After being tired of showing Midou’s own invention Rocketlock all the corners of the proverbial room, we decided to have a little fun with less competitive deck. I was using the Pokémon I detest the most in the TCG (Masquerain) due to Amelia’s hype of it, and decided to show I was better even with decks I hate.
Masquerain from Supreme Victors is a Pokémon (and a deck) with very little firepower, but an enormous amount of draw and durability. The deck is based around setting up an active Masquerain, supported by the searching of Sunflora’s Sunshine Grace, a split line of offensive and defensive Cherrim, and the Thankfulness Shaymin Lv.X. With Expert Belt and Thankfulness, Masquerain has a massive 140 HP. Coupled with its Intimidating Pattern Poké-Body, up to two defending Cherrims, and the possibility of Defender, taking it down is no easy task. And if needed, it can retreat for free and be picked up with Seeker. Meanwhile, Masquerain does 30-70 (Expert Belt plus two offensive Cherrim is the max) with Skim Attack for just one Grass Energy, and draws me two cards.
Weak? Yes. Fun? Yes!
Midou was using a Miasma Wind deck, centered around Leafeon UD. For just one Colourless Energy, Miasma Wind does 50 damage times the number of Special Conditions on the Defending Pokémon. With the help of Blaziken PL’s Fire Breath Power (Burns the opponent’s Active) as well as Roserade UL’s Energy Signal (can Confuse or Poison with Grass or Psychic attachment respectively, Rainbow inflicts both), this has the enormous potential of 150 damage. With Metapod GS tech to remove all the Fire weaknesses as well as Jirachi, the deck isn’t as clunky as you might think.
I wanted to war story this game because it has many hilarious occurrences, and both sides got their strategy working exceptionally well. So here goes!
Both of our starting hands are hilarious. Midou’s only basic is the 30 HP Caterpie, with no Supporter other than Palmer. Meanwhile I get no less than four Basics (Surskit, Shaymin, Unown Q and Sunkern), and the other three cards in my hand are all Broken Time Space. I decide to start with Shaymin.
I “win” the flip and go first, attach some Grass to Shaymin and hit the centipede for 10, and it stays asleep. Midou topdecks a Call Energy, which can be used while Asleep since it’s not actually an attack, and he Calls for Roselia and Eevee.
Then it’s my turn to get a great topdeck and I get a Pokémon Collector. I attach Unown Q to Shaymin to make some bench space, and get out two Cherubi and an Uxie, lay down the BTS and Set Up for 5 cards. The new cards include Masquerain and a defensive Cherrim. I evolve both, retreat Shaymin, promote Masquerain and KO Caterpie with Skim Attack, drawing into my fourth BTS. How helpful.
Midou promotes Eevee and evolves it into Umbreon UD, which takes me by surprise. Umbreon UD’s Moonlight Fang does just 30 damage, but gives it an immunity to all effects of attacks executed by Pokémon with either a Body or a Power, which is pretty much all of my deck. He attaches a Rainbow and attacks, but it tinks on the manly Masquerain due to Intimidating Pattern and Cherrim AR.
As you might expect, a few boring turns are coming up now. Shaymin is able to damage Umbreon through Moonlight Fang, and not really in any danger to get KO’d because of the sleep and heal effect. The only problem is that Midou’s damage potential goes up as the game goes on whereas Masquerain doesn’t get much stronger from here – my bench was already nearly fully set up as it is. But that wasn’t my only problem…
Turn 3. Shaymin Flower Aromas Umbreon for 10 and puts it to sleep, and it stays asleep. Midou Palmers Caterpie back into the deck, and plays Warp Point so that we end up Roselia vs Masquerain. This all was good for a 4 card Set Up with Uxie on his side, where he draws into some good stuff. A new Eevee is benched and promptly evolved into Leafeon, and Roselia evolves into Roserade. Roserade needs two Energy to attack though, so Midou passes. I don’t do anything in my turn except using Skim Attack.
Roserade goes back to the bench for Leafeon, and Midou plays a Collector to get out Unown Q, Shaymin (Celebration Wind) and Torchic, the latter evolving into Combusken immediately. Unown Q is attached to Leafeon. Energy Signal Confuses my Masquerain, and Midou plays down the Shaymin, using Celebration Wind to move the Grass to Leafeon, using Miasma Wind for a measly 20 damage.
I topdeck a Bebe and use it to get Sunflora out, which in turn I use to get my second defensive Cherrim. I obviously retreat my Confused Masquerain for Shaymin and put Leafeon to sleep, praying it stays so (though right now Miasma Wind is nowhere near KO’ing it). Of course, it wakes up…
Midou tries to attach Expert Belt so I whack him with a baguette and point out Unown Q is already on it as a tool. He attaches a new Grass to Roserade to Confuse me again, and Miasma Winds for 30.
