TCG Pocket: How to use each Promo card from Charcadet Drop event

The Charcadet Drop event in Pokémon TCG Pocket brings a bunch of exciting Promos for the Paldean Wonders set, alongside the Season’s Ranked battles. Naturally, you must be curious if you can use these Promo cards for these challenging bouts!

Let’s have a look at the usage of each new Promo from the Charcadet Drop event.

Cards obtainable in this event

The Charcadet Promo is a Full Art alternate version of the existing card in the Paldean Wonders set. Similarly, Tinkaton and Tatsugiri are also alternate art reprints from their Paldean Wonders counterparts, while Smoliv and Frigibax are altogether new cards. All of them have stamps to mark them as Promo cards.

Analysis of every Promo card from Charcadet Drop Event

Charcadet

First look at Charcadet (a very pretty card, by the way), and you’d think to run it in an Armarouge EX deck. Armarouge EX is a decent Pokémon in this set, and while taking 30 less damage looks good, it isn’t too fantastic against a meta where Mega Evolutions are running rampant.

An output of 120 DMG isn’t too shabby, but with Mega Blaziken and Mega Charizard Y out there, this one feels lackluster.

Since Charcadet has a Colorless Energy attack, it should rather be evolved into Ceruledge in a Psychic deck.

Ceruledge is a more useful card than Armarouge EX. For just 3x Energy (easily obtainable with Mega Gardevoir and even Giratina EX | Dawn), Ceruledge hits opposing EX Pokémon for a neat 140 DMG. 

140 DMG is enough to cripple a lot of EX Pokémon, and then Psychic types like Mega Gardevoir EX, Giratina EX, or Mega Altaria EX can help win the battle. Moreover, losing Ceruledge is less risky than Armarouge EX, since you only lose 1 point.

Pro tip: Since Ceruledge has a 2x Energy retreat cost, be sure to use the Peculiar Plaza Stadium card in your deck. You can enjoy free retreats for 2x Energy costs!

Tinkaton

Tinkaton is bad. Metal types have been consistently good in Pokémon TCG Pocket, and among the various steely stalwarts, Tinkaton is a bad apple. Not being able to use its attack the next turn and also having a 2x Energy retreat cost makes this card borderline useless.

In fact, why don’t you just use Tinkaton EX (Shing Revelry)?

Tatsugiri

This Tatsugiri card boasts stunning art, but it’s not going to see any usage in TCG Pocket decks. 80 DMG from a mere 70 HP Pokémon after one of your mons has been KO’d is silly. Ideally, you should have a strong [warer] type ready to go once you lose a Pokémon, not something like Tatsugiri for which you risk another KO lol.

Smoliv

In the Paldean Wonders set, Arboliva is a super useful card that adds extra oomph to the atypical healing perks of Grass Pokémon in TCG Pocket. Arboliva has a nice 130 HP and serves as an inbuilt Lillie for one of your EX cards in play, as long as the said EX has an Energy attached. Of course, you discard an Energy from the EX when using Arvoliva’s ability, but you can simply give the next turn’s Energy to the EX.

Now, you ideally use a Rare Candy to evolve Arboliva from Smoliv, and the existing Smoliv card from Paldean Wonders just heals 10 DMG for itself.

This Smoliv Promo, however, is a straight upgrade as it heals 20 DMG from any one of your Pokémon (as long as it is in the Active Spot, though). As such, both Smoliv and Arboliva offer exceptional healing support, particularly to your EX Pokémon. This duo pairs brilliantly with the dreaded Mega Venusaur EX, arguably the best Mega Evolution in TCG Pocket.

Do note that both the Smoliv Promo and Arboliva can heal any Pokémon, not just Grass types, but only Smoliv’s move requires Grass Energy. But since you would anyway want Arboliva on the Bench, it doesn’t matter which Smoliv you use for non-Grass decks.

For Grass decks, go with this Promo for sure! Smoliv is perhaps the top grab from the Charcadet Drop event.

Frigibax

Baxcalibur has proven to be one of the best additions from the Paldean Wonders set as it supplies free Energy to the Water Pokémon in the Active Spot. This Energy engine is massively useful even for Energy-hungry EX cards, including Mega Gyarados and Palkia. It is a boon to the current power duo of Chien-Pao EX and Suicune EX in TCG Pocket battles.

While Baxcalibur is best used on the Bench, if you happen to draw Frigibax first, the Promo is better as it can use stiffen to shrug off 20 damage. This is subjectively better than the current Frigibax from the Paldean Wonders set, which does 20 DMG.

Of course, you can still opt for the old Frigibax if you’re willing to do some early damage or are using Greninja. As such, the two Frigibax are sidegrades, and you should opt for the one that suits your deck. 

For the trending Chien-Pao EX | Suicune EX pair, the Promo is the way to go.

Happy collecting and battling, Pokémon TCG Pocket-ers!