Discussion Hot Techs for After Rotation

Steve D

Aspiring Trainer
Member
The new Mewtwo looks like a strong counter against M Mewtwo.

[C][C] Psychic: 20+ damage. Does 20 more damage for each Energy attached to your opponent’s Active Pokemon.

This means that if the opposing M Mewtwo has 4 energy on it then your 1-Prize Mewtwo can OHKO it with a Fighting Fury Belt and weakness. I think this may be a one of in any deck that plays DCE just so you can run through your opponents M Mewtwos. Also it wouldn't be too bad against Yveltal EX.
What's the new Mewtwo? I must have missed it
 

crystal_pidgeot

Bird Trainer *Vaporeon on PokeGym*
Member
Mega Mewtwo is such a rough matchup for a lot of decks (That aren't Rayquaza/Sceptile), it and Garbodor makes any rogue deck just cry. A big reason why I probably won't play Volcanion is because it only has one favorable matchup (Sceptile), Rayquaza is simply faster and can hit harder, Mega Mewtwo just wrecks that matchup with raw strength. I feel like Darktina will be a good response to these Mega decks, but I personally probably won't play the deck (prolly playing Sceptile) because it loses to itself way too much.

I feel like Silent Lab could be pretty spicy, in Mega decks to counter Giratina, and help the Rayquaza matchup.

Lugia looks really interesting, seems like big EXs are coming back, and a cheap 1 prize big hitter will be nice, probably will run 1- 3 in Sceptile variants, you have plenty of energy, why not put it to work. It also one hits Shaymin, which is super nice.

Mega Catcher looks really good against slower Megas like Mewtwo/Primal Groudon.

Lass's Special against Rayquaza. Not that good, but still a thought.

Giovanni's Scheme in Mega Sceptile decks so they can actually 2 hit some stuff.

These are some great points. I completely forgot about Silent Lab as an option and since my deck doesn't use basic Pokemon with abilities, it would be a very strong supporter choice. It also turns off Safeguard. Mega Mewtwo Y EX is also something I'm scared of because it seems the developer don't respect it in regards to how they print energy cost on Pokemon. Mega Gardevoir does well against Mega Mewtwo while Mega Steelix gets completely killed by it. Mewtwo can do 210 damage just from a DCE to it and its not uncommon for it to have 3 or 4 energy attached to it. Mega Mewtwo really is just the worst card design really. The other cards are great for tech. I'll have to look into them.
 

DevinC

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Quad Garb I don't know why but I feel like Quad Garb will be played in the earlier days of the season. Anyone else thought about this?
 

Frosstoise

Pokemon Connoisseur
Member
Quad Garb I don't know why but I feel like Quad Garb will be played in the earlier days of the season. Anyone else thought about this?

I can't think of a reason someone would play a 4x garbodor line, when it's only use is ability lock. 4 of them is 8 cards total that just serve as bench sitters, which can is a huge amount of space for no offensive value.
 

Chancewoot

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I can't think of a reason someone would play a 4x garbodor line, when it's only use is ability lock. 4 of them is 8 cards total that just serve as bench sitters, which can is a huge amount of space for no offensive value.

If it was like Trevenant, then yes, Garbodor would be great. But Garbodor doesn't have nearly as strong of an ability, a way too expensive attack, and low health.
 

DevinC

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I can't think of a reason someone would play a 4x garbodor line, when it's only use is ability lock. 4 of them is 8 cards total that just serve as bench sitters, which can is a huge amount of space for no offensive value.
Yeah man but think about it. The Overhype, someone will definitely try it.
 

Chancewoot

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Yeah man but think about it. The Overhype, someone will definitely try it.

I think if anything, it will be a local meta call, as in 10/20 players are playing Volcanion, why don't I just play Palkia-EX/Palkia with a few Garbodors in the mix.
 

