Hello friends. My name is Sabrina and I'm looking to get back into a competition environment. I played from the DP set, until just before they started up EXs. I imagine the meta game has completely changed in my absence, so what I'm wondering is what do I need in a deck? What are the must-have techs? What deck is half the competition running and what deck was made specifically to defeat it? I have about a box worth of the new XY set and I just want to know what to do with it. I must sound like a total dumbass. If anyone feels inclined to leave me some tips I would so appreciate it!
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What do I need to know to succeed in competitive play?
- Thread starter wholehomo
- Start date
The format is really similar to the later DP format, where SP dominated until the HGSS rotation, or the early BW format, where Six Corners was everywhere. It's a bit more supporter heavy at the moment, but there is a good balance developing. Current top decks are Darkrai/techs, variants of Blastoise, Virizion EX/Genesext EX, and Plasma Basics (with or without Snorlax), but with the new influx of XY, time will tell if it will stay that way. You should definitely look for Computer Search, Dowsing Machine, any good Supporter (Colress, Juniper/Sycamore, N), Tool Scrapper, and Professor's Letter. Switch is legal, so you can use your old ones. Warp Point has a functionally identical card called Escape Rope. Other than that, go visit your local league, check out the local tournament results for top decks, pick something you feel comfortable enough to run, and then go for it.
Now, I'm going to assume you're familiar with the standard Garchomp C SP decks from the later DP format, or the later Six Corners deck from the beginning of Black and White. This format puts both of those to shame. 180 HP Basic Pokemon are everywhere. 220 to 230 HP, with the release of the new EX and Mega EX cards, and they're the backbone of Plasma, which has dominated the format alongside Darkrai EX for quite a while now. Blastoise is the only evolution-based deck that can stand in the format right now, and that's only because it puts Energy onto it's OWN high-powered EX Pokemon faster than most other decks can deal with. That being said, Big Basic decks really do own the format. Go in like you're going against SP and you'll do fine. Team Flare Grunt, Crushing Hammer, Enhanced Hammer- these will be your friends. Escape Rope as well. Like the SP format, people are used to seeing the same three decks everywhere, so a new set is a great way to find something that will catch them off-guard. Good luck in your run, hope it ends at Worlds.