Returning From Internationals and Prime Plays for Liverpool Regionals!
Hey PokeBeach! It’s been a while since I wrote, but I’m back from North America Internationals with loads of thoughts and decks to share with you. I ended up toning down on tournaments last season due to University commitments, which meant by the time N.A. Internationals rolled around my overall Championship Point total was only 300 CP. The threshold for an invite in Europe is 350 points, putting me in a pretty precarious place of needing to place well to obtain enough points to gain the Worlds invitation.
Testing Within the Primal Clash – Guardians Rising Format
Jumping back into the PCL-GRI format, the meta game had shifted greatly since Sun and Moon had been released. The inclusion of [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] along with Trainer cards like [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] had altered deck structures where Supporters could now be easily searched and strong Tools like [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] could now be removed. [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] provided a massive damage boost we hadn’t seen since [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. The biggest influence on changing the metagame was [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]. This one Pokemon put a holt to the fast-paced format chock-full of Item cards we’ve had for a while, slowing the game down significantly. A deck that ignored Garbodor’s presence would instantly take a loss to almost a third of the meta game, due to the high count of Items they opt to play.
After testing multiple decks, I started to notice how diverse the format was. Garbodor became its own archetype, usually coming in with either [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Espeon-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card]. Drampa-GX gave a disruption option using Righteous Edge to discard Special Energy, but also came packing with a powerful three-Energy attack in Berserk. As long as you have any damage on the Bench, Berserk outputs 150 damage which can be boosted to 180 with [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. The best way to place damage was to either attach a [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] onto one of your Benched Pokemon, or use [card name=”Team Magma’s Secret Base” set=”Double Crisis” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] to place two damage counters onto any Pokemon played to the Bench. Although 180 damage was extremely strong and dealt with many Pokemon in the format, this build had fallen out of favour for Internationals compared to the Espeon-GX build.
[cardimg name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ align=”right” c=”custom”]Look at me. I control the format now.[/cardimg]
Special Conditions are rarely seen these days in the TCG, however Confusion was brought to the format’s forefront due to Espeon-GX’s Psybeam. Many players (including myself) would rather not take the risk of flipping for Confusion, since half of the time you may lose the game because of it. Espeon-GX also comes with a Psychic, which can provide either a 2HKO attack combined with Psybeam if your opponent has only one or two Energy attached. However, if the opponent has three or more Energy on that Pokemon then combined with Choice Band Espeon-GX is able to OHKO 180HP Pokemon and above. Finally, Divide GX provides a great utility to either set up Pokemon for a KO with Psychic, finish off any Pokemon on the Bench that are close to being KOd, or remove a low-HP evolution like [card name=”Rowlet” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”9″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Combee” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”9″ c=”name”][/card]. Since Divide GX only needed a Psychic and [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card], it’s possible to use on the second turn, before opposing Pokemon can evolve.
Moving away from Garbodor variants, multiple new deck archetypes appeared using cards from Guardians Rising. [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] was paired with [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Team Magma’s Secret Base” set=”Double Crisis” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] to give a strong, reliable source of damage when the opponent limits their Bench. [card name=”Gyarados” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY60″ c=”name”][/card] saw some success after Alex Dao was able to take down two European Regionals in a row using the deck. Full Retaliation could now be boosted to prime numbers using Choice Band; even with only two [card name=”Magikarp” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY143″ c=”name”][/card] on bench, that 150 becomes 180 or even 210 if you attach a second Choice Band to Gyarados.
[card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] finally found a fantastic partner for Strong Charge in [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card]. Nature’s Judgement provides a solid 120, or if you need to take the KO, all Energy can be discarded to deal 180. The Energy requirement is simple. Vikavolt’s Strong Charge provides the Colourless and a single Grass, while your attachment provides the second Grass to use the attack. Tapu Bulu-GX also has its own GX attack to make use of, Tapu Wilderness GX. Dealing 150 — or 180 with Choice Band — while also wiping the slate clean of damage. This can be huge against decks that can only output 2HKOs or need to invest lots of resources to take a OHKO. Since the deck has to use Lightning Energy for Strong Charge, [card name=”Tapu Koko-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] can be included to go for a surprise KO with it’s GX attack, as long as your opponent has played enough Energy down.
