Speedrill (TCG)

Speedrill has been a popular in the Pokémon TCG through the '07-'08, '08-'09, and '09-'10 Play! Pokémon seasons. It has placed highly in many tournaments, including the 2009 Pokémon TCG World Championships. The deck's strategy focuses on getting as many out as possible early in the game and attacking with 's Band Attack, which has the potential to do huge damage for a low Energy cost. Stephen Silvestro, the 2009 Masters Division World Champion, included a minor variation in his deck on the concept: Luxray LV.X, coupled with a miniature Galactic engine. 
==History==
The exact origin of the deck is unknown, but it is believed to have first been popularized by Colin Moll of St. Louis. Shortly after the release of the expansion, a number of players began experimenting with , seeing its potential to do good damage for not much Energy. However, since the deck required a large set up and cards such as and the weren't available at that time, the deck had trouble being competitive.
When the expansion was released, though, players once again looked at Speedrill as a threat. It placed well in a number of tournaments, including Worlds 2009 where it won in the Master's division with Luxray LV.X.
==Strategy==
Speedrill's strategy is really very simple. It all centers around setting up as fast as possible and recycling Beedrill as soon as they are Knocked Out. The deck will ideally have three or four Beedrill and a out on the field as early as turn two or three, hitting for 90 to 120 damage for only with 's Band Attack. With a mixture of Claydol's Cosmic Power and 's Flutter Wings Poké-Power, this set up is surprisingly easy to achieve.
In addition to considerable speed early in the game, Speedrill can function well even against heavy attackers such as Infernape LV.X, since it can recycle Knocked Out Beedrill through and quickly get them back onto the field through Flutter Wings, Cosmic Power, and a host of helpful and s. This makes it a real threat late in the game as well, since the ability to recycle Beedrill and hit for massive damage for a low Energy cost makes running away with the game nearly impossible for the opposition.
==Cards==
===Key cards===
* - This Beedrill, from the expansion, is the main attacker for the deck. With its Band Attack attack, Beedrill can hit for up to 120 damage for only , depending on the number of Beedrill in play. It has a second attack, Twineedle, as well. For , Twineedle is rather useless. It will hit for only 50 damage on average, which is usually less than Band Attack. Beedrill also has one other significant asset, that being its free retreat cost. With Band Attack's damage dependant on how many Beedrill are in play, Knock Outs on Beedrill should be avoided at all costs, generally, and Beedrill's free retreat makes it possible to switch out a heavily damaged Beedrill for a fresh one.
* - This Beedrill, although less crucial to the deck, is still very important to the deck's set up. Although its attack, Needle Shock, isn't bad as a stalling mechanism late in the game, the true reason to play this card lies in its , Flutter Wings. Flutter Wings allows the player using it to search their deck for a Pokémon and add it to their hand once during their turn. It's comparable to a free each turn, which makes this deck's setup lightning fast.
* - Although some decks can function without this staple card, Speedrill is not one of those decks. With this strategy being so reliant on speed, extra drawing support is extremely important, and Claydol provides just that with Cosmic Power.
===Other Pokémon===
* - Only used for evolving into ; the best Kakuna to play for its Dangerous Evolution attack.
* - Exclusively used for evolving into Beedrill, can also help set up with its Call for Family attack.
* - Used to evolve into Claydol.
* - Uxie is a staple card in most decks, that can help the Speedrill player get set up fast with its Set Up Poké-Power, which allows the player to draw cards until they have seven cards in their hand. Before Claydol hits the field, Uxie is going to give the Speedrill a big drawing boost.
* - Azelf is useful for getting a prized or , since if a Beedrill is prized, Band Attack will only be able to do 90 damage maximum.
* - Unown G is critical when playing against , since it can protect Benched Claydol from being targeted by 's Shadow Room attack. It also prevents from being Knocked Out by 's Take Out attack.
===Other Trainers/Supporters/Stadiums===
* - Simply used to search for whatever Pokémon the player may need at any given time.
* - Searches for and/or s.
* - Used to get several Basic Pokémon out.
* - Functions as a simple drawing card.
* - A fantastic hand-refresher after a Pokémon is Knocked Out; helps the deck rebound.
* - Allows going straight from Weedle to Kakuna.
* - Good card to search Pokémon without using the for the turn.
* - Extremely useful for field control and swapping out heavily damaged Pokémon.
* - Like Bebe's Search except not a Supporter. It can only be used once per game, however.
* - Recycles Knocked Out Pokémon and Energy back into the deck. Useful for obvious reasons.
* - Helps with the speed of the deck; a simple drawing trainer.
* - This card is crucial to setting up fast, since it can allow players to get Claydol and multiple out early in the game.
===Energy cards===
* - Useful in the early game for setting up.
* - Used to power 's Band Attack.
==Typical deck list==
==Variable tech cards==
These are cards that may or may not be in the deck build depending on the player's style:
* - Cherrim can add an extra 10 damage onto Band Attack, allowing it to reach 130 damage and potentially get tough KOs such as and .
* - PlusPower has the same function as Cherrim; it is easier to use but only works once.
* - Some Speedrill variants use Super Scoop Up to bring back heavily damaged Beedrill to the hand and play them down again with , effectively removing all damage from them.
==Restriction==
With the 2010-2011 , the expansion was rotated out. The main attacker of this deck, Beedrill, as well as a handful of supporting cards, are now out of the format.
Category:Deck archetypes