Dragapult ex, For Sure This Time

Upon the release of Twilight Masquerade, I was worried that [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] would be far too powerful and oppressive. After its dominance in Japan, I thought Dragapult ex was the new gatekeeper of the format, however, these preliminary results gave rise to decks like [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Raging Bolt ex ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card], which ended up being the most hyped decks right before NAIC. These decks match up well against Dragapult ex, scaring it away for NAIC. As a result, NAIC was dominated by decks like [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”29″ c=”name”][/card] and Lost Zone box. These are single-Prize attacking decks that do well into Lugia VSTAR and Raging Bolt ex, but not necessarily against Dragapult ex. Dragapult ex was the new deck on the block and an unknown quantity — relatively few players ended up pulling the trigger on Dragapult ex for NAIC, and the deck flopped massively. Its only real finishes were as decorative pieces in other decks, such as Jacob Eye’s [card name=”Regidrago VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] deck and Tord Reklev’s [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card].

These developments in the meta make logical sense, and if the trend is to be continued, that might mean that Dragapult ex is primed for success. Furthermore, one of the most hyped decks from Shrouded Fable is Charizard ex with Dusknoir. It’s no secret that I am a huge fan of Charizard ex, but if it has one weakness, it’s the Dragapult ex matchup. [card name=”Regidrago VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] is a decent matchup, especially with many of them cutting their tech copy of Raging Bolt ex in exchange for [card name=”Giratina VSTAR” set=”Lost Origin” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card]. I think this is correct, as Giratina VSTAR is much better than Raging Bolt ex on average, and less of a liability, however, it leaves them vulnerable to specifically Dragapult ex, as they no longer have a way to one-shot it. If any Regidrago VSTAR players are cautious of the matchup, they might still play Raging Bolt ex.

Dragapult ex is an inherently powerful card — I believe that part of the reason for its failure at NAIC was because it was new and not yet optimized. Furthermore, as far as I’m aware, no top players chose to play the deck. While Dragapult ex does better against decks with low-HP Pokemon, it still has a decent shot of winning most matchups. With Shrouded Fable, Dragapult ex is a benefactor of incorporating Dusknoir. While Dusknoir’s synergy isn’t quite as powerful as with Charizard ex, it is still ridiculous. In addition to Dragapult ex’s normal snipe damage, Dusknoir compounds the threat and enables some truly outrageous combos. Alternatively, you can simply use Dusknoir to make Dragapult ex one-shot anything. You can also play [card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Defiance Band” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card], like Charizard ex decks.

Dragapult ex Variants

First I’ll discuss [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Xatu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”72″ c=”name”][/card], which is a fun and underappreciated deck if you ask me. I have some recency bias though, as I just won a League Challenge with the deck on the same day I’m writing this. I don’t think this deck can as easily incorporate cards from Shrouded Fable, so I’ll also be going over my Dragapult ex / [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] list, which has some striking similarities to my Charizard ex build. I don’t know which version is better at the moment.

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Dragapult ex / Xatu

[decklist name=”pult xat” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″][pokemon amt=”20″]3x [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]4x [card name=”Drakloak” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Xatu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”72″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Natu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”71″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”58″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Tatsugiri” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”131″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”32″]4x [card name=”Arven” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”166″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor’s Research” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”147″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Boss’s Orders (Ghetsis)” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Buddy-Buddy Poffin ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”144″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”84″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Earthen Vessel” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”148″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Prime Catcher ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”157″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Technical Machine: Evolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”178″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Technical Machine: Devolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”177″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Board ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”159″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Forest Seal Stone” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”8″]5x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”5″][/card]3x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”153″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card][/energy][/decklist]Admittedly, this isn’t my list, nor is it anything too special. This seems to have become the standard list that some top North American players have been using at small tournaments since NAIC. I thought about some changes, such as [card name=”Cleffa” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”80″ c=”name”][/card] or another [card name=”Technical Machine: Evolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”178″ c=”name”][/card], but ended up deciding that this list is good as is. I ended up using Technical Machine: Evolution less often than I expected. Lots of games are slower, where you draw cards and stabilize, so you don’t necessarily need it. Faster games demand a [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] response anyway, so you won’t use it there either. Technical Machine: Evolution does allow for some crazy openings and works well with [card name=”Arven” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card], so we play one for the option, but it isn’t the main game plan like I initially thought it might be (like it is with [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card]). Another thing is that attaching Energy to your Active that will get KO’d is rather suspect. You often want to attach to a Benched [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card] to prepare for a [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] attack, and attaching to your Active to use Evolution doesn’t help with that.

