BulbapediaWhy hello 6P, I do not believe we have been properly introduced. My name is Zach Elliott, though I go by Squib on most online forums and such. I have been following this site for a while now, and decided that I could give writing for it a try.
First, who am I? Well I’ve only been playing competitive Pokémon TCG for a little over a year now, so you could call me relatively new at this. My accomplishments in the game are very lackluster, though I did manage to go into top cut at 1st seed from Swiss in my first ever Premier tournament.
Since then I’ve topped a few Cities, but nothing exciting. I’m very good at going X-2 at every tournament and then whiffing cut. But whatever, I’m boring; let’s see what I have to talk about today.
If there’s a card in format right now that I know better than any other card, it would definitely be Eelektrik. Since Noble Victories was released, I have been playing this card in every tournament I attended (except for the first few Cities this season, Landorus-EX was really scary, but we’ll get to that later). And why would I do something as dedicated as that? Because this is one of the most powerful Energy accelerators the game has ever seen!
Eeletrik’s Future
So first we are going to need a starting list. I was fortunate enough to play in the Georgia Marathon this season, and Keldeo/Blastoise was everywhere. So, naturally, RayEels thrived as well. We can take a look at my list from Cities (which I was able to top cut with multiple times) and tweak it to fit the BLW–PLS format:
|
Pokémon – 16 4 Tynamo NVI 38 |
Trainers – 31 4 Professor Juniper
3 Level Ball
|
Energy – 13 |
Mostly everything should seem in place except for maybe Keldeo EX. But with Skyarrow Bridge, Keldeo EX only needs 1 energy to retreat, effectively giving all your Eelektriks 1 Retreat Cost as well, something that is very helpful indeed. The second Baby Ray is also slightly unorthodox, but it makes the mirror sooo much easier.
Now let’s get on to making this deck ready to take States by Storm!
New Cards for Eelektrik Decks
To be completely honest, I do not see much in this set that helps Eelektrik out too much. But, there are a few cards I will review for sake of being thorough. Below each analysis I will provide an adjustment to make to the decklist above to include the card.
Rotom PLS
pokegym.netFor one energy Rotom can use its first attack which allows you to discard a L Energy from your hand in order to draw 3 cards. This sounds great, but there are a few problems here.
1. Rotom has a pesky Weakness to Fighting and a very depressing 60 HP, so he is just as susceptible to being donked by Landorus-EX as your poor Tynamos are.
2. Having a L Energy in your hand T1 is not always going to happen. Plus, you have to have one to attach to Rotom as well. Think of it this way: your opening hand needs to have 2 energy in it for this to work, otherwise Rotom is a useless and very dangerous starter!
Now you could rely on Professor Juniper or other draw to get your hands on the second energy, but if that’s the case an additional 3 cards may not be necessary.
Ultimately, I would much rather have a second energy in play on a Thundurus to threaten a T2 80 than I would 3 extra cards.
-2 Thundurus
+2 Rotom
Victini-EX
Victini-EX is a strange card, and I’m not too sure about where he is going to end up. He can be a terror T1, but his 110 HP should not be overlooked. If you run Victini-EX, I feel the only ACE SPEC of choice is his Victory Piece. This would give Eelektrik a nice T1 attack that could do 50-100 damage or simply accelerate energies from the deck much like Charge does.
But of course, there are always cons to the pros.
- This card is a free 2 Prizes against Keldeo. Your deck has a natural advantage over Keldeo, don’t throw it away.
- This card is a free 2 Prizes against Darkrai. After just one snipe Victini-EX is ripe for the picking, or if the Darkrai player is particularly devious they could play a Dark Claw and simply take you out straight up.
- And most importantly, this card takes away your option to play a different, more useful ACE SPEC. Sure you could just use his first attack with a Fire energy, but then you might as well just use Charge.
As you can see, Victini-EX is more of a liability than even Shaymin EX. It pains me to hate on the little guy so much, but he definitely belongs somewhere else.
-2 Thundurus / -1 Computer Search
+2 Victini-EX / +1 Victory Piece
Lugia EX
Now this is interesting. But I will save all of our time here; Rayquaza EX takes the Knock Out with 4 energies attached to him anyway, and he doesn’t need Plasma Energies. Probably too inconsistent and just altogether unnecessary. Running 3 kinds of energy when none of them are DCE just screams bad idea to me.