In the theme of Stage 2’s being playable again, [card name=”Metagross-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] had some limelight after placing second at Madison Regionals. With the format becoming slower, [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card] can be used as a perfect sacrificial opening Pokemon to search out pieces of the Evolution chain early on for no Energy cost. By turn three or four, its possible to have three or even four Metagross-GX on board. This is perfect as Geotech System can be used three times to power up Giga Hammer, and then the next turn Metagross-GX can retreat and use Geotech System all over again. With a bulky 250 HP, Metagross-GX survives most hits as well; this means that [card name=”Max Potion” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] can be used to clear all damage off the one you retreated.
Finally, [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] gained a new partner in [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card]. With the perfect pre-evolution in Alolan Vulpix to grab [card name=”Dartrix” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card] and Decidueye-GX early on, Alolan Ninetales-GX provides a much more potent and reliable version of [card name=”Meowth” set=”Fates Collide” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card]’s Second Strike that was used at times in Deciudeye-GX variants. Ice Path GX is also fantastic as a secondary GX attack, forcing your opponent to make tough decisions on whether to hit for high amounts of damage or try to chip away at Alolan Ninetales so that it can’t Ice Path all that damage straight back onto you.
I started off by testing out Gyarados, as a possible strong pick to deal with the high HP Garbodor variants. [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] decks still had some potential in the format paired with the new [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card] to reduce the amount of Items used to get set up as well. However, I just couldn’t get the deck to a point where it didn’t miss a huge beat at some point along a best-of-three match. Afterwards, I moved onto [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card], which showed great success last format. I added in a 2-1 line of Alolan Ninetales-GX as another way of searching for Pokemon under Item-lock once Vileplume was established.
After testing multiple matchups I wasn’t sure if it was possible to fit all these pieces into the deck without consistency issues. The utility of Alolan Ninetales and Vulpix was great, but with only a 2-1 line it was hard to get all these Pokemon into play and get Vileplume up as soon as possible. Talking with some of my teammates we decided that it could just be beneficial to drop the Vileplume line altogether.
My Choice for Internationals — Decidueye-GX / Alolan Ninetales-GX
Without the stress of needing a quick [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] to make sure my opponent couldn’t play Items for more than a turn or two, the deck could include more utility Items and also bulk up lines. The Alolan Ninetales-GX line is increased to 3-2 to try and open with Alolan Vulpix, and the GX can now be found more easily, and multiple can be set up if needed. Here is the list I ended up playing for the North American Internationals, and some of the card choices I went with.
[decklist name=”Decidueye-GX/Alolan Ninetales-GX” amt=”60″ caption=”undefined” cname=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″][pokemon amt=”22″]4x [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Dartrix” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”10″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rowlet” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”9″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”117″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”30″]3x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”Steam Siege” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/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]3x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Revitalizer” set=”Generations” no=”70″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Forest of Giant Plants” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”8″]4x [card name=”Grass Energy” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”167″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
One Mewtwo
[cardimg name=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
Without any context [card name=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] looks relatively out of place. [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is just the same but much, much better, right? Well, the main reason to use Mewtwo is because Psychic applies Weakness. The most hyped deck for the tournament was certainly [card name=”Espeon-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]. Espeon usually have three Energy attached to use their own Psychic, so we can take advantage of this. With three Energy Mewtwo’s Psychic hits for 80 damage total. Paired with [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] thats a 110 total, and that’s where Weakness comes in. Espeon-GX’s Psychic Weakness makes that 110 into 220, enough for a OHKO. Without Mewtwo it’s not possible to take a OHKO on Espeon-GX, which can cause problems throughout a match.
Mewtwo doesn’t really do too much in other matchups, but can hit for 80 against anything with three Energy, like a [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] or opposing [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card]. As a one Prize attacker it can come in handy in those situations to setup 2HKOs.
One Espeon-EX
With evolutions being a big part of the format, [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] made it possible to take easier KOs on their pre-evolutions with lower HP by using Miraculous Shine. For example, against [card name=”Metagross-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”85″ c=”name”][/card], the difference in HP from [card name=”Metang” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”84″ c=”name”][/card] to Metagross is 160! Removing this amount of HP meant the Feather Arrow from Decidueye-GX went a lot further in these matchups, and a single Miraculous Shine could easily wipe the board of evolutions, in a single turn.
