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Gengar LV X
If there was hype about Tangrowth . . . then Gengar LV X
has practically been worshipped since it was only a
rumour.
Gengar is already a popular and successful deck-type.
Will the LV X make it even more so? Let’s take a look.
Well, that 140 HP is absolutely monstrous and makes
KOing a Gengar a tough proposition. The Colourless
Resistance is useful as Flygon is still common and the
new Salamence will almost certainly see some play. Free
Retreat is great on any card and Gengar can abuse it
more than most, retreating to avoid damage from status
conditions that would not trigger Gengar SF’s Fainting
Spell.
The only downside to Gengar LV X’s stats that I can see
is the X2 Weakness to Darkness. This will make it
somewhat easier to KO using Weavile SW’s Dark Engage and
a secondary attacker, thus not risking a main attacker
to Gengar SF’s Fainting Spell.
Gengar LVXs attack, Compound Pain, is a spread attack
that does 30 damage to any already damaged Pokémon. It
is slightly overpriced at [P][P][C], but has the
potential to secure multiple KO’s. It combos well with
Gengar SF’s Shadow Room and with attacks on both of the
Gengars released in the new set. It does open up the
possibility of playing Gengar in a new way, as a spread
deck, but it does sacrifice a lot of the speed which is
one of the major assets of current Gengar builds.
The real attraction of Gengar LV X, though, is its Level
Down Power which has the ability to return one of your
opponent’s LV X Pokémon to the deck every turn.
Obviously this can be devastating, especially against LV
X Pokémon which are used to bench-sit for their Power.
Imagine losing a Tangrowth LV X or a Heatran LV X to
this, after all the effort it takes to get them on the
bench! It is also an excellent weapon against Flygon
decks which like to lock and mill the deck with Wind
Erosion and Dialga decks which like to tank with the LV
X. Some care is needed though. It would be madness to
Level Down a Luxray GL and give your opponent another
chance to use Bright Look.
Gengar LV X (and the new Gengars from the Arceus set)
will undoubtedly force Gengar players to make some hard
choices. It definitely gives them some powerful new
tricks, but at the same time, running it means running
one less Gengar SF. Whether it is worth losing a
Fainting Spell Gengar or not is a question that has yet
to be answered. The disruptive ability of Gengar SF, its
speed, abililty to swarm, and free Prizes are all
essential to the deck’s competitiveness. Gengar LV X is
most definitely worth testing in Gengar decks, but its
impact needs to be carefully evaluated before it becomes
an automatic inclusion.
Rating
Modified: 3 (Gengar decks are already very competitive.
The LV X needs to prove its worth)
Limited: 1.75 (unlikely to come out, little chance of
using the Power. The attack could be very good here
though)
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