Confidence is Key
By Dominic Viola
Welcome to the 2025-2026 Pokémon Season!!! My name if you couldn’t tell is Dominic Viola and I’m here to help you Pokémon Trainers with what to play for your local League Challenges and Cups. You could even apply this logic to Regionals! If you couldn’t already tell by my cheesy title, it is true, Confidence is Key! That’s right, I said it; it’s not about trying to find the “perfect play” into your local metagame unless the majority plays a single deck. Your best bet is going to play a deck that you know the ins and outs of more so or maybe this isn’t the deck you aren’t most confident on but a deck that you have a lot of practice and confidence within that performs well in the metagame. Now that we have a baseline down let's also not forget that we are playing a TCG where there are definitely decks that have stronger and better stocks than others. For the rest of an article, I’m going to be going over a post NAIC tier list and give some deck list from the event that performed well and talk about the card conclusions and why I rank them where I do.
As of this moment here is how I rank the current metagame after NAIC so why not just start from the bottom to the top!!
Sad Little Spider: Joltik Box (List by Gabriel Englehart 118th NAIC)
Starting at the bottom we have JoltikBox. This deck is the most beginner friendly on the market. It has the most linear gameplan of either going ALL IN on that Pikachu ex or Iron Hands action with a very consistent 4-4-4 supporter lineup occasionally including a one of Iono. Now the reason for JoltikBox being at the bottom is it being so linear and almost always requiring going second. Being linear is typically not a strength, it is very easy to see what this deck wants to do against a matchup which means this deck is less likely to win. It’s not impossible to win but it will be much harder for the deck to win. Let’s talk about the second (see what I did here) problem. This deck doesn’t want to go second, IT NEEDS TO. In top cut at a League cup if you take a game one your opponent most likely should be choosing second to rob you of a WHOLE TURN you could be using your little spider which means less likelihood of you winning. This deck isn’t bad however it just isn’t the cream of the crop. I would personally stay clear of this deck right now but if you are a believer SEND IT!
Infernal Darkness: Charizard ex ( 1st Place Seniors Gabriel Fernandez NAIC)
Did you think we wouldn’t cover the list that got Gabriel the perfect season? There will be a common theme within this C tier and that is unexplored areas that exist within the game and also lack of experience with the functionality of how these decks truly work within the metagame. I do think this list was a great call and had a lot of tricks up its sleeve at NAIC, but I don’t see the deck being as strong of a contender today. Another thought about the deck is it is very reliant on hitting its TM Evolution more so then Gardevoir and while it has the 4 Arven and 2 Evo to back it up it also plays less energy than Gardevoir. I do think that Charizard ex isn’t top tier but still a strong deck within the metagame because of the board states it can create and can still surprise people who aren’t up to speed and in best of one there is no adapting. In a Budew format, I don’t see this deck performing that well because of what it needs to start going to get into a Charizard Pidgeot boardstate. I'd play this deck to Cups rather than Challenges just because I think it shines more in the best of 3 and can afford to lose a round.
Discard 1 to Draw 2: Zoroark ex (Cameron Shenoy 7th NAIC)
Here we have a deck that many people haven’t talked about enough for its deep run at NAIC probably because of how surprised we all were but Zoroark is still trading. This Zoroark list is a very heavy damage tanking/Munkidori spreading list unlike last formats heavier Darmanitan list. This change was 100% due to that pesky little hedgehog Shaymin, which protects the bench. I put this list in the C tier for its lack of performance in this format but I could see it go even higher. I think the thing that holds this back is its tricky board establishment but once it's able to start using a couple trades a turn you better be ready to take it on. 310 hp on a stage one with a rigid band is strong and it only makes Reshiram, Professor Turo, and Munkidori even stronger. All 3 cards are able to work together to keep up with pressure and create stronger positions. This is a deck I definitely want to get my hands on more and playtest but I don’t see it being a bad pick at all for this format especially with it being one of the only decks that has a good Gardevoir ex match up. I'd play this deck to Cups over Challenges just because it needs more to get rolling but it's still a fine play.
