Raging Bolt ex Will Remain a Solid Option for Worlds

Hello to all PokeBeach readers! Here’s Gabriel Semedo again with another Pokémon TCG article, and this time, I’m going to talk about Raging Bolt ex , one of the most recent Tier 1 decks to break out in the metagame, and one which, in my opinion, will remain a strong option through the 2024 World Championships.

The current competitive scene is going through a phase without relevant tournaments —  the last major tournament was the North America International Championships, and after that, the season ended. With no Regionals, League Cups, or League Challenges in the month of June, the only major reference that players have about the metagame is NAIC, a tournament that took place about a month ago. Worlds, however, will include the Shrouded Fable miniset, which could slightly impact the metagame. Cards like Fezandipiti ex and Night Stretcher have the potential to be included in several decks.

In thinking about the current scene, I decided to write today’s article about Raging Bolt ex, as I believe that despite all probable changes in the metagame leading up to Worlds, the deck will remain a very solid choice to use in the competition.

Charizard ex Will Be Back for Worlds

One of the biggest shocks in the NAIC metagame was the low popularity of Charizard ex. For a number of reasons, players believed it was no longer a good call. One of the reasons was the new decks — Dragapult ex and Raging Bolt ex — would both be hard matchups for Charizard. Furthermore, Lugia VSTAR would have gained more strength, representing yet another tough matchup.

These factors were enough to keep a good number of players away from Charizard ex, but it didn’t keep away some of the game’s big names, including Tord Reklev, Pedro Pertusi, and William Azevedo, who continued to believe in the deck and played it at NAIC. It is true, however, that there was no Charizard ex in the Top 8 or even Top 16 of the competition, something that’s notable since it was common to see at least two Charizard in any Regionals Top 8 until recently.

On the other hand, some decks that couldn’t shine completely due to the presence of Charizard started to appear again. Decks like Miraidon ex and Future Iron Hands ex are great in a metagame where Charizard ex isn’t popular. And the NAIC’s biggest standout, Gardevoir ex, has a well-balanced matchup against Charizard ex.

Charizard ex is once again a good call for Worlds because the decks that stood out in the NAIC are the decks that have a balanced-or-worse matchup against it. Furthermore, some of the best players in the world have proven that Charizard ex remains as strong as ever, and this will encourage players who were unsure to give the deck another chance.

In thinking about a metagame with Charizard ex strongly present, I recommend Raging Bolt ex, as I believe it has a balanced matchup against Charizard. Among all the aggro decks in the format, which are basically Basic Pokémon decks that aim to hit hard on their first turn, the combination of Raging Bolt ex and Teal Mask Ogerpon ex is the only one that offers a good chance of winning this matchup. Miraidon ex has a bad matchup, Future Hands has a bad matchup, and Roaring Moon ex has a better, but still slightly bad, matchup.

Raging Bolt ex Will Stay Strong

It’s clear that Gardevoir is the best deck in the format, but I’m sure that this metagame will not remain the same for Worlds. Charizard ex has the potential for a strong comeback, Gardevoir will have a target on its back, and Lost Box gains a direct counter in the new Kyurem from Shrouded Fable. Despite all this, I believe that Raging Bolt stands firm as a solid deck capable of doing well regardless of the coming metagame. Of course, Raging Bolt has its bad matchups, but its strength and consistency compensate for several of its weaknesses, and it has a low probability of losing due to bad starting hands.

If you are preparing for Worlds and still don’t know where to start, I would recommend starting with Raging Bolt ex, as I am sure this deck will be successful at Worlds. If you don’t use the deck, you’ll at least face a player using it, so it’s a mandatory deck to study regardless.

This concludes the public portion of this article.

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