Driving and Drawing — Silvally-GX and Zoroark-GX for London

Hey PokeBeach! London’s International Championships are getting closer and closer. We’ve seen multiple Regionals pan out in the BREAKthrough through Burning Shadows format. We’re getting not one, but two new sets to mess around with for The European International Championships — Shining Legends and Crimson Invasion. John has done a fantastic job of looking over some cards released in these new sets here. Today, we’re going to be looking at some new archetypes that I think could be viable for London.

To start off, I’ll show you some interesting takes on Silvally-GX, a powerful new Stage 1 that has a plethora of uses due to its Colorless typing and strong Ability. Afterwards the other interesting card to look at is Zoroark-GX. Zoroark-GX paired with [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card]  provides a great draw engine in Trade and two powerful attacks that aid Alolan Ninetales-GX throughout the game, which is what I’ll look at first. Then, the addition of Zoroark-GX to the [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] deck could revitalize the old archetype that hasn’t seen play since rotation.

Silvally-GX and Partners

Why Silvally-GX?

Let’s begin by looking at why I think [card name=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″ c=”name”][/card] has some potential. Its pre-evolution, [card name=”Type: Null” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] is a bulky 110 HP Basic, meaning it’s going to survive hits that other evolving Basics, like [card name=”Ralts” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card], wouldn’t. The attacks aren’t too shoddy either — for a [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card], Armor Press deals 30 and reduces damage by 30, while Slash Claw does a simple 70 for one more Colorless. Upon evolving, Silvally-GX grants all Basic Pokemon free retreat with Gyro Unit. Obviously this a huge plus, as this means that any [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card], Type: Null or other Basic Pokemon don’t need to waste Energy to retreat or have [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] attached.

This frees some space in the deck, since Float Stone isn’t really a necessity. Moving on Silvally has a three Energy attack that deals a strong 120 along with the added effect of attaching a Basic Energy of any kind to the Bench. This gives the deck a huge amount of versatility. The Pokemon you choose to pair with Silvally-GX depends entirely on what you want to beat in the meta. Rebellion-GX is the exact same attack as [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card]’s Dangerous Rouge GX, except for a three Colorless cost. Benches are relatively large at the moment, with [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] plus a Tapu Lele-GX instantly powering up Rebellion GX to 200.

Finally we have the inclusion of the Memory Tools that Silvally-GX can make use to change its typing to either Fighting or Psychic depending on which one you attach. I feel like these Tools are what makes this Pokemon viable. [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card], Zoroark-GX, and Silvally-GX are all Pokemon which should see play for Internationals and they all share a common Fighting type Weakness.

Changing Silvally-GX to a Psychic type isn’t as powerful, but could be useful against [card name=”Necrozma-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”153″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card], which do see some play at the moment.

What To Pair it With?

So we have our accelerator and a good attacker, but now we need to add some supporting Pokemon to the deck to improve matchups. Let’s start with the obvious type — Metal. The deck doesn’t have much in the way of dealing with a big [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card], so Metal-type attackers are crucial to try and hit a OHKO through Weakness. Here is a starting list I’ve been toying with:

[decklist name=”Silvally-GX and Friends” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″][pokemon amt=”17″]3x [card name=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Type: Null” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Latios” set=”Shining Legends” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Registeel” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Cobalion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Shining Legends” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Fighting Memory” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/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″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Psychic Memory” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Po Town” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”Shining Legends” no=”69″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Pokemon

[cardimg name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ align=”right” c=”custom”]Still strong![/cardimg]

Starting off, we have a regular line of 4-3 [card name=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″ c=”name”][/card] to make sure we aren’t hurt by prizing and also to draw [card name=”Type: Null” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] on the first turn. Three [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is almost an auto-inclusion in most decks now as consistency boost and a great Double Colorless attacker. Instead of the usual [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] to spread damage, [card name=”Latios” set=”Shining Legends” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] hits much better numbers with Break Through. Silvally-GX deals 120 damage or 150 with Choice Band, so combined with the 30’s from Latios and [card name=”Po Town” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card], it’s possible to take down a good amount of threats in the format. Break Through is great for setting up [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card]’s Miraculous Shine on low-HP basics such as [card name=”Ralts” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Beldum” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”83″ c=”name”][/card] with Po Town in the deck, which is why I’ve included a single copy.

