As a TCG game, Pokemon TCG Pocket has a constantly evolving meta as new expansions like Mythical Island and Space-Time Smackdown are released. With Genetic Apex, Pikachu ex and Mewtwo ex quickly became two of the early stars in the meta, but were soon joined by Misty supporting Articuno ex and Starmie ex. With the next expansion, Mythical Island, Celebi ex and Serperior dominated the scene. However, new threats have now emerged in Space-Time Smackdown. While Darkrai ex has quickly become one of the most dominant Pokemon cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket, one other card has ruined an important aspect of the meta that fits with all decks.
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Pokemon TCG Pocket is played with a smaller deck pool and victory points, meaning games are fast-paced and more reliant on one or two strategies. When a card can disrupt one of the most important strategies in the game, it can quickly redefine the meta.
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Pivot meta is one of the most important aspects of Pokemon TCG Pocket, and the new Cyrus Trainer card introduced in the Space-Time Smackdown booster pack has ruined this. Cyrus can bring a damaged Pokemon into the active spot, negating the defensive switching of the pivot meta.
A common strategy is to use an ex Pokemon to score early points or stall, then switch them out when they are damaged. The opposite is also true for using weaker Pokemon while setting up an ex Pokemon. The important part of this strategy is pivoting your lead Pokemon to the bench before the opponent can knock it out.
However, Cyrus destroys this. Unlike Sabrina, Cyrus targets a damaged Pokemon of your choice, effectively allowing you to bring in whatever weak Pokemon you want. This can be used to snipe an almost-defeated ex Pokemon or to swap in a weakened normal Pokemon. Both strategies can be used to claim the final victory points and win the game.
Even worse, Cyrus can be paired with Sabrina for devastating results. Sabrina can bring in a Pokemon to the active slot where the player can damage it. Then, if the opponent switches it back to the bench, the attacking player can bring it back out with Cyrus and finish it off.
Cyrus also pairs well with cards like Greninja and Spiritomb that can damage Pokemon on the bench. Using this combination allows players to completely ignore the active Pokemon and quickly grab the final victory points they need to win the game.
At this time, there isn’t much counter to Cyrus besides hoping you have enough healing to restore any potential targets to full health. With ex Pokemon’s high health, only Grass-type decks have any hope of accomplishing this.
Players are hoping a counter to Cyrus is added in the next pack that would restore the pivot meta, or at least make it viable again. Mr. Fuji is one such suggested card, as it would allow players to shuffle any Pokemon and attached cards back into their deck, removing the ability to use Cyrus to move it to the active slot.
Only time will tell if a counter to Cyrus comes to Pokemon TCG Pocket. For now, players will have to be careful when pivoting their Pokemon. The Space-Time Smackdown has added numerous good cards, but Cyrus has emerged as one of the best.
