Ultra Prism-Darkness Ablaze — Final Pre-Rotation Review

This week we got the Darkness Ablaze expansion on the online game and I’ve spent the vast majority of my free time playing games! There’s no better way to get acquainted with the metagame than playing random matches, so I’ve been doing just that. I’ve played all the new decks and have things to say about each! Since the Ultra Prism through Darkness Ablaze Standard format will become irrelevant in just a couple week’s time with the rotation, there’s no time like the present to overview each of the decks in the metagame and get you ready for this week’s and the next’s wave of online events. This format is quite fun, with varying degrees of counterplay for each deck. I don’t want to speak too soon, but this is the most satisfied I’ve been with the state of the game in a while, each deck has a chance and the games don’t seem to devolve as much into random elements outside of a pilot’s control. The overarching purpose of this article is to give you the reader a primer on the online metagame before the rotation, dispelling myths about the strength of certain decks, and more. Each deck out there is also trending neutrally, positively, or negatively, so read on to find out what I think of your current pet deck. Enough introduction, let’s just jump into the decks!

Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V

Arceus and Dialga and Palkia-GX / Zacian V has gone through a ton of transformations since the release of Sword and Shield, but it’s always been a front runner at events. That’s still the case now, the deck only had things to gain from the latest expansion. Crobat V brings another support Pokemon to the table that can accelerate you through your deck in order to get the first turn Altered Creation GX. While Brave Blade can no longer one-shot the average main attacker, this deck is best built to gust up smaller Pokemon and take multiple Prizes for each Knock Out. The ideal gameplan usually revolves around taking out two double Prizers, turned triple Prizers after Altered Creation GX for the win.

This concludes the public portion of this article.

If you'd like to continue reading, consider purchasing a PokeBeach premium membership! If you're not completely satisfied with your membership, you can request a full refund within 30 days.

Each week we post high-quality content from some of the game's top players. Our article program isn't a corporate operation, advertising front, or for-profit business. We set our prices so that we can pay the game's top players to write the best content for our subscribers. Each article topic is carefully selected, goes through multiple drafts, and is touched up by our editors. We take great pride in our program!