The release of Scarlet and Violet as a Pokemon TCG set, and the introduction of gen 9 cards to the game, is very close. With this, we're seeing a new/old mechanic: Pokemon-ex. Not to be confused with the slightly more recent Pokemon-EX, which are always Basic, Pokemon-ex are beefed-up versions of Pokemon with high build-around power. However, this comes at a cost. When a Pokemon-ex (or Pokemon-EX, for that matter) is knocked out, your opponent takes 2 Prize Cards, not just 1. Despite this, I believe that Pokemon-ex is the perfect mechanic for Scarlet and Violet.
Perfect Timing
True to the games' endgame theme of time travel, we're seeing a new swath of Pokemon for a past mechanic. On the surface, this seems like a pretty basic point. But when you include the specific Pokemon getting a Pokemon-ex, the real genius of this is revealed. Every single Pokemon is either available in both versions, a new Pokemon, or a past/future form. This, again, helps bridge the gap between past and future, much like the newly revived ex mechanic is intended to.
Perfect Flavor
Many of the designs for Pokemon-ex are fantastic for the connections they make to the Pokemon's personality, in-game roles, or abilities. For example, Miraidon has an Ability that's very similar to many modern win conditions in that it gets Pokemon onto the bench, which can often allow more consistent Ability-based combos. Contrarily, Koraidon has an ability that ramps up your Energy attachments. It reminds me a lot of the Malamar found in Malamar Toolbox, even serving the same function (getting Energy from the discard pile.) This is a much older form of build-around.
Perfect Power
While many of these Pokemon are blatantly powerful, the return to Evolution Pokemon-ex having to evolve provides a check to this power in many cases. Gardevoir-ex, an Energy producer even more potent than Koraidon-ex, has the downside of being a Stage 2 Evolution, meaning it can't start rolling on turn 1. This has the potential to slow down big bad high-HP Pokemon slugfests. That's really important with the recent effect of HP creep in the Pokemon TCG.
All in all, the return of Pokemon-ex was a brilliant decision by the game's designers. Throughout the next few years, I'm very excited to see how the mechanic shapes up in the Standard meta and beyond!
Comments
Post a Comment