Preliminary Grades and Voter Input (Division 6)

[Cyrus]

Directions on how to differentiate Voter Input over other comments:

-Read carefully through each deck.
-Title your post as "Voter Input."
-Tell me which deck right off the bat deserved the win.
-In a few sentences, tell me why that deck deserved the win, and the other deck didn't.. Remember, this is a 1 v. 1 format, meaning that you aren't choosing the best of four, but the best of two...twice.
-Use some grade at the bottom of your post to rationalize your decision - preferably the system I've been using this whole contest.

~~~Bigchuck01 VS Andceo~~~

Bigchuck01

Pokemon: 20

4 Magnemite
3 Magneton
3 Magnezone
1 Magnezone lv x
2 Baltoy
2 Claydol
3 Mr. Mime
1 Uxie LA
1 Azelf LA

Energy: 16

7 Lightning Energy
4 Call Energy
4 Metal Energy (Special)
1 Psychic Energy

Trainers: 24

4 Bebe's Search
4 Rosanne's Research
3 Felicity's Drawing
3 Rare Candy
2 Warp Point
1 Night Maintenance
4 TM-1 Evoluter
3 Plus Power

The deck focuses on using Magnezone's Gyro Ball attack then promoting Mr. Mime. The idea is that between all of the damage and constantly having to retreat, your opponent will be hard pressed to get 3 energy in play to attack Mr. Mime. If your opponent does manage to get a big attacker with 3+ energy on it, Magnezone lv x is there to do 80+ paralysis locking it in place, and setting it up for a Gyro Ball KO on the next turn where your opponent will be back at square 1. The deck runs 3 Mimes because you would like to have 2 in play at the same time in case your opponent runs Warp Point.

Felicity is in the deck to get energy in the discard so you can use Super Conductivity on Mr. Mime when you promote it so that you can retreat it on the next turn (the 10 damage is irrelevant on Mime since it takes 3 energy to attack it, and all 3 energy attacks will be doing more than 70 anyways). TM-1 Evoluter is in the deck to ensure that your combo comes out as fast as possible. Plus Powers are in the deck for the abundance of 130hp Pokemon, so you can 2hko them with Gyro Ball (60+70).

Andceo

23
3 Magnemite DP
2 Magneton DP
3 Magnezone LA
1 Magnezone LVX
3 Mr.Mime MT
2 Pikachu POP6
2 Raichu MT
2 Baltoy GE
2 Claydol GE
1 Cresselia MD
1 Cresselia LVX
1 Azelf MT

13
4 Call Energy
7 Lighting Energy
2 Basic Metal Energy

24
4 Roseanne’s Search
4 Rare Candy
4 Bebe’s Search
4 Felicity Drawing
1 Night Mainteance
2 Ts-01 Eevoluter
2 Ts-02 Deevoluter
1 Premier Ball
2 Warp Point

The card i was issued is Magnezone#6 from the new set DP:Stormfront.
I was very lucky because I got an amazing card.
Magnezone has a Pokè-Power called Super Connectivity. It means we have our Metagross EXeoxys back in the game!! And with many Lighting Pokèmon all around (Luxray, Raichu, Rayquaza too even if it’s C) which have their force in the “Discard L energies and attack for a high damage” attacks, we have our first combo!!
We don’t need to say that even the LVX form in DP:Legends Awakened is in combo with this new Magnezone, because Magnezone LVX has an attack which can do 80 damage and Paralyze if we discard a L and a M energy from our Magnezone. With Super Connectivity we have this problems solved, and as this Pokè-Power can be used several times if you have more than one Magnezone in play, it means we can recover many energies each turn!
This is about Super Connectivity. About Magnezone attack, this is one of the “Hit and Run” attacks we have already seen in the past. Three energies to do 60 and move to the Bench, with the opponent moving his Active Pokèmon to the Bench as well.
We need Mr.Mime MT for sure to exploit Magnezone attack at his best!!!
At this point, I think a Robot&Yeti standard list with 2 Magnezone SF and Mr.Mime to have a new strategy (60 to one of the opponent Pokèmon and Mime active) should be very good for the contest.
The problem is I would surely get a low rating for “Originality” and “Card Use”. This is why I tried to look deeper in the sets to find something original.
The first thing we need is to find something which can combo with Magnezone possibility of put a damage counter in play. Gyarados MT, Mothim SW and Hypno MD can combo with it, but I don’t see it working.
