Looking back at 2017-18 Season (Local, International & Personal)

The new rotation is underway which means everything changes yet again. Gone are staple cards like Ultra Ball, Guzma and Zoroark-GX and in comes Cherish Ball, Reset Stamp and Naganadel-GX to potentially take their place? But before moving on to the new format, I will look back at the previous format with some fun (potentially useless) stats for those who might be interested, with regards to the international scene and also our local scene in Singapore from all events (except League Cups and SPE) with stats for players and decks. For local stats, it's only for games I was at as I have no records for the ones I missed (and I missed quite a number of games during SUM-UNB format).

For International, it'll be for Championship Points scored during big international events (League Cup, SPE, Regionals and Internationals) to show which decks did well during which quarter/format.

I'll also put up some of my own personal stats from decks I've played during the 2018-2019 season, and some fun stats on who I did well against or badly against (deck and player). 

International Scene Stats

SUM to CES Format

Decks
Decks/CP/Placements/Final App/Final Win

Rayquaza-GX/Vikavolt		6221	130	60		31	17
Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX		5318	132	54		30	12
Buzzwole/Garbodor		4406	77	46		24	14
Necrozma-GX/Malamar		4350	83	35		20	10
Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX		3136	54	22		11	5
Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar		1394	35	16		9	3
Zoroark-GX/Golisopod-GX		1279	30	15		8	6
Tapu Koko/Malamar		1017	25	14		6	5
DM Necrozma-GX/Magnezone		847	20	9		8	3
Metagross-GX		828	20	9		4	1

This format was dominated early on by VikaRay before the emergence of Buzz/Garb. That itself would see ZoroRoc show up and thus the early triangle was complete with Malamar featuring consistently during the quarter.

SUM to LOT Format

Decks

Decks/CP/Placements/Final App/Final Win

Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel		6218	100	55		33	16
Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX		4483	90	54		29	15
Zoroark-GX/Decidueye-GX		3413	45	25		9	3
Necrozma-GX/Malamar		2361	43	21		17	9
Granbull		2093	25	14		9	3
Lost March		1986	43	24		9	8
Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX		1459	26	14		6	5
Gardevoir-GX		1375	24	11		6	2
Zoroark-GX/Control		1355	9	2		2	2
Passimian		1321	18	10		6	3

Blacephalon-GX was released in Lost Thunder and took over almost right away and it would end up dominating most of the quarter with Zoroark keep track with both the Lycanroc variant and the Decidueye variant having it's day in the sun with the emergence of Alolan Ninetales-GX to help Stage 2 pokemon. New decks such as Granbull and Lost March would feature strongly too.

SUM to TEU Format

Decks
Decks/CP/Placements/Final App/Final Win

Zapdos/Jirachi		19076	274	121		63	30
Pikachu & Zekrom		17222	232	123		79	47
Zoroark/Lycanroc		12891	199	97		48	26
Ultra Necrozma/Malamar		7835	127	48		11	6
Blacephalon/Naganadel		4870	95	50		28	13
Regigigas/Stall		1873	26	16		10	4
Celebi & Venusaur		1086	26	13		4	2
Zoroark/Control		1044	17	9		6	4
Rayquaza/Vikavolt		729	9	5		3	1
Quagsire/Naganadel		679	16	5		3	3

Team Up brought along the emergence of not just one but two incredibly strong Lighting decks in Zapdos and Pikachu & Zekrom-GX, both of which would find themselves in the same deck at times. ZoroRoc once again found answers to the new threats in the form of Alolan Muk while Ultra Necrozma made a return to prominence.

