Rule the Format – The Dawn of Palkia in the Standard Format
Hello PokeBeach readers! Isaiah here with yet another Standard format article! Last time, I talked about the power of the new [card name=”Miltank” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card] from Astral Radiance and its various applications, including a [card name=”Blissey V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”119″ c=”name”][/card] deck that used it as a powerful tech for various matchups. At the time of writing that article, the Melbourne Regional Championships were on the horizon, which have since concluded, resulting in a victory for my good friend Christian Hasbani with his [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] deck. Not just that, though, Christian was one of eight Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR decks in the Top 8 of Melbourne Regional Championships. As we head toward the back-to-back tournament weekends for the Milwaukee Regional Championships and the North America International Championships, how about we take a look at this new powerhouse and what makes Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR so great.
Introduction to Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
[cardimg name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
There is a lot to be said about Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, but the best starting point is that it is easily one of the best attackers in the Standard format and is only gatekept from being number one by how absurdly good [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] is as a card. However, while Arceus VSTAR is made strong by its Starbirth VSTAR Power, which has a strong claim to being the best Ability of all time, and access to [card name=”Double Turbo Energy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card] to power up its attack that accelerates even more Energy, Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR is much more powerful and Energy efficient than Arceus VSTAR is. Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR’s Subspace Swell is an incredible power spike on [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card]’s Blizzard Rondo, reaching the ever critical 220 damage mark at just eight total benched Pokemon, or less with various damage modifiers like [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card]. Not just that, but Subspace Swell also reaches a ceiling of a remarkable 260 damage with the full ten benched Pokemon on both sides, reaching 290 with Choice Belt and being capable of going further with cards like [card name=”Leon” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] or Quick Shooting from [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card]. Did I forget to mention that this also only costs two Water Energy? Yeah, this attack is incredible. Despite the attack being so inexpensive, you also can still play the plethora of Water-type support cards in the Standard format, most importantly [card name=”Capacious Bucket” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] to search Energy for your attachment each turn and [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] for some Energy acceleration if needed. Unbelievably, this card still gets better.
Much like every other Pokemon VSTAR, Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR has a VSTAR Power, and an incredible one at that. Star Portal allows you attach three basic Water Energy from your discard pile to your Water-type Pokemon in any way you like. A costless Energy acceleration tool like this is borderline unprecedented, with Abilities of even remotely similar caliper being on a Stage-2 Pokemon with a mediocre attack. Star Portal guarantees that you will almost never whiff the turn 2 attack if you are willing to go for it, providing instant Energy acceleration to the deck’s attackers. Oftentimes, a Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR deck will just use Star Portal to power up multiple Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR at a time, sometimes with a surplus Energy going on something like an [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] so it can use Aqua Bullet down the road. Alternatively, though, they may decide to throw three Energy on [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] so that it can swing with its incredibly powerful Moonlight Shuriken attack to two 90 to two Pokemon, which typically means that two [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] are getting Knocked Out by a single Prize attacker, which is a massive momentum swing if you can pull it off.
At this point, the general strengths of Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR should be pretty clear, being an extremely powerful attacker with multiple attacking options during any particular game. Thanks to this versatility, Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR decks were able to take up all eight of the Top 8 slots at the Melbourne Regional Championships. However, despite being the main attacker in all eight decks, there were two distinctly different variants of Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, one with [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] and one with a far more aggressive engine that features [card name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Trekking Shoes” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], a variant that many call “Turbo Palkia.” For the remainder of this article, I will be taking a look at both variants to see their respective pros and cons to determine which is the best variant going into the Milwaukee Regional Championships and the North America International Championships. With that, let’s start by looking at the more popular variant, [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card], which took up five to the Top 8 spots in Melbourne.
