Refining Refinement — Where Does Gardevoir ex Stand?
At the Latin American International Championships, [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] was 25% of the Day 2 metagame, and fellow PokeBeach writer Ciaran Farah made Top 4 with it. However, since then, Gardevoir ex has been significantly declining, with only one Top 4 placement at Charlotte, Portland, and San Antonio. Gardevoir ex is still one of my favorite decks in the format — and it still has the potential to defeat anything — but even I can recognize that it does have some significant issues that prevent it from rising to the level that decks like [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Mew VMAX” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”114″ c=”name”][/card] have reached.
In theory, Gardevoir ex should be one of the best decks in the format. Psychic Embrace is one of the strongest Abilities we have ever seen on a Pokemon card: infinite Energy acceleration from the discard pile hasn’t been seen before in the Pokemon TCG, and I’m not sure it will return anytime soon. Gardevoir ex has an amazing late-game Prize trade, as [card name=”Gardevoir” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] CRE can deal up to 330 damage as a single-Prize Pokemon! It also doesn’t have to discard its Energy, preventing your opponent from solving the problem by chasing your Gardevoir ex. The deck has one of the best draw engines we have ever seen between [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card]’s Refinement Ability and Gardevoir CRE’s Shining Arcana, each letting you effectively draw two cards. You also have access to the other [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card]’s Mirage Step attack, which allows you to put all of your remaining Kirlia into play from your deck and save a poor opening hand.
[cardimg name=”Reversal Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”192″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
While the deck does fall behind on Prize cards early, this lets it abuse the strongest comeback cards in the format: [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Reversal Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”192″ c=”name”][/card]. Gardevoir ex can also trap opposing Pokemon in the Active Spot, and it has [card name=”Scream Tail” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Cresselia” set=”Lost Origin” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] to deal damage to Benched Pokemon in different ways, forcing your opponent to bench both [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”126″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] to fully protect their support Pokemon. (This is why Gardevoir ex decks started including [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card], as it would usually force your opponent to discard either Jirachi or Manaphy to keep important Benched Pokemon like [card name=”Bibarel” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. If the opponent kept both Jirachi and Manaphy, the Gardevoir deck could just KO the Active Pokemon, and the opponent would be left with an anemic board.) With all these upsides, why has Gardevoir ex been struggling?
Time is Gardevoir ex’s biggest weakness. Decks that rely on falling behind early and making a comeback later tend to take longer, but Gardevoir ex specifically has issues because of the number of actions you need to take every turn. Refinement is a difficult Ability to use; you have to assess your hand, your board, and your opponent’s board, and then decide what card to discard. After you do this, you are presented with two new cards, which force you to re-assess and decide how to use your second Refinement. Iono is also a big culprit in this, as you often have knowledge of the bottom few cards of your deck — another variable to consider at all times. It was often the case that players would need to shuffle their deck multiple times in a turn, contributing further to the length of a game.
While you could push yourself to play quickly, this is hardly an effective strategy because of how difficult Gardevoir ex is to play. Trying to play three games with it is a losing battle, and it is often better to just resign yourself to having to win in two good games rather than three sloppy ones. You also cannot justify conceding the first game — even if you win Game 2, you would just tie in the middle of Game 3, so you’re forced to play out games that look terrible in the hope that you could win. While Gardevoir isn’t less consistent than other decks in the format, it’s very challenging to win with an unplayable opening hand. When you are forced to win each round 2–0, the advantages of the Gardevoir ex deck essentially get nullified, as you need to win much more often than you would if you played a deck like Charizard ex or Mew VMAX.
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The metagame after LAIC adapted significantly for the presence of Gardevoir ex. Mew VMAX players tend to include [card name=”Box of Disaster” set=”Lost Origin” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] as a way to prevent Gardevoir CRE from KOing a Mew VMAX (as it will get return-KO’d by the Box). Charizard ex players stopped using Bibarel and started using [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card], making that matchup much closer. We also saw Gardevoir’s biggest enemy, [card name=”Iron Hands ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card], become the main focus of many [card name=”Miraidon ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”81″ c=”name”][/card] lists, many of which play the [card name=”Peony” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] version to significantly increase the likelihood of a turn-one Amp You Very Much. Most hands of the Gardevoir ex deck just fold to an early Amp You Very Much, which made that matchup extremely difficult. [card name=”Chien-Pao ex” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] has also been making a small comeback recently, and while it isn’t a bad matchup for Gardevoir, you can lose out of nowhere in the middle of the game to [card name=”Cross Switcher” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”230″ c=”name”][/card] bringing up a Manaphy, [card name=”Canceling Cologne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card], and then [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card]’s Moonlight Shuriken KOing two Kirlia.
Still, Gardevoir ex should be well positioned. It has a slightly favored matchup against Giratina VSTAR, and is very slightly favored to win against Charizard ex and Mew VMAX, even though they adapt for the matchup. This is my current decklist for Gardevoir, and I’ll go over different tech options you can use to adapt to the expected metagame!