Two Tapu Lele-GX, The Supporter Line, Three VS Seeker
With two [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] and three [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card], I was mostly comfortable with three [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card], although there were times where a fourth would be great. Three [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card] and two [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] also worked fine. As the deck doesn’t need to slam down a Vileplume early on, it now has time to use [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] on the first turn to search for two [card name=”Rowlet” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”9″ c=”name”][/card] and usually an Alolan Vulpix. Tapu Lele-GX helps out massively with getting the specific Supporter needed (especially the now classic turn one Wonder Tag for [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card]), and ties the deck together nicely in terms of consistency.
Two Choice Band, Two Field Blower
To make up for the fact we don’t slow the opponents’ strategy down anymore using Vileplume, adding extra damage to our attacks through [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] speeds up KOs and makes for nicer numbers. Decidueye-GX’s Razor Leaf hits for 120, which only requires three Feather Arrow placements to take out a 180 HP Pokemon. Getting three Decidueye out in a single game occurs much more often without Vileplume as well, so that it’s possible to take a OHKO in a single turn.
[card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] is mainly in this deck to remove any Tool from [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card], so that Decidueye-GX’s Feather Arrow can be used. Removing any Choice Band the opponent played down is useful as well, and any pesky Stadiums like [card name=”Team Magma’s Secret Base” set=”Double Crisis” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Rough Seas” set=”Primal Clash” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]. A neat little trick in the mirror is to evolve all your own Pokemon using [card name=”Forest of Giant Plants” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card], and then use Field Blower to remove the Stadium from play; this forces your opponent to find their own Forest, or else they’ll be on the back foot!
One Rescue Stretcher, One Revitalizer
Compared to the Vileplume version which usually plays two [card name=”Revitalizer” set=”Generations” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card], multiple Pokemon we want to get back are not Grass-types, so a single [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] can get back an [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card], a [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] if you need a Supporter or just a single piece of the Decidueye line. The shuffle option can come in use as well if you just want an entire line of Decidueye back into the deck. A single Revitalizer is still strong to pick up pieces you may have discarded early or lost from a KO.
[premium]
The Tournament Itself — A Brief Report
With over 1,400 players, I was placed in the Blue flight, with nine full rounds. I needed a record of at least 6-1-2 to get into Top 64.
Round One: Decidueye-GX / Vileplume
[cardimg name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ align=”right” c=”custom”]Plume’d[/cardimg]
For my first round I was pitted against John Kettler, a veteran of [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] decks from the start. Game one starts with him going first and getting two [card name=”Dartrix” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card] and a [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]’d [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] in play. I responded with a [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] and a Beacon from [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card]. John misses his Decidueye-GX the next turn but does manage to use Dartrix’s Leaf Blade, but flips tails and cannot KO my Alolan Vuplix. I’m unable to find a Decidueye-GX of my own, but do hit a Double Colourless and [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card], meaning I can start sniping. We both miss Decidueye-GX again for a bit, however I’m able to go ahead with Ninetales’ Ice Blade and get some cheap KOs on the Bench. We both finally find some Decidueye-GX, and John decides to use [card name=”Lugia-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card]’s Aero Ball to hit my Alolan Ninetales for 80. With two Decidueye in play, I opt to use my Ice Path GX to heal up Alolan Ninetales and KO the Lugia-EX. John is, however able to use [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card], locking me into an unusable hand for the rest of the game. Without any way to find Energy or a Supporter, I couldn’t find any way to close out the game. Once my Alolan Ninetales-GX fell I had no good attackers left, and lost a really close game one.
We had little time left meaning I would need a fast win in game two. I was able to get a Decidueye-GX with Double Colourless into play turn one, but John matched that with a Energy Drive for 80 with [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] along with Vileplume and a Feather Arrow from Decidueye. However, the Vileplume had no [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] on, so I opt to [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] the Vileplume, use a Feather Arrow and attack with Razor Leaf to set it up to 110. Next turn I could KO it with Feather Arrow and regain Items for a small bit. I didn’t see an [card name=”Olympia” set=”Generations” no=”66″ c=”name”][/card] in the first game, so assumed this play would be safe; I was wrong. John drops Olympia and Double Colourless to take a KO on my Decidueye. Needless to say, I was unable to get any further in that game and lost just before time was called.
