Cyrus
Iron Chef - Master Emeritus
~~~Pooka~~~
“Ingredient: Swampert ex
For the first time in all my Rounds of Iron Chef, I felt like this was a card with a lot of potential. However, this felt like the worst deck I've made... Oh well, here's the list:
// Pokemon
2 Swampert CG
3 Swampert ex CG
2 Marshtomp EM
4 Mudkip CG1
2 Magcargo DX1
2 Slugma UF
2 Ho-Oh ex
1 Lugia ex
1 Holon's Castform
4 Jirachi DX
// Trainers
4 Windstorm
4 Holon Transceiver
4 Rare Candy
4 Prof. Elm's Training Method
3 Holon Mentor
1 Switch
1 Holon Adventurer
1 Holon Scientist
1 Holon Lass
// Energy
4 Water Energy
2 Lightning Energy
2 Psychic Energy
2 Fighting Energy
2 Grass Energy
2 Fire Energy
Overall, the deck is pretty simple. Since Swampert CG is a psuedo-Ludicolo, why not take advantage and run Magcargo? Since nothing in the deck is a Delta Pokemon, might as well run Jirachi - gotta keep the deck consistent somehow! Since Swampert ex's Power revolves around having Energy in the discard, might as well run the Holon Engine to discard them. Plus, Holon Lass is a great way to find the Energy anyway.
An early setup is key. Getting the Jirachi out there ASAP is crucial! When Jirachi is active, a Magcargo follows. When Magcargo comes into play, Swampert comes out as well. From there, everything else just sets up beautifully. Now, how to account for the nasty drawback of Swampert ex's Power? Simply put a Jirachi active, use all the Powers, and finish your turn with Swampert ex's Power. Losing a Jirachi for the price of 3 Energy is no problem.
The beauty of the deck is its different attackers. With the plethora of options at hand, the deck can change strategies depending on the matchup.
Swampert ex has a very good attack. Not only does it rack up a lot of damage fast, but it serves two more purposes. First of all, it can soften up other threats on the bench. In addition, it can discard more Energy, making it easier to use the Power.
However, the "cleaner" of the deck is Ho-Oh ex. Honestly this card is overlooked. With 6 different types of Energy attached, it can do 130 damage, OHKOing nearly anything in the format (except those big Stage 2 exs). This is easily achieved with Swampert ex's Power! Even when it gets KO'd, its benefits aren't done -- its Power conserves Energy by moving it back to your attackers!
When you need that big OHKO, Lugia ex is there to take down anything. After a Ho-Oh ex is KOd by a huge ex Pokemon, just move 2 Energy to Lugia ex, attach Holon's Castform, and go in for the OHKO. Also, in a pinch, Swampert CG or Magcargo can be used as attackers. After all, every Basic Energy type is in here!
Well, I hope you liked my wacky attempt at this. Good luck, Crim!”
Deck (10/10): I’m extremely happy with the list you made. Other than maybe slipping in a copycat or a second switching card, the trainer line is grade A. You’ve got a very well-rounded energy line, and Pokes look 100% solid. You win the internet!
Creativity (3/5): It’s a refreshing and creative take at an energy manipulation deck, but I just didn’t see the creativity pushed very far. Oh well, it’s all right.
Card Use (4/5): You did well with abusing energy cycle, and while compensating for the Swampert’s attack/heavy retreat cost wasn’t recognized much, I thought you did really well.
OVERALL: 17/20
~~~Criminal~~~
“I've been taking a break from the game for a while now (since worlds) but I decided that I just couldn't waste my opportunity at the Tournament of Champions! So after I found out I had a match against my arch-rival and Poke-Peer Pooka, I decided I'd take a look at the current format and see what I could do with Swampert EX.
I remember back during Worlds alot of people thought Swampert EX was going to be the next big thing, so it surprised me to see that there are no decks in the current format that can abuse Swampert EX's Poke-Power "Energy Recycle." I figured that you essentially take a turn to set up a monsterous next couple of turns, i couldn't see WHY it hadn't become a tier 1 - tier 2 deck. Then I started building the deck, looking at possible combinations, and quickly realized that there are absolutely no delta pokemon that can really combine well with Swampert EX. Currently, if you're not Delta Drawing during the first few turns or taking prizes left and right, then youre just not winning.
So what I realized was this:
- A Swampert EX deck is too slow, by nature, and cannot start truly dominating the board until at least turn 4, and thats if you go 2nd (getting a stage 2 out plus getting enough energies in your discard pile to really abuse the power on turn 3)
- A Swampert EX deck cannot gather a large hand simply through delta drawing, which also leads to a bad case of "terrible starting pokemon"
- Swampert EX's poke-power wastes a turn, which usually gives up a prize in the process.
