Standard Insta Kill (Gengar / Trevenant BREAK)

[gregpokeman]

Pokémon: 21

• 3 Gastly BKT
• 2 Haunter BKT
• 3 Gengar BKT
• 4 Phantump BKP
• 3 Trevenant XY base
• 3 Trevenant BREAK
• 1 Shaymin EX
• 2 Wobbuffet PHF

Trainers/Supporters/Stadiums: 32

• 4 Wally
• 4 Professor Sycamore
• 2 Lysandre
• 1 Judge
• 2 Trainers' Mail
• 2 Float Stone
• 4 VS Seeker
• 3 Rare Candy
• 3 Level Ball
• 3 Ultra Ball
• 3 Dimension Valley
• 1 Super Rod

Energy: 7

• 7 Psychic Energy

Strategy:

Hey guys, I really love this concept here, and the only problem with this is I do not know what to take out because I really want to make this fast. I am thinking about taking out something for 1 Shaymin EX; really would appreciate all the help I could get. Also, should I take out both Switches for 1 more Gengar and Gastly?

 

[Dark Espeon]

Hi gregpokemon,

I would do these modifications:

- 1 Bridgette (not needed with this balls count)
- 3 Rare Candy (not needed in this deck)
- 1 Level Ball (want more untra ball)
- 2 Switch (not needed in this deck)
- 1 Wally (three are sufficient)

+ 2 Professor Sycamore (need a stabke draw engine)
+ 3 Burst Balloon (Trevenant loves them)
+ 2 Shaymin Ex (more draw power)
+ 1 Trainer's Mail (awesome card)

Personally I would run Aegislash instead of Gengar and Judge instead of Prof. Birch's Observation in this deck. Once Trevenant Break attacked three times Aegislash can ko multiple Pokémon Ex in one turn.

 

[gregpokeman]

i think i should keep rare candy just beacuse too speed up gengar also aegislash need s two energy with valley while gengar needs one with valley also why balloon because you have to discard it after one turn.

 

[gregpokeman]

should i take out 2 physic energy for i more gastly and gengar

 

[Dark Espeon]

Hi gregpokemon,

You do not need either Gengar or Aegislash out that fast. Both are in essence cleaner Pokémon. You want to attack with Trevenant for some turns.

Burst Balloon is there to either protect you from an attack or deal 60 damage in case the opponent attacked Trevenant. To tell the truth, the deck wants the opponent to attack Trevenant with Burst Balloon attached because that accellerates damage counters on the battlefield and may even knock out some defenders on their own combined with Silent Fear. The fact that it is discarded at the end of your opponent's turn also combos well with Float Stones used to retreat Trevenant once Aegislash is able to draw multiple prizes at once. With Gengar it allows you to have Trevenant active longer to maintain the lock. otherwise you would need to give up the item lock to defeat one opposing Pokémon after the other turn by turn. In between these turns you loose the item lock which makes the deck much more vulnerable.

Aegislash needs one more energy but he can hit multiple Pokémon at once and combines well with Trevenant Break's Silent Fear attack. Once you used Silent Fear three times Aegislash can ohko Pokémon Ex. If more than one opposing Pokémon has been out that long Aegislash will draw you more prizes than Gengar.

Hope this provides some initial assistance.

 

[TuxedoBlack]

A few observations:

You only have 6 Basic Pokemon which you need to get out as quickly as possible. With only 6 Basic, chances are you will mulligan several times giving your opponent extra cards at the beginning of the game. So, to help reduce the extra-card(s) advantage, I'd suggest running a few Judges to remove the extra cards from your opponent's hand.

Without any other Basic other than your primary Pokemon, chances are you will fall behind in the prize count early game. And, given the relativley low HP your starting Pokemon have, running a few Teammates would be quite helpful too.

IMO, Level Balls should be maxed-out in order to get your bench (and Haunters) setup fast.

Eventhough, you may have a good start with Trevenant, most good players will recognize that your Gengars are the "real" threat. So, the Gengars (Gastly and/or Haunters too) will be prime Lysandre targets. A 3-2-3 Gengar should be the minimum size line, IMO. Alternatively, BKP Aegislash and/or Meowstic (FLF) can be used to utilize Trevenants' spread for KOs.

4 card-draw Supporters are woefully insufficient.

If your sole Lysandre is prized, you could be at a real disadvantge; 2 should be run.​

Following are some suggested deck changes for improvement, IMO:

-1 Wally
-1 Float Stone
-1 Trainer's Mail
-1 Switch
-1 Rare Candy

+1 Gastly
+1 Gengar
+1 Professor Sycamore

+2 Wobuffet (Bide Barrier) - can disrupt opponent's Pokemon with Abilities and solid alternate attacker
- - or - -
+1 Wobuffet
+1 Level Ball
- - or - -
+2 Judge
- - or - -
+1 Judge
+1 Teammates
​

By the way, I'm not sure if you really need the DCEs either since you run 4 Dimension Valley. Consider replacing those with more Psychic energy.

