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Standard Gardevoir EX (Budget)

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
Now, I'm looking to build a Mega Gardevoir/Dragonair list, as a rogue idea I had. Any suggestions for such an unusual strategy would be appreciated. For now I am considering 13 Energy, 4 Professor's Letter, a 2-1 Dragonair line, Xerneas as a backup charger and four Mega Gardevoir including 1 of the Despair Ray version.
 

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
I will address these two questions :)

Regarding MM2 as a bad match up, I wouldn't argue it is bad on its face. I would argue that it is bad because the MM2 player only needs to get one MM up and running quickly + 1 Lysandre and PRC Gardevoir is probably behind already. Allow me to pose this scenario as an example: Say MM2 goes 1st. Say you even start perfectly and get Xerneas up top, 2 Gardevoir EXs on your bench, 2 spirit links on your Gardevoirs. Let's even make this super awesome and say that at the end of T1, you have 1 Fairy energy in your discard + 2 BA Gards in hand + 1 Mega Turbo. Because you went second, both BA Garbs start with 1 Fairy each + 1 Fairy on Xerneas. T2, MM hits the board, they Mega Turbo into 1 Psychic + 1 DCE on the MM. Let's just assume they added the other DCE to a benched M2 to set up the second one rather than just stomping your Gardevoir T2. They Lysandre up one of the Gards and hit it for 130. T2, you level into BA, attach one energy, use Mega Turbo and get another onto BA and for kicks, let's just say you swap them out free with Fairy Garden. Now you have a 3 energy BA waiting to hit MM2 for 150 (5 energy on the board). That's solid. Except that now you are absolutely relying on heals + 0 energy attachments on the current active MM to survive the next hit. All this while having a Gard on your bench that has been damaged for 120.

Basically, what that book of a paragraph is attempting to establish isn't some crazy scenario. That is common for both you and MM2. The difference is that MM2 is one energy connection away from burning your active, is setting up a second MM free of damage, and only has to hit your eventual BA Garb for 90 to knock it out. You will be down 4 prizes to 2 after T3. That's hard to overcome. Not impossible. But hard.

By contrast, DR Gardevoir ends the threat T2 by knocking out MM #1 and forcing MM #2 to have a whopping 2 DCE + 1 P to knock out your DR Gardevoir. That absolutely turns the scenario on its head...all by using the options available to you by having two different primary attackers.

As for the DR Gardy "mirror", I honestly don't know that I think it is any better or worse. Both need to hit for 210 to bring down the mega. DR Gardy can get two up and running faster with fewer turns needed to make that happen. By contrast, BA can be up and running on a full 1 shot DR with only 7 energy on the board (which is extremely likely by T3 and quite doable by T2 if you can get 2 Geomancy off / hit enough Turbos). It always turns on whether BA Gardy gets heals and DR Gardy can keep that bench up. If BA can limit the bench to 5 with the right stadium, BA should win with enough healing because BA 1 shots DR with 7 energy on the board. Dunno. I think the match up is pretty even IMO. Just depends on who gets what breaks.

I am sure others have different experiences with that match up, but I haven't found BA to get overwhelmed by DR H2H.
A problem is that it usually gets outsped and that a single Geomancy is not enough, therefore Despair Ray starts pressuring Brilliant Arrow and it is hard to build into a one-hit Knock Out. Otherwise though, if Despair Ray draws bad, the Brilliant Arrow version has odds on its side, but the Despair Ray deck is normally very consistent, so I would say Brilliant Arrow has a 45/55 matchup against Despair Ray.
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
A problem is that it usually gets outsped and that a single Geomancy is not enough, therefore Despair Ray starts pressuring Brilliant Arrow and it is hard to build into a one-hit Knock Out. Otherwise though, if Despair Ray draws bad, the Brilliant Arrow version has odds on its side, but the Despair Ray deck is normally very consistent, so I would say Brilliant Arrow has a 45/55 matchup against Despair Ray.
In light of this, why don't we tech a 1-of silent lab or, more to the point, why is garbodor only a very rare inclusion in brilliant arrow gardy decks? Could play 4 spirit links and 1-2 floats; as opposed to 3 spirit links and 2-3 floats, due to the deck having fairy garden.

EDIT: about the dragonair thing, the rayquaza guy mentioned togekiss/darkrai earlier which might be a good stepping stone?
 
