0.3% of the meta · Updated July 25, 2026
Signature card
Garchomp ex
Shiny Super Rare
#9 — Zartan3000
Lagoon Serenity Format (5 USD) · 5W-1L
#2 — NeoNox40
Lagoon Serenity Format (OAK FA Prize) · 7W-3L
#14 — Moky2510
Umbreon99's Friday Clash #4: $70 USD + Oak & FA · 7W-3L-1T
Garchomp ex (170 HP) wins by applying early single-energy pressure with Linear Attack for 50 to any target, then closing games with Dragon Claw for 100 once fully charged, while Rampardos provides a hard-hitting non-ex secondary attacker that makes the points math awkward for opponents.
Open by finding Gible with Poké Ball and using Skull Fossil alongside Professor's Research and Copycat to evolve both lines simultaneously. Use Rare Candy to advance Gible toward Garchomp ex quickly. Linear Attack fires with one fighting energy, letting Garchomp ex contribute damage before it is fully charged — use it to target fragile benched basics and score cheap knockouts. Once three energy are ready, Dragon Claw for 100 trades efficiently against ex Pokemon. Rampardos closes out the last point when Garchomp ex is threatened. Cyrus and Lillie provide hand quality and targeting control in the mid-game.
Any target — Linear Attack
50 damage to any 1 of opponent's Pokemon with 1 Fighting energy
Available turn 2 or 3; targets benched basics to score cheap 1-point knockouts
Linear Attack deals 50 to any target including benched basics. Many evolution basics have 60–70 HP, meaning one Linear Attack into a follow-up puts them in range of knockout on the next turn. Targeting a benched basic before it evolves into an ex removes a future 2-point threat and scores an easy 1 point.
Rampardos absorbs attacks and scores knockouts as a non-ex, meaning the opponent only gains 1 point if it falls. Use Skull Fossil to include Cranidos in your setup and evolve it alongside Garchomp ex. Keeping Rampardos active while Garchomp ex charges on the bench delays the opponent from landing the high-value ex knockout.
Cyrus redirects the opponent's best attacker away from your active Pokemon, buying a free turn to charge Garchomp ex for Dragon Claw. Hiking Trail helps maintain hand depth during the Stage 2 build. Lillie and Maintenance appear in flex slots to recover key pieces and keep the evolution lines moving.
Garchomp ex requires Gible to be on the bench and either Gabite to evolve or Rare Candy to skip. Sniping Gible before Rare Candy is drawn removes the entire ex line. Scoring 1 point off Gible and forcing a redraw significantly delays Garchomp ex.
With 170 HP, Garchomp ex survives most single hits but is vulnerable to two-turn knockouts. Chip damage from bench attacks or multi-target moves followed by a finishing blow lets you score 2 points on Garchomp ex. Since the deck runs limited healing, damage accumulates quickly once Linear Attack stops being the active attacker.
Lunala ex sits at only 25% favorable for Garchomp ex, confirming that psychic-type attackers with high damage ceilings can one-shot or nearly one-shot Garchomp ex while it charges Dragon Claw. Promoting a psychic attacker early forces Garchomp ex into inefficient Linear Attacks rather than Dragon Claw finishers.
Non-ex secondary attacker
Cranidos line support
Threats — Weak Against
Based on type weakness analysis of core cards. View full matchup matrix →