LL, 0-1-0
Round Two: M Rayquaza-EX
Hoping for an easier round two, I stumble into one of the [card name=”M Rayquaza-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card] in the room, which isn’t the most favourable matchup since Emerald Break OHKOs every Pokemon in my deck, Decidueye-GX included. Both games go in a similar fashion. I try to stabilise while my opponent takes multiple OHKOs, so after my opponent takes five Prizes I use N and remove [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] with a Forest of Giant Plants or Field Blower, and send up Alolan Ninetales-GX to try and absorb a hit so that I can Ice Path GX the next turn. In game one my opponent draws out after I KO a Rayquaza and Ice Path a [card name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”110″ c=”name”][/card] letting him OHKO my Ninetales for the game. Game two he is unable to draw out, and I’m able to just clinch the match OHKOing [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] with Alolan Ninetales-GX’s Ice Blade. Time is called and we tie.
LWT, 0-1-1
Round Three: Darkrai-EX
A lovely and friendly Poke-dad, I was able to get setup both games and my opponent could never get enough Energy into play to take OHKOs.
WW, 1-1-1
Round Four: Zoroark / Lycanroc-GX
[card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] is usually a fine matchup for me, and the inclusion of [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] makes it even better due to the Grass Weakness Lycanroc has. I opt to limit my Bench to three Pokemon for the entire game, which forces my opponent to make use of Lycanroc-GX which I could easily respond to using Decidueye. There was a turning point where had my opponent drawn a [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] he could take a big KO on my Deciudueye GX using [card name=”Zoroark BREAK” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] to copy my Razor Leaf — however he missed the Rainbow and couldn’t stay in the game. Game two my opponent opens with a dead hand.
WW, 2-1-1
Round Five: Lapras-GX
Not too much to say about Waterbox, Decidueye-GX’s typing makes it easy to OHKO [card name=”Lapras-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card]. Both games went fast with me taking fast Prizes.
WW, 3-1-1
Round Six: Decidueye-GX / Vileplume
Unlike my first round against Deci-Plume, my opponent couldn’t get [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] up at all in the first game. Because of this I was able to get set up much easier, and use [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] to gain an advantage throughout. My opponent opened lone [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] in game two, but drew absolutely nothing and I won the next turn.
WW, 4-1-1
Round Seven: Espeon-GX / Garbodor
My first [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] of the day. Game one was an intense match where we both got strong set ups and took KOs at the same pace. He was able to use Divide-GX to set up my [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] with 60 damage so Psychic could take a OHKO later on. This proved to be huge, as later on [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]’s Trashvalanche hit for 150 with six Items in my discard and a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card], which meant he could Lysandre it Active and take his last two Prizes. In game two, I somehow managed to get three Decidueye into play — on turn two! I rushed down my opponent taking fast KOs, and he scoops to try and get enough time in for a game three. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough time and we end up with a tie.
LWT, 4-1-2
Round Eight: Espeon-GX / Garbodor
Another [card name=”Espeon-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]. This time I got off to a much better start game one, with [card name=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] being able to take an OHKO on Espeon-GX with Psychic. The game was still close, and came down to a Confusion flip on my [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card]. I hit heads for the game. Game two was uneventful; my opponent dead drew.
WW, 5-1-2
Round Nine: Decidueye-GX / Alolan Ninetales-GX / Tapu Koko
The first true mirror match. My opponent played two [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card], making the matchup much harder for me since he could easily spread damage onto my field to then use [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card]’s Miraculous Shine to devolve my Pokemon into their lower-HP counterparts for easier KOs. However in game one my opponent found it hard to get any Pokemon into play, with his first Decidueye-GX coming out quite late on in the match. By this point I’d been able to spread as much damage onto his field as possible so that I could use my own Espeon-EX, and my opponent scooped once I took three Prizes from Miraculous Shine. Game two was much closer, however my opponent still could not seem to draw that well. This meant that I went ahead in Prizes, and I could lose to an opposing Miraculous Shine. However he could not draw Energy or [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] to retreat his Active, and I was able to win with an Ice Blade.
WW, 6-1-2
Only a handful of 6-1-2s would miss our flight’s Top 32. My only loss also had the highest record of our flight as well, which was a good sign. Unfortunately though, my opponents’ win percentage wasn’t high enough; I bubbled by 0.31% coming 34th. Top 128 did mean my invite was secured though, so thats a plus!
