Kash Top 25 List: Best Pokemon cards released in 2025 (stats based)

It’s almost the end of 2025 and it’s a good time to look back and reflect on the year, and in this instance we’re looking at cards that were released in 2025. Loads of cards were introduced this year, including the return of not one but two different mechanics, Trainer’s Pokémon and Mega Evolution Pokémon (now with a different ruling).

So as per the yearly tradition now, I wanted to rank the best cards released this year and that will be based on stats from results of big major IRL events and also online events featuring 256 or more players. And I wanted to use a points system to rank these cards.

The way I did the points was quite simple:

• 1st - 5 points
• 2nd - 3 points
• 3rd and 4th - 2 points
• 5th to 8th - 1 point

And if you see the average points and was wondering how I calculated it, quite simple:

• Points scored from each set (termed as S1 to S5)/Events in each set
• The total of the average/how many sets they were played in = Average Points Scored per Sets

The tournaments included in these are any event that is recorded on Limitless for this year that had cards released this year (so no Korean League Season 2, Rio de Janerio, Birmingham and San Antonio). Also included are any Play Limitless online tournament that hit 256+ players. If I had included 128 like I used to, there would be too many and it might dilute the information, and there were just enough to make everything look perfect as S3 and S4 were lacking in IRL tournaments, so online had the most events, especially in S4, to help make the numbers more event. If anyone was wondering:

• S1 (BRS to PRE)
• 8 IRL events
• 4 Online events
• S2 (SVI to JTG)
• 15 IRL events
• 6 Online events
• S3 (SVI to DRI)
• 6 IRL events
• 7 Online events
• S4 (SVI to BLK/WHT)
• 6 IRL events
• 28 Online events
• S5 (SVI to MEG)
• 9 IRL events
• 16 Online events
• S6 (SVI to PFL)
• 5 IRL events
• 8 Online events

Results are as of December 24th, so any online events that were to happen between then and 31st, unfortunately I just don't have enough time to update it all and I don't think it will change this list much anyway.

For the results:

• Wins are wins, pretty easy
• Top 4 will be results from 2nd, 3rd or 4th, not including wins
• Top 8 will be results from 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th, and nothing from the above included

Some cards just missed out and honestly it wasn’t that much of a miss. Cards like Flareon ex, Maractus, Tool Scrapper, Team Rocket’s Petrel, Battle Cage, Mega Lopunny ex and Mega Mawile ex all just missed out on this list.

And with that, here are the best 25 cards released in 2025, not done by any sort of opinion or favoritism, just good old statistics and numbers, my favourite! And why just 25? 2025, that's why. We need to keep the gimmick going. Again. For another year. Because why not, I love it!

As for the "saw play in" sector for the cards, I will keep it to 5, not to make the list any more messy than it might already be. For the ones latter on in the list, I usually put the top 5 decks that used it the most from lists on Limitless.

#25 - Team Rocket's Watchtower - Destined Rivals (DRI)

Type: Stadium

Total Points: 44 (26th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 0.61 (26th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - 11 / Avg - 0.84
• S4 - 9 / Avg - 0.26
• S5 - 14 / Avg - 0.56
• S6 - 10 / Avg - 0.77

Wins: 3

Top 4: 8

Top 8: 12

Saw play in:

• N's Zoroark ex
• Dragapult ex/Charizard ex
• Gholdengo ex
• Cynthia's Garchomp ex
• Iron Thorns ex/Crustle

We start off with my least favourite stadium card in the game right now, Team Rocket's Watchtower. Its sole purpose is to slow down decks utilising colourless Pokémon as their engine. The good news is that there are loads of decks who are very reliant on the likes of Pidgeot ex, Noctowl, Squawkabilly ex and Mega Kangaskhan ex just to name a few. And let’s not forget the new Meowth ex coming soon which has the same ability as Tapu Lele GX and Lumineon V.

But it’s not just the engine, some attackers are affected by it too. Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex cannot use it’s ability to pay less energies to attack when Watchtower is live. On the flip side, Slaking ex can attack as its ability will be canceled out by Watchtower.

#24 - N's Zoroark ex - Journey Together (JTG)

Type: Stage 1 Pokémon ex

Total Points: 55 (21st)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 0.47 (30th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - 11 / Avg - 0.52
• S3 - 5 / Avg - 0.38
• S4 - 23 / Avg - 0.67
• S5 - 13 / Avg - 0.52
• S6 - 3 / Avg - 0.23

Wins: 3

Top 4: 12

Top 8: 14

Saw play in:

• N's Zoroark ex
• Gardevoir ex
• Archaludon ex
• Gholdengo ex

A Zoroark ex card with the Trade ability is back, but it's not the same as the previous one. That one was amazing with a great attack, this one copies attacks from your bench. And they aren't all that great to be fair but still enough for N's Zoroark to have some presence in the meta. 

The one good thing about N’s Zoroark ex is it’s very flexible deck, it can play just about any techs and one list won’t look like the other, with so much room to play the game differently, be it a slow controlling game or keeping tempo wit your opponent or even going aggressive to run them off the game.

#23 - Crustle - Destined Rivals (DRI)

Type: Stage 1 Pokémon

Total Points: 51 (23rd)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 0.49 (27th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - 7 / Avg - 0.53
• S4 - 25 / Avg - 0.73
• S5 - 17 / Avg - 0.68
• S6 - 2 / Avg - 0.15

Wins: 3

Top 4: 11

Top 8: 12

Saw play in:

• Crustle
• N's Zoroark ex
• Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant

There will always be an annoying card like Crustle in the format, we just cannot escape it. Crustle is one of those decks that simply asks one question, “do you have an out to KO Crustle?”. Honestly there’s not much to talk about this, you either have an answer or you just lose to it.

#22 - Levincia - Journey Together (JTG)

Type: Stadium

Total Points: 54 (22nd)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 0.49 (27th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - 00 / Avg - 0.00
• S3 - 2 / Avg - 0.15
• S4 - 45 / Avg - 1.32
• S5 - 2 / Avg - 0.08
• S6 - 5 / Avg - 0.38

Wins: 3

Top 4: 11

Top 8: 13

Saw play in:

• Gholdengo ex
• Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box
• Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex

The 2nd of two stadium cards on this list and it only really got good when Gholdengo ex got better in the latter half of the year. It is a good way to recover energies without relying on Superior Energy Retrieval, especially when you can’t use it under item lock from either Budew or Frillish.

I’m surprised it’s not seen more play in other decks using Lighting Energy, recovering 2 for free from a stadium is good value. Gholdengo still makes the best use of this because it does want to have as many energies as possible in hand.

#21 - Charmeleon - Phantasmal Flames (PFL)

Type: Stage 1 Pokémon

Total Points: 26 (30th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.00 (13th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - Not Released
• S6 - 26 / Avg - 2

Wins: 1

Top 4: 6

Top 8: 7

Saw play in:

• Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex
• Charizard ex/Noctowl
• Dragapult ex/Charizard ex

Hang on, what is a normal looking Charmeleon doing on here? It's attack only does 40 damage, what's so special about it you ask? Well, the 110 HP is quite big for a Stage 1 Pokemon! 

And so far all Charizard ex decks, be it the Pidgeot ex build, the Noctowl build or even the Dragapult ex build, they’ve all preferred to use the 110 HP Charmeleon and this likely to stay until rotation in April.

