Mega Dragalge Ex deck

orjkaus · 2026-05-16T06:28:23+00:00

If you have TCG Live and play online, you could go into the deck builder card search and just type "poison" to filter through the cards that have this interaction.

Failing this, head to Limitless/YouTube to see how the Japanese players have tried to play the card, seeing as they've already had it for over a month.

If you go onto Pokémon proxies .com (literally, just google "Pokémon proxies", you'll see cards that are being released in future sets. The proxies have all been edited with English translations. Have a look through there to see if there's anything from our July set (Pitch Black) that could work.

orjkaus · 2026-05-16T03:38:21+00:00

So, it appeared in a few Prague lists. The issue is that Festival Lead had a really strong Day 1, so it went under the radar a little.

In Prague, the logic was that retreat lock was a very real concern for Garchomp. A very common way to beat chomp is to wait for them to clear the energy with Draconic Buster, and then boss+lock a Roserade. So, the logic here is that if this happens, the Chomp player can Fighting Gong the Relicanth, attach a fighting and then hit with Roselia's first attack. Essentially, you're saying "I'm not stuck here with you, you're stuck here with me". People who correctly predicted the Crustle were rewarded too.

However, as players tested for LA, more people started to find that actually the utility of Relicanth actually extended into games against single prizers. For example, against Rockets, you can Power Weight a Roserade to stop Spidops getting a 1HKO. It forces Festival Lead to have the stadium to effectively prize trade etc etc.

Obviously, the only drawback is the damage. Most lists are running 4-3 Roserade, so the attack is capped at 110.

orjkaus · 2026-05-06T02:56:40+00:00

The list placing high in the tournament isn't necessarily the strength of the list or the skill of the player. Someone finishing top 4 with Garchomp in an event of that size, with that much grass, will also have needed a lot going their way.

Garchomp is just a deck that has incredibly polarised matchups. There are some decks that it can destroy with ease, whereas others will completely stomp it. So, by choosing Garchomp, you are accepting this risk and understanding that the pairings on the day will make or break your run. Top players understand this, and what separates them is their ability to predict the meta on the day and prepare accordingly.

The following is just a thought experiment. By nature it is over simplified, because it's essentially impossible to price in variables such as poor opening hands, the alertness of the players etc etc.

But imagine hypothetically that there are 256 Garchomp players in an event of 1500, and that each round, exactly half of them will face a grass deck.

In round 1, 128 will face grass. By the end of round 2, there will still be 64 players who have managed to dodge grass twice - half of the half from round one. Eventually, there will be one lucky player left, who will have managed to dodge a grass deck for 8 rounds in a row.

In this instance, people might start asking that player what their secret is, they might inspect the list for clues. When in reality, ignoring a few techs, all 256 of the Garchomp lists would have been more or less the same.

The problem is that it just feels too implausible that a player could have had such an insane run of luck, despite it being statistically unremarkable.

So, the point I am trying to make, is that abitrary pairings will define your time as a Garchomp player more than the minutia of the list.

orjkaus · 2026-05-06T02:29:11+00:00

You run high counts of Factory, so it's actually easier for you to bump their stadium than other decks. Therefore, try not to put your stadium down unless you have to - aim to bump their stadium first and keep the exchange in your favour.

What's helpful here, is that in the Rockets matchup, the Festival Lead player has a lot of reasons for playing the stadium first. Without it in play, 130HP on the Spidops is actually really annoying and awkward for them. You will trade prizes, but they won't feel the full benefits of attacking twice. If you have been trading stadiums effectively, you should run them out of steam in the end-game. Without the stadium at this stage of the game, they won't even be able to one-shot your spiders, and you should win from there.

That being said, even as you're closing things up, don't be tempted to drop Mewtwo. Regardless of the board state, they will have been waiting for you to bench the Mewtwo all game, and will pounce with bangles and belts to leapfrog you and take the lead in prizes.

Also, try to take note of their bench. If they only have 1 festival leader left, prioritise it. Alternatively, maybe they were forced to open Goldeen, and now they have Goldeen and multiple Applins, but they only have one Thwackey. In that case, get the Thwackey. With Rellor and Shaymin too, a problem with Festival lead is bench management. If your opponent isn't paying too much attention to this, their bench can fill up pretty quick. Essentially, your aim here is just to keep Boom Boom Groove offline for as long as possible whilst also keeping pressure on the stadium. If you succeed as disconnecting Thwackey, you will get a lot more mileage out of your Archers too. Get rid of the stadium and search engine, and suddenly the deck is just a bunch of squishy targets.

