Nekizalb
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Pearl Chomp Lock
[gal=48290]2009-9-15 Garchomp C LvX SV145/147[/gal][gal=42357]2009-4-14 Palkia G Lv X PL 125/127[/gal]
(AKA Palkia Lock with Garchomp)
Written By: Aaron H. (Nekizalb)
Date: July 10, 2010
Format: DP-UL
The outcome of a Pokemon TCG match is greatly affected by the first turns of the game. If one player is unable to set up during the first few turns of the game, there is a rather large chance that he or she will lose that match if his or her opponent does set up. Pearl Chomp Lock is a deck that is designed to cripple the opponent’s setup at the start of the game, but it can fight back in the late-game. There are many smaller strategies to this deck as well.
This is the deck that I was going to use for Nationals. It was able to win the majority of my playtesting games, and I got it to where I was certain it would do well. However, I switched decks right before Nationals, so all this deck got to do was appear in the Modified Tournament side event.
The List
21 Pokemon:
1 Palkia G Lv. X, PL 125
3 Palkia G, PL 12
1 Garchomp C Lv. X, SV 145
2 Garchomp C, SV 60
1 Uxie Lv. X, LA 146
2 Uxie, LA 43
4 Mesprit, LA 34
1 Azelf, LA 19
1 Azelf, MT 4
1 Toxicroak G, PR DP41
1 Crobat G, PL 47
1 Bronzong G, PL 41
1 Mismagius, SF 7
1 Misdreavus, LA 107
26 Trainers/Supporters/Stadiums:
4 Cyrus's Conspiracy
4 Poketurn
4 Energy Gain
2 SP-Radar
4 Power Spray
3 Pokemon Collector
1 Roseanne's Research
1 Bebe's Search
1 Premier Ball
1 Aaron's Collection
1 Night Maintenance
13 Energy:
4 Double Colorless Energy (Special)
4 Call Energy (Special)
4 Water Energy (Basic)
1 Psychic Energy (Basic)
The Cards
1 Palkia G Lv. X:
This card is the main card of the deck. At a glance, 120 HP is pretty good, almost guaranteeing that Palkia G Lv. X will be around for at least one turn. Lost Cyclone looks like it can be disruptive to your opponent, and is used to your benefit (which is explained below.) Hydro Shot is a great attack. You can start using it in four turns or even three (with an Energy Gain or a Double Colorless Energy). A Retreat Cost of two is heavy, but not unbearable. Truly, the only bad thing about this card is its Lightning Weakness. Having Lightning Weakness means Luxray GL Lv. X will use Flash Impact to KO Palkia G Lv. X in one shot. Since Luxray GL Lv. X is probably the most popular card in the format, this could lead to problems.
Let’s look at Lost Cyclone again. You get to send Pokemon on your bench to the Lost Zone until you have three Benched Pokemon, and your opponent does the same. This can be good or bad for your opponent; they can remove benched support Pokemon like Uxie or Azelf, or they can remove a damaged attacker from the game so you can’t get a cheap prize. Lost Cyclone is very important to this deck because you run Mesprits. Lost Cyclone can clear the Mesprits off your bench so you can drop more, Psychic Binding your opponent four times in a row. This can slow your opponent down a lot.
Hydro Shot is Palkia G Lv. X’s only attack. It’s a bit more expensive than Garchomp C’s Dragon Rush, but unlike Dragon Rush, you can use it turn after turn. Having a cost of (W)(W)(C)(C) is a lot more convenient than a cost of (W)(W)(W)(C), because you can fulfill the two Colorless Requirements with Double Colorless Energy. So, on your first turn, you attach a Water Energy. On your second turn, attach another Water Energy. On your third turn, attach a Double Colorless Energy and Hydro Shot. Next turn, attach another Double Colorless Energy and Hydro Shot. You can keep doing this as long as you have Double Colorless Energies in your hand. Otherwise, you can simply drop another Energy and an Energy Gain onto Palkia G Lv. X to continue Hydro Shotting. The 80 damage that Hydro Shot does is just enough to pick off a Claydol that your opponent would use to set up, and Hydro Shot can also KO a Luxray GL or Garchomp that is threatening you.