#20 - Hoothoot - Prismatic Evolutions (PRE)

Type: Basic Pokémon

Total Points: 83 (15th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 0.68 (25th)

Points

• S1 - 00 / Avg - 0.00
• S2 - 38 / Avg - 1.81
• S3 - 17 / Avg - 1.31
• S4 - 18 / Avg - 0.52
• S5 - 9 / Avg - 0.36
• S6 - 1 / Avg - 0.07

Wins: 5

Top 4: 15

Top 8: 22

Saw play in:

• Tera Box
• Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex
• Flareon ex/Noctowl

You might be asking, what the heck is a Hoothoot doing on here? If you remember from last year's list, Jewell Seeking Noctowl just missed out because it came out late and Tera-style decks didn't do much last year. It sure has made an impact this year, especially in the current format. 

So why this Hoothoot? 80 HP protects it from being KOed by the combination of Hawlucha and Dragapult’s Phantom Dive which is only 70 damage. And you need the Hoothoot to stick around to get Noctowl going so it’s perfect for it’s role.

#19 - Jellicent ex - White Flare (WHT)

Type: Stage 1 Pokémon ex

Total Points: 75 (18th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.31 (21st)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - 15 / Avg - 0.44
• S5 - 30 / Avg - 1.2
• S6 - 30 / Avg - 2.31

Wins: 7

Top 4: 12

Top 8: 12

Saw play in:

• Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex
• Dragapult ex

Jellicent ex is another one of those item-locking mons but it's not from an attack this time, it's from its ability while in active, and it also locks Tools cards! So it’s a very difficult 270 HP mon to deal with under both item and tool lock. The only way to get out of it is KOing it or gusting around it. 

The attack is not bad too, 80 for 2 energy or 160 energy for 4 energy. And with those stats and numbers in mind, it was always bound to be a natural partner with Gardevoir ex and Munkidori. 

Garde helps to charge it and Muncie moving damage around all whilst your opponent might not be doing much because of the double lock. It is a scary threat to deal with.

#18 - Dawn - Phantasmal Flames (PFL)

Type: Supporter

Total Points: 31 (29th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.38 (10th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - Not Released
• S6 - 31 / Avg - 2.38

Wins: 2

Top 4: 6

Top 8: 8

Saw play in:

• Charizard ex/Noctowl
• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex
• Alakazam/Dudunsparce
• Mega Venusaur ex

Maybe my favourite supporter card released this year not named Lillie's Determination. I knew Dawn was good the moment I read it. Basic, Stage 1 and Stage 2 Pokémon search, it had to be good right? So I knew what deck I wanted to build around it, Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex but the Stage 1 was the missing piece and then it hit me, Noctowl! 

But I wasn't the only one with that idea, Oscar Madsen also had the same idea and we know the story now, Dawn Zard won Stuttgart Regional! Dawn is the main engine for that deck. 

But it’s also a great tech card for stuff like Pult Dusk, Zara Pidgeot and Mega Venusaur. It’s also the perfect card for a deck like Alakazam. While Dawn Zard uses Noctowl to set up the deck, Dudunsparce helps to draw more cards for this deck that wants as many cards in hand as possible.

#17 - Genesect ex - Black Bolt (BLK)

Type: Basic Pokémon ex

Total Points: 109 (13th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.5 (20th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - 55 / Avg - 1.62
• S5 - 34 / Avg - 1.36
• S6 - 20 / Avg - 1.53

Wins: 6

Top 4: 21

Top 8: 31

Saw play in:

• Gholdengo ex/Lunatone
• Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box
• Gholdengo ex

What is it with Genesects and it always getting playable tech cards haha! This version pretty much flipped the fortunes for one Gholdengo ex. 

It was always a decent deck but once Genesect ex was released, it pretty much became one of the top tier decks in the format and as of writing, it is still one of the top decks of the current format going into it’s final few months of Gholdengo.

Being able to just search our two evolution metal Pokémon is just a great ability which is why Gholdengo as been thriving so far. I do think Genesect can find a place in annother evolving metal decks for the next few years but none of them might be as good as Gholdengo ex.

#16 - Mega Absol ex - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Basic Pokémon Mega Evolved

Total Points: 78 (17th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.87 (16th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 61 / Avg - 2.44
• S6 - 17 / Avg - 1.31

Wins: 5

Top 4: 16

Top 8: 13

Saw play in:

• Mega Box
• Tera Box
• Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant
• N's Zoroark ex

Mega Absol ex was initially overlooked by many upon release but not by the legend Tord Reklev who introduced to us the brand new Mega Box deck which is one of the most powerful decks in the current format. And it’s got two incredibly good attacks too. 

Terminal Period may look awkward needing 6 damage counters on your opponent’s active Pokémon but let’s not forget that Munkidori exists which makes it easy to get those 6 damage counters onto their active Pokémon. 

Claw of Darkness is probably the big selling point, as you can not just look at your opponent’s hand and then discard one card, and if they have a small hand size, especially after an Iono, it could be a game ender. 

#15 - Frillish - White Flare (WHT)

Type: Basic Pokémon

Total Points: 101 (14th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.81 (18th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - 15 / Avg - 0.44
• S5 - 44 / Avg - 1.76
• S6 - 42 / Avg - 3.23

Wins: 8

Top 4: 20

Top 8: 15

Saw play in:

• Gardevoir ex
• Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex
• Pidgeot ex Control
• Mega Box
• Dragapult ex

Wait hang on we just saw Jellicent ex, why is Frillish ahead of it? Quite simply, it's the Psychic version of Budew and spoiler alert, it's quite high up on this list for a good reason. And more decks can simply just use one Frillish for the item lock, and you don’t need Jellicent ex. 

In fact, I dare say Frillish is a better item locker than Jelicent ex. Garde decks often likes to use Frillish to keep the item lock going along with Munkidori moving damage to make it really tough for your opponent to set up with all that in mind. If it was a Jellicent, all you need is a gist to play items again, same can’t be said for Frillish.

#14 - Lunatone/Solrock/Fighting Gong - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Pokémon / Item

Total Points: 75 (18th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.92 (14th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 52 / Avg - 2.08
• S6 - 23 / Avg - 1.77

Wins: 3

Top 4: 15

Top 8: 27

Saw play in:

• Gholdengo ex/Lunatone
• Ceruledge ex
• Bloodmoon Ursaluna/Lunatone
• Mega Lucario ex/Hariyama
• Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex

The first of two shared entries on this list and there was no reason to separate Lunatone, Solrock and Fighting Gong. Apart from Cynthia's Garchomp, any deck playing one of those cards are likely to play the other two. 

Fighting Gong lets you search for either a Fighting energy or a Fighting Pokemon. And most of the time, if it’s not for the energy, it’s either for Lunatone or Solrock. Lunatone draws you 3 extra cards by discarding a Fighting energy while Solrock was on the board. Solrock does 70 damage if Lunatone was on board. 

So they’re all connected! 3 great cards all working well together, and decks that made the most of these 3 cards were Gholdengo and Ceruledge. And yes Gholdengo has now become one of the top decks of the game because of firstly Genesect and now all 3 cards here. Because of them, Gholdengo can now play other Ace Spec cards and have an alternate attacker in Solrock, sometimes on Turn 1!

