IntroductionOn September 13th, 2025, the Frankfurt Regional Tournament took place in Germany and kicked off the next Western tournament season alongside the Monterrey Regional.Surprisingly, Richard Herrmann managed to place 11th among the top 32 players with Greninja ex TWM 106, which is a high rank for this Pokémon. Back when it was released, in the Twilight Masquerade era, it was received well, but then it slowly faded away from the competitive scene. Hermann proved it is still relevant and has a "spot under the sun" beside other predictable, dominant decks, such as Dragapult ex and Gardevoir ex.That being said, let's see Herrmann's updated list and understand how this strategy came to be.Richard Herrmann - Terastal Greninja ex - 11th Place (Frankfurt Regional, September 2025)DecklistStructureGreninja ex: The Main AttackerIts attack, Shinobi Blade, isn't expensive. With just one Water energy, you can use it to deal 170 damage and also look for any card in your deck and put it in your hand.This is enough to Knock Out all the "baby" Pokémon in the meta very easily. Furthermore, Terastal Greninja ex also deals with Electric Pokémon, like Iron Thorns ex TWM 77 and Iron Hands ex sv4 70 because it is a Fighting type.As for its other attack, Mirage Barrage, it is a "sniper" attack that deals damage to two targets. You can target two Benched Pokémon with it, or one Benched Pokémon and the active Pokémon. However, it also forces you to discard two energies attached to Greninja ex.This attack is perfect to Knock Out the main "baby" Pokémon in Standard, such as:- Dreepy TWM 128 in Dragapult ex TWM 130 lists;- Pidgey sv3pt5 16 in Pidgeot ex sv3 164 lists;- Charmander in Charizard ex sv4pt5 54 lists;- Gimmighoul in Gholdengo ex sv4 139 lists.Recursive PokémonPokémon ex: Card DrawFezandipiti ex SFA 38's ability, Flip the Script, is what you want. If one of your Pokémon was Knocked Out on the previous turn by enemy attacks, you can use this ability to draw three cards.Pidgeot ex sv3 164's ability, Quick Search, is what you'll use, too. It lets you get any card in your deck and add it to your hand."Baby" PokémonBudew PRE 4's main attack prevents your opponent from using Items from their hand."Baby" Pokémon: Damage CountersYou can sacrifice both Pokémon above to put damage counters on enemy Pokémon. Dusclops PRE 36 gives you 6 counters, whereas Dusknoir PRE 37 (its evolution) gives you 13.TrainersSupporter to Filter Items and ToolsSupporter to Sabotage Your Opponent's Hand and Renew YoursSupporter to "Pull" Enemy Pokémon to the Active SpotSupporter to Get Pokémon and Other Resources From Your DeckHilda WHT 84 lets you get an evolution Pokémon and an energy from your deck, basic or special.Colress's Tenacity SFA 57 lets you get a Stadium and an energy from your deck, also basic or special.Items to Get Pokémon From Your DeckItem To Evolve PokémonYou'll use this card to evolve Froakie sv3 56 directly into Greninja ex TWM 106 instead of moving slowly through Froakie >> Frogadier >> Greninja.Item to Get Energies From Your DeckItems to Recycle Pokémon and Basic EnergiesItem to "Pull" Enemy Pokémon into the Active SpotItem to Sabotage/Remove ToolsToolThis tool lets you retreat the Pokémon it is equipped to for two energies less.StadiumJamming Tower TWM 153 disables all tools in play. This will be great against any strategy that relies on them, like Air Balloon BLK 79.ACE SPECThis deck's ACE SPEC is a Stadium that lets you evolve Froakie directly into Greninja ex.Pros and ConsProsIt can easily deal with all "Baby Pokémon" in the meta, such as Dreepy TWM 128, Pidgey sv3pt5 16, Pidgeot ex sv3 164, Charizard ex sv4pt5 54, and Gholdengo ex sv4 139.It is also great against Electric decks, like Iron Thorns ex TWM 77 and Iron Hands ex sv4 70, because "Terastal" Greninja ex is a Fighting Pokémon.Finally, it deals a lot of "sniper" damage, so it can Knock Out multiple Pokémon at once, particularly with Dusclops and Dusknoir.ConsThis list only uses 2 copies of Greninja ex, so it relies a lot on recycling tools. Some of your critical pieces could end up in your Prize cards as a result.Dragapult ex PRE 73 decks deal damage across the board consistently and could disrupt you considerably. Particularly if your opponent sets up their strategy quickly.Gardevoir ex sv4pt5 29 decks could be troublesome because their final board is quite explosive. You'll have to set up faster than them.Finally, aggressive lists, like Raging Bolt ex TEF 123 and Ogerpon ex, need fast, aggressive answers, preferably with basic Pokémon, and this list simply doesn't have them.Final WordsThis is an excellent sniper strategy. However, it fails against resilient Pokémon that need multiple turns to fall. Shinobi Blade, despite powerful early on, might not be enough.The Dusclops and Dusknoir combo makes Mirage Barrage better, but it could be risky against optimized lists. As future sets will focus on Fire Pokémon and Mega Evolutions, Water Pokémon could become relevant again, so this list could start seeing some play.What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.Thank you for reading, and see you next time!
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