Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir

What Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir looks like when you open the box

Across the 97 lists we counted, this deck runs 18 to 27 Pokémon, 25 to 37 Trainers and 4 to 9 Energy. Its attacks are paid for in Psychic.

On results pages and on stream you will see it written « lopunny-dusknoir ». Every card named in that label turns up in the tables below, which is what makes it a fair name for the deck.

Look at the Energy: 4 to 9 out of 60, when half the 126 decks we track run 11 or more. This one is lean. It lives on cheap attacks and leans on Trainers to find the right Energy at the right moment rather than stockpiling it.

It takes a while to set up. Dusknoir is a Stage 2 Pokémon: you put down the baby, you evolve it, and then you evolve it again. Three cards stacked before anything attacks. That is what the hardest-hitting decks cost you, and it is also where they crack — a fast opponent can bury you before the line is standing.

Look at the Trainers: 25 to 37 cards out of 60, against a median of 31 across the 126 decks we track. Inside that, 9 to 16 Supporters, and the rule there is strict — one a turn, even if you are holding three. The 11 to 20 Items you can play all of in the same turn. It also brings up to 4 Stadiums, and 88 of the 126 decks we track bring that many or more. Only one Stadium sits on the table at a time: the one you play sends the one already there to the discard pile.

What Tools and Stadiums do — the two Trainer families we skipped here — and why the Energy count says so much: how to read a deck list.

What the cards in this deck's name actually do

Mega Lopunny ex and Dusknoir give this deck its name. Here is what is written on them.

Mega Lopunny ex is in all 97 lists, 2 copies of it.

Dusknoir is in all 97 lists, 4 copies of it. Its Ability is called Cursed Blast, and here is what is printed on it, word for word: « Once during your turn, you may put 13 damage counters on 1 of your opponent's Pokémon. If you use this Ability, this Pokémon is Knocked Out. »

How Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir actually wins

Mega Lopunny ex attacks with Spiky Hopper for 160. It needs 2 Colorless Energy attached, and it has 330 HP. And the number is not everything the card says. There is one more line printed under the attack, and it is the one everybody skips: "This attack's damage isn't affected by any effects on your opponent's Active Pokémon."

The cost of Spiky Hopper decides your first few turns. You only get to attach one Energy a turn, and that attack asks for 2. On your own attachments alone, your first real swing lands on turn 2. We have not found anything in this list that attaches Energy faster than that, so plan on holding out for a turn before you swing. Those turns still get played: you fill your Bench, you build your lines, and you keep something back to rebuild with when your attacker falls.

Energy is not your only clock. Duskull has to climb two steps before it becomes Dusknoir, and an evolution asleep at the bottom of your deck does you no good at all. The list has that covered. Hilda, which the list runs 4 of, goes into your deck for an evolution.

Good news on mobility: pulling Mega Lopunny ex back to the Bench costs you 1 Energy attached to it, and that is all. Retreating does not cost you your turn, so you step back and swing anyway. That matters enormously the day your opponent lands something nasty on it.

Mega Lopunny ex is a Mega Evolution ex, and that is the most expensive rule in the game: your opponent takes 3 Prize cards instead of one the turn it goes down. They need 6 to win the game, so 2 well-placed knockouts on that card beat you, where it would take 6 knockouts anywhere else on your Bench.

The attackers in the deck's core, with their best attack, its cost and their Weakness

Pokémon	HP	Attack	Damage	Cost	Weakness	Retreat
Close Mega Lopunny exStage 1	330	Spiky Hopper	160		Fighting ×2	1
Close DusknoirStage 2	160	Shadow Bind	150		Darkness ×2	3
Close DusclopsStage 1	90	Will-O-Wisp	50		Darkness ×2	2
Close DuskullBasic	60	Mumble	30		Darkness ×2	1

The core: the 6 cards every list runs

These 6 cards appear in all 97 lists, without a single exception. That is 20 of the 60 slots. The other 40 are decided player by player.

