Well it's the holiday period and it being the end of the year, I am usually way too free (again) and get bored and start finding things to do, like always. So why not another damn list because people like lists right? So why not a list for the best cards released in 2022?
But with a twist! An opinion based list would probably be too common and I'm pretty sure no-one wants to listen to my opinions so I thought why not do with based on statistics. Since we've got resources such as the Pokemon webstie, Limitless, PokeStats or IRL games and Play Limitless, Trainer Hill and PokeStats for online games at our disposal, I can easily find some ways to go about it. The main thing here is to show which cards that were released in 2021, be it a re-print or something new, made a huge impact on the standard meta during the year, be it in Brilliant Stars (BRS), Astral Radiance (ASR), Pokemon GO (which I'll put together with ASR for Q2), Lost Origin (LOR) and Silver Tempest (SIT).
The way I did it, for IRL events all events on Limitless is counted (sadly except Japanese events as their card pool are usually a little different to all of us) and for online, I included events with 256+ people and of course, only counted the top 8 decks will be used because doing more tourneys or more than top 8 will mean way too much info and I probably won't have the time to finish all of it. I'm a lone soldier here anyway so I have to make do with some limits. So the results won't be as accurate as possible but it's the best solution I could come up with. And since it's 2022, why not a top 22 list?
(Just in case, all results are based up till time of writing, which was 25th December 2022, it might be released much later than that)
As for some of the calculations you'll see, this is how I worked it out:
- Total Points -
- Points for IRL events is as such: (and before you ask, yes I gave all IRL events the same amount of points, it's all for stats purposes anyway so I wanted to treat them all equally and I gave online events less to make up for it)
- 1st - 20
- 2nd - 16
- Top 4 - 13
- Top 8 - 10
- Points for Online events is as such:
- 1st - 15
- 2nd - 12
- Top 4 - 10
- Top 8 - 8
- Seasonal Points
- Pretty much the total points divided by the quarter the cards was from:
- Brilliant Stars/4
- Astral Radiance and Pokemon GO/3
- Lost Origin/2
- Silver Tempest/1
- Average Points
- Taken from the amount of events played in that quarter: (using this gave me Total Average and Quarterly Average Points)
- Brilliant Stars/23
- Astral Radiance and Pokemon GO/23
- Lost Origin/22
- Silver Tempest/12
- Quarterly Average Points
- I had a feeling my first two methods would still heavily favour cards that were released early on so I wanted to try a system where I would divide the average by the quarter they showed up (Battle Styles/4, Chilling Reign/3, Evolving Skies/2 and Fusion Strike/1) just to make it more fair
Some cards came close but didn't quite make the list, as I felt that they either didn't make enough of an impact to be included or made an impact to the meta for a short period or in the case of stuff like Raikou V, it started showing up once the meta allowed for it to thrive. So since I've only got a top 22 list, these are the ones that didn't make the cut, started with the bottom of the list up to the 23rd card on the list.
- Hisuian Goodra VSTAR (LOR)
- Magma Basin (BRS)
- Canceling Cologne (ASR)
- Thorton (LOR)
- Starmie V (ASR)
- Cynthia's Ambition (BRS)
- Regigigas (ASR)
- Kyurem VMAX (LOR)
- Miltank (ASR)
- Radiant Gardevoir (LOR)
- Bibarel (BRS)
- Snorlax (LOR)
- Giratina VSTAR (LOR)
- Forest Seal Stone (SIT)
- PokeStop (PGO)
- Lost City (LOR)
- Temple of Sinnoh (ASR)
- Cyllene (ASR)
- Switch Cart (ASR)
- Mirage Gate (LOR) - the 23rd card on my list and the one that missed out
These cards just didn't quite make the list. Switch Cart initially only saw play with Mew VMAX until Lost Box showed up and even then it still wasn't enough. Same can be said for Mirage Gate, initially only seeing play in Giratina VSTAR decks but lately has been more used in Lost Box decks with the Radiant Greninja package, but sadly a little to late to make the cut. Cards that will continue to see play going into next year like Forest Seal Stone, Lost City and Temple of Sinnoh all only started seeing play late on, the first two mainly with Mew VMAX as well.
And if you're wondering how I ended up ranking each card, I went with a simple solution. I'd take each of the ranking each card had from the different points system and gave them all an average ranking on where I thought they'd likely end up being ranked and from there, it was just sorting who went where. So pretty much each ranking divided by 4 here is how it was decided. Like I said, I wanted to do it statistically and I thought this was probably the best way I could think of.
So with that in mind, here is the top 22 cards that were released in the year 2022 that made an impact on the game looking at Standard format and how it did in big tournaments based on events on IRL events (Regionals, ICs, Worlds and Opens) and Online events.
Wins, Top 4s and Top 8 are counted separately as in Wins is only 1st, Top 4 for 2nd to 4th place finish and Top 8 is for a 5th to 8th place finish.
