Hello all you peoples. Sorry
for just the one deck fix last
week. I was extraordinarily busy and wound up only sending the
one in. I was up for 48 hours straight and then suddenly the fatigue
hit me like a ton of bricks and I collapsed for another 16 hours, two
days worth of sleep for the 2 days I was awake I suppose.
But, in that time, I've
received a nice amount of decks to
work with. Interestingly, I've gotten some revised copies of previous
decks I've fixed, so I'm doing a Retro week! This deck here is one
from around April, back before Team Rocket had made any impact
on the game. Since then, we've had Team Rocket, Gym Heroes
and Gym Challenge. 3 sets is enough to make players take
second looks at their decks, so that's what I'm doing right now.
Ahhh...memories...This was a
Water/Grass deck that I
remember pretty well. The creator had a run of success after I fixed
it once, but it's begun to falter with the onslaught of newer cards,
understandably. Let's see how it looked when I last left off.
> Hello, hello. It's me again, John. Since the
release of Gym
> Heroes and Challenge, the gaming environment has
changed a lot,
> though my deck (which rules -- thanx!!) has not,
since I was
> afraid of messing it up. I've sent you a
different deck about 3
> times, but since you didn't answer, I guess you
didn't like it.
> Anyway, it's still a grass/water combo that stalls
with status -
> inflicting attacks until I can bring out Articuno.
Actually, I
> couldn't find a 3rd Articuno so I replaced that
slot with a 7th
> water energy, and it works very well.
>
> Aquaterra
>
> 2 Articuno
> 3 Scyther
> 3 Venonat
> 2 Venemoth
> 2 Lickitung
> 3 Koffing
>
> 4 Bill
> 3 Oak
> 3 Scoop Up
> 2 RSA
> 3 NGR
> 4 PlusPower
> 2 Comp. Search
> 3 GOW
>
> 10 Grass
> 7 Water
> 4 DCE
>
> Thanks a lot!
>
> - John
>
I am sure I did get those other
decks, but with only a couple
fixes per week, I try to select from those whose decks I haven't
fixed. It's only fair to spread the help rather than give a choice few
assistance. Keep that in mind, please.
Well, this deck doesn't
look that bad, especially since I
fixed it a while back, so let's see what cards can be removed for
better stuff now.
This was a Status effect
deck and I think it only right to
continue with that theme. So what can come out now??
Lickitung was pretty good
and still is for an early game
status staller, but retreat is ever so important now. 3 retreat won't
cut it anymore unless you're hitting for 50 or more. There has to be
something better than LIckitung by now.
Koffing is
pretty good for its guaranteed Status effects, but
the HP is low. Thankfully, Psychic isn't quite as dominant as it
once was. This honor is now going to Electric Pokemon. They're
everywhere now. Still, I think we can find something much better
than Koffing at this point.
Having status
effects like Poison and Sleep are nice, but
you should be able to deal some good damage while your
opponent is unable to hit you back. The best card for this strategy
right now is Team Rocket's Scyther. It's kin of hard to pull from
packs and can be pricey, so I'll only recommend a couple. The
Jungle Scyther is still top notch too, so a mix will work.
Koffing was ok, but
I've found that the Team Rocket set
Oddish is even better for inflicting Status effects. There's no
damage, but they're guaranteed and very cheap. With only 1 for a
retreat cost, it's still easy to recall.
That should
really be all that is needed as far as the
Pokemon go. The rest of the thrust can go into the Trainers.
There's a score of excellent Trainers available now. I would suggest
that 3rd Articuno though, if only to increase the odds of getting one
out early enough. You'll need to work on your cleanup hitter fairly
early or the Status may not be enough to hold down the fort.
You'll
need those Bills, Oaks and Computer Searches of
course. They're invaluable.
Rocket
Sneak Attack continues to be critical as does the
presence of PlusPowers where you have low HP Pokemon. They
can stay.
Gust of
Wind is still one of the best cards out there...
A Stadium
card, you need a Stadium to stay afloat. All
decks will need one, if only to counter what the opponent tosses at
you. I think your best choice for this deck would be the No Energy
Removal Gym. Losing a couple Energy from Articuno or Scyther
can really slow you down. Energy Removal isn't your strategy, so
this card won't hurt you at all.
If you do
lose a good Pokemon or some Energy, Nightly
Garbage Run is still extremely needed. I'd keep them in for sure.
I don't think
this deck required a whole lot to keep it in
shape. Just the few retouches to stay current. Here's how it looks
now...
3
Articunos
3
Venonats
3
Venomoths
2
Scythers
2 TR's
Scythers
3 TR
Oddish
4 Bills
4 Oaks
3
Computer Searches
3
Rocket Sneak Attacks
2
Nightly Garbage Runs
4
PlusPowers
3 Gusts
of Wind
2 No
Energy Removal Gyms
9 Grass
Energy
7 Water
Energy
3
Double Colorless Energy
And Voila!! (That's French for
":Got Milk?") This deck can
still put out the assault of Status effects, but with a more current
take on the game scene. TR Scyther is an extremely annoying
card to play against and those Oddish's are much better thanmany
players realize or admit. The Trainers were rearranged with the
priority of getting your Status players into the game early and
allowing for the buildup of Articuno to clean up after them. One note
- Don't play PlusPower on an Oddish. You don't do any damage,
so PlusPower is wasted. It still makes a Scyther attack extremely
powerful though.
And there's the
trip down memory lane. Perhaps in 6
months I'll see some of the decks i've fixed recently, who can say?
It's always nice to go back and reminisce...Who remembers
parachute pants, The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,
Technotronic and Crystal Pepsi?? Memories, I tell ya...always
good for a laugh.
Good Luck!!
Dr. Crash Landon
my signature line