Eternatus VMAX Deck: Still Viable? With Ultra Ball being reintroduced in Brilliant Stars, many decks are becoming more consistent. But is it the same case for Eternatus VMAX? Is it stil

With Ultra Ball being reintroduced in Brilliant Stars, many decks are becoming more consistent. But is it the same case for Eternatus VMAX? Is it still viable in the format? In today’s article, I’m going to discuss the Eternatus VMAX deck. Enjoy!

 

Here’s an example of the deck:

This is just an example, if the deck didn’t work for you, you could try to experiment with it yourself and get comfortable with it.


Deck Overview

You will be playing like the usual Eternatus VMAX deck but with the additional help of Ultra Ball.



Pokemon


Eternatus VMAX

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In the recent format, Eternatus VMAX is in a rough spot because of how many decks are playing Path to the Peak, Galarian Weezing, or even having a ridiculously fast pace. That reason is already enough to not bring any Eternatus VMAX because setting things up can be quite hard. But with the release of Brilliant Stars, Choice Belt and Ultra Ball seem to give some hope back to Eternatus VMAX. Choice Belt can easily increase your damage output to 300 damage and that can easily knock out any Pokemon VSTAR that you face. But because your damage is capped at 300, you still can’t OHKO any viable Pokemon VMAX except the one that is weak to Dark-type. 

 

Its ability actually opens up a lot of new gameplay since the release of Brilliant Stars. But because the current viable deck in the format is either Arceus variant with Path to the Peak or Mew VMAX, Eternatus VMAX is really in a rough spot because of how hard to keep up the pace and have a stable footing in the format because of how many Path to the Peak is used. What I can at least do is bring stadium cards so that I can bump Path to the Peak in case I face a deck that plays Path to the Peak. Other than that, Eternatus VMAX can still hold some ground because it has the highest HP for Pokemon VMAX so you can tank some damage.

 

I play a 4-3 line of Eternatus VMAX. I think this is one of the most used compositions unless you want to play a 3-3 line. 


Umbreon VMAX

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This time, I will be using Umbreon VMAX as my pair with Eternatus VMAX. I can easily use Umbreon VMAX’s ability to gust any Pokemon that my opponent has. But, because it has 3 energy attack costs, I won’t be attacking with Umbreon VMAX. I solely play Umbreon VMAXmbreon VMAX because of its ability to gust. It is also a Dark-type Pokemon so I can use Umbreon VMAX in the Eternatus VMAX deck

 

I bring a 2-2 line of Umbreon VMAX because 5 gusting power (+3 Boss’s Orders) is more than enough.


Galarian Moltres V

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Galarian Moltres V will be my second attacker. It can easily recycle energy from the discard pile so I can do an easy turn-2 attack with it. Its attack also can OHKO Mew VMAX and some Pokemon V with the additional help of Choice Belt. However, because Galarian Moltres V is only a Pokemon V, its HP is a bit low and easy to get knocked. But on the bright side, its weakness is Grass-type so you won’t get OHKO by Fighting-type Pokemon like Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX. Although you still need to be wary because of its low HP. 

 

I bring only 2 copies of Galarian Moltres V because I think I want to put more focus on Eternatus VMAX and until Dark Patch is released, Dark-type Pokemon is still in not a good spot to be having another high-cost attacker. 


Galarian Zigzagoon

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Galarian Zigzagoon here will be your damage booster. 10HP sometimes really determines your winning condition so having Galarian Zigzagoon is never a bad thing. I bring 2 copies of Galarian Zigzagoon in case one of them is prized. 


Hoopa V & Liepard V

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I play Hoopa V in order to counter some decks that play Urshifu or any Pokemon that is weak to Psychic-type. I can also easily hit any Pokemon that is weak to Dark-type too. Hoopa V is a very reliable Pokemon to do this thing, but because its attack cost is high until Dark Patch is released, I only bring 1 copy of it. 

 

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On the other hand, Liepard V will be my tech card. It serves as my Tool Scrapper and it counts as a Dark-type Pokemon. I only bring 1 copy of Liepard V because most of the time decks only bring 1 Tool Scrapper and this time Liepard V will be my Tool Scrapper. 


No Liepard?

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Liepard is one of the newest addition to the Dark-type deck when Brilliant Stars is released. But this time I won’t be playing it because somehow, I can’t seem to set up properly using Liepard compared to using Crobat V. If you guys want my opinion on Liepard, yes, Liepard is great for a Dark-type deck but because it has 100HP, it can’t be searched using Level Ball. That’s why I somehow still can’t find a proper way to set up the board using Liepard V

 

But, I have tested it once with the additional help of Dark Patch and it can still hold the ground facing the top contenders’ deck. I think you can try to save at least a 3-3 line of Liepard because maybe in the future, Dark-type is getting a heavy buff. If you want to have my decklist that includes Liepard, here you go:

 

 

I cannot guarantee that you guys have the same experience that I have with this deck. But from what I play, I can still at least do a considerable amount of damage. 


