Simon Trottier-Lacasse’s Rapid Strike Malamar deck with Inteleon nearly won the most recent large online event. Second place is awesome, especially with a comeback record like this:
Perhaps more importantly still, a 6-2-0 record versus Fusion Strike speaks volumes. For an event with 71 players using Mew, that’s the kind of win rate you’re looking for if you want to win. Before the rotation, Malamar had Mew to counter Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX – now, it struggles against it. However, based on this event and others, Rapid Strike is on a bit of a downturn compared to where it was. Additionally, some lists have started running Moltres, shifting the focus away from Inteleon altogether.
G-Max Rapid Flow is especially strong against Malamar because it can clear your board of them. But without Inteleon, an Active Malamar can’t be one-shot, thanks to its Resistance to Fighting. This said, your matchup against Inteleon-less Urshifu lists is a little better than those with it. Overall, this deck holds its own against “random” decks. It simply does what it wants to most games (Octillery and Inteleon boost consistency tremendously).
Here’s the list Simon played:
##Pokémon - 22 4 Sobble CRE 41 3 Drizzile SSH 56 2 Inteleon CRE 43 1 Inteleon SSH 58 4 Inkay CRE 69 4 Malamar CRE 70 2 Remoraid BST 36 2 Octillery BST 37 ##Trainer Cards - 32 4 Korrina's Focus BST 128 4 Bruno BST 121 3 Brawly CRE 131 4 Scoop Up Net RCL 165 4 Level Ball BST 129 4 Fog Crystal CRE 140 4 Evolution Incense SSH 163 3 Great Ball SSH 164 1 Rescue Carrier EVS 154 1 Ordinary Rod SSH 171 ##Energy - 6 4 Spiral Energy CRE 159 2 Psychic Energy 5
The last time I highlighted this fun single-Prize deck, it had Cinccino and Oricorio-GX. The latter is no longer an option, and the former is overshadowed by the power of Inteleon’s Quick Shooting. Quick Shooting actually helps a lot of your Rapid Strike Tentacles math. For example:
- Reveal five for 200 (plus 20 from Quick Shooting)
- Reveal seven for 280 (plus 40 from Quick Shooting)
The damage over time can “replace” one of the Rapid Strike cards you’d have to otherwise shuffle back in. Scoop Up Net is the other especially different emphasis of this list. With it, you can return an Inteleon line to your hand, potentially gaining two additional Rapid Strike cards! You can do the same thing with Octillery after using it. This maneuverability lets you evolve rapidly, not always caring to hold Evolution cards for your attacks later on. This way you can play more cards and see more new cards with your draw Supporters!
The list comes complete with a wide array of Pokemon search, and awesome recovery that wasn’t previously legal in this deck’s original heyday in Rescue Carrier. Overall, Rapid Strike Malamar is more consistent than it was!
Play this deck if you’re looking for a cheap option that can still win games, or if you’re missing the single-prizer days of old and want to stick it to the Pokemon VMAX of the world.
Thanks for reading and be sure to check our TrainerChip’s Malamar budget deck video:
Caleb
