Best Theme Deck for Newbie and Place for Testing

Lil'Mos

Aspiring Trainer
Member
So, after doing some research I have finally decided to play Pokemon TCG now. I have gotten the basic rules, card formats/rotations, etc; down. Now I am left with the daunting task to pick up some cards to build a deck. So I thought why not buy a starter deck or "Theme Deck" that can help me get started, but there're way too many to choose from. So I was left with the question which theme deck is the best to buy for a beginner, and which would be great for Pokemon Leagues. (I'm still quite a beginner so playing competitive isn't the on the top of my mind.) Is there also a place where I can test decks before actually paying for them? Added could you post some good combination on how my lines of cards should work out too with the theme deck you guys suggest?

Thanks, in advance
 
I personally consider the Pangoro theme deck called "Dark Hammer" (came out alongside the Furious Fists expansion) to be the best currently available, as it has good attackers, good support Pokemon, and a useful selection of Trainer cards. It's an older deck though, so it might be harder to find in stores.

I also like Stone Heart (featuring Regirock; came out with Ancient Origins) because Regirock is a pretty hard-hitting Basic, plus it has Poison shenanigans with Ariados. Only downside is that it doesn't have the best draw support. It also comes with 3x Combee which can help you out in the future if you get interested in running a Vespiquen deck.

Though, while it's true some theme decks are better than others, since you are a beginner and not too interested it competitive quite yet I'd honestly suggest just picking up a theme deck that features a Pokemon you like! Or better yet, buy two and create your own deck from the various cards. :)

None of the theme decks will be particularly viable at Leagues (unless there is a Theme Deck tournament, of course, but those are quite rare), so no reason to fret too much over whether one is on that level or not. ;)

As for trying them out, there is a way, but it'll take some time -- the Pokemon Trading Card Game Online (free to play for PC and mobile) has most XY-era theme decks available in their store that can be bought with in-game currency. It'll come down to accumulating enough coins to purchase them, either by completing matches, logging in every day, achievements, and so on. Plus, PTCGO is great for practice in general, so that's definitely something I suggest you look into as a fledgling trainer. :)
 
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@Purrloin Thanks for the help. Well I got a little money to spare so if I were to buy two theme decks, combine them which would be the prefect pairing really. Also for Leagues are there any rules set out how they run or do they all run separately on different rules, because I hope to join one soon.
 
There is an alternative, better-value type of theme deck known as Battle Arena Decks, each kit containing two sixty-card decks. These contain some of the more powerful cards in the game, and should give you an idea of how many decks are best made. These should also be better for using at a league as they are much more competitive than theme decks. The one I recommend is the Darkrai-EX vs Mewtwo-EX decks, although it does belong to the Expanded format.

Leagues should run by the official rules, however you may want to check if they allow cards from Expanded (BW-on sets) or Standard (XY-on sets).
 
@bbninjas Thanks, I found a different Battle Arena Deck which includes Xerneas and Yveltal. I was wondering if that is any better as it can be played for now.
 
Xerneas and Yveltal won't have cards as useful as Mewtwo/Darkrai, both in regards to Pokemon and Trainers. However, it is a step up to theme decks.
 
I recommend that you go check out 1 or 2 of your local pokemon leagues.
typically... the players are very helpful. Talk to the organizer. Talk to the players.
many of the top players can give you some good advice.
they can also give you pointers on how to "improve" your theme deck.
typically theme decks are heavy in energies and pokemon
and light on trainers/supporters.
I would guess that the top players in league can likely spare an
extra sycamore or ultra ball for you.
get to know the mechanics of 1 or 2 decks well.
chances are that when you improve and get better, you
will likely want to migrate toward one of the top tier decks.
good luck. and have fun.
 
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