Darkness Approaches — Banette ex Emerges from the Shadows

Hello PokeBeach readers! Isaiah here, and I am happy to be writing another article for you all! Last time, I talked a lot about [card name=”Iron Hands ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card] and its position in the metagame across a variety of archetypes, making special note of specifically Owyn Kamerman’s big win at the Dortmund Regional Championships a few weeks ago with [card name=”Chien-Pao ex” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card].

[cardimg name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”269″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

This weekend at the Utrecht Special Event, we saw a few weird things happen, with one of the stand-out decks being Tord Reklev’s bizarre [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] deck, but another stand-out aspect of the event was the repeat champion. Unfortunately for the legacy of Iron Hands ex, Owyn Kamerman decided to switch to the [card name=”Fusion Strike Energy” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”244″ c=”name”][/card] variant of [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card], further padding the resume for an archetype that is certainly in the conversation for being the greatest archetype of all time. Chien-Pao ex was not nonexistent at the top tables, though, finishing in the Top 4 of the event, falling victim to [card name=”Roaring Moon ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card]. Other than these decks, a [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] and a few Charizard ex decks round out the Top 8 of the event, allowing Europe to leave the Paradox Rift format with relatively few genuine surprises.

With the Goiânia Regional Championship in Brazil on the horizon, I imagine much of the format will continue in the same direction it has been. Considering that Charizard ex is historically popular with some of Brazil’s best players, I would certainly expect to see the deck make multiple deep runs in the event, which will certainly affect the Vancouver Regional Championships at the end of the month.

Following the conclusion of the Knoxville Regional Championships a while back, I felt kind of lost. I am not a huge fan of this format, or, rather, it has gotten a bit stale after playing the same format for around five months now. Unfortunately, I cannot start testing post-rotation much because I have the Vancouver Regional Championships left to prepare for, and I am not even going to the Europe International Championships anyway, so preparing for a format that is going to change so dramatically before I get the chance to play it at tournaments feels pointless anyway. As such, I have started to look at more fun and interesting strategies, as I realistically expect to fall back onto a deck that I am already comfortable with, such as Charizard ex, if I cannot find anything else that I want to try.

In doing this, I stumbled upon one new deck that has caught my attention, and that is [card name=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card]. First piloted by Mateusz Łaszkiewicz way back in October before Paradox Rift even released, the deck caught my attention even back then, and Nathaniel Kaplan’s run with the deck at the Toronto Regional Championships, while underwhelming, started to make me think that the archetype had some potential. I also knew that I had no more events to play until early 2024 when that happened, so I did not play as much Pokemon for the months following Toronto while I finished school. Mateusz’s Top 32 finish at the Dortmund Regional Championship last month, however, reminded me that the deck existed again and I decided that I would start trying it out. To my surprise, the deck was much better than I expected, and I think that the deck might be one of this format’s hidden gems that could be a fun, solid play before rotation, especially if the Vancouver Regional Championship is an all-or-nothing event for you. Currently, I have made a few changes to Mateusz’s initial decklist, so I will start with that before going into why I think the deck is so strong.

Without further ado, here is my updated Banette ex deck list.

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Updated Banette ex

[cardimg name=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”229″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

At its core, Banette ex is an Item lock deck, much like [card name=”Seismitoad-EX” set=”Furious Fists” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card] was, or its more recent alternative, [card name=”Vikavolt V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card]. An overwhelming majority of the time, the words “Everlasting Darkness” should be stated to end your turn, and if you are not doing that, you are likely playing the deck wrong. Obviously, some matchups do not require this, something that I will address a bit later, but for most matchups this remains true. As a result, most of the Trainer cards in this deck serve the express purpose of helping you find the pieces to use Everlasting Darkness starting from the second turn of the game and continuing until you can seamlessly close out the game with other attacks. The [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card] draw engine is a critical piece to this deck, first and foremost as a draw engine, but also for the power of [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] and even [card name=”Ralts” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”67″ c=”name”][/card]. I think that the core base of Mateusz’s deck list was almost perfect, but the biggest uncertainty that I have had is about the inclusion of [card name=”Trekking Shoes” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card]. While this card is inherently good in this deck, I do think that the initial decklist is missing some potentially important cards, such as [card name=”Hisuian Heavy Ball” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card], that can easily be added by removing some of the copies of Trekking Shoes, if not all of them. I have been slow about removing the Trekking Shoes from my decklist, currently sitting at two copies, but I think that I could see myself getting down to zero copies before I stop playing the deck.