The First Variant: Inteleon
[cardimg name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] variant of [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] is by far the more common variant, as it was pretty much the only variant until the Melbourne Regional Championship. The Inteleon build aims to make best use of all aspects of Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, offering easy access to the various tools that the deck needs to function all while taking up space on your Bench, boosting Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR’s damage output solely by existing. The Inteleon version also can incorporate the Quick Shooting [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card] as a means of further increasing its damage output to reach for important numbers such as the ever present 310 for [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card]. Thanks to the existence of Quick Shooting and a ton of search cards, this deck can easily make massive plays with [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card]’s Moonlight Shuriken throughout the game, whether it beat a crippling double Knock Out on [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] or it is a huge four Prize Card cleanup play. Along with all of these pros, this variant is able to nicely round itself out with easy access to one of the most powerful combos in the Standard format, being [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] with the newly released [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card], which almost singlehandedly cripples many decks in the Standard format. A lot of the time you will hear people call the Inteleon version of Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR the “slow variant,” but this is misleading, as this variant is still easily capable of rushing the opponent with a massive turn 2 attack when needed.
The deck list that I will be focusing on is the one that 2019 World Champion Henry Brand played to a Top 8 finish in Australia, succumbing to eventual Regional Champion Christian Hasbani. This list is an absolutely excellent baseline list and I would most likely play something similar if I was playing this deck at the Milwaukee Regional Championships or to the North America International Championships.
Deck List
[decklist name=”palk intel” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″][pokemon amt=”18″]3x [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”39″ 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]3x [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”35″]2x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Irida” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Shining Fates” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ 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=”Capacious Bucket” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ 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=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Pal Pad” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tool Jammer” set=”Battle Styles” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Training Court” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”169″ 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
Inteleon Split
The correct Inteleon count in Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR / Inteleon decks is a pretty contentious discussion. Many players prefer two copies of the Shady Dealings Inteleon because the value of its Ability. Its attack is also way too good to pass up, and knowing that you may have to discard it at some point is enough to want to make sure you have two. However, I tend to agree more with Henry Brand’s choice to play one of each Inteleon in his deck. By doing this he gives himself more options, which I am always a fan of. In addition, Quick Shooting is just an incredible powerful Ability in decks with attacks similar to Subspace Swell, as the two Damage Counters are effectively identical to having an extra Pokemon on the Bench, which turns critical numbers like eight Pokemon for 220 damage into just seven Pokemon, which can be further reduced by [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] if needed. The split of one of each is also further justified by the inclusion of [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] as a way to recover either Inteleon if necessary.
Pal Pad
Since its debut in Flashfire, I have always been a major fan of [card name=”Pal Pad” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”172″ c=”name”][/card]. In this deck, it is no different, with three different one-of Supporter cards and multiple two-ofs that you also would want to recover. Most notably, the inclusion of Pal Pad opens up the possibility of recycling [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] for use on consecutive turns in the late game, which for a card that is crippling when used once, using it twice is even more devastating. Pal Pad recovery also gives you access to up to four [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] in a game, which is an incredibly powerful option to have, regardless of the deck.
Tool Jammer
To keep it simple, [card name=”Tool Jammer” set=”Battle Styles” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] is just a really good card. In this deck, it is not super common that you will get a one-hit Knock Out if the opponent is carefully managing their Bench size. As a result, you may be forced to play for more two-hit Knock Outs, and Tool Jammer is an excellent defensive tool to help you in this process. Tool Jammer notably shuts off the effect of Choice Belt, which means that it effectively says “if I cannot take a Knock Out in one hit, you are not allowed to either.” This is especially important in the [card name=”Regigigas” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] matchup, as turning off Choice Belt means that [card name=”Regieleki” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] is unable to take a one-hit Knock Out on a fresh Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR. In addition to being a defensive tool, it is a small piece of disruption in some situations, turning off [card name=”Air Balloon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card] as a pivot option. It can also be used as a pseudo Choice Belt in situations that it is shutting off [card name=”Big Charm” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”158″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Cape of Toughness” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card], making it an all around incredible card to include in this deck.
