With no offense to any of my regular readers, I'm dispensing with
the song and dance for this deck fix. It's after hours in the office
here and I'm starting to get tired. Pepsi will only take a guy so far
and I have to get up early and battle the phone company about not
cancelling my mom's service. Ugh....I apologize for no intro story or
anything, but I'm nearly drained right now. However I feel that this
decks deserves a good fix, so I'm just gonna fix it and collapse in
relief. Cool....


      On with the deck.



Hey Dr. Crash I brought my Mew along, so I hope Hypno doesn't get jealous.
Anyway, I need help with my deck. It's pretty good, but can you make it
better? Here it is:
THE VOLTCANO

Pokemon:23
2 Magmar (Fossil)
3 Ponyta
2 Rapidash
3 Vulpix
2 Ninetales
3 Pikachu (2 Jungle,1 League Promo)
2 Raichu ( 1 Fossil, 1 Base)
2 Magnemite (Rocket)
2 Zapdos
2 Electabuzz
Trainers:11
3 Bill
1 Prof. Oak
3 Pluspower
4 Energy Removal
Energy:26
15 Fire Energy
9 Lightning Energy
2 Double Colorless Energy
 
 My strategy is to get out Magmar, Pikachu, or Ponyta, then evolve and start 
bringing on some damage by removing  their energy then attacking. It has lost
only 2 battles. You're the best.

                                            His Mew-Ness,
                                                MewBoy

          This deck fix is a tall order. But poor decks need just as
much help as tournament grade decks looking for tweaks. On we
go.

        This deck is suffering threefold from numerous problems. First
there is a smattering of Pokemon, in numbers so sparse that the
hopes of obtaining the right one when you need it is remote at best.
        Second, this deck has very few Trainers which are the
essence of victory as any Mech will tell you.
        Third there is an overabundance of Energy, which often
results in drawing too much at once or having an opening hand of
one Vulpix and a bunch of Lightning Energy
        I'll deal with each seperately.


         Pokemon- You really need to select no more than 4 groups
of Pokemon to include. If you're dealing with evolutions, one family
is almost always enough. Basic Pokemon that don't evolve (BBP's
or Big Basic Pokemon i.e. Lapras and Hitmonchan) should ideally
occupy most of your deck space for Pokemon.

         I'm going to select the best of the ones you've chosen and
work from there on out.

        Fossil Magmar -  An excellent starter. Good status effects
and damage avoiding effects. Water isn' t that prominent since
Raindance decks took a hit when Rocket Sneak Attack came out.
This is a very solid Pokemon to have on your side.

        Electabuzz - The 5 Star Pokemon. It's only minimal drawback
is so minor that it can't even begin to outweigh the strong attacks
of Electabuzz. It MIGHT damage itself. 30 damage for 1 Lightning
and 1 Colorless is still good.

        Pikachu - Not that spectacular, but not the worst option
available for small Basic Pokemon. Evolves into something better.
        Dark Raichu - I'm suggesting this guy because he has a very
nifty attack with Surprise Thunder which hits for a moderate
amount but can have additional repercussions for the opponent's
bench. Lower HP is a bit of a problem, but not unmanageable. If
you find that Dark Raichu is completely unavailable, the Base Set
one is the next best option. Agility is dang good.

        Ditto- He can be almost anything, so long as the opponent
puts it out. I know he wasn't listed, but I think you need his Power.
For a few Energy, he can be a great counter to almost anything
your opponent has. Fight fire with fire they say.

        That does it for Pokemon. Notice I've kept the number of
different types small. This way you know what's in the deck always
and don't have to worry about getting the wrong Evolution. In the
revised decklist, you'll see how multiples assures getting these
powerhouses.

        Trainers- You only have 11...that's pitiful. Every good
Pokemon CCG player knows that Trainers are your key to victory.
Most of your deck should be Trainers; this gives you many options
to control the game that your Pokemon's attacks and powers
won't. Trainers get you more cards, tilt the odds in your favors, find
critical cards, disrupt your opponent's strategy and support your
Pokemon.
       I'll just run down a list of which would be good to have in your
deck since your list was so small.

