Despite pushback from players on the intensity of expansion releases in Pokemon TCG Pocket, another dual set has been announced that will spotlight Legendary Birds Ho-oh and Lugia. Wisdom of Sea and Sky will feature a slew of new Pokemon to collect, but players have already noticed a major flaw with the Lugia ex card.
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Wisdom of Sea and Sky, which leaked ahead of its announcement trailer, will release on July 30, 2025, following the aggressive four-week release schedule that has become the typical pattern for Pokemon TCG Pocket. The set will include Ho-oh ex, Lugia ex, and special illustration cards for Johto starters Chikorita, Cyndaquil, and Totodile.
At first glance, the set seems to offer an interesting dynamic between the two Legendary Birds, but those playing TCG Pocket know that the energy requirements for Lugia ex will render the deck unusable.
Pokemon TCG Pocket Encourages Players to Use Broken Mechanic
In the trailer for Wisdom of Sea and Sky, players get an early look at Ho-oh ex and Lugia ex. Ho-oh ex has the move Phoenix Turbo, which does 80 points of damage and allows players to attach a Fire, Water, or Electric Energy to basic Pokemon in any way they would like.
Meanwhile, Lugia ex requires one each of Fire, Water, and Electric Energy to use Elemental Blast for 180.
While the logical thought would be to put these two cards together in a deck, there are numerous issues with how they will function. First, relying on an ex card with medium HP and a lower attack option isn’t great for the quick matches in TCG Pocket. Ho-oh ex requires three of any Energy to use Phoenix Turbo, making it an expensive punching bag to throw out in a first turn.
One player in the comments of the social media reveal pointed out the flaws, stating, “Lugia needs three Energies??” Others vocalized frustration at the expansion’s release timeframe, reiterating that the sets are coming too close together for fans to keep up.
The other problem with this strategy is the Energy requirements. Dual-type decks have been broken in Pokemon TCG Pocket since their release, with no patches to rebalance how the decks function. The Lugia ex card will cause Water, Fire, and Electric Energy to spawn randomly in the Energy Zone, making it nearly impossible to predict how the deck will run in each match.
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While players could choose to fill the rest of the deck out with Colorless cards, these offer fewer heavy hitters than Typed cards, and would only act as cannon fodder as the player attempts to dump Energy cards onto Ho-oh to then use it to load Lugia and then play Lugia to hit. It will be too many steps at far too great a risk.
Additionally, the only way these cars will work in a deck is if they are both available. With players struggling to pull the cards they need from new expansions, and a lack of ways to grind currency amid the rush of releases, it will be difficult for those wanting to attempt the strategy to get the right cards to run it.
Introducing new card concepts is exactly what Pokemon TCG Pocket needs to help alleviate some of the stagnation that has occurred in the competitive matches since launch in October of 2024. However, these new strategies will only be useful if they utilize functional mechanics. Until the Dual-type deck issues are resolved, it is likely Ho-oh ex and Lugia ex will be nothing more than collection accomplishments for the Wisdom of Sea and Sky expansion.
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