‘Nette Decking Your Way to Victory: A Look at ZoroCargo and Banette for Worlds

Hey there everyone, and welcome to my latest article. Last time, I took a look at the top five expected decks headed into the North American International Championship. While there were a few new decks that showed up on the scene in Columbus, such as [card name=”Yveltal BREAK” set=”Steam Siege” no=”66″ c=”name”][/card], the deck that ended up winning the entire event was [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card], a deck that many, including myself, had written off as worse than other Zoroark variants. However, Stephane Ivanoff and Fabien Pujol proved the world wrong, as the fellow countrymen from France piloted the exact same list to two spots in the Top 8. Unfortunately, they were paired up in the Top 8 and Stephane had to eliminate his friend, but regardless of this they proved this weekend that ZoroGarb is a threat that must be reckoned with in the metagame.

With NAIC over, the competitive season is nearly over, with just the World Championships in August remaining. While some people might be moving on and starting to theory craft post rotation decks, I will be focusing this article on my first impressions of the Worlds metagame (BREAKthrough – Celestial Storm, our upcoming set). Thanks to all of the new decks that were introduced to the format at NAIC, plus the Worlds format, the upcoming format looks to be teeming with deck options, a welcome change from our current format that started to centralize on a few top decks before NAIC. In this article, I will be taking a look at the first lists for two decks I have built for this format, [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”name”][/card] / Magcargo and Banette-GX, and talk about why I think each might be viable going forward. Unfortunately, with the set yet to be released on PTCGO, the lists I will be providing you with will be completely untested, but in the following month as soon as the set drops online, I will be testing these ideas out to see which of them are actually viable. With that out of the way, let’s get right into it.

ZoroCargo

While there are a ton of cool new cards being printed in this set (seriously, after taking just one look at the set list made me really excited to start playing this format), the card I was most drawn to most immediately had to have been Magcargo. Its Ability, Smooth Over, has incredible synergy with [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”name”][/card], it is basically a mini [card name=”Mallow” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] every single turn, for free! As such, I knew I needed to find a way to abuse this going forward. Immediately, I thought of trying out ZoroRoc with a thin Magcargo line, but I soon realized that this just was not going to fit. I needed too many cards for [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] to allow me to play all of the spicy techs that I wanted to play with Magcargo. As such, I decided to cut the Lycanroc line entirely from my first list and try out just a straight Zoroark list with a few techs to help it deal with some anticipated threats in the upcoming metagame. Let’s take a look at the list I built for this deck.

[decklist name=”ZoroCargo” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″][pokemon amt=”20″]4x [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x Magcargo (Celestial Storm)2x Slugma (Celestial Storm)3x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Shaymin” set=”Shining Legends” no=”7″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Sudowoodo” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”67″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Lele” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Latios” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]3x [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Cynthia” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”142″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4 x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4 “][/card]4x [card name=”Puzzle of Time” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Evosoda” set=”Generations” no=”62″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Max Potion” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”164″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Parallel City” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”145″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”6″]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Counter Energy” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

2-1 Magcargo

After hyping up Magcargo so much in the previous section, it might seem a little weird that I am playing such a thin line of it in the deck compared to the 3-2 line of secondary Pokemon like [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Golisopod-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM62″ c=”name”][/card] that other Zoroark variants run. However, when you consider Magcargo’s place in the deck, especially in comparison to Lycanroc or Golisopod, it starts to make more sense. Lycanroc and Golisopod are absolutely essential to the strategies of the decks they are in; Lycanroc is used both as a secondary attacker as well as for its Ability, while Golisopod is used as a tanky secondary attacker. Unlike those Pokemon, Magcargo is not essential whatsoever to the way the deck functions. While it certainly helps to have it out, as the additional consistency it provides is incredible, but the deck does not rely on it for its strategy or as an alternate attacker at all. As such, I only found that I need to play a 2-1 line, giving me tons of space to add in multiple tech attackers and items to help shore up some potentially poor matchups.

