New Decade, New Pokemon! — A First Look at the Decks of Sword & Shield

By: Zakary Krekeler · Posted Jan 10, 2020 at 12:07 AM · 0 Comments

Hello everyone! Welcome to the new decade! Only a few weeks from now, we’ll have an equally exciting event in the Pokemon TCG–the release of a new generation of Pokemon! The Sword and Shield set is the first set of the eighth generation, and by all accounts, it looks like the future is nothing but bright.

We’ve definitely been spoiled recently when it comes to set quality. Every new release, the new set seems to have a ton of potential, and for the most part, those sets have lived up to that potential. Dragon Majesty was the last one that I would consider a dud, aside from that, it’s been one after another of impactful additions. Sword and Shield is no exception to this trend; in fact, I would probably consider it to be the best set we’ve had in a while — even compared to the Tag Team sets. The quality of the Trainer cards in this set is exceptional, and it has multiple cards that I think should be included in nearly every deck in the format. As far as Pokemon go, there are plenty of solid options as well, both in terms of additions to existing archetypes and in the new ones that will be coming out. As I’m writing this — several weeks before the Prereleases, mind you — there are already at least eight new deck concepts that I think could be competitive, one of which I am rather certain will immediately be considered top-tier. So, in this article, I’ll be giving you a sneak preview of what’s to come!

Initial Assumptions

Before I get too far into the new cards, let me first explain the two assumptions I’ve made when writing this article, and why I’m confident that those assumptions will be correct. Firstly, I’m assuming that, like in Japan, our turn 1 rules will change to disallow the use of a Supporter by a player going first. This hasn’t been officially announced for the TCG outside of Japan, but it would be a huge change from past policy to have a different set of gameplay rules in each region. Consequently, whenever I’ve been playing any of these decks, I’ve done so under those new Turn One rules. Secondly, I’m assuming that our Sword and Shield set will be made up of at least the cards from Sword, Shield, and the Starter Set V decks. It is also likely that we’ll have the cards from VMAX Rising, but like Japan, we don’t actually know what’s in that set yet! For the most part, however, the decks and concepts in this article likely won’t change all that much based on the VMAX Rising cards. It’s certainly possible there is an amazing Trainer or tech Pokemon will be revealed that would warrant inclusion in these lists or some absurd counter card that would affect the viability of one of these decks. More than likely, however, VMAX Rising won’t have any drastic effects on the makeup of these new decks. I’ll update you all as needed if VMAX Rising reveals any must-have cards, or if one of the cards from the aforementioned sets is inexplicably missing!

New Staple Cards

As I’ve stated above, Sword and Shield contains plenty of top-tier Trainer cards and support Pokemon. Even if you aren’t interested in switching to a new deck, you’ll more than likely want to include some of these new cards!

These are the staple cards that I would recommend acquiring from Sword and Shield, listed in order of how I would prioritize acquiring them. The most important ones come first.

[premium]

Quick Ball – Follow link for translation

Cards you should get:

*If you don’t already have any Pokemon Catcher from a previous printing

**Budget willing. If you get a good deal on this card, don’t hesitate though!

Those top three cards — Quick Ball, Marnie, and Professor’s Research — are going to make up the core consistency engine for most decks. In particular, Quick Ball is absurdly good; every list that I’ve built is playing four of them. The fact that the Basic Pokemon goes to your hand is excellent, as it lets you get cards like [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] and use its Ability — something you couldn’t do with [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card]. It also allows you to thin your hand of useless cards, giving you more consistency against late-game [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card]. For Evolution decks, Evolution Incense is also a must-have. Notably, Professor’s Research is a straightforward reprint of [card name=”Professor Juniper” set=”Black and White” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card], and is now our best non-shuffle draw Supporter in the format. Our other new key Supporter is Marnie, which is an interesting card that also becomes our best disruption Supporter in Standard. In addition to being strictly better than Judge in terms of card draw, since it doesn’t allow your opponent to draw back into the cards that they shuffle in, it’s also slightly more effective in terms of disruption. Both Marnie and Professor’s Research also combo well with the new Oranguru. With Ape Wisdom, you can choose to “save” a card that you want to keep — say, a [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card], or a Supporter for next turn, or a Prism Star. That way, you don’t have to discard it or put it far away at the bottom of your deck, and instead guarantee that it’s in your hand after playing your Marnie / Professor’s Research. Even outside of that usage, Oranguru is a solid addition to most decks. It allows you to dig one card farther when taking your turn, and it combos excellently with anything that might involve the top card of your deck, such as [card name=”Magcargo” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”24″ c=”name”][/card], Zacian V, or Torkoal V.

