Grinding Gears and Filming Folks at US Nationals

Pikachu hangs from the wires above, looking down at the players as round one passes, with the Beastie Boys play softly in their ears. Someone, right then, shuffling their deck, will be crowned the 2012 United States National Champion…

Before I knew it, I was already on the bus leaving Indianapolis, turning Nationals into nothing but a memory within the minds of everyone who was there. As you are probably aware, if you have read one of my previous articles or watched the finals game at Nationals, I am making a documentary. I have recorded five whole hours of non-stop footage from Nationals, I was at the top tables, I was all over the Finals game. I even hauled all of my equipment, miles at a time through down town Indianapolis, a kino-flo light kit, c-stands, camera, sound, and my computer equipment. It put quite a toll on my body.

I went an abysmal 5-4 with Darkrai EX/Terrakion NVI/Mewtwo EX/Exp. Share after some incredibly absurd games against decks that were practically auto-wins. I was flabbergasted at the insane number of things that went wrong for me. Later, before I left Indianapolis, some friends and I made a fun format: ninety HP, no evolutions, Catcher is banned, etc. I made a Sableye DEX/Dark Patch/Sneasel UD deck.

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Turn one, I had the donk on a Tyrogue HS/Aerodactyl DEX/PlusPower/Black Belt deck. I got out six Pokémon, a Special Dark, a Dark Claw, and was ready to use Beat up for a potential 150. Not only did I roll six tails. I rolled six 1’s. Six… 1’s. I did the math, that’s a 0.002% of happening. That’s a perfect way to sum up my time at Nationals, as a player.

But I wasn’t just a player at Nationals, I went there as a filmmaker. Being a player was just an added bonus. I was granted an opportunity, from the higher-ups from The Pokémon Company International, to record at the tables of the event. In the player’s faces, on their cards, everytime they drew for their turn, I had it on camera, in crystal clear high-definition. Since I was given this permission, I feel like it’s my duty to not go online and start blabbing about everything I witnessed, decks, decklists, or even judges’ rulings.

So, instead of writing this from the perspective of someone who was standing a few inches away from everything that was happening, I’ll write it like I was a spectator, someone standing further away, just getting the most basic of information of what was happening.

In this article, I want to talk about a few specific things. Recapping my Nationals experience, making up mock decklists for my favorite decks I saw played, and lastly, talking about the future, Worlds, and next format.

Rokman’s “DMT.dec”

Pokémon – 10

3 Darkrai-EX DEX

2 Terrakion NVI

1 Mewtwo-EX NXD

2 Smeargle UD

2 Shaymin UL

Trainers – 38

3 Professor Juniper

3 Professor Oak’s New Theory

3 N

3 Random Receiver

 

4 Junk Arm

4 Dark Patch

3 Exp. Share

3 Pokémon Catcher

3 Ultra Ball

2 Dual Ball

2 Eviolite

2 PlusPower

1 Super Rod

1 Super Scoop Up

1 Energy Search

Energy – 12

8 D

4 F

pokemon-paradijs.comThis is the list I played in the 2012 United States National Championships. I felt like the list was pretty solid, because it didn’t have any major holes. The first thing I liked about the list was how amazingly “Portrait-proof” the list was. With only 9 Supporters, it was hard for enemy Smeargles to stick good Portraits. But that meant I would have to manage my Supporters well in my games, which shouldn’t be an issue for me.

Exp. Share was probably the best card in the deck; it completely seperates the mirror match in to being almost 70% in your favor. Almost nobody runs this card in DMT lists, but I can’t understand why. It keeps Energy in play, it sets up Terrakions so much easier, and is a great card with Shaymin. It’s, in my opinion, the best card in the deck.

The reason I run only 1 Super Scoop Up is because, simply, I hate the card. I run the one because I will get behind against other Darkrais that run multiples, and if they consistently hit heads, I can’t catch up. I just need to run 1 and if I can deny one KO against a deck that has been denying me all game, I’ll be fine.

Let me preface this brief tournament report by saying this was the strangest Swiss tournament I’ve ever played in. Almost every round had a long list of absurd things that had happened to me. As I said earlier, I was floored by how strange it was. I feel like if things hadn’t been so odd, I would have cut and had a decent showing. But, you’ll see…

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Round 1 – Liz R. (Zekeels/Terrakion)

– I go first and start off really well, drawing into Ultra Balls and Dual Balls, setting up a full board with an Exp. Share on a Benched Terrakion and landing a solid Portrait on PONT. Once I was setup, it would be very difficult for her to gain board control.

– But Liz plays the game perfectly. For 4 consecutive turns, she is using Catcher defensively, Catchering up a Terrakion, a fresh Darkrai, Smeargle, Shaymin, etc., forcing me to attach a Dark every turn so I can free retreat and continue attacking.

– Eventually, I whiff a Darkness to retreat, and she is given an opening to lay down Tynamos, and later the Eelektrik to get a setup. She then transitions into using Zekrom with Eviolite, continuasly using Bolt Strike.

– Time is called, I check my discard and see that I haven’t come across a Junk Arm the entire game. I’ve got like 12 cards in my deck. Thankfully, I never needed Junk Arm, and on the last turn of the game I check my discard; all my Supporters have been played beside 1 Juniper. With 3 Prizes left, I can’t be certain it’s in my deck. I take a chance and use my first Junk Arm of the game for Random Receiver, ripping the Juniper. I Juniper into a hand with 3 Junk Arm and am able to use two of them for a Catcher and Dark Patch to win the game.

Win 1-0

Round 2 – Trevor W. (Darkrai/Terrakion)

pokemon-paradijs.com– When we flip over our Pokémon at the start of the game, he has an active Darkrai, and I’m relieved I started with both Terrakions. The beginning of the game was pretty slow paced. He was surprised I ran Exp. Share, but he knew how impactful it would be on the game, even complimenting me on the play.

– But he had a card for the mirror as well: Defender. He would put them on his Eviolited Darkrais, forcing me to use two PlusPowers to 1-shot his Darkrai. This was problematic, but I was never in a position where I just HAD to 1-shot it, anyway.

– The game was fairly evenly paced until he had a great turn, Catchering a benched Darkrai, playing PlusPower (to go through my Eviolite), a 2nd Fighting for his Land Crush Attack, and even playing an Eviolite and Defender on his benched Darkrai, so I won’t be able to Catcher-Retaliate it. The 2 Prizes he got from this Darkrai were the only prizes he’d take in this game.

