A Pokemon TCG card from the Terastal Fest ex set is dominating the meta in Japan and it’s expecting to do the same once it’s released in English, due to its OP ability to lock down an entire type of card.
In both the Pokemon TCG and Pocket, a deck can contain Item and Supporter cards. Of the two, Supporter cards tend to be more powerful, but they’re restricted to one per turn. Items, on the other hand, can be used as many times as the player draws them.
Item cards contain many staples used by nearly every deck, which is why the Budew card from the Japanese Terastal Fest ex set is so feared. According to Pokecabook, over 50% of over 1440 decks used the card.
Budew is the Pokemon TCG Item card killer
On the surface, Budew doesn’t appear to be anything special, being a 30 HP Grass Pokemon with a single attack that deals 10 damage.
Budew’s Itchy Pollen attack has a secondary trait that makes it dangerous, as it prevents the opponent from using any Item cards from their hand on their next turn. This can completely neuter the other player’s turn, forcing them to concentrate on nuking the Budew.
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The fact that Itchy Pollen doesn’t even require Grass Energy means it’s incredibly splashable and can be used in pretty much any deck, which is why it’s seeing so much play, as it’s not strictly limited to Grass decks.
Blocking Item cards means a player can’t use powerful Pokemon TCG cards like Rare Candy, Ultra Ball, or VS Seeker, which is an amazing effect for such a weak Pokemon.
The popularity of Budew could lead to it being restricted or banned in Japan, which would likely be emulated in English tournaments, once it’s finally released worldwide.
With Pokemon TCG Pocket quickly becoming a smash hit, there’s also the question of when Budew will make the jump to that game. The smaller deck size in Pocket means it can be just as deadly there, which means it probably won’t make the jump to mobile devices.