The Latin American Pokemon Trading Card Game International Championships (LAIC) is almost here, and will feature some of the best Pokemon TCG decks around.
The 2023 Latin American International Championships takes place November 17 – 19. It is the first event of the 2024 championship series, and alongside the VGC and Pokemon Go, the TCG events will feature sizeable cash prizes and championship point payouts.
The tournament, which will take place in sunny Sao Paolo, Brazil, will be a showcase of some of the best and the best Pokemon TCG decks around, in a true test of their mettle and their mental.
Best Decks in standard for Pokemon TCG LAIC
Gardevoir Ex
Surprisingly, given its reputation as BDIF and placing second at worlds this year, it did not make the power rankings on the official Pokemon website.
The powerful deck has also seen helpful additions with the release of Paradox Rift. Tord’s list and analysis of the deck in particular will come in valuable to competitors.
Giratina VSTAR
Giratina Vstar has been levitating near the top for some time, and continues to pack a punch. Lost Giratina also filled the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th spots at the recent Pokemon TCG Singapore regional league.
It also scored the most wins in the Japanese TCG City Leagues at the start of November, so we expect it to give a strong showing at LAIC.
Roaring Moon Ex
An ancient draconic Pokemon that has been called, in addition to its supporter cards ‘cracked beyond all belief‘ and simply ‘broken’. Its frenzied gouging move allows for an OHKO on anything and its second, disruptive calamity storm move, hits Mew for double damage. It also saw a great deal of popularity in the Japanese TCG city leagues.
Miraidon Ex
Miraidon came in 1st and 3rd in Lexington, Kentucky this month and is not to be scoffed at. In between JW Kriewall’s (with felt hats) victory at the Toronto Regionals and LAIC, what was arguably the best Pokemon TCG deck has gained some new options. These include the monster, Iron Hands Ex, the legendary Tapu KoKo Ex and item, and some nifty new tool cards in TM: Turbo Energise and Earthen Vessel.
Iron Valiant Ex
The Tachyon bits ability does work in tandem with switch and ping decks. Expect Iron Valiant Ex to deliver OHKO’s out of nowhere. It has many possibilities right now, synergizing harmoniously with cards like Medicham V, Natu and Radiant Alakazam. Fans are waiting eagerly for the emergence of Iron Valiant Ex and Iron Hands Ex archetypes that will come into their own.
Charizard Ex
Charizard burning down arenas in 2023. Who would have thought it? The original baller has risen from the ashes once again at regionals. Although it utilizes low HP basics, the deck is packing, typically three to four rare candies to quickly allow Charizard onto the arena.
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Charizard Ex should watch out for decks with high damage outputs like Chien Pao. A possible counter for that unfavorable matchup is Toedscruel, which stops Superior Energy Retrieval, and TM Evolution which allows the first-turn player to unleash Charizard on turn two.
Chien Pao Ex
A strong deck unless you’re up against card-control players. It can be played alongside Palkia and Baxcalibur, although with so many evolutions running around you may want to swap out Bibarel. The deck is a powerhouse that can quickly put an end to decks with double prizes.
The deck can include these itself, by running the deadly Iron Hands Ex and Earthen Vessel combo to easily accelerate the energy that Iron Hands Ex needs.
Mew Vmax
In a metagame full of highly playable tech options, Mew VMAX is still a solid build. Players are expecting to see less Charizard, which should help Mew builds but with so many Roaring Moons running rampant in recent tournaments, things could get choppy for Mew players.
Nevertheless, pundits are optimistic. Christopher Schemanske of Pokemon.com said “hostile environment for some of its biggest enemies, Comfey / Lost Zone Toolbox and Gardevoir ex”.
Watch the best Pokemon TCG decks in action
Make sure to watch the LAIC championships this month on the official Pokemon Twitch stream. In addition to a great show, The Pokemon company will be giving away a free Pokemon TCG live code for Iron Valiant EX.
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For more tips and tricks to become the very best, make sure you check out our other articles:
Pokemon TCG Players worried shiny Charizard Ex tin could bring another scalper wave | Grab this Pokemon TCG Paradox Rift Booster deal and snag a free Iron Valiant at LAIC | Where to buy The Pokemon Paradox Rift Elite Trainer Box and Booster Box | Iron Hands Ex card set to strangle and destroy Pokemon TCG metagame | How to get your Pokemon Cards Graded | Best Waifu Cards | Pokemon Paldean Fates Release