– After that turn, my Exp. Shares on the bench activated. And we both looked at the field, I’ve got 5 Energy in play, he has 3. I’m about to KO his Terrakion, leaving him with 0 Energy. It was over at this point.

Win 2-0

aaronwilliamson.com

Round 3 – Kevin K. (Zekeels/Terrakion)

– This game would shine some light on the rest of the tournament for me. It was almost disturbing to me at how the game would play out.

– Kevin goes first, having an incredible turn, getting out three Tynamo and a Smeargle, which Portraited my Professor Oak’s New Theory. I go and PONT into nothing but an N. He goes and immediatly drops an Eelektrik and Zekrom, with Eviolite. He N’s both of us. I get another N, which he will later Portrait. After the Portraited N, I draw into 6 useless cards.

– For the next five turns, I draw pass. I have two Terrakions out, which thankfully aren’t going to be killed quickly, so I won’t bench out. I even have multiple opportunities to get Retaliate KOs on his Zekrom, but I whiff the Exp. Share and Fighting Energy.

– After a gruelling early game, I notice an opening that I can capitalize on, potentially pulling this game back into my favor. I have to Juniper into 2 specific cards: Exp. Share, Ultra Ball/Dual Ball, or either of those replaced with Junk Arm. I drop the Juniper, and draw nothing. I just don’t get it.

Loss 2-1

Round 4 – John T. (Darkrai/Mewtwo)

pokemon-paradijs.com– This guy was 2nd at Colorado Regionals and it was pretty cool to meet him. But, after last round, the strangeness continues, this time even worse. After I mulligan twice, and him going first, he benches two Darkrai on his opening turn. This actually really makes me happy, because I’ll have Terrakions to eat them up.

– But it’s never that simple, is it? For the next six turns, after multiple PONT, Juniper, and N, as well as Portraited Supporters from him, I never run across my Balls, Terrakions, Exp. Shares, or Fighting Energy. I never, once, get out a Terrakion and Exp. Share on the bench, to pretty much seal the game for me.

– Either way, the game gets down to 2-2 Prizes. All he has on the field is a couple of nearly dead Darkrai and a Mewtwo. I have a similar board of roughed-up Darkrais. One of us N’s, putting us into top deck mode. He gets a Mewtwo with Double Colorless Energy, allowing him to get so much mileage out of the card because I’m drawing dead. Another disappointing loss.

Loss 2-2

Round 5 – Catherine P. (Zekeels/Terrakion)

– From the very start of the game, I knew how bad this game was going to be. After I mulligan once, and go second, she sets up practically immediately. Her opening hand had everything, she plays everything in her hand but 3 cards, and then Junipers, discarding 2 Lightning. I assume she draws a god 7 cards.

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– Almost every turn, she would draw so well, that she is able to pull off the most optimal moves for the turn. Stuff like, drawing into the Terrakion, the third Eelektrik, and getting a Catcher, PlusPower, and Switch to do whatever she wanted. She would do things like that for turn after turn, even through low N’s and defensive Catchers from me.

– The match is my 4 Prizes to her 2. I check my discard and I haven’t seen a Junk Arm all game. I am literally staring at my discard pile, in horror. How does a thing like this happen? I even tell my opponent, I haven’t seen a Junk Arm all game, and even she can’t believe it.

– After a gruelling game, where I am basically having to crawl out of the bottom of a metaphorical well, once time is called at 3 to 1 Prizes, I realize my only hope is to N and use my last Catcher to the fullest. She draws something like Juniper or Random Receiver for Juniper. Sigh.

Loss 2-3

After day one, I was completely flabbergasted at how my deck played out. Every match I played today was a very good matchup, at least a 60% win ratio, from my testing. But it wasn’t completely over, I could win-out in day 2, ending up 6-3 and if everyone I played so far went at least X-1, I could squeak in, against all odds. Thankfully, I didn’t go to Nationals just to play, and was able to get some incredible interviews with Kyle “Pooka” Sucevich and Jason “Ness” Klaczynski.

Round 6 – Kyle L. (Vanilluxe/Plume)

pokemon-paradijs.com– Day two doesn’t start out so well; I mulligan twice and go second. Boy, that’s getting old. Either way, he turn threes Vileplume and Vanilluxe, after I got a fast Night Spear. I got the Exp. Share down on the field and used a lot of Energy before he gets the lock.

– Once he gets the lock, the next three turns he uses Twins, when the prizes are only 5-6. I realize this is a great opportunity for me to still win the game, because if he can’t abuse Twins mid and late game, I’ll be able to win, as long as he hits a few tails.

– He uses Unfezant and tries to Fly for the KO a few times, but he will hit the two tails, after Victory Star. Since that happens, I’m able to easily get back in the game and win.

Win 3-3

Round 7 – Raymond R. (Donphan/Tornadus)

– I mulligan and go second. So gross. Either way, he must play very very few Fighting Energy. Throughout the whole game, I only saw two Fightings played, but multiple DCE. He opens up with two Phanpy and a Tornadus, laying down some Exp. Shares. He also uses a lot of defensive Catchers and forcing me to waste Energy attachments so I can retreat.

– Thankfully, Donphan isn’t too much of a problem, Darkrai can still 2-shot it, where Donphan needs 3 Energy and a PlusPower to 1-shot Darkrai, which will probably never happen.

pokemon-paradijs.com– The only KO he got all game was after wasting a Catcher on a Smeargle for the KO. He even says, “Just so I can say I drew a prize.”

– On the last turn of the game, I Shaymin 10 Energy to my Mewtwo EX to sweep the last 2 Prizes.

Win 4-3

Round 8 – Tim B. (Zekeels/Terrakion)

– I go first, getting a great setup with Terrakion and Exp. Share on the bench. I even land a Portrait for a PONT, drawing into some great stuff. He gets a pretty good board out on his first turn as well, with two Tynamos and a Zekrom.

– On the second turn, I realize if I land a Portrait and draw into a Dark Patch, he’ll be in a very terrible position, way behind me in resources, and will have to climb his way back up. So, I whiff the Portrait, and I realize that’s probably the best thing that could have happened for him. So, I have to Ultra Ball my Supporters away so he can’t Portrait me.

