Vileplume – Pokémon TCG Highlander

With Vileplume, a drastic pace-change wave is brought to the entire board. Players will have to quickly adjust to new forms of stun and a heightened potential for Weakness-prone knockouts.

Strategy Points:

• The cost on “Allergy Flower” can decimate an opponent’s deck that isn’t running a good amount of Trainer cards. Considering even one of these strategies can grant you an edge on resources over your opponent:
  • Use a “Hit and Run” type attacker like Accelgor or Ninjask to pivot into Trevenant or Spiritomb to increase the cost of Trainer cards needed for your opponent to discard.
  • You can run Flygon and/or Float Stone to quickly pivot back into your attackers. You can also attack with Trevenant or Spiritomb for added spread damage, including Trevenant BREAK or Dangerous Energy as respective additions.
  • You can run Cessation Crystal to turn off “Allergy Flower” to freely play your Trainer cards. This works especially well with a free retreater, like Tapu Koko or Cyclizar.
  • Palossand and Garbodor can also turn off “Allergy Flower”, then you can use Devolution Spray or Corviknight’s “Flying Taxi” before your turn ends to keep the cost on for your opponent.
• “Allergy Panic” will put most fully evolved Highlander Pokémon in one hit knock out range from only 50 damage. When it comes to broadening your type coverage, consider Pokémon that can attack for around those numbers without specific and/or low energy, like:
  • Drapion (Darkness), Druddigon (Dragon), Xerneas (Fairy), Cherrim (Grass), Emolga (Lightning), Bisharp (Metal), Deoxys (Psychic), and Tauros (Colorless, Fire, Fighting, and Water)
  • Multi-type Pokémon like Kecleon, Ninetales, Venomoth, and Scovillain can take advantage of broadening your range of hitting for Weakness for less bench space in this manner.
  • You can run Tropius or Magnetic Storm to not worry about Resistance.
• Exploud, Aegislash, and Weakness Policy are great options to stop “Allergy Panic” from affecting your Pokémon.
• “Dazzling Pollen” provides a great way to deal good damage with a bonus for either result on your coin flip. Running Galvantula and Malamar can add a lot of pressure with Confusion flips.
• “Feelin’ Fine” from Oddish provides a quick +1 that can serve as a potential Trainer card for your own cost to pay. “Stampede” with “Shrine of Memories” or “Memory Berry” can allow Vileplume to hit Pokémon weak to Grass for high damage off of one Grass Energy. Damage modifiers like Cherrim and Lurantis quickly skyrocket numbers with the times three Weakness applied.
• “Irresistible Aroma” allows for Gloom to grant you hand knowledge and potential hand disruption. This works well with cards like “Iono“, “N“, “Marnie“, and “Judge“, which can place your opponent into a Trainer lock if the information shows that they can pay the cost next turn. “Drool” provides another option similar to “Stampede” from Oddish.
• Vileplume – Level X:
• “Pollen Catastrophe” works perfectly with the previously mentioned “hit and run” strategies. You can run Zoroark or Solgaleo to quickly pivot Vileplume – Level X back to your bench. “Dust Island” or Toxapex helps keep Poison around on your opponent’s attacking Pokémon. You can also run Venusaur, Wigglytuff, Salazzle, Galvuntula, and Amoongus to increase the range of Special Conditions affecting the Defending Pokémon.
• “Power Sap” can easily heal all damage from Vileplume – Level X, all while your opponent is under the pressure of “Allergy Flower” and “Pollen Catastrophe.”
• “Strange Tentacles” from Tentacruel and can manipulate Energy onto your opponent’s Pokémon, encouraging potential attacks into Vileplume – Level X while also providing more healing with “Power Sap.”