Review too
long? Skip straight to the scores and summary.
Name:
Raichu ex
Set:
EX Emerald
Card#:
97/106
Rarity:
Pokémon-ex
Pokémon-ex Rule:
When Pokémon-ex has been Knocked Out, your opponent takes 2
Prize cards.
Type:
Electric
Stage:
1 (Evolves from Pikachu)
HP:
100
Weakness:
Fighting
Resistance:
None
Retreat:
None
Poké-Body:
Rai-shield
Damage
done to any of your Raichu ex in play by attacks from your
opponent’s Pokémon-ex is reduced by 30 (after applying
Weakness and Resistance). You can’t use more than 1
Rai-shield Poké-Body each turn.
Attack#1:
(LC) Power Short
Choose 1
of your opponent’s Pokémon. This attack does 30 damage to
that Pokémon. (Don’t apply Weakness and Resistance for
Benched Pokémon.) If that Pokémon has Poké-Powers, this
attack does 30 damage plus 20 more damage.
Attack#2:
(LCCC) Pika Bolt [70]
Name:
Pikachu
Set:
EX Emerald
Card#:
60/106
Type:
Electric
Stage:
Basic
HP:
50
Weakness:
Fighting
Resistance:
None
Retreat:
(C)
Attack#1:
(L) Pika [10]
Attack#2:
(CC) Thundershock [20]
Flip a
coin. If heads, the Defending Pokémon is now Paralyzed.
Attributes:
Here we have another Stage 1 Pokémon ex. As such, it should
be pretty strong to offset the need to Evolve and the
two-prize loss when it is KO’d. Raichu ex is an
Electric Pokémon, a fairly solid type: Resistance is now
somewhat rare, while Weakness is reasonably common. We have
100 HP: this is not the number you want to see on your
Pokémon ex. Granted, it’s better than 80 or below, but this
number makes you vulnerable to Desert Ruins.
Desert Ruins then results in an effective HP of 90 or
less against a good deal of decks. This is a Stage 1
though, so they really could have given it a little more HP,
but Raichu aren’t renowned for their HP, so at the
same time 90 probably wouldn’t have been more accurate
anyway. Confusing, huh?
Let us
move onto the bottom stats: Fighting Weakness is not happy.
100 HP plus Fighting Weakness tends to render one Magma
bait; that is decks styled after last years top 15 and up
World Champion deck. The recent Medicham ex might be
another threat, and we already have Nidoking/Nidoqueen,
Hidden Legends Machamp, and a few other nasty
Fighting decks that mean you’ll need to watch out. Sadly,
there is no Resistance. At least there is also no Retreat
Cost, which is as good as it gets and only two other
Pokémon-ex have it that good.
Now, let’s
back track a bit: I said this is a Stage 1. So we’ll have
to use a Pikachu. There are four legal choices. How
does the Emerald version stack up? The first attack is a
hair overpriced but the second attack is just as under
priced. I like this one since it can Paralyze, though
others have better damage or a risky way to get extra Energy
attached. The only difference between Pikachu legal for the
Modified Format is the attacks; stats are the same.
Abilities:
First up is Raichu ex’s Poké-Body, Rai-Shield.
Reducing damage taken by 30 is good, even if it is just
against Pokémon-ex. Non-Fighting
Pokémon-ex have to hit for 130 damage to OHKO Raichu ex,
or 80 twice to “two-hit KO” it, etc. The good news
is that Rai-Shield affects all of your Raichu ex.
The bad news is that since they don’t stack, it only matters
if you use a different Raichu ex. Currently, there
is one other in the Sandstorm set, and it isn’t too good.
Still, keep it in mind should another Raichu ex get
released. Overall, I’d rather this blocked
another 10 to 20 damage and the
max HP score was just 90, or blocked damage from at least
one more category of Pokémon. For that matter, only
blocking damage from Pokémon-ex, while probably the most
useful category (what Pokémon do you think are going to be
most apt to OHKO something?) it still is a restricted
category.
The first
attack doesn’t seem like much at first. When I first read
this card, I figured I wouldn’t worry about it unless
another Raichu ex was released (the Poké-Body always
seemed promising in that regard). Then it hit me when
reading this attack. It needs just (LC), making it quick to
power up. It hits for base 30 damage, and can snipe the
bench. Not great, but not horrid. Then I finish reading.
Oh, it does another 20 if the target has a Poké-Power.
Better: some small Basics can be OHKO’d. Finally, it really
hit me: Active Pokémon still have Weakness and Resistance
applied. This is an Electric Pokémon. If it hits an
Electric weak Pokémon with a Poké-Power, it will do 100
damage. Pidgeot has exactly 100 HP! It is another
Pidgeot killer! With a Strength Charm, this
attack would OHKO a Zapdos ex. No Slugma has
more than 50 HP, so if you hit the Smooth Over Magcargo
with it, an Ancient Technical Machine [Rock] (used by
a back up Evolved Pokémon, of course) would also be KO’d via
De-Evolution. I find this to be quite, quite nice.
Now, that
last Raichu ex had a nice big attack, but it was too
hard to power up! TPC apparently learned their lesson: this
Raichu ex can hit for a respectable 70 for just
(LCCC). Four Energy may seem like a lot, but when 3 of it
can be supplied by a Boost Energy, it is quite
reasonable.
Over all,
this card has some pretty solid
abilities, with enough synergy between them to
warrant giving this card a try.
Uses
and
Combinations:
This is where things get tricky. One could use Electrode
ex in an attempt to speed things up. Combined with Dark
Electrode, you can still hit hard and power yourself up
quickly. Yes, Darkness Energy would be something of a waste
on Raichu ex, but speed is speed. Sandstorm
Elekid might be more reasonable though. It is nearly
useless for attacks, though. Still, it is probably the
better option.
Another
good candidate would be Sandstorm Xatu, with its
Healing Winds Poké-Power. Granted, it’s not as potent as
Heal Dance, found on Hidden Legends Bellossom and
Emerald Gardevoir, but those are Stage 2s and don’t
stack. Xatu also can hit the bench for damage
counter placement (getting around Metal Energy) and
also has a free retreat, fitting well with this Raichu ex.
Toss in Low Pressure System for a small HP bonus, and
your choice of legal Raichu (both have combo
opportunities), and a Plusle from Deoxys, and it
sounds like you have a deck.
Ratings
Unlimited:
2.25/5-Much like yesterday’s cards, it almost is worth
trying to run. OHKOing a Baby Pokémon is nice, and 70 would
take out most Basics in one hit as well.
Modified:
3.5/5-I am starting to think this thing has some real
potential. It seems to be good at targeting what most decks
rely on for fast set ups, and it sets up reasonably quick
itself.
Limited:
4/5-Damage reduction is great in this format. Sniping the
bench is fabulous. A reliable 70 is good as well. Blocking
30 damage in this format is really special though.
Summary
Thunder-Thunder-Thunderrats hooooooooo! Yeah, maybe five
people will get that sorry excuse for a joke. Anyway, I
doubt I’ve stumbled across the next big thing, but I do
think I’ve found a fun new toy to harass net-deckers with.
This is a solid Pokémon that seems geared towards attacking
common game practices.