– He goes, doesn’t draw Receiver/Junk Arm/Supporter and misses the Portrait. Basically, he isn’t able to do anything this turn beside Outrage my Darkrai for 20.

– After a few turns, I get a double KO on Eelektriks, and he is still only using Outrage on me. He eventually gets a Zekrom up and kills my Terrakion. I get another Terrakion up, after Shaymining to a fresh one, and am able to completely sweep his board.

Win 5-3

Round 9 – (Vanilluxe/Plume)

pokemon-paradijs.com– I go second, and on his first turn, he drops Vanillite, Water, and 2 Oddish on the bench. I know that against a deck like this, two things need to happen. 1. I need to draw a bunch of prizes before he gets his “lock” and 2. he needs to hit a couple tails. So, I have to N to get something going, I end up being one card short of a turn one Night Spear.

– He goes, draws his card, and Candy-Vanilluxe, attach 2nd Water, Candy Plume, Victory Star. Good game. He drew all 6-of those off the N. So gross.

Loss 5-4

So, as you can see, almost every game I played was strange in its own way. Whether it was how I drew, how the game played out, or the fact I never saw a whole quarter of my deck after drawing/seeing 40+ cards.

But, I wasn’t too upset, I was happy to be in Indianapolis because I was still recording for my documentary. I had a great time, hanging with friends, seeing faces I only see once a year, and getting to meet a few new people, as well as having my meeting with The Pokémon Company International.

The main reason I was so upset I didn’t do well, was because I was writing this article! I was hoping I could at least make it fairly deep into top cut, to give this article some validity. Unfortunately, that isn’t how things turned out.

Re-capping the Top Cut!

From this thread on the Pokégym, we can see what was in the top cut, from top 128, all the way to the finals. I’m only going to cover the top 16, because I feel like that was where the real “top” decks shined at the event.

Top 16

Harrison L. (Mew/Accelgor/Plume/Chandelure/Darkrai) vs. Brenton B. (Darkrai/Mewtwo)

Kevin N. (Zekeels/Raikou-EX/Mewtwo) vs. Stephen C. (Speed Darkrai)

Jay H. (Darkrai/Mewtwo) vs. Jeremy J. (Zekeels/Mewtwo)

Ashton H. (Zekeels/Mewtwo) vs. Dallan F. (CMT)

John K. (Mew/Accelgor/Plume/Chandelure/Darkrai) vs. John R. (KlinKlang)

Carl Scheu (DMT) vs. Toby N. (Zekeels/Terrakion)

Tom D. (Speed Darkrai) vs. Dylan B. (Mismagius/Vileplume/EX)

Simon N. (Darkrai/Tornadus/Mewtwo EX) vs. Chris M. (CMT/Terrakion)

Of this Top 16, I think the only upsets were probably John Kettler losing to John Roberts, the guy who would later on win the whole tournament. Klinklang just doesn’t have a lot of answers to a strong Plume and constant Duck and Covers. It seems very strange that Kettler would lose at this stage of the tournament to a fairly positive matchup.

Other than that, there aren’t too many surprises. About the decklists in particular, Tom Dolezal’s list was extremely strange, running only 4 Darkrai and 2 Smeargle for Pokémon. That’s it. He also ran 4-of everything when it came to Trainers, PlusPower, Ultra Ball, Random Receiver, etc.

I think a Mismagius/Vileplume deck making it into the top 16 of United States Nationals is also a tad surprising. It isn’t a very strong deck and folds pretty hard to a fast Darkrai, because it just has so much to set up. I know Jason Klaczynski played the deck, and he’s probably one of the few people I would expect to do well with anything. I mean, let’s face it, he got his Worlds invite this year from playing Durant at every event…

Top 8

Brenton B. (Darkrai/Mewtwo) vs. Kevin N. (Zekeels/Raikou/Mewtwo)

Ashton H. (Zekeels/Mewtwo) vs. Jay H. (Darkrai/Mewtwo)

Carl Scheu (DMT) vs. John R. (KlinKlang)

Chris M. (CMT/Terrakion) vs. Tom D. (Speed Darkrai)

There is one really big upset here between Ashton H. and Jay Hornung. I don’t think Darkrai/Mewtwo has a very good matchup versus Zekeels/Mewtwo, because Jay would later lose to Kevin in Top 4. Within a Mewtwo war, Zekeels has a distinct advantage, because it doesn’t need to drop a Shaymin every time it needs to attack with a Mewtwo.

I am not surprised at all by the other matchups, CMT with Terrakion should beat a Speed Darkrai, Zekeels should beat Darkrai/Mewtwo, and DMT will almost never beat a Klinklang.

Top 4

Chris M. (CMT/Terrakion) vs. John R. (KlinKlang)

Kevin N. (Zekeels/Raikou/Mewtwo) vs. Jay H. (Darkrai/Mewtwo)

As I’ve stated multiple times already, if a deck has a limited amount of damage it can do, it’s going to have a tough time vs. Klinklang. With Mewtwo being one of the few unlimited damage cap pokemon, it needs about 7 Energy on it to 1-shot a bulky Pokémon-EX. That’s pretty much impossible to pull off, without a significant amount of luck, so Klinklang has the matchup here for the most part. CMT’s only hope is to pull of a sick start and start Knocking Out Klinks before they can get out a Klinklang.

And Like I said earlier, Darkrai/Mewtwo will lose the Mewtwo war against a Zekeels player 9 times out of 10. Not surprised by the winners of this top 4 at all.

Finals

John R. (Klinklang) vs. Kevin N. (Zekeels/Raikou/Mewtwo)

Game one of the finals was actually quite surprising. I would assume one of Kevin’s friends told him John doesn’t play Mewtwo EX, so Kevin knew if he could load up a Mewtwo quickly, he could just sweep the board and take a fast win, choking the Klinklang deck before it can get a stable position. By turn four, Kevin has an active Mewtwo with FOUR DCE attached, pretty much Knocking everything Out turn after turn.

When the prizes are 2 to 6, John tries to setup a Shaymin/N combo to get a comeback, but it ends up failing and John is forced to Catcher around the Mewtwo EX. As expected, Kevin wins this game fairly quickly.

