Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift Triple Play: A Trio of Prime Kind-Shifted Tera Decks

The Terastal phenomenon is taking on the Pokémon universe, with Pokémon able to showing as surprising sorts. This extends to the Pokémon TCG world, the place superior Pokémon ex from the Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift enlargement are lining up for battle.

We’ve enlisted three prime gamers to get a more in-depth have a look at three of those unbelievable Pokémon—the Water-type Garchomp ex, the Combating-type Toxtricity ex, and the Lightning-type Mewtwo ex. Learn on to learn the way these highly effective Pokémon can transfer past your assortment and into your subsequent highly effective deck.

Garchomp ex is a Pokémon with many highly effective traits. Its 320 HP might not be the best we have seen on a Stage 2 Pokémon ex, however that’s greater than sufficient to resist most assaults. It might not do as a lot injury as, say, Charizard ex, nevertheless it does 160 injury for just one Vitality, and it may well connect Combating Vitality to its allies—important as a result of the Combating sort has all the time had restricted types of Vitality acceleration. Garchomp ex additionally has a Retreat Value of 0, so you’ll be able to simply pivot into a distinct attacker. Lastly, Water might be one of the best sort for a Stage 2 Pokémon, as a result of a participant can use Irida to seek for Uncommon Sweet and Garchomp ex, making it simpler to get the highly effective Pokémon into play.

Its essential downside, although, is its restricted injury output. Garchomp ex isn’t going to one-hit KO a Pokémon ex or Pokémon V, until it hits for Weak point. Fortunately, it would not need to be performed by itself! Garchomp ex can speed up as much as three Vitality from the discard pile, so it may well simply be performed with any attacker that may use Combating Vitality. Combating-type Pokémon additionally make good companions for Garchomp ex as a result of they cowl its Weak point: Garchomp ex is weak to Lightning-type Pokémon, however these Pokémon are often weak to Combating.

So, which Pokémon needs to be performed alongside Garchomp ex? There are numerous choices: Lucario from the Sword & Defend—Good Stars enlargement can use Combating Vitality to do big injury, though it would then be left with no Vitality in play. Glimmora ex gives disruption with its Mud Subject Skill, however its injury output is not very excessive both. The one I selected for this deck is Terrakion from Sword & Defend—Silver Tempest. The injury from Cavern Sort out will not be very excessive, however alongside Garchomp ex’s Hydro Lander, that is 280 injury whole, sufficient to take care of most Pokémon within the format. Cavern Sort out’s impact additionally protects Terrakion from injury for one flip, which may power the opponent to discover a card corresponding to Boss’s Orders or Escape Rope to get round it. Its draw back is that it may well solely be used each different flip, however that is very manageable—after utilizing Cavern Sort out, you’ll be able to merely retreat Terrakion for Garchomp ex, and use Hydro Lander to connect the discarded Vitality again to Terrakion!

One query stays: Tips on how to get Vitality to the discard pile within the first place? Once more, there are a number of choices, however my decide right here is Kirlia, which acts as a draw engine for the deck. Every flip, Kirlia helps you to draw a number of playing cards and discard a Combating Vitality or one other card that you do not want (like Battle VIP Cross after the primary flip). Kirlia also can evolve into Gallade, which may seek for any Supporter as soon as per flip. This offers you entry to situational playing cards like Boss’s Orders and even Cheryl, which may heal a broken Garchomp ex.

As talked about above, Irida is an effective Supporter for the deck, particularly early on the place it may well discover Garchomp ex and Uncommon Sweet (or another Merchandise card, like Earthen Vessel to get Primary Vitality). Nevertheless, later within the recreation, Irida might not be pretty much as good, particularly because the deck would not play that many Water-type Pokémon. Iono, alternatively, is all the time helpful—it is a good draw Supporter within the early recreation, and it gives disruption within the later recreation, making it more durable for the opponent to get a KO after Terrakion makes use of Cavern Sort out. We will amp up the disruption issue with Path to the Peak, which does not have an effect on any of our Pokémon, however can severely disrupt decks that depend on Skills, like Gardevoir ex.