[cardimg name=”Cleffa” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”202″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Cleffa, I think, would still be a good option, although, you run into the same problem of using your Energy to retreat into it, instead of attaching to Dreepy. Either way, we mostly use Instant Charge to start games off. Since we have [card name=”Rescue Board ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card], using Cleffa is a bit more realistic — since the card is so good, it might be worth playing. An additional benefit of Cleffa is its free Retreat Cost providing a pivot throughout the game, which is important alongside [card name=”Xatu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”72″ c=”name”][/card]. If they KO Cleffa, you still have your Rescue Board. If you have a read on your metagame, you could potentially cut Technical Machine: Devolution, [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card], or even [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card]. If [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] ends up dropping off post-Shrouded Fable, there would be no reason to keep Enhanced Hammer.

As much as I would like to play Fezandipiti ex and Dusknoir, there isn’t Bench space for anything. This deck typically wants three of the Dragapult ex family and one Xatu at all times. [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] is almost always on the board, or else there are two of the other support Pokemon in play. This rewards you with a stable and consistent draw engine but comes at the cost of not having space for a lot of other Pokemon on the board. This is fine, for the most part, since you utilize powerful Trainer cards to do whatever you need to do.

[card name=”Tatsugiri” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] is a frustrating card to play with, but I think it’s a necessity. When you manage to set it up as a pivot with Rescue Board, all is well, and you probably win, but getting to that point is a pain, however, Tatsugiri is typically needed to help you find a Supporter card in the early game. Arven is great for setting up, while [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card] is typically better if you’ve used up most of the cards in your hand — using Arven for a combo and then ending with two or fewer cards isn’t a winning play. What I’m getting at is that using Tatsugiri in the early game requires some sort of sacrifice. Tatsugiri itself takes up a use of [card name=”Buddy-Buddy Poffin ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”144″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”84″ c=”name”][/card], and then an Energy to retreat into it. Then, the Tatsugiri either gets KO’d, which is bad, or you need to retreat it. At this point, it’s either whiffed Supporters entirely, which essentially makes you lose, or it has completely saved your game.

Tatsugiri is an early-game crutch, but where it truly shines is in the mid-to-late-game; by this point, you’ve been able to grab the Rescue Board from an extra Pokemon Tool search via Arven, since the first one usually has to get [card name=”Forest Seal Stone” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”156″ c=”name”][/card]. Now, Tatsugiri is an easy promotion off every KO or your own [card name=”Prime Catcher ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card]. Combined with a little draw from [card name=”Drakloak” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card] and Xatu, you should be getting whatever Supporter you want every turn (not that there are many options), and you are completely resistant to hand disruption — this is awesome.

Speaking of Forest Seal Stone, you’ll be using it early and aggressively. Rarely are there cases where you save Forest Seal Stone or use it later. There are a few reasons for this; this deck has a fairly high startup cost — you need lots of pieces in place for things to get moving. You don’t have the luxury of saving Star Alchemy. Furthermore, you don’t realistically need to save it. With the plethora of on-board draw, you can keep things moving once they get going, if that makes sense. Saving Forest Seal Stone for later is always cool, but it isn’t the reality for this deck.

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

[card name=”Radiant Alakazam” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”59″ c=”name”][/card] is deceptively useful — this list has a hard damage cap of 200, which can be annoying, but Radiant Alakazam somewhat helps you circumvent this. Of course, Radiant Alakazam only starts working after your first Phantom Dive, but that’s usually sufficient. This ends up being useful against lots of different Pokemon, specifically Pokemon VSTAR, where 200 damage plus 60 snipe plus 20 from Radiant Alakazam is a KO. Furthermore, once damage is on the board, you can now KO fresh Pokemon ex or V. The ones with 210 or 220 HP, that is. Radiant Alakazam also helps you hit KO’s against [card name=”Raging Bolt ex ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card], moving the damage to whatever is appropriate, which helps counteract their defensive measures of [card name=”Switch Cart” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Bravery Charm” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”173″ c=”name”][/card]. Finally, you’ll use Radiant Alakazam to help snipe the various 70 HP Basic Pokemon. Radiant Alakazam also functions as a strong enough single-Prize attacker, which helps a lot in certain Prize trade situations. Also, if your opponent isn’t paying attention and builds a large hand size (Raging Bolt ex is a good example), then Radiant Alakazam’s attack functions as a nuke.

Lastly, I want to shout out [card name=”Prime Catcher ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”157″ c=”name”][/card] for being absolutely nuts and helping this deck gain some of the offensive pressure it needs. While your first attack or two will be using [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”name”][/card], you’ll often need Prime Catcher off Arven at some point. There are also times when the [card name=”Rescue Board ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card], unfortunately, does not end up where you ideally would want it to be, so Prime Catcher’s switch effect is useful. This deck can readily access tech cards thanks to [card name=”Arven” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”186″ c=”name”][/card], so we are sure to make use of that. [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] helps tremendously against Raging Bolt ex while also being somewhat versatile elsewhere. [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card] somewhat salvages the [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] matchup, [card name=”Technical Machine: Devolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”177″ c=”name”][/card] deals with [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card], and [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card] protects you from [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card].