-1 Rayquaza EX / -1 Rayquaza / -1 R Energy
+1 Lugia EX / +2 Plasma Energy
So the Pokémon don’t really help us out much, how about the Trainer cards?
Colress
pokegym.netPeople have been talking badly about this card and I’m not sure why. The ability to shuffle draw that many cards is hard to pass up. It may be weak in the early game, but if wait until at least T2 to play this guy, you can get that PONT feel back. And we all loved PONT.
-2 Random Receiver
+2 Colress
Escape Rope
Maybe. I didn’t play competitively back in the days of Warp Point, but if you’re 1HKOing whatever is active, it’s probably best that you pick what that is instead of your opponent. I’d still play Switch.
-1 Switch / -1 Keldeo-EX
+2 Escape Rope
Hypnotoxic Laser
If anyone else has tried to fit this into a non-Basic rush deck, you know what I’m talking about when I say that this just isn’t happening. Not enough room, and generally unnecessary. We’re already doing 180 damage after all. Plus we need Skyarrow Bridge in play to work perfectly; we don’t want Virbank City Gym out there.
Don’t do this. Ever.
Dowsing Machine
Excellent. Eelektrik decks don’t have explosive T1s like the Basic decks out there, so we don’t really need the early game power that Computer Search provides. Dowsing Machine surpasses Computer Search in terms of usefulness after about turn 4, and we shouldn’t need it until then.
-1 Computer Search
+1 Dowsing Machine
The BW-PLS Format
Coming out of Regionals and into States, there are 4 decks that people should know about and need to look out for:
- Keldeo/Blastoise
- Landorus/Mewtwo/Stuff
- Darkrai/Stuff
- Rayquaza/Eelektrik
These are the 4 decks that have won a Winter Regionals and made up most of the Top 32s. Understanding how each of these decks reacts with one another is the key to success, and if we want to win with Rayquaza/Eelektrik, we need to study its matchups specifically.
Now I’m not going to go into much detail about each matchup, but I will touch on the points that involve what each deck gains with the new set and how Eelektrik can adapt.
Vs. Keldeo/Blastoise
This is a pretty nice matchup for Eelektrik. They don’t play Eviolite, so you can easily spam 3 energy Dragon Bursts to take your 2 Prizes. Plus, Thundurus can start killing Squirtles on T2 if they only have 1 benched. But things have changed, and we may need to adapt.
With Plasma Storm comes Black Kyurem EX, Articuno-EX, and Lugia EX. All 3 of these attackers have been talked about in this deck, so I will address each specifically.
pokegym.netThis guy is there to 1HKO anything out there, and there is little Rayquaza can do to stop it. 400 damage from Black Ballista hurts, and you’ll just have to take it. Just know that if they use this card then they have to play a different energy type to cover its cost, be it Lightning, Prism, or Blend.
You can simply KO it by discarding 2 energies from Dragon Burst (unless they are bold and play Crystal Wall, then a third energy is in order). This card just speeds the matchup up; Blastoise player needs 4 energies to 1HKO instead of 6, Eelektrik player needs 2 instead of 3. A fair exchange.
Vs. Articuno-EX
I don’t think this card will be very good. With Hypnotoxic Laser out, people will have answers to Status Conditions, and most of those answers will come in the form of Keldeo-EX. We are no exception. Simply Rush In, retreat, and then blow it up for 180 damage.
Vs. Lugia EX
This makes the matchup kinda funny. If they start with it, you can Thunder Wave with Tynamo to set up a Disaster Volt for 160 KO later in the game, but this may not be that effective. You could throw a regular Zekrom into the deck (he’s still good at Bolt Striking you know) for an easy 2 Prizes, but in all honesty you shouldn’t have a turn to attack this guy.
Lugia EX should be played as Shaymin EX: a finisher on the last turn. Just be aware that Lugia can swoop in at any time to finish the game.
All-in-all, not much changes for Eelektrik against this deck. Being aware of these new attackers is the biggest advantage you can have. If they have 3 Prizes left and opt to weaken a Rayquaza EX instead of Knocking it Out, you may want to retreat because Lugia EX is inbound.