With all of that in thoughts, here is the place I ended up:

As you’ll be able to see, past the playing cards already talked about, I principally targeted on consistency, with playing cards corresponding to Battle VIP Cross, Degree Ball, and Extremely Ball, which may all seek for the Pokémon we want. Notice that I selected to incorporate Gabite from Sword & Defend—Good Stars, which may’t assault on this deck, over the Combating-type Gabite from Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift. It’s because it has 90 HP, so it may be searched out with Degree Ball!

There are a number of techs that I have not talked about but, although, so let me clarify their function.

First, Manaphy is a traditional addition to any deck with low-HP Pokémon. It protects our Pokémon from being broken on the Bench, and is completely needed if we do not need our Ralts, Gible, and Kirlia to be Knocked Out by a Radiant Greninja’s Moonlight Shuriken. Additionally, Manaphy is a Water-type Pokémon, so even in matchups the place it isn’t wanted, we are able to nonetheless get it with Irida in some unspecified time in the future, after which discard it to make use of Kirlia’s Refinement Skill or to pay Extremely Ball’s value.

Jirachi will not be as universally good, nevertheless it’s an excellent companion to Manaphy. It protects our Benched Pokémon from injury counters positioned by Primary Pokémon, notably Sableye’s Misplaced Mine, Cresselia’s Moonglow Reverse, and Medicham V’s Yoga Loop. These assaults are all harmful for low-HP Pokémon. Additionally, by having each Manaphy and Jirachi in play, our Benched Pokémon are principally not possible to wreck (with uncommon exceptions, like Iron Valiant ex’s Tachyon Bits Skill), so we do not have to fret. Even when a Kirlia turns into Lively and we want a number of turns to discover a technique to retreat it, the opponent will not have the ability to take Prize playing cards round it. This reduces the necessity for switching playing cards.

I did select to incorporate one copy of Change within the record, although, as a result of there are conditions the place we would like our Pokémon to get out of the Lively Spot with out having to connect Vitality playing cards over a number of turns. For instance, if we occur to start out the sport with Terrakion, we want a technique to swap it out in order that we are able to assault with Garchomp ex and fix Vitality to Terrakion.

In fact, there are different methods to construct round Garchomp ex. Radiant Greninja provides draw energy to the deck however has unhealthy synergy with Path to the Peak. Tremendous Rod may recuperate discarded Pokémon and Vitality playing cards, and Pal Pad may do the identical for Supporters. Be at liberty to fiddle with this deck record!

Xander says: Since Hydro Lander solely takes a single Vitality, Terrakion is the right companion to utilize its extra Vitality attachment impact. With Manaphy and Jirachi, until the opponent can discover a Boss’s Orders or Escape Rope, you’ve primarily purchased your self a free flip!

Regardless of enjoying Path to the Peak, I’d nonetheless embrace Radiant Greninja. Stage 2 decks sometimes battle with consistency, so the additional enhance from Hid Playing cards could make a giant distinction, particularly earlier than establishing a number of Kirlia.

Robin says: Garchomp ex is tremendous fascinating in that regardless of being clearly fairly highly effective, there is not any apparent technique to construct a deck round it. Perhaps it is nonetheless ready on the right companion to be launched in a future enlargement, however till then, I like Stéphane’s selection of Terrakion! As an alternative of making an attempt to offset Garchomp’s low injury output with some heavy-hitting Pokémon, this deck embraces its slower nature and needs to make it as tough as attainable for the opponent to take prizes. The mixture of Gallade and Cheryl is nice, and I might possibly attempt to lean even heavier into that therapeutic technique.

Kind-shifted Tera Pokémon have made their full debut within the Pokémon TCG with the discharge of Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift. In addition to the advantage of being invulnerable to assaults whereas on the Bench, Tera Pokémon can add sort range to a monotype deck. One such Pokémon is Toxtricity ex, which makes use of Lightning Vitality regardless of its Combating Tera Kind.

One rapid pairing with Toxtricity ex could be Miraidon ex. With Miraidon ex’s Tandem Unit Skill, you’ll be able to seek for Toxel, which remains to be a Lightning sort. Utilizing playing cards corresponding to Flaaffy from Sword & Defend—Evolving Skies and Electrical Generator, you’ll be able to energy up your attackers and make use of Toxtricity ex’s Gaia Punk assault to dish out main injury.

