When cards from the latest Pokémon Pocket set Extradimensional Crisis were first teased, fans were quick to slate them. Many dubbed the set a dud, and wrote off the new cards as weak before they’d even had a chance to try them out. But now, the ultra beasts are having the last laugh, as the top 20 standings of the latest big tournament is completely stacked with decks from the new release.
The most popular deck by far, making up 20% of the meta, features the new Normal type Legendary Pokémon, Silvally. It’s a pretty straightforward strategy, simply relying on two of the most efficient, high damage non-ex Pokémon in the entire game to crush two-trophy Pokémon underfoot.
While popular, this deck was far less successful than those featuring Extradimensional Crisis’ flagship card, Buzzwole ex. We, too, did this bulky mosquito dirty not including it in our list of best cards from the set. We did spot how crucial the supporter Lusamine would be to its strategy, however, enabling you to pivot into Buzzwole’s Big Beat attack after softening them up with some combination of Kartana and Pheromosa.
Celesteela is also a key piece of the deck, allowing you to switch in and out as you choose. While it didn’t take first place, Buzzwole is the clear overall winner of the tournament, with three players in the top five. A grass deck like this is also just a really good fit for the meta right now, able to hit Rampardos or Darkrai for massive damage.
The final deck worth highlighting was a niche contender. It had only 42 players in a 920-person tournament, but pulled off an impressive 56% winrate. That deck is Solgaleo ex/Shiinotic. Here’s how it works.
Shiinotic is basically included for its ability, which will help you more consistently get out Solgaleo. In most decks Shiinotic isn’t worth including, because it’s only useful on the bench. But in this deck, you don’t have to worry about retreating it, as Solgaleo’s ability allows it to switch right in and start beating down. Brutal!
Of course, these results may be slightly skewed by just how fresh Extradimensional Crisis is; players are naturally going to be tempted to try out exciting new strategies rather than sticking with old decks, but this is the least Darktina we’ve seen since that deck formed. Giratina and Darkrai decks only made up 7% of the meta, and had a sub 50% win rate. That said, first place in the tournament still went to a Giratina and Darkrai player. Perhaps their reign of terror isn’t quite over yet.
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Source: Wargamer
