An In-Depth Guide to Rainbow Force Xerneas

[cardimg name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ align=”right” c=”none”][/cardimg]

Hey, guys! Linthil here, and this is my first article. It’s about the legendary stag-like cervine Rainbow Force [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]! The reason why I first paid attention to it was because of the colorless [card name=”M Rayquaza-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”105″ c=”name”][/card], a pretty popular card back in the days among the PTCGO players, and since I like alternative rogue decks, I started to think about it. Also, it’s a fairy Pokémon, just as Gardevoir, one of my favorites, so double success. It in fact turned out to be a really great deck! I rarely lose with it on tournaments, so I made it in real life too. That being said, let’s get to the decklist:

[decklist name=”Rainbow Road” amt=”60″ caption=”” cname=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″][pokemon amt=”20″]4x [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Jirachi-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”98″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Virizion-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”96″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”63″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”142″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Latias-EX” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”112″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Aegislash-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”65″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Primal Clash” no=”21″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Vulpix” set=”Primal Clash” no=”20″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Raichu” set=”Generations” no=”27″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Pikachu” set=”Radiant Collection 2″ no=”RC29″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Barbaracle” set=”Fates Collide” no=”23″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Binacle” set=”Flashfire” no=”48″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Carbink” set=”Fates Collide” no=”50″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card][/pokemon][trainers amt=”28″]3x [card name=”Colress” set=”Plasma Storm” no=”135″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]1x [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Juniper” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”116″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]1x [card name=”Professor Birch’s Observations” set=”Primal Clash” no=”159″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Pokémon Fan Club” set=”Flashfire” no=”106″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Flashfire” no=”104″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”110″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Startling Megaphone” set=”Flashfire” no=”97″ c=”deck2″ amt=”1″][/card]2x [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]3x [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”122″ c=”deck2″ amt=”3″][/card]2x [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]2x [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card]1x [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”deck2″ divide=”yes” amt=”1″][/card]4x [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card][/trainers][energy amt=”12″]6x [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”Generations” no=”83″ c=”deck2″ amt=”6″][/card]4x [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”deck2″ amt=”4″][/card]2x [card name=”Prism Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”93″ c=”deck2″ amt=”2″][/card][/energy][/decklist] 

Key Cards

[card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]

The star (rainbow?) of this deck. We’ll only be using his first attack, Rainbow Force. It deals 10 + 30 damage for each different type of Pokémon on our Bench. That’s huge, because this deck is entirely built to make this attack hit for its maximum number, 250, even knocking [card name=”Wailord-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”147″ c=”name”][/card] out.

[card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card]

The second copy of [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] is there to increase the chances of getting it early in the game and decrease the chances of getting prized ones, since it provides three more cards for our Bench, easily giving our Rainbow Force attack some early fuel. This means I can search for card draw ([card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card]), tankiness ([card name=”Latias-EX” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”112″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Aegislash-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card]), Special Conditions immunity ([card name=”Virizion-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card]), Supporter search ([card name=”Jirachi-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”98″ c=”name”][/card]) and free Retreat Cost ([card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]), while I get my Bench ready and colorful (seven types already, not bad, huh?).

[card name=”Colress” set=”Plasma Storm” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card]

Oh, the main reason why this deck shines the most within the Expanded format, and it works here at all stages of the game. Since we’ll ideally have 8 Pokémon on our Bench, and the opponent shall have some more dudes, it’s not unusual (Carlton Banks, anyone?) that we’ll be drawing around 10~12 cards, so there are no worries about getting that [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card] we need to finish the game, for example.

[card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card]

With full Bench and [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card], it is possible to get to the golden number 180, knocking out most EX Pokémon. But how do we deal with Mega Evolution and other Pokémon with higher HP? Easy, maxing out our copies of Sky Field. By doing that we can put up to eight Pokémon onto our Bench, and almost always win the Stadium war. We are also running [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Primal Clash” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card] to help achieve that goal.

The Pokémon

First of all, most of the Rainbow Force [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] decklists I’ve seen used Standard cards. That’s fine, since you’ll rarely let your opponent get 2 prizes for an EX, but I find those versions a lot slower than mine. And that’s the main reason why I’m using a list full of EX: they are useful as Basic Pokémon.

