By Pokay G
Have you ever heard of Zoroark? In the trading card game, it has a move called Foul Play that allows it to use any of the opponent’s moves for only a two energy cost. Looking at cards from the Emerging Powers Pokemon card set, it is very good against Beartic. Foul Play can let Zoroark use the bear’s Sheer Cold attack, which does 50 damage. The downside to this attack for the arctic bear is that it cannot attack on the next turn, unless it retreats. However, Beartic has a massive retreat cost of four energy cards. Zoroark won’t be able to attack on the next turn either, but he only has to discard one energy card to retreat.
Another example of the power of Foul Play is how well it works against RDL (Rayquaza Deoxys Legend). The legendary Pokemon card features an attack called Ozone Buster that does 150 damage. RDL needs three energy cards to use it, but Zoroark can use it against RDL to defeat the legend and take two prize cards for the win!
When wouldn’t you use Zoroark? It’s not a good choice when up against your opponent’s weak or basic Pokemon that do not have any strong attacks listed. The dark dog is a small beast that can take out bigger foes.
Zoroark is also very good when running a Stage 1 deck. These decks allow players to evolve quickly and knock out the competition very fast. The ideal game is winning six prizes in six turns with a Stage 1 deck. To reach this ultimate goal, some players are putting Donphan and Yanmega with Zoroark. When played, the key is to spread damage across the bench and come out strong with Foul Play when you’re up against a tank.
In a Stage 1 deck, another option to include is Cinccino. It’s a very good Normal-type Pokemon since its attack does massive damage with just one Double Colorless energy card. Becoming even more popular is Gliscor, which can deal 30 damage to the opposing Pokemon for just one fighting energy. Both of its attacks, Ninja Fang and Poison Jab are excellent. Low energy costs are crucial for a fast-winning deck and both of these choices offer a great boost for the energy bang.
Overall, any deck can be made better with this Dark-type on board.
Yes, it may have “broken” a.k.a. cheap beyond belief attacks, but Zoroark is here to stay. It will be played at many tournaments until it is no longer legal. If you do run it in your deck, watch out for Donphan and other fighting types. It is weak against them and can easily be dealt a one shot knock out by most of their heavy hitting attacks.
Finding a deck to quickly beat the Stage 1 strategy easily and consistently is a challenge, but it’s a challenge everyone going for World Champion has to take on head on. It takes a lot of practice, play testing and increasing knowledge of the game to come up with something outside of the Pokemon bandwagon. Hopefully this article has increased your understanding of both the pros and cons Zoroark has to offer. Good luck playing with him or going up against this beast.
When shopping around for this card, remember that there is more than one kind available. Read the card carefully and make sure it has the Foul Play attack. For card collectors, the artwork on the card could be rated at 8.5 out of 10. It looks cool and aggressive in both Holo and Reverse Holo forms.
Tags: Card Collecting, Zoroark