How To Build a Pokemon Deck (Getting Started in the TCG)

[@jeffreykershner440]

This is helpful. My 7yo kids are getting into Pokemon TCG and I want to play and help them. We bought a few hundred used cards and have organized them. This whole thing is pretty overwhelming.

[@WoodyREC]

That's awesome you get to share that with them - if you need any help what's so ever feel free to let me know and will try get back to you!

[@jeffreykershner440]

@@WoodyREC thanks for that. I'll check your videos with questions before asking here.

[@pedrodurty47]

@@jeffreykershner440 my 6 year old wanted the same thing. I got the battle academy box for 20 bucks at Gamestop and we have been playing everyday since. The online game is extremely complicated and I understand why after watching this

[@JSpade85]

Same here!

[@MaskMan1Official]

Cool dad alert

[@derekzepeda9363]

60 cards total, 30 support, 12energy, 18 Pokémon .

[@vfarismax6167]

18 basics or stage 1 do u know how that works ?

[@jaydee5312]

​@@vfarismax6167Mix of both, depending on the deck. But generally more basics.

[@vfarismax6167]

@@jaydee5312 thanks

[@rebeccaparos5896]

​@vfarismax6167 any pokemon stage one basic or evolution count to the 18

[@doctastic976]

This is the most useful person in the world. I have clicked on eight tutorials and looked for one that says how many you need and you are the only person who has told me. Real one

[@PooCassoX]

This is very helpful. I tried playing against my nephew with a heartgold and soul silver deck i bought at walmart years ago- he completely DESTROYED me with his customized and well thought out deck he created from multiple packs and decks. …so you could say this is the start of the revenge tour

[@theghostlyestatestcg2182]

Did you ever get one over him?

[@RealAcelin]

Did you ever beat him again?

[@daserfomalhaut9809]

I'm from Yugioh and am trying to play Pokemon Live (PC). It's funny seeing the differing cultures. If Yugioh had a card that even *dared* to say "draw 7" it would be banned before it gets printed. We have cards that only let you draw 2 and come with absurd stipulations for it because even with them, those cards win games. So it's always funny when I jump to a different game.

[@WoodyREC]

The differences are crazy, it’s always interesting seeing how other card games work! I remember how powerful Pot of Greed was 😂

[@daserfomalhaut9809]

@@WoodyREC We have a card called Pot of Desires now. Banish TEN cards face down. Draw 2. It is optimal to run 40 card decks. Meta since it was released.

[@menaatefadly]

​@@daserfomalhaut9809until you draw into the 2 other pots of desires lol

[@dawnslack5515]

Laughs in Uno Draw 10

[@lioneart19]

On the other hand, a LOT of cards have effects that search for other very specific cards and the decks usually are only 40-cards

[@brandon_erdman]

Haven’t collected Pokémon cards since 2001. My sons (8 and 6) are getting interested after finding my old cards. We ended buying 3 astral radiance build and battle sets and it has been an absolute blast. Right now we have just been using the 6 different 40 card decks that come in the sets. With the smaller decks the games go a little faster and keeps them interested. With how much fun we have had playing the game. I really look forward to collecting some more cards and building some more decks.

[@WoodyREC]

That's what it's all about mate!😊

[@michealhuxel268]

My buddy got me some cards for Christmas, since I missed collecting them as a kid. Can’t wait to get back into playing! This seems like a genuinely awesome community.

[@Jingles180]

So glad the home page recommended this video, super informative as a new TCG player! Currently I am using Goodra and Arceus but I'm struggling to draw useful cards in games and watch my poor Pokémon get decimated quite quickly, especially by Fusion Strike decks, would love some help!

[@WoodyREC]

I'm glad it could be any help! Would the Fusion Strike deck be Mew? As that's generally just one of the most powerful decks If you're struggling to get cards when you need them maybe increase the amount of the cards you need in your 60 - for example you will want 4 Arceus V so you can get it down turn one and evolve the following. Once Arceus VStar is in play it's ability lets you fetch any two cards which will help massively! In general, the cards mentioned in the video (Professor's Research, Quick Ball, Ultra Ball etc) always help with consistency, again 4 copies is best! You could also add Pokemon to help this like Bibarel or Crobat V to draw more cards a turn! Hope this helps, but if you're having an specific issues give me a shout and happy to try and help😊

[@LarsIsReal]

I'm from MTG. Search cards are what we call tutors. It's really amazing to me how many of these cards appear in decks that are legal and seem to be part of the game's identity

[@Tux12411]

Thanks for the video, it helped me get some ideas! I used to collect Pokemon cards when I was younger and was an avid TCG player a few years ago before I took a long break. I just got back into it yesterday and I'm working on building a dark/fighting-type deck with the focus on Darkrai and Lucario.

[@danieljensen9221]

This was a very helpful video. I've taken an interest in the Pokemon TCG and wasn't quite sure where to start or how deckbuilding would work. Thank you for giving some pointers in how to approach the game 😊 I'm gonna try out some Theme Decks and work my way from there.

[@WoodyREC]

I’m glad I could be any help 😊 welcome to the game! If you’re stuck with anything give me a shout!

[@EverEnd1663]

I found that picking two pre constructed decks and smooshing them together works out great.

[@isaiahlamers9896]

The best advice I can offer is know your cards. Once you have trainers and what they do memorized, you start to see, “oh, this trainer/synergy with this card is strong, let’s see if I can find more”. This helps me and when I see a card, I can instantly think of 2-3 trainers/Pokémon that would synergise with that card.

[@Onestruck]

oh my god thank you so much for this, my little brother has recently gotten really into pokémon but i'm clueless and really want to help him build his deck so we can play together:)

[@WoodyREC]

Amazing, glad I could help! Hope you both enjoy the game and just give me a shout if you need anymore help with decks etc

[@perihelionphotography]

I started off in the tcg live to better understand it. Only things I didn’t see in this video that I highly recommend is looking at ACE spec cards. You can only use one but man they are busted. Poke Vital A heals a huge amount of damage, hero’s cape gives a massive health boost, master ball lets you select a card without any drawbacks

[@wildestpath6398]

I’ve been collecting cards since i was in elementary school and have so many cards, but i’m only now finally trying to learn how to play at 21! My favorite pokémon is Altaria so i would love some help coming up with a deck centered around it!

