Special Comparison: Cleffa (HS17) vs Manaphy (UL03) [11/28/2011]

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Celebi23

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Card of the Day Comparison: Cleffa from HeartGold SoulSilver vs Manaphy from Unleashed

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NOTE: Please use today's thread to review Cleffa (CL24) as well, since both cards are exactly the same except for their artwork and set.

Guiding Questions:
1. How does this card stand on its own (analyze the HP, attacks, Abilities, etc. of the card)?
2. What role does/could this card have in the metagame?
3. What cards, if any, does this card combo with?
4. Give it a rating (out of 10), and explain why you have given it that rating.

You are not required to follow the guiding questions, but make sure your post has informative and interesting content.
 
Cleffa vs Manaphy: A Refreshing Start

With the loss of any and all universal draw pokemon in the HGSS on format, pokemon players turned to the next best thing: universal hand refresh. The format started with everyone using Cleffa, and with good reason. Cleffa had a free attack in Eeeeeek, that give you 6 new cards, effectively a PONT, and the potential to stall with Sweet Sleeping Face. Pair this with a free retreat to seamlessly bring out your main attacker, and you had a pretty ideal starter, or so people thought.

Tyrogue, released in the HGSS set and rereleased in CoL, just like Cleffa, began to make Cleffa a really risky play. In the event that players started with only one basic, not very unlikely in most formats, and that one basic was a lone Cleffa against a deck that ran Tyrogue, again not unlikely given that Cleffa was often ran in threes or fours early on, then someone could drop Tyrogue, retreat the active, and get the easy donk, effectively ending the game before it started. Given how common this donk had become, people quickly began searching for a new starter, one that could survive Tyrogue. This starter came in the form of Manaphy. This card was inferior to Cleffa in virtually every way, save for one crucial difference: it had 50 HP, enough to survive the Tyrogue donk. The two cards contested for which would be the better starter: one that can stall and get 6 cards for free, or one that got five cards for one energy and couldn't stall, but had 50 HP and therefore better survivability. So which is ultimately better? A lot of it depends on your meta, but let's look at the cards more closely.

Cleffa

"Do you feel lucky, punk?"

Cleffa is by far the more efficient and versatile of the two starters. Cleffa's Eeeeeek is a free attack, meaning that, unless Cleffa is asleep on your turn, you can refresh your hand immediately and draw six cards, no strings attached, and no energy attachment is needed. This means that in the event you have a bad hand and have no energy, you can Eeeeeek it away with no issue, whereas with Manaphy you would have to wait until you get an energy. Cleffa's Sweet Sleeping Face can also be used to stall out your opponent, buying you a turn or two so you can set up unmolested. Pokemon Catcher greatly hinders this strategy, but it is still a viable play if there is no other option, as your opponent will not always have Pokemon Catcher in hand. It is a threat that any Cleffa user needs to think about when trying to Eeeeeek Stall, however.

This stall can also work against you. If Cleffa stays asleep when your opponent ends, and you don't have a switch in hand, then you're stuck doing bench maintenance until Cleffa wakes up. This can be a problem as now your opponent may have time to even the board presence, no matter how setup you already were without Cleffa's help. If you aren't set up and can't switch, it also means that you have no hand refresh to work with other than supports until Cleffa wakes up. Cleffa's flippy nature can be frustrating and even game changing if the flips don't go your way. These flips can help you as well, but there are players that might shy away from this card due to not liking the reliance on random chance.

Another big problem, as mentioned earlier, is the lone baby start against a deck that runs Tyrogue. If a player knows his opponent runs Tyrogue, and sees a collector being played, nine out of ten times the cleffa player should get ready to scoop his/her cards and mark a loss, and the only real exceptions to this rule is if Tyrogue is prized or the opponent can't bring Tyrogue to the active spot. These drawbacks make Cleffa a risky play, even with the greater consistency.

Manaphy

"I'd rather be safe, than sorry."

Manaphy was ultimately the security blanket against the monster under the bed that was Tyrogue. Barring the use of two pluspowers, Tyrogue absolutely cannot score the donk on Manaphy. This was a highly sought after quality in competitive play and still bears considering now. Like Cleffa, Manaphy has free retreat, and it can also survive a linear attack from Yanmega on the bench, a claim Cleffa cannot make. The problem with Manaphy comes with its far inferior hand refresh. While one colorless and one less card could be considered a small price to pay for the near immunity to Tyrogue donk, the extra card and the energy drop can make a difference.

For example, it is possible that your opening hand may not even have an energy in order for you to refresh with. In this situation, Manpahy is pretty much useless, potentially leaving Manaphy to getting KO'ed next turn anyway. The energy requirement makes Manaphy less consistent, even if it's just a little less consistent. However, one small hiccup in the starting game can lead to a loss, which in itself can be almost as big a problem as the easy donk. In addition, the one less card from Deep Sea Swirl does reduce the chances into drawing into what you need. It's a small difference, but the luck of the draw, and how many cards you draw, has a huge impact on the Pokemon Trading Card Game. This is important to remember.

