Wisdom of Sea and Sky has just launched, bringing a fresh wave of powerful and promising cards. While we can’t know exactly how the meta will evolve, some new cards already look like strong contenders worth building around.

To help you decide which packs to prioritize, here are my top picks for the standout cards from each one. If a card is an evolution, assume the full line is included to.

Which Pack to Choose?

Ho-Oh Exclusive Cards

• Ho-oh ex
• Swanna
• Jumpluff
• Togekiss
• Donphan ex
• Crobat ex
• Umbreon ex
• Tyranitar
• Skarmory ex
• Magby
• Tyrogue
• Steel Apron
• Dark Pendant
• Silver
• Jasmine
• Hiker

Lugia Exclusive Cards

• Shuckle ex
• Typhlosion
• Kingdra ex
• Gyarados
• Lanturn ex
• Xatu
• Pichu
• Espeon ex
• Lugia ex
• Corsola
• Cleffa
• Elemental Switch
• Will
• Lyra
• Fisher
• Squirt Bottle

Ho-oh Lugia Non-Exclusive Cards

• Eevee

From the exclusives alone, it’s clear that the Ho-Oh pack is the one to open if you’re following the meta. The power level of the cards there easily outclasses the Lugia pack — we’ll get into that more below.

• Donphan ex
• Crobat ex
• Dark Pendant
• Silver

As for the Lugia pack, the only real standouts are the Supporters — though Gyarados is also shaping up to be a potential threat.

• Lyra
• Will
• Elemental Switch

Thankfully, the new Eevee isn’t a pack exclusive — and it’s even more broken than last set’s version. It lets you draw a Pokémon directly, which pairs perfectly with Sylveon ex, still the strongest card out of Eevee Grove. You now have a higher chance of drawing into Sylveon ex early, letting you immediately accelerate your setup and gameplan.

Ranking every Card so far

10. Gyarados

The new Gyarados is looking like a strong contender with its ability to deal 140 damage by discarding 3 Water Pokémon. That’s a solid payoff, especially if you’re aiming for early pressure — but the downside is burning through your resources quickly, which could hurt in longer games.

It’s still too early to tell if the card will be consistently good, but the added tempo might just make it worth it. I’d personally love to see this deck take off — it brings a fresh mechanic we haven’t really seen in a while, and it’d be exciting to see it work.

9. Skarmory ex

The new Skarmory ex looks like a reliable early-game attacker — 70 damage for just 2 energy, with 140 HP and built-in -20 damage reduction from the attackmakes it surprisingly tanky and hard to one-shot.

It might not end up as the best deck overall, but its consistency and simplicity could easily make it a top-tier option. You can even run two Skarmory ex and just an 18T core, making it one of the cheaper competitive builds this expansion.

8. Lyra

Lyra offers another way to retreat your Active Pokémon, but it does come with a condition — the target needs to be damaged. Because of that, Leaf might still be the better all-around option.

Where Lyra shines is in decks with heavier retreat costs, especially anything with 3 or more like Snorlax. It fits best in tank-style builds that need a way to move their bulky frontliners reliably.

7. Will

Will is a potential game-changer purely based on its effect — guaranteeing your coin flips is undeniably powerful. On paper, that kind of control can swing key moments, and it definitely earns a spot on this list for impact alone.

The problem is that coin flip effects aren’t usually reliable or game-ending, even when they hit. To get value out of Will, you need to run more flip-based effects, which naturally makes the deck more inconsistent. That tradeoff might not be worth it overall — but we’ll see.

I’d actually welcome it if Will finds its way into a meta deck. The new Xatu gives it a bit more of a reason to try, but there are still a lot of hoops to make it all work.

6. Donphan ex

This is the part of the list where I think we’re looking at real potential gamechangers for the meta. Fighting might finally be back thanks to Donphan ex. It deals a solid 50 damage that ramps up to 110 for just 3 energy — and that kind of pressure is comparable to something like Garchomp ex.

The key difference is that Donphan is only a Stage 1, so you don’t need Rare Candy to get it going. That makes it easier to build around. The downsides? It has a hefty 3 retreat cost and doesn’t hit the bench, so it might still fall short compared to Garchomp ex. But with fewer setup pieces, it might be worth the tradeoff — we’ll have to see how it plays out

5. Elemental Switch

Elemental Switch is looking cracked — it’s basically Dawn, but as an Item instead of a Supporter, limited to Fire, Water, and Lightning types.

Lightning decks are already aggressive thanks to Zeraora paired with Dawn, and Elemental Switch now lets you pull off the same energy movement while still playing a Supporter that turn. It also opens up more flexibility for Eeveelution builds, giving Flareon ex, Sylveon ex, and even potential introduction of Glaceon because of Water energy.

4. Dark Pendant

Dark Pendant might be the most broken card in the set right now. It gives Dark decks way too much freedom, letting them gain energy effortlessly every time they get knocked out. Cards like Guzzlord or even Darkrai can snowball off this easily.

You can still attack them — at the cost of losing your hand. It might be too strong if left unchecked, and running Guzma is starting to feel like a must just to deal with Dark decks more effectively.

3. Crobat ex

The new Crobat ex, along with the Zubat and Golbat line, is absolutely insane. All of them deal Poison for just 1 energy, and when paired with Nihilego, you’re looking at 20 poison damage per turn on top of your attacks — that adds up fast. Crobat ex can even 2-shot something like Charizard ex if left unchecked.

Add in Dark Pendant, and suddenly it becomes risky just to KO anything in this deck. The only real downside is Zubat’s 50 HP, but every strong deck needs a weak spot. You can also pair this with Arceus or Darkrai for even more aggression. A strong Dark deck is definitely on the horizon.

2. Eevee

The new Eevee is even stronger than the last set’s version — which was already pretty solid. The main reason is how dominant Sylveon ex has become, showing up in almost every top meta deck.

This new Eevee increases your chances of finding Sylveon ex, making your setup much more consistent compared to just drawing a random card. Now you can reliably evolve on your next turn with more chances. With this kind of support, expect Sylveon ex to be even more prevalent this expansion.

1. Silver

Silver is shaping up to be one of the strongest Supporters we’ve seen so far. Hand disruption has always been powerful when timed right — think Mars or Red Card — but Silver takes it even further. You get to see your opponent’s hand and choose a Supporter to discard.

Going first, you can outright remove something like Professor’s Research before they even get to play it, which can easily win games on its own. It stays relevant in every stage of the match too — deleting a key Cyrus, Sabrina, Red, Giovanni, or Lusamine can completely shut down your opponent’s plan.

Expect to see Silver in almost every deck moving forward. And hey, this might be the perfect time to start running Penny just so you can use it more often.

Conclusion

While it’s still too early to say what the top decks will be, one thing’s already clear — the Ho-Oh pack is the one to prioritize. The exclusives alone give you access to some of the most meta-relevant cards right now, and if you’re looking to stay competitive, it’s hands down the best place to start.

What’s your top cards and deck from Wisdom of Sea and Sky? Let me know in the comments what you think of the new set and what decks you’re planning to play — I’d love to hear your thoughts!