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Trying to climb the ranked ladder fast on Day 1 of Secluded Spings?
Unfortunately, there aren't much data to gather around this time with fewer tournaments going on at the start of the expansion. Some bugs on the client made it also hard for tournaments to progress without hiccups. Anyhow, I still tried my best to find the best decks all for you to play on day 1 of the expansion. Our first large data is from FrogEX Weekly Cup with 380 players, but it stopped at round 4, making it less reliable than we were hoping it to be. The other is the SuperBicho Weekly Cup Limitless Proof with 61 players.
Here are the top decks you can try right now!
Suicune ex Greninja
With 38 players sporting a 56% win rate, this seems to be the best new archetype of Secluded Springs. Given that A4a-020 is the face of the set, it makes sense. What's intriguing is there are multiple variations of the deck playing around a core of A1-089 and A4a-020, then having different techs alongside. Some include the new A4a-023 generating energy, ensuring you can attack the next turn. Some include A3-066 and a A2b-035. For A3-066, this is much more manageable in tournaments since you can choose energy, but for ranked play, it is much harder to play around 2 energies just for A3-066 and may not seem to be worth it. I settled with this list since it's simple enough and consistent. You don't mind starting with A1-087 since you can retreat into A4a-020 and then draw through your whole deck, making A1-089 much more active. You can play around with different techs like what I mentioned and see what fits you. The game plan is pretty much evolve A1-087 into A1-089 as soon as you can to make use of its ability while you can have dual damage from either A1-089 or A4a-020.
Espeon ex Sylveon ex
The most played deck of the event with 50 players, although it has a 48% win rate only, which is a little normal given the astounding amount of mirrors for the deck. What's also pulled back a lot of its win rate is it lost to a lot of A3-066 hybrids, whether A3a-061 or A2a-071, making it quite a surprise given that from its total stats from last expansion, it's A4-083 A3b-034 that has the advantage. So we are not sure if this is just a stream of bad luck from the players. Still, I reckon A4-083 A3b-034 is still one of the top decks for sure from consistency alone, and it can out-heal A1-089's ability, making it a suitable deck for the resurgence of A1-089 around. A4-083 A3b-034 won the SuperBicho cup, so just to show who's boss.
As always, if you're new to the deck, you can just check this guide from last expansion.
Raikou ex Magnezone
Sporting a 59% win rate with 10 players. A4a-025 seems to be the next best after A4a-020 from the legendary dogs. The most successful shell is to include the A2-053 line and an A3-066 against EX decks. The ideal goal most of the time is to lead with A4a-025 while you keep drawing cards to build your A2-053. A3-066 serves as backup against EX Pokemon as always. A1-098 can generate Lightning energy on its own and with enough energy become an attacker when evolved into A2-053. With A4a-025's bench damage, double A2-150 becomes more active, letting you choose your Pokemon most of the time. A4-151 can also be active due to A1-098's ability.
Darkrai ex Giratina ex
Having a 57% win rate with 29 players, A2-110 A2b-035 is still, as always, a force to be reckoned with, especially since it is also considered to be the best deck of last expansion, just sitting with A4-083 A3b-034. With a high enough sample and still having that high of a win rate, you can't go wrong with playing A2-110 A2b-035. There's not much innovation, as the Supporters and Tools from this expansion don't add anything to the usual game plan. Double A1a-068 has been performing quite well and also counters A4-083 A3b-034 since you can just easily switch between a A2b-035 and A2-110 since A2-110 can deal a final blow to A4-083. Even though it beat A4-083 A3b-034, it lost to the champion of the SuperBicho cup.
Arceus ex Pichu
Next with impressive results is one of the top decks from last expansion as well, with a 56% win rate on a 27-player count. With the rise of Water decks due to A4a-020, Lightning becomes stronger looking to prey upon them. It is one of the successful A3-066 decks from last expansion since it answers the damage problem of A3-066, although it's not without its cons like starting with A2a-071. For some reason, it farmed A4-083 A3b-034 in the tournament. It does lose to the new A4a-020 A1-089 and A3b-009 A4-134. Depending on what you face, A2a-071 A4-066 is the way to go.
You can check this guide from last expansion to see how it goes.
Silvally Pichu
52% with 17 players. The more stable version of A4-066, making A3a-061 as its partner. It leans towards the early game, so damage does become limited later on, making other decks that have answers to A3-066 while one-shotting A3a-061 become a problem, like A3b-009 A4-134 or A3a-006.
Also made a guide from last expansion, so check that out.
Greninja Oricorio
A1-089 A3-066 got 70% out of 13 players, making it really an impressive performance. It has been popping in and out of the meta and is one of the strongest counters to A2-110 A2b-035, which makes it extremely strong in tournaments where you would expect to face A2-110 A2b-035. There's no addition to the usual lists, but this one is where it runs A3-054 instead of one line of A3b-034. Some also ditch A3-054 altogether. It is also extremely effective in tournaments due to how you can choose energy, especially if you don't need A3-066 at all and can just run water energy. In ladder, we definitely need to run water and lightning to make use of A1-089 and A3-066. The game plan is to simply evolve into A1-089 as fast as you can to start making use of its ability. A3-066 as your front against EX decks while A2b-035 can be your standalone hitter, especially in the early rounds where you are still generating energy.
Buzzwole
53% with 15 players. A3a-006 is still one of the strong decks to bring due to how it can comfortably handle A3-066 with either A2-150 plays or even A3a-062. The double A3a-007 double A2-150 has been the dominating variant for quite a while now, so results speak for themselves. It does suffer against A4-083 A3b-034 due to how it can just heal through the damage, making A2-150 plays harder to use. You can check this guide for more info on how to play.
Flareon Eevee
Although only 4 players brought it, it had a 68% win rate, making it a worthy contender. It has been quite a popular deck already in the final weeks of last set. It dominates A3a-061 A4-066, A3a-006, and A4-083 A3b-034, making it a top pick but only in the upper ranks since those are much more common there. It is weak to A3a-043, A1-089 A3-066, and A2b-010 A3b-034. The deck tends to rush either A3b-009 or A1-045 with A4-032. It does suffer if you don't start with A4-032 or are unable to find A3b-009 since that is the deck's win condition.
Meowscarada
Finally, I wanted to feature this deck since it has been ages since we saw A2b-007, and it actually performed well in both tournaments, albeit just 1 different player for each. It notably adds the new A4a-006 as a counter to evolution decks, most importantly A2b-010. One incredible interaction is A4a-006's damage calculations apply before sending it back to the hand, so if you used A2b-071 on A4a-006 on a A2b-010, it can deal up to 60 damage on the A1-033, knocking it out altogether. It also features A4-101 from the last expansion. I'm not exactly sure of its role, but I guess it's a going-first option if you want to protect A2b-005 and also can one-shot other baby Pokemon with A1-223. Definitely an interesting take, and we might see it in the future. The deck mainly operates by using Sprigatito to search the Meowscarada line and become your main damage dealer.
Final Thoughts
A4a-020 A1-089 emerges as the top new deck with 56% win rate, and honestly, this archetype has the perfect mix of draw power and mobility to dominate the early meta. A2-110 A2b-035 stays reliable at 57%, proving once again why it's been a consistent powerhouse. Meanwhile, A4-083 A3b-034 struggles at 48% despite popularity - the mirrors and A3-066 pressure are real challenges to overcome.
Lightning decks are positioned perfectly against this Water influx, so if you're looking to climb, now's the time to strike with those type advantages. Whether you're bringing proven consistency or experimenting with the new hotness, good luck out there in the Secluded Springs meta - may your draws be perfect and your matchups favorable!
