www.pokebeach.com/2018/06/mega-charizard-x-vs-mega-blastoise-battle-arena-decks-announced
Really wish they would use alternate art but this is good news for PSA collectors. Bad news for those who flip 10s.
Also kinda sucks because I just bought that gen m blastoise in PSA 10 and if I had known it was gonna be a promo I could have saved myself some money. Oh well!!
Gotta make sure modern TCG continues to be garbage somehow!
Couldn’t do the f***ing M Charizard X FA.
Ugh…
Agreed. Should be alternate art or at least indicate somehow that it is from a battle deck.
They’re both getting rotated so it doesnt really affect the TCG.
Although it is kinda boring at the moment with Buzz variants dominating everything.
Buzz gets pooped on by malamar decks.
You would think so, but look at the top 8 from Madison…
Buzz ended up winning. Shout out to my Favorite deck Greninja tho 
It just wont die despite all the hate it gets.
I’m talking value not play
But you have to remember the Battle Arena decks have always been like this. The EX cards are the same that the ones from sets. I don’t understand the need for these products though… These cards are out of rotation and it doesn’t help even on expanded I think as both Mega Blastoise and Mega Charizard X aren’t very playable cards
I run 3 Dawn Wings and 3 Ultra Necrozma. Easy 1 shots for Dawn Wings with the x2. I play a ton of ptcgo and can’t remember the last time I lost to either Buzz Garb or Buzz Lycanroc. Hoopa is miserable and almost a guaranteed loss.
Don’t these cards always have the alternate holo pattern so they should be somewhat distinguishable from the pack pulled ones?
Play competitive then, you’ll win thousands and get free booster boxes.
PTCGO doesnt compare to real life. On the online you dead draw far too many times, their algorithm is not perfect by any means. There’s been times when I flip tails 20 times in row. When it’s supposed to be 50/50. Also the fact that you’re mostly playing against little kids on there, not trained players with money on the line.
There is a hidden rank on ptcgo. If you win more than you lose, it will put you against better opponents. This is extremely obvious when making a new account. Just because a coin flip is 50/50 doesn’t mean you can’t flip the same side multiple times in a row. I’d also imagine that the game’s shuffle is likely a new and true random order for all cards and a manual shuffle is definitely not. If you’re dead drawing enough to complain about it there is likely something wrong with your deck or you are not playing early hands correctly.
Right? Don’t promos have a different set symbol from the one you can pull in a real booster?
Playing the TGC IRL is significantly harder than PTCGO. You need to be VERY adept at rapid shuffling, card handling and decision making - and do it consistently over a long period of time. Plus your playing against way better competition and the time pressure is much more intense.
Just as an example, PTCGO shuffles for you in about 1/2 second. IRL you need to riffle shuffle your deck at least 7 times to sufficiently randomize it after every single time you search it. You have 30 seconds to do it (less than 4 seconds per shuffle). If you are too slow you will eventually get called out for time.
Also PTCGO doesn’t let you make mistakes like playing a supporter twice in one turn. And it shows your deck contents in an orderly fashion - organized by Pokemon, then trainers, then energy. Compare that to physically searching through a stack of unordered cards.
TLDR - Playing the TCG at a high level with real cards is way harder then it looks.
@surfnsnow Well said. I can really relate to all of that above. I used to go to some tournaments and I made so many mistakes during playing and felt nervous while playing with experienced players. In the end I didn’t get much enjoyment out of it because of that. I like the TCG and I play TCGO, but it’s a shame I can’t get my head thinking straight under pressure on actual tournaments.
This seems to be a very sensitive topic but I will keep going. I am not a PTCG god and will never claim to be.
I was initially trying to point out that PTCGO is strategically the same game as playing IRL. The coins are not loaded and I believe the shuffle is a true random.
PTCGO definitely has some built in quality of life components that make it easier to play but the strategic game is identical. If you have played any amount of either you shouldn’t be making mistakes like trying to play a second trainer card in the same hand.
Again, I disagree with the assumption that you are playing better people in a tournament unless you’re talking about later rounds or worlds. If you win more games than you lose on PTCGO, you play better opponents. The best players from any given tournament are going to be on PTCGO.
Sure, you have to be able to shuffle quick. Does that really make the game itself any harder? It’s something you can practice and definitely not a key component in the game’s strategy.
I will agree that nerves can be a factor but that will completely depend on the individual. Some people thrive with competition and others do not. This is made up of the personality and experience of the individual. Some people that are better under pressure might be stronger players in real life. As long as they learn how to shuffle. lol
Unless you’re a really nervous person that should go away with enough experience. Remember, they are all nerds too. If it is what you are looking to achieve, go in with a mind set of just having fun until you get more comfortable.
As was mentioned here - every ex from these battle arena decks can be differentiated by looking at its holo pattern. Every battle arena ex has what kind of looks like an xy reverse style holo. So its 100% possible (and easy) to tell the difference between the set card and the arenacard in person.
Also to the person talking about ptcgo - bad luck happens. Drawing poorly happens too. IRL the best shuffler in a tourney setting can’t come close to the level of randomization that the ptcgo algorithm does. Plus as an irl player I enjoy bad hands as it’s good testing for what to do within a tournament setting
@RattlePokemon I agree with your points here and in the previous post. I wasn’t trying to call you out or anything, just wanted to point out that there are differences between IRL and PTCGO. In my experience IRL is more difficult but that may not be true for everyone. And you’re right that some people thrive, focus and do better under pressure. I used to be that way with some of the sports I do, but as I’ve gotten older my nervous system isn’t quite what it used to be 