2 Pokemon + 18 Trainer Decks is a deck archetype that maximize its consistency and flexibility with their Trainer cards, while sacrificing Pokemon options. Read on to learn how to build these decks and how to play them!
List of Contents
These are decks that fully utilize all the available Trainer cards in the format. They mostly operate under the same concept and strategy but with varying levels of power level.
18 Trainer decks also make use of powerful ex Pokemon, as well as Fossils to control the points that they want to give up and protect their Benched ex Pokemon.
Articuno ex Deck List | |||||||||||||||
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Pokemon Cards | |||||||||||||||
Articuno ex ×2
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Trainer Cards | |||||||||||||||
Old Amber ×2
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Misty ×2
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Giovanni ×2
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Sabrina ×2
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Potion ×2
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X Speed ×2
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Poke Ball ×2
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Red Card ×2
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Professor's Research ×2
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Articuno ex is the best Pokemon for the 18 Trainer deck build mainly because of the inclusion of Misty which can quickly power up an Articuno ex on lucky coin flips.
In addition to this, it also has a usable first Attack in Ice Wing which it can use for only 2 Energy, giving it an edge over its other Water 18 Trainer counterpart, Lapras ex, which can only use Bubble Drain once it has all three Energy attached.
Articuno ex Deck Strategy Guide and Card List
Lapras ex Deck List | |||||||||||||||
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Pokemon Cards | |||||||||||||||
Lapras ex ×2
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Trainer Cards | |||||||||||||||
Old Amber ×2
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Misty ×2
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Giovanni ×2
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Sabrina ×2
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Potion ×2
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X Speed ×2
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Poke Ball ×2
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Red Card ×2
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Professor's Research ×2
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Lapras ex has the potential to be more tanky than Articuno ex because of Bubble Drain's HP recovery, but is limited by its lack of a cheaper first Attack, making it reliant on multiple Misty heads flips. This makes it so it can only use Bubble Drain, as it has no other option besides this.
Lapras ex Deck Strategy Guide and Card List
Zapdos ex Deck List | |||||||||||||||
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Pokemon Cards | |||||||||||||||
Zapdos ex ×2
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Trainer Cards | |||||||||||||||
Old Amber ×2
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Giovanni ×2
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Sabrina ×2
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Potion ×2
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X Speed ×2
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Hand Scope ×2
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Poke Ball ×2
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Red Card ×2
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Professor's Research ×2
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Zapdos ex is another powerful ex that can make use of the 18 Trainer deck setup, however it lacks access to ramp like Misty. This makes it reliant on manual Energy attachments.
What it has over Articuno ex and Lapras ex, however, is its option to deal a huge burst of damage with Thundering Hurricane. This attack can high roll for 200 damage, or do 50 to 100 damage on average. This Pokemon ex can also start attacking as early as T1 with access to a 1 Energy Attack in Peck, which can OHKO Staryu with the help of Giovanni.
It can also run Hand Scope, which would otherwise be a mediocre Trainer Card, because of the lack of other usable options. Hand Scope with Red Card make for a powerful one-two combo, as Hand Scope can help you decide whether it would be beneficial to play Red Card against your opponent.
Zapdos ex Deck Strategy Guide and Card List
All Tier Lists | |
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Best Cards Tier List | Best Meta Deck Tier List |
Best Rental Deck Tier List | Best F2P Beginner Decks |
Deck Articles | |
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How Rental Decks Work | Staple Cards for Decks |
Aggro Decks Explained | Deck Matchup Statistics |
Best 18 Trainers Decks | Best Misty Decks |
Best Erika Decks | 10 Match Tests vs Pikachu ex Deck - Statistics |
All Starter Decks | ||
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Pinsir Starter Deck | Rapidash Starter Deck | Sandslash Starter Deck |
Best 18 Trainer Decks
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