So I thought at Cresselia + Magnezone + Mime. This should be fun. Instead of using Unown Q, Moonlight or Magnezone DP + M to switch Mime, I can just Super Connectivity every turn and move the damage counter with Cresselia to one of the opponent Pokèmon. This will help Magnezone attack too, because I would reach the 130-quota needed to KO most of the Pokèmon in the game.
After I have decided for the 3-2-3/1 Magnezone, 1-1 Cresselia LVX, Azelf and 3 Mr.Mime (because I want them early game as starter while setting and more than one are required during the game), I needed a partner for a “critical hit” late game.
Luxray seems to be one of the best, but it’s a stage2 and it’s too much metagamed (if the opponent doesn’t play LVX it doesn’t work). Rayquaza is good but I cannot add Fire Energies to the deck because I want 4 Call for the setup and some Metal to attack with Magnezone LVX sometimes. And well, it makes me waste 2 energy drop for the R energies. So I decided for Raichu MT because I have no problem in attaching several energies in one single turn: 2-3 for the Super Connectivity, 1 from my hand and maybe 1 or 2 more thanks to Magnezone LVX Pokè-Power.
Just 4 Lighting energies cards, and I have a stage1 which can do 120 damage and KO a 130-HP-Pokèmon if I have Cresselia LVX in play. If not, just one energy more to do a 150 hit! Even if I Pikachu-Candy-Raichu it in the same turn! And it’s not impossible because I’m supposed to have a Magnezone in play with 1-2 Lighting energies attached to him to attack with him!
Raichu requires more Lighting energy cards in the list and makes me drop the Metal Special energies (I just have 2 Basic Metal which I can Roseanne’s if I don’t find them), but I think it’s ok because I’m not supposed to let a Magnezone active and take damage on it.
2 copies of TS-01 are here because I want to set myself quickly, and Mime+Evoluter is a very strong move early game to evolve all your Benched Pokèmon!
2 of TS-02 because I have no way to attack the Bench, and if the opponent wants to keep its damaged stage2 in the Bench I can just de-evolve it leaving Mr.Mime in the active position.
I think this deck should have a very decent setting early game thanks to Eevoluter, Claydol and Magnezone power which let me recover from energy drop. Late game, I have several options. I have the one-hit KO with Raichu, I can do 80 and Paralyze and then 60 and move to the Bench if the opponent wasted his Warp Points to get rid of Mr.Mime and I can keep “60 and switch” if I want. 3xMagnezone Super Connectivity and 4 Felicity Drawing ensure me I’ll have many energies in play every turn even after a KO. The problem should be the damages in my field, but I have Cresselia to heal myself and Mime to be used as the Super Connectivity target as some damage counters don’t solve the opponent problems to have more than 2 energies on its Active Pokèmon to attack.
Another important option is Pikachu POP6: if you have a Warp Point in hand after a KO, you can send Pikachu, Super Connectivity x2, Warp Point and send Mime/Magnezone to attack while it heal himself in the Bench thanks to the Berry and prepare to become a Raichu and do Explosive Thunder!

Lists:

Chuck's list is excellent. It is very, very consistent, and very well-balanced. Perhaps my only problem is that it's a bit of a pain to get energy in the discard pile quickly, but that's a minor concern. Normally I would heavily question the lack of a fourth candy and make it a big point, but it's kind of moot when you run four TS-1. 10/10.

Andceo also has an excellent list, but it's slightly less consistent. The low energy count is a little troubling, but not enough to knock him down to an eight. 9/10.

Creativity:

So...Both of them have the Mime thing going on. Good...

However, that's all that Alex has - there isn't much more manipulation of the Poke-Power than that.

Andceo has a card that complements Magnezone's power excellently: Raichu, which can deal some pretty large damage effortlessly.

2/5 for Chuck, and 3/5 for Andceo.

Card Use:

Normally, Card Use doesn't blend into Creativity, but all my comments hold true here. 3/5 for Chuck, and 4/5 for Andceo.

WINNER: Andceo.