Our Metal-type suite consists of one [card name=”Registeel” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card], one [card name=”Cobalion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] and one [card name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”110″ c=”name”][/card]. Registeel is a great single-Prize attacker that combined with a Choice Band OHKOs a [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], and can be set up in two turns using Turbo Drive and manual attachments. Registeel’s first attack can also OHKO Ralts early on for a single Energy, and gives a small bit of Energy acceleration akin to Silvally-GX, if needed. Cobalion is the revenge attacker, which can take a OHKO on Gardevoir after a single GX has gone down, given that Cobalion has a Choice Band attached;  If any more of your Pokemon have been KOd, then the Choice Band isn’t required. Finally, we have Magearna-EX. Its Mystic Heart Ability blocks multiple effects that can cause issues, such as Espeon-EX’s Miraculous Shine devolving Silvally-GX or Drampa-GX’s Righteous Edge removing Double Colorless. Soul Blaster is a powerful attack that requires only two attachments to get going, and does enough damage on its own to OHKO any Fairy-threats.

To finish off, we have a single [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] for good measure. Righteous Edge and Big Wheel GX are both great single Energy attacks that are useful early on. The deck does play Po Town, so it’s possible to damage Silvally-GX if needed to activate Drampa’s Berserk attack for big damage.

Items, Supporters and Stadiums

Supporter lines at the moment are relatively similar: four counts of N and [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] for draw, three [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] for our ‘switching’ effects, one or two [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] to search for Basics on turn one, and finally one or two [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] as a damage-nullifier. Silvally-GX is no different with the only other inclusion being a single copy of [card name=”Skyla” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], to easily search out a specific Tool through Tapu Lele-GX’s Wonder Tag. Speaking of Tools, we have four “Memory” to attach to Silvally-GX. I went for three [card name=”Fighting Memory” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] and only a single [card name=”Psychic Memory” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”98″ c=”name”][/card] — the London metagame should include a greater amount of Fighting-weak Pokemon compared to Psychic. The most important Psychic-types either don’t have a Weakness or are already OHKOd by Drampa-GX. I could understand a even split of the Tools just in case, though.

Three Choice Band is important so that you can hit numbers with pretty much every Pokemon in the deck, whether it’s boosting Drampa-GX’s Berserk to 180, letting Registeel OHKO a Gardevoir-GX or getting an all-important boost in damage so that Tapu Lele’s Energy Drive deals numbers. Two Field Blower is standard for a deck that does use Abilities but aren’t reliant on them, and a single Stretcher gives the deck a means to recover a single or multiple Pokemon if needed. Finally as talked before, Po Town sets up numbers on any opposing evolutions for either KOs via damage or Espeon-EX’s devolution.

Energy

Since Turbo Drive lets us recycle Energy, eight total Metal is enough throughout the game. Four Double Colorless is a given for a deck that’s never unhappy to see this type of Energy.

[premium]

A Fiery Combination — Volcanion-EX and Silvally-GX

The next pairing favours [card name=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″ c=”name”][/card] as more of a tech than an attacker, but still greatly profits from the inclusion of this Stage 1. [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY173″ c=”name”][/card] decks have an issue with retreating at times, requiring multiple copies of [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Switch” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card] to alleviate big Retreat Costs and attacks like Volcanic Heat. Gyro Unit replaces the need for some of these switching cards, and also makes the deck much, much more mobile than before. Here is the list I have at the moment:

[decklist name=”Volcanion-EX” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″][pokemon amt=”15″]4x [card name=”Volcanion-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”26″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Silvally-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”90″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Type: Null” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]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]4x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Lillie” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”147″ 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=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”124″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Switch” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”14″]14x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”167″ c=”deck2″ amt=”14″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

The list is based off of the winning list from Hartford Regional Championships, which took place a couple of weeks ago. The list omits some usual cards like [card name=”Brooklet Hill” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card] and includes higher copies of Pokemon like Volcanion-EX to draw into faster, along with [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card] to disrupt decks that use Double Colorless such as [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], which are problematic matchups to our Fire deck. I felt like a 2-1 line of Silvally-GX should suffice, as once Silvally-GX hits the field you’re set for free retreat throughout the game. The original list played only a single Field Blower, but with even more reliance on Abilities I felt that the list needed at least a second copy to stop [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]’s Garbotoxin more often throughout a game.

