One Pokemon TCG Pocket Space-Time Smackdown Card Remains One of the Most OP Ever

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Summary

  • Rampardos in Pokemon TCG Pocket is a top-tier card due to its high damage output for minimal Energy cost.
  • Its Head Smash attack can KO powerful foes like Giratina Ex with minimal drawbacks, making it unbalanced and hard to beat.
  • With tools like Rare Candy and Supporter cards, Rampardos can easily dominate battles and remain a meta card for a long time.

Just a week into the release of the latest expansion, Extradimensional Crisis, for Pokemon TCG Pocket, and the game has already undergone significant transformations! As a fan, I’ve noticed that certain decks have become dominant, while others have fallen by the wayside. The Darktina deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket continues to shine across various scenarios, but it faces a tough challenge against the new Buzzwole Ex and Pheromosa deck.

Even with all the potential counters it’s faced over time, Giratina Ex is likely to maintain its position as a meta card due to its ability to influence the first turn of play with Energy. However, there’s another card that predates it that still holds supreme.

In some top-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket decks, you’ll find a focus on “hand management,” which involves cards such as Mars and Red Card to throw off an opponent’s strategy by forcing them to reshuffle their hand into the deck, potentially drawing fewer cards than before. Currently, one of the leading decks in the game revolves around Silvally, dealing 100 damage if a Supporter card is played that turn. What makes this deck so reliable and potent, however, is not just Silvally; it’s also backed by Rampardos from the Space-Time Smackdown expansion.

How Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Silvally/Rampardos Deck Rose to The Top of The Meta

In the world of Pokemon Trading Card Game, Rampardos from the Pocket version continues to be among the most powerful cards in the game, and here’s why: As a Stage 2 Pokemon, it had less consistency in the past, but with the introduction of Rare Candy in Celestial Guardians, it regained its significance and is expected to stay relevant for quite some time. The reason behind this is that Rampardos has 150 HP as a standalone card, a Retreat Cost of only two, and perhaps most significantly, it can attack for just one Fighting Energy and inflict an impressive 130 damage.

Rampardos’ Cons Are Minimal Compared to the Pros

The downside to Rampardos’ Head Smash move is that it inflicts 50 damage on itself when it knocks out an opponent’s Pokemon, but this self-damage is relatively minor given how powerful the attack is overall. In fact, there are no other moves in the game that can deal such high damage for only one Energy. Since Rampardos isn’t an “Ex” card in the Pokemon TCG Pocket version, the self-inflicted damage is negligible compared to the number of times Rampardos can attack before being knocked out itself. This means another Rampardos or a different card can take over and win the game, and the Energy requirement is also low.

Why Rampardos is Unbalanced in Pokemon TCG Pocket

In comparable circumstances and without special Pokemon accessories like the Giant Cape or Rocky Helmet, a Rampardos typically has the ability to knock out an opposing Giratina Ex, but this isn’t always reciprocated. This is because Rampardos only sustains recoil damage if it knocks out another Pokémon, enabling it to launch two attacks in succession to deliver a fatal blow to Giratina Ex if both are at full health, while the Pokémon TCG Pocket version of Giratina Ex takes 20 points of recoil damage with every attack, reducing its HP to 130 and exposing it to Head Smash.

Due to the rarity of Pokemon cards that can inflict 150 damage in a single strike, even with the aid of Giovanni from the Pokemon TCG Pocket Supporter card, Rampardos will likely attack multiple times before being defeated. Given that only two or more hits of 130 damage are required to defeat an opponent, it’s quite challenging to overcome Rampardos as it doesn’t take much to set this card in motion. A Stage 2 card isn’t difficult to bring onto the battlefield with tools like Poke Ball, Pokemon Communication, Professor’s Research, Rare Candy, and others. Once on the field, all Rampardos needs is one Energy Card to attack. Some consider Rampardos overpowered (OP) and unbalanced, as it may set a precedent for future cards that are not designed similarly.

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2025-06-06 00:35