SUM to UNB Format

Decks
Decks/CP/Placements/Final App/Final Win

Reshiram & Charizard-GX		9614	177	87		53	28
Pikachu & Zekrom-GX		6722	118	63		37	18
Zapdos/UB		5871	100	56		22	14
Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX		3385	58	28		12	5
Weezing		2916	138	24		11	5
Blacephalon UNB		1688	28	15		4	1
Ultra Necromza-GX/Malamar		1627	27	9		3	0
Zoroark-GX/Dewgong		1546	17	10		6	5
Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel		1544	30	15		8	5
Regigigas/Stall		1014	12	5		2	2

Unbroken Bonds gave up some fire power, no pun intended. Fire decks took over and it was the new deck Reshiram & Charizard that would end up as BDIF in this format, often times finding itself in the square with PikaZek, Zapdos and Zoroark who now had Persian as it's preferred partner in crime. The new Weezing deck also feature strongly in the one format it has Double Colourless Energy and Counter Energy to use. The new Blacephalon also did better than it's big brother but that will change eventually.

Overall

Decks
Decks/CP/Placements/Final App/Final Win

Zapdos		24947	374	177		85	44
Pikachu & Zekrom-GX		23944	350	186		116	65
Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX		23041	465	233		107	53
Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel		12632	225	120		69	34
Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar		11283	197	75		24	9
Reshiram & Charizard-GX		9614	177	87		53	28
Rayquaza-GX/Vikavolt		7766	151	69		35	18
Necrozma-GX/Malamar		7200	136	59		38	19
Buzzwole/Garbodor		5535	100	63		33	18
Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX		4986	89	41		19	11

If not for it's disappearance from the meta in the final quarter, Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX would have been the best deck CP wise from my records for the entire 2018-2019 season. It was always strong in the meta no matter what it came up against.

Zapdos having the highest overall just shows how good and how popular it was when it was released, along with Pikachu & Zekrom-GX. They may have only featured in two quarters but still dominated enough to take the top two spots here. Old favourites and possible top contenders in the new format, Blacephalon-GX and Ultra Necrozma-GX, featured prominently during the year.  VikaRay's positioning shows how dominant it was early on as it scored most of it's points from the first quarter while the likes of Necrozma-GX would feature strongly for almost all of the quarters.

Local Scene Stats

SUM to CES Format
Decks

1. Rayquaza-GX/Vikavolt (22 Top 4s, 5 Wins)
2. Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX (16 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
3. Zygarde-GX/Lycanroc-GX (14 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
4. Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX (11 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
5. DM Necrozma-GX/Magnezone (7 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
6. Necrozma-GX/Malamar (6 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
7. Passimian/Tapu Koko (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
8. Zoroark-GX/Control (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Beast Box (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Zoroark-GX/Golisopod-GX (3 Top 4s, 0 Wins)

Players (Myself -> 12 Top 4s, 5 Wins)

1. Titally (10 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
2. Rauf (9 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
3. Andy (8 Top 4s, 1 Win)
4. Anselm (5 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
5. Eugene (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
6. Aidyl (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
7. Walter (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
8. Liang Jun (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Rizduan (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Kian Chong (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)

VikaRay would dominate the local scene as it did internationally. ZoroRoc did just as well here as it did elsewhere. BuzzGarb and Tapu Koko/Malamar did not feature much in our local scene. Zygarde/Lycanroc continued to do well in Singapore as it had been in the previous format as did DM Necrozma/Magnezone. 

SUM to LOT Fromat
Decks

1. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel (19 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
2. Zoroark-GX/Decidueye-GX (18 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
3. Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX (10 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
4. Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX (10 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
5. Lost March (7 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
6. Gardevoir-GX (6 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
7. Tapu Koko/Malamar (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
8. Tapu Koko/Weavile (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Passimian (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Granbull (6 Top 4s, 0 Wins)

Players (Myself -> 16 Top 4s, 3 Wins)

1. Eujun (9 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
2. Klive (7 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
3. Vincent (6 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
4. Eugene (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
5. Anselm (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
6. Luke (6 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
7. Bertrand (5 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
8. Che Yu (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Liang Jun (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Christopher (5 Top 4s, 0 Wins)

What did not change comparing results internationally and locally for this format is that Blacephalon, ZoroRoc and ZoroDeciTales. Granbull had a better showing here than it did elsewhere as was Lost March. Spread decks also ended up doing well here when compared to results overseas. One deck that did well overseas that didn't feature much in Singapore during this time was Psychic/Malamar.

