Stéphane Ivanoff

Patrat
Ability: Watchful Eyes
Damage counters on a Pokémon (yours or your opponent's) cannot be moved to another Pokémon.
C - Bite 10

Special Red Card
(Item)
You may use this card only if your opponent has 3 Prize cards or fewer remaining.
Your opponent shuffles their hand and puts it on the bottom of their deck. If your opponent put any cards on the bottom of their deck this way, they draw 3 cards.

Keep Android Open Advocating for Android as a free, open platform for everyone to build apps on.

Please, PLEASE, be loud about this topic, Android being open is what makes it useful, you own your phone and you should be able to install apps from wherever you wish to, don't let Google tell you what's allowed on the device you payed for!

keepandroidopen.org

Polymarket has created a market that would monetize a nuclear attack amid increasing concerns that bets are happening among government insiders who can make military decisions.

What stage of the apocalypse is this?

polymarket.com/event/nuclea...

We had our regular pre-new-standard-set Expanded night on Monday! There were 13 players and I think 11 different archetypes

Check out this thread for every list!

This gives away the whole game, as people have been warning for years and years. This is identity erasure of a whole class. the precedents for having documents revoked by group…are not good.

we have reached the “Nazi medical experiments” stage of our concentration camp effort

this is your mission. our pedophile president needs you to bomb this elementary school full of kids because he thinks it makes him look cool. also his scheming viziers will be betting money on it for fun. good luck soldier

I love that!

Je suis invité à un event Pokémon secret pour les #Pokemon30 ans de Pokémon qui a 30 ans (Pokémon (30)). Ils ont annoncé que les Pokémon sont réels et le Prof Chen m'en a donné un.
(et aussi ils ont annoncé la génération 10 il paraît)

Very fun idea, but it wouldn't even work because Regidrago plays Pokémon Ranger 😅

In the meantime, if you want to read more about Expanded, you can find all my older threads (and the Silent Lab, my Expanded Discord) here:
linktr.ee/lubyllule
Have a good day!

Thanks for reading! When I first started this series, I thought I could do 50 threads, and that's now done! I'm glad that so many people expressed an interest, even a fleetingone, in Expanded thanks to them.
This series is not over, though, I'll keep going as long as there are cool decks to cover!

This might just be me being optimistic, of course. But Zoroark Checkmate is such a hard deck to build and play that it's very possible there are ideas that haven't been explored yet. I think there's potential there! Maybe not right now, but at some point.
(20/20)

Three-Prize Pokémon are also seeing more play recently: Mega Gardevoir ex (in Gardevoir), Mega Lopunny ex (in Vileplume), Mega Absol ex (by itself). Their rise is a good sign for Zoroark as it makes it easier to take three Prizes in one turn.
(19/20)

Since Ignition Energy came out and replaced Triple Acceleration Energy, it's possible to use Basic Pokémon's {C} attacks. There are some powerful utility Pokémon that could be used this way, mostly Girafarig and Bunnelby.
(18/20)

However, Zoroark Checkmate shines against more linear decks, especially aggressive decks, since Stinger GX prevents them from converting their lead into a win. Ceruledge is a great example.

I also think there might be ways to make Zoroark Checkmate better than we think.
(17/20)

The deck's main issue is that it loses to opponents that can take three Prizes on the turn after Stinger GX. That's something that Regidrago, the current best deck in the format, can easily do with Timeless GX, making it a terrible matchup for Zoroark.
(16/20)

Zoroark Checkmate has been worthy of this legacy. In 2022, it got 2nd place *and* top 8 at CL Aichi, the only major Expanded event in the world.
But since then, it has mostly disappeared from the metagame. Is its time over?
(15/20)

(As a side note, the name Checkmate came to be associated with Naganadel-GX because Tord and his group cryptically refered to their deck as such. I never considered my version to be a Checkmate deck. If you ask me, it was Zoroark/Dewgong. People underestimated Dewgong so much.)
(14/20)

My Zoroark-GX / Dewgong deck from NAIC 2019 Pokémon: 24 4 Zorua SLG 52 4 Zoroark-GX SLG 53 2 Seel UNB 44 2 Dewgong UNB 45 1 Meowth TEU 125 1 Persian-GX UNB 149 1 Poipole LOT 107 1 Naganadel-GX FLI 56 1 Ditto Prism Star LOT 154 1 Alolan Muk SUM 58 2 Tapu Lele-GX GRI 60 1 Dedenne-GX UNB 57 1 Mew UNB 76 1 Marshadow UNB 81 1 Giratina LOT 97 Trainer: 28 4 Lillie UPR 125 3 Guzma BUS 115 2 Judge FLI 108 1 Acerola BUS 112 1 Tate & Liza CES 148 4 Nest Ball SUM 123 4 Pokémon Communication TEU 152 3 Ultra Ball SUM 135 2 Rescue Stretcher GRI 130 1 Pal Pad UPR 132 1 Field Blower GRI 125 2 Choice Band GRI 121 Energy: 8 4 Double Colorless Energy SUM 136 4 Triple Acceleration Energy UNB 190

The other one is Zoroark-GX decks from NAIC 2019, that used Naganadel-GX not as a main option, but as a tech against Tag Team decks. Tord Reklev and Henry Brand came up with the idea independently, and Henry's build eventually led to me winning NAIC in Masters, and Isaiah Bradner in Seniors.

