Tinkaton ex Post rotation update

Hello everyone, in today's post of “Yapping About Tinkaton ex,” I want to share the recent developments I’ve made in improving Tinkaton ex’s past rotation. Initially, I was quite worried about how Tinkaton would compete with the other decks post-rotation. It doesn’t help that the new Budew card introduces new challenges for the deck, making it difficult to consistently top locals if we aren’t prepared. After extensive testing and research, I think I have found the “perfect” solution to Tinkaton’s problems. (I say perfect in quotes because I’m still testing the list and figuring things out.) 

To make improvements in the future, we must reflect on the past. I came across a Justinbasil article detailing a few deck builds that would work post-rotation. One of these builds featured a Dragapult ex deck that included a rather unusual Pokémon: “Pelipper” from the Paldean Legends set. This card has an ability that states, “When you play this Pokémon from your hand to evolve one of your Pokémon during your turn, you may choose one: put a Supporter card from your discard pile into your hand; or search your deck for a Supporter card, reveal it, put it into your hand, and then shuffle your deck.” On paper, the card seems pretty good, though the only drawback is that this Pokémon is a Stage One. However, I think that’s perfectly fine and, in my opinion, this card is going to revolutionize how we build Tinkaton going forward post-rotation. 

Tinkaton is a deck that not only relies on drawing a bunch of cards to make Tinkaton plays, but it also needs consistent access to our Dudunsparce. Right now, one of the best ways to achieve that is through our supporter cards, such as Jacq, which allow us to search for our Evolution Pokémon. Therefore, it is crucial that we have ways to find our supporters so we can start looking for our Dudunsparce to draw more cards.

Now, I know some of you may be thinking, “This feels like a lot of work for something that Pokegear can provide without taking up a Pokémon space,” and you’d be right. However, I’d argue that in a deck like Tinkaton specifically, Pelipper is the better card—not only because it can search for any supporter card but also due to its existing synergy with our normal Pokémon lineup. See, in this build I’m working with, we are still utilizing Fan Rotom from Stellar Crown. This is a card I have discussed in detail, but the TL;DR is that this card allows us to get instant access to multiple dunsparce at the start of the turn, letting us start with a bunch of Pokémon on our bench and setting up a follow-up to draw numerous cards with Dudunsparce. Rotom will provide similar benefits for Pelipper. Since Winugl is a Normal type, it can be easily accessed via Fan Rotom, meaning we can set up for Pelipper plays with minimal effort. Additionally, Pelipper not only searches for any supporter but also retrieves a supporter from our discard pile, allowing us to pull a Boss’s Orders if they are all in the discard pile, creating a powerful play. We can also use Pelipper to search for Ciphermaniac’s Codebreaking, allowing us to manipulate what we want to attempt with our Dudunsparce and Baby Tinkaton draws.

As far as testing goes, it feels pretty good. Being able to search for supporters in a pinch feels awesome, and being able to search Wingul through Rotom also feels really good. However, I don't think the Pelipper version is the definitive version right now, as I'm still messing with other engines to see what is available to me. But I do feel like this version is super strong and has the legs to work pretty well post-rotation.

Here is the list for anyone who is interested.

Pokémon: 22

3 Tinkaton ex PR-SV 31

2 Tinkaton PAL 105

1 Tinkatuff PAL 104

4 Tinkatink PAL 102

1 Fezandipiti ex SFA 38

1 Pelipper PAL 159

1 Wingull PAL 158

4 Dudunsparce TEF 129

4 Dunsparce TEF 128

1 Fan Rotom SCR 118

Trainer: 31

3 Jacq SVI 175

1 Arven OBF 186

2 Colress's Tenacity SFA 57

2 Boss's Orders PAL 172

2 Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking TEF 145

4 Rare Candy PAF 89

2 Dusk Ball SSP 175

4 Great Ball PAL 183

4 Buddy-Buddy Poffin TEF 144

2 Nest Ball PAF 84

2 Artazon PAF 76

1 Night Stretcher SFA 61

1 Switch SVI 194

1 Technical Machine: Evolution PAR 178

Energy: 7

1 Reversal Energy PAL 192

1 Enriching Energy SSP 191

5 Psychic Energy SVE 13

Overall, Post-rotation is not the end for tinkaton ex, and as I keep testing and making adjustments, I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. granted, the meta will also become very different as well, but I have fairly confident that tinkaton will be able to compete post-rotation.