If you already have [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card] in your collection, I recommend finding them. One critical thing about V Pokemon is that they are not GXs. This means that [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] is completely useless against them — quite bad if you’re using it as your only gust effect! Not every deck can fit in Custom Catcher; for those that don’t have that space, Pokemon Catcher gives them a way to bring up opposing V Pokemon.

Then, we have Zacian V. At a pre-order price of ~$20 a piece, it is likely to be by far the most expensive card on this list. Part of that is because Zacian V, as a deck, is seeing plenty of early success (more on that in a moment), but that price is also due to Zacian V’s incredible use as a consistency card. It is worth noting that you don’t actually have to play any Metal Energy in your deck to take advantage of its Intrepid Sword Ability. Instead, you can simply throw it into any deck, to give yourself the option of ending your turn and drawing three cards. For turns where you can’t attack, this is an incredible advantage to have, reminiscent of the much more expensive [card name=”Tropical Beach” set=”Black and White Black Star Promos” no=”BW28″ c=”name”][/card]. You can also use it when going first on turn 1, to get some draw power on a turn where you won’t be able to attack or use a Supporter. One of the best moves I’ve found when going first is to use Quick Ball to grab a Zacian V, then use that to set up for an explosive second turn. I wouldn’t recommend adding Zacian V into decks where Bench space is a priority (such as [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Naganadel” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”108″ c=”name”][/card] decks), but I would add a copy into pretty much everything else.

The remainder of the cards on this list are simply good utility cards to have available. They won’t go into every deck, but they’ll be in enough to make them well worth holding onto.

New Decks Concepts

It’s always great to improve your existing decks, but why not try something new? Here are some of the best concepts that I’ve found from Sword and Shield. Most of the decks that I’ll be going over have had some basis in the Japanese metagame, either via placements at major events, or from winning lists from more local events. There’s been a ton of creativity thus far, and so we’ve already got a great starting point, even without having the cards ourselves!

Likely Tier 1: Zacian V

I could write an entire article about Zacian V — the card is that good! For now, let me say that this is likely the single best Pokemon to come out of Sword and Shield. It has huge HP, it hits like a truck, and its Ability is versatile enough that you could include it in almost every deck as a consistency card.

As far as results go, Zacian V has had tremendous success in the Japanese metagame. Among the new decks, it is one of the only ones to consistently stand toe-to-toe with newly refined variants of existing decks. In the Champions League Aichi event, it was the only entirely new concept to make the Top 8, finishing with a 2nd place finish, as well as two Top 8 finishes. Also, Zacian V has seen constant inclusion in local results in Japan and has quickly become one of the most popular decks to play in the Japanese meta, along with [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM191″ c=”name”][/card].

There are two main ways to build around Zacian V as an attacker; the first is to use it with [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], to increase its damage and take advantage of Zacian’s high damage output. After an Altered Creation GX, Brave Blade will hit for 260; add a Fine Band, a peck from Galarian Zigzagoon or [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card], or a Galarian Perrserker, and you’ve got enough damage to OHKO nearly every non-VMAX Pokemon in the game!

Zacian V / ADP

Here is one of the Top 8 Zacian / ADP lists from Champions League Aichi:

[decklist name=”Japan League” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Oranguru” set=”Unified Minds” no=”182″][pokemon amt=”13″]3x Zacian V (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Oranguru (Sword & Shield)[/pokemon][trainers amt=”35″]4x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)2x Marnie (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)4x Metal Patch (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Tag Call” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]9x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Black and White” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”9″][/card]2x Aurora Energy (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Unit Energy GFW” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Of the Zacian V / Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX lists to come out thus far, this one is definitely my favorite. It strikes a balance between offense and defense, and has great strategic flexibility as a result. This particular list was built to counter a Japanese metagame filled with Pikachu and Zekrom-GX, Mewtwo and Mew-GX Box, and other Zacian V decks, and it seems to have accomplished that goal. The Shrine of Punishment gives the deck the capability of hitting 270 — enough to OHKO Mewtwo and Mew-GX and [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card] — while the [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] allows Zacian V to survive unboosted attacks from opposing Zacian V, most Fire-type attackers (such as Reshiram and Charizard-GX), and many of the new Sword and Shield attackers. Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX is already a solid deck in Standard; the addition of Zacian V pushes it to yet another level.

