Pokemon TCG Ray/Eels Deck (60)
Pokemon (14)
4 Rayquaza
2 Rayquaza EX
2 Raikou EX
4-4 Eelektrik
Trainers, Supporters, Stadiums (32)
4 Catcher
4 Ultra Ball
3 Level Ball
3 Random Receiver
4 Juniper
4 N
3 Switch
2 Eviolite
1 Super Rod
2 Skyarrow Bridge
Energy (14)
9 Lightning {L}
5 Fire {R}
I was wondering if anyone could give me a few pointers with this Decklist. I'm currently playing ZekEels and I'm really glad the rotation is BW-on, it certainly frees up a lot of space in my deck and makes the meta a lot more healthy. I'll be explaining all my choices, some strategies, and some cards I really wanted to try and fit in but were uncertain of their viability.
Rayquaza EX
It's my belief that any RayEels deck should be straight to the point, I've found that Eels + Friends with Rayquaza doesn't really work. A straight 3 Rayquaza is enough, it provides an ample amount of attackers and I can only afford to have 3 KO'd anyway.
Raikou EX
It is speculated that Garchomp Altaria will be a really good deck in the next format. Garchomp is an uneven prize trade with Rayquaza EX, so I feel the best way to deal with this matchup is to snipe their support Altarias with Raikou. Regular Rayquaza is pretty crappy in my personal opinion, it's way too difficult to set up and is just dead space.
Level Ball
4 of these gives you the maximum chance to evolve your Eelektrik on turn two, and serves as Tynamo search / Ultra Ball fodder if you don't manage to get a Tynamo early on through drawing or already have some Eels set up.
Random Receiver
A max count of Random Receiver I feel is necessary in the new format. People aren't running Cheren/Bianca because they're good, they're running them to fulfill the 11 supporter minimum from the PONT days. I personally hate these supporters, so I run 4 Receiver to make just 4 Juniper and N viable. I included Bianca/Cheren to satiate the people who are going to scold me for not using the next best options.
Switch
I really took Switch for granted this format. Only recently I had learnt you could only manually retreat once per turn, and this really messed with my play style. For those times where things are going slow and you only have 1 Rayray powered up and need to quickly retreat to the bench for a serving of Dynamotor then get back there, Switch is for those moments. Should I run 3 or 4 of these?
Super Rod
The deck has no Energy acceleration for fire. I don't want to run the special blend energies because they can be discarded by the opponent way too easily, and can't be searched for or retrieved. I originally ran two Super Rod, but found that one was enough in favour of making space for Switch, so I decreased the count for Super Rod to one. Is one alright? Should I go for two in favour of getting rid of too much fire energy to even attack? All the opposition has to do is knockout your fire energies and you're just left with a petty 100 per turn with Rayquaza. Maybe I'm exaggerating here, but fire energy is not as DCE is to ZekEels where it doesn't matter if it's gone. It's an essential cog in the clock tower.
Fire Energy
Should I run 4 or 5? Maybe I should decrease the count in favour of Super Rod or Energy retrieval? It's great for Raikou so that you have to only discard two energy and it's a necessity for Rayray.
Strategy:
QUICKLY set up Eels with your maxed Ultra and Level Balls (8/60) and start applying early pressure with Rayquaza. Since there are a lot of stage Pokemon running around in the new format too much energy isn't required. Pick off support Pokemon with Raikou and get back discarded fire (Hammers) with Super Rod. Dominate with RayRay if they decide to target Raikou with some fighting dude.
Tech Options:
- Sableye
The one and only tech anyone should consider. I found however, that it messes with RayRay's already inconsistent (enough) play not to warrant its use. Sure, it's a great Junk Arm re
Lacement, but I really don't think I want to use it that much in this deck. Suggestions are appreciated, however.
- Max Potion
I wanted to include this, but my main fear is that I'll end up discarding too much fire energy on RayRay. It's great for Raikou, but Raikou isn't the main focus of this deck.
- Super Scoop Up
More flippy, but more useful. It's a heal, frees up bench space and is highly situational, but effective in those situations.
Common Questions:
Why a 4-4 Eelektrik line?
4-4 Eels give you the maximum possible draw for them. Arguably, you'd only want to set up 2-3, but the 8/60 chance to manually draw into the line and the 8/60 chance to get a ball to search them is too good to pass up. 1/60 chance makes all the difference because you could have one prized or something.
