Searching Standard: Iron Treads EX

Hello and welcome to another episode of Searching Standard, where each and every week I look for new, innovative decks for you to play in Standard. This week, I'm looking at a deck that was recently featured on the YouTube channel of LittleDarkFury. It features Iron Treads ex PAF 66, which is a very tanky Pokemon. Let's get started by taking a look at the deck list.

Iron Treads ex PAF 66 is a great attacker for this deck. By attacking with its Iron-Clad Roll attack, you'll deal 150 damage, plus you can discard all Future Booster Energy Capsule PAR 164 from Iron Treads ex PAF 66 to reduce the damage that it will take from your opponent's attacks by 150 damage during your opponent's next turn. Make sure you don't attach more than one copy of Future Booster Energy Capsule PAR 164, because that damage reduction ability requires you to discard all copies of Future Booster Energy Capsule PAR 164 that are attached to Iron Treads ex PAF 66.

Another way to deal damage to your opponent's Pokemon is with the Lost Zone package found in this deck. You can use Comfey LOR 79's Flower Selecting Ability to draw extra cards while putting cards into the Lost Zone. By doing this, you enable the use of Cramorant LOR 50's Spit Innocently attack while it has no Energy attached to it (thanks to its Lost Provisions Ability). Once you have 10 or more cards in the Lost Zone, you'll be able to attack with Sableye LOR 70's Lost Mine attack, placing 12 damage counters on your opponent's Pokemon in any way you'd like.

As additional backup attackers, you have Iron Hands ex PAR 70 and Zamazenta CRZ 97. With Iron Hands ex PAR 70's Amp You Very Much attack, you'll deal 120 damage, plus you'll take an additional Prize card if that damage Knocks Out your opponent's Pokemon. Zamazenta CRZ 97 has the Retaliate attack, which deals a base of 100 damage plus an additional 120 damage if you had a Pokemon get Knocked Out during your opponent's previous turn.

The last of the Pokemon in this deck are included for the use of their Abilities. Manaphy BRS 41's Wave Veil Ability will keep your Benched Pokemon safe from damage, while Radiant Greninja ASR 46's Concealed Cards Ability provides you with a bit of extra card drawing.

Since this deck is utilizing Pokemon that play well with the Lost Zone, there are a couple of Trainer cards that are usually included in the Lost Zone package of cards. First is Colress's Experiment LOR 155, which both provides you with additional cards for your hand as well as placing cards in the Lost Zone. There's also a playset of Mirage Gate LOR 163, which can be a great way to power up a Pokemon, but requires 7 cards to be in the Lost Zone in order to be played.

In order to make sure you have a copy of Future Booster Energy Capsule PAR 164 to attach to Iron Treads ex PAF 66, you have a copy of Town Store OBF 196, which can help you search for it. Raihan EVS 152 also allows you to search your deck for a card, as well as offering some Energy acceleration, as long as you had a Pokemon get Knocked Out on your opponent's previous turn. There's also a copy of Hisuian Heavy Ball ASR 146 that you can use to make sure that nothing important is locked away in your Prize cards.

This next pair of Items are found in many Standard decks as a means of helping you find the Basic Pokemon you need. While Battle VIP Pass FST 225 can only be played on your first turn of the game, the fact that it allows you to get two Basic Pokemon to put into play can be huge. Nest Ball SVI 181 also allows you to put a Basic Pokemon from your deck directly onto your Bench, and can be played all throughout the game.

By playing Boss’s Orders PAL 172, you can choose one of your Benched pokemon to become their Active Pokemon. This can allow you to ensure that the damage from Iron Hands ex PAR 70's Amp You Very Much attack can score a Knock Out. You can also play Counter Catcher PAR 160 for the same effect as Boss’s Orders PAL 172, but only if your opponent has taken more Prize cards than you have.

Comfey LOR 79 benefits greatly when you play both Escape Rope BST 125 and Switch Cart ASR 154. Both of these Items allow you to switch your Active Pokemon with one from your Bench. Escape Rope BST 125 also forces your opponent to switch their Pokemon, while Switch Cart ASR 154 offers the possibility of healing your Pokemon. Beach Court SVI 167 can be played to reduce the Retreat Cost of all Pokemon by one Energy, which can offer a free Retreat for Comfey LOR 79.

The final trainers in this deck are general all-purpose cards. Pokégear 3.0 SVI 186 can be a great help in finding the Supporter you need. Super Rod PAL 188 offers a bit of recursion, allowing you to shuffle Pokemon and Basic Energy back into your deck. Finally, by using the Devolution attack that Technical Machine: Devolution PAR 177 provides, it's possible for you to Knock Out multiple of your opponent's Pokemon.

Wrapping Up

With a bit of luck, you'll be able to keep Iron Treads ex PAF 66 as your Active pokemon turn after turn, frustrating your opponent in the process as their attacks deal minimal damage to Iron Treads ex PAF 66. This Pokemon will likely get even better as additional sets are released, and if it does, I'll be sure to revisit this Pokemon with an updated deck.

What do you think of this deck? Do you have any suggestions for improvements? Let me know by leaving a comment below. And be sure to join me here again next week as I continue my search for innovative decks in the Pokemon TCG. I'll see you then!

- Mike Likes