Rotation has been announced and there is plenty that will be rotated out!

Pokemon has announced the format for the 2018-2019 TCG Season and that means we are also get a rotation. The announcement came earlier then usual but we can take a look at what we currently know about the cards in the format and what is coming. With this information we can see which notable cards will be out of the format and which ones we will be using for another year or two.
What we know is that the 2018-2019 Standard format will be Sun & Moon-on. That means we will be able to use cards from Sun & Moon base set on to the current format which will be Forbidden Light. By the time the format becomes official on September 1st, we will be adding Celestial Storm. Dragon Majesty will soon be legal afterwards.
The point of this article is to give you an idea of which notable cards will be leaving the format. That way you can be better equip to know which cards to take out of your decks to make them ready for the new Standard format. We will be looking at notable cards that are being rotated from the following sets: BREAKthrough, BREAKpoint, Fates Collide, Steam Siege, Evolutions, Generations and Black Star Promos #XY67 to XY211. I will be giving my thoughts about each set and possible replacements for some cards.
Please note that we do not know which cards will make up Celestial Storm or Japan’s future sets. If these sets reprints any cards that were rotated because of the move to a Sun & Moon-on format then that will keep those cards in the format. A notable example of this was N. This card was rotated when the first set of XY cards were remove from Standard format but was later reprinted in Fates Collide. When that happened then all previous copies of N was made legal for the Standard format.
This year’s rotation will be one of the biggest rotations in recent memory. There will five main sets, a huge mini set and over a hundred Black Star Promos leaving the format. You will need a guide to know which cards to keep in your deck and remove from your trade binder.
With that said, lets take a look at which cards will be rotated with the format being Sun & Moon and beyond.
Please note that if there are cards that have several prints of it within a set or rotated block then we will be providing a card number and link to it. That way you know which card we are talking about.
BREAKthrough

BREAKthrough was the beginning of the BREAK block and the last XY blocks. This set was kind of weird one because clearly Pokemon TCG was stalling for time until the next set of main series games. Meanwhile, they were using this time to experiment with some new mechanics. Around the time of this set, you can see that the TCG was trying to weaken the hold that EX Pokemon had on the game while encouraging players to evolve their non-EX Pokemon. They did this in the form of BREAK Evolution.
BREAK Evolution was meant to encourage players to evolve their Pokemon by giving certain Pokemon an extra evolution stage to become stronger Pokemon. This plan didn’t work out too well with the only noteworthy BREAK Pokemon from this set being Zoroark BREAK. Even then, it wasn’t widely used.
Below are the cards from BREAKthrough that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Typhlosion
Houndoom EX
Octillery
Magnezone
Raikou
Gengar
Mewtwo EX (61/162)
Mewtwo EX (62/162)
M Mewtwo EX (64/162)
Ralts (68/162)
Zoroark
Zoroark BREAK
Yveltal
Mr. Mime
Xerneas
Trainers


Assault Vest
Brigette
Buddy-Buddy Rescue
Fisherman
Float Stone
Parallel City
Professor’s Letter
Skyla
Town Map
Super Rod
There are not many replacements for the Pokemon that we are losing. Those who want a “Rush In-Retreat” option can now do it with Dawn Wings Necrozma’s Invasion ability. The real lost when it comes to Pokemon will be Octillery and Mr. Mime who have their own special roles to play when put into a deck. You can try Oranguru as Pokemon base draw support but it will be harder.
We are losing plenty of great Trainer cards. The most noteworthy one would be Brigette which has had an interesting lifespan. It was a great card that nobody played but exploded with use. This was seen at the beginning of the Sun & Moon era with the advent of GX Pokemon. The best replacement that we can use for Brigette is Pokemon Fan Club which received a reprint in Ultra Prism or Nest Ball.
Other cards that players will miss includes Float Stone, Parallel City, Professor Letter, Skyla and Super Rod.
Float Stone and Parallel City will sorely be missed as players played these cards in mostly all their decks. Players can use Escape Board to replace their Float Stones but that will not be the same. Lady can be used to replace Professor’s Letter but that comes with the drawback of using your Supporter for the turn. You can use Rescue Stretcher to replace your Buddy-Buddy Rescue (If you still play that card) or Super Rod.
BREAKpoint