Vs. Landorus/Mewtwo/Stuff
No one likes this matchup. Ok, maybe the Landorus player does, but trust me it is no fun for the Eelektrik player. This is a matchup that you just have to accept will be rough and that your Tynamos will die. We run Super Rod for a reason, right?
The new set does a few favors for this deck, so we will have to be prepared. Ether is finally coming out, and Landorus will be all over that card. Hypnotoxic Laser gives this deck another weapon to kill our Eelektriks, and Scramble Switch lets the deck pull out some unexpected attacks. What can we do against these cards?
Vs. Ether
pokegym.netAccelerating ahead to Land’s Judgment is a little unnecessary against poor Tynamo, but don’t think it won’t happen. Hammerhead T1 into T2 Land’s Judgment can KO your Rayqauzas, so be ready.
Also know that killing a Landorus-EX with energy isn’t as devastating anymore. An attachment, Energy Switch, and Ether will get a new one ready to swing in no time.
My best advice is to always be prepared for taking 150 damage next turn and have a response plan. If it doesn’t happen, then you prepared for the worst and didn’t have to deal with it.
Vs. Hypnotoxic Laser
Landorus doesn’t need this card to donk Tynamos, but if Virbank City Gym is in play, Hammerhead can 1HKO Eelektrik. It can also set up Land’s Judgment for 150 + 30 from poison to 1HKO Rayquaza EX. Again, the best you can do here is be prepared for such an attack.
Know what you will do if your active is Knocked Out before you launch an attack. Countering Virbank City Gym with Skyarrow Bridge is always a good move too. Perhaps upping the count of Skyarrow Bridge to 3 would make this matchup a little easier.
Vs. Scramble Switch
This basically goes hand-in-hand with Ether. This deck will be able to build big attackers out of the middle of nowhere, even a massive Mewtwo to 1HKO your Rayquaza.
Some quick math: if you just Dragon Burst for 180 to KO a Landorus, you have 1 energy left. Your opponent promotes a Landorus with a Double Colorless Energy and leaves a Mewtwo with a F Energy on the bench. Your opponent draws, attaches a DCE to Mewtwo, and Scramble Switches. The new Mewtwo has 5 energies, and so is swinging for 120 damage since you have one also.
But alas, your opponent has another trick up his sleeve as he Ethers another energy onto Mewtwo and then plays Hypnotoxic Laser. The math adds up: Mewtwo with 6 energies + Rayquaza with 1 energy = 140 damage. Going into your turn you take 30 damage from Poison (that pesky Virbank City Gym), and you’re Knocked Out.
This is a (perhaps worst case) scenario in which Scramble Switch will allow decks to surprise Knock Out like never before. Just know that DCEs can be moved now, and that you will be Knocked Out without expecting it, so always plan for it just in case.
That pretty much sums up the new strategy against Landorus. Save up your Super Rod(s) and Skyarrow Bridges, they are the key to winning.
Vs. Darkrai/Stuff
I personally dislike this matchup the most. Playing against Landorus is awful for the first few turns, but if you can get past those it’s not so bad. This deck just doesn’t like to lose. Though playing Hydreigon is alright, straight Darkrai decks can be a real nuisance. What sort of toys does this deck gain?
The new set gives Darkrai decks a few items to bolster their early games. The cards are the same as for Landorus decks, but they serve a slightly different purpose. These cards are Bicycle, Ether, and Hypnotoxic Laser.
Vs. Bicycle
pokegym.netBicycle gives Darkrai more draw on its first turn. Speed Darkrai decks can play down their hand better than any other deck out there with Ultra Ball and no evolutions to clutter. As such, Bicycle is at its most potent in this deck.
If Darkrai is allowed to access even 2 more cards on its first turn than normal, you could very easily have a T1 Night Spear headed your way. If you know that your opponent plays Bicycle, paralyzing with Tynamo may be the best option.
If your opponent doesn’t run Keldeo or can’t access it right away, you can buy a precious turn to set up an Eelektrik or two and get rolling. If you flip tails, well me and you both know that Tynamo was going down anyway.
Vs. Ether
This is pretty much the same as Bicycle, it makes the T1 Night Spear even more of a reality. Though it also allows Darkrais to be powered up much quicker, most decks rely on Dark Patch more often than Ether. Again, trying to buy a turn with Thunder Wave could be your best bet.