Zacian V / Lucario & Melmetal-GX

The second way that Zacian V has seen play is in conjunction with [card name=”Lucario and Melmetal-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM192″ c=”name”][/card]. In these lists, the player takes advantage of Zacian V’s naturally high HP. With Full Metal Wall GX and a Metal Frying Pan, you can make it so that it would take 280 damage to OHKO a Zacian V — not an easy number to get to, especially when you have to hit it three times to win! Here is the 2nd place list from Champions League Aichi:

[decklist name=”zacian deck” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Lucario and Melmetal-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”120″][pokemon amt=”11″]4x Zacian V (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Lucario and Melmetal-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Dusk Mane Necrozma” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Oranguru (Sword & Shield)[/pokemon][trainers amt=”38″]4x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x Marnie (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Erika’s Hospitality” set=”Hidden Fates” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x Metal Patch (Sword & Shield)4x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Tag Call” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Air Balloon (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Chaotic Swell” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”187″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”11″]11x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”11″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

I’m not a huge fan of the [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”166″ c=”name”][/card] in this list — I would rather have more consistency, or perhaps techs like [card name=”Super Scoop Up” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] — but aside from that, there isn’t much that I would change about it. This deck thrives against decks that are well-prepared for the Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V build; without many easy routes to increase damage or remove tools, the extra bulk that Lucario and Melmetal-GX provides can catch a lot of opposing decks off guard. Full Metal Wall GX is a bit easier to get off than Altered Creation GX, and since this build only plays Metal Energy, it’s a bit more consistent with regards to powering up and getting things going. I do think that going forward, this build needs some way to slightly improve its damage output. I’ve found that Galarian Perrserker fills that role well; with Zacian V’s damage increased by 20, it’s able to OHKO opposing Zacian V, even if they have [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] attached. So, from the above list, I’d recommend trying out a 1-2 line of that in favor of two of the Crushing Hammer. If we do get cards from VMAX Rising, I would likely try to include one or two copies of the new Duraladon, if only to have an extra pivot attacker.

Potentially Great Decks

Each of these six decks are ones that I think are solid, though I wouldn’t consider any of them to be top-tier right off the bat. None of them have overwhelming tournament results like Zacian V does, but they do have enough finishes and enough natural strength to make me think that they have the potential of breaking into the meta.

Morpeko V

Hit-and-run style decks are always somewhat popular and tend to be fairly effective. The best examples thus far have be [card name=”Donphan” set=”Plasma Storm” no=”72″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Hitmonchan” set=”Team Up” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card], and I would expect Morpeko V to be strong as well. Here’s what I’ve been working with:

[decklist name=”morpeko” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″][pokemon amt=”15″]1x Morpeko VMAX (Sword & Shield)4x Morpeko V (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x Tapu Koko V (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Zacian V (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Oranguru (Sword & Shield)[/pokemon][trainers amt=”35″]4x Marnie (Sword & Shield)2x PRofessor’s Research (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Volkner” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Rosa” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”204″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x Bede (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Electropower” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Fishing Rod (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Thunder Mountain Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”191″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]8x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]2x [card name=”Recycle Energy” set=”Unified Minds” no=”212″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Your strategy with this deck is generally straightforward: power up a Morpeko V, attack with Electric Wheel, and bounce back to a [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”name”][/card]. You deal damage, while your opponent can’t take Prizes. The [card name=”Recycle Energy” set=”Unified Minds” no=”212″ c=”name”][/card] ensures that you won’t run out of Energy from Electric Wheel’s discard effect, and Morpeko VMAX and Tapu Koko V give the deck options for more damage. It’s well-rounded, annoying, and matches up pretty well overall.

The biggest problem this deck seems to have is getting enough Energy in play for the second attacker. The first one is easy enough to get, but in the case that a Morpeko V ends up the victim of a pair of Custom Catcher, this deck can often find itself stuck without a response attacker. A big part of this is the “Discard an Energy attached to Morpeko V” section of its attack; after all, you can’t power up a second attacker if you have to constantly attach to your first one! A Bede can go a long way toward fixing this problem, which is why I prefer to play two of them in my list.

