Dragon Gales – Dragonite V in Expanded

Hello PokeBeach readers! I am happy to be bringing you another article! Last time we talked quite a bit about [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] and its two main partners: [card name=”Ludicolo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”34″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card]. Since the release of that article, not much has changed for the Suicune V archetypes, but their results and popularity seem to be improving. In the online event scene, Suicune V / Ludicolo has finally grabbed the position of being the fifth most played deck after a steady climb in popularity over the last few weeks, easily cementing itself as an even bigger threat than before. Another deck that has been gaining a ton of popularity recently is [card name=”Houndoom” set=”Battle Styles” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Umbreon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] (or more simply, Single Strike Box). Single Strike Box has not been a huge part of the metagame for very long, but since it first started picking up some traction in early September, the momentum has not stopped and it has climbed all the way up to being the third most popular deck in Standard within online events. Of course, this popularity surge would not be possible if it was not for the work of former PokeBeach writer and two time North America International Champion, Stéphane Ivanoff, who used the deck to win an event with more than 500 people (and was organized by yours truly!).

Interestingly enough, the rise of Single Strike Box is not the only deck that Stéphane has directly caused to surge in popularity over the last month. In the far smaller Expanded scene, Stéphane has caused a huge surge in popularity of not one, but two different variants of [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], and those decks will be the topic of today’s article! First, however, we must take a look into one of the cards that has been a powerhouse of the Expanded format over the past roughly two years, shaping the Expanded format to its will in the process, [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card].

Expanded and the Double Dragon Problem

[cardimg name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Throughout the history of the Expanded, many cards have caused controversy. From [card name=”Hex Maniac” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] to [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”77″ c=”name”][/card], card after card has been dealt with, whether it be by ban, community dismissal of the debate, or power creep. However, one card has been a topic of debate for quite some time, and even now, it still has yet to be dealt with, and that card is [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card].

To this day, I still do not understand why this card was seen a good card to print. The absurdity of its power was clear upon release, and it has only gotten better as more and more Dragon-type Pokemon have been released. From [card name=”Giratina-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] to [card name=”Salamence-EX” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY170″ c=”name”][/card] and from [card name=”Garchomp and Giratina-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] to [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], Double Dragon Energy has been absurdly powerful the whole way. Especially within Unified Minds and Cosmic Eclipse, the power of Double Dragon Energy in Expanded has grown tenfold and it continues to be one of the most powerful cards in the format. With the Sword & Shield block, it appeared to be sunset for Dragon-type Pokemon, but then with the recent Evolving Skies expansion, a new pool of extremely powerful Dragon-type Pokemon was released, and with it, Double Dragon Energy has come surging into Expanded even stronger than before.

With this new pool of Dragon-type Pokemon, two have made a larger impact than others. The first of these is [card name=”Regidrago” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card], which has made a name for itself as a Single Prize Pokemon with incredible damage potential. The other new Dragon-type Pokemon is [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], which I mentioned earlier as a powerful new threat with two different builds. These variants, one built around going turbo with just Dragonite V and one that includes [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], have started the take Expanded by storm, so it is only fitting that we talk about them today, especially with some good sized Expanded online events on the horizon. Without further ado, how about we take a look at the first variant of this deck, Turbo Dragonite V.

Turbo Dragonite V

Reminiscent of the [card name=”Roxie” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”205″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Garchomp and Giratina-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] that took down the 2020 Dallas Regional Championship, the Turbo [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] deck is built to consistently swing with Dragon Gale as soon as your first turn, assuming you are going second. Stéphane first suggested this deck shortly after the release of Evolving Skies, and since then, it has done quite well for itself in the Expanded format. Stéphane’s build, which used old Roxie / Giratina and Garchomp-GX lists from before as inspiration, is built to be extremely consistent at pulling off the turn one Dragon Gale thanks to [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and plenty of forms of draw cards and digging Trainers in order to find the pieces needed to pull together this powerful combo.

