Return from a Different Dimension — Lost Zone Giratina is Back

Hello PokeBeach readers! Isaiah here, and I am happy to be writing another article for you. Last time, I talked about some of the key new cards in the Paldea Evolved expansion, such as [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Reversal Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card] as well as a bit about one of my favorite new archetypes, [card name=”Chien-Pao ex” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Baxcalibur” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card], a deck which I still consider to be one of the top decks in the current format. As of now, I would say this deck is still one of my top picks, largely because [card name=”Blastoise” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”31″ c=”name”][/card] was one of my favorite decks when I was younger, but also because I think the deck is capable of making an incredibly deeper run with reasonably good matchups against most of the decks in the current Standard format.

As the format continues to develop within its infancy, we are slowly starting to see the meta take shape. As expected, the deck to beat continues to be [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] with the release of Iono and a reprint of [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”name”][/card] propelling the deck into the stratosphere when it comes to the deck’s position in the metagame. With an effective game plan against almost every deck in the format, the deck does give off the illusion of it being almost unbeatable, but that is not exactly the case either. Just like in the Scarlet and Violet format, Lost Zone decks continue to give Gardevoir ex some problems, but to a far lesser extent than before, largely thanks to Iono. The combination of [card name=”Judge” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”176″ c=”name”][/card] (or Iono) and [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] also continues to give the deck trouble, but this particular combo seems to be a bit less popular now than it was last format, possibly due to the emergence of [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card], which makes hard counter decks to [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] a bit less valuable. However, to the surprise of some, Mew VMAX is still extremely strong with the [card name=”Fusion Strike Energy” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”244″ c=”name”][/card] build thanks to its immunity to Spiritomb should the opponent play it. The ever present [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] also seems to be sticking around, and as a natural beneficiary to less Path to the Peak, the deck is poised to do quite well at upcoming events in this format.

All of this brings us to one final deck that I want to take a look at, and that is Lost Zone [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card], the main topic of this article. Seemingly out of nowhere, Giratina VSTAR has seemed to star popping up again as a potentially strong deck in the format after over six months of being considered borderline unplayable or just strictly worse than its [card name=”Arceus VSTAR” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] cousin. In order to best understand what has changed for Giratina VSTAR, we first need to take a step back and look at what went wrong for it in the first place.

What Went Wrong for Giratina VSTAR?

[cardimg name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”212″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

When Lost Origin first released, the community was heavily divided on the best way to use the new Lost Zone cards. On one side of the argument were people arguing in favor of [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card] decks, which largely benefitted from being strong against two of the best decks in the previous format, [card name=”Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card]. The fast Sableye strategy proved to be highly effective and it led to Tord Reklev winning the Peoria Regional Championships, which was the first major tournament where Lost Origin was legal. Also at Peoria, we saw a large amount of success from Giratina VSTAR. This deck was largely good because of its sheer damage output, almost completely invalidating most Arceus VSTAR strategies which had been at the top of the Astral Radiance format. It also benefitted from [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] and its own Sableye to be able to have competitive games with single Prize attackers, such as the other Lost Zone decks.

Unfortunately, while it saw some consistent success in that format, Giratina VSTAR never was quite good enough to win a Regional Championship, largely due to the card itself actually not being all that great. While Star Requiem is an absolutely absurd attack that almost singlehandedly makes the deck good, Lost Impact is rather lacking, aside from doing a massive amount of damage. In the past, I have talked about cards doing “too much damage” referring to the idea that attacks that do massive amounts of damage typically have big drawbacks that you would rather avoid in exchange for doing a little less damage, and that was exactly Giratina VSTAR’s problem in that format. It did not really do anything special, only acting as a big attacker in a format with Mew VMAX or Radiant Charizard around to take big Knock Outs instead. The card just had an inherent flaw where it was not good enough at doing what it was designed for.

Then came the next format, Silver Tempest, and in this format, Giratina VSTAR’s problem went from being a minor issue that did not completely invalidate the deck, to now being a problem so massive that the deck was basically unplayable. Between having a very difficult time taking a Knock Out on Lugia VSTAR and struggling to keep up with cards like [card name=”Yveltal” set=”Shining Fates” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card], the format advanced so far beyond Giratina VSTAR that it just could not possibly try to keep up with an extremely fast metagame. Giratina VSTAR would ultimately need a format that was slower, similar to the Lost Origin format, in order to truly shine again.

What changed for Giratina VSTAR?

