Top 5 Crown Zenith Decks

Posted by Zach Lesage on 2/3/2023 to Articles

A New Standard

What’s going on Po Town readers? Crown Zenith has been fully released on PTCG Live, and I’m here to share the top 5 best Crown Zenith decks! You read that right! This article will feature some of the best Pokémon TCG decks for January / February 2023! Before I explain the full details of this article, I have to be honest with you, Crown Zenith is not the most competitive set we’ve seen. It is basically a collector set with a few new cards tossed around to keep the competition “fresh”. You can read that as Radiant Eternatus, Sky Seal Stone and Zamazenta [Crown Zenith] being the best new cards surrounded by a bunch of collectors cards. Either way, it is our newest set, so lemme share the decks I have with y’all. I’ve used a mix of recent Regional Championships results from around the world, a few of my own lists that I’ve been crafting with other Pro players, and top online events to come up with this list! I do want to say that the ranking of the decks is within my personal opinion, but it closely resembles the absolute top of our current Pokémon TCG metagame for both the online and physical games. If you need any Pokemon TCG codes to complete your decks, you are in the right place right here at PoTownStore.com! That being said, let’s look at the top 5 decks in our Crown Zenith format!

5. Mew VMAX

Leon Kesselring recently won Liverpool Regionals with Mew VMAX [Fusion Strike], and it shook the whole community up! Many players are worried that the new combination of Drapion V [Lost Origin] + Sky Seal Stone might spell doom to this deck, but you have Path to the Peak [Chilling Reign] as a decent counter to that strategy. The goal of this deck is to draw cards with Genesect V [Fusion Strike] in order to find all of the combo pieces to attack with Mew VMAX! Those pieces would be cards like Choice Belt, Power Tablet, and Double Turbo Energy. While this deck might get countered by a few other decks on this list, it is still one of the absolute best decks in the format! Let’s check out Kesselring’s Liverpool winning list:

Pokémon (12)	Trainers (44)	Energy (4)
4x Mew V CRZ 60	2x Judge FST 235	4x Double Turbo Energy BRS 151
3x Mew VMAX FST 114	2x Boss's Orders BRS 132
4x Genesect V FST 185	1x Marnie CPA 56
1x Oricorio FST 42	1x Roxanne ASR 150
	4x Power Tablet FST 236
	4x Cross Switcher FST 230
	4x Battle VIP Pass FST 225
	4x Quick Ball FST 237
	4x Ultra Ball CRZ 146
	4x Cram-o-matic FST 229
	2x Lost Vacuum CRZ 135
	1x Switch Cart ASR 154
	1x Escape Rope BST 125
	1x Echoing Horn CRE 136
	2x Forest Seal Stone SIT 156
	1x Choice Belt BRS 135
	1x Big Parasol DAA 157
	2x Lost City LOR 161
	2x Path to the Peak CRE 148
	1x Collapsed Stadium BRS 137

4. Regigigas

Drew Kennett is one of the best players in the entire world and has seen quite a bit of success with Regigigas [Astral Radiance] this season, and for a great reason - this deck is fantastic! The goal is simple: get out all of your 6 Regis to unlock Ancient Wisdom and then power up the best Regi to attack with! Different Regis can have a type advantage against a lot of top decks, like using Regirock [Astral Radiance] against an Arceus VSTAR. Being able to accelerate Special Energy in a pinch is a huge asset when it comes to powering up Pokémon; that is why this deck is one of the best! Let’s check out Kennett’s list that they played to a Day 2 finish in San Diego:

Pokémon (14)	Trainers (35)	Energy (11)
3x Regigigas ASR 130	4x Professor's Research BRS 147	4x Aurora Energy SSH 186
2x Regieleki EVS 60	3x Marnie CPA 56	2x Gift Energy LOR 171
1x Regieleki ASR 51	3x Serena SIT 164	2x Twin Energy RCL 174
2x Regice ASR 37	4x Quick Ball FST 237	2x Speed Lightning Energy RCL 173
2x Regirock ASR 75	4x Scoop Up Net RCL 165	1x Capture Energy RCL 171
2x Regidrago ASR 118	3x Ultra Ball BRS 150
2x Registeel ASR 108	3x Ordinary Rod SSH 171
	2x Trekking Shoes ASR 156
	1x Lost Vacuum LOR 162
	1x Hisuian Heavy Ball ASR 146
	3x Choice Belt BRS 135
	1x Cape of Toughness DAA 160
	3x Path to the Peak CRE 148

3. Arceus VSTAR / Duraludon VMAX

This is my current pet deck in Standard and that's because I love the matchup spread that it has! The goal of this deck is to use Arceus VSTAR to power up Duraludon VMAX [Evolving Skies] so that you can start tanking some hits. Duraludon VMAX has the Skyscraper Ability, which means it won’t get damaged by your opponent’s Pokemon in play that has Special Energy attached. That means Lugia VSTAR, Regigigas, and Mew VMAX all have to have other strategies. Furthermore, Big Parasol [Darkness Ablaze] can stop a lot of “side-strategies” against this deck, like Yveltal [Shining Fates], which is why the deck sees so much success. I’ve been tinkering with this deck for a while now, so here is my most recent personal list:

Pokémon (11)	Trainers (36)	Energy (13)
4x Arceus V PR-SW 204	3x Marnie PR-SW 121	6x Metal Energy EVS 237
2x Arceus VSTAR CRZ 230	3x Big Parasol DAA 199	4x Double Turbo Energy ASR 216
3x Duraludon VMAX SIT 236	2x Evolution Incense SSH 163	3x Fighting Energy CRE 233
2x Duraludon V CPA 047	2x Hyper Potion SSH 166
	1x Switch SUM 160
	1x Escape Rope BUS 163
	1x Tool Jammer BST 136
	1x Single Strike Style Mustard BRS 214
	2x Pokégear 3.0 UNB 233
	2x Temple of Sinnoh ASR 214
	4x Ultra Ball BRS 186
	2x Collapsed Stadium LOR 215
	3x Quick Ball SSH 216
	4x Colress's Experiment CRZ 219
	4x Boss's Orders LOR 241
	1x Raihan CRZ 225

