Searching Standard: Lokix

Hello and welcome to another episode of Searching Standard, where each and every week I look for new, innovative decks for you to play in Standard. This week, I'm looking at a deck that was recently featured on the YouTube channel of LittleDarkFury. It features Lokix PAL 21, a Pokemon capable of Knocking Out any opposing Pokemon, with a little help. Let's get started by taking a look at the deck list.

Lokix PAL 21 has the Assaulting Kick attack, which can be used with a single Energy attached. This attack normally does 30 damage, but if you Evolved into Lokix PAL 21 from Nymble PAR 13 this turn, you'll deal an additional 100 damage. Against a Pokemon weak to Grass Types, you'll deal 260 damage, which is enough to Knock Out most opponents. However, to Knock Out Charizard ex PAF 54, you'll still need a little extra help, which we'll talk about later. And as you'll see, attacking a Pokemon that has a Weakness to your Pokemon's type is the key to winning with this deck. That's why there's a copy of Lokix PAR 122 included, which can help against Pokemon weak to Dark Type Pokemon.

Other Pokemon that you can use in certain situations are Kleavor ASR 85 and Scizor OBF 141. Kleavor ASR 85's Rocky Tackle attack can deal 300 damage to a Pokemon weak to Fighting Type Pokemon, while Scizor OBF 141's Punishing Scissors attack has a ceiling of 310 damage, doubled to 620 damage to a weak opponent.

The final attackers for this deck are Luxray PAL 71 and Radiant Charizard CRZ 20. Luxray PAL 71 has the potential of coming directly into play, without the need of Evolving, thanks to its Swelling Flash Ability. Radiant Charizard CRZ 20 is a great late game attacker, as its Excited Heat Ability can allow you to attack with its Combustion Blast attack when you only have a single Fire Energy attached.

In order to draw extra cards, this deck utilizes the Bibarel BRS 121 / Skwovet PAF 205 combo. As long as you have one card in your hand, you can use Skwovet PAF 205's Nest Stash Ability to shuffle your hand back to the bottom of your deck and draw one new card. You can then use Bibarel BRS 121's Industrious Incisors Ability to fill your hand back to five cards. By doing this turn after turn, you can quickly cycle through your deck to find the cards you need most.

This deck is also employing a pair of Pokemon that have Abilities that protect your Benched Pokemon. Jirachi PAR 126's Stellar Wish Ability prevents damage counters from being placed on your Benched Pokemon, while Manaphy BRS 41's Wave Veil Ability prevents your Benched Pokemon from taking any damage from your opponent's attacks. With both of these Pokemon in play, your Benched Pokemon will remain safe and sound.

Since this deck is attempting to attack Pokemon that are weak to our Active Pokemon, you'll want to utilize both Boss’s Orders PAL 172 and Counter Catcher PAR 160 to choose which Pokemon you'll be attacking. You can also attach Supereffective Glasses ASR 152 to a Pokemon to allow you to deal three times the amount of damage if that Pokemon's Weakness matches your Active Pokemon's Type. This will be how it's possible to Knock Out an opponent's Charizard ex PAF 54 with Lokix PAL 21's Assaulting Kick attack.

Even though Nymble PAR 13 and Scyther MEW 123 both have a Retreat Cost of zero Energy, you'll be happy to have Escape Rope BST 125 and Switch SVI 194 as a way of moving your Pokemon around, when needed.

Drawing extra cards is always important, so this deck includes a few Supporters to help with that task. Both Bruno BST 121 and Iono PAL 185 shuffle your hand into your deck and let you draw a new hand of cards. Bruno BST 121 is best late game, while Iono PAL 185 is playable at any point during the game. Professor's Research PAF 87 lets you consistently draw the most new cards, but requires you to discard your current hand first.

Sometimes you'll want to be able to play a Pokemon that has gone to your discard pile, or you'll need some Energy that had been attached to a Pokemon that was Knocked Out. Both Klara CRE 145 and Super Rod PAL 188 can help with this. Klara CRE 145 puts the cards back into your hand, while Super Rod PAL 188 will shuffle the chosen cards back into your deck.

To help you find the Pokemon that will be most effective against your opponent's Pokemon, there are a few different Trainer cards you can use. If Artazon PAF 76 is in play, each player will be able to search their deck for a Basic Pokemon without a Rule Box to put onto their Bench each turn. Nest Ball SVI 181 lets you search your deck for any Basic Pokemon, even if it has a Rule Box, to put onto your Bench. Finally, Ultra Ball PAF 91 can be used to find any Pokemon from your deck to put into your hand.

As the game nears its conclusion, you might need to Knock Out a multi-Prize Pokemon to secure a victory. Technical Machine: Crisis Punch PAF 90 can help with this, by providing you with an attack that will deal 280 damage. This deck also has a copy of Town Store OBF 196 to help you find those important Pokemon Tool cards, like Supereffective Glasses ASR 152 and Technical Machine: Crisis Punch PAF 90.

Wrapping Up

If you're looking for a deck that is capable of defeating nearly any other deck, look no further. This deck has the potential to deal with anything that comes its way. But just because it has that potential, doesn't mean that winning will be simple. This deck requires a bit of skill to play, and you'll constantly need to be thinking one step ahead in order to make sure you search for what you need.

What do you think of this deck? Do you have any suggestions for improvements? Let me know by leaving a comment below. And be sure to join me here again next week as I continue my search for innovative decks in the Pokemon TCG. I'll see you then!

- Mike Likes