SUM to TEU Format
Decks

1. Zapdos (24 Top 4s, 5 Wins)
2. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX (15 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
3. Charizard TEU (13 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
4. Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX (9 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
5. Regigigas/Stall (8 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
6. Alolan Exeggutor (7 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
7. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar (6 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
8. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Giratina/Malamar (4 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
10. Ampharos-GX (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)

Players (Myself-> 17 Top 4s, 6 Wins)

1. Liang Jun (8 Top 4s, 1 Win)
2. Jun Hao (7 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
3. Qi Wen (7 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
4. Che Yu (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
5. Aidyl (6 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
6. Bertrand (5 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
7. Anselm (5 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
8. Rauf (5 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
9. Eugene (4 Top 4s, 1 Wins)
10. Marcus (3 Top 4s, 2 Wins)

Lighting struck Singapore as it would almost everywhere else with Zapdos and PikaZek being the two best decks during this time. The one big difference from results here compared to internationally was the new Charizard featuring strongly in the entire quarter (I might be partially blamed for that as I would play Charizard for the most part of this format). Alolan Exeggutor and Ampharos-GX were another two decks that did well in the local scene.

SUM to UNB Format

Deck

1. Reshiram & Charizard-GX (12 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
2. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX (7 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
3. Blacephalon UNB (6 Top 4s, 3 Wins)
4. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts (6 Top 4s, 1 Win)
5. Zoroark-GX/Dewgong (5 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
6. Gardevoir & Sylveon-GX (5 Top 4s, 1 Win)
7. Quagsire/Naganadel (4 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
8. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
9. Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Zapdos/Jolteon-GX (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)

Players (Myself -> 10 Top 4s, 2 Wins)

1. Luke (6 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
2. Eugene (5 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
3. Billy (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
4. Jun Shien (4 Top 4s, 1 Win)
5. Wei Kit (3 Top 4s, 1 Win)
6. Gordon (3 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
7. Kwok Hoe (3 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
8. Jun Kai (3 Top 4s, 0 Wins)
9. Rizduan (2 Top 4s, 1 Win)
10. Keith (2 Top 4s, 1 Win)

So for this one, the results I have won't reflect what happened internationally as I didn't play much of this format due to firstly my exams in May, family matters I had to attend to in June and falling ill in July. ReshiZard was still top dog from the games I played with the new Blacephalon and Gardevoir & Sylveon featuring strongly early on. The lack of Weezing and Zoroark/Persian on here is due to it featuring strongly later on, during the time I took a break from the game.

OVERALL

Decks

1. Zoroark-GX/Lycanroc-GX (35 Top 4s, 10 Wins)
2. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel (28 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
3. Rayquaza-GX/Vikavolt (27 Top 4s, 7 Wins)
4. Zapdos/Jolteon-GX (27 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
5. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX (22 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
6. Buzzwole-GX/Lycanroc-GX (21 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
7. Zoroark-GX/Decidueye-GX (20 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
8. Passimian (17 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
9. Zygarde-GX/Lycanroc (17 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
10. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar (14 Top 4s, 1 Win)

Players (Myself -> 55 Top 4s, 16 Wins)

1. Rauf (22 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
2. Eugene (20 Top 4s, 5 Wins)
3. Titally (19 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
4. Liang Jun (18 Top 4s, 4 Wins)
5. Anselm (17 Top 4s, 7 Wins)
6. Luke (16 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
7. Jun Hao (15 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
8. Aidyl (14 Top 4s, 2 Wins)
9. Bertrand (13 Top 4s, 6 Wins)
10. Che Yu (13 Top 4s, 2 Wins)

ZoroRoc was an easy favourite for many players here as VikaRay, Blacephalon and BuzzRoc were before the lighting decks showed up. Passimian and Zygarde were two local favourite that featured on the list for the overall stats and Charizard just missed out despite scoring most of it results in only the 3rd quarter. And of course Rauf was the top player in Singapore, as he has been for the most part of last year as well when it comes to the local games.

