and hit exactly what Supporter I need. It also isn’t a liability on the Bench. No Weakness and 170 HP is hard to Knock Out.
This deck does seem like it needs to hit combos with its evolutions and [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card], but I just hate having [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] on my Bench and haven’t really run into a situation where I needed to draw more cards over just playing a Supporter. It’s there if I need it, but it’s not a thing I rely upon anymore.
One Drampa-GX
This is another Pokemon-GX that I see players sleeping on as well. Solid first attack. Great second attack, abysmal GX attack. If you are ever dead drawing, that GX attack can be helpful, but after you draw ten off of it, expect to get hit with an [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card]. With every deck playing [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] now, Drampa’s first attack hits hard with a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] while holding your opponent back an Energy attachment. The second attack is great as well in the mirror match since their Tapu Koko will surely damage your Bench in some way. I hate to be a broken record, but Choice Band works here too to hit that magical 180 damage.
One Olympia
This isn’t a new card, and it probably isn’t even noteworthy, but I do want to try to convince you to run one [card name=”Olympia” set=”Generations” no=”66″ c=”name”][/card] in all of your decks now. [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] just makes this card so accessible. In fact, all tech Supporters get a huge boost from Tapu Lele. If you ever have a Pokemon stuck Active, you are now an [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] away from getting it out of there and healing it. That’s huge. Combining this with [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] lets you heal a lot more damage. I think [card name=”Olympia” set=”Generations” no=”66″ c=”name”][/card] will see a lot more play and it has come in clutch for my testing.
One Professor Kukui
When your attacker needs help to hit that 180, it needs all the help it can get. [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card], Tapu Koko, and [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] will be redundant enough to get there.
Three Aqua Patch
We always played four [card name=”Dark Patch” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] right? So why three Aqua Patch? The biggest reason is because your [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] shouldn’t be getting Knocked Out every turn. It shouldn’t be losing the Energy that quickly. [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] can pay for that second attack just fine, so it’s only really needed in cases where you fell behind or need an attacker quickly. That’s why three are at least in this deck currently. Four wouldn’t be bad either but it’s user preference.
Multi Switch
This is a really niche card that I am testing and enjoying. It’s only a one-of in this deck right now, but it does come in handy. Sometimes your Tapu Koko has a [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] on it and it isn’t really needed as an attacker anymore. We’ve switched gears and [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] is working its magic. Tapu Koko doesn’t need the Energy anymore, so moving it to the Active makes sense. Tapu Koko also has free Retreat, so there’s no concern over it being stuck Active if it gets [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Flashfire” no=”90″ c=”name”][/card]’d up. I could see adding another copy of this, or even cutting it entirely. But right now, I like it in this deck.
[cardimg name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
No Trainers’ Mail
Ah, my namesake card. [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card]. My mailbox. Treynor’s Mail. This card is a huge liability now in the [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] world we’re about to live in. [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] makes sense in this deck. We need to hit cards in combination. However, I like this deck’s Garbodor matchup and a big part of that is not relying on Items so much. If we play [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ c=”name”][/card], we use Items for our consistency, which is exactly what Garbodor wants. I want no situation where I’m forced to play an Item against Garbodor or else I will be dead drawing.
I have taken [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ c=”name”][/card] out of a lot of my decks currently. I just play a thicker [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] count. Consistency has been a non-issue for me since [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] has come out.
The rest of the deck shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. Let’s go over some cards that are possible inclusions.
Possible Inclusions
Manaphy-EX
This works well in just about every Water deck. Free Retreat and [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] is the combination that made a lot of Water-type decks flourish. WaterBox from 2016 instantly comes to mind. This is a good inclusion, but my argument is that we always have a free retreater in Tapu Koko. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] also only has a single Retreat Cost. This isn’t much to pay with [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] in my mind.
Hoopa
Let me make a little blurb here about this card if you really want to play this deck sooner rather than later. [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] isn’t nearly as good as Tapu Koko is, however, it does have some merit, being able to hit [card name=”Trubbish” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] for Weakness. If you do decide to play [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card], you do lose your great free Retreat option so I highly recommend playing [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card] in decks that play [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] so that you have the mobility you would have under Tapu Koko. I’ve heard some arguments that [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] is superior to Tapu Koko in some regards since its attack only takes a single Colorless Energy.
Regice
[card name=”Regice” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] is still decent, regardless of the fact that it doesn’t protect you from Pokemon-GX. It works really well as a single Prize attacker outside of Tapu Koko, and with [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card], it can take 2HKOs on most Pokemon-GX/EX. It can lock certain matchups down, and with [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card], it can be powered up very quickly.
[cardimg name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”117″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
Espeon-EX
[card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] is a gorgeous card, but that’s not the reason it can make it into this deck. Against certain decks, this card is a game changer. It doesn’t do much against decks like [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card], but only needing to get 60 damage down against [card name=”Sylveon-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] decks for a KO is huge. This was a maybe card for me, mainly because I didn’t use it too much in testing. However, against certain decks it can be a game changer. By taking a different strategy, such as continuous attacks with Tapu Koko, you can amass enough damage to take many Prizes at once with this card.
