Pokémon TCG: Diamond & Pearl—Secret Wonders

Blastoise (Secret Wonders, 2/132) has an awesome Poké-Power that goes by the name of Waterlog.  This Poké-Power allows you to attach as many Water Energy cards as you like to your Pokémon. The only drawback? Your turn comes to an end.  Yet in no time at all, you'll be able to pay for its Hydro Pump attack and deliver 90 damage!  Blastoise works well with Smeargle (Secret Wonders, 66/132).  Use Smeargle’s Color Pick attack to get up to 3 Water Energy cards from your deck, put them into play using Waterlog, and get ready to wash away the competition!

Charizard (Secret Wonders, 3/132) is a powerhouse Pokémon that can pummel the competition, but its impressive strength comes at a price. Charizard's Blast Burn attack doles out devastating damage, but after the flames die down, you'll have to flip a coin to see how many Energy cards to remove from the Fire-type combatant. Even if you’re lucky, you’ll have to remove 2 Energy cards. And if you're unlucky, be prepared to kiss 4 Energy cards goodbye. This Pokémon is best played near the end of a match, since its Fury Blaze Poké-Body really kicks into effect when your opponent has 3 or less Prize cards remaining, increasing the damage done by Charizard’s attacks by 50!

Entei (Secret Wonders, 4/132) will help you get your flame on! This Legendary Pokémon's Blaze Roar attack connects for an ambitious 60 damage to the Defending Pokémon. On top of that, the attack can do 20 damage to an opponent’s Benched Pokémon of your choosing with the proper coin flip. If you're not so lucky on the flip, Entei will need to discard 2 of its Fire Energy cards as a result of the attack. If you can manage to Knock Out a Pokémon with this attack, Entei's Burning Coat Poké-Body will kick in. For each of your opponent’s Pokémon that you Knock Out, Burning Coat moves the top 3 cards from the top of your opponent's deck into the discard pile. To maximize this deck disruption, try combining Entei with Rhyperior (Diamond & Pearl, 12/130). Rhyperior achieves similar disruptive results with its Earth Fissure Poké-Power, and the two working together make a disruptive deck-damaging duo. 

A chivalrous Pokémon by nature, Gallade (Secret Wonders, 6/132) refuses to bully enemies weaker than itself. Instead, it uses its Sonic Blade attack to drive them to the Bench without knocking them out. If an opponent proves worthy, Gallade won’t hold back!  Its Psychic Cut attack will finish off any foe that’s already been damaged by Sonic Blade. When the battle heats up, Gallade's Psychic Cut attack can also reveal your Prize cards—providing valuable insight when deciding which card to pick up!

Have a splash with Gastrodon East Sea (Secret Wonders, 8/132)! Remember, you can have up to four copies each of Gastrodon East Sea and Gastrodon West Sea in your deck, so you can mix it up a bit when it comes time to build. Gastrodon East Sea's Dwindling Wave attack can do up to 80 damage, but you have to subtract 10 damage for each damage counter on it. Teamed with Gastrodon West Sea (Secret Wonders, 9/132), once a turn Gastrodon East Sea’s Osmotic Pressure Poké-Power gives you the chance to shift up to 3 damage counters from Gastrodon East Sea to one of your Gastrodon West Sea. Normally, damaging your own Pokémon isn't a great idea, but more damage on Gastrodon West Sea means more damage when it uses its Raging Flood attack! 

Open the floodgates with Gastrodon West Sea (Secret Wonders, 9/132) , the cool Sea Slug Pokémon!  Its first attack, Raging Flood, has the ability to inflict up to 110 damage for only 2 Energy. Even better, you can remove 2 damage counters from Gastrodon West Sea when the attack is complete! Gastrodon West Sea’s second attack, Wild Waves, spreads some serious damage around, making it well suited for any deck that targets the opponent’s Bench. But be wary with this powerful attack—Pokémon on each player’s Bench receive damage. Smart players will save this attack for when their Bench is empty or when they are in a healthy position and can handle a bit of damage dealt to their own Pokémon!

