Charizard ex League Battle Deck - How to Upgrade + Is It Worth Buying?

[@TrustYourPilotTCG]

HUGE UPDATE: The Charizard ex League Battle Deck is just 600 Crystals in Pokemon TCG Live, making it BY FAR the best way to Credit Farm - x.com/TrustYourPilot1/status/1857108054149574740 and x.com/TrustYourPilot1/status/1857108819983409358. It was supposed to be 1,250 Crystals, but they made it 600 Crystals for some reason. The total Credit gain from 1 Charizard LBD is 2,700 Credits. Buy two, that's 5,400 Credits for 1,200 Crystals. Compared to the Shadow Rider League Battle Deck, which is 4,100 Credits for 1,250 Crystals. TL;DR - Only spend your Crystals on the Charizard ex League Battle Deck in PTCGL!

[@hug-the-raccoon]

For new players, don't worry too much about rotation (if you're playing digitally). Cards won't rotate until March/April, you still have a long time. As long as you don't craft every deck you see, you will have enough resource for whatever you need. Source: I started in the middle of last expansion, and I already craft/upgrade multiple good decks and more.

[@matteovarrone4852]

Would you consider buying this for an entry level? Ofc I'm not new to card games, I've been playing yugioh competitive for a while, but I was searching for a good and cheap deck to start playing live. worth it?

[@nin10yen]

@@matteovarrone4852it’s very consistent and easy to play right out of the box so it’s def worth it if you want to play physically

[@AponGG]

@@matteovarrone4852Yes it is, just spend some coins on trainers (Most of the cards are 0.02€ on cardmarket)

[@yesteryearr]

I played TCG live and was really struggling with most of the decks... But this one was easy to understand and actually enjoyable. I'm pretty sure its completely free to play with if you download the game

[@InfernoPhilM]

Prime catcher 📉

[@Lemon_Sage9999]

GOOOD

[@enhidri160]

Bout damn time

[@wlwmlmwlwml]

already dropping, it’s at the lowest it’s ever been at 17

[@tflees]

awesome

[@drew8235]

Been waiting jeeze

[@MMOToaster]

I started playing last week and got destroyed in my local playgroup. Signed up for a tourney next week. Will buy the deck and try my best.

[@michaelk7007]

I'm excited to get this tomorrow. Been buying singles to upgrade and found a bunch at my local cards shops for it. It also let me learn what TCG shops to avoid, man you want to support local, but at one location any bulk is 25cents and the other any trainer card is considered $1 or $2 if holo minimum is insane.

[@johnathansilva2823]

Snorlax Block Snorlax Doll Sawsbuck A bunch of stadiums and then>Neutralization Zone Gengar (night gate) Tatsugiri 141/182

[@Ferraco05]

Now that you mention rotation, I got curious and tried to build a Zard with only G block cards and above, and oh my gosh what a huge downgrade! We will no longer have Radiant Charizard, Rotom V, Lumineon V, Forest Seal Stone, Bibarel, Feather Ball, Thorton, Collapsed Stadium, ... We'll have to wait and see for new cards, but atm the best cards I could gather are Cleffa, Squawkabilly ex, TM Evolution and Grand Tree.

[@DarkAngelEU]

This is what's holding me back from buying this deck. It feels a bit like a scam.

[@sang_from_rushhour3009]

damn i was wondering how streamers had so much credits stored up. yeah i'll start farming that bundle for future cards. this was very vital.

[@Yutson]

I'm new to both Live and the tabletop, so your videos have been greatly helpful! I'm hoping one day you can let us know how to upgrade (if possible) the stellar pikachu deck we got at the beginning of surging sparks.

[@TrustYourPilotTCG]

I tried making Pikachu ex work on its own but came away very disappointed - kzbin.info/www/bejne/n4iuiXyNj8iMobM Pikachu ex is best thrown into a Lost Box Mirage Gate deck (you can adapt the Giratina deck if you want).

[@eldroskandar]

1. I've been playing with Unfair Stamp until know, is Prime Catcher the better Ace Spec? 2. I struggled to find a use for Cleffa, so I cut it, but maybe I'm too dumb, so when is Cleffa better than Rotom/Fezandipiti/Pidgeot? Or am I having the wrong mindset here? 3. What do you do against deck which tries to prevent damage from ex Pokémon?

