Standard Manectric EX / Seismitoad EX / Crobat

[boltkenji]

Pokemon:

• 3 Manectric EX
• 2 Seismitoad EX
• 3 Crobat
• 3 Golbat
• 4 Zubat
• 1 Jirachi EX
• 1 Absol (Cursed Eyes)

Trainers/Supporters/Stadiums:

• 4 Professor Juniper
• 4 N
• 2 Lysandre
  
• 1 Colress
• 1 AZ
• 2 Pokemon Fan Club (Will be replaced with Level Ball when we get Bandit Ring)

• 3 Ultra Ball
• 3 Muscle Band
• 3 Super Scoop Up
• 3 VS Seeker
• 3 Rough Seas
• 3 Head Ringer
• 1 Switch
• 1 Computer Search

Energy:

• 6 Lightning Energy
• 3 Double Colorless Energy

Strategy:

With all the hype for M Rayquaza EX, people have started to tech for it by adding various electric types into their lists, which indirectly counters my main deck, Yveltal. I have decided to bench it for now while I experiment with a deck that has been doing pretty well near me. Here's the list that I am working with:

Use Seismitoad to stall and item lock the opponent while you set up Bats on your bench. Manectric EX is the main attacker and with Bats, you can set up easy knockouts.

 

[Mora]

-3 Lightning Energy - Too much Energy.
+1 Head Ringer - Really good, expecially against Toad and match ups with Megas (like Gardevoir).
+1 Silent Lab - To get rid of Safeguarders easily, particularly Suicune + Rough Seas.
+1 Double Colorless Energy - You don't always want to Quaking Punch, but when you do, you want it turn one. Manectric doesn't mind having a DCE attached, especially if it gets Head Ringered.

 

[boltkenji]

I like the changes that you suggested, especially the Silent Lab, but dropping energy to make that happen has always made me a little nervous. I understand that in this deck, energy costs are quite low so there isn't as much as a need for high counts of them. The problem is, even with 11 in the deck, it's still possible to whiff sometimes. I'll still consider the changes though, because I really liked what you suggested.

 

[Mora]

Yeah I felt the same way when I started playing with it, so I can understand that. Ten is the most Energy I've ever played in the deck, and it did well for me at States, so I think you could at least afford to drop 2 Lightning for a Double Colorless and a Silent Lab. You'd still have 4 DCE and 6 Lightning.

 

[boltkenji]

Ok fair enough. I wanted to make room for Silent Lab because I didn't have a solid check for safeguard.

-2 Electric energy
+1 Silent Lab
+1 Double Colorless Energy

 

[Mora]

If it was just Sigilyph, Crobat would have no problem dealing with it (Surprise Bite + Skill Dive for Weakness), but if you're playing against Primal Kyogre, they can just bench nothing but Suicune, and it's almost impossible to deal with. Let me know how you do with this deck post Roaring Skies. I've switched decks to something I know is solid while we wait and see where the format goes from here, but I'd love to keep playing this if it's still relevant.

 

[boltkenji]

Eh nobody really plays Kyogre near me so that's not too much of a worry. I switched to this because it should be strong against Rayquaza in theory. Most variants run a heavy Trainer engine in place of a high Supporter count and Seismitoad can shut it down. Outside of Altaria, Manectric will one-shot a Mega-Rayquaza, assuming it has a Spirit Link attached. On paper, it would seem like a decent match up, but you may need a bit of luck to survive hits.

 

[boltkenji]

I recently got a chance to do some play testing against a friend's Mega Gardevior deck. Overall, it performed well and only lost once due to a misplay. I decided to switch to a more disruption-themed focus. The list is updated with the changes that I made.

 

[boltkenji]

For the past few weeks I have been play-testing and tweaking this list like crazy, and here's what I have found:

First, I have to say, this list runs really well for me. I will admit that it does struggle a little bit from the loss of Lysander's Trump Card, but with careful resource management, it seems to get by better than a lot of other decks. I have considered replacing Computer Search with Dowsing Machine so that I have at least some form of recovery, however, I feel that Computer Search is useful at any point in the game, unlike Dowsing Machine, where its usability increases as the game drags on. This is not the type of deck that wants to be playing for the late game, rather it has a very fast-paced early game strategy of denying your opponent prizes by setting up quickly with low energy-cost attackers.

I think my favorite new addition into this list is the Cursed Eyes Absol from Roaring Skies. With its ability, I can move damage around the field to ensure more precise knock-outs. And with Super Scoop Up and AZ, I have plenty of opportunities to reuse it if I need to.

I also upped the count of Head Ringer in the deck from two to three. It provides so many opportunities for disruption especially when attached to cards that want to Mega Evolve. Placing it before the Spirit Link comes out is also infinitely satisfying. In addition, Head Ringer increases the damage dealt by Manectric's Assault Laser, so basically this card is god-tier in this deck.

When I saw that Level Ball was returning, I made space in the list to make room for them, and I think they will be more valuable than Pokemon Fan Club in the long run. I will start testing with it as soon as I can. I might consider switching the Ultra Ball and Level Ball lines so that I can ensure that my Zubats and Golbats are hitting the field without sacrificing resources to discard. I usually have no problem getting Manectric and Seismitoad into play, as most games result in me drawing into them. The list is updated with all of my changes. Any comments/critiques/testing results are greatly appreciated.