With Destined Rivals freshly released and NAIC 2025 kicking off, we though it would be a great time to examine the strongest Pokémon decks. These are the lists we can expect to see making a splash this weekend.
Among the best Pokémon decks below, you'll see a number of old favorites that haven't changed much in the past few weeks, alongside brand new strategies powered by the best Pokémon cards in the newest Pokémon set.
Joltik Box
A super aggressive deck, Joltik box relies on the incredible energy acceleration from Joltik to power up another big electric type like Iron Hands, Pikachu, or Miraidon. Destined Rivals helps it out with a couple of trainer cards. What's really nice for this deck is that, because it also runs grass types, it has an advantageous matchup against the favorite Grimmsnarl strategy.
Ethan's Typhlosion
A brand new deck full of Destined Rivals Pokémon, Ethan's Typhlosion is a real rarity - a single prize card deck. Despite not being an ex, Ethan's Typhlosion hits like an absolute truck as long as you've used or discarded some Ethan's Adventures, and its preevolution Quilava does a good job helping you set up. It's a little one-note, but that note sounds like the trumpet of victory.
Shaymin is a good and brand new tech card in pretty much every deck, but it's especially effective in Typhlosion lists, since you're not reliant on exs.
Dragapult/Charizard
Two of the best cards in the current meta slapped together to form a coherent whole. This strategy is very reliant on rare candies to get to your big Pokémon, and can therefore be hurt by Budew's item lock. That said, it's been kicking about the meta for a long time now and is still an absolute powerhouse - a fan favorite for a reason, and still more popular than other Dragapult builds - thanks to Charizard's dark typing making it a good matchup versus Gardevoir.
Raging Bolt
Another deck that's stuck around stable and true for a while without major changes, Raging Bolt's strategy is simple but effective: use Teal Mask Ogerpon as a battery for huge Bellowing Thunder knockouts. This is another deck that's not been transformed by DR, beyond the new Judge card that many decks are playing.
Gardevoir ex
Gardevoir ex's Psychic Embrace ability is just so powerful at moving energy around that it's made this deck a force on the competitive scene for years. Lots of different cards have made the build work over time. It's strong not just for the ability to attach tons of energy from the discard pile, but also because it damages your Pokémon when it does this.
That sounds like a weakness, but when you pair it with Munkidori, who can move those damage counters onto enemy Pokémon, or Pokémon that get stronger the more damaged they are like Drifloon and Scream Tail, it becomes all upside.
The deck hasn't received any new toys in Destined Rivals, but Lillie's Clefairy from Journey Together is an invaluable weapon against the dominant Dragapult decks.
Marnie's Grimmsnarl ex
The new champion on the scene, Marnie's Grimmsnarl is the most popular Destined Rivals deck by far, and the strategy to beat in the current meta. While less able to deliver powerhouse hits than some archetypes, this list really spreads the damage around, with lots of ways to apply it such as Froslass combined with Munkidori.
Grimmsnarl itself is a really great card, thanks to its ability .which powers itself up with energy. This means you don't have to devote any time away from pouring energy onto your multiple Munkidoris and can reap the benefits of both a big attacker in the active spot and a ton of chip damage from the bench.
These seem to be the biggest, most popular strategies right now, but they're by no means the only decks being played in the upcoming tournament. We're excited to see some close games during the NAIC, and root for some underdog decks not on this list!
What's your favorite Pokémon deck in the current meta? Share your sweetest build over on our Discord. We also have a wonderful guide on the rarest Pokémon cards of all time and a list of all Pokémon sets in order.