Of course, there are some other non-EX Pokémon within the deck, so let’s take a look at them. [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Primal Clash” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card] works here as a Stadium lock, since [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] is a key card that allows us to hit for massive damage. Yeah, it can still be discarded with [card name=”Delinquent” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”98″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Paint Roller” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”79″ c=”name”][/card], or with attacks like [card name=”Lugia-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card]’s Deep Hurricane and [card name=”Primal Groudon-EX” set=”Primal Clash” no=”151″ c=”name”][/card]’s Gaia Volcano, but it shall work most of the time. [card name=”Raichu” set=”Generations” no=”27″ c=”name”][/card] is here as our Lightning-type Pokémon because its attack has great synergy with the deck in general, which can be a life saver against the likes of [card name=”Jolteon-EX” set=”Generations” no=”28″ c=”name”][/card] or [card name=”Pyroar” set=”Flashfire” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]. We also have [card name=”Carbink” set=”Fates Collide” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card], whose Safeguard Ability can save us big time too. And our last Pokémon is [card name=”Barbaracle” set=”Fates Collide” no=”23″ c=”name”][/card]: as long as we have a Stadium card in play, our opponent can’t attach any Special Energy cards. That’s a good tech against the famous Night March and VespiPlume decks, as long as we can keep our [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] up. Another thing to notice is that we can pick the Fighting-type version of [card name=”Binacle” set=”Flashfire” no=”48″ c=”name”][/card], to add more type diversity to the deck.

The Trainer

Now, the Trainers that make this beautiful mess work. Let’s start with the Supporters: [card name=”Pokémon Fan Club” set=”Flashfire” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] works wonders during the early stages of the game. We can get [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card], and then start to fill our Bench, choosing the best Pokémon to counter our opponent’s strategy or just to stall. Also, we have one copy of [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Professor Juniper” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Professor Birch’s Observations” set=”Primal Clash” no=”159″ c=”name”][/card] to make the deck run.

To have access to those awesome Supporters from the Discard Pile, we have two [card name=”VS Seeker” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”110″ c=”name”][/card]. [card name=”Startling Megaphone” set=”Flashfire” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] to erase those Tools, and [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] allow us to speed things up and avoid bad hands, and [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] helps to get our [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] energies, so we’ll only need a DCE to complete the rainbow. As for the tools, two copies of [card name=”Float Stone” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”137″ c=”name”][/card], so [card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card] can work his magic (Rush In, then Retreat for free), and we have more [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] than [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] only because in the case we don’t have our Stadium up, our max damage should be 160, and [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] can reach for the K.O. on those 180 HP EX Pokémon.

The Energy

To complete the deck analysis, six [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”Generations” no=”83″ c=”name”][/card], four [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card] and two [card name=”Prism Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], to enable [card name=”Virizion-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”96″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] abillities on our Active Pokémon. I think that’s the best use of energies, but if you want, you can use more [card name=”Fairy Energy” set=”Generations” no=”83″ c=”name”][/card] to increase [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] chances, or use more [card name=”Prism Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card] if you feel you’ll be attacking with your other Pokémon more. Just remember to keep the 4 [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card] anyway, and you should be fine.

Side Deck Options

Now, I had some doubts during the deck building process, so there are some cards that could also work here as a side deck: a line of 1-1 [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card], taking Barbaracle’s place; [card name=”Lugia-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”94″ c=”name”][/card], if you feel the need of an instant (with DCE) Basic backup attacker, and it also counts as another Colorless-type, since we only have [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card]; [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] replacing [card name=”Darkrai-EX” set=”Dark Explorers” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] as our Dark-type Pokémon, but keeping the free Retreat Cost mechanic; [card name=”Tool Scrapper” set=”Dragons Exalted” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card], as a [card name=”Startling Megaphone” set=”Flashfire” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] substitute to discard a nasty [card name=”Head Ringer” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”97″ c=”name”][/card] that may be attached to [card name=”Keldeo-EX” set=”Boundaries Crossed” no=”142″ c=”name”][/card]; and [card name=”Super Rod” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”149″ c=”name”][/card], just in case you get many Pokémon and energies discarded (you can take an [card name=”Ultra Ball” set=”Plasma Freeze” no=”122″ c=”name”][/card] out for that).

There’s also the option to use [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]’ second attack, Power Criation, in case you can’t build your Bench well or Rainbow Force gets disabled. And we can enable that massive 160 damage (180 with [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card]) with [card name=”Jynx” set=”Generations” no=”36″ c=”name”][/card], whose ability Victory Kiss heals our active Pokémon. If you go for it, you might want to choose for [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”XY” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card] instead of [card name=”Prism Energy” set=”Next Destinies” no=”93″ c=”name”][/card], allowing you to take damage on your turn (and heal afterwards).

