Head to the Lost Zone and Win with Mew Prime!

Even among the many interesting cards in the new Pokémon TCG: HS—Triumphant expansion, Mew Prime (97/102) stands out as something special. Reading the card, you can't help but think of the powerful combinations that can be created with it. The card is a blank slate—all it needs is your creativity!

But in case you're not sure where to start, check out this primer on how to get a Mew Prime deck headed in the right direction. Note that this article doesn't suggest many Pokémon cards to use as attack resources for Mew Prime's Lost Link Poké-Body—that's up to you. This is, however, a brief overview of some key cards you can use to support Mew Prime. Add your own combination of Pokémon whose attacks intrigue you—you'll have the makings of a flexible, winning deck.

A Pokémon Push

Mew Prime has its own method for putting your Pokémon in the Lost Zone with its See Off attack, but there are other effective ways of stocking the Lost Zone with Pokémon that Mew Prime can tap into. These Pokémon are helpful for two reasons: First, you might not have Mew Prime in play yet. Second, Mew Prime only has 60 HP—a definite vulnerability—so letting other Pokémon do the set-up work before Mew Prime enters play is a wise move.

Two other Pokémon Prime can be highly useful in a Mew Prime deck. Check out Absol Prime (91/102), another Basic Pokémon that hits hard on its own. Its Vicious Claw attack does 70 damage for only 1 Darkness Energy and 1 Colorless Energy, but it requires you to put one of your Pokémon from your hand in the Lost Zone. Ordinarily that would be a drawback, but in this case it works well for prepping Mew Prime—especially since Mew Prime can't get Pokémon from your hand to the Lost Zone. Plus, Absol Prime has 80 HP (making it a little more durable than Mew Prime), and its Eye of Disaster Poké-Body is helpful early in matches as your opponent sets up his or her Bench—every Basic Pokémon that your opponent puts into play gets 2 damage counters added to it right away. However, Absol Prime can't get cards out of your deck and into the Lost Zone, so find the right cards to fuel the Lost Zone by using a Luxury Ball (Diamond & Pearl—Stormfront, 86/106) or a Dusk Ball (Diamond & Pearl—Majestic Dawn, 80/100), both of which let you get Pokémon from your deck to your hand rather easily.

Another interesting Pokémon to consider including is Gengar Prime (94/102). Note that Mew Prime's See Off attack allows you to use the moves from any Pokémon in the Lost Zone—both yours and your opponent's. With Gengar Prime's Hurl into Darkness attack, you can examine your opponent's hand, choose a Pokémon with a move that could help you out, and put it in the Lost Zone. Gengar Prime also uses Psychic Energy, making it a natural fit with Mew Prime. And with 130 HP, you can be sure it can take a beating and stay in the fight until Mew Prime is ready to roll.

Full of Energy

Because Mew Prime requires Psychic Energy to use its See Off attack, you'll be tempted to load your deck with Psychic Energy and find other Pokémon that use that Energy for their attacks. But two kinds of Special Energy can really open up the playbook, allowing you to use a wider range of Pokémon in conjunction with See Off.

Rainbow Energy (HeartGold & SoulSilver, 104/123) is virtually indispensible in a Mew Prime deck. With it, the whole gamut of Pokémon attacks becomes available to you. With even 2 Rainbow Energy attached to Mew Prime, you can use the attacks of a wide range of Pokémon. Of course, there is a strong disadvantage to using Rainbow Energy, since you have to put a damage counter on any Pokémon you attach it to—so have some healing cards on hand to keep Mew Prime in top shape.

One issue with a Mew Prime deck is that it relies heavily on its star Pokémon for it to work—all the rest of the Pokémon in your deck will likely be in the Lost Zone. To make sure that you always have Mew Prime ready to play, consider attaching Rescue Energy (90/102) to it. In addition to supplying 1 Colorless Energy, Rescue Energy keeps Mew Prime from landing in the discard pile or Lost Zone when it gets Knocked Out. Instead, Mew Prime returns to your hand (but all of the cards attached to it—including Rescue Energy—do go into the discard pile).

Of course, you'll probably need more Energy than simply a handful of Special Energy cards. Plus, you have to watch out for Pokémon such as Scizor Prime (HS—Undaunted, 84/90), whose Red Armor Poké-Body prevents all damage from attacks by Pokémon that have Special Energy cards attached to them. Tailor your deck with regular Energy that you know you'll need based on the Pokémon you plan to send to the Lost Zone.

Live It Up

One look at Mew Prime and it's obvious what the card's weakness is: with only 60 HP, Mew Prime can be Knocked Out quite easily. But what can you do to make sure Mew Prime stays around long enough to win?

There are a number of Pokémon that can simultaneously do damage and heal your Pokémon, but Espeon (HS—Undaunted, 2/90) may be your best option. Its Solar Suggestion attack lets you take 4 damage counters off any of your Pokémon and put them on any of your opponent's Pokémon. Just as importantly, Solar Suggestion costs the same as Mew Prime's See Off, so you don't need to add any more Energy to use it if Espeon is in the Lost Zone.

If you can't heal Mew Prime, another strategy is to remove it from the line of fire, and the Seeker (88/102) Supporter card is handy to keep around for just such emergencies. Since Mew Prime has no Retreat Cost, it's easy to get back to your Bench and then back into your hand with Seeker. Remember that you can only retreat your Pokémon once per turn, so if you play Mew Prime again right away, it can't be Active until the next turn, unless you use a card like Warp Point (Diamond & Pearl, 116/130) or Switch (Diamond & Pearl, 119/130). If your opponent is adept at sniping Pokémon on your Bench, it might be good to wait until Mew Prime can contribute right away.

Seeker is also very useful for the beginning of a match when your opponent's Bench is lacking Pokémon. If your opponent has only one Pokémon on his or her Bench, play Seeker before delivering a Knock Out to the Defending Pokémon for an easy win.

A somewhat riskier option for Mew Prime is to put an Expert Belt (Platinum—Arceus, 87/99) Trainer card on it. Expert Belt will boost Mew Prime's HP by 20, but that will still only give it 80 HP. If your opponent is playing a deck that is capable of hitting for 80 or more damage each turn, you may want to leave the Expert Belt out, or use it on your Absol Prime while you're getting Mew Prime ready. Seeker helps out here, too, since all of the cards attached to the Pokémon you pick up also go back to your hand.

These suggestions only scratch the surface of what you can do with Mew Prime, and that's why it's so great. With Mew Prime, you can make all kinds of incredible decks that will keep your opponents guessing. But, as with many strategies, you will only succeed if you are aware of both Mew Prime's strengths and weaknesses. Just be creative and be patient, and Mew Prime's power will be revealed!