Vs. Hypnotoxic Laser
Well this is a little different from the Landorus deck in that Night Spear already humiliates Eelektrik in one shot. However, with Virbank in play Darkrai can 1HKO your Baby Ray with Night Spear + Hypnotoxic Laser. Another weird math scenario could be a Rayquaza with 30 damage from a snipe being Knocked Out by Night Spear + Dark Claw + Hypnotoxic Laser.
Basically put, you need to know that 30 extra damage is always in reach if Virbank City Gym is in play. Be prepared for the KO if you have 120 (or 140 in case of Dark Claw) HP left on your active.
Darkrai will always be tough for Eelektrik to handle. Having Tool Scrapper to remove Eviolites and Super Rods to recover fallen Eels is usually the way to go. Also know that a Crushing Hammer flip can remove your R Energies, so make sure you don’t get stalled for a turn like that.
Vs. Mirror
Well this section is going to be different obviously. I’ve already mentioned the new tricks Eelektrik can do (none) with the new set, so prepping for the mirror shouldn’t be too difficult. Playing a second Baby Ray is always useful, as is a second Super Rod (if you’re really that hardcore/also expect to play against a lot of Landorus).
Plasma Storm really doesn’t do anything for this mirror match.
What About Plasmaklang?
pokegym.netOh, don’t think I’ve forgotten about this little black horse. Plasma Storm brings us a new archetype in Cobalion/Klinklang just like Boundaries Crossed brought us Keldeo/Blastoise. The deck’s main goal, as I’m sure you’re already aware, is to set up Klinklang and therefore make all your Metal Pokémon immune to EX attacks.
Attackers that we could expect from this deck are Cobalion-EX, Registeel-EX, and Cobalion from Noble Victories. We don’t have special energies and don’t run Eviolite, so Cobalion-EX’s attacks are pretty much vanilla damage.
Registeel-EX could be problematic with his spread onto Eels, but Catcher stall + spread isn’t very likely since we have Keldeo-EX to Rush In and save the stranded Eelektrik. Cobalion from Noble Victories is no problem either because we can simply reset the lock with a Keldeo-EX Rush In.
We have three answers to this deck:
A T2 Disaster Volt for 80 can wipe Klinks off the board. This deck probably won’t run Tropical Beach since it has a turn 1 attack in Cobalion-EX, so the probability of multiple Klinks on the bench drops by a bit. This guy can also 2HKO Klinklang, so he is rather useful.
2. Rayquaza DRV
The ability to Shred through anything and deal 90 damage is incredible for a non-EX. This guy trades blow for blow with Cobalion-EX. Since this deck has no way of 1HKOing Rayquaza, you can trade your 1 Prize Rayquaza for their 2 Prize Cobalion-EX all day. However, you have energy acceleration to get another one ready while they have to rely on manual attachments or the inconsistent Ether.
pokemon-paradijs.comThis guy is not a difficult card to tech into Eels. You usually have a full bench, and already run R Energy. Plus you have acceleration so you could just drop Victini and start 1HKOing. This little guy can wipe out Cobalion-EX in one attack, but also receives a 1HKO in return. It’s like a faster Rayquaza trade.
I’m not sure if he is necessary since Rayquaza already trades really well with Cobalion-EX, but he is an easy tech if the deck is really popular in your local metagame.
Conclusion
Phew, this is quite a long article for my first one. I hope I was able to provide some insight into what I believe to be the future of Eelektrik. Once again, the swimming Eel has to adapt to everything around it instead of using new toys to develop new strategies. But it’s pretty easy to do this with such a flexible energy accelerator, so we’re fine.
Oh, I suppose you would like a list to start testing with? This is what I started with:
|
Pokémon – 16 4 Tynamo NVI 38 |
Trainers – 31 4 Professor Juniper
2 Level Ball
|
Energy – 13 |
You could most definitely cut out a Skyla for a second Super Rod if you want. Well, that’s all I’ve got for now (all 3200 words of it haha). Let me know what you guys think of my future sight and what discoveries you have made about our friend Eelektrik.
Until next time chaps
-Zach
“But with Skyarrow Bridge,Keldeo EX only needs 1 energy to retreat, effectively giving all your Eelektriks 1 retreat cost” Skyarrow bridge only works on Basic Pokémon.
