Cold Town Road — Ice Rider Calyrex for New Jersey

Hello PokeBeach readers! Isaiah here, and I am happy to be writing another article! Last time, I talked about Ian Robb’s [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Galarian Moltres” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] deck from the Salt Lake City Regional Championships, and how I felt it could be a good play for the Indianapolis Regional Championships. On the other side of that event, I can say that I was certainly correct, as Ian Robb used an updated version of the deck not to just make Top 8 again, but to take down the entire tournament.

The new deck looked closer to the original list than it did to the deck list from my article. Ian and I discussed how the more complex build might be better for a tournament as large as the Indianapolis Regional Championships, as it gave Ian a chance in virtually any matchup he could face, even some unexpected ones, like the Arceus VSTAR / [card name=”Beedrill” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] deck that Isaiah Bradner played to a second place finish. As we move deeper into the Sword and Shield–Brilliant Stars format, it grows clearer and clearer that Arceus VSTAR is, without question, the best deck in format. As such, going into the New Jersey Regional Championships this weekend, many players are asking themselves the same question: how do we beat all of these Arceus VSTAR decks? While many players have pivoted to Fighting-type-focused strategies such as [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] or the newly released Lucario VSTAR, I have a different suggestion: [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card].

Why Ice Rider Calyrex?

[cardimg name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”203″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Since its release in Chilling Reign, I have always been fond of [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card]. At the time of its release, the card was capable of spectacular damage, taking one-hit Knock Outs on most Tag Team Pokemon-GX, such as [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], and it was able to do solid damage against the viable Pokemon VMAX, including [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card]. With the help of [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card], it could even reach the critical one-hit Knock Out range on those Pokémon, too. Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX was so strong that it even won an online tournament that was a sort of grassroots substitute for the World Championships. Following the rotation to Sword and Shield-on, however, Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX kind of fell behind the pack, with fewer excellent matchups against the top decks, especially after the advent of [card name=”Jolteon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] and streamlined [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] decks. As time went on, [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] would also pose a threat, between [card name=”Genesect V” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] threatening a Weakness-boosted one-hit Knock Out and [card name=”Power Tablet” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”236″ c=”name”][/card] driving Mew VMAX’s damage output up to that magical 320-HP barrier. However, just went all hope seemed lost for Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, Brilliant Stars came to give the deck a breath of new life.

With the release of Brilliant Stars, there were two major changes for the Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX deck: one focusing on a single card, and one focusing on a major metagame shift. In Brilliant Stars, we saw the release of [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card], which was a massive development for Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, as it pushed Max Lance up to 280 damage from the pretty mediocre 250 that it capped at before. As a result, after a few Quick Shooting or maybe a [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card], Ice Rider Calyrex goes from a two-hit Knock Out deck with favorable trades against Pokemon V to a deck that is reasonably capable of taking one-hit Knock Outs on Pokemon VMAX. And if that was not enough, there is one more very significant change from Brilliant Stars that provides Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX with a massive boost, and that is the introduction of Pokemon VSTAR.

In the past, I have talked about “HP brackets” in the Pokemon TCG, the general HP numbers that certain card types follow. For some examples, the HP bracket for Pokemon EX in the Black and White and XY Eras was 170 to 180, the HP bracket for Pokemon V is 190 to 220, or the Pokemon VMAX HP bracket is 310 to 340. These numbers signify central areas that many Pokemon of that category fit in, even though various exceptions may exist. Looking at Tag Team Pokemon-GX in the late Sun and Moon era, we see that their HP bracket is generally about 240 to 270, with Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX being the only meta-relevant Tag Team Pokemon-GX outside this range. As you may notice, the Pokemon VSTAR HP bracket is almost identical, being in the 250 to 280 range. As such, given its established success against Tag Team Pokemon-GX, we might reasonably expect Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX to do excellently against all of the Pokemon VSTAR, including the ever-prevelant Arceus VSTAR.

With that, how about we take a look at my take on the Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX deck going into the New Jersey Regional Championships?