In the Paldea Evolved format, following the rotation of the early Sword and Shield sets as well as the release of various game slowing cards like Iono, Giratina VSTAR may have finally found its foot in the meta again. Lost Impact still has the issue of doing too much damage, possibly even being worse of an issue now than it was in the Lost Origin format, but Star Requiem continues to be an extremely strong attack and the addition of Iono in place of [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] from deck lists in the past is a perfect way to open the doors for Giratina VSTAR once again.

Mew VMAX continues to be one of the deck’s best matchups, often locking up the game with either the combination of [card name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ c=”name”][/card] and Star Requiem or just using Spiritomb to get ahead. The Gardevoir ex matchup, while not easy by any means, is very winnable, acting as a Lost Zone deck in the early game before switching to taking a one-hit Knock Out on Gardevoir ex toward the end of the game to swing the Prize trade. Lost Zone decks still can be a bit annoying, but with a few [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card] and Sableye, you can keep up before using an Iono and a Giratina VSTAR to swing the Prize trade back in your favor. Finally, of course, is the deck’s biggest adversary, Lugia VSTAR, which continues to be a bit of a difficult matchup. But Lugia VSTAR decks in general are much weaker now than they were in the Silver Tempest format, which allows for Giratina VSTAR to gain some footing to keep up with Lugia VSTAR’s power for most of the game. All of a sudden, every matchup in the format has become winnable, which should be plenty of a case to justify playing Giratina VSTAR once again.

With a case built for Giratina VSTAR’s redemption, how about we take a better look at a deck list for it and what makes it tick.

Giratina VSTAR Deck List

With the way I have been talking, I am sure you have picked up on the way that [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] decks tend to work in the current format. The early game is very similar to that of any other Lost Zone deck, using a few [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Colress’s Experiment” set=”Lost Origin” no=”155″ c=”name”][/card] to get things started until you hit seven cards in the Lost Zone to activate [card name=”Mirage Gate” set=”Lost Origin” no=”163″ c=”name”][/card]. Once Mirage Gate is online, the deck starts to get much more complex. With many more attacks at your disposal, it becomes important to properly manage all of the resources that the deck has in order to use them in the most effective way to take all of your Prize cards.

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While the deck is not trying to do some big huge [card name=”Kyogre” set=”Celebrations” no=”3″ c=”name”][/card] combo, it does still take a great deal of skill to properly manage all of the things that the deck needs to do in order to win the game, as one minor misstep often can be game losing. More often than not, you are also going to try to give up a few Prizes early on, so that on an explosive turn with multiple Mirage Gate, you can proceed to [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] the opponent to a small hand size. As a result, they struggle to handle the damage that Giratina VSTAR is able to produce on consecutive turns. Alternatively, depending on the matchup, an Iono to a low number of hand cards, paired with a few Lost Mine attacks is often enough to decimate about any strategy, but especially the more frail ones like [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] or Lost Zone decks. This deck list is heavily influenced by one that I received recently from my friend Aaron Friedman.

Deck List

[decklist name=”giratina” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″][pokemon amt=”16″]4x [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Giratina V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/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]1x [card name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]4x [card name=”Colress’s Experiment” set=”Lost Origin” no=”155″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Boss’s Orders (Ghetsis)” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Mirage Gate” set=”Lost Origin” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”194″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”181″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”196″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”176″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]3x [card name=”Beach Court” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”167″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”3″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”13″]5x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”5″][/card]4x [card name=”Grass Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”115″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Jet Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”190″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Card Inclusions

One Cramorant and Two Sableye

Ever since the Peoria Regional Championships, I have tossed and turned on whether it is better to play two [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card] or two [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card]. I think it is extremely difficult to fit two of both in the deck, unfortunately, so one of the two has to give. In the past, I have always leaned towards two Cramorant, but in the current format, two Sableye feels correct. Way too many decks right now play [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card], which is a great option to bring up after an [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] so that you are not severely punished with a free Knock Out. As such, the second Cramorant loses a lot of the value that it had. The second Sableye is a super valuable card against other Lost Zone decks, against Gardevoir ex decks, and really just against the whole format. The card is very good for setting up easier one-hit Knock Outs, which is exactly what this deck needs sometimes. Going forward, I see myself trying to find myself a space for two of each, but as of now, I have settled with just one Cramorant for the reasons above.

