Blades Crossing ⁠— Zacian V in Three Flavours

[cardimg name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Hello! I’m back from Australia. Although I can’t say that I’m satisfied with my performance at the Oceania International Championships (I lost my win-and-in for Day 2 and got Top 128, earning points but nothing else), it was a fantastic experience in a lovely city. There’s a lot of take away from the first major event in the new format and with the new first turn rule.

Decks using [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] proved they could handle the power creep (although [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card]’s showing was weaker than expected). [card name=”Galarian Obstagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] made a surprise appearance in Top 4 and [card name=”Cinccino” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] Mill took spots at the top tables. However, let’s not forget what was arguably the most notable story ⁠— [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] proving it could live up to its hype by making up of almost half of Day 2. There have been more dominant performances from decks in the past ([card name=”Drampa-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garbodor” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] shortly after Guardians Rising‘s release comes to mind), but never this many.

Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V happens to be the deck I played in Melbourne. For several reasons, I wanted a safe choice for this weekend. The International Championships give so many points that I would rather not take unnecessary risks and I knew that if I could get any amount of points this weekend I would most likely secure my Top 4 travel award for the Europe International Championships. I tried some original ideas but in the end, I could not see myself playing anything else than Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V or Blacephalon. Since I was running out of time and didn’t have a solid list for Blacephalon, I chose to play Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V. It was the deck my testing group had spent the most time with. That testing group included players from all over the world including Bert Wolters, who was the first seed going into Top 8 (like last year!) where he lost to Cinccino Mill. Bert’s list and mine only differed by one card.

We expected Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V to be very popular this weekend so we put a lot of time into the mirror match. We haven’t found any miracle tech or strategy to win it confidently, but we did end up with a good understanding of the matchup and that proved very useful. To put it another way, past a certain threshold there’s nothing you can do to make the matchup significantly favored; however, there are mistakes you can make that will definitely make you unfavored. In this article, I will talk about how we built our list to have answers to everything and I will explain how not to make these mistakes I mention.

Maybe the perspective of a mirror match doesn’t excite you terribly, since it’s a match where both players have theoretical answers to what the opponent does. It comes down to who actually draws the right cards so I’m not a big fan of it either! For this reason, I’ll include two variants of the deck that are each played slightly differently and have unique plans for the mirror match. I think that having different options from the standard list can make a difference, especially ones that your opponent might not expect.

The Oceania International Championships List

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To start with, here’s Bert’s list from the Oceania International Championships. I played the same list, except I played a second [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] instead of the [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card].

[decklist name=”ADP Zacian OCIC” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″][pokemon amt=”14″]3x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ 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][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Metal Saucer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”170″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Switch” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/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 [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Vitality Band” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”185″ 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″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]9x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”9″][/card]2x [card name=”Aurora Energy” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”186″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Unit Energy GFW” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Let me explain some important cards and counts:

Two Arceus & Dialga & Palkia-GX, Two Tag Call, One Guzma & Hala, One Cynthia & Caitlin and One Unit Energy GRW

I’m grouping these cards together because they’re part of the same package. We don’t want to play more than two [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] since you only want one per game, but we want it on turn 1 as much as possible so you can attach Energy to it to use Altered Creation on turn 2. In addition to [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Tag Call” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] can be used to search for Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX and opens the door to a small Tag Team Supporter engine. [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”name”][/card] is the most important of the two, since it can search for [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] to retreat [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] and a Special Energy. This is the reason why we’re using one [card name=”Unit Energy GFW” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card]. The Water-type Energy is the hardest to find and Guzma and Hala gives us easy access to it. In fact, every other Energy in the deck provides Metal Energy so when you have two Energy attached, it is impossible not to have a Metal Energy. Note that Guzma and Hala can grab [card name=”Aurora Energy” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card], but sometimes the discard cost is too much. Don’t forget you need to discard two cards in order to play Guzma and Hala. [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card] is another option but the damage counter could matter especially in the mirror match. Cynthia and Caitlin is much less important and is included only to have a way to draw cards with Tag Call. It’s rare that we actually need it but the option is there. Having a fourth Tag Call target means that it’s much less likely to use Tag Call for only one card, so we’re getting better efficiency out of it.