My Ice Rider Calyrex Deck

In the online tournament space, many players have been exploring the potential of the [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] archetype with the new Brilliant Stars changes. Some of the top Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX players, such as Tate Whitesell, Le Bui, and Kashvinder Singh, have been major pioneers for the archetype in recent months, leading the way for others to follow in the footsteps of their deck lists. I’ve talked a bit about Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX with Tate, Le, and Kash, exploring how best to build the deck’s core more than anything. For the most part, this is pretty straightforward; most versions of the deck rely on [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] at this point. Another commonality is the inclusion of [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] to slow down [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] decks, but I actually decided to omit this card from my deck list. I did this with the goal of streamlining the deck a little more, making the deck more consistent at beating your good matchups, such as [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card], instead of trying to make one of your hardest matchups more playable. Even with Path to the Peak, you still need to run super hot (and your opponent needs to draw poorly) for it to matter, so we may as well just run even hotter and take the stronger good matchups that I already mentioned.

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Deck List

[decklist name=”ice rider” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″][pokemon amt=”19″]3x [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”45″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/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=”Shining Fates” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Capacious Bucket” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”150″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”7″]7x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”117″ c=”deck2″ amt=”7″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Card Inclusions

Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX Line

We opt for a classic 4-3 line of our central Pokemon VMAX in this deck, though Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX is unique among 4-3 Pokemon VMAX decks for all four of the main Evolution line’s attacks being good. The VMAX’s Max Lance attack is by far the highlight, boasting one of the highest damage outputs in the game for its Energy cost. This card can take a one-hit Knock Out on any Pokemon V in the format with ease, allowing you to score a massive advantage if you go first and Knock Out a Pokemon V on your second turn. Alongside Max Lance, Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX also has Ride of the High King, which is a great means of doing moderate damage for minimal resource investment, giving you time to invest more Energy into a second Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX so that you can better chain Max Lance later in the game.

As for Ice Rider Calyrex V, while neither attack is exceptional on its own, they both have significant applications. The more relevant of the two is Pierce, which is a great opening attack if you go second, setting up a Knock Out later in the game that will not force you to use as many resources. Most notably, it makes reaching the Pokemon VMAX HP bracket much easier, as Pierce plus Max Lance with a [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] to accompany either attack does 320 damage. Lastly, Glacial Lance is pretty rarely important, but if the opponent gets an early hit on an Ice Rider Calyrex V, it can sometimes be better to use Glacial Lance than to evolve and use Max Lance in the interest of giving up one fewer Prize card.

Inteleon Line

If you’re not familiar with Inteleon yet, I suggest reading this article, which, despite being for a past format, has a pretty elaborate explanation of the engine’s uses. In a combo deck like Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, Shady Dealings is critical to find the cards you need to chain together high-power Max Lance attacks. In addition, Quick Shooting [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card] is critical for accumulating some extra damage to allow Max Lance to hit bigger numbers more easily, without requiring massive resource investment into each attack.

Galarian Zigzagoon

[card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] serves a pretty identical purpose to the Quick Shooting Inteleon, but unlike Quick Shooting, Galarian Zigzagoon is a Basic Pokemon, so it is much easier to use (and reuse with [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card]) to push for a little extra damage when you need to. Most notably, it is great for turning the [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card]–plus–[card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] combo into an attack that does 320 damage instead, which hits some other Pokemon VMAX that you were previously just short of being able to Knock Out in one hit. Similarly, one Headbutt Tantrum plus a Quick Shooting is 30 damage, which is effectively a Choice Band or Leon, making 280 or 310 significantly easier to reach.

One Manaphy and Zero Rescue Carrier

With the rise of [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] following the Europe International Championships, playing a [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] in your deck became something of a necessity. The card seems more cuttable following Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX’s lackluster performance at the Indianapolis Regional Championships, but I am not sure if that’s the way to go just yet, as a resurgence is always possible. The balance I decided on was to keep Manaphy in the deck, but not support it with any [card name=”Rescue Carrier” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card]. In fact, I would probably go so far as to claim that including Rescue Carrier would be overteching for the matchup.

Four Melony and One Raihan

The split of four [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] and a [card name=”Raihan” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] is a bit heavier than most lists, but I personally believe that it is one of the best luxury counts that comes with cutting [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card]. With more Melony alongside the increased number of ways to discard Water Energy thanks to [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] rejoining the format, the likelihood of a turn-two Melony goes up significantly, which, while it is not as significant here as it would be in a deck like [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Ludicolo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”34″ c=”name”][/card], still opens up the option to play a [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] or other Supporter later in the game, which can be a wonderful boost. As for the Raihan, that inclusion is pretty standard by now, as just doing the same thing as Melony but searching any one card rather than drawing three random cards is slightly better in some situations, so the inclusion is easily warranted.