Another annoying drawback is that out of the four T1 donk cards that you will probably find in this meta, three of them can one shot Manaphy without too much trouble (Pachirisu, Tornadus, Zekrom). Each of these are less likely than the Tyrogue autoloss that Cleffa has to does, but each happens often enough that you need to watch out for it if you decide to run Manaphy. In addition, there are three more cards in addition to the above pokemon that can easily roll over Manaphy (Yanmega Prime, Donphan Prime, Cinccino), in addition to Tyrogue which can two shot Manaphy. Since Manaphy cannot stall, this can be a huge problem if you don't get another pokemon on your bench before running Deep Sea Swirl. Cleffa can be donked T1 with little trouble, but if it can get an Eeeek off, it may have a better chance of long term survival. Manaphy on the other hand probably isn't going to last longer than two turns in the active spot, and while that is more time to set up a basic, if you are in the situation where you have to refresh, the extra HP might not even matter. However, given all the search cards this format enjoys, you run a decent chance of getting at least one basic out on your turn, which is a better chance of odds and ultimately makes Manaphy the safer play than Cleffa, although at the cost of some consistency.

So which is the better play?

The answer to this question ultimately depends on how many Tyrogue you expect to find. In a Tyrogue dominated meta, Manaphy is probably the better play unless you find you really need the extra card off Eeeeeek. Otherwise, Cleffa is indisputably better. One thing that has kept Tyrogue counts down is the possibility of a Tyrogue vs Tyrogue mirror. Tyrogue can donk itself, and this has caused quite a lot of discouragement with using Tyrogue. Risking a Cleffa donk in exchange for consistent refresh was deemed worth it. Risking a Tyrogue donk to merely score occasional donk (as Cleffa counts have gone down to 1-2, Tyrogue might go second, Cleffa may have a benched basic) was generally not considered to be worth the risk. This makes Cleffa a bit safer to use, although Tyrogue can still blindside it and getting another basic out should be Cleffa's first priority. Overall I prefer Cleffa, but I probably wouldn't correct anyone that runs Manaphy instead. I think it all comes down to personal preference, and the metagame the player is ultimately in.

For my own ratings I give Manaphy a 6.5/10 and Cleffa an 7.5/10. We've clearly had better starters in Sableye SF and Spiritomb AR, but short of Stantler or Pichu in a rush deck, this is the best we currently have for our starters, and with a reprint in CoL, they might be here to stay for a while. We may as well use them.
 
Cleffa.​

1. How does this card stand on its own (analyze the HP, attacks, Abilities, etc. of the card)?: hahaha thirty HP is the first thing you notice about this card, that is pretty atrocious for a format where we are seeing basics with 100 more HP than this being printed. If someone would have told me last format that Cleffa could be played effectively, I would have got a pretty good laugh. However, in a format with such a limited card pool, Cleffa is one of the better starters, and or late game hand refresh cards out there. Eeeeeeek is an excellent attack, giving yourself a new hand can be extremely beneficial, hence the reason Professor Oak's New Theory is play. Cleffa's Eeeeeeek is very nice because it is a way for you to refresh your hand when you have access to a Pokémon Collector or a Dual Ball, but not a card like Professor Oak's New Theory, Professor Juniper, Copycat or Cheren. Another thing that Cleffa has going for it is the ability to wall thanks to Sweet Sleeping Face. After refreshing your hand, Cleffa gives you the chance to stall for a turn or two while you get set up off of the new hand it just gave you. Cleffa has no Weakness (not that it is going to matter), and no Resistance, so no really props or slops there; however Cleffa does have a free retreat. That is something that Cleffa really has going for it, in my opinion, every deck should have a Pokémon with a free retreat. Pokémon with free retreat costs are safe to go into after your old active Pokémon is killed. Despite the low HP, Cleffa has a lot of playable aspects.

2. What role does/could this card have in the metagame?: Unlike the previous cards of the day, Cleffa can only be used as a tech, there is no way to center a competitive (or casual) deck around Cleffa. Cleffa can be effective teched into anything. This being said, Cleffa is more beneficial in some metagame decks than others. Trainer Lock variants are a type of deck that can see excellent results from a one card Cleffa tech. If Cleffa is asleep and you have a Vileplume out, it is going to be extremely difficult for most decks in the metagame to get a knock out, considering they can't damage your Cleffa, and can't play a Pokémon Catcher to kill something off of your bench. Another reason why Cleffa is a good play in Vileplume variants is because decks that can't use and don't play trainers, can be inconsistent. Cleffa helps a decent amount, the ability to get a new hand with a Collector early, or even late game, is excellent.

