Pokémon TCG Pocket’s latest expansion, Mythical Island, has brought a slew of new cards into the mix. With new cards, comes a brand new meta, especially with so many new cards that break the game in new ways. The question is then, how good are these cards when put next to each other? That’s the question we’re looking to answer today. You can also check our Pokemon TCG Pocket Beginners Guide if you are not familiar the game.
We’ve made a tier list of the cards in Mythical Island, ranking them by how useful they are. How much exactly does each card shake up the meta? How do they affect previous established strategies? Which cards should you incorporate into your decks? Read on to find out more!
How Will Tiers Be Managed?
The Mythical Island expansion brings 68 brand new cards to Pokémon TCG Pocket. While many of these are simply filler cards, there are a surprising amount of cards that shake things up significantly. If you haven’t managed to get them all, consider to buy Poké Gold from LootBar, the safest and most value-oriented third-party website for in-game currency.
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Now, we’re going to sort every card from Mythical Island into its own tier. Every tier will dictate what the power-level of any given card is. The breakdown of each card tier is as follows:-
- S-Tier: The highest possible tier, for cards that shape how the game is played. Entire decks are built around countering the cards in this tier. Even when they aren’t present in a deck, they still need to be taken into account. The best of the best.
- A-Tier: We reserve A-tier for powerful cards that present a solid threat when in play. While they don’t define the meta themselves, they’re a force to be reckoned with when in play. They can be countered by smart play or luck, so they don’t exactly break the game themselves.
- B-Tier: The average, this is for cards that can do something well, but don’t do much outside of that. They’re good for doing what they need to do, but are too situational to be placed in the higher tiers. Most cards will fit into this tier.
- C-Tier: This is where two classes of cards will go. The first are cards that have a function but are outclassed by better cards. The other is cards that have a gimmick that isn’t very effective. Cards in this tier aren’t exactly useless, but using them is a handicap.
- D-Tier: This is where most of the useless cards that don’t have a niche or are purposeless will go. There is generally no reason you would want to use these cards outside of gimmick decks or challenge reasons.
For the more populated tiers, we won’t be discussing every single card in the tier. Instead, we’ll be breaking down some of the key players in each tier. We’ll also not be listing pre-evolutions unless they have their own unique quirk separating them from their next stages. With that, let’s get right into the tierlist.
D-Tier: Just Magmar
D-Tier is sadly only Magmar, he's just so bad.
Surprise! It’s just the new Magmar. While this does feel like bullying, it’s unfortunate that the new Magmar is so bad. While only requiring two Fire energy for 80 damage isn’t too bad, it also burns TWO fire energy just to use said attack. This means Magmar, played in the early game, will rarely get to attack twice.
Perhaps the most damning part is that Ninetails is just plain better. It doesn’t do enough damage, costs too much energy, has too little HP and doesn’t accomplish anything well enough to justify placing it any higher.
C-Tier: Lacking a Little
C-tier is filled with decent cards that just don't perform or have much better alternatives like Volcarona, Beheeyem, Stonjourner and Dedenne.
Here in the C-tier, we have quite a few cards that just miss the mark in terms of function. Perhaps the most disappointing presence is Volcarona. While it can fish for bench KOs, burning two energy just to attack makes it just a bit too lacking in effect. Fellow fire-type Salazzle also finds a place here, lacking impact in fire decks despite applying poison.
New Weezing is of particular note here as well. It’s not C-tier because it’s bad, it’s actually pretty decent. It’s just that, in any situation you’d want to use a Dark-type deck, you will always want to pick Genetic Apex Weezing over it, making it plain outclassed. Beheeyem is an early game Psychic Pokémon that’s too situational to really make work, same with Mew.
Stonjourner simply requires too much energy to get going for 90 damage. Dedenne meanwhile may be a bit contentious. It CAN be useful in stall decks, but it’s just so painfully low impact because of its extremely low 10 damage.
B-Tier: Good Niche Pokémon Cards
B-tier is mainly good cards, powerful enough to add to decks they're in, but not exactly enough to define games by themselves.
