Mewtwo ex shares a similar fate to Pikachu ex as one of the first cards revealed for Pokémon TCG Pocket and now also stands as one of the best decks in the metagame. Mewtwo ex boasts the highest HP of any Basic Pokémon ex in the game and has two powerful attacks: Psychic Sphere, which deals 50 damage for PC, and the devastating Psydrive for PPCC, which deals 150 damage—enough to KO nearly any Pokémon, though it requires discarding two P Energies.
Mewtwo ex depends on Gardevoir’s Psychic Shadow ability to fuel back-to-back Psydrive attacks, creating a generally unbreakable setup. Coming from one of the strongest booster packs of Genetic Apex and standing as one of the most well-rounded archetypes, you might wonder: how can you beat the Mewtwo ex deck? Here’s a look at its main strengths and counter-strategies, including budget decks.
Key Strengths of the Mewtwo ex Deck
- Steady Energy Acceleration
Energy acceleration is rare in the early days of Pokémon TCG Pocket, and Gardevoir’s Psychic Shadow is the only acceleration effect that’s universal, repetitive and reliable.
Once online, Psychic Shadow not only enables consecutive Psydrive attacks but also helps in many scenario, such as reducing retreat costs or powering Gardevoir herself if she’s Active. No deck can realistically keep up with this doubled Energy intake each turn once in place.
Conclusion: You must either secure a win before Gardevoir enters the field or spread enough damage across the board before she does.
- Tanky Pokémon
If you’re having trouble against Pikachu ex’s bulk, wait until you hear about Mewtwo ex. Its whopping 150 HP keeps it safe from most non-ex Pokémon, putting it out of range for even three-hit KOs from standard attacks. If the Mewtwo ex player benches a second Mewtwo ex to protect the Ralts line, the task becomes even harder, as they can simply rotate Mewtwo ex for durability.
On top of that, its Darkness weakness is challenging to exploit, as D lacks ex Pokémon and its heavy hitters are slow to set up. Only Muk (with Giovanni) or Nidoqueen (with a benched Nidoking) can reliably one-shot it, which involves too many conditions to be a consistent strategy.
Conclusion: Your Pokémon should deal at least 80 damage in a single attack to keep up the pace against Mewtwo ex.
- Mewtwo ex has two attacks
While Psydrive is the deck’s main powerhouse, Psychic Sphere remains a highly relevant attack, dealing a solid 50 damage. Before it’s ready for Psydrive, Mewtwo ex can deal up to 100 damage with Psychic Sphere, which is enough to KO most Stage 1 Pokémon on curve. Even without Gardevoir, Mewtwo ex is actually threatening while it charges up for the “grand finale” Psydrive attack.
Conclusion: Your Pokémon need to withstand multiple Psychic Sphere attacks to keep Mewtwo ex in check.
Blaine deck
For as certain as Mewtwo ex is to dominate in the late game, Blaine decks capitalize on the early game to smother it before it can pop off.
Ragettt piloted this list to a top 8 finish in the Pocket Legends League #3:
Blaine powers up three specific Pokémon featured in this deck, each capable of reaching damage ceilings that can quickly overwhelm the opponent. Even without Blaine, these Pokémon are strong in their own right:
- Rapidash: Can attack on turn 2 if going first. With Blaine, Fire Mane deals 70 damage, enough to KO an Active Ralts.
- Magmar: Has decent bulk and a solid attack for a Basic Pokémon. Magma Punch combined with Blaine can KO Kirlia.
- Ninetales: The standout of the deck. Flamethrower deals 90 damage for just 2 Energies (discarding R), a recipe for success similar to Pikachu ex and Starmie ex… except it only trades for a point! With Blaine, it reaches 120 damage, enough to KO Gardevoir in one hit.