#13 - Mega Diancie ex - Phantasmal Flames (PFL)

Type: Basic Pokémon Mega Evolved

Total Points: 46 (25th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 3.53 (6th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - Not Released
• S6 - 46 / Avg - 3.54

Wins: 4

Top 4: 8

Top 8: 6

Saw play in:

• Gardevoir ex
• Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex

A Psychic-type attacker that isn't weak to Dark? Yup Mega Diancie might have been the missing piece for Gardevoir ex. One of Gardevoir’s biggest issue was not being able to keep up with some Dark decks (which honestly is not true, it still had so many other counter-play).

Diancie is effectively a 300 HP basic thanks to its ability and with Bravery Charm, it becomes 350 HP! Garland Ray is also a great attack, hitting 240 for just the cost of discarding 2 Psychic. And let’s not forget, Gardevoir is a deck that loves their energies in discard pile. And with Munkidori, Diancie can get some big KOs, even on 300 HP mons.

#12 - Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex - Destined Rivals (DRI)

Type: Stage 2 Pokémon ex

Total Points: 130 (9th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.64 (19th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - 36 / Avg - 2.77
• S4 - 42 / Avg - 1.23
• S5 - 39 / Avg - 1.56
• S6 - 13 / Avg - 1

Wins: 7

Top 4: 27

Top 8: 33

Saw play in:

• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex

It's another good Dark-type attacker in this Gardevoir-dominated year we've seen but Marnie's Grimmsnarl sure sticks out more than the rest. Technically I could have put Spikemuth Gym on here too since it only really works with this deck but I have too many shared entries already on here.

A Stage 2 mon hitting for 180 and 30 to another bench mon, sounds familiar? Yup it’s kinda like the old Darkrai EX that would hit 90 and snipe 30. And with the likes of Munkidori and Froslass, you can keep adding these numbers to either board wipe your opponent or set up enough numbers for a TM Devolution plays.

#11 - Mega Kangaskhan ex - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Basic Pokémon Mega Evolved

Total Points: 83 (15th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.08 (12th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 60 / Avg - 2.4
• S6 - 23 / Avg - 1.77

Wins: 5

Top 4: 17

Top 8: 17

Saw play in:

• Mega Box
• Tera Box
• Pidgeot ex Control
• Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant
• Mega Lopunny ex/Dusknoir

Mega Kangaskhan ex is not just a good draw supporter for many decks, it can also be a tanky attacker too, usually in it's own deck or Mega Box. And with stuff like Latias ex, you can easily draw 2 cards and then retreat into any other attacker. That’s the drawing bit.

The attacking bit? 200 +50 for each heads you flipped until you hit tails, which means it can do 500 damage if you’re really lucky. But even with the first tail flips, 200 is already a lot of damage. 

And it could be 230 thanks to Munkidori. And with cards like Bouffalant, Bravery Charm and Jumbo Ice Cream, it becomes a near untouchable monster to deal with, with effectively 410 HP!

#10 - Brock's Scouting - Journey Together (JTG)

Type: Supporter

Total Points: 203 (6th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 1.85 (17th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - 57 / Avg - 2.71
• S3 - 35 / Avg - 2.69
• S4 - 88 / Avg - 2.59
• S5 - 14 / Avg - 0.56
• S6 - 9 / Avg - 0.69

Wins: 12

Top 4: 38

Top 8: 53

Saw play in:

• Dragapult ex
• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box
• Dragapult ex/Charizard ex
• Flareon ex/Noctowl

Any Supporter card allowing you to search for Pokemon is always worth a look, just like Jacq, Hilda, the previously mentioned Dawn or stuff like Bridgette or Korinna from back then. Brock's Scouting is the latest to join the list, and it gives you the option to search for 2 Basic or 1 Evolution Pokemon.

For decks like Dragapult, it’s great early game to get a Budew or Dreepy down even after Itchy Pollen is in effect, or one Drakloak to get your engine going. For Joltik decks, they tend to go for Latias ex and Miraidon ex which in turn gets Joltik and another lighting attacker to set their whole board up. 

#9 - Yveltal - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Basic Pokémon 

Total Points: 115 (11th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.71 (9th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 93 / Avg - 3.72
• S6 - 22 / Avg - 1.69

Wins: 8

Top 4: 23

Top 8: 22

Saw play in:

• Mega Box
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass
• N's Zoroark ex
• Froslass/Munkidori
• Crustle

Initially Maractus would have made this list but then Yveltal showed up later in the year and it's now the preferred choice for the retreat-lock attack. 

And perhaps the one thing it has over Maractus, apart from the bigger HP amount, is simply Yveltal having free retreat! That works perfectly with Pecharunt ex in mind, giving you a free out for…oddly enough…another retreat lock attack! Or decks that need to retreat to use it’s attack again, this could work with them.

#8 - Ralts/Kirlia - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Basic Pokémon / Stage 1 Pokémon

Total Points: 114 (12th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 3.17 (7th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 66 / Avg - 2.64
• S6 - 48 / Avg - 3.69

Wins: 10

Top 4: 18

Top 8: 21

Saw play in:

• Gardevoir ex
• Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex

So yeah we got a new Ralts and Kirlia and they're both better than the previous ones we started with at the start of the year. Ralts two attacks are nothing special but you got the choice of either drawing one extra card, or doing 10 damage.

As for Kirlia, it’s also got two good attacks but most of the time, if it’s used, it will be the first attack. Call Sign let’s you search for 3 Pokémon and put it into your hand so you can set up the perfect board the next turn, with one of them surely being Gardevoir ex which is what the deck needs to get going!

#7 - Hilda - White Flare (WHT)

Type: Supporter

Total Points: 165 (7th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.3 (11th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - 79 / Avg - 2.32
• S5 - 55 / Avg - 2.2
• S6 - 31 / Avg - 2.38

Wins: 13

Top 4: 28

Top 8: 30

Saw play in:

• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Flareon ex/Noctowl
• Alakazam/Dudunsparce
• Conkeldurr
• Dragapult ex

As mentioned for Brock's Scouting earlier, any Supporter card that searches for Pokemon is usually very good. But Hilda doesn't just do that. While it does search for an Evolution Pokemon, it also search for an Energy card. Not just Basic, any energy card! 

So for decks like Dragapult, it can search out Dragapult ex AND Neo Upper Energy, allowing Pult to attack right away. It also work for decks like Flareon to get the missing energy for Flareon or whoever might be attacking. 

The new Mega Lopunny ex decks is also very reliant on Hilda to get Mega Lopunny or Dusclops/Dusknoir and with Jet Enegy, it can destroy and opponent’s board right away.

#6 - Shaymin - Destined Rivals (DRI)

Type: Basic Pokémon 

Total Points: 222 (5th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 2.95 (8th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - 80 / Avg - 6.15
• S4 - 69 / Avg - 2.03
• S5 - 54 / Avg - 2.16
• S6 - 19 / Avg - 1.46

Wins: 14

Top 4: 42

Top 8: 52

Saw play in:

• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass
• Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex
• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Gardevoir ex
• Ethan's Typhlosion

We finally got a bench protector back in the game but with a bit of a catch this time around. Shaymin protects your benched Pokémon from attack, sounds like the old Mew or Manaphy or Mr Mime right? 

Well not quite, it only protects Pokémon without a Rule Box, so your Pokémon ex are not protected. A nice change I’d say and hey Shaymin has saw play in loads of decks. The irony being that the one that used it the most is a deck that attacks the bench too, that being Grimmsnarl. 

And with the likes of Scream Tail, Fezandipiti ex and Wellspring Ogerpon ex still such a big threat in the current meta, Shaymin will continue to be an answer for decks suffering from snipe attacks.