#22 - Trekking Shoes - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 849 (17th)
Seasonal Points: 283 (23rd)
Total Average Points: 42.89 (22nd)
Quarterly Average Points: 14.3 (26th)
Wins: 8 (3 IRL + 5 Online)
Top 4: 31 (13 IRL + 18 Online)
Top 8: 37 (17 IRL + 20 Online)
Saw play in:
- Mew VMAX
- Regi Box
- Vikavolt V
- Yveltal Control
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX
First up is Trekking Shoes. A card that is somewhat similar to Acro Bike but instead of having the knowledge of your top 2 cards in deck, this time you only get the top card and you decided to either keep it or discard it to draw one more card. Item cards that helps thin your deck will always see play and it's no surprise to see it happening with Shoes as well.
Decks like Regis and Vikavolt who are looking to discard certain cards are usually the ones utilising Shoes the most, with the other being Mew, a deck that wants to actively play cards down to thin their hand so this is the perfect card for decks looking for the final few cards to add into their decks or just to get cards to thin through the deck quicker.
#21 - Radiant Charizard - Pokémon Go
Total Points: 722 (21st)
Seasonal Points: 240.67 (25th)
Total Average Points: 47.88 (18th)
Quarterly Average Points: 15.96 (23th)
Wins: 12 (5 IRL + 7 Online)
Top 4: 22 (11 IRL + 11 Online)
Top 8: 28 (13 IRL + 15 Online)
Saw play in:
- Radiant Charizard/Inteleon
- Lost Zone Toolbox
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
Easily the best card to come out of the Pokemon Go sub-set, and sure enough it's a Charizard card! One of the rare times it has a playable card and it's Excited Heart ability is the main reason for it, meaning it can attack for just 1 Fire Energy when your opponent has 2 prizes left.
That is 1 Fire energy hitting for 250, or with Choice Belt 280, which makes Radiant Charizard a great late-game closer. And the results speaks for itself as it has won regionals with an Inteleon Box deck, a Lost Box deck and a Lugia VSTAR/Archeops deck. And it will likely continue to see success just due to it's ability to hit for big numbers for little cost in the late game.
#20 - V Guard Energy - Silver Tempest
Total Points: 423 (30th)
Seasonal Points: 423 (16th)
Total Average Points: 35.25 (26th)
Quarterly Average Points: 25.25 (9th)
Wins: 4 (2 IRL + 2 Online)
Top 4: 15 (10 IRL + 5 Online)
Top 8: 17 (12 IRL + 5 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Mew VMAX
- Eternatus VMAX/Galarian Weezing
- Blissey V/Miltank
V Guard has already seen instant success thanks to Lugia with Archeops having the ability to attach special energies from deck, making it easier for Lugia players to find V Guard Energy than anyone else.
Doesn't mean it's the only one looking to get the 30 HP buffer as it has also seen play with the likes of Mew, Eternatus and Blissey. It's effectiveness may soon fade away with the new era of ex cards coming soon which means less V attackers to be worried about to make this useful.
#19 - Collapsed Stadium - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 1128 (14th)
Seasonal Points: 282 (24th)
Total Average Points: 62.74 (12th)
Quarterly Average Points: 15.68 (25th)
Wins: 10 (6 IRL + 4 Online)
Top 4: 34 (20 IRL + 14 Online)
Top 8: 58 (27 IRL + 31 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Giratina VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
A pretty simple stadium with a simple effect. Everyone's bench goes down to 4. But what a powerful effect it can be. Not only can Collapsed Stadium be a great defensive stadium, but it can also help to reduce certain decks damage output or even better, stop them from attacking at all as in the case against Regi Box who needs a full bench to utilise Regigigas's ability.
Collapsed Stadium is also a great defensive tool as it can help you get rid of one of your own bench pokemon, whether it be that bench sitting Crobat V or Lumineon V to deny your opponent the easy prizes or a heavily damaged Pokemon to make your opponent's job even tougher. One of the better stadiums cards currently in the game.
#18 - Lugia VSTAR (and Archeops) - Silver Tempest
Total Points: 438 (29th)
Seasonal Points: 438 (12th)
Total Average Points: 36.5 (25th)
Quarterly Average Points: 36.5 (7th)
Wins: 4 (2 IRL + 2 Online)
Top 4: 16 (11 IRL + 5 Online)
Top 8: 17 (12 IRL + 5 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
Just as Mew VMAX did a year ago, Lugia VSTAR showed up in the last set of the year but has already taken over the Pokemon TCG scene, having already won 4 events recorded on here, with one of them being the Latin America International Championship by Tord Reklev himself!