[@magmarman2633]

As a newer TCG player whose main deck has been Zard Pidgeot: 1. Prime Catcher is considered the best Ace Spec in the game rn, since it forces up any Pokemon of choice from your opponent's bench and allows you to retreat your active (though this isn't as useful in Zard). Unfair Stamp used to be good, but Fezandipiti EX makes it less effective since your opponent can just draw 3 more cards after you knock out their Pokemon 2. Cleffa is there to prevent hand bricking and preventing something else from being stuck in the active spot, such as Rotom V. This is why Prime Catcher's retreat effect won't affect you; Cleffa has no retreat cost, so you don't have to sacrifice one of your 6 precious energies to retreat and put your Charizard up into the Active Spot. As for the hand bricking, if you can't get Pidgeot up fast enough and Rotom V is unavailable (prized or lacking Nest/Ultra Ball), Cleffa can help you refresh your hand without using a Professor's Research 3. This one's extremely tough, but Dusknoir can help with eliminating Pokemon like Ogerpon Cornerstone and Mimikyu that block Charizard's attacks. You can also choose to slot in an item called Canceling Cologne, which when played prevents the effects of the opponents' Active Pokemon's ability until the end of the turn. This is also a Regulation F card, meaning it will rotate out in March/April of next year, but it helps immensely against Cornerstone Ogerpon, Iron Thorns (whose ability blocks the abilities of Charizard and Pidgeot), Klefki (whose ability blocks the ability of your Active Pokemon), Flutter Mane (see Klefki), Mimikyu, etc

[@manleyfgc7981]

1. Both are great Ace specs and come down to player's choice. Unfair stamp can hurt your opponent's momentum and brick their hands but it's weakness is sometimes the opponent can use something like iono, fezandipiti, etc to draw back into things they need which hurts the impact your unfair stamp can have. Prime catcher is very versatile and almost never a dead card but isn't the highest ceiling of value for an Ace spec. It's value is in its versatility. Also, if you're behind, counter catcher does almost the same thing so I always see Prime catcher as being better in an aggressive deck that wants to win early rather than a deck that wants to play from behind like charizard. With that being said, charizard is still great with both. Charizard has tons of options to choose from as far as Ace specs go. 2. Think of Cleffa like Rotom V. Rotom V is best going first because it's an effect. Cleffa is best going 2nd because it's an attack. In some matchups, charizard wants to lose single prize early and cleffa is a great way to get set up going 2nd, let it get knocked out with a fully single prize board and then build. Rotom V always has the chance to get hit by an early prime catcher or Boss's Orders and you'd be down 2 prizes and the game is that much harder to win. Basically, cleffa is just better going 2nd. It also comes up as a pivot pokemon because of its free retreat in the mid-game at times. 3. Canceling Cologneand Radiant Charizard. I ALWAYS run a copy of both when playing Zard because you'll always have people doing some anti-charizard cheese across many levels of play. Dusknoir also helps eliminate problem cards like mimikyu as well

[@TwistedxGamer101]