3 Palkia G:
Palkia G is used to Level Up into Palkia G Lv. X. Unlike other Pokemon-SP, Palkia G can be effective by itself, and doesn’t necessarily need its Level X to be a strong attacker. 100 HP is great for a basic, almost guaranteeing that it won’t be donked. Splashing Turn can do a cheap 20 for one Water Energy and one Colorless Energy (or Energy Gain), and you get the option to switch Palkia G with one of your benched Pokemon. This is a very nice attack to have; if your Palkia G is damaged, you can use Splashing Turn to move it to the bench without discarding Energy, send up a Garchomp C, and eventually Level that up to heal your Palkia G.
The main focus of Palkia G is Pearl Breath. For one Water Energy and two Colorless Energy, you do 50 damage to the opponent’s active Pokemon and 10 damage to each of your opponent’s benched Pokemon. 10 damage might not sound like a lot, but if you use Pearl Breath over the course of a few turns the benched damage can stack up. Crobat G is also there to help by providing an extra damage counter. If you use Pearl Breath and Crobat G wisely, chances are you will be able to knock out more than one Pokemon in a single turn.
I run a 3-1 line of Palkia G Lv. X for consistency; the game goes much smoother when you start with Palkia G instead of another Pokemon.
1 Garchomp C Lv. X:
Garchomp C Lv. X is one of the best cards in the format. It has 110 HP, which pretty much means that it won’t die in one shot without some effort. Healing Breath is a great Poke-Power. It allows you to heal all of your Pokemon-SP when you play Garchomp C Lv. X onto Garchomp C. If you have a heavily damaged Palkia G Lv. X, leveling up Garchomp C could get you back in the game.
Dragon Rush is one of the best attacks in the game. For a Double Colorless Energy and an Energy Gain, Garchomp C Lv. X can smack any Pokemon on your opponent’s side of the field for 80 damage. As mentioned in Palkia G Lv. X’s paragraphs, 80 damage is enough to KO Claydols or other important Pokemon. It also sets up something for another attack to KO it. The only downside of Dragon Rush is that you can’t use it every turn, so you will have to retreat Garchomp C Lv. X, bring up a Pokemon-SP, and Poketurn that Pokemon-SP in order to Dragon Rush again.
2 Garchomp C:
Garchomp C is primarily used to Level Up into Garchomp C Lv. X. Unlike Palkia G, Garchomp C cannot really do much without its Level X. Claw Swipe can do 30 for a relatively cheap price of (C)(C), and it can potentially donk Pokemon like Hoppip or Unown Q with a DCE. Earthquake can do 50 damage, but it also hits each of your benched Pokemon for 10 damage. With Healing Breath, this shouldn’t be much of a problem, but that 10 damage can set up a benched Uxie or Mesprit for a KO from Gengar’s Shadow Room. With a Flash Bite from Crobat G, Earthquake can also KO an opposing Garchomp C.
1 Uxie Lv. X:
Uxie Lv. X is mainly used for its Poke-Power, Trade Off. With no space in the deck for Claydol, Trade Off provides some sort of draw engine for the deck. Over the course of a few turns, Trade Off can allow you to collect extra Team Galactic’s Inventions or Double Colorless Energies. For a Double Colorless Energy, Uxie Lv. X can also use Zen Blade for a cheap 60. That 60 is enough to knock out a sacrifice Uxie due to Weakness, and can usually get you a cheap prize at some point of the game.
2 Uxie:
Uxie is mainly used for its Poke-Power, Set Up. Set Up is one of the best (if not the best) Poke-Powers in the game, allowing you to draw cards until you have seven cards in your hand when you play it down. If you play down several Pokemon, attach your energy for the turn, and play a couple of trainer cards, you can put Uxie down to refresh your hand. Uxie also works with Mesprit and Azelf to trigger Azelf’s Downer Material.