~~~Kenshin's Garde VS Pajamas~~~

Kenshin's Garde

This week’s ingredient was Magnezone#6 SF. The card is reminiscent of the old Metagross DX that was so popular back in the days of Metanite. However, that card was used more as a tech, and ended up sitting on the Bench a lot. Magnezone#6 is almost in the same position, so it’s difficult to fully take advantage of it without including multiples of the other Magnezone cards. However, there are a few combos that can be done to take full advantage of Magnezone#6.

Pokemon: 22
3 Magnezone SF#6
1 Magnezone DP
2 Magneton DP
3 Magnemite DP
2 Claydol GE
2 Baltoy GE
1 Mr. Mime MT
2 Shedinja LA
2 Nincada LA
1 Bronzong MD
1 Bronzor MD
1 Azlef LA
1 Registeel LA

Trainers: 23
4 Bebe’s Search
4 Roseanne’s Research
4 Rare Candy
4 Felicity’s Drawing
3 Pluspower
2 Lake Boundary
2 Night Maintenance

Energy: 15
4 Call
5 Lightning
2 Metal (Basic)
4 Metal (Special)


The obvious plus of Magnezone is its Super Conductivity Poke-Power. With this, you essentially get 2+ energy attachments per turn, which is extremely good since Magnezone attacks for 3 energy, while a majority of the current decks in the metagame can do their main attacks for 0-2 energy. Magnezone’s attack, Gyro Ball, is very similar to Gliscor LV.X’s, Night Slash, but with the added effect of sending the Defending Pokemon to the Bench. This is effect is a double-edged sword: on one hand, you can set up your opponent’s Pokemon for a KO later in the game (combo will be discussed later), but on the other hand, you probably won’t be able to Gyro Ball the same Pokemon you just hit unless your opponent decided to bring up the Pokemon themselves. Of course, one could choose to not switch out, which has its benefits (i.e. Claydol is Defending Pokemon), but that wouldn’t be taking full advantage of Magnezone’s abilities. Another bonus of Magnezone is its Lightning typing. With Kingdra running rampant in the tournament scene, a Pluspower’d Gyro Ball with Lake Boundary will destroy it.

This deck has been formulated to use one of the combos that can be seen in a majority of the Gliscor decks running around: switching off to Mr. Mime or Shedinja. With Mr. Mime, you stop anything with less than 3 energy dead in its tracks. Shedinja makes your opponents wary of evolving any of their other Pokemon, and your opponent has to be careful what they KO you with lest they KO themselves. Both of these cards are great to switch into. But another card that can benefit from Gyro Ball’s effect is Bronzong MD. You don’t have the stalling potential that Mr. Mime and Shedinja offer, but you get the benefit of adding damage counters to all of your opponent’s Pokemon that have Poke-Powers, as well as spread to all Pokemon that have damage on them. After a few Gyro Balls, the opponent will have to think carefully to find a way to not have half of their Pokemon KO’d in one turn.

One of the reasons Gliscor sometimes struggles is the fact that their combo is so reliant on Unown Q, which easily took up a number of spots in their deck. Magnezone can get around this obstacle by including 1 of its Diamond & Pearl brethren. Because Magnezone SF is able to put a Metal Energy from the discard to the active, Magnezone DP’s free retreat Poke-Body effect will almost always work. Another bonus of using Magnezone SF’s power in this way is that you get to put a damage counter on your Pokemon. While this is normally a drawback, having a damage counter on Shedinja can be extraordinary. As long as Shedinja has a damage counter on it, your opponent will be Confused in addition to taking 3 damage counters from Shedinja’s attack.

