Loading...
After a highly eventful first week of Space-Time Smackdown, the new cards made quite the impression, with Darkrai ex leading the charge. Whether played in a grindy shell with Druddigon or in an aggressive deck with Weavile ex, no tournament was safe from the domination of this dark menace.
Then, a familiar toolbox resurfaced, using Hitmonlee to maneuver around Druddigon and including the new Magnezone as a powerful attacker that requires no energy commitment. This aggressive build had answers for many situations: Hitmonchan held the frontline, Hitmonlee targeted the backrow, Marshadow served as a revenge KO option, and Magnezone acted as a bulkier finisher. But this week, players came with a counter to both these strategies—and more: Exeggutor ex.
The new rise of Exeggutor ex
In a meta accelerated by the release of Weavile ex + Darkrai ex, the aggressive Fighting Toolbox, and the self-sufficient Magnezone, Exeggutor ex reminded everyone who the original early-game threat was. With an attack usable as early as turn 2 (even when going first), an average damage output of 60, and a massive 160 HP, Exeggutor ex has the perfect tools to thrive. On top of that, it had the type advantage against the new Pokémon ex and could one-shot every Pokémon in the Fighting Toolbox, except for Magnezone. Few Pokémon could take down Exeggutor ex in a single hit, and even KOing it over multiple turns is difficult, thanks to Erika and Potion. The introduction of Rocky Helmet made each extra turn against this wall feel more and more like a death sentence as suddenly, Tropical Swing virtually becomes a 60-100 damage attack.
The biggest challenge with Exeggutor ex is evolving it as soon as possible, given Exeggcute’s low HP as a Basic Pokémon. The inclusion of Pokémon Communication, combined with the deck’s low Pokémon count, significantly increases the chances of evolving it on curve, improving consistency and ensuring Exeggutor ex hits the field as soon as possible. When you're confident in setting up Exeggutor ex by turn 2, there's little need to bench additional Pokémon, rendering disruption tools like Hitmonlee, Sabrina, and Cyrus completely ineffective—sometimes for the entire game.
First, let’s take a look at glione’s decklist, the winner of the 5th edition of the FrogEX Weekly Cup (760 players, $50 cash prize):
This is the standard Exeggutor ex list, featuring a 2-2 main evolution line along with a single Celebi ex. With exactly three Basic Pokémon, the deck aligns well with its Poké Ball count and Tool selection (2 Rocky Helmet, 1 Giant Cape). Focused on sustain, it maximizes healing Trainers and ideally only brings Celebi ex into play in the late game when it's fully charged with Energies, as Exeggutor ex needs just one to attack.
This aggressive variant also includes 2 Sabrina and 1 Cyrus to leave no chance for Basic Pokémon on the Bench to evolve or to trap Pokémon with a big retreat cost and no entry-level type of attack (think Darkrai ex). It also helps bypass Druddigon, an otherwise troublesome wall that would take up to three hits to KO.
The exact same list was successfully played by 8PCheese, the runner-up of the upcoming Ursiiday’s Pocket Weekly #15… a tournament that was also won by an Exeggutor ex deck—though of a different nature.
Winning in a field of 1,891 players, Jouzard took victory with an Exeggutor ex deck paired with Yanmega ex. Unlike Exeggutor ex’s low-powered and somewhat unreliable attack, Yanmega ex provides a consistent 120 damage per turn. Air Slash is a one-shot move against relevant threats like Druddigon, Kangaskhan, Darkrai ex and Weavile ex, while Yanmega ex itself is sturdy enough to tank hits in the early game—especially with Erika’s support.
To accommodate this evolution line, Jouzard made some adjustments, cutting Potion, a Giant Cape and a Sabrina to include Yanmega ex and its pre-evolution. Additionally, they included a Leaf to allow Exeggutor ex to retreat in the late game, either for a finishing blow from Yanmega ex or to pivot into an evolved Pokémon instead of leaving a Basic starter in the Active spot.
The final major tournament of the week, the aptly named BEC Exeggutive Series (617 players, $50 cash prize), was also won by an Exeggutor ex deck—this time a standard build with a few quirks.