Personal Stats

Some notes:
Deck Types would be Energy (energy acceleration style decks), One Hit (decks that aim to take big hits), Draw Power (consistent decks like Zoroarks), and Spread (need I say more). I never once played a Tank style deck (Green's ReshiZard or CeleSaur) or any of those Stall/Mill/Lock type decks, you'll never see me play those.

Copy -> Deck list were inspired by other players
Own -> My own creation/version of popular decks

So the very first deck I built for the last rotation ended up being my best deck of the entire 2018-2019 season in terms of wins. If you notice, my three most winningest decks are all decks that were never considered meta decks during their existence. Zygarde was my go to deck early on and served me well, giving me my first ever CPs when I finished 7th at a League Challenge.

Charizard was a deck that just appeals to me in so many ways. It's an evolution deck, check. It's an energy accleration deck, double check. It's Charizard of all people, one of my all time favourite pokemon since I first got into it back in the good ol days, triple check! Even though it wasn't very good, I made it my mission to make it good and I think I did just that. 3 event wins, 13 top 4 finishes, and all of that were done mostly in just one quarter. The winning rate would have been a lot better had I not tried a few games with it in the UNB format and ended up with a record of 3 wins and 6 losses. I did take it with me to a Pro Circuit Invitational and made top cut with it!

Ultra Necrozma is one of those decks I'll always fall back to. Like Charizard, I was determined to make it work the moment I saw it. And it did for a while but as my record shows, more losses than wins. And the same is happening in the new rotation sadly.

Due to my time away from the game, I never did get to play more games with ReshiZard which is a shame as I really did enjoy it. I mean it gave me my biggest accomplishment in the game so far, top 8 at the Singapore SPE and also a top 4 finish at the most recent League Challenge. Those were done with the Jirachi/Arcanine version which sadly doesn't quite translate well into the new format with Choice Band gone.

Also a special mention for Zoroark/Deciduye/Ninetales. I'm not too keen on playing Zoroark decks but one that made Decidueye good? I was in! And I had my best win rate with that deck, also getting a top 4 finish with it at an Invitational event.

Just to point out, even though it may seem like I try to play many different kind of decks, there were some popular decks that I never played. BuzzRoc, Blacephalon-GX and Rayquaza-GX to name the more popular ones which is weird considering the latter two are energy acceleration/one hit style decks, which are decks I tend to like more.

Hopefully I'll have more intereting stats to show in the future but I might not be playing much for the next season as I'm stuck to another year of University. I had planned to hopefully play in my first Regional and International next year but those hopes might have to be on hold for the time being. Thanks for reading!

Reshiram & Charizard - Best Deck I ever played so far

Just wanted to do a little recap about a deck that has been near and dear to my heart since it was released and it's Reshiram & Charizard-GX. Main reason for doing this is because the version of the deck I enjoyed playing will no longer be viable in the new format. Like Charizard from Team Up before it, I knew from the moment I saw it, I was going to play that no matter what. Along with Welder, Fire Crystal and Heat Factory Prism and with Kiawe still around for a bit more, I knew I could make it work. I've played Ho-oh-GX before anyway.

But this wasn't like Ho-oh-GX, this was way better. Sure it may be a 3-prize attacker but it can knock out just about anyone and with six energy attached, it will knock everyone out. I've always liked playing decks that has energy acceleration and decks that can do one hit KOs and it's a Charizard card so of course I'm going to like it.