Three Jirachi and Three Zacian V

Seeing three Jirachi may seem strange to some of you, especially if you’ve only played this season and aren’t used to Jirachi counts being anything else than zero or four. Jirachi is the best starter in the deck but on the other hand, we almost never want more than one in play. Playing too many leads to dead cards. I’ve found that three is the best compromise. In fact, I would rather play a fourth [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] than a fourth Jirachi. Zacian V isn’t the best starter but it’s very valuable to have on turn 1 because of its Ability. Since you’ll use at least two Zacian V per game (except for some unusual matchups like [card name=”Cinccino” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] Mill) having more Zacian V is usually a good thing. That said, the deck works with only three Zacian V and since space is hard to find, we didn’t include a fourth. However, it’s definitely a consideration.

Two Dedenne-GX

Obviously, [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] is a great card as it lets you draw cards beyond your Supporter for the turn. It’s sometimes necessary when you’re missing one key card (such as [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Metal Saucer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”170″ c=”name”][/card]). I wasn’t sold on the second copy at first but after testing, I think it helps to have more outs to draw cards in the late game. If you’re only playing one, you should add more Supporter cards to the deck.

One Oranguru

[cardimg name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

There are four Pokemon in the deck we include only one copy each, but I would only consider [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] to be core. Primate Wisdom is a fantastic Ability in this deck. If you can, try to use it on the first turn to put a Metal Energy on top of your deck to attach it with Zacian V’s Intrepid Sword. However, its utility extends far beyond that trick. Oranguru allows you to save one card like a [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] before using [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”name”][/card] or Dedenne-GX’s Dedechange to help find a pair of Custom Catcher. If you don’t have any use for Custom Catcher this turn, use a shuffle effect (such as Quick Ball, Tag Call or a Stadium like [card name=”Giant Hearth” set=”Unified Minds” no=”197″ c=”name”][/card] if your opponent played one) first so you have better odds of drawing something actually useful. But Custom Catcher isn’t the only card you might need to save! There’s been times when I needed a Metal Saucer and a [card name=”Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card] to attack ⁠— I had the Switch but no Metal Saucer. Putting Switch on top of the deck is a good play in these situations, so you can play it after you’ve hit a Metal Saucer. There was one game in Melbourne where I had one turn to win or my opponent would finish the game. I put Professor’s Research back on top of my deck before using Dedechange so I could use draw thirteen cards in one turn, which gave me the win. Overall, Primate Wisdom has a pretty high skill ceiling as you need to have an idea of your odds of hitting some cards, know your Prize cards and think fast between several options which may all look pretty cool at first glance.

One Absol, One Phione and One Mimikyu

As for the rest, [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] was included mostly for the mirror match but it helps against any Jirachi-reliant deck, especially [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] increases our odds against [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] decks, although it’s not a perfect counter because a smart player will try to use other attackers instead. [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] is for Cinccino Mill in theory, but it ends up being relevant in plenty of weird situations. For example, you can force an opponent’s Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX back to the Bench so they have to find a Switch to use Altered Creation GX on turn 2. It might seem easy, but getting a Water Energy and a Switch is not that likely, at least not without using Dedechange. There have been several times where I used a Quick Ball, see Phione in my deck and realise it’s the perfect card to get.