Shining Goodra

HeeHee - Michael Jackson
Member
Something I've used of late in several decks is Bursting Balloon + Eco Arm, with 4 Balloons and 1 Eco Arm I can continue attaching to force my opponent to attack into it or get stalled out from not attacking letting me stay on the offensive and ensure KOs when I land an attack on the defending Pokemon. Eco Arm shuffles 3 tool cards from your discard pile into your deck, obviously shuffling is required. Depending on what point of the game you and your opponent are in, drawing the newly added Bursting Balloons can be quick and with ease, especially playing off of Trainers Mail.

Decks consist of:
Greninja Variants
Scizor EX/Garbodor Variants
Hoopa/Gengar/Wobbufet - Garbodor
Snorlax/Hypno/Fairies

Including several others, with each the same success. Not every deck can run Bursting Balloon due to limited space, but with no tool disposal in the current meta, its a card sure to see an increase in play in decks it wasn't usually played in before.
 
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Doomsday94

Aspiring Trainer
Member
As much as I love using Bursting Balloon in Greninja, giving the spaces to play 4 plus Eco Arm is not necessarily going to get the desired effect. This is mainly because many decks are shifting to 2 Lysandre, and this trend will only continue if Garbodor sees as much play as the hype predicts. I know that it uses the supporter slot, but once set up, the top decks can do that anyway.

A few cards that I feel are worth a mention though include the Zebstrika from Breakthrough (I think), the M Rayquaza beater for 1 DCE. And the other option, that sees a lot of play as it is, is Zoroark, it can OHKO M Ray, and if using the Break, poses a threat in the M Mewtwo match.
 

SpoonLarry

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Depending on how popular Volcanion will be M Scizor decks have the best matchups overall. It shits on M Ray by crippling it's ability to atk effectively by discarding dce or skyfield plus parallel city is BIS stadium for this deck , OHKO Xern and M Gardevoir, resists M Mewtwo and cripples it's use of dce and shrine of memories, locks down greninja if you can setup Garbo in time, shits on darktina with its insane energy denial, shits on regice and glacion as it OHKO because of weakness. There is very little this deck cannot handle, super easy to setup with only 2 energy cost, and insanely disruptive with energy denial when combined with crushing hammers, which makes it great against pretty much anything. All that being said though this is shaping out to be an incredibly healthy meta, all these decks have obvious counters that are super viable and I am loving it. M Ray = M Mewtwo the two heavy hitters, M Gardevoir > M Mewtwo, M Scizor > M Gardevoir, Valcanion > M Scizor...

A card I wanna start testing out with the wide popularity of mega's is mega catcher, even as just a one of, seems like a very viable tech choice.
 

Ventoreck

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Depending on how popular Volcanion will be M Scizor decks have the best matchups overall. It shits on M Ray by crippling it's ability to atk effectively by discarding dce or skyfield plus parallel city is BIS stadium for this deck , OHKO Xern and M Gardevoir, resists M Mewtwo and cripples it's use of dce and shrine of memories, locks down greninja if you can setup Garbo in time, shits on darktina with its insane energy denial, shits on regice and glacion as it OHKO because of weakness. There is very little this deck cannot handle, super easy to setup with only 2 energy cost, and insanely disruptive with energy denial when combined with crushing hammers, which makes it great against pretty much anything. All that being said though this is shaping out to be an incredibly healthy meta, all these decks have obvious counters that are super viable and I am loving it. M Ray = M Mewtwo the two heavy hitters, M Gardevoir > M Mewtwo, M Scizor > M Gardevoir, Valcanion > M Scizor...

A card I wanna start testing out with the wide popularity of mega's is mega catcher, even as just a one of, seems like a very viable tech choice.
I agree, this meta is gonna be so much fun! No more stupid nightmarch, Treveant / Seismatoad locks... its gonan be awesome!
 

Otaku

The wise fool?
Member
I agree, this meta is gonna be so much fun! No more stupid nightmarch, Treveant / Seismatoad locks... its gonan be awesome!

If you didn't like the two strategies you just listed, you probably are celebrating far too soon. None of the three decks you listed won the World Championships a week ago. In the Masters division, Night March took sixth and seventh place and the other two didn't even make Top 8. All three showed up more in the lower age brackets but none of them took first there either (at best managing second place).

