Through The Tall Grass
Welcome back! This week’s article is all about that stack of shiny cardboard you have: the deck. Other than a really cool playmat, and sleeves with just the right feel, it’s the most important part of the game. When I started, I had no idea how to pick a deck. Do people build their own from scratch, and if so, what’s the fix of Pokemon/Energy/Trainer cards? Do they not build decks, and if not, where are they finding them? I’m going to be up front, my focus is learning and enjoying the game, not being competitive. In a future article I’ll be giving my opinion on meta vs. non meta. These are the questions I tried to get answers to as I went to my first league night. Forty-five minutes late because I thought it was open play and not a league night, but that’s not the point.
Question the First: What’s a Good Deck to Start With?
I couldn’t figure this out on my own, so I went to the local FLGS and asked. Shout out to Flipside East Greenbush! I was given a pretty solid answer.
Pre Constructed (precon) Decks: If we’re talking about the quickest to grab and get learning, Pokemon League Battle Box is a great start. These are preconstructed decks, along with some of the bits and pieces you’ll need, like all those nice d6 that you’ll be stacking on your cards fighting against the monkey that haunts my dreams, Munkidori (TWI 95/167).
I started out with what was in stock, the Team Rocket's Mewtwo ex League Battle Deck. Solid deck, easy to figure out, and able to win some matches at the local league night. And you get your first taste of the sweet sweet synergy of Team Rocket supporters.
Trainer Note: The precon decks are a good start, but need some tweaks and changes to be regularly competitive or more consistent. How do you figure this out? That brings us to our next option…
The Internet: At this point, if you’re someone who runs off at the “Meowth” with a ton of questions, you’ll have heard of limitlesstcg.com. This website is the gathering of all the decks played at all regional and big tournaments, with all the stats tracked. So you can easily find the deck that’s won the most games, or won the big tournament you watched the stream of. It is the place to find the most competitive deck, as far as the meta is concerned. Once you find the decklist you want, it’s very easy and usually affordable to buy the cards from your FLGS or a reputable seller online.
Trainer Note: As mentioned, this will get you a list of whatever deck is winning tournaments, which might be more complicated than you want if you’re coming into this as a beginner.
Ok Josh, you gave me options. Which should I pick?
It is my opinion that you should pick whichever deck you’ll have the most fun with, and be willing to play the most times. At this point, learning the cadence of a match, how to manage your deck and resources, and how to analyze your match are more important than picking a deck that’s competitive. If Hydrapple (Hydrapple ex - 014/142) is your favorite dragon type (#justiceforcharizard), so much that you’ll be more willing to play that deck 100 times, that’s the deck to play rather than whatever is at the top of the meta pile that you’ll get frustrated with after a few losses.
Next time, we’ll be discussing the Phanpy in the room: meta vs. non meta.
Let’s have fun,
Josh H.
