Last Minute Worlds Call — Palkia Waterbox
Hello, all PokeBeach readers! Gabriel Semedo here once again with another Pokemon TCG article. This time, I’m going to discuss a deck that received some reasonable attention at the North American International Championships (NAIC), but hasn’t been extensively covered so far. The deck in question is Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, paired with a selection of strong Water-type Pokemon like Chien-Pao ex, Radiant Greninja, and Starmie V.
With the Pokemon World Championships just around the corner, the only official tournament we’ve had in the same format (with Paldea Evolved legal) was the NAIC. Since then, there has been limited information about Standard format updates. This is largely due to the fact that many top players who will be attending the event in Japan are likely quietly honing their skills and safeguarding their best ideas for the most important Pokemon TCG tournament in the world.
Regrettably, I won’t be able to attend Worlds this year. However, I’m diligently training players who will be participating, and I’m also participating in League Challenges and Leguae Cups to accumulate Championship Points for the next season. My role entails remaining attentive to all strategies that possess sufficient potential to surprise at the World Championships. And one of these intriguing strategies is the deck I will be introducing in this article.
Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR Remains As Strong As Ever
While Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR might not possess the same KO power it held last season, it remains effective at taking a KO against opponent’s Pokemon V or ex. The current Standard format includes decks that require a substantial amount of damage, such as Gardevoir ex, Lost Box, Mew VMAX, and Lugia VSTAR. As a result, Palkia VSTAR consistently deals over 220 damage, often enough to claim two Prize cards in a single attack. The strategy revolves around securing as many Prizes as possible through these KOs. When you need to hit exceptionally high damage, that’s when you need to use Chien-Pao ex’s attack. On the other hand, for eliminating low HP single Prize Pokemon like Comfey or Ralts, Radiant Greninja proves invaluable.
In most situations, Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR boasts a respectable damage output, while you have Radiant Greninja and Chien-Pao ex for other cases. This versatility enables you to handleany kind of Pokemon deck, whether it features solely single Prize Pokemon like United Wings or includes high HP Pokemon like Arceus VSTAR/ Umbreon VMAX / Duraludon VMAX.
Given the deck’s heavy reliance on Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR as you will almost always attack with this Pokemon, the optimal approach involves having two Origin Forme Palkia V cards on the field whenever possible. This guards against the possibility of one being KO’d, allowing for a seamless transition to the other. Resorting to Chien-Pao ex or Radiant Greninja without a real need can lead to significant issues, as these Pokemon discard vital Water Energy. Unlike the Chien-Pao ex / Baxcalibur deck, where preserving energy on the field isn’t a priority, the Palkia Waterbox aims to maintain Energy on the field to enable dealing 300 damage or more with Chien-Pao ex when required. Occasionally, Chien-Pao ex might not even be necessary, but the mere presence of scattered energy across the field exerts psychological pressure on the opponent, as they will need to consider the KO potential of Chien-Pao ex.
This concludes the public portion of this article.
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