Pyukumuku Won a Tournament?! Moomoo Cheese is Actually Good?!

Hello everyone! Recently I attended two Full Grip 1K events, one for Standard and one for GLC. With Fusion Strike‘s recent release, everyone was curious how the set would affect the metagame. The Standard 1K actually made Fusion Strike legal for the event, even though it was only the day after the set’s release, which meant that the tournament featured a healthy mix of new cards, including Mew VMAX, Genesect V, Gengar VMAX, and Inteleon VMAX. However, the winning [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] deck featured a low-key card that most people wouldn’t have even put in their top five from the set: Pyukumuku.

Pyukumuku’s hilarious Ability is called Pitch a Pyukumuku. As much as I wish that involved flinging the card across the room Hisoka-style, it only goes to the bottom of the deck and allows you to draw a card. It can only activate directly from the hand, and only once per turn. However, the benefits are twofold. First, it assists with deck thinning: even though it’s only one card, it can be used multiple times over the course of a game. Over an entire tournament, Pyukumuku will allow you to see many more cards than you otherwise would, and it has some degree of synergy with [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]’s Fleet Footed Ability. Maybe, just maybe, that extra card will be the combo piece you need to pull off something incredible. Next, Pyukumuku offers some utility to those late-game [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card] that are otherwise useless. Since Pyukumuku is usually in the deck, there’s a live target for cards that would otherwise be useless, and that target can potentially fetch something more helpful.

Funnily enough, I actually ID’d into Top 8 in both tournaments in round 6 against the same player, Trevor Redding. He’s the one who ended up winning with Suicune V / Pyukumuku. Let’s take a look at his list.

Suicune V / Pyukumuku

[decklist name=”suicune” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″][pokemon amt=”20″]4x [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Sobble” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”55″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Ludicolo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”34″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lotad” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”32″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x Pyukumuku (SWSH8 #77)[/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]1x [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”62″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Capacious Bucket” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”180″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Burning Shadows” no=”114″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”9″]4x [card name=”Capture Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]5x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”EX Power Keepers” no=”105″ c=”deck2″ amt=”5″][/card][/energy][/decklist]This is more or less a typical Suicune list. The deck is fast and consistent, and has a reasonable enough damage output. With Quick Shooting [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Ludicolo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”34″ c=”name”][/card], Suicune has the potential to OHKO even Pokemon VMAX if the opponent isn’t careful. And even if you aren’t swinging for enough damage for an immediate OHKO, sometimes you can set up a future KO for Quick Shooting.

[cardimg name=”Ludicolo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”34″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

I generally don’t think the term “mid-range deck” is very applicable to Pokemon, but if there ever was a midrange deck, this is definitely it. Suicune is a fairly solid and vanilla deck. As we’ve seen from the Full Grip 1k tournament, consistency wins games — you don’t always need to be flashy or reinvent the wheel. Suicune by itself is low-maintenance, and only the combo turns end up being high-maintenance. The idea is that Suicune more or less runs itself, and [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] can facilitate the combo turns when you need to pull off a big play. The deck needs no further explanation, so let’s take a look at its matchups.

Single Strike – Slightly Favorable

[card name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] is a decent matchup for Suicune, but it’s still losable. Your priority should be to get an early [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card] on your attacking Suicune so that it’s much more difficult for the opponent to OHKO it. Aside from the [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] matchup, this is where Cape shines the most. It’s impossible for [card name=”Umbreon V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Umbreon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] to OHKO a Caped Suicune, and it’s extremely difficult for [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”85″ c=”name”][/card] and Gengar V to do so. Of course, they may have [card name=”Tool Jammer” set=”Battle Styles” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card], but for most Single Strike builds, accessing those techs is extremely difficult to do, if they even run them in the first place.

There are two attributes of the Single Strike deck that makes things easier for Suicune. First, the forced damage placed by [card name=”Houndoom” set=”Battle Styles” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card] helps a lot with the math, so it’s easier for Suicune to take KO’s. Furthermore, Single Strike operates with a large Bench size, which directly contributes to Suicune’s damage output. They can try to play around this by keeping a small Bench, but in doing so they are heavily restricting their own actions. Either way is fine; for the Suicune player, it’s a win-win situation.

Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX – Slightly Unfavorable

Against [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card], G-Max Rapid Flow is not fun for Suicune to deal with. Because Suicune needs a full Bench to do meaningful damage, there’s always going to be a plethora of low-HP targets for Rapid Flow to farm Prizes with. Furthermore, Suicune goes down to two Rapid Flow hits, and even a Cape doesn’t help much because it only takes one more Inteleon ping to go down. In this matchup, you just need to hope that Urshifu has a slower start or misses a Rapid Flow at some point.