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Fayld

Rayquaza / Eelektross Master
Advanced Member
Member
In light of this, why don't we tech a 1-of silent lab or, more to the point, why is garbodor only a very rare inclusion in brilliant arrow gardy decks? Could play 4 spirit links and 1-2 floats; as opposed to 3 spirit links and 2-3 floats, due to the deck having fairy garden.

EDIT: about the dragonair thing, the rayquaza guy mentioned togekiss/darkrai earlier which might be a good stepping stone?

I think Dragonair would be great with fewer moving pieces. Togekiss/Darkrai is alright because the primary other pokemon don't require additional support to get into play. They are basics. Don't require spirit links. Can take advantage of FFB. Etc. Example, I think a Dragonair / Darkrai deck has potential provided you can cycle enough pieces. I think Dragonair + Xerneas BREAK could have a ton of potential. I don't think it has nearly as much potential with the Gards simply because so many resources are dedicated to getting the Gards going. I mean, you are talking 7 pokemon (minimum) + 3 spirit links (preferably 4). that's 10-12 cards dedicated solely to the megas. You free up 2-4 cards by going Xerneas BREAK alone and maxing both lines.

I think the primary reason Garbodor doesn't get lumped with Gardevoir is the additional 2-1/2 line required to run it. As stated above, Gardevoir already sports a fat pokemon line to begin with and the DR deck requires abilities to cycle. While the BA / DR doesn't require abilities, it does require energy acceleration of some form. I guess you could try to make it work more like a M Mewtwo deck list, drop the Xerneas acceleration, and rely on a combination of Turbos + Elixirs to push the energy higher. The issue with BA, unlike MM2 is that it doesn't take advantage of DCE. I am sure someone has built that list and I would love to see it. I have never been able to make the Turbo + Elixir dedicated energy acceleration work, but that might just be lack of imagination or too many turbos.

I have been running a modified variant on this deck and so far it has been downright fantastic.

My modifications:
-1 Gardevoir EX STS
-1 Skyla (I haven't had many issues with spirit links and realistically, you only need 2 most games. She has other uses, but I would rather have PCL.)
-1 N (still playing with this)
-1 Hex Maniac (still playing with this too)

+1 Tauros GX (Adds pressure, but I am not positive it does much)
+1 Lillie (still toying with 1 Lillie / 1 N vs 2 N. Both have positives and negatives)
+1 Pokemon Center Lady (I feel like this is a key addition)
+1 Olympia (I go back and forth on this one vs a second Hex. I have liked the second Hex and didn't think I would when I first played it).
 

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
I saw a video about a M Rayquaza Dragon/Dragonair deck, and realized, after comparing it to the Reshiram build, that Dragonair is probably nowhere near Xerneas in terms of utility and Energy acceleration in Mega Gardevoir, and it is without even considering Xerneas BREAK.

The problem I find with using Dragonair is that it means that you have to run tons of Basic Energy and set up Stage 1 and Mega Evolution Pokémon while Xerneas does the job as a Basic Pokémon with 9 to 11 Energy in the deck, which means you have much more room. I haven't tested the Dragonair build though, as I have no Dragonair in the moment, so I am basing this off observations I made while watching videos about Dragonair build of decks such as Darkrai, expanded Malamar and the Dragon Mega Rayquaza.

What I find not to be a bad idea so far though, is mixing the two Mega Gardevoir EX in a hybrid way, that makes both parts work. My list has been working consistently so far, and very well for a hybrid kind of deck, and I would suggest that you try a such deck out if you have the necessary cards, although I would take any suggestions towards improving this list as well.

I am currently working with the following list, and I have tested it out, to generally positive results:

Pokémon (15)
2 Hoopa EX AOR
3 Gardevoir EX STS
1 M Gardevoir EX PCL
2 M Gardevoir EX STS
3 Xerneas XY
1 Dragonite EX EVO
3 Shaymin EX ROS

Trainer (36)
3 Fairy Garden
1 Brock's Grit
1 Hex Maniac
2 Lysandre
3 N
3 Professor Sycamore
3 Escape Rope
2 Fairy Drop
4 Gardevoir Spirit Link
2 Mega Turbo
4 Trainers' Mail
4 Ultra Ball
4 VS Seeker