Go on a flight of fancy with Legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh (Secret Wonders, 10/132)! Its Phoenix Turn Poké-Power brings new meaning to the phrase, "With great risk comes great reward." If Ho-Oh would be Knocked Out by an attack during your opponent's turn, you get the chance to flip a coin. With a heads, you keep Ho-Oh in play and get to remove all damage counters, Special Conditions, and any other effects on Ho-Oh. However, you must discard all cards other than Energy cards attached to Ho-Oh. Your opponent takes a Prize card, but Ho-Oh stays in play to rule the roost with its rainbow-powered rampage, Rainbow Wing, that lets it do 20 damage for each different type of basic Energy card attached to it!

Serve up some slobbery strategy with Lickilicky (Secret Wonders, 12/132). Evolving from Lickitung (Secret Wonders, 91/132), Lickilicky uses its extensible tongue to wreak havoc on your opponent's Bench. Its Tongue Reel attack will have you lapping up Prize cards with its ability to switch the Defending Pokémon with a Benched Pokémon of your choice. The attack does 20 damage, and as an extra bonus you can leave the Pokémon Paralyzed with a heads-up flip of the coin. Its Boundless Power attack hurls a hefty 80 damage, but it will leave Lickilicky unable to attack on its next turn. Its Retreat Cost of 4 Energy is about as expensive as it gets, but otherwise Lickilicky is a great Pokémon to have on your team, if you can handle the drool.

L is for Low Energy Cost: Lugia’s (Secret Wonders, 14/132) Silver Wing attack inflicts a reasonable 20 damage for 1 Energy, while the Psychic Destruction attack has a chance to do a colossal 120 damage for only 3 Energy (1 Psychic, 2 Colorless). What player wouldn’t be happy with that?
U is for Utility: Lugia’s use of Colorless Energy allows it to be used in almost any type of deck. Even if you don't have Psychic Energy in your hand to pay for Psychic Destruction, you can always use a Special Energy card to cover the cost.
G is for Great HP: Weighing in at a hefty 90 HP, Lugia is a Basic Pokémon that will hold its own in the opening rounds.
I is for Interference: If you flip a heads when attacking with Silver Wing, you can remove an Energy card from your opponent’s Active Pokémon and return it to his or her hand.
A is for Attacks: Before using Psychic Destruction, make sure that your opponent doesn’t have any Energy hiding underneath his or her Active Pokémon. If there is Energy attached, the attack value will drop from a devastating 120 all the way down to 40.

Raikou (Secret Wonders, 16/132) rumbles onto the scene with an amazing Poké-Power and a powerful attack worthy of its legendary status. Its Thunder Rumble Poké-Power allows you to put 1 damage counter on 1 of your opponent's Benched Pokémon when you attach a Lightning Energy to Raikou. When Raikou uses Thunder Climb, you have to discard the top 3 cards from your deck. But don't worry—it's a good thing! For each Lightning Energy card you find, Raikou adds 10 damage to the attack’s 50 base damage. The best part? You get to attach any Lightning Energy cards you find to one of your Pokémon.

Roserade (Secret Wonders, 17/132) is a beautiful, elegant, and above all else, dangerous Pokémon. The 90 HP Stage 1 Pokémon evolves from Roselia (Secret Wonders, 62/132). Roserade has two attacks—S leep Poison and Magical Leaf. Sleep Poison inflicts 20 damage and renders the Defending Pokémon Asleep and—you guessed it—Poisoned. Roserade’s insidious second attack, Magical Leaf, has a base damage of 40. If you flip a coin and get heads, the damage is increased to 70 and you remove 3 damage counters from Roserade! All things considered, Roserade is a stunning Pokémon that is sure to see lots of play.

This Legendary Pokémon has a very interesting Poké-Power—it allows you to retrieve 3 Water-type Pokémon from your discard pile.  Has your Blastoise (Secret Wonders, 2/132) just been Knocked Out?  No problem!  Put Suicune (Secret Wonders , 19/132) on your Bench and take back Squirtle (Secret Wonders, 112/132), Wartortle (Secret Wonders, 75/132), and Blastoise.  Your opponent will have a hard time getting rid of Suicune after it uses its Cure Stream attack; any damage done by an attack on your opponent's turn is reduced by 20!