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Deck List

[decklist name=”dnite turbo” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″][pokemon amt=”13″]2x [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Noivern-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Noibat” set=”Unified Minds” no=”158″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Exeggcute” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”4″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mr. Mime” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”75″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”40″]3x [card name=”Professor Juniper” set=”Black and White” no=”101″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”AZ” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Battle Compressor” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Computer Search” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Special Charge” set=”Steam Siege” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Great Catcher” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Stormy Mountains” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”7″]4x [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”118″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Card Inclusions

Two Dragonite V, Tapu Koko Prism Star, and Mr. Mime GEN

Contrary to what I normally say, we only play two copies of our main attacker, [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], in this deck list, but it comes with a reason. In general, if three Dragonite V would ever be Knocked Out, then you would lose anyway. However, in this deck, it is barely even feasible to power up three or more Dragonite V in a game anyway, and if you would ever have to, it would typically be preferable to power up [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] anyway. Additionally, in the event you happened to need more copies of Dragonite V, you could easily just use [card name=”Rescue Stretcher” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] to recover it anyway.

Dragonite V is made good by its second attack, Dragon Gale. Boasting an absolutely insane damage output for its Energy cost, Dragonite V is able to easily grab knockouts on any Pokemon V and most Pokemon-GX, including a majority of Tag Team Pokemon-GX if there is a [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] involved. This attack has two major drawbacks, though. The first of these is quite blatant, being that Dragon Gale hits all of your own Benched Pokemon. Fortunately, [card name=”Mr. Mime” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] is able to protect our Bench from this damage, unlike [card name=”Mew” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”76″ c=”name”][/card]. While the 20 Damage from this attack is not always game breaking, being able to reduce, even if only once, is very nice. Additionally, I should clarify that the only reason that the Mr. Mime of choice is the one from BKT (or GEN) rather than PLF is because of its Resistance to Dark, which is slightly better than the one that has no Resistance.

The other drawback to Dragon Gale is its extremely awkward attack cost. Thankfully, [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] is able to cover most of it, only leaving us with either a Water or Lightning Energy to fill. In this deck, we choose to fill that Lightning Energy cost with [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and its Dance of the Ancients Ability, which lets us attach not just one, but two Energy from our Discard Pile, which can power up multiple attackers at once. Most of the time, this alone is enough to get us through the game, alongside manual attachments, but sometimes we have to use a little extra Energy Acceleration, which will be addressed later.

Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX

Acting as a sort of “backup attacker”, [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] fills an extremely critical role in this deck. With its 280 HP, Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX is a bit more bulky than the 230 HP of Dragonite V, but even better, it has one of the most powerful GX attacks in the game. For just one Energy, it flips over your Prize cards, which is not great by itself, but if you meet the extra Energy requirement, then you also get to take two Prize cards, which lets you automatically close out a game after taking your first four Prize cards. This can be especially strong, as with its normal attack, it can also take down a Pokemon like Dedenne-GX, so it can feasibly take four easy Prize cards while only taking the Energy commitment of one attacker. All in all, Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX is an excellent and versatile attacking option

Noivern-GX

[card name=”Noivern-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] probably seems extremely out of place in this deck, but it serves a very strong role. Between two incredible attacks, being an Evolution Pokemon (therefore getting through [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”6″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Pyroar” set=”Flashfire” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]), and its Retreat Cost of 0, Noivern V acts as an extremely strong and versatile attacker in a variety of matchups. With some luck, you can easily and completely shut out some decks with Distort and/or Sonic Volume (notably, this very deck has no realistic answer to Sonic Volume).

Magearna-EX

[cardimg name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”75″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

I absolutely never thought I would still be talking about [card name=”Magearna-EX” set=”Steam Siege” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] in 2021.

