Pokémon TCG Champions League invaded by one of the weakest cards in the game

A new Pokemon Trading Card Game card is a hit in Japan, despite featuring one of the weakest Pokémon in the franchise. Earlier this month, the Pokémon TCG released Terastal Festivala new subset focused primarily on Eevee and its evolved forms. The set won't be released internationally until next month, but Japanese players are already experimenting with new builds, with one card emerging as an unexpected favorite that's being used in more than half of the winning decks.

According to Unlimited TCGBudew's Terastal Festival emerged as a surprise favorite in Japanese tournaments. Although full usage statistics are not available, the card has frequently appeared in top 16 deck lists in various Japanese Cities League tournaments. According to Limitless TCG, tit appeared in over 50% of decks placed in the Top 16 Japanese Cities League Tournaments in the last three weeks. This may be a small sample, but it shows Budew's versatility and usefulness in almost every deck.

Why Budew is dominating Pokémon TCG tournaments

Budew can stop an opponent's rhythm

On the surface, Budew doesn't seem like a particularly powerful card. Budew only has 30 HP and his Itchy Pollen attack only deals 10 damage. However, Itchy Pollen has an extremely powerful ability that prevents Budew's opponent from using any Item cards the next turn. As Itchy Pollen does not require energy to use, Budew can be used in any deck to prevent an opponent from using items like Rare Candy to set up their moves. Budew also has no retreat cost, so players can trade Budew on the following turn.

Budew only appeared in three Pokemon cards because it is a Baby Pokémon. Although Baby Pokémon didn't have a real place in the Pokémon TCG traditionally, rRecent sets have provided them with a niche thanks to their unpowered attack. And while Budew can be KO'd easily due to only having 30 HP, some dominant decks have proven to have no quick answer against the card. The result is a low-cost card too valuable not to be found in many decks.

Our Take: Budew Shook Up the Pokémon TCG

Expect to see Budew in a ton of decks

For weeks, Pokemon Trading Card Game players spoke about Budew's supposed influence on the game. The card will likely change the deck's construction throughout the game, with players looking to replace Item cards with Supporter cards and Pokémon cards with abilities whenever available.

Additionally, expect decks that can eliminate Budew quickly (such as decks with Dragapult ex, Dusknoir, or Munkidori) to increase in popularity as they can eliminate Budew quickly before he does too much damage. One question is whether Budew will become too dominant in the Pokémon TCG, or whether the card is destined to be just a fad.

Source: Unlimited TCG