Shadow Rider – Slightly Favorable

[card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] is a favorable matchup because Suicune can usually get one or two attacks in before Shadow Rider ramps up its Energy enough to start taking OHKOs. Cape of Toughness is very relevant here as well; it’s extremely strong in the early game, even if it doesn’t do much later on.

This matchup is rather straightforward, with the two decks trading blows until somebody wins. Try to preserve [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card]. Since you usually won’t OHKO their attackers, you may need Boss to finish off Pokemon that flee to the Bench. You’ll also need Boss to close out games if your opponent forces you to attack into any non-VMAX Pokemon. Only having two Boss here makes the matchup a little bit sketchy, and you may lose if you fail to access them for any reason.

Another important part of the strategy is to power up multiple Suicune in the early game when you have the chance. This allows you to use Boss later, which you can’t do if you’re forced to use [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] just to power up Suicune to attack.

Fusion Strike – Even

With Fusion Strike being a new archetype, I haven’t played this matchup enough yet to say which way it tends to swing. Fusion Strike operates with a large Bench, which is good for Suicune. However, Fusion Strike Energy blocks Inteleon ping damage, which means that if they keep their Bench to four or less, Suicune is incapable of OHKOing a Mew VMAX that has any Fusion Energy on it. Mew can also start KOing Suicune on Turn 2 if they have a decent start, which can be problematic.

With four Pokemon on the opponent’s Bench and a Ludicolo boost, Suicune does 300 damage. Sometimes you’ll use [card name=”Sobble” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card]’s Pound either before or after for that extra 10 damage. Inteleon’s Aqua Bullet could also fulfill this role by sniping a Mew VMAX off the Bench, but only if it already has a lot of damage on it.

If they play a full Bench, it should be an easy win because you just need one Ludicolo turn to swing the Prize trade in your favor. But it can get dicey if they don’t, so a couple techs I’m considering to boost Suicune’s chances are [card name=”Fan of Waves” set=”Battle Styles” no=”127″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card]. Fan of Waves can remove Fusion Strike Energy to enable Inteleon’s Quick Shooting, but it doesn’t work against Pokemon with two Fusion Energy attached. Zigzagoon can potentially ping a Mew before it gets Fusion Energy attached, as Inteleon is much too slow for that. However, it’s not foolproof by any means, as there’s no guarantee you’ll pull it off before Fusion Energy comes down. That said, both of those techs also have plenty of uses in other matchups and situations.

This is another matchup where Cape is strong, because it forces Mew to find either Tool Scrapper or two Power Tablets. This is easy enough for them to do with [card name=”Peony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card], but forcing extra resources out of them is still always helpful.

Jolteon – Very Unfavorable

This matchup is horrible, but I’ve won it before. You need to be very aggressive and hope they have a slow start. If Jolteon operates how it wants to, Suicune can never win, but sometimes, with consistency on your side and a lack of consistency on your opponent’s, you can eke out a victory. Cape is somewhat useful here. Jolteon’s HP is lower than the typical VMAX, so it isn’t too difficult to OHKO with the help of Ludicolo and Inteleon. However, with Jolteon’s snipe pressure, you’ll be lucky to even keep Lotad on the Bench for more than one turn.

Leafeon – Unfavorable

This matchup is difficult because [card name=”Leafeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card] OHKOs Suicune, and Suicune cannot OHKO Leafeon as long as they don’t Bench an excessive amount of Pokemon. Leafeon is fast and low-maintenance. Leafeon always wins a straight-up Prize trade, and Suicune has no counter to [card name=”Galar Mine” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card]. Just like with Jolteon, you have to be aggressive and lucky, and make use of early-game Cape of Toughness to possibly survive a hit.

Zamazenta Tank Deck

The next deck I want to share with you all today is an interesting Zamazenta tank deck that I’ve been working on lately. This is basically my pet deck, but I believe it is quite strong in the current meta. Here’s the list:

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[decklist name=”zama tank” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″][pokemon amt=”5″]3x [card name=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”40″]2x Cook (SWSH8 #228)3x [card name=”Pokémon Center Lady” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Bird Keeper” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”159″ 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=”Lucky Ice Pop” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”150″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Moomoo Cheese” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rusted Shield” set=”Shining Fates” no=”61″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Potion” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”61″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Circhester Bath” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”150″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”15″]4x [card name=”Capture Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Coating Metal Energy” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]7x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”XY” no=”139″ c=”deck2″ amt=”7″][/card][/energy][/decklist]The strategy of this deck is to build two invincible [card name=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] that are impossible for most decks to take down. Zamazenta can chip away at HP and Special Energy with its Assault Tackle attack, and its Ability makes it invincible against Pokemon VMAX, which make up the source of most meta decks’ strength. The rest of the deck is built to supplement Zamazenta.