Trainers

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For searchers, I play 4 copies of Quick Ball and Ultra Ball along with 2 copies of Evolution Incense. I think this is my standard composition for searchers, but if you want to go further, I think Great Ball will be a big help although the search is not a guaranteed one. 

 

Then we have the switching cards which are Air Balloon, Switch, and Hiding Energy. I don’t think at this point I will play an Escape Rope because I already have Umbreon VMAX and Boss’s Orders. So, I want to maximize my switching potential on my end because sometimes Escape Rope can help my opponent switch their damaged Pokemon. 

 

I also play 1 Energy Switch because sometimes I miss energy on my Eternatus VMAX so having Energy Switch can help me move energy from Galarian Moltres V to Eternatus VMAX

 

Then, Choice Belt will be my damage booster in this deck because it can help me to make sure that I can OHKO any VSTAR, especially Arceus VSTAR

 

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As for supporters, Professor’s Research, Marnie, and Boss’s Orders will be my go-to supporters. I think this is a very standard composition but you can try to play Piers or Adventurer’s Discovery in case you find it hard to set up your board. You can also try to play Flannery to remove your opponent’s Stadium and Tool Card.

 

Last but not least, I play Training Court as my Stadium card. I only play 3 because sometimes playing 4 copies can mess up my number in terms of the probability for another card. But there’s no harm to playing 4 copies of it if your area plays a lot of Path to the Peak


Matchup

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Setting up the board is quite easy because you have so many basic Pokemon. However, things can get hard if your opponent plays Path to the Peak because your draw power comes from Crobat V. But if things go as usual, setting up the board is quite easy. Ultra Ball really helps this deck find its consistency again. 

 

Currently, there’s still no Pokemon, Trainer, or Energy that can help Dark-type to counter its weakness. Facing a Fighting-type deck is a big no for Eternatus VMAX. They can easily knock all your Pokemon out because of your weakness. This is one of the main problems here because you can’t retaliate fast enough if you are facing a Fighting-type deck. However, Hoopa V can be your saviour because Hoopa V can be a Psychic-type deck as well and most of the Fighting-type deck that is currently viable is weak to Psychic-type.

 

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But, because Mew VMAX is still one of the most viable decks in the format, playing Eternatus VMAX can be a great benefit for you because you can hit for weakness. Eternatus VMAX damage output can also knock any Pokemon that Mew VMAX deck has so that is another benefit of playing Eternatus VMAX. Then, the Mew VMAX deck is almost impossible to play Path to the Peak, so you are safe from getting disrupted hence you can do your maximum damage. The only downside that you have when facing a Mew VMAX deck is when Mew VMAX pace is very frightening that you always get knocked in 2 turns. 

 

Then, hand disruption in this deck is quite severe because you are playing a hefty amount of Pokemon. But most of the time when this deck gets Marnie’d, there will always be a searcher or Crobat V in my hand so I think at least you will be safe in about 8 out of 10 situations like this. 

 

Energy disruption is also not a big problem because you have Galarian Moltres V that can recycle your energy. Also, in the upcoming set, we will likely get Dark Patch so it will be another great boost to the Dark-type deck. 

 

But, one thing that stands as the biggest problem for Eternatus VMAX is Path to the Peak. Currently, decks like Arceus VSTAR/Inteleon, Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX, Jolteon VMAX, and another Arceus VSTAR variant always bring Path to the Peak in them. Looking at how many decks that bring it, it is very hard for Eternatus VMAX to gain a stable footing because Path to the Peak instantly shut down most of the Pokemon in the deck. One thing that you can do here is only to bump the enemy stadium with your stadium. You can also play Flannery to discard both stadium and tool cards. But I think, once Path to the Peak is in play, you will be having a limited option for drawing cards. You may consider bringing Liepard to the deck but it means you need to set up more evolution Pokemon. 

 

Other than that, Eternatus VMAX is a very great Pokemon to play with because of its damage potential and its high HP can tank even for 3-4 turns. But because right now many decks play Path to the Peak, Eternatus VMAX seems to be very struggling because its damage potential depends on its ability. 


Afterword

Eternatus VMAX, in my opinion, is a beast when it is first released. But over time, many decks play Path to the Peak not only to counter Eternatus VMAX but to counter Mew VMAX and Arceus VSTAR too. Until we have great support for Dark-type and a more decent stadium removal card, Eternatus VMAX will be struggling a lot to gain footing in the format. 

 

Comment down below to share your thoughts!

 

Life is too short to be anything but happy! - Arelios

There may be some mistakes and missing points of review in this writing. Please kindly comment to share your correction and point of view too.

 
 
 

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