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PokeClass Episode 30 – MagneBoar Deck Analysis plus Battle Video!

PokemanDan June 25, 2011 No Comments

[youtube width=”640″ height=”390″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuAXsylH6oQ[/youtube]

Hey OHKO! Sorry for the delay in getting this posted, things have been pretty busy recently.
That said, here’s the latest deck analysis on the most hyped/anticipated deck at US and Canadian Nationals in a few weeks.
I give you the lowdown on the deck including a tight skeleton list to help you out. I’m liking the new format of the deck analysis myself, but what do you guys think? Let me know in the comments below!
Read More

Opinion: Why Rare Candy is No Longer a Good Card.

Pikkdogs June 6, 2011 12 Comments

Hey all you OHKOers out there.  This is Pikkdogs here with an opinion article, about the playability of Rare Candy.

Before we begin the article I want to introduce some new writers to the site.  Kurt and Kyle, known on YouTube as Misnos, will soon be joining the onehitko family.  For those of you that do not know, Kurt and Kyle post Youtube videos about play-testing sessions that they have.  The videos are fairly fast paced and gives you a lot of information about some pretty cool decks.  The videos are really cool and should be good for the website.  I got a sneak peek at the first article they are writing, and let me tell you, you guys are in for a treat.  Look for their first article/video soon, in the meantime, if you would like to check out their videos, you can find them here.  Now, onto the Rare Candy issue.

The Old Rare Candy

When I first returned to the game, Rare candy was a very important card in almost all decks.  It was one of the first cards that I knew I had to have to make a decent deck.    It was what gave Stage 2 decks a chance against all other decks.  You could go from basic to Stage 2 easy.  It let you do the unthinkable, get a turn 1 Stage 2.  Because it was such a good card it saw a lot of play.  Every stage 2 deck needed at least 2. Read More

Battle Road Report, Rambles, Rants and Raves!

Joel June 4, 2011 8 Comments

Hello everyone in the world of OneHitKO, Joel here with another article (and might as well give Pikkdogs a bit of a break). First off I would like to apologize for not writing in a really long time, but when you work 2 jobs it gets hard to find time. With getting my first day off in a good 3 weeks, I attended the battle road in Hartland, Michigan. The tournament was held in a nice library in the middle of the small town. There were roughly 30 masters, 5 rounds with a top cut of 4. I went to this tournament with no intention on winning, so I played ReshiBoar, and the whole deck was HGSS-on. I will share my list at the end of the article. On with the tournament report! (I would like to apologize in advance for not going into full detail on all of my matches as I just wrote down the names of my opponents, their deck and my win-loss record).

Round 1 vs Andres T. with Donphan/Flygon/Nidoqueen
I met Andres a few times before but have never played against him. We both came with the intention on just having a good time and he built the deck the night before. Game starts and I go first. I start with a Cleffa active and a Reshiram, Tepig and Vulpix on my bench. I attach rescue energy to Reshiram, and use Eeeeek to refresh my hand. He goes, drops BTS, drops Phanpy then Donphan attaches to Donphan and passes. I don’t remember much except for getting my Lanturn out, changing him to a water type and KO-ing Donphan. He also had Flygon and Nidoqueen in his hand but couldn’t draw the basics needed. I end up winning with Reshiram.
1-0

Round 2 vs Clair D. with Kingdra/Garchomp C

This was a close match. She manages to KO 2 Reshiram with Kingdra (not the prime) and snipes a Tepig with Garchomp C. I KO Garchomp C with Reshiram and fry the rest of her Kingdras and Uxies with Lanturn. (I apologize once again for not going into more detail, I should probably write more of what happened during my matches next time). Lanturn won the game for me
2-0

