Double Top 8 with Broken Gate

Hello everyone, today I am writing about Mirage Gate Toolbox. The Lost Zone engine has been played in several different ways since its release a short time ago. Following the release of Silver Tempest, I played a Lost Zone toolbox deck myself to get Top 4 at the Latin America International Championships in Brazil, followed by Top 8 at Toronto Regionals just a week later. The group of players that played the deck with me also saw strong finishes at these events. This deck was such a strong play primarily due to its favorable matchups against [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card], which were the two most popular decks at these events. Going forward, it remains a contender in Tier One, or Tier Two at worst.

[cardimg name=”Mirage Gate” set=”Lost Origin” no=”163″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

The cards that comprise the deck’s consistency engine integrate so well with each other. [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] are the backbone of the consistency engine. All of the search cards can find them, which makes them all into draw cards. All of the Energy cards serve as fuel for Greninja, making them into draw cards, too. Switching cards allow for extra uses of Comfey, which lets you draw more cards. [card name=”PokéStop” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card] can find switching or search cards, which end up drawing cards. Since all of these different types of cards serve as consistency boosters in addition to their normal functions, the deck becomes quite dangerous. It’s deceptively consistent, and you can get to the bottom of the deck relatively quickly by drawing so many cards.

To take advantage of such a ridiculous engine, the deck employs three insanely high-power cards: [card name=”Kyogre” set=”Celebrations” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Mirage Gate” set=”Lost Origin” no=”163″ c=”name”][/card]. Past that, you can tech for a variety of different situations or matchups. Mirage Gate and Sableye have some form of synergy with nearly every available attacker in the format. These aspects give the deck power and versatility in addition to its consistency.

However, the deck has a high skill ceiling. The deck forces dozens of tough decisions each game, and makes you meticulously plan several turns ahead, as well as manage your resources perfectly. Although this puts a lot of pressure on you, it also offers an enormous upside. If you play the deck perfectly, you’ll be able to run circles around most opponents, and will almost never lose in matchups that you are prepared for. This is enforced by the fact that it is a single-Prize deck, which naturally makes games go longer. This forces more decisions and resource management from both players, and also gives you lots of comeback potential in case things don’t start smoothly.

I am a fan of the sense of agency this deck gives the player, as opposed to a deck like Lugia VSTAR. Lugia is a powerhouse of a deck, but offers few decisions each turn, and often bricks. Many turns with Lugia could be run by a simulator, mindlessly playing out the cards in your hand. With how fast games have gone in recent formats, I’ve often been left with the feeling that skill is irrelevant in determining the outcomes of games. You have to make decisions in every game of Pokemon, but I felt that most decisions didn’t really matter all that much. Either you or your opponent drew better, and the game was over in three or four turns. Mirage Gate Toolbox feels like the complete opposite.

In short, the deck has ridiculous consistency thanks to its unique and integrated engine, crazy power due to its specific trump cards, versatility and unpredictability because of Mirage Gate, a high skill ceiling because it forces so many important decisions that directly reward your planning and skill, and favorable matchups against two of the format’s most dominant decks. It’s no surprise that my testing group has seen such astounding results with the deck.

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For all of its strengths, the deck has some weaknesses as well. The most powerful attacker in my list is [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Lost Origin” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card], which does decent damage, but imposes a hard damage cap that leaves you unable to OHKO many Pokemon. Aside from the one copy of Snorlax, the attackers do little damage upfront. Kyogre can deal up to 500 damage, but it can only target the Bench, and only at the very end of the game. It can usually only attack one time. Usually, though, this restriction on damage does not matter, as you have ways to win your relevant matchups.

However, against defensive-minded decks, such as [card name=”Duraludon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Mewtwo V-UNION” set=”Sword and Shield Black Star Promos” no=”SWSH161 ” c=”name”][/card], or anything else that can heal, you will have a lot of trouble. Furthermore, any cards that inhibit your engine will cause problems. Fringe disruption cards such as [card name=”Vikavolt V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Galarian Weezing” set=”Shining Fates” no=”42″ c=”name”][/card] completely cripple the deck. Even simple strategies such as targeting Radiant Greninja, or shutting it down with [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] can be troublesome. Finally, techs such as [card name=”Wash Water Energy” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Big Parasol” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card], or [card name=”Espeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card] are annoying because they protect opposing [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] from [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card]. If Manaphy is protected, you won’t be able to use Kyogre and will be forced to rely on backup strategies.

