I am Inevitable – Poipole Stall in UPR-CEC
[cardimg name=”Poipole” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”55″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
What’s up PokeBeach readers! I’m really happy to be back writing another article. I just came off my first tournament of the season, Daytona Regionals, this past weekend playing an interesting variant of [card name=”Poipole” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] Stall. In this article, I’ll detail the list, its matchups, and where it is and isn’t appropriate to be played.
In Daytona Beach, I went 5-3-1 with my losses being to two [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] (both incredibly close) and Alex Schemanske’s [card name=”Blacephalon-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Naganadel” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”108″ c=”name”][/card] (I played like a four-year-old). Here’s the full list of matchups:
R1: Ability [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card], WW
R2: Baby [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card], WW
R3: [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Druddigon” set=”Unified Minds” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card], WLW (stream)
R4: Malamar, L
R5: Malamar, L
R6: ADP with [card name=”Rosa” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”204″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] (no Phione), LWT
R7: Blacephalon-GX / Naganadel, LL
R8: Baby Blacephalon / Pidgeotto, WW
R9: Ability Zard, W
Poipole Stall works by infinitely spamming Poipole’s Knockout Reviver attack so that your opponent can never take Prize cards for a Knockout. With the use of Malamar, [card name=”Lusamine” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Brock’s Grit” set=”Team Up” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Recycle Energy” set=”Unified Minds” no=”212″ c=”name”][/card], you can infinitely recover and power up Poipole until you inevitably win the game through deck out. If you play well, this deck can handle almost everything the format has to offer in one way or another.
List and Explanations
Here’s the list I played in Daytona this past weekend:
[decklist name=”Infinity Stones” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Poipole” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”55″][pokemon amt=”22″]4x [card name=”Poipole” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”55″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Inkay” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”50″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Latios-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”78″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Nincada” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”29″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Naganadel-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ditto Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”30″]4x [card name=”Mysterious Treasure” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”113″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Switch” set=”Diamond and Pearl” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Beast Ball” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Lillie” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Cynthia” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Lusamine” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Brock’s Grit” set=”Team Up” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Bellelba and Brycen-Man” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”186″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Ultra Space” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”8″]6x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”Generations” no=”79″ c=”deck2″ amt=”6″][/card]2x [card name=”Recycle Energy” set=”Unified Minds” no=”212″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist]The list is REALLY tight as is, so I’ll explain some of the counts before going into some of the other cards I tried.
Four Poipole
Even with Brock’s Grit giving you infinite Poipole, the more Poipole you play, the less you need to play Brock’s Grit. No-brainer inclusion here.
Three Inkay, Three Malamar
I tinkered with 3-2, but prizing a Malamar is too risky to go below three copies. One in play usually suffices, but setting up a second is important in matchups like straight Malamar and anything else in which you need to do more than just infinite loop your Poipole.
Three Jirachi
I’ve wanted the fourth copy in here for a while, but it just doesn’t fit. Three suffices for the mid-game however, so as long as you can set up the no-Jirachi Poipole Loop (I’ll discuss types of Poipole Loops later), you don’t actually need more Jirachi. Great card to set up in the early game, however.
Two Latios-GX
[cardimg name=”Latios-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”78″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
I play two copies of [card name=”Latios-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] due to its importance in both the [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] matchups. Getting off Clear Vision GX as fast as possible is critical in both matchups to stop Cross Division GX (gives Mewtwo a huge Prize lead) and Altered Creation GX (wins ADP the game if they play Phione and makes it hard if they play Custom Catcher). It’s also a free retreater and you can attach [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] to it if you’re worried about it getting targeted with [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], so two Latios felt really strong to me.
One Nincada, One Shedinja
This originally made it into the deck as a way to counter ADP decks that played Phione. Assuming you were able to use Clear Vision GX before Altered Creation GX, putting Shedinja on one of your Benched Pokemon allows you to force your opponent to take zero Prize cards even when they use Phione. Through your ability to infinitely recycle Shedinja and the fact that once their deck is thin enough to consistently hit Phione it will also be thin enough to hedge your bets on milling it with [card name=”Bellelba and Brycen-Man” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card], ADP becomes much more manageable.
