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Creating Rogue Options: Mismagius Garbodor & Kingdra Zoroark

After Summer break began, I knew it was going to be the perfect time to create something rogue. We have established strong draw power, solid supporters, and enough sets to play around with, making this an easy time to find unorthodox decks.

This article is going to detail the two rogue decks I am testing currently, as well as some other concepts and how they can potentially be used. In the process, I am going to explain part of my methods for building archetypes. Specifically, the archetypes I cover are…

  • Mismagius Garbodor
  • Kingdra Zoroark GX

Understanding the concepts behind rogue options is more important than the actual lists. Here are some guidelines to follow when developing new (or changed) archetypes.

Borrow from the norm

I tend to look to more conventional decks for ideas and make a sort of pseudo version of the same engine. In other words, for a deck that can use some extra consistency from Trade, I can use a Zoroark Lycanroc or a Golisopod Zoroark list as a skeleton for the new deck. This is what I did with Kingdra Zoroark, but I also took some hints and influence from Greninja lists. In short, look to other top tier decks to find a starting point.

Another option is going for an older archetype and trying to adapt it to the current format. This is where I started when coming up with the Lugia bats idea. A way to implement this in Standard could be trying to rebuild a Darkrai GX, or Yveltal EX deck. Maybe Rainbow Road? The thing to remember is that older archetypes can come back into the meta even if they had been pushed out previously. This principle is more common in Expanded because of the vast number of archetypes, but it can happen in Standard as well.

Consider what counters the popular options

Another big factor in deciding what rogue deck to comprise is finding attackers that tend to counter what is seen in high counts currently. The reason I decided to pursue Mismagius Garbodor is that I noticed all the Zoroark decks have a huge issue with not being able to play Special Energy. Then I made a couple tweaks for the Gardevoir matchup and overall consistency. Again, I considered this before building Kingdra. This led to considering the issue grass types could end up being.

Mismagius Garbodor

This is the oldest idea thus far and seems to have the most promise. The concept preys on the decks that rely on Special Energy and combines with Garbotoxin to oppress opponents into draw/passing repeatedly. That is: no Tools, no Special Energy, no Stadiums, and no abilities. And to add insult to injury, one of the remaining cards that they can play (items) are fueling the other Garbodor’s Trashalanche attack. Throw in some energy denial and you have probably the highest form of control maintainable in Standard.

This is the list:

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