CGU 10k Recap, Urshifu VMAX, and Evolving Skies Favorites
Hey everyone! This is Charlie, and I’m super happy to be back with another article! For the first time in a while, I recently attended an in-person Pokemon tournament when I went to the 127-player CGU 10k(?) event in New Jersey. I’m from the area and was already planning to be there to see family, so luckily those weekends lined up and I was able to play in the event and see lots of old friends. I played a pretty standard [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] list, which Mike Fouchet gave me on the morning of the event, because I had yet to do much testing for the current Standard format. In an unfamiliar environment where literally not a single set that existed during my last in-person tournament was legal for play, I was still able to pick up a Top 16 finish after going 5-1-2 in Swiss rounds. In this article, I’m going to talk about how that event went, how the new Standard format looks, and go into a few preliminary thoughts on some Evolving Skies cards. Overall I’m extremely excited for this new format; it’s looking to be much more skill-based than the format we’ve been playing throughout most of the online era. Without further ado, here’s the Urshifu list I played to a Top 16 finish at the 10k:
[decklist name=”10k Urshifu” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″][pokemon amt=”21″]3x [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”87″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]3x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Cheryl” set=”Battle Styles” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Air Balloon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”183″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Energy Search” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Telescopic Sight” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”8″]4x [card name=”Fighting Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rapid Strike Energy” set=”Battle Styles” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]While this list was extremely consistent, I don’t think it was perfect. Here I’ll quickly go into the card choices, what I liked, and what I would change if I were to play in this event again. (Spoiler: Urshifu is still far and away the deck of choice!)
4 Rapid Strike Urshifu V, 3 Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX
I chose to go for the 4-3 line here to make it easier to find [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”87″ c=”name”][/card] in the early game, but also because I never needed a fourth VMAX unless I had discarded a bunch of stuff early. This line felt optimal for the way this list plays. The fourth Urshifu V might be cuttable, but you would have to add a recovery option like an [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card].
4 Sobble, 4 Drizzile, 2 Inteleon SSH, 2 Inteleon CRE
[cardimg name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
While the 4-4 [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”name”][/card] is pretty obvious, the 2/2 split of Inteleon isn’t seen as often. Most people tend to go 3/1, 2/1, or even 4/0 in favor of the Quick Shooting [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”name”][/card]. (I saw this last one in a few [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] variants.) From experience, I can say I absolutely love this 2/2 split and feel that it’s optimal in almost every situation. There are rarely any scenarios in which you need both Quick Shooting Inteleon out at once, and having the options to use the Shady Dealings [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] twice in a game is actually incredible. I used both of these way more than I used both Quick Shooting Inteleon throughout the event, and even just having it as Prize insurance is enough for me to want two of each. I love this split and think it fits perfectly in an Urshifu list like this one.
4 Research, 3 Marnie, 3 Boss’s Orders
Four [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”name”][/card] is an absolute staple in this, and I’d actually like a fourth [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] as well to help with disruption — it’s the only good disruption card in the format right now — but otherwise this felt consistent enough. I added the third [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] right before the event because I was worried about running out, but this was overkill, and looking back, I should have kept the count at two. This deck hits the Bench so much, the third Boss is hardly necessary, and sometimes [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] does the job just as well when you need to push a target to the Bench in order to hit it harder with a [card name=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card]-boosted G-Max Rapid Flow.
1 Cheryl
[card name=”Cheryl” set=”Battle Styles” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card] is so good. That’s honestly all that needs saying. I wish I had an option in this list to recover the single Cheryl, or even just played a second copy. Using this to heal all the damage off all your Evolution Pokemon is absolutely wild, and sometimes wins games outright. It’s especially potent against decks that rely on 2HKOs, like [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] variants. You can just wipe away all their damage after a Rapid Flow! I used this to heal 310 damage off an Urshifu in one critical moment during the event, and it almost won me a game I otherwise had no business winning. Cheryl is an absolutely insane card that needs to be getting more attention right now.
4 Quick Ball, 4 Level Ball, 4 Evolution Incense
This consistency engine is pretty powerful. I love having [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card] back in the format, and the reprint was timed well now that we have the Inteleon engine all over the place. I honestly wouldn’t cut down on a single thing in this and would 100% recommend keeping it exactly as it is. Don’t try to take shortcuts just because you have Drizzile options! Consistency is and will always be king.