The Decklist
[decklist name=”Gardevoir ex” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Cresselia” set=”Lost Origin” no=”74″][pokemon amt=”18″]2x [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Gardevoir” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”61″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Ralts” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Celebrations” no=”16″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Jirachi” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”126″ 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=”Scream Tail” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”86″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Cresselia” set=”Lost Origin” no=”74″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”30″]4x [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]1x [card name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Worker” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”167″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”132″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”146″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Fog Crystal” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”140″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”EX Sandstorm” no=”88″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Crimson Invasion” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Collapsed Stadium” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Artazon” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”171″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]2x [card name=”Reversal Energy” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”192″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]10x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”10″][/card][/energy][/decklist]
Potential Options
Third Reversal Energy
Including a third copy of Reversal Energy has been a strong consideration for me lately. The two matchups where this card is most important are Charizard ex and Mew VMAX. While these are already slightly favored, the time issues prevalent with Gardevoir ex make it so you can’t really afford to lose Game 1 in these matchups.
Reversal Energy is especially huge against Charizard ex. There are games in this matchup in which you will need to use both Reversal Energy to attack, making it so you cannot use one to retreat or discard for Concealed Cards, nor can you afford to have one in the Prize cards. A third copy of Reversal Energy is also useful against Lost Zone decks, letting you attack early with a Gardevoir CRE without any damage on it.
For the third Reversal Energy, I would be removing either the Jirachi or the fourth copy of [card name=”Battle VIP Pass” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”225″ c=”name”][/card]. While three Battle VIP Pass seems silly, I think it makes more sense to remove the fourth copy of Battle VIP Pass than to remove the fourth [card name=”Level Ball” set=”Battle Styles” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card]. This is because Level Ball is an out to find the Mirage Step Kirlia on turn two, whereas Battle VIP Pass doesn’t find you a consistency Pokemon on its own since this deck no longer plays [card name=”Mew” set=”Celebrations” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card]. Jirachi is a strong card against Lost Zone decks as it protects your Bench from [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card]’s Lost Mine attack, but I believe that it is a flexible card in this deck, as the same can be accomplished (albeit more weakly) by [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card].
One Professor’s Research
[cardimg name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Celebrations” no=”24″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
[card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Sword and Shield” no=”178″ c=”name”][/card] is a strong card in Gardevoir ex, but I have chosen to omit it from my decklist. I have found Professor’s Research to be strong in certain scenarios, specifically against Charizard ex and Miraidon ex, but unplayable in others. Having to discard your hand is a real cost in this deck, as the decklist is very tight on cards it needs for the late game. There are so many cards you cannot afford to discard early on, like your Pokemon, your [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”name”][/card], and your [card name=”Boss’s Orders” set=”Rebel Clash” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card]. Iono draws six cards in the early game, which is acceptable as an alternative to Professor’s Research.
If you do want to include a Research in this deck, the card that I would take out is the Avery. I like Avery because it puts a ton of pressure on your opponent’s Bench, which is especially helpful against Mew VMAX and Chien-Pao ex, and it also acts as a trump card in the mirror match. Its floor is also just adding three cards to your hand, whereas Research has major potential downsides. I would never cut an Iono for a Research, as Iono is one of the most important cards in your deck for disrupting your opponent’s hand. Almost all of your late-game win conditions involve playing an Iono and hoping your opponent cannot power up an attacker or play a Boss’s Orders. Meanwhile, the main way you lose a lot of your good matchups is not drawing an Iono early on.
Matchup Notes
I won’t be going through every matchup here, as a lot of them take similar strategies. A lot of what I said in my earlier article about Gardevoir ex still rings true, with the added caveat that if your Miraidon ex opponent hits the turn-one Amp You Very Much, you’ll need to prevent them from taking a KO. This is done by either attacking with Gardevoir ex or bringing up their [card name=”Flaaffy” set=”Evolving Skies” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] and using Scream Tail to KO their [card name=”Squawkabilly ex” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card].
Charizard ex: 55–45
The Charizard ex matchup is favored for Gardevoir ex, but not by much. Your main strategy against the Pidgeot ex version of this deck is to fall behind exactly two Prize cards, then take two Prizes every turn to win. The reason you fall behind by two Prize cards is so you can use Reversal Energy and Counter Catcher the whole game. If you go aggressive and take a two-Prize KO when your opponent is at five Prize cards, they can take the response KO on your Gardevoir CRE and equalize the Prizes, preventing you from using Reversal Energy or Counter Catcher. If you take one Prize card when your opponent is at five, then your opponent can KO your attacker and make the game 5–4. After this, if you take two Prize cards and make it 3–4, your opponent can just KO your Gardevoir CRE with a single-Prize Pokemon and tie the game up at 3–3 to prevent you from using Counter Catcher. This is done using either [card name=”Charmander” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”26″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Technical Machine: Devolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”177″ c=”name”][/card], and is typically doable if they have access to Quick Search. This is also why it’s important to take the Pidgeot ex as your first KO, as you shut off your opponent’s Quick Search for the rest of the game. This matchup is winnable if you draw perfectly, but various things can go wrong to make it losable.