4 Mesprit:
Pearl Chomp Lock would not be very successful without Mesprit. When you play Mesprit down, you get to shut off all of your opponent’s Poke-Powers for one turn. While one turn may not seem like a lot, you run four Mesprits. This means that you can shut off your opponent’s Poke-Powers for four turns. Shutting off your opponent’s Poke-Powers prevents them from setting up, and if you prevent them from using Poke-Powers for four turns at the start of the game, chances are they may not be able to set up at all. Thus, you would have a rather large chance of winning the game.
Now, I’m mentioning playing four Mesprits down, but wouldn’t that take up so much bench space I wouldn’t have room for anything else? Palkia G Lv. X’s Lost Cyclone Poke-Power allows me to remove used Mesprits from the game, and it also clears my bench at the same time. So, I can repeatedly drop Mesprits and still have space on my Bench for other Pokemon.
Another reason why you would want to remove Mesprit from the game is simple: it can’t attack. While Extrasensory is a good attack (allowing you to potentially hit for 70 damage for only two energy), this deck does not run the required two Psychic Energy to perform the attack. So, a Benched Mesprit is pretty much useless except to work with Uxie and Azelf to trigger Downer Material.
1 Azelf (LA):
This list only runs 1 Palkia G Lv. X and one Garchomp C Lv. X, and other 1-of cards are important to this deck, like Toxicroak G, Bronzong G, and Azelf (MT). Thus, Azelf LA is needed for its Time Walk Poke-Power. You get to check your prizes, take a Pokemon out of your Prizes, and put a card from your hand back into your prizes in place of that Pokemon. Time Walk is also handy for seeing what else is in your prizes. Lock Up is not a great attack, so Azelf shouldn’t really be attacking. However, like Mesprits, Azelf can be removed from the game by Palkia G Lv. X.
1 Azelf (MT):
This is what swings matchups into your favor. Downer Material is a great Poke-Body, forcing your opponent to pay another Colorless Energy to use any attacks on his or her basic Pokemon. Suddenly, Luxray GL Lv. X cannot use Flash Impact on Palkia G Lv. X without having a Lightning Energy and two more energy equivalents. Garchomp C Lv. X cannot Dragon Rush one of your Pokemon for a Double Colorless Energy and an Energy Gain. Spiritomb has to use an Energy to use Darkness Grace. The list goes on and on. Overall, Downer Material slows decks like LuxChomp down so much that Pearl Chomp Lock wouldn’t be able to beat it without using Azelf MT.
And with Azelf MT explained, the deck name is now also explained: Pearl (from Palkia G’s Pearl Breath) Chomp (as in GarCHOMP C Lv. X) Lock (from Mesprit’s Psychic Bind and Azelf’s Downer Material.)
1 Toxicroak G:
Also known as “Promocroak”, this card is very important to the deck, mainly used to counter Luxray GL Lv. X. For one Psychic Energy and a Colorless Energy, Toxicroak can do 60 damage plus poison if one of your Pokemon was knocked out last turn. Palkia G Lv. X has Lightning Weakness, so Luxray GL Lv. X can KO Palkia G Lv. X in one hit. It is very easy for Toxicroak G to retaliate that KO against Luxray, because Luxray has Fighting Weakness. Did the Luxray GL Lv. X have an Expert Belt? No worries; the poison damage will make up the last 10 damage. Toxicroak G has a Retreat Cost of two, but that is made unnecessary by Leap Away. Leap Away is a Poke-Power that has a 50-50 chance of returning Toxicroak to your hand. If it returns to your hand, you can save your lone Psychic Energy and an Energy Gain.
The best way to use Toxicroak G is to wait for your opponent to KO something with Luxray GL Lv. X, then in one move drop Toxicroak down, attach the Psychic Energy to it, and attach an Energy Gain, move it to the active spot, and use Poison Revenge for a surprise KO.
Without this card, the LuxChomp matchup would be very unfavorable.
1 Crobat G:
Crobat G is mainly used for its Poke-Power, Flash Bite. When you play it down, you get to do 10 damage to one of your opponent’s Pokemon. That 10 damage is just enough to set things up for a KO, like a Jumpluff. Play down Crobat G, and you can KO Jumpluff with Dragon Rush or Hydro Shot. Fighting Resistance is useful against Pokemon like Donphan, and Free Retreat is always nice. Toxic Fang, although you probably shouldn’t have to use it, can accumulate damage over time.
