Pokémon TCG Pocket: Charizard EX dominates at Brilliant Festival with its Stoke attack

"Although the new Charizard ex doesn't discard Energy and can attack every turn, it requires careful preparation to come into play. This deck provides the necessary tools to achieve this without losing initiative," states the official TCG analysis.

Don't miss the exclusive missions!

Players who want to incorporate this strategy into their collection can obtain the key cards by selecting the Charizard ex Initiation deck (Brilliant Festival) in the game store. The ex Initiation deck missions are available until April 27, 2025, at 05:59 UTC.

If you're looking to dominate matches with an aggressive and constant strategy, this version of Charizard ex will allow you to maintain pressure from the moment it comes into play. Combine power, acceleration, and planning to turn up the heat.

Highlighted cards in the deck

• 2 Charmander (Brilliant Festival)
• 2 Charmeleon (Brilliant Festival)
• 2 Charizard ex (Brilliant Festival)
• 2 Cyclizar (Brilliant Festival)
• 2 Professor's Research
• 2 e-Nigma (Brilliant Festival)
• 1 Helio (Spacetime Struggle: Palkia)
• 1 Red (Brilliant Festival)
• 2 Poké Ball
• 2 Pokémon Communication
• 2 Giant Cape

Supporters and strategic synergies

In addition to Cyclizar, this deck includes key Trainer and Supporter cards to sustain the offensive pace. e-Nigma allows you to search for useful cards at critical moments, and Red boosts damage against other Pokémon ex, helping Charizard overcome damage thresholds that could hinder instant K.O.s.

Since its debut in the Formidable Genes expansion, Charizard ex has proven to be one of the most explosive cards in the Pokémon Pocket Trading Card Game.

Now, with its version in the new Brilliant Festival expansion, this Pokémon Fire-type icon reinvents itself with a strategy that leaves behind devastating single attacks to bet on constant offensive pressure and rapid Energy acceleration.

Stoker: the key to the new Charizard ex

Unlike the previous Charizard ex, which worked better alongside Moltres ex, this version shines on its own thanks to its Stoker attack, which for just one Fire Energy allows attaching three additional Fire Energies from the Energy area to Charizard ex. This mechanism is key for the Pokémon to quickly use its powerful Steam Artillery attack, which deals 150 damage without discarding Energy.

This constant attack rhythm is unusual for a Stage 2 Pokémon, which usually requires several turns to come into play and charge Energy. Therefore, it is crucial to protect Charmander and Charmeleon while they evolve on the Bench, and for this, Cyclizar is used, another Brilliant Festival Pokémon, which can withstand while dealing some damage with its High Acceleration attack and retreat easily thanks to its low Retreat Cost.