Now, the issue with this strategy is that you need Energy in your discard to use the Poke-Power in the first place. That’s why 4 Felicity’s Drawing and 1 Registeel have been included. This, with Roseanne’s and Bebe’s, I essentially have 13 ways of discarding cards. Registeel can also act as a tank: after using Super Conductivity on it, I can discard two cards from my hand to heal the damage done to it. And if I have additional Special Metals in my discard, Registeel’s attack can help to put them back on him without taking Super Conductivity damage. This can be a very good switch in if the opponent has 3+ energy on their attacker and/or sending up Shedinja isn’t an option (i.e. won’t be KO’d by damage, is down to the last prize).

And if Registeel is prized, or some other Pokemon I need is hiding in my Prizes, Azelf will help me fetch them out. Pluspower has been added to the deck so that Magnezone has the ability to OHKO the Defending Pokemon (i.e. random basics, Stage ones, CLAYDOL) as well as to be able to two hit KO those 130 HP Pokemon.

Pajamas

This deck is called Outlaw, because it allows to you violate several conventional rules of the game.

Pokemon (19):
3-2-2/1-1 Magnezone (DP-DP-SF6/DP-Lv.X)
2-2 Gyarados MT
1-0-1 Metagross LA (w/ Beldum #84)
2-2 Claydol GE

Trainers (25):
4 Bebe's Search
3 Cynthia's Feelings
2 Energy Pickup
2 Lake Boundary
1 Night Maintenance
2 Premier Ball
4 Rare Candy
4 Roseanne's Research
1 Time-Space Distortion
2 Warp Point

Energy (16):
6 Lightning
5 Metal (basic)
4 Metal (special)
1 Multi

The name of the game here is board control. It makes it very difficult for your opponent to maintain a cohesive strategy when you have the ability to rearrange the board to your liking on every turn.

The greatest strength of the new Magnezone is Super Connectivity, because it effectively gives you a second (or third!) energy attachment per turn once you've had some energy fall into the discard. Because Magnezone Lv.X's attack discards two energy per use, it is likely that you'll be able to use Super Connectivity before receiving your first KO, without needing to use any extra trainers or Pokemon to discard energy.

Magnezone Lv.X has ridiculous synergy with Magnezone SF, and it turns this evolution line into an absolute beast. Super Conductivity is limited to making its attachment to the active Pokemon, but Electric Trans makes this substantially more powerful by allowing you to move the energy to somewhere more useful. You are also able to abuse Cyber Shock multiple times in a row because of the energy acceleration. The sheer power of continuous guaranteed paralysis can't be overstated.

Magnezone DP gives free retreat to your active Pokemon if it has metal energy attached, Lv.X can move metal energy freely, and SF ensures that you always have metal energy in play. This combo gives you a lot of flexibility by allowing you to choose your own active Pokemon every turn. In addition, Metal Blast has the same base damage as Gyro Ball, and has the potential to do even more, so it may in fact be the preferred choice if you don't need the switching effect. Super Connectivity helps to power up Metal Blast very quickly.

The one downside of Super Conductivity is that it places a damage counter along with the recovered energy, but this turns out to be practically insignificant. Magnezone (DP or Lv.X) and Metagross can both reap the benefit of special metal energy, which Super Connectivity can recover, so the one counter they take is often offset by the decreased damage inflicted next turn. Gyarados becomes more powerful as he accumulates damage, so the downside isn't really a downside at all. You increase his damage with Super Connectivity, move the energy elsewhere with Energy Trans if necessary, and then Flail away.

Gyro Ball is not exactly overwhelming in its power; 60 for 3 is a little below average in this format. However, the added effect makes it intriguing. Under the right circumstances, you can push Magnezone back to the bench and bring up Gyarados. He can absorb your opponent's next attack, possibly partake in the energy shuffle described above, and then return an even greater blow.

Metagross is an extremely useful tech here. On roughly half of your turns, it allows you to choose a new defending Pokemon. This gives you a lot of options: you can drag up and knock out one of your opponent's benchwarmers, you can bring up a potential heavy hitter and paralyze it with Cyber Shock, or you can choose the Pokemon you don't want active next turn so your opponent is forced to pick someone else when you attack with Gyro Ball. In addition, it's easy to move your energy from Magnezone to Metagross and start doing huge damage with Extra Comet Punch.