Nevertheless, I’ve chosen to go along with a distinct route. I like Fusion Strike Pokémon, and it simply so occurs that there’s a Fusion Strike Toxel! I’ve chosen to pair Toxtricity ex with the Fusion Strike engine, specifically Genesect V and a plethora of Merchandise playing cards, permitting me to attract playing cards with the Fusion Strike System Skill. Though Toxtricity ex is not a Fusion Strike Pokémon itself, we are able to nonetheless make use of Fusion Strike System to attract as much as 5 playing cards after evolving into Toxtricity ex.

Our Pokémon line appears much like a conventional Mew VMAX / Genesect V lineup, besides with Toxtricity ex as an alternative. I selected to incorporate a 1-1 Mew VMAX line since it may well nonetheless be a helpful attacker, particularly because it would not have to discard Vitality to do important injury. Mew V additionally has a free Retreat Value, which may all the time be helpful. Lastly, Raikou V is one other robust Lightning-type attacker price together with. Although it is not a Fusion Strike Pokémon, you could discover worth in attacking with Lightning Rondo in your first flip of the sport when going second.

The important thing side of any Fusion Strike deck is its Merchandise-heavy engine. As a result of we need to maximize the variety of playing cards drawn with the Fusion Strike System Skill, playable Merchandise playing cards are the way in which to go. To that finish, Battle VIP Cross, Extremely Ball, and Nest Ball can fill our Bench initially. From there, Vitality Sticker and Electrical Generator can speed up Vitality to load up your attackers. Needless to say Electrical Generator solely attaches to Benched Lightning-type Pokémon, which means you could’t choose Toxtricity ex with its impact! Then again, Vitality Sticker can connect to any Benched Pokémon.

The remaining Gadgets assist with maneuverability and redundancy. Tremendous Rod can recycle Vitality playing cards for Electrical Generator, or Toxtricity ex if one copy is caught within the Prize playing cards. Change can transfer a trapped Genesect V or Toxtricity ex and serves as a pivot after enjoying Electrical Generator. And Misplaced Vacuum can’t solely take care of Path to the Peak, it may well additionally scale back hand measurement for Fusion Strike System.

The deck features a handful of highly effective Supporter playing cards. Iono gives a powerful draw and may disrupt your opponent concurrently. Even if you’re solely drawing a number of playing cards, you’ll be able to replenish your hand with Fusion Strike System. Boss’s Orders is just an excellent card for many decks and should be included. The ultimate Supporter card is Grant, which has two essential capabilities: First, Grant will increase the utmost injury output of Toxtricity ex by 30, which means we are able to attain 300 injury with Gaia Punk. Second, we are able to use Grant’s impact to discard undesirable playing cards in our hand, corresponding to extra Lightning Vitality or Battle VIP Cross. Then, we are able to draw extra playing cards with Fusion Strike System.

The ultimate elements are the Stadium and Instrument playing cards. Follow Studio bumps Toxtricity ex’s max injury as much as 280, which may Knock Out nearly all Pokémon VSTAR. Our different Stadium, City Retailer, is a stable card total—it may well discover Forest Seal Stone or Defiance Band to fit your wants at any given second. Within the worst case, it may well skinny a card out of your deck to enhance your odds of drawing what you want from the subsequent Fusion Strike System.

At first of the sport, you need to think about filling your board with Fusion Strike Pokémon with the intention to extract extra worth from Fusion Strike System. As a result of the deck performs few Supporter playing cards, Genesect V is your essential supply of draw energy. I wish to have no less than two Genesect V in play, however ideally three. The opposite spots may be reserved for Mew V, Toxel, or Raikou V, relying on which you intend on attacking with. It could be a waste to make use of Toxtricity ex’s large assault, Gaia Punk, discarding three Vitality, solely to Knock Out a low-HP Pokémon.

I like to guide with Raikou V or Mew VMAX in order that I can retain Vitality on the board. These attackers additionally take much less Vitality to assault than Toxtricity ex, which can be needed should you can’t discover Vitality with Electrical Generator. From there, Toxtricity ex can probably Knock Out the opponent’s return attacker with a single assault. Utilizing Vitality Sticker and Electrical Generator, you must have the ability to muster up one other attacker on the next flip to take care of your momentum.