All of these counter cards that I mentioned would have been laughed at a week or two ago, as they were not prevalent cards in the meta. However, all of them had top finishes at the most recent Regionals. Fortunately, you can tech the Mirage Gate deck to counter most of these, but there’s only so much space for situational techs, so you will have to pick your battles and take some losses somewhere.

Here is my current list:

[decklist name=”godlike broken deck” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Kyogre” set=”Celebrations” no=”3″][pokemon amt=”15″]4x [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Kyogre” set=”Celebrations” no=”3″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Zekrom” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Lost Origin” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x [card name=”Colress’s Experiment” set=”Lost Origin” no=”155″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Klara” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”145″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Mirage Gate” set=”Lost Origin” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Switch Cart” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Recycler” set=”Battle Styles” no=”124″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Hisuian Heavy Ball” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”13″]2x [card name=”Capture Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”XY” no=”136″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”XY” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Water Energy” set=”XY” no=”134″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]Due to the various counters that exist in an ever-changing metagame, the list needs to constantly be modified, but thanks to the deck’s versatility, it can handle it. The list that I played at LAIC was good, but required some changes for Toronto, and now that list has been revised once again to its current form. This is very much a reactive deck that plays based on what your opponent does. It is also a spread deck that can punish opponents’ board states no matter what they do, but the way you go about it can vary from game to game.

[cardimg name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Your first attack or two will be with [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card], simply because you have nothing better to do at the start of the game. Cramorant deals enough damage to be relevant, setting up a KO or taking one outright. Ideally you will set up Mirage Gate one turn later, or even activate Sableye if you have a strong start. Due to the large number of Energy cards in the deck, there isn’t room for as many switching cards, so Sableye is slightly slower than it is in the non–Mirage Gate version. There are plenty of attacking options, and again, what you choose to do depends on what’s happening on your opponent’s side.

Two Comfey and Radiant Greninja are usually the first Pokemon you search out, just to get the engine going. Cramorant is the next priority, as well as Manaphy in some matchups. After your first turn or two, the deck really opens up, and you have freedom to do whatever you want because you’ve drawn so many cards. Let’s talk about the card choices.

The core engine cards are non-negotiable, including four Comfey, four [card name=”Colress’s Experiment” set=”Lost Origin” no=”155″ c=”name”][/card], Radiant Greninja, four [card name=”Scoop Up Net” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card], four Mirage Gate, and four [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”name”][/card]. You play two Cramorant because you need at least one as soon as possible every game, and you sometimes use both. Both Sableye are also used often. If one is prized, you can recover the other as needed with [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Klara” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card], or [card name=”Hisuian Heavy Ball” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card]. Sableye is the main attacker of the deck because it is so flexible in how it deals damage: it can set up KOs or finish them off. It has great synergy with Radiant Greninja and Kyogre, and follows up well after Zekrom.

[card name=”Oranguru” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] is one of the most important techs against Lugia and other decks with [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card]. Oranguru makes it so that you can put Colress’s Experiment on the top of your deck at the end of your turn, which allows you to easily recover from Marnie. Oranguru also smooths out plays involving Mirage Gate or Kyogre. I will only use it to rig Comfey’s Flower Selecting if I am sure that my opponent will not play Marnie, though.

Kyogre is the finisher in some games. Sableye can remove opposing Manaphy, which allows Kyogre to take multiple Prize cards at once. Against opponents who play around Kyogre, you may not be able to use it, but it is especially important in the Mew matchup because they cannot play around it, and it allows you to take four Prizes to end the game. This means that they will never be able to use [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] to disrupt you.

Snorlax is the deck’s [card name=”Stoutland V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] counter, along with the two copies of [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] to consistently find them. Even if Stoutland takes two Prizes, you are completely fine if you find the response KO with Snorlax. It’s also good in some other situations — it is the deck’s most powerful single-Prize option when it comes to attacking the opponent’s Active Spot. It’s also easy to use because it is not picky with its Energy requirement.

Zekrom deals tons of damage to Lugia and paralyzes it. It can also OHKO a Lugia VSTAR with a Choice Belt. Zekrom is also useful when you are forced to deal with high-HP Pokemon. Since you can use Zekrom multiple times, it forces the opponent to always have a switching card. However, it is rather situational, depending on the board state and the Lugia player’s particular list.