One Shaymin, One Sudowoodo, One Mimikyu

[cardimg name=”Counter Energy” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”122″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Without heavy disruption, Zoroark has a tough time functioning on its own without any partners. As such, I have decided to play a slew of attackers to help deal with many different threats to the deck that all function off a single [card name=”Counter Energy” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] attachment. [card name=”Shaymin” set=”Shining Legends” no=”7″ c=”name”][/card] can one shot a [card name=”Lycanroc-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] after one of your Pokemon has been Knocked Out, allowing it to trade evenly and KO what would otherwise be one of the biggest threats to Zoroark. [card name=”Sudowoodo” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”67″ c=”name”][/card] is great versus opposing Zoroark decks, as you can Riotous Beating them for a Knock Out with ease. Sudowoodo can also copy GX attacks, giving you another out to KOing Pokemon like Lycanroc. Finally, [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] serves a similar purpose to Sudowoodo (outside of copying GX attacks, which it cannot do), while providing you with more type coverage. While I do expect [card name=”Buzzwole-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM69″ c=”name”][/card] decks to fall off after rotation, I still expect them to be a force in Nashville, and as such some tech needed to be played to help deal with that matchup. Unfortunately, there are not really any good Fire type attackers that run off two Energy, so I was not able to find a Counter Energy Pokemon to deal with Golisopod. That matchup will instead become a two shot war and will come down to how often you are able to hit your [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Max Potion” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card]

One Latios

[card name=”Latios” set=”Shining Legends” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] is another tech Pokemon that I have chosen to run in my list. While in my last article I claimed that it was not a fantastic tech outside of ZoroPod due to needing to get it into the active early in order to be effective, I believe that its benefits in this deck outweigh the downside. Outside of the Counter Energy options, which rely on you being behind on Prizes, this deck struggles to one shot most of the meta and instead relies on two shotting. This is where Latios comes in huge, as it can snipe things to either set up one shots later on, or to finish off KO’s on weakened Pokemon on the Bench. Latios is also solid against Buzzwole, as it can two shot the GX if it has a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] attached to it. Overall, I like Latios a lot in this deck, and it will definitely be something I try out when Celestial Storm finally drops online.

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One Oranguru

While [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] has always been known as a Zoroark mirror and mill deck counter, it never really got its time in the spotlight until NAIC. After Tord Reklev destroyed the competition en route to yet another finals appearance with this card playing a central role in his Zoroark deck, I cannot imagine wanting to play a Zoroark variant without Oranguru until rotation comes. Being able to get back your [card name=”Puzzle of Time” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”109″ c=”name”][/card] over and over is incredibly strong, as it gives you access to more cards from your discard than any other deck has available to them. Oranguru is also great against mill decks, as many of them struggle to go on the offensive to knock it out. So, in those matchups, you just Resource Management back two Puzzle and a DCE every turn, and you basically cannot lose. Currently, I would not play a Zoroark deck without Oranguru; it is an absolute staple in the current metagame that we are headed into.

One Acerola, One Max Potion

As I stated earlier, this deck usually engages in a two shot war. Since we lack ways to one shot most decks unless we are behind on Prizes, the logical addition to combat this issue (outside of adding attackers that can one shot of course) is to add tankiness to the deck to help it trade prizes better. [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Max Potion” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] serve similar purposes, but both have unique perks to them that made me want one of each instead of two of one of them. Acerola allows you to get an extra Trade off as long as you had a [card name=”Zorua” set=”Shining Legends” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] benched the turn before. You use the Trade Ability of your damaged Zoroark, pick it up with Acerola, and then put it down on the fresh Zorua and use a second Trade with the same card. This helps you dig through your deck a little bit more if necessary, as well as just giving additional draw in any situation. On the other hand, Max Potion allows you to heal your Pokemon while still playing a Supporter card such as [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] potentially setting you up for devastating turns that you would not be able to have if you used your Supporter card to heal your Pokemon.

One Counter Catcher

Without Lycanroc, this deck really lacked any way to pull off sneaky [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card] combos (such as against an [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] in BuzzRoc), which can be incredibly deadly late game. As such, I decided to add in one [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] to help with this issue. Although it can only be used while behind on prizes, that really is not much of an issue for this deck; as I have said before, this deck is usually going to be behind on Prizes due to it being a two shot deck primarily. As such, Counter Catcher seemed like a natural inclusion, and might end up being a card that I end up playing multiple copies of if it proves effective.

Two Parallel City

While I have been harsh on [card name=”Parallel City” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] in Zoroark decks previously, I believe it will be the preferred Stadium for Zoroark decks headed into Worlds over [card name=”Reverse Valley” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”110″ c=”name”][/card]While Buzzwole decks will still be popular, NAIC proved once and for all that Zoroark decks can still thrive even in a hostile metagame for it. As such, Parallel City’s usefulness goes up significantly, as it is very good in the Zoroark mirror match. While its use is pretty obvious (limit your opponent’s damage output), I specifically included two copies of Parallel in this list so I could ensure that Oranguru would survive a Riotous Beating in the mirror match, as then I could Acerola it and get two Resource Managements off in a row, which gives you a huge resource advantage.