And yes this post is meant to have both Lugia VSTAR and Archeops on it as one cannot function without the other. Sure you can see them in other decks but it won't be as effective as they would be together. All you have to do is use your ball search to search out Archeops, discard them and use Lugia VSTAR's Summoning Star to get up to two of them onto the bench. And it's proven to be an instant success since Archeops can help to accelerate any special energy, meaning you don't always have to rely on another Lugia VSTAR once the first one has done it's job!
#17 - Comfey (and Cramorant and Sableye) - Lost Origin
Total Points: 823 (19th)
Seasonal Points: 411.5 (19th)
Total Average Points: 45.29 (20th)
Quarterly Average Points: 22.64 (16th)
Wins: 16 (5 IRL + 11 Online)
Top 4: 24 (8 IRL + 16 Online)
Top 8: 33 (8 IRL + 25 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lost Zone Toolbox
- Giratina VSTAR
- Hisuian Goodra VSTAR
- Origin Forme Dialga VSTAR
- Any deck using the Lost Zone mechanic along with Cramorant and Sableye
Yup I've cheated a little bit again and this time included three cards into this one post but it makes sense, trust me! If you play a deck with Comfey, odds are Cramorant and Sableye will likely be included. Comfey's Flower Selecting acts like the old Acro Bike, where you pick one of two cards from the top of your deck, and you keep one of them and sending the other to the lost zone.
And you're not too fussed about sending cards into the lost zone and it helps Cramorant and Sableye! Cramorant needs 4 cards in the Lost Zone to attack for 110, for no energy cost and it's doable in the first turn thanks to two Flower Selecting combined with a Colress's Experiment. Sableye is able to put 12 damage counters on the field when your Lost Zone is up to 10 cards and it's already proven to be a deadly attacker, often times taking down two smaller basic Pokemon or setting up the perfect numbers to help you take the final prizes. Expect to see more of the Lost Zone Toolbox as it will continue to gain more attackers once more cards get printed, allowing for more tech attackers to join in on the fun with the help of Mirage Gate (which needs 7 in Lost Zone).
#16 - Cheren's Care - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 1314 (11th)
Seasonal Points: 328.5 (21st)
Total Average Points: 63.83 (11th)
Quarterly Average Points: 15.96 (24th)
Wins: 14 (8 IRL + 6 Online)
Top 4: 44 (18 IRL + 26 Online)
Top 8: 61 (33 IRL + 28 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Bibarel
- Blissey V/Miltank
- Hisuian Zoroark VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
It's been a great year for colourless Pokemon. Throughout the year we have seen many great colourless attackers enter the fray and more often than not, they usually have Cheren's Care as a great defensive tool to make any opponent's games a bit more difficult. It's pretty much Acerola but only for colourless pokemon!
Early versions of Arceus/Inteleon made the best use of Cheren, being able to search them out with Drizzle's or Inteleon's Shady Dealings to heal up a damaged Arceus and bring in another Arceus to attack. And with the likes of Pal Pad, you could often use it more than 3 times in a match! Lately it's been used to help tankier attackers like Blissey V or Miltank and also to help Lugia VSTAR get out of some sticky situations.
#15 - Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 1252 (13th)
Seasonal Points: 417.33 (17th)
Total Average Points: 57.21 (14th)
Quarterly Average Points: 19.07 (20th)
Wins: 10 (3 IRL + 7 Online)
Top 4: 43 (20 IRL + 23 Online)
Top 8: 63 (25 IRL + 38 Online)
Saw play in:
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Mew
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Vikavolt V
It's not just been a great year for colourless Pokemon, it's also been a great year for water-type Pokemon. It has seen lots of support being released this year and perhaps one of the best is Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR. Not only is it a great attacker, but it can also be a great supporter to help charge 3 water energies to any of your water pokemon, be it Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX, Kyurem VMAX or Radiant Greninja thanks to Star Portal, or often times charging up itself and another Palkia!
It's attack is similar to Suicune V which saw a lot of success upon release last year where it attack for more damage with more bench on both sides. But while Suicune V is a Basic pokemon whose limit is 220, OF Palkia is a VSTAR evolution pokemon whose limit it 260 damage and with the likes of Quick Shooting Inteleon, Galarian Zigzagoon and Choice Belt, you can easily get up to 300. It's no wonder why it's got 10 wins in major events this year.
#14 - Drapion V - Lost Origin
Total Points: 868 (16th)
Seasonal Points: 434 (13th)
Total Average Points: 48.73 (17th)
Quarterly Average Points: 24.37 (13th)
Wins: 10 (5 IRL + 5 Online)
Top 4: 26 (14 IRL + 12 Online)
Top 8: 36 (12 IRL + 24 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lost Zone Box
- Giratina VSTAR
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Hisuian Goodra VSTAR
- Hisuian Zoroark VSTAR
- Mew VMAX
- Frosmoth Toolbox
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Eternatus VMAX/Galarian Weezing
Drapion V had one job, to make Mew VMAX's life a lot more difficult and judging by the amount of decks that have used it in the past few months, I dare say it has done it's job. A dark-type attacker who has a colourless attack cost but attacks for less depending on how many Fusion (and/or Rapid and Single) Strike pokemon are on the opposite field.
