Welcome to the Heavy Metal Hotel — I Won a Tournament With Duraludon VMAX

Recently I won an online tournament with a card that’s never before had competitive success: [card name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card]. This ended up warping the short-term meta more than I would have guessed. Some decks, such as [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Gengar VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card], started playing more basic Energy and [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] in subsequent online events. However, even with those developments, the deck still has incredible matchups across the board. Now that the deck is a known quantity, Duraludon VMAX’s popularity ebbs and flows, and some individual tournament metas will be easier than others.

In any case, today I’ll tell you everything you need to know about the newly-emergent Duraludon VMAX archetype! It’s a bit different than the other decks out there, so it should offer a nice change of pace and great matchups. The deck has been developed primarily by a player who goes by the name fryeguy, to give credit where credit is due. After seeing their list in an online event, I changed a few cards and played it to a 1st place finish at a 130 person online event. My current list is one card off of my tournament-winning one, so I’ll be sharing the current best iteration with you all today.

Duraludon VMAX Deck List

[decklist name=”duraduradura” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″][pokemon amt=”9″]3x [card name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Duraludon V” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”47″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”39″]4x [card name=”Adventurer’s Discovery” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”224″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”62″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Flannery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”139″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”182″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”159″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Switch” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]8x [card name=”Metal Energy” set=”XY” no=”139″ c=”deck2″ amt=”8″][/card]4x [card name=”Fighting Energy” set=”XY” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist][cardimg name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”220″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Welcome to the heavy metal hotel! This is basically an anti-meta deck. There was originally another [card name=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card], but Zamazenta V is actually more of a liability, even in matchups where it looks good like [card name=”Jolteon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card]. It’s mostly just useful against decks like [card name=”Leafeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] is not for attacking most of the time. The star of the show is Duraludon VMAX itself. [card name=”Duraludon V” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”47″ c=”name”][/card]’s Ability is quite helpful because it makes it so that it’s less likely to be sniped off by stuff like [card name=”Umbreon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] and Mew VMAX before it evolves. Your ideal setup is two Duraludon VMAX and one Zacian V to help set up. Zacian V will go down at some point, especially if it’s offered as fodder in the Active Spot. Either way, opponents will be forced to fight through two VMAX. Zamazenta V interferes with this setup, which is why it’s sometimes a liability. Fortunately, it’s also quite bulky, so starting with it isn’t the end of the world.

There’s no Energy acceleration besides Intrepid Sword, so we’re powering up Duraludon VMAX the old-fashioned way. This sounds too slow to be viable, but it’s actually fine. [card name=”Adventurer’s Discovery” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”224″ c=”name”][/card] makes its competitive debut in the deck, despite being a card that’s typically too slow in the current format. It allows us to search out everything without requiring the awkward inclusion of [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”name”][/card]. This is much like how 2019’s [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] decks played [card name=”Professor Elm’s Lecture” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”188″ c=”name”][/card] as their only way to search out Pidgeotto. In both cases, the Supporter is the Evolution search, but it also finds other cards and alleviates the need for a dedicated Evolution search card.

One Raihan

This card looks like a strange inclusion for something that, for one, can’t easily be searched, and two, in a deck whose Pokemon aren’t often KO’d. However, this deck is able to see a lot of cards via draw Supporters, Intrepid Sword, and [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”182″ c=”name”][/card]. There’s a very reasonable chance that you’ll see [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] on a turn where it’s usable, and it can potentially turn the tide of the game. Not only is it a form of Energy acceleration, but more importantly — Energy recovery. Sometimes you’ll be on the bad end of some opposing [card name=”Crushing Hammer” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card], and the recovery plus Energy acceleration can really help out. And of course, searching for any card is an amazing utility as well.

Two Flannery

Yet another quirky inclusion is [card name=”Flannery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]. Flannery may seem counterintuitive since it discards Special Energy which is at odds with Duraludon VMAX’s Skyscraper Ability. However, Flannery is a versatile card with several uses. Discarding Special Energy is situationally useful, particularly against Mew VMAX and [card name=”Meloetta” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card], as well as other fringe edge cases. Furthermore, Flannery acts as a [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] to the counter, giving more outs than just the four [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card]. Moreover, it’s a Path to the Peak counter that’s searchable via [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Sword and Shield” no=”174″ c=”name”][/card]. Finally, Flannery can bump an active Crystal Cave, which can be good if you have another one in hand. This allows for some extra healing, which is a tactic often employed against decks without Stadium cards — such as [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]. Remember that you can’t play two Stadium cards in one turn, so you can only get the double Crystal Cave healing if one was already in play from before.

