First things first, I'm the realest I'm not sure if someone has made a thread similar to this one, but if there is please don't merge them because I feel this subject needs to be re-touched upon.
Anyways, Pyroar. The card we all know and hate. This card is responsible for destroying 99.9% of all my deck ideas and is a huge thorn in my side. The way this TCG is designed makes Pyroar an insanely broken card. For the last 2-3 years, Pokemon has been churning out over-powered basics like EXs or other beefy basic attackers. These cards make up almost the entire Meta. Pyroar simply comes in and puts an end to that. What made Safeguard Pokemon reasonable to play against was the fact you could just play a non-EX basic to KO it without losing hardly any consistency. Pyroar not only defies the mighty EXs but also all other basics as well, forcing us to either play Stage 1's or Stage 2's, both of which are very under-powered, or rely on shutting off Pyroar's ability. The problem with these two "solutions" is that they actually create problems that outweigh the benefits. It makes decks undesirably clunky and worsen match-ups with other Meta decks. This present players the choice, tech for Pyroar and lose consistency and worsen other match-ups, or keep the decks as they are, but accept a guaranteed auto-loss to a deck. So this thread is dedicated to techs you have all thought of to deal with Pyroar. Simply state what card it is (name and set) and explain which deck is performs best in and why.
I'll start by stating a couple:
Raichu XY - This card fits into nearly any deck that can runs DCE and can afford 4 spots. Raichu boasts free retreat, and can hit for 100 with a full bench, meaning it snags an OHKO on Yveltal EX, actually improving a separate match-up. What's holding this card back? Beside the fact that it is extremely frail, 100 damage isn't enough to OHKO Pyroar, meaning you must also use Muscle Band or Hypnotoxic Laser.
Beartic FF - Another DCE attacker. This guy boasts more HP than Raichu, sitting at a beefy 130. His attack scores an OHKO on Pyroar, Landorus EX, and Donphan. What could possible hold such a card back, you ask? This card actually provides little help in any other match-up, because it's attack relies on your opponent's active Pokemon's retreat cost, a variable completely out of your control, unlike Raichu's attack, which you can manipulate for consistent damage.
Garbodor DRX/LTR - This card takes a different route to stop Pyroar. By attaching a tool you activate its ability Garbotoxin, which nullifies all other abilities, both yours and your opponents. This card isn't as splash-able as the other two, not only because it requires a dedicate space of around 6-7 card spots, but also because some decks that rely on their abilities cannot afford to use Garbodor to shut down Pyroar. Not only this, but Garbodor functions solely as a bench-sitter; it offers no offensive presence, and God forbid if that thing gets brought to the active, that retreat cost almost guarantees it's staying there till it dies. Not to mention Startling Megaphone, a standard card in most decks, turns Garbodor off.
Target Whistle PHF - This is probably the most interesting tech I've seen. This card functions best in Hyper-offensive decks that don't want to run anymore Pokemon. The trick to using this card is to pick off a Litleo early game, or manage to knock-out an opposing players EX Pokemon. Target Whistle it onto the bench and either Catcher or Lysandre it out for another kill. This can be done up to 5 times by using Dowsing Machine, and in some decks, this card drastically increases the match-up. Team Plasma decks can utilize this card very well since they tend to be able to set up rather fast and can hit hard enough to score easy OHKO's, not to mention, Lugia EX makes picking off Litleo's much more meaningful, and can actually put the Pyroar player at a disadvantage if it is not played against correctly.
Alright, that's all I've got for now. Let's see what you all can come up with!
Thood
Anyways, Pyroar. The card we all know and hate. This card is responsible for destroying 99.9% of all my deck ideas and is a huge thorn in my side. The way this TCG is designed makes Pyroar an insanely broken card. For the last 2-3 years, Pokemon has been churning out over-powered basics like EXs or other beefy basic attackers. These cards make up almost the entire Meta. Pyroar simply comes in and puts an end to that. What made Safeguard Pokemon reasonable to play against was the fact you could just play a non-EX basic to KO it without losing hardly any consistency. Pyroar not only defies the mighty EXs but also all other basics as well, forcing us to either play Stage 1's or Stage 2's, both of which are very under-powered, or rely on shutting off Pyroar's ability. The problem with these two "solutions" is that they actually create problems that outweigh the benefits. It makes decks undesirably clunky and worsen match-ups with other Meta decks. This present players the choice, tech for Pyroar and lose consistency and worsen other match-ups, or keep the decks as they are, but accept a guaranteed auto-loss to a deck. So this thread is dedicated to techs you have all thought of to deal with Pyroar. Simply state what card it is (name and set) and explain which deck is performs best in and why.
I'll start by stating a couple:
Raichu XY - This card fits into nearly any deck that can runs DCE and can afford 4 spots. Raichu boasts free retreat, and can hit for 100 with a full bench, meaning it snags an OHKO on Yveltal EX, actually improving a separate match-up. What's holding this card back? Beside the fact that it is extremely frail, 100 damage isn't enough to OHKO Pyroar, meaning you must also use Muscle Band or Hypnotoxic Laser.
Beartic FF - Another DCE attacker. This guy boasts more HP than Raichu, sitting at a beefy 130. His attack scores an OHKO on Pyroar, Landorus EX, and Donphan. What could possible hold such a card back, you ask? This card actually provides little help in any other match-up, because it's attack relies on your opponent's active Pokemon's retreat cost, a variable completely out of your control, unlike Raichu's attack, which you can manipulate for consistent damage.
Garbodor DRX/LTR - This card takes a different route to stop Pyroar. By attaching a tool you activate its ability Garbotoxin, which nullifies all other abilities, both yours and your opponents. This card isn't as splash-able as the other two, not only because it requires a dedicate space of around 6-7 card spots, but also because some decks that rely on their abilities cannot afford to use Garbodor to shut down Pyroar. Not only this, but Garbodor functions solely as a bench-sitter; it offers no offensive presence, and God forbid if that thing gets brought to the active, that retreat cost almost guarantees it's staying there till it dies. Not to mention Startling Megaphone, a standard card in most decks, turns Garbodor off.
Target Whistle PHF - This is probably the most interesting tech I've seen. This card functions best in Hyper-offensive decks that don't want to run anymore Pokemon. The trick to using this card is to pick off a Litleo early game, or manage to knock-out an opposing players EX Pokemon. Target Whistle it onto the bench and either Catcher or Lysandre it out for another kill. This can be done up to 5 times by using Dowsing Machine, and in some decks, this card drastically increases the match-up. Team Plasma decks can utilize this card very well since they tend to be able to set up rather fast and can hit hard enough to score easy OHKO's, not to mention, Lugia EX makes picking off Litleo's much more meaningful, and can actually put the Pyroar player at a disadvantage if it is not played against correctly.
Alright, that's all I've got for now. Let's see what you all can come up with!
Thood