All of these Pokémon come online by turn 2, putting immense pressure on Mewtwo ex. Ninetales remains the most desirable, as it can secure a two-shot KO against Mewtwo ex unless the opponent has a double Potion—and even then, Blaine still pushes it over the line. However, be cautious: as you don’t run Potion to fully commit to the aggro plan, Psychic Sphere two-shot all of your Pokémon, and Vulpix can even be one-shot.
Requiring little setup and capable of heavy early-game damage, Blaine is an explosive deck that can take down Mewtwo ex with a strong start. Having no card over the ◊◊ rarity and all coming from the Charizard pack except for the replaceable Giovanni, this is also a very budget deck to build.
Charizard ex
Charizard ex offers a similar value proposition to Mewtwo ex: an energy-acceleration engine (Moltres ex) paired with a powerful ex attacker capable of dealing lethal damage (Charizard ex with Crimson Storm). The key difference is in their distribution: here, the energy accelerator doesn’t need to evolve, while the attacker must be at Stage 2 to reach full strength.
Charizard ex - goldpack
Moltres ex provides faster energy acceleration than Gardevoir, and Charizard ex’s Crimson Storm can one-shot Mewtwo ex while resisting a Psydrive attack, giving this deck a favorable edge in the matchup. On average, Charizard ex wins the race.
Since they share similar mechanics, their deck lists look strikingly alike; however, Charizard ex doesn’t need Giovanni because every Crimson Storm attack guarantees a one-shot. Giovanni isn’t completely out of consideration though, since Moltres ex’s Heat Blast can two-shot Mewtwo ex with it—a plausible scenario when you have a second Moltres ex in play but can’t find your evolutions.
Running 2 Red Cards also gives Charizard an effective tool to disrupt Mewtwo ex’s opening hand and Gardevoir’s setup (see our article on how to play Red Card).
Koga deck - Arbok variant
Dark Pokémon aren’t entirely absent from Pokémon TCG Pocket; Poison-types from the video game become D in the TCG. Taking advantage of Mewtwo ex’s Dark weakness, this deck built by Belaa plays the two best D Pokémon in Genetic Apex: Weezing and Arbok.
This list emphasizes early aggression, with all Pokémon able to attack on turn 1 and their evolutions ready by turn 2. Each Pokémon line has impressive peaks:
- The Koffing line acts as tanks in the early game, Koffing being able to resist a Psychic sphere boosted by Giovanni. Weezing, a staple from Genetic Apex (covered in detail in our article on chase cards), becomes even more threatening here, with its usual 40 damage per turn from Tackle and Gas Leak elevated to 60 thanks to the D Weakness. Weezing also plays extremely well against other top decks.
Arbok: the biggest damage dealer here thanks to Corner, which creates deadly scenarios for Mewtwo ex. If your opponent starts with a Mewtwo ex but lacks the Ralts evolution line to support it, Arbok can trap it for a two-shot KO. Sabrina can be used in conjunction with Arbok to create trapping scenarios, and Giovanni is crucial for securing Arbok’s two-shot against Mewtwo ex, even if your opponent uses a Potion.
Farfetch’d, played as a one-of, applies immediate pressure from turn 1 without needing evolution to be effective.
Like the Blaine deck, Koga is a very budget deck to craft, with the highest rarity card being Weezing and all cards (except Sabrina) coming from the Mewtwo pack only. Possible adjustments include removing a Koga for a 2nd Sabrina.
Other Decks to counter Mewtwo ex
Mewtwo ex is one of the most consistent and inevitable decks in Genetic Apex. Whatever deck you bring against it, facing a curved Gardevoir is extremely hard to come back from.
Gusting options like Pidgeot often underperform, as Mewtwo ex can simply swap one Mewtwo ex for another or even sacrifice a Ralts if another is charging on the Bench. This resilience is a big part of Mewtwo ex’s popularity, with its consistency and good matchup spread—qualities that contrasts with other top tiers like Pikachu ex or Starmie ex with some polarized matchups and obvious counters. We will most likely have to wait for the second expansion and more D Pokémon to see a reliable threat to the deck’s domination in the early metagame.