Manaphy is an obvious inclusion, preventing your board from being devastated by Radiant Greninja or [card name=”Raikou” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card].

[cardimg name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

[card name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ c=”name”][/card] was not in previous lists, as we were already strong enough against Mew. However, it makes its way into the list now as a counter to Lugia and Stall, and no, that’s not a joke. Lugia lists sometimes play [card name=”Espeon VMAX” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card], which is weak to Darkness. With the new addition of [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card], Drapion can dispose of Espeon. This is a high-maintenance play that requires Boss and two Mirage Gates, but the massive reward of three Prize cards is well worth it. Furthermore, removing Espeon activates Zekrom and Sableye for an easy checkmate. Drapion is also a much-needed counter to [card name=”Mewtwo V-UNION” set=”Sword and Shield Black Star Promos” no=”SWSH160 ” c=”name”][/card], turning that matchup from an auto-loss into an auto-win.

[card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] is primarily included to target Espeon, but it’s a strong card in its own right, and has synergy with Kyogre. Boss can allow for more powerful Kyogre plays, since Kyogre can only hit the Bench. Boss can also be used to strand something in the Active, or to choose who to paralyze with Zekrom. Finally, Boss counters [card name=”Eiscue” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”47″ c=”name”][/card] quite well combined with [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card]. It is exceptionally rare that opponents will set up a board state with lone Eiscue amidst the pressure you apply. They also might not expect you to play a Boss. [card name=”Temple of Sinnoh” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”155″ c=”name”][/card] is technically a stronger Eiscue counter, but Boss’s other uses make it better overall.

[card name=”Klara” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”145″ c=”name”][/card] was in the LAIC list but got cut from the Toronto list, a decision I later regretted. Klara is incredibly handy. Oftentimes you will prize or Lost Zone an Ordinary Rod, and find yourself low on recovery later on. Klara allows you to chain Sableye for checkmates. It also recovers Radiant Greninja if the opponent targets it. Finally, getting back Energy can help draw more cards with Radiant Greninja, or set up a Mirage Gate play by getting your desired Energy attachment directly to hand (for Radiant Greninja or Zekrom, or putting it back into the deck with Oranguru).

I’ve cut cards that were underwhelming, such as [card name=”Bird Keeper” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card] and PokéStop. The cards are not bad, but too often found their way into the Lost Zone. They were only impactful in a small number of games. You can play them to increase consistency, but the current list has more techs to deal with meta-specific threats.

Matchups

Lugia – Favorable

Lugia lists can have a variety of techs, such as [card name=”Dunsparce” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”207″ c=”name”][/card], Manaphy, Espeon VMAX, Stoutland V, switch cards, Raikou, or high counts of Marnie. You must be mindful of all of them, and games play out slightly differently depending on what techs your opponent plays. The main constant of the matchup is Stoutland V. Your opponent will probably get two Prizes with it, and you need to immediately respond with Snorlax and Choice Belt. If they do not have access to a switching card on the following turn, using Zekrom to paralyze the Stoutland is also acceptable.

[cardimg name=”Stoutland V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”117″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Playing Snorlax on the Bench preemptively is usually fine: you don’t want to keep Snorlax in hand too long and let it get sent to the bottom by a Marnie. Opponents won’t target the Snorlax because it is an inefficient use of resources on their part, and they don’t have a good way to KO it anyway. Risking Lugia in the Active Spot is bad, [card name=”Archeops” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] requires [card name=”Powerful Colorless Energy” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”176″ c=”name”][/card] that Stoutland also needs, and [card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card] is too expensive at the beginning of the game.

I usually prioritize setting up Oranguru, especially if I have Colress’s Experiment in hand for next turn. Lugia players love to spam Marnie against you, and you don’t want to be caught with your pants down. You only need Manaphy if your opponent plays Raikou, but you won’t know if they play it ahead of time. Lists seem to be moving away from it, but it can destroy you if you aren’t prepared for it. Typically I will put Manaphy on the Bench if I have a strong start and it won’t inconvenience me too much, but I won’t prioritize it over the more important Pokemon. If Manaphy doesn’t come onto the Bench immediately, it’s an acceptable risk. You only get punished if the opponent plays Raikou and manages to set it up on turn two.