       Bill - I'm glad to see you had some of them. 4 is the standard.
Accept no less.

       Professor Oak - The master of refilling your hand with cards
when you're low or stuck with junk. Run about 2-3 of this card at all
times.

       Computer Search - Sometimes you NEED that PlusPower or
Gust of Wind. In those times, Computer Search is perfect. 2 cards
which don't help for one that will..sweet!

        Item Finder - Since Trainers are so important and the max is
4, Item Finder is like having 5 Bills or 5 Gusts of Wind. Once
again, 2 useless cards is a small price.

        Super Energy Removal - Far better than its unsuper
counterpart, it disrupts doublely, making it twice as hard for the
opponent to recover. Great for buying time or insuring a prize
earned.

         Rocket Sneak Attack- This card can suddenly appear and
remove your opponent's plans. Stripping an SER before it's played
is a lifesaving tactic. It removes threats like Gust of Wind,
Pokemon Center or Computer Search. This card is so great it's in
many game-winning decks.

          PlusPower - 10 doesn't seem like much, but it is the
difference between Wigglytuff dealing 60 damage to a Scyther and
getting smacked the next turn or wiping out the Scyther with the
additional 10 HP damage and living in full health.

         Nightly Garbage Run - Essential for reclaiming Energy and
BBP's. 3 for 1 is such a bargain, it's unbelievable. This card
lengthens your turns by 3 which in ong battles can mean all the
difference.

          Scoop Up - Kind of a combination Pokemon Center for one
and Switch at the same time. Heal your Pokemon completely,
chuck his Energy and put someone else more battle ready out to
play. It doesn't get dually better than that.

                All the above Trainers are very good and are staples in
most decks. There's a handful of other good Trainers like Lass and
Pokemon Breeder, but those are more situational. You can pick
and choose among the ones above when making decks to decide
which of the big Trainers you'll need.

       
         Energy - Well Obviously we want DCE's and Lightning and
Fire Energy here, but you should also consider the Full Heal
Energies. Status effect causing attacks are getting popular and
Full Heal Energy can better guard against them.
         As for the amount of Energy to include in a deck, well you
generally want one third of the deck to be Energy. One Energy for
every three cards drawn is the rule of thumb. With low Energy
decks like Haymaker, it's ok to stray a bit below that mark. Energy
intensive decks like Raindance tend to waver slightly above the 20
point at 22-24, but there are a few variations that have low Energy
too.


              Now having reviewed strategies and which cards are
good, Let's see if we can't put you on the right train for success.


               4 Fossil Magmar
               4 Jungle Pikachu (Or Movie Promo PIkachus if ya got
em.)
               3 Dark Raichus (Or Base Set ones if need be.)
               4 Electabuzz
               2 Ditto

               4 Bills
               2 Professor Oaks
               2 Computer Searches
               3 Gusts of Wind
               3 Rocket Sneak Attacks
               4 Super Energy Removals
               3 Scoop Ups
               2 Nightly Garbage Runs
              
               4 Double Colorless Energy
               2 Full Heal Energy
               6 Fire Energy
                8 Lightning Energy



               There you are a Fire/Lightning deck with all the punch of
the original without having to deal with the inefficiency factor. Let
Magmar or Buzz come out to play first and keep Pikacu on the
bench if possible. If you must, Scoop him up to keep him safe
since getting Dark Raichu is important to closing the game out.
               Ditto is there to run interference and stall if he can while
you get something else pumped up.
                All the Trainers lend themselves to a very forceful, direct
aproach that keeps your opponent left with little option. Look for
small combos in your deck and always try to think of what isn't
working like it should consistently, not just once or twice.  If a card
isn't working, such as Scoop Up, which i believe it will, simply
remove for another card that you feel better suits your style. 
Experimentation is the key to all good decks and new archetypes!


           Now if everyone will excuse this tired Deck Mech, I'm beat.
I'm going right to bed. Good night...Nope, I correct myself. Good
Morning.


                      Good Luck!!
               Dr. Crash Lanzzzzzzzzzzzzzz