New Cards
What’s poppin’ TCG Park readers? Are you also satisfied with the new set of Brilliant Stars? I certainly am, and I’ve been building as many decks as possible to test this set for our community! This article will share my top five decks from Brilliant Stars! I’ve already covered the first part of this article featuring the other top 10 decks, so with that being said, let’s jump into these new decks
5. Gengar VMAX
Gengar VMAX [Fusion Strike] might not have been taken seriously at first, but it’s since found its way close to the top of the metagame. Path to the Peak [Chilling Reign] allows this deck to get around tough Abilities, like Skyscraper on Duraludon VMAX [Evolving Skies], and Gengar VMAX can OHKO anything with G-Max Swallow Up! Ultra Ball [Brilliant Stars] and Choice Belt [Brilliant Stars] both take this deck to new heights!
Pokémon – 17
| 2 Crobat V PR-SW 110 |
| 3 Gengar V FST 156 |
| 4 Houndour BST 95 |
| 4 Houndoom BRS 196 |
| 3 Gengar VMAX FST 271 |
| 1 Stonjourner BST 84 |
Trainer Cards – 35
| 4 Marnie PR-SW 121 |
| 2 Bird Keeper SHF 66 |
| 2 Switch SUM 160 |
| 2 Tower of Darkness BST 137 |
| 4 Professor’s Research CEL 24 |
| 3 Boss’s Orders RCL 189 |
| 2 Choice Belt BRS 135 |
| 4 Ultra Ball BRS 186 |
| 4 Quick Ball SSH 216 |
| 4 Urn of Vitality CRE 229 |
| 4 Path to the Peak CRE 148 |
Energy – 8
| 4 Single Strike Energy BST 183 |
| 4 Hiding {D} Energy DAA 175 |
4. Arceus VSTAR Toolbox
While some decks focus on a core strategy, this deck focuses on whatever works in each matchup! Maybe you hit a Gengar VMAX deck and you wanna hit it for Weakness – Galarian Zapdos V [Brilliant Stars] can make that happen! What about Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX [Battle Styles]? Hoopa V [Fusion Strike] says hi! I could go on forever, but that’s how this deck rolls! Use Arceus VSTAR to power up various attackers and take advantage of your opponent’s deck!
Pokémon – 16
| 3 Arceus V BRS 166 |
| 1 Ditto V SHF 50 |
| 3 Arceus VSTAR BRS 184 |
| 1 Crobat V PR-SW 110 |
| 1 Galarian Moltres PR-SW 125 |
| 2 Galarian Moltres V BRS 183 |
| 1 Hoopa V PR-SW 176 |
| 1 Yveltal CEL 19 |
| 1 Galarian Zapdos V BRS 182 |
| 1 Zamazenta V BRS 105 |
| 1 Lumineon V BRS 156 |
Trainer Cards – 31
| 2 Marnie PR-SW 121 |
| 1 Bird Keeper SHF 66 |
| 1 Switch SUM 160 |
| 3 Professor’s Research CEL 24 |
| 1 Escape Rope BUS 163 |
| 3 Boss’s Orders RCL 189 |
| 2 Choice Belt BRS 135 |
| 4 Ultra Ball BRS 186 |
| 4 Quick Ball SSH 216 |
| 1 Collapsed Stadium BRS 137 |
| 2 Energy Switch SSH 162 |
| 1 Raihan EVS 202 |
| 1 Air Balloon SSH 213 |
| 2 Training Court FST 282 |
| 1 Adventurer’s Discovery FST 224 |
| 1 Cheren’s Care BRS 168 |
| 1 Klara CRE 194 |
Energy – 13
| 6 Darkness Energy EVS 236 |
| 4 Double Turbo Energy BRS 151 |
| 2 Fighting Energy CRE 233 |
| 1 Metal Energy EVS 237 |
3. Duraludon VMAX / Arceus VSTAR
With Riley Hulbert winning the 150 player Full Grip Games event with this new archetype, the whole world has their eyes set on Duraludon VMAX [Evolving Skies]. Use Arceus VSTAR to power things up with Trinity Nova, try your best to Single Strike Style Mustard [Brilliant Stars], and block your opponent with Skyscraper. After testing this deck for a bunch of games, it seems incredibly effective! Let’s check it out!
