Pokemon TCG Pocketfinally revealed its upcoming Wisdom of Sea and Sky expansion today, launching as early as July 29, and including a plethora of Gen 2 critters in the booster packs themed around Ho-Oh and Lugia. The set was leaked to launch on July 30, and dataminers found some Pichu-themed accessories in the game’s files, leading to speculation that set A4 would indeed be based on Johto and its Pokemon. A Gen 2 set has been asked for by fans for quite some time now, but one of the most hyped-up cards inPokemon TCG Pocket’s new Wisdom of Sea and Sky setmay fail to meet the expectations.
It’s unsurprising that Generations 1 through 4 or 5 may hold more nostalgic value now that the franchise is about to turn 30 years old, and Gen 2 brought along a lot of amazing new features for the games that still hold a special place in many fans' hearts. A lot ofPokemon TCG Pocketfans have been hoarding Pack Hourglasses for either a Gen 2 or Gen 3 set for months now, but they may be disappointed with the way the Wisdom of Sea and Sky set treats the new Lugia Ex card.
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s New Lugia Ex May Be One of the Worst Pulls in The A4 Set
Lugia Ex is a fairly simple card. It has 150 HP, it’s weak to Lightning, it has a retreat cost of 2, and its only attack is called Elemental Blast, dealing 180 damage for one Fire, Water, and Lightning Energy, with the caveat that one Fire, Water, and Lightning Energy must be discarded from it. Dealing 180 damage in one hit is incredible, and it’s currently the second hardest-hitting attack in the entire game afterCharizard Ex’s Crimson Storm. However, there are a few reasons for Lugia Ex to fall flat:
The main issue is thatmulti-Energy decks inPokemon TCG Pocketare typically terrible to play because of RNG, as the game will always generate one random Energy type from the available pool on every turn. As such, even with just two Energy types in a deck, it can be very hard to consistently get the ones needed for a given Pokemon in the correct order, and Lugia Ex requires three different Energy types.
Why Lugia Ex is Shooting Itself in the Foot With Its Energy Requirements in Pokemon TCGP
There are ways to make Lugia Ex more playable, such asPokemon TCG Pocket’s new Ho-Oh Excard, which attacks for three colorless Energy, deals 80 damage, and then allows players to attach one Fire, one Water, and one Lightning Energy to any basic Pokemon. This includes Lugia Ex, and it gives it all needed Energy to attack for free. Other options would be to play the Dawn supporter for Energy switching, the new Pichu, which, for no Energy, attaches a Lightning Energy to a Pokemon, or Manaphy, which, for one Water Energy, attaches a Water Energy to two Pokemon.
However, the game plan is overly complicated for what it wants to achieve, and with no direct support for multi-Energy decks, Lugia Ex depends on the usage of other tools to even attack once. Sure, its attack is indeed strong, but it may not be enough to one-shot opposing cards, or it may be forced to attack non-Ex cards and “waste” its powerful attack, not being able to attack again on the following turn. On top of that, going first and/or finding Lugia Ex as the only basic Pokemon in one’s opening hand would be a death knell. For these reasons,Pokemon TCG Pocketmeta decksmay have a hard time justifying playing Lugia Ex, which may never really see competitive play.