Zamazenta is the main attacker, and [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] is just for support. You usually ignore Metal Energy from Intrepid Sword so that you can attach them to Zamazenta. Since you need two Zamazenta and one Zacian per game, you run an extra copy of each for consistency and prizing-proof reasons. Sometimes you’ll have the perfect storm for an aggressive Zacian line of play, but those are few and far between. Zamazenta is the star of the show more often than not.

This deck also benefits from Fusion Strike‘s release. Mew VMAX and Inteleon VMAX are favorable matchups, and any shift in Single Strike decks away from [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] is favorable as well.

No Single-Prize Pokemon

Single-Prize Pokemon sound good in theory, at least as a one-of such as Dialga or [card name=”Duraludon” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card]. However, even one of these can be a huge liability. With so few Basics, starting with it is quite likely, and it could very easily be Knocked Out before you can even find another Pokemon, thus losing the game. Additionally, decks with [card name=”Echoing Horn” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] can punish you very hard for playing them. They don’t offer much value even when used to their full potential.

Two Cook, Three Pokemon Center Lady

Cook heals 10 more damage than [card name=”Pokémon Center Lady” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card], but Pokemon Center Lady seems to be better for two reasons. Pokemon Center Lady heals Special Conditions, which is mostly relevant against [card name=”Galarian Weezing” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”113″ c=”name”][/card]. It can also heal from any Pokemon, which is relevant because Cook can only heal from the one in the Active Spot. It’s often correct to heal your Benched Pokemon while attacking with a healthy Active, for example. With Cook being a relatively new card, the split here is still experimental. Pre-Fusion Strike, it was just four copies of Pokemon Center Lady. This split feels fine so far.

Draw Supporters

After testing with Professor’s Research, I’ve determined that it’s unnecessary and harmful to discard your own hand. [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] is the preferred draw Supporter, but other options are included because you sometimes want to hang onto your hand with healing cards. [card name=”Bird Keeper” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card] is a useful switching option, and it’s this deck’s only switching option. [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] is quite disruptive, especially against decks like Single Strike. Both of these are included primarily for draw, and the other effects are just a bonus. Between these and Intrepid Sword, this deck is capable of both filling the hand quickly and recovering from a Marnie.

Healing Items

[cardimg name=”Moomoo Cheese” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”156″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

[card name=”Potion” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] is definitely the worst of these, but they’re included just for some extra copies of Item heal. [card name=”Moomoo Cheese” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Lucky Ice Pop” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] actually go a long way in keeping Zamazenta alive, and it’s quite funny to have legitimate competitive use for these cards. They are quite honestly the backbone of the deck, and they’re integral for the deck’s main strategy. Opposing decks are typically forced to attack with Basic Pokemon V instead of Pokemon VMAX, or with Pokemon VMAX only when they get [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] in play. These attacks are usually not enough to take out Zamazenta in one shot, so then you have an opportunity to heal back up.

Tool Scrapper

[card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card] is included primarily to get rid of [card name=”Tool Jammer” set=”Battle Styles” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card], which nullifies [card name=”Rusted Shield” set=”Shining Fates” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card]. In this way, opposing Jammers are basically a +70 damage modifier for the opponent, which is quite annoying. This deck can’t always find Scrapper consistently, but with how much it can draw through the deck every game, it finds it often enough for it to be worth playing. A second Scrapper isn’t entirely out of the question to boost this consistency even further.

Four Rusted Shield, Two Cape of Toughness

Rusted Shield is the preferred Pokemon Tool for Zamazenta. Although you only need two Zamazenta each game, you want four Rusted Shields in order to find them quickly. You also want more after the first one or two get hit by Tool Scrapper, since giving 70 extra HP to Zamazenta is insane. This puts it on the level of Pokemon VMAX, so it usually will never get OHKO’d. Cape of Toughness is the preferred Tool for Zacian, and it’s also a backup option for Zamazenta if Shield is unavailable.

Four Crystal Cave, Two Circhester Bath

You need to play a lot of Stadiums to always be able to immediately counter [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card]. Path can potentially ruin this deck, and this deck cannot search out the Stadiums, so the only solution is to play several of them. Sometimes [card name=”Circhester Bath” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card]’s damage reduction can be helpful — there have been times where I’ve bumped my own [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card] after healing to get the damage reduction too, especially if I have another Crystal Cave for next turn. This gets you a great net defensive effect, because you’re basically using two Stadiums’ effects in one turn. If you heal, then reduce damage, then heal again on the next turn, you’re taking -80 damage, where just leaving Cave in play means you only take -60 over two turns.

Four Capture Energy

After testing Quick Ball, [card name=”Capture Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] is definitely superior. Pre-Capture, there were sometimes issues finding Energy. With so few Basic Pokemon in the deck, though, Quick Ball is unnecessary. Capture fulfills the Colorless requirement for Zamazenta’s attack, so it drastically increases consistency by combining necessary Energy with search power for Basic Pokemon.

