18 trainers articuno ex

Trainers decks. Hear the story: in the TCG, when you don't open with a Basic Pokémon, you reveal your hand, shuffle it back to your deck and draw the same amount of cards. This is called a mulligan. A big downside is that for each mulligan you take, your opponent can draw an extra card.

But what happens in Pokémon TCG Pocket, where you're guaranteed to open with at least one Basic Pokémon? You build a deck with only two copies of that Basic Pokémon and fill the rest

Trainers decks. Hear the story: in the TCG, when you don't open with a Basic Pokémon, you reveal your hand, shuffle it back to your deck and draw the same amount of cards. This is called a mulligan. A big downside is that for each mulligan you take, your opponent can draw an extra card.

But what happens in Pokémon TCG Pocket, where you're guaranteed to open with at least one Basic Pokémon? You build a deck with only two copies of that Basic Pokémon and fill the rest with Trainers. By choosing the best standalone Basic Pokémon ex, such as Pachirisu ex or Articuno ex, the 18 Trainers deck ensures a reliable start and quickly begins racking up damage with a consistent game plan. It also comes down to be a budget deck with just a need for 2 ◊◊◊◊ cards.

weaknesses 

The deck is as straightforward as it gets, making it difficult to adjust strategies mid-game. It also has to play a bunch of filler cards.

A strong early game is crucial, as the deck can hardly come back from an established board. Articuno ex can't hit for more than 90 damage and Zapdos ex's Thundering Hurricane is unreliable. Both can be easily one-shot by Mewtwo ex’s Psydrive or Charizard ex’s Crimson Storm, while Venusaur ex can efficiently stall them out.

18 Trainers can get easily overwhelmed by aggressive decks, especially on the play. An aggressive deck like Pikachu ex just needs 1 and 2 Pokémon on the bench for two turns to knock them out, while none of them can guarantee a one hit on Pikachu ex.