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It's been three weeks since Pokémon Pocket soft-launched in New Zealand, and many players have flocked there to get early access to the game. While we're still in the early stages of understanding both the game and its meta, some of the strongest decks are already emerging. We've also identified key cards that give these decks an edge over other archetypes.
In this article, I'll highlight 10 powerful cards that have boosted deck performance and quickly become essential additions to specific archetypes. Let’s dive in!
10- Charizard ex
Kicking it off at number 10, a1-36-charizardex is a powerhouse Stage 2 Fire Pokemon, so it can take a couple of turns to get him in play. Once in play, a1-36-charizardex can obliterate anything in front of him with Crimson Storm, dealing 200 damage, the highest damage output in the game!
However, Crismon Storm requires 4 Energy to activate and will discard 2 Fire Energy when activated, so it's expensive to use and you'll need to rely on a ramp card like a1-47-moltresex to speed up your strategy with a1-36-charizardex.
You'll evolve it from a1-33-charmander and a1-34-charmeleon. a1-34-charmeleon isn't posing a great threat and his Fire Claws needs 3 Energy to deal 60 damage.
9- Exeggutor ex
a1-23-exeggutorex is an aggressive Grass Pokemon, requiring only 1 Grass Energy to start attacking with Tropical Swing. Tropical Swing only deals 40 damage, however, you get to flip a coin, and if it's heads, you're adding another 40 damage. So you are reliant on the luck factor, but 80 damage is huge in the early game, getting quick points and potentially ruining the opponent's strategy.
a1-23-exeggutorex is also pretty tanky with 160 health, so he's not easily knocked out. However, a1-23-exeggutorex's biggest downside is the retreat cost being at 3 Energy. Since we're only attaching 1 Energy to a1-23-exeggutorex, it's difficult to justify committing more Energy to retreat him, so you'll likely have to sacrifice him.
8- Zapdos ex
a1-104-zapdosex is one of the Legendary birds in Pokemon Pocket making it in the number 8 spot! The Legendary Bird has been a popular inclusion in lightning decks, acting as a secondary win condition with Thundering Hurricane. There is a randomness involved as you'll flip a coin 4 times and will deal 50 damage for each heads. So you can push up to 200 damage if you're lucky, but even 100 damage can be enough in most cases. Peck can be used early into the game to put pressure and weaken a Pokemon to knock it out easier, but it's not an attack you can rely on to win games.
a1-104-zapdosex's retreat being only 1 makes it easy for you to switch him out for another Pokemon, denying the opponent an easy knockout for 2 Points.
7- Articuno ex
The main reason a1-84-articunoex is as powerful as it is in the current meta is thanks to a1-220-misty, speeding up getting to 3 Water Energy and start going for those Blizzard attacks.
Blizzard is extremely strong because it can knock out multiple Pokemon, nothing on the opponent's Bench is safe, so retreating a damaged Pokemon won't do too much for the opponent since it'll continue to get damaged by Blizzard.
Most Water decks are including a1-84-articunoex in their lists since a1-220-misty is an auto inclusion, so it makes sense to have a1-84-articunoex as an alternate win condition.
6- Moltres ex
a1-47-moltresex is the strongest Fire Pokemon, mostly for its Inferno Dance, which for 1 Fire Energy, you can activate to flip a Coin 3 times and for each heads you can attach a Fire Energy to your benched Pokemon. This enables you to play other strong Fire Pokemon like a1-36-charizardex and get their high-cost attacks as early as possible. It's a staple inclusion in most Fire decks thanks to its ramping capabilities, speeding up your game plan.
a1-47-moltresex is a Basic Pokemon, so you'll always want to play him as early as possible to start using Inferno Dance on the early turns and you can transition to Heat Blast to push 70 damage, threatening to knock out low health Pokemon. In many cases, you'll want to retreat it to allow your carry Pokemon you've been ramping up to take over the game, so the 2 cost to retreat can at times be a nuisance, but promo-2-x-speed can come in clutch here.