Energy (9)
9 Fairy Energy

I do recognize that some of the parts in this list look odd but can explain each one:
Three Xerneas: This is a deck where starting Gardevoir is good too, and I am already running so many basics.
Four Spirit Link but a 3-3 Mega line: This helps in getting them out more consistently; three will not get the job done as well.
Three Sycamore and three N: This deck has many (23) Items and does not rely on discarding lots of Pokémon/other resources, so I prefer a 3-3 Supporter lineup over 4 Sycamore and 2 N.
Nine Energy: This is the exact amount for all of the Mega Gardevoir and Xerneas to be fully charged up with an Energy Prized, and it allows for a damage output that reasonably goes up to 210 with Brilliant Arrow (a very crucial number for Belted EX's, Stage 1 GX's and some Mega Evolution Pokémon) and sometimes 240, with a potential of 270 with all Energy attached. It makes the Energy not too hard to draw but not too common to see which helps the semi-turbo engine I run.
 

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
I saw a video about a M Rayquaza Dragon/Dragonair deck, and realized, after comparing it to the Reshiram build, that Dragonair is probably nowhere near Xerneas in terms of utility and Energy acceleration in Mega Gardevoir, and it is without even considering Xerneas BREAK.

The problem I find with using Dragonair is that it means that you have to run tons of Basic Energy and set up Stage 1 and Mega Evolution Pokémon while Xerneas does the job as a Basic Pokémon with 9 to 11 Energy in the deck, which means you have much more room. I haven't tested the Dragonair build though, as I have no Dragonair in the moment, so I am basing this off observations I made while watching videos about Dragonair build of decks such as Darkrai, expanded Malamar and the Dragon Mega Rayquaza.

What I find not to be a bad idea so far though, is mixing the two Mega Gardevoir EX in a hybrid way, that makes both parts work. My list has been working consistently so far, and very well for a hybrid kind of deck, and I would suggest that you try a such deck out if you have the necessary cards, although I would take any suggestions towards improving this list as well.

I am currently working with the following list, and I have tested it out, to generally positive results:

Pokémon (15)
2 Hoopa EX AOR
3 Gardevoir EX STS
1 M Gardevoir EX PCL
2 M Gardevoir EX STS
3 Xerneas XY
1 Dragonite EX EVO
3 Shaymin EX ROS

Trainer (36)
3 Fairy Garden
1 Brock's Grit
1 Hex Maniac
2 Lysandre
3 N
3 Professor Sycamore
3 Escape Rope
2 Fairy Drop
4 Gardevoir Spirit Link
2 Mega Turbo
4 Trainers' Mail
4 Ultra Ball
4 VS Seeker

Energy (9)
9 Fairy Energy

I do recognize that some of the parts in this list look odd but can explain each one:
Three Xerneas: This is a deck where starting Gardevoir is good too, and I am already running so many basics.
Four Spirit Link but a 3-3 Mega line: This helps in getting them out more consistently; three will not get the job done as well.
Three Sycamore and three N: This deck has many (23) Items and does not rely on discarding lots of Pokémon/other resources, so I prefer a 3-3 Supporter lineup over 4 Sycamore and 2 N.
Nine Energy: This is the exact amount for all of the Mega Gardevoir and Xerneas to be fully charged up with an Energy Prized, and it allows for a damage output that reasonably goes up to 210 with Brilliant Arrow (a very crucial number for Belted EX's, Stage 1 GX's and some Mega Evolution Pokémon) and sometimes 240, with a potential of 270 with all Energy attached. It makes the Energy not too hard to draw but not too common to see which helps the semi-turbo engine I run.

For those who do not quite get the strategy behind the deck, it is taking on almost any Pokémon with two-hit Knock Outs throughout most of the game with Despair Ray that also discards setup Pokémon, after having spent a turn or two using Geomancy, when the matchup says Brilliant Arrow should be a necessity, and then, later game, or sometimes earlier than that, Knock Out Pokémon in one hit with Brilliant Arrow once the board contains 6-7 Energy.
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
For those who do not quite get the strategy behind the deck, it is taking on almost any Pokémon with two-hit Knock Outs throughout most of the game with Despair Ray that also discards setup Pokémon, after having spent a turn or two using Geomancy, when the matchup says Brilliant Arrow should be a necessity, and then, later game, or sometimes earlier than that, Knock Out Pokémon in one hit with Brilliant Arrow once the board contains 6-7 Energy.
I believe gardevoir are like drinks; be careful while mixing them!
 