BREAKpoint was advertise as the EX Pokemon (Big Basics) verses Mega Pokemon verses BREAK Pokemon set. It was suppose to give big support to Basic and Evolution Pokemon. Though, I would say that it ended up giving a huge boost to Basic Pokemon in the form of Fighting Fury Belt and Max Elixir.
What did came out of BREAKpoint for evolution is Greninja BREAK. This card was the main focus for the deck of the same name. It also spur the debate of whatever Greninja BREAK was a good deck or a bad deck. It didn’t help that it made it into the Finals for Worlds 2016 only to brick and lose to a one time wonder deck.
Below are the cards from BREAKpoint that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Palkia EX
Manaphy EX
Froakie
Frogadier
Greninja
Greninja BREAK
Espeon EX
Trubbish
Garbodor (Garbotoxin)
Phantump (Ascension)
Trevenant BREAK
Sudowoodo (Watch and Learn)
Garchomp
Darkrai EX
Scizor EX
M Scizor EX
Raticate
Raticate BREAK
Ho-Oh EX
Trainers

Bursting Balloon
Delinquent
Fighting Fury Belt
Max Elixir
Misty’s Determination
Professor Sycamore
Puzzle of Time
Energy

Splash Energy
For Pokemon, we are losing a great Frogadier that can help Greninja decks set up. We are also losing Greninja and Greninja BREAK. It is too early to tell if Greninja GX can fill the shoes that Greninja BREAK has left behind. Though, cheating the evolution rule is always a great thing to have.
Other great Pokemon that are being lost from this set includes Acid Spray Trubbish, Ability Lock Garbodor Espeon EX, Sudowoodo and Darkrai EX.
Trubbish is still being used to evolve into either Garbotoxin Garbodor or Trashalanche Garbodor. Espeon EX rose in popularity when the metagame became evolution heavy. It was used as a tricky play to devolve heavy damaged Evolved Pokemon to take knockouts. Sudowoodo made a great revenge attacker thanks to Watch and Learn attack. Lycanroc or Buzzwole from Forbidden Light could replace Sudowoodo as a non-GX Fighting type Pokemon. Lastly, Darkrai EX was good and people still believe in it.
When it comes to Trainer cards, we are lose a lot with little replacements for them. Some of them have been staples in every deck since the beginning of XY. You can even argue since the Black & White era.
Professor Sycamore, Fighting Fury Belt and Max Elixir are being rotated with no substitutions in slight. We have had a Supporter that discard and draw seven since Professor Juniper in the Black & White era of the game. When Professor Sycamore rotates then we are losing that massive draw power. The best replaces that we have will be Cynthia but nothing beats throwing away a hand of useless cards to dig deep into your deck.
Fighting Fury Belt and Max Elixir give Basic decks an edge in the form of extra damage and HP with energy acceleration. You can use Choice Band to do extra damage but some Pokemon actually want to have extra HP to weather attacks.
Puzzle of Time can be replaced with Lusamine as a way to recover Supporters and Stadiums. Though, if you want to use your Supporter right way then you will need to wait a turn. Puzzle of Time was quite a powerful card because it allow you to get any cards that you need. Somtimes it was a Support to use in the same turn. Other times it was for much needed Double Colorless Energy.
Fates Collide

Fates Collide may be the low point out of all the sets that make up the BREAK era. You will notice this in the number of notable cards that are being rotated from this set. It was suppose to mark the grand return of Alakazam to the TCG but in the end it was forgettable.
We also saw that some Basic Pokemon were able to BREAK Evolve. Though, they were also forgettable and were not included on this list.
What won’t be forgotten is the Fighting support that Fates Collide brought. This set brought a lot of great cards that Fighting type decks will miss. Especially those who are currently playing Fighting decks in the Sun & Moon era.
Below are the cards from Fates Collide that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Glaceon EX
Barbaracle
Alakazam EX
M Alakazam EX
Mew
Regirock EX
Carbink BREAK
Zygarde EX
Bronzong
Bronzong BREAK
Genesect EX
M Audino EX
Trainers

Devolution Spray
Fairy Garden
Fossil Excavation Kit
N
Energy

Strong Energy
Regirock EX will be one of the biggest losses from the rotation of Fates Collide. It gave a boost of ten damage to Fighting type Pokemon. The best part is that you can stack your Regirock EX to do more damage. You can use Diancie Prism Star to boost Fighting type Pokemon damage but you will lose the ability to stack damage due to the Prism Star Rule.
Fighting types will also lose the ability to accelerate energy with Carbink BREAK. Currently there is no replacement coming for Carbink BREAK. The same can be said for Strong Energy which is a staple for any Fighting deck. This card was able to survive rotation before but it won’t this time.
Zygarde EX is being rotated. If you want to replace this Fighting type Pokemon then you can replace Zygarde EX with Zygarde GX. Maybe you want to hit with a bit more of a punch? Buzzwole GX is pretty good.
Lastly, the biggest lost with Fates Collide rotating is N. This card was a staple during the Black & White era. It became an instant staple when it was reprinted during Fates Collide. It gave players a comeback option for those who were behind on prizes. N gave players an option to disrupt your opponent’s hand while giving decent draw support pending your prize count. You can use Judge which was recently reprinted in Forbidden Light. Though it won’t be the same. Either way, good riddance N. I can now go back to plot in peace.
Steam Siege

