So I've been struggling around a bit recently, and since my PTCGO account is very barren at the moment, the only deck I can really play is ZoroVoir (Minus Leles). I've since realised that this deck without Leles is very inconsistent and I ran into a lot of bad matchups. However, I should be getting a LOT of codes soon from a collector friend of mine who doesn't play competitively, and I have an idea of what to spend them on.
I have been thinking very hard about what the true "Best Deck" is, or rather, the "Best Pokemon" and I believe I have come to a conclusion.
Ho-Oh GX.
Here are all the pros and cons:
+Hits for weakness against Golisopod, DM Necrozma, Solgaleo and more.
+190 HP, which as Buzzwole has shown us is very nice to have.
+Resistant to Buzzwole, Lycanroc, Lucario and more.
+Can be turbocharged w/ Kiawe in just one turn.
+Can snipe for 50.
+Has weakness to Lightning which next to nobody plays.
+It is a basic, so gains the bonuses of Max Elixir, Fury Belt, Ninja Boy and more.
+Requires Fire Energy to attack, which can be partnered with Scorched Earth for a draw engine.
-If you cannot Kiawe or Nitro Tank GX it takes a long time to set up.
-You cannot use Phoenix Burn twice in a row. (Without a Stand in/Float Stone combo)
-It has a Retreat Cost of 2, the most awkward in the game.
-It is a 2 Prize GX attacker.
As you can see, the pros highly outweigh the cons.
It took 9th at Worlds, 6th at Bremen, 8th at Hartford, 7th at Sydney, 6th at Malmö and 9th at Collinsville.
So overall Ho-Oh is a very strong GX that can 1HKO almost anything given the right conditions. It can however, be a little slow and inconsistent. So how do we stop it being so inconsistent?
Zoroark GX.
Not only is Zoroark a fantastic draw engine, but it can also deliver 2 Hit knockouts with ease. I'm not going to go into huge detail about what Zoroark GX does as we all know how it works by now. We do also have the option of Baby Zoroark, which also has Stand In that can help reset Ho-Oh's Phoenix Burns every turn. It also provides us with a nice 1 prize attacker which this deck lacks. This is not a Zoroark GX focused deck however, the strategy is as follows:
Use a combination of Kiawe/Ho-Oh as soon as possible whilst stalling against Pokemon such as Buzzwole and dishing out small snipe hits early game. Whilst you have your big, beefy, 230HP Fury Belt Boosted, Buzzwole Resistant Ho-Oh stalling for you, you will want to start setting up your Zoroarks so you don't lose out on consistency late game. Once you have your Zoroarks up and running, you can start dishing out big 1HKOs and resetting your attacks every turn with your Stand In Zoroark.
Here is a rough list I've been working on combining these two.
I kind of put it together quickly so it's not the best quality. It is in the Deck Garage... ...so please don't give suggestions about the deck here. Feel free to comment whatever else you would like here though, but please save the deck improvements for the Deck Garage.
I will be testing this as soon as possible, although it might take a while for me to obtain all the cards in it. If anyone would like to test it in the meantime please reply with your findings as it would be greatly appreciated.
Just to clarify, this is NOT the "Best Deck", but rather the one with the most advantages against the current meta.
Also, please note that this is NOT a normal Ho-Oh GX deck, so it does not operate in the same way. I wouldn't like to hear any comments telling me to change it to a regular Ho-Oh deck, so please don't be offended if I do not agree with some of your suggestions.
Thanks for reading this kind of long winded article, it took a long time to put together!
I have been thinking very hard about what the true "Best Deck" is, or rather, the "Best Pokemon" and I believe I have come to a conclusion.
Ho-Oh GX.
Here are all the pros and cons:
+Hits for weakness against Golisopod, DM Necrozma, Solgaleo and more.
+190 HP, which as Buzzwole has shown us is very nice to have.
+Resistant to Buzzwole, Lycanroc, Lucario and more.
+Can be turbocharged w/ Kiawe in just one turn.
+Can snipe for 50.
+Has weakness to Lightning which next to nobody plays.
+It is a basic, so gains the bonuses of Max Elixir, Fury Belt, Ninja Boy and more.
+Requires Fire Energy to attack, which can be partnered with Scorched Earth for a draw engine.
-If you cannot Kiawe or Nitro Tank GX it takes a long time to set up.
-You cannot use Phoenix Burn twice in a row. (Without a Stand in/Float Stone combo)
-It has a Retreat Cost of 2, the most awkward in the game.
-It is a 2 Prize GX attacker.
As you can see, the pros highly outweigh the cons.
It took 9th at Worlds, 6th at Bremen, 8th at Hartford, 7th at Sydney, 6th at Malmö and 9th at Collinsville.
So overall Ho-Oh is a very strong GX that can 1HKO almost anything given the right conditions. It can however, be a little slow and inconsistent. So how do we stop it being so inconsistent?
Zoroark GX.
Not only is Zoroark a fantastic draw engine, but it can also deliver 2 Hit knockouts with ease. I'm not going to go into huge detail about what Zoroark GX does as we all know how it works by now. We do also have the option of Baby Zoroark, which also has Stand In that can help reset Ho-Oh's Phoenix Burns every turn. It also provides us with a nice 1 prize attacker which this deck lacks. This is not a Zoroark GX focused deck however, the strategy is as follows:
Use a combination of Kiawe/Ho-Oh as soon as possible whilst stalling against Pokemon such as Buzzwole and dishing out small snipe hits early game. Whilst you have your big, beefy, 230HP Fury Belt Boosted, Buzzwole Resistant Ho-Oh stalling for you, you will want to start setting up your Zoroarks so you don't lose out on consistency late game. Once you have your Zoroarks up and running, you can start dishing out big 1HKOs and resetting your attacks every turn with your Stand In Zoroark.
Here is a rough list I've been working on combining these two.
3 Zorua
2 Zoroark GX
1 Zoroark
4 Ho-Oh GX
2 Turtonator GX
2 Tapu Lele GX
4 Ultra Ball
3 Float Stone
2 Fighting Fury Belt
2 Field Blower
1 Choice Band
4 Sycamore
4 Guzma
3 Kiawe
2 Cynthia
2 N
1 Ninja Boy
2 Scorched Earth
16 Fire Energy
2 Zoroark GX
1 Zoroark
4 Ho-Oh GX
2 Turtonator GX
2 Tapu Lele GX
4 Ultra Ball
3 Float Stone
2 Fighting Fury Belt
2 Field Blower
1 Choice Band
4 Sycamore
4 Guzma
3 Kiawe
2 Cynthia
2 N
1 Ninja Boy
2 Scorched Earth
16 Fire Energy
I kind of put it together quickly so it's not the best quality. It is in the Deck Garage... ...so please don't give suggestions about the deck here. Feel free to comment whatever else you would like here though, but please save the deck improvements for the Deck Garage.
I will be testing this as soon as possible, although it might take a while for me to obtain all the cards in it. If anyone would like to test it in the meantime please reply with your findings as it would be greatly appreciated.
Just to clarify, this is NOT the "Best Deck", but rather the one with the most advantages against the current meta.
Also, please note that this is NOT a normal Ho-Oh GX deck, so it does not operate in the same way. I wouldn't like to hear any comments telling me to change it to a regular Ho-Oh deck, so please don't be offended if I do not agree with some of your suggestions.
Thanks for reading this kind of long winded article, it took a long time to put together!
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