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
Yes indeed, you have to be extremely careful. A 2-2 split in my experience will not work well. You have to run 2 Brilliant Arrow and 1 Despair Ray or 1 Brilliant Arrow and 2 Despair Ray if you are going to make a hybrid variant.
By the way, I modified my deck slightly since I posted it. I removed Dragonite EX and Brock's Grit and added in 2 Super Rod.
However, I still did not find a way to get in a third Fairy Drop, as I do not see much if anything I could cut for it.
I have to say though, even at three, Xerneas works well as an early setup Pokémon that uses Geomancy the required amount of times depending on the matchup (Zero to two times) and is a rather bulky Pokémon to sit behind while getting the opponent to an odd Prize count once it is defeated.
I also really enjoy the fact that this deck has six good starters which is 54% of my Basic Pokémon, so I get good starts over two thirds of the time.
As a suggestion, for those who only have two Shaymin-EX, I would recommend adding in a fourth Professor Sycamore or a third Fairy Drop.
 
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swan

aspiring memer
Member
Yes indeed, you have to be extremely careful. A 2-2 split in my experience will not work well. You have to run 2 Brilliant Arrow and 1 Despair Ray or 1 Brilliant Arrow and 2 Despair Ray if you are going to make a hybrid variant.
By the way, I modified my deck slightly since I posted it. I removed Dragonite EX and Brock's Grit and added in 2 Super Rod.
However, I still did not find a way to get in a third Fairy Drop, as I do not see much if anything I could cut for it.
Out of interest, how does BA-M gardevoir deal with Decidueye/plume? Any comments on the matchup?
 

Asmer

Keep the High Tide on the Flipside
Member
Not very well, honestly. Decidueye can typically Snipe Xerneas/Skymins/Hoopas that haven't been removed and Plume shuts down the engine pretty hard since it locks you out of both Mega Turbo and Max Elixir (depending on what you're running). That, and Decidueye is oddly tank-y with 240 HP, which is quite a pain.

-Asmer
 

Fayld

Rayquaza / Eelektross Master
Advanced Member
Member
Yes indeed, you have to be extremely careful. A 2-2 split in my experience will not work well. You have to run 2 Brilliant Arrow and 1 Despair Ray or 1 Brilliant Arrow and 2 Despair Ray if you are going to make a hybrid variant.

I disagree with this. I have found a 2-2 split to be essential. There are too many times where *the* variant of M Gardevoir is prized for me to say that a 2-1 split works. Also, I am generally not predetermining which mega I am gunning for early. Speeding to Despair Ray is pretty common, but there are games where it is unnecessary due to a variety of reasons.

As for the Deciduplume match up, it is pretty start dependent. T1 Plume is rough, but it is rough for most decks (as is Deciduplume in general given its success rate in recent tournaments). If I get a turn of items, the match up is usually fine. There aren't a ton of games where I have seen 3 fully leveled owls + a plume T1. DR is definitely the "get it out at all costs early" play in this match though. 2 energy is easy to hit. I am also running two copies of Hex and 1 copy of PCL. My deck is less item dependent in general than other variants I have seen and the two hexes make getting items / avoiding damage / healing much more doable in this match.

Small Sample Size warning, but I have won 15 of 17 games with this deck list.

Pokemon (14)
3 Xerneas STS
2 Hoopa EX
2 Shaymin EX
2 Gardevoir EX STS
1 Gardevoir EX PCL
2 M Gardevoir EX STS
2 M Gardevoir EX PCL

Trainers (36)
4 Professor Sycamore
2 N
2 Hex Maniac
2 Lysandre
1 Skyla
1 Pokemon Center Lady

4 VS Seeker
4 Ultra Ball
2 Escape Rope
2 Fairy Drop
2 Mega Turbo
2 Trainer's Mail
1 Super Rod

3 Fairy Garden

4 Gardevoir Spirit Link

Energy (10)
10 Fairy Energy
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
Yeah, I was just asking because I've been testing XB and come to the point where I'm wondering how much of an edge it has over Ba-M gardevoir. The decidueyeplume matchup is definately one where I'd rather play XB. (MU is a 50-50). I play a wobbufet which is, quite frankly, amazing! I wonder if it is a tech option in Gardevoir? I also use jirachi for Mm2 and Mray which it seems might help for gardevoir too?
Does Gardevoir struggle against volcanion? I can see it going either way with OHKOs.
 

