Blog Painting the Town Every Color: A Look at Rainbow Road

Anthony Orosco

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Great article. I'm currently in the process of making a Rainbow Road deck, and this really helped with settling a few decisions. I have to say, I love your style of writing. Please keep making articles!
 

PMJ

happy thoughts
Forum Head
Articles Head
Elite Member
Advanced Member
Member
This deck will get much better once we get tool removal back. The two Mew basically run Mewtwo over and being able to keep your energy safe from TFG and hammers will help tremendously against Scizor.
 

chella182

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Really love this deck. I have a Wobbuffet PHF in my build too, just to add Psychic to the type line-up, and can be useful for shutting off abilities. I never even thought of sticking Energy Keeper Carbink in there though!
 

GolurkChamp2597

Long Time Champion
Member
Awesome article! I've been playing Rainbow Force since the Xerneas came out (pair it with Bronzong, Golurk, and Smeargle). Maybe tech a Klefki (STS) to avoid mega evolution Revenge Killers?
 

poke4trade

Raising Ash
Member
This deck will get much better once we get tool removal back. The two Mew basically run Mewtwo over and being able to keep your energy safe from TFG and hammers will help tremendously against Scizor.

Unless you know some more information, my prediction is that we will not get a tool remover back for some time. I think pokemon, with the reprint of raticate is wanting us to use pokemon to scrap tools. I don't think we will get something another six months. I think that they do want to promote the Mega game.

Just thoughts based on the sets that have come out.
 

GolurkChamp2597

Long Time Champion
Member
I like the nice and simple deck. But I don't want to pay for shaymin!!!
Maybe consider Octillery (BKP) for a substitute. However, there are several problems with that.
1. Another stage one that is easy lysandre bait.
2. Lack of speed in the deck
3. Playing octillery would prevent play of Volcanion EX, given you are using one of volcanion's types.
4. Octillery is still sitting around $15 a piece.
 

poke4trade

Raising Ash
Member
Maybe consider Octillery (BKP) for a substitute. However, there are several problems with that.
1. Another stage one that is easy lysandre bait.
2. Lack of speed in the deck
3. Playing octillery would prevent play of Volcanion EX, given you are using one of volcanion's types.
4. Octillery is still sitting around $15 a piece.

The best poor mans shaymin I've found is to use Acro bike in combination with puzzle of time and trainers mail. I had my son's friend play a deck like this for a league challenge, and he tied for first. He played Glaceon/Jolteon/Zoroark. The 10 year old played two juniors, one senior, and one master. It rips you through the deck pretty fast and creates setup plays for next turn. On his turn, he was never without some kind of draw support. The master did not let him win either, he brought it to tie/time because the junior would have knocked him out of CP's for his world invite. He was playing him full blaze. The deck was just hitting and working well that day.

You can also use unown and recycle them with super rod. Or play the same kind of combinations with Unown. But ya, you can win without Shaymin or Octilary. I've seen it done with my own eyes.
 

Anthony Orosco

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Then I'm affraid you wont be making a top tier DL. If you didnt buy your Xerneas yet, they're going up in price now.
Rainbow Road doesn't need Shaymin to be top tier. I have my own Rainbow Road deck up and running, and it hits for 120 on turn two consistently. My only draw supporters are Sycamore, and then I have an Octillery (Properly code named Octillary Clinton) on the bench. With AZ and Super Scoop Up rotating out, its hard to get the Shaymins back up besides attacking. And your bench space is precious! You need to power up Xerneas, and while a burst of cards is nice, being set with a float stone Octillery is better over the course of the game. And just a final note, is Deck List too hard to spell?
 

PokeDad5

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I would love to know how you're getting the energy consitently for T2 hits of 120. The bench pokemon are easy to get on the floor, but how are you consistently getting the energy on Xerneas?
 

Anthony Orosco

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I would love to know how you're getting the energy consitently for T2 hits of 120. The bench pokemon are easy to get on the floor, but how are you consistently getting the energy on Xerneas?
I run 4 DCE and 7 Fairy Energy. Split between Supporters and Octillery, I have no shortage of draw support. There have been games where I was set a turn back due to energy, but it wasn't costing me the game. If I needed to I could max out with 4 copies of Sycamore, or throw in Prof. Birch for even more draw power. But this deck is fine, and doesn't need any Shaymin IF you build it right. What really grinds my gears is people putting Shaymins in when they shouldn't. This deck shouldn't have Shaymins because its draw power is fine, it doesn't work with the deck engine, and it takes up precious bench space. More Shaymins may equal more cards, and as an extension of that, more potential options. Long term support is better with Octillery. Xerneas is supposed to be budget, and with the price of Xerneas rising, it kinda defeats the purpose. 11$ cards are bad enough. It doesn't need a 70$ card.
 

PokeDad5

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I hear ya that it's cheaper than most decks out there. Probably the cheapest now that NM is gone. I guess I never had much success with Octillery, which is why I chose shaymin over him.
 

Sabaku

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I run 4 DCE and 7 Fairy Energy. Split between Supporters and Octillery, I have no shortage of draw support. There have been games where I was set a turn back due to energy, but it wasn't costing me the game. If I needed to I could max out with 4 copies of Sycamore, or throw in Prof. Birch for even more draw power. But this deck is fine, and doesn't need any Shaymin IF you build it right. What really grinds my gears is people putting Shaymins in when they shouldn't. This deck shouldn't have Shaymins because its draw power is fine, it doesn't work with the deck engine, and it takes up precious bench space. More Shaymins may equal more cards, and as an extension of that, more potential options. Long term support is better with Octillery. Xerneas is supposed to be budget, and with the price of Xerneas rising, it kinda defeats the purpose. 11$ cards are bad enough. It doesn't need a 70$ card.

I usually have Shaymin-EX included in the variations of Rainbow Road I build because it's easier to get away with playing them aggressively with Stadiums like Sky Field. The extra damage from Rainbow Force is good, but I often find myself playing redundant types, so I included Shaymin-EX in the build instead of Octillery. Playing Shaymin-EX made it easier for me to get rid of redundant types when Sky Field was discarded since it's so easy for him to fill up the bench. If I had the space, I would want to run three just because they can be forced out so easily.

An Octillery build can be good for decks that want to keep the prize trade in their favor in the long-run, but since it's a Stage 1 that needs a DCE or a Float Stone to retreat quickly instead of just a single Energy, it's easier for a Lysandre to kill the momentum. Running Octillery by itself also leaves you more prone to getting ability donked by Hex and Garbodor if that's your only draw support (Maybe next to Octillery's type clashing with Volcanion-EX, Garbodor's probably the main reason why I'm not so gung ho about running it). You might be forced to run at least a single copy of Shaymin-EX anyways for when things get hairy and you don't have time like that.

Edit:

So I finally ran into a Dark deck while using this deck, and let me tell you, Rainbow Road got DESTROYED! Once the guy got Fright Night Yveltal on the field, there was nothing that I could do at all. Fright Night shut down my Float Stones, and with Exp. Share not working, I couldn't transfer any Energy at all. Yet another reason to be happy when Solgaleo-GX comes out.
 
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