Miraidon ex Deck Technique: A Paradox Pokémon Turns Up the Energy

By Natalie Millar, Contributing Author

With the Europe Worldwide Championships within the books and the Portland Regional Championships simply concluded, the Scarlet & Violet-era Commonplace format is in full swing. The large focus heading into EUIC was the introduction of the brand new Scarlet & Violet growth. Gamers anticipated that two new Pokémon ex, Gardevoir ex and Miraidon ex, would see success in London. They had been appropriate: Gardevoir ex, piloted by Tord Reklev, completed second on the match, and Miraidon ex, piloted by Robert Kinbrum, made the Prime 8. Robin Schulz lately revealed the ins and outs of Gardevoir ex. Now it’s Miraidon ex’s flip within the highlight.

Miraidon ex is available in as one thing of an underdog to different decks on this format, nevertheless it nonetheless has quite a lot of advantage. Its Photon Blaster assault does a hefty 220 harm, sufficient to Knock Out many Pokémon in a single hit and even the stoutest Pokémon in two. This energy does include a draw back—Miraidon ex can’t use that assault throughout the next flip (though one other Miraidon ex can). Thankfully, Miraidon ex’s Tandem Unit Means permits you to search your deck for two Fundamental Lightning-type Pokémon and put them straight onto your Bench. The actual energy of this Means is its lack of restriction—every of your Miraidon ex can use Tandem Unit throughout your flip at any level within the recreation. In impact, Tandem Unit turns into the central focus of this technique due to its impact that lets you assault over and over. Miraidon ex isn’t the one attacker on this deck, however it’s a good one. A typical play sample of this deck is to make use of Tandem Unit to seek out one Pokémon and one other Miraidon ex, then utilizing Tandem Unit once more straight away. This provides your deck unimaginable consistency, successfully turning one Nest Ball into a complete board stuffed with Pokémon!

The Lightning-type Pokémon you need to purpose to look out with Tandem Unit are Regieleki V and Raikou V. Regieleki V evolves into Regieleki VMAX, whose Transistor Means lets your Fundamental Lightning-type Pokémon do 30 further harm with every assault. This Means stacks, so you probably have two Regieleki VMAX in play, your Lightning-type Pokémon will do 60 further harm. Raikou V is just an attacker that requires much less Power than Miraidon ex, however its Fleet-Footed Means will also be helpful generally. Don’t overlook about it!

Energy up your Miraidon ex and Raikou V with Electrical Generator. This Merchandise card permits you to have a look at the highest 5 playing cards of your deck and fix as much as 2 Fundamental Lightning Power playing cards you discover to your Benched Lightning-type Pokémon, letting you energy up the Photon Blaster and Lightning Rondo assaults in a short time. Actually, a well-liked technique is to make use of Lightning Rondo in your first flip for those who go second, as Raikou V will typically land a one-hit Knock Out on most Fundamental Pokémon. Due to Electrical Generator, Miraidon ex decks can have electrifyingly quick begins!

Miraidon ex is often a easy deck to construct, and I’ve tried to give attention to that simplicity and velocity with this checklist:

The deck checklist above ought to be a strong baseline for Miraidon ex: with excessive counts of all the things, this deck constantly assaults on both flip one or two and has further choices to attract by way of your deck with Radiant Greninja. Sixteen Lightning Power playing cards aren’t normally included in Miraidon ex decks, however I actually like this excessive depend as a result of all of it however ensures hits off Electrical Generator. Nothing will put you in a nasty temper sooner than taking part in Electrical Generator and seeing zero Lightning Power, so I needed to reduce that threat as a lot as doable. Nevertheless, 16 Power continues to be rather a lot to incorporate, so to benefit from these further Lightning Power, I additionally determined to incorporate Radiant Greninja.

Whereas this deck has no synergy with discarded Power playing cards, and Radiant Greninja can’t be used for attacking, the Hid Playing cards Means is extremely helpful for merely letting us draw further playing cards! Robert Kinbrum performed Radiant Greninja in his Prime 8 deck checklist from EUIC. It labored very well for him, so I made a decision to incorporate it right here. Nevertheless, one main change I’ve constituted of Robert’s checklist is reducing Cram-o-matic and together with Choose.