When Eelektrik is active, you can ‘rush in’ with Keldeo then retreat Keldeo for 1 energy if Sky Arrow bridge is active. Therefore you’re retreating Eelektrik for 1 energy…
Nvm i read that wrong. you meant by having Keldo EX rush in and retreat. Sorry my bad
No it’s alright. I should have been more clear!
Great article! I really like your examples of how Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX can utilize Ether/LazerBank/Scramble switch, and to be aware of suprise KOs. the only thing im having trouble understanding is Bicycle in Speed darkrai decks, i just think its a waste of space that could be filled with so many other things , its just to situational for me.
I really hope RayEels can survive in this new storm.
Hey Thanks. I appreciate it. Landorus/Mewtwo will be scary if Keldeo doesn’t keep It in check for sure. I’m not sure if I would play bicycle either, but I have a speed Darkrai deck built with it and the deck beats everything but the mirror due to lack of healing cards. I guess this was more of an awareness article haha. Eels need to know what others are capable of before performing well. Me too, thanks for the comment!
Hey Thanks. I appreciate it. Landorus/Mewtwo will be scary if Keldeo doesn’t keep It in check for sure. I’m not sure if I would play bicycle either, but I have a speed Darkrai deck built with it and the deck beats everything but the mirror due to lack of healing cards. I guess this was more of an awareness article haha. Eels need to know what others are capable of before performing well. Me too, thanks for the comment!
From my experience with rayeels (3rd at Oregon regionals with it) I agree with most of what you’ve said and I think the deck is still strong going into the next format. There are a few things that I differ in opinion on that I thought were worth mentioning. For one, I’ve never seen the point of thundurus in the deck. Even when it works properly you’ve got 2 energy stuck on a weak attacker that will hit for 80, 60, or even 40 damadge againt landorus. If your opponent KO’s it then you’re ok, but other wise I find I’ll miss my lightnings. Rayquaza hitting 60 turn 2 just seems better over all. Also I think you need more than 1 switch 1 keldeo. If keldeo’s prized and they catcher eel you may as well scoop, so I’d run either 2 keldeo or go up to 3 switch. I’d say 2 super rod is definately needed to draw it and in case of a bad juniper or start. Finally I think thunder wave is a bad idea vs darkrai, people will be running outs for conditions due to hypnotoxic. Nevermind the flip. I’d rather save an energy attachment and make them use a catcher to get my tynamo active. Just my thoughts, glad to see players still supporting eels :)
Oh nice congratulations on 3rd place! Thundurus is interesting for me. I used to not play him, but when I’m not using the DCE version of the deck, I just like the feel of the T1 Charge. I suppose going the Rayquaza EX route is fine since most basic have 60HP, but it makes the mirror a little more precarious. I never play down Ray EX in the mirror, unless I know I can take 2 KOs with him before being knocked out, so having something to start with that isn’t him is nice. I suppose I should try aggro Ray EX, I’ve never thought of that way before. The switch/Keldeo count is alright in practice; Eel usually dies when brought active anyway. If they’re stalling you, Skyla for switch or Ultra Ball for Keldeo. If you prize Keldeo, the one switch gives you an emergency out until you can get Keldeo. I’ve also toyed with 2 Super Rod, I go back and forth. I believe I mentioned a second Super Rod in the article somewhere; I may cut a Skyla for it if necessary, but I’ve never had problems with it as a one-of. I also agree Thunder Wave is a bad idea, but honestly T1 Night Spear is so demoralizing it might just work. If they don’t need a catcher to bring it active, they have to use a Skyla for switch or something, so still some resources killed at least. Thanks for the comment, go Eels!
So instead of going to school this week you decided to do this?
Ha, what else am I supposed to do?
I liked the article and gave it a +1, but I disagree with not playing Hypnotoxic Laser. That card is too amazing not to play. I’m playing two in my Plasmaklang build, to give you an idea. You don’t need to run Virbank for it to be effective, it’s plenty good on its own. It also sets up OHKOes on EX’s with an Eviolite and 170 HP and it forces an early game Landorus to retreat and Switch back active to not be an easier two prizes later. It’s not a four-of here like it is in other decks, but I definitely think it warrants two or three spots.
i’d say being consistent is far more useful than the situational uses that laser has. sure it can set up kos, but having more eels out would do the same effect every turn.