Round 3 vs Diane S with Gengar/Garchomp C

Diane is not only a PokeMom, but also a great player. I start with a Reshiram, Tepig and Vulpix and she starts with 3 Gastlys. I go first, attach Rescue to Reshiram and pass. She goes, and the most she can do is trainer lock me with Gastly. I attach fire to Reshiram, evolve to Ninetales, roast reveal to draw into a Pignite and Emboar, evolve to Pignite and outrage. She goes, attaches to Gastly, evolves to Haunter and poisons Reshiram. My third turn I manage to get Emboar set up and 2 Reshiram with 3 energy. I pick off all her pokemon for the game, but this won’t be the last time I see her.
3-0

Round 4 vs Matt V with Kingdra

Matt is a good friend of mine, and a good player.  I start with Cleffa and Reshiram to his 3 Horseas. I go first and immediately collector for a Tepig, Vulpix and Chinchou. I bench all 3, and use Eeeeek to refresh into an amazing hand. He goes, drops Uxie, attaches to a benched Horsea and passes. My refreshed hand consisted of a Lanturn, Ninetales, Rare Candy and a few energy. I evolve to Lanturn and Ninetales, Roast reveal and draw into 2 energy and an Emboar. Candy to Emboar, retreat Cleffa and charge up my Lanturn attack. He couldn’t do much since Lanturn basically fried his Kingdras.
4-0

Round 5 vs John H. with Sabledonk

John is one of the nicest players I met and he told me he was playing Sabledonk just to ensure rotation. Not much I can say except you really can’t win against that deck with a lone Cleffa.
4-1

At this point, I’m 4th seed going into top cut and I’m playing John again. I’m not looking forward to this.
Top Cut Game 1 vs John
I start with 2 Reshiram, a Tepig and a Cleffa against his Sableye. He doesn’t manage to donk me, and scoops after a couple turns to save time.
5-1
Game 2
Lone Vulpix, ’nuff said.
5-2
Game 3
I start with 2 Reshirams, and a Tepig. Opening hand consists of a Collector, Candy and Emboar. I get fully set up by my 2nd turn and steamroll his belted Sableyes with Reshiram.
6-2

Top Cut Round 2 vs Diane with Gengar/Garchomp C
I’m going to summarize both games, Donked. I start with bad hands, and she starts with Sableye both games. I have lone pokemon in both games and the PokeMom gets a Victory Medal. Still, coming in 2nd place is pretty cool seeing I have only made top cut 4 times in my career and this is the first time I have ever made it past the first round of top cut.

Now that the report is out of the way, here is the list I ran.

Pokemon
3 Reshiram
2 Tepig (promo BW07)
1 Pignite
2 Emboar
2 Vulpix
2 Ninetales
2 Chinchou
2 Lanturn (prime)
3 Cleffa
Trainers
2 Junk Arm
4 Energy Retrieval
2 Professor Oak’s New Theory
4 Pokemon Collector
3 Rare Candy
3 Interviewer’s Questions
2 Fisherman
4 Pokemon Communication
Energy
2 Rescue
2 Lightning
13 Fire

I like ReshiBoar because not only is it fun, but it’s also consistant and hits hard. Reshiram is such a good card too, it has 2 good attacks, and Emboar helps you constantly deal damage. I got the idea for the Lanturn from my friend Tyler, it works good in mirror matches with his Poke-Power Underwater Dive, which changes Lanturn from an electric to water type, that way I can take out not only fire types, but the water type decks made to counter Reshiram. I know my trainer and energy counts could use more work, but as I said I had no intention on doing good today.

I’d also like to take the time to rant about Sableye. I hope the mid-season rotation comes because as John told me after we were playing, you don’t need to be skilled and win if you are running Sableye. As my final round in Swiss and top cut showed, I probably would have won if it wasn’t for Sableye. On the bright side, if Sableye doesn’t donk, it will have a hard time winning (especially against tanks like Reshiram and Zekrom).

That’s all I have for now, hopefully I can get another article for you guys soon. I was going to write one a couple weeks ago but everything I could possibly talk about has been already covered. Also if you aren’t already, follow me on twitter @TheJoelHowe.