The next exciting card featured in Diamond & Pearl—Secret Wonders is the return of one of the most powerful Grass-type Pokémon of all, Venusaur (Secret Wonders, 20/132)! Venusaur uses its Giant Bloom attack to inflict heavy damage on the opponent and at the same time heal itself. Venusaur's healing ability combined with its massive 130 HP ensures that once Venusaur enters the battle, it won’t be leaving anytime soon. And with its Miracle Aroma Poké-Power, Venusaur can disable the Defending Pokémon with Asleep, Burned, or Poisoned Special Conditions once a turn, even when Venusaur is safely on the Bench!

Featuring an awesome action pose illustrated by Kouki Saitou, Electivire (Secret Wonders, 25/132) looks ready to pump any foe full of 20,000 volts of power! You'll be busy moving Energy cards on and off this Stage 1 Pokémon since Electivire’s Motor Drive Poké-Power attracts Energy cards and its Discharge attack forces you to discard them. The discard is well worth it—for each Lightning Energy you sacrifice, you get to flip a coin. The Discharge attack delivers a whopping 50 damage times the number of heads!

Is it getting hot in here? Your opponent will start feeling the heat with the fierce Magmortar (Secret Wonders, 31/132) on the battlefield.  Its Poké-Body, Flame Body, acts like a built-in Potion by removing 2 damage counters whenever you attach a Fire Energy. In turn, this helps pile up the amount of possible damage for a Flame Blast attack with 20 damage for each Fire Energy attached to Magmortar. And no Pokémon is safe, not even on the Bench, as Fireball Bazooka does 40 damage to the Defending Pokémon as well as a brutal 20 damage to two of your opponent's Benched Pokémon!

Mothim (Secret Wonders, 33/132) makes a triumphant appearance in Secret Wonders as an Evolved form of Burmy’s many versions (Plant, Sandy, or Trash Cloak)!  Mothim’s first attack, Silver Wind, when followed by its second attack, Raging Scales, enables this Grass-type Pokémon to do either 70 damage or a possible game winning 110 damage if Mothim has any damage counters on it.  Mothim, like other Grass types, is most effective in swarms. Mothim’s free retreat cost enables the player to have several powered-up Mothim swarming in and out of the Active position while landing devastating attacks. Watch out, because mighty Mothim is fast and furious! 

Weavile (Secret Wonders, 40/132) appears as a Water-type Pokémon in Diamond & Pearl—Secret Wonders. Its Poké-Power, Dark Engage, shifts the type of your Active Pokémon to Darkness for one turn. This power can be very useful against the opponent’s Pokémon that are weak against Darkness-type Pokémon. It will cost you zero Energy to use Shadow Charge, which allows you to search your deck for 2 Darkness Energy cards and attach them to any Pokémon you choose. Weavile’s uniquely disruptive attacks, useful Poké-Power, and free Retreat Cost make it a versatile Pokémon to put into action.

Disguise, surprise, and strategize with Wormadam Plant Cloak (Secret Wonders, 41/132). This Stage 1 Pokémon can rapidly grow from 80 to a massive 120 HP by making use of its Plant Cloak Poké-Body when at least 2 Grass Energy are attached. Now that’s plant power! You can take advantage of the added health points immediately after evolving by attaching a Double Rainbow Energy to pay the cost of the 2 Grass Energy. Wormadam Plant Cloak can also whip up a blazing 60 damage with its Leaf Hurricane attack, which imposes a bothersome Confusion Special Condition if the opponent’s Active Pokémon has less remaining HP than Wormadam Plant Cloak.

Today, we are talking about featured card fashions and here we have Wormadam Sandy Cloak (Secret Wonders, 42/132) wearing the stylish but practical Sandy Cloak Poké-Body—suitable for any shape or size. Not only does it protect the wearer from any underlying effects from the Defending Pokémon's attacks, it will keep you bone-dry during the rainiest of days. Complement Wormadam’s outfit by adding some classic Fighting Energy and for each of these accessories you add 10 additional damage when performing the Push Over attack in battle. While the 10 bonus damage may not seem like much, every little bit helps, and it may just give you the extra edge over your opponent.  

