Barry deck

Barry is the latest addition to Pocket’s long line of Supporters that enhance specific Pokémon. In his case, he boosts Snorlax, Heracross, and Staraptor—all versions of them—by reducing their attack cost by until the end of the turn. This effect offers a unique form of Energy acceleration, effectively letting these Pokémon attack two turns earlier than usual with their most powerful moves. Conveniently, every Pokémon Barry supports has an attack that requires at least three Energy, including at least .

• Snorlax (Triumphant Light) is the most popular pick. While Barry only reduces its attack cost to , Snorlax is a Basic Pokémon with a high-damage Collapse attack. It also serves as a sturdy tank in the Active Spot, buying time to power up benched Pokémon while threatening 100 damage as early as turn 4.
• Staraptor (Triumphant Light) evolves from a line of Pokémon that can attack on curve, including the useful Starly. It culminates in Staraptor, whose Brave Bird deals 130 damage at the cost of 20 HP; thanks to Barry, it only requires .
• Heracross is the least used of the three. With Barry, Single-Horn Throw can be used on turn 1, dealing 50 base damage with the potential to spike up to 120 damage, enough to one-shot Pokémon like Darkrai ex.

Though unorthodox, Barry’s effect makes him the best one-time "Energy cheating" card in the game, giving him a unique niche to exploit.

Giratina ex Snorlax Greninja

Check out our Giratina ex deck page for more details!

Snorlax Magnezone

Snorlax pairs well with Magnezone, as neither requires a specific type of Energy. Magnezone’s Volt Charge ability doesn’t interfere with Snorlax’s 2 Energy requirement to attack with Barry and actually leaves you open to charge Snorlax up to the point of self-sustainability. This flexibility allows the deck to run any Energy type, including to take advantage of Irida or for Thunder Blast consistency.

The ideal setup involves Snorlax in the Active Spot, charging up while constantly threatening a 2-Energy Collapse attack. Giant Cape and especially Rocky Helmet improve Snorlax’s efficiency as a tank. Meanwhile, Magnemite evolves on the Bench, eventually enabling Magnezone. Snorlax acts as both a 140HP wall and a heavy hitter in a single card, while Magnezone takes over when the big sleepy Pokémon eventually runs out of steam.

Weaknesses

• Without Barry, these Pokémon’s attacks are too slow to be viable (except for Staraptor’s). They need additional utility to justify their inclusion in a deck as
  • Snorlax is a solid tank but suffers from a high retreat cost.
  • Staraptor is a strong attacker, but it’s a Stage 2 Pokémon, making setup difficult.
  • Heracross is nearly useless without Barry due to its high Energy requirements and coinflip attack.
• While all three Pokémon technically don’t require specific Energy types besies Heracross, they don’t synergize well together. Their attacks remain expensive without Barry, and their inherent drawbacks (Snorlax’s Collapse putting it to Sleep, Heracross’s inefficient cost, and Staraptor’s need to evolve) make them inconsistent...
• ... Ultimately, running Barry means dedicating two Supporter slots for only two Pokémon in your deck, with the risk of poor draw timing. That stands even more true in the case of Staraptor, as evolving to a Stage 2 Pokémon is already a challenge in some games.