2. Lost Zone Box

Lost Zone Box has been one of the most powerful decks since its release in Lost Origin, and it is one of the few decks that can include a new Crown Zenith card: Sky Seal Stone! In this variant of the deck, we focus on using Kyogre [Celebrations] as a game-ending combo to wipe your opponent’s board! While there are many strategies to discover within this deck, the most common strategy is to get cards in the Lost Zone with Colress’s Experiment and Comfey [Lost Origin] to eventually activate Mirage Gate [Lost Origin] to power up your Pokemon. Cramorant and Sableye work with varying amounts of cards in the Lost Zone to try and make the most of each moment. Raikou V [Brilliant Stars] is really your best shot at beating a Lugia VSTAR deck because of Weakness and you get to use Sky Seal Stone as a way to draw extra Prize Cards. This deck has so many different ways to draw cards, attack, and even accelerate Energy which is why it is one of the best decks in the format. Let’s check out my most updated personal list:

Pokémon (15)	Trainers (32)	Energy (13)
1x Galarian Zigzagoon SHF 151	2x Switch Cart ASR 154	3x Lightning Energy EVS 235
1x Dragonite V EVS 192	1x Raihan SIT 242	2x Capture Energy DAA 201
1x Raikou V CRZ 201	1x PokéStop PGO 068	5x Water Energy CRE 231
4x Comfey CRZ 174	1x Echoing Horn CRE 225	3x Psychic Energy CRE 232
2x Sableye LOR 070	2x Escape Rope BUS 163
2x Cramorant LOR 050	4x Scoop Up Net RCL 207
1x Kyogre CEL 003	2x Energy Recycler FLI 143
1x Lumineon V CRZ 199	4x Battle VIP Pass FST 225
1x Manaphy CRZ 166	1x Hisuian Heavy Ball ASR 146
1x Radiant Greninja ASR 046	2x Quick Ball SSH 216
	4x Colress's Experiment CRZ 219
	4x Mirage Gate LOR 163
	1x Boss's Orders LOR 241
	1x Sky Seal Stone CRZ 143
	2x Ordinary Rod SSH 215

1. Lugia VSTAR

Lugia VSTAR is one of the best decks that this game has ever seen so it's no surprise that it has ended up on the top of my list! The goal of this deck is to quickly discard two Archeops [Silver Tempest] and summon them into play with Lugia VSTAR. At that point, you want to power up your various Pokemon with Special Energy to swarm the board with quick attacks to overwhelm your opponent. There are some unique cards to attack with, so let's look at a few of them. Yveltal can OHKO anything for five Energy, Raikou [Vivid Voltage] is great at sniping Pokemon (and also strong in mirror), Stoutland V [Battle Styles] can draw extra Prizes against Basic Pokemon, and Radiant Charizard [Pokemon Go] gets better as the game progresses. While it isn’t a new card from Crown Zenith, Irida [Astral Radiance] has recently been added into this deck as a way for Lumineon V [Brilliant Stars] to have a way to search for another Lumineon V to grab a Supporter for next turn and an Item of your choice. Typically it is best to grab one of your 1-of Items, like Canceling Cologne [Astral Radiance] because they are hard to find in your deck by trying to draw into them. Let’s check out Raz Wolpe’s list from the Top Cut of Liverpool Regionals.

Pokémon (20)	Trainers (25)	Energy (15)
3x Lugia V SIT 138	4x Professor's Research BRS 147	4x Powerful Colorless Energy DAA 176
3x Lugia VSTAR SIT 139	2x Marnie CPA 56	4x Aurora Energy SSH 186
4x Archeops SIT 147	2x Boss's Orders BRS 132	4x Capture Energy RCL 171
2x Lumineon V BRS 40	1x Serena SIT 164	2x Double Turbo Energy BRS 151
1x Radiant Charizard CRZ 20	1x Irida ASR 147	1x Heat Fire Energy DAA 174
1x Yveltal SHF 46	4x Quick Ball FST 237
1x Raikou VIV 50	4x Ultra Ball CRZ 146
1x Stoutland V CRZ 116	4x Evolution Incense SSH 163
1x Oranguru SSH 148	1x Lost Vacuum CRZ 135
1x Pumpkaboo EVS 76	1x Canceling Cologne ASR 136
1x Dunsparce FST 207	1x Choice Belt BRS 135
1x Manaphy BRS 41

Time to Play

That’s what we have going on today, Po Town readers! I hope this list gives you the necessary insight to dominate the PTCG Live ladder and have the highest rank out of all of your friends! And things might shake up here a bit too! Lost Zone Box / Rayquaza [Vivid Voltage], Lost Zone Box / Hisuian Goodra VSTAR [Lost Origin], and Eternatus VMAX [Darkness Ablaze] have all been climbing up the tier list and might break into the top 5 decks soon enough! As for me, I’m currently rocking Arceus VSTAR / Duraludon VMAX, and it’s been working really well for me at Regionals! I’ve made Top 64 at Dallas, San Diego, and I have a few other major events coming up soon! I’ll be travelling to Orlando, Melbourne, Knoxville, Vancouver, Utrecht, and Fort Wayne to play events in this Crown Zenith format! I look forward to bringing updates to everyone on the latest decks, upcoming cards, and more! Happy testing, Zach Lesage

About the Writer

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