Searching Standard: Melmetal EX

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 Melmetal ex OBF 153, a Pokemon capable of Knocking Out any opposing Pokemon, regardless of their HP. Let's get started by taking a look at the deck list.

Melmetal ex OBF 153 is the main attacker for this deck. By using its Full Metal Knuckle attack, you'll deal a minimum of 210 damage (since all of the Energy in this deck is Metal Energy). Of course, by adding extra Energy, Melmetal ex OBF 153 is able to deal out as much damage as you need to Knock Out your opponent's Active Pokemon. There's also a copy of Melmetal TEF 117 included in this deck as a backup attacker. Its Iron Bash attack deals a similar amount of damage for five Energy as Melmetal ex OBF 153's Full Metal Knuckle attack (230 vs. 240), but you'll only give up a single Prize card if Melmetal TEF 117 gets Knocked Out.

To help get Energy attached to your Melmetal ex OBF 153 quickly, you can use the Metal Maker Ability of Melmetal ex OBF 153 to potentially attach up to four extra Energy from the top of your deck to your Pokemon each turn. Using this Ability also helps thin your deck out, reducing the likelihood that you'll draw an Energy card in the future once your deck is shuffled.

The remaining Pokemon in this deck are included for their Abilities that help you draw additional cards. Mew ex MEW 151's Restart Ability always ensures that you'll be able to draw cards at some point during your turn if your hand ever drops below three cards. Radiant Greninja ASR 46's Concealed Cards Ability allows you to discard an Energy card to draw two new cards. Both of these Abilities will help you get extra cards in your hand, giving you more options each turn.

Both Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144 and Nest Ball SVI 181 can be invaluable help in finding any of the Basic Pokemon from your deck. Keep in mind that in this deck, Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144 can find any Basic Pokemon except Mew ex MEW 151, while Nest Ball SVI 181 doesn't have this restriction.

An easy way to search your deck for up to three Stage 1 Pokemon is by playing Hyper Aroma TWM 152. Even if you can't evolve into those Pokemon right away, it's usually worth always searching for three Stage 1 Pokemon to put into your hand. Ultra Ball SVI 196 can be used to find any Pokemon from your deck to put into your hand, but it does require that you discard two other cards in order to use it. You can mitigate your losses by discarding Pokemon or Energy cards that you can then shuffle back into your deck with Super Rod PAL 188.

You'll want to play Boss’s Orders PAL 172 to choose which of your Pokemon to attack. Try to choose a Pokemon that you're sure to Knock Out, or one that is almost fully powered, needing only one or two more Energy to attack. You can also attach Heavy Baton TEF 151 to either Melmetal TEF 117 or Melmetal ex OBF 153 to get some added value when they are Knocked Out. By being able to transfer up to three Basic Energy cards to your Benched pokemon in any way you'd like, you'll be likely to end up with a fully powered attacker right away, allowing you to get some retribution.

The final pair of cards are generally found in nearly every Standard deck, due in no small part to the versatility they offer. For sheer card drawing volume, no Trainer offers more cards without having some hoop to jump through than Professor's Research PAF 87. The only drawback when playing Professor's Research PAF 87 is that you need to discard your current hand before drawing seven cards from your deck. So, make sure you've played everything from your hand before playing Professor's Research PAF 87. Iono PAL 185 can also draw you a lot of cards, depending on how many Prize cards you've taken. Her main function, though, is to reduce the number of cards in your opponent's hand, thereby reducing their options. This will often allow you to reduce their momentum and offer you a chance to catch up.

Wrapping Up

While this deck might not offer a lot of strategic planning, it's a lot of fun to play. Being able to scale the amount of damage when you attack with Melmetal ex OBF 153's Full Metal Knuckle attack makes Knocking Out an opposing Pokemon with one hit a breeze.

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