Banette-GX

The other card that intrigued me significantly when checking out the new scans was Banette-GX. Banette actually won the World Championships back in 2007 and is back again to wreck havoc on our current format. For those of you who do not know what Banette does, here is a brief explanation. While it only has 190 HP on a Stage 1 (which is low in this format for a GX), Banette has an Ability, Shady Move, that let’s you move one damage counter around on the board to another Pokemon once per turn. This is an incredibly strong Abililty, especially when combined with spread tactics like [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] and the upcoming Stadium Shrine of Punishments. Speaking of Shrine of Punishments, it actually synergizes very well with Banette; while you deal damage in between turns to your own Banette, you can actually move one of the damage counters that you place on yourself per turn onto your opponent’s Pokemon. Banette also has two incredibly strong attacks. Its first attack does 30 plus 10 times the number of Supporters you have in your discard pile, capping at an extra 100 damage. Its GX attack is the exact same as [card name=”Decidueye-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM37″ c=”name”][/card]’s as it allows you to put three cards from your discard pile into your hand. As we have previously seen with Decidueye, this GX attack is incredibly strong, as regaining resources is never a bad thing. While Banette clearly has a lot going for it (including a one Retreat Cost and a Fighting Resistance), its one major downside is that it is weak to Dark Pokemon, making it very susceptible to Zoroark decks. However, with all of the positives it has going for it, this is really just a small hindrance, as you can certainly build your list to deal with Zoroark decks effectively. Now that we know what the card does and why I think it is so strong, let’s take a look at my first deck idea for Banette GX headed into worlds.

[decklist name=”Banette Spread” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Oricorio” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”55″][pokemon amt=”17″]4x Banette (Celestial Storm)4x Shuppet (Celestial Storm)3x [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Hoopa” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Lele” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1 x [card name=”Oricorio” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”55″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1 “][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Cynthia” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”142″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Mysterious Treasure” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”145″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Shrine of Punishment (Celestial Storm)[/trainers][energy amt=”11″]4x [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”EX Emerald” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Three Tapu Koko, Two Hoopa

[cardimg name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM31″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

As you can probably tell, I am going all in on the spread option for this deck. Three [card name=”Tapu Koko” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM30″ c=”name”][/card] and Two [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Steam Siege” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] give me all the spread early game I could possibly need. While Tapu Koko needs a DCE in order to attack, Hoopa needs a Psychic or Rainbow, giving you options to choose which one to use based on what cards you draw turn one. Plus, Tapu Koko has free retreat, which makes it a fantastic partner for Banette as you do not need to pay to retreat it turn two once you start getting Banettes in the active position. The early spread of this deck looks like it will be crucial, as Banette will struggle to one shot most of the meta outside of Buzzwole decks, so the extra chip damage will be very important for securing crucial KOs midgame, both with attacks as well as with Shady Move.

One Espeon-EX

While we won’t have this card after Worlds, I think Banette will love having access to [card name=”Espeon-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] in the Standard format while it is still around. Normally, Zoroark decks would be a huge issue for Banette, as you struggle to even two shot them while they will be easily one shotting you thanks to your Weakness. However, thanks to Espeon-EX, you now have a shot at winning versus Zoroark decks. In this matchup, you will want to just mercilessly spread damage with Tapu Koko, Hoopa, and the new Stadium Shrine of Punishments, completely forgoing setting up your Banettes until you need them to either finish off Knock Outs or use Shady Move to set something up to die. With this strategy, you should have plenty of damage built up on board on all of their evolutions, allowing you to devolve them all for an unexpected win. This is also very strong against [card name=”Malamar” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM117″ c=”name”][/card] decks, as you can spread early while they set up and then Shady Move spread the last damage you need before devolving and knocking out all of their Energy accelerators. I love Espeon-EX, especially in this deck, and can’t wait to give it one last shot in the Standard format before it is rotated after Worlds.

One Tapu Lele

Like in the Zoroark deck, [card name=”Tapu Lele” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] serves one purpose and one purpose only; to counter Rayquaza-GX. If I did not play Lele in here, Rayquaza would absolutely dumpster this deck; you really do not have any way to deal with its aggression and constant one shots, as spreading really is not that effective against it. However, since we already play [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”EX Ruby and Sapphire” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] to give us another damage counter we can move to our opponent’s field with Shady Move, Tapu Lele was a welcome addition to the deck to give it the answer to Rayquaza that it was so sorely lacking before.