Instead of disrupting the opponent’s field, haxxsel focused on strengthening the deck’s durability. He replaced two Sabrina from glione’s list with Shaymin and a Leaf. While Shaymin isn’t a strong attacker, its Fragrant Flower Garden ability adds a recurring heal on top of all the others for an absurd survivability. This proved to be a decisive advantage in his run against chip-damage-heavy decks like Darkrai Greninja. In the top cut, haxxsel’s strategy paid off as he triumphed over four other Exeggutor ex decks.
Adding a Basic Pokémon increases the risk of opening with a non-Exeggcute Pokémon. To mitigate this, Leaf allowed for easier retreating—whether to swap an unfavorable Active Pokémon early on, pull back a heavily damaged Exeggutor ex for a fresher one, or transition into a fully charged Celebi ex as a finisher.
Finding counters to Exeggutor EX
In this sea of coconut domination, what possible counters exist? Across these tournaments, certain standout performances offer insight into decks that could challenge the green menace:
Darkrai ex featuring Kangaskhan
Although Darkrai ex Greninja doesn’t have a strong matchup against Exeggutor ex, Dachoso introduced a key change: entirely replacing Druddigon with Kangaskhan. Unlike Druddigon, Kangaskhan can attack from the Active spot for just one Energy, so that the damage output of the deck isn't limited to just Darkrai ex and Greninja’s ability. While this means forgoing an Energy attachment to Darkrai ex, the overall damage output makes up for it and pressures Exeggcute early.
Dachoso’s adjustment paid off, as he reached top 4, winning all three of his matches against Exeggutor ex decks.
18 Trainers Water
One of the standout from Ursiiday’s Pocket Weekly #15—beyond its $400 cash prize—was the performance of quietwarrior, who piloted a unique 18-Trainer Water deck featuring a one-of Palkia ex and one-of Articuno ex. At its core, the deck isn’t too different from Exeggutor ex—a bulky tank supported by strong utility. However, unlike the deck, neither of its Pokémon require evolution to reach full power, and Misty remains just as oppressive. The ability to tank early-game hits is crucial against Exeggutor ex, and this deck excels in that regard.
An interesting twist is the inclusion of two distinct attackers. Palkia ex and Articuno ex have completely different energy scaling—Palkia ex ramps from 1 to 4, while Articuno ex moves from 2 to 3. This flexibility allows the deck to adjust based on the matchup: Articuno ex performs well against high-HP Basic Pokémon, while Palkia ex becomes a serious threat from turn 1 and serves as a strong finisher when needed.
Despite an impressive tournament run, quietwarrior was stopped in the Top 16, marking his only loss of the event.
Charizard ex
Charizard ex is a natural counter to both Pokémon and high-HP tanks—making it the most effective answer to Exeggutor ex. JohnnyGamer proved this by reaching Top 8 in BEC#5, taking down eight Exeggutor ex decks along the way. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on his side in the Top 8, where he fell to... another Exeggutor ex deck.
His performance confirms that Charizard ex is a top-tier pick whenever decks dominate the meta.
Where Is the Space-Time Smackdown Metagame at?
Of all the archetypes carried over from Genetic Apex, decks have emerged as the dominant force in the Space-Time Smackdown metagame thanks to Exeggutor ex's overwhelming strengths in this format, reinforced by new additions like Tools and Pokémon Communication from the new set. In a field full of chip damage threats (Nightmare Aura, Hitmonlee, Rocky Helmet...), the most reliable counter remains high-HP Pokémon that can simply outlast them.
The metagame has shifted rapidly in the first two weeks, and while further shakeups are possible in the two weeks before the next set release, things already seem to be settling:
- Darkrai ex decks remain universally strong and popular, boasting solid win rates across the board—except against Exeggutor ex, their primary counter. Meanwhile, Weavile ex, previously considered the weakest variant at the end of last week, may see a resurgence due to its highly aggressive early game.
- Exeggutor ex decks dominate Darkrai ex strategies and represent a major threat to nearly every other deck. A 160 HP Pokémon that deals an average 60 damage from turn 2—while being healable every turn—is something very few decks can reliably counter.
- Charizard ex, a hard counter to Exeggutor ex, struggles against the rest of the metagame. Its linear gameplan and reliance on Moltres ex's coin flips make it less reliable, and unlike most top meta decks, it is prone to lose to itself.
As the metagame evolves, decks looking to counter Exeggutor ex must find ways to either KO Exeggcute before it evolves or one-shot Exeggutor ex later on, all while handling the constant pressure from decks with Druddigon. Whether such a balance can be achieved remains to be seen.