Asmer

Keep the High Tide on the Flipside
Member
Does Gardevoir struggle against volcanion? I can see it going either way with OHKOs.
As a general, no, not really. It's a pretty fair match-up, depending on how the ebb and flow of the match itself goes, and since we'll be getting better Tool Scrapper soon, it'll be even more bearable (since killing off FFB/Float Stone makes Despair Ray MGarde so much better in this match-up). You do have to watch for some of the tempo swings Volcanion can pull out of its behind, however, since they can easily reach 210 damage with a decent draw.

And, of course, Brilliant Arrow can straight destroy Volcanion EX (that's fairly obvious, though). They'll do anything they can to get the Energy Count down, so keep that in mind of course, but as a general, they have to split their focus, meaning you can come in and do nasty things with Despair Ray Garde/Xerneas. Overall, it's definitely a winnable match-up.

-Asmer
 

TCG_Destory

Darkness player
Member
As a general, no, not really. It's a pretty fair match-up, depending on how the ebb and flow of the match itself goes, and since we'll be getting better Tool Scrapper soon, it'll be even more bearable (since killing off FFB/Float Stone makes Despair Ray MGarde so much better in this match-up). You do have to watch for some of the tempo swings Volcanion can pull out of its behind, however, since they can easily reach 210 damage with a decent draw.

And, of course, Brilliant Arrow can straight destroy Volcanion EX (that's fairly obvious, though). They'll do anything they can to get the Energy Count down, so keep that in mind of course, but as a general, they have to split their focus, meaning you can come in and do nasty things with Despair Ray Garde/Xerneas. Overall, it's definitely a winnable match-up.

-Asmer
It does look like a fair matchup, as they both start with one Prize Pokémon, and Volcanion needs two hits (generally) to Knock Out Xerneas, then M Gardevoir and Volcanion-EX will two-shot each other most of the time but can arrive at a point of one-shots. Flareon-EX and the Despair Ray Mega Gardevoir both have a capability to clean up in the late game. It seems to depend on who gets the fastest setup. Both decks also use two forms of Energy acceleration. One is Pokémon-based and one is Item-based (Max Elixir for Volcanion and mostly Mega Turbo for Mega Gardevoir).
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
As I said, I've been trying to compile sufficient evidence to convince myself that xerneas break doesn't need to be in a gardevoir deck and can find better matchups across the board without gardevoir. So I am very appreciative of all the knowledge that you can impart to me on the subject. :)
 

Fayld

Rayquaza / Eelektross Master
Advanced Member
Member
As I said, I've been trying to compile sufficient evidence to convince myself that xerneas break doesn't need to be in a gardevoir deck and can find better matchups across the board without gardevoir. So I am very appreciative of all the knowledge that you can impart to me on the subject. :)

I don't think it needs to be in a Gardevoir deck. Having played with the break and breakless, I honestly think Xerneas Break gets in the way of what M Gardevoir 2/2 is trying to accomplish.

Personally, I think it makes more sense in a deck that doesn't require specific energy types. An example I think that could possibly work would be a Xerneas Break + Lugia EX + Tauros GX deck. Or even just Xerneas Break + Tauros GX. I know people have tried Xerneas Break + Dragons and that was rather unsuccessful from everything I have ever read on it, but the general concept seems alright. Find a deck that can run throw down DCE for your turn then accelerate energy using Geomancy for a couple of turns and you might be in business.

I think ultimately the issue with Xerneas Break is the dependence on energy to do its thing. If it was a [Y][C] or a [C][C] attack, I firmly believe this would be a card that makes its way into more decks. But the [Y][Y] requirement means you have to run enough fairy energy to make it work and have to invest two turns or 1 turn + Max Elixir (prior to evolving) to make it work. It also limits how easily you could type it in with something like Lurantis GX which I think could potentially be a great partner for Xerneas. Unfortunately, I think the mismatched energy is enough to crush the idea. Finally, being a break means it doesn't get the extra support for energy acceleration like Max Elixir or Mega Turbo. The best acceleration is Xerneas itself and that means you are wasting at least 1 turn setting up the attack while your opponent is hitting Xerneas or the Break for too much damage.

Dunno. Maybe you could play it with the latest Dragonair? Seems kind of clunky, but who knows. At least it is only one prize rather than the two Darkrai gives up, but it doesn't get the extra 40 HP from FFB either.

