Pokemon TCG Pocket’s meta-dominant Mewtwo ex deck finally has a reliable counter thanks to the release of Mythical Island on December 17.
The miniset, intended to tide players of the mobile title over until the launch of a major expansion in 2025, added over 80 new cards, including several that are a direct counter to Gen 1’s lab-created Legendary.
While Dragon and Metal types have been left wanting with Mythical Island, another previously underrepresented type, Dark, received a powerful new tool in the form of Venipede and its evolutions.
While this Dark-type deck is primarily strong against the potent Mewtwo & Gardevoir pairing you’ve likely come up against countless times, it’s also effective against TCG Pocket’s rising Celebi & Serperior deck, albeit to a lesser degree.
Before we get to how it works, here’s the deck list you’ll want.
Deck list
| Card | Quantity | Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Koffing | 2 | N/A |
| Weezing | 2 | Gas Leak: Once during your turn, if this Pokemon is in the Active Spot, you may make your opponent’s Active Pokemon Poisoned. |
| Venipede | 2 | N/A |
| Whirlipede | 2 | Poison Sting: Your opponent’s Active Pokemon is now Poisoned. |
| Scolipede | 2 | Venoshock: If your opponent’s Active Pokemon is Poisoned, this attack does 50 more damage. |
| Tauros | 1 | Fighting Tackle: If your opponent’s Active Pokemon is a Pokemon ex, this attack does 80 more damage. |
| Koga | 2 | Put your Muk or Weezing in the Active Spot into your hand. |
| Leaf | 2 | During this turn, the Retreat Cost of your Active Pokemon is 2 less. |
| Poke Ball | 2 | Put 1 random Basic Pokemon from your deck into your hand. |
| Professor’s Research | 2 | Draw 2 cards. |
| Sabrina | 1 | Switch out your opponent’s Active Pokemon to the Bench. (Your opponent chooses the new Active Pokemon.) |
Strategy & Meta analysis
You’ll no doubt have already sussed it, but Scolipede is the star of the show here. While its ability to poison opponent’s Pokemon is identical to that of Genetic Apex‘s Muk, the former only requires two to the latter’s three.
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What’s more, its pre-evolution, Whirlipede, is essentially a better Grimer, boasting a lower retreat cost, more health, and damage. The trade-off here is that Scolipede is a three-stage evolution to Muk’s two, but that downside is accounted for with supporting cards such as Tauros, Leaf, and the ever-reliable Sabrina.
Leaf allows you to withdraw Scolipede without having to sacrifice a single energy, while Koga grants the same flexibility for Weezing. This is integral to ensuring you’re able to set up your Poison before the opposing Mewtwo ex comes online.
You’ll want to get Venipede onto your board as fast as possible and start setting up your bench with a Koffing and Tauros. The latter should be treated as a secondary option if you have unlucky draws, though Professor’s Research and Poke Ball should make this a rare scenario in itself.
Finally, should your opponent ever get their ramp combo going with Gardevoir, Sabrina can be used to force an opposing Mewtwo ex to the bench before it’s able to get Psydrive off, giving you an additional turn of setup.
Looking for more Pokemon TCG Pocket meta recommendations? Check out our deck tier list for suggestions.