I think manleyfgc7981 answered each perfectly but I’ll elaborate as well. 1. I used Prime Catcher for a while in the zard list and if I saw anyone running it I wouldn’t question it. The ability to Boss’s Order on an item card is extremely strong. In matchups where you need to snipe supporter mons to stop your opponent is extremely versatile. However, I do think that Prime Catcher is much stronger in more aggressive decks. Charizard wants to play slow and behind. Using ace specs like Unfair Stamp or Hero’s Cape give us the ability to play behind a lot better. I tried running Grand Tree for a while when it released as with the new Dusknoir line thought it would alleviate some of our rare candies but it’s too inconsistent. I personally run Unfair Stamp but have considered Hero’s Cape. Unfair Stamp in the right situation can completely shut down your opponent. If they have no card draw support and you put them down to 2 cards where they have no access to getting that draw support you almost always fly away with the game. Hero’s Cape lets Charizard just take more hits. 430 HP is a huge number and a lot of decks can struggle trying to deal with it. 2. Cleffa is amazing. I had a hard time understanding its versatility when I was first introduced to the deck but the more you play with it the more you understand. If we are going second with a hand we can almost dump Cleffa essentially refills our entire hand while only being a 1 prize Pokémon that has a free retreat. It’s an immensely powerful support Pokemon that plays into Charizard’s play slow gameplay perfectly. Going first I still think it’s a good option to have in the active slot considering the free retreat and we still have Rotom. Rotom’s strength comes from the fact if we have a full hand Rotom can just give us more cards. 3. Snorlax stall is probably one of the worst matchups we have in the format currently. Almost all of our Pokemon have abilities that we attack with. The Dusknoir line can help us snipe down Pokemon like Mimikyu and Cornorstone but if we exhaust that line we are pretty much left with nothing. I will say, this matchup makes Prime Catcher immensely more powerful in the deck to get around Snorlax and Mimikyu. Outside of that running a 1 of copy of Cancelling Cologne will make our opponent’s Pokémon’s abilities useless for a turn. It’s honestly a matchup I still struggle with immensely and it’s also just super infuriating to play against with this deck.

[@user-11Il10I1]

very informative for newcomers

[@wilsonvalderrama1131]

Finally, thanks 🙏

[@Willprintforfood]

I got mine yesterday. Christmas came early

[@zekesvault]

How?

[@Willprintforfood]

@@zekesvault it came in the mail

[@zekesvault]

@@Willprintforfood Who did you preorder from? I bought from Saga and I am hoping mine comes before Saturday when I play in a tourney!!

[@SonicBlastGamingCSGOmore]

People at the lcs are gonna see me and alot of other new players come in weekly with this deck 😂

[@michealstarbuck]

you also get a code for the deck with the physical deck

[@Ravenclawed07]

Once you feel like a good player, feel free to use my Zard list, it’s a little janky, but it works well. Pokémon: 21 3 Charmander MEW 4 1 Charmeleon PAF 8 2 Charizard ex OBF 125 2 Pidgey OBF 162 1 Pidgeotto OBF 163 2 Pidgeot ex OBF 164 1 Duskull SFA 18 1 Dusclops SFA 19 1 Dusknoir SFA 20 1 Togepi ASR 55 1 Togetic ASR 56 1 Togekiss SSP 72 1 Radiant Charizard CRZ 20 1 Rotom V LOR 58 1 Lumineon V BRS 40 1 Fezandipiti ex SFA 38 Trainer: 33 4 Arven SVI 166 2 Iono PAL 185 2 Boss's Orders PAL 172 1 Briar SCR 132 1 Thorton LOR 167 1 Professor Turo's Scenario PAR 171 4 Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144 4 Rare Candy SVI 191 3 Ultra Ball FLF 99 2 Nest Ball SVI 181 2 Super Rod PAL 188 2 Counter Catcher PAR 160 1 Night Stretcher SFA 61 1 Forest Seal Stone SIT 156 1 Defiance Band SVI 169 1 Collapsed Stadium BRS 137 1 Grand Tree SCR 136 Energy: 6 5 Fire Energy Energy 19 1 Mist Energy TEF 161

[@magmarman2633]

The Togekiss is really interesting, I really expect a line (even a 101) to be featured in some decks looking for filler in the near future The Mist Energy I'm a little confused about. Is that a tech option against Pult?

[@dnatal09]

Worth buying, though the value of Zard and Pidgeot may affect it so everyone might get a set of these for a reasonable price

[@danzdribble]

>:>:>:

[@catatauthedog]

I'm running hero's cape as aspec, it's working better than any other card in that meta where some attacks deals more than 330 damage. Ensuring to my active Zard (I always try to keep 2 zard, 1 actived and other in bench, that evolved from Charmeleon) to hit one more time.

[@manleyfgc7981]

People are running tons of tool removal this current meta. It's not as strong as you think.