One added advantage in today’s format is that we don’t have a ton of reliable gust effects that can threaten Morpeko V itself — [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] can’t target it, and [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Flashfire” no=”90″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] are both long gone. That leaves two options: [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card]. Right now, pre-Sword and Shield, Custom Catcher is seeing rather little play, having been almost fully replaced by Great Catcher. The bad news for Morpeko is that that dynamic is likely to change going forward. Great Catcher can’t snag Pokemon V, thus making it useless against most of the new Sword and Shield concepts. So, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Custom Catcher (or Pokemon Catcher) make a comeback, thus hurting Morpeko V’s prospects. In any case, Morpeko V still has enough to make it solidly competitive, though the meta for it may not be ideal.

Torkoal V

When I first looked at the spoilers for Sword and Shield, I didn’t think much of Torkoal V. Frankly, it seems to have been something that I overlooked! To my surprise, Torkoal V lists have been somewhat common in the Japanese local results, so much so that they appear to have distinguished themselves from the other Fire decks (Reshiram and Charizard-GX as well as others). I wouldn’t go quite as far as to say that they’re better, but these lists have done enough to justify considering Torkoal V a competitive deck. Here’s the list that I’ve been testing with:

[decklist name=”Torkoal V” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Heatran-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”25″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x Torkoal V (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Victini V (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Heatran-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Hoopa” set=”Unified Minds” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Oranguru (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Faba” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”173″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”182″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Fire Crystal” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”173″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Fiery Flint” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Giant Hearth” set=”Unified Minds” no=”197″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Heat Factory Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]12x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”12″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

The key to the deck is the Oranguru. With Ape Wisdom, you can guarantee that you’ll hit for the bonus damage with Flame Pillar, so long as you have a Fire Energy in hand to put on top of your deck. Given that this is a Fire deck, and thus has access to [card name=”Giant Hearth” set=”Unified Minds” no=”197″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Fiery Flint” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Fire Crystal” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”173″ c=”name”][/card], it’s trivially easy to meet that requirement. Against decks without reliable Energy acceleration, Steam Crash is a devastatingly powerful attack. Even if you can’t get the OHKO, Steam Crash will tend to win matchups against slower decks. Combine the attack with a [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] or well-timed Marnie, and it can be enough to win a game on its own. Everything else is a traditional [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] deck engine. For a more traditional deck, you can also always include Torkoal V in an existing Reshieam and Charizard-GX deck, as a one-of alternate attacker, instead of as the main focus.

Lapras VMAX / Frosmoth

Going as far back as Base Set, ‘Energy Rain’ Abilities have always been popular, and in almost every case the decks centered around them have been strong. For the first time, we have one of these Abilities on a Stage-1 Pokemon: the new Frosmoth. If Archie’s [card name=”Blastoise” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] is your deck of choice in Expanded, then you’ll probably be happy to hear that the concept is coming to Standard! Here’s my early Frosmoth list:

[decklist name=”Lapras V” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Quagsire” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”26″][pokemon amt=”16″]3x Lapras VMAX (Sword & Shield)3x Lapras V (Sword & Shield)2x Frosmoth (Sword & Shield)2x Snom (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Quagsire” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”26″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Wooper” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Blastoise and Piplup-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”215″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ditto Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)2x Marnie (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lady” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)3x Evolution Incense (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Switch Raft” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”62″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”182″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x Air Balloon (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Retrieval” set=”Evolutions” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Fishing Rod (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Viridian Forest” set=”Team Up” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]12x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”12″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Other attackers could include [card name=”Keldeo-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”47″ c=”name”][/card], Keldeo V, or [card name=”Volcanion Prism Star” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card], but you don’t need them when you have Lapras V and Lapras VMAX. G-Max Pump can quickly hit critical damage numbers: three Energy for 180 (enough to OHKO most GXs), five for 240 (enough to OHKO Pikachu and Zekrom-GX and all Pokemon V), six for 270 (enough to OHKO most Tag Team Pokemon-GX. This means that Lapras VMAX is also one of the few Pokemon capable of OHKOing other VMAX pokemon; it does take quite a few Energy to pull off, but it is more feasible than you might think. Truly, Lapras V itself is also a solid attacker, especially against decks with lower amounts of HP. You can use Ocean Loop to hit hard, and force your opponent to play an eight Prize game by making them Knock Out that and two VMAXs.