[@WoodyREC]

The Altaria from Silver Tempest has a really cool attack ‘Magical Echo’ which moves all damage from one of your Pokémon to your opponents! So if you have a bulky Pokémon that can take a hit, then you can retreat into Altaria and use that to pass the damage over! I’ve seen people use Serperior VStar because of its free retreat and HP paired with Kricketune to buff it. Alternatively something like Giratina VStar means you’re never getting hit for weakness or Chansey V with a bravery charm and dunsparce works nicely too!

[@ninfinity_official]

I learned how to play the TCG back when Quarantine started and I've been wanting to enter some local tournaments

[@WoodyREC]

Amazing, jump in, it’s the best way! When I first started at tournaments I met a ton of cool people I’m still friends with now - best way to get experience and advice is playing in them 😊

[@dungeonmaster3464]

Dragonite and/or Sylvion are pokemon that I'd like to build around. I have no idea if there are any good cards of those 2, but when I was little my cousin gave me first-gen Dragonite and Eevee cards as a present. So, now that I'm interested in trying to build a serious deck, I'd like to play Dragonite and/or my favorite Eeveelution. I used to collect pokemon cards when I was little, but after a while I defaulted to Magic and Yugioh because that's what my friends were playing. Now I have an itch to go back to this game I used to love, now this a more strategic mindset.

[@WoodyREC]

Welcome back!😊 There is a Sylveon VMax which has the attack ‘Max Harmony’ which is powered up the more different types you have on your bench so Dragonite V will count as Dragon which is a different type so that’s perfect! Sylveon uses colourless energy so you can use any, Dragonite V uses Water and Electric so I’d use a split of those energies for consistency! Outside of that Id pick 3 Pokémon which aren’t Psychic or Dragon to get max potential from Sylveons attack! (I’d recommend Crobat V as that’s Dark and let’s you draw more cards so has some use on the bench!)

[@dungeonmaster3464]

@@WoodyREC Thanks. Apart from Dragonite and Sylveon, it seems like I'm going to be looking at all my other pokemon in the context of what they do on the bench. I also decided to look at the cards you mentioned. Sylveon V before VMaxing looks really good in the early game before things get going, because it lets me search for an item in place of attacking. And Dragonite V and VStar look like great secondary attackers, along with the VStar power letting me suit up both Dragonite and Sylveon. Lastly, apart from Crowbat V, should I focus on finding a water and electric pokemon to work with the energy? Or should I be purely looking at the abilities?

[@WoodyREC]

@@dungeonmaster3464 No problem! You could always have some for their ability and couple of Water / Electric attackers. During certain matches you can then just put down which ones you need - the extra attackers will give you more options to hit for weakness, but if you can’t put down the ability ones instead.

[@dungeonmaster3464]

@@WoodyREC I've done my homework, so I figured I'd return to this. Luminion V and Dedene GX both have great abilities on the bench, as one searches a Supporter card when played and the other is a Professor's Research on legs. Flaffy and Abomasnow both fetch energy from the discard pile, and Frostmoth lets me deluge all the water energy in my hand. Apart from pokemon, Sylveon V opens me up to tech in a lot of item cards. Dragonite VMax incentivizes me to play a large number of basic energy, but I can still experiment with a couple special energies. And some generally good Supporter cards help me cycle through my deck consistently.

[@WoodyREC]

@@dungeonmaster3464 Amazing job - sounds like you’ve got it sorted! Best of luck with the deck 😊

[@GonzaloAPH]

Many thanks for this video! I used to play Magic and Pokemon ages ago, at school. I attended the last Tournament with my wife and I decided to begin again, from zero. I want to build a deck around Dragapult and Gardevoir and build a Grass/Water deck for my wife, since she like those types. I would be very grateful for any tips! Many thanks!

[@WoodyREC]

I’m glad I could help! That’s awesome you share the hobby, my fiancé and I do the same! Gardevoir from Chilling Reign has a cool ability ‘Shining Aura’ which lets you draw cards and attach extra energy! You can also add Gardevoir EX when that’s released in Scarlet and Violet! Dragapult makes a good pair being the same type so you can get away with just psychic energy. General support things like Fog Crystal and Old Cemetery will be useful, plus things like Rare Candy to evolve Gardevoir quicker. Hope this helps 😊 which Pokémon does your wife like?

[@GonzaloAPH]

​​@@WoodyREC many thanks for the reply! Your idea of building Fog Crystals and Old Cemeteries around a quick-energy Gardevoir deck sounds very intriguing. Besides, the "flavour" is amazing! Actually, my wife's favourite Pokemon is Snorlax. She likes Grass-types, though and particularly Chikorita's evolution line. Since she's new, maybe a mono-Grass deck would be easier to play with, so I was thinking of building something around Meganium and Snorlax. Any ideas would be much appreciated! Thanks again!

[@yeollierancher]

Glad I found this video! I’ve been checking lists and videos, and nothing has really helped so far. You cleared up a bunch of my questions though! I come from a YGO background and have been collecting Pokémon all my life, so I’ve been looking through my newest cards to make a Dragapult VMAX and a Duraludon VMAX deck. Not necessarily in the same deck, but I don’t even know where to start 😂

[@WoodyREC]

Glad I could be any help! So with Duraludon he needs two different types of energy to attack which can be tricky, but he’s really good, so you will want a way to accelerate them via something like Arceus VStar or Metal Saucers Dragapult VMax has Max Phantom which does 130 then 50 to the bench so you will want other ways to drop damage like Galarian Zigzagoon and Scoop Up Nets to re-use. Using Stadiums is another good way to spread damage with things like Old Cemetery! Like in the video, general rules 4 of the LOTR important cards are a good place to start so Ultra Ball, Quick Ball, Professors Research etc

[@yeollierancher]

@@WoodyREC help is always appreciated! It’s one thing I love about the Pokémon community, it’s so tight-knit and friendly to newcomers. Not sure about Metal Saucers, but I recall seeing the supports in my storage boxes, I’ll have a look and test it out! Thanks so much! 🫶

[@WoodyREC]

@@yeollierancher Ignore the metal saucers, forgot Duraludon VMax wasn’t steel! Get going with the other supporters and let me know how you get on! 😊

[@yeollierancher]

@@WoodyREC pretty sure I have a regular Duraludon in my binder, so it’s good to know anyway! I’ve seen some deck profiles where they have a bunch of V Pokémon and only 1 regular Pokémon; while others have the main V/VMAX ones and a couple of regular ones that evolve normally... any thoughts on this?