Pokemon (14)
4 Rayquaza
2 Rayquaza EX
2 Raikou EX
4-4 Eelektrik
Trainers, Supporters, Stadiums (32)
4 Catcher
4 Ultra Ball
3 Level Ball
3 Random Receiver
4 Juniper
4 N
3 Switch
2 Eviolite
1 Super Rod
2 Skyarrow Bridge
Energy (14)
9 Lightning {L}
5 Fire {R}
I was wondering if anyone could give me a few pointers with this Decklist. I'm currently playing ZekEels and I'm really glad the rotation is BW-on, it certainly frees up a lot of space in my deck and makes the meta a lot more healthy. I'll be explaining all my choices, some strategies, and some cards I really wanted to try and fit in but were uncertain of their viability.
Rayquaza EX
It's my belief that any RayEels deck should be straight to the point, I've found that Eels + Friends with Rayquaza doesn't really work. A straight 3 Rayquaza is enough, it provides an ample amount of attackers and I can only afford to have 3 KO'd anyway.
Raikou EX
It is speculated that Garchomp Altaria will be a really good deck in the next format. Garchomp is an uneven prize trade with Rayquaza EX, so I feel the best way to deal with this matchup is to snipe their support Altarias with Raikou. Regular Rayquaza is pretty crappy in my personal opinion, it's way too difficult to set up and is just dead space.
Level Ball
4 of these gives you the maximum chance to evolve your Eelektrik on turn two, and serves as Tynamo search / Ultra Ball fodder if you don't manage to get a Tynamo early on through drawing or already have some Eels set up.
Random Receiver
A max count of Random Receiver I feel is necessary in the new format. People aren't running Cheren/Bianca because they're good, they're running them to fulfill the 11 supporter minimum from the PONT days. I personally hate these supporters, so I run 4 Receiver to make just 4 Juniper and N viable. I included Bianca/Cheren to satiate the people who are going to scold me for not using the next best options.
Switch
I really took Switch for granted this format. Only recently I had learnt you could only manually retreat once per turn, and this really messed with my play style. For those times where things are going slow and you only have 1 Rayray powered up and need to quickly retreat to the bench for a serving of Dynamotor then get back there, Switch is for those moments. Should I run 3 or 4 of these?
Super Rod
The deck has no Energy acceleration for fire. I don't want to run the special blend energies because they can be discarded by the opponent way too easily, and can't be searched for or retrieved. I originally ran two Super Rod, but found that one was enough in favour of making space for Switch, so I decreased the count for Super Rod to one. Is one alright? Should I go for two in favour of getting rid of too much fire energy to even attack? All the opposition has to do is knockout your fire energies and you're just left with a petty 100 per turn with Rayquaza. Maybe I'm exaggerating here, but fire energy is not as DCE is to ZekEels where it doesn't matter if it's gone. It's an essential cog in the clock tower.
Fire Energy
Should I run 4 or 5? Maybe I should decrease the count in favour of Super Rod or Energy retrieval? It's great for Raikou so that you have to only discard two energy and it's a necessity for Rayray.
Strategy:
QUICKLY set up Eels with your maxed Ultra and Level Balls (8/60) and start applying early pressure with Rayquaza. Since there are a lot of stage Pokemon running around in the new format too much energy isn't required. Pick off support Pokemon with Raikou and get back discarded fire (Hammers) with Super Rod. Dominate with RayRay if they decide to target Raikou with some fighting dude.
Tech Options:
- Sableye
The one and only tech anyone should consider. I found however, that it messes with RayRay's already inconsistent (enough) play not to warrant its use. Sure, it's a great Junk Arm re
Lacement, but I really don't think I want to use it that much in this deck. Suggestions are appreciated, however.
- Max Potion
I wanted to include this, but my main fear is that I'll end up discarding too much fire energy on RayRay. It's great for Raikou, but Raikou isn't the main focus of this deck.
- Super Scoop Up
More flippy, but more useful. It's a heal, frees up bench space and is highly situational, but effective in those situations.
Common Questions:
Why a 4-4 Eelektrik line?
4-4 Eels give you the maximum possible draw for them. Arguably, you'd only want to set up 2-3, but the 8/60 chance to manually draw into the line and the 8/60 chance to get a ball to search them is too good to pass up. 1/60 chance makes all the difference because you could have one prized or something.