And as you know, Mew VMAX needs a bench full of Fusion Strike pokemon to make full use of Genesect V's abilities, meaning often time, a Drapion V will show up out of nowhere to take 3 prizes at the cost of no energies (most of the time and if there is no Path to the Peak on board) and the 60 damage re-coil usually doesn't matter much. As long as Mew VMAX continues to be a threat in the meta, Drapion V will continue to be THE answer for decks struggling to beat it.
#13 - Irida - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 1275 (12th)
Seasonal Points: 425 (14th)
Total Average Points: 58.6 (13th)
Quarterly Average Points: 19.53 (19th)
Wins: 11 (3 IRL + 8 Online)
Top 4: 43 (21 IRL + 22 Online)
Top 8: 64 (25 IRL + 39 Online)
Saw play in:
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Radiant Charizard/Inteleon
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Articuno/Inteleon
Part of the reason why water type Pokemon have had such a great year is due to the amount of support it has gotten and one of the biggest help came from Irida. The ability to search out a water pokemon and an item can often times mean you are able to set up much quicker than your opponent, thus putting you in a great spot to take charge of the game. Often times this year have we seen players go for a Turn 1 Irida to get a Radiant Greninja and Battle VIP Pass to get the perfect first turn. It's no wonder why it's been part of many successful water decks this year.
It helps Inteleon decks to set-up the ideal board state and for decks like Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX or Kyurem VMAX, it can help to find the missing piece to be able to take the big KOs for two or three prizes. The latest deck to use it is Articuno who can heal itself with the help of Emergency Jelly, both of which can be easily searched out through Irida. Even though Inteleon will be rotating soon, with the likes of Manaphy, Radiant Greninja and Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR still in format, Irida will still be extremely helpful for those decks.
#12 - Colress's Experiment - Lost Origin
Total Points: 1011 (15th)
Seasonal Points: 505.5 (10th)
Total Average Points: 55.69 (16th)
Quarterly Average Points: 27.84 (11th)
Wins: 20 (7 IRL + 13 Online)
Top 4: 30 (11 IRL + 19 Online)
Top 8: 38 (11 IRL + 27 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lost Zone Toolbox
- Giratina VSTAR
- Hisuian Goodra VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- Hisuian Zoroark VSTAR
Colress's Experiment is simple, yet very effective. Similar to Welder and Bird Keeper, you get 3 cards out of it. The difference is that you get the knowledge of the top 5 cards from your deck and you are able to pick and choose which ones you'd like to go to your hand (3) and which ones you'd like for it to go into the Lost Zone (4).
Another strong draw supporter which has started seeing play in decks like Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX, which plays no Lost Zone support cards but being able to thin cards out and put Arceus Vs into the Lost Zone instead of discarding them can sometimes be the difference between winning and losing a match. But of course, it will continue to see most of it's success from the Lost Zone Box decks, being able to speed up your Lost Zone counter to reach the numbers for either Mirage Gate or Sableye can make or break games, making Colress even more important!
#11 - Serena - Silver Tempest
Total Points: 674 (23rd)
Seasonal Points: 674 (7th)
Total Average Points: 56.17 (15th)
Quarterly Average Points: 56.17 (3rd)
Wins: 5 (3 IRL + 2 Online)
Top 4: 26 (17 IRL + 9 Online)
Top 8: 27 (17 IRL + 10 Online)
Saw play in:
- Lost Zone Box
- Mew VMAX
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Regi Box
- Zoroark Box
- Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Eternatus VMAX/Galarian Weezing
The fact that Serena was released just last month and is already up to 11th on this list speaks volumes of how good this card truly is. Like Battle VIP Pass last year, it may have had only one format to shine through so far and indeed Serena has already shone! Seeing play in almost every top deck for it's ability to either draw up to 5 cards or, the main reason, it's ability to gust up a V Pokémon.
Sure, it works the same as Boss's Orders, albeit Boss can gust up any Pokémon. However, Serena gives you the option to draw out of bad hands which is incredibly helpful in the early going of any match. Decks like Mew, Regi Box and Zoro Box do like to discard cards and that is where Serena can help them out with their strategy. Still, as long as decks are playing the likes of Crobat V and Lumineon V to achieve a certain board state, Serena is always a threat for those final 2 prizes.