One Mew
This card is critical for the Mewtwo matchup and anything else that plays snipe cards; but once you get it in play, the game should be locked. I considered a second copy, but its uses are usually just limited to Mewtwo and Malamar so only one sufficed. As long as you don’t Prize your one copy, you should be fine because of Brock’s Grit.
One Blacephalon CEC
I included [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”104″ c=”from”][/card] as a piece of the anti-Control combo that involves [card name=”Naganadel-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card], but its uses are much more widespread. Sometimes, taking Knockouts is necessary to win; cards like [card name=”Victini Prism Star” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”7″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card], and opposing Blacephalon can be incredibly problematic if not dealt with. Blacephalon makes these threats easy to Knock Out (even on the Bench) while also being an Ultra Beast and obliterating Control variants. This is by far the best main attacker to play.
One Naganadel-GX
The other piece of the anti-Control combo, Naganadel-GX, is necessary to put your opponent down to three remaining Prize cards in order to get the full effect of Fireworks Bomb. Pulling this combo off against [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] Control or Doll Stall almost guarantees a win. You can even attach Shedinja to Blacephalon in anticipation of a Knockout from an opposing [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Articuno-GX” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]! If you expect any Control decks in the meta, I’d recommend including Naganadel-GX.
One Dedenne-GX
I included [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] in order to boost consistency; my testing games revealed the need for another way to dig in order to hit Clear Vision GX or get out of a dead hand. You can discard Dedenne with Bellelba & Brycen-Man or attach Shedinja to it, so it’s rarely that much of a liability. I like having this card in the deck for consistency.
One Ditto Prism Star
I play the [card name=”Ditto Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] only because it can evolve into Shedinja in the early game if need be. It’s really strong if you play Shedinja, but not as strong if you don’t. Better than the 4th [card name=”Inkay” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card] for sure.
Four Mysterious Treasure, Four Pokemon Communication
This deck plays 22 Pokemon and most of them are Psychic; maxing out on both these counts is critical.
Two Escape Board, One Switch
The two [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] are critical for retreating Jirachi in the early and mid-game, but I added in the [card name=”Switch” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card] as a counter to [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] before you set up Double Poipole Loop. You can switch to a third Escape Board, but I’m a big fan of the Switch in here.
[premium]
One Beast Ball
[cardimg name=”Beast Ball” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”125″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
This is the perfect deck in which to include [card name=”Beast Ball” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card]. Your lock is much more efficient with no Poipole prized and the anti-Control combo requires two Ultra Beasts, so grabbing the pieces you need from the Prize cards is incredibly powerful. If you prize too many Poipole or both pieces of the anti-Control combo, just go for Naganadel-GX’s Stinger GX and try again!
Four Lillie
These were added very late in testing, but [card name=”Lillie” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] makes the deck flow so much better. Unlike [card name=”Bill’s Analysis” set=”Team Up” no=”133″ c=”name”][/card], Lillie can find Energy cards and significantly more cards in total than Bill’s can, making it fit much better in this deck. Lillie is most effective in the early game, which coincidentally is where Poipole Stall struggles the most. This card is incredibly good and I do not recommend dropping any.
Four Cynthia
Similarly to Lillie, [card name=”Cynthia” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] is crucial in the mid-game and to constantly re-shuffle your hand until you hit the infinite combo (double Lusamine with Brock’s Grit in discard). Don’t go below four.
Three Lusamine
A case can be made to go down to two, but prizing a Lusamine makes infinite recovery significantly slower and makes you highly vulnerable to [card name=”Girafarig” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card]. Keep it at three.
Two Brock’s Grit
This is the Supporter that makes the deck work. With its ability to shuffle six Pokemon and Basic Energy cards back into the deck, Brock’s Grit allows you to put back four Poipole and any extra Pokemon you may need (Shedinja line, extra Malamar, a new Jirachi, etc.) in order to win the game. I played two copies due to concerns of prizing it and it may even be worth it to boost the count to three.
One Cynthia & Caitlin
[card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] enables you to both draw cards and recover a critical Supporter card for the next turn. Since this deck relies on drawing lots of cards and infinitely recycling Supporters, a card that does both of those things seems pretty strong in here. It also gives you another option (albeit much slower) to infinitely cycle Supporter cards with access to only one Lusamine (Lusamine for target Supporter and Cynthia & Caitlin, play target Supporter, Cynthia & Caitlin for Lusamine, rinse and repeat). Having access to one is strong and I would consider adding a second if there was space.