Routine ensues: Sunshine Grace, retreat, Skim Attack. Grass Energy Signal for confusion, Miasma Wind for 10. Sunshine Grace, Defender on Shaymin, Flower Aroma, and of course Leafeon wakes up immediately and runs off to the bench for Umbreon UD, which starts Moonlight Fanging me with an Expert Belt attached. I do another Defender on Shaymin and put Umbreon to sleep, but again, it wakes up…
This is where disaster strikes. Midou topdecks Blaziken, and Fire Breathes Shaymin. After an obvious tails flip on my side from the Burn, Shaymin now has 30 damage on it. I’m out of Defenders now (though I was only using them out of semi-boredom), but I Flower Aroma again for 10 and AGAIN it wakes up and AGAIN I flip tails on the burn. Still, only 30 damage…
Midou fetches another Leafeon with Luxury Ball, and Moonlight Fangs for 30. Now I need heads on the burn for Shaymin to survive…of course, I get tails and Midou takes a prize while in stitches.
I Palmer Shaymin, Unown Q and the Grass back into the deck and Sunshine Grace to get Shaymin into play again immediately. The war continues and this time he stays asleep. At this point, I have a hand with no less than 16 cards, and Midou draws a Copycat. Oof. With a bunch of new tools in his hand, he Communications for Leafeon Lv.X, and Confuses and Burns me with Roserade and Blaziken. Umbreon is weak enough to be killed by Damage Aid if it just stays asleep, but of course it wakes up. At least I get heads on my burn flip though.
I devise a scheme to get around this bad luck, and use a double Poke Drawer + to get out a Lookers and an Expert Belt. I Looker his enormous hand straight back into the deck and KO Umbreon with Skim Attack. Leafeon is promoted.
Midou’s small but fresh hand has a Jirachi and a Seeker, which he both plays down. We both pick up our Uxie, and he replays it and Sets Up for 4 cards. Another double status load is thrown on Masquerain, and if I lose another burn flip, that’s a dead Expert Belt Masquerain…thank God, I get heads.
I Bebe for Unown Q and attach it to Shaymin, retreat Masquerain for Shaymin and am about to Seeker it when I realize I already played a Supporter, so I shove that ahead for a turn. Leafeon has 50 damage, meaning I need 40 to KO it. Another devious scheme comes to a great success: I attach a second Energy to Shaymin, and play out an offensive Cherrim, so I get the 40 damage Knock Out for my third prize. Midou obviously promotes Jirachi.
At this point, we both screw up. There’s a Roserade on Midou’s bench with like 4 or 5 Energy on it, easily capable of KOing my 70 HP Shaymin. I should have Leveled it Up to Shaymin Lv.X so that at the very least it would have a chance to survive. However, he didn’t capitalize on this and instead keeps in his Jirachi to double up on his Bebe’s Search with Detour, as he wanted to get out another Leafeon. So my Shaymin gets to escape the active spot, now with a +40 bonus for all my Pokémon, and my freshly Seekered Masquerain takes its place.
Masquerain is now fully charged: 2 defensive Cherrim, and offensive Cherrim, Expert Belt and Thankfulness, and I have so many superfluous reserves I could resurrect it forever. I Skim Attack Jirachi for the kill, and he Final Wishes an Expert Belt into his hand.
We’re on turn 14 now. He brings in the now extremely powerful Roserade, and place down Leafeon on his bench (Eevee and BTS, natch). Midou makes another nasty misplay here, not noticing I only have two prizes left and not properly gauging Masquerain’s durability. He attaches Expert Belt and another Energy, benches Budew (what?) and re-uses a recently picked up Uxie for 4 cards. Interviewer’s Questions gets him a Call and a Rainbow, And then he announces the attack…
MD On Masquerain: brb calc.......
Midou: lol
MD On Masquerain: 6 energy
Midou: 180
MD On Masquerain: so 120 base
MD On Masquerain: 20 for your belt
Midou: oh
Midou: yeah
Midou: 140
MD On Masquerain: then i have 2 cherrims, so that makes 120
MD On Masquerain: then intimidating pattern, so 100
Midou: phew
MD On Masquerain: Masquerain damage adjustment: 50, current damage = 50.
MD On Masquerain: Masquerain damage adjustment: 50, current damage = 100.
Midou: finally
Midou: killed that
Midou: nigger
MD On Masquerain: really?
Midou: oh wait
MD On Masquerain: i have 140 hp bro
Midou: shaymin
Midou: >_>
Heh. Now in front of me is a slightly damaged Roserade that escapes my Skim Attack’s KO (80 HP left due to Expert Belt, Skim Attack does 30 plus 20 for Belt and 10 for Cherrim SF). However, I have a gut feeling I can KO it somehow. I look at my deck twice with Luxury Ball and Sunshine Grace to check it, and then I know what to do.
My deck list has a total of 5 Energy. 2 of them are on the benched Shaymin, 1 on Masquerain, and the rest is in my deck. I use a double Poke Drawer + to get them out, and I Seeker Masquerain to get another in my hand. I attach a third Energy to Shaymin, and announce Seed Flare, attaching the other two Energy and thus doing exactly the required 80 damage for the KO, getting my last two prizes.
Despite the 5-0 prize score, this match was hilarious and interesting enough to share. You don’t see two less powerful decks setting up their entire strategy in one game. We say gg and talk a while about “I would have but then I could have” (a tradition in any Pokémon game), and then I go to sleep because it’s like 1am.
Props:
- Masquerain for not being a total failure
- Poke Drawer + getting me crucial kills
- Seed Flare
- Midou for not reyscarfacing after a loss
Slops:
- Misplays
- Burn flips
- Sleep flips
- Burn flips and sleep flips