Wormadam Trash Cloak (Secret Wonders, 43/132) can be up and running in no time!  When you have any Energy card attached to Burmy Trash Cloak (Secret Wonders, 80/132), use its Wear Cloak Poké-Power to attach a Metal Energy from the discard pile, evolve it into Wormadam Trash Cloak, attach another Metal Energy card from your hand, and presto! It’s ready to attack!  Be sure to pack in some Buffer Piece Pokémon Tool cards (EX Dragon Frontiers, 72/101) with this Wormadam— its Trash Cloak Poké-Body will reduce your opponent’s attacks by 20 damage and Buffer Piece will reduce them by an additional 20!

The Professor is in! The one-and-only Professor Oak makes another Supporter card appearance on Professor Oak’s Visit (Secret Wonders, 122/132). His Supporter effect is clear-cut: draw 3 cards from your deck, and in return, put a card from your hand onto the bottom of your deck. Since you draw first, there is no need to sacrifice a card from your hand before reaping the benefit of drawing the cards (unlike a few other existing Supporter cards). In a pinch, if Professor Oak’s Visit is the only card you’re holding, you can use it to replenish your hand. The ability to draw cards shouldn’t be overlooked, as many games can be lost or won on the single turn of a card.

All Pokémon TCG players will tell you that early game set-up is everything. The Supporter card Roseanne’s Research (Secret Wonders, 125/132) provides this and more!  Roseanne’s Research enables a player to get up to 2 in any combination of Basic Pokémon and basic Energy cards.  The power to get your desired Pokémon and appropriate Energy early in the game is critical in fast set-up decks that rely on swarms of Pokémon such as Kricketune (Mysterious Treasures, 27/123) or Blissey (Mysterious Treasures, 5/123).  Late-game recovery is also achievable using Roseanne’s Research.  If some of your Pokémon are Knocked Out, use Night Maintenance (Secret Wonders, 120/132) to shuffle them back into your deck along with some Energy cards, if you need them.  Immediately play Roseanne’s Research, and your Pokémon are back in play again!

The ability to draw cards and disrupt your opponent’s hand are two key elements when it comes to squeaking through a tough match. Team Galactic’s Mars (Secret Wonders, 126/132) does both!  It allows you to draw 2 cards, then as a bonus, you get to move a card from your opponent’s hand into his or her deck. You get to the pick the card, but you don't get to peek first. Team Galactic’s Mars works well with many other cards, such as Honchkrow (Mysterious Treasures, 10/123).  Honchkrow's Dark Wing Flaps attack does 50 damage, then allows you to choose a random card from your opponent’s hand and force your opponent to shuffle it back into his or her deck.  If you combine this attack with a well-played Team Galactic’s Mars, you can really mix things up on your opponent!

One of the tricky things about Pokémon LV. X is that they can only be played on the Active Pokémon—a dangerous spot to be in, unless you’re looking to battle. That's not a problem for Gardevoir LV. X (Secret Wonders, 131/132). With its Teleportation Poké-Power, you can transport Gardevoir LV. X safely to your Bench, even if you retreated a Pokémon earlier in the turn to allow Gardevoir LV. X to get into play in the first place. Once Gardevoir LV. X  is on the Bench, you can use its Teleportation Poké-Power to swap it with another Pokémon and use Gardevoir’s (Secret Wonders, 7/132) Telepass Poké-Power to steal the effect of your opponent’s Supporter cards in his or her discard pile. When you attack with Gardevoir LV. X, remember to keep an eye the remaining HP of all of your Pokémon in play or you may accidentally Knock Out your own Pokémon with its Bring Down attack!

Honchkrow LV. X (Secret Wonders, 132/132) is one of the most powerful cards in this expansion. Honchkrow LV. X can only be put on your Active Stage 1 Honchkrow (Mysterious Treasures, 10/123), but you gain the advantage of having the attacks and Poké-Bodies of both cards! Honchkrow LV. X is a powerhouse with two great attacks—Feint Attack and Darkness Wing.  Feint Attack is very fast, dishing out 40 damage for 2 Energy. Darkness Wing is equally good, dealing out 60 damage for 3 Energy.  With Darkness Wing, if it Knocks Out an opponent’s Pokémon, you can search your discard pile for any 1 card and put it into your hand!  Honchkrow LV. X’s unique attacks and free Retreat Cost make it a formidable foe.