Different choices to incorporate within the deck record are Energy Pill, Professor Turo’s State of affairs, and Choose. A single Energy Pill can bump Mew VMAX’s injury output to 240 with Techno Blast, which may Knock Out all related Primary Pokémon ex. This may very well be price a single slot whereas sustaining a concentrate on Toxtricity ex. Subsequent, Professor Turo’s State of affairs can decide up a broken Pokémon after its Vitality has been discarded to Gaia Punk. Lastly, Choose could damage the opponent greater than Iono, particularly earlier than they’ve taken any Prize playing cards.

I hope you give this deck a attempt, or that it conjures up you to check out another new playing cards with, maybe, wacky companions! I loved developing with this record and discovering a novel pairing of Toxtricity ex with the Fusion Strike bundle.

Stéphane says: I am impressed, however not stunned, that Xander managed to show a Toxtricity ex deck right into a Fusion Strike deck! I actually like how he approached his deckbuilding course of. Whereas I am not a giant fan of Vitality Sticker, I can see the way it can work in a Fusion Strike deck together with Genesect V’s Skill. I additionally suppose the addition of Grant on this deck is genius.

This deck is proof that having many Pokémon of a single Evolution chain in the identical format can encourage artistic deckbuilding. I ponder, although, if it is attainable to push this line of pondering even additional by together with Toxtricity from Scarlet & Violet—Obsidian Flames, relatively than Raikou V. This Pokémon’s Loud Combine assault does injury relying on the variety of Pokémon sorts in your Bench: with a Toxel, Mew V, and Genesect V on the Bench, it does 140 injury for 2 Vitality, which may Knock Out Pokémon which can be weak to Lightning, like Lugia VSTAR, in addition to most Pokémon with out a Rule Field!

Robin says: At the same time as a fellow Fusion Strike fan, I’d have by no means predicted this mixture! I like when gamers suppose exterior of the field and give you unconventional deck concepts. Genesect V is one in every of my all-time favourite playing cards to play with on account of how a lot management over your personal deck it gives, so it is cool to see it being utilized in alternative ways than what we’re used to. It is exhausting to argue in opposition to the traditional Mew VMAX deck being the stronger choice, however that does not imply we should not have some enjoyable with different makes use of of its engine!

Every time a Pokémon has limitless injury potential, it’s often price looking at, and Mewtwo ex isn’t any exception. Its Photon Kinesis assault requires lots of Vitality in play however can develop into extremely robust.

In fact, a very powerful query when making an attempt to construct a deck round Mewtwo ex is how one can get all that Vitality into play, as attaching just one per flip could be far too gradual. Fortunately, it’s not a tough query to reply, as a result of Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift comes with the right companion for Mewtwo ex: Xatu. There are another choices, like constructing the deck round Clefairy for instance, however Xatu has so much going for it.

Its Clairvoyant Sense Skill permits us to connect an extra Psychic Vitality, after which draw 2 playing cards. Not solely does this make Mewtwo ex’s assault stronger, nevertheless it additionally gives the deck with a draw engine—often the subsequent large query in line after selecting a basic technique. It gained’t be unusual to have three Xatu in play in some unspecified time in the future within the recreation, permitting for a complete of 4 Vitality attachments per flip and lots of playing cards drawn!

Nevertheless, even with help from Xatu, it would take a number of turns for Mewtwo ex to succeed in the numbers it wants. Many different decks shall be sooner, so we want a technique to decelerate the opponent in addition to have choices for getting again into the sport after falling behind. One key card that covers each of these factors is Path to the Peak. Neither Mewtwo ex nor Xatu is affected by it, which makes this in style Stadium card an ideal match for this deck.

One other essential card to speak about is Mew ex, which helps the deck in a number of alternative ways. Initially, it has free retreat, which is essential to offset the draw back of Xatu’s Skill attaching Vitality playing cards solely to Benched Pokémon. Second, its Restart Skill, regardless that it would usually be blocked by Path to the Peak, provides the deck some extra draw and stability within the early recreation. And lastly, its Genome Hacking assault is helpful in quite a lot of conditions and one thing the opponent will all the time want to fret about. A frequent play is utilizing a Boss’s Orders or Counter Catcher on an opponent’s Radiant Greninja, then copying its Moonlight Shuriken assault to take out two low-HP Pokémon directly.

The final Pokémon I added to the deck is Mimikyu. Though nearly all decks have some sort of reply to its Safeguard Skill, coping with it does nonetheless make the sport extra difficult for them. I like placing Mimikyu into the Lively Spot firstly of the sport whereas build up Vitality in play. Particularly when paired with Path to the Peak and Iono for some further disruption, it may be surprisingly efficient in stopping the opponent from taking a Prize card for a flip.