As demonstrated in practically every successful stage 2 deck since the release of GE, Claydol's Cosmic Power is crucial for keeping your resources flowing. Though it's not really the reason I play a multi energy, it opens the possibility of using Spinning Attack if necessary.

Energy Pickup stacks even more energy recovery on top of Magnezone SF, and is particularly useful on the occasional instance where you don't have one in play. Lake Boundary is the stadium of choice because you have attackers of three different types, making the odds good that you'll have an opportunity to exploit your opponent's weakness.

Here is a brief recap of the board control bundled into this deck: Magnetize lets you choose the active Pokemon before attacking, Magnetic Reversal lets you choose the defending Pokemon, and Electric Trans lets you rearrange your energy however you like. Gyro Ball lets you choose your active Pokemon after attacking, or Cyber Shock lets you lock in the defending Pokemon with guaranteed paralysis. On top of all this, you recover energy like a madman, strategically place damage counters with Super Connectivity, and keep your hand full with Cosmic Power. Combining this extreme control with strong attacks makes for one very powerful deck.

I will grade this match later.

 

[SuperWooper]

BigChuck01

Deck: Solid is really the only word I'd use to describe this. It's Magnezone/Mime at its simplest and most consistent. 4 TS-1 makes it ridiculously fast. Two things keep you away from the 10/10, though: No Unown Q to make Mime's retreat easier, and you didn't play one, and no basic metals mean that you can't Roseanne for one if you haven't found one all game by some stroke of rotten luck. Even one would have done. For the Q, I understand that Magnezone's power gets the energy on Mime quite easily, but what if you want to use that turn to get your 1-energy Magnezone up to 3 all in one turn after retreating the Mime with Unown Q? Give it a 9.

Creativity: 2. Consistent as this list is, it's entirely run-of-the-mill. Nothing stands out (which was probably Alex's aim, but the creativity takes a hit nonetheless).

Card Use: The attack is abused quite nicely. I can't help but feel that the power isn't doing much here, though. You're retreating the Mime, but that's not enough to give you anything more than a 3.

15 (9/2/3)

Andceo

Deck: Three-and-a-half evolution lines with only Claydol to back you up. The fourth Felicity is there, which is nice, and two TS-1s put you just one point shy of Chuck. The list is pretty good for something with so much on its plate. 8. (You almost got a 7. I wish I could issue a 7.5.)

Creativity: Cresselia removes the damage counter that Magnezone adds, doing the job that Chuck's Pluspowers did at the exact same time. Nice touch. Making the Magnezone line just 3-2-3 and sticking a 2-2 Raichu line in there makes the deck "neat" enough for a 4/5.

Card Use: 3 Mr. Mime go toward the old babyporter strategy, while Raichu can do 90 from nowhere with two Magnezones on the field. The attack and the power are both covered, but you're only going to get a 4 because you don't abuse the power perfectly. (Another situation in which I could have put a .5 on the end of here for a 4.5.)

16 (8/4/4)

Andceo wins.

Kenshin's Garde

Deck: The Magnezone/Shedinja thing interests me, but I think you lose a little focus with the 1/1 Bronzong. Should have gone to another Shedinja line or a second Mime and an Unown Q, I think. The Registeel interests me, but it's not integral enough for me to give you a bump. Once a few energy get in the discard by means other than Registeel, he becomes kind of a slot on the bench that you really wish could go to a second Mime. You've got the Pluspowers, which is gooood. Lake Boundaries are questionable in something like Iron Chef. Only five Lightning scares me. Magnezone DP over Magnezone Lv X wins you no points - in fact, that (coupled with a few other problems) drops you below the eight point mark. 7/10

Creativity: 4. Putting the damage counter on Shedinja for the auto-confuse is a cool idea, and since Magnezone warps their guy, too, I think that one of your Shedinjas could wreak some havoc. The 1-1 Bronzong is creative enough though I don't like it so much.

Card Use: 4. This would have been a 5 if Shedinja had been 3-3. By himself, Shedinja makes both Magnezone's power and attack work like clockwork. Everything clicks.