It’s possible Silvally-GX could fit in a more [card name=”Kiawe” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card]-based Volcanion-EX build that also utilizes [card name=”Ho-Oh-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card], however since the deck wants to use Kiawe as soon as possible getting a Silvally-GX into play could take some time. Overall I’m really impressed with how Silvally-GX is shaping up for Internationals. The versatility of Pokemon to pair with, type advantages due to the Memory Tools, high-HP and bulky pre-evolution to survive hits might push this deck to a tier one status.

The Trickster Fox is Back

[cardimg name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Moving on, it is time to look at another interesting card released in Shining Legends — [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card]. The most hyped card from the set, Zoroark-GX boasts some pretty strong traits that mean it can fit in basically any deck that wants an attacker and a draw engine. 210 HP is pretty hefty. There’s no comparison to the usual draw engine of [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card], which only has 90 HP, albeit only worth one Prize instead of two. Zoroark-GX’s Ability Trade is reminiscent of [card name=”Empoleon” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card]’s Diving Draw, which saw a good amount of play when it was in the format. Being able to “trade” one card that you don’t need such as a second [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card], an unnecessary evolution piece like [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] or a Supporter your going to discard anyways with [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] for two new cards each turn both provides extra draw power and deck thinning.

Now, Trade on its own wouldn’t be much better than Octillery’s Abyssal Hand. The Ability can net more than two cards per turn and also provides better late-game-N-proofing, yielding five cards over Zoroark-GX’s four (three if the discarded card could be useful). This is where Riotous Beating comes in. Double Colorless Energy are used in over half of the decks at the moment, which means these decks can easily take advantage of Riotous Beating. Based off the total amount of Pokemon you have in play, the attack can max at 120 damage, or 150 with Choice Band. Zoroark-GX is the perfect 2HKO machine, providing decks with a bulky single Energy attacker that can deal a big chunk of damage or finish off the opposing Pokemon. Any [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] Flying Flip damage or 30 from sniper Pokemon like [card name=”Latios” set=”Shining Legends” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] or the new [card name=”Buzzwole-GX” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] make it easy to set up KOs on the lower-HP GXs.

Finally we have Zoroark-GX’s GX move Trickster GX. Although in most decks this won’t be usable due to lack of Darkness Energy, any Zoroark-GX / [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] or other pairings can take advantage of the GX attack. I think the first thing to say is that it can copy other GX attacks on your opponent’s side of the field. This opens up the door to so many crazy plays. Most decks have high-powered attacks to copy, like Drampa-GX’s Berserk, [card name=”Tapu Bulu-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM32″ c=”name”][/card]’s Tapu Wilderness GX  and [card name=”Turtonator-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”18″ c=”name”][/card]’s Bright Flame. Technical moves like [card name=”Sylveon-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card]’s Plea GX or Magical Ribbon and Ice Path GX from [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] can swing the game in your favor if you can use them at the right time.

The main flaw with Zoroark-GX is its Fighting Weakness. I’m not too sure on the presence of Fighting types will be at Internationals, but the one Pokemon that will be a definite inclusion in Gardevoir-GX archetypes is [card name=”Gallade” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”84″ c=”name”][/card]. This single Prize attacker can OHKO for a single Double Colorless with its Sensitive Blade attack, providing a Supporter was played this turn — which is simple when the most common way of bringing Zoroark-GX active once Gallade hits the field is a [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card]. The best way to alleviate this is to play Zoroark-GX with other attackers that can deal with Gallade in one hit.

Going Back to Alolan Ninetales-GX

Alolan Ninetales-GX archetypes have seen mixed success this season, with one or two placements here or there but never any definitive success. As an attacker, Alolan Ninetales-GX can output 190 damage consistently and has a great snipe attack for Double Colorless, and a tricky GX move that forces the opponent to do small chip damage before taking a KO so that Ice Path GX doesn’t just KO their Pokemon and entirely heal the Alolan Ninetales-GX. The archetype also gained [card name=”Alolan Ninetales” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”28″ c=”name”][/card] with Luminous Barrier, which forces some decks into tight spots — for example, [card name=”Gallade” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”84″ c=”name”][/card] has to target down Alolan Ninetales before anything else, since the deck has no other non-GX attackers that can deal with the Ability.