Pokémon – 11
| 4 Arceus V BRS 166 |
| 2 Arceus VSTAR BRS 184 |
| 3 Duraludon VMAX EVS 220 |
| 2 Duraludon V CPA 47 |
Trainer Cards – 35
| 4 Marnie PR-SW 121 |
| 2 Big Charm RCL 206 |
| 2 Switch SUM 160 |
| 4 Professor’s Research CEL 24 |
| 1 Escape Rope BUS 163 |
| 1 Single Strike Style Mustard BRS 214 |
| 4 Pokégear 3.0 UNB 233 |
| 4 Boss’s Orders RCL 189 |
| 1 Choice Belt BRS 135 |
| 4 Ultra Ball BRS 186 |
| 4 Quick Ball SSH 216 |
| 4 Collapsed Stadium BRS 137 |
Energy – 14
| 7 Metal Energy EVS 237 |
| 4 Double Turbo Energy BRS 151 |
| 3 Fighting Energy CRE 233 |
2. Dark Toolbox
Dark Toolbox is a deck that differs from person to person, but it often consists of Galarian Moltres [Evolving Skies], Sableye V [Sword and Shield], Galarian Weezing [Shining Fates], and Hoopa [Darkness Ablaze]. You wanna offer up a few Prize Cards while doing damage before swooping in with a Crazy Claws or Fiery Wrath! This deck is difficult to play, but it’s incredibly effective. Let’s check it out!
Pokémon – 23
| 2 Galarian Moltres PR-SW 125 |
| 1 Hoopa DAA 111 |
| 3 Koffing SHF 149 |
| 1 Sableye V SSH 120 |
| 2 Galarian Weezing SHF 150 |
| 1 Galarian Zapdos V BRS 182 |
| 1 Castform Snowy Form CRE 34 |
| 1 Manaphy BRS 41 |
| 4 Sobble CRE 41 |
| 4 Drizzile SHF 99 |
| 1 Inteleon SHF 100 |
| 2 Inteleon EVS 227 |
Trainer Cards – 30
| 1 Marnie PR-SW 121 |
| 4 Level Ball BST 181 |
| 1 Energy Retrieval SSH 160 |
| 2 Cynthia’s Ambition BRS 169 |
| 3 Evolution Incense SSH 163 |
| 1 Bruno BST 158 |
| 1 Professor’s Research CEL 24 |
| 2 Energy Search SSH 161 |
| 2 Boss’s Orders RCL 189 |
| 3 Scoop Up Net RCL 207 |
| 2 Klara CRE 194 |
| 4 Quick Ball SSH 216 |
| 2 Raihan EVS 202 |
| 1 Air Balloon SSH 213 |
| 1 Training Court FST 282 |
Energy – 7
| 6 Darkness Energy EVS 236 |
| 1 Fighting Energy CRE 233 |
1. Mew VMAX
Here we are, the best deck in format, Mew VMAX [Fusion Strike]! Mew VMAX has been crushing events ever since Fusion Strike and the recent release of Ultra Ball, Choice Belt, and Double Turbo Energy [Brilliant Stars] make this deck even better. Considering Mew VMAX can already copy any attack in your deck, accelerate Energy, and more – these changes make the deck absolutely broken!
Pokémon – 14
| 1 Oricorio PR-SW 168 |
| 4 Genesect V FST 255 |
| 2 Meloetta FST 124 |
| 4 Mew V FST 251 |
| 3 Mew VMAX FST 269 |
Trainer Cards – 38
| 3 Fog Crystal CRE 227 |
| 1 Rose Tower DAA 169 |
| 2 Switch SUM 160 |
| 2 Escape Rope BUS 163 |
| 3 Boss’s Orders RCL 189 |
| 2 Choice Belt BRS 135 |
| 4 Ultra Ball BRS 186 |
| 4 Battle VIP Pass FST 225 |
| 4 Power Tablet FST 281 |
| 4 Quick Ball SSH 216 |
| 4 Cram-o-matic FST 229 |
| 2 Training Court FST 282 |
| 3 Elesa’s Sparkle FST 260 |
Energy – 8
| 1 Double Turbo Energy BRS 151 |
| 4 Fusion Strike Energy FST 244 |
| 3 Psychic Energy CRE 232 |
Time to Test
With all of the knowledge of the new Brilliant Stars set in this article, I hope it has inspired many of you trainers out there to play some Pokémon! As for me, I always get inspired from new set releases and use it as a time to explore as much of the format as possible. I hope to share my findings with our community and write about them here! I still have a bunch of testing left to do so I’m gonna start that and catch up with all of you later! Happy testing 🙂