Hi there. In this Pokemon TCG Pocket gaming post, I showcase a Primarina ex deck. As I got lucky with 2 early copies of Primarina ex, I decided to try it out on ranked ladder. I think it is okay up to Ultra Ball Rank 1. Not sure if it go further. (Ultra Ball Rank is a grind and does not interest me.)
Core Cards
Popplio & Brionne
Popplio and Brionne are needed to work your up to Primarina ex. They are okay attackers in the early game.
Primarina ex
Primarina ex is a bulky Stage 2 Water Pokemon with 180 HP. The first attack of Hydro Pump requires 1 Water Energy to deal 40 damage. If there is at least 1 extra Water Energy to Primarina ex then Hydro Pump deals 80 damage. In other words, 2 Water Energy makes Hydro Pump do 80 damage.
The second attack requires 3 Water Energy to deal 100 damage plus heal 20 damage from Primarina ex. This Water attacker is a bulky beatstick.
Rare Candy
Some could say that Rare Candy helps Stage 2 decks while others could say that have this in Pocket ruined the game as people can get fast and lucky starts. With Rare Candy you can skip the Stage 1 evolution and go from Basic Pokemon to the corresponding Stage 2 Pokemon. Note that you cannot evolve a Pokemon on the first turn that the Basic Pokemon is put into play.
Lillie
Lillie is very good for healing your damaged Stage 2 Pokemon. Healing 60 HP is quite a bit.
Hau
Hau is a damage booster supporter for 1 of your Incineroar ex, Primarina ex or Decidueye ex. During this turn add 30 damage to your opponent's Active Pokemon from your Incineroar ex, Primarina ex or Decidueye ex.
Sample Decklist
The decklist I have been using is based on Primarina ex.
Decklist
Pokémon: 6
2 Popplio A3 46
1 Brionne A3 47
2 Primarina ex A3b 24
1 Pyukumuku A3 54
Trainer: 14
2 Professor's Research P-A 7
2 Poké Ball P-A 5
1 Cyrus A2 150
1 Sabrina A1 225
2 Rare Candy A3 144
1 X Speed P-A 2
1 Hau A3b 68
1 Lillie A3 209
2 Giant Cape A2 147
1 Potion P-A 1
The one Pyukumuku is for stalling and for dealing some damage.
There is a different decklist that includes the Greninja line. Maybe that one is better you can theoretically deal more damage with Primarina ex and Greninja. You can also deal with pesky Oricorio walls.
Gameplay/Deck Strategy
The strategy for this deck is pretty simple. Setup Popplio and work your way up to Primarina ex. Once you have Primarina ex then you start attacking.
If you get fast starts with Rare Candy during turn 2 or 3 then you are good.
This deck is capable of comeback wins if the opponent is 1 point away from winning and you have 0 points. Primarina ex is capable of knocking out all of your opponent's Pokemon if they are 100 HP or less. Primarina ex has a good mix of bulky HP and okay firepower.
Advantages
- Primarina ex's 180 HP is a lot.
- Hydro Pump attack on Primarina ex scales well. One Water for 40 damage, two Water Energy for 80 damage.
- Heal 20 damage from Primarina ex's second attack.
- Fairly simple gameplay
- Good against Fire attackers like Incineroar ex
Disadvantages
- Weak to Lightning
- Popplio are vulnerable.
- Centralised attackers in Primarina ex
- Oricorio walls shut this deck down.
- 100 Damage is not really knockout power damage.
Notes
Primarina ex is a big bulky Water attacker. A deck around this does not require Misty. A deck without Misty will not annoy opponents as you are not relying on luck.
When this deck gets going it is difficult for opponents to stop you. Lightning decks do hurt this Water deck and this Primarina ex deck can brick and suffer from slow starts. As Fire attackers including Charizard ex and Flareon ex are kind of popular, running a Water deck such as this is a good choice.
Thank you for reading.