#10 - Arceus VSTAR - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 1829 (7th)
Seasonal Points: 457.25 (11th)
Total Average Points: 81.29 (10th)
Quarterly Average Points: 20.32 (18th)
Wins: 19 (15 IRL + 4 Online)
Top 4: 58 (25 IRL + 33 Online)
Top 8: 86 (42 IRL + 44 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Galarian Moltres V
- Arceus VSTAR/Malamar VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Gyarados VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Corviknight VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Hisuian Goodra VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Bibarel/Crobat VMAX
Do I need to tell you how good Arceus VSTAR truly is if I have listed down 10 different decks on here. Sure, the first part is always Arceus VSTAR but that's why it's possibly the best attacking Pokémon to come out of 2022. It's a colourless attacker which means it's splash-able in just about any deck and along with Double Turbo Energy, it can get it's Trinity Nova attack ready in Turn 2 to help charge any V Pokémon you've got on the field.
Whether it be the dark type Malamar VMAX, the water type Gyarados VMAX, the metal type Corviknight VMAX, or even the World championship winning lighting type Flying Pikachu VMAX, Arceus VSTAR can easily power them all up. Even dragon types such as Duraludon VMAX, Hisuian Goodra VSTAR and Giratina VSTAR, all of which need two different typing to attack, that issue is easily solved with Trinity Nova.
And I haven't even mentioned it's VSTAR power, quite possibly the best VSTAR power of the whole lot. Starbirth allows you to search your deck for up to 2 cards and put them into your hand. Yup, that simple but that powerful. Double Computer Searches if you will! Often times it will be for that second energy needed to attack along with either Choice Belt to reach the numbers for a KO, a gusting option to take 2 quick prizes or the attacker you want to charge up with Arceus VSTAR. It's easy to see why I only played Arceus decks for the majority of this season.
#9 - Lumineon V - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 1694 (8th)
Seasonal Points: 423.5 (15th)
Total Average Points: 95.76 (7th)
Quarterly Average Points: 23.94 (14th)
Wins: 22 (10 IRL + 12 Online)
Top 4: 57 (31 IRL + 26 Online)
Top 8: 68 (29 IRL + 39 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Galarian Moltres V
- Arceus VSTAR/Malamar VMAX
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Giratina VSTAR
- Lost Zone Toolbox
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
We've seen this type of ability of a 2-prizer basic Pokémon before. Jirachi EX, Tapu Lele GX and now Lumineon V. Initially people didn't think it'd be as played as Tapu Lele-GX for the sole reason that Lele could actually attack while Lumineon didn't really have the best outs to do so, even though it's attack is quite good as well, a callback to another good support Pokémon. Remember Shaymin EX's Sky Return?
The attack cost is quite awkward but with an ability that good, you didn't need to worry about it. Need to start setting up your board with Irida? Lumineon's got you covered. Need to get that 2 cards into the Lost Zone with Colress? Lumineon is there to help! Just need to find that game winning Boss/Serena or that potentially comeback winning move with Roxanne? Yup Lumineon V is the answer.
But lately it has become an attacker too! Firstly with Palkia decks sometimes attaching one energy to it. Then Lost Box decks using Mirage Gate on it and now Lugia decks having Archeops to help power it up in one go! Lumineon V’s popularity has been increasing as the year went on and it’s no surprise to see why. And just like Lele before it, it is now a good support Pokémon and an attacker too!
#8 - Hisuian Heavy Ball - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 1602 (9th)
Seasonal Points: 534 (9th)
Total Average Points: 82.53 (9th)
Quarterly Average Points: 27.51 (12th)
Wins: 17 (6 IRL + 11 Online)
Top 4: 51 (26 IRL + 25 Online)
Top 8: 78 (34 IRL + 44 Online)
Saw play in:
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Regi Box
- Radiant Charizard/Inteleon
- Lost Zone Box
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX/Inteleon
- Eldegoss V/Yveltal Control
Dare I say the most underrated card currently in the game? Even I was surprised to see how many results it got but then again, there is a good reason why many decks continue to use it. Firstly it helps to check your prizes so you don't have to wonder what other cards you might have prized, which is a big help for people like me who tend to forget things easily.
But it's also a great way to get a one-off tech out of the prizes. Many games in the past have been lost because we prized that crucial one tech attacker needed to swing a game our way. Or sometimes one tech card that is needed to stop something, for example Manaphy to stop bench attacks, and if Manaphy were to be prized, that is where this card thrives just to save us from that issue.
With Hisuian Heavy Ball, that won't be a problem at all. Decks like Regi Box might even play two of it just to make sure no Regis are prized. It's too good to be ignored and cards like these will continue to see play because of it's dual functionality.