[@WoodyREC]

@@yeollierancher Depends on the Pokemon really - generally the regular Pokémon will have really useful abilities like Bibarel/Inteleon and sometimes it’s good to have regular attackers to get around “walls” that can’t be KO’d by V Pokemon or just to have single prize attackers!

[@striked1]

thank you for the info my niece just got into pokemon so she wants me and my brother inlaw to play with her and i would love an arcanine and vaporian deck

[@zingywolf7300]

Hello! I am currently trying to build up a deck so I can have fun playing with others. I would like to use Victini V, torkoal V, salazzle, and 2 different cinderace. All of these are from the original sword and shield set btw. My main problem is me not knowing how much energy and what other cards to put in.

[@WoodyREC]

In general you want around 12 energy cards, 18 Pokémon and 30 Trainer (things to help you search things out and draw cards!) Things like Heat Energy and Magma Baisn give you some support options for your fire Pokemon! Then use the general support trainers mentioned in the video 😊

[@matthewvalentyn751]

I really enjoy Deoxys, but I'm at a loss for other cards to add, I'm freshly getting into this game. Deoxys has been one of my favorites since it's original release and I'd really enjoy using it in a deck. I also enjoy control decks in most games if you have any other suggestions for a 2ndary deck I could look into, I'd very much appreciate the help.

[@WoodyREC]

So with Deoxys there is a new VStar out for it which is quite good, it does damage to their attack and bench Pokemon. If you go down that route you will want other things that can spread damage like Galarian Zigzagoon and maybe stadiums like Old Cemetery to stack damage on the bench. Fog Crystal is great for Psychic decks too, to find Pokemon or Energy when you need it. You could also pair Deoxys with Shadow Rider Calyrex VMax as that accelerates Psychic Energy and lets you draw cards! EDIT: For control decks things like Miltank are great attackers, as a lot of Pokemon cant deal with them. Crushing Hammers to discard energy along with things like Fan of Waves to remove Special Energy early on can slow people down. Alternative you focus on discarding their cards with something like Durant!

[@Hirz26]

I work at a rec center, and the kids love pokemon cards I am now looking to build a deck focus on eeveelution (glaceon v&vmax, sylveon V, jolteon V, flareon V) and trying find a deck to stomp on the kids when needed, but not too seroius so the don't cry :)

[@WoodyREC]

That's cool haha Sylveon VMax is actually powered up by having different types on your bench so maybe build around? Fill your bench with eeveelutions then attack with Sylveon!

[@Hirz26]

@Woody [REC] tryon to get as many as I could, but god damn it's hard to find eevees

[@WoodyREC]

@@Hirz26 I've always found the same! They're such popular Pokemon they're impossible to get a hold of!

[@rowdy0505]

That was very helpful. Thanks! I'm playing Mtg so it's much more easy to understand but Pokemon is still a very different game. I'll try to build around Lycanroc or Boltund ig.

[@GLArts_64]

This is great! I’m personally trying to build a deck themed around my favorite mon Raichu. Found a Raichu V online and thought it would be the best centerpiece for my deck.

[@WoodyREC]

Raichu V is a great choice, there’s some good electric partners at the moment with Miraidon ex (the one with tandem unit) and things like Zapdos from Pokémon Go and Raikou V! In terms of trainers there are more specialised stuff for electric like Electric Generator which helps you get powered up quickly, you could even include Flaaffy with Dynamotor to help too.

[@Clitorasaurus]

Thanks for making this. Getting into the game and it’s quite different from the other tcg’s i play. Great video

[@zacharyugarriza5449]

Thanks for the info! I’m a huge psychic fan. I have a ton of them collected and would love to build one around mewvmax

[@WoodyREC]

Mew VMax is one of the more popular decks around at the moment - so if you check out a channel like Omnipoke they will have the most up to date deck list and some gameplay showing it off 😊

[@kitsucrab]

I know I’m a bit late to this video but I’m a HUGE fan of Serperior and have been collecting cards for a while now.

[@WoodyREC]

Never too late buddy! Serperior VStar is actually really good, so its attack 'Regal Binder' lets you move around energy if you want and does 190 damage so lets take advantage of that! When you've taken a hit or two, you can move energy away with your attack, then the following turn you can use something like Hyper Potion or Max Potion to entirely heal your Serperior without losing any energy because its been moved! They also have free retreat so you can just retreat to a Serperior VStar on the bench you've powered up and continue as usual! You aren't relying on any abilities so you can run something like Path to the Peak to mess with your opponent. Things like Marnie, Roxanne and Avery are particularly good in this deck and it's more disruption for your opponent!

[@kitsucrab]

@@WoodyREC this sounds really fun! Thank you

[@code_fox9661]

I appreciate this video a lot, I'm trying to find a good deck to help my wife fight my most powerful deck, it's a dark/fighting focused on keeping my opponent from loading up energy cards and allowing me to get whatever Pokemon I want in my deck by turn three. If anyone has any ideas for a fire/electric deck to combat I'd love a new take on it.

[@animelover-rs2wt]

Hey I know it’s late but I’m considering doing a dragapult v deck

[@WoodyREC]

It’s a bit of an older video now but I did make a deck with Dragapult (really liked the VMax!) Should go through the list and how it works. kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5-pmX9nfrqIis0

[@stormwarden6012]

My old collection has 2 Kyogre and a Groudon and I'd love to build a deck around each of them! I forget if Groudon is fighting or fire. I know I have a lot of water type mons and energy and quite a few fire types as well.

[@WoodyREC]

Which set are Kyogre and Groudon from?

[@BiggieBean06]

I want to use my Single Strike Urshifu V and Houndoom. I have a couple single Strike energies so I was hoping I could build a deck on it

[@WoodyREC]

That all sounds good - looks like you’ve built a good deal of it! Single Strike Urshifu V and VMax are good if you can get multiples of both, then Houndoom to attach the Single Strike Energy on them. Things like Urn of Vitality and Tower of Darkness to help add some consistency to your Single Strike deck!

[@BiggieBean06]

@@WoodyREC Thanks for the advice!

[@Ethanol_]

Any ideas for a kyreum vmax deck?

[@WoodyREC]

Kyurem VMax is a great Pokémon, people have seen good success with things like Palkia VStar as it will let you setup with its ability! Melony is another great card, Radiant Greninja fits into the type! You could even try the new Baxcallibur from Paldea Evolved!