One Bellelba & Brycen-Man
The PokeStar Studios duo is used to its fullest potential in this deck! With its first effect, you can accelerate your inevitable victory and possibly mill opponents’ critical counters (Phione, [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Team Up” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card]), and with its second effect, you can clear Great Catcher-able cards like Dedenne-GX and Latios-GX from your board. I considered a second copy, but there’s simply no space in this list for it. Bellelba & Brycen-Man is incredibly important to this deck’s strategy and you should never try to put [card name=”Jessie and James” set=”Hidden Fates” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck over this!
Three Ultra Space
Ultra Space is another critical piece of the infinite combo as it allows you to search Poipole out immediately after using Brock’s Grit and in every subsequent turn. You inevitably lock it into play through Lusamine and it serves as your search engine throughout the entirety of the game. I don’t think a fourth is necessary because of Lusamine, but definitely don’t drop below three.
Six Psychic Energy, Two Recycle Energy
I wanted to play a seventh Psychic because Energy can sometimes be hard to find, but space was scarce and a cut needed to be made somewhere. Once you set up, the six Psychic is more than enough and Recycle Energy always comes back to your hand (unless it is targeted by [card name=”Faba” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”173″ c=”name”][/card]). If you can fit a seventh Psychic I’d probably put it in, but there are better cards worth including first.
Other Options
Now that I’ve gotten through the list I played in Daytona, here are a few of the cards I considered playing and I think could be solid options in the future.
Lunatone / Solrock (LunaSol Combo)
Including [card name=”Lunatone” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Solrock” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”62″ c=”name”][/card] allows you to turn of [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Team Up” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card] and pretty much auto-win Ability Zard. I chose not to include it due to space, my prediction that not many Ability Zard would show up in Daytona, and the fact that Ability Zard is still beatable by forcing them to three Prize Cards and Knocking Out Ninetales with a Shedinja-wielding Blacephalon. I was able to go 2-0 against Ability Zard on the day without the combo, but if your metagame is full of Ability Zard, feel free to include the LunaSol combo.
Lillie’s Poke Doll
I originally had [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck over the Shedinja line as a strong bridge in the early and mid-game if you miss a few beats, but my fear of Phione forced me to take them out. This card is really strong if you can fit it and I’m 100% going to be testing it in the deck soon.
Hoopa
[card name=”Hoopa” set=”Unified Minds” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card] is a really strong Malamar counter due to its ability to easily Knock Out Blacephalon, Mew, and [card name=”Espurr” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] in order to lock up a win. I didn’t expect many Malamar and the matchup is pretty close without playing Hoopa, but if you expect a boatload of Malamar decks to show up, playing Hoopa wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Zebstrika
I had [card name=”Zebstrika” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”82″ c=”name”][/card] in the very first iteration of the deck, but its uses were much more niche than those of Dedenne-GX so it made its way out. I wouldn’t really consider putting it back in unless you expect an overwhelmingly large number of Pidgeotto Control decks to show up.
Poipole Stalling 101
Now that I’ve gotten through the list, I’ll quickly go over a few important facts to know when playing Poipole Stall, the types of Poipole loops you can initiate, and the deck’s matchups in a vacuum.
Expect Anything
[cardimg name=”Druddigon” set=”Unified Minds” no=”157″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
While Poipole Stall is rarely countered, a few cards can come out of nowhere and put you in an uncomfortable spot. My Round 3 opponent spontaneously dropped [card name=”Druddigon” set=”Unified Minds” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card] and used Drag Off on my Malamar, but I was prepared with a Switch to move it and then Knock Out Druddigon with Fireworks Bomb. My Round 8 opponent was suspiciously stacking energy onto a Ditto Prism Star, so I decided to remove the threat with Fireworks Bomb. Lo and behold, he played a copy of [card name=”Dewgong” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”45″ c=”name”][/card] and I had no Mew on my Bench. Furthermore, if certain techs that are more common can foil your strategy, still be prepared for them. Even though the best ADP lists this past weekend didn’t include Phione, making Clear Vision GX less important, you should always go for it in anticipation of a Phione play. In summary, don’t leave yourself vulnerable to unexpected threats and be proactive with attacks like Clear Vision GX.