I played against this deck a few times and a 3rd Gengar and Wobuffet(s) are very important. Other than the few near autolosses (Dark decks, Water and Lightning decks running Rough Seas), Trevenant BREAK will setup your opponent's field very nicely for Gengar.

I hope you find these comments helpful.

 

[gregpokeman]

thanks guys i really like your ideas.

 

[gregpokeman]

are these changes good cause i cant find what to take out for burst ballon

 

[Dark Espeon]

Hi TuxedoBlack,
Have to disagree that Trevenant has a near autoloss to darkness decks and Rough Seas decks. It comes down to the Trevenant variant and whether a T1 Trevenant can be obtained. Burst Balloon helps the deck out a lot. You do not want too many basics in this deck to minimize the odds to start with a basic other than Phantump. For me a total basic count of 7-8 Pokémon worked out real well. Seven in pure Trevenant decks and 8 in Aegislash variants. Furthermore you do not want to fill the bench sdue to Zoroark and Lysandre.

Hi gregpokemon,

Still not sold on Rare Candies since it takes up deck slots and Haunter has a good disruptive ability that complements the item lock. I would not want to miss out on it. To me Haunter is the only selling point for Gengar if you run Heavy Boots with it. Automatic confusion and item lock combos well. Shaymin Ex should be a 2-off due to your lower draw supporter count. I am still on the fence whether I like Wobbuffet or not. My own Trevenant deck worked better when I reduced the Wobbuffet count to 1 to have a cleaner Pokémon. I also disagree on the need to have 4 Level Ball in this deck. In my Trevenant Aegislash deck I run 4 Ultra Ball and 2 Level Ball in total and it worked out real well. You do not need more than that.

The main questions thus are:
1) Do you want to maintain Gengar in this deck since this will force you to allow the opponent to use items every second turn and make the deck less durable?
2) Who is intended to be the main attacker in the first 2-5 turns in the ideal case and what do you want the deck to accomplish in terms of its tactic to win?

As a general advice: I would run around 8-10 draw cards (incl. Shaymin Ex) in any deck. Less than that will make the deck inconsistent. At present you only have 6 cards that allow you to draw other cards and your supporter search (Trainer's Mail) is minimal. I would in general run 3-4 Trainer's Mail to make the deck consistent.

 

[TuxedoBlack]

Hi TuxedoBlack,
Have to disagree that Trevenant has a near autoloss to darkness decks and Rough Seas decks. It comes down to the Trevenant variant and whether a T1 Trevenant can be obtained. Burst Balloon helps the deck out a lot. You do not want too many basics in this deck to minimize the odds to start with a basic other than Phantump. For me a total basic count of 7-8 Pokémon worked out real well. Seven in pure Trevenant decks and 8 in Aegislash variants. Furthermore you do not want to fill the bench sdue to Zoroark and Lysandre.

Based upon my experience, even with a T1 Trevenant (XY), has not yet made a significant difference since the Gengar, as well as the Trevenant line Pokemon are all weak to Dark Pokemon attacks. Secondly, Gengar nor Trevenant has any energy acceleration, whereas as Dark decks can with Yveltal (which easily 1HKOs Phantumps and Gastlys...).

Burst Balloon can be Xerosic'd off or Lysandre'd around.

With either Lightning or Water decks, Rough Seas play a huge role in preventing Gengar KOs.

 

[PokeDad5]

With Trevenant you won't be playing bursting balloon anyway, if it's your active. I like the idea of Trevenant aegislash. Sounds like fun

 

[Dark Espeon]

Based upon my experience, even with a T1 Trevenant (XY), has not yet made a significant difference since the Gengar, as well as the Trevenant line Pokemon are all weak to Dark Pokemon attacks. Secondly, Gengar nor Trevenant has any energy acceleration, whereas as Dark decks can with Yveltal (which easily 1HKOs Phantumps and Gastlys...).

Burst Balloon can be Xerosic'd off or Lysandre'd around.

With either Lightning or Water decks, Rough Seas play a huge role in preventing Gengar KOs.

Hi TuxedoBlack,

If the opponent cannot use items or only has one turn of items it will be hard to find Lysandre and Xerosic since most decks run no more than two of these cards and you will need to use supporters to draw and recover from an occasional Delinquent. It sure is an uphill battle but it surprisingly is not as bad as it seems at first glance. Please note that I am talking about pure Trevenant decks that do not tend to fill their bench on usual and run AZ to get their Shaymin Ex off the bench. Trevenant does not need energy acceleration other than the stadium card since he can attack for 1-2 energy and is therefore not that hard to replace.