1 Bronzong G:
Galactic Switch is what this Pokemon is used for. If one of your Pokemon is damaged, you can Galactic Switch an Energy from the damaged Pokemon over to another Pokemon, Poketurn the damaged Pokemon, and continue fighting. Galactic Switch can also get you a surprise Dragon Rush or Zen Blade in. Garchomp C Lv. X can heal off the damage Bronzong G does to itself. The only bad thing about Bronzong G is that it has a Retreat Cost of three. If you start with it, you will most likely be getting it out of the active spot through Poketurns.
1 Mismagius:
Mismagius is used to counter Mewtwo Lv. X. Without Mismagius, this deck would basically lose as soon as a Mewtwo Lv. X hits the opponent’s side of the field. Palkia and Garchomp can’t hit through Mewtwo’s Poke-Body, so Mismagius is needed. I chose Mismagius because it can KO a Mewtwo for no energy, and you can still attach an Energy for the turn. Horror Chant, should you need to use it, can be incredibly disruptive to decks like Cursegar.
If you run no Mewtwo counter, you will lose pretty much any game in which you face Mewtwo. I made the mistake of not running Mismagius for the side event, and lost in the last round against an opponent who played Mewtwo.
There are other Mewtwo counters, like Xatu from Unleashed or Banette from Platinum. Each one has its pros and cons, but I like Mismagius because it can attack for no energy.
1 Misdreavus:
Used to evolve into Mismagius. I chose the LA one because Show Off can get you the Psychic Energy necessary to use Horror Chant, but you should never have to attack with Misdreavus.
4 Cyrus’s Conspiracy:
A very important card in this deck. Playing it gets you another Supporter, a basic Energy card, and a Team Galactic’s Invention. So you can charge up your Pokemon with Energy, utilize the four Team Galactic’s Inventions in this deck, and get another Supporter to help you. If you play a Cyrus’s Conspiracy for another Cyrus’s Conspiracy, you could completely set up by using Cyrus’s Conspiracy. Setting up this way is known as using a “Cyrus Chain.”
4 Poketurn:
Poketurn allows you to return one of your Pokemon-SP to your hand. If you have a damaged Palkia G or Garchomp C, you can return that to your hand to prevent your opponent from getting a cheap prize. You can use Crobat G with Poketurn to Flash Bite multiple times in the same turn. You can use Poketurn with Bronzong G to move more than one Energy around per turn. Lastly, you can return Toxicroak G to your hand without paying its Retreat Cost of two. The fact that you can search Poketurn with Cyrus’s Conspiracy gives you a lot of options.
4 Energy Gain:
Attach Energy Gain to a Pokemon-SP, and each of its attacks will cost one Colorless Energy less. This is very important for speed; Garchomp C can go from having no Energy to Dragon Rushing in one turn, Palkia G can Pearl Breath in two turns, Toxicroak can surprise opponents, and the uses for this go on and on. I’ve seen some other SP decks only run three Energy Gain, but I run four because they serve as “Crash Chant Fuel” for Mismagius.
2 SP-Radar:
SP-Radar allows you to search your deck for a Pokemon-SP, but you have to put a card from your hand into your deck. This can be a win-win situation; you can play SP-Radar, put a Night Maintenance or some other currently-not-useful card from your hand into the deck, get the Palkia G Lv. X or Garchomp C Lv. X you need, and you have two less cards in your hand. This allows Uxie’s Set Up to draw two more cards than before you would have played the SP-Radar. The nice thing about SP-Radar is that it can search for basic SPs and Lv. Xs, so depending on the situation you might want to grab a basic instead of a Lv. X.
4 Power Spray:
Power Spray is a card that is feared by many players. A Power Spray played at the right time will slow your opponent down a lot, or put them in a situation where they cannot take a KO this turn. Using a Power Spray on an opposing Uxie that is about to Set Up for five, six, or seven cards is a big play. Once your Mesprits are all played, this deck will rely on Power Sprays to stop Powers, and to keep crippling your opponent’s setup. If for some reason you fail to put a Mesprit into play, you can put three Pokemon-SP into play and use Power Sprays to stop your opponent from setting up.
