Hey spike. I heard you were a good mechanic from a
friend. Here is a
>new kind
>of deck that probably doesn't work, but maybe with
your help it will.
>The
>goal is to get Arcanine out and deal heavy damage
while using Alakazam
>to
>heal it. Trust me and keep in a few Switch because
when someone gusts a
>
>Alakzam it is uimpossible to retreat.
>
>4x Abra
>3x Alakazam
>4x Growlithe
>3x Arcanine
>2x Lickitung
>2x Chansey
>2x Kangaskan
>
>4x Pokemon Breeder
>4x Gust of Wind
>4x Switch
>3x Pokemon Center
>2x Profesor Oak
>1x Gambler
>1x Pokemon Trader
>
>21x Fire Energy

***

Well, either this guy is trying to get on my good side
by sending me a deck with 4-3 Arcanine, or he's just
lucky that way. At any rate, it looks like this deck
has some potential. I generally don't try and set up
some complicated system to move damage off Arcanine,
simply because I usually have 2 or 3 more prize cards
in my hand by the time he goes down :-) But what the
hey, it's an idea, so let's take it and run like hell.

1)  I have to wonder at not having Kadabra in there.
It seems to me that you should put him in and
streamline the evolution to 4-3-2. Makes it harder to
get Alakazam, but it also gives you an alternate
hitter, and with enough card searching/drawing,
Alakazam should be little problem. This also allows
you to ditch the Breeders--it's not really worth
running 4 when there are no other Stage 2's in the
deck. I think you're being a little compulsive about
trying to get Alakazam. Arcanine can do fine on his
own for a little while. I like the Lickitung, Chansey,
Kangaskhan thing. People debate over which of these is
the best, and it's nice to see a deck that simply runs
all 3. Each is useful in his own right, and they all
make nice fat recipients for damage. Nevertheless, in
order to answer to the constant need for space, I'm
going to have to take out one, and I
choose--Lickitung! Chansey stays--I dislike the
poofball myself, but I can handle it if I close my
eyes and repeat the phrase "Damage Swap" over and over
again.

2) Now that we've changed the format a little, you
don't really need the Breeders. Neither do you need 4
GOWs. Switch is, as you said, good in a deck with so
many 3 retreats, but 4 of them might be overkill.
Pokemon Center, very good, but again 3 are probably
not neccessary--if you've already got an Arcanine and
Alakazam out, the game may well be over before you
need to Center your bench. I like the Oaks, but with 2
of them already, you don't need Gambler--you need
Bills instead. Finally, the 1 Pokemon Trader should be
swapped for 2 Computer Search. And, of course, the
ever-present need for some Energy Removal...

3) You need psy energy. Trust me, sooner or later
you're going to end up with only an Abra or Abras in
your starting hand. Plus, the whole point of adding
Kadabra was that he makes a nice hitter himself. And,
up to a point, going multi-color won't hurt Arcanine,
since he shouldn't be sacking fire energy (you *are*
using Take Down with Alakazam, right??) You've got
plenty of ways to draw the energy when you need it, so
put in the psy. Also try to sneak some DCE in there,
huh? Makes for a good combo with Arcanine, and helps
out Chansey and Kangaskhan should they need to go
active for some reason.

***

20 Pokemon:

4 Abra
3 Kadabra
2 Alakazam
4 Growlithe
3 Arcanine
2 Chansey
2 Kangaskan

17 Trainers:

1 Pokemon Breeder
2 Gust of Wind
2 Switch
2 Pokemon Center
2 Oak
2 Computer Search
3 Bill
3 Energy Removal

23 Energy:

13 Fire Energy
8 Psychic Energy
2 DCE

***

I often wish I could put a deck like this together and
see how it plays during the process of fixing it.
Energy distribution is the one area that I'm often
uncertain of when I'm wrapping up an article.
Thankfully, it's also the thing that's easiest for
people to fix on their own. If you think you need more
energy of some kind, squeeze it in somewhere! The Oaks
and Bills should help you get what you need when you
need it--Energy Retrieval would be an idea, but I
couldn't fit it in. I went to only one Breeder because
drawing Kadabras should rarely be a problem--it's in
there if you need to pull it, but you shouldn't have
to depend on it.

Because this deck interests me, I'll mention a few
things that occured to me as I was writing this
review. Some of them are based on experiences with my
own deck.

a) Always make all 4 energy on Arcanine fire if you
can, unless you are going for a sneak punch with DCE.
This may well save your butt if you get ER'ed.

b) Save psy energy for psychic Pokemon (naturally.)
When putting energy on a Colorless Pokemon for
whatever reason, put psychic energy on if possible
(unless there are extenuating circumstances--perhaps
you've already got Arcanine loaded and you need the
energy for a Kadabra or something.)

c) I can't emphasize this enough: PUT DCE ON LAST IF
AT ALL POSSIBLE. With Arcanine, this means 2 fire and
1 DCE, with Chansey or Kanga (if you are pumping for a
4-energy attack) this means 2 colored energy and then
the DCE. The only reason you should violate this rule
is if you are about to Oak, or you have no other
energy in your hand. A double colorless is like a big
sign that says "PLEASE ENERGY REMOVAL ME."

I don't normally go into detail like this, but there's
something very compelling about this deck. Anyway,
have a nice time playing with it. Oh, and tell your
friend that he's a very perceptive person :-)