[@CombatAcee]

If your still replying, I would love to know how to build a deck for Jolteon V since electric types have always been my favorite

[@Nianque2]

So apparently I have a cousin that loves the pokemon tcg. I play Magic personally, but I'd love to build a deck to play against him with. He's young and doesn't know the game that well, so it doesn't have to be all that good. I have very little knowledge about this tcg, but assuming I wanted to build around weavile and sneasler, is there anything you can suggest to get me started?

[@WoodyREC]

Really sorry - thought I’d replied but must have closed the page before it had sent! If the advice isn’t too late there isn’t a great Weavile in format currently however Hisuian Sneasler V is quite good for a fun deck! His ‘Dire Claw’ attack does 80x the amount of special conditions on your opponents Pokemon so just need a way to stack conditions on them! There is a Parasect in Lost Origin which when it evolves puts two conditions on you and your opponent. You will want Scoop Up Net which allow you to reuse Parasect ability! You can use the tool Wind-up arm to attack despite being asleep to get around it! Finally Dark Patch seems good to attach an extra dark energy so you can get Hisuian Sneasler V set-up in a single turn!

[@Nianque2]

@@WoodyREC Thanks for the reply! Another video I saw had something with a butterfree where it evolved and put status conditions on the target I believe. That seems quite good as well.

[@WoodyREC]

Yes, Butterfree is great too - it’s a bit of a weigh up, Butterfree needs more spaces in your deck, and cards to get going but does mean you can get those big OHKOs!

[@HexSigilVT]

I wanna try to build a deck around either darkrai or corviknight to start myself off but no idea on what to try at first, so this could really help me learn how to build decks in general!

[@prettybirb]

A couple of my friends have been getting into collecting cards, and I am personally more about playing than collecting, however I decided to try and get some pulls from getting Boxes. I want to use a deck focused on Dragons (my favorite type in the video games) and in particular Salamence. I havent gotten my boxes in the mail yet but how would you build around trying to utilize something like Salamence V/VMAX from Darkness Ablaze or Salamence in Evolving Skies? (I also plan to stick with Expanded Format because I am not a fan of rotating formats in card games. I am a Yu-gi-oh Player more than anything else.)

[@WoodyREC]

I definitely get the pains of rotating formats! So with Salamence you could use the V actually, Swoop Across is a great way to spread damage, meaning you can take multiple KOs at once. There is Double Colourless Energy that means it counts as two energy which works great on him. Tools like Cape of Toughness are pretty good giving basic Pokemon extra HP making him more tanky in return. You can also add Dunsparce from Fusion Strike to remove his weakness. Alternatively, the VMax isn't bad either. Again, using Double Colourless means you can power him up quicker and use Max Wings which is 240 damage, plus something like Choice Belt means you can reach one hit KOs onto big V Pokemon. The Sonic Double attack also leans into the damage spread strategy so could do a bit of both. Other things that can help you with spreading damage is stadiums like Gapejaw Bog, Galarian Zigzagoon and could even use something like Black and White Dusknoir with Sinister Hand. Once you've spread all that damage, Dusknoir can then move all the damage counters around, making it easier to take knock outs! Hopefully that's some help to get you going!

[@mrpenguin809]

i have lots of cards but i saw lots of people making a Giratina deck and i think it could be a good start because i have a Giratina VSTAR but im not to sure where to even start

[@WoodyREC]

I actually have a video on Giratina VStar which will hopefully help out! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npTSmptuo6mjZrM

[@mrpenguin809]

@@WoodyREC thanks a lot! it seems like a really good deck that i would like but I play with the actual cards so im wondering if it would be a major difference or not if i just have 2 Giratina Vs and one Giratina VStar.

[@WoodyREC]

Glad it was so help! I'd just start with what you have, and then you can always add more as you pull/trade for them!

[@ManuToa]

Thanks for this vid finally got into the vgc and played competitively for the first time and me and my friends got into the tgc. Been wanting to build around hawlucha and slaking just casually

[@JustAnOnion]

Ive been getting back into the TCG with Friends and Family. We all play super casually, i dont have that many cards, and only have 6 decks at the moment (4 theme decks I customized, and 2 completely custom decks), but im looking at buying more theme decks. We play so casually however we ignore Weaknesses and Resistances due to the lack of variety i own, and have custom nerfs written on a sheet of paper (for the slightly too strong Gen7 cards I want to use) I only use my older cards (Gen 4-Gen 7 era Pokemon) because I dont like the Damage/Health Inflation Gen 8 onwards added (some Gen 7 cards are bad too but I only use the ones i deem fair to the rest of my cards) Since we play against eachother only and are super casual, we also like to keep custom deck building pretty balanced. Most of my decks stay close to a 20/20/20 rubric with cards. But some have more or less, one deck has more Pokemon, but less Trainers, while one more Energy, but less (more expensive) Pokemon. If you only plan on playing with friends and family, rather than getting super competitive with it, i also highly recommend buying a Theme Deck that looks cool and just customizing it a bit. No need to go all out when playing casual, but keeping a deck with a set theme/gimmick is also a huge recommendation. I find my custom decks with a gimmick way more fun to use than my basic ones. (One of my decks has almost every Pokemon focused on doing a little bit of chip Bench damage, while another has Pokemon that constantly Discard energy, and Trainers to retrieve that energy)

[@WoodyREC]

@@JustAnOnion That sounds like a great way for you and your friends to enjoy the game - it’s like you’ve created your own format! Definitely great advice for others getting into the game as well!

[@amzieeherb1981]

Im new to playing the card game and I'm trying to understand the basics. My favourite pokemon are Gallade, Gardevoir and Tinkaton but I have various others I like!

[@WoodyREC]

I go over a Gardevoir deck in one of my latest videos, which will explain the deck and what’s in, with how it works! kzbin.info/www/bejne/raCcdZaZrK2FptE

[@ryangilbert9522]

I know I’m four months behind, but I’ve been looking to get into Pokémon because it seems like it will be more friendly for my daughter to play. My favorite Pokémon is Ampharos and I’d love a deck that doesn’t have to be crazy good not standard legal. Just a base that my daughter can punch at as she learns what she likes.

