If the review seems too long, skip to
the Summary and Scores section.
Name
:
Buffer Piece
Set
:
Arceus
Rarity
:
Uncommon
Card#
:
84/99
Type
:
Trainer
Sub-Type:
Pokémon Tool
Text
:
Attach
Buffer Piece to one of your Pokémon that doesn’t already
have a Pokémon Tool attached to it.
If that Pokémon is Knocked Out, discard this
card.
Any damage done to the Pokémon this card
is attached to by an opponent’s attack
is reduced by 20 (after applying
Weakness and Resistance).
After the end of your opponent’s
turn after you played Buffer Piece,
discard Buffer Piece.
Buffer
Piece
is a returning Pokémon Tool, and that is why I chose to
review it.
Much as I love this game, I still haven’t the time or
money to pursue it and on this, my birthday, I wished to
review a card.
Pojo was kind enough to oblige my request.
So with a familiar card, I can explain its
strengths, its weaknesses, and its application in broad
strokes and let you deduce its proper place in your
metagame for yourself.
Pokémon Tools are most useful because they often have an
effect that is utilized during your opponent’s turn, and
Buffer Piece
is no exception.
Reducing the damage you take from an opponent’s
attack during your opponent’s turn seems needlessly
specific.
If you’ve played this game from the beginning or merely
done your homework, you’ll remember the usefulness of an
even older Trainer named
Defender or
high utility granted to
Metal Energy
from its original wording.
If you are unaware, just know that both were
fantastic at preventing self-damage and stacking, and
Metal Energy
even blocked effect damage in its original iteration.
In
spite of its extremely specific text,
Buffer Piece
has a solid use: making math hard. ;)
Pokémon is a game of math.
From the probability of card draws, to coin
flips, to damage accumulation, math is at the heart of
this game.
Reducing damage by 20 points can extend your Pokémon’s
life for a single turn.
That single turn means as little as denying a
Prize draw by a turn to as much as that plus getting off
a great attack and Poké-Power use on your next turn.
It also can act as insurance, thwarting what
would have been a successful KO from the use of a
Plus Power or
similar minor damage boost.
So,
why would you not use this card?
First, a Pokémon can only utilize a single
Pokémon Tool at a time.
Clearly if you have a better Pokémon Tool for
your deck, you’d rather use the space for it.
Second, the amount is small enough that a heavy
hitting deck might not be affected by it; you still
suffer a one- or two-hit KO.
Third, the amount is small enough that a similar
effect can be attained from healing: only if your
Pokémon has taken 10 or less damage would you not be
better off using
Potion (conveniently freeing up that Pokémon Tool
use).
Fourthly, your opponent might have a deck that doesn’t
have to deal damage via an attack, or can select the
target for the attack, or is more interested in an
effect of the attack over damage.
From Special Conditions to attacks that aide in
setting up, to simply placing damage counters (which
Buffer Piece
would not block), it just may not matter.
Lastly, at different points in the game’s life
there have been cards that specifically undermine
Pokémon Tool use.
I am
out of touch with the game, but a quick search of cards
containing the word “Tool” on Pokepedia.net showed me a
few cards that reward the use of Pokémon Tools, and a
few punish a player for their use.
None were so overwhelming as to make this card
unplayable, and a few that receive extra bonuses from
using Pokémon Tools could indeed make good use of this
card.
Scores
Unlimited
:
1/5
Modified
:
3/5
Limited
:
4/5
Summary
Buffer
Piece
is a Pokémon Tool that does a simple job, reducing the
damage you take just enough to upset your opponent’s
plan of attack and preserve your own.
It can be worked around, however, and there may
be a better Pokémon Tool for your deck, like
Expert Belt.
If you either need a lot of Pokémon Tools or have
none and some open slots in a Modified deck, it is worth
testing… along with just about every other currently
legal Pokémon Tool.
In Unlimited matches, it is far outclassed by the
classics and in a Limited event its strategic value
increases.
-Otaku
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