Game two was the exact opposite, John, going first, was able to attach an Energy every turn and get out a quick Klinklang and Kyogre EX, setting up a turn three double-KO on two Tynamos on the bench. It was over from there. But Kevin knew it was in his best interest to play this out as long as possible. If he scoops a few minutes before time is called, he will be going first in a sudden death match, which is devastating for a slow setup deck like Klinklang.

Game three starts, during Kevin’s first turn, time is called. So, everything has gone right, for now. Kevin gets a solid start, active Mewtwo EX with DCE, hitting a Klink for 20, with two Tynamos on the bench. John goes (turn 1 of +3), with a terrible hand. He Heavy Balls for a Groudon EX, attaches an Eviolite to the active Klink and benches Groudon, after attaching a Basic Metal.

Kevin goes (turn 2), retreats to a Smeargle and Portraits. He sees Rainbow, Catcher, and Metal. Kevin feels great, John’s got nothing. But Kevin doesn’t have a Supporter to get the ball rolling, so he can setup an easy KO for the win, he is forced to pass.

pokemon-paradijs.comJohn starts (turn 3), he draws a Rare Candy. He can’t do anything but attach, so he attaches the rainbow to the benched Groudon EX, before passing. Now, the game is in sudden death mode, Kevin has to get a KO here or he is out, he top deck’s nothing. Portraits and sees what he has, and passes.

John top decks a Klinklang! He Rare Candies, attaches a Metal, Gear Shifts up all the Energy, and tries for a KO on a Smeargle to win the game. If he hits one out of two tails, he wins! He hits one, and that’s it! Game is over!

It was great to see a newcomer to the game win the biggest tournament of the year, this was John Roberts first year playing Pokémon, and he did it all. Also, Kevin was a great sport about the whole top decking thing. It was a great series to watch!

Now, let’s go over some of the decks I saw from the tournament that either caught my eye or did really well. This isn’t the exact lists anybody played, just a list I put together from observing their games.

Mew/Accelgor/Chandelure

Pokémon – 25

3 Oddish UD
2 Vileplume UD
3 Litwick BW27
2 Lampent NVI
2 Chandelure NVI

4 Mew Prime
2 Accelgor DEX
2 Darkrai-EX DEX
2 Pichu HS
1 Smeargle UD
1 Relicanth CL
1 Shaymin UL

Trainers – 23

4 Twins
4 Sage’s Training
2 Professor Oak’s New Theory
2 Professor Juniper
2 N

 

4 Rare Candy
3 Pokémon Communication
2 Ultra Ball

Energy – 12

4 Rainbow
4 Prism
4 Double Colorless

pokemon-paradijs.comA really good friend of mine, and mentor, John Kettler, played this deck at Nationals. He reached Top 16, where he, unfortunately, made a series of mistakes which cost him the entire tournament. He lost to John Roberts, the KlinKlang player who would go on to take it all. This happens to be my favorite deck of the tournament, as well as a deck I wish I had the cajones to play. Because, it takes a lot of cajones to play it.

As for Kettler’s deck, he has been playing many Accelgor variants, since the card came out. His most recent version of the deck is without a doubt, the best one I’ve seen. And certainly the hardest to play. The deck has many outs, as well as a ton of potential to setup so many things, within a limited number of turns.

John Kettler wasn’t the only player playing this deck at Nationals, a few others had a pretty good showing with the deck. I’m pretty sure Kettler was the only person who made it to day three. Originally, Kettler was running the deck with Kingdra, a fairly common sense play with the deck. It works on the bench, it’s simple to use, and you only need it once or twice to get a KO going into your turn, so your opponent never gets to attack.

Chandelure does the same thing, but better, and with a higher cost of usage. For Chandelure to be used to it’s fullest potential, you need Darkrai EX on the bench, a Rainbow Energy attached, as well as only using it in the Active Spot. This causes some problems, but you are getting to do three Kingdra, at once. You could even go the route of “double Chandy” which is a phrase Kettler coined himself, to get 60 spread however you want, instead of using a Duck and Cover from Mew.

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How This Deck Works

Basically, it sets up with any of the following, Pichu, Smeargle, Relicanth, Twins, Sage’s, and just plain old See-Off turn one. The deck works on getting an Accelgor in the Lost Zone, setting up Vileplume and Chandelure, and getting a Darkrai on the bench, with a Rainbow Energy on Chandelure.

The deck also has the option of using Shaymin to shift all energy to a “surprise” Chandelure attack, or even a Night Spear from Darkrai EX. Sometimes, using Duck and Cover isn’t always the only means to winning.

This isn’t your typical, set-up deck, like Ross.dec used to be. This is a deck that has a constantly evolving strategy to getting set-up. You have to use your Twins with a constant mind of what will be happening within a few turns, sometimes doing the most optimal things to getting closer to your perfect setup can backfire.

You’ll need to deviate from the optimal strategy and use Lampent’s Lure attack if the opponent’s board is going in a certain direction that can shut you down. You’ll need to do things like abusing Relicanth in the face of another Vileplume deck, so you can thin your deck out, putting unwanted Pokémon and Trainers in the Lost Zone like Oddishes, Plumes, Pichus, Candy, etc. Playing this deck, you’ll need to be very savvy, as well as thinking outside the box. This deck only works if it’s piloted by a very intelligent player.

Weaknesses

pokemon-paradijs.comThis deck has two pretty big holes in the deck’s setup process, that can be abused. Things that get multiple KOs can be devastating. Things like Darkrai EX, Kyogre EX, Kyurem NVI, etc. These Pokémon can take advantage of a slow setup deck that relies on Twins.

As for the techs people couldn’t stop talking about, I don’t think they can do that much to the deck. Unown CURE only saves you from Paralysis for one turn, while Espeon DEX is very easily killed in a few turns from Chandelure. Under Trainer lock, getting out of status effect isn’t that big a deal if you haven’t been able to search for Pokémon with Dual Ball or able to get energy acceleration with Dark Patch.

Unown CURE can only be fully advantageous if you run multiple Seeker in your deck, and are re-using it. Much like Jason Klaczynski’s variant of the European deck, Kumis.dec, which runs Mismagius, Vileplume, and bulky EX pokemon.

The deck’s weakness is also itself. It’s a very difficult deck to get board control, as well as multiple Stage 2 Pokémon, even more so in a format where people consistently get turn one and two Night Spears, with a surplus of Catchers to boot!

