Every new set in Pokémon TCG Pocket brings a bunch of cards, some of which turn out to be strong in the existing meta and even fewer in following metas. Among these few that remain relevant across multiple releases, an even smaller number of cards reign supreme and are absolute bonkers, be it through sheer strength and/or their utility.
Giratina EX and Rmpardos are two such stars, and now, the Eevee Grove mini expansion (A3b) has graced us with another card that has redefined battles in TCG Pocket.
Meet Sylveon EX, one of the most popular Eeveelutions among fans and arguably one of the most (if not THE most) impactful Pokémon cards in the game.
This addition has become the most popular card in decks and the go-to EX card as well. It’s so good that it can fit in multiple deck types even though it’s Psychic type, and not Colorless.
Let’s unwrap the happy ribbons (no pun intended) and see what makes this Eeveelution so special and worth a fairytale!
Just like other OP cards such as Giratina EX, Darkrai EX, and Solgaleo EX, Sylveon EX’s secret sauce is its ability, Happy Ribbon.
When you evolve Eeevee/Eevee EX into Sylveon EX in a turn, you are free to draw 2 cards in that same turn. So, you get a Professor’s Research effect with Sylveon EX, but what if I told you that you can even draw up to 8 cards per turn and maybe pull your entire deck in 3-4 turns?! 😯
Let me repeat…
You can draw up to 8 cards in a single turn!
Here’s how you do it:
- A single Sylveon EX (Active Spot/Bench), when evolved, draws 2 cards.
- Another Sylveon EX draws 2 more cards. We now have 4 cards.
- If one of your pulls is Professor’s Research, draw 2 more cards. It’s now 6 cards.
- Pulled a Poké Ball? Get a Basic. That’s 7 cards, y’all!
- Oh, did you forget? You even draw 1 card for the turn. 8 CARDS!
Of course, the opponent using a Red Card in their turn can ruin your stunt, but hey, you can draw up to 8 cards and spell disaster for your opponent.
Even if you keep a second Sylveon out of the equation, you can still potentially draw 6 cards with only a single Sylveon EX. Even the worst-case scenario (no Poké Ball or Professor’s Research) makes you draw at least 3 cards in one turn.
The fun here is that Sylveon doesn’t even need to be in Psychic decks. It just needs to be there on the Bench and do its magic right in front of your opponent’s horrified eyes.
At this juncture, it’s worth mentioning that you would ideally need this Eevee card to evolve into Sylveon EX:
It has the non-damaging move Collect to draw a card for free and play into Sylveon EX’s ability.
To sum up:
- Sylveon EX can help you draw an upwards of 8 cards in one turn. Even if the cards don’t align in your favor, you draw 3 cards in one turn.
- It needs only 2 Energy (1x Psychic and 1x Colorless) to deal DMG. That’s pretty neat for a Stage 1 card that also draws 2 cards for you, bringing support.
- Only 1 retreat cost is perfect as you’re anyway going to attach an Energy to Eevee and draw a card (using its move) to accelerate your pull rate. Then, simply retreat to the Bench (in non-Psychic decks), having used the Happy Ribbons ability.
- In battles where you don’t draw Eevee first, don’t worry! Just keep it on the Bench, evolve it into Sylveon EX, use Happy Ribbons, and it has done its job.
- Sylveon EX easily fits in non-Psychic decks and even Psychic + any type decks, making it future-proof. Of course, some weird Trainer card in a future set that inhibits drawing of cards or Gengar/Gengar EX (from Genetic Apex) could play spoilsport, but still, Sylveon EX will remain functional.
The choice of Trainer cards is up to you. Depending on your strategies, the Supporters, Items, and Pokémon Tools will differ, so I’ll highlight the best Pokémon combos to blend with Sylveon EX.
Pro tip: A lot of success in Ranked battles is achieved from using Red Card, Iono, and Mars. So, do consider including those, not necessarily all, but at least some.
Sylveon EX | Garchomp EX | Rampardos (Fighting Energy)
- Garchomp EX and Rampardos have formed one of the scariest decks in TCG Pocket thanks to Garchomp EX sniping any card on the opponent’s side and being bulky, and Rampardos with its classic 130 DMG for 1 Energy. This combo brings a lot of unpredictability, and now, Sylveon EX helps solve perhaps the only challenge of this deck: evolving the Basics by drawing the Stage 2 cards and Rare Candy quickly.
