One particular deck combination has been dominating the Pokemon TCG, leaving players to try and find the best version of the deck’s strategy. No two decks are exactly alike, causing some versions of this powerful Pokemon TCG strategy to hold up better than others, in part thanks to an often overlooked Pokemon.
With the constant evolution of the Pokemon franchise bringing new creatures, characters, and strategies to life, the Pokemon TCG has been known to cycle through particularly strong deck combinations. Lately, the most prevalent deck combo has used Gardevoir EX and Munkidori as its main cards, implementing a brilliant combo that can be difficult to defend against. One quirk of the TCG, though, is that even the most powerful cards often rely on unexpected Pokemon for back-up. It’s recently been discovered that a Jellicent EX card fits perfectly into the Munkidori and Gardevoir EX combo, granting competitive viability to an underrated Pokemon.
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Gardevoir and Munkidori Have Made an Unlikely Ally with Jellicent
The meta game of the Pokemon TCG has become overrun with decks focusing on a particular combo using the abilities of Munkidori and Gardevoir EX. Gardevoir EX is a high-HP card that comes with the ability Psychic Embrace, which lets the player add two Psychic energy cards to any of their Psychic Pokemon at the expense of taking damage. Munkidori’s Adrena-Brain ability then allows them to move that damage from their own Pokemon to an opponent’s, leading to a combo that helps farm energy to the active Pokemon while also causing damage to the opponent.
Although plenty of different Pokemon can work in tandem with this combo, Jellicent EX may be the perfect partner. Its Oceanic Curse ability prevents the opponent from using item or tool cards to counter the player, and its Power Press attack can deal up to 160 damage in one hit. As the game grows, upcoming new Pokemon TCG expansions might challenge this particular strategy, but currently, these 3 Pokemon form a nearly unbeatable team.
The next expansion to the Pokemon TCG looks like it will focus on bringing Mega Evolution back to the card game, just like Pokemon Legends: Z-A will do for the video game side of the series. In the recent Pokemon Presents, 6 new Mega Evolution cards were revealed, including one for Mega Gardevoir EX. This means that even as powerful new cards are added to the game, Gardevoir will probably still have a place in strong decks. The future is less certain for Jellicent and Munkidori, but the combo will still be a powerful tool for players who know how to use it.
The Pokemon TCG is a Different Beast than the Video Games
The Pokemon video games may have inspired the TCG, and they have the same creatures and battles at their core, but the strategies required separate the two. Oftentimes, in the competitive world of Pokemon video games, certain Pokemon stand above the rest as being particularly powerful, and end up getting placed on almost every team. This causes some Pokemon to fall into obscurity, no matter how much potential they might have. In the Pokemon TCG, however, a deck doesn’t have to conform to many rules in order to be viable. A player’s deck can have as many or as few Pokemon in it as they like, so long as it doesn’t exceed 60 cards. This is what allows any Pokemon to become a viable competitive option as long as it fits within the player’s strategy, allowing creatures like Jellicent a chance to claw their way back from obscurity.
Unfortunately, the world of the Pokemon TCG can be fickle, and cards that are powerful today could be overlooked tomorrow in favor of a new strategy or combo. The Gardevoir EX and Munkidori deck has allowed Jellicent its turn in the spotlight, for now. Perhaps with future expansions, other less popular Pokemon could have a chance to shine as well. Whatever a player’s favorite Pokemon card might be, it always has potential, so one should never underestimate an opponent just because they have an unassuming team member.
- Franchise
- Pokemon
- Original Release Date
- October 20, 1996