Thanks again everybody!

Pikkdogs Pikks Three: Cleffa HGSS, Stantler Unleashed, and Shuckle Promo

Pikkdogs May 13, 2011 9 Comments

A big hello to all you OHKOers out there, this is Pikkdogs here with another Pikk three article.  Before I get into the article I would like to congratulate Ed and all the other writers on the site.  We have now reached 200 published posts on teamomar/onehitko.com.  200 articles is a cool feat, and I hope we can do at least 200 more.

This article will review three cards that are being talked about as good tech cards in the new format.  These tech cards either help you setup or they help you draw cards.  With the eminent rotation of cards like Uxie La, Sableye Sf, and Spiritomb  Ar; the format will lose the best draw and support Pokemon.

The only other Pokemon that fits this bill in the current format is Smeragle Ud.  Smeargle Ud will be better after the rotation because of the fact that other people will play more supporters, which means that it will be easier to copy a supporter with “Portrait”.  Although Smeargle will have to be used differently because of the loss of Unown Q.  Smeragle will now be used as a starter, instead of a tech card used in the recovery process

But, this article is not about Smeargle, it is about three other Pokemon that has seen no play, but will probably see a lot more rotation after the rotation.

Card #1 Cleffa HGSS Read More

Preview of U.S. Spring Battle Roads

Pikkdogs May 11, 2011 2 Comments

A big hello to all you OHKOers out there.  This is Pikkdogs with a preview to the upcoming spring Battle Roads.  The Battle Roads this year will be very different this year, than all other tournaments.  This is because we are using new rules, such as those that allow you to use trainers on the first turn.  The format will be MD-BW, meaning that we expect a lot of donk decks that feature Sableye Sf.  A couple of weeks ago Play Pokemon announced that there will possibly be a rotation after Battle Roads, this news over shadowed Battle Roads, and a lot of people have only been thinking about the HGSS-on format.  So to get you guys ready, here is your Spring Battle Roads preview.

I admit, that like other people I have been thinking more about the new format than the one in Battle Roads.  Because of this, we could see record low numbers of people at the event.  We could also see a lot of bad decks that aren’t tested well against the donk decks that will be successful.  So be ready for not a lot of people, and for some people that aren’t really ready to compete.

The Main Decks

The main deck at this years Battle Roads will be Sabledonk.  Which is basically an Uxiedonk deck that exchanges 4 Plus Powers for 4 Sableye SFs, and Cyclone Energy for Special Darkness Energy.  Because of the extra Pokemon, Sabledonk is not quite as consistent as Uxie donk.  But, because Sabledonk now can use trainers on the first turn, it does not have to be as effective.  As long as the deck starts Sableye, it will go first and probably only have to knockout/Seeker about 2 Pokemon.  In short, Sabledonk will be able to knock out just about everthing on turn 1.

Another deck that will see action is Gyarados.  It also relies on Sableye Sf for a good start and will hope to be doing 80-110 damage on turn 1.  It is a very fast deck that can do a lot really quickly.  But, the question is, “is it better than Sabledonk?”  Through my testings I have learned that Sabledonk is more consistent than Gyarados, and the fact that Gyarados has 130 HP is not really relevant.  It seems that Sabledonk can got Gyarados almost every time, while Gyarados can only donk Sabledonk sometimes.  Gyarados will be a great deck but it will not consistently beat Sabledonk.  The fact that it has a lot of 30 HP Pokemon, does not help the Sabledonk matchup.  Even though this deck is not the best, it will be played a lot because a lot of people will not want to play Sabeldonk.

There will also be some rogue decks.  A lot of people will not want to play Donk decks, and will play inferior decks knowing that they will probably lose.  So plan to see some weird decks.  A lot of these rogue decks will have Sableye Sf to get a good start, kind of like Gyarados.  Other decks will have Spiritiomb Ar, to try to combat Sableye.  One example is the deck I made, “Who Let The Dogs Out.”  This is a deck that runs 4 Spiritomb and then 2 copies each of the Legendary Dog Pokemon.  I dont think that a lot of people will netdeck that deck, but you will still need to look out for Spiritomb.