What did do well were decks that have at least some chance of making the jump to PRC-On. Item lock may still be a problem because of Vileplume; it might not be a one-sided lock and it might involve a Stage 2, but thanks to Forest of Giant Plants it is still probably the easier to pull off first turn than Seismitoad-EX (which can't attack T1) and Trevenant (XY) (which required Wally). Until we get Karen, Vespiquen (XY: Ancient Origins 10/98) will still be a thing. What is changing is that without a way to easily deprive Garbodor of Tools, its Garbotoxin will join Greninja in locking down Abilities (not in the same deck). So... still expect most of the card pool to prove inadequate for competitive play, and to be complaining about the new seeming best deck in the format being played too much. ;)

Keep in mind I agree that the game's pace is too fast and that especially one-sided Item lock should take more time and effort to use.
 

SpoonLarry

Aspiring Trainer
Member
@Otaku I don't think Vespiquen is viable without battle compressor, especially with the rise in popularity of mega's and EX pokemon with Fighting fury, as worlds was proof of nm and Vespiqen struggling to get knockouts on the beefier Pokemon. What happened at worlds doesn't apply to 90% of the people who even take part in conversation on these forums as most of us never get that far, its the experiences we have at our locals, and those are riddled with the aforementioned decks winning all the time, and because the meta is shifting it matters even less, for example mega Audino was an excellent meta call, but it wont be nearly as good if even viable at all with all the heavy hitters in the new rotation, cant even take advantage of hitting for weakness cause its a normal type. Mega Scizor is the new Mega Audino. Now I'm not saying that what happens at worlds doesn't effect how the game is shaped for the future or what happens at locals as people will become inspired by some of the matches that took place, I just think its unfair to invalidate someones opinion based on what the results were at worlds as there personal experiences at there locals most likely don't reflect in the same way at all. Plus its not even about the deck its self that we are happy to see go away, its the type of decks. We are all happy to see them go away, for now at least.
 

Otaku

The wise fool?
Member
@SpoonLarry

Still be a thing =/= BDIF

People aren't like to give up on it right away, even if Vespiquen is no longer viable. Also remember that its role could change; instead of opener/main attacker it could become a closer. Of course, maybe everyone will just drop it early and not look back, so Karen technically won't make a difference for it. ;)

Also you're right; we don't know if M Audino-EX will be able to stick around. Some act like the player who won got very, very lucky in some of those later games; luck doesn't mean you didn't win, but it might mean your win is an outlier and not something to be considered as the norm. Like most I also expect part of the win was owed to it being a rogue deck, something it will no longer be able to claim as now we all know about it.
 

DatSonicAce

Latios Superfan
Member
@SpoonLarry

Still be a thing =/= BDIF

People aren't like to give up on it right away, even if Vespiquen is no longer viable. Also remember that its role could change; instead of opener/main attacker it could become a closer. Of course, maybe everyone will just drop it early and not look back, so Karen technically won't make a difference for it. ;)

Also you're right; we don't know if M Audino-EX will be able to stick around. Some act like the player who won got very, very lucky in some of those later games; luck doesn't mean you didn't win, but it might mean your win is an outlier and not something to be considered as the norm. Like most I also expect part of the win was owed to it being a rogue deck, something it will no longer be able to claim as now we all know about it.
I feel like maybe Vespiquen could be used alongside, or as a tech in STS M Gardevoir. Thoughts?
 

Otaku

The wise fool?
Member
Hmm... @DatSonicAce that is an idea. Instead of constantly trying to recycle and refill, just do it once (and you may not have to burn your Bench right away anyway), then switch to Vespiqeun. Plus if your opponent does force a reset with Karen... well if you have a Pokémon based drawsearch engine like Unown, Shaymin-EX, Hoopa-EX, etc. then you just fall back to M Gardevoir.
 

superdan51

Make Metagross-GX Great!
Member
Hmm... @DatSonicAce that is an idea. Instead of constantly trying to recycle and refill, just do it once (and you may not have to burn your Bench right away anyway), then switch to Vespiqeun. Plus if your opponent does force a reset with Karen... well if you have a Pokémon based drawsearch engine like Unown, Shaymin-EX, Hoopa-EX, etc. then you just fall back to M Gardevoir.