Deck List

[decklist name=”banette” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”88″][pokemon amt=”20″]3x [card name=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Banette” set=”Lost Origin” no=”73″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Shuppet” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”87″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Ralts” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”67″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mew ex” set=”151″ no=”151″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”34″]4x [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Shining Fates” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ 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=”Fog Crystal” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”196″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Trekking Shoes” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Hisuian Heavy Ball” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Calamitous Wasteland” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”175″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”6″]6x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”119″ c=”deck2″ amt=”6″][/card][/energy][/decklist]

Critical Cards

Banette

[cardimg name=”Banette” set=”Lost Origin” no=”73″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

While Banette ex is the heart and soul of the deck, many of this deck’s most powerful plays are possible because of [card name=”Banette” set=”Lost Origin” no=”73″ c=”name”][/card]. Cards like [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] are integral to the deck’s primary win conditions and having Banette as a way to recover a copy of either is huge. The recovery itself, while important, is not the most important aspect of the card, however. It is far from uncommon that you will have the game-winning Boss’s Orders in your hand already, but with your ten-card hand, it is almost a guarantee that your opponent will play an [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card], causing the card to go to the bottom of the deck, and this is where Banette comes in, as it can be put in play before the opponent gets the chance to Iono you, meaning that no amount of disruption can cause you to miss that Boss’s Orders. By doing this, you also can better set up checkmates with cards like [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”name”][/card]. Using the same Boss’s Orders example, you can sometimes Super Rod back Banette alongside an attacker like a [card name=”Gardevoir ex ” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card] while your deck is small enough that you will either be able to draw into them all with Refinement the next turn, or the opponent is guaranteed to Iono you. Banette is essentially this deck’s ACE SPEC before they make their upcoming return in Temporal Forces, and understanding how to use this card effectively is one of the key components to becoming a master at this deck.

The Gardevoir Line

As much as this deck is a Banette deck, the deck certainly would not be able to exist without this entire line. [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card], naturally, is the core of the deck’s draw engine. While the deck has some solid draw Supporters, being able to still draw cards while playing Boss’s Orders or [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] is important too. Not only that, but Kirlia also helps you weed out the “bad” cards in your deck in specific matchups, being everything from your extra [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”name”][/card] to something like [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] against a deck with no Pokemon V. Something important to keep in mind with Kirlia, though, is that sometimes the weakest card in your hand is not always the best card to get rid of. For example, I frequently discard Banette with Refinement throughout a game because I know I can get it back later and sometimes saving something like a [card name=”Fog Crystal” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card] for later is often important. Kirlia is also important for discarding Psychic Energy for Gardevoir ex. Gardevoir ex serves so many purposes in this deck, but the most important one is that it is how you close out most games.

The game plan in an incredibly large number of matchups is to set up the board so that you can take all of your Prize cards with Gardevoir ex in less time than the opponent needs to win the game. For a simple example, if a [card name=”Gholdengo ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] has taken two Prize cards, you will want to take two Prize cards with Banette ex and then slowly set up enough damage on two more Gholdengo ex so that you can use Miracle Force on the first one and then again on the second one while the opponent is unable to take all four of their remaining Prizes. Gardevoir ex is also a key pivot card for the deck, allowing you to instantly retreat a Pokemon that the opponent tries to Boss’s Orders to break Item lock while still saving a Professor Turo’s Scenario. Finally, [card name=”Ralts” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”67″ c=”name”][/card] and its Memory Skip are surprisingly important against [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] decks if they set up an attacker, denying them the ability to attack with a Charizard ex on back-to-back turns.

Calamitous Wasteland

[cardimg name=”Calamitous Wasteland” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”175″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

I am sure many readers have never even seen this card, but [card name=”Calamitous Wasteland” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card] is a huge part of this deck’s strategy in many matchups. One of the most stand-out matchups for this card is Lost Zone decks, especially decks like Aidan Khus’ second-place deck list from the Knoxville Regional Championship. These decks typically play low counts of Stadium cards, meaning that Calamitous Wasteland can easily stick for a few turns, and they typically play few Energy because they use switching effects to move around the board. In these cases, you are typically able to trap [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] for a few turns while you slowly set up damage on a variety of Pokemon, and if they do retreat, they lose two Energy in the process — as long as you maintain Item lock, they cannot play their own [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”name”][/card], essentially causing the opponent to lose their Energy permanently. In reality, this card is relevant in any matchup where the opponent plays a Basic Pokemon in their deck, and considering that you need to have a Basic Pokemon in your deck for a deck to be legal, it should be quite easy to understand why it is good. An important thing to note, however, is that Calamitous Wasteland also increases your own Pokemon’s Retreat Cost, so make sure you have a way to move a Pokemon in the event the opponent plays a Boss’s Orders.

Radiant Alakazam

If you were to ask me what my favorite card in Standard is right now, it is without a doubt [card name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ c=”name”][/card]. Ever since I first used it with [card name=”Articuno” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”36″ c=”name”][/card] at the 2022 Toronto Regional Championships, this card has been one of my favorite cards to play with as a way to lock the opponent out of a game or as a unique tool to set up math. In this deck, Radiant Alakazam fills both of these roles, allowing you to trap something in the Active for sometimes ten or more turns while you slowly set up so much damage on the opponent’s board that they are unable to handle you attacking several turns in a row. Using the previous Gholdengo ex example, you often trap a Gholdengo ex for 23 turns in a row while it slowly accumulates 10 damage at a time, allowing you to pick off some Pokemon on their Bench while setting up the math to win the game. Radiant Alakazam is sometimes a double-edged sword, though, as its Retreat Cost of two can be problematic at times. As such, you mustn’t place it on your Bench without a Kirlia in play or a Professor Turo’s Scenario in your hand unless it is absolutely necessary, as you can easily cause yourself to miss Item lock for a turn, which can sometimes be game losing. Additionally, Mind Ruler is a surprisingly powerful attack in this deck, offering a way to do reasonable damage on a Pokemon that only gives up one Prize card, but this comes up fairly infrequently, so I would not expect this to be a core part of any game plans.