Lets take a look at my list and see how i attempted to get rid of the inherent weaknesses in a Swampert EX deck.
// Pokemon
4 Mudkip CG1
3 Marshtomp CG1
3 Swampert ex CG
1 Swampert CG
2 Mew ex
2 Onix UF
2 Steelix ex
1 Rayquaza*
1 Lugia ex
1 Holon's Magneton
2 Holon's Castform
// Energy
4 Rainbow Energy
3 Fighting Energy
4 Fire Energy
4 Lightning Energy
// Trainer
3 Claw Fossil
2 Windstorm
2 Warp Point
2 Rare Candy
4 Holon Transceiver
2 TV Reporter
3 Prof. Elm's Training Method
2 Holon Mentor
1 Holon Scientist
1 Holon Adventurer
1 Holon Farmer
Right off the bat you're definitely going to notice a lot of cards that you'd expect 4 of yet only see 2-3 of. This is mainly due to deck constraint, and there's only so much you can do with 60 cards.
2 Mew EX. Mew EX is not someone you really want to start with anyway, even though at first glance you'd think you would. In all honesty, youre probably going to be losing your 1st pokemon in battle simply because your set up is alot more important than keeping pace with a quick opponent. Claw Fossil + Warp Point can negate the loss of a prize, as can a quick Swampert start, but in either case, starting with an EX Pokemon just isn't something youre looking forward to. I'd rather lose a mudkip and 1 prize than a Mew EX and 2 prizes early on in a game.
3 Claw Fossil. 4 Would have been great, an extra 2 Root fossils would have been great as well, but you just can't fit them. Three is a good enough number to try and get one into play as fast as possible, then if you need a turn to set up through Energy Recycle, you just sac a Fossil and usually attach 3 energies to a Mew EX or Steelix EX. If they decide not to attack the Claw Fossil and get sneaky while setting up themselves, you simply just Energy Recycle again, this nets you a total of SIX extra energies, that, combined with your energy placements for the turn, are more than enough to end the game with. After that you simply attack into victory.
2 Windstorm. I'm sure this will be a very arguable call, but ultimately I felt it was the right one. Windstorming the turn that you're going to Energy Recycle is key. You really will only Energy Recycle 1-2 times per game, on average, depending on the matchup. Just use the Windstorm wisely, getting rid of Cessation Crystal or any other potentially dangerous Tool or Stadium only when absolutely necessary. Swampert isn't like other decks that are vulnerable to Cessation Crystal, Swampert really only needs to use its ability once to set you up, more than that is just icing on the cake.
Ultimately, I felt Holon Farmer was just too necessary, you will have alot of less than premium starts, and you have to accept that. The deck doesn't really rely on a great start like other decks do, you just have to be willing to Farmer a little early certain games, usually the turn before you need to mentor into a ray * that had fallen, or a lugia ex, etc. I cut a 3rd TV Reporter for Holon Farmer.
The deck runs a fair number of Supporters + Holon Transceiver, it should not have completely unplayable starts very often. A normal situation is to just build your bench, attaching an energy every turn if possible, then Holon Scientist after your opponent delta drew into a fairly large hand. You WILL win the battle of the beasts against just about any deck. Steelix EX's Mudslide, combined with Lugia EX's one hitter quitter are alot for any deck to handle, especially if they let you set up.
That's it for me this week, I'm sure Pooka came up with a great idea as well, so this should be a pretty good matchup. Good luck to him, and let the better (and cooler
) theorist win!”
Deck (9/10): I’m also very happy with this list. I feel like you could have gone up to four PETM and three rare candy (or 2 marshtomp/4 rare candy). Your lines are very balanced, and you have a little bit of extra switching. Good job!
Creativity (3/5): While at first I planned on giving this a 1 or a 2 in creativity due to its status as an LBS clone, I took into account how you cleverly play Claw Fossils to win hard matchups, and how unlike any other LBS-esque deck, you actually don’t have to rely on holon energy, making you safe from Crystal Beach. Good goin’.
Card Use (4/5): The retreat of Swampert ex is easened up a bit by two switching, and there are lots of easy choices to make for Ultra Pump discarding. You abuse the power very, very well.
OVERALL: 16/20
While Crim is cooler than Pooka, in the most intense battle of all time, the Pookmeister barely edges out the Criminal. Good going, both of you guys!
“Ingredient: Swampert ex
For the first time in all my Rounds of Iron Chef, I felt like this was a card with a lot of potential. However, this felt like the worst deck I've made... Oh well, here's the list:
// Pokemon
2 Swampert CG
3 Swampert ex CG
2 Marshtomp EM
4 Mudkip CG1
2 Magcargo DX1
2 Slugma UF
2 Ho-Oh ex
1 Lugia ex
1 Holon's Castform
4 Jirachi DX
// Trainers
4 Windstorm
4 Holon Transceiver
4 Rare Candy
4 Prof. Elm's Training Method
3 Holon Mentor
1 Switch
1 Holon Adventurer
1 Holon Scientist
1 Holon Lass
// Energy
4 Water Energy
2 Lightning Energy
2 Psychic Energy
2 Fighting Energy
2 Grass Energy
2 Fire Energy
Overall, the deck is pretty simple. Since Swampert CG is a psuedo-Ludicolo, why not take advantage and run Magcargo? Since nothing in the deck is a Delta Pokemon, might as well run Jirachi - gotta keep the deck consistent somehow! Since Swampert ex's Power revolves around having Energy in the discard, might as well run the Holon Engine to discard them. Plus, Holon Lass is a great way to find the Energy anyway.
An early setup is key. Getting the Jirachi out there ASAP is crucial! When Jirachi is active, a Magcargo follows. When Magcargo comes into play, Swampert comes out as well. From there, everything else just sets up beautifully. Now, how to account for the nasty drawback of Swampert ex's Power? Simply put a Jirachi active, use all the Powers, and finish your turn with Swampert ex's Power. Losing a Jirachi for the price of 3 Energy is no problem.
The beauty of the deck is its different attackers. With the plethora of options at hand, the deck can change strategies depending on the matchup.
Swampert ex has a very good attack. Not only does it rack up a lot of damage fast, but it serves two more purposes. First of all, it can soften up other threats on the bench. In addition, it can discard more Energy, making it easier to use the Power.
However, the "cleaner" of the deck is Ho-Oh ex. Honestly this card is overlooked. With 6 different types of Energy attached, it can do 130 damage, OHKOing nearly anything in the format (except those big Stage 2 exs). This is easily achieved with Swampert ex's Power! Even when it gets KO'd, its benefits aren't done -- its Power conserves Energy by moving it back to your attackers!
When you need that big OHKO, Lugia ex is there to take down anything. After a Ho-Oh ex is KOd by a huge ex Pokemon, just move 2 Energy to Lugia ex, attach Holon's Castform, and go in for the OHKO. Also, in a pinch, Swampert CG or Magcargo can be used as attackers. After all, every Basic Energy type is in here!
Well, I hope you liked my wacky attempt at this. Good luck, Crim!”
Deck (10/10): I’m extremely happy with the list you made. Other than maybe slipping in a copycat or a second switching card, the trainer line is grade A. You’ve got a very well-rounded energy line, and Pokes look 100% solid. You win the internet!
Creativity (3/5): It’s a refreshing and creative take at an energy manipulation deck, but I just didn’t see the creativity pushed very far. Oh well, it’s all right.
Card Use (4/5): You did well with abusing energy cycle, and while compensating for the Swampert’s attack/heavy retreat cost wasn’t recognized much, I thought you did really well.
OVERALL: 17/20
~~~Criminal~~~
“I've been taking a break from the game for a while now (since worlds) but I decided that I just couldn't waste my opportunity at the Tournament of Champions! So after I found out I had a match against my arch-rival and Poke-Peer Pooka, I decided I'd take a look at the current format and see what I could do with Swampert EX.
I remember back during Worlds alot of people thought Swampert EX was going to be the next big thing, so it surprised me to see that there are no decks in the current format that can abuse Swampert EX's Poke-Power "Energy Recycle." I figured that you essentially take a turn to set up a monsterous next couple of turns, i couldn't see WHY it hadn't become a tier 1 - tier 2 deck. Then I started building the deck, looking at possible combinations, and quickly realized that there are absolutely no delta pokemon that can really combine well with Swampert EX. Currently, if you're not Delta Drawing during the first few turns or taking prizes left and right, then youre just not winning.
So what I realized was this:
- A Swampert EX deck is too slow, by nature, and cannot start truly dominating the board until at least turn 4, and thats if you go 2nd (getting a stage 2 out plus getting enough energies in your discard pile to really abuse the power on turn 3)
- A Swampert EX deck cannot gather a large hand simply through delta drawing, which also leads to a bad case of "terrible starting pokemon"
- Swampert EX's poke-power wastes a turn, which usually gives up a prize in the process.
