Discussion Partners for Kabutops from Fates Collide?

jedimastercobra

Zygarde is Optimus Prime
Member
I want to build a fun and interesting deck around the first attack from the new Kabutops.

Kabutops – Fighting – HP150
Stage 1 – Evolves from Kabuto

[C][C] Stick To: 50 damage. Heal from this Pokemon the same amount of damage this attack does to your opponent’s Active Pokemon.

[F][C][C] X-Scissors: 80 damage. Flip a coin, if heads this attack does an additional 60 damage.

Weakness: Grass (x2)
Resistance: none
Retreat: 2

The first attack heals you for the amount of damage you do. Can you deal enough damage to heal yourself completely and potentially spam and never die? Another problem is the fact that it evolves from a restored Pokemon, however we have fossil researcher, the new Shuckle, Maxie, and the new fossil excavation kit.

Pros:
Healing
One prize
Lots of variety for partners
Fighting support
Low attack cost

Cons:
Potentially slow
Hard to get out
Fossil items and Pokemon take up space

Is the deck viable? Can it be faster? Can the deck be good overall?

All advice and suggestions are helpful. Thank you!! :)
 

pokedan24

Aspiring Trainer
Member
That one caught my eye too. With Focus Sash, you could protect yourself from one hit knockouts and with enough boosters and heal cards, bring yourself back to full health. For damage boosting, we have Regirock EX and Strong Energy, and for healing, there's potion and maybe Jynx? idk
 

Yog

Rogue
Member
Just a quick point to note, the text on Fossil Researcher reads: Search your deck for up to 2 in any combination of Amaura or Tyrunt and put them onto your bench. So you may forget about him in a Kabutops strategy.
 

jedimastercobra

Zygarde is Optimus Prime
Member
I though about running kabutops with maxie and carbink break to get it set up quick, possibly turn two or three.
Already made a deck list and will begin testing.

Thank you all for your help!
 

DatSonicAce

Latios Superfan
Member
I though about running kabutops with maxie and carbink break to get it set up quick, possibly turn two or three.
Already made a deck list and will begin testing.

Thank you all for your help!
I suggest actually playing Archie's Omastar with Break so you can pull out your fossils consistently with minimal effort. As a tech card, you could run Aerodactyl to effortlessly clean up Shaymins (use Omastar's Ability to immediately pull an Aerodactyl out, retreat, use Omastar Break's Ability (free Lysandre on benched EXs), attach a DCE, and goodbye Shaymin. As for Kabutops, could be good, just have to pull off the Archie to get Omastar and then a Kabuto.
 

TuxedoBlack

Old School Player
Member
Potential partners:
Lucario - solid 1-energy attacker and can also provide energy attachment acceleration
Lucario EX - solid 1-energy attacker and can also supplement card-drawing with its 2nd attack
Regirock EX - provides damage output boost
Have you considered using the Maxie's Hidden Ball Trick engine to get the Kabutops in play vs. normal evolution? Maxie's HBT seems to be a bit easier, IMO.
 

poke4trade

Raising Ash
Member
2 Strong Energy, 1 Muscle band, 4 Regirock EX + Fighting Stadium for EX.

50 + 20 + 20 + 20 + 10 + 10+ 10 +10 +20 = 170 dmg

Heals for 170 points

Ouch! I would just play float stone to float Regirock out. I would use Regirock as a meats shield as I built my bench up. I would run it as evolution and run the shaymins with AZ to pull the fossil item cards out. AZ would just pull the shaymins off the bench to be replaced with Regirock. Shrugs...Something like that. You could also use skyfield and forgo the fighting stadium so you can lay down pokemon.

4/4 Kaputops
4 Regirock
3 Shaymin
 

Chip Thrasher

Aspiring Trainer
Member
If you want to boost the damage, I've seen combinations of Fighting Stadium, Strong Energy, and Muscle Band.

Also, You could save space and skip the Kabuto and Fossils with Maxie's Hidden Ball Trick.
 

poke4trade

Raising Ash
Member
If you want to boost the damage, I've seen combinations of Fighting Stadium, Strong Energy, and Muscle Band.

Also, You could save space and skip the Kabuto and Fossils with Maxie's Hidden Ball Trick.

I've played a lot of fossil decks and when it comes to flipping them with Maxies and Archies it is really hit or miss in standard, in expanded a lot more consistent. However, if the fossils our your lead attacker, the best way I feel to play them is through the standard way of getting them out. But you need them out on first turn -- because you will need more than one as an attacker. Like always, the problem with fossils is that the most popular strategy shuts the deck down, Item lock.
The deck will need a massive first turn to lay out 2 to 3 fossils and a few Regirock. The best way I've found to get the massive first turn is through shaymin ex.

Just like with Aurous and Tyrantrum, if you get the babies out on first turn, you can make trainers grumpy real quick.

Here is one of the more popular decks I've made. It actually does really well if you hit the right matches. My son won a couple of League Challenges with it. It is a cheap rouge deck, but not really super competitive because of Item Lock.

 
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Chip Thrasher

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Interesting. Big first turns do definitely intimidate (which I've never really thought of as a game mechanic before), but they also, of course, get set up as quickly as possible.
 

poke4trade

Raising Ash
Member
Interesting. Big first turns do definitely intimidate (which I've never really thought of as a game mechanic before), but they also, of course, get set up as quickly as possible.

Yes. A big first turn is probably the number one strategy in Pokemon. Second Strag., for the past couple of years, has been item lock, a reason why trainers who've been playing the game for a while are grumpy. Third, and the current reigning champion, is over whelming an opponent by sheer power.

Every top tier deck in Pokemon, for standard, is about the first turn:
Vespequeen
Seismitoad
Trevenent
NightMarch

Pretty much pokemon, once you bundle this up, the game asks a simple question,
Does it stop the opponent from playing on your first turn?

If the deck you designed can do just two of three below, you've built a very competitive deck.
Massive First Turn
Overwhelm
Item Lock

All the top decks accomplish 2 to 3 of these outcomes. It is why pokemon will never be like chess, cause chess's first question is can I out maneuver my opponent, not stop my opponent from playing on first move.

The deck your talking about needs a massive first turn and cannot not overwhelm or item lock on players first turn. So the deck is a bit shy of the two really needed outcomes to be competitive. Other than that, it is an awesome rouge deck. I like rouge decks a lot because they play more like a chess match! :0)
 
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Chip Thrasher

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I agree. Consistent decks are good, but not consistent enough to make it boring to play with. Variety in the TCG is great!
 

Chip Thrasher

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Maxie and Archie have never really worked out for me. Don't know why, probably just not good at playing those kinds of decks :)
 
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