So I've been noticing a shift lately with a whole theme of decks popping up recently using what i can best describe as a U-Turn mechanic.
The main idea goes back to Accelgor/Gothitelle just a few seasons ago where you have your attacker and your wall, each serving different purposes. One pokemon attacks while having the ability to switch or shuffle back into the deck forcing you to promote another pokemon. You'd think this would be bad but coincidentally that mechanic is what makes these decks good. Most pokemon that have these amazing abilities that require them to be active, but lack an attack to make them worth it. Why not use something with a better attack and still take full advantage of these effects? Well that's what I'm seeing recently and while they might not be the top decks they certainly are strong and interesting.
So if we have a look at our attackers these are the most common ones ive seen (note this list is not limited to only these few pokemon)
Donphan: Most recently is Donphan PLS. With the fighting support out of FUF his Spinning Turn attack can hit for huge amounts of damage for a low energy cost, then he U-Turns back to whatever your wall pokemon of choice is.
Palkia-EX: It's seeing less play now and it never really saw play before but a few decks based themselves around Palkia-EX's Strafe attack. Thanks to his dragon typing people would boost his Strafe attack up with Altaria's Fight song ability so he'd hit for solid damage then U-Turn to your wall.
Magnezone: Magnezone PLS also uses this same mechanic with his attack Gyro Ball to hit for 80 or 100 with a muscle band and then U-Turn. His Electric typing serves favorable against those pesky lightning weak EX's and his ability to play 2 Supporters per turn is huge! The only thing holding him back is the fact that he is a Stage 2 pokemon.
Gengar-EX: Finally we have Gengar-EX, not yet released yet but people are already speculating uses for his second attack Hallway of Darkness. deal 60 and poison the attack pokemon then U-Turn to your wall and lock the active with Dragagle's ability.
Now for the most commonly used Wall's the ones who take a brunt of the force:
Trevenant: This guy will be the most common wall in U-Turn decks. We've already seen this deck played incredibly when Gothitelle was used to item lock, now we have a stage 1 version. Item lock in pokemon is a huge advantage and being able to consistently hit hard and turn off your opponents items is very scary.
Flygon: This is probably my favourite wall, Flygon is great for just adding that huge amount of damage onto the board. Sand Slammer puts 1 damage counter onto all of your opponents pokemon between each turn. It gets around Mr. Mime and it adds up quick. Pair him off with Dusknoir and you're looking incredibly strong.
Sigilyph: Safegaurd plain and simple. U-Turn back to an unbreakable EX wall. If your opponent is running a low amount of non EX's or non at all Sigilyph will sit there and Wall all game and there isn't much they can do about it. He can be a crucial 1 or 2 turn stall late game when you really need the extra time. (Not I choose to list Sigilyph instead of Suicune solely because it has a lower retreat cost which is more favorable for your wall pokemon in dire situations.)
Latias-EX: Latias is probably the least used of these pokemon but powerful still. So many pokemon these days have abilities and to be able to prevent all of their attacks can be huge. I personally am not a fan of a 2 prize wall but Latias-EX has seen play and wins.
I think one of the most important thing to note with these decks is to protect your bench because they will still try to snipe you attacker past the walls. Mr. Mime or a mountain circle should suffice. You can almost pair any two of these pokemon together 1 attacker and 1 wall and you have a deck. Obviously some combinations work better but it can all be down to preference.
Personally I love this style of deck and I'm crossing my fingers that these decks start gaining merit in the current meta. So the question is what do you guys think of these U-Turn decks and how strong do you think they will be post rotation?
The main idea goes back to Accelgor/Gothitelle just a few seasons ago where you have your attacker and your wall, each serving different purposes. One pokemon attacks while having the ability to switch or shuffle back into the deck forcing you to promote another pokemon. You'd think this would be bad but coincidentally that mechanic is what makes these decks good. Most pokemon that have these amazing abilities that require them to be active, but lack an attack to make them worth it. Why not use something with a better attack and still take full advantage of these effects? Well that's what I'm seeing recently and while they might not be the top decks they certainly are strong and interesting.
So if we have a look at our attackers these are the most common ones ive seen (note this list is not limited to only these few pokemon)
Donphan: Most recently is Donphan PLS. With the fighting support out of FUF his Spinning Turn attack can hit for huge amounts of damage for a low energy cost, then he U-Turns back to whatever your wall pokemon of choice is.
Palkia-EX: It's seeing less play now and it never really saw play before but a few decks based themselves around Palkia-EX's Strafe attack. Thanks to his dragon typing people would boost his Strafe attack up with Altaria's Fight song ability so he'd hit for solid damage then U-Turn to your wall.
Magnezone: Magnezone PLS also uses this same mechanic with his attack Gyro Ball to hit for 80 or 100 with a muscle band and then U-Turn. His Electric typing serves favorable against those pesky lightning weak EX's and his ability to play 2 Supporters per turn is huge! The only thing holding him back is the fact that he is a Stage 2 pokemon.
Gengar-EX: Finally we have Gengar-EX, not yet released yet but people are already speculating uses for his second attack Hallway of Darkness. deal 60 and poison the attack pokemon then U-Turn to your wall and lock the active with Dragagle's ability.
Now for the most commonly used Wall's the ones who take a brunt of the force:
Trevenant: This guy will be the most common wall in U-Turn decks. We've already seen this deck played incredibly when Gothitelle was used to item lock, now we have a stage 1 version. Item lock in pokemon is a huge advantage and being able to consistently hit hard and turn off your opponents items is very scary.
Flygon: This is probably my favourite wall, Flygon is great for just adding that huge amount of damage onto the board. Sand Slammer puts 1 damage counter onto all of your opponents pokemon between each turn. It gets around Mr. Mime and it adds up quick. Pair him off with Dusknoir and you're looking incredibly strong.
Sigilyph: Safegaurd plain and simple. U-Turn back to an unbreakable EX wall. If your opponent is running a low amount of non EX's or non at all Sigilyph will sit there and Wall all game and there isn't much they can do about it. He can be a crucial 1 or 2 turn stall late game when you really need the extra time. (Not I choose to list Sigilyph instead of Suicune solely because it has a lower retreat cost which is more favorable for your wall pokemon in dire situations.)
Latias-EX: Latias is probably the least used of these pokemon but powerful still. So many pokemon these days have abilities and to be able to prevent all of their attacks can be huge. I personally am not a fan of a 2 prize wall but Latias-EX has seen play and wins.
I think one of the most important thing to note with these decks is to protect your bench because they will still try to snipe you attacker past the walls. Mr. Mime or a mountain circle should suffice. You can almost pair any two of these pokemon together 1 attacker and 1 wall and you have a deck. Obviously some combinations work better but it can all be down to preference.
Personally I love this style of deck and I'm crossing my fingers that these decks start gaining merit in the current meta. So the question is what do you guys think of these U-Turn decks and how strong do you think they will be post rotation?
