Legal Sets
Official Rules
- •60-card decks exactly
- •Maximum 4 copies of any card with the same name (Basic Energy exempt)
- •Must include at least 1 Basic Pokémon
- •First player cannot attack on Turn 1
- •Pokémon-EX give up 2 Prize cards when knocked out
- •Pokémon-GX give up 2 Prize cards — GX attack usable once per game
- •Guzma replaces Lysandre as primary gust (both still legal)
- •Tapu Lele-GX's Wonder Tag warps deckbuilding
- •Garbodor GRI's Trashalanche punishes Item-heavy play
- •All Phantom Forces and earlier XY cards rotated out — no more Night March, Battle Compressor, Dimension Valley
- •2017 World Championship in Anaheim — Cassiraga wins with Gardevoir-GX
Format Overview
Standard 2017 was defined by the arrival of GX Pokémon and one card in particular: Tapu Lele-GX from Guardians Rising. Its Wonder Tag Ability searched for any Supporter when played from hand, appearing in literally every competitive deck and fundamentally changing how the game was played. The format also introduced Guzma (which both switches your Active and the opponent's, replacing Lysandre as the primary gust effect) and Choice Band (+30 damage to EX/GX).
The metagame was shaped by Garbodor from Guardians Rising. Its Trashalanche attack dealt 20 damage per Item card in the opponent's discard pile, effectively punishing the aggressive Item use that had defined previous formats. Every deck had to reduce its Item count to avoid getting punished. Five of the top 8 decks at 2017 Worlds featured a Garbodor line, making it the format's most versatile Pokémon.
Diego Cassiraga won the 2017 World Championship with Gardevoir-GX — a Stage 2 Fairy deck whose Secret Spring Ability accelerated Energy from hand and Infinite Force dealt damage scaling with total Energy in play. It was the perfect answer to a Garbodor-heavy meta, as Gardevoir's damage didn't rely on Items. Cassiraga defeated Naoto Suzuki's Golisopod-GX/Garbodor in the finals.
Key Cards
Top Decks (10)
Gardevoir-GX
1st Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
Gardevoir-GX's Secret Spring accelerates Fairy Energy from hand. Infinite Force deals 30× total Energy on both Actives. Gallade's Premonition manipulates the top deck. Diancie starts the game searching out Ralts. Cassiraga defeated Suzuki's Golisopod/Garbodor in the finals.
Golisopod-GX / Garbodor
2nd Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
Golisopod-GX's First Impression deals 120 when switched into Active. Two Garbodor lines: BKP shuts off Abilities via Garbotoxin, GRI punishes Items via Trashalanche. Float Stone, Acerola, and Guzma enable constant switching for First Impression every turn.
Espeon-GX / Garbodor
3rd Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
Espeon-GX's Psybeam confuses and Psychic scales with opponent's Energy. Divide-GX spreads 10 damage counters. Trashalanche Garbodor punishes Items. Garbotoxin locks Abilities. Flareon gives Fire typing from discard for Grass-weak targets.
Golisopod-GX / Garbodor (Sasaki variant)
4th Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
More aggressive Golisopod/Garbodor with 4 Choice Band, Drampa-GX as backup (Berserk deals 150 with a damaged bench), and Magearna-EX for Metal protection. Tapu Koko spreads bench damage. 3 Guzma for aggressive gusting.
Garbodor / Necrozma-GX
5th Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
Trashalanche Garbodor as the core with Necrozma-GX's Black Ray-GX spreading 100 to all opponent GX/EX. Espeon-EX devolves spread-damaged Pokémon. Mewtwo provides a cheap single-Energy attacker. Enhanced Hammer disrupts Special Energy.
Espeon-GX / Garbodor (Pendarvis variant)
6th Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
4 Tapu Lele-GX for maximum Brigette consistency. Only 3 VS Seeker to reduce Trashalanche liability. Flareon for Fire coverage. 2 Rescue Stretcher for recovery. A refined Espeon/Garbodor build.
Gardevoir-GX (Meza variant)
7th Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
GardevoirGX with both Lysandre and Guzma for double gusting flexibility. Fisherman for Energy recovery. Teammates for precise search after KOs. 3 Tapu Lele-GX and 1-1 Octillery for consistent draw.
Drampa-GX / Garbodor
8th Place — 2017 World Championship (Masters)
Drampa-GX's Berserk hits 150 with bench damage (enabled by Rainbow Energy self-damage). Righteous Edge discards Special Energy. Trashalanche Garbodor punishes Items. 4 Tapu Lele-GX + 4 N for powerful late-game disruption.
Greninja BREAK
8th Place — 2017 NAIC (North America Internationals)
Zero EX/GX attackers — opponents must take 6 single-prize KOs. Greninja BREAK's Giant Water Shuriken places 60 damage without attacking. Talonflame starts Active for free search. Ace Trainer disrupts from behind. The purest non-GX strategy.
Decidueye-GX / Alolan Ninetales
Decidueye-GX's Feather Arrow places 20 damage via Ability each turn — 60-80 free snipe with multiple copies. Alolan Ninetales-GX provides secondary attacks. Alolan Ninetales (BUS) walls all EX/GX damage. Rare Candy accelerates Stage 2 lines. Espeon-EX devolves spread-damaged targets.
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