Typically the troublesome a part of utilizing Cram-o-matic is getting an Merchandise card to activate it. The most well-liked Cram-o-matic deck, Mew VMAX, typically performs a large 30 Merchandise playing cards, making it very straightforward to have an Merchandise card to discard. Nevertheless, this Miraidon ex deck performs solely 13 Merchandise playing cards, with 4 of these being Electrical Generator. With Electrical Generator being so necessary for Miraidon ex to assault early, I discovered that Cram-o-matic was typically simply getting trapped in my hand or discarded by way of Extremely Ball. As a result of I typically wasn’t utilizing Cram-o-matic, I ended up streamlining the Supporter line and including Choose for added disruption.

Whereas Professor’s Analysis is an incredible card on this deck, you may play solely 4 copies of it. Moreover, Miraidon ex has among the finest Pokémon serps constructed into the deck, however you don’t actually have a manner to attract further playing cards. Drawing a great deal of playing cards is essential on this deck—for the reason that solely extra draw engine you may have is Hid Playing cards, you want to have the ability to constantly play draw Supporters within the early phases of the sport.

Choose doesn’t draw as many playing cards as Professor’s Analysis, however typically you don’t want a lot in the course of the sport moreover Power attachments. Nevertheless, a very powerful ingredient of Choose is its disruption to different decks. As a result of your Pokémon search engine is so constant, having Choose as an choice to disrupt different decks is essential. Each Gardevoir ex and Misplaced Zone decks want quite a lot of playing cards to arrange, so an early Choose can typically be disastrous.

Together with solely seven Pokémon search playing cards—4 copies of Extremely Ball and three of Nest Ball—is likely to be thought of fairly low for many decks, however Miraidon ex’s Tandem Unit makes this depend really fairly excessive. Nevertheless, you continue to want entry to your first Miraidon ex for those who don’t begin with it, so Miraidon ex decks do want to incorporate not less than a couple of Pokémon search playing cards: having round six complete is widespread. This deck additionally provides a fourth Extremely Ball to provide you simpler entry to Regieleki VMAX and Radiant Greninja. Since Hid Playing cards is so sturdy on this deck, it’s good to get Radiant Greninja on the Bench as quickly as doable, however because it’s a Water-type Pokémon, you may’t use Tandem Unit to look it out. Equally, you may solely use Extremely Ball to look out Regieleki VMAX. I made a decision to incorporate a fourth copy of Extremely Ball over a fourth copy of Regieleki VMAX as a result of Extremely Ball can even discover Radiant Greninja and your first Miraidon ex.

It’s tempting to incorporate an equal quantity of Boss’s Orders and Serena on this deck; you do want draw Supporters, in spite of everything. Nevertheless, I’ve nearly at all times discovered that Boss’s Orders is simply higher than Serena. The draw Supporter impact of Serena is a lot better suited in decks that actually synergize together with your discard pile. Nevertheless, with Scarlet & Violet introducing so many Pokémon ex, the opposite impact of Serena has simply gotten weaker and weaker. Having the ability to change in any opposing Pokémon—not simply Pokémon V—has been so essential once I’ve performed video games with this deck. Due to that, I’ve been taking part in Boss’s Orders in each deck on this format and forgoing Serena due to the flexibility Boss’s Orders provides.

As a result of Photon Blaster prevents Miraidon ex from attacking two turns in a row, it is advisable embrace a switching card to maneuver round your Miraidon ex. The switching card I went for was Swap Cart over Swap or Escape Rope. Swap Cart’s restriction of solely having the ability to change out Fundamental Pokémon wasn’t an excessive amount of of a legal responsibility as a result of Regieleki VMAX has a free Retreat Price, so it actually was between Escape Rope and Swap Cart. The rationale I selected to play Swap Cart was as a result of the therapeutic impact in opposition to Misplaced Zone decks turned out to be essential. Misplaced Zone decks will typically go for a two-hit Knock Out on Miraidon ex with Cramorant, and Swap Cart heals the Miraidon ex out of two-hit Knock Out vary, which is why I made a decision to incorporate it over Escape Rope.

Most decks want to incorporate Stadium playing cards to bump opposing Stadiums, and Miraidon ex is not any exception. Most Miraidon ex decks select Seashore Courtroom as their Stadium, and I agree—it’s extremely helpful on this deck. All your Fundamental Pokémon have a single-Power Retreat Price, so Seashore Courtroom successfully provides your entire Pokémon free retreat! It is a highly effective impact, which is why I stored with the usual checklist and included three of this Stadium card.

