Hard Knox — Final Thoughts for Tennessee

By: Caleb Gedemer · Posted Posted onOct 10, 2019 at 10:56 PM · 0 Comments

[cardimg name=”Slowbro” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”43″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

A lot has happened since the first major Regionals in the new format. We went from what was expected to be a fairly certain metagame to one filled will multiple ways to play top tier decks and no general concensus on the most optimal versus of many different lists. First, three truths, dispelling three myths:

The Three Myths

“Play What You’re Comfortable With.”

This is a affirmative statement, one that doesn’t challenge you to take risks and get better at the game. While playing what you know will often grant you a higher probabibility of winning a certain amount of games, it’s likely that a better deck would accomplish the same thing, but have a higher ceiling (granted you may not play it as well but at least you’ll have the chance to.) However, get comfortable with the deck you do decide to play. Very often, “play what you’re comfortable” and being comfortable with playing a deck are conflated as one. Also, looking back and regretting a deck choice or decision is pointless, move on and get yourself in the know for the next event; keep moving and improving. And sometimes, a last-minute decision will backfire due to inexperience, but often times it can be rewarding.

“The Format is too Open.”

There is almost always an optimal deck choice for an event — we’re human, we won’t always know it, but there is always a “perfect” choice; it’s not always played, or known. The exception to this is when one deck is not better than another, often in a rock, paper, scissors format — quite rare as of late.

Personal Preferences and Playstyles vs. All Decks Having an Optomized Version

There is always an optimal deck list for an archetype. No, there are no “personal playstyles, preferences, and the like,” there is one proper answer in every situation, and always a true answer to a problem. I often joke to players in my local area at Regionals that they often opt not to play the same deck — I go on to say one of them got it right and that they should all play the same archetype in the future. You can have success from a variety of angles, but there’s always a statistically optimal deck and list for that same deck.

Post Atlantic City

[premium]

Reset Stamp

[cardimg name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Before Atlantic City I talked about how powerful [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] has become in this format. It’s become even better and more of a focus as of late with the [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] concept with [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card]. I believe that every deck (besides something super linear, perhaps, like [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]) should be playing at least two copies. You’ll be disadvantaged without a whole two copies in any mirror match when your opponent has multiple Reset Stamp of their own, as will you be in close matchups when your opponent has that little bit of gusto at the end to disrupt you and slam your brakes. I understand that Reset Stamp sometimes feels underwhelming, especially when you happen to discard both on your first turn due to the unfortunate situation of drawing them both at an inopportune time. A double count of the card has become a necessary evil in this format and playing even more than two is very nice when you have the space in a deck like [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Green’s Exploration” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card]. By now this card should be an instant inclusion, but if it’s still not for you, you might have some work to do with your list.

Reshiram and Charizard-GX / Green’s Exploration Rises

Joao Pedro Medeiros Zambrano took this deck to the house in Brazil at a Special Event during the same weekend as Atlantic City Regionals. He took a unique spin on the deck, one I hadn’t considered. I then used it for a League Cup this past weekend (second place), and I really like what he did with the deck, fleshing out the consistency and completely changing the Item card structure, and for good reason. By now it’s a well-known fact that a [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card] and Reset Stamp play is super strong against almost every deck. It can completely shut down a Mewtwo and Mew-GX deck and, against other decks, it can ruin them by stopping [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card] and giving your opponent a small, useless hand. Before this revolutionary new list, these decks were always playing healing cards. Things like: [card name=”Great Potion” set=”Unified Minds” no=”198″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Mixed Herbs” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”184″ c=”name”][/card], you know the drill. What this new list did was cut those out entirely in favor of a new win condition: setting your opponent up with a bad hand. This isn’t foolproof, but neither was healing. This variant is far more consistent in this way. You no longer have to pair two Mixed Herbs together in a format full of one-hit Knock Outs. Besides, the healing cards had seen their time in the sun anyways—the deck needed a makeover. Here’s Zambrano’s list and I’ll glance over some of the things I’ve considered and experienced with the deck afterwards:

[decklist name=”.” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″][pokemon amt=”7″]4x [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”25″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”42″]4x [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Green’s Exploration” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”175″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Pokégear 3.0″ set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”182″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Acro Bike” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Fire Crystal” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”173″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Switch” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Cherish Ball” set=”Unified Minds” no=”191″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Judge Whistle” set=”Team Up” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Stealthy Hood” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”186″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Fiery Flint” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Energy Spinner” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”170″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Heat Factory Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”11″]11x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”92″ c=”deck2″ amt=”11″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Simple, huh? That’s the point, maximizing counts of Power Plant and Reset Stamp allows you to be less defensive with your Green’s Exploration plays because you’ll often have one or both of those cards in your hand already and won’t have to search your deck for them. The inclusion of [card name=”Acro Bike” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] is for similar reasons, as it gives you one of your only outs to finding [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] since there’s no way to search it out other than [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card]. Against, [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Team Up” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Stealthy Hood” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card] is insanely good, it makes the [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card] Toolbox matchup favorable. Using [card name=”Energy Spinner” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”170″ c=”name”][/card] is good card in this deck, better than [card name=”Fiery Flint” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] because it has no cost to use. The two [card name=”Judge Whistle” set=”Team Up” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] are “free spaces” and I don’t really like them or think they add anything to the deck. They would almost be better as something else like another Energy Spinner, but I’d rather them serve some other kind of function. Some options like Great Potion, Pokemon Communication, and/or [card name=”Wait and See Hammer” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card], to name a few. The only deck I don’t feel confident in playing against with this is [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]. Without healing cards you get wrecked; their damage adds up too fast. Almost every other matchup (other than control variants) is favorable. I like this deck as a simple pick for someone that’s not too confident in anything else and wants to have a mostly laid back time playing a deck whose losses are usually due to a very bad play or lackluster draws.

Welder Toolbox Decline and Gardevoir and Sylveon-GX Hype

Wait, I thought this was the best deck? It really was for a little while, but that’s gone to the horses already. It’s wildly dependent on finding Welder early and often (and completely) crumbles without it. With [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] creeping back into the format, it has hurt this build significantly by weakening its late game and destroying the [card name=”Blacephalon” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”32″ c=”name”][/card] Fireball Circus carry option. It’s still a powerful deck, but I won’t give it much more than that. I see its popularity dropping significantly! With this deck naturally shifting back, [card name=”Gardevoir and Sylveon-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] has a much cleaner path to success at upcoming events. Honestly, it’s one of my top choices for this event because it is positioned so well. While I’m not a huge fan of how simple the deck is, it’s also very matchup based, but sometimes it’s like that.

Power Plant in Pikachu and Zekrom-GX

Two or more [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card] need to be in [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] lists to do well. Frankly, I like two of those, two [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”name”][/card], and the single [card name=”Thunder Mountain Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”191″ c=”name”][/card]. That’s a lot of Stadiums, but not much different from any deck in the format right now. Lysandre Labs helps your Malamar matchup and gives you a win against Gardevoir and Sylveon-GX. The copies of Power Plant increase your chances of beating [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”name”][/card]-based decks.

[decklist name=”.” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″][pokemon amt=”10″]2x [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Dedenne-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”57″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Zeraora-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”86″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Raichu and Alolan Raichu-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”54″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”39″]4x [card name=”Volkner” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Bill’s Analysis” set=”Hidden Fates” no=”51″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Electromagnetic Radar” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Switch” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Electropower” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Tag Switch” set=”Unified Minds” no=”209″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Stadium Nav” set=”Unified Minds” no=”208″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Friend Ball” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”131″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Thunder Mountain Prism Star” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”191″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”11″]11x [card name=”Lightning Energy” set=”Evolutions” no=”94″ c=”deck2″ amt=”11″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Here’s the list I’ve been toying around with. It’s got the full-on Stadium package that I talked about earlier which I like. I think the [card name=”Bill’s Analysis” set=”Team Up” no=”133″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Volkner” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card] package are by far the best in this deck. All you really want after you get your attackers down is Trainer cards which you can get with either option.The counts of [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] take a back seat in this list but it’s necessary to help you dig for some of the more important Item cards and, most importantly, to allow you to function properly under your own Power Plant. Three [card name=”Electropower” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”172″ c=”name”][/card] might stick out, but I don’t think it’s that important in this format to have a full set of four because you’re often chasing two-hit Knock Outs anyways and it’s a lot less important because of that. If nothing else, take away from this that you want two or more Power Plant in Pikachu and Zekrom-GX decks for its assistance in the Mewtwo and Mew-GX matchup. Pikachu and Zekrom-GX is easy for the latter to beat when you’re just playing against Lysandre Labs and no risk of a Power Plant plus Reset Stamp play. One last thing, [card name=”Friend Ball” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] is really good in this deck because almost every deck is playing Dedenne-GX, and it becomes an instant Lightning-type Pokemon for you, in this case, [card name=”Tapu Koko Prism Star” set=”Team Up” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card]. With [card name=”Absol” set=”Team Up” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card], I have three [card name=”Pokémon Communication” set=”Team Up” no=”152″ c=”name”][/card] which also helps you set up faster with Dance of the Ancients.

