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Standard Pikachu/Zekrom 2020 Standard questions

Graffiti600rr

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Good morning,

My son has been doing really well with his Pikarom Deck, but with rotation happening I need a little input.

Here is the current deck:

Pikachu/Zekrom (2)
Jirachi (3) TEU99
Zapdos (2) TEU40
Tapu Koko GX (1) SM33
Tapu Koko (1) TEU51
Zeraora GX (1) LOT86
Tapu Lele GX (1) GRI50 - This is out I believe
Absol (1) TEU88
Marshadow (1) SLG45
Xurkitree (1) UPR160
Lille (4)
Guzma (3)
Cynthia (2)
Volkner (2)
Zcerola (1)
Rescue Stretcher (1)
Thunder Mountain (1)
Aether Paradise (1)
Choice Band (2)
Escape Board (2)
Electropower (4)
Ultra Ball (4)
Weakness Policy (1)
Nest Ball (3)
Switch (2)
Field Blower (1)
Lightning Energy (12)

I know a few of these are out, but I am not sure which. Thank you in advance. Just looking for swap suggestions.
 

NaganadelIsBeast

Pun Intended
Member
I don’t play PikaRom, so I can’t give swap suggestions, but I’ll tell you which cards are rotating.

  • Tapu Koko GX
  • Tapu Lele GX
  • Marshadow
  • Guzma
  • Acerola
  • Rescue Stretcher
  • Anther Paradise
  • Choice Band
  • Ultra Ball
  • Weaknesss Policy
  • Nest Ball
  • Field Blower
  • Lightning Energy jk
 

IcePhoenix863

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Since Ultra Ball is rotating, I would swap it for Electromagnetic Radar UNB 169/214. Nest ball and other Pokemon search is hard to replace, and electromagnetic radar and the upcoming Cherish Ball are probably the best options. I would substitute Tapu Lele GX for Dedenne GX UNB 57/214, and drop Acerola for more Volkners. As for stadiums I would add in Viridian Forest TEU 156/181 to swap for the stadiums that are rotating.

Don't know if this will help, as it's just my opinion, and there will definitely be more cards released later on that you can add.
 

Deathfinch

The Great
Member
I don’t play PikaRom, so I can’t give swap suggestions, but I’ll tell you which cards are rotating.

  • Tapu Koko GX
  • Tapu Lele GX
  • Marshadow
  • Guzma
  • Acerola
  • Rescue Stretcher
  • Anther Paradise
  • Choice Band
  • Ultra Ball
  • Weaknesss Policy
  • Nest Ball
  • Field Blower
  • Lightning Energy jk
isnt cynthia rotateing too?
 

Duo

RIP Nessa 2023
Member
She is not. Cynthia is from Ultra Prism which just barely makes the cut.
 

Christopher Shehan

Aspiring Trainer
Member
The deck gains Raichu*2. I keep seeing Giovanni pop up as a way to clear the bench up after Dedenne. Not sure if Jirachi is the way to go after rotation since there isn't an easy way to find it
 

Kenatta_tcg

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Not sure if you got your answers or not, but I have been working on Pikarom since my son (Jr league) and daughter (Sr league) play competitively. The question really is how much will they have to deal with some of the threats Masters have to deal with. For example, most post-rotation Pikarom lists play a copy of Oranguru to counter the shedinja matchup. The problem is that neither of my kids have ever had to play against shedinja. They play against Reshizard and mirror Pikarom a ton. Below I will cross out the ones I think you should remove and add the ones I think below that.

Pikachu/Zekrom (2)
Jirachi (3) TEU99 (Remove - The Dedenne version seems to work better as the only means to search Jirach is Pokémon Fan Club, which isn't good).
Zapdos (2) TEU40
Tapu Koko GX (1) SM33 (Remove - Rotates out)
Tapu Koko (1) TEU51
Zeraora GX (1) LOT86 (Add 1 copy - Post rotation this card is amazing for free retreat, you can't afford to prize it. Also most decks play 2 right now anyway).
Tapu Lele GX (1) GRI50 - This is out I believe (Remove - Rotates out)
Absol (1) TEU88 (Remove - Not searchable and not as necessary post rotation).
Marshadow (1) SLG45 (Remove - Not searchable and better just to play higher stadium count)
Xurkitree (1) UPR160 (Remove - Not searchable and difficult to find the turn you need. No nest ball is a killer).
Lille (4)
Guzma (3) (Remove - Rotates Out)
Cynthia (2)
Volkner (2) (Add 2 - this card is amazing post rotation. The only reason not to play 4 is if you are playing Lisia and going that route, which would mean adding 4 copies of order pad and hoping to hit heads).
Zcerola (1) (Remove - rotates)
Rescue Stretcher (1) (Remove - rotates out)
Thunder Mountain (1)
Aether Paradise (1) (Remove - rotates out)
Choice Band (2) (Remove - rotates out)
Escape Board (2) (Remove - not necessary without Jirachi)
Electropower (4)
Ultra Ball (4) (Remove - rotates out)
Weakness Policy (1) (Remove - not as good. Consider perhaps playing a copy of Weakguard Energy instead if you want to go that route).
Nest Ball (3) (Remove - rotates out)
Switch (2)
Field Blower (1) (Remove - rotates out)
Lightning Energy (12)

Now let's talk about inclusions. I personally think 2 Raichu & Alolan Raichu GX is a must. It vastly improves your Reshizard and Mew & Mewtwo GX matchups, which will likely be 2 huge decks post rotation. With that card you can take a 1hko on either with 5 energy and an epower. Plus you get your RaiRai out of the way. I think you probably want to go with Lysandre Labs (2) and Viridian Forest as your other stadiums. The Lysandre labs beats shedinja and Reshizard as they play Choice Helmet to avoid the 1hko. Also, you want a high stadium count to counter Power Plant as every Green's build will be heavy on those. PowerPlant is devastating to Pikarom. I would add 2 Dedenne GX for speed. Also, you probably want to go 4 electromagnetic radar to discard energy for Tapu Koko PR and search. 2 cherish ball probably, and consider a mix of energy switches and tag switches to get those huge hits. I really think Mew & Mewtwo Gx should also be in this deck (1) as counter against fighting decks. Also, almost every deck post rotation should have 4 custom catchers and probably 2 reset stamps.

On the Supporter side I would play 4 Cynthia and 4 Volker, and possibly add a Lisia or two to get your prism stars. You could also play pokemon fan clubs and go that route instead, but I wouldn't play more than 2. The reason I say Cynthia instead of Lillie is that it is better post rotation. You will find a lot more hands with cards you can't get rid of (i.e. custom catcher) and you also don't want to discard. The value of Lillie post rotation isn't as good imo.

Hope that helps get you started.
 

IcePhoenix863

Aspiring Trainer
Member
only means to search Jirach is Pokémon Fan Club, which isn't good

You could also use Pokemon Communication to search Jirachi and/or Zapdos, may be worth including one or two as Jirachi is still a very good card. Without Field Blower and Guzma it is more likely to be able to be used as a pivot as well as an engine.
 

Javi Blizz

Spanish TCG Player
Member
What about UNM Eelektross instead of Zapdos? 4 Energy in play is very easy to reach with PikaRom and it does more damage and have more HP than Zapdos.

I have been playing Xurkitree GX during this season as my league was heavy on Special Energies. Do you think it is worth keeping him for post-rotation?
 
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