15 (7/4/4)

Pajamas

Deck: No Felicity's, no Call, no Pluspower, no Mime. These three things stand out. 2 Premiere Ball for just the Magnezone Lv X is odd to me, but I don't hold it against you. Lake Boundaries again - are you guys that afraid of Kingdra? Basic and special Metals work on several levels: you've got plenty of them so Magnezone DP can do his job, and you've got an emphasis on the metal Magnezones here, so they prevent damage. There's a focus to your evolution lines, but those first four cards I mentioned really hurt. Point deduction for each of them makes it six, but I'll give you a 7 like Kenshin's Garde because I feel that it's a fairer score, here.

Creativity: 4. Gyarados, like Shedinja, makes the WP-attack and the damage counter work. Magnezone lets you retreat Gyarados with a metal attached.

Card Use: In my opinion, Shedinja and Mime combined (along with that 1-1 Bronzong, I suppose) in Kenshin's list do more for him than just the Gyarados in yours. The 1-1 Metagross can attack, as you say, but it's a pretty lousy attack (they'll probably Warp you out or something). His power is quite strong, but it doesn't contribute too much to how well you abused Metagross Stormfront. Gusting is good on principle, but it doesn't make your specific ingredient any stronger. No Felicity's means that you're not abusing Magnezone's power like you could. The killing blow is the fact that you played only 2 of your ingredient, while Kenshin played 3. 3/5 here.

14 (7/4/3)

Note: Even if I had given Pajamas the 4/5 in card use to tie it, I would have given it to Kenshin because his list was stronger: Calls, PPs, Felicity's and the lone Mime would have clinched it.

Winners:
Andceo
Kenshin's Garde

Back to back posts merged. The following information has been added:

NOTE:

Since you can't edit here, I have to double post. BigChuck01 would have received a 14 for his score of (9/2/3) rather than a 15, putting Andceo above him by two points in my analysis. Sorry for the mistake.

 

[Pajamas]

Not playing Magnezone Lv.X is an automatic -1 in card use. If you aren't abusing Cyber Shock, you aren't taking full advantage of Super Connectivity. If you can't rearrange the energy that Magnezone SF brings back, you aren't taking full advantage of Super Connectivity.

I can 2HKO anything except Rhyperior Lv.X, so why waste space with PlusPowers? Energy Pickup and Warp Point are much better choices, since you can't always count on having both flavors of Magnezone in play at all times, but I guess you'd have to play PP if you forget the Lv.X.

While we're on the topic, not playing Warp/Switch, Unown Q, or Magnezone Lv.X means that Kenshin has no choice but to stick a metal energy on Mr. Mime. After I retreat Gyarados for free, that energy gets moved right back to somewhere more useful. I understand that Magnezone's power gets the energy on Mime quite easily, but what if you want to use that turn to get your 1-energy Magnezone up to 3 all in one turn after retreating the Mime?

Metagross allows you to drag up the Pokemon you don't want to see next turn (either a big attacker or a between-turns damager) so then you can force a different choice with Gyro Ball. It also makes Cyber Shock practically unstoppable, though that's not directly related to Magnezone SF.

I don't like Call in this deck because of the energy-related powers, I'd never mix Gyarados and Mr. Mime, and my writeup already explains why I don't need Felicity (or Registeel, for that matter). I'll concede those as matters of opinion, but the things I outlined above more than cover any discrepancy you're seeing.

 

[Pidgeotto Trainer]

Voter input

Chuck
List 9/10 Very, very solid, looks like the most consistent. Solid number of Pluspower and TM-1.
Andceo
List 8/10 It looks like it has less consistency, but really only one less draw card. He has 3 less energy but I think 13 is still acceptable. I like the Cresselia tech, and the idea of the Raichu tech, though 100 is such and odd amount these days (compared to the old Lati*s.) Almost a 9, but for the list aspect I think Chuck still has a slight edge.

Chuck
Card use 3/5
Takes advantage of attack, not so much power.
Andceo
Card use 5/5
Takes advantage of attack, and the power in both the attachment and the damage done to self, yet at the same time, all in proportions that I think are fit well into the deck. 2-2 stage 1, 1-1 x does do more for the deck than Chuck's just using of Mime.