Thoughts on Other Builds

Pidgey Power

This deck is “real” and coming to a Regionals near you. My testing group’s poor (besides Isaiah Williams) performance at Worlds with it was very much because of consistency issues. With Grant Manley’s addition of Jirachi to the list, I’m very confident in its ability to set up flawlessly nearly every game and eventually lock an opponent out of the game. He covers it well, but here’s my own simple thoughts on the deck:

  • Using [card name=”Girafarig” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card] is almost a must with the possibly of facing multiple mirror matches with the deck gaining popularity.
  • It needs to be playing [card name=”Jessie and James” set=”Hidden Fates” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] to speed up games, it’s crazy not to include this card in the list.
  • You can cut a [card name=”Tate and Liza” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] for a second [card name=”Escape Board” set=”Ultra Prism” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card], I prefer this so you can use Jirachi effectively each game.

One Last Mewtwo and Mew-GX Idea

[cardimg name=”Mismagius” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”78″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Get ready for this: [card name=”Mismagius” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card]. Yes, that’s it. Mysterious Message might not seem specifically designed for this deck, but the idea is completely different than what you might be thinking:

  • Mismagius defends you against [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card]—defense that’s really hard to come by in this format.
  • The synergy with [card name=”Mysterious Treasure” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”113″ c=”name”][/card] makes setting up Mismagius very consistent.
  • Unlike [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card], you control when your opponent takes Prizes and you can pop your Mismagius when it’s convenient for you — then Reset Stamp your opponent to a low hand size and decrease their chances of winning. By doing this you forfeit a Prize, but instead of giving your opponent two [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] to Knock Out, you get to get some value out of those extra two Prizes you can give in between and it potentially makes your own Reset Stamp plays much more powerful.

I really like this idea and I’ve been testing it a lot to see if it works like I want it to. It also messed with [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] Control by giving them Prizes and then you can Reset Stamp for better effect rather than giving them a fresh six cards. This is mainly strong against the updated [card name=”Reshiram and Charizard-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card] lists with the heavy Power Plant count as well as against [card name=”Pikachu and Zekrom-GX” set=”Team Up” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] decks with double Power Plant that go favorably against you. Remember that your opponent can always use [card name=”Custom Catcher” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] to bring up the Mismagius as it waits on the Bench. But if they do this, then they’re doing the job of Shedinja for you—all in one card. One thing I’ve not liked about the Shedinja lists (which are still good) is that you have to swap over to Pokemon Communication instead of Mysterious Treasure which discards cards, thins your deck, and gets your attacker options into your discard pile. This is something to try out quick if you still have time, personally I am scrambling to test its merit myself—it’s going well though. Power Plant matchups have been going nicely.

Final Tier List for Knoxville, Tennessee Regionals

The metagame has changed already. Here are my rankings and thoughts on each:

Tier S

Mewtwo and Mew-GX Toolbox with Shedinja

This is the best deck. Look at my last article for the list I like (it’s different than Tord Reklev’s winning one), I don’t see it being played this way very much to be honest, I think people are too infatuated with Jirachi which is bad in the deck. Jirachi ruins your mirror match, clogs up your field, it’s not great in Tag Team Pokemon-GX decks because your attackers aren’t getting Knocked Out often enough to give you the pivot you want off the Jirachi, so then you’re burning [card name=”Switch” set=”Evolutions” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] to make use of it.

Pidgeotto Control

Nearly the best deck, I don’t think people will play it much because it’s really difficult to pilot, but those that do and are confident in their ability will do very well like Grant Manley did.

Tier A

Gardevoir and Sylveon-GX

This might see more play, but [card name=”Gardevoir and Sylveon-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] loses to Fire-type decks. This beats anything else unless you face a Pikachu and Zekrom-GX with multiple [card name=”Lysandre Labs” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”111″ c=”name”][/card].

Pikachu and Zekrom-GX

This is doing much better than I’ve thought so far in this format. Power Plant needs to be in the deck and I think it will remain as popular as it was at Atlantic City, maybe a little less-so.

