Pokemon TCG Pocket: Best Pikachu ex deck guide

A Pikachu ex deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket offers a fast and aggressive playstyle that can catch your opponents off-guard. Although this deck does not have the highest damage output, it can put pressure right from the beginning and potentially start dealing damage from the second round. If done correctly, the deck can wipe off most basic and Stage one evolution cards before your opponent has managed to fully set up their board.

In this guide, we will discuss the strategy behind the Pikachu ex deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket and how you can use it to easily win some PvP matches.

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Pikachu ex deck guide: Which cards should you use?

Each deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket consists of 20 cards. That said, here are the cards you should put in the Pikachu ex deck for TCG Pocket:

Card	Quantity
Pikachu ex	2
Zapdos ex	2
Poke Ball	2
Professor's Research	2
Giant Cape	2
Dawn	2
Cyrus	2
X Speed	2
Sabrina	2
Red	2

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Pikachu ex deck guide: Strategy and how to play

All Pikachu ex variants from Genetic Apex in the game (Image via The Pokemon Company)

The primary strategy of this Pokemon TCG Pocket Pikachu ex deck is to have three lightning-type cards on the bench to enable maximum damage from Pikachu ex's Circle Circuit attack.

The most interesting aspect about lightning-type cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket is that most cards have only one-energy retreat cost. This is a massive advantage for setting up and switching, especially if you pair it with X Speed. This Item Card reduces the retreat cost by one energy, making most lightning-type cards have free retreats.

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Pokemon TCG Pocket Pikachu ex deck: Best starting hand

Best starting hand for Pikachu ex deck (Image via TPC)

Your best starting hand would be a Zapdos ex in the active spot, Pikachu ex in the bench, Poke Ball and Professor's Research. You should not play Pikachu ex in the active spot right off the bat, since it needs time to set up.

Zapdos ex is one of the best choices for the early-game active slot since it has 130 HP and can tank a lot of damage while you set up the board. Professor's Research is the best Trainer Card during this time as it can draw more cards and let you set up the board better.

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How to play the Pikachu ex deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket?

Pikachu ex needs only two energy, so you can ideally set it up to attack right from your round two. Initially, this card will only do 30 damage and will increase to a maximum hit of 90 if there are three lightning-type cards in your bench.

However, putting Pikachu ex in the active spot too early might not be the best idea in all scenarios, since this will allow opponents to counter-play and knock out this card.

During the normal game, this is the flow that you should look to achieve:

• Put Zapdos ex in the active slot.
• Put Pikachu ex on the bench and look to build its energy.
• You attach one Lighting energy to your active Zapdos ex to apply pressure and damage. This is also to stall enough time to set Pikachu ex up in your bench.
• Once you have three lightning-type cards and have the right setup for Pikachu ex, use X Speed for a free swap and attack with Pikachu ex.
• Use Red if you want to deal 110 damage to ex Pokemon.

Sabrina and Cyrus can force a benched card to the active slot. If you already have a win condition where your next attack will knock out any benched Pokemon, use it to force this swap from your opponent and win the game instantly.

The other scenario during which you can use Sabrina or Cyrus is to save your Pikachu ex or Zapdos ex from being knocked out during the subsequent opponent's turn. In such cases, use these trainer cards to bring a weaker card in the active slot and save yourself instead.

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Counters to Pikachu ex decks in Pokemon TCG Pocket

Machamp ex decks counter Pikachu ex decks (Image via TPC)

Pikachu ex decks are weak against Fighting-type decks in general. The following Pokemon are the best to use:

• Machamp ex
• Marowak ex
• Aerodactyl ex
• Golem
• Gallade ex
• Rampardos
• Garchomp ex
• Lucario ex
• Conkeldurr
• Lycanroc
• Passimian ex

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Check out our other articles on Pokemon TCGP:

• Pokemon TCG Pocket decks tier list
• Pokemon TCGP announces new Trading changes
• What are Pokemon Tools in Pokemon TCGP, and how to use them
• All status conditions explained in Pokemon TCGP
• How to access older packs in Pokemon TCGP