2 Escape Rope, 2 Air Balloon, 1 Switch
[cardimg name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The 2/1 split between Escape Rope and Switch was another last-minute change: Mike originally had two Switch and one Escape Rope, but I wanted another Escape Rope so I could push things I hit with Gale Thrust to the Bench in order to hit it with a boosted Rapid Flow. This count felt right even though the third card not being a regular Switch hurt me a few times. The two Air Balloon feels good as well — I could have gone with something like [card name=”Tower of Waters” set=”Battle Styles” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] as a main switching option, but Stadiums can be easily countered, and [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”168″ c=”name”][/card] is marginally less common than those counter-Stadiums.
1 Energy Search
Wow, it’s been a while since this card was relevant! With [card name=”Professor’s Letter” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Energy Spinner” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”170″ c=”name”][/card] now both relics of the past, [card name=”Energy Search” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”161″ c=”name”][/card] is making its comeback. It’s extremely good here, as it provides you with a way to search Energy with Drizzile. I’d honestly want a second one of these in a list, but space is just barely too tight to permit it. Missing Energy attachments is one of the worst things that can happen to this deck, so having options like Energy Search is always super helpful.
1 Telescopic Sight
[card name=”Telescopic Sight” set=”Vivid Voltage” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card] lets you get OHKOs on [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card] without using Inteleon snipes, lets you OHKO other Basic Pokémon V with the help of one or two Inteleon snipes, and also helps a lot when trying to pull off two consecutive boosted G-Max Rapid Flow attacks against [card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] variants. It also comes in handy when you put it on stuff like [card name=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card], boosting Fling to a powerful 80 snipe damage. You really don’t need more than one of these, so I wouldn’t recommend adding another, but including one is still more than worth it in this format.
1 Path to the Peak
Since this deck barely relies on Pokemon V Abilities at all ([card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card]’s Dark Asset is the only one), [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] being in play rarely hurts us. Why not include one? Path to the Peak is searchable with Shady Dealings and hard-counters many draw engines, like those of Zacian and Shadow Rider Calyrex, so playing this along with a Marnie in the late game can be devastating for these decks. I find it especially useful in the Shadow Rider Calyrex matchup, and without it that matchup becomes almost impossible. With all the extra disruption it gives you, this is a great tech for a deck like this.
4 Fighting Energy, 4 Rapid Strike Energy
Four [card name=”Rapid Strike Energy” set=”Battle Styles” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card] is an obvious choice, but I only went with four Fighting Energy because I never struggled to find them. We play an Energy Search to get us out of a jam, but otherwise drawing into them is usually sufficient for our Energy needs. I might want a fifth Fighting Energy, or a different basic Energy engine entirely (which I’ll talk about more in a bit), but this felt alright in the list. While it would be a nice luxury, there’s no immediate need to boost this count.
That’s it for the deck I played. Now I’ll mention a few things I might have wanted to include had I tested it more before the event.
[premium]
Pal Pad
[card name=”Pal Pad” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”172″ c=”name”][/card] is very good when you play a tech Supporter like Cheryl, and can also easily replenish your supply of any other Supporters that you had to discard a lot of in the early game. This would let me comfortably go down to two Boss, for example. Plus, Pal Pad is searchable, and with multiple Shady Dealings, you can search the Pal Pad, play it, then search one of the Supporters you recycled! This card is a really nice fit for the deck and I should have put it in earlier.
Ordinary Rod
Another recovery card — I think [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card] would be a very solid inclusion. It lets me reuse cards like [card name=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] if they were lost early, plus recover Energy for the late game (we discard them pretty often!). This might not be necessary with a different Energy engine, but I do wish I had one in the list to make the deck’s resources a little easier to manage.
Galarian Moltres V, Energy Switch, Dark Energy
A Rapid Strike variant with [card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] was piloted by Rahul Reddy to a Top 8 finish at this event: he used [card name=”Energy Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] to move Darkness Energy from Moltres onto Urshifu in order to consistently loop G-Max Rapid Flow. This greatly improved the Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX matchup, especially since you also have a Darkness-type attacker to OHKO a Shadow Rider if need be. I like this variant of the deck a lot, but ultimately might be even more interested in a different way to loop G-Max Rapid Flow.
Melony, Octillery CRE, Water Energy
[cardimg name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
In my last round, I was paired against an Urshifu player that had a 1-1 [card name=”Octillery” set=”Battle Styles” no=”37″ c=”name”][/card] line, three [card name=”Melony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”146″ c=”name”][/card], and four [card name=”Water Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card] in his deck. His goal was to use Melony in order to draw cards and reuse G-Max Rapid Flow, as Octillery could then search out the Rapid Strike Energy he needed. This also greatly improved the Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX matchup, because the key to winning it is to use two consecutive G-Max Rapid Flows in order to Knock Out two Benched Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX and take six Prize cards at once. I really liked this variant, and while I think a few parts of my opponent’s list were inconsistent, I feel the deck has a lot of room to be developed and could end up being extremely good.
