Name: Dark Celebi

Set: Hidden Legends

Card#: 4/101

Type: Dark/Grass

Stage: Basic

HP: 70

Weakness: Fire

Resistance: None

Retreat: C

Attack#1: (C) Dark Provide

Attach up to 1 (G) or (D) Energy card from your hand to your Pokémon.

 

Attributes: Dark Celebi is a Basic Pokémon.  Good so far.  Interestingly, it breaks the old rule-Dark Pokémon are supposed to always be Stage 1 or higher, to represent the corrupting influence of Team Rocket (evil Basics have been released, but under the title of Team Rocket’s or Rocket’s Pokémon).  This is an advantage though-since this allows for the use of Darkness Energy as a damage bonus and means that, should you play this in Unlimited, Team Rocket’s Hideout can boost your HP by 20.  It’s a dual-type Pokémon, a recent addition to the TCG.  Being both Dark and Grass is pretty good.  Grass Weakness is showing up a tad more with the rise in Water Pokémon seeing play in Modified, and Metal Pokémon (that are Grass Resistant) don’t see a lot of play there either, since said Pokémon are Weak to Fire.  In Unlimited, the Grass just means that the few Metal Pokémon seen in the format can ignore what little direct damage you can do.  The Dark-aspect is virtually trouble free.  Yes, there are a few “anti-Dark” cards like Unown D and Light Machamp, but both of those are from Unlimited, and neither is used in most decks.  There are a few Dark Weak Pokémon, but there is no Dark Resistance.  Possibly the best deal is the ability to use Darkness Energy for boosting your damage-well, it would be if we hadn’t already gotten that from the name.  This card is kicking butt so far.  The HP is a solid 70-big enough that only the “top half” of attacks can OHKO it.  With Team Rocket’s hideout, it balloons up to 90 HP-rare on basics, and the fourth highest for non-Pokémon ex.  That won’t work for Modified, but Low Pressure System can give you an 80 still.  Sadly, we do have a Weakness (hey, it was risking becoming too good ;) ).  Fire Weakness is a bit of a pain for Modified-Normal Blaziken can OHKO you, and a Flame Kick from Blaziken ex has a 50% chance of OHKOing you.  However, it beats Psychic Weakness in my opinion.  Blaziken ex could OHKO you anyway, and chances are if Blaziken comes up, you’ve already been hit by something else a few times.  No Resistance is the worst.  I wish that they had given it something.  Many things would be appropriate, but it’s no use dwelling on it.  Finally, we have Retreat cost of just one.  So long as you aren’t desperately needing the attached Energies, parting with one isn’t so bad.

 

Abilities: Two attacks, neither of which seem overly powerful on their own.  Together, they become much, much more.  Dark Provide does give small, quick boost to one of your Pokémon.  It is nice that it affects two different types of energy.  Leaf Poison is pretty solid.  You pay for roughly 30-should I give a bonus for multiple energy types to a dual-type Pokémon?  Well, you do 20 and Auto-Poison, which is roughly the same value.  Also, since it’s Dark, you get a +10 if you use a real Darkness.  30 with Auto-Poison for two Energy.  Better yet, with the first attack, you can have two Darkness attached by turn two.  This means you can hit, second turn, for (20 + 10 + 10) 40 damage and auto-Poison.  Nasty.

 

Uses/Combinations: I think it might be fun in a really rogue Dark Vileplume deck in Unlimited.  Not overly potent unless you can pull off nasty first turn Dark Plume and hope they don’t have a Cleffa.  If you have the right cards with that set-up, it could actually be a winner!  Moving onto Modified, if you want to run a Grass deck with Darkness overtones, this is about as good as it gets.  Unfortunately, the only things that really match it are Team Magma’s Cacnea and Cacturne.  I don’t know of any decks that make good use of Darkness Energy that would really benefit from a Dark Celebi, but if they exist, then it could fit in there as well.

 

Ratings

 

Unlimited: 3/5-Looks to be fun and maybe even effective.

 

Modified: 2/5-Only for a rogue deck, and it doesn’t show a lot of promise there.

 

Limited: 2/5-Timed right, the first attack can pump up other Pokémon… but remember, if you can’t Provide more than once, you only break even.  If you have the Dark Celebi Starter from Hidden Legends, this bad boy spikes to a 3.5/5, as said deck has two Darkness Energy.

 

Summary

Solid card.