Chuck
Creativity 3/5
An obvious combo.
Andceo
Creativity 3/5 All good logical combos. Almost a 4, a little more than Chuck's but not significantly more.

Chuck 15/20
Andceo 16/20


Kenshin
List: 8/10 Solid consistency of trainers and Call. I don't really like Shedinja, but it's not a bad addition. I think I'd rather have 2 Mr. Mime. Bronzong doesn't look good here since there's nothing else to spread. No Magnezone x is bad (though the opponents only 2 SF Zone is bad too). This is almost a 7 but I'll give it 8 because I think it's at least a half point better than Pajamas.
Pajamas
List: 7/10 Gyarados is an alright choice and perhaps better than Shedinja but no Mr. Mime is terrible imo. The first two got that part right. While the other pokemon are more solid choice than Kenshin's, that choice is bad and the consistency is better for Kenshin. Call is still great for consistency, and Kenshin still has 11 loadable energy which is plenty, and Calls aren't a waste later, you still need attachments from hand. Also, Cynthia over Felicity is definitely wrong here. So the consistency of the list I think has to go slightly to Kenshin. Energy Pickup doesn't seem good either.

Kenshin
Card Use: 3/5 Manipulation of attack but not that much for power. Shedinja is better when damaged but its often better to free retreat and Gyro Ball.
Pajamas
Card Use: 3/5 Less manipulation of attack, no Mr. Mime really hurts imo. Only 2 of the card you have to use hurts too. However, he uses the damage placing well with Gyarados so I would give him a very slight edge over Kenshin here but not much.

Kenshin
Creativity 3/5: Well there's a lot of ideas here. All logically apply to Magnezone, but some like Bronzong I don't think are so great.
Pajamas
Creativity 3/5: Gyarados is probably my favorite card/creativity of the two that doesn't come immediately to mind. (though Mime is still the best). That's all he's got though. Metagross is just a nice effect that anything can be added. I wouldn't give either an edge here.

Kenshin 14/20
Pajamas 13/20

Both are very close. Pajamas ideas maybe a bit better, but Kenshin at least has Mime, and the deck is built better.

 

[Kenshin's Garde]

i wanted to include the x, but i was afraid, as many people have said, that its inclusion would take away from the card use because i would then have only 2 of the main ingredient. magnezone DP just seems to combo better than the x does in this situation. additionally, having only two of the magnezone SF increases the probability that one will be prized, which can be crippling. and with no azelf in your list, pajamas, you can become very susceptible to some bad prizes (and what happens if your Lv. x is prized? 3hkos ftw?). if nothing else, i won't lose as easily to luxray! ;P

also pluspower tends to work better imo because you have the oppurtunity to ohko kingdra with a lake boundary in play. it also makes me less reliant on using super conductivity every turn (the damage DOES stack up over time . . . something that will definitely hurt, even if its on something that wants damage like gyarados when it starts getting into KO range.)

what i don't like about metagross in here is that it is completely luck based, takes up a spot on the bench (and you already have a pretty full bench with the zone, switcher pokemon, claydol, etc.) and is yet another evolution you need to get up. the fact that you don't even run the metang to get around rare candy dropping makes you very vulnerable to devolution, as well as simply burning candies that could go to fuel another quick zone.

also, your lack of draw seems like it could leave ou in a bind should you ever become claydol-less (or can't draw into it early game). also, while i recognize that you say that magnezone x dumps your energies for you, with your logic, you could potentially be doing nothing with your magnezone (2 energy vs 3 energy) without a way to use super conductivity.

that said, even if i lose, i would like to say it was a good match, Pajamas! hope to see you again next year in this (or better yet, at a real life competition!)

 

[ChaosJim]

Not choosing to include the lvl x is notably questionable, but at the same time, it helps to keep the deck more focused at times. Not an easy call. I won't hold it for or against players, provided their other card choices reflect this, what I see, as an earlier choice.

Kenshin gets a 7/10 for his list. Solid pokemon choices, except maybe Regi, but I only fully question him when I see the 4 Felicity also in the list.