[premium]

Three Avery

This card is preferred over [card name=”Marnie” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] so that you can keep your hand. There’s enough [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Shining Fates” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] already, but with Intrepid Sword and situational cards in the list, sometimes it’s better to hang onto your hand with [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card]. Marnie’s draw five just isn’t that great, and there isn’t much need for hand disruption. Although opposing Marnie are always possible, sometimes Avery can pair with Intrepid Sword to make large hand sizes. Furthermore, Avery forces your opponent to discard Pokemon off their Bench. This is insanely useful against Suicune V, and occasionally useful against other decks like Single Strike.

Four Pokegear 3.0

Pokegear 3.0 has a lot of synergy with the deck because the lineup of Supporters do everything for you. It’s like a Pokegear toolbox of sorts. Pokegear 3.0 also adds a lot of consistency, especially helping with finding early Adventurer’s Discovery.

Four Crushing Hammer

Unfortunately this deck becomes a bit of a villain by playing four Crushing Hammer. However, if a Mew VMAX ever gets two Psychic Energy on it, it can become a bit of an issue. The best way to deal with that is by using Crushing Hammer, as Mew typically plays few copies of Psychic Energy. Crushing Hammer is obviously useful in almost any matchup or situation, but the big ones are against decks that play few basic Energy such as Mew VMAX and Jolteon VMAX. Not only is it harder for them to find or recover basic Energy, but they also may be forced into attaching their Special Energy, which Duraludon VMAX is immune to. I’ve also found Crushing Hammer to be useful against decks like Suicune V and [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card]. Although it does activate [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card], it still slows them down a little bit.

Three Big Charm

The extra 30 HP from [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] comes up more often than you’d might expect. Its main use is against Single Strike, whose only option is to use [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card]’s G-Max One Blow to take out both Duraludon VMAX. This is already a tall task for them while dealing with pressure from attacks from Duraludon VMAX, but Big Charm actually takes Duraludon VMAX outside of Single Strike Urshifu VMAX’s maximum damage range. This forces some sort of Tool disruption option out of Single Strike on the turn they use G-Max One Blow, and the deck isn’t that consistent with finding said Tool disruption on demand. With three Big Charm, they ideally have to make the big G-Max One Blow play not once but twice. Single Strike is still losable, but Big Charm allows for a strong game plan and increased win percentage in that matchup.

Two Tool Scrapper

Duraludon VMAX does exactly 220 damage, so that means that opposing [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card] on Suicune V and Zacian V allows them to survive an attack. This problem is somewhat solved by playing two [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card], and against Suicune V, you’ve got an extra turn to find it. Zacian V doesn’t allow you that luxury because it will immediately heal out of Tool Scrapper KO range. Tool Scrapper also has great utility against Jolteon VMAX’s [card name=”Elemental Badge” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card], taking advantage of their low basic Energy count. With Elemental Badge removed, Jolteon VMAX may struggle to attack without Special Energy. Finally, Tool Scrapper gets rid of [card name=”Tool Jammer” set=”Battle Styles” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] from the likes of Single Strike and [card name=”Leafeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card] in order to reactivate Big Charm.

Four Fighting Energy, no Aurora Energy

The addition of [card name=”Aurora Energy” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card] can be slightly more useful than Fighting Energy, but there’s too much Special Energy hate in the format. Having Energy disrupted slows down Duraludon VMAX tremendously, and it’s a huge pain. [card name=”Fan of Waves” set=”Battle Styles” no=”127″ c=”name”][/card] makes it quite difficult to find Energy as it sends Aurora Energy to the bottom of the deck. A lot of decks have been randomly been playing Fan of Waves lately. Mirror matches play Flannery, and there’s even some [card name=”Beedrill” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] out there too.