I started testing on it as soon as the proxies were out and my first idea for it was a Fire Box-style deck with the new Arcanine (which would become one of my new favourite cards too), the new Volcanion, Silvally-GX for the basic retreat and Salazzle and Salazzle-GX for draws and the last turn attacker. It didn't work as well as I wanted it to.

My first big event with the deck was the Singapore Pro Circuit Spring season Top 32 invitational event. I had spent $110 the weeks before to get 3 Reshiram & Charizards (which was perfectly timed as the NFA price would rise from $35 to $65 USD). But with the lack of testing due to the event being in the middle of my exam period, I was unprepared and didn't do well even though I started with two byes.

R1: Bye W
R2: Bye W
R3 vs Salazzle Hand Control L
R4 vs Reshiram & Charizard-GX LL
R5 vs Zoroark-GX/Slowking/Persian-GX LL
R6 vs White Kyurem LWW

It was so bad, my first win came in the last round and both times it was because my oppoent, my good friend Shaun, bricked both times. Right after my exams, the focus was straight onto the Singapore SPE, the biggest event I'll attend for this season so I wanted to at least do well. I did do a write up on my story for that event here: Singapore SPE 2019

In short, it was my best performance ever, I surpassed my own target of a Top 16 finish by actually finishing in the top 8 and making my first top cut at a top tier event, and that's after giving 2 wins anyway to two guys who were going for their worlds invite which annoyed me in some ways, 100cp in one event, which is ten times better than any points I've ever scored in any event.

R1 vs Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX WW
R2 vs Zapdos/Ultra Beast LWL
R3 vs Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX LL
R4 vs Gengar & Mimkyu-GX WW
R5 vs Gardevoir-GX/Alolan Ninetales-GX WW
R6 vs Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel WLW
R7 vs Rayquaza-GX/Vikavolt WW
Top 8 vs Nidoqueen/Meganium LWL

The list I played for the SPE was based off an idea from Rukan Shao, utlising 3 Dedenne-GX as the main draw engine of the deck with Jirachi there mainly to search out Guzma, Switch or the first turn Kiawe.

After that event I made some changes and tried a few different ideas. I did try the Green's Exploration version of ReshiZard and 4 Volcanion but that version of the deck just did not suit my style of play, I just couldn't get it rolling. No matter how many games I tried, I struggled with that version of the deck and the struggles have continued into the new format testing. I'll admit that I just have not gotten around figuring the deck out and that is one weak area of mine I plan on working out and hopefully get the better off as I still want to play ReshiZard in whatever version it's viable in.

The new list was made with help from Luke Morsa who suggested the 2-2 line of Arcanine to help with certain matches and it did. I liked the new version so much that from June to early August, I would exclusively play that list (other than a few days when I foolishly tried a Zoroark/Dewgong deck), with little to no changes to the deck as I felt it was close to perfect for how I wanted to play ReshiZard with Arcanine being the charger and sometimes the GX killer, and more importantly, the Stall killer. Just having Arcanine improved that matchup by miles for me.

From the five events I played with this list (yes only 5, as I missed a lot of games in May and July due to exams, illness and other personal stuff), the record with that list was 13/3/2 in 18 games, which would give me a 72.22% winning rate. I used the same list for the June Pokebeach PTCGO online monthly tournament and it was one of my better performances, it got me all the way up to my 2nd Finals appearance, but just like the first one, I missed out on the win.

R1 vs Reshiram & Charizard-GX WLW
R2 vs Blissey WW
R3 vs Bye (No Show) W
R4 vs Reshiram & Charizard-GX/Zoroark-GX/Slowking WW
R5 vs Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall LWW
R6 vs Quagsire/Naganadel ID
R7 vs ID
Top 8 vs Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall W
Top 4 vs Bye (No Show) W
Final vs Pikachu & Zekrom-GX LL

And a day before that finals match, I played in our local League Challenge at Project EXT and finally got my first Top 4 finish at a League Challenge, which meant I finally got a stamped promo card!