#5 - Psyduck - Promo (PR)

Type: Basic Pokémon 

Total Points: 144 (8th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 3.66 (5th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 102 / Avg - 4.08
• S6 - 42 / Avg - 3.23

Wins: 9

Top 4: 33

Top 8: 22

Saw play in:

• Mega Box
• Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass
• Crustle
• N's Zoroark ex

Probably the hardest card to find on this list, because I myself do not own one of these. Psyduck was released as a 3-pack blister when Mega Evolution so it was tough to find. And it was super playable too with the top deck in mind during that time.

Psyduck shuts down ability that has Pokémon knocking itself out to use the ability and guess who takes the hit from this? Yup Dusclops and Dusknoir, the main thing helping Dragapult ex. Charizard Pidgeot is another one but the irony being it also using Psyduck, some of them habe started cutting Dusknoir as a way to help with the Pult matchup so Psyduck was the answer for them too.

#4 - Lillie's Clefairy ex - Journey Together (JTG)

Type: Basic Pokémon ex

Total Points: 433 (4th)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 4.07 (4th)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - 145 / Avg - 6.90
• S3 - 40 / Avg - 3.08
• S4 - 119 / Avg - 3.5
• S5 - 82 / Avg - 3.28
• S6 - 47 / Avg - 3.61

Wins: 30

Top 4: 77

Top 8: 104

Saw play in:

• Gardevoir ex
• Tera Box
• Joltik Box
• Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex
• Flareon ex/Noctowl

Lillie's Clefairy ex has been a welcomed addition to many decks this year and it's just a generally good card. The ability is already so good, giving your opponent’s Dragon Pokemon, a typing known to have no weakness, now having Psychic weakness when Clefairy on board meant stuff like Gardevoir ex now had an easier way to deal with Dragapult ex. 

But it’s not just the ability, the attack is amazing too. The last time we saw a Rondo attack was with Entei, Suicune and Raikou Vs, all theee of them seeing play at one point or another during their time. You hit for as many Pokemon on both boards and adding Clefairy, if both boards are full, that’s an easy 220. 

And that number can keep going up if Area Zero Underdepths is in play, and with your board full, it goes up to 280 which can knock out many big attackers like N’s Zoroark ex and Ceruledge ex. And if your opponent’s board is full, that means Clefairy does 340, enough to KO even Charizard ex! 

And it’s quite splashable, just needing a Psychic and colourless to attack and there’s plenty of ways around that. Clefairy is here to stay and will always be relevant since Dragapult isn’t going away anytime soon.

#3 - Budew - Prismatic Evolutions (PRE)

Type: Basic Pokémon 

Total Points: 673 (1st)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 5.87 (3rd)

Points

• S1 - 95 / Avg - 7.92
• S2 - 161 / Avg - 7.67
• S3 - 98 / Avg - 7.54
• S4 - 202 / Avg - 5.94
• S5 - 77 / Avg - 3.08
• S6 - 40 / Avg - 3.07

Wins: 46

Top 4: 115

Top 8: 172

Saw play in:

• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Dragapult ex
• Gardevoir ex
• Dragapult ex/Charizard ex
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass

Yup, Budew. You know it. You either love it or hate it. A 30 HP mon that hit for 10 and item lock for free and has free retreat, how can it not be good? It’s been the perfect partner for decks that like to play the comeback game but building their board and playing the slow game initially, mainly Pult, Garde and Grimm.

It’s the perfect turn 1 attack for most of these decks to stop your opponent from setting up by preventing them from using cards like Poffin, Nest or Ultra Ball and also Rare Candy. Speaking of which, one thing Budew has over Frillish (apart from the energy cost and the retreat cost) is that it is searchable through Buddy-Buddy Poffin, something the 80 HP Frillish is not.

But it’s not just a great early game attack, it’s also a great late game attack to stop your Gholdengo opponent from using Superior Energy Retrieval or other decks from using Prime/Counter Catcher. We will keep seeing Budew until it rotates, we won’t be able to escape it. It’s Itchy Pollen season!

#2 - Air Balloon - Black Bolt (BLK)

Type: Tool

Total Points: 465 (2nd)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 6.12 (2nd)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - 239 / Avg - 7.03
• S5 - 164 / Avg - 6.56
• S6 - 62 / Avg - 4.77

Wins: 23

Top 4: 96

Top 8: 128

Saw play in:

• Gholdengo ex/Lunatone
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass
• Gholdengo ex
• Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box
• Tera Box

Air Balloon is back and if not for the next card, might have been the best card released this year! It’s just a great pivot card and many decks have made good use of it. A lot of decks that used to rely on Rescue Board all swapped to Air Balloon since its release. 

Two decks that have made the most of it are Gholdengo ex decks and decks that are reliant of Munkidori, be it Marnie’s Grimmsnarl, Froslass/Budew, Mega Kangaskhan/Bouffalant or even Gardevoir. 

It makes the most sense in Gholdengo as you can make the most use of it’s Coin Bonus ability as it draws an extra card while being in the active and with Air Balloon, you cam draw up to 4 cards which is always a good thing.

#1 - Lillie's Determination - Mega Evolutions (MEG)

Type: Supporter

Total Points: 464 (3rd)

Average Points Scored per Sets: 11.97 (1st)

Points

• S1 - Not Released
• S2 - Not Released
• S3 - Not Released
• S4 - Not Released
• S5 - 318 / Avg - 12.72
• S6 - 146 / Avg - 11.23

Wins: 31

Top 4: 86

Top 8: 106

Saw play in:

• Dragapult ex/Dusknoir
• Gardevoir ex
• Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex
• Mega Box
• Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass

Of course it had to be Lillie's Determination and for the first time since I started doing these lists back in 2019, it's not an Item card that tops the list. Well there's a good reason for that, there were no real good item cards released this year. But they did print perhaps one of the best Supporter cards ever in Lillie's Determination.

Shuffle and draw 6 is nothing new to us, we got that in older cards like Professor Oak's New Theory and Cynthia. What makes this better is that if you have not taken a prize card, it becomes 8 cards instead so now there is an incentive to not take prize cards but instead build your board state by seeing more cards in hands, which is why the slower set-up style decks have all used it, especially the 5 mentioned above.

A lot of these decks like to build their board first, sit behind one or two Budews, use Lillie’s for about 2-3 turns to get the perfect set-up and then launch an attack. It’s not bad in the late game too. With Iono you’re limiting yourself to maybe 2-3 cards. Lillie gets you 6 which is sometimes just enough to get you to a winning position. 

That’s all I got for the cards released this year and that’s it for me this year too! I wish you all the best for the upcoming new years in 2026. Thanks for reading and enjoy the new years! 

Kash Top 25 List: Best decks from SVI to PFL and how 2026 rotation will affect them

Stuttgart Regional has come and gone and with that, the final TPCi regional is done for the season. We still do have one more TPC major event to go with cards featured in Phantasmal Flames (Hong Kong's Premier Ball League) and while Aichi is happening this week, that will feature cards we will see next year so it won't matter for people who are preparing for the next few big events such as Toronto, Birmingham, Mérida and Auckland. And also for those of us prepping for our League Challenges, League Cups, Great Ball Leagues and Ultra Ball Leagues.

So I thought now would be a great time to look at top 25 decks in this format and up till say January when the next mini-set arrives. And with rotation just around the corner in April, why not see how some of these decks will be affected by it. And spoiler alert, this rotation is a big one and a lot of decks will be affected by it and of course, some of them will soon be extinct (aka my way of saying no longer playable in Standard because the main attackers have been rotated).