Tournament Recap
During the event, I went 5-1-2 in the eight Swiss rounds, then conceded my top 16 match to Peter Kica because I had to leave for a family dinner. However, I certainly would have lost, because I also wrote the wrong Drizzile on my decklist, which would have forced me to use the Drizzile without Shady Dealings!
In the Swiss rounds, I played against five [card name=”Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] variants, four of which were in the first four rounds. I started off 1-1-2 against this gauntlet of Ice Riders: the matchup is slightly favored and I was in winning positions in both tie situations, but the first two games took too much time for us to finish. My one loss came when my opponent found his last Boss and an Energy off a Marnie when I had the win on board next turn. That happens in close matchups sometimes, and you have to be ready for it. I thought I was out at this point, but I kept playing because I never drop and knew that I had a small shot if I won out. I did exactly that, facing a [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”138″ c=”name”][/card] toolbox deck, a fifth Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, an [card name=”Eternatus VMAX” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”117″ c=”name”][/card], and finally the Rapid Strike Urshifu/Melony deck I mentioned above. Then I managed to squeak in at the 16th seed, securing me a total of $48 — only 80% of my entry fee. While the prizing was clearly suboptimal, the event was so much fun and I considered it a worthy entertainment expense to play some real-life Pokemon. Catching up with old friends was so good, and I really hope we can safely have some more large in-person tournaments soon!
To recap, if I could do the event again, I would play this list:
[decklist name=”10k Urshifu” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″][pokemon amt=”21″]3x [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu V” set=”Battle Styles” no=”87″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”43″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Inteleon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]4x [card name=”Drizzile” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”56″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Sobble” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Crobat V” set=”Darkness Ablaze” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Passimian” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”31″]4x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Marnie” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Cheryl” set=”Battle Styles” no=”123″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Quick Ball” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”179″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Evolution Incense” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Escape Rope” set=”Battle Styles” no=”125″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Air Balloon” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Switch” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”183″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Energy Search” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”161″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ordinary Rod” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Pal Pad” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”8″]4x [card name=”Fighting Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”120″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rapid Strike Energy” set=”Battle Styles” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
Looking Forward to Evolving Skies
Evolving Skies is shaping up to be one of the coolest sets released in a long time, especially since it will be legal for play when rotation happens. Here are a few of my favorite cards from the set, and the kinds of decks I expect to see them in.
Jumpluff
Jumpluff cards are some of my favorites. I had a lot of success with Lost March [card name=”Jumpluff” set=”Lost Thunder” no=”14″ c=”name”][/card] back in late 2018, and this new one is looking to be even more fun. The new Jumpluff’s Ability allows it to attack twice in a turn! While its only attack is an unimpressive 60 damage for one Energy, Jumpluff can take advantage of the Rapid Strike Scrolls and learn three powerful attacks with [card name=”Rapid Strike Scroll of Swirls” set=”Battle Styles” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Rapid Strike Scroll of the Skies” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card]. Scroll of the Skies is especially interesting here because it has a lot of damage potential — none of the Omega Barrage Pokemon from back in the day, for example, were able to deal high damage without extreme boosts. The double attack with that scroll is basically like a free Weakness modifier, giving you guaranteed OHKOs on attackers like [card name=”Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”75″ c=”name”][/card] all the time. I think this card has a ton of potential to be good, especially because Skiploom can let you quickly evolve into it with a simple Energy attachment. All in all, I cannot wait to mess around with this card.
Ludicolo
While I don’t think this card is necessarily good immediately, it comes to mind in Expanded for boosting some sort of very low-damage attack with a crazy bonus effect, like [card name=”Pheromosa and Buzzwole-GX” set=”Unbroken Bonds” no=”1″ c=”name”][/card] in order to get the bonus. This definitely has the potential for some fun interactions in the future. Keep it in mind and you might be able to build a really cool deck with this card!
Flaaffy
The new Flaaffy takes its Ability from [card name=”Eelektrik” set=”Noble Victories” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] and brings it back to a Standard format that might be able to use it really well. While I’ll mention its most obvious partner in a moment, Flaaffy can also be potent with other Lightning attackers. A Lightning Box deck recently saw a lot of play in the Japan Championships, so make sure to think hard about partners for this powerful new Bench sitter!