The Format Send-Off — Liverpool Regionals
Ever since last year, the format for Worlds includes the newest set released in August. This means that usually the last tournament in the PCL–GRI format is N.A. Internationals (or for FFI–FAC, U.S. Nationals) last year. However for this season we got an extra Regionals added on at the end of July, just before Burning Shadows is released. The points are transferred over into the 2017 – 2018 season, so this is the first chance to get a head-start for points. After doing so much testing for the Internationals, I have a good idea of potential plays.
Where We’re Left After the Results of Internationals
The main thing we saw was that [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] decks are extremely strong, paired with either [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] is also a mainstay, and although more [card name=”Espeon-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] variants reached Top 64, the most successful of the Garbodor was definitely Drampa-GX with Tord taking the finals, and Sam Chen taking a Top 4 spot. These two decks should be the main bulk of the meta game for Liverpool due to there success. With this in mind, I want to take a look at Drampa-GX / Garbodor with a couple of techs to help out with the mirror, and also [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card], which also had a good showing at Internationals with a top eight finish.
Drampa-GX / Garbodor
[decklist name=”Drampa-GX / Garbodor” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″][pokemon amt=”15″]3x [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Trubbish” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”Steam Siege” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Teammates” set=”Primal Clash” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”13″]5x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”5″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
[cardimg name=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
One Zygarde-EX
With four [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck, it’s possible to make use of different attackers. I found that Drampa-GX / Garbodor really has some issues versus [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] decks. The main problem is that [card name=”Zoroark BREAK” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] can copy Drampa-GX’s Beserk for a single Darkness Energy, and they already have their own ways to get damage onto their bench with Rainbow Energy and [card name=”Team Magma’s Secret Base” set=”Double Crisis” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Zygarde-EX” set=”Fates Collide” no=”54″ c=”name”][/card] provides a strong attacker against this deck due to Weakness. Combined with [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] Zygarde-EX’s Cell Storm hits for 160, enough to take down a Zoroark BREAK. The other benefit of Zygarde is that without Weakness, its most powerful attack just isn’t really that powerful compared to Drampa’s Berserk, dealing just a straight 100 no-strings-attached. This makes Zygarde-EX a bad target to copy from using Zoroark BREAK’s Foul Play.
Finally, opposing Drampa-GX are also weak to Fighting. Thus, with a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] attached Cell Storm hits for the magic 180 to take a KO. The heal 30 isn’t too bad either, since the damage from Rainbow Energy is instantly healed.
One Hex Maniac and Professor Kukui
Sometimes it just isn’t possible to get Garbotoxin from [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] out when you need it, whether it’s prized or the Tool attached has been removed using [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card]. With a full four [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck, finding [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] when you need it isn’t too hard, and provides a definite Ability-lock throughout your opponents’ next turn. This is crucial against so many decks in the format, whether its [card name=”Vikavolt” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card]’s Strong Charge to stop a [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card] for the turn or [card name=”Metagross-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]’s Geotech System to stop them retreating and attaching the Energy straight back onto a fresh Metagross-GX.
[card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] adds an extra damage modifier that comes in handy, especially when your dealing with Weakness. Kukui is an essential for Zygarde-EX to have full effect against Zoroark and its BREAK. [card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] has a huge 170 HP, and Choice Band doesn’t have any affect on Greninja BREAK since it’s not a Pokemon-EX or Pokemon-GX. With Professor Kukui, Drampa-GX can push its Berserk from 150 to 170 to hit for a huge OHKO against Greninja BREAK, swinging the matchup straight into the decks favour. [card name=”Greninja” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] has seen some success recently, so I feel like a strong way to deal with the BREAK is a good idea.
I’m honestly a massive fan of this deck for Liverpool after testing with this list for a while. The consistency is fantastic, and there are multiple routes a player can go down. Whether its getting an early Drampa-GX, putting pressure on with [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card]’s Energy Drive, or just [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]’s Trashvalanche if your opponent plays an Item heavy deck, each route has a strong chance of success.
There are some other options for cards thats worth a try. If you don’t feel like Zoroark is a big enough part of the metagame, Zygarde-EX can be dropped for an extra Drampa-GX, as the third increases the chances of it in your hand on the first turn or early in the game. [card name=”Team Magma’s Secret Base” set=”Double Crisis” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] is a speed boost for Drampa’s Beserk, which lets you bypass the need to attach Rainbow Energy by placing two damage counters onto whatever you Bench. I tested two of these in the deck for a while but could never consistently hit them when I needed to, and found that Rainbow Energy seemed to be more consistent overall. If you do feel like you want more outs to powering up Berserk, drop a Rainbow Energy and the fourth N and try out two Team Magma’s Secret Base.
