Hey, Cut or Tap readers! My name is Jackson, and I’m super excited to be writing my first article for the site. I remember having a membership for the site back in the peak DDG era pre-Covid, and it’s a bit of a full circle moment for me to have the privilege to write for the site myself!
I want to take this chance to introduce myself to you guys before I get into it, for those unfamiliar with myself and my background. Growing up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, I’ve been playing the Pokemon TCG for 14 years, starting during the HGSS era. In my time playing, I’ve had the opportunity to both struggle and thrive through all three age divisions, which has given me a wealth of perspective to provide commentary on. For those of you who do know me, it’s probably from my Senior division win at NAIC in 2018, or my LAIC Top 8 back in November 2024 with the Secret Box Charizard list – a deckbuilding example I’m very proud of.
With that being said, I’m excited to write about something that goes beyond the scope of the current format and one deck. Today I’m going to write on an easily applicable framework for deckbuilding, no matter the format or meta. By the end of the article, you should be able to take away the skills needed to build a deck that performs better than pulling a list from Limitless. I’m going to use a case study of deckbuilding that I believe transcends the “stock” list and gave a certain deck a distinct competitive advantage.
So Why is Deckbuilding so Important?
For many players, deck building is a bit of a lost art. In the modern era of Pokemon, where everyone has access to all deck lists played at every Pokemon tournament, it can feel tough to “crack” the format open with an innovative idea that gives players a distinct advantage. But despite this notion, we see time and time again the best players (and usually best-performing players at a tournament) have the best lists.
Now, very rarely is there one “objectively” correct list. Most cards in Pokemon are relational; deck lists are only stronger if the cards in them interact in a positive way versus the other decks in the format. (Example: playing a Spiritomb PAL in your deck, but no one is playing Pokemon V in their decks.)
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You must have a Premier Membership or greater to see the rest of this post. If you don't have a Premier account, you can Sign Up for one here.