[@WoodyREC]

If you’re open to anything I would maybe suggest finding a theme deck which can be quite cheap and is perfect for you and your daughter to get started (alternatively the Battle Academy is great!) Both those products come with decks ready to play out of the box!

[@TheDerpyEspeon127]

I just pulled a full art vmax zeraora, and i love the ralts line. It makes me want to build a psychic/electric deck! I also recently pulled rapid strike shinx/luxio/luxray

[@WoodyREC]

The Kirlia from Silver Tempest let’s you draw cards so it can slipped into any deck! Zeraora VMax is a good attacker, both attacks are useable! You can add in Flaaffy from Evolving Skies to keep energy coming into play along with Electric Generator to power it up!

[@JustAnAussie32]

Being a kinda new TCG player I like kinda less luck based deck and I like using the Melmetal line in the Pokémon go set

[@WoodyREC]

Melmetal uses an attack which comes down to coin flips, but can get powered up in a single turn via Metal Saucer and Twin Energy so definitely include 4 copies of each of those! Alternatively things like Magnezone with Giga Magnet can get you set-up quickly if you play lots of Metal energy. Adding 4 Glimwood Tangle stadiums means you have multiple chances to flip those coins and find those heads you need for maximum damage!

[@sephire25]

I remember in the old tcg client i built a swampert deck that i loved. it wasnt good compared to modern decks but swampert was my favorite mon and i spent so much time building it and then i made the mistake of transferring over to Live and lost my favorite cards. I'm honestly watching these kinds of videos to see if i can be convinced to create another deck but idk. im not seeing mons i like.

[@WoodyREC]

What other Pokemon do you like? Maybe I can help you find a card you will enjoy!

[@seagulll4505]

My favourite Pokémon is lucario and would love to have a deck built around him

[@WoodyREC]

Lucario currently has a V and VStar Pokemon which are quite good! If you use things like Gutsy Pickaxe you can accelerate energy into play, meaning you can attack quicker! Oranguru means you can set this up. There is a lot of good fighting support coming too so should be new cards on there way. You can add some consistency and ways to get those Pickaxe when needed via things like Shady Dealings Inteleon.

[@liekkianimaatio3652]

I really like Oshawott. The Pokémon line was my first card and my first starter. I also have a soft spot for Eiscue

[@james-e7c4o]

ik this video was posted 2yrs ago but my fav pokemon is def gengar every game i play i used gengar

[@kpetro539]

I got some cards with Water Support at PAX East, mainly Greninja V. Would love to build a deck around Greninja in general.

[@WoodyREC]

If you’re going to use Greninja V his attack ‘Dancing Shuriken’ relies on flipping heads so you can pair it with Glimwood Tangle stadium to make it a bit more powerful! You could add Cape of Toughness to make it tankier, along with Radiant Gardevoir to reduce damage taken and even Milotic from Darkness Ablaze to heal some damage taken! General water support things like Capacious Bucket, Wash Energy, Melony and other things will help you get going!

[@zoeg1645]

Thank you for this video , I’d like a deck around the hisuian typhlosion !! I’ve been obsessed w them since they released. The cards are soooo pretty to me

[@WoodyREC]

Glad I could help! You could use Hisuian Typhlosion V and VStar which has the attack ‘Hollow Flames’ which does 180 and drops 3 damage counters on there bench, it also has the VStar attack ‘Shimmering Star’ which if you set up four damage first you can KO anything! You can use things like Galarian Zigzagoon / Hawlucha and Scoop Up Nets to drop damage counters, paired with Old Cemetery to make sure there Pokemon are covered in damage counters. Shadow Rider Calyrex VMax is a good partner as it accelerates energy, and things like Fog Crystal are generally good for Psychic decks!

[@zoeg1645]

@@WoodyREC thank you so much!!! I super duper appreciate it ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@BobJones-bg4ui]

My favourite Pokémon are Dragonite, Tranitar, Salamence, and Flygon. If the TCG has Pokémon Ranger cards, I want to build a deck that has them as a theme. I’m brand new to the TCG, and want a causal friendly deck. Plusle, and Minun are also sick.

[@WoodyREC]

Unfortunately there is an old Pokémon Ranger card but no way to theme a deck around them! Sounds like you like Dragon Pokémon so you can use the new Regidrago VStar which can use the attacks of any Dragon Pokémon in the discard! Meaning you can use the likes of Dragonite, Salamence etc all in one deck! You can get them in the discard via things like Quick Ball, Ultra Ball, Serena and Primordial Altar then use their attacks via Regidrago VStar!

[@BobJones-bg4ui]

@@WoodyREC Thank you for the deck idea! Decks with Flaaffy also caught my attention too. But, discord dragons are pretty cool too.

[@abigail4816]

My long term goal is to build fairy deck, but for now I'd like to build a psychic deck featuring mimikyu and/or mew. It will be my first deck so that's why I'm not doing fairy yet

[@smewbirb]

Not sure if this gets checked anymore, but im wondering more about how mixing types works in deck building? Ive been a collector for a while but am just now starting to learn how to play. This video was rlly helpful!!

[@WoodyREC]

Still checking as much as I can 😊 so different Pokemon types require different energy too attack, so it would mean you’d need two types of energy in your deck instead of. In general it’s absolutely fine, but you might find those turns you draw one type when you need the other! You can get around this including cards like ‘Earthern Vessel’ which lets you search specific energy!

[@smewbirb]

@@WoodyREC Thanks so much!!! This was helpful

[@jacoblessard8213]

Vaporeon or Dragonite deck pls!

[@joshua666jones13]

vaporen

[@GetLostOUTRO]

I just ordered the Ampharos ex Battle Deck. I'm looking to upgrade make it a bit stronger. What do you suggest

[@WoodyREC]

I’d drop some of the colourless Pokemon and add in more electric! You could use Miraidon ex which has Tandem Unit to help you set up. I’d either change the Flaaffy to the Evolving Skies version or drop them down to 1 and put in 4 rare candy to skip that stage! Electric Generator is probably your best friend with the deck, so definitely 4 of those, then just increase the Ultra Ball and Nest Ball count to 4 each.

[@GetLostOUTRO]

Okay so I decided on 2 Magnemite, 2 Magneton, 1 Magnezone ex, 1 Zapdos ex, 1 Raichu V, 1 Raikou V, 3Mreep, 3 flaaffy(2 evolving skies), 1 Magnezone Amphoras ex.... What are good trainers to use or try out ?

