You can also use the new Hydreigon, while including its BREAK stage in this deck as a Giratina replacement as a consequence of Pokemon Ranger's existence(not to say that I'm in support of removing Giratina-EX, when I'm not, but in my opinion, it's worth a look): 2 Hydreigon BREAKs+2 Assault Vests + Cruel Fang=Your team getting an additional turn: 190-(220(Max NM damage possible)+10(Fighting Fury Belt)-40(Cruel Fang)-40(Assault Vest))= 190-150=40...
^ Plus, Hydreigon BREAK can even snipe at the unbelted FCO Mews for 2-3 KOs in one turn w/ Calamity Blast. Hydreigon can even serve as backup attacker using Dark Burn w/ enough energy on board to discard three darks for 150 damage to Shaymin-EX for the KO, belted or not...
^Other than that, the addition of Ranger nerfs Giratina-EX in a way she can't be relied on any more vs. NM, meaning it's time to think about NM-debuffers like Assault Vest and the new Hydreigon's attack, whether in Stage 2 or when it goes BREAK form...
^However, to make room for that strategy, I'm afraid these changes will be made to my latest take from the skeleton:
-4 Trainers' Mail
-2 Giratina-EX(Pokemon ranger-induced)
-1 Sycamore
+2 Deino STS
+2 Zweilous STS
+2 Hydreigon STS
+2 Hydreigon BREAK
+2 Assault Vest
+1 Parallel City
+1 Wally
+1 Yveltal XY(to recover energy discarded by Dark Burn and/or Calamity Blast)
Admittedly, this is really interesting, however, its just a bit too clunky for such a fast paced metagame. Also, at least for the next month, why not use the far better Hydreigon from Phantom Forces, as it also helps with energy acceleration. Personally, after multiple tens of hours of testing, Ive felt that Darkrai EX, Giratina EX, and Garbodor best function in addition with a copy of Yveltal XY (I use the steam siege one though, the artwork on it is really nice), and possibly a single copy of Latios EX. My decklist is below, to give context for my next paragraph.
****** Pokémon Trading Card Game Deck List ******
##Pokémon - 12
* 2 Shaymin-EX ROS 77
* 3 Darkrai-EX BKP 74
* 1 Yveltal STS 65
* 2 Giratina-EX AOR 57
* 2 Trubbish BKP 56
* 2 Garbodor BKP 57
##Trainer Cards - 35
* 2 N FAC 105
* 2 Lysandre FLF 90
* 1 Startling Megaphone FLF 97
* 1 Super Rod BKT 149
* 4 Max Elixir BKP 102
* 3 Fighting Fury Belt BKP 99
* 3 Trainers' Mail ROS 92
* 2 Parallel City BKT 145
* 1 Pokémon Ranger STS 104
* 1 AZ PHF 91
* 3 Float Stone BKT 137
* 4 Ultra Ball ROS 93
* 4 Professor Sycamore XY 122
* 4 VS Seeker PHF 109
##Energy - 13
* 4 Double Dragon Energy ROS 97
* 9 Darkness Energy Energy 7
Total Cards - 60
****** Deck List Generated by the Pokémon TCG Online
www.pokemon.com/TCGO ******
For Latios EX, I for me personally, that its too inconsistent to really carry its weight, and despite how good it can be in a tournament setting (even one donk can be crucial for making top cut), for me (just a casual-competitive player), its not as important on PTCGO. This also allows me to run FFB over Muscle Band, since despite losing 10 extra damage (which can be the difference between a KO and survival), having the extra 40 HP is very important in many situations. For example, Night March, you'd need 10-11 Night Marchers discarded to OHKO a Darkrai or Giratina, rather than just 8 or 9, FFB also improves an already decently strong Trevenant matchup by making EX's (including benched shaymin when necessary) another attack further from a KO. These aren't the only reasons of course, but basically the way I see it, is that I find myself needing an extra few HP far more often than an extra 10 damage that muscle band has over FFB. As for Yveltal XY, (STS in this case), it can force a 7 prize game without having to lose pokemon needed for the ability lock, and put more lost energy onto the field, and lastly, it is indeed very useful against Night March. 2 Trubbish, 2 Garbodor, 2 Shaymin EX, are all for the ability lock and consistency. Onto trainers, I haven't changed much from the standard, after all, standard is called standard for a reason: its consistent, and its proven to work. My two 1 of item cards, Super Rod and Startling Megaphone, have both been vital at times, and do their jobs wonderfully, allowing to recover due to a quick start of my opponent, or me having to Sycamore away some resources, and a well timed Startling Megaphone can cripple the rarely seen Mega Pokemon decks (Rayquaza, Sceptile, Alakazam, Manectric, etc.). I've used AZ just as much as Cassius, and in my honest opinion, they're just super similar cards that offer slightly different perks. Last of all before my closing comments, are my feelings on Pokemon Ranger. Many people have said that Pokemon Ranger will cripple Giratina, however, it really isn't the case. Pokemon Ranger's release certainly hurts it, but its not a knock out blow, Giratina will still be nearly as strong as ever. In fact, I feel that in the PRC-STS format, with M Rayquaza EX likely rising up to be the strongest deck in the format, Giratina EX's ability will be vital too. The only changes that I'll need to make for my deck list for the PRC-on format will be changing AZ and Startling Megaphone, which I'll probably replace with a 10th Dark Energy and a 3rd Parallel City, as I always find myself needing another copy of boh. Anyway, I feel that this deck is one of the three best in format (Night March and Trevenant being the other two), and that it will continue to be a major part in our format. In my honest opinion, just like Darkrai DEX decks of years past, this deck will continue to evolve with the format as well.