Pokemon Center Lady
[card name=”Salazzle” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card] has been getting some talk, which is why this might be worth playing. [card name=”Pokémon Center Lady” set=”Flashfire” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card] is pretty great with [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] since it can practically remove an entire attack. We want [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] to be tanky. That GX attack is there so your Pokemon doesn’t get Knocked Out. This is also another tech Supporter that is beneficial for [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] to get.
Pokemon Fan Club
[card name=”Pokémon Fan Club” set=”Flashfire” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] is a way to get Pokemon without playing Items to get them. This card has become popular in Japan because Garbodor is so popular there. Getting two Alolan Vulpix out on the first turn is great for this deck. It’s even better since we can Tapu Lele-GX for [card name=”Pokémon Fan Club” set=”Generations” no=”69″ c=”name”][/card] on the first turn. Getting [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card] out fast is huge for this deck.
Team Magma’s Secret Base
This card might end up in my deck before Tapu Koko gets released. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card] needs that 20 damage down to take KOs on 210 and 180 HP Pokemon, depending on if you have a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] on or not. This contradicts with [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], which is a phenomenal card, so it’s going to be a two-of at most. This card has set up more KOs in my testing than I can count. Give it a shot and see if it’s effective in your area.
Matchups
This deck has some really strong matchups and a couple of weak ones. The absolute strength of the cards and the synergy between the two of them make this deck’s strategy really hard to beat.
Garbodor / Tapu Lele-GX / Tauros-GX
This is one deck that will be seen quite a bit, and that’s good, because [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] has a favorable matchup against it. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] doesn’t need to play Items to take quick Knock Outs against this deck, and its GX attack comes in really handy. [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] will probably be their early attacker, just hitting for damage while you’re building up your [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]. But attacking with Tapu Koko repeatedly will make these easy to KO. Avoid playing Items and take some snipe KOs with Ice Blade against [card name=”Trubbish” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] will make those [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] not even appear late game and you can just KO their Pokemon-GX, which is the strategy of your deck.
Be wary of using Tapu Koko too much against [card name=”Tauros-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card], however. The [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] deck most likely also plays [card name=”Ninja Boy” set=”Steam Siege” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card] as well. So this might make some surprise KOs happen. Try to attack with Tapu Koko a couple times, and that should be sufficient to clean up with [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card].
Sylveon
This isn’t a great matchup. To really hit hard, you need multiple Energy out there, and this deck really denies your Energy attachments. [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] can only really take you so far, so I think that with constant [card name=”Team Flare Grunt” set=”Generations” no=”73″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card], you will struggle to take Knock Outs. My biggest advice against this deck is to strictly attach to the Bench, and to consistently use [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] so that they cannot keep the cards that they searched for with [card name=”Sylveon-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card]’s Magical Ribbon attack. In my testing, I was beating [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] by slim margins with [card name=”Sylveon-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] when my opponent did these two things. Don’t hesitate to put damage down with [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] as well.
[cardimg name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
WaterBox
I know many people have seen the full usefulness of [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card]. Players will be playing this with [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card] and other Water attackers such as [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]. I think that the weird HP of [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] makes this a weird matchup. Using [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] to hit those perfect numbers against [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] is crucial. Tapu Koko is just useless in this matchup unless you’re just using it for its free Retreat. [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] just flat out eliminates the damage that Tapu Koko puts down, and with both decks playing [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], it’s most likely going to stay on the battlefield regardless of the number of [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] being played.
I think that this matchup is positive because of the OHKOs you can take while they cannot. [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] cannot hit for enough damage, while [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] does. This is where [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]’s 210 HP really helps.
Decidueye / Vileplume
This is a favorable matchup for [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]. Using [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] when you need it is key to this matchup. The same is true for [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] take their time setting up, giving you plenty of time to attack with Tapu Koko and then take quick Prizes with [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]. Them not hitting you for Weakness is also pretty great. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] can simply outlast [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] and also be unfazed by the Item-lock caused by [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card].
Volcanion
This seems like an automatic win for [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card], and while it is a positive matchup, it can go poorly as well. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] doesn’t need Weakness to take quick KOs. It also does so much damage that its completely unnecessary. [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] can hit 210 damage fairly easily with a few Steam Up, which is the magic number to KO [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]. My advice in this matchup is to attack with Tapu Koko often and to avoid playing [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]. This just allows them to heal the damage you cause with Tapu Koko. The Tapu Koko damage isn’t really for [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] to hit good numbers, it’s more to open up alternate attackers like [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] to go in and take Prizes.
[card name=”Regice” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] plays a huge role in making this a solid matchup if you play it. [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] decks play [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card], but taking a one hit KO on a [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] and then barring the return KO unless they play [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”113″ c=”name”][/card] is huge.
Conclusion
There are a lot of good cards to come out of this new set. [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] was always seen as a good card once we spoiled it on here, however, the pairing with Tapu Koko just completes this card and puts this deck up there on the tier list of the new format. [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] will rule the format for the coming months, but [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] has a favorable matchup against it and will grant us a reprieve against the Trashbag.
My next Regional will be Madison, so I will still be testing this heavily. However, don’t discount [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck if you’re considering this for Seattle. Hit me up in Madison, I’ll be going for the repeat.
Later,
Treynor
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