You've probably heard or the four elements of classic myth. Earth,
Air,
Fire, and Water are said to govern the universe.
Just as a thought experiment, I analysed the various Pokemon card
battles
I've had. I found that the best players actually fall into one of
these
elements in their battling style.
What follows is a rundown of elemental battle styles, and how they fit
into
the game:
Air - is a stick-and-move style. "Float like a Butterfree, sting like
a
Beedrill" is it's philosophy. Jump in, do your damage, and book before
the
enemy can retaliate. If you play the style of Air, the various
free
retreaters, like Butterfree, Beedrill, & Crobat are for you. Doduo
and
Balloon Berry can also help an Air-style deck, by lending strength,
while
keeping up the speed that characterizes Air. Elekid's ability to strike
from
afar, Pichu's attacks on Powers, and Alakazam's Teleport Blast, which
damages and retreats, are also quite useful.
Water - Like the sea against a cliff, Water-style decks slowly wear down
the
foe, while washing away or preventing their own damage. Neo
Genesis
Butterfree is excellent for this style 'Kazam with Misty's Golduck is
killer. A combo of a strong Active, plus Alakazam (Base) and Blaine's
Vulpix
(with it's Natural Healing) will soak up damage that would destroy
other
decks. Gold Berry, Scoop Up, Healing Fields, and Pokemon Center are
useful
to Water. Building a Water-style deck means doing damage while
remaining
relatively untouched. It's very frustrating to battle Water. Don't
confuse
Water style with Water type. In fact, the best types for Water
players are
Grass and Psychic. Both have properties that fit the Water philosophy
of
damaging while avoiding damage (Like Neo Kakuna's Secrete Poison and
Alakazam's Damage Transfer). Other tricks you can play include the
Unown
N-Tyranitar combo and Quagsire's Whirlpool.
Earth - is easy to visualize. Strong and steady, hard to break.
Earth-style
decks just keep taking the hits and bouncing back for more. Steel
Energy is
the best friend of the Earth-style. Give it to Steelix, the epitome of
the
Earth philosophy, and you have a hammer that just keeps pounding foes
into
the ground. Once again, Scoop and Super Scoop, and Pokecenter, are
your
friends. Focus Band and the various Berries too. Nothing is more
frustrating
than finally getting a near-invincible foe almost KOed, only to have it
come
right back to full strength. Your opponent might as well try beating
against
a brick wall. Another part of the Earth philosophy is to observe your
opponents and try to get Resistance on your side. Do whatever you can
to
reduce that damage. They like Colorless? Use Unown N and Sprout
Tower.
Fighting-heavy environment? Break out the flyers. Other Pokemon for
Earth
players are any babies, Chancey (Chancey with 4 Steel does 40 with no
drawback), Arcanine, Scizor, and Skarmory. NR Piloswine is awesome
with
FFSS. Slowking can really mess with Trainers, too.
Fire - aims to immolate opponents in a furious blaze of destruction.
The
Fire type exemplifies this style. Interestingly, some Water types
(like
Feraligatr) do too. In order to burn, Fire style decks need lots of
fuel.
Higher than normal energy card counts, Energy Retrieval, and Energy
Charge
help keep the fires burning. Meganium can give Grass some
Firelike
characteristics. Fire's strategy is to claim it's prizes fast. It's
vulnerable to decking, so stock some NGRs to restoke the furnace, and
Pluspower to make it white-hot.
Now that you know the elemental styles, let's go over how to defeat
them:
Air - needs it's ability to run, so disrupt that with Pokemon and
attacks
that hold the foe in place (like Muk and attacks that Paralyse). Use
Rocket's Training Gym to further inhibit their ability to retreat.
Bench
Destruction makes sure that there is no place to hide, even if they
do
retreat.
Water - often uses Powers and Trainers to soak up damage, so Muk is
once
again the 'mon of the hour. Pair it with Chaos Gym and Slowking to dry
up
the tides.
Earth - The key to breaking down Earth's walls is fourfold: Gust out
and
defeat the supporting Pokemon, take away the Gyms and Trainers that
defend
it, Remove away its armoring Steel, and use attacks that ignore
Resistance.
The Fighting type gives a few Earth-shattering options in that
regard.
Fire - A fire, unfueled, flickers out. Energy Denial is the name of
the
game. ER, SER, and Whirlpool-style attacks will drain away Fire's power,
and
Triggered Poison will make the Fire user afraid to get it back. Fire
falls
quickly when it can't get a spark going.
When you build a deck, think of the style and philosophy you're using.
Does
it go well in your environment? Would another way work better? This is
at
least as important as figuring typematching and card quantities. Hope
this
helps.
Scott Parker
sparx_2@yahoo.com
_________________________________________________________
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