3 Pokemon Collector:
This card is great in this deck. With one Pokemon Collector, you can get three Mesprits to stall your opponent for three turns, or you could get Uxie, Azelf MT, and Mesprit to help you set up and slow your opponent down. Pokemon Collectors are necessary in order to keep the Mesprits coming, and they can also nab you the basics that you need in some cases (like Crobat G or Toxicroak G).
1 Roseanne’s Research:
Roseanne’s Research can only get you two basics, but sometimes you need an Energy card. Roseanne’s Research is something I put in here in case you need it, because there are going to be some situations when you need a Mesprit and an Energy card to make the best out of it. Also, if you hold an Energy Gain in your hand, you can use Roseanne’s Research to get Toxicroak G and the Psychic Energy for a surprise KO.
1 Bebe’s Search:
This is used primarily to get out Uxie Lv. X to start the Trade Off draw engine, or Mismagius to provide a Mewtwo counter. Bebe’s Search can also grab you a Palkia G Lv. X or Garchomp C Lv. X under a Spiritomb lock. Also, the card that you put back into the deck with Bebe’s Search allows you to draw more with Uxie’s Set Up.
1 Premier Ball:
With Palkia G Lv. X being so crucial to this deck, it is important to keep it active as long as possible. Aaron’s Collection can bring it back to your hand, but you can’t play a Supporter that turn. Night Maintenance returns it to your deck, but you still have to search for it. SP-Radar can get it out of your deck, but not your Discard Pile. Premier Ball can do both, making it incredibly useful for this deck. Premier Ball can also get you Uxie Lv. X to utilize Trade Off for draw power.
1 Aaron’s Collection:
Aaron’s Collection is very useful in recovering a KO’d Palkia G Lv. X or Garchomp C Lv. X. If you are running low on Energy, Aaron’s Collection can also get you back two basic Energy cards. This is also useful in recovering your single Psychic Energy.
1 Night Maintenance:
You can use Night Maintenance to return three in any combination of Pokemon and basic Energy cards to your deck. There are a lot of combinations of what you could get with this. Unlike Aaron’s Collection, you can still play a Supporter the turn that you play Night Maintenance. Night Maintenance is slightly inferior to Aaron’s Collection because the cards don’t go into your hand, but getting three cards (and the option of non-SP Pokemon) is nicer than Aaron’s Collection.
4 Double Colorless Energy:
Double Colorless Energy, commonly known as DCE, is very important in this deck. Palkia G Lv. X can use Hydro Shot again and again with DCE. Garchomp C Lv. X can Dragon Rush with just a DCE and an Energy Gain. Uxie Lv. X can Zen Blade with one Energy attachment. Overall, DCE is very important for speed and sniping in this deck, so I run four to have a maximum chance of drawing into them.
4 Call Energy:
Call Energy is for consistency. If you start out with an active Pokemon, a Call Energy, and a Cyrus’s Conspiracy, chances are you will get set up by using the Call Energy for Palkia G and Garchomp C and the Cyrus’s Conspiracy for whatever else you need. Again, I run four to have a maximum chance of drawing into them at the start of the game. Having a Call Energy at the start of the game also means that you can stop your opponent from setting up by being able to use your Power Sprays on your opponent’s first turn. Garchomp C Lv. X can also use Call Energies to Dragon Rush, so they aren’t exactly useless late-game.
4 Water Energy:
All of Palkia G’s attacks require Water Energy, so I run four Water Energy so it can attack. Four is enough; two for the first Palkia G Lv. X to Hydro Shot, and two for the second.
1 Psychic Energy:
This is used by Toxicroak G to use Poison Revenge. Mismagius can also use it to use Horror Chant.
Strategies
The overall strategy with Pearl Chomp Lock is to drop Mesprits for the first four turns of the game and use Palkia G Lv. X to Lost Cyclone them away. Meanwhile, you should be using Palkia G or Garchomp C to attack through Pearl Breath or snipe through Hydro Shot and Dragon Rush. During the first four turns of the game you should also be gathering Power Sprays into your hand.