You don’t have to cut that much consistency for them, and I don’t see why HTL is any different than Catcher in the sense that even though it doesn’t do anything to help consistency, it still helps you win.
Honestly I don’t see how much adding two Laser could hurt consistency. It would hurt speed a bit, but RayEels isn’t aimed towards speed, it’s more of a late game deck. You still set up just fine and it works wonders in situations when you’re one Energy short of the OHKO (Which happens a lot, even with a consistent list).
the difference is that ray eels is meant to always OHKO things after they get setup, so the only window for laser would be from tun 2-4, before you have so many eels that you could OHKO everything in format but can attack for decent amount of damage. also, attackers are the only non-consistency cards in the deck. besides, you want to be speedy so the landy and darkrai don’t outspeed you.
Eels are going to be killed as the game goes on.
Catcher technically isn’t a consistency card.
The Landy and Darkrai are going to outspeed you. Your goal is to set up reasonably fast enough and kill them before they kill your Eels.
My list is really straightforward and doesn’t have any tricks to it really. I used to have a variant with Energy Switch and Max Potion, but then it become a “jack-of-all-trades, master of none” kind of deck. It was really inconsistent. With just thick lines of everything, set-up is easy. Fitting in lasers cuts deeply into that, and they really don’t do anything an extra Eel / Tool Scrapper does. Could be useful vs Landorus, I’ve already got Tynamo for dire situations.
The 4 of Skyla is mainly due to my hatred of Cheren and Bianca. I found that in the 3-4 cards I grabbed from those supporters, I usually was searching for a certain card. Skyla ensured I never whiffed the one I needed, and is always welcome when I’m N’d to 1 and looking for that game winning Catcher. Personal preference; I definitely agree Skyla is best in Stage 2s and item engines for sure. Thanks for the comment!
As I said, you don’t have to go all-out on Lasers, but they’re definitely good enough to warrant the spot.
The difference between HTL and stuff like Max Potion and Energy Switch is that HTL is a much better card. Think of it this way: Catcher does nothing to help consistency, yet you play it. Why? Because it’s an amazing card. Lasers are the same way.
I definitely think that 2 HTL could find its way into that list. I think that HTL is more important than the Switch, second Level Ball (I played Eels with none with success), second Thundurus, and fourth Skyla. Consistency is nice, but there are times when tech cards are better.
HTL is pointless and obsolete in Rayeels since it can OHKO everything, you don’t need to poison them,especially since tool scrapper is more effective on the eviolited pokemon
RayEels doesn’t necessarily OHKO everything. It only OHKOes everything when it has 4 Eelektrik in play. There are times when you need 10 more damage.
Tool Scrapper isn’t necessarily more effective, and sometimes you’ll need both (Eviolited Tornadus with Aspertia).
Point is, you can only OHKO stuff if you can load that much Energy onto Ray. Since people will be Catcher-KOing your Eels, you’re going to occasionally need a little extra damage.
The only way I see HTL being useful is if you can only get 3 Lightning on Rayquaza EX and have an Eviolited Tornadus EX with Aspertia. Then Tool Scrapper + Dragon Burst will leave it 10 short. But this is way too situational for me. There will be times where you will be able to get an extra energy on him, especially with such thick lines of everything. Set up is easy, so it’s not impossible to Dragon Burst for 240 to take the OHKO.
Setting up is easy, but staying set up is the hard part. You also won’t always have access to the Tool Scrapper because you can only use 2 a game (If you count Dowsing Machine).
Since when do you need four Eels in play? That’s suicide.
You don’t need it, and it is by no means suicide. Why would you say it’s suicide?
Because you get catcher stalled for daaayyyss man. And lack of bench space as well.
Any Eel can get Catcher stalled. Having four doesn’t make them more likely to be Catcher-killed.
And you don’t need the bench space that much, I’m fine with a Ray, a Keldeo, and 4 Eels if I manage to set it up.
Well there you go, setup makes Laser obsolete. Consistent list = setup. Setup = win. Win = no need for laser. Even 2 Eels can do it if you’re smart and use an attachment (assuming you already have the Fire). I don’t know why you would ever need 4 lol. Don’t worry about Catcher stall; it means you’re winning and that your opponent burned a Catcher for no good reason.
Setup makes Laser obsolete until your Eels go down. Once a couple Eels get killed you need to hit magic numbers.
