Most competitive Pokémon decks fall into one of a few recognisable shapes, even though the exact cards change every format.
Aggro: win fast, before the board develops
Aggro decks aim to deal heavy damage early and take Prize cards before the opponent's strategy gets going, usually trading away durability and late-game options for speed.
Control: slow the game to a crawl
Control decks lean on disruption, healing and Energy denial to grind the game out, aiming to outlast an opponent rather than outrace them — the opposite instinct to aggro.
Toolbox: an answer for everything
Toolbox decks run a wider spread of single-copy Pokémon and Trainer cards, each one a specific answer to a particular matchup problem, giving up consistency for flexibility across different opponents.
Frequently asked questions
What is an aggro deck in the Pokémon TCG?
A deck built to deal damage and take Prizes quickly, at the cost of durability.
How does a control deck differ from aggro?
It slows the game down to outlast the opponent rather than race them.
What does a toolbox deck do differently?
It runs varied single-copy answers to specific matchups instead of one fixed plan.