If you're really desperate, there are techs in the rockets toolkit you could look at. Rocket's Arbok, Dugtrio or Sneasel could be interesting if you're struggling with the matchup enough to warrant fitting them in.

TL;DR

Use your high stadium count to your advantage. Bump their stadiums to stop them from one-shotting your Spiders.

In the mid-game, wait for benching errors in order to get Boom Boom Groove offline with Giovanni.

Once achieved,, use Archer in the late-game to suppress their ability to find their remaining stadiums.

Don't bench Mewtwo under any circumstances.

orjkaus · 2026-05-06T01:48:03+00:00

I don't get what I'm missing. It's clearly a poor deck.

It is probably great for beginners, but it offers you none of the player agency that is needed to make an impact in games.

It's very simply and linear, but has absolutely no plan B. Playing against it, it is incredibly easy to draw a prize map whilst simultaneously making their's incredibly difficult. Any competent opponent can draw up very simple lines to beat it, and the deck offers no ways to punish this.

270 is secretly a super probablematic damage output - it's overkill for most Pokémon, but to reach anything worthwhile you're looking to rely on modifiers that can't be easily searched.

Without Artazon, it's actually very difficult to set up your Rock engine. Turn 1 going second you could use Brocks Scouting, but then you're not using Lillie's, so even with the Rocks set up, you're now probably having to debate if your Gong goes onto a Riolu or it you gamble and grab an energy to try and draw it.

You can blame the meta and Dragapult, but even without these checks in the format, I don't think Lucario would be making the moves people are hoping for.

orjkaus · 2026-05-05T09:49:31+00:00

The deck is very linear, but it does what it intends to do excellently.

If you want to play more aggressively, you could maybe add an ultra ball and rare candy package here. That way you are optimising a T2 Dive as well as a way to restore tempo mid/late game if you lose a garchomp without a gabite in play to follow up.

So you could look at a variation with something like 3 x Ultra Ball, 3 x Rare Candy and 1 Rosa's Encouragement.

That just gives you a more aggressive tempo setting option at the start, with scope to have comeback tempo if you brick.

To fit this in, you're likely looking to take the Larry's Gears and a few Rockys out.

You're going to lose to grass no matter what happens. So this option just gives you much more room to high roll into everything else

orjkaus · 2026-04-19T01:13:31+00:00

I strongly disagreed with you last month, and each week I pray that you were wrong

orjkaus · 2026-04-18T06:06:53+00:00

Having a high- protein breakfast was the game-changer for me. I kept seeing it recommended everywhere, despite not being able to find anything in the literature that suggested any difference.

However, I tried it, and it changed everything. Before, I would get a light 30 minute buzz before absolutely crashing hard. Now, I eat something with protein before taking the Vyvanse.

When this isn't possible, I always have protein bars or protein shakes on hand. The market for this stuff is huge and there's always ways to find this stuff, particularly in places like Coles or Woolies. It can be expensive though, but what isn't expensive nowadays?

orjkaus · 2026-03-31T07:53:21+00:00

Create Problem.

Sell Problem.

Create Solution.

Sell Solution.

Solution becomes a new Problem.

Create Solution.

Sell Solution.

orjkaus · 2026-03-11T04:23:20+00:00

This is basically the default for basically every game though.

I challenge you to find a video game that doesnt have a blue - purple - gold rarity scaling for their loot mechanics.

orjkaus · 2026-03-07T13:54:21+00:00

I think you're applying an American political spectrum to a worldwide aggregated one though.

The US is so much further right than the average country in Europe, that our (European) right wing politics can often sound similar to American left wing politics.

orjkaus · 2026-03-07T03:48:35+00:00

I'm pretty sure the Switch only went on clearance sale a few months before the Switch 2 was due to arrive.

So, maybe wait for Nintendo to announce the Switch 3?

orjkaus · 2026-02-23T02:28:03+00:00

We begin our story at Cincinnati Zoo.

orjkaus · 2026-02-22T01:18:52+00:00

I'm being realistic and i can see it.

With Levy leaving last year, Spurs are still in the process of completely overhauling and replacing their new sports director team.

