Pokemon TCG Pocket’s meta is evolving ever more rapidly, with some decks hitting tournaments hard with incredible win rates and then plummeting into obscurity after other decks adapt to the meta thanks to some counters. This can be all the more problematic for some meta decks over others, depending on what the best strategies look like at that time, and a great example comes from theCharizard Ex meta deck inPokemon TCG Pocket. The deck mainly revolved around Charizard Ex for damage and Sylveon Ex for card draw, and it rose to prominence very quickly. Just as quickly, the deck is now almost entirely out of the meta, but another is following in its steps.
Charizard Ex decks are no strangers to the competitive scene inPokemon TCG Pocket, especially since this particular card has a Genetic Apex version and a Shining Reverly version, the latter of which is still seeing some play. However, the deck essentially rotated out of the meta as soon as Silvally and Oricorio decks started to become more frequent and consistent, as Oricorio completely walls the Charizard Ex/Sylveon Ex deck. Yet, an old deck uses the same approach as Charizard Ex to win games, but with a more powerful and efficient counter to Oricorio. That deck is Solgaleo Ex.
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Solgaleo Ex Deck Takes The Best Parts of Charizard Ex and Improves Them
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Oricorio countersmost Ex cards in the game, to the point they can’t do anything against it. The exceptions to this rule are very few and far between, like the Burn damage from Incineroar Ex’s first attack or the passive damage from Nightmare Aura on Darkrai Ex. The remaining Ex cards in the game are countered hard by Oricorio, and Charizard Ex/Sylveon Ex decks only had a slow answer in the form of a single copy of Flareon from Genetic Apex to it.
Instead, the new version ofSolgaleo Ex decks inPokemon TCG Pocketdrops Shiinotic and its pre-evolution in favor of two copies of Eevee with the Collect attack and Sylveon Ex, which serve a similar purpose. In order to counter Oricorio, however, the deck also runs one copy of Magearna from Celestial Guardians, which has 90 HP, is weak to Fire, has a Retreat Cost of 1, and attacks with Silver Cannon for two Metal Energy. This attack does 40 damage and an additional 40 against Pokemon with abilities, meaning it can hypothetically one-shot Oricorio if it doesn’t have Giant Cape attached.
Likewise, Magearna can live through two Oricorio attacks provided it is equipped with Giant Cape, which is better suited on Solgaleo Ex, but it can be used on Magearna in hard matchups where it’s needed. Solgaleo Ex is faster than Charizard Ex in most scenarios, and Magearna is much faster than Flareon, which requires three Energy to attack, and it’s a Stage 1 critter, instead.
Celestial Guardians is thebest set to open packs of in Pokemon TCG Pocketfor multiple reasons, so those who are missing cards for this deck should find most of them there.
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s New Solgaleo Ex Meta Deck Explained
The current Solgaleo Ex/Sylveon Ex/Magearna deck uses a specific list, with little variation. This includes:
The last slot is more flexible, with good options beingPokemon TCG Pocket’s Cyrus Supporterfor more bench targeting, Pokemon Communication to get specific Pokemon cards more consistently, and Guzma to counter Tool-heavy decks. This deck draws a lot of cards thanks to Poke Ball, Professor’s Research, Eevee, and Sylveon Ex, so it’s relatively easy to get Solgaleo Ex online and attack within a couple of turns. At that point, Lillie can be great for some healing, Sabrina can remove opposing Oricorio cards from the active spot, and Mars can counter decks using Sylveon Ex. Solgaleo Ex is a fast deck, and it should have a much longer lifespan in the meta than Charizard Ex’s latest iteration.
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s best Metal deckis Solgaleo Ex and has been for three sets in a row.
