Hi there! The whole Raccoon City incident made me think, "Hey, you know what would be awesome? If I could capture, train, and use these bio-weapon mutants in standardized battles with other opponents!" So the next step is Pokemon. 
I've seen the show, some of it. I remember when the stuff got big over here. It always seemed fun enough. The card game looks interesting, and might make a nice break from Magic, which I play pretty regularly. Some of my questions will use Magic-based comparisons for ease of understanding.
So! Onto the questions.
1) Are theme decks viable? In Magic, I play tribal (built around one creature type) decks almost exclusively, and if not tribal then something with a tight theme and focus. I want the deck to tell a story, not just be a random collection of creatures and things that would never work together or are only there because they're the best. I like a good concept and a strong theme.
For example, I love dinosaurs and prehistoric beasts. Would a Fossil Pokemon deck be a viable build? I know when I looked into this game before most people said not to do it, but then some Fossil-related stuff has come out since then. I'd love to use Tyrantrum, Aerodactyl, and Kabutops, among others, to bash my foes!
But I'd also like to make stuff like Water-based Pokemon decks, Dragon-based, or ferocious predator decks, or that kind of thing. Is this doable?
As an aside, I did once seriously look into getting into Pokemon. I joined the http://google.com/ forum and asked about stuff like this. I was told that the game "isn't like Magic, where only certain decks win competitive play." Then everyone proceeded to shut down any possible theme or deck based on favorite creature types or concepts, and suggest like the same 2 or 3 Pokemon that were big at the time (Darkrai was one, I think). And they all suggested the same Trainer cards and things. Without fail. So in essence, they sold me off of the game because it was in fact more limited than Magic, where at the last you can have different deck types win (I have a mill deck that runs no creatures and wins), even if they all embody the basic archetypes: control, aggro, combo, etc.
2) What is the easiest/most affordable way to get into the game if you want to build some strong decks and play them around with friends and maybe local game shops? I mean, is there a particular set that works better? Do you have to have the latest and greatest EX or BREAK or whatever everything is to win? Are there certain non-Pokemon cards that are absolute must-haves in every deck?
3) In the face of stuff like the EX cards, are regular old Pokemon still worth running anymore?
4) If the answers to the above questions pan out, would anyone care to help me put together a Fossil Pokemon deck to start with? I have looked around for deck lists but they seem few and far between.
Thanks for your time!
I've seen the show, some of it. I remember when the stuff got big over here. It always seemed fun enough. The card game looks interesting, and might make a nice break from Magic, which I play pretty regularly. Some of my questions will use Magic-based comparisons for ease of understanding.
So! Onto the questions.
1) Are theme decks viable? In Magic, I play tribal (built around one creature type) decks almost exclusively, and if not tribal then something with a tight theme and focus. I want the deck to tell a story, not just be a random collection of creatures and things that would never work together or are only there because they're the best. I like a good concept and a strong theme.
For example, I love dinosaurs and prehistoric beasts. Would a Fossil Pokemon deck be a viable build? I know when I looked into this game before most people said not to do it, but then some Fossil-related stuff has come out since then. I'd love to use Tyrantrum, Aerodactyl, and Kabutops, among others, to bash my foes!
But I'd also like to make stuff like Water-based Pokemon decks, Dragon-based, or ferocious predator decks, or that kind of thing. Is this doable?
As an aside, I did once seriously look into getting into Pokemon. I joined the http://google.com/ forum and asked about stuff like this. I was told that the game "isn't like Magic, where only certain decks win competitive play." Then everyone proceeded to shut down any possible theme or deck based on favorite creature types or concepts, and suggest like the same 2 or 3 Pokemon that were big at the time (Darkrai was one, I think). And they all suggested the same Trainer cards and things. Without fail. So in essence, they sold me off of the game because it was in fact more limited than Magic, where at the last you can have different deck types win (I have a mill deck that runs no creatures and wins), even if they all embody the basic archetypes: control, aggro, combo, etc.
2) What is the easiest/most affordable way to get into the game if you want to build some strong decks and play them around with friends and maybe local game shops? I mean, is there a particular set that works better? Do you have to have the latest and greatest EX or BREAK or whatever everything is to win? Are there certain non-Pokemon cards that are absolute must-haves in every deck?
3) In the face of stuff like the EX cards, are regular old Pokemon still worth running anymore?
4) If the answers to the above questions pan out, would anyone care to help me put together a Fossil Pokemon deck to start with? I have looked around for deck lists but they seem few and far between.
Thanks for your time!