If you could use 6 Recons Directives, would you?: Zoroark Dragapult (Stéphane Ivanoff 17th NAIC)
Probably being the most creative deck at NAIC we have ZoroPult. This deck is very neat with how it plays; there is so much consistency built within the list. All your Stage 1s are draw engines and all of them have great attacks that work well around the whole metagame. I know I put this deck here for its lack of performance or data, but it is another deck I could see climb higher in the tier list. With all this power, consistency, and energy acceleration, this deck is powerful. Although the techs and card counts are now known they are a lot harder to play around. A huge pro about this deck is it’s able to play TM Evolution because of the Sparkling Crystal and N’s engine within it. Two Munkidori in this deck also feel super clean being able to help in all of the popular spread decks. I wouldn’t be surprised to see even more out of this deck so I would definitely keep your eye out for it and be prepared to face it at your Local Leagues. I put this deck at the top of C tier because I see it having the most potential out of all the C tier decks as the season goes on. I’d say this deck can survive both the Cup and Challenge aspect of local events because of its consistency.
RAY CHEN'S CREATION: Toedscruel ex (Ray Chen 5th NAIC)
Starting off in B tier we have Toedscruel ex piloted by the GOAT. If you aren’t putting this deck at least in B tier at this point you're behind I’m sorry I hate to be the one to say it… WAIT NO I LOVE TO BE!! This deck is gas, fast, and has some control aspects built into its mushrooms and with its pollen and is one of the more consistent decks in the format. This deck, infecting Ray Chen, POPPED OFF within the 3 weeks prior to NAIC and worked its way to the top. This deck pretty much has it all. The only thing that’s holding it back is how you have to flood the board with smaller 2 Prizers and a lot of decks can take advantage of that aspect of the deck. However, if your opponent misses a beat, with how much this deck keeps pace, the game is over. The 4 e-switch not only lets you attack faster with the Toed but lets you spread your energy around the board to keep them unaffected by some attacks such as Dragapult ex. I had the honor to play against Ray at Portland in round 8 and got to see the speed of this deck first hand and what it can truly do. More people should be playing this deck and I would absolutely recommend it for a local event because of the consistency it has. Bug Catching set is a card made for this deck and I can’t wait to see it continue to pop off in our meta! This deck can be good Challenges, a little tiny tiny bit worse for Cups in my opinion but not by much of a margin, its consistent strong deck that can be very oppressive.
Pengo time!!: Gholdengo Dragapult (Grent Shen 44th NAIC)
Our next deck on our tier list is Pengo. I really wanted to put this deck higher because it takes a good Gardevoir and Grimmsnarl matchup but it's slightly unfavored againstDusknoirPult, PultZard, and has a neutral Bolt matchup. This deck is very strong and hits hard. With the power of Ciphermaniac’s, you’re able to play around anything if you prepare. I put this deck here because most of its matchups are hit or miss. Sure when you hit the good ones IT'S GREAT but when you hit the unfavored ones, it’s not great.. It's also very reliant on its Ace Spec not being prized. Overall, this deck is still a great play to your local events and does well against the meta just not as well as the A or S tier decks can do. I’d play this deck more for a Cup than a Challenge but I don’t see it being a bad Challenge deck, mainly because it can draw lots of cards.
The Power of Friendship: Eevee Box (Nathan Ginsburg 13th Place NAIC)
In the middle of our metagame we have EeveeBox. EeveeBox is another really cool deck in our format and has a really good matchup into a lot of our decks in the lower tiers. Sadly against Gardevoir, PultNoir & PultZard players this deck has more of a struggle but still is a super strong deck. With the power of Flareon’s Burning Charge, Sylveon’s Angelite, Leafeon’s ability to heal the Board & 1000 IQ Briar plays this deck can hold its own on the metagame. The Gravity Mountain provides a line against Grimmsnarl even if you prized your Leafeon, as well as giving Flareon a way to 1HKO Gardevoir. A lot of lists are playing Kiernan for that damage modifier but Gravity Mountain isn’t the supporter for your turn and can bump Area Zero, allowing you to remove damaged liabilities out of play which is another 1000 IQ play. If you like EeveeBox, try this list out and you won’t regret it. This deck is a great play for Cups and Challenges.