Matchups

Mew VMAX — Favorable

This is a broken deck that applies oodles of early pressure. The matchup is losable, but it’s the matchup that [card name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] was built to beat. Choose to go second. You rely on Supporters to find Pokemon, and there’s only six Basic Pokemon. [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] going second can donk you with [card name=”Meloetta” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card]. Although the Meloetta donk isn’t the most consistent, it’s better to avoid it altogether. Despite being much slower, Duraludon VMAX can win the Prize trade against Mew due to limiting their damage output to Max Miracle. With [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card] and Big Charm, Max Miracle is usually a 3hko on Duraludon VMAX. Duraludon VMAX can 2HKO Mew and disrupts their Energy, occasionally causing Mew VMAX to miss an attack. Going in with the normal strategy of two Duraludon VMAX is usually the way to go.

Another win condition that Duraludon VMAX often employs against Mew VMAX is [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] stall. This strategy is situational and works better in open deck list tournaments, but it can work quite often. Duraludon plays four Boss’s Orders and Mew decks often play three [card name=”Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card], sometimes four. Mew VMAX decks can only draw cards by churning and burning through their hand, so it’s possible they have to waste any number Switch cards early on, especially if they start with [card name=”Genesect V” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card]. This really opens the door for Boss’s Orders stall to straight up win you the game. I’ve noticed that Boss’s Orders stalling has become a somewhat common win condition in this format, so regardless of the matchup, always be aware of that as both a win and lose condition.

Single Strike — Slightly Favorable

[cardimg name=”Single Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”168″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

This matchup is slightly favorable at worst. Open deck list tournaments are much better for Duraludon VMAX, as you have knowledge of Tool Scrapper and Tool Jammer counts and can play accordingly. You want to get two Duraludon VMAX in play as fast as possible, with Big Charm attached. They cannot do anything besides G-Max One Blow, so the game just comes down to whether or not they can pull off the move multiple times. Big Charm forces them to have a Tool disruption option, and Duraludon VMAX applies a bit of pressure, especially with Boss’s Orders to target down the Basic [card name=”Single Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”85″ c=”name”][/card].

One thing that may be good to keep in mind is the combination of basic Fighting Energy and [card name=”Single Strike Scroll of Scorn” set=”Battle Styles” no=”133″ c=”name”][/card], which is a combo that can hit Duraludon VMAX. However, it doesn’t OHKO, and if it does meaningful damage that means the attacker is already heavily damaged. Duraludon VMAX can then easily KO and remove those resources from the board. The only way this comes up is if the Single Strike deck preemptively hits a [card name=”Duraludon V” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”47″ c=”name”][/card] for some damage before it evolves. As a side note / public service announcement, Single Strike Scroll of Scorn is a terrible card and you should not be playing it in Single Strike. I see it way too often and it’s always useless, even more so in open deck list tournaments.

Gengar VMAX — Very Favorable to Auto-Win

This deck plays only Special Energy, so typical lists will be an auto-win for Duraludon VMAX. All you have to do is get Duraludon VMAX into play. Since Duraludon VMAX started seeing play however, some [card name=”Gengar VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card] lists have started playing [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card]. With four Single Strike Energy on Gengar VMAX and no Big Charm on Duraludon VMAX, Gengar can KO. However, this is a rare occurrence, and it will almost never happen twice. Against the Path version, simply get the Big Charm attached, try to have a counter Stadium ready, and make use of Energy disruption. Path to the Peak doesn’t change the matchup being very favorable, it just means that you actually have to think and play the game.

Jolteon VMAX — Slightly Favorable

Many [card name=”Jolteon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] lists nowadays are playing four Path to the Peak to deal with Mew VMAX, and that makes for some potential problems. Duraludon VMAX functioning usually wins, but Jolteon VMAX can often cheese a win with [card name=”Marnie” set=”Champion’s Path” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] plus Path to the Peak. If that happens, the snipe damage piles on, and that’s how Jolteon VMAX wins. It’s not pretty, it’s not clean, but it can happen. With Jolteon VMAX, stagger your backup Duraludon VMAX until after your first Duraludon VMAX takes some damage. This makes it so that they can’t just hit both Duraludon VMAX with each attack, essentially forcing them to waste damage. You typically have to feed them the [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] just to set up, but again, they still have to fight through two Duraludon VMAX. Stagger attaching your Big Charm due to their Tool Scrapper.

