Special Comparison: Dual Ball VS Pokémon Collector
Which card is better in this format? Explain each cards' pros and cons. Can certain decks make better use of one or the other? Discuss.
♦ Special Comparison: Pokémon Collector (HGSS # 97) VS Dual Ball (CoL # 78) ♦
- Thread starter Vulpix Yolk
- Start date
Which card is better in this format? Explain each cards' pros and cons. Can certain decks make better use of one or the other? Discuss.
Dual Ball:
Pros:
- Not a supporter
- Can potentially get out two basic Pokemon
- Can be Junk Armed
Cons:
- Flippy
- Can be trainer-locked
Pokemon Collector
Pros:
- Searches out 3 Pokemon (one more than Dual ball)
- It is guaranteed
- It can be Pokegeared or Random Receivered.
Cons:
- It's a supporter
- Extremely poor late game
I think I've listed all the pros and cons. In general, Dual ball is the favourite when making a deck. The format is slowly changing and this shift has allowed Dual ball to dominate. The game relies more on drawing power rather than the ability to search. As a result, any supporters in your deck will have to be your draw support and anything else must be a trainer. This change in approach is also caused by the realisation of how poor Collector is late game. It does absolutely nothing for you and just clogs up your hand. It really falls flat in regards to it's predecessor, Roseanne's research.
Personally, I don't see many decks that would need to run Collector over Dual ball.
Pros:
- Not a supporter
- Can potentially get out two basic Pokemon
- Can be Junk Armed
Cons:
- Flippy
- Can be trainer-locked
Pokemon Collector
Pros:
- Searches out 3 Pokemon (one more than Dual ball)
- It is guaranteed
- It can be Pokegeared or Random Receivered.
Cons:
- It's a supporter
- Extremely poor late game
I think I've listed all the pros and cons. In general, Dual ball is the favourite when making a deck. The format is slowly changing and this shift has allowed Dual ball to dominate. The game relies more on drawing power rather than the ability to search. As a result, any supporters in your deck will have to be your draw support and anything else must be a trainer. This change in approach is also caused by the realisation of how poor Collector is late game. It does absolutely nothing for you and just clogs up your hand. It really falls flat in regards to it's predecessor, Roseanne's research.
Personally, I don't see many decks that would need to run Collector over Dual ball.
Pretty much sums it up right there. Vileplume based decks are pretty much the only viable options to use Collector over Dual Ball. Also, if you use Dual Ball, you get the added bonus of being able to use Random Receiver over Pokegear, meaning for a more consistent deck overall.
Okay;
Dual Ball:
Pros:
Pros:
Dual Ball is the winner!
Dual Ball:
Pros:
- Trainer Card (Can be Junk Armed)
- Can be played multiple times (two a turn for example)
- Can be blocked by Trainer Lock
- You must get two basics (if double heads) when you only need one
- Risk of failure
Pros:
- Up to three basics
- Can be searched out by Pokegear 3.0/Random Reciver
- Is a Supporter
Dual Ball is the winner!
Wow, and just three or so months ago plenty of people were saying that Pokemon Collector is a staple and that you HAVE to run 3-4 of them in every deck :/ . Personally, I use both because my deck is relatively abundant in basic Pokemon. I still prefer Collector though, since its reliable, and you got a full 3 instead of 2 (maybe, if you get heads enough!) from Dual Ball.
I can see what the other side is arguing though: Much much much more frequently, it would be better to use a Draw supporter, and you can use Junk Arm to get some more basics, or have a second chance if you whiff on the coins. I personally think keeping at least 2 Collector in the deck is a great idea.
I can see what the other side is arguing though: Much much much more frequently, it would be better to use a Draw supporter, and you can use Junk Arm to get some more basics, or have a second chance if you whiff on the coins. I personally think keeping at least 2 Collector in the deck is a great idea.
I personally prefer Collector over Dual Ball. I'd rather draw into one and then use up my supporter for that turn than flip coins for Dual Ball, hoping to get 2 basics out and using a Junk Arm to get it out if it fails when you could've used that Junk Arm for more valuable cards. Though Dual Ball is quicker for some people and it doesn't use up your supporter for the turn, flipping coins is just too iffy for me and I would rather be on safe ground. But for people who run fast decks, Dual Ball might be a better option for them.
Pokemon Collector:
Pros:
Dual Ball:
Pros:
Overall, Pokemon Collector is the winner. Pokemon Collector is a Supporter card, which means it can't be Trainer Locked, but is restricted to you only being able to play one per turn and it taking your Supporter card slot for that turn. Unlike Dual Ball, Pokemon Collector can't fail and guarentees a good set up unless you have what you want to search out prized. Pokemon Collector reminds me of Holon Mentor, a very similar card that was heavily played back when I started playing. Even then Holon Mentor was played over other flippy set up cards because of the reasons I just talked about.
Pros:
- Guarenteed 3 basic Pokemon. This can be better than dual ball in the fact that it can't fail.
- Pokemon Collector can be used under Vileplume, since Vileplume only locks out Trainer-Items.
- It's a Supporter, so it takes your Supporter card slot for your turn.
Dual Ball:
Pros:
- It doesn't take your supporter card for your turn like Pokemon Collector does.
- It can stack to allow more than 3 basics (which is how many basics Collector allows you to grab).
- You can reuse it with Junk Arm to get even more basics.
- It's flippy, and is possible to fail.
- Vileplume and other cards can prevent this card from being played through trainer locking.
Overall, Pokemon Collector is the winner. Pokemon Collector is a Supporter card, which means it can't be Trainer Locked, but is restricted to you only being able to play one per turn and it taking your Supporter card slot for that turn. Unlike Dual Ball, Pokemon Collector can't fail and guarentees a good set up unless you have what you want to search out prized. Pokemon Collector reminds me of Holon Mentor, a very similar card that was heavily played back when I started playing. Even then Holon Mentor was played over other flippy set up cards because of the reasons I just talked about.