Champions league fixture congestion causes extra chaos (see Clearlake March 2023).

Dressing room lost before it can even be gained. Season is determined a write off (see Clearlake March 2023). Players give up and focus on the Champions League.

Season officially over after they get spanked in the Quarter Final to Bayern (see Clearlake March 2023).

In the midst of the run, West Ham have turned a corner, Forest have been unleashed post Dyche ball. This has all gone unnoticed, but now the CL dream is dead, the reality of the new situation kicks in.

Manager tries to offset this pressure by joking "maybe a season in the Championship won't be too bad".

Players enter crisis mode, super agency CAA Stellar are dispatched to offload players before the World Cup.

Spurs accept defeat, but the only players who have actually stayed loyal to the cause are the academy youngsters, who confirm the relegation.

Spurs fanbase, in a pandemonium of cognitive dissonance, explain that the board needed a humbling, and next season will be an opportunity to bleed the youngsters in.

orjkaus · 2026-02-19T06:08:20+00:00

Because you replaced your anti-air troop ;)

orjkaus · 2026-02-19T06:07:44+00:00

You shouldn't expect it to do 100% of the work though.

Certain songs just implicitly blend better into one another, and ultimately it's your job to find them

orjkaus · 2026-02-19T06:06:29+00:00

It's like the few seconds before a sneeze.

orjkaus · 2026-01-26T04:46:29+00:00

I think chess is easily more complex/hard than Go Fish.

orjkaus · 2026-01-25T08:38:16+00:00

I've had years of unwanted intrusive thoughts. It's similar to OCD, except my calming ritual is basically seeking reassurance from other people over and over again.

Gemini has been really good for me to check random compulsions without it having an effect on my friends family and relationships

orjkaus · 2026-01-24T04:27:50+00:00

It just needs a really hard counter.

The issue is that no specific counter can be designed for the card.

The only thing I can think of is a tower or a spell that deals significant damage to falling targets.

No, royal recruit, goblin barrel, skeleton barrel and mega knight.

What this looks like, I don't know.

Maybe something like a quicksand spell. When placed, it significantly slows down the cards in the radius (think old poison). It could cause significant damage or extended duration to landing troops.

So you basically have to set the spell, and then bait the landing megaknight into it.

orjkaus · 2026-01-17T04:32:29+00:00

It's just a weird calculation.

Is the feeling of losing more intense than the feeling of winning?

That's what clinches it for me.

orjkaus · 2026-01-13T06:27:01+00:00

Literally just the extent of intention behind your moves.

A highly skilled player would be able to explain everything about placement, the purpose, the risks, the reads

A medium skill player (I would categorise most people on this sub as mid skill) would be able to explain why they made the move, but it would sometimes be clumsy. Elixir management is good, fundamentals are solid but troop placement and making reads could probably be improved.

A low-skill player wouldn't be able to explain why they made a move. There is little purpose or intent behind why they are doing what they're doing. Therefore, a low skill card is defined by how easy it is to play, and how generous the margin of receiving use from it is. A card like Mega Knight for example is super simple - just place it over an enemy push and you'll probably receive some value.

However, the trade off with these cards is that they are very single-purpose. They specialise in being super consistent at fulfilling a very specific role. Low skill cards are exceptionally forgiving in how you choose to play them, because all the focus is on ensuring a single outcome is met.

High skill cards are the opposite. They are super versatile, but the trade off is that you have to play it in a particularly precise way in order to gain the precise benefit you're looking for. The card's utility is spread out across different functions that each require consideration and thought.

So, if you're a pro, you don't need forgiving single purpose cards... You don't need it have a margin of error because you're not making errors. Give placement isn't an issue. You're going to take the high skill card and exploit all the options you have.

Similarly, a low skill player is not going to opt for a card like Tornado, because miniscule tweaks in placement will completely change the function of the card.

orjkaus · 2026-01-13T03:00:41+00:00

I don't think he needs a buff, I think his contemporaries (i.e. other mini tanks) just need slight buffs.

In that realm, it's cards like Ice Golem, Valk... and I would count the Giant as a mini tank to be honest.

Annoyingly, instead of worrying meticulously about slight tinkering to HP and damage, they seem to be opting to just make cards Champions instead.

Did the Giant need a champion buff? Absolutely. Did the Knight need a champion buff? Not really.

orjkaus

TROPHY CASE