Zoroark-GX seems like an obvious pairing for this deck. [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] requires Water Energy in the discard, which can be hard to do throughout the mid-to-late game. Trade lets you chuck away a Water from the hand at any time to draw two more cards, both giving you access to your acceleration and more draw. Riotous Beating also suits Alolan Ninetales-GX archetypes, which can make use of the Ice Blade damage from early on to score easy KOs for just a single Double Colorless — something Alolan Ninetails-GX had problems with in the past, since it also needed two Water Energy to deal high amounts of damage. Here is the list I’ve been working on at the moment:

[decklist name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″][pokemon amt=”19″]3x [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Alolan Ninetales” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”28″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”29″]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]3x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”127″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ 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=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Pokemon

[cardimg name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”132″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

To start, we have the consistent and standard line of 4-3/1 Alolan Ninetales. [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card]’s Beacon is still pretty strong giving you a nice consistency boost by searching for two Pokemon early on. This forces an [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card] from the opponent or else you obtain easy access to your evolution cards, especially if [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] was played on turn one. Three copies of the GX seems standard and consistent, while a single [card name=”Alolan Ninetales” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”28″ c=”name”][/card] paired with the single copy of [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card]  should be enough to stall out opponents if they run out of non-GX attackers.

For our Zoroark line, I opted for a heavy 3-2/1 line. This increases your changes of drawing [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] early on, plus makes it more acceptable to play a single copy of [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] alongside the two GXs. Even though the deck only includes a single [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], Zoroark has a neat Ability that gives you some more mobility. If your opponent over-benches which is a common sight at the moment, Mind Jack can also pack a real punch or even a OHKO on some lower-HP GXs, making it a valuable attacker at times.

Next up, we have the usual copy [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] for its free retreat along with great numbers through Flying Flip. Whether it’s to chip down 210HP Pokemon to 190 for Blizzard Edge OHKOs, or lower [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] to 150HP for Zoroark-GX to KO with Riotous Beating, Tapu Koko always has a use throughout tournaments. Finally, we have [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] as the devolution option. Tapu Koko and Alolan Ninetales-GX provide strong ways to hit the Bench early on, which can lead to some scenarios where devolution on Pokemon like [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] is possible to be able to take a KO.

Items / Supporters

This archetype has a much more unconventional approach to its Supporter line with the inclusion of [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card]. Because [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”127″ c=”name”][/card] acts as a double Computer Search alongside Trade, I opted to decrease the count of [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] and N down to three, as there are multiple points where Mallow can search out exactly what you need anyway. Three [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] is standard, and offers a great way to switch so that Alolan Ninetales-GX can be powered up by [card name=”Aqua Patch” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] on the Bench and brought back forward either through [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], Tapu Koko’s free Retreat or [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] Stand In and Retreat. [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] hits even better numbers, and there is an argument whether or not it’s worth a second copy, since one Flying Flip plus Kukui and Choice Band means Gardevoir-GX can go down in a single Blizzard Edge from Alolan Ninetales-GX. For now I’ve included a single copy so that it’s possible to make this play at least once in a game.

I also included a single copy of [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card], as paired with any evolved DCE attacker in the deck and a pre-evolution it’s possible to reset the situation. Pick up the damaged Active Pokemon, send up the pre-evolution, re-attach and evolve to get back where you started, but without the issue of damage. Finally we have the usual copy of Brigette to search for Alolan Vulpix, Zorua, or Tapu Koko on the first turn of the game. Moving on we have four counts of [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Shining Legends” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card] for crucial Pokemon search, [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] to make sure you can hit numbers throughout the game against GXs and Aqua Patch for maximum acceleration. A single copy of Float Stone might seem too little, but usually one is enough to retreat with at some point, or to stick onto [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] if it makes it into play. One [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] feels like enough, although I could understand a second copy in place of lower-priority cards such as Acerola if your worried about [card name=”Garbodor” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] — Trade is utilized a high amount in the deck, and losing access to the Ability each turn isn’t ideal. Finally a single copy of Rescue Stretcher felt like enough to grab a specific piece back, or shuffle in a line of Alolan Ninetales or Zoroark if needed.