Two Shrine of Punishment, One Lysandre Labs, and One Vitality Band

To help Zacian V reach some KOs, [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] helps in particular against Tag Team Pokemon-GX. For example, after Altered Creation GX and two damage counters from Shrine of Punishment, [card name=”Raichu and Alolan Raichu-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”54″ c=”name”][/card] gets KO’d by Zacian V’s Brave Blade. For a long time, our list only played two copies of Shrine of Punishment and no other Stadium. However, we ran into an issue in the mirror match where you could use Altered Creation GX first and take the lead, but your Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX would quickly fall in range of an opponent’s Brave Blade if they didn’t use Altered Creation. That meant they could catch up in the Prize race. We used [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] for a long time, but in the end we switched it to [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”name”][/card]. Both have pros and cons. Big Charm makes the math better against other decks (Blacephalon needs a seventh Energy for the big KO and [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]’s Flare Blitz GX isn’t enough), but Lysandre Labs helps to counter other Stadium and Tool cards. That includes [card name=”Metal Core Barrier” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”180″ c=”name”][/card], a cool mirror tech and [card name=”Lucky Egg” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”167″ c=”name”][/card] in Blacephalon. In addition, if one player is using Big Charm in the mirror match and the opponent is using Lysandre Labs, the second player has the edge. This ultimately made us decide in favor of Lysandre Labs.

Two Reset Stamp

This is a strong card and you should play it. In addition, running two copies of [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] is necessary for a card that’s used only late game in a deck that tends to discard many cards. This is not a new observation by any means but it still holds true. Maybe a deck with more [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] could get away with less Reset Stamp, but I’m not so sure about it. Marnie tends to be useful in the early game while Reset Stamp is much better end game disruption.

How to Play the Mirror Match

Now, let’s talk a little bit about the mirror match. Generally speaking, your plan to win is as follows. Use [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card]’s Altered Creation GX, then Ultimate Ray, then [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card]’s Brave Blade (repeat Brave Blade as necessary). Target what you need to get six Prizes. In the best case scenario the opponent benches a [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] and we can use Ultimate Ray on it, taking three Prizes and threatening a KO the following turn on Zacian V with our own Zacian V.

Obviously, the player going first has the advantage as long as they get an Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX and an Energy attachment on turn 1. Otherwise, the other player takes the lead. However, that doesn’t mean that the first player to use Altered Creation GX wins. For example, if you use Ultimate Ray on an opponent’s Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX or Zacian V, then they retaliate with a Brave Blade KO on your own Zacian V that you charged up, they can get to six Prizes first. When you use Ultimate Ray without taking a KO, there’s a risk that the damage gets lost and you lose the tempo of the game. Therefore, you should keep these tips in mind:

• Avoid benching Dedenne-GX if you can, especially if your opponent can use Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX’s Ultimate Ray first. If the player going first uses Altered Creation GX on turn 2 into Ultimate Ray on turn 3 on Dedenne-GX, they win. If you go first, Benching Dedenne-GX gives your opponent an easy path to win (Ultimate Ray on your Dedenne-GX into Brave Blade on a Zacian V).
• When using Ultimate Ray on turn 3, you can use [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]’s Ability to send their Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX back to the Bench and have them promote another Pokemon. If your opponent promotes a non Pokemon-GX such as [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Radiant Collection 2″ no=”RC13″ c=”name”][/card], you can take two Prizes with Ultimate Ray and hopefully win by taking a Brave Blade KO on their Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX later (you need [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] and / or [card name=”Vitality Band” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] for that). Because of [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], Pokemon-GX are easier targets than Zacian V so this plan works pretty well. Of course, your opponent can promote Zacian V instead of Absol or Jirachi when you use Phione so that Ultimate Ray isn’t a KO. The trick is to use Phione early enough in the turn (before attaching an Energy) so that your opponent is afraid that you can charge up Zacian V. They can’t risk their Zacian V being KO’d by yours, so they’ll have to promote another target instead. If they call your bluff, hopefully you find a few [card name=”Metal Saucer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”170″ c=”name”][/card] this turn to actually KO their Zacian V with yours!
• The most important tip is you don’t have to use Altered Creation GX. If your opponent goes first and has a strong start (my testing group’s benchmark for that is if they have an Energy attached to Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX and on Zacian V on turn 1), then mirroring their actions will usually lead to them taking Prizes before you. Instead, charge up Zacian V directly! This way, you can start attacking before your opponent since they’ll spend a turn using Altered Creation GX. In addition, Zacian V can withstand Ultimate Ray and if your opponent takes a KO on a one-Prize Pokemon, they can’t take their four remaining Prizes in one turn if you don’t Bench Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX. You need to find a pair of [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] to KO your opponent’s Zacian V for this plan to work, but it has a much better chance of success than using Altered Creation GX and Ultimate Ray after your opponent. Of course, if your opponent’s Zacian V has a defensive Tool ([card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card]) then it gets harder, but that’s why [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”name”][/card] is in the deck.

