Ready to play the hottest new deck in Pokémon TCG: Mega Evolution – Delta Reign?
Mega Rayquaza ex is a fun deck with some decent results from tournaments in Japan. My favorite build is the one focused around Basic Pokémon. See my deck list (based on a deck that won a City League tournament in Japan) for more info on how to play this deadly deck.
Mega Rayquaza ex card breakdown
Mega Rayquaza ex
ME06: Delta Reign • Double Rare
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Apart from being a Pokémon that I adore, Mega Rayquaza ex also holds a special place in my heart as it was the first ever competitive Pokémon TCG deck I played. That was back in the days of Evolving Skies when the Rayquaza VMAX deck launched: and that deck was insanely fun.
This deck is arguably better, however, as it doesn’t rely on small pieces to accelerate energy. Instead, Mega Rayquaza ex has a built-in energy accelerant via Ruler’s Roar.
Thanks to Ruler’s Roar, you can get Mega Rayquaza ex set up to attack relatively quickly and early on.
To ease the speed and consistency at which you can get attacks off, you also have many Energy Switch cards. This gives you a lot of versatility in what attacks you get off and when.
And because your entire Pokémon line consists of Pokémon ex, finding them is easy with Cyrano.
Cyrano - 170/191
SV08: Surging Sparks • Uncommon
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Being able to search your deck with Meowth ex for Cyrano, and then convert Cyrano into an instant three Pokémon ex feels great, granting this deck easy and reliable card search at every stage of the game.
Mega Kangaskhan ex - 104/132
ME01: Mega Evolution • Double Rare
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Speaking of consistency, Mega Kangaskhan ex is an absolute powerhouse pairing for Mega Rayquaza ex. Early on, you’ll be using Run Errand to draw plenty of cards. And because you are running two copies of Latias ex, it’s easy to switch it out for your Rayquaza ex and take knockouts.
Shut down abilities with Legendary Pyroduct
Legendary Pyroduct - 094/103 (Left)
ME06: Delta Reign • Uncommon
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Legendary Stadium cards are brand new card types in Delta Reign. The one I’m running in this deck is Legendary Pyroduct – the Stadium card that shuts down abilities on Evolution Pokémon. This works particularly well into that nasty Crustle deck that would otherwise shut Mega Rayquaza ex down. The fact that your entire deck is built on Basic Pokémon makes running Legendary Pyroduct low risk and high upside.
Accelerate energy with these key cards
Adventure Lantern
ME06: Delta Reign • Uncommon
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Mega Rayquaza ex isn’t the only card capable of searching out energies in your deck, however. Adventure Lantern also fulfills this need, letting you search out both a Fire and a Lightning Energy card from your deck and add them to your hand. You can then easily attach those Energy onto your Mega Rayquaza ex and other attackers.
Ethan's Ho-Oh ex - 039/182
SV10: Destined Rivals • Double Rare
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Once you have those Energy card in hand, you can accelerate them onto your Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex, and then use Energy Switch to move them onto your other attackers as needed.
Lastly, Crispin fits this deck like a glove, letting you do the same thing as Adventure Lantern while also accelerating an Energy onto your Pokémon.
Crispin - 105/131
Prismatic Evolutions • Uncommon
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In a deck like Mega Rayquaza ex that’s all about doing damage via Storm Emeralda that scales based on the number of energies in play, cards like Crispin and Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex that do the majority work for you are worth their weight in gold.
Mega Rayquaza ex – is it competitively viable?
When Mega Rayquaza ex first came out in Japan, it was the hottest new thing. In the first few weeks, it peaked on Japanese tier lists as new players flocked to it for its combination of fun mechanics and high damage output ceiling. And despite getting some high profile results (like finishing top 16 at a major Champion’s League Tournament), hype for this deck has largely simmered down.
However, with Delta Reign releasing months later, you might see playshare for Mega Rayquaza ex peaking once again via online tournaments and maybe even in card play. Will it be a top tier meta threat? Perhaps not. But it’s certainly strong enough to grind the ladder on Pokémon TCG Live.