Volcanion-EX / Turtonator-GX
[decklist name=”Volcanion-EX” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Starmie” set=”Evolutions” no=”31″][pokemon amt=”13″]4x [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY173″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Starmie” set=”Evolutions” no=”31″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Staryu” set=”Evolutions” no=”30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”33″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Teammates” set=”Primal Clash” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Olympia” set=”Generations” no=”66″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Switch” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”14″]14x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”116″ c=”deck2″ amt=”14″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
As you may be able to tell, this list is only a couple of cards off Ryan Sablehaus’ list, which got Top 8 at Internationals. I love the blend between the previous builds that tried to play as little Items as possible combined with an extra addition of acceleration from [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card]. Volcanion-EX still has a place in the metagame, with probably the best options in Energy acceleration now through [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”name”][/card]’s Nitro Tank GX. [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] is weak to Fire as well, which does give the deck a slight advantage in that matchup.
I included the 60 HP [card name=”Staryu” set=”Evolutions” no=”30″ c=”name”][/card], mainly to survive Decidueye-GX damage along with any Ice Blades from [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Teammates” set=”Primal Clash” no=”141″ c=”name”][/card] is an interesting inclusion in place of a fourth [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card]. sometimes you do just need a piece or two of the puzzle to get a KO in Volcanion decks, so with two Tapu Lele-GX its not too hard to search it out when needed. Finally, I added an extra [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] over the third [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card]. Sometimes the deck misses out on its Volcanion early on or needs to find a [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”name”][/card] as soon as possible, and with three Ultra Ball it was slightly harder to get set up as soon as I wanted. This became much easier with four. The only other change I could possibly agree with is an extra [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] to bring the count up to three; this would make [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] less of an issue, since you should be able to draw Field Blower much more consistently to remove the Tool and regain Abilities.
Bringing Back Decidueye-GX / Alolan Ninetales-GX
[cardimg name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”150″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
[card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”12″ c=”name”][/card] is still strong and could certainly take the tournament. I would probably remove the [card name=”Mewtwo” set=”Evolutions” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and put a [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] in its place. If my [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] were removed by Field Blower it wasn’t easy to move around after a KO from my opponent. Tapu Koko’s free retreat gives an irremovable pivot Pokemon that also has an interesting attack. Flying Flip provides a 20 spread around the board, which is quite strong in the mirror match and also against evolution decks to then use [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card]’s Miraculous Shine to devolve. I also would consider a fourth Professor Sycamore in place of a [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card]. Two was good for consistency but was not needed later on in the game and also added to the Item total when discarded, powering up Garbodor’s Trashvalance. Sometimes that extra Supporter could’ve come in handy off late game N’s or under Item-lock. Through testing I feel like one Level Ball still works fine, mainly as a ‘fifth’ [card name=”Dartrix” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”10″ c=”name”][/card].
Conclusion
Well, I think that’s it for me this time. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the article! If your heading over to Liverpool Regionals, definitely come and say hello or pick my brains about anything TCG-related. I unfortunately cannot attend Worlds this year, so I’ll be watching from the U.K. My first thoughts are that Gardevoir-GX decks will be the centerpiece of the format, due to the raw power of its first attack, along with the Ability to attach an extra Fairy Energy each turn. The GX attack is maximum Garbodor-hate as well. If you had ten or less Items in the discard, you could shuffle every single one back in and turn Trashvalanche from a huge 200 damage attack straight down to zero!
[card name=”Metagross-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”85″ c=”name”][/card] decks might see a resurgence due to how good Gardevoir-GX is. However, Volcanion decks gain the new Supporter Kiawe, which is crazy acceleration if your able to use it on turn one on either [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY173″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”name”][/card]. Some rogue decks could become good again, like Rainbow Road with [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] or even [card name=”M Rayquaza-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card]. I feel like [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] may see less play, as Gardevior-GX has a strong matchup against it, and Volcanion gets even speedier without the need to play down as many Item cards. Thats my first thoughts, anyways. See you later!
~Ryan
[/premium]