- You are obviously starting with Gible (Triumphant Light) or Eevee with Collect. In any case, you should draw a card with Eevee and withdraw it from the Active Spot at the earliest, bringing Gible to the forefront. Then, Garchomp EX can start sniping the opponent’s Active or Bench for just 1 Energy.
- Once Sylveon EX is up on the Bench, you get closer to having Rampardos. Garchomp EX has only 1 retreat cost, making it easy to withdraw if need be and still maintain its offensive power.
- Arm yourself with Mars Supporter to cripple the opponent if they take out your Garchomp EX. With only 1 card in play, they would struggle while you would ideally have a Rampardos ready to go.
- Lillie is fantastic since you have two Stage 2 cards, and Rampardos also loses 50 HP on securing KOs.
- One of the perks of this deck is that you can play it with supreme efficiency with just 1x Sylveon EX! Get 1x Cranidos and 1x Gabite as a safety net.
- It’s difficult to form a strategy around this deck, so in most cases, your opponent is left guessing while you inch closer to victory each turn.
Sylveon EX | Giratina EX | Greninja (Psychic and Water Energy)
- This deck has gathered a lot of steam among players and rightfully so! It marks the addition of the famed Giratina EX, one of the strongest cards in Pokémon TCG Pocket, and Greninja, an assassin that wins matches.
- Combine them with Sylveon EX, Rare Candy, Cyrus, and Pokémon Tool, and you can see where this is heading. Also, with both Psychic and Energy in tow, Sylveon EX can also attack with 70 DMG. If you have a Greninja or two on the Bench, add up to 90 to 110 DMG overall.
- Greninja snipes the opponent from the comfort of the Bench while Giratina EX can stall and gather Energy. This Legendary delivers big damage to weakened targets with 1430 DMG.
- Cyrus is mandatory for this deck. In fact, you can use two copies of Cyrus to punish the opponent.
- Focus on doing early damage with Greninja and Sylveon EX, and finish them off with Giratina EX. Sylveon EX helps get multiple cards, and Greninja keeps on doing chip damage as Giratina EX uses its ability to collect Energy.
- Remember that Giratina EX requires 3x Psychic Energy and 1x Colorless (Water in this case). So, getting it ready to go shouldn’t take too much effort, especially when you also gain Psychic Energy from the Energy Zone. Consider adding Dawn for more consistency.
Sylveon EX | Charizard EX | Flareon (Fire Energy)
- The infamous Shining Revelry Charizard EX is back, made all the better with Sylveon EX and Flareon.
- It’s a pure Fire Energy deck, so Eevee draws a card and evolves into Sylveon EX to draw as many cards as possible. Happy Ribbons is aimed at finding Rare Candy and Charizard EX ASAP. You don’t need a Charmeleon in this deck.
- While Sylveon EX manages the extraction of Charizard EX, another Eevee should be evolved into Flareon. At just 2 Energy, Flareon deals 40 DMG, but more importantly, it attaches a Fire Energy to one of your Benched Pokémon (Char).
- Charizard EX needs to use Stoke in a turn to go ballistic, but it doesn’t do any damage in that turn. As such, 2x Lillie is pivotal to its survival. Add a Giant Cape as well to make Charizard EX 200 HP.
- Focus on evolving the Active Spot Eevee into Flareon and the Benched Eevee into Sylveon. Keep in mind that, unlike Sylveon EX, Flareon has a 2 Energy retreat cost.
- Sabrina is a good touch to this deck as it helps set up Flareon, possibly negating damage for a turn, and then go on to grant Energy to Char.
- Sylveon EX is arguably one of the most game-changing cards in Pokémon TCG Pocket. Drawing as many cards as possible, not bricking, and getting a strong are base but core aspects of any battle. Sylveon EX can be used in any deck to help pull more cards and get an edge over your opponent. This ability is invaluable, and just like Giratina EX, Sylveon EX should become a mainstay in the meta.
- An overlooked concept is that Sylveon EX’s ability can lay the foundation for decks having 20+ cards! The physical TCG consists of 60 cards in a deck, so TCG Pocket may eventually get closer to that figure, perhaps starting with 30 to 40 cards. That would certainly make Sylveon EX ‘balanced’ while also not ruining what makes it special.
Happy collecting and battling, Pokémon TCG Pocket-ers!