Since Turbo Dark started to build up a ton of power following the release of Unified Minds, one of the most prevalent tech cards in Expanded has been an answer to [card name=”Darkrai-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card]’s Dead End GX. Typically, most players included [card name=”Comfey” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] if they could, or they may have just included any of other forms of Special Condition protection. However, as time has gone on, and especially following the release of [card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Umbreon and Darkrai-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card]’s Dark Moon GX has become an increasingly large part of the Turbo Dark strategy. As such, Comfey has become less effective, paving way for Magearna-EX’s Soul Heart, which blocks the effects of both attacks. Additionally, Soul Heart is able to block some more infrequent secondary effects, such as the Energy discard from [card name=”Ultra Necrozma” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] or Special Conditions from [card name=”Vileplume” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”6″ c=”name”][/card].

Guzma and Hala, Tool Cards, and Stormy Mountains

At this point, the [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”name”][/card] engine has become a pretty critical aspect of most Double Dragon Energy decks, and this deck is no different. While you do not have to find it right away every single game, it is a great option to a super easy Turn One Dragon Gale if you go second, directly finding Double Dragon Energy, [card name=”Float Stone” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Stormy Mountains” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”161″ c=”name”][/card] (which then searches for Dragonite V or Tapu Koko Prism Star), drastically reducing the amount of digging necessary to pull together the Turn One attack. Additionally, Guzma and Hala acts as a way to go and grab [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] for the coveted Turn One Tag Team Pokemon-GX Knock Out.

Raihan

Remember when I mentioned alternate forms of Energy Acceleration? Well, here we are!

When [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] was first revealed, I immediately thought of its power in Expanded thanks to [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”name”][/card] acting as both a recycling method and a way to find it more frequently. Historically, one of [card name=”Garchomp and Giratina-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card]’s biggest issues has been closing out the game after a big Knock Out on your only powered up attacker. This problem is no more thanks to Raihan being the one-card way to power up an attacker by recovering an Energy and then finding the Double Dragon Energy to finish powering up. Additionally, with its ability to find any card it allows you to pull together some bigger combo plays when needed.

AZ

[card name=”AZ” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] is a pretty simple card in concept, so I should not have to do much explaining here. It allows you to pick up one of your Pokemon in play, which is really good if you need to heal an attacker, remove a liability (like [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]) from the board, and/or reuse something like Dedechange or Dark Asset ([card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card]).

However, its true purpose is a little less clear. If you are not already intimately familiar with the Expanded metagame, you may not be aware of the prevalence of Stall decks. Stall decks, which are built around staying alive to ultimately achieve the win condition of deck out, often employ a “Block Strategy”, which is built around [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Plasma Storm” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card]’s Ability, Block. These decks will manipulate the Pokemon in play on both sides of the board while they set up their hand to execute a combo of leaving Snorlax by itself (or maybe with something like [card name=”Regirock” set=”XY Black Star Promos” no=”XY49″ c=”name”][/card], which cannot be targeted by [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”name”][/card]) and then dragging up something with a weak or unusable attack, trapping it permanently. Most of the time, this play is game winning, but by including an AZ, we are able to pick up a Pokemon that gets Block locked so that we can still win the game.

ADP / Dragonite V

The other variant of [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] that I want to cover today is one that pairs Dragonite V with the infamous [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card]. Exploiting the overlapping usage of [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card], this powerful partnership is able to decimate its foes with massive damage output (Dragon Gale can hit an astounding 330 damage with all present modifiers!) while taking extra Prize cards in the process. I, admittedly, have much less experience with this build than the previous build, but in my opinion, this deck has amazing potential to be one of the most powerful decks in the Expanded format. Due to my limited experience, this list will be quite similar to one recently piloted by Stéphane, but with some minor changes to suit my preferences.

Deck List

[decklist name=”adpdnite” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″][pokemon amt=”11″]2x [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Zeraora-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”86″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Vikavolt V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Lele-GX” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”36″]3x [card name=”Professor Juniper” set=”Black and White” no=”101″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Guzma and Hala” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”193″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Guzma” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Tag Call” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”109″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Computer Search” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Field Blower” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Stormy Mountains” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”13″]4x [card name=”Double Dragon Energy” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]9x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”118″ c=”deck2″ amt=”9″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Card Inclusions