The Big the Bad: Grimmsnarl ex (Piper Lepine 6th NAIC)
NAIC changed the way Grimmsnarl lists look and are built across the board. While I’m personally more of a fan of Tim Franklin's testing group list with Fez and 3 Boss’s Orders, I’m not going to discredit the player who was able to take it to the top being Piper Lepine!! Grimmsnarl is a very strong spread deck that is able to abuse Munkidori allowing you not only to heal the board but spread more damage with its Shadow Bullet attack or TM Devolution plays. The spreading doesn’t stop there because we add Froslass into the mix of it all being able to create more damage counters and pressure on the board. Being a dark type, Grimmsnarl creates a lot of pressure points for the top tier decks however it has a consistency issue and there are many ways to play around its spread damage tricks. This deck had a 50% win percentage against Gardevoir, was unfavored into PultNoir and also unfavored into straight Pult in Day 2 of NAIC because of the ways those decks can handle all of Grimm’s tricks. If Grimmsnarl was a little more consistent and had a way to do something without shoving its All-Star into the active then I think it would be way stronger than it already is. This deck is still a great pick for a local event but I’d definitely play it at a Cup over a Challenge due to constituency issues.
I MISS THE RAGE: Raging Bolt ex (Yerco Valenci 15th NAIC)
On the top of the B tier we have the best Noctowl deck, Raging Bolt. Although this deck has a very simple concept and is linear it does it in a way that’s more unfair than fair (unlike joltik box). This deck can create so many different ways to keep pressure, has impactful one prizers that are either able to snipe Pokémon attempting to set up or kill Fezindipiti ex and Pikachu ex. This deck has a lot of consistency and ways to prepare for your opponent’s attempts to respond. The main strength of Raging Bolt has is that it’s a deck that can do the same thing over and over again and take on anything in the metagame but against more advanced players who know how to play around its oppression optimally it will start to lose more games. However that doesn’t mean it can’t win, it just has a much harder time versus the A tier and S tier decks because of their own broken fundamentals. I'd say Bolt is a really great play for a Challenge because of its power and consistency but I wouldn’t play it at a Cup personally because the best of 3 factors won’t be its saving grace.
Bloodmoon in the Active, Pass: Consistent Dragapult ex (Tord Reklev 3rd NAIC)
Let's stop saying this deck is StraightPult, its ConsistentPult clearly. I mean look at these counts. This version of Pult is all about getting to the Phantom Dive as soon as possible with no questions asked. I think all of the A tier Pult list have equal power levels this one by far has the most pedal to the metal. This version of the deck really wants to put your opponent on the backfoot and can play from ahead or behind in whatever situation it is put in. Tord’s decklist also features a few tricks with not just 1 but 2 Munkidori, 2 Professor Turo, a Jamming Tower to give us a better Gardevoir matchup, and a copy of everyone's favorite cactus, Maractus. These techs not only add surprise but are still hard to play around if you know about them in advance. We can see why Tord felt so confident on this list with the way it's built. There are so many positions this deck can play out of based upon its pure amount of consistency. There really is nothing else to say. I think this is the best Pult deck to bring to a League Challenge just to get through your rounds as efficiently as possible and is still a great League Cup play. If you like Dragapult, TRY THIS LIST OUT!!