Giratina VSTAR: 55–45
Giratina VSTAR seems like a difficult matchup, but it’s winnable with tight play. Cresselia is your most important Pokemon in this matchup, as you get to trap their [card name=”Cramorant” set=”Lost Origin” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card] Active and snipe down their [card name=”Comfey” set=”Lost Origin” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card] and Sableye. Some players like to use Moonglow Reverse to hit the [card name=”Giratina V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] on the Bench, and while this strategy can work, it’s often too slow if your opponent took too many Prize cards early on. Hitting the Giratina V is a good plan if the alternative is going up on Prizes and shutting yourself out of Reversal Energy, but typically you are weathering an assault and need to keep up in the Prize trade. Another solid option is to KO the Cramorant with your Gardevoir CRE with a Reversal Energy attached, as this doesn’t require you to bump an opposing [card name=”Path to the Peak” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card].
The late game in this matchup comes down to how set up your board is. I usually would avoid going into [card name=”Roxanne” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”150″ c=”name”][/card] range unless you have several Kirlia set up on your Bench. Roxanne, combined with Path to the Peak, is sometimes enough to spell the end for you in this matchup, so having on-board draw is very important to defeat this disruption. You can also set up extra attackers; [card name=”Zacian V” set=”Celebrations” no=”16″ c=”name”][/card] is an underrated attacker in the middle of the game in this matchup, as it often survives a Shred from a Giratina V. It is important in this matchup to have an idea of what your opponent is capable of, and to prioritize your board to make sure you’re safe after a Roxanne!
Mirror Match
[cardimg name=”Avery” set=”Chilling Reign” no=”187″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]
The Gardevoir mirror match has changed significantly now that most lists are cutting Avery. Before, it was important to limit your Bench so an opposing Avery was never going to hit too hard, and so you could get rid of opposing Kirlia. However, now, you have the freedom to fill up your Bench early on. Using Mirage Step is still important so you get Kirlia into play without using Ralts, so you don’t have to Super Rod back Ralts in the late game. Manaphy is also an important Pokemon in the mirror match, as you prevent an opposing Scream Tail from hitting your Bench. Putting both Manaphy and Jirachi down if you are ahead is a massive risk, though, as your opponent can start using Counter Catcher to KO your Kirlia. Gardevoir ex is also a solid attacker if you’re one Prize ahead, since if your opponent sets up a Gardevoir CRE to KO it, you regain access to Counter Catcher and Reversal Energy.
This mirror is all about board presence. You ideally want every Knock Out you take to be on an opposing Kirlia so your late-game Iono sticks. Your own Bench space is also very important, as you need to leave enough room to set up several Kirlia throughout the game. Scream Tail is nice, as even if your Gardevoir ex goes down, you can still attack with it. The Gardevoir mirror is very complicated, and often comes down to whoever has a better management of their resources.
Snorlax Stall: 65–35
The [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] Stall matchup is theoretically favored for Gardevoir ex thanks to the inclusion of [card name=”Professor Turo’s Scenario” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”171″ c=”name”][/card]. The way I typically approach this matchup is to attach five Psychic Energy to an attacker and use it to take one-hit Knock Outs on opposing Pokemon. After the Snorlax player uses Counter Catcher or Boss’s Orders to bring up an opposing Pokemon, you can use [card name=”Collapsed Stadium” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card] or Professor Turo’s Scenario to reset those Psychic Energy and continue taking one-hit KOs.
Your ideal board in this matchup is to use Mirage Step and just have Kirlia, Ralts, and maybe a Zacian or a Scream Tail to prevent your opponent from hitting any Water Pokemon with [card name=”Erika’s Invitation” set=”151″ no=”160″ c=”name”][/card]. Theoretically you have enough recourses to take six Prize cards in this matchup — you have your ten Psychic Energy to KO the initial two Snorlax, you have a Boss’s Orders to KO their [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card], and then you have Collapsed Stadium and Professor Turo’s Scenario to reset your Psychic Energy twice and take two more Knock Outs. There are a lot of things that can go wrong in this matchup, such as starting a Water Pokemon or getting one randomly hit by an Erika’s Invitation, or getting your Collapsed Stadium discarded by [card name=”Sidney” set=”Fusion Strike” no=”241″ c=”name”][/card], but with the Professor Turo’s Scenario, you have a method of converting your Energy into Prize cards, which theoretically works for all six!
Conclusion
Gardevoir ex is in an interesting position in the current format. With favored matchups into both Charizard ex and Giratina VSTAR, it seems like a no-brainer pick. However, the time issues, difficult decision-making, and poor Miraidon matchup make it less desirable. If you do decide to play Gardevoir ex at one of your upcoming Regional Championships, I would recommend practicing with a timer so you can recognize when a game is winnable and when you need to concede. A good Gardevoir player will consistently make solid runs into Day 2, so if you’ve played it in the past, I would give it another shot!
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