My Early Thoughts on the Post-Rotation Format
Hello PokeBeach readers! Isaiah here, and I am happy to be writing another article for you all! Last time, I discussed Archaludon ex and how I felt it was best to build it in the current format and also how it might change in the new format. Notably, that article was written before the Vancouver Regional Championships happened (although it was published afterward), and my deck list for Archaludon ex / Origin Forme Dialga VSTAR was remarkably close to the deck list that ended up finishing in the Top 8 of that event. Personally, I still think this deck is one of the best decks pre-rotation and I expect to continue playing it at my local-level events until I can’t anymore. With that said, rotation is fast approaching, with Journey Together coming out on March 28, about a week after I am writing this, so it is time to get thinking about how the format is going to look on a broad scale. I wanted to make that the focus of this article, making it more of a transitioning piece rather than focusing on any particular deck, as we really do not have enough information to make concrete decisions about what decks are good or bad until after the set has been out for a few weeks. First, how about we look at what we are losing to rotation this year?
What Cards are Rotating in the F Block?
In March 2022, the Pokemon TCG community returned to in-person play for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. With that return to Pokemon, the first Pokemon VSTAR were released, too, in the form of Arceus VSTAR and the rest of Brilliant Stars. With the benefit of hindsight, we can recognize that Arceus VSTAR was one of the most format-defining cards of all time, and one of the greatest, too, making Day 2 of every North American major event from its release until the 2024 North America International Championships. While this card was certainly impactful on its own, it was mostly able to succeed because of Double Turbo Energy, which is sure to be one of the most missed cards rotating this year. Winning the World Championships every single year it was legal, Double Turbo Energy has certainly cemented itself as one of the greatest Energy cards ever printed, and its rotation is sure to leave a big impact.
Brilliant Stars also re-introduced Bench Barrier to the game in the form of Manaphy and its Wave Veil. To say this card was one of the most important cards released in the entire Sword & Shield era would be an understatement, allowing people to not get steamrolled by cards like Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX, Kyurem, and perhaps most importantly, Radiant Greninja. Radiant Greninja is also rotating, which is sure to be one of the most significant rotations of any card ever. Astral Radiance saw the debut of a variety of impactful cards, including Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, Origin Forme Dialga VSTAR, Roxanne, and many more, but none was as impactful as Radiant Greninja. Concealed Cards is one of the greatest Abilities for card draw ever printed, since it turns the worst cards in any Pokemon deck, Energy, into new cards, which could end up being cards that are actually useful and powerful. As if that somehow was not enough, Moonlight Shuriken is one of the most powerful attacks of the last few years, gatekeeping many rogue strategies from ever being playable, and forcing decks with low-HP Pokemon to always watch their backs just in case. Of course, some of the best decks that ever used Radiant Greninja were the Lost Zone decks introduced in Lost Origin. Comfey, Colress's Experiment, Mirage Gate, and Sableye together feel like one of the biggest archetypes leaving us this year, as the Lost Zone engine is easily one of the most unique deck packages we have ever seen, and also one of the most successful.
Unbelievably, Lost Zone was not the most successful deck in the Sword & Shield era — that title belongs to the legendary Lugia VSTAR and its trusty Archeops. Considered by many to be the greatest archetype of all time, Lugia VSTAR finally rotating is a happy sight for many. Others, myself included, are sad to see it go. It’s one of the most fun, unique, and powerful decks that I have ever gotten to play with, and it’s difficult to imagine what a world without Lugia VSTAR is going to look like. Lugia VSTAR was not the only deck introduced in Silver Tempest, though — Regidrago VSTAR is also finally rotating out of the Standard format. At one point, I considered this card to be the best card that was never good, but fortunately it finally got to prove itself in its eleventh hour. Both of these decks used one of the most powerful cards of the Sword & Shield era, Radiant Charizard, which is certainly going to be my most missed card after rotation finally arrives.
This concludes the public portion of this article.
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