Welcome back to the game!
Now, to answer your questions:
Stigma said:
What decks are really popular right now, and how can I stop them if they're really powerful?
At the moment, the best deck in the format is G&G, which is the combo between
Gallade (Secret Wonders (SW)),
Gardevoir (SW) and
Gardevoir Lv.X (SW). Countering it is hard at best. T2 Banette (consisting of
Banette (SW)) is the best counter we have. It beats the deck most of the time, but loses to most of the rest of the popular decks.
There is another big deck in the form of
Magmortar (SW) variants, These are often used either with
Claydol (Great Encounters (GE)) or
Delcatty (ex Power Keepers (PK)) and either
Blaziken (PK) or
Typhlosion (Mysterious Treasures (MT)). This is easier to counter, mainly through the use of teched in Water types, such as
Gyarados (MT).
There are other decks that see play, but few are as popular or as powerful as those two.
The release of the next set (Majestic Dawn (MD)) will probably change this a bit, but we don't know how much yet.
Stigma said:
What rules have changed since diamond/pearl came out?
The main one is the start of the game. The player who starts first can draw a card on their first turn, but cannot play any Trainer, Supporter, or Stadium card.
Actually, that brings up the point that trainers have been divided into 3 different categories: Trainers (which include normal trainers, Pokémon Tools and TM's), Supporters and Stadiums. If a pre-DP card mentions trainers, it can get any, but a DP-on card can only search for the appropriate card, even if it's a pre-DP trainer (e.g.
Mawile (ex Crystal Guardians (CG)) can search for anything, but
Budew (Diamond and Pearl (DP)) can only search for a normal Trainer, Tool or TM, even it the trainer in question is pre-DP, so can't ever search for a Supporter or Stadium).
All pre-DP card that say they can search for a Basic or Evolution card now count as saying they can search for a Pokémon. This is so they can be used to search for a Lv.X. This means that a card that can only search for one of them can't get a Lv.X.
Fossils now give prizes when they are KO'ed, you can only retreat once per turn, there are Plus Weaknesses and Resistances of Minus numbers other than 30 as well, and there are now basic Metal and Dark energies.
There may be another I've forgotten (probably not, but since they are basically second nature now...) and hope you were able to understand my explanations. It would probably be best to try and get a DP rulebook (or MT or SW (I think) rulebook instead) since it shows all of the differences between the Ex-series rules and the new DP ones, and clearly. The rulebook will also have the Lv.X rules, which I'm assuming you know, but do say if you don't.
Stigma said:
If I have a deck packed with supporters, would that be bad?
No.
Gardevoir (SW) makes this tactic a bit risky, since it allows them to use your own supporters, but they are still useful. However, don't use too many, since using only one per turn can slow you down (unless you use
Porygon2 (GE)...).
Stigma said:
Are quick balls any good?
Only in decks with one evolution line, since then, they can be used, and you know that you are going to get one of 2 maybe 3 different Pokémon, so you know you will probably need the Pokémon. However, when using multiple lines, due to the unpredictability of the card, it becomes less useful, possibly getting something you don't need. In these cases, cards like
Celio's Network (CG) and
Bebe's Search (MT), or even
Dusk Ball (MT) become more useful.
Stigma said:
And what stadiums should I be on the lookout for to put in my deck?
This depends upon the deck. If you using few to no Special energies that provide more than 1 energy, then
Crystal Beach (CG) is quite nice. If you aren't using evolved Metal, Dark or Colourless Pokémon with Poké-Powers or Bodies, then
Battle Frontier (PK) could be used, but it doesn't help against must. If you end your turn using a Poké-Power, try
Holon Circle (CG).
Lake Boundary (MT) is useful if you are already using a lot of x2 weakness Pokémon, or even if you want to do more damage to Pokémon with weakness to your deck. They are the main ones, but they are often not needed.
Hope I've helped!
