Okay, first let me get it off my chest; I'm sickened by players who simply
"brush off" archetypes such as Raindance and Haymaker just because
people say they're "unoriginal" and such. Anyone who says
Haymaker and Raindance are going out is a lier. Any true TCG veteran
can tell you that. Why are they so big? BECAUSE THEY'RE GOOD!!
Now, you may say Haymakers are "simple" and "boring" and
"take no strategy", but look at your own decks. The
PlusPowers, Computer Searches, Energy Removals, Oaks, and other such things
take as much strategy as any other decks I can think of. Personally, I
play an awesome Haymaker (which, to avoid copying, I will not tell its exact
contents here) which wins my local weekly tournament 4/5 times approx.
(about 15-20 people each time). Why does Haymaker have such a bad
name? Because too many newbies copy other people's stuff that's really
not good; they don't know how to play the deck and thus lose.
Now, let's look into why Haymaker is so good:
1. Little to no reliance: It doesn't take many cards to keep it going!
With single-card attacks and no spare evolutions to worry about, everything
you draw can be used. The Pokemon themselves take no outside support
from evolutions and such, leaving more room in the deck for speed and power
cards such as PlusPowers, ERs, SERs, Bills, Oaks, Computer Searches, Gusts
of Wind, and other manipulation cards. At the same time, Haymakers are
the least prone to disruption and tend to take and keep control early.
2. Grabbing and keeping control: A good haymaker has enough trainers to keep
control the whole game. A haymaker won't let you take the offensive;
it always presses you to make despirate moves, gives you less room for
error, and forces you to make descisions when you don't have enough to work
with.
3. It gets around: Haymakers can get around ANY sort of wall.
Resistance? Retreat and attack. Mr. Mime? Mr. Hitmonfodder.
Damage Swap? Swap the Alakazam to the front. Legendary Bird?
Energyless Bird. There's really nothing that can match the versatility
of a Haymaker. Sure, it's an archetype, but who cares? It became
used a lot for a reason. Oh, and go ahead, make an anti-haymaker deck;
you'll end up having to be so focused you won't be able to beat any other
decks.
Sure, there are ways, but a lot of it is luck of the draw; let's stop all
this stupid "how to beat a Haymaker" stuff (everyone knows how, so
face it peoples who think they're smart; Sandshrews and Digletts aren't
going to win against anything else but the Electabuzz; Farfetch'd/Scyther
kill both of them with ease). This is just as stupid as the old
"how to beat Charizard" stuff...anyhow, the moral of the story is
live and learn; keep playing and learning, and you'll be able to build more
and more awesome decks; maybe you'll make the next archetype!
~Fanha