Dragons Collide: PultZard (Makani Tran/Ryan Antanouchi 12th/10th NAIC)
PultZard is a very strong deck in our metagame having immense power to take on the whole meta. The synergy Charizard and Dragapult have together is insane. You can use Charizard first and finish off HP numbers with a huge Dragapult swing or swing with Pult to set up numbers for Charizards. With Munkidori math and unfair stamp pressure thrown into the mix it really puts the opponent on the backfoot fast. It also has the Budew plus Unfair Stamp route to take which is such a strong combination to have in a deck. This deck also has the strongest Gardevoir matchup out of the 3 variations because of the Charizard being such a big threat to Gardevoir ex. Another pro about this deck is you don't have to play Bloodmoon Ursaluna because you are playing the Zard package being able to just carry games on its back and hitting even more wild numbers as the game goes on. This deck can get into checkmate positions very easily. I see this deck again being a great play for Challenges and Cups but I'd much rather take it to a Cup then a Challenge just because I think this deck thrives more in best of 3.
Why not add more Phantoms? Dusknoir Dragapult
Left: (Jon Eng 11th, Hedrick/Abaan Top 32 NAIC)
Right: Dominic Viola 23rd NAIC (Hey that’s me!)
Dragapult Dusknoir was 8 spots of top 32, that's 25%!!! In fact 17/32 were Dragapult variants over 50% which is a wild statistic! Now the reason why I love dragapult dusknoir so much is the oppression it creates against the opponent and I bring up 2 lists because I still think there are 2 ways to play it (also why not plug myself lol). The Unfair Stamp build is all about not letting your opponent play the game. You already have Budew, Dusknoir and Dragapult to knock your opponent down, let's make sure they can never get back up. The Stamp may sound like overkill but against a lot of decks you need the oppression of Stamp in order to get ahead and even stay ahead of the game. With Exp Share you still have a way to chain Dragapults super fast like the neo upper list no matter how the game goes. You are always able to keep up and play! Now I'll stop talking about myself and talk about who I like to call the BIG THREE of Dragapult Dusknoir and that is Jon Eng, Andrew Hedrick, and Abann Ahmed. This list is all about the gas with 4 research and their Ace Spec slot able to just create a Dragapult attack out of nowhere. This deck creates a similar pressure the Stamp version does but by trying to be even faster than the opponent. Budew can already buy so much time in the early game which then allows Dragapult and your Dusknoir’s Cursed Bombs to clear everything important on your opponent's field to create a free turn. With this amount of leverage, it's no wonder why this deck was 25% of the Top 32 of NAIC. Either of these lists are great plays to both Challenges and Cups with the amount of consistency, pressure, and comeback they provide. Dragapult has the craziest and most insane comebacks this game has ever seen and is definitely my own comfort pick, I know this deck as much as I know the back of my hand.
The Cream of The Crop: Gardevoir Ex (Isaiah Bradner 1st NAIC)
I think we all have to say this deck deserves its own tier with how high it climbed at NAIC. Gardevoir ex was not only the event winner but 75% of top 4! (That is an insane statistic). There are a couple variations of this deck rolling around within the metagame but I do think the version piloted by Bradner with no Drifloon is the best one. What makes Gardevoir so good is its board presence. This deck can just keep going with what it feels like an infinite mana pool thanks to Psychic Embrace. Combined with Munkidori you can clear damage off of your board and spread it to your opponent’s. Gardevoir does a lot of things that are very powerful and has proved again and again that it’s at the top. It’s a great play for both Cups and Challenges based upon its pure power and consistency. It has such a high ceiling and can almost do anything. If you aren’t prepared with how you take on the Gardevoir matchup or are playing a deck that can’t beat it and you have some high level Gardevoir players in your local scene I'd try to get yourself confident on a different deck if you want to optimize your road for success!!
Conclusion
So that concludes my article of how I would personally approach Cups or Challenges right now in this metagame, how I break it down, and where I would personally play these decks to local events. I do think your own confidence and capabilities you have on decks should truly be the final call at the end of the day because that will always do you best. I think again there are definitely decks that are better for a Cup or Challenges, but even if they are, that doesn’t mean they can’t win the tournament format. All these decks have had success and are great plays within the meta; it just comes down to their pilot’s confidence and knowledge. Thank you so much to CJ who has given me the opportunity to write on her blog and I hope to see you Minty Mermaids in the future. PEACE GANG!!!