How to Prepare  

Never has a format been so secretive.  Most people who are talking about Pokemon, are talking about the HGSS-BW format.  What they are taking to the Battle Road tournaments, are pretty secret.  I would not be surprised if everyone plays Sabledonk or Gyarados, or there could be a lot of rogue decks out there.  Since nobody is talking about Battle Roads, it is very hard to know exactly what they are playing.  To prepare for Battle Roads I would seek out the top players in my area and see what they think about Battle Roads.  I would ask if they are planning on going to them, and what they are testing for the tournaments.  The players will probably not tip their entire hand, but they will give you an idea of what they are expecting for the tournament.  That way you should be able to find out what the metagame will be like.

Your testing should focus on how to beat Sabledonk.  If you play Sabledonk, you will want to see if you can put any thing to help in the mirror.  So far, I have not found anything that is helpful in the mirror, but it will be up to you to try to make your deck as consistent as possible but at the same time let you have more than a 50-50 shot at the mirror.  All of your other testing sessions should either focus on Gyarados, and how you will react to an unexpected rogue deck.

The Prediction

For the first time in over a year, Luxchomp decks probably will be winless in these tournaments.  I just don’t see how they can stand up to the speed that the other decks have.  I am very confident in predicting that Sabledonk will win most of the tournaments.  It can consistently beat any deck that I have seen (except Who Let The Dogs Out, but that has a very bad matchup against any other deck) and is fast enough to donk anything in its way.  In area’s where the best players want to mix it up a little, Gyarados will probably win a couple tournaments.  I also think that some rogue decks will come in and take a small number of tournaments.

Conclusion

I think that Spring Battle Roads will be very interesting.  Most players are only thinking about Nationals, but there are a lot of valuable Victory Medals up for grabs very soon.  Spring Battle Roads could be a format that has only one or two decks, or it could be a very diverse format.  I am not sure exactly what will happen, but I know that the best decks will need to know either how to donk or to survive the donks.  Its time for you guys to do your homework and your testing on your metagame and see if you can’t steal a couple Victory Medals while everyone else has their eyes on Indianapolis.

Your First Black and White Pre-Release Preview

Pikkdogs April 20, 2011 3 Comments

Hey all, this is Pikkdogs here with a preview of the Black and White Pre-Release event.  I know most people don’t play pre-releases to win, but if you want to here is how you can do it.  

To start with we will look at some of the better cards for the pre-release tournaments, than we will look at the top cards that you will want to trade for.

Before we do that, we will do a little review of Pre-Release strategies.  One thing you do is play almost all of your trainers.  There are no trainer cards that are useless for pre-releases in this set, so you should probably play all trainers that you pull.  Another handy tip is to get all the draw/search power that you can.  The Call of Legends set had a lot of great Pokemon cards that allowed you to draw and search.  For Black and White, this is not the case.  There are a only a couple cards that let you draw and search.  The last tip is to play what you have.  Stage 2’s aren’t great in pre-releases, but if you pull a 3-2-1 line, you would want to put it in.  Or, if you pull a 3-2 or 2-2 line of a good stage 1, you will want to focus your deck around it.  Okay, lets stop with the tips and move on to the best cards for the pre-release.