If I have the Radiant Greninja play on the turn after they establish two Archeops, I will sometimes go for that and then KO both Archeops with Sableye on the following turn. This is a strong play that cripples them for the entire game, but of course it is extremely situational. If they play Manaphy early, you’ll have to deal with that first. If they are attacking with Stoutland, putting down the dog takes priority. If you get Cramorant’s free 110 damage on a Lugia and they attack with that Lugia, Snorlax is the ideal finisher in that situation. They won’t use Stoutland to take out Snorlax, so you’ll have at least two turns to recover it in preparation for the Stoutland. If they attack with a clean Lugia, use Zekrom.

Sableye can easily KO Manaphy or Dunsparce. It can also set up for Kyogre plays later in the game. However, it is vulnerable to Stoutland. How and when you use Sableye depends on how the game goes. If they have Espeon VMAX, you may try to set up the Drapion V play. Of course, that is a bit of an ask, but if you pull it off, you pretty much win instantly.

Sometimes they attack with Archeops, [card name=”Yveltal” set=”Shining Fates” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card], Charizard, or [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card]. These attackers don’t force a specific response, so just do whatever you want; or rather, whatever is best based on the situation.

Kyogre sometimes makes its way into the Lugia matchup, and sometimes it doesn’t. It just depends. Always keep the Kyogre play available, look for spots to use it, and force your opponent to respect it.

Mew – Favorable

[cardimg name=”Kyogre” set=”Celebrations” no=”3″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Mew matches are almost always won with Kyogre for four Prizes. You essentially win when you take two Prizes via other means, as Kyogre will finish things off. Don’t take your third Prize until the turn that you win, because then you are just asking to lose to Roxanne.

The easiest ways to take the first two Prizes are with Drapion V, or with two Sableye attacks on a [card name=”Genesect V” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card]. If the opponent plays exceptionally well, they will force more interactions by keeping their board out of range of Kyogre. This is very difficult, as it forces them to play with two Genesect and evolve several Mew, as well as use Psychic Leap multiple times. In that case, you should still win, but you may need to set up Mew VMAX with damage counters via Sableye.

You want to draw through your deck aggressively while spreading damage and preparing for the Kyogre endgame. Sometimes you can lose if they lock you with Path, spam Marnie, and take out your Greninja. Admittedly, the current list is greedy with zero Stadiums, but Mew cannot keep Path in play for long, as they need their own Abilities in order to function. Since the single-Prize nature of this deck makes games go longer, there will certainly be turns where there is no Path in play. Oranguru is incredibly important in this matchup, though it is useless against the [card name=”Judge” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”235″ c=”name”][/card] version of Mew.

Other Lost Zone decks – Even

This matchup is just a bloodbath of Sableye trades. Choose to go second, as you want to be the first one with ten cards in the Lost Zone to start using Sableye. Occasionally, going second will also reward you with a Prize lead thanks to turn-one Cramorant. If you are going first, end your turn with a high-HP Pokemon in the Active so that they will not get a Prize lead with Cramorant. You also want a high-HP Pokemon on your Bench in case of Escape Rope. Radiant Greninja is in play normally, and you could also have Snorlax on the board. Oranguru is a bit risky since some other lists may play [card name=”Galarian Zigzagoon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card].

Sableye takes out their Manaphy, and Radiant Greninja can take multiple Prizes at once. Those are your two main attackers in this matchup. Snorlax is occasionally used as well. Try to play around Roxanne by thinning your deck. Oranguru helps banish dead cards to the Lost Zone by rigging your uses of Comfey. If you are against a version with Radiant Greninja (as opposed to Charizard), try to keep Manaphy on your Bench at all times. If they leave too much excess damage on your field, you can heal with [card name=”Switch Cart” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] or Scoop Up Net to punish their Sableye.

Conclusion

This deck is incredible, but perhaps one of the most difficult decks to play ever. I enjoy brain-melting decks like this because it rewards planning and creativity, but it certainly requires some practice. That said, the upside is that you have a ridiculously good deck that can do whatever you want and win most matchups. The list constantly undergoes changes, so feel free to experiment and tech various counters. Just make sure that you slaughter Lugia. I played against nearly 20 Lugia across two events and only lost to three, with two of them being in Brazil where the list was less prepared to deal with Stoutland.

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