Pajamas also gets a 7/10 for his list. You have no way to accelerate the energy that actually hit the table or the discard pile. Props on the Gyarados idea, I think you're not taking it far enough.

Both of you plan on Gyro Balling a lot and aren't using LvL Xs, probably just a pet peeve on my part.

Kenshin earns a 4/5 for card choices. Other than devoting too many slots to discarding, I think you've got it pretty down on what you want to be doing.

Pajamas falls short here with a 3/5. Energy pickup? Its only half a card. Its going to make some games, but early, where your list is weakest, it falls short. The 1/1 split on NM and TSD also concerns me, because you can't depend on having either one reliably as a result.

Both players do well in creativity, the Bronzong and Shedinja stuff making a lot of sense, as well as the Metagross option being a clincher in the Pajamas list.

This is really close, since both decks are solid, and both have a different vision from one another and myself. Kettler, this shows how hard these things are for you to grade. Thanks for running this contest.

 

[Pajamas]

takes up a spot on the bench (and you already have a pretty full bench with the zone, switcher pokemon, claydol, etc.)

Metagross + Gyarados takes up a whole lot less bench space than Registeel + Azelf + three different post-Gyro Ball options. Obviously I wouldn't expect you to have all of the switchers out at once, but you definitely seem much more cramped, since you have no way of clearing out Regi and Azelf once they've exceeded their useful life. If your opponent drops a surprise Dusknoir, you're hosed.

Both of you plan on Gyro Balling a lot and aren't using LvL Xs, probably just a pet peeve on my part.

For what it's worth, I plan on Cyber Shocking a lot in the early game, to get energy in the discard and to pull pretty much everybody into KO range for Gyro Ball. The "downside" of Gyro Ball's effect becomes a lot less so when you're only making KOs with it, and you can get a decent amount of spread with minimal return damage by comboing Cyber Shock + Magnetic Reversal repeatedly.

that said, even if i lose, i would like to say it was a good match, Pajamas! hope to see you again next year in this (or better yet, at a real life competition!)

Agreed. This is looking a lot tighter than I initially imagined, and I'm eager to hear what Kettler has to say. Best of luck to you.

 

[Rainbowgym]

Voter Input

I looked several times to both lists of Kenshin/Pajamas trying to figure out which one is the best.
Without going into details I would give Kenshin the win over Pajamas, pure and only because that build seems to me adressing the Magnezone SF a little more.

Very very close match, and hard to say who should win, but this is my vote.

 

[Cyrus]

Lists

Kenshin's Garde 8/10.
Pajamas 7/10.

Creativity:

Kenshin's Garde 3/5
Pajamas 4/5

Card Use:

Kenshin's Garde 4/5
Pajamas 3/5

TOTALS:

Kenshin's Garde 15/20
ajamas 14/20

WINNER: Kenshin's Garde


I will post elaboration later.
Pokemon: 22
3 Magnezone SF#6
1 Magnezone DP
2 Magneton DP
3 Magnemite DP
2 Claydol GE
2 Baltoy GE
1 Mr. Mime MT
2 Shedinja LA
2 Nincada LA
1 Bronzong MD
1 Bronzor MD
1 Azlef LA
1 Registeel LA

Trainers: 23
4 Bebe’s Search
4 Roseanne’s Research
4 Rare Candy
4 Felicity’s Drawing
3 Pluspower
2 Lake Boundary
2 Night Maintenance

Energy: 15
4 Call
5 Lightning
2 Metal (Basic)
4 Metal (Special)




Pokemon (19):
3-2-2/1-1 Magnezone (DP-DP-SF6/DP-Lv.X)
2-2 Gyarados MT
1-0-1 Metagross LA (w/ Beldum #84)
2-2 Claydol GE

Trainers (25):
4 Bebe's Search
3 Cynthia's Feelings
2 Energy Pickup
2 Lake Boundary
1 Night Maintenance
2 Premier Ball
4 Rare Candy
4 Roseanne's Research
1 Time-Space Distortion
2 Warp Point

Energy (16):
6 Lightning
5 Metal (basic)
4 Metal (special)
1 Multi