There are a number of choices for tech playing cards to incorporate in Miraidon ex, with the 2 most typical choices being Klefki and Magnezone VSTAR, so let’s look at each inclusions.

Klefki’s Mischievous Lock Means turns off all Skills of Fundamental Pokémon whereas Klefki is within the Energetic Spot. It is a very sturdy impact, as a number of of the highest decks proper now rely closely on the Skills of Fundamental Pokémon—suppose Comfey, Genesect V, and Radiant Greninja! Nevertheless, Klefki is two-sided—it’s going to additionally flip off your Miraidon ex’s Tandem Unit Means whereas Klefki is Energetic. Due to this, Miraidon ex decks that embrace Klefki will typically play greater counts of switching playing cards so you may transfer Klefki to the Bench, use your Skills, after which transfer it again to the Energetic Spot. Top-of-the-line methods to maneuver Klefki is definitely with Regieleki V’s Switching Bolt assault. With two Regieleki VMAX in play, Switching Bolt can take a one-hit Knock Out on an opposing Comfey and change again into Klefki, persevering with the lock!

Nevertheless, utilizing Klefki does have downsides. If you happen to go second and don’t begin Klefki as your Energetic Pokémon, then your opponent will get a complete flip to make use of their Skills, which is able to make the Klefki in your deck a lot much less efficient. As well as, getting two Regieleki VMAX in play and getting an Power on Regieleki V shall be fairly troublesome with out utilizing Tandem Unit, so don’t count on to start out taking Knock Outs till flip three on the earliest. Throughout this time, an opposing Misplaced Zone deck can even play Colress’s Experiment and Misplaced Vacuum to start out attacking your Klefki, and if Mischievous Lock ever will get damaged, then the 70-HP Klefki will typically get cleaned up fairly simply by Sableye. Due to how a lot it slows you down, I personally don’t favor it in my Miraidon ex deck. It’s nonetheless enjoyable to attempt, although.

A Miraidon ex deck with Magnezone VSTAR received the Miyagi Champion’s League in Japan, sparking curiosity on this variant of the deck. Magnezone V’s Magnetic Stress assault permits you to change 1 of your opponent’s Benched Pokémon into the Energetic Spot, then do 40 harm to it. And sure, this harm is boosted by Regieleki VMAX.

Nevertheless, the primary use for Magnezone V is that it might repeatedly Knock Out Manaphy, then evolve into Magnezone VSTAR and use the Electro Star assault to Knock Out a number of Pokémon without delay. The technique could be very efficient in opposition to each Misplaced Zone and Gardevoir ex decks, however there’s a vital catch: Electro Star is a VSTAR Energy. This deck additionally actually makes use of Forest Seal Stone, a Pokémon Device card that’s a really highly effective consistency possibility and allows you to get hold of any card in your deck. The principle downside with the Magnezone V line is that it might require quite a lot of setup, particularly for those who aren’t utilizing Forest Seal Stone. You’ll typically must arrange two Magnezone V, then evolve them into Magnezone VSTAR at simply the appropriate time, and through this complete ordeal you may Knock Out solely Manaphy, letting your opponent assault with Cramorant and ultimately Dragonite V uninterrupted. Due to this, I ended up leaving Magnezone VSTAR within the binder in favor of a way more easy deck.

Miraidon ex is a really quick and highly effective deck that may be a vital underdog within the present format. Nevertheless, I consider that for those who simplify the deck checklist and give attention to constantly utilizing Photon Blaster as early as doable, it might turn into an actual contender. I hope this text electrifies your want to check out Miraidon ex. It’s undoubtedly a deck that you need to control!

For extra Pokémon TCG technique and evaluation, go to Pokemon.com/Technique.

Natalie Millar
Natalie has been taking part in Pokémon casually since late 2013 however began attending extra aggressive tournaments in late 2017. She received the primary Regional Championships after the pandemic in her house metropolis of Brisbane, Australia, and has been attending most main tournaments since. Exterior of Pokémon, she studied psychology, nevertheless it doesn’t assist with studying opponents as a lot as you’ll suppose. You could find her at most main tournaments and might comply with her on Twitter at @nataliem9999.