Steam Siege gave us two things. It gave Fire types the support they needed to burn the competition thanks to the Volcanion cards that were released. We also saw the return of dual type Pokemon. Granted, not many dual type Pokemon took the stage but the ones who did left a huge impression on the game.
This set had a lot of great ideas when it came to mechanics and ideas. The problem is that Pokemon TCG didn’t commit to them as you will see in later sets. It was clear that the TCG was beginning to close the book on the XY era of the game. We were cleanly seeing the last of powerful EX Pokemon while giving one last attempt to make BREAK Pokemon matter in the game. We saw this in the form of Volcanion EX and Xerneas BREAK.
Below are the cards from Steam Siege that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Yanmega BREAK
Volcanion
Volcanion EX
Weavile
Yveltal
Yveltal BREAK
Cobalion
Magearna EX
Gardevoir EX
M Gardevoir EX
Xerneas
Xerneas BREAK
Talonflame
Trainers

Captivating Poké Puff
Ninja Boy
Pokémon Ranger
Special Charge
The cards that are being rotated from this set do not have any replacements for them. Volcanion and Volcanion EX are both staples in Fire decks. Volcanion may have lost use in current Fire decks but Volcaion EX still has a place. That is because Volcanion EX’s Steam Up ability can give these decks extra Fire power. Now Fire decks will need to rely on Choice Band to knock out big HP Evolved GX Pokemon.
The last of the original Fairy support from XY Base will be rotated out in the form of Xerneas. This card spent the last few years accelerating energy in Fairy decks to power up powerful Pokemon like the original Gardevoir EX. Now it will be gone along with Fairy Garden that was reprinted during Fates Collide.
Out of the Trainers that are being rotated from this set, players will sorely miss Special Charge. When this card rotates then it would mean that there will be no way to retrieve Special Energy. Once they are in the discard then they are now truly gone.
Evolutions

Evolutions was made to help people remember the early days of the TCG. It gave collectors the chance open packs and be in awe as they saw the original style cards in the modern day. It even made players pretend that EX Pokemon have been in the game since the beginning with the old style EX cards.
Once the novelty wore off, Evolutions may have been one of the most dislike sets in the modern day TCG. The EX era tried to end in a bang with a celebration of the 20th anniversary. It may have with collectors but for players of the set was pretty disappointing.
Below are the cards from Evolutions that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Venusaur EX
M Venusaur EX
Charizard EX
M Charizard EX
Blastoise EX
M Blastoise EX
Starmie
Mewtwo
Clefairy
Pidgeot EX
Dragonite EX
Trainers

Brock’s Grit
The only cards that matter from Evolutions that will need replacements will be Starmie, Mewtwo, Clefairy and Dragonite EX.
Starmie gives decks a way to recover energy. Though, you can now do that with Mt. Cornet but for only Metal energy. Mewtwo is currently being used as a budget counter to Buzzwole. This one will be harder to replace. That is because you will need to find a Psychic type Pokemon who can knockout Buzzwole with a single energy attachment.
There is also Clefairy who was used to copy powerful attacks. Specifically, GX Attacks. If you want to use this gimmick then there is always Mimikyu’s Copycat attack or Zoroark GX’s Trickster GX. Lastly, there is Dragonite EX who can recover EX Pokemon. EX Pokemon will no longer be involve in the Standard format but if if you want to recover powerful GX Pokemon then there is Rescue Stretcher.
Brock’s Grit found a home in Tapu Bulu GX decks as a way to recover Grass and Lightning energy. If Tapu Bulu GX decks wish to recover energy then they will need to play more Energy Recycler.
Generations

Generations was a quick set to celebrate the 20th anniversary. It was used to release the second Radiant Collection. Though, it impacted the game in a huge way. That is because it had powerful card within the set and many reprints.
Jolteon EX was only release in this set and the packs for it were in specialty products. The game was heavily focus on Big Basic decks that help make Jolteon EX a popular way to counter the meta. That is why we saw this card hit almost fifty dollars at it’s peak. We did saw the price drop as Generations became more common and Jolteon EX took a backseat in the game.
We also saw plenty of cards get reprint in Generations. It is because of this set that cards like Evosoda which was suppose to have rotated two years ago is now being played in Standard . Wobbuffet can now be played in stall decks in the year 2018. This card was originally printed in 2014.
Generations had plenty of cards to celebrate the original generation of Pokemon but it kept XY in the game much longer then expected.
Below are the cards from Generations that are being rotated.
Pokemon