After the first four turns of the game, you should use your Power Sprays carefully to continue denying your opponent Poke-Powers. You should also continue to attack through Pearl Breath, Hydro Shot, and Dragon Rush.
Once you run out of Power Sprays, you cannot stop your opponent from using Poke-Powers. This will give them the opportunity to set up. If they get several high-HP attackers out, you might want to just snipe with Hydro Shot and Dragon Rush for your last few prizes.
With Pearl Chomp Lock, both of your main attackers can snipe, so you have several targets to choose from when you use Dragon Rush or Hydro Shot. In the first few turns of the game, you will be denying your opponent draw power, so don’t waste your resources to snipe Claydols. Go for the attackers they are struggling to set up; Psychic Bind will make Claydols useless. As the game progresses, when you run out of Power Sprays, it might be a better decision to attack Claydols instead of their main attackers to keep them without draw power for the rest of the game.
If your opponent is running Mewtwo, you should try to get out Mismagius or another Mewtwo counter as soon as possible.
Matchups
LuxChomp:
A 2-2 line of Luxray GL: 55/45 (Your Favor)
A 3-1 line of Luxray GL: 45/55 (Their Favor)
Most people probably would look at Palkia G’s Lightning Weakness and assume that Pearl Chomp Lock has an extremely unfavorable matchup against LuxChomp. However, you have several things that make the LuxChomp matchup hard for the LuxChomp player. LuxChomp needs Poke-Powers to set up, and your Mesprit drops at the start of the game can definitely slow your opponent down. Next, you have Downer Material in play. This makes it hard for the LuxChomp player to attack. They must take two turns or even three to attach enough Energy to Luxray GL to KO your Palkia G Lv. X. The same goes for their Garchomp C. If they do manage to get a Luxray GL Lv. X out, you can retaliate their KO with Toxicroak G, and they must wait another turn to get enough energy onto another attacker. Also, Palkia G Lv. X and Garchomp C Lv. X can snipe any Garchomp C or Luxray GL that they are attempting to set up. If LuxChomp runs a 2-2 line of Luxray, it is not very hard to snipe one Luxray GL and snipe the other or use Toxicroak G to take care of that.
If they run a 3-1 line of Luxray GL, the matchup becomes a little harder. Running a 3-1 line of Luxray GL means that they have a better chance of getting up Luxray GL Lv. X to KO your Palkia G Lv. X. However, most LuxChomp builds these days run a 2-2 line of Luxray instead of a 3-1.
Keeping Downer Material in play is crucial to this matchup. You can use a Power Spray on Luxray GL Lv. X’s Bright Look, but you cannot stop Garchomp C Lv. X from Dragon Rushing your Azelf MT. If you do not have the Night Maintenance and a Pokemon Collector or a Roseanne’s Research in your hand, it might be a better decision to snipe a Garchomp C rather than a Luxray GL.
Also, keep in mind that Ambipom G can still take a surprise KO against your Garchomp C Lv. X under a Downer Material lock through DCE and an Energy Gain.
Overall, it takes a lot of skill to win this matchup, but a skilled player can pull it off in the end.
Jumpluff: 85/15 (Your Favor)
Psychic Bind will totally ruin their setup. Without Poke-Powers for the first four (or five or six, depending on Power Sprays) turns of the game, they will have a lot of difficulty setting up. In addition, you can make it hard for them to do a lot of damage to you by using Lost Cyclone. If you use Lost Cyclone, you can limit yourself to 100 damage from a Jumpluff (four Pokemon of yours, four of theirs, plus the possible two that they would lay down during their turn). In addition, if you force them to remove attackers, they constantly have to keep bringing in new Pokemon in order to keep up the damage. They might not be able to do this if you have them under a Powerlock.
Benched Hoppips can make easy targets for Pearl Breath when combined with Flash Bite. It only takes one Flash Bite and two Pearl Breaths to take out a Benched Hoppip. Pearl Breath can also knock out a Jumpluff in two hits, and one Pearl Breath sets up any other Jumpluff for a KO through Hydro Shot or Dragon Rush.