Wobbuffet
While I also have a personal affinity for Wobbuffet cards, this one is actually really interesting. For only a [card name=”Twin Energy” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”174″ c=”name”][/card], you can place as many damage counters on your opponent’s Active Pokemon as you have on one of your Benched Pokemon. In a Single Strike deck with big, bulky attackers, this can be extremely powerful, especially in matchups like Ice Rider where they hit your Pokémon VMAX very hard without Knocking them Out. Mirror Move attacks have always been pretty good, so make sure to watch out for this card!
Florges
Giving a universal Energy Trans effect to Rapid Strike Pokemon is extremely good. While Florges is a Stage 2, Rapid Strike decks have options like Drizzile to help search out Rare Candy and other consistency cards. This could be extremely powerful in the right deck, and since the Ability can move Energy away from any Pokemon as long as it moves to a Rapid Strike Pokemon, you can use it to move Energy off of powerful accelerators like [card name=”Galarian Moltres V” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card]. The Stage 2 thing will be hard to get over, but be ready for this card to make an impact.
Sylveon VMAX
This card could be good in both Standard with [card name=”Kecleon” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] being able to acquire so many different types and in Expanded as an upgrade to the famous Rainbow Road deck. I feel that there are so many interesting things one could do with this deck, and so many different ways to get all the different types on the board, that we will see some extreme creativity coming out when building Sylveon decks. While Standard will only have ten types (we still have yet to see if [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”XY” no=”140″ c=”name”][/card] will actually be legal, which would allow Kecleon to become Fairy-type), this still maxes you out at a ridiculous 370 damage when taking advantage of multitype Pokemon. I really want to make this card work and might try some pretty crazy things in order for that to happen.
Gourgeist
While I don’t feel there are enough Psychic Pokemon that draw you cards consistently for this to truly be good, this card could be used in a fun deck for sure. Its attack looks at the top six cards of your deck, hits for 60 damage per Psychic Pokemon revealed, then shuffles back the Pokemon and discards the rest. There are more efficient ways to hit this high damage, so I think this won’t ever really be competitive, but it’s super cool to keep in mind.
Medicham V
This is absolutely my favorite card in the set. Yoga Loop allows you to take an extra turn if you take a KO with it, which is one of the coolest effects in the game. I finally think we have a good version of this effect now, after similar cards like [card name=”Dialga-GX” set=”Forbidden Light” no=”82″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Togepi and Cleffa and Igglybuff-GX” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”143″ c=”name”][/card] failed to ever be competitive. I don’t even need to go into all the cool things you can do with this card — just throw one in your [card name=”Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX” set=”Battle Styles” no=”88″ c=”name”][/card] list and play around with it.
Zoroark
[cardimg name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Sun and Moon Black Star Promos” no=”SM84″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The new Zoroark can swap itself out with a Stage 1 in your discard pile. This is the Zoroark effect I’ve always wanted to see, and I cannot wait to build an Expanded Stage 1 box based around this and [card name=”Zoroark-GX” set=”Shining Legends” no=”53″ c=”name”][/card]. Just think of the possibilities! I played a Zoroark Stage 1 box to Day 2 of a Regionals once, and this card’s existence makes that concept so much better. This will be good in a lot of unexpected ways.
Rayquaza VMAX
I love Rayquaza, and Creatures, Inc. does too! The new Rayquaza VMAX has an attack reminiscent of [card name=”Rayquaza-EX” set=”Dragons Exalted” no=”85″ c=”name”][/card] from Dragons Exalted, and combined with the new Flaaffy, it can OHKO a VMAX pretty easily. Plus, it has a built-in draw engine with its Ability, which lets you discard your hand and draw 3 new cards. While it may struggle to beat Urshifu decks that Knock Out all the Flaaffy, this new Rayquaza will absolutely find its time to shine.
Boost Shake
This card is immediately getting banned in Expanded for its synergy with cards like [card name=”Trevenant” set=”XY” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card], but in Standard it can be really nice to end your turn with it going first or second. I feel like it’s going to have way more utility than people expect, and might even be widely played in decks that can afford to not attack for a few turns while setting up. Grab these while you can!
Zinnia’s Resolve
This card is a great new draw Supporter for a format where Research and Marnie both rule. I’ll happily discard two cards to draw six when my opponent has a full Bench! This is like a more versatile [card name=”Roxie” set=”Cosmic Eclipse” no=”205″ c=”name”][/card], which we all saw was good in specific decks. This might be a new staple for the time being.
Conclusion
Well, that’s all I have for you today! I’m super excited for the release of Evolving Skies, and hope that we see some more in-person Pokemon events returning soon. As always, feel free to hit me up on Twitter (@C4_TCG) with any questions, and I’ll be back soon with another article!
Charlie
[/premium]