 Four Coating Metal Energy

[card name=”Coating Metal Energy” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”163″ c=”name”][/card] is nice to have for the occasional Fire Pokemon like [card name=”Victini VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Blaziken VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card], along with their corresponding Basic forms. Hitting Energy off Intrepid Sword doesn’t really matter, so the only real downside to Coating Metal Energy is being weak to an opposing Fan of Waves, which is usually just a one-of anyway.

Matchups

Single Strike – Slightly Unfavorable to Even

[cardimg name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

This matchup really depends on what list your opponent is playing — the slight variation between Single Strike lists can make a big difference. Gengar V is easier to deal with than [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card], for example, and Tool Jammer can be quite problematic if they play it. This matchup is contentious because Single Strike can do big damage fast with their Basic Pokemon V, and because of this pressure, opposing Marnies are more damaging than they usually are. The matchup is still very winnable thanks to healing, [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card], and Energy disruption, but it can definitely go either way.

Rapid Strike Urshifu – Very Favorable

Their options for attacking into Zamazenta are limited. [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”87″ c=”name”][/card] can do 150 damage, which isn’t too shabby, but it gets healed off pretty easily. Furthermore, Assault Tackle applies tons of pressure by discarding [card name=”Rapid Strike Energy” set=”Battle Styles” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card]. This is a very good matchup for Zamazenta. The [card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] build is a little bit more contentious as they have more powerful attacking options, but even that version is slightly favorable at worst for Zamazenta.

Shadow Rider – Auto-Win

Shadow Rider just can’t deal with multiple tanky Zamazenta. This matchup is completely free.

Fusion Strike – Favorable

Fusion Strike has some options. Mew VMAX’s Max Miracle hits through Zamazenta for a solid 130 every turn, and they can copy a Benched Mew’s attack to send Mew VMAX back into the deck, which heals it in the process. However, the Special Energy focus is Fusion’s downfall. They’ll eventually run too low on Energy thanks to Assault Tackle, and two to three basic Psychic Energy just isn’t enough to win games. The damage will start to pile on, and Max Miracle’s 130 damage just won’t cut it against the mass of healing cards that Zamazenta has access to. Attacking with Genesect V is an option, but it’s quite difficult to pull off — even Genesect would need several Power Tablets to KO just one Zamazenta.

Jolteon – Very Favorable

Although Jolteon packs some Path to the Peak, they don’t do enough damage to take out Zamazenta. Heal off the Max Thunder Rumbles and bump Path as soon as you can. This matchup is smooth sailing all the way.

Leafeon – Slightly Favorable

This matchup isn’t actually as free as you’d expect if they play [card name=”Phoebe” set=”Battle Styles” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] and a way to reuse it at least once. If they don’t have Phoebe, it’s an auto-win, but with Phoebe, Tool Jammer, Galar Mine, and an Inteleon ping, they can OHKO a Zamazenta V. However, they have to do that twice before Zamazenta finishes them off with Assault Tackle, and their Stadiums usually get bumped immediately. Even with Shady Dealings, finding that perfect combo twice isn’t easy. Even if they do, being able to KO Zacian isn’t a given either. Overall, Leafeon is a favorable matchup, but they have a reasonable route to win.

Suicune – Very Favorable

This deck operates with very few Benched Pokemon, so Suicune’s damage is quite limited. Between the healing and Assault Tackle’s 2HKOs, it’s nearly impossible for Suicune to win. [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] along with [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card] gives them a chance, but it’s still an uphill battle even if they manage to pull all that together.

Dragapult VMAX – Very Favorable

[card name=”Dragapult VMAX” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] can win by bricking you with Path and Marnie, but aside from that happening every once in a while, this matchup is virtually free. Dragapult can do a little bit of damage every turn thanks to Shred, Max Phantom’s snipe, and Inteleon pings, but it just isn’t enough to keep up with the constant healing. Bumping Path immediately is important in this matchup.

Zacian – Auto-Loss

It’s impossible to win this matchup. Opposing Zacian doesn’t care about Zamazenta’s Ability and it does way too much damage way too quickly. If you ever win this matchup, then congratulations: you’ve witnessed a miracle.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading! I hope you try out these decks when you get the chance! Suicune doesn’t have the greatest matchup spread, but it makes up for that in terms of strong fundamentals and reliability. Zamazenta has fantastic matchups and is also reliable, but it suffers greatly against Zacian and can also sometimes lose against Single Strike. Overall, I think Zamazenta is positioned very well in the current meta, and it’s a personal favorite of mine, so I hope more people try it out!

Also, catch me playing all kinds of decks at twitch.tv/tricroar on weekday evenings! Until next time!

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