One ADP and One Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX

[cardimg name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

One of the more bizarre counts that you may notice in this deck is the split between [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card]. At first, I thought it was a little odd too, but in reality, the decision is genius. Historically, one of the biggest problems for Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX decks has been [card name=”Pokémon Ranger” set=”Steam Siege” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card], as it removes the effects of Altered Creation GX, completely shutting down that strategy. In these cases, the natural thought would be “I wish I had another GX attack.” By using the fact that, in an online tournament, we almost always can see our opponent’s deck list, we can evaluate whether or not it is worth using Altered Creation GX by analyzing the Knock Outs that we will need to take and of course, whether or not they include Pokemon Ranger. In cases that we feel Altered Creation GX is not a viable option, we have the option to switch to a Turbo Dragonite V style strategy, closing out the game with Naganadel and Guzzlord-GX’s Chaotic Order GX instead. Simply put, but playing this split of Tag Team Pokemon-GX, we are able to essentially play two different decks at the same time.

Zeraora-GX

This card’s purpose is about as simple as it gets: Free Retreat is really good.

[card name=”Zeraora-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] continues to live out its life in the Expanded format reduced to just a duplicate of [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”63″ c=”name”][/card] for a different type. However, one pro to Zeraora-GX is that it can occasionally be an alternate attacker if needed. Most of the time it will not be needed, but the inclusion of Zeraora-GX alleviates one of Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX’s biggest issues, being [card name=”Togekiss VMAX” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”141″ c=”name”][/card], by taking a quick and easy one-hit Knock Out.

Vikavolt V

What’s better than doing 50 damage and Item locking? Doing as much as 100 damage and Item locking!

Drawing a parallel to [card name=”Noivern-GX” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] in the previous deck, [card name=”Vikavolt V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] acts as a similar form of disruption, but with a far more powerful second attack. In this deck, Vikavolt V is much better than Noivern-GX because it is able to use the excess Lightning Energy to its advantage rather than pulling from the same Double Dragon Energy pool as most of the other attackers.

Leon

This is probably the one card in the deck that has me more uncertain than any other. With that being said, [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] is a nice damage buff against some of the massive Pokemon VMAX that see play in Expanded, such as [card name=”Coalossal VMAX” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card], as it allows Dragonite to reach their HP numbers if used alongside Altered Creation GX and [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. In addition, the inclusion of Leon gives the deck access to the turn one 280 option that is otherwise missing, which can be a huge swing in the mirror.

Four Max Elixir

Given the nature of this variant of Dragonite V, especially with its more diverse attacking options, [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] makes far more sense. Acting as what is likely the best generic Energy acceleration ever printed, the ability to pull together an easy turn one attack without needing to use [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] is an excellent option to have, and this option becomes even better as the game progresses as it allows you to pull together several attackers at once as oppose to having to ride or die on a lone Dragonite V.

Two Muscle Band

The inclusion of two damage modifying Pokemon Tool cards is pretty standard for Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX at this point, so the bigger thing to understand is why we choose [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] over [card name=”Choice Band” set=”Guardians Rising” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. In general, the biggest reason is simple: versatility. However, this versatility is more than just being able to use it in any scenario rather than a limited pool of Pokemon. The choice to use Muscle Band gives access to everything from the aforementioned 330 damage ceiling to letting Zeraora-GX hit 180 to allowing Dragonite V’s Shred to cap at 130, knocking out [card name=”Altaria” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”49″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Pyroar” set=”Flashfire” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]. Overall, the extensive options that become possible thanks to Muscle Band makes its inclusion over Choice Band a clear decision.

Conclusion

As of now, I cannot state with absolute certainty which of the variants we have covered today is the best version, but I can say that, without doubt, both of these decks are top tier threats in the future of Expanded. If I did have to make a definitive choice, I would say that I slightly lean toward the [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] despite having more experience with the Turbo [card name=”Dragonite V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] build.

With that, this article comes to a close.

As always, if you have any questions about this deck or Pokemon in general (especially Expanded!), please reach out in the Subscriber’s Hideout, on Twitter (@ICheville), or on Facebook (Zaya Lee).

Thanks for reading, and until next time!

– Isaiah

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