MetaByss (TCG)

MetaByss
Metagross and Gorebyss Types used Major cards Metagross, Gorebyss, and Double Rainbow Energy Era 2004

'MetaByss was a Pokémon Trading Card Game deck archetype that saw success toward the end of the 2003-2004 season, after the release of EX Hidden Legends in June 2004. Its name is a blend of MetaGross and Gorebyss, the deck's two main attackers. MetaByss was one of several popular deck archetypes of the era to include Gorebyss, the others being CroByss; Jumpluff/Gorebyss; and a number of decks focusing on Stage 1 attackers.

Strategy

The prime reason Metagross and Gorebyss were used in tandem was not for any inherent synergy in their effects, but in their typing. Together, they covered each other's weaknesses and were able to take advantage of the weaknesses of many other attackers of the era. Furthermore, each were capable of abusing Double Rainbow Energy to attack faster. As a dual Psychic/Metal-type, Metagross attacked for increased damage against popular Pokémon such as Walrein, Gardevoir ex, and Crobat (a frequent fixture in other Gorebyss decks). Metagross was weak to Fire, which was problematic due to the prevalence of Blaziken and Blaziken ex in the metagame, so Gorebyss served to counter Fire-types.

Although the primary goal of the deck was simple (attack as soon and as often as possible with either Metagross or Gorebyss, depending on the matchup), there was no clear-cut path on how to optimally accomplish this. A particular area of contention involved which Beldum to use. There were three options: Beldum (EX Hidden Legends 28), Beldum (EX Hidden Legends 29), and Beldum (EX Hidden Legends 54). The first had a Poké-BODY, Levitate, that granted it free retreat if it had any Energy attached. This was useful both in tandem with a starter Pokémon such as Dunsparce or Jirachi, as it provides a way to easily retreat Beldum and attack with a preferable Pokémon instead. Levitate was particularly useful given Metagross's Metal Juncture Poké-POWER, which could be used to move Metal Energy used to retreat off of Beldum and onto an attacking Metagross later in the game. The second Beldum, numbered 29, had a Poké-POWER called Magnetic Call that allowed the user to flip a coin once during his or her turn, and (upon a successful flip) search his or her deck for another Beldum and place it onto the Bench. The third Beldum, numbered 54, had a Call For Family attack for a cost of , which

Key cards

Desert Shaman

• Metagross - Crobat was one of the deck's two primary attackers, capable of attacking for only one or two Energy.
• Gorebyss - Gorebyss served as the deck's other primary attacker, and served as a hard counter to Blaziken ex.
• Dunsparce - Dunsparce was the deck's ideal starter Pokémon. With its Strike and Run attack, Dunsparce could instantly give the player a strong setup; most decks of the time relied on Dunsparce early in the game.
• Desert Shaman - Desert Shaman provided a means for CroByss to downsize the opponent's hand, which was particularly effective in combination with either of Crobat's attacks. Because CroByss was a quick deck that often set up before its opponent, a Desert Shaman early in the game was typically much more disastrous for an opponent than for the Crobyss player.
• Double Rainbow Energy - Double Rainbow Energy provided a way to power up either Crobat's Triple Poison or Gorebyss's Mystic Water in only one turn.

Typical decklist

The deck list appearing below is not official; it is meant to represent an average build of the archetype, not specifically constructed for any regional metagame. Being that this is merely an archetype, a player may wish to change any part of this deck when building his or her own version.

Quantity	Card	Type	Rarity
4×	Crobat
3×	Golbat
4×	Zubat
3×	Gorebyss
3×	Clamperl
4×	Dunsparce
4×	Desert Shaman	Su
4×	Steven's Advice	Su
3×	Copycat	Su
3×	Pokémon Reversal	T
3×	Fast Ball	T
2×	Rare Candy	T
1×	Warp Point	T
3×	Desert Ruins	St
4×	Double Rainbow Energy	E
4×	Rainbow Energy	E
4×	Psychic Energy	E	—
2×	Grass Energy	E	—
2×	Water Energy	E	—

Possible tech cards

Ditto

The following cards are often used in CroByss in place of certain cards included in the above list.

• Jirachi - Because CroByss relied so heavily on Evolutions, Jirachi could serve as a viable alternative or partner to Dunsparce.
• Igglybuff - Igglybuff served a similar purpose, but with the option of retrieving an Energy card. Given CroByss's reliance on a variety of different Energy types, this could prove useful.
• Ditto - Ditto served a number of purposes. Its Prismatic Body Poké-BODY allowed Water Energy and Grass Energy to count as Psychic Energy when applied to the damage output of Gorebyss's Mystic Water attack. Ditto also served as a powerful attacker in some matchups, hitting Rayquaza ex (one of the most popular attackers of the era) for Weakness and being able to effectively copy the attack of opposing Gorebyss.
• Ancient Tomb - In areas where the metagame included many Lightning-type and/or Psychic-type Pokémon, a CroByss player may want to include Ancient Tomb to negate the weaknesses of Gorebyss and Crobat, respectively.
• Ancient Technical Machine [Rock] - Ancient Technical Machine [Rock] was useful against Evolution-based decks, particularly those that relied heavily on Rare Candy.

See also

• 2004 World Championships (TCG)

This article is part of Project TCG, a Bulbapedia project that aims to report on every aspect of the Pokémon Trading Card Game.