Stadium Lineup
The Stadium lineup in this build is a little non-standard. In many deck lists you will see two copies of [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], but Henry Brand opted to only play one copy, presumably due to space constraints, as well as the card not being super powerful outside of being paired with Roxanne or [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card]. One less common Stadium choice that we see in Henry Brand’s build, however, is [card name=”Training Court” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card]. Training Court is an all around great utility Stadium card for any deck, but in this deck it has a nice multifaceted use of being an Energy recovery option, a way to instantly use [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card]’s Concealed Cards, and a Stadium to replace Path to the Peak to enable use of Star Portal.
[premium]
The Second Variant: Turbo
[cardimg name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The Turbo variant of [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] is a bit of a unique deck. Until recently, the last time a turbo engine like this has really seen any success was with [card name=”Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], but this deck was an excellent reminder that turbo engines can still work in a format full of [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card]. Leading up to the Melbourne Regional Championships, Brent Tonisson, who finished in the Top 8 of Melbourne with the Turbo Palkia deck, looked at a [card name=”Origin Forme Dialga VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] deck that Reiji Nishiguchi used to win a large online tournament and proceeded to ask himself “what if we just played the better Astral Radiance Pokemon VSTAR? The idea of doing this was also to drastically improve the deck’s [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] matchups as well as the Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR mirror by almost guaranteeing a turn 2, 220 damage into a Pokemon V, securing a Prize card lead for the remainder of the game. In doing this Brent and others accepted that, while they did very well against the top three decks in the format, they would do poorly against most other decks, but the strategy paid off, with two of the five players in the Finals, three in the Top 8, and four in the Top 16.
As for strategy, between [card name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Trekking Shoes” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] couple with [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card], you are able to easily dig deep into your deck to find a [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”39″ c=”name”][/card] and an attachment for it to set up for a turn 2 Subspace Swell. While doing this, you also set up your discard pile with several Water Energy for Star Portal in addition to finding a [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] and an out to [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] for the turn 2 attack. After doing this, one issue that can come up is that you could easily get your Origin Forme Palkia V dragged up by a Boss’s Orders and Knocked Out by many of the attackers in the format if you went second, and this is where [card name=”Diancie” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card] comes into play. Regardless of if you are going first or second, you will always do the same amount of card drawing to secure the pieces for a turn two attack, but if you are going second specifically, your final play can easily be to drop a Diancie, send it to the Active Spot and pass, leaving the opponent unable to play Boss’s Orders on your Origin Forme Palkia V without an [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] (which can be played around by a second Diancie), [card name=”Pokémon Catcher” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card], or another dedicated tech.
The list that I have included is the exact list played by the group at the Melbourne Regional Championships. Looking at it, I honestly am unsure that I would make a single change, as it feels pretty solid as it is. While I personally prefer the Inteleon version, I also think that this variant is pretty well positioned for the Milwaukee Regional Championships and North America International Championships.
Deck List
[decklist name=”turbo palk” amt=”60″ caption=””undefined][pokemon amt=”18″]2x [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”39″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Starmie V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”30″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Diancie” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Pumpkaboo” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”76″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Capacious Bucket” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Trekking Shoes” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”150″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Air Balloon” set=”Sword and Shield” 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=”Hisuian Heavy Ball” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”10″]10x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”117″ c=”deck2″ amt=”10″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
Card Inclusions
Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR Line
One of the most bizarre card counts in this deck list is that it only plays two [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”39″ c=”name”][/card] and two [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card], but the reasoning why is fairly sound. In this deck, the worst starter, behind [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card], is Origin Forme Palkia V, as it is the only Pokemon in the entire deck that does not contribute to drawing cards or have an easy to use damaging attack on the first turn if you go second. As a result, the Australians decided to play just two copies because that is exactly how many you need in most matchups. Between the two Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR and any of various tech attackers, you should be able to handedly take all six Prize cards, and if that is not enough, then you probably were not going to win anyway.
