Hello, everyone. It's your friendly niehgborhood deck mech, Satoshi here.
Due to the recent rash of cards(perticulary Scyther) being bashed, I've
begun tpo think about one thing: WHY?
I think I know. Dr. Crash Landon put it wonderfully when someone came
calling claiming Base Gastly was good. I believe his words were something
along the lines of: "My only guess is some people think it's good because no
one has ever said WHY it is bad."
So true. Some cards are just taken as good. They are so obviously a cut
above the rest that no explanation is needed. Unfortunately, some people
fail to see why they are considered good. The result? A bash-fest of the
widely used cards. The same thing happens with bad cards--like explained by
Dr. Crash. No explanation is needed as to why they are bad, and thus some
people think they are good.
In short, here's a list of the most widely used cards and decks--and some
of the worse cards--and why they are popular/not popular.
===GOOD CARDS===
1)SCYTHER
Scyther is popular for many reasons. He's a hybrid basic. 70 hp, free
retreat, resistance to fighting, and a colorless attack that does 30 damage.
Alas, some people think him not good. Why is beyond me. Sure, Charmeleon has
the same attack, but he is a Stage One. A Stage One is expected to be
strponger than a basic. If that wasn't the case, there would be no use for
evoltuions.
2)ELECTABUZZ
70 hp, again, is great for a basic. as is a 10 damage possible paralyzing
attack for L, and 30-40 damage attack for LC. The 10 damage to youself is
the small setback used to keep Electabuzz from being broken.
3)WIGGLYTUFF
Why some people look down of the 'Tuff one is confusing. He may not be your
style, but you cannot say he is bad for this reason. Any card that creates
an Archtype is worth a second--if not thrid of fourth--look.
4)PROFESSOR OAK
Hint: this card is not used to help you stall. I hear people argue that
"This card makes you DISCARD YOUR HAND!!" So what? If you had what you
needed in you hand, you wouldn't need to Oak. Get it?
5)BILL
Two free cards. No drawbacks. End. Of. Story.
===SEMI-BAD TO BAD CARDS===
1)BASE GASTLY
30 hp. This is the lowest an auctual Pokemon can have. What's more, no
damaging attacks. While some may argue that this can lead to a deep
strategy, it does not with this card. Sleeping Gas has a 25% chance of doing
you any good, while Destiny Bond relies on your opponent having the IQ of a
piece of lint. No self respecting Pokemon Trainer would attack after a
Destiny Bond. See what I mean?
2)CHARIZARD
People try to solve this problem by adding Venusaur to ciurculate energy to
Charizard. Wrong problem being solved. It isn't the problem of discarding
that is Charizard's weakness; it's having to recharge. You can only put down
one energy a turn in "Char" decks, so ading in the Plant dude doesn't
help--it would have taken just as long without him.
3)MOVIE PROMO MEWTWO
Hehe...how'd this get here? This is a GREAT card. 70 hp--great for a basic.
An attack that let's you charge up for it's next attack? Nice.
===GOOD DECKS===
1)RAINDANCE
This deck alone breaks the golden rule of Pokemon:one energy a turn. With TR
out now, we have a possible 70 damage on turn two. Whoever says this deck is
weak needs to play more.
2)HAYMAKER
Cheap nothing. It is FAST. Very fast. That's it's strategy. Anyone who's
played one know's that is a great deck premise.
3)Stall
Damage Swap: one of the best Pokemon Powers to date. With Chansey and
Pokemon Center in hand, the damage goes buh-bye. Very annoying. Very deadly.
4)WIGGLYWONDER
Turn two 60 damage. This is raw power. Great. Again, anyone who says this is
weak has never played a good one.

There you are. Hope this has cleared up why some cards are good, and some
are not. Any questions? E-mail me at Satoshi@pojo.com. Good Luck and Happy
Gaming!!
~Satoshi
Satoshi@pojo.com