Pokemon TCG Pocket: Elite Deck Building Guide

Since its historic launch in October 2024, Pokemon TCG Pocket has quickly become a fan favorite, and the competition is heating up. People are finding new and innovative ways to play the game, and the list of viable decks is continuously growing.

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Want to open more packs? Here is the best way to get more Hourglasses in Pokemon TCG Pocket.

With the exciting prospect of ranked battles to dive into, players surely want to build the strongest decks possible and pilot them to victory. This is the perfect time, then, to review some tips and tricks on how to build an elite deck.

What is an elite deck?

Psyduck and slower confused with Pikachu watching

An elite deck is one that you win consistently with, and which is widely regarded as tough competition by other trainers. In Pokemon Pocket, setting up quickly is one of the most important aspects of the game and can be achieved by fine-tuning your deck to ensure that every card is necessary. Choose your supporter cards wisely.

Even the strongest decks are not invincible. Sometimes a bad starting hand is all it takes to give the advantage to your opponent, and with only three victory points needed to win, there is less room for recovery in comparison to the classic Pokemon TCG. We’ll review three elite decks and how to build them, starting with my personal favorite.

Celebi EX/Serperior Deck (Grass Type)

Deck List:

Card	Quantity	Effect/Ability/Attack
Celebi EX	2	Attack: Powerful Bloom – Flip a coin for each Energy attached to this Pokemon. This attack does 50 damage for each heads.
Snivy	2	Attack: Vine Whip – 40 damage.
Servine	2	Attack: Vine Whip – 50 damage.
Serperior	2	Ability: Jungle Totem – Each Grass Energy attached to your Grass-type Pokemon provides 2 Grass Energy This effect does not stack. Attack: Solar Beam – 70 damage.
Exeggcute	2	Attack: Growth Spurt – Take a Grass Energy from your Energy Zone and attach it to this Pokemon.
Exeggutor	2	Attack: Psychic – 80 damage. This attack does 20 more damage for each Energy attached to your opponent’s Active Pokemon.
Professor’s Research	2	Draw 2 cards
Erika	2	Heal 50 damage from one of your Grass-type Pokemon.
Sabrina	2	Switch out your opponents’ Active Pokemon to the bench. (your opponent chooses the new Active Pokemon)
Poke Ball	2	Put a random Basic Pokemon from your deck into your hand.

This deck boasts one of the highest potential damage output attacks in PTCGP, but the power is not guaranteed. When you use Celebi EX’s attack Powerful Bloom, you will flip a coin for each Grass energy attached to the Pokemon.

Although Serperior is a stage 2 Pokemon and will take a few turns to set up, the Jungle Totem ability makes every attached Grass Energy count as two instead of one. The possibility of flipping 10 coins for a single attack makes this deck extremely fun to play!

Additionally, I’ve found that Exeggutor helps counter many different decks that rely on having a lot of energy attached. Exeggutor’s Psychic attack deals 80 damage plus 20 for every energy attached to your opponent’s Pokemon, meaning that the more of a boost that target has, the more devastating your counterattack.

Collecting all the cards you need for your dream deck isn’t an easy task. Participate in Limited-Time Events, use hourglasses to open more packs, and exchange cards with friends using the Trade feature.

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Mewtwo EX Deck (Psychic Type)

Deck List:

Card	Quantity	Effect/Ability/Attack
Mewtwo EX	2	Attack: Psychic Sphere – 50 damage. Attack: Psydrive – 150 damage. Discard 2 energy from this Pokemon.
Ralts	2	Attack: Teleport – Switch this Pokemon with one of your benched Pokemon.
Kirlia	2	Attack: Smack – 30 damage.
Gardevoir	2	Ability: Psy Shadow – Once during your turn, you may take a Psychic Energy from your Energy Zone and attach it to the Psychic Pokemon in the Active Spot. Attack: Psyshot – 60 damage.
Professor’s Research	2	Draw 2 cards
Mythical Slab	1	Look at the top card of your deck. If that card is a Psychic Pokemon, put it into your hand. If it is not a Psychic Pokemon, put it on the bottom of your deck.
Giovanni	2	During this turn, attacks used by your Pokemon do +10 damage to your opponents’ active Pokemon.
Potion	2	Heal 20 damage from one of your Pokemon.
X Speed	2	During this turn, the retreat cost of your Active Pokemon is one less.
Poke Ball	2	Put a random Basic Pokemon from your deck into your hand.
Red Card	1	Your opponent shuffles their hand into their deck and draws 3 cards.

