The Best Obsidian Flames Decks

What’s poppin Po Town readers? Scarlet and Violet: Obsidian Flames is our latest set on Pokemon TCG Live, and it has shaken up our metagame! While this isn’t the most impactful set in our format, it does contain some amazing cards! Charizard ex [Obsidian Flames] has found its place in a handful of decks, including one with Arceus VSTAR [Brilliant Stars], and Pidgeot ex [Obsidian Flames] has boosted the consistency of some of the previously existing archetypes! I’ve been testing a lot lately, like more than usual, and I’ve compiled some of the best decks in the game for you to check out! These decks have been doing well at League Challenges, League Cups, and online Pokemon TCG events! And you can take any of these lists, copy and paste them right into PTCG Live, and play them right away! If you need any cards online to build these PTCGL decks, be sure to grab some online PTCG Live codes from the PoTown store! And as an added bonus, use code zlesage5 to save 5%! That being said, let’s look at some of the best decks in format!

Starting off with my personal favourite, Giratina VSTAR [Lost Origin] is likely the best deck on this entire list! Your goal is to ramp up cards in your Lost Zone with Comfey [Lost Origin], and Colress’s Experiment [Lost Origin], and eventually press forward with Lost Impact for 280 damage! After sending a couple of energy to the Lost Zone with that attack, you can activate Star Requiem to OHKO any Pokemon that crosses your path! I’ve personally played similar lists to this Lost Zone Giratina VSTAR deck to a handful of League Cups in Toronto, and this is my personal list right now! Let’s check it out!

After placing second at the most recent World Championships in Japan, Gardevoir ex [Scarlet and Violet] has been a favourite choice for many top players, including Tord Reklev. Ralts [Scarlet and Violet] might not add too much to the conversation, but Kirlia [Silver Tempest] and Gardevoir [Chilling Reign] both have built in draw Abilities. They allow you the nestle a Gardevoir ex in between them, are means to ends of getting Psychic Energy in the discard pile, and you can power those energies up with Psychic Embrace. Your attacking options are Zacian V [Celebrations], and Gardevoir, both of which can score OHKOs by loading up Energy! My list is extremely similar to Tord’s, but there are a few changes that have helped me personally. The biggest change is playing the Ralts from Scarlet and Violet to have additional attackers against Gardevoir, and adding in a Worker [Silver Tempest] to get rid of Path to the Peak [Chilling Reign] easier. Let’s see how it looks!

While Lost Zone Giratina VSTAR is trying to ramp up to Lost Impact, and Star Requiem plays, Kyogre [Celebrations] is trying to discard five Energy from the top of your deck to swing for 250 damage to two of your opponent’s Benched Pokemon. In between all of that, you have access to attacking with Radiant Greninja [Astral Radiance] to snipe some of your opponent’s Pokemon, and you can also swing for some easy damage with Dragonite V [Evolving Skies]. It might be hard to pull off Aqua Storm, but it is worth it once you get there! Let’s see what my list looks like!

Mew VMAX [Fusion Strike] won Worlds in Japan, and it is actively one of the best decks in our format! You can go “turbo mode” by dropping an Elesa’s Sparkle [Fusion Strike], grabbing a few Fusion Energy [Fusion Strike], and swinging for a quick OHKO with Meloetta [Fusion Strike]. Or you can Evolve your Mew V [Crown Zenith] into a Mew VMAX [Fusion Strike], and copy Genesect V [Fusion Strike] to do 210 with Cross Fusion Strike into a Techno Blast! On top of all of that, Mew VMAX can lock your opponent out of Abilities with Path to the Peak, and Genesect V can draw a bunch of cards with its Fusion Strike System Ability when Path to the Peak isn’t in play. This deck might be a little scared of Spiritomb [Paldea Evolved], Drapion V [Lost Origin], and Charizard ex, but it still has found a home in the metagame! Let’s see all of the Fusion Strike goodies inside of this list!

After Cyrus David won the recent North American International Championships with Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX [Battle Styles] / Inteleon VMAX [Fusion Strike], it has been a valid option! Lots of Pokemon in our format have minimal HP, like Ralts and Comfey, and that means you can pick off those Pokemon quickly with Double Gunner! If they have a little bit more HP, soften them up with Double Gunner, move damage counters around with Radiant Alakazam, and snipe some Pokemon with G Max Rapid Flow. Medicham V [Evolving Skies] can even allow you to take an extra turn if you place your damage in the right spots! It might be a bit difficult to play, and it suffers from a tough Mew VMAX matchup, but it is a solid choice otherwise! Let’s see what it looks like!

Okay, we have to save the most spicy deck for last: Miraidon ex [Scarlet and Violet]! Taking the same 60 from Andrew Mahone’s Worlds run, this is a vicious deck! You have Electric Generator [Scarlet and Violet] to power up your Pokemon, Miriadon ex grabs your Lightning type Pokemon, and your various attackers swing hard! Raikou V [Brilliant Stars] can OHKO most Pokemon V, and Raichu V [Brilliant Stars] can OHKO everything! Flaaffy [Evolving Skies] holds it all together by getting even more Lightning Energy on the field, and that makes this deck super consistent! If it was good enough to make the Top 32 at Worlds, it's good enough to play going forward! Let’s check out Andrew’s list!

Well, those are the PTCGL decks that are absolutely the best decks in our current format! We still have major events that are happening soon in Pittsburgh, Barcelona, and Curitiba, but I’m sure the above decks will fare well at those tournaments! My best advice is to pick a couple of these decks, test them online, and see what decks work best for you! You never know when you’ll find your new favourite deck or the deck that will give you a championship title in the near future! I’ll be attending Pittsburgh Regionals, and I’m still trying to get into the second wave of the Barcelona Special Event registration! Again, if you need any of the cards to complete these decks, be sure to use code zlesage5 to save 5% on codes from the PoTown store! I have to get back to my own testing, but I’ll catch up with ya for my next article! Thanks for reading!

Zach Lesage is a contributing writer for potownstore.com. As a Toronto local, he has been playing the Pokémon Trading Card Game since 2005 and creates Pokémon content as his full-time career. With multiple prestigious accomplishments in the game, such as the 2020 Players Cup 2 Champion and 2020 Oceania International Championships Finalist, he has proven his success in the game. Outside the game, he travels the world, enjoys the culture of designer streetwear, and is a professionally trained chef. You can catch him at most Pokémon events and follow him on Twitter https://twitter.com/ZachLesagePTCG.