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‘Pokemon TCG: Sun & Moon — Guardians Rising’ Expansion Debuts With Free Card Giveaway

By Asma M
Published on: 14:26 PST, May 7, 2017

Pokemon gamers who enjoy battling in the trading card game (TCG) have a whole new set of more than 140 cards entering the fray thanks to the newly-released Guardians Rising expansion. The newest set in the Pokemon Sun & Moon TCG series is significant to competitive players, as it is likely the last to hit store shelves before the North American International Championships that are set to take place in Indianapolis from June 30 through July 2.

Pokemon TCG: Sun & Moon—Guardians Rising brings to the game table a lot of great supporting cards that mesh well with the sets that have previously been released. As an example, a new Supporter card called Mallow puts any two cards you want on top of your deck. It creates the perfect setup for Shaymin Ex, which allows the player to draw cards until six are in hand. Aqua Patch is another good example of a new supporting card, as it pulls Water Energy cards from the discard pile. The changes to the competitive landscape are exciting thanks to the many creative options that have been unlocked with this set.

Interested players who want to check out what the Pokemon TCG is all about can score a free card just by attending an in-store event hosted by Toys “R” Us. The program runs from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 13. Everyone who stops in gets a free Alolan Vulpix foil card and a collectible album while supplies last, and the first 50 fans in line also get a free Eevee figurine as well. Attendees of all ages can participate in a Pokemon-themed coloring activity or trade cards with their fellow trainers.

Since cards are sold in sealed blind packs containing 10 random cards, finding and collecting the cards can be just as much of a game as actually sitting down at a table and playing with them. What are the best pulls from Guardians Rising? Let’s take a look at some of the most sought-after cards in the set since its debut.

Tapu Lele GX

Tapu Lele GX is the most-talked about card in Guardians Rising and rightly so. It has an ability that lets you get any Supporter card from your deck when you play it. Being able to grab any Supporter at will during battle is incredibly valuable as there are currently tons of Supporters that are game-changing, such as Teammates, Mallow, Lysander, N, and Professor Sycamore.

In addition to its ability, Tapu Lele also comes equipped with an attack that only requires two Energy to use, and it hits for 20 damage times the number of energy attached to both itself and the defending Pokemon (without applying resistance). That’s at least 40 damage to start. Overall, it’s an incredibly low-risk Pokemon to put onto your bench, because it has no weaknesses and only a retreat cost of one Energy.

Drampa GX

Drampa GX is a Colorless-type carrying a standard (for GX Pokemon) 180 HP, letting you use any type of energy for its attacks (notably double colorless energy) to get it powered up fast and early. For one Energy, players can use the Big Wheel GX attack — it’s a type of attack that is so powerful it can only be used once per game — letting you refresh your hand with 10 cards. Using this attack early in game allows you to reap the benefits from Hala later in the game.

Hala

This Supporter card combos well with Drampa GX in this set, along with any deck that can use a GX attack early in the game. Being able to pick up seven cards from your deck is quite useful, especially later in the game as your deck thins out and getting to the resources left in your deck becomes more challenging.

Garbodor

Proving that the best cards are not always fancy GX foils is Garbador. Its Trashalanche attack hits at a rate of 20 damage for every item card in your opponents discard pile — all for the small price of one Psychic Energy. Since item cards are critical to most strategies, they are almost always needed. Whipping this card out after your opponent just finished getting set up can deal a devastating blow.

Have you scored some “epic pulls” from Pokemon TCG: Sun & Moon—Guardians Rising? Share your favorites and how you’ll be incorporating them into a fun deck in the comments below.

[Featured Image by The Pokémon Company]

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