Suicune V and Starmie V
Alongside the Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR line, this deck also includes a [card name=”Suicune V” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] and a [card name=”Starmie V” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”30″ c=”name”][/card]. Both of these attackers serve different specfic purposes with their respective attacks, but in general they both exist to be the third attacker in most matchups. Suicune V is most important in mirror matches and against [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card]. In the case of the former, with both decks being designed to fill up their Bench, a Basic Pokemon that takes advantage of that makes a lot of sense. On the other hand, Suicune V is important against Mew VMAX because it is a guaranteed option to take a Knock Out on a third [card name=”Genesect V” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card], which is one of your primary win conditions in the matchup.
Unlike Suicune V, Starmie V has a way more specific use, being relevant in almsot exclusively [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] matchups. In these games, Arceus VSTAR will almost always use three Energy to power up Trinity Nova to attach three more, which leaves exactly six Energy in play. As a result, Starmie V is able to immediately respond by doing 300 damage to Arceus VSTAR, offering both a great finisher and a great way to apply early pressure.
Galarian Zigzagoon
In an Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR deck, [card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] excels far and beyond its typical uses. As I have said previously, one of the most important things that this deck can do is a turn 2, 220 damage into a critical Pokemon V to take a massive early lead. Normally this would take a total of eight benched Pokemon, but with a [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] this drops down to seven. However, if one of your benched Pokemon is a Galarian Zigzagoon that got to use its Headbutt Tantrum, that 10 damage perfectly compliments the extra 10 damage from Choice Belt, meaning that you hit 220 damage with six benched Pokemon. This means that the opponent can have exactly the one benched Pokemon that they need to not lose the game for you to reach the one-hit Knock Out on their Pokemon V. Additionally, in the mirror, Galarian Zigzagoon allows you to hit 280 with nine total benched Pokemon and a Choice Belt, meaning that you can take a one-hit Knock Out on their Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, but they cannot take a one-hit Knock Out on yours without a Galarian Zigzagoon of their own or a Quick Shooting [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card].
Which Variant is Best?
When looking at both of the [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] variants, both decks seem like they are very clearly strong in their own ways. The [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] variant takes advantage of many of the strongest cards in the game right now to build a consistent powerhouse with a plethora of options to defeat the opponent. On the other hand, the Turbo variant is able to be super aggressive and build off of an early prize lead to take down many of the format’s top decks while also having a formidable toolbox of backup attackers to close out a game if you run out of Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR. As I have done further testing with both decks, carefully considering each variant’s pros and cons, I am fairly sure that the Inteleon variant is slightly better than the Turbo version of the deck, at least going into the two upcoming tournaments, because it has access to so many more powerful cards. While the Turbo Palkia deck is extremely powerful, its biggest issue is that it can easily lose to unexpected decks, which is a scary loss to take in a massive event like a Regional Championships or International Championships.
Now I should note, though, just because I am saying the Inteleon version of the deck is better does not mean that you should scrap the Turbo build if you have more practice with it. In the end, a major aspect of doing well in a tournament is comfort with a deck, and if Turbo Palkia is your most comfortable deck, then run with it!
Conclusion
As we head toward the Milwaukee Regional Championships and the North America International Championships, [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] is by far the top deck on most players’ minds. Due to its one-of-a-kind performance at the Melbourne Regional Championships, Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR has made itself known in the format and many players will be prepared to beat it, which will be the ultimate test to see if it is truly the best deck in the format or if it is just another Tier 1 deck.
With that, this article draws to a close. I hope this comparative article was helpful, especially if you are considering Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR for either of the events coming up. As always, if you have any questions please reach out in the Subscriber’s Hideout, on Twitter (@ICheville), or on Facebook (Zaya Lee).
Best of luck at the Milwaukee Regional Championships or North America International Championships if you are attending, and see you all next time!
– Isaiah
[/premium]