Lets take a look at my list and see how i attempted to get rid of the inherent weaknesses in a Swampert EX deck.
// Pokemon
4 Mudkip CG1
3 Marshtomp CG1
3 Swampert ex CG
1 Swampert CG
2 Mew ex
2 Onix UF
2 Steelix ex
1 Rayquaza*
1 Lugia ex
1 Holon's Magneton
2 Holon's Castform
// Energy
4 Rainbow Energy
3 Fighting Energy
4 Fire Energy
4 Lightning Energy
// Trainer
3 Claw Fossil
2 Windstorm
2 Warp Point
2 Rare Candy
4 Holon Transceiver
2 TV Reporter
3 Prof. Elm's Training Method
2 Holon Mentor
1 Holon Scientist
1 Holon Adventurer
1 Holon Farmer
Right off the bat you're definitely going to notice a lot of cards that you'd expect 4 of yet only see 2-3 of. This is mainly due to deck constraint, and there's only so much you can do with 60 cards.
2 Mew EX. Mew EX is not someone you really want to start with anyway, even though at first glance you'd think you would. In all honesty, youre probably going to be losing your 1st pokemon in battle simply because your set up is alot more important than keeping pace with a quick opponent. Claw Fossil + Warp Point can negate the loss of a prize, as can a quick Swampert start, but in either case, starting with an EX Pokemon just isn't something youre looking forward to. I'd rather lose a mudkip and 1 prize than a Mew EX and 2 prizes early on in a game.
3 Claw Fossil. 4 Would have been great, an extra 2 Root fossils would have been great as well, but you just can't fit them. Three is a good enough number to try and get one into play as fast as possible, then if you need a turn to set up through Energy Recycle, you just sac a Fossil and usually attach 3 energies to a Mew EX or Steelix EX. If they decide not to attack the Claw Fossil and get sneaky while setting up themselves, you simply just Energy Recycle again, this nets you a total of SIX extra energies, that, combined with your energy placements for the turn, are more than enough to end the game with. After that you simply attack into victory.
2 Windstorm. I'm sure this will be a very arguable call, but ultimately I felt it was the right one. Windstorming the turn that you're going to Energy Recycle is key. You really will only Energy Recycle 1-2 times per game, on average, depending on the matchup. Just use the Windstorm wisely, getting rid of Cessation Crystal or any other potentially dangerous Tool or Stadium only when absolutely necessary. Swampert isn't like other decks that are vulnerable to Cessation Crystal, Swampert really only needs to use its ability once to set you up, more than that is just icing on the cake.
Ultimately, I felt Holon Farmer was just too necessary, you will have alot of less than premium starts, and you have to accept that. The deck doesn't really rely on a great start like other decks do, you just have to be willing to Farmer a little early certain games, usually the turn before you need to mentor into a ray * that had fallen, or a lugia ex, etc. I cut a 3rd TV Reporter for Holon Farmer.
The deck runs a fair number of Supporters + Holon Transceiver, it should not have completely unplayable starts very often. A normal situation is to just build your bench, attaching an energy every turn if possible, then Holon Scientist after your opponent delta drew into a fairly large hand. You WILL win the battle of the beasts against just about any deck. Steelix EX's Mudslide, combined with Lugia EX's one hitter quitter are alot for any deck to handle, especially if they let you set up.
That's it for me this week, I'm sure Pooka came up with a great idea as well, so this should be a pretty good matchup. Good luck to him, and let the better (and cooler
) theorist win!”Deck (9/10): I’m also very happy with this list. I feel like you could have gone up to four PETM and three rare candy (or 2 marshtomp/4 rare candy). Your lines are very balanced, and you have a little bit of extra switching. Good job!
Creativity (3/5): While at first I planned on giving this a 1 or a 2 in creativity due to its status as an LBS clone, I took into account how you cleverly play Claw Fossils to win hard matchups, and how unlike any other LBS-esque deck, you actually don’t have to rely on holon energy, making you safe from Crystal Beach. Good goin’.
Card Use (4/5): The retreat of Swampert ex is easened up a bit by two switching, and there are lots of easy choices to make for Ultra Pump discarding. You abuse the power very, very well.
OVERALL: 16/20
While Crim is cooler than Pooka, in the most intense battle of all time, the Pookmeister barely edges out the Criminal. Good going, both of you guys!