Just Super Rod and set more up. Regardless, HTL still doesn’t allow magic numbers unless you have an Eviolited 170HP EX. RayEels didn’t run PlusPower for the same reason
There will be a bunch of Darkrai variants playing Virbank City Gym as well, which allows you to one-shot Eviolited Darkrais.
Well we can go back and forth with specific examples. If you’ve managed to fit HTL in the list and it run smoother than before, then I’m impressed. I think I will just stick to having a consistent list that aims at getting an extra energy on the board instead.
all thunderuses should be zekroms since they can one-shot lugias and are better in mirror…
In the mirror you generally use Rayquaza. Shred is by far the best attack in the deck for killing Rayquaza EX. Rayquaza EX also OHKOs Lugia, just with one more energy. Plus, regular Zekrom isn’t really strong without Eviolite, which doesn’t fit in well here. Also, I like to start with Thundurus, and Zekrom is just a poopy starter
in the mirror you will never put down rayquazas ex or you are doing it all wrong. you will have two main attackers in the mirror:zekrom and rayquaza. your main attacker is zekrom as it takes out rayquaza and other zekroms(and, i guess thunderus), both of which thundy can’t do, and it is easier to stream that rayquaza. besides, you dont need more than 3 non ex attackers. just play 2 super rod. oh, and if you play 3-4 switch instead of keldeo and play emolga(which is great as a 1-2 of in this deck), or just attach energy and outrage, there is nothing wrong with itas a starter. sure, it is not as strong as thundy but it isn’t that bad(also, eels will always have the worst starters in the game…).
Alright, I see you’re argument for the mirror. Without Eviolite, it is noteworthy that Zekrom dies to Shred after a Bolt Strike, so it still trades evenly with Rayquaza. Rayquaza kills Eels and other Rayquazas just fine and is usually the pivotal card in the mirror; Zekrom does the same but with all Lightning instead of a Fire and 2 Lightning. Plus Zekrom can’t take advantage of a benched Ray EX if your opponent is clumsy enough to do it. I never said I would use Ray EX in the mirror, I agree that it’s not a good idea unless you know he can’t be knocked out and so will get 4 prizes for you. I’ll still play 2 Thundurus / 2 Rayquaza for the balance of mirror strength and early game pressure. Zekrom is just clunky. And I don’t like Emolga, with so much search Items I can just play Thundurus to pressure the opponent’s board.
Problem with your match up against Keldeo/Blastoise is that, I play Keldeo/Blastoise and have battled heaps of Rayeel decks and I’ve found that Keldeo/Blastoise loves to dance on Rayeel’s grave and Rayeels has since dropped from tier 1 to tier 2.
I disagree. If Keldeo/Blastoise can’t return an OHKO from Rayquaza EX on a Keldeo, then they pretty much lose the game. Back to back knockouts on Keldeos will seal the deal for the most part, and N will make sure that they can’t return it. RayEels has still been very popular and did well at Winter Regionals. I’m not one to put decks into tiers; I think it’s silly, but if RayEels were to fall from its tier 1 spot, it’s not lower than 1.5.
But that’s just all theorymon. I read Dane Carlson’s article about what won Regionals where he lives and in Masters Keldeo/Blastoise was the most played deck and won more than any other deck at 22 while Rayeels only won 9 times and was played 32, only doing a 3rd of what Keldeo/Blastoise did. Have you even battled a Keldeo/Blastoise deck and won? And do you qualify for Juniors, Seniors or Masters? Cause most of The Rayeel decks I defeated have been in Masters (some at leagues). I’ve only ever loss to Rayeel deck with Keldeo/Blastoise. So your argument is all theorymon, almost no real facts.
What? Keldeo was more popular, yes. That doesn’t make RayEels any less powerful. It’s a great matchup. Eelektrik may not be BDIF anymore, but it’s definitely competitive without a doubt. I played RayEels during Cities because it beats Blastoise/Keldeo. And yes, it was Masters. I only have played with Masters… This article is based on my experience at Cities and how the deck performed. I’ve also played a fair share of games with the deck with Plasma Storm as well, and wrote based on what I found there.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who plays Thundurus in RayEels! All of my friends think it is crazy, but it feels good to go agro from turn two and get energy in the discard!
Haha yeah I love Thundurus. So much fun to kill little baby basics and set up your Rayquazas