I want to talk myself into the card and have thought about it a lot. I have even played against an effective enough deck a few times online, but it was never anything that made me think I might get overwhelmed in the same way rainbow road does. Who knows, maybe something in the next year will change my opinion on it. There are some smart players out there working on new stuff all the time. Maybe there will be a breakthrough (you see what I did there? BAHAHHAAHAHAH).
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
Actually, tauros-GX doesn't help the decks strategy at all, full stop.
Yeah, xern/dragons doesn't work; There is no synergy, you might aswell just play a bland xern B deck with dces in it.
Actually, getting and keeping energy is not the problem for xerneas break:
Problem 1) Having a "brittle board". When you end up with a weak setup where you have to sac an energy holder or have to stack energy on a bad target (e.g. xerneas). This problem is, for the most part, solved by nest ball. (and of course exp. share, however not really a noticable change as it was already in format when xerneas B was released.
Problem 2) Being overrun. There are a couple of turns around xern B numbers 2 and 4 where you pretty much have to find Brock to continue streaming attackers. Super rod can extend this window of time. Also this isn't a problem in games where you steamroll your opponent.
dragonair < geomancy
Yeah, the darkrai-EX comparisons start to hurt when you're as far in as myself. This card shouldn't be compared to darkrai-EX: e.g. darktina works; xerntina doesn't because they are completely different in what they want to do other than stack energy and having really anoying resistances.
130 and 150 are borderline "magic numbers" so the lack of fury belt isn't too big. Although if playing lugia it could be a versatile 1-of to shield the 1st xerneas.
The breakthrough pun only works with the rainbow road xerneas.
Sorry for the badly organised response, I hope you feel encouraged to give the deck a try out.
 

Fayld

Rayquaza / Eelektross Master
Advanced Member
Member
Actually, tauros-GX doesn't help the decks strategy at all, full stop.
Yeah, xern/dragons doesn't work; There is no synergy, you might aswell just play a bland xern B deck with dces in it.
Actually, getting and keeping energy is not the problem for xerneas break:
Problem 1) Having a "brittle board". When you end up with a weak setup where you have to sac an energy holder or have to stack energy on a bad target (e.g. xerneas). This problem is, for the most part, solved by nest ball. (and of course exp. share, however not really a noticable change as it was already in format when xerneas B was released.
Problem 2) Being overrun. There are a couple of turns around xern B numbers 2 and 4 where you pretty much have to find Brock to continue streaming attackers. Super rod can extend this window of time. Also this isn't a problem in games where you steamroll your opponent.
dragonair < geomancy
Yeah, the darkrai-EX comparisons start to hurt when you're as far in as myself. This card shouldn't be compared to darkrai-EX: e.g. darktina works; xerntina doesn't because they are completely different in what they want to do other than stack energy and having really anoying resistances.
130 and 150 are borderline "magic numbers" so the lack of fury belt isn't too big. Although if playing lugia it could be a versatile 1-of to shield the 1st xerneas.
The breakthrough pun only works with the rainbow road xerneas.
Sorry for the badly organised response, I hope you feel encouraged to give the deck a try out.

To be clear, I don't think the card is viable as a central basis for a competitive deck at this point and most of my ideas at this point are attempts to see if there is anything that might work outside of Gardevoir (which I 100% know hasn't worked in my decks). I think it is a great card. I just think there isn't great support to go with the card. What I usually see with this deck is a lot of Fairy Garden and to be perfectly frank, I think Fairy Garden is probably the wrong choice. I don't see a lot of Sky Field (I don't think I have ever seen a Xerneas Break list with it in fact) with the goal of getting 4 set up ASAP along with maybe something like a 2-2 line of DR Gardevoir as the secondary attacker. That could possibly work assuming you can cycle your hand enough early.

