Set the field on fire with the Flame Pokemon as you master how to play Charizard ex deck!
Charizard ex of the Scarlet and Violet series is perhaps one of the most destructive Pokemon in the current meta, thanks to its ability Infernal Reign.
If you want to harness the power of a Pokemon that can energize itself and dish out a freaking 180 damage to the opposing Pokemon, you’re in for a hot ride!
For this article, we will give you a complete Charizard ex deck list that you can use for the 2024 post rotation, as well as some instructions on how you can maneuver your way to victory while using the deck.
Charizard ex Deck List
Pokemon – 16 cards
- x2 Charmander (Paldean Fates – 007/091)
- x2 Charmander (Obsidian Flames – 026/197)
- x1 Charmeleon (Paldean Fates – 008/091)
- x1 Radiant Charizard (Crown Zenith – 020/159)
- x3 Charizard ex (Paldean Fates – 054/091)
- x2 Pidgey (151 – 016/165)
- x2 Pidgeot ex (Obsidian Flames – 164/197)
- x1 Manaphy (Brilliant Stars – 041/172)
- x1 Rotom V (Crown Zenith – 045/159)
- x1 Lumineon V (Brilliant Stars – 040/172)
Trainer – 37 cards
- x4 Arven
- x4 Iono
- x2 Boss’s Orders
- x1 Eri
- x1 Professor’s Research
- x4 Ultra Ball
- x4 Buddy-Buddy Poffin
- x4 Rare Candy
- x3 Nest Ball
- x2 Super Rod
- x2 Counter Catcher
- x1 Lost Vacuum
- x1 Technical Machine: Devolution
- x1 Choice Belt
- x1 Maximum Belt
- x1 Forest Seal Stone
- x1 Collapsed Stadium
Energy – 7 cards
- x6 Fire Energy
- x1 Mist Energy
How to Play Charizard ex Deck: Strategies and Game Plan
Charizard ex deck is feared for its late game potential, and players who want to play it in casual or tournaments should never worry about letting the opponent take the upper hand.
In fact, the closer you are to losing, the better.
Core Cards: Charizard ex and Pidgeot ex
The deck’s core cards, Charizard ex and Pidgeot ex, will enable you to do almost anything–deal tremendous amounts of damage while taking the most useful Trainer cards you have from the deck.
With Pidgeot ex, you have the freedom to take any card from your deck at every turn. Plus, you can even use it in and out of the Active Spot, as it has a free retreat cost.
Of course, you wouldn’t want your Pidgeot ex taking the lead in attacking the enemy team. Your Charizard ex will do such a job, and it can be used offensively the moment you put it in the field with its ability.
Another good thing about Charizard ex is that it’s almost impossible to one-hit KO this beast with its 330 HP.
And with just a couple of Fire energy cards, which is often easy to get by its Infernal Reign, Charizard can use Burning Darkness, a move that increases in damage for every Prize card your opponent has taken.
All you have to do is protect Charizard ex with your Trainer cards retrieved by Pidgeot ex, and let the flaming lizard take care of the rest until you win.
But achieving the goal of setting up Charizard ex and Pidgeot ex isn’t as easy as you might think.
Navigating Your Way With Charizard ex Deck
While Charizard ex deck thrives during the late game, your opponent is still capable of ruining your plan, so you need to establish the upper hand quickly by doing the following things:
- Play as many Charmander and Pidgey as you can during the first few turns. To do this, you can utilize your Nest Balls and Buddy-Buddy Poffin.
- Having lots of Rare Candies in your hand is vital as well, since you will need them to evolve your Charmander and Pidgey. If you don’t have a Rare Candy yet, use Arven to take some from your deck.
- If you have the chance during early to mid-game, always start your combo by evolving Pidgey into Pidgeot ex. Once you have a Pidgeot ex on the field, it’s going to be much easier to play multiple copies of Charizard ex later by using Quick Search.
- Once you have at least one Charizard ex, play it on the field and use its Infernal Reign to power up itself and the other Charmander or Charizard ex on the bench. Now you can use Burning Darkness to ravage the opposing Active Pokemon.
