Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Strategy Guide and Card List

The Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck is a High-Damage Lightning-type Deck featuring Raichu and Pikachu ex from the Genetic Apex Set in Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket (PTCG Pocket). Read on for the complete list of cards in this deck, basic information on the deck, how to play the deck, and optimal matchups for it!

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Guide

Deck Evaluation

Ace Pokemon						Tier Ranking
Raichu Genetic Apex (A1)			Pikachu ex Genetic Apex (A1)
						Energy Type(s)
						F2P Friendly?
						❌
						Deck Difficulty
						★★
Deck Strengths
Pikachu ex's attack only costs 2 energy but deals medium damage. Raichu can deal high damage.
Deck Weaknesses
Raichu discards all its energy when it attacks. Highly dependent on Lt. Surge.

Best Meta Decks Tier List

List of Cards

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck List
Pokemon Cards
Pikachu ×2				Raichu ×2				Pikachu ex ×2				Zapdos ×1
Zapdos ex ×2
Trainer Cards
Sabrina ×2				Lt. Surge ×2				Potion ×1				X Speed ×2
Poke Ball ×2				Professor's Research ×2

Deck Building Guide

Packs Required for Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck

Pack	Featured Card

How to Play Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck

How to Play Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck
Core Combos and Interactions Starting Hand Deck Strategies Game Phases

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Core Combos and Interactions

Starting Attacker	OHKO Attacker	Description
Pikachu ex	Raichu	・Pikachu ex can be played immediately and attack for low cost. ・Raichu can take Pikachu ex's place in case its HP becomes low, then is powered by Lt. Surge to unleash a high-damage attack that can OHKO the opponent's active Pokemon.

Best Starting Hand

Best Starting Hand

This is the ideal starting hand for this deck. Having one of each Pokemon in the deck right away gives you many attack options early.

Always play Pikachu ex first and set up Raichu on the bench. Pikachu ex can deal a decent amount of damage early on, putting pressure on your opponents. If Pikachu ex's HP becomes low, switch it out for Raichu and use Lt. Surge to power the Pokemon.

Other Good Starting Cards

Recommended Starting Hand

In the event that you don't have Raichu right away, playing Pikachu ex should still be your first move. Use Professor's Research to hopefully get Raichu, then evolve Pikachu into Raichu if you manage to obtain it.

If Pikachu ex's HP becomes low, switch it out for Raichu and use Lt. Surge to power the Pokemon.

Best Cards Tier List

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Strategies

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Strategies
Early Pressure Lt. Surge and Raichu

Strategy 1: Early Pressure

Play Pikachu ex right away and fill up your bench. Attack right away once you get a chance to deal a decent amount of damage early in the game.

Strategy 2: Lt. Surge and Raichu

Given the high cost of Raichu's Thunderbolt attack, it's best to use Lt. Surge to quickly attach Lightning Energy to Raichu. Afterwards, you can potentially get a OHKO with it.

Game Phases

Early Game

Key Card(s) Required
Step	Description
1	Play Pikachu ex right away.
2	Attack once your bench is filled for maximum damage.
3	Use Potion to keep Pikachu ex healthy when needed.

Mid-Game

Key Card(s) Required
Step	Description
1	At this point, you should have Raichu ready on your bench.
2	If Pikachu ex's HP become low, use X Speed to allow the Pokemon to retreat for no cost, then play Raichu.
3	Use Lt. Surge to power up Raichu's Thunderbolt and attack.

Optional

Key Card(s) Required
1	Zapdos is a Basic 1-Energy attacker that can apply immediate pressure on Lightning-weak decks like Starmie ex or Articuno ex decks.

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Best and Worst Matchups

Best Matchups

Deck	Commentary
Blastoise ex Decks	Type: ・Blastoise ex decks take time to set up due to Blastoise ex being a Stage 3 evolution Pokemon, which can easily be exploited by Pikachu ex. ・The deck is also more vulnerable to Lightning attacks.

Worst Matchups

Deck	Commentary
Exeggutor ex Decks	Type: ・Exeggutor ex can tank Pikachu ex's early pressure as well as Raichu's Thunderbolt. ・Exeggutor ex's attack also costs minimal energy, so even if its damage isnt't as high, it can deal damage every turn.

Overall Consistency

Although the deck has extremely high damage potential and only has one (1) Stage 1 evolution Pokemon, the cost of energy is also high.

Moreover, even if the deck's attacks can OHKO a lot of Pokemon, they do rely heavily on meeting certain conditions first, such as coin flips and having a certain amount of Pokemon on the bench to maximize the damage. This makes the deck quite inconsistent in terms of damage.

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck F2P & Substitutes

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Card Substitutes

Card	Explanation
Pincurchin	・ Pincurchin is a viable Pokemon that can be swapped in when Pikachu ex's HP becomes low. Although it has lower HP and damage, it can paralyze the opponent's Pokemon, giving you a free turn.

Pokemon TCG Pocket Meta Guide

Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck Other Viable Options

Card	Possible Cuts
Zebstrika	・ Although Zebstrika has a lower HP and damage compared to Zapdos, it's a safer offensive option since its attack doesn't damage your own Pokemon but instead can pick off your opponent's weakened Pokemon on their bench if Pikachu ex or Raichu's damage doesn't knock them out.

Electrode Variant Deck List

Electrode Variant Deck List
Pokemon Cards
Pikachu x2	Raichu x2	Pikachu ex x2	Voltorb x2
Electrode x2
Trainer Cards
Sabrina x2	Lt. Surge x2	X Speed x2	Poke Ball x2
Professor's Research x2

Replacing Zapdos and Zapdos ex for Electrode gives the deck some consistency in terms of damage and costs less energy. Electrode can also benefit from Lt. Surge, making the deck more cohesive.

Pokemon TCG Pocket Beginner's Guide

Pokemon TCG Pocket Related Guides

Deck Building Guide

All Deck Tier Lists

Deck Articles

Meta Decks

Best Meta Decks
Starmie ex Deck	Mewtwo ex Deck	Dragonite Deck
Articuno ex Deck	Arbok Lock Deck	Venusaur ex Deck
Blaine Deck	Pikachu ex Deck	Marowak ex Deck
Charizard ex Deck	Machamp ex Deck	Blastoise ex Deck
Frosmoth Deck	Exeggutor ex Deck	Centiskorch and Moltres ex Deck
Arcanine ex Deck	Gengar ex Deck	Gyarados Deck
Wigglytuff ex Deck	Melmetal Deck	Lt. Surge Deck
Alakazam and Jynx Deck	Eelektross and Zapdos ex Deck	Greninja Deck
Primeape Deck	Grapploct Deck	Cinccino and Weezing
Raichu and Pikachu ex Deck	Mewtwo ex and Weezing	Greninja and Weezing Deck
Venusaur ex and Weezing	Lapras ex Deck	Brock Deck
Dragonite and Weezing	Kabutops

Rental Decks

All Rental Decks
Venusaur ex Rental Deck	Charizard ex Rental Deck	Blastoise ex Rental Deck
Pikachu ex Rental Deck	Mewtwo ex Rental Deck	Machamp ex Rental Deck
Nidoking and Nidoqueen Rental Deck	Kanto Fossils Rental Deck	Koga Rental Deck
Brock Rental Deck	Blaine Rental Deck	Lt. Surge Rental Deck

Starter Decks

All Starter Decks
Pinsir Starter Deck	Rapidash Starter Deck	Sandslash Starter Deck