Leon

[cardimg name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”182″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

At this point, there is not a lot more to say about [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card]. The numbers it fixes are pretty evident, with the ability to take a one-hit Knock Out on [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] being the single most significant number that it fixes. Now, you might think, with how little I have emphasized trying to fix difficult matchups, why bother with Leon at all if it is mainly for Mew VMAX? This question is fair, and I have indeed considered cutting Leon in the past. However, there are two points that have caused me to keep the card in the deck.

1. It is useful in other matchups (i.e. it lets you hit the 260 to 280 range without [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card]).
2. Unlike [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], Leon is absolutely critical to winning against Mew VMAX, regardless of if you play Path to the Peak or not. As such, it is a must-include to even have a reasonable chance.

Tool Scrapper

Since the deck was released, I have tossed and turned on whether or not [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card] is worth the inclusion. In fact, it might take the title for the card that has entered and exited my Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX deck lists the most. In the current format, I see a lot of value in Tool Scrapper, largely due to the prevalance of [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] in the Standard format, especially in [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] decks. In addition, it has the added luxury of being very good against [card name=”Exp. Share” set=”Battle Styles” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card] in [card name=”Whimsicott VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Moon & Sun Badge” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card] in [card name=”Eldegoss V” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”19″ c=”name”][/card] Stall if need be, but I would not bank on either of those being super common matchups or them being problematic to beat in the first place.

An Aside on Astral Radiance

As we wrap up the final weeks of the Brilliant Stars format’s major tournaments, with just the New Jersey and Vancouver Regional Championships remaining, it is hard to not look forward at Astral Radiance. I think this expansion brings a lot of change to the format, most of which is good change. Notably, though, this set is exceptionally good to Water-type Pokemon due to [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] being one of the expansion’s main feature cards. As such, [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] will see a variety of secondary benefits from the expansion. While many cards in the set designed for Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR are not going to be exceptionally strong, such as [card name=”Irida” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card], others will do much better. [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card], for example, will be a major boost to Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX decks, offering another way to discard Energy from the hand while also drawing some cards. However, Radiant Greninja might not even be the best Radiant Pokemon for the deck, thanks to the existence of [card name=”Radiant Hawlucha” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”81″ c=”name”][/card]. Radiant Hawlucha’s ability to make your Pokemon deal 30 extra damage to Pokemon VMAX is a game changer for Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, because it allows the deck to go from having to play [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] to reach 310 to suddenly being able to do it with just a [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] and Radiant Hawlucha. Going further, adding Leon now allows you to hit 340, which can remove the need for Quick Shooting entirely, as you can now take a one-hit Knock Out on pretty much everything in the format.

Alongside direct damage buffs, the major change for Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX will be the addition of the new Supporter card [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card]. Being reminiscent of [card name=”N” set=”Fates Collide” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card] and especially [card name=”Ace Trainer” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”69″ c=”name”][/card], Roxanne will add a whole new dimension to the format’s hand disruption. In Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX decks, this inclusion will now drastically increase the power level of [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], making it significantly harder for [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] decks to hit a counter Stadium and regain usage of their Fusion Strike System. With this tactic, you can very realistically delay the opponent just enough to take a lead, rather than just having to hope for the best off a [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card]. One major consequence of playing Path to the Peak now is that it shuts off the Abilities of Radiant Pokemon like Radiant Hawlucha, but this could also somewhat reasonably be played around with proper planning, perhaps with the inclusion of an alternate Stadium card.

Conclusion

Going into the New Jersey Regional Championships, I definitely think [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] has the potential to be an excellent play thanks to its ability to prey on Pokemon VSTAR and other Pokemon in that HP bracket. While I am not set on whether I will play it myself, it is definitely a strong consideration of mine for that exact reason. As we enter the Astral Radiance format, there will be great changes to the format as a whole, and we can certainly expect to see a surge in Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX at that time.

With that, this article comes to a close. I hope you enjoyed giving this article a read. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to reach out in the Subscriber’s Hideout, on Twitter (@ICheville), or on Facebook (Zaya Lee). Additionally, feel free to say hi if you find me at the New Jersey Regional Championships!

Until next time!

– Isaiah

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