#7 - Lost Vacuum - Lost Origin
Total Points: 1429 (10th)
Seasonal Points: 714.5 (6th)
Total Average Points: 89.12 (8th)
Quarterly Average Points: 44.56 (5th)
Wins: 17 (7 IRL + 10 Online)
Top 4: 48 (25 IRL + 23 Online)
Top 8: 61 (29 IRL + 32 Online)
Saw play in:
- Mew VMAX
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Giratina VSTAR
- Lost Zone Box
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Eldegoss V/Yveltal Control
- Eternatus VMAX/Galarian Weezing
Think Field Blower but half the effect with the additional cost of one of your own cards going into the lost zone! Still a very powerful effect mind you. Field Blower saw play in many decks for a good reason and Lost Vacuum is starting to do the same thing. I didn't see a lot of play just after it was released but as the year went on, more and more decks started to include it to help get rid of stuff such as Path to the Peak, Choice Belt or Air Balloon.
The main decks that have been making full use of Lost Vacuum have been Lost Box, Kyurem and Mew. Lost Box wants to get cards into the lost zone and this is another card that helps with it. Kyurem, or decks that utilise Irida, can easily bump out a stadium by fetching out Lost Vacuum. But lately, it's been Mew that have been making the best use of it.
The DTE Mew version's core strategy is to play Path and either Marnie or Judge to stop your opponent from doing anything useful. Sure, as the Mew player, you are also stuck under Path which is where playing more than 2 Vacuums in most cases come in handy to get you out of your own Path lock, do whatever you need, just to go back into another Path look. That strategy sounds oddly familiar don't you think, and that also used a lot of Field Blowers in that particular deck.
#6 - Manaphy - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 2537 (4th)
Seasonal Points: 634.25 (8th)
Total Average Points: 136.79 (4th)
Quarterly Average Points: 34.2 (10th)
Wins: 30 (13 IRL + 17 Online)
Top 4: 80 (39 IRL + 41 Online)
Top 8: 115 (61 IRL + 54 Online)
Saw play in:
- Malamar/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX/Inteleon
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Radiant Charizard/Inteleon
- Lost Zone Box
- Giratina VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Eldegoss V/Yveltal Control
Bench Barrier. Need I say more? Mr Mime saw play in all kinds of decks when it was legal. Mew say play in many different decks just a few years ago when it was legal, lastly against Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX. And now Manaphy is back to help solve the Rapid Strike Urshifu problem. But there are loads of spread attackers in the game currently.
Inteleon, while it may be a good support Pokémon itself, can also hit the bench. Same can be said for Radiant Greninja, however it's likely to only attack once while Inteleon can continue attacking for a few more turns. Radiant Greninja and Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX have very similar attacks.
Amazing Rare Raikou and Kyogre are just another two who have been threating to hit the bench in the last few months which is why decks are continuing to add Manaphy to help solve those problems. Many more bench attackers will come, and many more decks will add Manaphy to save them.
#5 - Radiant Greninja - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 2154 (6th)
Seasonal Points: 718 (5th)
Total Average Points: 107.2 (6th)
Quarterly Average Points: 35.73 (8th)
Wins: 24 (7 IRL + 17 Online)
Top 4: 76 (32 IRL + 44 Online)
Top 8: 97 (32 IRL + 65 Online)
Saw play in:
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Blissey V/Miltank
- Vikavolt V
- Giratina VSTAR
- Lost Zone Box
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
Speaking of Manaphy, one of the main reason it continues to see play is the threat of a Radiant Greninja hitting two 90 HP Pokémon on the bench for two prizes. But in all fairness to Radiant Greninja, that is not actually why it sees play in all of those decks listed above. There is a good reason why it's the best Pokémon card not an Energy or Trainer, statically of course, released in 2022.
And it's all thanks to it's amazing Concealed Cards ability. Discard an energy and draw 2 cards. Simple but extremely effective and because of that, almost every day plays it bar the likes of Mew and Lugia or any other deck playing special energies as they cannot afford to discard them, unlike Blissey that actively wants to discard energies. It's been extremely helpful for decks like Palkia and Giratina as well, as it allows them to set-up much quicker than their opponents and eventually re-use those energies in the case of Palkia through it's Star Portal ability, and sometimes Greninja is the intended target for the cheeky double KO out of nowhere.
Lately it's been the centerpiece of the new style of Lost Box since it can be easily powered up by Mirage Gate as well, while allowing them to draw cards consistently before using Energy Recycler to bring it all back into the deck.
#4 - Roxanne - Astral Radiance
Total Points: 2307 (5th)
Seasonal Points: 769 (4th)
Total Average Points: 109.73 (5th)
Quarterly Average Points: 36.58 (6th)
Wins: 27 (5 IRL + 22 Online)
Top 4: 75 (26 IRL + 49 Online)
Top 8: 118 (39 IRL + 79 Online)
Saw play in:
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Blissey V/Miltank
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Giratina VSTAR
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Mew VMAX
- Lost Zone Box
- Mewtwo V-Union/Yveltal Control
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
THE comeback card of 2022. Players are often aware of what might happen to them the moment they go down to 3 or 2 prizes in the game, a Roxanne might just be coming to either hurt them or help them as it can sometimes be a lie (I should know). Quite a useless card in the early goings of any match since it can only be used when your opponent has 3 or fewer prizes left. But that's where it shines as when it does, you put them down to just 2 cards with a top deck incoming while you get up to 6!
