1st Place Mega Greninja ex Deck List and Guide
Chaos Rising is going to be a big set for one reason and one reason above all: Mega Greninja.
While collectors are primarily going to be looking for Mega Greninja ex Special Illustration Rare, players will be eager to get their hands on one of the strongest decks in Japan right now.
In this deck guide, we’ll be looking at a deck that got first place at a City League in Japan.
1st Place City League Fukuoka 03/22 - ス！
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Pokémon: 22
4 Froakie M4 20
3 Frogadier M4 21
2 Mega Greninja ex M4 22
2 Greninja ex TWM 106
3 Dreepy TWM 128
3 Drakloak TWM 129
1 Dragapult ex TWM 130
1 Budew ASC 16
1 Shaymin DRI 10
1 Fezandipiti ex ASC 142
1 Meowth ex POR 62
Trainer: 28
4 Lillie's Determination MEG 119
3 Hilda WHT 84
2 Surfer SSP 187
2 Boss's Orders MEG 114
1 Dawn PFL 87
4 Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144
4 Poké Pad ASC 198
3 Ultra Ball MEG 131
2 Rare Candy MEG 125
1 Special Red Card M4 72
2 Air Balloon ASC 181
Energy: 10
7 Water Energy MEE 3
2 Ignition Energy WHT 86
1 Neo Upper Energy TEF 162
Mega Greninja ex deck quick start guide
Fill up your board with basic Pokemon you’ll need to evolve later: Froakie and Dreepy.
Protect your bench with Shaymin early to prevent lethal damage spread.
Evolve Dreepy into Drakloak to use Recon Directive to find the cards you need.
Find powerful search Supporters via Meowth ex and use them to add Evolution Pokemon to your hand.
Spread damage around via Mega Greninja ex and Dragapult ex.
Attack with Greninja ex to close out the game.
Breaking Down Mega Greninja ex
Mega Greninja ex is actually a very cool card. Its key ability is Mortal Shuriken – one that lets you place 6 whole damage counters on one of your opponent’s Pokemon. This is a pretty insane ability that works especially well with all the other damage spread abilities currently in the game.
In this build, you’ll be combining this with Dragapult ex’s powerful Phantom Dive. When combined, you can unlock insane damage spread capabilities that will be a huge threat to most decks.
Drakloak adds draw power
One of the best reasons to run Drakloak is that it unlocks Recon Directive – a solid draw effect that Mega Greninja ex is otherwise lacking. But it’s not the only consistency Pokemon that this build has access to: Meowth ex is also a powerful tool that will make finding your necessary Supporters more reliable.
Protect your early game set up with Shaymin
Mega Greninja ex is a deck that relies on plenty of low HP basic and Stage 1 Pokemon to get set up. To keep your opponent from exploiting this glaring weakness, you’ll need some protection. That’s why this deck runs one copy of Shaymin.
Greninja ex is a powerful additional attacker
While Mega Greninja ex is powerful for its ability, regular Greninja ex is strong for its Mirage Barrage. For those who remember the phenomenally popular Radiant Greninja and its Moonlight Shuriken attack, Mirage Barrage works very similarly. Except you can discard two Energy from this Pokemon and do an insane 120 damage to two of your opponent’s Pokemon: any Pokemon.
Combine this with the already incredible damage spread this deck is capable of and you’re sometimes taking four prizes in a single turn!
Use Meowth ex to find powerful Supporters
This deck runs two very interesting and powerful consistency Supporter Trainer cards: Hilda and Dawn. Both cards are here for similar reasons.
Hilda lets you kill two birds with one stone by letting you search out an energy and an evolution Pokemon from your deck and add them to your hand. This is strong in a deck like Mega Greninja ex that is so reliant on both evolution Pokemon and Special Energy.
Meanwhile, Dawn acts as your catch-all, allowing you to fetch the entire evolution line from your deck in a single go. This works especially well when paired with Rare Candy, and don’t forget Meowth ex is a huge boon to decks like these that rely on specific Supporters, as Meowth ex is in effect a searchable Supporter.
Mega Greninja ex – strengths and weaknesses
Finally, just how good is Mega Greninja ex? As stated previously, early results from Japan make Mega Greninja ex look strong. While lists from big tournaments prioritize the regular Greninja ex over the Mega, players might realize just how strong that Mortal Shuriken actually is.
Mega Greninja ex key strengths:
Insane damage spread
Massive high end power capable of multiple knockouts in a turn
Decent consistency thanks to Poké Pad, Meowth ex, and Drakloak.
However, this deck is not without its fair share of weaknesses. For starters, it doesn’t have the best draw, plain and simple. While the Dragapult ex evolution line and the Meowth ex help mask this inherent weakness, it’s still just there.
Being a damage spread deck makes it typically a bit more challenging to use than your typical “swing for one-hit-knockouts” kind of a deck. This deck is all about skill and precision – not brute strength.
Mega Greninja ex key weaknesses
Relatively slow set up
Vulnerable to damage spread if not protected
Lack of a powerful, native draw engine
Players looking for a way to express their skill in a rewarding way will enjoy this deck – even if it does have a tendency to get overtaken by decks that can move a little more quickly.
Mega Greninja ex will be a very popular deck on the Pokemon TCG Live ladder when Chaos Rising comes out on May 22, 2026. With phenomenal early results in Japan, and featuring one of Pokemon’s most iconic stars, it looks to have what it takes to compete with the Pokemon TCG meta! Look out for this deck and more to come as we get closer to the big set release!