We now have lots of extra draw due to our Pokémon’s Skills, however the deck nonetheless wants an affordable quantity of Supporter playing cards like Iono and Professor’s Analysis for the preliminary setup. Iono is especially essential as a result of it doubles as a powerful hand management card within the late recreation, which, as talked about earlier than, is required on account of our relatively gradual technique. I’ve additionally added one Avery, which along with being one other draw card, gives a distinct type of disruption that’s fairly robust in opposition to a number of the at the moment in style decks.

Within the Merchandise line-up, now we have the same old Battle VIP Cross and Extremely Ball for looking out our Pokémon. We even have entry to Fog Crystal, which is unbelievable on this deck as a result of flexibility of having the ability to seek for both extra Primary Pokémon or for a Psychic Vitality to make use of with Xatu.

The final resolution level that’s associated to the deck’s consistency and basic technique is the variety of Vitality and restoration playing cards to incorporate. We have to discover lots of Vitality playing cards early to get worth out of Xatu instantly, however afterward within the recreation, playing cards like Vitality Retrieval or Tremendous Rod that reuse Vitality develop into extra precious. I’ve settled on 12 Primary Vitality and one in every of every restoration card, however affordable minds can differ about this stability.

Now that every one the necessities are taken care of, it’s time so as to add some extra tips and energy to the deck! Bravery Appeal is a straightforward inclusion, giving Mewtwo ex some much-needed further HP. It’s additionally nice on Mew ex, and it may well even be situationally helpful when hooked up to Natu. Counter Catcher is powerful in any deck that expects to fall behind within the Prize race initially and is very highly effective when mixed with Iono or Avery.

Lastly, there are two Reversal Vitality within the deck record. It doesn’t work on Mewtwo ex straight, however when hooked up to Xatu whereas behind on Prizes, it counts as 3 Psychic Vitality, including 90 injury to Photon Kinesis for only a single attachment! This makes it attainable to take large Knock Outs a lot sooner than your opponent will count on, and is but another excuse why I actually like Xatu because the companion of selection for Mewtwo ex.

I feel this deck is de facto fascinating to play with. It tries to make the sport awkward for the opponent whereas constructing as much as large consecutive Knock Outs towards the top of the sport, which ends up in some robust choices for each gamers. For instance, generally it is sensible to skip out on a attainable Knock Out, and as an alternative use Mewtwo ex’s Switch Cost for a stronger board place and a extra impactful assault on the flip after. I’ve been positively stunned with how a lot of a combat Mewtwo ex can put up in opposition to even a number of the strongest decks within the format, so give it a attempt should you like its sort of gameplay!

Stéphane says: I agree with Robin that Xatu is one of the best companion for Mewtwo ex, and I feel the way in which he constructed his deck round these two Pokémon is easy and efficient. That stated, I feel I’d make a number of modifications to the record. First, Manaphy appears essential in a deck with low-HP Primary Pokémon—we do not need our Natu to be Knocked Out by a Radiant Greninja earlier than they’ll evolve! Second, talking of Radiant Greninja, I feel it may very well be a good addition to the deck. Even when we do not particularly need to discard Vitality, extra draw energy remains to be appreciated, particularly on the primary flip. Alternatively, on condition that Battle VIP Cross is within the deck, together with a Mew may assist discover this key Merchandise card on the primary flip of the sport. Because of Fog Crystal, discovering Mew is straightforward!

Xander says: Mewtwo ex and Xatu is a powerful but easy pairing that may take lots of decks abruptly. On prime of that, Bravery Appeal brings Mewtwo ex’s HP as much as 280, which matches most Pokémon VSTAR. I actually like Robin’s inclusion of Reversal Vitality, which may enhance the injury of Photon Kinesis by 90 in a pinch. By sacrificing a single Prize card early, you’ll be able to reply with a giant Knock Out on the opponent’s essential attacker.

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

Xander Pero
Xander Pero is a contributing author for Pokemon.com. He was an avid fan till discovering sanctioned tournaments in 2009. He previously traveled usually for the Prime 16 circuit, however now spends his time specializing in college, the place he research industrial engineering. You’ll find him at varied tournaments, in addition to on Twitter at @xanderpero.