1. Lillipup/Herdier–  Herdier and Lillipup are some of the only Pokemon that let you draw cards.  Lillipup will allow you draw 1 card for 1 energy, and if you evolve to Herdier you can attach an extra energy and draw 3 cards.  Lillipup will probably be a good play even if you do not pull Herdier.
2. Cinccino– This is a great card for a Modified format, and a pre-release.  A Stage 1 that does a maximum of 100 damage for CC, will just about win you any pre-release game.  If you pull it, play it no matter if you only pull a 1-1 line.
3. Bouffalant #91– This Bouffalant will allow you to do 90 damage for only two energies if you had a Pokemon knocked out last turn.  If you add in 2 more energies you can do 80 damage, which is good for a pre-release.  He also has a great 100 Hp. 
4. Throh-Throh is also a basic Pokemon with 100 HP.  For FFC his “Stone Throw” attack does 80 damage.  The ability to do 80 damage for only 3 energies on a basic is amazing.
5. Maractus #12– This is a basic Pokemon that has 90 HP.  For 3 Grass energies you can do 50 damage and then heal from Maractus the number of damage counters that you put on the opponent.  50 for 3 isn’t great, but healing is pretty awesome.  This can make Maractus quite a tank.
6. Zoroark- This is a Stage 1 100 HP dark Pokemon.  His first attack, “Nasty Plot” sounds dirty, but its a good attack that lets you search your deck for any card, it costs only one dark energy.  Its second attack is “Foul Play”, which also sounds a little dirty.  For two colorless energies you can use any attack on the defending Pokemon and use it as the effect of this attack.  For a pre-release, this attack can be a little un-predictable, but its a good card for countering a good stage 1 or 2 Pokemon.
7. Good Stage 1’s– I won’t review them all, but this set has a lot of good Stage 1 Pokemon.  Here is a good list of them: Simisear, Simipour, Simisage, both of the Pignites, Darumanitan, Swanna, Zebstrika, Dewott #30, and Klang (which I think is also the name of tbe first Klingon to visit Earth).  Most of these cards have the ability to hit fairly hard for not a lot of energy.  A fast stage 1 can be about as good as a Stage 2.
8. Pikachu– I know its a secret rare, so you will be lucky if one or two people will pull one at your event.  But, if you can get it, I would play it.  For one energy, you can use “Energize,” which attaches one lightning energy from the discard pile to Pikachu (read- use with Professor Juniper).  Then, next turn you will be able to do “Thunderbolt” for LLC, which does 80 damage.  It does require a discarding of all energy attached to Pikachu, but it only has 60 HP so it will probably be dying soon anyway.
9. Mandibuzz– Its not a great card, but it does have an attack called “Punishment”.  It will allow you to say “I punish you!”  Which is always something cool.  “Punishment” does 100 damage for DCC on a stage 2 Pokemon, but it only does 40 to any other Pokemon. It also has an attack called “Blindside” that can snipe for 50 for one Dark energy if there are any damage counters on that Pokemon.  This will almost guarantee you about 2 knock outs from benched basic Pokemon, if you can put damage counters on the bench.

As you can see, there are not many cards that add consistency, but quite a few cards that do a lot of damage.  I predict that weakness will be pretty important in the games, so make sure you have a card that can cover your weakness.  This is usually not too hard since you normally pull a wide variety of cards.  Okay, so we know what to do for the event, here is what you have to trade for.    

1. Cincinno– I already explained this card, so there isn’t much to say.  If you see someone pull one, offer them 5-8 dollars of trade value.  Every player should have at least 4 of these cards.
2. Emboar #20 and Samurott #32–  These will eventually be 2 playable cards, so trade for them if you can.  I would say about 4-5 bucks of trade value is right on the money.  Every good player should eventually have a couple copies of each card.
3. Professor Juniper– This is gonna be a card on par with PONT and Copy Cat.  Get a bunch if you can.  I would put about 3 bucks of trade value on it.
4. Reshiram #113/Zekrom #114/Pikachu- These cards may not be great for the modified format, but they will be fairly rare.  If you can get them they will either help you complete your collection, be good trade bait, or easy to flip on Ebay.

Those are the only must have cards from the set, although Reuniclus and most of the trainers are also good.  I hope with this guide you will be ready to do well at the Pre-Release, and get some good training done.  If you think I left some good Black and White cards off the list, please include them in the comment section.

So long and thanks for all the fish!