5- Mewtwo ex
a1-129-mewtwoex being a Basic Pokemon gives it a huge advantage over other Pokemon, with its 150 health, it can be difficult for most opponents to knock it out with one attack, allowing you to get more out of a1-129-mewtwoex. For only two Energy, you can start activating Psychic Sphere, dealing 50 damage to the opponent's Pokemon. Not quite enough to justify its spot in this list as the 50 damage doesn't post a high enough threat. However, Psydrive is where things take a different approach, now dealing 150 damage, capable of knocking out most Pokemon on the opponent's side.
The reason I didn't rank up a1-129-mewtwoex higher on this list is because of Psydrive's condition, forcing you to discard two Psychic Energy. So a1-129-mewtwoex is almost always tied to a1-132-gardevoi for the extra Psychic Energy you'll get, enabling you to activate Psydrive every turn.
4- Venusaur ex
a1-4-venusaurex is a Stage 2 Pokemon, so it can be slow to set it up as a win condition, and both a1-1-bulbasaur and a1-2-ivysaur aren't the strongest options to have in play. However, after a1-4-venusaurex joins the battle, it can be a game changer with its tanky 190 health alongside Giant Bloom, dealing 100 damage and healing a1-4-venusaurex by 30 damage.
a1-4-venusaurex sticks in play and can be exceptionally difficult for opponents to knockout thanks to the healing of Giant Bloom alongside cards like a1-219-erika and promo-1-potion. The 100 damage from Giant Bloom is no laughing matter, capable of knocking out most high-health Pokemon with two attacks.
3- Pikachu ex
a1-96-pikachuex's Circle Circuit needs only two Lightning Energy to start pushing up to 90 damage, depending on the number of Pokemon in your Bench. a1-96-pikachuex is a Basic Pokemon, so he joins the battle immediately without being tied to another Pokemon.
a1-96-pikachuex's only downside is it has low health compared to other top ex-Pokemon, so it can get knocked out easily. Requiring only 1 Energy to retreat gives you more flexibility to switch if out of the Active spot and makes it difficult for opponents to knock it out.
Water type decks being popular in the current Pokemon Pocket meta have also played a role in pushing a1-96-pikachuex to the top of this list as it's a reliable counter option to beat those decks.
2- Starmie ex
The runner up on this list goes to a1-76-starmieex, thanks to its multiple advantages over other Pokémon that have propelled its deck to the top of the meta. In every tier list, you'll find, you'll see a1-76-starmieex on the top of it, mostly because of a1-76-starmieex's early strength combined with a1-220-misty, accelerating the deck's aggression.
This Water-type Pokemon needs only two Water Energy to deal 90 damage, enabling it to take an aggressive stance and win games before opponents can establish their strategy. No other Pokémon matches the level of pressure a1-76-starmieex applies, with only Lightning-type decks managing to hold their own against it.
Additionally, a1-76-starmieex has no retreat cost, allowing it to easily switch out of the Active spot without losing any Energy, preventing opponents from securing a knockout and gaining 2 Prize cards.
1- Misty
I can confidently say that a1-220-misty is the strongest card in Pokemon Pocket, carrying the Water-type Pokemon and setting up extremely aggressive game plans.
a1-220-misty lets you flip a coin until you get tails and for each heads you get, you attach a Water Energy to the Pokemon you chose. It's an RNG card, where half the time you won't get any value from it, but for the other half, getting just 1 Water Energy can get the game rolling on earlier turns, quickly pushing damage and knocking out Pokemon before your opponents get to set up their strategy.
This has allowed decks like a1-84-articunoex and a1-76-starmieex to thrive in the meta, getting access to their attacks on earlier turns.
Closing Words
Pokemon Pocket has a variety of unique and powerful cards, which makes narrowing it down to just 10 a real challenge. There are, of course, plenty of worthy contenders that could have made this list, but I’ve tried to focus primarily on cards that we see perform in different decks. Although Pokemon Pocket caters to the casual community more, there is potential for the game to grow beyond that and for a competitive scene to develop.