Reshiram and Charizard-GX / Green’s Exploration

A very underrated deck that benefits from smart play. And Reshiram and Charizard-GX / [card name=”Green’s Exploration” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”175″ c=”name”][/card] comeback potential is higher than with anything else. Reset Stamp is probably the best in this deck out of anything else, but it does require you to start with [card name=”Volcanion” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”25″ c=”name”][/card] to get the best use out of it; I don’t think it will be super popular.

Tier B

Blacephalon-GX / Naganadel

This deck is better than one might think, but so many people put random [card name=”Tapu Fini” set=”Unified Minds” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card] into decks for no reason that I don’t think it can win a tournament; you’ll run into a random tech and lose badly. It’s also not amazing against decks that can play around [card name=”Beast Ring” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] like Pikachu and Zekrom-GX and Mewtwo and Mew-GX decks; also, [card name=”Reset Stamp” set=”Unified Minds” no=”206″ c=”name”][/card] hurts [card name=”Blacephalon-GX” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”52″ c=”name”][/card] / [card name=”Naganadel” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”108″ c=”name”][/card] a bit along with [card name=”Power Plant” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”183″ c=”name”][/card] stopping [card name=”Naganadel-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card].

Malamar / Giratina

This is as solid a deck as they come, it just does a whole lot of nothing in my opinion; smacking for 130 with [card name=”Giratina” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] each turn is good enough to win games, but it’s very slow, draws out ties, and it can brick badly sometimes and you lose outright because of it. Also, [card name=”Shrine of Punishment” set=”Celestial Storm” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] is better in [card name=”Malamar” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”51″ c=”name”][/card] than Power Plant because it’s good in nearly every matchup and sets up [card name=”Espurr” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] math.

Mewtwo and Mew-GX Toolbox with Acro Bike

The list Azul Garcia Griego used is still solid, but inferior to the [card name=”Shedinja” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] build. That said, it’s still going to be played a fair amount but less than [card name=”Mewtwo and Mew-GX” set=”Unified Minds” no=”71″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Team Up” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card].

Mewtwo and Mew-GX Toolbox with Jirachi

I can’t get behind Jirachi in here, but people are still playing it. This seems to be the most popular way to play this deck right now, so be prepared for it. It’s stronger against Power Plant than other versions because Jirachi gives you an out.

Welder Toolbox

This deck is inconsistent. If you miss [card name=”Welder” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”189″ c=”name”][/card], you usually lose the game. While I don’t like it, it’ll still be played. But I can’t see it doing very well after a terrible showing in Atlantic City and Power Plant on the rise to shut the deck down; Reset Stamp is very good against it as well. Additionally, [card name=”Wobbuffet” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] has left most lists, so that’s a plus for [card name=”Victini Prism Star” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”7″ c=”name”][/card] at least.

Tier C

Eevee-GX Toolbox

This is a gimmick deck. It won’t really be played at all but [card name=”Eevee-GX ” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM174″ c=”name”][/card] is super annoying if you face it with Mewtwo and Mew-GX.

Naganadel / Quagsire

Inconsistent. Naganadel / [card name=”Quagsire” set=”Dragon Majesty” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] might be more respected now that it had two Top 16 finishes at the last Regional. With techs in place, it struggles with almost every deck.

Restored Pokemon Toolbox

I think this deck is atrociously bad but there’s always that one person that tries it out, maybe a couple could squeak into day two with the right matchups.

Conclusion

I don’t think we’ll see any new surprises this weekend, just increased success from [card name=”Pidgeotto” set=”Team Up” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] Control and the harkening in of Mewtwo and Mew-GX with Shedinja. The format has become more matchup-based as the metagame has grown to be more defined; Mewtwo and Mew-GX Toolbox variants and Pidgeotto Control are exceptions to this because they can be teched in nearly any way you want to grant you a favorable matchup against anything. Right now, I’m strongly considering trying out the Mewtwo and Mew-GX / [card name=”Mismagius” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”78″ c=”name”][/card] brew, but I’m not positive yet. I want to play a Mewtwo and Mew-GX deck but if I feel unconfident in its matchups against Power Plant lists, I might switch over to a Power Plant deck myself. Unlike Atlantic City, I don’t have as much of a solidified deck choice in mind just yet—hopefully the next days come baring good news. Thanks for reading and good luck at your next event!

Peace,

–Caleb

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