Standard Format

For those who prefer to play Standard, this deck isn’t the best choice, but still has some strenghts. First of all, since most of our EXs Pokémon were rotated out (we can only use [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Aegislash-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card]), there’s no point in using [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] anymore. So we will count on non-EX Pokémon, such as [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Primal Clash” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Raichu” set=”Generations” no=”27″ c=”name”][/card], [card name=”Carbink” set=”Fates Collide” no=”50″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Zoroark” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”91″ c=”name”][/card] to add type diversity, backup attackers and the already known Stadium lock, EX immunity and free Retreat. We can also use [card name=”Manaphy-EX” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”116″ c=”name”][/card], as we’ll be running [card name=”Rainbow Energy” set=”XY” no=”131″ c=”name”][/card], and it’s one more type for our Bench. [card name=”Octillery” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”33″ c=”name”][/card] becomes a staple here, with the loss of [card name=”Colress” set=”Plasma Storm” no=”135″ c=”name”][/card], which shall be replaced by more copies of [card name=”N” set=”Noble Victories” no=”101″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Professor Sycamore” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card]. Also, since we don’t have lots of EXs anymore, we can replace [card name=”Pokémon Fan Club” set=”Flashfire” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card] with [card name=”Brigette” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”161″ c=”name”][/card]. Even though we can keep the deck’s structure, it becomes a lot slower.

Unlimited Format

Oh my, this is nostalgic. And really helpful! We can make use of the multi-type Pokémon [card name=”Kecleon” set=”Rising Rivals” no=”67″ c=”name”][/card], and his partnership with [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] alone can win lots of games for you (nine types for one Pokémon, that’s very broken here). That means we no longer need to rely that much on [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card], and we can even use more win conditions. Also, we can use all of the EXs we did with the Expanded list if necessary, and have at least two non-Basic Pokémon to play around the likes of [card name=”Pyroar” set=”Flashfire” no=”20″ c=”name”][/card]. But the most important thing is to accelerate our setup, which means cards like [card name=”Max Elixir” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”102″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Trainers’ Mail” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”100″ c=”name”][/card] can be maxed out, and maybe more energies. For the rest of the deck, use your imagination! It shall be powerful and funny.

The Matchups

To be honest, I haven’t found a particularly hard matchup for our guy, but there are some observations: first of all, this deck shines the most against EXs Pokémon, because we can easily knock them out and get two prizes. But let’s see how it goes against the other high tier decks:

Night March: the fast setup can really destroy us, with multiple uses of [card name=”Lysandre” set=”Flashfire” no=”104″ c=”name”][/card]. We need to rely early on [card name=”Aegislash-EX” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”65″ c=”name”][/card] to counter the [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card] attacks, while we get out [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] ready. [card name=”Raichu” set=”Generations” no=”27″ c=”name”][/card] might also be a nice tool here, because we can also attack with only a DCE, which can be disrupted by [card name=”Barbaracle” set=”Fates Collide” no=”23″ c=”name”][/card]. Just try to control that, and the late game shall be fine.

VespiPlume: just like Night March, pay attention to the opponent’s usage of [card name=”Double Colorless Energy” set=”HeartGold and SoulSilver” no=”103″ c=”name”][/card]. There’s also something to look for, and that is the Item lock. It shouldn’t hurt us that much, but can delay our setup. Try to get an early [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card] and lock it with [card name=”Ninetales” set=”Primal Clash” no=”21″ c=”name”][/card].

[card name=”Trevenant BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”66″ c=”name”][/card]: the damage output isn’t high, but we need to pay attention to the Item lock too. Try to setup your game fast with [card name=”Hoopa-EX” set=”Ancient Origins” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card]. Also, there’s the Ability lock from [card name=”Wobbuffet” set=”Phantom Forces” no=”36″ c=”name”][/card], which can hurt us too, but once our Bench is ready [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] can work his Rainbow Force.

[card name=”Greninja BREAK” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”41″ c=”name”][/card]: now it gets more difficult, because 120 HP is low, and our [card name=”Xerneas” set=”BREAKthrough” no=”107″ c=”name”][/card] can be sniped by the frogs. Using backup attackers with higher HP can be a good option here, but pay attention before using [card name=”Jirachi-EX” set=”Plasma Blast” no=”98″ c=”name”][/card] and [card name=”Shaymin-EX” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”106″ c=”name”][/card], that can easily be knocked out. [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card] is a great card in this matchup too.

The Future

Guys, dual-type Pokémon are coming back! This means that this deck can get even more power. I particularly think that the Expanded version won’t change much, maybe we’ll have the adition of Volcanion-EX, which means we can trade our [card name=”Muscle Band” set=”XY” no=”121″ c=”name”][/card] for [card name=”Fighting Fury Belt” set=”BREAKpoint” no=”99″ c=”name”][/card], giving our Xerneas more survivability (because that extra type will help us get to the 180 damage even without [card name=”Sky Field” set=”Roaring Skies” no=”89″ c=”name”][/card]). But within the Standard Format the new cards should have more impact. Let’s wait and see what will happen.

Well, that’s all for today guys, I hope you liked the review! If you want to add me on PTCGO to play or just talk, my nickname is Linthil. See you later!