[@WoodyREC]

@@GetLostOUTRO If you're playing a stage 2 like Magnezone and Ampharos then Rare Candy are important! Electric Generator is amazing with electric Pokemon, making energy flood into play. Make sure you have some switch cards in their like Escape Rope and Switch. Finally, since you're not using any rule box abilities I'd put 3-4 Path to the Peak in there to make things more difficult for your opponent!

[@ChannelingDarkness]

I am starting to play tomorrow and this was a very easy explanation. Thank you so much! I subscribed as well. 😊

[@WoodyREC]

Really glad I could be any help, best of luck for tomorrow and welcome aboard!

[@Imthebest43verrrr]

Can you please show how to build a two type deck

[@WoodyREC]

Two type decks aren't too different, you will just obviously need to split your energy and maybe not focus as heavy on specific support for a type! Do you have two Pokemon you have in mind?

[@lebagswag128]

my favorite pokémon is croagunk and i’d love to build a deck that uses toxicroak

[@WoodyREC]

The best Toxicroak at the moment is from Sword and Shield base, he allows Poison to deal more damage between turns, so then you want more stuff to work with poison! Depending what other Pokémon you like, Galarian Slowking VMax is a good partner as he can poison for 12 damage instead of 1, then Toxicroak adds a further 2. If you go that route then something like Galar Mine stadium is great as it will trap there Pokémon in the active! Dark Patch will accelerate dark energy so you can attack quicker too.

[@LCDigital92]

I’m a collector and am curious about the TCG but don’t expect to play. I am thinking about making decks as part of my collection even if I don’t play them. My top 6 Pokémon are Mewtwo, Typhlosion, Arcanine, Absol, Zeraora, and Sneasel. Mewtwo and Zeraora have theme decks, which I have (with Lycanroc and Luxray). I noticed that 1. Mewtwo and Hisuian Typhlosion are Psychic, 2. Typhlosion and Arcanine are Fire, 3. Absol and Sneasel are Darkness, and 4. Zeraora and Luxray are Lightning. I’m thinking about making 4 decks based on those, but I’m not sure if that makes sense or if it’s better to center decks around the specific Pokémon.

[@WoodyREC]

You can definitely pair them up by type, should work fine! For the Psychic deck things like Fog Crystal and Old Cemetary should get you started. Dark have things like Dark Patch and Galarian Moltres and lightning have Flaaffy which is great for getting energy into play and Speed Energy (which lets you draw more cards!)

[@nerdiebird]

I would love to see a Flygon themed deck, but theres not a lit of powerful Flygon cards out there. I made my own deck themed around Flygon EX(XY61) with supporters based on drawing more cards, but it only has one attack that costs 4 energy so by the time I had enough energy stacked, I could use its attack maybe once and it would get knocked out.

[@WoodyREC]

There’s not many options for Flygon is there! You could try Flygon GX, which attacks for three energy and hits a little harder, it also has Dusty Defence which reduces damage you take! Going down that root you could play more things to reduce damage like Radiant Gardevoir and Hard Charm (that means you’re taking 70 less damage from each attack). You can accelerate energy into play with things like Gutsy Pickaxe, to help you attack earlier.

[@dominikdutrisac5660]

My favourite Pokémon is Venusaur! I was hoping to build a deck around the Radiant Venusaur I got from a Pokémon GO Booster Pack. Thank you for your help!!!

[@WoodyREC]

I actually built a deck around Radiant Venusaur and Hisuian Arcanine - here's a link if you want to see the full deck list and how it worked: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioXXkoB3qr53gJY

[@plotswitch3422]

Gengar is my all time fave! I would love to figure out how to build a deck around them.

[@claytonwithers7837]

Hi, thank you for making this video, I found it really helpful. I have about 450 Pokemon cards and I'am trying to learn to play the real version of the game. My brother and I kind of played it together but he did not like the complicated rules so we made up our own thing. So my favorite Pokemon is Charimander, Charmilian and Charsard and I was hoping to build a deck around thoughs three Pokemon. But I don't really know the best way because I'm lacking trainer cards.

[@WoodyREC]

Glad I could help! Trainer cards really make a deck, they make decks work and more consistent so if you can find a theme deck, trades or a Pokemon league nearby I’d try gather what you can as a start 😊

[@MontannaValler]

It is my first time making a Pokemon deck. Can you help me build a deck around my surfing Pikachu V?

[@WoodyREC]

Of course! If you add something like Baxcalibur that will let you attach multiple water energy instead of one! Having some Melony in the deck is good incase you cant get Baxcalibur setup, so you can accelerate more energy and draw cards! Radiant Greninja is good, it will let you get those energies in the discard to use Melony and again draw more energy (it's also a great secondary attacker!). Then make sure you have good amount of your main attacker, so something like 3-4 copies of your Surfing Pikachu V and VMax. Add in those generic support cards mentioned in the video and you should be good to go!

[@danielkemp6249]

I don't know if you're still looking at comments, but I would love some advice. I originally come from magic, but a buddy of mine got me slightly interested in pokémon. I want to build a deck around grumpig, a stage 1 with a version that lets me search out two energy and attach them to any pokémon, and mawile, a basic that has a version that deals 30 damage per attached energy. I'm a little hung up on deck distribution, because it's much different from magic, and there are just so many cards to go through to even begin to try to build a deck.

[@maximuz_prime1]

Very helpful wen I started I used a chairzard/arc v max deck but now I’m focusing on Arc/Duraludon V deck

[@cloudstrife8833]

Il trying to build an electric/metal deck, i have it with megnezone ex, regileky vmax, genesect gx and drampa ex; but i dont know wich synergyes i can do, and if i need to add other v, gx, ex or stuff like that

[@jimstyx]

Gengar is my favorite by far Just got into the tcg because my son wanted to get into it, always played the vg but I need to learn this so I can teach him

[@josephplafcan1210]

I would move to see a fossil deck. It's the deck I've always wanted to make. Rampardos focused if possible. Thank you!

[@antonio_but_really]

I really want to build a deck around dunsparce.

[@Sharp_21]

Hey I’m a huge Umbreon and Oshawott fan, could you help me build a deck around these 2 pokemon please?