So I took 25 different decks, all of which were featured in Day 2 of Stuttgart Regional and show what rotation will do for these decks. And for those wanting to pick up a new deck to play, I'll show the prices of these decks too (as of December 4th 2025).

As a reminder, rotation is G Block so sets affected are:

• Scarlet and Violet (SVI)
• Paldea Evolved (PAL)
• Obsidian Flames (OBF)
• Pokémon 151 (MEW)
• Paradox Rift (PAR)
• Paldean Fates (PAF)
• Scarlet and Violet Promos (SVP)
• SVP 001 to 086, 088, 093-096, 099-101, 103-104, 119-121, 124-125, 130, 132, 137-140, 142-143, 160-161, 167-169, 196, 

I have one rule that can affect the rotating numbers. For decks with evolving mons, if the highest stage is rotating, then every card rotates. If it's not rotating and are using a Basic from the G-Block, they are not considered rotating. 

We are getting Ascended Heroes mini-set too. These are some of the cards that will likely see play that we will get in the upcoming mini-set:

• Mega Froslass ex
• Mega Dragonite ex
• N's Zekrom - 250 damage for N's Zoroark and also a Shred attack for 70!
• Light Ball - +50 attack for Pikachu ex
• Thick Scales - Dragon mons takes -50 against Grass, Fire, Water, Lighting
• Canari - Search up to 4 Lighting Pokemon
• Poke Pad - Searches out any non-Rule Box pokemon

25) Dragapult ex/Blaziken ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 18th

Total Price: $48.16

Cards Rotating: 18 (30%)

• 2 Reversal Energy
• 1 Luminous Energy
• 4 Iono
• 4 Arven
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Earthen Vessel
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 2 Artazon

We start with a fun deck that Fabien Pujol has been piloting for a while now, but this might end up being a secondary way for people to play Dragapult ex post rotation. With Zard gone, there "main" way to accelerate energy onto Pult is now gone, especially with Luminous Energy being rotated soon, so I can see something like Blaziken ex helping to sort that issue out.

What this deck, and many other decks, will lose out are great supporters in Iono for disruption and Arven to set up your board and also many good items too, such as Counter Catcher for gust, Super Rod for recovery and Vessel for getting energies. But perhaps one of the main losses is the TM Evo, which will hurt a lot of evolving decks such as this one, especially those with multiple lines of Pokemon in the deck.

24) Cynthia's Garchomp ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 35th

Total Price: $17.66

Cards Rotating: 11 (18.33%)

• 1 Toedscool
• 1 Toedscruel
• 4 Arven
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 2 Town Store

Cynthia's Garchomp ex is one deck that doesn't actually lose much from rotation, but what it does lose is all it's outs to get Gabites and and Roserades in the field at the end of Turn 1 with Arven, TM Evo and Town Store all rotating, meaning it'll be harder to set up the field.

Everything else isn't as big as a loss, Toedscruel is a new inclusion to deal with Gholdengo and well they're both rotating so they cancel each other out. Turo rotating is a big one for many decks and now the only good way to heal stuff with supporters is Wally and to switch out, we'd need either a Switch or Kieran or a Pokemon with an ability to help with that.

23) Dragapult ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 20th

Total Price: $46.17

Cards Rotating: 16 (26.67%)

• 1 Toedscool
• 1 Toedscruel
• 1 Hawlucha
• 4 Luminous Energy
• 4 Iono
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Artazon

As you'll see later on in this list, Dragapult decks technically won't lose much but what it loses really does hurt, the big ones being Luminous Energy, Iono and Counter Catcher. Pult decks love to play from behind and the two cards that enable that style of play is Iono and Counter Catcher and with both gone, playing from behind is now a lot tougher when you can't disrupt and gust something up at the same time.

Everything else is as mentioned, Hawlucha rotating does mean the deck will have a harder time of hitting the perfect 70 HP on a Basic Pokémon, or hitting something for just enough to KO with the 10 Hawlucha ping. Turo is another loss for late game Ursaluna attacks but there are like-for-like replacemtns in the form of Switch or Kieran. 

22) Ethan's Typhlosion

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 97th

Total Price: $48.05

Cards Rotating: 11 (18.33%)

• 1 Iron Bundle
• 2 Professor's Research
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 1 Earthen Vessel
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 1 Picnic Basket
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 2 Artazon

Well this deck is sadly still around, but with Gholdengo rotating, is ther even a point of this deck still being a thing? I feel as though Alakazam has already replaced it as the best budget deck in the format. But Typhlosion can still hit for big numbers with Ethan usage and Brave Bangle and a few other damage modifiers. 

The deck doesn't lose much to rotation. Artazon is a big one as the deck does want to setup a board full of Cyndaquils and Victini and other supporting mons like Shaymin and Psyduck. Losing TM Evo does hurt this deck a lot too. 

21) Dragapult ex/Charizard ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 114th

Total Price: $41.39

Cards Rotating: 21 (35%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 2 Charmander
• 1 Charmeleon
• 2 Charizard ex
• 1 Chi-Yu
• 4 Luminous Energy
• 4 Arven
• 2 Iono
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 1 Nest Ball
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Technical Machine: Evolution

And now we've arrived to our first soon to be extinct deck. The main reason is because the whole Charizard ex line is rotating thus this Pult Zard build will cease to exist come rotation. There are a few different ways to replace it, the main one being Blaziken ex but you do lose out your end-game closer with Zard ex.

Like for every other Pult lists, losing stuff like Luminous Energy, Iono and Counter Catcher hurts and losing the Zard pieces means losing stuff like Arven and TM Evo to set-up. Chi-Yu rotating isn't a big of a loss as Gholdengo ex is also rotating and decks like these can now just run Moltres from Phantasmal Flames to deal with stuff like Teal Mask Ogerpon ex.

20) Charizard ex/Noctowl

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 1st

Total Price: $35.45

Cards Rotating: 20 (33.33%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 3 Charmander
• 1 Charmeleon
• 2 Charizard ex
• 2 Pidgey
• 2 Pidgeot ex
• 1 Klefki
• 2 Iono
• 4 Nest Ball
• 1 Super Rod
• 2 Jet Energy

Ahhh Dawn Zard, my favourite deck for the past month or so. I'm so happy it won Stuttgart Regional because I was a believer of the deck since November. In fact when I first read Dawn I was already thinking to myself...well I can get Zard or Pidgeot for my Stage 2, what about my Stage 1....and the first thing to hit my mind was Noctowl and here we are! 

Unfortunately this deck also ceases to exist soon, as not just the entire Zard ex line is rotating but the Pidgeot ex line is rotating too! It will be a sad day when that happens. Losing Klefki is also really big for the enitre game as now decks with Psyduck can go unchecked with no real counter with to deal with it. Losing Jet also sucks for a lot of decks, less options to move around stuff on the field.

19) Mega Venusaur ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 373th

Total Price: $26.06

Cards Rotating: 10 (16.67%)

• 1 Toedscool
• 1 Toedscruel
• 1 Wo-Chien ex
• 2 Iono
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 2 Nest Ball
• 2 Earthen Vessel

Mega Venusaur ex actually doesn't lose much from rotation. Toedscuel is only there for Gholdengo ex and they're both gone. Losing Iono and Turo are more painful to the deck. Most decks would also be hurting losing Nest Ball and Vessel but this deck already has Bug Catching Set so that's a like-for-like replacement.