The issue with adding a 2-2 line of vileplume is space in gard decks, youd have to drop a lot of stuff, which would be important. Off the top of my head I can see having to switch to sky field, which gives you a disadvantage against mega ray, as well as no longer having free retreat with xerneas. The bench is usually full, with 1-2 shay and a hoopa with another gard and xerneas from first turn. This would make the deck super clunky. Another thing is dce, which would take 4 fairy energy away, making using PRC mega gard useless because maximum damage now drops to 210, and all that energy isnt usually there anyway, giving it a bad match up against all mega decks. The idea for the deck is there, but you would have to move to using only STS mega gard, and dropping xerneas, and fairy garden to make the vespiqueen work in the deck, as well as having enough pokemon to make vespiqueens attack strong enough
 

Otaku

The wise fool?
Member
The issue with adding a 2-2 line of vileplume is space in gard decks...

Are you taking the discussion in a different direction, or did you read "Vespiquen" as "Vileplume"? ;)

Oh, the other option of "Typed Vileplume instead of Vespiquen." which really should have been obvious given that you said a "2-2 line". >.>

Anyway...

Give me a list, and we can discuss what may or may not need to be dropped. I need it anyway because I don't know the deck beyond the concept, and as such I could not follow along with a lot of what you stated. You talk about doing a lot to add in Vespiquen that frankly, I wasn't planning on adding because I was wanting to use it as a cleaner, not my main attacker. When Vespiquen is your main attacker (or the co-attacker of something of a similar size) you have to stream them. When it is acting as backup to something that isn't a probable OHKO (even if it is a possible OHKO), then you should may have the time to build manually.
 

superdan51

Make Metagross-GX Great!
Member
Are you taking the discussion in a different direction, or did you read "Vespiquen" as "Vileplume"? ;)

Oh, the other option of "Typed Vileplume instead of Vespiquen." which really should have been obvious given that you said a "2-2 line". >.>

Anyway...

Give me a list, and we can discuss what may or may not need to be dropped. I need it anyway because I don't know the deck beyond the concept, and as such I could not follow along with a lot of what you stated. You talk about doing a lot to add in Vespiquen that frankly, I wasn't planning on adding because I was wanting to use it as a cleaner, not my main attacker. When Vespiquen is your main attacker (or the co-attacker of something of a similar size) you have to stream them. When it is acting as backup to something that isn't a probable OHKO (even if it is a possible OHKO), then you should may have the time to build manually.

Heres my list that I play IRL right now with the STS Gard, and I do agree with the back up attacker but I still feel as if its a little more difficult to add into this deck, but now that I think about it you might not even need to drop fairy energy

but tell me what you think
****** Pokémon Trading Card Game Deck List ******

##Pokémon - 12

* 1 Shaymin-EX ROS 77
* 3 Gardevoir-EX STS 78
* 2 M Gardevoir-EX PRC 106
* 4 Xerneas XY 96
* 1 M Gardevoir-EX STS 112
* 1 Hoopa-EX AOR 36

##Trainer Cards - 37

* 3 Fairy Garden XY 117
* 1 Skyla BCR 134
* 3 Ultra Ball DEX 102
* 2 Lysandre FLF 90
* 2 Super Rod BKT 149
* 1 Town Map BKT 150
* 4 Max Elixir BKP 102
* 4 Trainers' Mail ROS 92
* 4 Gardevoir Spirit Link PRC 130
* 1 Parallel City BKT 145
* 1 Hex Maniac AOR 75
* 1 Pokémon Ranger STS 104
* 4 Professor Sycamore PHF 101
* 4 VS Seeker PHF 109
* 2 N DEX 96

##Energy - 11

* 11 Fairy Energy GEN 83

Total Cards - 60

****** Deck List Generated by the Pokémon TCG Online www.pokemon.com/TCGO ******

oh and yes I did mess up for vileplume haha
 
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