[@WoodyREC]

Umbreon VMax had ‘Dark Signal’ so you can switch your opponents Pokemon when you need too, and can be a great back-up attacker! Oshawott evolves into the recent Hisuian Samurott VStar too, which means we can keep the whole deck Dark type, meaning things like Dark Patch are really useful! Radiant Greninja lets you throw away energy to draw more cards, so that means you can get your Dark Patch's working quicker, and things like Pokestop Stadium are good at doing similar, so you might want to focus more on items to help you find Pokemon and draw cards (Ultra, Quick Ball, Evolution Incense, Rare Candy etc) Because Pokestop could throw away Pokemon, or because you're discarding your own energy, I'd maybe add in some support to bring Pokemon/Energy back like Klara or Ordinary Rods!

[@Sharp_21]

@@WoodyREC thank you! I’ll stop by my local card shop tomorrow and buy some of those cards to build this deck

[@LeifTheRogue]

Very useful video!! I’d def like to build some sort of poison type team, maybe featuring Ariados? It’d probably be a gimmicky team, but that fits me perfectly!

[@WoodyREC]

Can’t beat a gimmicky team haha the most fun! Ariados from Lost Origin is maybe your best bet, it has the attack ‘String Bind’ which lets you do 10 +30 for each energy in their retreat costs! You can use multiple Spidops EX, which increases there Retreat once for each so if you get four of those down you’re hitting for at least 130 (plus more for there regular retreat costs!) You can also add Galar Mine (which isn’t in standard now) but does add another 2 to the retreat costs! Make sure you have plenty of retreat cards your self (Switch, Escape Rope etc) so you don’t get stuck by the stadium yourself!

[@LeifTheRogue]

Oooh, that def sounds like a fun team. Thanks for the info!

[@LeifTheRogue]

And props to responding to comments in an 8 month old video, not many people do that!

[@jacobwalters5130]

Just found out my nephew got a corviknight v starter deck and decided to pull out the collection I had to make a deck. Thinking of making one with meloetta just wasn't sure on how to go about it.

[@WoodyREC]

Unfortunately we've only had the 1 Meloetta in the last 2-3 years, the one from Fusion Strike attacks from being powered up with Fusion Strike Energy so you can use her with things like Elesa's Sparkle and Fusion Strike Energy to get her attacking for quite a lot of damage. You can use Fog Crystal as she is a Psychic Pokemon, and even things like Genesect V as that lets you draw cards in Fusion Strike engines. Then I'd put in some more Fusion Strike Pokemon like Deoxys or Dragapult to help with your other tools, and since they're both Psychic means you can still run just Psychic and Fusion Strike Energy. You could also add Smeargle who will let you recycle Fusion Strike Energy from your discard pile once Meloetta's are KO'd.

[@arkada]

Thanks for the vid. I want to play this game but im not a "meta" player in any game. So i want to build the deck around the pokemons that i like , like kyogre or eternatus

[@WoodyREC]

It’s a really unique list that goes against the usual rules of deck building but Tricky Gym have made a really fun Kyogre deck so I will direct you there: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l4Kme5KroZaYp6c

[@BraxtonCrabtree-c1k]

Hello I have just started in the Pokémon tcg and I have made 2 decks do have any useful tips or suggestions for my decks in the future

[@owen-leetear-buck6875]

very helpful video, Im getting back into the game and I really love cramorant. He has to be one of my favorites. that and pyukumuku

[@DomPalombiMusic]

I’d love to build a current gyarados deck, curious to know your suggestions!

[@Goblinking23]

My all time favorites would be Steel type Pokémon. Steelix and Metagross being my top 2. Then for legendaries, I like Hoopa and Rayquaza

[@WoodyREC]

Steelix and Metagross should work together! Metagross VMax can KO any Pokémon in two attacks with Max Rush which is good and it’s only two energy cost Radiant Steelix is good to clean up with Late game, but you can only have one of these in deck, it is however shiny so it’s a cool Steelix card to have! Steelix needs a lot of energy in deck so you want something like Energy Recycler to get them in for the big swing at the end! You can lose from decking out so only use him to close out games! In terms of Steel support Metal Saucer lets you get extra energy in play on a turn!

[@massivemax7395]

I am looking to start playing in Tempe AZ! I will build some decks

[@massivemax7395]

I would love to use Snorlax and Slowbro. The lazy bro combo

[@cobrasbonsai861]

This Helped Me Sooooo Much Dude! Thank You For The Help. I Just Started Getting Into Playing The Game. I Haven’t Gotten Into A Tournament Or Haven’t Played A Game So Do You Mind Helping Me With My Fav Pokemon? It’s Espeon!

[@WoodyREC]

Glad I could help 😊 Espeon is great as a support Pokemon because of it's 'Solar Revelation' ability, so you could pair it with any Pokemon! Let me know what other your Pokemon you like and will try pull something together for you!

[@cobrasbonsai861]

@@WoodyREC Thanks Man! I Needed That Information!

[@alucius1]

Articuno is my favorite pokemon. I am working on improving the arriving theme deck. I still have my og Pokemon cards from the 90s to

[@kammanpl450]

These arent allowed in tournaments anymore i would recommend you to sell the ones that you dont like earn some money from it and buy a deck Or some boosters

[@JoshPerry-jz6ki]

I have some Pokemon cards. The only thing is that I don't know how to play . But, I collect em all to see what I get.

[@johnhensworth2707]

Hey Woody, The type of deck I’m thinking about is a Dark themed deck with Houndours, Houndooms, Umbreons and other Dark type Pokémon. This is more of a casual deck I’m aiming for. If you could also suggest some support and item cards that would be outstanding. Thank you Woody.

[@Spladoinkal]

So I come from having played MTG for years and am just getting into Pokemon TCG. What I'm looking for is the different strengths of each type of Pokemon. For instance, in MTG green decks tend to have really powerful creatures that take a lot of mana to play, OR black decks have either zombies which are tons of not-so-powerful creatures that can raise from the dead so you can overwhelm the opponent with numbers or black decks could be vampire decks where most of the cards are supposed to drain your opponent's HP to zero without needing to attack with creatures. I'd like to figure out what Pokemon types can do what kind of stuff beyond "This type is weak to this type." I COULD just play prebuilt decks as a beginner but I'm a tinkerer at heart. I got into I.T. because I like building computers. I got into paintball so I could purposely upgrade my paintball marker, etc. etc. I'd rather lose with a poorly built custom deck than win with something I didn't make myself.