Caterpie
Metapod
M Charizard EX
Pikachu (Nuzzle)
Raichu
Jolteon EX
Golbat
Meowstic EX
Flareon EX
Wobbuffet
Meowstic
Sylveon EX
Gardevoir EX
M Gardevoir EX
Trainers

Evosoda
Olympia
Pokémon Center Lady
Revitalizer
Red Card
Team Flare Grunt
Wally
Because of the rotation of Generations, Raichu GX may find it harder to play in Standard. That is because a Pikachu with Nuzzle is being rotated. There was a Pikachu with Nuzzle printed in the Sun & Moon era but we have not seen an English printing of it.
Wobbuffet will be rotated out but we have other ways to turn off abilities. There is always Alolan Muk and Glaceon GX who can do the same job as Wobbuffet to various degrees.
Evosoda, Red Card, Team Flare Grunt and Wally will be missed. Evosoda and Wally are both used to quickly evolve Pokemon. There is no real way to replace them at the moment.
Red Card and Team Flare Grunt will be missed in Sylveon GX decks as a way to stall. Nothing hurts more then having your opponent use Red Card to disrupt your hand. Your opponent can then follow this with Team Flare Grunt to rip off energy from your active Pokemon. Now your opponent will need to rely on Crushing Hammer and Plumeria to remove energy from your Pokemon.
Black Star Promos #XY67 to XY211

Black Star Promos #XY67 to XY211 was an interesting bunch of cards. We saw a lot of Black Star Promo cards thanks to all the releases we got during the 20th anniversary. It is worth noting that there are a lot of bad cards that were released during the XY era of Black Star Promos.
Usually the Black Star Promos of an era is used to save certain cards from rotation or just release one off cards. We saw both happen a lot during the XY era. It is why Hoopa EX was allow to be around for so long.
The Black Star Promos were numerous with some getting played for a minute. Though, there were only a few gems in the massive pile of cards.
Below are the cards from Black Star Promos #XY67 to XY211 being rotated.
Pokemon

Jirachi
Tyrantrum EX
Hoopa EX
Latios EX
Rayquaza EX
Pikachu EX
Mew EX
Xerneas EX
Yveltal EX
Wobbuffet BREAK
M Beedrill EX
Salamence EX
Giratina
Trainers

Karen
Replacements? How can you replace such niche cards? Some of these cards became techs in decks or eventually got printed in a main set. Some of the noteworthy cards include Jirachi, Hoopa EX, Giratina, Karen and Mew EX. So lets go over these cards instead of talking about replacements.
Jirachi who saw a lot of play thanks to Stardust. This attack knocked off special energy while granting immunity from damage. Meanwhile, there is Hoopa EX who was seen as the last bastion for EX Pokemon. It helped grabbed three EX Pokemon from your deck thank to Bandit Ring. Though, Hoopa EX saw less play as we went deeper into Sun & Moon and GX Pokemon.
The Giratina promo was an instant tech for decks struggling against Greninja BREAK. It worked but was argued if it was worth playing. Especially when Greninja BREAK saw less play.
Karen was a solution for a problem that a previous rotation took care of. It came a little bit too late.
Lastly, we have Mew EX. This card was a surprise reprint as it was dug up all the way from the Black & White era of the game. Mew EX didn’t see a lot of play when it was first reprinted. It wasn’t until the advent of Buzzwole GX that Mew EX saw more play. It was a Psychic type Pokemon that can use one energy attachment to take down a Buzzwole GX.
Final Thoughts

The final Standard format to include EX era cards was an interesting one. We finally saw the fall of the big EX Basic format. Who knew it would take another bigger and badder card in the form of GX Pokemon to it knock down.
The era of EX Pokemon has ended. It was an interesting ride that started in the Black & White Era. They used it as a way to jump start Mega Evolution. It didn’t work until they introduce Spirit Links. They tried to overthrow EX Pokemon with BREAK Evolution but that didn’t work. You can see the results of the XY Experiment in the current format in the form of GX Pokemon. Powerful Evolved Pokemon that rival EX Pokemon in power.
Will the XY and BREAK block be missed? Maybe not but we can say that we had plenty of fun with the cards.
It is now time for Sun & Moon to rise and take control of the format. Now you have a full list of notable cards that you need to take out from your decks and binders to get ready for Rotation on September 1st. Best of luck to all the TCG players who are going to be hunting for Championship Points in the 2018-2019 season!
The post TCG Jump: What is Getting Rotated appeared first on Pokémon Crossroads.


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