Dragapult ex / Pidgeot ex

[decklist name=”pult pidg” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Duskull” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”60″][pokemon amt=”21″]3x [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Drakloak” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”129″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”128″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Pidgey” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”45″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Fezandipiti ex (SFA #??) 1x [card name=”Manaphy” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”41″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”20″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Cleffa” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”80″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x Dusknoir (SFA #) 1x Dusclops (SFA #19)1x [card name=”Duskull” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”60″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”33″]4x [card name=”Arven” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”166″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]3x [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”Boss’s Orders (Ghetsis)” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”172″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Kieran” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”154″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Mela” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”167″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Buddy-Buddy Poffin ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”144″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]4x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”91″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Nest Ball” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”84″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Earthen Vessel” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”163″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Counter Catcher” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”160″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Super Rod” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”188″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Forest Seal Stone” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Technical Machine: Devolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”177″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Rescue Board ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”159″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Defiance Band” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”169″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”6″]3x [card name=”Psychic Energy” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”156″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Fire Energy” set=”Crown Zenith” no=”153″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Neo Upper Energy ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”162″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

It seems almost blasphemous to play a [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] deck with only one [card name=”Drakloak” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card], like we are wasting the card’s full potential, but we’re not. This is a [card name=”Rare Candy” set=”Paldean Fates” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card]-based deck, like [card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card], it just so happens that the Drakloak which sometimes finds itself in play has a useful Ability, but one that we aren’t relying on. This build wouldn’t be able to consistently get multiple Drakloak into play anyway. [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] searches for whatever we need, so we rely less on the draw. Fezandipiti ex also helps out later on, and more or less replaces [card name=”Bibarel” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]. If you saw my last article about Charizard ex, you’ll notice that the engine is almost identical– if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

Since writing that article, I’ve switched to the 60 HP [card name=”Pidgey” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] for both decks. Call for Family is good, especially in this deck with access to Rescue Board, but you don’t use Call for Family often enough to justify the vulnerability to [card name=”Sableye” set=”Lost Origin” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card] and Dusclops. This Pidgey can also deal some damage for one Energy, which is occasionally useful.

[card name=”Radiant Charizard” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”11″ c=”name”][/card] does a lot for this deck. Pidgeot ex or [card name=”Lumineon V” set=”Brilliant Stars” no=”40″ c=”name”][/card] can search out [card name=”Mela” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”167″ c=”name”][/card], which allows us to attack with Radiant Charizard out of nowhere when the opponent is on three Prize cards. This effectively means four Prize cards if we’re using Dusknoir. Dragapult ex’s biggest pain points are high-HP Pokemon, which Radiant Charizard perfectly counters. With [card name=”Defiance Band” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”169″ c=”name”][/card] (or [card name=”Kieran” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”154″ c=”name”][/card] or Dusclops), it easily one-shots the likes of [card name=”Regidrago VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”136″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card]. We now have a convenient way to one-shot things like [card name=”Iron Hands ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card], be it with Radiant Charizard or Defiance Band on Dragapult ex. We don’t have [card name=”Lost Vacuum” set=”Lost Origin” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card] anymore, but the plethora of damage modifiers and Radiant Charizard entirely make up for this. I don’t know where I would even make space for the Lost Vacuum anyway.

Without [card name=”Xatu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”72″ c=”name”][/card] or any other reliable form of Energy acceleration, this build is forced to rely on [card name=”Neo Upper Energy ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”162″ c=”name”][/card]. Neo Upper Energy is certainly good, but it’s a shame that we have to forego the other ACE SPEC options. We will almost always be using Neo Upper Energy at some point, often finding it with Quick Search in games where we don’t get an early attachment to [card name=”Dreepy” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”128″ c=”name”][/card]. We still have the [card name=”Technical Machine: Devolution” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”177″ c=”name”][/card] for Charizard ex, although I am a little concerned about this deck becoming collateral damage from other decks teching this Pokemon Tool for Charizard ex. It is mostly fine, as long as you don’t completely dead draw after hand disruption on the turn they remove Pidgeot ex. Fezandipiti ex can help with this, so put it into play if you’re anticipating a Technical Machine: Devolution play that involves KOs. Technical Machine: Devolution without any KOs doesn’t apply much pressure, so you can just draw back up with [card name=”Rotom V” set=”Lost Origin” no=”58″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Cleffa” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”80″ c=”name”][/card] in that case. This list has no tech for Lugia VSTAR, so we are extremely weak in that matchup — if you expect to face Lugia VSTAR in the given meta, definitely tech [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card].