Radiant Greninja (and no Water Energy)

There really is not a lot to say on this one other than that Concealed Cards is an absolutely insane ability for a Basic Pokemon, and it is absolutely a staple of this deck. Unfortunately, with the release of [card name=”Jet Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”190″ c=”name”][/card] (a card which I will touch on later), it is quite difficult to fit the Water Energy needed to use Moonlight Shuriken, but with so many Manaphy in the current format, the card loses a lot of its luster anyway, so the change could not have happened at a better time.

Drapion V

[cardimg name=”Drapion V” set=”Crown Zenith GG” no=”GG49″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

I am sure it is a bit surprising to see a [card name=”Drapion V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”118″ c=”name”][/card] in this deck, but rest assured, it is for a good reason. This deck has such a rock solid game plan against [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] as is, adding the variable of having to keep something fringe alive while trying to take ineffective trades just never feels like it is a worthwhile outcome to me, instead preferring to go all in and win fast. I also feel that the ability to use Drapion V to take a one-hit Knock Out on a Gardevoir ex is a very valuable play as well, so I feel the decision is more than worth it.

The one use that I do want to point out for Spiritomb, is that it pairs very nicely with Iono, creating a pseudo Path to the Peak for the sake of matchups like [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card].

Switch

This particular decision is not super significant, but I did feel that it was at least somewhat worth speaking on. In a deck with Evolution Pokemon, I believe it is very important to play [card name=”Switch” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”194″ c=”name”][/card] instead of [card name=”Switch Cart” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] in order to make sure that you can always move your Giratina VSTAR when needed. While the loss of the extra healing is certainly unfortunate, it is not exactly a make or break on the deck’s matchups either, so I believe the change is strictly a positive.

Ultra Ball

Ever since this deck came out, I have always been an advocate for playing some number of [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”196″ c=”name”][/card] as an additional way to find your Giratina VSTAR rather than having to bank on drawing it with some Comfey or Colress’s Experiment. As of right now I only have one copy, which is probably plenty fine, but going forward I want to look into a second copy of the card.

Choice Belt

In this deck, we are only capable of hitting 280 damage without additional Sableye pings, which creates an ineffective trade against top decks like Lugia VSTAR. That is where [card name=”Choice Belt” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”176″ c=”name”][/card]comes in, allowing the deck to finally reach for some numbers that were previously quite difficult to attain. This tech has performed incredibly well and is absolutely worth its place in this deck list.

Beach Court

A lot of deck lists for Giratina VSTAR that I have seen lately have been playing [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] and I am really not sure why. I guess it is for the combo with Iono, but even then it does not feel particularly valuable most of the time. Instead, I chose to play a few [card name=”Beach Court” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”167″ c=”name”][/card] as Stadium bumps to use Drapion V against Path to the Peak in Mew VMAX decks, while also having it be a fairly strong utility card when trying to set up. In the future I could see going down to just two copies, possibly for a [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card], but for now I do like three copies of Beach Court quite a bit.

Four Jet Energy

As the only card that is completely functionally new to this deck from Paldea Evolved, it felt highly important to speak on [card name=”Jet Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”190″ c=”name”][/card]. This card is absolutely incredible in Lost Zone decks, turning a board of three Comfey into three uses of Flower Selecting without requiring a single switch Trainer card in the process, which is something that is exceptionally valuable when trying to race for seven in the Lost Zone for Mirage Gate or maybe even ten for an early Sableye. At first, four copies may certainly seem excessive (at least, that is what I initially thought), but after some messing with the list, I realized that four is perfect. With a Colorless Energy cost in Lost Impact’s attack, the card never reduces the consistency of a Lost Impact, barring a really unfortunate series of events, and it also acts as a way to immediately get Giratina VSTAR into the Active Spot once it is ready to battle.

Additionally, while not a huge deal, being able to use a Jet Eenrgy to Abyss Seeking with ease on turn 2 in matchups where it is affordable can be quite valuable, and is absolutely a play to think about when navigating the earliest parts of the game.

Conclusion

After a long time being considered unviable, it is always special to see a cool deck come back into the format, especially one as interesting as Giratina VSTAR is. The deck is certainly poised to do great things, and I am ecstatic to see the deck finally returning to its former glory in the Standard format.

With that, this article draws to a close. As always, I hope you enjoyed giving this article a read, as Giratina VSTAR is one of my favorite decks from the last year, so getting to write about it in this format feels extra special. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me in the Subscriber’s Hideout, on Twitter (@ICheville), or on Facebook (Zaya_Lee).

Until next time!

– Isaiah

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