Why It Did So Well

This deck did well because it is the most fearsome of any lock decks. It can completely shut down most decks in the format, especially if they aren’t running the most overhyped techs prior to Nationals, Unown CURE and Espeon, which most people shouldn’t have been running. If this deck can get Chandelure out and Accelgor in the Lost Zone, before you have taken 4 Prizes, it’s pretty much over.

I think the main reason this deck did so well, is people just don’t expect to play against it. It is one of those decks that is really good, but severely under-represented. So, most players don’t even bother testing against it, instead opting to test against the most played decks, like Darkrai variants, or Zekeels varaints. Which, is a good idea, but being prepared against a sick lock deck is necessary to having any kind of success in a tournament like Nationals.

Klinklang EX

Pokémon – 15

4 Klink DEX
1 Klang DEX
3 Klinklang BLW
2 Darkrai-EX DEX
2 Groudon-EX DEX
1 Kyogre-EX DEX
1 Shaymin-EX NXD
1 Smeargle UD

Trainers – 35

4 Professor Oak’s New Theory
3 Copycat
3 N

2 Random Receiver

 

4 Junk Arm
4 Heavy Ball
4 Rare Candy
3 Max Potion
2 Ultra Ball
2 Dual Ball
2 Pokémon Catcher
2 Eviolite

Energy – 10

4 Rainbow
4 Prism
2 Special M

pokemon-paradijs.comAs you probably know by now, Klinklang is the deck that won Nationals. I don’t know John Roberts decklist exactly, but everyone knows he ran some strange things, like Copycat and Shaymin EX. These were things people didn’t play in the deck originally. The reasoning is pretty sound though; this deck can’t afford anything being discarded, so stuff like Juniper and Sage’s are out of the question.

So, why not just run 4 N, 4 PONT, and 4 Random Receiver? Well, there was a lot of Item lock doing really well in the tournament, and this deck can’t afford a Supporter setup like that in the face of a Vileplume, so, it needs less Random Receiver and more Supporters. I feel like the setup I have here is pretty sound.

As for the actual Trainer lineup, I feel like this is a very solid build, with the only option being a 3rd Catcher, which I don’t find entirely necessary. This is a deck built around getting a Groudon active and never letting him die, not putting a mountain of pressure on your opponent with sick Catcher play.

Being a Stage 2 deck in this format is one of the toughest things for this deck, having a difficult time setting up or even just being over-run by Catcher Night Spears, can make it very hard for you to setup. As long as you can whither that storm, get your Klinklangs out, get energy on the board, you should be in great shape.

With so many great high HP Pokémon-EX, as long as they aren’t being 1-shot, this deck is unbeatable. A deck like Darkrai/Terrakion will have real trouble against this deck, because with Eviolite, you’ll have to be 3-shotting the Pokémon in the deck, which gives them more than enough time to get a Max Potion out.

pokemon-paradijs.com

How This Deck Works

It’s pretty simple how this deck works. First off, you get out Klinklang, the guy that moves Energy. Then, you get out attackers and attach an Energy every turn. That seems pretty simple and easy, but you’ll often times finding yourself PONT-ing or Juniper-ing just for Energy. Because if you fall behind, you can get in trouble.

Once you are setup, you essentially have your “lock” where your attackers should be protected from 1HKOs. Then, you’ll abuse Klinklang’s Ability and Max Potion. Once you are there, it comes down to drawing into the Potions and Junk Arm’s and avoiding unfavorable N’s.

Darkrai EX serves two purposes, giving your team free retreat, so you can easily shift between Kyogre EX, Groudon EX, and Shaymin EX, without worry. Darkrai EX is also a very good attacker, who has synergy with Kyogre EX, and can also pick apart your opponent’s board. You have to be careful with dropping him though, because Terrakion is around every corner, waiting to Retaliate Darkrai to the depths of hell that he crawled out of.

Weaknesses

pokemon-paradijs.comLost Remover, Enhanced Hammer, and Crushing Hammer are the most absolutely devastating cards to run up against with this deck. You have no Energy acceleration and rely on “protecting” your Energy with Klinklang’s Ability. If the opponent can deny your Energy with Hammers, you are completely boned!

One of the top decks that was receiving hype prior to Nationals was Esa’s “Hammertime”, a deck that abuses Sableye DEX in conjunction with Energy removal Trainers. Essentially, destroying any Energy the opponent can get on the board. This had to be one of the main reasons many people disliked Klinklang all together, because this is a definitive auto-loss.

And again, much like the Accelgor deck, this deck needs to get setup. Of course, there isn’t much to setup other than a single Stage 2 Pokémon, and multiple energy on the field. The hardest part being attaching an energy every turn.

Why It Did So Well

Simply put, John Roberts, the winner of Nationals, didn’t run into a lot of Hammertime decks. I think the reason for that is, a lot of players didn’t want to run a flippy deck, and one that is easily played around. I feel like if there was a better representation of Hammertime at Nationals, this deck would have had a rougher Swiss and maybe been knocked out of top cut.

As for how the deck won the actual tournament, Kyogre EX was the MVP, all day long. Kyogre is basically an anti-setup card. You can send Tynamos and Oddishes to the bottom of the ocean, drowning them, like it’s your job. Very few decks can even 1-shot Kyogre, so he is a fearsome Pokémon to deal with.

Zekeels/Raikou

Pokémon – 13

3 Tynamo NVI 38
3 Eelektrik NVI
2 Mewtwo-EX NXD
1 Raikou-EX
2 Zekrom BLW
1 Smeargle UD
1 Shaymin UL

Trainers – 34

4 Professor Juniper
4 Professor Oak’s New Theory
3 N

2 Random Receiver

 

4 Junk Arm
4 Dual Ball

3 Pokémon Catcher
2 Level Ball
2 Eviolite
2 PlusPower
2 Switch
1 Max Potion
1 Super Rod

Energy – 13

9 L

4 Double Colorless

pokemon-paradijs.comThis is the deck Kevin Nance played in the finals versus John Roberts. Speaking about Zekeels lists in particular, I’ve noticed people have been playing Ultra Ball as well as Dual and Level Balls. I assume, just to have some extra discard to put Lightnings away, quicker. Another card I have seen being slightly talked about, is the Slurp Shakedown Eelektross (Eelektross DEX). The one that has a Drag Off attack for LLCC, doing 60. It’s a great counter versus Vileplume variants, giving you a great partner with Raikou.

