Pokemon TCG Pocket's quirky yellow chicken, Oricorio, has taken the metagame by storm, shifting the balance against the once-feared ex cards. So, how do you build the perfect deck around this deceptively fragile Pokemon? We've got you covered.
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Here’s how you can unlock the secret Wishiwashi emblem from Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Celestial Guardians set and show off to your enemies.
After analyzing recent Pocket tournaments, we've found that the Oricorio-Luxray lineup offers the highest potential. While other variants, like Oricorio-Magnezone and Oricorio-Tapu Koko, exist, this particular build has the highest win rate and is the most likely to rise through Pokemon TCG Pocket's PvP ranks in the near future.
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Oricorio (Lightning) Card Overview
- HP: 70
- ATK: 50
- Text/Ability: [Safeguard] Prevent all damage done to this Pokemon by attacks from your opponent's Pokemon ex.
- Weakness: Fighting
- ATK Cost: Two (one Lightning, one Colorless)
- Retreat Cost: One
- Evolution Line: None
- Expansion: Celestial Guardians
There are currently four different Oricorio cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket: two Psychic-type, one Fire-type, and one Lightning-type. The Lightning-type variant has made the most impact, with the ability to nullify ex Pokemon's damage.
The other three Oricorio variants also feature unique effects tied to their attacks, which are as follows:
- Fire-type Oricorio (A3 034): Discard a random Energy from both Active Pokemon.
- Psychic-type Oricorio (A3 076): Your opponent's Active Pokemon becomes Confused.
- Psychic-type Oricorio (A3 077): If any of your Pokemon were Knocked Out by damage from an attack during your opponent's last turn, this attack does 60 more damage.
The Best Deck for Oricorio
- Energy: Lightning (Electric)
- Key Cards: Oricorio, Luxray, Pokemon Candy
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Currently, the best-performing Oricorio deck is the Luxray variant. The strategy revolves around using Luxray as the primary damage dealer while stalling the opponent with Oricorio. Rare Candy plays a crucial role, speeding up the evolution from Shinx to Luxray and bypassing the need for Luxio.
Volkner is another key card in the Oricorio-Luxray deck, allowing you to recover discarded Lightning Energy and build up two attacking Luxray and two Oricorio.
To further improve consistency, cards like Iono and Pokemon Communication help increase the chances of drawing the necessary cards. The ideal opening hand in this setup includes Oricorio, Shinx, Luxray, and Rare Candy.
Oricorio-Luxray Deck Strategy
- Open with Oricorio or Shinx.
- Bench your remaining copies of Oricorio and Shinx.
- Start building up Shinx on the Bench.
- Use Oricorio to stall the enemy.
- Evolve into Luxray using a Rare Candy.
- Switch to Luxray and attack.
- Retreat Luxray and replace it with Oricorio.
- If need be, play Volkner to recover discarded Energy.
- Repeat steps six and seven.
You can create a budget variant of Oricorio decks using the following Pokemon: Oricorio (Lightning), Tapu Koko, and Shaymin (Triumphant Light). This deck focuses on stalling with Oricorio while building up Tapu Koko. Thanks to Shaymin's ability and Tapu Koko's automatic switch effect, you can freely switch between the two cards to maintain pressure on your opponent.
How to Play Oricorio Effectively
Here are some tips to make the most of Oricorio:
- Use it as a surprise counter: You don't always need to start with Oricorio or have it on the Bench early. Sometimes, the best play is to let your opponent evolve into their ex Pokemon and then surprise them with Oricorio.
- Build Oricorio up in counter matches: If your opponent is using a Lightning-weak deck, set up Oricorio as early as possible to deal 70 damage.
- A secondary Oricorio is a lifesaver: Having two Oricorio in play makes you immune to Sabrina's attacks. It allows you to simply switch to the other Oricorio and keep stalling.
Oricorio's Meta Performance Report
- Win Rate: ~ 53%
- Meta Share: ~ 2%
- Tournament Appearances: ~ 100
Less than a week after the release of Pokemon TCG Pocket' s Celestial Guardians set, Oricorio has already secured a spot in the metagame. While it's still early to draw any firm conclusions, it's clear that this silly Pokemon will continue to boast a high win rate in PvP and likely take up an even bigger share of the meta soon.
How to Counter Oricorio
Despite being a strong Pokemon, Oricorio struggles against TCG Pocket' s non-ex decks. Regardless, the best counters at the moment are the emerging Decidueye ex Meowscarada decks and the reliable Rampardos & Lucario setups.
As of this writing, no tournament match has been recorded where an Oricorio deck has defeated Decidueye ex or Lucario decks. As a result, these two decks have a 100% win rate against the popular anti-ex chicken in TCG Pocket.
The Future of Oricorio in Pokemon TCG Pocket's Meta
Oricorio has already made its mark on Pokemon TCG Pocket' s meta, but the question remains: will it stay a fixture in PvP, or will it fade away?
Based on what we've seen so far, cards like Oricorio—those with universal synergy and prerequisite-free abilities—are unlikely to become obsolete. Darkrai ex and Magneton (Genetic Apex) are prime examples of such cards. Their easy-to-trigger, practical abilities have kept them relevant through various shifts in the metagame. Oricorio seems set to join this group.
It's easy to envision Oricorio maintaining a strong position in the future of Pokemon TCG Pocket's metagame. Even if non-ex decks dominate, whenever the tide shifts back toward ex-heavy lineups, the weird yellow chicken will rise in popularity and step in to counter those powerful cards.
- Released
- October 30, 2024
- Developer(s)
- DeNA, Creatures Inc.
- Publisher(s)
- The Pokemon Company
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- Yes
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Digital Card Game