Play Quickly, but Don’t Play Sloppily
Since Regionals can present you with various opponents that each have a very different approach to playing against Stall decks, make sure to keep your pace of play brisk. I played against an opponent that knew I had the game-winning lock on Turn 2 but fought it out until he drew the last card of his deck 30 minutes later, then subsequently played against one that saw I had the lock and conceded Games 1 and 2. Be just as prepared for different types of opponents as different decks.
Stay Focused
While not incredibly difficult to play, Poipole Stall requires you to sequence many small plays in the perfect order each turn and demands your full attention. Get enough sleep before the event (I didn’t) and eat a solid breakfast (I didn’t either) if you want to succeed with this. Don’t lose focus during your matches or you’ll end up like I did: watching Day 2.
While playing this deck, you can initiate many different types of loops that allow you to play around certain cards while staying invincible. Below, I describe these different loops and in what scenarios they are most useful.
Poipole / Jirachi Loop
This is the loop you will most commonly use in the early and mid-game; Jirachi allows you to dig for another Trainer every turn and you only need one Poipole, one Malamar, and a Recycle Energy in order to pull it off. Strong when your opponent runs no counters.
Double Poipole Loop
This loop counters Absol, Cryogonal, and anything else that can make it hard to retreat Jirachi. To enter it, your attacking Poipole needs a Recycle Energy, you need another Poipole with one Psychic Energy on the Bench, and you need one Malamar. This also helps against Stamp as it gives you an extra turn to find a Brock’s Grit you may have lost access to. I always try to enter this loop once I have the full combo in hand as it’s by far the most forgiving when it comes to counters.
All Psychic Loop
You can pull off this loop without a Recycle Energy, so sometimes you’re forced to enter it in the early game if your setup is weak. It requires two Malamar in play and a Poipole with two Psychic Energy as well as a free Retreat Pokemon. I rarely try to do this, but it can get you out of tough situations if you’ve lost your Recycle Energies or simply can’t find them.
Matchups
In practice, this deck’s matchups are pretty polarizing: wins are highly likely if you set up and highly unlikely if you fail to set up well. Unlike [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”custom”]Doll[/card] Stall, [card name=”Poipole” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] Stall doesn’t really take any auto-losses other than a highly-teched [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] list. Here are a few of the matchups I’d consider most important:
Mewtwo & Mew-GX: Highly Favorable
As long as you don’t prize [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card], you’re golden. Getting off [card name=”Latios-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] is often easier here since a T2 20-counter Cross Division GX is much less likely than a T2 Altered Creation GX, and once the lock is set up you can’t lose. Mew protects you from [card name=”Naganadel-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card]; they can’t GX attack; and no, [card name=”Greninja-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card] does NOT go through Knockout Reviver: the only card that exists that does is [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card] (not in Standard!).
Ability Reshiram & Charizard-GX: Slightly Unfavorable (without LunaSol), Highly Favorable (with LunaSol)
If you play [card name=”Lunatone” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Solrock” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”62″ c=”name”][/card] and get them out, this is a free win. If you don’t, however, you have to try and force your opponent to mill a [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Team Up” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card], then get them down to three Prizes and KO their other Ninetales with Fireworks Bomb. If they don’t mill a Ninetales ever, attach [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] to your [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card] and be prepared to immediately recover it with [card name=”Brock’s Grit” set=”Team Up” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] and Knock Out their next Ninetales or [card name=”Vulpix” set=”Team Up” no=”15″ c=”name”][/card] as soon as it hits the board. This is much more winnable than it seems on paper.
Blacephalon / Pidgeotto (PidgeyBlowns): Highly Favorable
Once you set up the lock, there’s nothing they can do. Kill [card name=”Victini Prism Star” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”7″ c=”name”][/card] and they have no way to put cards back into their deck. If you set up, you win this.