Other than those things, this is a fairly common list. The only other way to run the deck beside this is to go the Terrakion route, replacing DCE with Fighting and switching up your attackers to include 2 Terrakion. I feel like either option is just as good as the other, but this version has many more options than just Zekeels/Terrakion.

The Max Potion is an interesting tech that can serve a lot of neat little tricks. One being healing a Raikou after it snipes and gets hit, healing a Mewtwo EX, before you shaymin more energy up to it. There’s a lot of things you can do with Max Potion that makes it a great 1-of card. I feel like Max Potion is certainly cuttable, but it has it’s benefits.

pokemon-paradijs.com

How This Deck Works

Hopefully, none of you need an explanation on how Zekeels works. But I can shine some light on great Raikou plays, because that is kind of the thing that makes this deck special. Of course, the common sense stuff like Catcher an Eelektrik and sniping a benched one. Everyone knows this play, but I want to go over some more complicated ones.

The best one I’ve seen is Catchering a benched Terrakion and using Thunder Fang. This serves two purposes, one, it does 30 (leaving it with 100) and if you Paralyze it, it makes it useless, even if it is one Energy attachment away for a Land Crush, it can completely turn a game around. Yes, it’s based on a flip, but you can’t always nab the Zekrom, PlusPower, and Bolt Strike for KO.

Raikou is a great Pokémon because of how popular Vileplume has been picking up steam. Vanilluxe and Accelgor were in full swing at Nationals, as well as the later Battle Roads, it’s a very serious deck that can pull a game from under any deck, and will certainly have players backing it at Worlds.

Weaknesses

pokemon-paradijs.com

Obviously cards that can gobble up Tynamos off the bench are a big problem, Kyogre EX, Kyurem NVI, etc. But those aren’t very common to go up against, the deck’s biggest problem is certainly Terrakion. Everything in the deck is 1-shot by Retaliate, minus Mewtwo EX, which is easily countered by other Mewtwos. Those two combined can pretty much rip this deck apart.

Let’s also not forget the sheer speed of Darkrai decks. A quick Night Spear can shred up any opportunity to building a decent Eelektrik engine. By getting double knockouts on Eelektriks and Tynamos, not having Terrakion to get an easy 1-shot back can be devastating. I feel like that’s why so many people played Zekeels/Terrakion at Nationals.

Why It Did So Well

First off, it’s Zekeels, pretty much the most stable deck in the format since Eelektrik came out. Secondly, it has so many options. Mewtwo, Raikou, and Zekrom all serve completely different purposes and can almost single handedly turn a game around on their own.

Not to mention, Zekeels was probably the most played deck at Nationals. I think I faced four Zekeels/Terrakion in swiss, I’m not sure how many Zekeels were lists like this, but Kevin Nance is an incredible player and deserved to make his way to the finals.

Even with Kevin Nance piloting the deck, there was a literal TON of Terrakion at Nationals, this deck is fairly shakey against Retaliate, so I feel like there had must of been a lot of good pairings for Kevin. I’m not entirely sure what his matchups were, but they had to have been solid.

Darkrai/Mewtwo

Pokémon – 10

3 Darkrai-EX DEX
3 Mewtwo-EX NXD
2 Shaymin UL
2 Smeargle UD

Trainers – 36

4 Professor Juniper
4 Professor Oak’s New Theory
3 N

2 Random Receiver

 

4 Junk Arm
4 Dark Patch

3 Pokémon Catcher
3 Ultra Ball
2 Dual Ball
2 Switch
2 Eviolite

2 Super Scoop Up
1 Dark Claw

Energy – 14

10 D

4 Double Colorless

pokemon-paradijs.comI think I might have done much better in the tournament had I played this instead of Darkrai/Terrakion. If you think about it, Mewtwo EX is kind of a better Terrakion, because it is useful against many more decks, and in a way, can counter Terrakions on it’s own. Mewtwo also adds much more early game pressure, that Terrakion certainly doesn’t have.

Jay Hornung, a writer for SixPrizes, ended up making top 4 with the deck, losing to Kevin Nance. Of course, Darkrai/Mewtwo has a lot of great matchups. I’m not exactly sure how he lost the match, but Kevin’s Zekeels certainly has a great build for a Mewtwo war, as you could have probably guessed.

The Super Scoop Up are used in tandem with Shaymin, Shaymining energy off a damaged Mewtwo EX to a fresh one, or doing the same thing with Darkrai, etc. The one Darkness Claw is useful against someone who has played both Terrakions down. You can Catcher Night Spear and KO both at the same time, while not activating Retaliate.

How This Deck Works

Much like Speed Darkrai variants, that run heavy Smeargle, this is a deck built around Dark Patch, in more ways than just one. Instead of just being bale to get a fast Night Spear, you can Dark Patch energy on the field, only to Shaymin them to a Mewtwo EX. In one turn, you can easily get four or more energy on a Mewtwo EX, out of nowhere.

This makes the deck very formidabble in that it can aggro Darkrai, and use Mewtwo EX to counter Terrakions. Obviously, the deck runs really well, probably better than Darkrai/Terrakion, in my opinion.

pokemon-paradijs.com

Why It Did So Well

The deck just has two great attackers in Darkrai and Mewtwo, the two most espensive cards of this era of the TCG, prior to the tin release later this year. There’s a reason those two cards were so expensive, because they are so freakishly good. With inexpensive attacks in X-ball, that has unlimited damage cap, and the easily powered up Darkrai that can use devastating Night Spears.

It also doesn’t have any specific decks to fear. Really, it’s toughest matchup is probably just Vileplume variants, because there is always a potential to get a fast lock. The deck did so well, because it can be confident in almost every matchup, especially the most common decks at the tournament, Darkrai/Terrakion and Zekeels/Terrakion.

Weaknesses

I think the deck finally fell apart because it got in some serious mewtwo wars where it just happened to not keep up. The deck does well in a mewtwo war, but it needs constant Shaymin drops to keep the fight going, which can sometimes be problematic, especially if you have to rely on a SSU to pick up the Shaymin.

