Dragon

HAH! Jumping straight into the deep end I see. Don’t you think you’d be better off with an easier type to master, like Grass? No? Well then you better bring your A-game, because becoming a Dragon Pokémon master is not for the faint of heart! Despite missing out on the first half of the Sword and Shield block, Dragon is really making up for lost time with some of the gnarliest attackers in Gym Leader Challenge getting printed in recent sets. The difficulty with Dragon Pokémon, of course, is accommodating for their challenging and often contradicting Energy requirements. Classic Dragon stuff, right? Thankfully, Dragon has all the support it needs to be a top contender in Gym Leader Challenge, and is easily one of my favorite types to pilot.

Support Pokémon

Dragon doesn’t have a lot of draw support, but it’s got what every other type wishes it had: free Pokémon search and free Supporter Search! What more do you need?! Though just the middle evolution of a Stage 2 line, Gabite is the glue that holds the whole Dragon deck together. Dragon Call can be used to set up Dragonite (TEU), and once Dragonite is online, you can search your deck for whatever Supporter you want every turn with Fast Call. Absolutely busted.

Attackers

Dragon has a lot of good Stage 2 attackers, but how many Stage 2 Pokémon can you reliably put in a single deck? Typically I’ll limit myself to just a few Stage 2 Pokémon to keep things as consistent as possible. Every Dragon Deck will likely run Dragonite and Garchomp, which leaves room for roughly one more Stage 2 if you’re feeling adventurous. Fortunately, Dragon also has access to some of the best Basic attackers in the format, with Drampa and Ultra Necrozma cranking out 160+ damage for just two Energy! Zygarde is also an insane way to close out games, dealing up to 200 snipe damage if the opponent has taken five Prizes! Though Dragons have relatively difficult attack costs to fulfill, they also have access to one of the best Special Energy cards ever printed: Double Dragon Energy!

Deck Lists

Dragonite / Garchomp

Dragon is one of my favorite decks to play because it takes a lot of skill to pilot and there seem to be excellent new Dragon Pokemon releasing in every set! While Dragon did not get new cards printed for some time, it has a ton of attackers to choose from, and you can tweak the Pokémon line to your liking. Brilliant Stars has revolutionized this type, adding a new basic attacker Druddigon and a Garchomp that makes itself invincible for a turn! This list uses a combination of Special Energy and Basic Energy to keep your Pokémon powered up throughout the game, relying on Raihan to occasionally skip ahead in Energy attachments.