Lugia VStar is fresh off another win at the largest Regional ever, staving off a myriad of rogue ideas, despite the humongous target on its back. With the 2023 San Diego Regionals fast approaching, the overwhelming feeling has been to either give in and play Lugia, or play a deck that has at least an even matchup into the terror of the format. Typically, I steer away from playing the outright best deck in the format, and look for decks that are close in power level, taking relatively even matchups across the board.
Consistency is also a major factor, as being able to play the game and then letting skill decide who wins or loses feels like the best recipe for success at such large events. This has led me to Mew VMax, as the deck seemingly checks all the boxes listed above, and is a deck that has proven itself in every meta since its initial release. With two variants of the deck floating around, I have leaned into the one including Judge and Path to the Peak, as the deck gives up aggressive pressure but gains more deck slots and thus more versatility.
Mew VMax has been the third most played deck at North American major events, if you combine different Lost Box variants into one category, and its meta share hovers around ten percent, while Lugia consistently comes in around thirty percent of the field. Even though the deck has proven to be a popular choice, it had zero placements in top cuts at LAIC and all North American major events since Lugia became a deck. Mew is not flopping, but it is falling short of expectations. I still will try to convince you Mew is a good play, but it is important to highlight the deck’s shortcomings. However, this can turn into an advantage, as this leads people to be more worried about other decks and potentially not tech as hard for the Mew when preparing. This is increasingly important when considering Mew an option, as Drapion V is always looming as an easy inclusion that would seemingly win the matchup. Right?
The Boogeyman
Drapion V will always fluctuate in play, as its inclusion into decks is largely predicated on how much people respect the psychic cats. Initially Mew was the main target, but when Mewtwo V-Union won Toronto Regionals, any deck with energy acceleration could consider it as hitting two birds with one stone. Mewtwo V-Union did not appear at the following event, while Mew continues to miss top cut. Mew has become similar to Night March and Gardevoir & Sylveon GX Tag Team, where it does well in events where it is not respected but falls off in events where it is respected. This would seemingly be a good time for it to slide in when all eyes are fixated on Lugia.
Regardless of how much Drapion V is played, it is important to have a game plan for it. In my experience, its inclusion in a deck, does not automatically mean a loss for Mew. There are two specific situations where Drapion does automatically win the matchup. The first being when Drapion takes a knockout and the opponent has set up a second option that can one shot a second Mew VMax behind it, and the second situation is the opponent hiding the fact that they play the key tech card and use it to take a surprise knockout to close out the game. Judge should prevent the first scenario as it typically prevents the opponent from having a clean set-up. If the opponent uses Drapion without a clear threat lurking on the bench then a combination of Roxanne, Lost City and a knockout is a relatively easy answer that will stabilize the prize race and leave the opponent searching for answers with a limited hand.
The second situation listed above means the opponent has already taken at least three prize cards. Path and Roxanne will make it as difficult as possible for the opponent to find Drapion, a counter to Path, and a method to pivot in. This can give enough time to close out the game before the opponent can find their pieces. In game one, I lean towards playing it safe and using Roxanne and Path so the opponent does not get a surprise win off a single card. If the opponent does play Drapion this will typically pressure them into pulling it out earlier in game two, which we already have a game plan for.
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