Dunno, this is pure spit balling at this point, but what about maybe something like this:

Pokemon - 17
4 Xerneas STS
4 Xerneas Break
2 Gardevoir EX STS
2 M Gardevoir EX STS
2 Hoopa EX
3 Shaymin EX

Trainers - 33
4 Professor Sycamore
3 N
2 Lysandre
1 Hex Maniac
1 Brock's Grit

4 VS Seeker
4 Ultra Ball
2 Mega Turbo
2 Trainer's Mail
2 Escape Rope

2 Exp Share
3 Gardevoir Spirit Link

3 Sky Field

Energy - 10
10 Fairy Energy

It isn't optimized. I haven't tested it. I have no idea whether it will allow you to cycle fast enough to set up given that most of the reason this general approach works so well in M Gardevoir / M Rayquaza is because Hoopa can pull just about anything in the deck. That said, I also don't think using BA Gardevoir is the right way to go if the goal is to use Xerneas Break. There is synergy, but I tend to think BA Gardevoir is too slow to be an effective attacker to pair with Xerneas Break.

It might be fun to play around with it though. Worst case, I spend some time messing with a deck that ends up not working right? :D
 

swan

aspiring memer
Member
I don't see why we need sky field. Setting up 4 at once is psuedo impossible (1 out of 8 being prized is pretty likely). I have no idea where you are going with the Steam siege gardevoir: Try to solve a cards problems while making a deck around it; don't give it more problems. I mean apart from the fact you have a maximum of 10 benched which doesn't justify sky field, there is no synergy (other than energy cost). Try this instead:
pokemon(13):
4 Xerneas
4 Xerneas B
1 Regirock
1 Wobbufet
1 jirachi
1 shaymin-EX
Energy(14):
11 fairy
3 DCE
Supporter(15):
4 Sycamore
4 N
2 Lysandre
1 Brock's grit
4 vs seeker
Items(15):
4 nest ball
3 ultra ball
3 max elixir
3 exp. share
1 super rod
1 switch
1 bursting balloon
Stadiums(3):
3 Fairy garden

I will note that it takes a painful number of games to get used to this "thing", however when you start to get it right it either works or flops. It's quite difficult to play on repeat as is, so it's not very tournament friendly. I feel I have Asmer's dissaproval on this one and hope it's only because I seem to have taken the thread on a tangent. :D
 

Fayld

Rayquaza / Eelektross Master
Advanced Member
Member
I don't see why we need sky field. Setting up 4 at once is psuedo impossible (1 out of 8 being prized is pretty likely). I have no idea where you are going with the Steam siege gardevoir: Try to solve a cards problems while making a deck around it; don't give it more problems. I mean apart from the fact you have a maximum of 10 benched which doesn't justify sky field, there is no synergy (other than energy cost). Try this instead:
pokemon(13):
4 Xerneas
4 Xerneas B
1 Regirock
1 Wobbufet
1 jirachi
1 shaymin-EX
Energy(14):
11 fairy
3 DCE
Supporter(15):
4 Sycamore
4 N
2 Lysandre
1 Brock's grit
4 vs seeker
Items(15):
4 nest ball
3 ultra ball
3 max elixir
3 exp. share
1 super rod
1 switch
1 bursting balloon
Stadiums(3):
3 Fairy garden

I will note that it takes a painful number of games to get used to this "thing", however when you start to get it right it either works or flops. It's quite difficult to play on repeat as is, so it's not very tournament friendly. I feel I have Asmer's dissaproval on this one and hope it's only because I seem to have taken the thread on a tangent. :D

I will just stick to your deck list since it doesn't seem like you are all that interested in the M Gardevoir idea. If you decide you want to know the strategy behind it, go ahead and PM me :)

It seems like there are a lot of one ofs that seem like they wouldn't add much. Example: 1 bursting balloon. Seems like a nice to have. Same with the 4 Nest Ball / 3 Ultra Ball combination. I get that it helps you get set up, but it sure does seem like this deck is all but begging to have 2-3 Wobs as a quality stall + Float Stones to help with Wob switching (I get fairy garden, but you won't always have fairy garden). I mean, it seems like your deck is trying to kill abilities and have the option to dump special energy to stall with Jirachi. I get why you are doing what you are doing with the Nest Balls, I just honestly think you are just as likely to be able to draw into your basics with as much draw support as you are running. Love it or hate it, I think this might be more consistent.

pokemon(14):
4 Xerneas
4 Xerneas B
3 Wobbufet
2 shaymin-EX
1 Regirock

Energy(15):
11 fairy
4 DCE

Supporter(10):
4 Sycamore
3 N
2 Lysandre
1 Brock's grit

Items(18):
4 vs seeker
4 ultra ball
4 max elixir
3 exp. share
2 float stone
1 super rod

Stadiums(3):
3 Fairy garden
 
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