A lot of cards to talk about here. Aerodactyl EX is the lowest ranking EX card, suffering from being a fossil evolution. Its ability, Primeval Law, would be great if its effect weren’t limited to the active Pokémon. Even then, many top threats don’t need to evolve, and 80 damage is good but isn’t enough to justify using over other EX mons.
Salandit finds itself in a higher tier than its evolution Salazzle. Its single colourless energy requirement allows it to find a place scoring good damage in Dark-type poison decks. Tauros is situational, but immediately shakes up the game when placed on the bench. Dhelmise meanwhile seems like a middling card, but becomes devastating with Serperior in play.
Chatot is an interesting Pokémon, it’s situational but can win you the game if played well. Florges only being B-tier may be a bit surprising, but its state as a two stage Pokémon leaves it a bit lacking. Cramorant being B-tier is debatable, but it can absolutely shift the game in its favour with just one or two good coin flips.
Finally, let’s round it out with some of the pre-evos. Graveler gets a huge boost by being better than Genetic Apex Graveler and having the new Golem as an excellent new evo. Koffing sits higher than new Weezing thanks to it just having a different but good niche. Blue is also a fun card, it’s more situational than other trainer cards but can occasionally be a game changer.
A-Tier: Great Cards
A-tier is full of powerful cards than can potentially win you games. The meta game isn't defined by them completely, but they stand heads and shoulders above many other cards in terms of usefulness.
Most of these are good for self-explanatory reasons. Pidgeot and Gyarados EX are both huge heavy-hitters that win games, though a little one note. Mew EX meanwhile can be a game-changer, but it can also be a handicap depending on your opponent’s deck. Druddigon meanwhile has had a huge impact on the game as a lead, thanks to Rough Skin.
The new Golem card is a marked improvement over the old, being just as impressive as many EX-cards. New Eevee gets in here from sheer damage potential. New Rapidash is pretty, and also just devastating with good coin flips and Blaine. Vaporeon boosts water deck energy control in a massive way, earning it a spot here.
Budding Expeditioner is a very niche card, but its ability to turn Mew EX into a free lead tank makes it so incredibly good. Leaf also has had a huge impact, allowing many high retreat cost Pokémon to be more meta relevant.
S-Tier: Game Defining Cards
S-tier, the best of the best. Serperior, Celebi and Scolipede have shaken up the game greatly, and their placing represents that.
There’s simply no beating around the bush, Serperior and Celebi almost break the game completely. Serperior’s ability, Jungle Totem, boosts literally every high energy requirement Grass card to meta relevancy. But, paired with Celebi, it’s absolutely broken. Celebi with three grass energy is capable of KO-ing the entire game, and with Serperior it’s practically a given.
Scolipede also earns a spot here as a sleeper hit. While it by itself is just good, the way it works seamlessly with poison decks completely dominates most of the meta. It’s the only card that doesn’t have any sort of counter, being almost untouchable when played well. Thus, it earns its spot here.
FAQs
Q1: Are C-tier and D-tier cards really useless?
A: Generally, every card in Pokémon TCG Pocket can be useful with enough luck and planning. Cards in the lower tiers simply aren’t as good as other options, and will as a result bring you more losses than wins.
Q2: Can you buy specific cards with real money?
A: No, you can’t buy specific cards with money. You can however redeem pack points, which you receive from pulling more cards from a specific booster pack. These can be traded for specific cards. You can use money to open more boosters via Poké Gold, which we recommend you get from LootBar, the most trusted source for in-game currency at a reasonable price, and a more convenient and cost-effective way to enhance your Pokémon TCG Pocket experience. Ensure you're getting the best value for your money by choosing a reliable Platform like LootBar for all your Pokemon TCG Pocket Top Up needs.
Q3: Do I need S-tier cards to win games?
A: No, you can win the game with almost any cards as long as you have enough luck. Having S-tier cards simply increases your chances of winning, sometimes drastically.
Conclusion
With that, we’ve covered and ranked practically every Mythical Island card! This Mythical Island tier list isn’t the be-all-end-all of course, creative players may find uses for some of the lower tier cards as of yet. But, as it stands, this is how the rankings look. We hope you enjoyed the article, and stay tuned for more.