R1 vs Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX/Naganadel-GX LWW
R2 vs Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX/Naganadel-GX LL
R3 vs Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel WLW
R4 vs Reshiram & Charizard-GX WLW

So the ReshiZard with Arcanine might just be my favourite deck I've played so far, and quite a successful one at it too. Made top 4 cut at a Win-A-Box tournament and I usually don't do well at these events, Top 4 at League Challenge and Top 2 at Pokebeach's monthly tournament. The list I used for those events:


I can easily say that Reshiram & Charizard-GX has been easily my most succesful deck, even though it didn't start so well at the Pro Circuit Invitational. I mean I scored worlds Championship Points in two events with this deck and I rarely ever get CPs at any of the LCs or League Challenges I attend (we don't have that many anyways that's why I'm more of a casual player for now). 110cp with this deck, even though it was in two different "seasons". Hopefully this isn't my only successful deck and that there will be more to come. Would be nice if it was with one of my favourite Pokemon too like Charizard is.

Top Decks at NAIC: CP earned, Rotation effect and Value

Back once again with another small report, this time from this past weekend's North American International Championships (NAIC). Unbroken Bonds cards have been legal for 6 weeks, and now with the most important tournament over for this format, many might start to shift their focus to Worlds format and for this year, the rotation will start right before the Worlds Championship so this was the last big standard event for cards like Zoroark-GX, Guzma to name a few.

I took 12 of the best lists I could find from NAIC 2019 to show how cheap or expensive these decks were if someone were to try it out at their locals before the switch to the new format or also to give an idea which deck may be heavily affected by the upcoming rotation or not. With seven different decks in the top 8, it was a bit easy to figure out which ones to showcase. Also added their CPs from Day 2, placements, and rotation effect on these decks. Prices taken from Troll and Toad, with the lowest rarity in mind. Prices are in USD.

At the end of this review, I'll do a comparison for all the decks based on their CP scored in the first five weeks of the SUM-UNB format, their total value and which decks is most affected by the upcoming August rotation.

Zoroark-GX/Dewgong

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 785cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 3

Rotation Effect: 55%

Pikachu & Zekrom-GX

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 3,201cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 10

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 28

Rotation Effect: 35%

Blacephalon UNB

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 868cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 6

Rotation Effect: 23.33%

Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 617cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 3

Rotation Effect: 25%

Zapdos/Ultra Beasts

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 4,359cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 9

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 35

Rotation Effect: 31.67%

Vileplume/Stall

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 60cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Rotation Effect: 46.67%

Stunfisk/Spiritomb

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Rotation Effect: 43.33%

Reshiram & Charizard-GX

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 6,742cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 12

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 49

Rotation Effect: 23.33%

Weezing

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1,970cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 11

Rotation Effect: 33.33%

Blissey

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 90cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Rotation Effect: 31.67%

Gardevoir-GX

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 60cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Rotation Effect: 43.33%

Tool Drop

CP Earned in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0cp

Tournament Wins in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 5 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Rotation Effect: 36.67%

Comparing all the data above for prices, CP earned, average CP earned and rotation effect:

Deck with the highest value:

1. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - $199.67
2. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - $182.61
3. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - $175.74
4. Tool Drop - $156.24
5. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - $143.65
6. Gardevoir-GX - $117.30
7. Zoroark-GX/Dewgong - $100.96
8. Weezing - $99.82
9. Stunfisk/Spiritomb - $98.79
10. Blacephalon UNB - $77.35
11. Vileplume/Stall - $63.29
12. Blissey - $59.50

Most CP earned after 5 weeks in SUM-UNB format:

1. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - 6,742cp
2. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - 4,359cp
3. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - 3,201cp
4. Weezing - 1,970cp
5. Blacephalon UNB - 868cp
6. Zoroark-GX/Dewgong - 785cp
7. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - 617cp
8. Blissey - 90cp
9. Gardevoir-GX - 60cp
10. Vileplume/Stall - 60cp
11. Stunfisk/Spiritomb - 0cp
12. Tool Drop - 0cp