[@catatauthedog]

@@manleyfgc7981 not all the decks uses lost vacuum, but I always waits to see if the vacuum is discarded. I don't equip my cape on the first zard, I equipe in the second. I'm almost in Arceus playing like this. Some decks use 2 vacuum or jamming tower, if the tower is the case, I can deal if with using others stuffs, but if there's more than 1 vacuum, my strategy don't works, and it's expected. There isn't perfect deck.

[@TwistedxGamer101]

Tried running Grand Tree for a bit to not have to waste so many rare candies but it’s just not as consistent. Went back to running Unfair Stamp which I think is one of the better specs to run. I’ve known some people to use Hero’s Cape for a 400 HP Zard but I don’t have experience with it. Might experiment with it

[@catatauthedog]

@@TwistedxGamer101 try, it's strong. You can also use the cape to tank one more hit for other pokes, like Roton, Lumineon or any other Pokémon that is in active spot tanking to you basic pokes to evolve in the bench.

[@chibihobo]

Gonna be kinda awkward if Rotation is earlier this year. Like say if they did Rotation in February to line up with EUIC . . . .

[@J86237]

No need to upgrade, just say “prime catcher for game” every match.

[@kevinBrMen]

“Once or twice a year” more like once or twice a game

[@VixanaL]

Charizard only needs two energies, but the ability gives us three. Where does the third one go?

[@Jgreen69]

Back Up attackers on the bench, like another zard ex or radiant zard.

[@REALSPICYWATER]

It can be useful when you have your charizard benched and you need an energy on an active Pokemon to retreat. You can also just decide to only take 2 energies from your deck

[@GreyFox250]

You can also give it to your active pokemon to retreat if needed and you evolved into Charizard on the bench

[@manleyfgc7981]

The third goes onto a single retreat cost pokemon in the active or to a second charmander or radiant zard. Always opt to grab all 3 energies because it deck thins and gives you a greater chance to draw into other cards you want.

[@MH_Zard]

backup manders. I've sometimes given it to my Pidgeot, and started smacking things with that. It's funny when it becomes the optimal play lol.

[@PewPewSol]

Isnt fezandipiti ex free?

[@TrustYourPilotTCG]

It was free in the Terapagos ex deck from the previous Battle Pass. I don't think it's free anywhere else? Let me know if I'm wrong though.

[@PewPewSol]

@ ah I see I am 100% wrong then if it was given there. Thank you for correcting me

[@LiamLovesMetal]

Ain’t no way my ass bought prime catcher a month ago before this

[@sierraj7480]

got this for $20

[@BRAMZY]

How do you take 3 prizes with Briar? The card states it can only be used when the opponent has exactly 2 prizes remaining

[@kordtsl637]

It’s a catch up for you. It’s suppose to work as a swing to help you win the other way since this charizard ex is a Tera pokemon as well. If you swing with Charizard while opponent only has two left your dealing 300 damage with its attack. Pretty much guaranteeing a knockout on any ex or V pokemon. That said briar gets you an additional prize for that knockout. Turning a two prize turn into three, or a one prize into two. It could give you the ability last second to clutch the game from behind. Sorry for long winded answer but hope this helps!

[@StephenMallow]

​@@kordtsl637 You can only use this card if your opponent has 2 prize cards remaining. So, if you knock out a 2 prize pokemon, wouldn't you just win the game anyway? Even without Briar? Like, technically, you CAN take a third prize card, putting your opponent at -1 prize cards, but that makes no difference in the game! It can only turn a two prize turn into a three prize turn when there are two prizes left, so it doesn't have any effect on the outcome of the match?

[@kordtsl637]

@@StephenMallow ahh I see where the confusion is. Let me see if I can help a bit. “Your opponents” prizes are the prizes on their side of the field not your side, it’s referring to your opponents cards. So there would only be two left of their prizes from knocking out your pokemon. Meaning they are one “ex or V” KO away from winning the game. Your prize pile could have all 6 left and you could still use briar cause the condition is that your opponent is the one who has two prizes left, not you.

[@RufusKyura]

Here's a newb-friendly guide on how to upgrade the new Zard deck: 1. Buy it; 2. Take out the Zard cards and throw them on a paper shredder; 3. Use the cards to upgrade other, more fun decks to play; 4. Have fun not playing the most boring meta deck ever conceived.