Four Sycamore, Four Cynthia, Three N, Three Guzma, Two Acerola

If there is one thing I love most about this deck, it has to be the number of Supporters I run. Look at that, 16 Supporters! That must be the most Supporters I have put in a deck this year, and I am going to absolutely love the amount of consistency this deck will have. While you do run the risk of having your hand clunked up by Supporter cards, you do have six Pokemon search cards ([card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Mysterious Treasure” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] that help you get them into the discard, as well as a full set of [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”Steam Siege” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card]. Plus, thanks to Banette’s GX attack, you can always recover cards that you discard if you ever have a poor Sycamore, making your discards hurt a little bit less. Once I test this list more, I might swap the [card name=”Cynthia” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] counts depending on how often I find myself falling behind and how quickly the deck takes Prizes, but for now I prefer the extra draw power that Cynthia offers me.

I only play three [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] because the deck has plenty of ways to damage Pokemon on your opponent’s Bench, while also having lots of deck mobility (the only Pokemon you play with more than one Retreat Cost is Hoopa, and we have two [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] to help with that issue). Finally, [card name=”Acerola” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] fits very nicely in this deck, as you will want to be denying Prizes often. Because this deck does not have a lot of aggression (you are spreading usually for the first few turns to build up damage while you build up enough Supporters in the discard to do enough to Knock Out their Pokemon) and plays zero disruption cards, your opponent is likely going to be able to set up at least one, if not more, attackers. Thus, Acerola helps deny Prizes against these decks that would otherwise run us over too fast before we achieve our set up, giving us a shot of making it to the end game where we surely will be at the advantage.

Four Shrine of Punishment

[cardimg name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

While this may seem weird considering that Banette is a GX itself, Shrine of Punishments actually works really well with this deck. First off, it activates Acerola for you, giving you an option to use the Supporter if you need to even if your opponent has yet to attack you. Second, the damage Shrine of Punishments is actually only a third of what you are doing to one of your opponent’s active GX. Here is how; after one tick of Shrine of Punishments, you and your opponent both take 10 damage. After a second tick of damage (you have to play it so it will always tick second after their turn), you will both have 20 damage on your GXs. Now, it is your turn, and you can use Banette’s Shady Move to take one of those damage counters off your Banette and place it onto their Pokemon. Now, you are at 10 damage done to yourself through Shrine, compared to 30 damage done to them. Since most decks outside of [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card] will fail to one shot Banette, this trade off in additional damage to damage done to yourself is definitely worth it thanks to our inclusion of Acerola. Finally, Shrine of Punishments helps you hit Knock Outs on beefy Pokemon that you otherwise would not have been able to Knock Out even with a fully powered Shadow Chant. For example, with a fully powered Shadow Chant and a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card], Banette does 160 damage, leaving it just short of Knocking Out Pokemon such as [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] and Rayquaza-GX. Shrine of Punishments allows you to knock out the Tapu Lele right away, while giving you a KO on Rayquaza GX coming back into your turn, which is incredibly strong. Plus, if Shrine of Punishment was placed down before the turn where you need the additional damage, it will start stacking damage on Pokemon, leaving them in KO range of Shadow Chant without needing the additional ticks of Shrine. Overall, Shrine of Punishment just works extremely well in this deck, and I would not play less than four copies when trying it out.

Conclusion

Thank you so much for reading. Hopefully my attempts at decks for this format have gotten your creative juices flowing; even though we can’t test the set online yet to get accurate matchup results, that should not prevent you from building lists and theorizing the new format! This new set looks absolutely amazing, bringing back tons of old cards that will impact the metagame going forward, so if there was ever a time to get creative and build your own crazy deck, now is absolutely it. As always, if you enjoyed what I wrote, please let me know in the Subscriber’s Secret Hideout so I know what to continue doing. And on the flipside, if you disliked my article, please also let me know in the Hideout so I know what I should improve on next time! If you aren’t following me on social media and want to see what crazy Pokemon ideas I’m talking about, or are just interested in my general musings, you can follow me on Twitter. While I will not be competing in Worlds, I will be playing in the Nashville Open, so if you see me at Worlds, please feel free to say hello! Finally, I will have at least one more article coming out this month, so be on the lookout for the next few decks that I come up with for that article; seriously, I love this set and love deck building with it!

Until next time,

Eric

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