Target Your Opponent’s Bench with Water-type Pokémon!

The HS—Unleashed expansion features numerous Water-type Pokémon that all share a highly useful skill: they have attacks that target Pokémon on your opponent's Bench. Not only does attacking the Bench make it more difficult for your opponent to "hide" a damaged Pokémon, it also opens up the battlefield. This makes it harder for your opponent to figure out where you'll attack next. So, get ready to flood your opponent's Bench with damage when you use some of these cool Water-type Pokémon!

Let's start with Seadra (40/95), a Stage 1 Pokémon with the Muddy Water attack. This attack does 20 damage to the Defending Pokémon plus 10 damage to one of your opponent's Benched Pokémon. Muddy Water also comes with an added bonus—it costs only 1 Water Energy to use.

There are 2 Kingdra Evolution cards for Seadra in the HS—Unleashed expansion, both of which feature Bench-hitting abilities. First, Kingdra's (17/95) Water Arrow attack does 30 damage to any 1 of your opponent's Pokémon. Like Muddy Water, it costs only 1 Water Energy to use. Additionally, Kingdra's other attack, Stream Pump, does a base 50 damage plus another 30 damage if you decide to return an Energy card attached to Kingdra to your hand. You can also use Kingdra Prime (85/95), as its Spray Splash Poké-Power lets you put a damage counter on 1 of your opponent's Pokémon each turn!

Following another evolutionary chain, take a look at Wartortle (42/95), a Stage 1 Pokémon that can deliver 20 damage to a Benched Pokémon with its Water Arrow attack. And when Wartortle evolves into Blastoise (13/95), you'll have one of the most powerful Bench attacks in the expansion: Hydro Launcher does 100 damage to any of your opponent's Pokémon. Unlike the other attacks discussed, Hydro Launcher costs quite a lot of Energy—2 Water Energy and 2 Colorless Energy. In addition, you have to return 2 Water Energy to your hand after using the attack. Fortunately, Blastoise also has the Wash Out Poké-Power, which lets you move 1 Water Energy from 1 of your Benched Pokémon to your Active Pokémon. This gives you a shot at quickly replenishing Blastoise with Energy every turn. For an even more efficient way to get Energy onto Blastoise, check out Feraligatr Prime's (HeartGold & SoulSilver, 108/123) Rain Dance Poké-Power, which lets you attach as many Water Energy as you like from your hand to your Pokémon!

The Bench-bruising action doesn't stop there! Octillery's (6/95) Switch Cannon attack blasts a Pokémon for 30 damage (and you retreat Octillery to your Bench). Poliwrath (21/95) has a Steamroll attack that hits the Defending Pokémon for 40 damage and a Benched Pokémon for 20 damage. Even Buizel (45/95) gets in on the action with its own Muddy Water attack, which does 10 damage to the Defending Pokémon and 10 damage to a Benched Pokémon. And that's not the end of them! Suicune & Entei LEGEND (94/95 & 95/95) possess a Torrent Blade attack that fits the bill, too. In fact, the array of Water Pokémon in HS—Unleashed that can damage your opponent's Bench is incredible!

One thing you'll notice about some of the cards mentioned (namely Kingdra, Poliwrath, and Blastoise) is that they are Stage 2 Pokémon. Thus, it can be quite a challenge to get the right Pokémon into play. Fortunately, there are a few cards that can help set up your Bench. First, start the process with Poliwag (58/95) and its Call for Family attack. This attack lets you find 1 Basic Pokémon in your deck and put it straight onto your Bench. Then, play the Rare Candy Trainer card (82/95), which will give you the power to evolve a Basic Pokémon directly to a Stage 2 Pokémon! With this combination of cards, you'll sink your opponent in no time!