Decks least/most affected by 2019-2020 rotation:

1. Blacephalon UNB - 23.33%
2. Reshiram & Charizard - 23.33%
3. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - 25%
4. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - 31.67%
5. Blissey - 31.67%
6. Weezing - 33.33%
7. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - 35%
8. Tool Drop - 36.67%
9. Stunfisk/Spiritomb - 43.33%
10. Gardevoir-GX - 43.33%
11. Vileplume/Stall - 46.67%
12. Zoroark-GX/Dewgong - 55%

Any deck with a Jirachi in it has had their value sky-rocketed, with it now at around $27 USD just for one of it. The Green's version of ReshiZard is a lot cheaper than the previous version and is also one of the least affected decks in the upcoming rotation. Weezing still remains as the best budget deck around but both Blacephalon UNB and Blissey could give it a run for it's money soon

Unbroken Bonds format's Top Decks after Week 3 - CP earned, Rotation effect and Value

Back again with another small report, this time from this past weekend's Madison Regional and with Unbroken Bonds cards legal for the 3rd week, people might now be figuring out what works and what is just simply just bad. It is still early days but the recent results might give a better idea of what to expect in the coming weeks and for sure, these decklists might be the ones you'd end up playing with or against in the coming weeks in your locals or possible even Challenges and Cups.

Like before for EUIC, I took the top 15 lists (in my own opinion) from the recent Madison Regional 2019 to show how cheap or expensive these decks were to get if someone was looking to build a new deck, how much Championship Points (CP) they earned and how much these decks will be affected by the upcoming 2019-2020 rotation. 6 of the best GX decks, 6 of the best non-GX decks and I even added 3 more fun rouge ideas at the end that people might want to give a try.

For CP earned, it comes from League Cups recorded in PokeStats and Day 2 for Madison Regional, Top 32 for Sao Paulo and Santa Clara Regional, Top 8 for Sydney Regional, Johannesburg SPE and Singapore SPE. Prices taken from Troll and Toad, with the lowest rarity in mind.

Prices are in USD.

At the end of this review, I'll do a comparison for all the decks based on their CP scored in Day 2, their total value and which decks is most affected by the upcoming August rotation.

GX DECKS
Reshiram & Charizard-GX

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 4,135

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 70

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 8

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 27

Average Points per Placements: 59.07

Rotation Effect: 28.33%

Pikachu & Zekrom-GX

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1,980

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 33

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 6

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 15

Average Points per Placements: 60

Rotation Effect: 31.67%

Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 549

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 10

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 4

Average Points per Placements: 54.9

Rotation Effect: 20%

Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1,661

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 22

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 8

Average Points per Placements: 75.5

Rotation Effect: 55%

Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 517

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 9

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Average Points per Placements: 57.44

Rotation Effect: 18.33%

Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 697

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 11

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 3

Average Points per Placements: 63.36

Rotation Effect: 53.33%

NON-GX DECKS
Zapdos/Ultra Beasts

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2,836

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 46

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 6

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 25

Average Points per Placements: 61.65

Rotation Effect: 30%

Quagsire/Naganadel

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 530

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 10

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Average Points per Placements: 53

Rotation Effect: 35%

Blacephalon UNB

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 696

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 14

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 4

Average Points per Placements: 49.71

Rotation Effect: 18.33%

Weezing

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1,513

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 28

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 9

Average Points per Placements: 54.03

Rotation Effect: 36.67%

Vikavolt UNB

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 185

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 4

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Average Points per Placements: 46.25

Rotation Effect: 26.67%

Granbull

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 317

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 6

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Average Points per Placements: 52.83

Rotation Effect: 36.67%

ROUGE CHOICES
Blissey

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 90

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Average Points per Placements: 45