Of course, since Cleffa only has 30 HP, it is obviously going to have difficulties preforming well against a lot of things in our current meta. One card that can be a large threat to Cleffa is Tyrogue. This is clearly the most obvious counter to Cleffa, and is the biggest reason that Cleffa doesn't receive more play. If you start lone Cleffa and go first, there is a large chance that you are going to lose, because your opponent can pull of a Tyrogue donk. Tyrogue donks are very easy to achieve, you can either start with a Tyrogue active, or retreat/switch out the Pokémon that you started with, and go into a Tyrogue sought out with a Collector. The chance of losing on the first turn is very scary, and this is why Cleffa doesn't see large amounts of play. Fortunately for Cleffa and its players, Tyrogue has died down significantly in popularity. Still, I would recommend staying away from Cleffa if you are playing a list with less than 10 basics, because there are still a lot of things out there that can deal a turn one 30 damage.

Another card that is a potential counter to Cleffa is Spinarark from HeartGold SoulSilver. Since Warp Energy is no longer legal, it is impossible for most decks to get a Cleffa out of their active position if their opponent uses Spider Web, and has a Vileplume out. In a timed format this is obviously going to be an issue. If your opponent manages to get a Spinarark lock on you and has a prize lead, they can just Spider Web until time is called, and they will win because of the prize lead. Even if you are tied with your opponent on prizes Spinarark can score your opponent a win, because they can retreat and kill your 30 hp'd active on the last turn of the game. Be caution if you are playing against Trainer Lock variants if you are using Cleffa. You won't have to worry about this if you are using Machamp Prime, or anything with Typhlosion Prime or Reuniclus because you can kill your own Cleffa, or Fighting Tag it back to your bench.

One other counter that I will mention is Roserade from Unleashed. There isn't much to say here, because Roserade isn't very played, but you may want to be aware of it none the less if you are considering playing Cleffa. Don't expect your Cleffa to be safe if it is asleep against someone using Roserade, because they can attach a Rainbow Energy, or a Grass Energy, making your Cleffa special condition of Sleep, turn into Confusion. After a Cleffa has woken up, it is very easy to kill.

3. What cards, if any, does this card combo with?:

4. Give it a rating (out of 10), and explain why you have given it that rating.: While Cleffa may be countered very effectively by a decent number of cards in our metagame, I feel that it is well worth the space in a large number of decks. It is very reliable, doesn't need energy to function, and needs no other cards to work. 8/10

Manaphy​

1. How does this card stand on its own (analyze the HP, attacks, Abilities, etc. of the card)?: Unlike Cleffa, Manaphy has an excusable amount of HP at 60, and is fairly difficult to donk. Deep Sea Swirl is the clear reason that Manaphy has any potential because for a colorless energy, you can shuffle your hand into your deck, and draw 5 cards. Since it requires colorless energy, it can be put into any deck in the format. Manaphy can do a quick 20 damage if need be, and with a Pluspower it can one shot Babies such as Tyrogue and Cleffa. For that to work however, you will need to be playing Rainbow or Water Energy. Weakness to Lightning is less than desirable, and so is the one retreat cost.

2. What role does/could this card have in the metagame?: Manaphy is very similar to Cleffa, and can be effectively played in any deck in the format, so I am not going to go into too much detail on this section. The reason why Manaphy sees play in this meta over Cleffa is because it has a much shorter list of counters. Manaphy can still be donked, however, it takes much more effort, and only a handful of Pokémon can pull of the donk. Those Pokémon include Zekrom, either with a Pluspower and a DCE, or with the Pachirishu Shaymin Engine and Bolt Strike, Pachirishu itself, Tornadus, and maybe Voltorb TM with a Rainbow Energy. Manaphy has a place in this meta because it is an overall safer play than Cleffa, because there is a lower chance of being donked, and no coin flip is involved.

3. What cards, if any, does this card combo with?:

4. Give it a rating (out of 10), and explain why you have given it that rating.: Manaphy is another excellent hand refresh card, however, I am not satisfied with a hand refresh card that does not have a free retreat. It is also very possible for you to have a terrible hand without an energy, that you can't trade in. Getting a great hand off of 5 cards can be difficult for some decks. 6/10

Cleffa VS. Manaphy​

Cleffa:

Props
  • 1 More card than Manaphy after you attack.
  • Can act as a wall.
  • No Energy require! Batteries included!
  • Free retreat cost.
    Slops:
  • Total Snipe bait
  • Easily countered
  • More easily donked than Manaphy
Manaphy:

Props
  • Not easily countered.
  • Can attack in a pinch.
  • Harder to donk than Cleffa.
    Slops:
  • One less card.
  • Requires Energy.
  • Still can be donked by Zekrom, Tornauds, Pachirishu and Voltorb.
  • Retreat Cost.

I hope that this posted helped anyone that is still on the fence on whether to play Cleffa or Manaphy, make a decision.

[/sand=Vulpix Yolk]
 
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