Hi PokeDad5,

If you play Trevenant you also want to use Burst Balloon with him and you actually do want the opponent to attack. I even run Eco Arm to recycle Burst balloon in my Trevenant deck.

 

[TuxedoBlack]

Hi TuxedoBlack,

If the opponent cannot use items or only has one turn of items it will be hard to find Lysandre and Xerosic since most decks run no more than two of these cards and you will need to use supporters to draw and recover from an occasional Delinquent. It sure is an uphill battle but it surprisingly is not as bad as it seems at first glance. Please note that I am talking about pure Trevenant decks that do not tend to fill their bench on usual and run AZ to get their Shaymin Ex off the bench. Trevenant does not need energy acceleration other than the stadium card since he can attack for 1-2 energy and is therefore not that hard to replace.

Understood.

Only then suggest to @gregpokeman that you test a lot against Dark decks... For, I've had no issue with any Trevenant and/or Trevenant-Gengar deck thus far.

 

[Dark Espeon]

Understood.

Only then suggest to @gregpokeman that you test a lot against Dark decks... For, I've had no issue with any Trevenant and/or Trevenant-Gengar deck thus far.

That is a good idea for sure. At first I would test against non-Dark decks to see if the deck itself is stable. Omce it is test versus various Dark variants to see if the deck can hold its own against them and to find out means to outplay them. Also be sure to test against Dark decks that do not run Maxie's Gallade.

@gregpokeman,
To provide some assistance for your own deck here is my Trevenant Aegislash deck:

SILENT HILL

Pokémon (18):

• 3 Trevenant Break (beatdown)
• 3 Trevenant (beatdown)
• 4 Phantump (evolve)
• 2 Shaymin Ex (draw)
  
• 2 Aegislash (cleaner)
• 2 Doublade (evolve)
• 2 Honedge (evolve)

Trainer (33):

• 4 Professor Sycamore (draw)
• 2 Wally (fast evolution)
• 1 Delinquent (control)
  
• 1 Lysandre (control)
  
• 1 Judge (draw)
• 1 AZ (retrieve)
• 2 Battle Compressor (control)
  
• 4 Trainer's Mail (search)
• 1 Sacred Ash (retrival)
  
• 2 Float Stone (enable)
  
• 4 Vs Seeker (retrieve)
• 2 Level Ball (search)
  
• 4 Ultra Ball (search)
• 4 Dimensional Valley (enable)

Energy (09):

• 3 Double Colorless Energy
• 6 Psychic Energy

I think that you can carry over the trainer engine for your Trevenant Gengar built but I would replace DCE with Mystery Energy and run Heavy Boots instead of Float Stone. Heavy Boots increases the HP of Trevenant and Trevenant Break by 20 and makes him immune to confusion. Haunter has an ability which automatically confuses both active Pokémon when he evolves from Gastly. it is a nice combo that could help out your deck and the main reason I do not like Rare Candy here. Haunter is indeed usefull. I would even argue that he complements Trevenant better than Gengar himself.

Based on the suggestions outlined above and using my Trevenant Aegislash deck as a starting point the Trevenant Gengar deck could look like this:

Pokémon (18):

• 3 Trevenant Break (beatdown)
• 3 Trevenant (beatdown)
• 4 Phantump (evolve)
• 2 Shaymin Ex (draw)
  
• 2 Gengar (cleaner)
• 2 Haunter (evolve)
• 2 Gastly (evolve)

Trainer (34):

• 4 Professor Sycamore (draw)
• 2 Wally (fast evolution)
• 1 Delinquent (control)
  
• 1 Lysandre (control)
  
• 1 Judge (draw)
• 1 AZ (retrieve)
• 2 Battle Compressor (control)
  
• 4 Trainer's Mail (search)
• 3 Heavy Boots (enable)
  
• 1 Sacred Ash (retrival)
  
• 4 Vs Seeker (retrieve)
• 2 Level Ball (search)
  
• 4 Ultra Ball (search)
• 4 Dimensional Valley (enable)

Energy (08):

• 3 Mystery Energy
• 5 Psychic Energy

Battle Compressor is in the deck to get supporters into the discard asap. I would discard Delinquent, Wally and a draw trainer with it to obtain access to them with VS Seeker. In a nutshell Battle Compressor turns VS Seeker into any supporter of your choice. Only discard Wally if you go first and have a VS Seeker. if you go second use Phantump to evolve into Trevenant.

Personally I believe that the Aegislash version is better than the Gengar built and both of them are less disruptive and have a worse Dark matchup than a mono Trevenant deck.

Hope these considerations provide some initial assistance.