Xander Pero's Naganadel Checkmate Pokémon: 25 3 Poipole FLI 55 1 Poipole LOT 107 3 Naganadel-GX UNM 160 1 Naganadel-GX FLI 56 1 Buzzwole FLI 77 1 Nihilego LOT 106 1 Dusk Mane Necrozma SMP 124 1 Pheromosa FLI 11 1 Naganadel LOT 108 2 Snorunt UNM 37 1 Froslass UNM 38 1 Ditto Prism Star LOT 154 1 Aerodactyl-GX UNM 106 1 Melmetal-GX SMP 178 1 Persian-GX UNB 149 1 Dewgong UNB 45 1 Marshadow UNB 81 1 Mew UNB 76 1 Hoopa UNM 140 1 Dedenne-GX UNB 57 Trainer: 27 4 Steven's Resolve CES 145 2 Tate & Liza CES 148 1 Brock's Grit TEU 135 1 Grimsley UNM 199 4 Custom Catcher LOT 171 4 Pokémon Communication TEU 152 3 Mysterious Treasure FLI 113 2 Reset Stamp UNM 206 1 Beast Ball CES 125 1 Spell Tag LOT 190 4 Ultra Space FLI 115 Energy: 8 3 Triple Acceleration Energy UNB 190 2 Rainbow Energy CES 151 1 Water Energy Energy 29 1 Recycle Energy UNM 212 1 Beast Energy Prism Star FLI 117

For some quick history: Zoroark Checkmate descends from two archetypes from 2019.
One is Xander Pero's bonkers Naganadel Checkmate deck which he used to take down the DC Open (a Regionals-level event held during day 2 of Worlds). Stinger into taking three Prizes was the deck's only win condition.

Note that you could also replace Arceus VSTAR with Zacian V + Forest Seal Stone. I think Arceus VSTAR is conceptually extremely cool in this deck, but maybe FSS works better in a Secret Box build. (There are other options for Ace Specs, by the way, like Dowsing Machine.)
(11/20)

The rest of the deck is mostly consistency cards. Winning after Stinger GX can require huge combos, but the deck has many ways to draw them: Fezandipiti ex, Oricorio-GX, Persian-GX, Secret Box, Zoroark-GX, and Arceus VSTAR, which doubles as an attacker that can hit 200 (220 with Muscle Band) easily.

Alolan Muk is in the deck as a counter to Sudowoodo, though it might not be needed anymore. Note that Alolan Muk does *not* shut off Jirachi Prism Star's Wish Upon a Star, as it's activated when Jirachi is taken from the Prizes, so not in play or hand (or discard).
(9/20)

Having the Zoroark line also means we get to play Zoroark-GX! The former titan of both Standard and Expanded is now mostly reduced to the role of a discard and draw engine, but it can also still be used to KO Dark-weak Pokémon like Mew VMAX and Shadow Rider Calyrex VMAX, thanks to Sky Field.
(8/20)

... And that's where the namesake card comes into play. Zoroark can turn into any of these stage 1 Pokémon, so we just need to discard them and we can use them whenever we need. Ditto Prism Star is another way to get any stage 1 in play.
(7/20)

The common point of all these Pokémon or attacks? They work with Ignition Energy!

Another important part of the deck in modern days is Dusclops, which can not only facilitate KOs, but also help activate cards like Counter Catcher, Slowbro, and Crisis Punch.

Now, that's a lot of stage 1s...

Yeah this deck uses Swellow, no big deal, it's just cool like that. Other attackers that can see play include Raticate + Hypnotoxic Laser, Greedent ex + Briar, and even Excadrill which can use Crisis Punch twice. Zoroark Checkmate is the ultimate toolbox, so many strange cards can find a home here.

If the opponent took two Prizes (by KOing Naganadel-GX, typically), then you could also use Slowbro's Twilight Inspiration with Peonia+Jirachi. If you can't use Peonia (because you need to play Pokémon Ranger for example), Swellow + Crisis Punch is another way to take three Prizes!
(4/20)