Arceus & Dialga & Palkia-GX (ADP): Slightly Favorable (without Phione), Slightly Unfavorable (with Phione)
[cardimg name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The priority here is still to get Clear Vision GX before they pull off Altered Creation GX, so if you can pull that off, you’re already in a good spot. That’s usually a game-winning play against the non-[card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] version, just watch out for [card name=”Girafarig” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] and keep your [card name=”Lusamine” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card], Brock’s Grit, and Poipole far away from the discard pile. You can Knock Out Girafarig as soon as it hits the board. Against the version with Phione, you should attach Shedinja repeatedly to your Benched Pokemon in anticipation of Phione and spam [card name=”Bellelba and Brycen-Man” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card] in an attempt to mill it. A reminder that your opponent is required to shuffle their deck after they used Ultimate Ray, putting that Phione somewhere other than the bottom of their deck! Jump on this opportunity and try to mill it when you get the chance.
GardEon: Highly Favorable
Item lock in the form of [card name=”Omastar” set=”Team Up” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card] does almost nothing against this deck, so once you set up, the game is over. The only risk is Magical Miracle GX shuffling your hand in and you dead draw late game, so make sure to cover for this with a Clear Vision GX. Once you set up the lock and they run out of [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card], the game is locked.
Blacephalon-GX / Naganadel: Favorable
This matchup is weird because they can use Bursting Burn to take Prize crds on your Poipole. My favorite strategy for dealing with this is to Retreat into a different Poipole every turn along with a combination of Shedinja and Bellelba & Brycen-Man in order to infinitely heal and deny Prize Cards on your Poipole. Make sure to use Clear Vision GX in the early game here so you don’t have to worry about Fireworks Bomb; if it ever hits the board, make sure you KO it quickly as well. This should be a win if you don’t make any egregious errors (like me).
Malamar: Even
This matchup is incredibly close and comes down to you having to Knock Out their threatening attackers in Blacephalon and Mew. Once you take them off the board (and bench Mew in anticipation of Espurr), you should be locked to win. Keep your Blacephalon waiting in the wings as your opponent may attempt to Knock Out their own Pokemon through [card name=”Giratina” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card]’s Shadow Impact and then hit you with Fireworks Bomb. As long as you play smart and set up, this should be fine, but they play many cards that can throw a wrench in your game plan.
Doll Stall: Highly Favorable
Make sure to go for Naganadel-GX’s Stinger GX as quick as possible. If you don’t get it before Clear Vision-GX, however, you should still be fine by just attacking with Blacephalon for four damage counters a turn. Both of you have access to infinite Stadium cards, so [card name=”Sky Pillar” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card] won’t be locked in play and you can take KOs. If you do get Stinger GX off, make sure to put Shedinja on your Blacephalon to anticipate a knockout from [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card]. If you can keep them at three Prize cards and then Knock Out Spiritomb, the game is won. You play more than enough cards to win this matchup, so it should be a walk in the park barring unusually terrible Prize cards or incredible luck on your opponent’s side.
Pidgeotto Control: Highly Favorable
Similarly to Doll Stall, a quick Stinger GX into Blacephalon should lock this up; just watch out for a handlock or a KO from [card name=”Articuno-GX” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]. I’d also recommend Shedinja on your Blacephalon here, but time is of the essence and you shouldn’t sacrifice attacking with Blacephalon early in order to get Shedinja as you do in the Doll Stall matchup.
Other Decks: Favorable
You should be favored against almost every random deck in the field due to your ability to block Bench damage and all Prize cards taken as well as address Stall and Control concepts. Decks like [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Mismagius” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] are easy wins assuming you set up. This is one of the deck’s biggest strengths: the ability to win Round 1. Many Stall and Control decks are great against the meta, but rarely does one have a strong matchup against Joe’s Home Brew. Poipole Stall is favored against the majority of random stuff so don’t be afraid of Round 1.
Conclusion
I really enjoyed playing this deck in Daytona Beach for my first event back and hope that you consider it in your testing for San Diego and beyond. Its efficiency and effectiveness really surprised me in testing, so I decided to pull the trigger on it. As always, thank you to PokeBeach for allowing me to write for them and feel free to ask me any questions in the Subcribers’ Hideout, on Facebook or Twitter (@C4_TCG), or in person!
Happy to be Back,
Charlie
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