Optional Tech Cards

There are several techs you can try out to improve your chances in the mirror match. I reiterate that none of these are a miracle solution, but they help in some situations.

Pokemon Catcher

You shouldn’t remove Custom Catcher from the deck, but you can find space for some [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card]. Several players from Limitless (including Robin Schulz) played Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V in Melbourne with four Custom Catcher and four Pokemon Catcher. Pokemon Catcher is luck-based, but a heads can change the outcome of a game, especially if you can KO a Zacian V before it can attack. Adding Pokemon Catcher is better against [card name=”Cinccino” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] Mill. In theory, you beat them by using Altered Creation GX then taking three KOs thanks to Phione and / or Custom Catcher. But you may be a bit short if your opponent discards some important cards. Having Pokemon Catcher helps a lot for that.

Crushing Hammer

Another flippy card and therefore unreliable. [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card]’s use is more narrow than Pokemon Catcher. You want to use Crushing Hammer in the early game before your opponent can use Altered Creation GX. If you can remove the Energy attached to Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX on turn 1, it’s basically as if you were going first instead. On the other hand, it’s not very strong later on in the game. Unlike Pokemon Catcher which finds a use, there are some decks which don’t care about Crushing Hammer at all.

Energy Switch

This card helps with the turn 2 Altered Creation GX and counters the Crushing Hammer strategy. If you miss an Energy on turn 1 on Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX, you can move an Energy attached with Metal Saucer or Zacian V’s Intrepid Sword using [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] to Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX on turn 2. It does have the issue of being pretty useless a good amount of the time. I would recommend Energy Switch only if Crushing Hammer starts seeing a lot of play; otherwise there are better cards to play.

Metal Core Barrier

A cool tech included in several Japanese lists, [card name=”Metal Core Barrier” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”180″ c=”name”][/card] protects your Zacian V for one turn. This can turn the tide of the game by preventing a KO and letting you use Brave Blade twice with the same Pokemon. The issue with the card is that you need it at the right time; unlike other Tool cards, you can’t attach it in advance if you have it on hand on turn 1. Plus, Lysandre Labs can counter it. We decided not to play Metal Core Barrier in our decks but I did end up losing my win and in to a mirror match that played it, so maybe I should have!

Farfetch’d

[cardimg name=”Farfetch’d” set=”Team Up” no=”127″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

I should mention another cool tech that was in my deck for a while: [card name=”Farfetch’d” set=”Team Up” no=”127″ c=”name”][/card]. Yes, I wanted to play it for sentimental reasons but the card is honestly interesting in the deck. After Altered Creation, Farfetch’d is a one-Prize attacker that deals 120 damage to a Pokemon with a Tool. This can remove a Big Charm or [card name=”Stealthy Hood” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card] from a [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card], activating [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card]’s Ability. In addition, it takes two Prizes on a [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Beast Bringer” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Lucky Egg” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”167″ c=”name”][/card]. It discards Lucky Egg too, so you can combine it with [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] and hope the Blacephalon player doesn’t draw out of it!

In the end, we decided that Farfetch’d wasn’t that good overall. However, Francesco Caterino, who played my exact same list lost his win-and-in to Blacephalon and said Farfetch’d would have given him the win, so maybe we abandoned it too early!