Cursegar: 40/60 (Their Favor)
Spiritomb will really, really slow you down. Spiritomb might require you to take three turns instead of the usual two to attack with Palkia G’s Pearl Breath. If a Spiritomb uses Darkness Grace, it conveniently sets itself up for a KO through Pearl Breath.
A key part in this matchup is to not let Gengar Lv. X use Level Down. In order to win this matchup, you must snipe the Gengar Lv. X, and to do that you need to keep your Level Xs in play. Gengar Lv. X, even when it has an Expert Belt attached to it, cannot KO a Palkia G Lv. X or a Garchomp C Lv. X in one hit. But, even if it has an Expert Belt attached to it, you can still KO it in two attacks through Hydro Shot or Dragon Rush. If Cursegar is running Manectric from PL, the matchup becomes harder, as you must remove the Manectric from play by Dragon Rushing or Hydro Shotting it before working on the Gengar Lv. X.
Some Cursegar lists run Mewtwo Lv. X; this can cause you serious problems. Try to get Mismagius out as soon as you can to get rid of Mewtwo. However, having an active Mewtwo Lv. X blocking you means that you can play Trainers, and thus can snipe their bench. If Mewtwo is active and they are setting up a Cursegar on their bench, it might be a good idea to go after the Cursegar and leave the Mewtwo alone for a little while.
Sablelock: Generally Your Favor
I put “Generally Your Favor” instead of a number because there are so many things that can happen in this matchup. Generally, you should win most of your games against this deck. Downer Material really slows Sablelock down, and if you combine that with repeated Psychic Binds, it can really hurt them. Garchomp C Lv. X can KO anything in Sablelock with one hit, and Palkia G Lv. X can KO everything but Garchomp C Lv. X in one hit.
However, Sablelock still has the potential to disrupt your setup to the point where you can’t do anything. If Sableye Impersonates a Judge, you might not draw a Mesprit off those four cards. If you don’t get the Mesprit drop on your first turn, they can still use Giratina’s Let Loose followed by a Cyrus’s Initiative to prevent you from setting up. If you don’t set up, then they can still win the game.
Pearl Chomp Lock can lock Sablelock more often that Sablelock can lock Pearl Chomp Lock, so Pearl Chomp Lock has the overall favorable matchup.
Speed Donphan: 70/30 (Your Favor)
Hydro Shot can OHKO a Belted Donphan. Pearl Breath will hit a Donphan for 80 damage after Weakness and Exoskeleton. Overall, Palkia will abuse Donphan’s Weakness and will usually win. However, Donphan can keep the Donphans coming under a Powerlock, which can make things difficult. Donphan can also run Judge to slow you down. Earthquake’s 60 damage is enough to knock out anything in Pearl Chomp Lock in two hits.
Donphan/Manectric/Entei&Raikou LEGEND: 55/45 (Your Favor)
As mentioned above, Pearl Chomp Lock is perfectly capable of taking down any Donphan in one or two attacks. However, the Manectrics in this deck make the matchup difficult, and the Entei&Raikou LEGENDS don’t help this matchup. Manectric can KO a Palkia G Lv. X in two hits due to Power Wave. Over the course of three turns, Power Wave can take out Uxies, Azelfs, Crobat G, and Bronzong G. Healing Breath can help, but Power Wave is still a threat in the long run. If Manectric is sitting on the Bench with a Bench Shield attached to it, you cannot do anything to your opponent’s Bench. Claydol will still sit on the Bench and will continue to provide draw power to their deck, and Donphans will get charged up.
The big problem in this deck is Entei&Raikou LEGEND. Thunder Fall has the potential to KO multiple Pokemon in your deck, as well as heavily damage others. Unlike Pokemon-SP Lv. X, Entei&Raikou LEGEND is not affected by Downer Material. And Lucian’s Assignment or Energy Switch are not Power Spray-able, so Entei&Raikou LEGEND can suddenly hit the field and take several prizes. If you have an Uxie, Mesprit, Azelf LA, and a Palkia G Lv. X active, Entei&Raikou LEGEND will take three prizes and set up your Palkia G Lv. X for a KO from Donphan. You can retaliate those KOs by using Hydro Shot or Poison Revenge (Entei&Raikou LEGEND is weak to both Water and Fighting), but the two prizes you get might not make up what damage Entei&Raikou LEGEND has done. The last thing to remember is that Detonation Spin can KO Palkia G Lv. X in one hit.
