Name: Armaldo
Color: Fighting
Type: Stage 2 (evolves from
Anorith)
HP: 120
Weakness: Grass
Resistance: None
Retreat: CCC
Poké-BODY: Primal Veil
As long as
Armaldo is your Active Pokémon, each player can’t play any
Supporter cards.
Attack#1:
(FFC) Blade Arms [60]
Attributes:
Armaldo is the only version of itself available, so that
means that it doesn’t have to beat itself out to be in a
deck, but neither can you toss in a copy or two into a
pre-existing Armaldo deck. It’s Fighting, which as a type
(note, Weakness, Resistance and the like are related to
type, but not automatic, so they are not included in this
assessment) is pretty strong: there are many Pokémon that
are weak to it, and while there is Resistance, it is no
longer as wide spread. This is also a Stage 2 Pokémon,
which is basically the “worst” you can be: it requires two
other cards to get into play, no matter how you get it into
play. Fortunately, being a Stage 2 came with some perks,
apparently (see the Abilities Section). There
are few solid Stage 2 Fighting Pokémon out there, namely the
Skyridge Machamp (though the Expedition Machamp is useful
when added to that deck), Aquapolis Nidoking, and perhaps
Expedition Golem. So it’s a mixed blessing: there is only a
small niche for Fighting decks, but there is not much
competition for it.
It has the
maximum HP it can without being a dual-Weakness Pokémon
ex. Needless to say, that is great. ^_^ It is Grass
Weak, which is about as bad as most Weaknesses. At least
there aren’t a lot of strong Grass Basics that can be
splashed into any color of deck in Eon-in Unlimited, though,
we have Jungle Scyther. x_x Sadly this card lacks
resistance, like so many others. Its retreat is three,
which is one more than I consider “average”. I case I
haven’t mentioned it clearly enough before, I consider a
retreat of two average, not in the mathematical sense, nor
in the sense that is it most common, but in that it is the
point at which anything less is something of an advantage,
and anything over is a disadvantage. Fortunately, this is
just one over, so if you absolutely must, you can pay it,
but I don’t recommend it.
Before I go
on, I must of course address its lower stages. This card
evolves from Anorith which in turn evolves from Claw Fossil.
Name: Claw Fossil
Type: Trainer
Text: Play Claw Fossil as if it
were a Basic Pokémon. While in play, Claw Fossil counts as
a (C) Pokémon (instead of a Trainer card). Claw Fossil has
no attacks of its own, can’t retreat, and can’t be affected
by any Special Conditions. If Claw Fossil is Knocked Out,
it doesn’t count as a Knocked Out Pokémon. (Discard it
anyway.) At any time during your own turn before your
attack, you may discard Claw Fossil from play.
Poké-BODY: Jagged Stone
If Claw Fossil is your
Active Pokémon and is damaged by an opponent’s attack
(even if Claw Fossil is Knocked Out), put 1 damage
counter on the Attacking Pokémon.
Name: Anorith
Color: Fighting
Type: Stage 1 (evolves from Claw
Fossil)
HP: 80
Weakness: Grass
Resistance: None
Retreat: C
Attack#1: (C) Fast Evolution
Search your
deck for an Evolution card, show it to your opponent, and
put it into your hand. Shuffle your deck afterward.
Attack#2:
(FC) Pierce [30]
Name: Anorith
Color: Fighting
Type: Stage 1 (evolves from Claw
Fossil)
HP: 80
Weakness: Grass
Resistance: None
Retreat: C
Attack#1: (F) Slash [20]
Attack#2: (CCC) Double Scratch
[40x]
Flip 2 coins. This attack
does 40 damage times the number of heads.
Of the
Fossils, Claw Fossil is probably best. Given the new rule
that you can play them from your hand in the beginning as a
Pokémon, they might be nice for low Basic decks. They may
be weak, but can be discarded at will from play and don’t
count as a price, and it places a damage counter if
attacked! As for the Anorith, I recommend running some of
both, perhaps along with some Rare Candy. The first Anorith
is good for setting up but the second is a solid attacker in
its own right. Still, you may want to get Armaldo in play
ASAP, hence the Rare Candies.
Abilities:
First, I’ll discuss the attack. (FFC) should yield 40, so
we get a 20 damage bonus. Not bad for a Stage 2 (they need
something to offset the difficulty in getting them into
play). 60 will take out most basics, and it can OHKO a
Chansey ex (not that people play it a lot). Now we
see what makes it a possible new archetype: Primal Veil.
Most of the best Trainers in Eon right now are Supporters,
and with Armaldo active, they are all shut down. It’s a
mixed blessing that is has to be active: this makes it
easier for you to get around it but also easier on your
opponent.
Uses/Combinations:
Okay, most obvious idea is to run this with a lot of
“switching” cards for your own Pokémon, letting you retreat,
use your own supporters, and then switch back out and
attack. Such a deck probably would want the free retreating
Pokémon, and need some healing. Gee, what could provide
both? Sandstorm Xatu can, of course. To cover the Grass
Weakness, we’ve got AQ Entei and Sandstorm Wobbuffet. One
could also pair this up with Slaking for 2-on-2 Matches for
major denial, or with the Energy Draw Delcatty so you could
work with less supporters.
Ratings
Unlimited: 1/5-Scyther, a lack of
heavy Supporter use, and lack of speed hurt it bad here.
Modified:
3.75/5-I strongly believe that this could become an
archetype here. Supporters are
vital to every deck. The only threat is the massive damage
of certain other decks, and the need to have two Armaldo in
play to counter Warp Point.
2-on-2: 4/5- Combo it with a
strong, preferably basic attacker, then hit them hard while
they can’t set up. Real strong contender here…
Draft: 3.5/5-Claw fossil=good
here. Anorith (non-searcher) = good here, as I learned from
experience. Anorith searcher if you have Armaldo = good
here. Not many Trainers played, let alone Supporters, but
it’s still a nice, strong Pokémon.
-Otaku