Look at how those 20 slots break down: 8 Trainers, 12 Pokémon, 0 Energy. Pokémon dominate, which is unusual: this deck needs bodies on the board, and it depends on any single attacker less than it looks.

6 of those 6 cards do not sit at the same count from list to list: Dusknoir (2 to 4), Duskull (2 to 4) and Dusclops (1 to 3), plus 3 more. Add those spreads up and you get 12 copies the 97 lists do not agree on, inside the core itself.

What "3 to 4" means in the copies column, what the "TWM 130" code under each name is for, and why we count dozens of lists instead of one: how to read a deck list.

The cards present in every list counted, with the number of copies

Copies	Card	Printing	Kind	Rotation
2–4	Close Dusknoir	PRE 37	Pokémon	leaves
2–4	Close Duskull	PRE 35	Pokémon	leaves
1–3	Close Dusclops	PRE 36	Pokémon	leaves
1–3	Close Mega Lopunny ex	PFL 84	Pokémon	stays
1–4	Close Hilda	WHT 84	Trainer	stays
3–4	Close Poké Pad	POR 81	Trainer	stays

The 73 cards that change from list to list

73 cards fight over the 40 slots that are left: 13 above three lists in four, 49 below one in four, and the percentage on each row says how many players took it.

The most agreed on first: Lillie's Determination at 99 %, Ultra Ball at 99 % and Boss's Orders at 99 %, plus 10 more above 75 %. Add those to the core and you have the common build.

The dividing line runs through Special Red Card, at 48 %: 47 of 97 players took it, 50 put something else there. The ones who run it bring 1 copy. Right at the bottom of the table, Buddy-Buddy Poffin (22 lists out of 97) and Lillie's Clefairy ex (18 lists out of 97).

Why a card at 45 % is not a bad card, and what order to buy all this in: how to read a deck list.