Energy

The Energy line is standard, although I did consider cutting down to seven [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] since you have more access to Aqua Patch early on with Trade. For now eight feels like a safer amount, and increases the odds of seeing multiple Waters early on so that you can both attach and discard Energy in the first couple of turns.

Bringing Back Zoroark / Drampa-GX

Back in the Primal Clash through Guardians Rising era, [card name=”Zoroark BREAK” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”92″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] was a tier one deck that easily dealt with [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] variants  (unless you opted to tech) and held its own against the majority of the metagame. However, once rotation hit the deck just wasn’t strong enough due to [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card]’s Resistance and how much easier it was to play around [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card]’s Mind Jack compared to Garbodor’s Trashalanche. Now with the inclusion of Zoroark-GX, there is definitely a good reason to try out this archetype again. This is one of the few decks that can also take advantage of Trickster GX, utilizing Zoroark-GX to its full potential. Here a list I’ve been giving a go:

[decklist name=”Drampa-GX / Zoroark” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″][pokemon amt=”16″]2x [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Zorua” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ 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]3x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2 x [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”127″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2 “][/card]1x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”112″ 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=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Po Town” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Reverse Valley” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Darkness Energy” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”168″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Pokemon

Two [card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] should be plenty enough with [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] as another main attacker. For the Zoroark line, I opted to go with a 3/1 split on Zorua. Most of the time I’d imagine that you’ll be attacking for a single Darkness to use Moonless Madness, but having the option of Ram for a Double Colorless can be useful since paired with Choice Band, 50 damage can finish off a heavily damaged GX. A 3/2 Zoroark split might feel quite high, however when playing it was noticeable that only two [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card] or just a single Zoroark was hard to find at times and prone to prizing issues, so I decided to include an extra copy of each to make sure you can access whichever you need at the right time. [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] hits numbers for Zoroark, and provides the usual perfect pivot for the deck. Three [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is standard. Finally, [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] is included again as an option against evolutions like [card name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], to devolve and reduce its overall HP for easier KOs.

Items, Supporters, Stadiums

Supporter lines that utilize Zoroark-GX are pretty similar, and barring the two [card name=”Professor Kukui” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card], there is only a single difference. There is a small bit of extra space in this list, so I opted to go with the extra consistency of two [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”134″ c=”name”][/card] to alleviate the one in 10 chance of it being prized. There isn’t too much to see in the Item section, with pretty classic counts of cards — I included two [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] just to make sure you have access to extra copies of Zoroark and Drampa-GX, although one of these Stretcher could be replaced with [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”name”][/card] if you want to have higher counts of [card name=”Darkness Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] available in the mid to late game.

[cardimg name=”Gardevoir-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”93″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

The Stadiums are slightly more interesting. Three [card name=”Po Town” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] makes sense to damage both your own Zoroark so that Drampa-GX’s Berserk can be activated, and put numbers on the usual evolution suspects I keep talking about. However since we can search the deck for two cards via [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] and Trade I thought a single [card name=”Reverse Valley” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”110″ c=”name”][/card] could be strong to hit some obscure numbers with Zoroark, be it 170 with Mind Jack and Choice Band when the opponent only has four Pokemon in play, or 130 with Riotous Beating to KO any beefy 130 HP Basics such as [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Steam Siege” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Yveltal” set=”Steam Siege” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card]. Sometimes 10 damage is the difference between winning a game and losing one, so Reverse Valley can come in clutch.

Finishing Thoughts

London is definitely going to be interesting. If you take one thing away from this article, I’d say to be prepared for Zoroark-GX. This fox fits into any deck needing a draw engine, and is pretty hard to KO without Weakness factoring in. I mainly talked about newer decks today, but Gardevoir-GX is still a powerful, Tier 1 deck for London. Even with multiple decks including [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] and Po Town almost specifically to have a chance against this Fairy, it still manages to see success around the world. If your deck can’t go toe to toe with this behemoth, you will be in for a tough time at London. That’s all for me today — if you have any questions, deck ideas or anything you want to ask, please do and comment below!

-Ryan Moorhouse

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