Mewtwo Wars are never something people want to get in, unless it’s a Zekeels variant because they don’t need anything but Eelektriks on the bench, which is what the deck is built to get out. Who knows how the finals would have ended up had Jay won in top 4…

Darkzone

Pokémon – 14

4 Magnemite TM
3 Magnezone Prime
3 Darkrai-EX DEX
2 Smeargle UD
1 Sableye DEX
1 Shaymin UL

Trainers – 32

4 Sage’s Training
4 N

 

4 Junk Arm
4 Rare Candy
4 Dark Patch
3 Dual Ball
3 Ultra Ball
3 Pokémon Catcher
2 Switch
1 Super Rod

Energy – 14

10 D

4 L

pokemon-paradijs.comThis is a deck that Alex Fields thought up, in the middle of the Spring Battle Roads season. Him and I collaborated on the decklist, and I was going to play the list at Nationals with him. Looking back at what I faced in swiss, I’m happy I chose the deck I did, I faced Terrakion or Vileplume every round, I would have had a gruelling experience in swiss had I played Darkzone.

Sage’s Training is the heart of the deck, as it serves two purposes, it puts Darkness Energy in the discard pile for Dark Patch, while getting you the pieces you need to get out a Magnezone. Dark Patch not only gets you Night Spears quickly, it allows you to have more energy in play for Magnezone’s attack, Lost Burn.

Of course, the deck has one of the best combinations in the game’s history, in my opinion. N and Magnetic Draw. N is the late game champion and in tandem with Magnetic Draw, you can consistently N turn after turn, as well as never hurting yourself. If you can barrage your enemy with late-game N’s, this deck can comeback from almost any position. That’s one of it’s best attributes.

pokemon-paradijs.com

How This Deck Works

You probably remember how Magnezone Prime works. it essentially makes a fast deck into an incredibly fast deck. I pretty much consistently get turn two Magnezones, which can usually net me the stuff for a turn two Night Spear, game after game.

The one Shaymin is for the turn one/two Night Spears, as well as the occasional times you need to immediately power up a Magnezone for a Lost Burn when put in a sticky situation.

Why It Did So Well

As you would have probably guessed, this deck didn’t do too well. Alex Fields went a disappointing 5-4, but I felt like I should have talked about this deck. It has a sick matchup versus Zekeels and Darkrai, and even if they have Terrakions, this deck can really hold its own.

Weaknesses

Really, this deck’s only weakness is the format in which it’s played in. With Zekeels and Darkrai being the top decks of the moment, and Terrakion is being played in more than a third of the entire metagame. Terrakion isn’t too much of a problem, but it really is an issue. It’s never optimal going up against a swarm of Terrakions.

Worlds Predictions!

transportationissuesdaily.comI am not entirely sure if I’ll be at Worlds this year. Of course, I really want to be there to record for the film, but it comes down to how much money I can get donated for the film, which I will get a trailer up soon. I don’t intend to play if I go, just record, which I already have permission from TPCi, if I do get there.

What do I think will really win? Klinklang winning Nationals was kind of a surprise to me. I do think John Roberts played well, deserved to win, but I personally never thought it would have happened. Worlds is a whole different monster, where the entire world’s metagame will come together and mesh. There will certainly be Hammers and Lost Removers at Worlds, Hammertime is popular deck on the international level, so that pretty much writes off Klinklang.

I am most interested in seeing what the Japanese players are going to use. In case you weren’t aware, they have been playing BW-on, all year long. So, for Worlds, they are converting to an older format. I think Darkrai will be popular amongst the Japanese, just because they are so used to playing him already.

If I just HAD to guess a deck to win, my mind immediately gravitates to Darkrai. It’s just the sickest card in the format, for so many reasons. Darkrai/Mewtwo is obviously the best variant, if I had to choose one. So, that’s my pick.

Next Format, Pokémon and decks!

Bulbapedia
C: Search your deck for two Basic Pokémon and put them onto your Bench. Shuffle your deck afterward.

I’m really interested to see how Emolga pans out. Once the format shifts to BW-on, we won’t have a basic searching card. Things like Pokémon Collector, Roseanne’s Research, Holon Mentor, Dunsparce SS, or even just Great Ball and Dual Ball. We won’t have any of that. So, we are going to have to go back to the olden days of the game, using a “Starter Pokémon” to setup our field.

I personally love Emolga and love this version of the game. It’s what I’ve played for years and practiced with, and it’s what I prefer. This will slow the game down drastically, allowing people to really evolve with the format.

Not only with things slow down with Pokémon search, we’ll also lose Junk Arm, which is one of the best things to happen to the game in a long time. Junk Arm just adds too many outs to players, people were being spoiled, running 1 and 2-of Items with massive roles for their deck, allowing them to take bigger risks, that usually would pay off.

But with these changes, I think there will be a seperation of the playerbase, the good players will rise back up, noticeably better than the average players. This is something I am really looking forward to.

Item lock isn’t going anywhere just because Vileplume is leaving the format, as we still have Zebstrika NXD and Gothitelle EPO 47. Sure, they aren’t as game-changing as Vileplume, but they could be even better in a format with Collector gone. If the only Basic search is Emolga and Ball trainers, that means Item lock could win a game on it’s own, if they didn’t open the game with Emolga.

Rayquaza EX is going to be the next big EX card. It’s the new Darkrai, when Darkrai was the new Mewtwo. Rayquaza EX is just ridiculous, being able to do insane amounts of damage with such a small sacrifice. I think this is going to be the card that can determine the whole format on it’s own.

Let’s take a look at some deck’s for the next format. Some of these I’ve talked with a close friend of mine, Alex Fields. So, some credit goes to him for some of the concepts.

“MewGoth.dec”

Pokémon – 20

3 Gothita EPO 43
2 Gothorita EPO 45
2 Gothitelle EPO 47
3 Shelmet NVI
2 Accelgor DEX

4 Mew-EX

2 Emolga DRX
2 Darkrai-EX DEX

Trainers – 28

4 N
4 Professor Juniper
3 Bianca
3 Random Receiver

 

3 Rare Candy
3 Ultra Ball
3 Pokémon Communication
3 PlusPower

2 Pokémon Catcher

Energy – 12

4 Double Colorless
4 Prism
4 D

youtube.comAccelgor and Item lock go hand in hand just like before; it’s one of the sickest locks a deck can setup. Much like Kettler’s deck at Nationals, this relies on using Accelgor’s attack Duck and Cover, to send up Gothitelle, to Item lock the opponent. When the turn passes to you, you will free retreat Gothitelle with a Darkness Energy attached, because of Darkrai’s Ability, to a Mew-EX to Duck and Cover again, or even just an Accelgor itself.