[@bee-square3145]

I love zorark mew and I like fire and lightning types

[@bee-square3145]

Ps this is a helpful video I hope meny people that want to get into the card game sees this

[@WoodyREC]

Thanks for the kind words! There is a Zoroark with the ability 'Phantom Transformation' from Evolving Skies which can turn into any Stage 1 in your discard pile! kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJXEaJ57eNp8j9E This is my video on the deck, but you can replace my stage 1 Pokemon with Stage 1 Pokemon you like!

[@bee-square3145]

@@WoodyREC cool thanks ill wach this asap

[@MutantBlake]

Hisui Samurott VStar. I'm trying to match it with Absol (Astral Radiance) and the hisui samurott line from Astral radiance.

[@WoodyREC]

Hisuian Samurott VStar and Absol can work great together - something like Galarian Zigzagoon and Gapejaw Bog might be another option as it means you can put damage on your opponent and attack with your Hisuain Samurott VStar in the same turn!

[@gast321]

aegislash and Espeon are my favourite pokemon, but those Mew cards you showed on screen looks pretty cool

[@GrangerMonarque]

Yo same! I absolutely love aegislash and espeon

[@ragdolltech3526]

I started with MTG in like '00, then jumped into Digimon and YGO at the same time earlier this year after getting back into MTG, and I'm slowly dipping into Pokemon as well. (yes I'm broke because of this all lol) My favorite Pokemon, Ive got two copies and a ton of cards, Probably wont be a good deck. But its Smeargle!

[@seadragon2477]

A friend told me that adding lots of supporters is not good because you usually don't have that many turns , how many supp cards do you recommend ?

[@WoodyREC]

I'd say aim for around 8-10 supporters. Normally you will have a combination of 3-4 different ones, and couple copies of each is good! As an example, something like... 4x Professor's Research 4x Judge 2 Boss's Orders Having multiples just means you're more likely to see those cards, and if 1 or 2 are stuck in your prizes it's not going to hurt too much!

[@Mongoose125]

Whats an expansion deck?

[@animelover-rs2wt]

my favorite pokemon is swampert but i never really played the tcg much please help me.

[@WoodyREC]

The only recent Swamper we have is from Fusion Strike - he has ‘Muddy Water’ meaning he can accelerate water or fighting energy into play so can be useful! You will want Rare Candy so you can evolve into Swampert quicker as it skips over Marshtomp! Things like Irida (get swampert and rare candy when you need) and Capascious Bucket (energy so you can use it’s ability) are both great for the deck!

[@animelover-rs2wt]

@@WoodyREC great thank you

[@Sylar-vx9rj]

i would really like to build a good deck based or including arcanine if you anyone can help me where to start ?

[@jessicabechtol2827]

My daughter and I are just learning how to build decks in Pokémon. I have played other card games and built decks in those games. My biggest question is how to know what Pokémon cards are ok to use in the deck? How old or new do they need to be?

[@WoodyREC]

If you're just playing at home you can use any you like, if you plan to attend Pokemon league / tournaments etc then it's anything from Sword and Shield currently (signified with a D and onwards regulation mark in the bottom corner)

[@daniellehermez8180]

What a fantastic video! My 7yo is wanting to improve his skills. We have quite a few centiskortch v and v max cards so would be great to get some tips on how to build a powerful deck with those!

[@WoodyREC]

If they are just looking to build a deck for fun then you can pair Centiskorch V and VMax with other Pokemon like Charizard from the Pokemon Go set, that doubles your fire energy in play, so means Centiskorch hits a lot harder! They can use things like Magma Basin/Giant Hearth, Welder and Blacksmith to flood the field with more and more fire energy too. Volcanion (Unbroken Bonds) is a great addition too, with Heatran GX - that should be enough to get them going!

[@wesleywheeler7891]

In the process of building my first deck. Growing up, I've typically liked fire types, so the plan is to fill it with my favorite pokemon (charizard, typhlosion, arcanine, maybe even a ho-oh if i can fit it.) So far the concept is to burn my energy, burn your energy, burn my cards, everything is basically on fire.

[@WoodyREC]

😂😂 you’ve cracked it!

[@gavincole6498]

I really like pikachu and zekrom tag team gx and crobat v and vmax would love some help! great video

[@WoodyREC]

Pikachu and Zekrom did use to be one of the more powerful decks, so you can actually find a full decklist on the official Pokemon website (www.pokemon.com/uk/strategy/sun-moon-team-up-deck-tips-pikachu-zekrom-gx).

[@gavincole6498]

@@WoodyREC ok thank you

[@andrewlaverghetta715]

This is interesting. I've got a son who's going on 5 years old who is interesting in the cards, but he can't quite grasp the rules yet. I played through him vs my wife. I played a Pikachu electric/fire deck that I bought at walmart maybe 4-6 years ago and it felt like it was for old school pokemon tcg, where you've got pokemon that you battle and you eventually whittle each other down, but with so many search cards, it doesn't quite feel the same as when I was in middle school and the game first came out. I definitely had my Team Rocket cards and my Dark this and Dark that. If it takes off enough over the coming years, we might end up making decks with whatever cards we have at home or buy and not keep in a standard set. Also, as somebody who plays a decent amount of magic, the number of energy and the number of pokemon in the deck seems so much lower than what I would expect. Fewer than 20 lands in a 60 card deck would be crazy, but it seems like that's the norm for Pokemon? And I suppose you don't want to draw too many pokemon, or have a lot of ways to search for them which basically is the same thing. It's so interesting the way it works.

[@WoodyREC]

That’s amazing you get to share that with your family 😊 the game has definitely changed a lot, the game was much slower back then which had its Pluses and Negatives! It is very different haha it’s because so much in the Pokemon TCG can be used without energy (Items, Supporters etc) so having a ton of energy is rarely that important, a lot of decks try to play the minimum you will need! There is also recovery tools to bring energy and Pokemon back (Super Rod), so you can use more energy if you get stuck in a spot!

[@spccruz083190]

I am getting back into pokemon TCG again. Sucks when everyone is so ahead of you lol. I enjoy the challenge but the 10c bin is all about I can afford.

[@puckerbutton7025]

i played back in the golden days in the 90s im almost 40 and just bought a duel decks box to get my daughter into it

[@2aVideos-m3u]

Nice video man🎉, if it would be posible can you tell me some good deck on wather/electrick energy cause i have kyurem VMAX and Dracozolt. THANKS for respond😊😊