The cards some lists run and others don't, most common first

Lists running it	Card	Copies	Printing	Kind
99 %96/97	Close Lillie's Determination	3–4	MEG 119	Trainer
99 %96/97	Close Ultra Ball	1–4	MEG 131	Trainer
99 %96/97	Close Boss's Orders	1–3	MEG 114	Trainer
93 %90/97	Close Buneary	2–3	PFL 83	Pokémon
92 %89/97	Close Enriching Energy	1	SSP 191	Energy
91 %88/97	Close Rare Candy	1–4	MEG 125	Trainer
91 %88/97	Close Switch	1–4	MEG 130	Trainer
89 %86/97	Close Latias ex	1–2	SSP 76	Pokémon
89 %86/97	Close Meowth ex	1–2	POR 62	Pokémon
89 %86/97	Close Telepathic Psychic Energy	3–4	POR 88	Energy
87 %84/97	Close Mega Kangaskhan ex	2–4	MEG 104	Pokémon
84 %81/97	Close Bronzong	1–2	TEF 69	Pokémon
84 %81/97	Close Bronzor	1–2	TEF 68	Pokémon
73 %71/97	Close Night Stretcher	1–2	ASC 196	Trainer
66 %64/97	Close Budew	1	ASC 16	Pokémon
58 %56/97	Close Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking	1–3	TEF 145	Trainer
56 %54/97	Close Jamming Tower	1–2	TWM 153	Trainer
48 %47/97	Close Special Red Card	1–2	CRI 82	Trainer
47 %46/97	Close Flutter Mane	1	TEF 78	Pokémon
39 %38/97	Psychic Energy	1–4	MEE 13	Energy
34 %33/97	Close Mew ex	1–4	30C 66	Pokémon
31 %30/97	Close Salvatore	1–2	TEF 160	Trainer
26 %25/97	Close Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex	1	TWM 141	Pokémon
26 %25/97	Close Nighttime Mine	1–3	ASC 197	Trainer
23 %22/97	Close Buddy-Buddy Poffin	2–4	TEF 144	Trainer
19 %18/97	Close Lillie's Clefairy ex	1–2	JTG 56	Pokémon
15 %15/97	Close Mist Energy	1–4	TEF 161	Energy
13 %13/97	Close Air Balloon	1–3	ASC 181	Trainer
12 %12/97	Close Frillish	1–2	WHT 44	Pokémon
10 %10/97	Close Wally's Compassion	1–4	MEG 132	Trainer
9 %9/97	Close Festival Grounds	1–2	TWM 149	Trainer
8 %8/97	Close Dudunsparce	2–4	TEF 129	Pokémon
8 %8/97	Close Buneary	1–3	MEG 107	Pokémon
8 %8/97	Close Shaymin	1	DRI 10	Pokémon
7 %7/97	Close Fezandipiti ex	1	ASC 142	Pokémon
7 %7/97	Close Pokégear 3.0	1–3	SVI 186	Trainer
6 %6/97	Close Dunsparce	1–4	TEF 128	Pokémon
6 %6/97	Close Prime Catcher	1	TEF 157	Trainer
6 %6/97	Close Spiky Energy	1–3	JTG 159	Energy
5 %5/97	Close Judge	1–3	POR 76	Trainer
5 %5/97	Close Wondrous Patch	2	PFL 94	Trainer
5 %5/97	Close Sacred Ash	1	DRI 168	Trainer
4 %4/97	Close Dunsparce	2–3	JTG 120	Pokémon
4 %4/97	Close Patrat	1	CRI 70	Pokémon
3 %3/97	Close Fan Rotom	1–4	SCR 118	Pokémon
3 %3/97	Close Dawn	2–3	PFL 87	Trainer
3 %3/97	Close Gwynn	1–3	PBL 78	Trainer
3 %3/97	Close Gravity Mountain	1–2	SSP 177	Trainer
3 %3/97	Close Xerosic's Machinations	1	SFA 64	Trainer
2 %2/97	Close Abra	1	TWM 80	Pokémon
2 %2/97	Close Moltres	1	PFL 14	Pokémon
2 %2/97	Close Unown	1	30C 72	Pokémon
2 %2/97	Close Eri	2	TEF 146	Trainer
2 %2/97	Close Mystery Garden	2	MEG 122	Trainer
2 %2/97	Close Risky Ruins	2	MEG 127	Trainer
2 %2/97	Close Team Rocket's Petrel	2	DRI 176	Trainer
2 %2/97	Close Lucky Helmet	1	TWM 158	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Dudunsparce ex	1	JTG 121	Pokémon
1 %1/97	Close Stunfisk	1	ASC 62	Pokémon
1 %1/97	Close Black Belt's Training	2	JTG 143	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Drayton	2	SSP 174	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Kofu	2	SCR 138	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Mega Signal	2	MEG 121	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Surfer	2	SSP 187	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close AZ's Tranquility	1	CRI 76	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Battle Cage	1	PFL 85	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Colress's Tenacity	1	SFA 57	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Community Center	1	TWM 146	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Maximum Belt	1	TEF 154	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Scoop Up Cyclone	1	TWM 162	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Tool Scrapper	1	ASC 212	Trainer
1 %1/97	Close Prism Energy	4	ASC 216	Energy
1 %1/97	Fire Energy	2	MEE 2	Energy

The most common Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir list, all 60 cards

Here they are in full, ready to build. 20 slots come from the core, the cards all 97 lists run. The remaining 40 come from the table just above, working down it: the cards the most players chose, each at its most common copy count, until the total lands on 60.

This list is nobody's list in particular. It takes, slot by slot, what the most people played, under the guardrails a judge would hold you to: never more than four copies of a card, and one ACE SPEC. Behind the core it took 19 more cards to reach 60. The whole thing comes to 24 Pokémon, 31 Trainers and 5 Energy.

One thing to know before you build it: the 97 lists we counted are all from players who came in the top twenty of their tournament. Nobody publishes the lists of the players who lost. So what you have in front of you is what the players finishing near the top bring most often.