It's no wonder why it's the best performing card released outside of Brilliant Stars. Not every deck can afford to use it as, it is after all a Supporter and you might sometimes need a Lumineon V or Eldegoss V just to get it. Unless you're playing an Inteleon deck then it's not an issue. Just the fact that this card can help turn the game around for you in the late game by trying to brick your opponent is enough to ignore the first part of the card because the second part is just way too powerful. In a way it does a better job of being the comeback card like N used to be than Marnie ever will.
#3 - Double Turbo Energy - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 3922 (3rd)
Seasonal Points: 980.5 (3rd)
Total Average Points: 198.06 (3rd)
Quarterly Average Points: 49.51 (4th)
Wins: 41 (23 IRL + 18 Online)
Top 4: 134 (66 IRL + 68 Online)
Top 8: 167 (88 IRL + 79 Online)
Saw play in:
- Mew VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- Whimsicott VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Blissey V/Miltank
- Hisuian Zoroark VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Eldegoss V/Yveltal Control
- Durant Mill
- Zoroark Box
You all remember Double Colourless Energy right? Well DCE is back but this time with a catch. DTE does pretty much the same thing as DCE, but it does 20 less damage to your opponent. Is that a problem? Clearly not looking at how many decks have succeeded thanks to DTE! And it's not the same few decks that utilise it, just to show how many different types of deck can make full use of it, be it a big beat them up VSTAR deck, a Control deck, a Mill deck or even a Box style deck.
The 20 less damage is not an issue for the likes of Mew VMAX and Arceus VSTAR who both need 2 and 3 colourless energies to attack and the 190 and 180 base damage is clearly good enough for them to go with it, or 220 and 210 with the help of Choice Belt. It's so good, that Mew VMAX started to get rid of Fusion Energy to play just the 4 DTE in some of the newer lists.
It's also got multi-uses. It's a great damage booster for Blissey V as it counts for double the damage. Decks like Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX often times use it as a way to utilise Hyper Potion as it requires two energies in order to heal up 120 damage and DTE solves that issue. In the same vein, Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR often time uses it just for Giratina VSTAR's Lost Impact, as it needs two energies to be sent to the lost zone and well, DTE fixes that. We will continue to see it in most decks until it rotates in 2024/5.
#2 - Choice Belt - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 4894 (2nd)
Seasonal Points: 1223.5 (2nd)
Total Average Points: 242.02 (2nd)
Quarterly Average Points: 60.51 (2nd)
Wins: 47 (24 IRL + 23 Online)
Top 4: 163 (86 IRL + 77 Online)
Top 8: 230 (116 IRL + 114 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Mew VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon/Galarian Moltres
- Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX/Inteleon
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX/Inteleon
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Regi Box
- Radiant Charizard/Inteleon
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- Lost Zone Box
Remember Fighting Fury Belt or Muscle Band? Or better yet, remember Choice Band? Well mix the first and last cards just mentioned there and there you go, Choice Belt! Like Choice Band before it, it has a simple but extremely powerful effect, do extra 30 damage. And instead of the targets being EXes and GXes, now it's Vs which has been the main target for the last 3 years, but that may soon change with the return of ex, possibly making Choice Belt less effective soon.
But it clearly has been a strong addition to most decks this year. For one it helps fixes the issue with Double Turbo Energy, which means your Arceus VSTAR or Mew VMAX does 20 less damage. Thanks to Choice Belt doing 30 more damage, you do end up doing 10 more damage than what your attack was originally intending to do. Not just a good card for VSTAR and VMAX decks, even single prize decks have been making full use of it to get the either the likes of Regigigas to hit the perfect 330 damage on a VMAX or a Radiant Charizard to hit a clean 280 damage to take down every possible VSTAR.
Lately it's been the thing to help get one hit KOs for the likes of Giratina VSTAR who can hit 310 damage thanks to it, meaning stuff like Mew VMAX goes down. Lugia VSTAR with 4 Powerful energies and Choice Belt will end up doing 110 more damage than it originally would do, taking down almost every VMAX in the game except for Eternatus VMAX. And with the rise of Stoutland in Lugia decks, Lost Zone Box decks have also started including Belt to help Snorlax take down Stoutland in one shot. Normally a card like this would be the best card of the year, as Choice Band was, but not this year.