If you’re worried about Blacephalon, something else that you can do is play more [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card]. As I said, I played a second copy in my list over the [card name=”Cynthia and Caitlin” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] and I think it was pretty good overall. I’ve noticed that Marnie isn’t played as much here as in Japan and I can’t help but wonder whether we Western players may be underrating it. Of course, Marnie isn’t the strongest disruption card, but it works pretty well early on to slow down an opponent. It’s especially good after the opponent uses Zacian V’s Intrepid Sword.

Speed Zacian V

Speaking of Japan, this year’s Oceania International Championship was interesting because I’m pretty sure it was the first major tournament with the highest proportion of Japanese players outside of Japan. There were about a dozen Japanese players in Masters but half of them made Day 2. I think it’s very interesting to see how they play the game since they’ve played with Sword & Shield cards for months now (though their format is slightly different from ours). I had the pleasure of meeting, talking to and playing a few games with Yoshiyuki Yamaguchi, one of Japan’s best players (ranked number 1 last season) and I think looking at his decks and thinking about his deckbuilding choices was useful to me.

Yoshiyuki ended Day 1 with a record of 5-3-1, but he went 4-1 in the League Challenge on Sunday (beating Pedro Eugenio Torres and Henry Brand in the process, among others). He played Speed [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card], a deck which has barely seen any talk outside of Japan and which I think is underrated.

Here’s the idea. I mentioned in the section above that sometimes in the mirror match, it’s better not to go for Altered Creation GX. What if we built the deck without [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] to make that plan as consistent as possible? Here is my take on the deck:

[decklist name=”Speed Zacian” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″][pokemon amt=”10″]4x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ 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=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”38″]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Erika’s Hospitality” set=”Hidden Fates” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tate and Liza” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Metal Saucer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”170″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Switch” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”175″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Metal Core Barrier” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”180″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]12x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”12″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Is Speed Zacian better than Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V? Sometimes. With 12 Metal Energy and four Zacian V, Intrepid Sword is a very strong Ability here and it’s easy to charge up Zacian V for a turn 2 Brave Blade. [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] helps to reach KOs on Tag Team Pokemon-GX and so does [card name=”Dusk Mane Necrozma” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM107″ c=”name”][/card]. Since you’re only using Metal-type attackers, [card name=”Metal Frying Pan” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] is a fantastic card and it makes your matchup against any [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] deck much better. [card name=”Victini V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] for example, isn’t much of a threat anymore. Against [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card], your opponent can use [card name=”Latios-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card]’s Clear Vision GX so not having Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX is actually fine or better than having it.

On the other hand, this deck struggles against Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V if your opponent uses defensive Tool cards because then you can’t OHKO them. The lack of Altered Creation GX is very bad against [card name=”Cinccino” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] Mill, which is a heavily unfavored matchup.

Overall, it’s a tradeoff. I think it was a smart play for the OCIC League Challenge, where Cinccino Mill was most likely not going to be too popular, Mewtwo and Mew-GX decks would see play and defensive Tools were not played very much in Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V.

There’s an argument to be made for including a second [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] in the deck. But the issue is that if you have to Bench it against Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V, you’ve basically lost because you’re giving up your advantage (forcing them to use suboptimal Ultimate Ray attacks). It’s better not to rely on it and play more Supporter cards instead. [card name=”Erika’s Hospitality” set=”Team Up” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card] is pretty good now since most decks want to take full advantage of their Bench, and [card name=”Tate and Liza” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] doubles as an additional [card name=”Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card], which is very strong to use Zacian V’s Brave Blade several turns in a row.

Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V / Alolan Ninetales-GX

If you don’t like when decks are too linear and would rather have more unique options, then this variant is for you! It comes from Yoshiyuki Yamaguchi too, who played it at the Oceania International Championships. I adapted his [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card] a little, but the concept is here.

