Before you start reading this, I assume you know how to play the Pokemon TCG. If not, go learn how to play. You will understand this blog a lot better and you will further expand your knowledge. Thank you.
Anyways! Let's get started on how to build a basic Pokemon deck.
First question you should ask is "Should I buy a Theme deck?" That depends. Do you want to play right away? If so, then it's a good start. The best start is buying either 2 (of the same) XY Theme decks. This is because you will instantly have either 4 Yveltal or 4 Xerneas. Having big basics in your deck is a huge factor in starting off because more HP means they will survive more. Not to mention that you can boost these decks up with packs that you can buy and make them pretty competitive at the end of the day. There are a lot of other different options on what Pokemon you wish to use, but your best bet is to buy a Theme deck that contains big basics. You're bound to find two of them and you'll have something that won't get pushed over right away.
If you don't wish to buy a theme deck, you will have to gather up every Trainer and Pokemon via packs or buying them individually online. Depending on the deck, you'll end up spending an average of around $150 for something decent. There ARE very budget decks out there, and if you wish to build one of those, completing the deck would only cost around $75-100. The prices of each deck is usually dependent on how much the actual Pokemon lineup are. Regardless, obtaining staple Trainer cards will ALWAYS be pricey because they're almost all uncommon, and some of them are from the earlier half of the standard rotation (which we will cover on another day.) After all, more expensive trainers like N and Max Potion can really add up and are a complete pain in the ass to trade for because you must keep them until they rotate out. The good news on all of this is that basic energy cards are essentially worthless! People will give these to you for free anytime you're short some.
Now that we've covered how much you're expected to pay up for a deck, now we can cover exactly what a good idea is of building a deck.
Let's say for example you want to build a very basic Yveltal deck. You wish to buy all the cards online, and you're NOT on a limited budget. I pick this deck as an example because it's a great beginner's deck and it gives you a good idea on how most decks are structured. Other decks may be heavier or lighter on any of the categories, but your instincts (and netdecks) can help you figure that out. People will tell you to run 20 Pokemon, 20 Energy, and 20 Trainers. However, that's not good when it comes to deck acceleration. What if you draw NO trainers and you hit all energy and Pokemon? You'll be playing the topdecking game for a while, meanwhile your opponent drawing at least 7 extra cards per turn and seeing new cards while refreshing their hand every turn. You will surely lose every game with that scenario. That being said, here's the basic Yveltal deck list. (Trainers have spaces on purpose to divide Supporters, Stadiums, and Items in that order.)
Pokemon: 13
3x Yveltal (XY)
3x Yveltal-EX
1x Darkrai-EX
1x Mewtwo-EX
1x Jirachi-EX
2x Pikachu (XY)
2x Raichu (XY)
Trainers: 35
4x Professer Juniper/Sycamore
4x N
2x Colress
2x Lysandre
1x Teammates
2x Shadow Circle
1x Dowsing Machine
4x Ultra Ball
4x Acro Bike
3x Muscle Band
2x Energy Switch
1x Professor's Letter
3x VS Seeker
1x Switch
1x Escape Rope
Energy: 12
8x Darkness Energy
4x Double Colorless Energy
This deck should be as basic as possible for a beginner player to do fairly well in and make minimal mistakes while being able to deal as much damage as they please to knock something out.
Even though you will have to spend money to catch up on staple trainer cards, every other deck you build from that point should be fairly cheap. All you'd have to do is complete the Pokemon lineup, grab all the good trainers as packs come out, and you'll be all set to build any deck you want! Hope this guide helped you find the proper template on how a typical deck should be built.
If you want to see more cool decks, you can go on YouTube and subscribe to The Top Cut. That channel provides deck profiles of good (and bad) decks and you also get to see every deck in action after everything is explained. Very good channel to expand your Pokemon TCG Knowledge and it'll give you a good idea on what to expect if you decide to attend a Pokemon League near you!