Even with the “can only attach to Bench Pokemon” restriction on Frosmoth, this deck still has excellent flexibility when transitioning between attackers. Good old [card name=”Quagsire” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] allows you to seamlessly transition from a damaged Lapras VMAX to a fresh one, and the heavier switching in the list makes it easy to pivot from one Lapras to another. Once everything gets set up, this is one of the most difficult decks to beat.

Setting up is this deck’s major weakness, however, but once it gets going, there isn’t much that can match up with it in terms of bulkiness, attack damage, and ease of changing attackers. If it doesn’t get going, on the other hand, there’s little that Lapras can do. You need to be able to maintain at least one of Frosmoth or Quagsire, and the longer it takes for the Frosmoth to get into play, the longer the opponent will have to be able to get into a winning game state. The deck feels a lot like [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] in that way — it can sputter, but if it doesn’t, watch out!

Snorlax VMAX

By now it is clear that Snorlax VMAX is probably the VMAX Pokemon with the most potential, and it’s not hard to see why; at 340 HP, it has the most HP of any Pokemon to this point. On top of that, its attack is solid, capable of hitting 210 with a full Bench — enough to KO most Pokemon-GX, and close enough to most V Pokemon that a minor damage buff is enough for a OHKO. Given the card’s Colorless attack requirements, Snorlax VMAX can be played with a wide variety of other cards. As we’ve seen before, Welder is a rather natural pairing, but I’ve also seen lists pairing Snorlax VMAX with Malamar, [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], and Zacian V.

The highly anticipated Cincinno is another rather natural pairing; Snorlax VMAX needs Pokemon on the Bench, while Cincinno provides great consistency from the Bench. That draw power also allows the deck to focus more on non-draw Supporters, such as energy acceleration, disruption or healing — all of which are absurd when used in combo with a Pokemon as tanky as Snorlax VMAX.

Here’s the current list I’ve been working with, which I’ve adapted from several of the Snorlax V / Cincinno decks that I’ve seen from the Japanese tournament results. I think it still has a lot that can be improved upon, particularly with regards to figuring out proper Supporter counts, but even at this early stage, Snorlax VMAX is a force to be reckoned with!

[decklist name=”Snorlax” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Ditto Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”154″][pokemon amt=”21″]3x Snorlax VMAX (Sword & Shield)3x Snorlax V (Sword & Shield)4x Cinccino (Sword & Shield)4x Minccino (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Magcargo” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”24″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Slugma” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”23″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dewgong” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”45″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ditto Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Heatran-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”27″]3x [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x Marnie (Sword & Shield)1x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)3x Evolution Incense (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Scoop Up” set=”Shining Legends” no=”66″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Fishing Rod (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Buff Padding” set=”Team Up” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Fine Band (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Giant Hearth” set=”Unified Minds” no=”197″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Triple Acceleration Energy” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”190″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

One difficulty I have encountered with this deck is early-game setup. Unfortunately, thanks to the (likely) new rule change, setup Supporters such as [card name=”Professor Elm’s Lecture” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”188″ c=”name”][/card] aren’t nearly as useful as they were before. The ideal time to use such Supporters were on turn one, particularly when going first; now that half of the time that first-turn play no longer exists, the reliability of such an engine is greatly diminished. It also doesn’t help that our Supporter-based setup options – Professor Elm’s Lecture, [card name=”Poké Maniac” set=”Unified Minds” no=”204″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Professor Oak’s Setup” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”201″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Apricorn Maker” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card] — are all somewhat awkward to use with Snorlax VMAX and Cincinno. That is, none of them can grab both multiple Cincinno and a Snorlax V; there has to be a trade-off somewhere. So, I’ve been trying to focus the setup solely on our wonderful array of Item-based Pokemon search. When it works, it works well, but the deck as is can be prone to some inconsistency. If you were wanting to try out Snorlax VMAX, that would be the first area I would look at when trying to improve upon this list.

Other options for tech Pokemon in this deck are Indeedee V, Galarian Obstagoon / Galarian Zigzagoon, or to use [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Salazzle” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] as the Ability-based draw engine. Snorlax has so much versatility, I would absolutely recommend trying out a bunch of different things with it.

