New Player - What To Build and Deck Building Tips

[Islaya]

Hey everyone,

I've been collecting the cards since the original Base Set and tried to give the game a shot a few years ago when I think Plasma Freeze came out but lost interest. Trying to pick the game up again and wondering where to start. I'd really like to build a deck with Glaceon and Sylveon (my two favorites) and love both of their current EX printings, but I'm not sure how well they'll work together. Not 100% sure what my local meta is like, but I'm pretty sure it's more casual then competitive, so I'm not overly interested in dropping an excessive amount of money on cards like Shaymin EX ATM (though I wouldn't be against it in the future) and would prefer to keep the deck more casual. Any suggestions on which route I might want to take? Would also possibly like some advice on building a very simple and cheap Pikachu deck for my 6 year old daughter who has also expressed interest (I think more curiosity after seeing me with the cards, lol) in playing the game. Thanks in advance.

 

[TuxedoBlack]

Welcome back to Pokemon TCG! Following are some helpful tips regarding some deck building guidelines:

• In many cases, decks will be built around a "core" group of Pokemon, usually of the same type in most cases. Again one has flexibility should the player want to incorporate other Pokemon that are either Colorless type and/or have Colorless energy attack requirements. The decks I currently run have 12 - 15 Pokemon of which most are the same type. Utilizing the same type of Pokemon in a deck has a variety advantages one of which is efficient energy utilization since there is perhaps only 1 type of energy ("color"). However, you can still run different types of energy in the same deck; it just may require that you need to run particular energy search and/or recovery cards in order for the deck to function effectively and efficiently.
• After developing your a "core" concept or strategy, one typically then "builds" a supporting cast around that core. In your particular case, you've selected Glaceon EX and Sylveon EX. Note that in this case, you are incorporating Water and Fairy type Pokémon which will have pros, as well as, some inherent cons due to different energy types requirements. Multiple energy types in the same deck are not uncommon; you'll need to make sure you have appropriate Trainer resources to get and recover needed energy at the appropriate times.
• There are a other good Water Pokemon you might want to consider also, like Articuno, Manaphy EX, Octillery, Palkia EX and Regice. You can also incorporate Colorless Pokemon too which can use Water or Fairy energy too, or other Pokemon that have a Colorless energy attack requirement. so, you are not limited to just using Water and Fairy Pokemon in your deck. Note that a set rotation (some older sets will not longer be "legal" for sanctioned, Standard format, tournaments) is pending real soon.
• There are good Fairy Pokémon like Xerneas (STS) whose Geomancy attack can be used to power-up your benched Pokémon.
• When you scan players' decks, you'll see that most decks are typically comprised of about 30-35 Trainers. The Trainers utilized MUST/NEED to compliment the deck's strategy and Pokémon, but some of the most popular Trainers you'll see in decks "most" often include:
  • Brigette - to help setup your bench when running "lots" of non-EX Basic Pokemon
  • Crushing and/or Enhanced Hammer - to remove energy from opponent's Pokemon
  • Fairy Garden - Stadium that gives your Pokémon free retreat when a Fairy energy is attached to the Active Pokémon
  • Giovanni's Scheme - to either provide card-draw support or additional damage output boost
  • Hex Maniac - to temporarily shuttoff Pokemon Abilities
  • Judge - to have both players shuffle their hands into their decks and draw 4 cards
  • Lysandre - to "gust" an opponent's benched Pokemon to the active position
  • Max Elixir - for Item-based energy-attachment acceleration
  • N - for card-draw support (and possible opponent's hand disruption since it affect both players)
  • Ninja Boy - to search (in deck) and replace Basic (already in play) Pokemon
  • Parallel City - Stadium that provides useful advantages
  • Professor Sycamore - card-draw support
  • Trainer's Mail - Item that allows you to view several cards and choose 1 Trainer (excluding another Trainer's Mail item)
  • Ultra Ball - to search for any Pokemon
  • VS Seeker - to recover Supporters from the discard pile
• As far as the "number" of each Trainer goes, the game rule restricts you to a maximum of 4 for any card, except for Basic energy. In many cases, you would see 2-4 copies of the above-listed Trainers in many players' decks. But again, it will still come down to properly supporting the deck's strategy which will strongly affect the number of and mix of Trainers.

I'd also suggest you review different decks in the Deck Garage Forum to also review different deck structures and their associated strategy. Afterwards, design your own deck draft and submit it for feedback and comments.

I hope you find these comments helpful.