And with more Grass attackers to come in the future, the combination of Meganium-Teal Mask Ogerpon ex-Mega Venusaur ex could help to speed up their attacks much like how the soon-to-be rotated Regigigas have done as a counter to Cornerstone Mask Ogerpon ex.

18) Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 9th

Total Price: $63.05

Cards Rotating: 22 (36.67%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 3 Gimmighoul
• 3 Gholdengo ex
• 2 Iron Hands ex
• 1 Miraidon ex
• 4 Arven
• 1 Penny
• 3 Superior Energy Retrieval
• 2 Earthen Vessel
• 1 Nest Ball
• 1 Picnic Basket
• 1 Bravery Charm

Well now we reach another deck that will be extinct soon. I will touch on the Gholdengo stuff when we get to the main guy but this deck also loses it's early attacker in Iron Hands ex. Most of the time, Iron Hands ex helps to take your first two prizes, sometimes your next two prizes as well, and Gholdengo ex is the closer.

So with both of them gone.....it's just a Joltik deck powering up Pikachu ex? Yup it's now a Joltik deck (bear in mind, Miraidon ex is also gone). It also loses Arven so the deck will be a bit slower to set-up with no Miraidon, no Nest Ball. Nothing. SER rotating is a bit poetic since it's really only seeing play in decks with Gholdengo ex.

17) Mega Sharpedo ex/Toxtricity

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 173rd

Total Price: $40.33

Cards Rotating: 10 (16.67%)

• 3 Professor's Research
• 3 Iono
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 1 Nest Ball
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Town Store

One of the main new decks to come out of Phantasmal Flames is the Toxtricity Box, be it with this build with Mega Sharpedo ex or a more Box style deck with many different attackers such as Mega Absol ex, the other Brute Bonnet, Seviper and whoever it may be. Dark Box is back again!

Although the deck doesn't actually lose much, it does lose some key consistency cards like Professor's Research and Iono. Super Rod I can see being swapped for Energy Recycler as the deck wants these energies in the deck anyway. This deck isn't that much affected by rotation so I can see more people likely picking the Tox Box deck up soon. In fact I'm already seeing a lot of these decks at my locals anyway!

16) Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 27th

Total Price: $40.91

Cards Rotating: 17 (28.33%)

• 2 Jet Energy
• 4 Arven
• 2 Iono
• 2 Penny
• 2 Nest Ball
• 1 Earthen Vessel
• 2 Bravery Charm
• 2 Technical Machine: Turbo Energize

The good news, none of the Pokemon in this deck is rotating, which is much better than most other decks on this list! You're still a Mega Kangaskhan ex deck at heart just trying to make it as tanky as possible with Bouffalant and Lively Stadium.

The bad news? Bravery Charm is gone so Khan won't be as tanky as it could have been. The deck also loses it main support engine in Arven, which helps to get Precious Trolley, said Bravery Charm and TM Turbo Energize, both of which are rotating. Losing Nest Ball also hurts the deck as you'll want to get Munkidori and Bouffalant down in most games (you can replace it for the upcoming Poke Pad but it doesn't search out Mega Kangaskhan ex). Losing Penny also hurts to help pick up a heavily damaged Kangaskhan or any other benched mon.

15) Joltik Box

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 88th

Total Price: $46.97

Cards Rotating: 18 (30%)

• 2 Miraidon ex
• 2 Iron Hands ex
• 1 Mew ex
• 4 Arven
• 4 Nest Ball
• 1 Earthen Vessel
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Future Booster Energy Capsule
• 1 Bravery Charm
• 1 Vitality Band

Joltik is one deck that was so heavily affected by the upcoming rotation, I did wonder if I should just put it under the soon to be extinct tag but decided not to. Joltik is still around, and it can still charge to Pikachu ex. And that's about it sadly. Miraidon ex rotating hurts the deck's consistency and Iron Hands ex hurts the deck's ability to prize race evolving decks. That being said, Pikachu ex will get a new tool to play with in the form of Light Ball to give it an extra 50 damage, so a Joltik charging Pikachu type of deck might still live.

Arven and Nest Ball are another two big losses for the deck as the deck wants to be as consistent as possible to execute it's gameplan every other match. 3 of the 5 tools are also rotating, all of which have their own useful needs in many match-ups. I'm not even sure how this deck will look post-rotation, or if it will even exist. It might soon turn into a deck that uses Joltik and Eelektrik to power up other attackers with the new Canari being the engine of the deck, in a similar with to Dawn for Dawn Zard.

14) Flareon ex/Noctowl

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 25th

Total Price: $44.38

Cards Rotating: 11 (18.33%)

• 1 Pidgey
• 1 Pidgeot ex
• 2 Jet Energy
• 1 Iono
• 4 Nest Ball
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 1 Vitality Band

Eevee-Box, or Flareon Owls, or whatever this is called, actually doesn't lose much to rotation which is always good news. Sure the 1-0-1 Pidgeot ex line is gone, but some lists don't even use it anyway! Jet is another one that I don't see many lists using. Iono can easily be swapped for Judge so you still have ways to disrupt your opponents.

The biggest lost will be Nest Ball. You still have a lot of outs to bench stuff like Fan Rotom, Eevee or Hoothoot, especially with Poke Pad releasing soon but now the deck won't have the easiest of times to bench something like Wellspring Mask Ogerpon ex, Terapagos ex, Fezandipiti ex or Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex which means you will have to rely on either Tera Orb or Ultra Ball, which is not what this deck wants as it doesn't like discarding cards.

13) Tera Box

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 42nd

Total Price: $38.13

Cards Rotating: 9 (15%)

• 1 Iron Bundle
• 1 Ditto
• 1 Mew ex
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 4 Nest Ball
• 1 Earthen Vessel

For Tera Box, you can pretty much just copy and paste whatever I just said for Flareon/Noctowl. The funny thing is, the only thing both decks share that they are losing is the Nest Ball. Tera Orb isn't the best like-for-like replacement as it cannot search out stuff like Lillie's Clefairy ex or Fezandipiti ex. 

I do see Tera Box still being relevant in the meta as it won't lose much anyway. If anything, it might evolve to add more stuff. We could see a mix of Tera and Mega Box in here as you do have Mega Signal to search out stuff like Mega Absol ex or Mega Mawile ex. It's still a good deck with loads of attackers! One of which won't be around is Mew ex.

12) Mega Lopunny ex/Dusknoir

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 28th

Total Price: $40.52

Cards Rotating: 14 (23.33%)

• 1 Pidgey
• 1 Pidgeotto
• 1 Pidgeot ex
• 1 Klefki
• 1 Ditto
• 2 Iono
• 2 Nest Ball
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 4 Jet Energy

Another new deck that showed up with the arrival of Phantasmal Flames is Mega Lopunny ex/Dusknoir! It looks just like the old Terapagos ex/Dusknoir deck that first showed up in Stellar Crown, with many of the same pieces in the deck, the Dusk line, the Pidgeot line, Fez and 4 Rare Candies.

But come rotation, the deck does lose a lot of useful stuff. The whole Pidgeot ex line will be gone but perhaps the biggest loss will be Klefki. Without Klefki, decks can simply shove in a Psyduck and know, unless it gets gusted up, we won't be able to use our Dusclops or Dusknoir for the games. The other big loss is Jet Energy. The deck works so well because Hilda gets you Mega Lopunny ex and Jet Energy to get that 230 damage on the board out of nowhere. These two cards being rotated will change how this deck looks come April.

11) Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 21st

Total Price: $38.27

Cards Rotating: 19 (31.67%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 1 Slither Wing
• 1 Mew ex
• 1 Squawkabilly ex
• 4 Professor Sada's Vitality
• 1 Penny
• 4 Pokémon Catcher
• 4 Nest Ball
• 3 Earthen Vessel

The big bad Bolt is still around....but not for much longer? Raging Bolt ex doesn't rotate, Teal Mask Ogerpon ex doesn't rotate, so why did I put in in the extinct distinction? Well this version of Raging Bolt will be gone. Quite simply, losing Professor Sada's Vitality might be a bit too much for this deck. 

Sure you still have Crispin and can probably play 4 of it for this deck going forward, but have one extra attachment is nothing compared to 2 extra attachments. The deck might now need to rely on stuff like Glass Trumpet to keep the energy attachments going for Raging Bolt ex to hit as much damage as possible. So it can still survive but not having Sada will hurt the deck a lot. Also losing Nest Ball AND Earthen Vessel is a big hit! Slither Wing rotating means you now don't have an answer to Pikachu ex.

10) Alakazam/Dudunsparce

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 50th

Total Price: $23.24

Cards Rotating: 4 (6.67%)

• 1 Jet Energy
• 1 Tulip
• 2 Nest Ball

Probably the best budget deck in the game right now and here is the scary part, the deck loses almost nothing to rotation. Jet energy? Not much of a loss to be honest, it's there to help you get out of retreat lock and confusion stuff, and you can keep re-using it with Dudunsparce. Tulip? Sure that might be the biggest loss for the deck but there are many other replacements for it.

As for Nest Ball? Losing another out to Fan Rotom or Abra isn't so bad, but losing the out to get Fezandipiti ex will hurt the deck as you can't really afford to play Ultra Ball in this deck. The name of the game for this deck is to keep what you have in hand, not throw it. So there is no real ways to just get a Fez down for this deck apart from drawing into it. But other than that, this deck should thrive in rotation, especially with Iono gone which is great news for Alakazam, and with Klefki gone, Psyduck can help to make sure Dusk bombs won't hurt the deck.

9) N's Zoroark

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 239th

Total Price: $57.52

Cards Rotating: 18 (30%)

• 2 Toedscool
• 2 Toedscruel
• 2 Iono
• 1 Arven
• 1 Penny
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 2 Super Rod
• 1 Pal Pad
• 1 Nest Ball
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 2 Artazon

30% looks like a big number, enough to kill off any deck but I don't think that will be the case for N's Zoroark ex. Losing Toedscruel is fine as Gholdengo ex is rotating. But losing Arven, Iono, Artazon, Super Rod and TM Evo is huge, these are all great consistency card for this deck. Arven and Iono will likely be replaced by cards with similar effects but they won't offer the same pros as having an item and TM Evo for this deck, as you want to get your Zoroarks on board ASAP.

If anything, N's Zoroark might just get a bit stronger come rotation because of the inclusion of the new N's Zekrom from the upcoming Heroes Ascended mini-set. And since Zoroark is a Trade deck, you're not too fussed about throwing some consistency cards once you set up so a lot of the rotating cards will likely make way for similiar cards. The ones that don't have a good replacement is Counter Catcher and Pal Pad.

8) Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 58th

Total Price: $41.38

Cards Rotating: 18 (30%)

• 1 Iron Bundle
• 4 Arven
• 3 Iono
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 2 Nest Ball
• 1 Energy Search
• 1 Super Rod
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 1 Technical Machine: Devolution
• 1 Artazon

This deck is still around but for a deck that doesn't really lose any of it's Pokemon line, Grimm sure loses a lot from consistency cards. Arven has been key for most of it's game to get TM Evo going Turn 1, Secret Box mid game or TM Devo in the late game, and yes, all of those cards except Secret Box will be rotating. In fact, I'm not even sure the deck might play Secret Box as it'll be a lot harder to find it without Arven but there is a like-for-like replacement in Team Rocket's Petrel. 

Nest Ball won't be a big loss for the deck with the new Poke Pad likely to replace it. Counter Catcher is a big loss for the deck, this deck does like to play from behind and losing that and Iono will hurt that gameplan, as mentioned previously for Dragapult decks too and as I will for Pult and Garde decks coming after this. Marnie's Grimmsnarl will look a lot different come rotation but it should still be a factor.

7) Ceruledge ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 77th

Total Price: $26.50

Cards Rotating: 13 (21.67%)

• 1 Squawkabilly ex
• 2 Jet Energy
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 1 Professor's Research
• 4 Nest Ball
• 2 Earthen Vessel
• 1 Pal Pad
• 1 Super Rod

Ceruledge isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Sure, it loses Squawkabilly ex which means it can't have explosive Turn 1s in combination with Carmine. Sure it loses mobility cards like Jet and Turo, but in all fairness, they aren't all that bad. In fact, I think most of the card this deck loses can be easily replaced except for one.

The big one being Pal Pad. This deck does like to run though the deck quickly, which means you often have to discard important supporters early on, be it Briar or Boss and losing Pal Pad will make it a bit harder to recover those cards. There are some Pokemon that can recover trainer cards but this being an aggro deck, you just want to be attacking all the time. Losing Vessel does hurt a lot too as you won't be able to throw away as many energies as you'd probably like. But the core part of the deck is still in tact so there's still hope for the Ceruledge believers. 

6) Mega Box

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 53rd

Total Price: $59.20

Cards Rotating: 18 (30%)

• 4 Arven
• 3 Penny
• 2 Iono
• 2 Nest Ball
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 1 Earthen Vessel
• 2 Bravery Charm
• 2 Technical Machine: Turbo Energize
• 1 Town Store

30% is a big number for a deck that recently showed up with the release of Mega Evolutions! Mega Box does get badly hit by rotation with losing one of it's main engines, Arven + TM Turbo Energize. It's what the deck wants to see pretty much every game in Turn 1 going 2nd. And it's not just the starting bit, the ability to take hits will take a hit as well (no pun intended) by losing Bravery Charm and also Penny.

But both Mega Absol ex and Mega Kangaskhan are just too good to ignore. This version of Mega Box might not exist for much longer but I can still see both of them being big players in the game for the next 2 years. Khan just has a great ability and can be a tanky deck with Bouffalant and find a different way to charge energies. As for Absol, the next best option is likely the Toxtricity Box for it, or the deck might just thrive on with a combination of Toxtricty, Crispin and whatever it may be!

5) Gardevoir ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 46th

Total Price: $52.31

Cards Rotating: 28 (46.67%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 3 Ralts
• 2 Kirlia
• 2 Gardevoir ex
• 1 Drifloon
• 1 Scream Tail
• 1 Mew ex
• 4 Iono
• 2 Arven
• 1 Professor's Research
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 3 Earthen Vessel
• 2 Nest Ball
• 1 Counter Catcher
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Bravery Charm
• 1 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 1 Artazon

Well, thankfully it's time has finally come. Gardevoir ex will rotate in the upcoming rotation so this deck is gone. There's not really much for me to say about it. I will touch on Jellicent ex in the next entry. As for Mega Diancie ex, it could still work as it only needs 2 Psychic energies to do 240 damage but getting those energies consistently might be an issue now that there is no Psychic Recharge.