Dragapult ex’s Matchups

Charizard ex

[card name=”Charizard ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”125″ c=”name”][/card] is one of your best matchups thanks to the Technical Machine: Devolution tech. You will simply attack with [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] a few times and then wipe their board with Technical Machine: Devolution. Try to keep them from using Dusknoir by sniping it before it evolves. If you’re able to do this, they won’t ever be able to one-shot a Dragapult ex, giving you plenty of turns to attack with it.

Gardevoir ex

[cardimg name=”Munkidori” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”95″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

The [card name=”Gardevoir ex” set=”Scarlet and Violet” no=”86″ c=”name”][/card] matchup is slightly in Dragapult ex’s favor, but it can certainly go either way. This matchup largely depends on how fast both decks get set up; a fast Dragapult ex applies tons of pressure and can run them off the board. As such, you want to play more aggressively towards that, and less towards a stable and consistent board. You will run headfirst into [card name=”Unfair Stamp” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”165″ c=”name”][/card], but that’s completely fine because you still have an attacking Dragapult ex that they can’t do anything about. Gardevoir ex will completely wipe the floor with you if you let them set up, as [card name=”Munkidori” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”95″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Cresselia” set=”Lost Origin” no=”74″ c=”name”][/card] can almost completely heal them. Usually, your snipe damage goes onto [card name=”Ralts” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”60″ c=”name”][/card] so that you can still snipe KO after a Cresselia attack plus a Munkidori Ability, or after just one of those if they evolve into [card name=”Kirlia” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”68″ c=”name”][/card]. If they are somewhat set up, try to take out Munkidori, or even Gardevoir ex if you have the chance.

Lost Zone Box

The Lost Zone box matchup is also somewhat favorable — they can’t deal with Dragapult ex once it is set up, but they can apply a lot of fast pressure. If you have a slower start, or they have a particularly good one, you might just succumb to early pressure. This is Lost Zone box’s modus operandi and there isn’t much you can do about it, apart from trying to set up Dragapult ex, and then you should be fine from there, so long as you didn’t give up too many Prize cards in the process. The [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] version is definitely better in this matchup than the [card name=”Xatu” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”72″ c=”name”][/card] version thanks to consistent access to [card name=”Iono” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”185″ c=”name”][/card], as well as skipping the vulnerable [card name=”Drakloak” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”129″ c=”name”][/card] to go straight to the beefy Dragapult ex.

Chien-Pao ex

[card name=”Chien-Pao ex” set=”Paldea Evolved” no=”61″ c=”name”][/card] can be scary with their fast pressure from [card name=”Radiant Greninja” set=”Astral Radiance” no=”46″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Iron Hands ex” set=”Paradox Rift” no=”70″ c=”name”][/card]. Furthermore, they can easily one-shot Dragapult ex and are one of the few decks that can do so. This matchup isn’t nearly as bad as it might look, however, as Dragapult ex can easily dismantle their board, allowing you to make comebacks thanks to the snipe damage adding up.

Snorlax Stall

Dragapult ex’s worst matchup is probably [card name=”Snorlax” set=”Pokemon GO” no=”55″ c=”name”][/card] stall, which I think is actually fine since it is still a somewhat uncommon deck. These lists are helpless against Snorlax… In the Seniors finals of NAIC, Dragapult ex was surprisingly able to beat Snorlax, but that’s because the winner had some tech Supporters which helped in that matchup.

Other Decks

This deck’s tougher matchups are undoubtedly [card name=”Lugia VSTAR” set=”Silver Tempest” no=”139″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Raging Bolt ex ” set=”Temporal Forces” no=”123″ c=”name”][/card]. For the [card name=”Pidgeot ex” set=”Obsidian Flames” no=”164″ c=”name”][/card] version, you just have to draw well and get lucky against Lugia VSTAR, especially without a tech for it. You have a decent shot against Raging Bolt ex thanks to the Radiant Charizard. For the Xatu version, things are very much the opposite; you have a better chance against Lugia VSTAR since we have [card name=”Enhanced Hammer” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”148″ c=”name”][/card], but have to get a bit luckier against Raging Bolt ex.

Finishing up

I think [card name=”Dragapult ex” set=”Twilight Masquerade” no=”130″ c=”name”][/card] is positioned fairly well into the upcoming meta, and the Pidgeot ex version with Dusknoir is incredibly strong. Dragapult ex is fun to play and rewards skill but sometimes the damage cap can be frustrating to deal with. If you haven’t gotten a chance to try out solid Dragapult ex lists yet, I would recommend giving these lists a shot. Thanks for reading!

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