Speed Machamp (or anything with Machamp): Their Favor
Machamp’s Take Out can, well, take out any Pokemon in your deck. The most you can do is hit them with Uxie Lv. X for 90, with Zen Blade, but that still means that a Machamp will have taken at least two prizes against you before you can take it down. Machamp is a huge threat to this deck, and even if you get a really good setup, you might not be able to take down a swarm of Machamps.
Variants, Techs, and Things to Add
2-1 Luxray GL Lv. X and 2 Lightning Energy:
The Palkia/Luxray variant was popular at Worlds of 2009, using Palkia to lock Poke-Powers and Luxray GL Lv. X to drag up and attack whatever the opponent was trying to set up. Luxray GL Lv. X also helps break out of a Spiritomb lock. However, Luxray GL Lv. X cannot KO basics the opponent is trying to set up, like Garchomp C, without a Flash Bite or two from Crobat G. Garchomp C Lv. X does a much better job of KOing Pokemon-SP basics, making Pearl Chomp Lock superior to Palkia/Luxray.
Dialga G Lv. X:
Dialga G Lv. X shuts off all Poke-Bodies on all Pokemon, excluding Pokemon-SP. So, you would be preventing your opponent from using any Poke-Powers, and you would also be preventing them from using Poke-Bodies. Dialga G Lv. X can also work as a Mewtwo counter, by shutting off Psybarrier. However, Time Crystal also shuts off Azelf’s Downer Material, so be wary of playing it in some cases. Deafen can be a good attack, should you find the space for a Metal Energy. Preventing your opponent from playing Trainers and Stadiums for one turn can really slow them down.
Giratina PL:
I think some people would look at Giratina’s Let Loose Poke-Power and say that it would work well in this deck. Giving your opponent four cards and then denying them Poke-Powers can greatly hinder their setup, and you can Lost Cyclone Giratina away. But, Giratina doesn’t work so well in Pearl Chomp Lock. If you get four bad cards, there is not much you can do with those. Sablelock has Sableye, which can Impersonate a Cyrus’s Conspiracy or a Pokemon Collector to get out of a bad Let Loose, but Pearl Chomp Lock can’t. You might actually hurt yourself by using Let Loose, so that is why I haven’t included any in the list.
Xatu UL or Banette PL:
These are other Mewtwo counters. Xatu can hit a Mewtwo for 120 if the Mewtwo has three Energy on it, and Banette can hit Mewtwo for 120 if you have no Pokemon in your hand. But, Xatu requires one Energy to attack, and Banette requires two Energy to attack. In my opinion, this still makes Mismagius the superior Mewtwo counter.
Unown G:
If Machamp is big in your metagame, you might want to add an Unown G. With Unown G attached to a Pokemon, Machamp cannot use Take Out to KO one of your Pokemon-SP in one hit. They will be forced to rely on Hurricane Punch, which most likely won’t hit for 120 damage.
Expert Belt:
If you manage to get a Palkia G, a Water Energy, a Double Colorless Energy, and an Expert Belt, Palkia G will be hitting the opponent’s active Pokemon for 70 damage (and 100 damage if you choose to use Hydro Shot.) The Expert Belt also puts you out of range from a Flash Impact KO, but not out of range from a Trash Bolt KO. Still, the extra HP and damage is a nice option to have on any of your Pokemon. And you can always use a Poketurn on a Pokemon-SP before it gets KO’d for two prizes.
Conclusion
Despite its Lightning Weakness, Pearl Chomp Lock can still stand up to many popular decks today. It can even consistently beat others. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Pearl Chomp Lock doing well at Worlds.
Have fun with this list, guys.
-Aaron
