Toxicroak isn’t the first Pokemon you’d think of when considering powerful cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket, and the data backs this up—Toxicroak decks currently have one of the lowest win rates in the metagame.
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However, despite its poor performance in TCG Pocket, Toxicroak can still shine in one specific deck that has the potential to win high-stakes matches. Here’s a guide to building that very deck.
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Toxicroak Card Overview
- Type: Darkness
- Text: Flip a coin for each Pokemon you have in play. This attack does 40 damage for each head.
- Base HP: 90
- Base ATK: 40
- Max ATK: 160
- ATK Energy: Two Darkness-type
- Retreat: Two
- Weakness: Fighting-type
- Set & Pack: Space-Time Smackdown’s Dialga
The Best Deck for Toxicroak
While it’s difficult to min-max Toxicroak, its most consistent can be seen in a basic deck paired with Darkrai ex. In this setup, Darkrai ex is a chip damage dealer, while Toxicroak is the primary damage provider. Additionally, Fossils are used as Pokemon decoys, maximizing Toxicroak’s coin flips before each attack.
Toxicroak Deck Synergies
- Darkrai ex uses up all the extra Energy to deal chip damage.
- Fossil cards act as decoys, capitalize on Toxicroak’s coin flip potential.
- Team Galactic Grunt helps draw Croagunk early.
- Pokemon Communication allows you to draw Toxicroak.
- Toxicroak is the primary damage dealer, capable of hitting the enemy with up to 160 DMG.
How to Play Toxicroak Deck Effectively
Here are some tips to help you exploit Toxicroak’s potential:
- Use faint cards for more coin flips. Toxicroak flips an extra coin for each Pokemon on the board. By adding Fossil cards, you can flip even more coins—two additional if you have two Fossils on the Bench. This helps you leverage its RNG-based attack, and if things go wrong, you can always discard Fossils to replace them with better cards.
- Compensate for Toxicroak’s low damage. On average, Toxicroak deals 80 damage per attack, which isn’t huge. To make it more dangerous, support it from the Bench with cards like Darkrai ex to chip away at the enemy’s HP.
- Exploit Pokemon Communication and Team Galactic Grunt. If you get Toxicroak set up early, its low Energy cost lets it deal significant damage. To ensure that happens, play Pokemon Communication and Team Galactic Grunt strategically, getting the Toxicroak evolution line in hand as quickly as possible.
Toxicroak Performance Analysis
Despite its synergy with Team Galactic Grunt, Toxicroak never managed to carve out a place in Pokemon TCG Pocket’s meta. By the time it was released, the metagame had already shifted away from coin-flip-based cards, with players favoring consistency instead. As a result, Toxicroak entered a scene with little opportunity to shine.
To make matters worse, Toxicroak is a Darkness-type Pokemon, a category dominated by Darkrai ex. While the two cards do synergize, players have better options to pair with Darkrai ex, such as Magnezone or Greninja. This has contributed to Toxicroak being largely forgotten in the current meta.
Pros & Cons of Toxicroak Decks
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Pros |
Cons |
|---|---|
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Energy-efficient |
High RNG |
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Early damage |
Below-average DMG |
|
Easy to play |
Inconsistency |
How Good Is Toxicroak?
Compared to top-performing Pokemon, Toxicroak is a low-tier card. Its base damage is below average, its success rate is heavily reliant on RNG due to coin flips playing a major role in its attacks, and its overall consistency is lacking.
Toxicroak is only a viable option for players looking to build a budget Darkness-type deck with Darkrai ex. It also serves as a decent starting point for newcomers to Pokemon Pocket, as Toxicroak decks are easy to play. However, beyond these benefits, the deck offers little else, and you’re better off avoiding it if you’re looking to invest in more competitive options.