The text under the table is the one the game expects: copy it, paste it into the deck manager, and the list builds itself.

Why we only read lists from players who came in the top twenty of their tournament, and what that changes about every percentage on this page: how to read a deck list.

Pokémon: 24
4 Dusknoir PRE 37
4 Duskull PRE 35
2 Dusclops PRE 36
2 Mega Lopunny ex PFL 84
2 Buneary PFL 83
1 Latias ex SSP 76
1 Meowth ex POR 62
2 Mega Kangaskhan ex MEG 104
2 Bronzong TEF 69
2 Bronzor TEF 68
1 Budew ASC 16
1 Flutter Mane TEF 78

Trainer: 31
4 Hilda WHT 84
4 Poké Pad POR 81
4 Lillie's Determination MEG 119
4 Ultra Ball MEG 131
2 Boss's Orders MEG 114
4 Rare Candy MEG 125
4 Switch MEG 130
1 Night Stretcher ASC 196
2 Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking TEF 145
1 Jamming Tower TWM 153
1 Special Red Card CRI 82

Energy: 5
1 Enriching Energy SSP 191
4 Telepathic Psychic Energy POR 88

Total Cards: 60

Which decks beat Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir at tournaments

Here is how Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir did against every other deck at tournaments. Real games, real players sitting across the table from each other, and the platform those tournaments run on counts them one by one. All of them were played after 30th Celebration became legal for tournaments, and we read the table on 24 October 2026.

The format matters more than people think. When the next set lands, decks get rebuilt around the new cards, and a matchup that leaned one way can swing the other. What you are reading holds for today's format.

We start with the opponent that gives you the most trouble, because that is where the work is before your next tournament. The further down the list you go, the better it goes for you.

Always look at the number of games next to the score. Six wins out of ten happens on its own, even with a middling deck: it is the same as flipping six heads in ten tries. Six hundred out of a thousand, and luck has nothing to do with it. Below 100 games we show nothing at all, because at that count half the matchups look like they lean one way when they lean nowhere.

Against Latias ex / Mega Kangaskhan ex: over 116 games, 39 won and 76 lost. One ended with no winner.

Against Dragapult ex: over 240 games, 128 won and 111 lost. One ended with no winner.

How many different cards Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir needs, and how long it will last

You need 79 different cards to cover every version of this deck, 6 of which nobody argues about. The rest is where lists differ from one another, and that is where you have room to choose.

All 97 lists bring an ACE SPEC, and that is where they part ways: 89 took Enriching Energy, 6 took Prime Catcher and 1 took Maximum Belt. The flex table shows you all 4. You are allowed ONE ACE SPEC card in your whole deck, so a single copy covers it whatever it costs. New to this deck? Take Enriching Energy and watch what the others do with theirs before you switch.

Then there is time. 3 of the 6 core cards carry the letter H, the one that goes at the next rotation: Dusknoir, Duskull and Dusclops. The core table marks every one of them. In copies, that is 10 of the 20 slots the core fills. Which day it lands, we do not know yet.

What Mega Lopunny ex / Dusknoir struggles against

The attackers in this deck are Weak to Fighting and Darkness, so they take DOUBLE damage from those types. 32 of the 126 decks we track attack in exactly those types.

Concretely, here is what is waiting for you: N's Zoroark ex, Mega Lucario ex / Hariyama and Mega Sharpedo ex / Toxtricity, plus 29 more decks. The table below takes them one at a time, and those are the lists you practise against first before an event.

This table counts one thing, Weakness, and that comes to 32 decks out of the 126 we track. The other 94 do not attack into yours, and this table says nothing about them. You will still run into them.

Going the other way, your attackers are Psychic, and 6 of the decks we track have an attacker Weak to one of those: Mega Lucario ex / Hariyama, Mega Lucario ex and Greninja ex, among others. That is you doubling, for once. Second half of the table.