Pikachu ex is one of the most popular decks in Pokémon TCG Pocket, and it is both great for beginners and arguably one of the best options in the early format—which feels like a match made in heaven.
Pokémon’s main mascot is a pretty popular first deck for many players as the cards are somewhat easy to find without breaking the bank, even if it has some glaring RNG weaknesses against some of the other top deck contenders.
Your main damage dealer is Pikachu ex, which can deal a solid 90 damage for two Electric Energy so long as you have three Pokémon on your bench. But the deck is more than that, as it relies on background setup with Zapdos ex as a great support Pokémon for certain matchups, as well as a few other tricks up its sleeve.
The best Pikachu ex Pokémon TCG Pocket decklist
| Image | Card | Amount | Set | Set Number | Obtained by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Pikachu ex | x2 | Genetic Apex (Pikachu) | 96/226 | 500 Pack Points |
 | Zapdos ex | x2 | Genetic Apex (Pikachu) | 104/226 | 500 Pack Points |
 | Voltorb | x2 | Genetic Apex (Pikachu) | 99/226 | 35 Pack Points |
 | Electrode | x2 | Genetic Apex (Pikachu) | 100/226 | 70 Pack Points |
 | Zapdos | x2 | Genetic Apex (Pikachu) | 103/226 | 150 Pack Points |
 | Sabrina | x2 | Genetic Apex (Charizard) | 225/226 | 70 Pack Points |
 | X Speed | x2 | Promo-A | 2/P-A | Shop |
 | Potion | x2 | Promo-A | 1/P-A | Shop |
 | Poké Ball | x2 | Promo-A | 5/P-A | Shop |
 | Professor’s Research | x2 | Promo-A | 7/P-A | Shop |
How the deck works
Pikachu ex is going to be your main damage dealer, as it’s so easy to get two Electric Energy on it, while other ex Pokémon require four or more Energy while also forcing players to remove Energy to use those attacks.
With Pikachu, though, so long as you can keep your backline, you can deal a solid 90 damage per turn and take out some Pokémon before they have any chance of setting up for a quick victory. But it comes with its risks due to Pikachu ex’s low health bar.
That’s where Zapdos ex comes in, with its three Electric Energy attack Thundering Hurricane, you have to pray to the RNG gods you can successfully flip a coin on Heads as many times as possible. You flip four coins, with each head doing 50 damage for potentially 200 damage, which is more than enough to beat any Pokémon in the game so far.
Equally, Electrode is a great flexible form of damage, its main draw being its 0 retreat cost. You can place an Electrode in the backline for those cheeky Sabrina plays from your opponent. With Electrode leading, you can also retreat it out either for your Pikachu ex or Zapdos ex that has been slowly getting Energy in the backline without having to use an X Speed.
Some decks also change out Potion for Giovanni to deal those extra 10 points of damage, or switch out the basic Zapdos for the Zebstrika backline combo. Find a version that works for you, but keep at least the core of Pikachu ex and Zapdos ex with cards meant to stack up your backline to guarantee 90 damage and try to speedrun a victory.
Even though there are many options, though, it doesn’t mean that the deck is faultless.
Pikachu ex Pokémon TCG Pocket deck weaknesses
Pikachu ex is a glass cannon. Its 120 HP is nothing amazing, and in the mirror match, it sometimes comes down to who gets the luckiest draws or goes second to stack their Pikachu ex with energy first.
Zapdos ex is also completely RNG, and most of the time, you could deal 50 or damage and waste a turn. It’s really random, and sometimes you can have a match where it pops off and other times where it falters.
The deck is also not great against bulky HP Pokémon like Mewtwo ex, Charizard ex, and Venasaur ex, all decks currently at the top of the best decks list. As Zapdos is the only card capable of one-hit KO’ing, and it relies on coin flips to work, it makes the deck pretty unreliable.
You can also easily draw into dead cards when you need one the most. If you can’t end a game in the first few turns, chances are you can’t win at all. It’s all about destroying decks early, as other decks that have time to set up squash you easily.
If a Mewtwo ex player gets a Gardevoir and Mewtwo on the field before you can stack energy, it’s pretty much game over unless you get a lucky Zapdos ex-coin flip. It’s the same for Charizard ex players, too. You can get overwhelmed fast if you don’t finish off the game before other decks can set up.
