Summary
- Pokemon TCG Pocket differs from the physical game with distinct deckbuilding rules limited to 20 cards.
- Dragon-type Pokemon in Pocket struggle due to Energy requirements and random Energy generation.
- To improve gameplay, Pocket could implement Energy manipulation to support Dragon decks and enhance diversity.
There are many ways in which Pokemon TCG Pocket resembles and follows in the footsteps of the physical version of Pokemon TCG, starting with the way card conventions are established and the types of critters available in the game. Although Fairy Pokemon cards were added to the physical game in the past, Pokemon TCG removed Fairy as a type with the launch of the Gen 8 series, but Dragon remained despite its similar status. In Pokemon TCG Pocket, the gameplay loop is quite different from the physical version of the game, and that is because deckbuilding rules differ as well.
For example, decks are limited to 20 cards, and the number of cards can neither exceed nor be inferior to that. There is a major difference in the fact that Energy cards don’t exist in Pokemon TCG Pocket, but rather, the game generates Energy randomly based on the Energy types used by the deck or those selected by players when creating it. This is no problem for decks that use just one type of Energy, but it can be for those that don’t. The result is that the mobile game does feature Dragon Pokemon, but they need one big addition for their Energy requirements.
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Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Energy Zone Makes Dragon Types Nearly Unplayable
Currently, there are seven different Dragon-type Pokemon cards in the game, though that is one is not counting the two illustration rare versions of both Dragonite and Garchomp. They all have one thing in common, with the exception of Gible, and that is that their attacks require at least two different types of Energy. In the case of Pokemon TCG Pocket‘s Dragonite line, they all need at least one Water and one Electric Energy to attack, whereas Druddigon requires Water and Fire, and both Gabite and Garchomp require Water and Fighting.
Gible can attack with any Energy type for 20 damage with Gnaw.
The main problem with this approach, given that Energy cards are not in Pokemon TCG Pocket at all, is that one can potentially never get enough Energy of a given type because each one is generated randomly between the possible types in the deck. For example, a Garchomp deck that uses other critters, like the Greninja line, may be forever stuck on all Water Energy and never get the one Fighting Energy needed for the Dragon Pokemon to attack. Since Energy generation is random, there are a few ways for the game to be improved for multi-type and Dragon decks:
- Rather than generating Energy randomly, the game could have a system where the Energy Zone generates Energy types based on the number of Pokemon of each type present in the deck. For example, three Water Pokemon and one Dragon Pokemon with Water and Fighting requirements could result in one guaranteed Fighting Energy for every three Water Energy
- Another option could be adding a Trainer card to Pokemon TCG Pocket, possibly one based on the legendary Dragon Pokemon trainer Lance, that allows Dragon-type critters to attack regardless of the Energy types attached to them (provided they have enough Energy to attack). An alternative could be a similar card that instead changes the Energy type available in the Energy Zone to one chosen by the player
Why Pokemon TCG Pocket Needs Energy Manipulation
With some kind of Energy type manipulation or control, Dragon-type decks could finally enjoy some time in the limelight, as the current meta decks in Pokemon TCG Pocket only use one Energy type in the Energy Zone. Decks like Darkrai Ex and Magnezone use multiple types of Energy in the actual gameplay, but the unstable nature of RNG privileges decks that only use one Energy type in the Energy Zone. It remains to be seen if any changes will be made, but these would be great to support Dragon-type decks as well as more deckbuilding diversity for those players who would like to use two or more Pokemon types in a given deck.