If you can help it, don’t hit into a clean Jolteon VMAX if there’s a damaged one on the Bench. KO’ing the damaged one via Boss’s Orders is better in order to not get destroyed by [card name=”Cheryl” set=”Battle Styles” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card]. However, it’s a given that they’ll get to heal on Jolteon VMAX with Cheryl during the game. Don’t play Stadium cards unless it’s to bump an opposing Path to the Peak, which you want to do immediately. Conserve Flannery and Pokegear 3.0 for the same reason. You won’t always have control over your hand due to opposing Marnie, and that’s just an unfortunate and variable part of the matchup. Finally, target basic Energy whenever possible, be it with attacking pressure or using Crushing Hammer. Running out of basic Energy and Path to the Peak is a possible way for Jolteon VMAX to lose, so it makes sense to leverage Duraludon VMAX’s Skyscraper Ability whenever possible.

Suicune V — Slightly Unfavorable

This deck is annoying to deal with because it’s fast and deals a lot of damage with only basic Energy. The threat of Skyscraper does nerf [card name=”Capture Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card], which makes them set up a bit slower or pay the price. However, unless the opponent is a buffoon, they won’t use Capture Energy and they’ll still be able to function just fine. Once [card name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] is set up though, it can mow down a few [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]. The gameplan is the same as normal, use two Duraludon VMAX and Zacian V to set up. They don’t play Stadium cards, so slam the [card name=”Crystal Cave” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card] down as soon as possible. The Flannery plus Crystal Cave plays are on the table for this matchup as well. [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card] deals with opposing [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card], but you do have to draw into them at some point, which isn’t guaranteed. In my limited experience in the matchup, it seems close to even, so it really can go either way. The outcome just depends on how the cards fall. The strategy is straightforward so I don’t have as many tips and tricks for this matchup as the others.

Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX — Very Favorable

The [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] version of [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] is basically an auto-win. The Fighting Energy and [card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] versions are also favorable, but they can at least attack into Duraludon VMAX. Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX’s damage output is just too low to contest against Duraludon VMAX though, and this deck shrugs off G-Max Rapid Flow like a light summer breeze. Galarian Moltres V is their only real hope, but even Aura Burn is a 3HKO when factoring in [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] and Crystal Cave. That’s right, two Aura Burns after one Crystal Cave is 350 damage — just 10 damage shy of a Duraludon VMAX with Big Charm, though that can be made up by Quick Shooting from the [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card] version. However, the Inteleon version is the slowest and most clunky, which gives Duraludon VMAX some time to set up. Duraludon VMAX mows down Galarian Moltres V after Galarian Moltres V and there’s no two ways about it. The Rapid Strike matchup is the easiest matchup for Duraludon VMAX besides Gengar VMAX.

Others

Some other more fringe matchups are a little tough for Duraludon VMAX. Notable examples of decks whose popularity goes on and off seemingly at random would be straight Zacian V and [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] with Path to the Peak. Both of those matchups are definitely winnable but unfavorable. Both decks are fast and do a ton of damage while not playing ANY Special Energy, which is a huge pain. Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX’s Path to the Peak will nullify [card name=”Zamazenta V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card], and Zacian V forces you to find Tool Scrapper due to their heavy counts of Cape of Toughness. [card name=”Victini VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”22″ c=”name”][/card] is troublesome for similar reasons as Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, but they have an irrelevant Weakness and even more Energy disruption, so I’d say that’s Duraludon VMAX’s worst matchup.

One fine matchup is [card name=”Leafeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card] but it depends on their list. Lists with [card name=”Phoebe” set=”Battle Styles” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] have a reasonable shot of winning because they can deal with Zamazenta V and deal tons of damage to Duraludon VMAX. However, it’s harder for them to function without Capture Energy, and you can potentially win the Stadium war. Rapid Strike [card name=”Malamar” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card] is a favorable but losable matchup. Malamar plays few basic Energy, and it’s difficult for them to take down a Duraludon VMAX with Big Charm attached.

Conclusion

Overall, Duraludon VMAX’s matchups are very good right now. The deck is neat, a little slow, and a little different from the normal stuff out there. If you haven’t tried the deck yet, I definitely recommend giving my list a shot. For live tournament wins and failures check out my stream at twitch.tv/tricroar. I recently started streaming PTCGO and do so regularly on weekday evenings!

[/premium]