- While you let Charizard ex score some knockouts, don’t forget to use Pidgeot ex’s Quick Search ability to use Trainer cards that can further disrupt your opponent’s strategy, such as Boss’s Orders, Eri, and Counter Catcher.
- Pidgeot can also take the cards that increase Charizard ex’s damage output: the Maximum Belt and Choice Belt.
Other Pokemon Cards in the Charizard ex Deck
Charmeleon
A copy of Charmeleon serves as a safety net in case you’ve run out of Rare Candies in your deck and you still need to evolve one of your Charmander.
Radiant Charizard
Radiant Charizard is an excellent addition to this deck since it also excels in letting the opponent take as many Prize cards as possible. If you can’t rely on your Charizard ex, you can use Radiant Charizard as your backup damage dealer.
Manaphy
Manaphy might look like a weak card, but having one on your bench protects all of your reserve Charmander from attacks that can target the bench spot.
Rotom V and Lumineon V
These two Pokemon V will be quite useful in taking cards from your deck during the early game. Luimineon V’s Luminous Sign can help you take an Arven from your deck, which in turn allows you to search for a Rare Candy.
Rotom V’s Instant Charge on the other hand, will give you three extra cards if you have nothing else to do before ending your turn.
How to Use the Trainer and Energy Cards in Charizard ex Deck
Arven
As much as possible, always use Arven to take all Rare Candies from your deck. If you already have enough Rare Candies in your hand, you can get other cards like Forest Seal Stone and the two belt cards instead.
Boss’s Orders, Counter Catcher, Lost Vacuum, Technical Machine: Devolution, Collapsed Stadium, and Eri
These cards are meant to confuse and delay whatever trick your opponent has in their sleeves. Some of these cards can also help you target the key Pokemon that are hiding in the opponent’s bench spot.
Ultra Ball, Buddy-Buddy Poffin, and Nest Ball
With the VIP Battle Pass out of the current rotation, you will need copies of Buddy-Buddy Poffin to call any Charmander that are lurking at the bottom of your deck. Ultra Balls and Nest balls are also included in this deck to ensure that it won’t be difficult for you to get your core Pokemon cards.
Iono and Professor’s Research
In case you have a bad hand at the start of the game, these are the cards that you can count on.
Rare Candy
We couldn’t stress enough how important these cards are; if you don’t have them, your Charmander and Pidgey will be sitting ducks on the field and you’ll lose the game.
Super Rod
Play your Super Rods in case you need to resurrect a fallen Charizard ex and retake some energy cards from your discard pile.
Choice Belt and Maximum Belt
These Pokemon tools are effective in making Charizard ex more deadly, especially against decks that use Pokemon ex and Pokemon V as their main attacker.
Forest Seal Stone
Forest Seal Stone is like a Quick Search ability that you can use at any point of the game, as long as you have Rotom V or Lumineon V on the field.
Fire Energy and Mist Energy
This deck will only have a handful of energy cards, since Charizard ex doesn’t take too much energy in battle. Always attach only two Fire Energy cards on Charizard ex, and maybe a Mist Energy to protect it from special conditions.
Charizard ex Deck: Conclusion
If you already know how to play Charizard ex deck, you’ll realize that it’s a beginner-friendly deck with a simple strategy of setting two Pokemon cards into play.
However, mastering this deck may still take some time, so be patient when playing it, whether on the tabletop or Pokemon TCG Live.
Luckily, Path to the Peak is now banned in the Standard rotation, so such cards that can hard counter Charizard ex’s Infernal Reign won’t be accessible in the current format.
The only problem for this deck would be those fast-paced aggressive decks that can knockout your Charmander early on, and the Technical Machine: Devolution that puts all of your Rare Candies into waste.
Other than that, the Charizard ex deck is still fun to play, and if you want to share other variations of this deck, let us know in the comments section below.
For more strategies and other things related to Pokemon TCG, please don’t hesitate to read more of PokeCardHQ’s articles:
