Welcome back, Cut or Tap readers! I hope you are all doing well. With Dortmund and Joinville Regionals behind us and Knoxville just around the corner, the Stellar Crown format is really starting to shape up. Despite many decks foregoing the inclusion of new cards, the impact of this new set has certainly reshaped the metagame. So far, we have seen a lot of old … Continue reading “Regidrago’s Second Wind:” Reclaiming Dominance in Stellar Crown

Hello, Cut or Tap readers! I hope you’re all doing well. It’s been a while since I’ve written for Cut or Tap, so I’m excited to bring you a fun yet powerful deck today. In the months leading up to the World Championships, I was pretty set on playing Regidrago VSTAR from early on in my testing, which left me with little to write about. … Continue reading The Deck I Almost Played at the World Championships

Hey there, Cut or Tap readers! I just got home from this year’s North American International Championships and am beyond pumped about how the tournament went! My friend and teammate Andrew Hedrick took the whole thing down with Turbo Lost Zone Box, while I, unfortunately, bubbled out of the Top 16 after losing the win-and-in to the Top 8.  I chose to play Chien-Pao ex, … Continue reading “How I Beat Tord Reklev and Ross Cawthon in the Same Tournament:” NAIC 2024 Tournament Report 

Hey there, Cut or Tap Readers! Today I will be sharing my thoughts on a deck that has been absolutely dominating the online tournament scene – Raging Bolt ex. When Temporal Forces first released, I initially wrote off this card as bulk ex material. However, just one set later, the introduction of a small masked Supporter catapulted Raging Bolt into the top tiers of competitive … Continue reading “Thunderstruck:” The Meteoric Rise of Raging Bolt ex

Hi there, Cut or Tap readers! If you read my most recent article on my top cards from Twilight Masquerade, you would know that Lugia VStar is one of the decks I am most optimistic about in the upcoming format. It is the deck I have been testing most extensively, and the initial results have been very promising. If the North American International Championships were … Continue reading “The King has Returned:” Lugia VStar in the Twilight Masquerade Format

Hey there, Cut or Tap Readers! I am thrilled to be fresh off a 5th place at the Indianapolis Regional Championships! While many of you might be interested in reading about my tournament experience, Indianapolis was my last tournament in this regrettably brief format, which I believe was a great one overall. Therefore, today I want to shift my focus to the future, and share … Continue reading First Impressions On My Top Cards From Twilight Masquerade

Greetings, Cut or Tap readers! With the conclusion of the 2024 European International Championships, I would like to reflect on my tournament run, sharing what went well and what could have been improved. In this article, I hope to provide you with some valuable insights into the position of the Chien-Pao/Baxcalibur deck in the current metagame. Chien-Pao is a deck that has been on my … Continue reading I Played Chien-Pao at the Largest Tournament Ever

Hey there, Cut or Tap Readers! Today I am going to share what I believe to be a superior version of a deck that has seen some popularity in the post-rotation Temporal Forces format: Ancient Box. This deck typically features heavy lines of Koraidon and Roaring Moon from the new Temporal Forces set, with some other ancient Pokémon sprinkled in.  The real star of the … Continue reading Forget Ancient Box, Just Play Roaring Moon Instead!

Hello, Cut or Tap readers! I am thrilled to be back, writing and sharing my experiences playing Pokemon! In this piece, I’ll be diving into the intricacies of my Miraidon deck, which recently brought me to a noteworthy 5th place at the Portland Regional Championships and a solid 36th place at the Charlotte Regional Championships to kick off 2024. I will walk you through the … Continue reading Miraidon Unleashed: A Tale of Two Regionals

Welcome back, Cut or Tap readers! As we prepare for the highly anticipated North American International Championships, which is likely to be the largest tournament ever outside of Japan, I am excited to share my unique perspective on a deck that exudes unparalleled power: Baxcalibur. Reminiscent of the iconic Blastoise/Keldeo deck that dominated the Standard format years ago, this new powerhouse possesses the potential to … Continue reading A Unique Take on Baxcalibur

Welcome back, Cut or Tap readers! As we gear up for the upcoming Hartford and Malmö Regional Championships, I am excited to share my thoughts on one of the most formidable decks in the current Standard format. I believe Mew VMAX to be a great choice for securing a high placement at these upcoming tournaments, and I highly recommend it for anyone looking to make … Continue reading Mew VMAX for Hartford, Malmö, and Beyond

Hey there, Cut or Tap readers! Nick Moffitt here, and I just finished in the Top 16 out of over 1,500 Masters at the European International Championship! I played a rather unorthodox deck – Lost Zone Kyogre with Galarian Moltres. Today I will be taking you through my deck building process, as well as a run-through of how my Top 16 tournament run in London … Continue reading Innovating with Lost Zone Kyogre: A Top 16 EUIC Deck

Hello everyone! This is Nick Moffitt bringing you my list of the most impactful cards we will be losing to the Standard format rotation this year. Like many of you, I feel that our current Standard format has dragged on for far too long, and I am ready to experiment with something fresh and new. This year’s rotation is pretty unique. Generally, we have rotation … Continue reading Most Impactful Cards Lost to the 2023 Standard Format Rotaion

Hi, everyone! Like most of you, I am getting tired of the current Standard format and am absolutely ready for Scarlet and Violet to drop, and for rotation to hit. This format has certainly been kind to me. I made every Day 2 at every event I attended and made Top 4 twice and Top 16 once, all with Amazing Rare Rayquaza Lost Zone, and … Continue reading Top 10 Cards from Scarlet and Violet

Hi everyone, this is Nick Moffitt bringing you another article for Cut or Tap! I just finished in 3rd place at the largest Regional ever in Orlando with Rayquaza/Raikou Lost Box! This is by far my favorite deck to play in the current Standard format and I believe it is the strongest deck behind Lugia VSTAR. I am excited to share my thoughts on the … Continue reading Orlando Regionals Top 4 Tournament Report

Hi everyone! My name is Nicholas Moffitt, and I am excited to bring you my first ever article for Cut or Tap. Today I am going to be talking all about Lost Zone Box decks. I will start with a brief recap of my last tournament in San Diego, where I finished 10th place with a unique take on Amazing Rare Rayquaza. I will also … Continue reading Lost Zone for Crown Zenith Format