Pokémon TCG Standard Deck Guide: Mega Dragonite ex - Theories and Possibilities

Recently, the Japanese Pokémon Company released a few more details about the next Pokémon TCG special set in the Mega Evolution block, Mega Dream ex.

Mega Dragonite ex will come in this set. We already knew about it because of the spoilers released at the Anaheim World Championships, but we didn't know which set would bring it… Now we know.

That being said, we built a list around Mega Dragonite ex with the cards released in Standard so far. Check out below!

Pokémon (21)

4 Dratini (Mega Dream ex)

3 Dragonair (Mega Dream ex)

3 Mega Dragonite ex (Mega Dream ex)

1 Rellor DRI 24

1 Rabsca TEF 24

3 Tynamo BLK 30

3 Eelektrik BLK 31

1 Fezandipiti ex SFA 38

1 Mew ex sv3pt5 151

1 Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex TWM 141

Trainers (29)

2 Artazon sv2 171

3 Arven sv3 186

1 Dawn (Phantasmal Flames)

2 Iono sv2 185

2 Boss's Orders (Ghetsis) sv2 172

3 Ultra Ball sv1 196

2 Nest Ball sv1 181

3 Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144

3 Rare Candy MEG 125

1 Earthen Vessel PRE 106

1 Counter Catcher sv4 160

2 Super Rod sv2 188

2 Air Balloon BLK 79

1 Technical Machine: Evolution sv4 178

1 Maximum Belt TEF 154

Energies (10)

4 Basic Water Energy sv2 279

6 Basic Lightning Energy sv1 257

Deck Structure

Mega Dragonite ex: The Main Attacker

Its ability, Sky Transport, lets you, at any moment in the game, move your active Pokémon to your bench.

Its main attack, Ryuno Glide, deals 330 damage, but it forces you to discard 2 energies attached to Mega Dragonite ex.

Mega Dragonite ex Combos

"Ryuno Glide" and Eelektrik

Dragonite's attack forces you to discard 2 energies from it.

Ideally, you should discard Electric energies because you can use Eelektrik BLK 31's ability, Dynamotor, to get 1 Basic Lightning Energy sv1 257 from the discard pile and attach it to one of your benched Pokémon. After attacking with Mega Dragonite ex, you'll need to retreat it and attach more energies to it. You can stack this ability by playing many Eelektrik on the board and then recycling 2 or more Electric energies.

Mobility: Air Balloon + Mega Dragonite ex's Ability

Mega Dragonite ex's ability, as we mentioned, lets you retreat your Pokémon.

Air Balloon BLK 79 lets you retreat your Pokémon again and again. After you attach it to Mega Dragonite ex, you'll be able to recycle energies in your discard pile with Eelektrik BLK 31's ability. Like so, in the same turn, you can use Mega Dragonite ex's ability and attack again to deal 330 damage.

Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex: End-Game Attacker

This Pokémon's ability discounts the cost of its main attack, Blood Moon, the more Prize cards the opponent takes.

It is an end-game attacker, as well as extremely efficient if the opponent has taken at least 4 Prize cards. That way, its main attack will only cost 1 energy. If the opponent has taken 5 Prize cards, you can use its attack for free!

Considering that attack has a drawback (it can't attack on the next turn), we can take advantage of Mega Dragonite ex's ability to move it to the bench and then promote Mega Dragonite ex itself as the new attacker.

Recursive Pokémon

Dragonair: The New Card

This Dragonair from Mega Dream ex is quite cool. Its ability, Evolutionary Guidance, lets you get an "evolution" Pokémon from your deck as long as Dragonair has any energies attached.

You can use it to get both Mega Dragonite ex and other Pokémon evolutions!

"Baby" Pokémon

► Eelektrik BLK 31 is the very core of this strategy because its ability lets us recycle the energies Mega Dragonite ex discards!

► Rabsca TEF 24's ability, Spherical Shield, protects your bench from enemy Pokémon, including any damage or attack effects.

"Rule Box" Pokémon

► Fezandipiti ex SFA 38's ability, Flip the Script draws 3 cards if one of your Pokémon was knocked out by the opponent on the previous round.

►Mew ex sv3pt5 151's ability, Restart, draws until you have 3 cards in hand.

Trainers

Supporter to Set Up

Arven will be essential, as he'll get the items you need to set up your Pokémon, like Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144. With them, you'll get Dratini and Tynamo.

As for tools, you should use him to get Technical Machine: Evolution sv4 178 at first and start evolving your Pokémon. Otherwise, get Air Balloon BLK 79 to start moving your Pokémon around with Mega Dragonite ex.

Supporter to Get Evolution Lines

Dawn will also get Pokémon and their evolutions, as she lets you get 1 basic Pokémon, 1 stage 1 Pokémon, and 1 stage 2 Pokémon. This goes really well with the gradual structure of the deck, as it centers around many evolutions.

ACE SPEC

We added this ACE SPEC so that Mega Dragonite ex deals more damage and knocks out the Mega Evolutions in Standard. After all, 330 is a lot of damage, but it still isn't enough to knock out certain Pokémon.

If you'd like to test out another ACE SPEC, you can check out Prime Catcher PRE 119. This card lets you move your Pokémon around, so it fits this strategy really well. Secret Box TWM 163, on the other side, is a more "solid" way to set up.

Pros

Dragon Pokémon aren't weak to any other Pokémon type, so you won't have to worry about other Pokémon types dealing twice as much damage against Dragonite.

This list is also efficient and fast, as long as you set up your Eelektrik BLK 31.

Finally, it deals a lot of damage, so it can deal with most stage 2 Pokémon ex and knock out stage 2 Mega Pokémon ex in up to 2 turns.

Cons

Because it relies on a few evolution lines, it is a bit slow. You'll have to use Technical Machine: Evolution sv4 178 and Rare Candy sv1 191 to make up for this.

Decks like Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex DRI 136 can be challenging because they play Froslass TWM 53, which deals damage to Pokémon with abilities. They also play Munkidori PRE 44, which moves damage counters. This is quite harsh for this list because lots of our Pokémon rely on abilities.

Decks like Raging Bolt ex TEF 123 are faster and deal just as much damage, so they make the Prize card race quite difficult.

Decks that "devolve" Pokémon are also a problem, particularly with Technical Machine: Devolution sv4 177.

Finally, if the opponent uses a "spread" or "sniper" strategy really well and you don't have Rabsca TEF 24 to protect your bench, you might just lose the game on the spot. If the opponent realizes you need Eelektrik BLK 31 to make the deck work and attacks it, the match will also end on the spot.

If you enjoy Dragonite and the Dragon archetype, this is a great list. It doesn't have any natural weaknesses and also deals a lot of damage directly.

I highly recommend you play Eelektrik BLK 31 while most players haven't noticed its potential yet. You'll have the opportunity to get this critical piece before anyone else, particularly before the new set comes along and makes everything more expensive.

What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!