Munkidori will still thrive, just not with Gardevoir. It's likely new best home is either Marnie's Grimmsnarl with Froslass, just Froslass itself, Toxtricity Box or some sort of Khan tanky-style deck. I'm glad to see it gone, this deck just kept getting way too much help honestly, it was getting annoying to see.

4) Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 10th

Total Price: $58.62

Cards Rotating: 24 (40%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 2 Ralts
• 1 Kirlia
• 2 Gardevoir ex
• 1 Mew ex
• 1 Scream Tail
• 4 Iono
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 3 Earthen Vessel
• 2 Nest Ball
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 1 Super Rod
• 2 Bravery Charm
• 2 Artazon

Same as above, this deck is finally rotating, thank god. Why was Gardevoir ex good you might wonder? Well it has one of the best abilities in the game. I do like decks that can accelerate energies (Malamar, Welder and Arceus VSTAR to name a few) and because there are so many good Psychic attackers, you can pretty much pick and choose how to attack. And you don't even need to take KOs because of Munkidori which is why this, as some say, is the best comeback deck in the game.

As for Jellicent ex, it will still be an annoying force to deal with in the game. It will need to find a new home and early signs point to it potentially being Dragapult ex or Blaziken ex. 

3) Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 5th

Total Price: $56.89

Cards Rotating: 28 (46.67%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 3 Charmander
• 2 Charmeleon
• 2 Charizard ex
• 2 Pidgey
• 1 Pidgeotto
• 2 Pidgeot ex
• 1 Chi-Yu
• 1 Klefki
• 2 Iono
• 2 Arven
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 2 Counter Catcher
• 2 Super Rod
• 2 Technical Machine: Evolution
• 1 Defiance Band
• 1 Mesagoza
• 1 Artazon

While I'm glad to see Gardevoir finally rotate, this one makes me sad to see leaving the format. Charizard ex and Pidgeot ex, a deck I've played almost non-stop for the last 2 years. Sometimes the BDIF, sometimes unplayable which is why I like it more than Gardevoir, you just never know what you'll get. 

Charizard ex has amazing ability, charging 3 Fire energies onto the board, and to anyone. Pidgeot just finds anything you want. There will still be a Charizard in the format in Mega Charizard X and also the upcoming Mega Charizard Y, but they both will not have the advantage of using Infernal Reign from Tera Charizard ex (They can use Oricorio ex at least). Since the main attacker and engine is rotating, the whole deck is done for. I mean almost half the deck is rotating anyway! It's not the biggest number on this list though.

2) Dragapult ex/Dusknoir

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 2nd

Total Price: $49.34

Cards Rotating: 13 (21.67%)

• 1 Hawlucha
• 4 Iono
• 1 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 3 Counter Catcher
• 1 Nest Ball
• 3 Luminous Energy

Dragapult ex is already one of the best decks in the format and the scary part is, while it's rivals Gardevoir ex, Charizard ex and Gholdengo ex are all rotating, Dragapult ex is here to stay. It doesn't lose much but what it does lose is it's ability to play the comeback games. With Iono and Counter Catcher gone, Pult decks won't be able to rely on sitting behind a Budew to make a comeback anymore.

But that's not the only painful loss, the other being Luminous Energy. It helps to pay one of Dragapult's awkward attack cost and can also be used for Munkidori. Now the deck will have to rely on manual attachments of basic energies to get those going. But with already a stable baseline, I expect Dragapult to still be the biggest threat going into the new rotation. But no fear 70 HP and 210 HP buddies, Hawlucha is gone so you're safe.

1) Gholdengo ex/Lunatone

Best Finish at Stuttgart Regional: 3rd

Total Price: $50.21

Cards Rotating: 29 (48.33%) - Soon to be Extinct

• 4 Gimmighoul
• 4 Gholdengo ex
• 4 Arven
• 2 Professor Turo's Scenario
• 4 Super Energy Retreival
• 4 Nest Ball
• 3 Earthen Vessel
• 1 Super Rod
• 1 Vitality Band
• 2 Artazon

And to answer your question, well Kash who is the most affected by rotation? Gholdengo/Lunatone. But that's more because Gholdengo ex is rotating. And it's not just the main attacker that is gone, the engine of the deck is also gone. Arven? Gone! Super Energy Retreival? Gone! Earthern Vessel? Gone! Nest Ball? Gone! 

What does it mean for the rest of the deck? Well Lunatone and Solrock is such an amazing engine for decks that will live on, be it with Ceruledge ex, Mega Lucario ex, or whatever else people might want to crack it with. Genesect ex might sadly be going back in the binder unless something really good shows up for it to be relevant again.

Well that's all the deck but now time to do some comparisons because looking at numbers are fun!

Decks that are least to most affected by rotation

1. Alakazam/Dudunsparce - 6.67%
2. Tera Box - 15%
3. Mega Venusaur ex - 16.67%
4. Mega Sharpedo ex/Toxtricity - 16.67%
5. Cynthia's Garchomp ex - 18.33%
6. Ethan's Typhlosion - 18.33%
7. Flareon ex/Noctowl - 18.33%
8. Ceruledge ex - 21.67%
9. Dragapult ex/Dusknoir - 21.67%
10. Mega Lopunny ex/Dusknoir - 23.33%
11. Dragapult ex - 26.67%
12. Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant - 28.33%
13. Dragapult ex/Blaziken ex - 30%
14. Joltik Box - 30%
15. N's Zoroark ex - 30%
16. Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass - 30%
17. Mega Box - 30%
18. Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex - 31.67%
19. Charizard ex/Noctowl - 33.33%
20. Dragapult ex/Charizard ex - 35%
21. Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box - 36.67%
22. Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex - 40%
23. Gardevoir ex - 46.67%
24. Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex - 46.67%
25. Gholdengo ex/Lunatone - 48.33%

And the prices of these decks:

1. Cynthia's Garchomp ex - $17.66
2. Alakazam/Dudunsparce - $23.24
3. Mega Venusaur ex - $26.06
4. Ceruledge ex - $26.50
5. Charizard ex/Noctowl - $35.45
6. Tera Box - $38.13
7. Raging Bolt ex/Teal Mask Ogerpon ex - $38.27
8. Mega Sharpedo ex/Toxtricity - $40.33
9. Mega Lopunny ex/Dusknoir - $40.52
10. Mega Kangaskhan ex/Bouffalant - $40.91
11. Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex/Froslass - $41.38
12. Dragapult ex/Charizard ex - $41.39
13. Flareon ex/Noctowl - $44.38
14. Dragapult ex - $46.17
15. Joltik Box - $46.97
16. Ethan's Typhlosion - $48.05
17. Dragapult ex/Blaziken ex - $48.16
18. Dragapult ex/Dusknoir - $49.34
19. Gholdengo ex/Lunatone - $50.21
20. Gardevoir ex - $52.31
21. Charizard ex/Pidgeot ex - $56.89
22. N's Zoroark ex - $57.52
23. Gardevoir ex/Jellicent ex - $58.62
24. Mega Box - $59.20
25. Gholdengo ex/Joltik Box - $63.05

First of all can I just say that 72% of these decks all cost $50 or less to build! If ever there was any proof to how aforable and easy it is to get into the game right now, this is it! And some of these decks might be a lot cheaper if they weren't playing the almost $8 Psyduck (which used to be around $20). 

And sure enough, the most expensive decks are the ones that are the most succesful (Garde, Gholdengo, Mega Box, Zard), which just makes sense to me but the fact that the most expensive deck on here is only $63 is saying something. Thanks for reading!