How To Play A Dragapult Ex Deck In Pokemon TCG – TheGamer

Sneaking in from Galar, the Stealth Pokemon, Dragapult, is ready to make its mark in the Pokemon TCG. Debuting in the Twilight Masquerade expansion, Dragapult ex brings overwhelming attacks that are sure to spook your opponents. If you're looking for a deck that will dominate your local Pokemon League but don't want to play the Charizard ex archetype, Dragapult ex may be the answer.

Dragapult ex takes a little time to set up, and it can snowball through the competition once it's running. So if you've got the patience to set up your big play, we've got your guide!

Pokemon (20)

Dreepy, TWM 79 (4)

Drakloak, TWM 80 (4)

Dragapult ex, TWM 81 (3)

Natu, PAR 71 (2)

Xatu, PAR 71 (2)

Manaphy, BRS 41 (1)

Tatsugiri, TWM 82 (1)

Rotom V, CRZ 45 (1)

Lumineon V, BRS 40 (1)

Radiant Alakazam, SIT 59 (1)

Trainers (33)

Arven (4)

Iono (3)

Boss's Orders (2)

Buddy-Buddy Poffin (4)

Ultra Ball (3)

Nest Ball (3)

Earthen Vessel (2)

Rare Candy (2)

Temple of Sinnoh (2)

Super Rod (1)

Scoop Up Cyclone (1)

Forest Seal Stone (1)

Technical Machine: Devolution (1)

Technical Machine: Evolution (1)

Rescue Board (1)

Counter Catcher (1)

Handy Fan (1)

Energy (7)

Fire Energy (3)

Psychic Energy (4)

Dragapult ex can be built several different ways , and does well sharing the spotlight with other strong ex Pokemon. This deck list focuses on Dragapult ex.

Dragapult ex is flexible enough to be mixed with very different cards. It's seen play with Pidgeot, Comfey draw engines, and even Charizard ex.

Dragapult ex is the backbone of your deck: with 320 HP it can withstand almost any attack, and then respond with its Phantom Dive attack for outstanding damage.

Fire & Psychic

Phantom Dive

200

Put 6 damage counters on your opponent's Benched Pokmon in any way you like.

Phantom Dive is Dragapult ex's primary attack. It hits the Active Pokemon for 200 damage, plus 60 more on your opponent's Bench. You can use this to weaken the next big threat, or to knock out a weakened or Basic Pokemon on the Bench.

In two turns, Dragapult ex can deal 400 damage to your opponent's Active Pokemon, which is more than enough to two-hit KO any Pokemon. Overkill can be an issue, so several other cards can be included to mitigate it by moving damage counters between Pokemon.

This build doesn't have much spare energy or ways to bring them back from the discard pile, so Radiant Greninja is out and Radiant Alakazam is in. Radiant Alakazam's ability, Painful Spoons, allows you to move two damage counters off of any one of your opponent's Pokemon onto another.

If your opponent's Charizard ex has 20 damage counters on it and only needs 33 to be knocked out, Painful Spoons allows you to move two damage counters onto a Benched Pokemon. Or, if your opponent's active Pokemon only has 20 HP left, move two damage counters onto it to knock it out before attacking the next one.

Tatsugiri is a wonderful early-game support Pokemon. When you play it in your active spot you'll be able to search your top six cards for a Supporter every turn, giving you plenty of time and resources to setup your Dragapult ex on the Bench.

Your best Supporter card to find will usually be Arven, which can find the Rare Candy you need to get Dragapult ex into play more quickly, along with a variety of useful Pokemon Tools. Use this to grab a Rescue Board to make it easier to retreat your Active Pokemon, or a Forest Seal Stone to search for any card you need.

Scoop Up Cyclone is an excellent choice for your Dragapult ex's ACE SPEC card. It allows you to scoop your Dragapult ex when it has enough damage counters that the next attack will KO it, denying your opponent two Prize cards.

If you have a Drakloak on your bench with some Energy already attached, you can then progress it to the Active slot, evolve into the same Dragapult you just scooped, and continue attacking.

Dragapult ex takes a little time to set up, so you'll need to protect your Dreepy while you finish preparations. Tatsugiri is an excellent first Active Pokemon, because it allows you to search the top six cards of your deck for a Supporter card to get the deck rolling, and at one Prize you can afford to trade it after a couple of turns.

Using Buddy-Buddy Poffins and Nest Balls, search for your Dreepy, Xatu, and Radiant Alakazam. You'll want to evolve all of your Dreepy and at least one Xatu early, because Drakloak will be your main draw engine and Xatu will let you play a second (or third!) Basic Psychic Energy each turn.

If your Benched Pokemon are reasonably safe, you can hold off on evolving Drakloak in order to keep using its ability. Manaphy can help protect them on the Bench, keeping your Drakloak engines going until you're ready to evolve one and attack.

Dragapult ex does not deal damage to Benched Pokemon, it places damage counters. This is a fine distinction, but it means Manaphy will not protect Benched Pokemon from the effects of Dragapult ex's Phantom Dive attack.

Once your Dragapult ex has a Psychic and a Fire energy attached you can start swinging strategically. Be aware of your opponent's Pokemon and their total HP, using Radiant Alakazam to move damage counters away from the Active Pokemon if your next attack can still KO it, or onto it to score a KO before attacking.

Technical Machine: Devolution can heavily disrupt decks that rely on Rare Candy. Plus, if you put enough damage counters on your opponent's Benched Pokemon to KO the Basic Pokemon they evolved from, you can use Devolution to secure multiple KOs in one turn.

Dragapult ex has 320 HP, which requires more damage than most Pokemon can deal in a single turn. If it takes enough damage to be knocked out on your opponent's next turn, you can use Scoop Up Cyclone to put it back into your hand, move a Drakloak to the Active position, and evolve it to start attacking again fresh.

This deck really doesn't have a backup plan, relying on Dragapult ex and the occasional Devolution to secure KOs. Once you're set up for that you'll mostly be playing to disrupt your opponent, using Boss's Orders to secure strategic knock outs.

Manaphy is a popular Pokemon to protect Benched Pokemon from taking damage, but its ability does not stop Dragapult ex's damage counters. However, Mist Energy prevents you from placing those damage counters and protects the attached Pokemon from Devolution. The more popular Dragapult ex is in your area, the more likely your opponents are to include a couple of Mist Energies as a counterplay.

Painful Spoons is not an attack, so Radiant Alakazam can still place damage counters on Pokemon with Mist Energy attached.

Decks that threaten Dragapult ex the most are ones capable of outpacing it by taking one-hit knock outs, such as Arceus/Giratina VSTAR. Once these decks get running you'll struggle to keep up with them, but only Giratina VSTAR's Star Requiem VSTAR Power will be able to secure an OHKO on your Dragapult ex.

Your best bet may be to take down a Giratina VSTAR as early as possible and then keep putting on pressure.

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How To Play A Dragapult Ex Deck In Pokemon TCG - TheGamer