The idea is to use Alolan Ninetales-GX to search for the cards you need, instead of relying on [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card]. This gives you stronger access to the cards you need at one point, although Jirachi can be used more times. Having Alolan Ninetales-GX lets you play more unique Item cards since you have a way to search for them. Here’s my current list:

[decklist name=”Zacian Ninetales” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″][pokemon amt=”15″]2x [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”53″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Team Up” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Phione” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”33″]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Metal Saucer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”170″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Switch” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Cherish Ball” set=”Unified Minds” no=”191″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Energy Spinner” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”170″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Vitality Band” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]1x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Aurora Energy” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”186″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist][cardimg name=”Alolan Ninetales-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”132″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Once again, this variant has pros and cons compared to a more standard list.

Thanks to Alolan Ninetales-GX, you have an easy way to search for Items, especially [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card]. This makes your [card name=”Cinccino” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] Mill matchup pretty good, since you can get a pair of Custom Catcher cards in your hand as soon as possible so they don’t get milled. Many Mill lists don’t run a way to reshuffle your hand, so you can keep your Custom Catcher cards in hand until you need them. Alolan Ninetales-GX over Jirachi makes more sense in [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card]-heavy local metagames, where Jirachi isn’t as good.

Alolan Ninetales-GX can double as an occasional attacker. This is mostly for the [card name=”Galarian Obstagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] matchup, since Alolan Ninetales-GX is an Evolution Pokemon and has Darkness Resistance. It can KO two [card name=”Lillie’s Poké Doll” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”197″ c=”name”][/card] in one turn if needed. There are situations where the snipe damage does matter, for example to finish off a damaged Tag Team Pokemon-GX. This is relevant against [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] in my experience.

Since you can run [card name=”Energy Spinner” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”170″ c=”name”][/card] to search for a specific Energy card and one Fairy Energy for the situations when you want to use Alolan Ninetales-GX to attack, the deck includes Fairy [card name=”Mimikyu” set=”Team Up” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card]. Copycat is a pretty good attack against both Zacian V and Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX and thanks to [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card], you can charge it up in one turn.

Of course, the deck has its issues. When you include plenty of cool techs, you run out of space and this is definitely an issue here. For example, the deck runs no Stadium cards as a result. It can have some consistency issues too. Alolan Ninetales-GX helps but you need to get [card name=”Alolan Vulpix” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card] into play first and that can be an issue. I’m running four Zacian V so we get Zacian V more often and can use [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”name”][/card] to search for Alolan Vulpix instead.

I’m not sure I can recommend this variant of the deck because in general, it’s slower and therefore worse than a more straightforward list. However, there are scenarios in which I think it’s the right choice. The first is if you’re especially worried about Galarian Obstagoon, since having an Evolution attacker obviously changes that matchup significantly. I’m not sure Galarian Obstagoon will be that popular, but the deck is pretty cheap and its novelty may appeal to players. If you expect a lot in your local meta, Alolan Ninetales-GX is a good choice. The second reason to play this deck is if, or when, [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] sees a lot of play. If we start seeing most lists play 3-4 instead of 1-2, then Alolan Ninetales-GX becomes a very good choice. A single [card name=”Cherish Ball” set=”Unified Minds” no=”191″ c=”name”][/card] allows you to grab the cards you need at a specific time so you can counter Marnie’s disruption more effectively than with Jirachi. The last selling point for this deck is that it’s easy to tech. Having access to Item cards such as Energy Switch and Energy Spinner makes it easier to add other attackers and you can run specific Tool cards. I think the list above can be improved so if you’re not having success with it, try changing some cards!

Conclusion

That’s all for today! [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] is definitely a deck we’re going to see a lot of in this format, so whether you want to play it or not you should definitely be prepared to face it. I hope this article helps you with that! Don’t hesitate to leave comments if you have questions and I’ll do my best to answer them quickly. Best of luck to those of you attending Collinsville Regionals this weekend! I haven’t played Expanded in a while so I don’t have a hot take about it but I’m looking forward to watching the stream this weekend!

–Stéphane

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