The release of the Space-Time Smackdown expansion for Pokémon TCG Pocket has resulted in one of the most diverse metas in the game to date. Some people opt for decks based on heavy hitters like Palkia ex whereas others might try to chip away at opponents with cards like Darkrai ex. Those cards are all good and swell, but players have now found the ultimate deck to troll other players: the Porygon-Z deck.
Porygon-Z is perhaps one of the quirkiest cards to come to Pokémon TCG Pocket since its release. Let’s explain why.
Why Porygon-Z is suddenly popular in Pokémon TCG Pocket
Porygon-Z is a colorless-type Pokémon with 140 HP and a retreat cost of two energy. This bad boy has one attack, “Buggy Beam.” It requires three energy to use and it deals 80 damage. But here’s where things get fun: “Buggy Beam” has a devious additional effect that randomly changes the type of energy your opponent gets the next turn.
It’s annoying in every sense of the word. It can render you basically useless if don’t have any other cards, like the trainer card Misty, to generate additional energy beyond the one you get each turn. At its worst, it will stall you and force you to play several turns of the game, “spin the wheel on the energy type.”At its best, it will briskly zip and zap its way through all your energy-needing Pokémon at 80 HP damage a pop.
Porygon-Z’s unparalleled ability to troll does come at a price, though. Pulling up a Porygon-Z switch requires a lot of prior setup. Buggy Beam needs three energy and you to draw and you’ll need to evolve it from Porygon Porygon2 first. Additionally, it only has 140 HP which puts it at risk to loads of common Stage 1 Pokémon that could clean it up in a couple of turns if Porygon-Z is out for too long. If you do want to run it, you’ll have to compliment it with other cards like Dialga ex and plenty of support Pokémon Tool cards like Giant Cape.
But hey, PorygonZ isn’t the strongest deck in town — it’s a lifestyle. Sometimes, the best deck isn’t the one that always wins, but the one that allows you to have fun and troll randoms online.
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