#1 - Ultra Ball - Brilliant Stars
Total Points: 5125 (1st)
Seasonal Points: 1281.25 (1st)
Total Average Points: 255.93 (1st)
Quarterly Average Points: 63.98 (1st)
Wins: 52 (27 IRL + 25 Online)
Top 4: 178 (90 IRL + 88 Online)
Top 8: 221 (108 IRL + 113 Online)
Saw play in:
- Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon
- Mew VMAX
- Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- Zoroark Box
- Ice Rider Calyrex VMAX/Inteleon
- Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- Regi Box
- Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- Mewtwo V-Union/Yveltal Control
- Giratina VSTAR
- Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- Arceus VSTAR/Giratina VSTAR
- Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
Well what else could it have been? We all knew it was always going to be Ultra Ball right? The moment it was announced to be making a return to Pokemon TCG, players all around the world rejoiced! The best Pokémon search card is back to make things a hell lot easier for almost every deck in the game. And you would be hard pressed to find a deck that doesn't actually play it, with Lost Zone Box the biggest deck not to use Ultra Ball mainly for the fact that it's the type of deck that can get away just using Quick Ball as it only uses Basic attackers.
Still, it is often a 4-off in most meta decks and if not, 2 or 3 is still good enough. Sometimes it's even a 1-off in decks like Giratina VSTAR or Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR that sometimes just needs to find the right attacker at the right time. Because it needs to discard two cards to be able to use Ultra Ball, it's also quite useful in decks like Zoroark Box, Lugia VSTAR and Regi Box that wants to discard certain stuff to help the deck function.
Perhaps the one to use Ultra Ball the best is Mew VMAX as it helps to clear two cards from the hand, giving you more cards to draw with the help of Genesect V's ability. This always saw play back in the deck, it saw play in almost every deck this year, it will see play in pretty much every deck next year and it will continue to be the preferred search out card for as long as it is in the Standard rotation.
And there you go, the top 22 cards to come out of 2022! The top 13 or so for me were all in a league of their own and like in the picture shown at the start, they are all a must have for any Pokémon TCG player. But that's not all the ranking I will do, I wanted to share something extra. Since I did go through a number of events, online and IRL, for this list of the best cards from 2022, why not share what was the best deck of 2022. I'll give you one guess as to who it was. Same points system used for this.
10) Regi Box
- 160 points
- 0 wins
- 7 Top 4s (2 IRL + 5 Online)
- 9 Top 8s (5 IRL + 4 Online)
9) Kyurem VMAX/Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR
- 220 points
- 1 win (1 IRL + 0 Online)
- 8 Top 4s (2 IRL + 3 Online)
- 12 Top 8s (2 IRL + 10 Online)
8) Arceus VSTAR/Flying Pikachu VMAX
- 235 points
- 5 wins (4 IRL + 1 Online)
- 6 Top 4s (5 IRL + 1 Online)
- 6 Top 8s (4 IRL + 2 Online)
7) Arceus VSTAR/Duraludon VMAX
- 246 points
- 1 win (1 IRL + 0 Online)
- 11 Top 4s (3 IRL + 8 Online)
- 11 Top 8s (2 IRL + 9 Online)
6) Giratina VSTAR
- 395 points
- 5 wins (0 IRL + 5 Online)
- 15 Top 4s (6 IRL + 9 Online)
- 17 Top 8s (3 IRL + 14 Online)
5) Lost Zone Box
- 410 points
- 11 wins (5 IRL + 6 Online)
- 8 Top 4s (2 IRL + 6 Online)
- 15 Top 8s (5 IRL + 10 Online)
4) Lugia VSTAR/Archeops
- 415 points
- 4 wins (2 IRL + 2 Online)
- 15 Top 4s (10 IRL + 5 Online)
- 16 Top 8s (11 IRL + 5 Online)
3) ArceusVSTAR/Inteleon
- 605 points
- 4 wins (2 IRL + 2 Online)
- 24 Top 4s (9 IRL + 15 Online)
- 29 Top 8s (14 IRL + 15 Online)
2) Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon
- 905 points
- 6 wins (0 IRL + 6 Online)
- 32 Top 4s (14 IRL + 18 Online)
- 48 Top 8s (22 IRL + 26 Online)
1) Mew VMAX
- 1326 points
- 14 wins (4 IRL + 10 Online)
- 47 Top 4s (23 IRL + 24 Online)
- 58 Top 8s (31 IRL + 27 Online)
Other than the fact that somehow Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR/Inteleon didn't actually get a big win IRL, everything else on here is pretty much as expected. Lugia being 4th on the list despite coming out in the last quarter just shows how strong the deck has already become and will likely continue to do so for the next 3 months before the new era of Pokémon TCG will arrive with Scarlet and Violet.
Mew VMAX shows that no matter what is thrown at it's way, it continues to adapt and stay relevant throughout this year, despite the huge threat of Drapion V being released in the second half of the year. It was the only deck to continuously do well from start to finish and always be amongst the top 5 points scoring deck in all 4 quarters. A sign of a truly great deck that didn't get any new attackers this year but with the help of many new Trainer cards (and one specific Energy card) released this year, continues to be a threat in the meta. Thanks for reading!
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