Why Is This Deck Good?

[cardimg name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

At first, I thought this deck was mainly good against decks like [card name=”Gholdengo ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] which are so heavily reliant on Item cards that they completely fall apart, but as I have played the deck more, I have come to understand that the deck has a lot of things going for it. For the last decade, the most important part of any Pokemon deck has been its Item cards, and losing aspect to this integral component in deck building can cause decks to collapse quite easily. Decks like [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] which seem impossible to beat with an unfathomably high HP stat and unfavorable typing are still solid matchups because, a majority of the time, the opponent cannot get their Charizard ex into play. Even something like [card name=”Roaring Moon ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”124″ c=”name”][/card] still has weak points with Basic Pokemon that are hard to retreat under Item lock and high attack costs. Item lock is simply so strong that the deck would probably be good even without all of the outside components that it has going for it. The card that pulls this deck together is Radiant Alakazam. I am fairly confident that this deck would simply not exist if this card did not exist, but being able to trap a Pokemon for ten or more turns at a time in some cases is so strong that some strategies fold instantly when you play your first [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”132″ c=”name”][/card]. Not only that, but the card is also perfect for setting up incredible power plays for your attackers to swoop in and close out a victory before the opponent knows what hit them. I honestly do believe that this deck has a lot of unseen potential, and I wish that more people were willing to play the deck.

Not Forgetting the Flaws

With that said, the deck has some cons, and it would be unwise for me to skip over them. The biggest problem is the deck’s Gardevoir ex matchup. Unless the opponent plays into a [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] lock, you do not have any good game plans in the matchup other than hoping that Item lock sticks, but if the opponent plays [card name=”Cresselia” set=”Lost Origin” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] the game can end instantly if the opponent knows how to use it effectively, largely because it buys so much time. I usually have the most success in this matchup by trying to race to take all of my Prize cards as fast as possible, but this usually is not enough unless the opponent has a slow start or misses some critical [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card]s. [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] is also hard, but more in the sense that you can easily lose if you do not play incredibly well, and the same requirement falls on the opponent. I think this matchup is by far the hardest in terms of how it tests your skill, so I also think that it is by far the most important matchup to devote time to learning. With that said, I have been playing this deck for about a month now, and I still do not feel like I understand this matchup. Conversely, if the opponent is not prepared or does not understand how your deck works, you can capitalize on their misplays, especially if they misuse Star Requiem.

Crucial Matchups

While I could elaborately explain what I have learned about every matchup, that would cause this article to be way too long, so I am going to stick to a brief version, highlighting the main aspects of some of the biggest matchups that you need to be prepared for.

Roaring Moon ex

[card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] cannot accelerate to itself while [card name=”Spiritomb” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] is in play. Use this to your advantage by trapping it with [card name=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ c=”name”][/card] while you slowly set up to take all of your Prize cards across two turns.

Mew VMAX

Spiritomb plus trapping [card name=”Genesect V” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] is essentially a death sentence here, especially since they cannot play [card name=”Power Tablet” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”236″ c=”name”][/card]. Do not worry about keeping your Banette ex undamaged, always prioritize using Boss’s Orders if a [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] is Active. They will eventually miss or run out of Energy, which is your signal to set up a checkmate.

Charizard ex

Prioritize Knocking Out [card name=”Pidgey” set=”151″ no=”16″ c=”name”][/card] unless [card name=”Charmeleon ” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”8″ c=”name”][/card]hits the board, then hunt it down. If they can establish [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card], Memory Skip is critical to force the opponent to burn resources. If you can trick them into burning their [card name=”Switch” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”194″ c=”name”][/card] while [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card], or [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] are on the board, you win instantly with [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card].

Gholdengo ex and Chien-Pao ex

These matchups are almost identical — let them run themselves out of Energy because they cannot recover them under Item lock.

Lost Zone

Both [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] and other Lost Zone decks play low counts of their actual attackers, so take advantage of this by KOing them under Item lock, giving you even more time to rack up damage on the board. Trapping with [card name=”Calamitous Wasteland” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card] is critical in these matchups.

Conclusion

Overall, I think that [card name=”Banette ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] is an extremely underrated archetype in this current format, offering a unique way to cripple most of the format’s most powerful strategies. With the final Regional Championships of the Paradox Rift format on the horizon, I would not be surprised if a bold player decided to try and make a deep run with the archetype.

With that, this article comes to a close. If you made it this far, I sincerely appreciate you giving this article a read, as I am especially passionate about this deck and I desperately want it to succeed. As always, if you have questions, do not hesitate to reach out to me in the comments or on social media.

Until next time!

– Isaiah

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