Who doesn’t love Mewtwo? With the Mythical Slab Trainer card, and an energy-accelerating Gardevoir on your bench, the Mewtwo EX deck is a top competitor. With this deck, you’ll want to get your Gardevoir set up as quickly as possible using Trainer cards like Professor’s Research, Mythical Slab, and Poke Ball.

Once you’re set up, Gardevoir’s Psy Shadow ability will accelerate your energy, and Mewtwo EX can dish out 150 damage every turn. Protect your Mewtwo from being knocked out. Once it’s gone, you’ll have a lot of difficulty securing the win, so keep it alive!

Utilize item cards like Potion and X Speed to help keep your Mewtwo EX in the fight longer.

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Palkia EX Deck (Water Type)

Deck List:

Card	Quantity	Effect/Ability/Attack
Palkia EX	2	Attack: Slash – 30 damage. Attack: Dimensional Storm – 150 damage. Discard 3 Water Energy from this Pokemon. This attack also does 20 damage to each of your opponents’ benched Pokemon.
Eevee	2	Attack: Continuous Steps – Flip a coin until you get tails. This attack does 20 damage for each heads.
Vaporeon	2	Ability: Wash Out – As often as you like during your turn, you may move a Water Energy from one of your Benched Water Pokemon to your Active Water Pokemon. Attack: Wave Splash – 60 damage.
Manaphy	2	Attack: Oceanic Gift – Choose 2 of your Benched Pokemon. For each of those Pokemon, take a water Energy from your Energy Zone and attach it to that Pokemon.
Poke Ball	2	Put a random Basic Pokemon from your deck into your hand.
Professor’s Research	2	Draw 2 cards.
Misty	2	Choose one of your water Pokemon, and flip a coin until you get tails. For each heads, take a Water Energy from your Energy Zone and attach it to that Pokemon.
Giant Cape	2	The Pokemon this card is attached to gets +20 HP.
Cyrus	2	Switch in one of your opponent’s Benched Pokemon that has damage on it to the Active Spot.
Pokémon Communication	2	Choose a Pokemon in your hand and switch it with a random Pokemon in your deck.

Palkia EX is part of the Space-Time Smackdown set which was released on January 30th, 2025. This deck quickly became a front-runner due to Palkia’s Dimensional Storm attack, which deals an impressive 150 damage in addition to dealing 20 damage to each of your opponents’ benched Pokémon.

Misty is arguably one of the strongest Trainer cards available, and with any luck, you’ll pull this card within the first few turns to power up your Palkia, or use it to replenish his energy after using his attack. Vaporeon’s Wash-Out ability will provide added control over the energy you have in play, and Manaphy’s Oceanic Gift will accelerate your early game progress.

General Deck Building Tips

Pokemon Ash, Brock, Pikachu, and Misty in a red sunset evening background

While building your deck, decide what is going to be your strongest Pokemon and build around it. Think about what cards will synergize with them, how you can attach energy faster, and how you can pull your supporting Pokémon more efficiently.

For example, consider making Arceus EX the center of one of your decks and pairing it with Dialga EX. Use Dialga EX to attach two energies to Arceus EX in a single turn to get ahead of your opponent.

Crobat also shares a synergy with Arceus Ex. As long as you have an Arceus EX in play, you can use Crobat’s Cunning Link ability to deal 30 damage to your opponents’ Active Pokemon from the safety of your bench.

If you want to build your Deck as quickly as possible, buying PokeGold will help speed up the process, but it’s not necessary to play at a high level. There are many powerful decks that you can build for free, with patient pack-opening and careful use of your points for that one rare card that just won’t drop. You can substitute some key cards for others until you obtain the optimal ones.

With new sets of cards being released frequently, deck-building in Pokemon Pocket is continuously evolving, even if the format didn’t strike a chord with everyone. Stay up to date with all the new cards, and don’t be afraid to experiment with your deck.