A Shocking Amount of New Decks

What’s up Ultimate Guard readers? Our latest Pokémon TCG set, Surging Sparks, has now been released, and there are a few potential archetypes released in this set that might be able to tackle some of the current metagame! While some might not end up as powerful as Lugia VSTAR [Silver Tempest], there are three new decks that I am going to showcase in this article, and for that - I’m incredibly excited! All of these decks are unique, have powerful attacks, and most importantly, are fun to play! Keep on reading this article about the new decks from Surging Sparks for lists, strategy, and more! Maybe you’ll end up finding your next favorite deck, or at least know what your future competition might be brewing up. Let’s get it!

Pikachu ex / Magneton

If an entire Pokémon TCG expansion is gonna be themed around a singular Pokémon, it has to be at least decent right? Pikachu ex [Surging Sparks] is definitely the star of this set, and it has a few things going for it. While its HP might be low at only 200, it does make up for it with its Ability that can allow it to hang on by a thread. And despite its three different Energy attack costs, Pikachu ex does swing for 300 damage. With cards like Gravity Mountain [Surging Sparks] and Defiance Band [Scarlet and Violet], you can have Pikachu ex swinging into a Charizard ex [Obsidian Flames] for an OHKO. There are a handful of different options to power that yellow mouse up, and I’m a big fan of Magneton [Surging Sparks]. It might come at the cost of a Prize Card, but you can have Pikachu ex hitting that 300 damage turn after turn! And you can always use Crispin [Stellar Crown] and a manual attachment to prepare for your next attack! Since Pikachu ex is a Tera Pokémon, Noctowl [Stellar Crown] seems like a solid inclusion to search out all of the cool Trainer cards that you can include in this deck, like the aforementioned Crispin, or even finish games off with Briar [Stellar Crown]. There are many different plays you can make happen with a Noctowl line, and those plays can greatly improve your chance of making Pikachu ex work! Some other ideas I want to try out are testing Joltik [Stellar Crown], Terapagos [Surging Sparks], and Latias ex [Surging Sparks]. Extra energy acceleration is always a good thing, and free Retreat for your Basic Pokémon can help you have early game mobility. I’m sure with a few hundred games, I’ll get the list to something truly special!

Pikachu ex Deck List

My honest opinion on this deck is that it might need some more time to bake, which roughly translates into waiting for a few more cards to truly break the Pikachu ex / Magneton combo! The below deck certainly can win games, so if you wanna give the deck a whirl, you can try this one out!

A Pokémon as iconic as Pikachu needs the best sleeves you can play with, so be sure to match that Lightning-type aesthetic with Yellow Katana Sleeves. You can check those out here.

Ceruledge ex

Ceruledge ex [Surging Sparks] is a deck that feels more polished than the other two decks featured in this article, and I largely have Gholdengo ex [Paradox Rift] to thank for that. Being able to identify an archetype where you can base your card counts off of, your tech slots, and more really takes a load of work off of my plate. Gholdengo ex is all about discarding Energy from your hand, whereas Ceruledge ex is all about having Energy in your discard pile. Being able to take the Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR [Astral Radiance] tech that can power up the already included Radiant Greninja [Astral Radiance] to gain a powerful single Prize Card attacker is the cherry on top! The strategy is truly that simple! Utilize discarding cards, like the new Brilliant Blender [Surging Sparks] Ace Spec, get Energy in your discard pile, and hit hard with Ceruledge ex. All gas, and no brakes - unless you are attacking with Radiant Greninja to snipe 90 damage to two of your opponent’s Pokémon! I do appreciate how explosive the first couple turns of the game are with this deck because you often use Squawkilly ex [Paldea Evolved], and Carmine [Twilight Masquerade] in the same turn to run through your deck! It’s not exactly the most resourceful playstyle, but it is incredibly fun to try and control the self-destructive tendencies of this style of deck! You could certainly try cutting Brilliant Blender for a different Ace Spec, like Legacy Energy [Twilight Masquerade], which allows you to offer your opponent three different Ceruledge ex to try and go through! I am slightly worried about the amount of Temple of Sinnoh [Astral Radiance] running around, but that is something metagame dependent! Only time will tell!

Ceruledge ex Deck List

Ceruledge ex is a different case than Pikachu ex because this deck is tournament viable right from the beginning - it might not be the BDIF, but it is comfortably sitting within the Top 10 decks in Japan right now! Will that carry over globally? I honestly think yes! Let’s check out my list!

I love matching my decks with the same color of Sidewinder, and with Ceruledge ex / Origin Forme Palkia VSTAR, Ultimate Guard offers the perfect deck box! The Sidewinder Synergy Blue / Red matches both types in this deck, and will protect your new Pokémon TCG deck. Check it out here.

Lost Zone Sylveon ex

The last deck that I’m going to cover in this article is going to be Sylveon ex [Surging Sparks] utilizing the Lost Zone engine! The idea that I’m going for is to use Angelite for the big Stage 2 Pokémon that are often difficult for Lost Zone box decks to handle, and to use Cramorant [Lost Origin] / Sableye [Lost Origin] for the smaller Basic Pokémon. It should work right? Mirage Gate [Lost Origin] is arguably the most efficient way to power up a Tera Pokémon that needs three different Energy to attack, and that is incredibly tempting. Especially since Lost Zone box decks are well defined, and the core engine is truly figured out! The issue is the awkwardness of getting started in the game by potentially missing a Colress’s Experiement [Lost Origin], or tossing away Sylveon ex pieces with Comfey [Lost Origin]. On the bright side, you likely only need to get one well timed Eevee [Surging Sparks] to instant Evolve into Sylveon ex, Mirage Gate, Roxanne [Astral Radiance], and then take a commanding steal of a game from there! And the rest of the deck should function like a normal Lost Zone box deck because all of the Energy types were already naturally in the deck before! I could see a world where Sylveon ex sees more success in a Xatu [Paradox Rift] based deck than a Lost Zone box build, but that’s for another day!

Sylveon ex Deck List

After testing Sylveon ex for a bit, there is definitely something there with this card! The Lost Zone engine is incredibly powerful when it works, but I could also see Dusknoir [Shrouded Fable] as a way to “board wipe” your opponent! The below list will definitely have you using Angelite to your advantage ASAP, so let’s check out my list!

Happy Playtesting

It looks like Ceruledge ex will be the best new deck coming out of Surging Sparks, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a deck featuring Pikachu ex or even Sylveon ex placing highly at a major event in the near future. Sets like Surging Sparks add new cards to previously existing decks, but also pump out many “could be” good cards that might see some play. If you get the right player having a successful day, we could even see Hydreigon ex [Surging Sparks] spread taking down Sacramento Regionals - all it takes is some good ol’ deck list cooking! I know that I’ll be testing these cards as much as possible as I round out the 2024 season with Sacramento, Bogotá, and Toronto - let’s hope I can lock plenty of CP for my World Championship invite as early as possible! Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more articles from me in the future!