Rotation Effect: 33.33%

Greninja & Zoroark-GX

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 155

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 2

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 1

Average Points per Placements: 77.5

Rotation Effect: 25%

Nidoqueen/Meganium/Swampert

CP Earned in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 252

Placements in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 5

Wins in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 0

Top 4 finishes in first 3 weeks of SUM-UNB format: 3

Average Points per Placements: 84

Rotation Effect: 21.67%

Comparing all the data above for prices, CP earned, average CP earned and rotation effect:

Deck with the highest value:

1. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - $256.66
2. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - $187.83
3. Blissey - $183.34
4. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - $179.91
5. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - $164.41
6. Blacephalon UNB - $148.40
7. Vikavolt UNB - $130.40
8. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel - $128.55
9. Greninja & Zoroark-GX - $115.44
10. Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall - $100.79
11. Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX - $88.50
12. Weezing - $85.58
13. Quagsire/Naganadel - $71.45
14. Nidoqueen/Meganium - $67.54
15. Granbull - $59.90

Most CP earned after 3 weeks in SUM-UNB format:

1. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - 4,135cp
2. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - 2,836cp
3. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - 1,980cp
4. Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX - 1,661cp
5. Weezing - 1,513cp
6. Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall - 697cp
7. Blacephalon UNB - 696cp
8. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel - 549cp
9. Quagsire/Naganadel - 530cp
10. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - 517cp
11. Granbull - 317cp
12. Nidoqueen/Meganium - 252cp
13. Vikavolt UNB - 185cp
14. Greninja & Zoroark-GX - 155cp
15. Blissey - 90cp

Average CP earned:

1. Nidoqueen/Meganium - 84cp/px
2. Greninja & Zoroark-GX - 77.5cp/px
3. Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX - 75.5cp/px
4. Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall - 63.36cp/px
5. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - 61.65cp/px
6. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - 60cp/px
7. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - 59.07cp/px
8. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - 57.44cp/px
9. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel - 54.9cp/px
10. Weezing - 54.03cp/px
11. Quagsire/Naganadel - 53cp/px
12. Granbull - 52.83cp/px
13. Blacephalon UNB - 49.71cp/px
14. Vikavolt UNB - 46.25cp/px
15. Blissey - 45cp/px

Decks least/most affected by 2019-2020 rotation:

1. Ultra Necrozma-GX/Malamar - 18.33%
2. Blacephalon UNB - 18.33%
3. Blacephalon-GX/Naganadel - 20%
4. Nidoqueen/Meganium - 21.67%
5. Greninja & Zoroark-GX - 25%
6. Vikavolt UNB - 26.67%
7. Reshiram & Charizard-GX - 28.33%
8. Zapdos/Ultra Beasts - 30%
9. Pikachu & Zekrom-GX - 31.67%
10. Blissey - 33.33%
11. Quagsire/Naganadel - 35%
12. Weezing - 36.67%
13. Granbull - 36.67%
14. Lucario & Melmetal-GX/Stall - 53.33%
15. Zoroark-GX/Persian-GX - 55%

As you can see, Reshiram & Charizard-GX has lived up to the hype so far by scoring the most CPs after 3 weeks of games and keeping it's tag as the BDIF but also the most expensive deck to build in the game and by a huge margin (a difference of almost $70). Weezing and ZoroPers are two of the cheaper decks around but have been two of the better decks in the current format so far. While they may have not seen much success as of yet, the likes of Nidoqueen, Vikavolt and Greninja & Zoroark might be better off than some decks come the 2020 rotation, a good sign for the "Tag Team Killers".

I hope this will help to decide your next decks for this current SUM-UNB format and possibly beyond that with the new rotation set to hit as soon as the next set (Unified Minds) is legal for play.

And just for fun, here's my list from the Singapore SPE that I got an 8th place finish with:

Rotation Effect: 35%

Fun Effect: 99.5%