The upcoming Dragapult EX League Battle Deck looks like the perfect place to jump on board for new Pokémon TCG players who want to get serious about competing. Like all League Battle decks it will have a beginner friendly RRP of $29.99 (£29.99), but it’s built to stand shoulder to shoulder with other competitive decks.
The deck is listed in some online storefronts and will be available on April 25, landing just a month after a whole bunch of cards from older Pokémon sets ‘rotate’ out of the standard format, shaking up the meta.
The Japanese version of the Pokémon TCG runs ahead of the English one, letting us glimpse ahead at the future: Dragapult Ex decks are right at the top of the Japanese post-rotation meta. YouTuber TrustYourPilot Pokemon has a good overview of some of the decks that have been performing with Dragapult, below:
Dragapult EX has a fairly cheap, very powerful attack, which deals 200 damage and places a further six damage counters on your opponent’s benched Pokémon for just two energy (admittedly, energy of different colors).
The Stage 1 that it evolves from, Drakloak, has a useful ability that lets you pick one card from the top two on your deck and put it into your hand, speeding up your setup for Dragapult EX, and preparing any reactive cards in case your opponent knocks one of your ‘Mons out.
This simplicity – card selection that leads into a very powerful attack – means that Dragapult EX isn’t just one of the most powerful Pokémon cards in the new meta, it’s also incredibly flexible, and can pair well with loads of different strategies. No surprise that so many different decks have taken the top spot in Japanese tournaments.
The League Battle deck isn’t quite as tuned as any of those winning decklists, but it’s really not far off!
Here’s all the cards in the Dragapult EX League Battle Deck:
Pokémon
- Dragapult ex (×4)
- Drakaloak (×4)
- Dreepy (×4)
- Xatu (×3)
- Natu (×3)
- Tatsugiri (×2)
- Fezandipiti ex (×1)
Trainer Cards
- Iono (×3)
- Arven (×3)
- Boss’s Orders (×1)
- Professor’s Turo’s Scenario (×1)
- Mela (×1)
- Buddy-Buddy Poffin (×4)
- Ultra Ball (×4)
- Earthen Vessel (×2)
- Rare Candy (×2)
- Counter Catcher (×1)
- Super Rod (×1)
- Switch (×1)
- Unfair Stamp (x1)
- Rescue Board (x2)
- Technical Machine: Devolution (×1)
- Technical Machine: Evolution (×1)
Energy Cards
- Basic Psychic Energy (×6)
- Basic Fire Energy (×4)
The single Unfair Stamp in the deck is particularly nice, as it can be a real paint to get hold of. The RRP on the deck is also less than the combined cost of buying the cards separately. While that’s great for consumers, that also means it’s likely to sell out fast. If you want one, make sure to get your pre-order in early.
Wargamer writes about other card games a lot, and things like League Battle Decks – which make powerful and in-demand cards widely available – are fantastic. The most expensive rare Pokémon cards are illustrator art variants, not the cards that players need to be able to compete in tournaments. The idea of a $30 tournament-ready MTG deck is pure fantasy!
Source: Wargamer
