Black & White—Dragons Exalted

The Black & White—Dragons Exalted expansion has an incredible number of great cards to play, but they're no good if you can't get them into your hand. That's where Milotic (28/124) comes in: this Pokémon's Clear Search attack lets you search your deck for any 3 cards and put them into your hand. Looking for some extra energy? An entire Evolution line? Some burly Pokémon-EX? Whatever you need, Milotic can get it, and fast—Clear Search costs just 1 Water Energy. That's the kind of attack that can turn the tide of battle.

Those pesky Pokémon-EX wearing you down? Try Sigilyph (52/124), a great Pokémon-EX stopper! Sigilyph’s Safeguard Ability protects it from all effects of any Pokémon-EX’s attack, even if it’s on your Bench. This protection doesn’t extend to your other Pokémon, though, so Pokémon-EX that can attack your Bench—such as Raikou-EX (Black & White—Dark Explorers, 38/108)—will still be able to deal their damage.

Sigilyph isn’t just good at slowing the advance of your opponent’s Pokémon-EX: it can also go on the offensive in a surprisingly big way! Its Psychic attack does 50 damage, plus 10 more damage for each Energy attached to the Defending Pokémon. Against Energy-reliant Pokémon such as Mewtwo-EX (Black & White—Next Destinies, 54/99), it’s one of the best options out there. Safeguard alone will make Sigilyph a popular card, and with its Psychic attack, this will be a card to fear for a long time!

Pokémon Abilities are essential to many decks, but Garbodor (54/124) may have people rethinking their strategy. Its Garbotoxin Ability removes the Ability of every other Pokémon when Garbodor has a Pokémon Tool attached to it, no matter where that Pokémon is—in hand, in play, even in the discard pile. Be careful, though—Garbotoxin affects both players, so make sure you aren’t wiping out an Ability you need when you activate it! Also, keep in mind that you can attach any Pokémon Tool card to get Garbotoxin going. If you have Dark Claw (Black & White—Dark Explorers, 92/108) or Eviolite (Black & White—Noble Victories, 91/101), even though Garbodor can’t use their effects, attaching one still activates its Ability!

Garbodor’s Sludge Toss attack does a respectable 60 damage, but its Energy requirement is a little steep at 2 Psychic Energy plus 1 more Colorless Energy. You’ll be more likely to keep Garbodor on your Bench and build a creative, Ability-eliminating deck around this strategic Pokémon!

Your opponent's Pokémon will have nowhere to hide when you put the massive Registeel-EX (81/124) into play. The Steel-type Pokémon takes aim at three Pokémon at once with its Triple Laser attack, doing 30 damage to 3 of your opponent's Pokémon. You'll be able to target vulnerable Pokémon early before your opponent can evolve them! Once several Pokémon have damage on them, start picking them off with the Protect Charge attack, which not only does 80 damage, it reduces attacks on Registeel-EX by 20 on the next turn. Not that Registeel-EX has too much to worry about—its 180 HP makes it one tough Pokémon to knock out no matter what Pokémon it faces!

March toward victory with the help of the Dragon-type Pokémon Altaria (84/124)! This Stage 1 Pokémon is perfect for giving the rest of your Dragon-type Pokémon a lift: its Fight Song Ability makes any of your Dragon-type Pokémon's attacks do an extra 20 damage to the Active Pokémon. That 20 damage might be what it takes to get your team to the finish line! Use Altaria's Ability to kick Giratina-EX's Shred attack into triple digits, or make Garchomp's Mach Cut attack do an astounding 80 damage for just 1 Fighting Energy. No matter what kind of Dragon-type deck you design, make room on your Bench for Altaria.

Crank up the volume with Rayquaza-EX (85/124), one of the boldest and most powerful of the new Dragon-type Pokémon. Rayquaza-EX announces its presence first with Celestial Roar, an attack that has you discard 3 cards from the top of your deck, and if any of them are Energy cards, you attach them directly to Rayquaza-EX. Like all Dragon-type Pokémon, Rayquaza-EX benefits from having multiple types of Energy attached to it, so whatever Celestial Roar can discover with its roar will surely be useful.

Once you have the Energy, it’s time for Rayquaza-EX’s Dragon Burst attack to unleash its true potential. This attack costs 1 Fire Energy and 1 Lightning Energy, but the more Energy you add, the more damage it can do: the attack will blast away for 60 damage times the number of Fire Energy or Lightning Energy that you discard from Rayquaza-EX. Rayquaza-EX fits well into both Fire-type and Lightning-type decks, either of which tends to have many ways to get Energy out of your discard pile to recharge Rayquaza-EX when you don’t want to use Celestial Roar.

With 170 HP, a cheap Retreat Cost, and an attack with unlimited potential, Rayquaza-EX is the perfect Pokémon to build your first Dragon-type deck around!

The Stage 2 Garchomp (90/124) is yet another hard-hitting Dragon-type in the new Black & White—Dragons Exalted expansion. With 140 HP and a couple of powerful attacks, Garchomp has some of the features of a Pokémon-EX without the risk of giving your opponent two Prize cards if it gets Knocked Out. Plus, both of its attacks are cheap, meaning you need less Energy to use it, leaving more room in your deck for Trainer cards.

For just 1 Fighting Energy, Garchomp’s Mach Cut attack will do 60 damage, plus knock a Special Energy off of the Defending Pokémon. You’ll be hard pressed to find such a potent attack for so little Energy anywhere else. And for just 1 more Water Energy, Garchomp will slice up the Defending Pokémon with its Dragonblade attack. This attack also makes you discard 2 cards from the top of your deck, so be ready with the usual Super Rods, Revives, and other Trainer cards that can retrieve vital cards from your discard pile.

For a Stage 2 Pokémon, this new Garchomp is sleek and powerful, just what you need to compete against the tough Pokémon-EX you’re sure to face!

Another Legendary Dragon-type Pokémon is ready to join the battle! When you first look at Giratina-EX (92/124), you won’t be able to take your eyes off of the stunning artwork—the Pokémon looks as if it’s flying off the card.

But Giratina-EX gets better when you start to study its pair of amazing attacks. Start your assault with Shred: for 1 Grass Energy, 1 Psychic Energy, and 1 more Energy, you’ll do 90 damage that is completely unaffected by effects on the Defending Pokémon. Even Pokémon Tool cards such as Eviolite are ignored by this powerful attack! Then, for 1 more Energy, finish off the Defending Pokémon with the 130-damage Dragon Pulse attack. You’ll need to discard the top 3 cards from the top of your deck to make it work, so make sure you have plenty of cards on hand to retrieve those cards you discard that you were hoping to use!

For collectors, the amazing art on the new Dragon-type Giratina-EX will make it a much sought-after card. And for players, it’s a powerful card to kick off your next Dragon-type deck!