Stonjourner VMAX

When it comes to the VMAX Pokemon, Stonjourner VMAX is probably the most straightforward. It doesn’t require extra Energy acceleration, or for you to fill up your Bench, in fact, Stonjourner V doesn’t actually need any support Pokemon at all — it can win all by itself! Those other Pokemon don’t hurt though! Here’s the list I’ve been using:

[decklist name=”Stonjourner V” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x Stonjourner VMAX (Sword & Shield)3x Stonjourner V (Sword & Shield)3x Indeedee V (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Zacian V (Sword & Shield)1x [card name=”Diancie Prism Star” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Oranguru (Sword & Shield)[/pokemon][trainers amt=”36″]3x Professor’s Research (Sword & Shield)3x Marnie (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Bede (Sword & Shield)4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sun and Moon” no=”126″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x Evolution Incense (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Tag Call” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x Giant Charm (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Martial Arts Dojo” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]10 x [card name=”Fighting Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”10 “][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Like the other VMAX Pokemon, Stonjourner VMAX utilizes a combo of tankiness and high damage output to win games. 330 HP is extremely difficult to take down, especially if you pair that with any extra healing. The way I’ve been trying to play this archetype is with massive bursts of healing, via [card name=”Mallow and Lana” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”198″ c=”name”][/card], Indeedee V, and Stonjourner VMAX’s own Stone Gift. With two Indeedee V in play, the healing from all of those effects can combine to remove an incredible 280 damage from a Pokemon — not bad! This card is no slouch when attacking either; 200 damage is a solid base, especially when that number can easily be increased via [card name=”Diancie Prism Star” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Martial Arts Dojo” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”179″ c=”name”][/card]. Most non-Tag Teams and non-VMAXs are in OHKO range thanks to those modifiers. Thanks to Weakness, Snorlax VMAX is as well, giving Stonjourner a decisive advantage in that matchup.

The deck’s biggest issue is speed, particularly with regards to Energy acceleration. It can be rather difficult to set up the second Stonjourner, and you’re often behind by the time you set up the first. As a result, the deck can end up feeling clunky at times, even though it doesn’t actually need that much to set up. Against decks with Energy removal — Crushing Hammer or Torkoal V, for example — this weakness can become a huge problem. Even so, the deck’s advantages certainly feel difficult to overcome when Stonjourner does set up well, so I imagine a more refined variant of this deck could end up sneaking into the meta. After all, the deck may be a bit slow, but it tends to steamroll to wins once it gets going.

Galarian Obstagoon / Sableye V

Obstagoon is a pretty nifty Pokemon. We can go all the way back to Team Rocket and Dark Golbat to see the positive effects of Pokemon with damage placing Abilities like Galarian Zigzagoon and Galarian Obstagoon have. The one major difference in today’s game is that Pokemon have a lot more HP than they used to. This means that the effect of placing one or three damage counters is naturally much weaker today than it was back in the day. Given that, could Obstagoon still see play as a competitive card?

In Japan, the solution has been to pair Galarian Obstagoon with the new Sableye V and [card name=”Yveltal-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card]. The Sableye V can deal out tons of damage, with the only caveat being that the opposing Pokemon already needs to have some damage counters on it — this is where the Galarian Obstagoon comes in. With the 40 damage resulting from a Galarian Zigzagoon and a Galarian Obstagoon, Sableye V can attack for 250 damage, bringing the opposing Pokemon up to 290. This is enough to OHKO almost everything in the format; anything larger can be OHKOd by simply finding a way to place a fifth damage counter prior to attacking. The Galarian Obstagoon can be bolstered by other damage placing effects, such as [card name=”Roxie” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”205″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Weezing” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card]. Here’s an example list for a Roxie version of Sableye V:

[decklist name=”Sableye V” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Weezing” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”77″][pokemon amt=”23″]3x Sableye V (Sword & Shield)4x Galarian Zigzagoon (Sword & Shield)2x Galaria Linoone (Sword & Shield)3x Galarian Obstagoon (Sword & Shield)4x [card name=”Weezing” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”77″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Koffing” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Yveltal-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”79″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”29″]4x [card name=”Roxie” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”205″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x Marnie (Sword & Shield)2x [card name=”Rosa” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”204″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x Bede (Sword & Shield)4x Quick Ball (Sword & Shield)3x Evolution Incense (Sword & Shield)3x [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”142″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Fishing Rod (Sword & Shield)[/trainers][energy amt=”8″]8x [card name=”Darkness Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