PlusPower will act as your Kingdra Prime Spray Splash, possibly allowing you to setup a KO going into your turn, or even to just save you a turn of having to Duck and Cover again. Mew-EX will work just like Mew Prime, making you only need 2 cards to do a Duck and Cover, instead of three, getting out a whole Accelgor line.

The Prism Energy is for Mew-EX’s attack, which people forget it has. You can spend a turn moving your Energy all around, even to your Darkrai, allowing you to use Night Spear next turn, potentially winning you a game. It also works as a Darkness Energy when attached to a Basic Pokémon, turning on Dark Cloak.

In a format where most decks will rely on Items to get their Pokémon out, Item lock could be one of the most devastating things in the metagame. If you get a fast Gothitelle, your opponent might be put in a position where they can’t win. Even more so if they don’t run Emolga.

Zekeels BW-on

Pokémon – 16

4 Emolga DRX
4 Tynamo NVI 38
3 Eelektrik NVI
2 Zekrom BLW
3 Rayquaza-EX DRX

Trainers – 31

4 Professor Juniper
4 N
2 Bianca

4 Random Receiver

 

4 Pokémon Catcher

3 Level Ball
3 Ultra Ball
2 Eviolite
2 Switch
1 Super Rod
1 Energy Retrieval

 

1 Skyarrow Bridge

Energy – 13

9 L
4 R

BulbapediaZekeels isn’t going anywhere and might even be getting better thanks to Rayquaza EX. This is a Rayquaza EX focused build, setting up multiple Eels and having a swarm of Rayquaza’s ready to go. You still have Zekrom with Eviolite, probably one of the most fearsome of all pokemon that are only worth 1-Prize.

Thankfully, this deck is able to fit everything it wants; four Catchers, four Receivers with eleven Supporters, four Emolga. It’s just great. With 3 Level Ball and 3 Ultra Ball, it’ll almost always setup. Which is one of the best things about this deck for the next format.

If there was any deck that I feel like is going to be the best going into the next format, it’s this one. Rayquaza EX just does absurd amounts of damage, and with only 1 Retreat Cost, it’ll be so easy to just keep abusing them back to back. That’s the reason the deck has Skyarrow Bridge, so you can keep switching out Rayquaza after you Dynamotor to the benched one.

Originally, I had two Super Rod, but I realized if your opponent can surprise KO your Rayquaza, Super Rodding the Fire Energy back into the deck won’t help you, you need to Energy Retrieval them back to your hand. This is kind of situational, but I think it could work. I need to test this versus two Super Rod.

“Rayboar.dec”

Pokémon – 17

4 Emolga DRX
4 Tepig BW07
2 Pignite BLW 17
3 Emboar BLW 20
1 Emboar BLW 19
3 Rayquaza-EX DRX

Trainers – 29

4 Professor Juniper
3 N
3 Bianca

2 Random Receiver

 

3 Rare Candy
3 Heavy Ball
3 Ultra Ball
3 Pokémon Catcher
3 Energy Retrieval
2 Super Rod

Energy – 14

10 R

4 L

pokemon-paradijs.comThis is a deck Alex Fields and I were talking about recently. Emboar and Rayquaza go together almost as well as Eelektrik does. But Emboar has something Eelektrik doesn’t, it can load up a Rayquaza faster, as well as being able to use the Flare Blitz Emboar.

But these things come at a cost. You need to run Energy Retrieval to keep getting back the Energy, which could be an issue in a format without Junk Arm. I’m not really sure how this deck will turn out, but I feel like it has serious potential.

WIth 3 Ultra Ball and 3 Heavy Ball, it shouldn’t be an issue getting out Embaors. At the cost of running less Supporter/Receivers, you have more access to your Emboar line. Ultra Ball and Emolga are the only way to get your Rayquazas, outside of drawing into them.

One more thing to consider is Cilan. It is a fairly weak Supporter, but it could probably turn a game around for you. The only issue is, it can mess up your early game Receivers, when you need to draw into stuff. Either way, it’s something to try out.

Hydreigon/Darkrai

Pokémon – 16

3 Deino DRX 93
1 Zweilous DRX 95
3 Hydreigon DRX 97
3 Darkrai-EX DEX
2 Registeel-EX

3 Sableye DEX
1 Emolga DRX

Trainers – 32

4 Professor Juniper
4 N
2 Bianca

3 Random Receiver

 

3 Pokémon Catcher

3 Max Potion

3 Rare Candy
3 Dark Patch
3 Ultra Ball
2 Level Ball
2 Eviolite

Energy – 12

8 D

4 Blend GRPD

BulbapediaThis will probably be the deck I play once we rotate over to BLW-on, with Registeel-EX being one of the main reasons I am so attracted to this deck. It’s kind of like a Kyogre EX, but probably a slight margin behind it in effectiveness. Since the deck arleady runs Max Potion and Hydreigon that moves Energy, it only makes sense to use Registeel-EX with the deck, making him a tank that basically doesn’t die, and is able to spread all day long.

Registeel-EX will basically single-handedly shut down Eelektrik decks, as well as Accelgor/Gothitelle decks, which I do predict will be very common plays. Registeel also fits in with the deck’s theme very well, being able to setup great Catcher-Night Spear plays for multiple prize knock outs.

How this deck will fare in the format is pretty much already proven, as the deck won Japanese Nationals (with Shaymin EX and Sigilyph DRE instead of Registeel-EX). The format is pretty open to whatever you want to play, there isn’t a handful of decks that dominate and it looks like a very healthy format. I’m very excited for next season!

In conclusion, Nationals was a great experience that I hope I was able to grasp for you in this article, in case you missed some of the big things. Hopefully, my expectations for next format are sound, and can potentially lead you to success in the upcoming Battle Roads, as well as give you an idea of what to try and pick up at your local prereleases.

Lastly, if you enjoyed this article, please like it! I’d really appreciate.

– Michael “rokman” Weldon
rokman@sixprizes.com
www.victoryroadmovie.com


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