In theory, this combo makes for a strong strategy; in practice, it can be a bit difficult to maintain. In my testing, it can be somewhat difficult to string together attacks from multiple Sableye V, while also getting all of your Galarian Zigzagoon and Galarian Obstagoon into play so that they can deal their damage. The deck lacks reliable Energy acceleration (if only there was Dark Patch), and so it can struggle in the late-game. On top of that, the deck is miserably bad against single-Prize attackers. So, while the concept is neat, I don’t foresee Galarian Obstagoon becoming a major threat in the near future. Still, if someone could refine the concept further, I think this deck could have potential, especially in the longer-term, if VMAX Pokemon begin to dominate.

The lists above are a great starting point for Sword and Shield. As far as our Standard meta is concerned, those archetypes are the ones that I believe have the best chance of making an impact and finding tournament success. With that said, they certainly aren’t the only decks that I would recommend taking a look at! Possible decks that I haven’t talked about yet include Rillaboom, Vikavolt / Intelleon, Polteageist / Omastar, Magcargo-GX / Oranguru, Cinderace, and Gengar / Wobbuffet V. I haven’t personally gotten a chance to tinker around with any of those decks yet, but they are other potential options to consider when deciding what to play when Sword and Shield releases.

Effective Proxying

Finally, I’m going to share with you my personal method of building proxy decks. After all, we’re still a decent ways away from being able to have our hands on these new cards — but there’s no reason to wait to try them out! Prior to new sets, I typically build quite a few of these proxy decks; currently, I’ve got 14 of them for Sword and Shield Standard (although I admittedly haven’t gotten to try them all out yet)!

All you need to build these proxy decks are the list that you want to build, a bunch of each type of Basic Energy, and a (preferably black) permanent marker. In order to effectively use the Energy as proxies, you’ll want to color coordinate the various types of cards. So, for example, for my Zacian V / [card name=”Lucario and Melmetal-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”120″ c=”name”][/card] deck, I used Fire Energy for my Pokemon, Fairy Energy for my Supporters, Fighting Energy for my Items, Dark Energy for my Stadiums, and of course, Metal Energy for my Metal Energy. Then, simply write on each Energy what the card is supposed to be. The end result looks something like this:

To make things even easier, I highly recommend writing on any information that you might need when playing. For example, on the Zacian V card, I’ve written on the HP, Weakness, Resistance, Retreat Cost, and the attack information. I would advise doing that with any new cards that you’ll be using; it simply makes games go faster when you don’t have to constantly look up the card to figure out one of its attributes. You don’t necessarily need to do that with cards that you (or your opponents) are familiar with — I haven’t done that with Mew, for instance — but it’ll save a lot of time, in the long run, to be more thorough with the Pokemon section of the deck. Write large, and write clearly, so that there isn’t any confusion over which card is which.

I’ve found that most decently experienced players can play with these “Energy Decks” with nearly the same level of speed and competence as if they were playing with real cards. Even for current meta stuff, proxying can be a great way to try out a deck before deciding to commit money to acquiring the cards you’ll need to build it. Compared to other proxying methods that I’ve used, this one has been by far the best as far as ease of deck-building, ease of play, and economic cost. Printed proxies are certainly nice, but they require you to use a printer every time you want to build a deck, or change a card. With these, changing a card in a list is as simple as crossing out one name, and writing in the name of the new card. Unlike the Energy decks, printed proxies also require you to use sleeves, the cost of which can add up quickly (especially if you’re like me, and have dozens of decks)! It’s also a great way to use up any extra Energy cards that you might have, turning them into something useful, instead of wasted space! If you don’t have a ton of extra Energy lying around, check with your local gaming store, especially during Prereleases. At worst, you can typically find Basic Energy online for around six cents apiece; at that price, one proxy deck will run $3.60, which isn’t too far off from the pack of sleeves that you’ll need for the other proxy methods.

With that, we’ve come to the end of the article! Hopefully, you can find some time to try out a few of these new concepts — they are a ton of fun to play! If you’ve got any questions about the lists, Sword and Shield, or anything else Pokemon, as always, don’t hesitate to message me, or to post here or in our PTCG Subscriber’s Hideout — I’ll try to respond as soon as I can!

Thanks for reading!

–Zak

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