Mamoswine ex

What Mamoswine ex looks like when you open the box

Across the 41 lists we counted, this deck runs 11 to 26 Pokémon, 15 to 36 Trainers and 6 to 23 Energy. Its attacks are paid for in Fighting.

On results pages and on stream you will see it written « mamoswine-ex ». 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: 6 to 23 out of 60, when half the 132 decks we track run 11 or fewer. This one carries more than most, and you feel it at the table — it wants to load up a big Pokémon and swing hard, even if that means drawing a spare Energy now and then.

It takes a while to set up. Mamoswine ex 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: 15 to 36 cards out of 60, against a median of 31 across the 132 decks we track. Inside that, 8 to 16 Supporters, and the rule there is strict — one a turn, even if you are holding three. The 6 to 22 Items you can play all of in the same turn. It also brings up to 4 Stadiums, and 91 of the 132 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 card in this deck's name actually does

Mamoswine ex gives this deck its name. Here is what is written on it.

Mamoswine ex is in all 41 lists, 3 copies of it. Its Ability is called Mammoth Hauler, and here is what is printed on it, word for word: « Once during your turn, you may search your deck for a Pokémon, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then, shuffle your deck. »

How Mamoswine ex actually wins

Mamoswine ex attacks with Rumbling March. It needs 2 Fighting Energy attached, and it has 340 HP. Watch the damage box: "180+" is not a total. Here is what the card prints, word for word: "This attack does 40 more damage for each Stage 2 Pokémon on your Bench."

The cost of Rumbling March 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. Except you are not on your own. Mega Lucario ex, which the list runs 4 of, has an attack called Aura Jab that digs Energy out of your discard pile and puts it back on one of your Pokémon. That attack takes your attack for the turn, so count it as a setup turn. That is how this deck gets itself charged.

Here is the detail that quietly loses games. To pull Mamoswine ex back to the Bench you have to discard 4 Energy attached to it. Retreating does not cost you your turn, you can step back and still swing right after. What it costs you is the 4 Energy you spent 4 turns attaching, and you start that climb again from nothing. Pack a card that moves it for free, or send it up knowing it stays up.

Mamoswine ex carries the "ex" suffix, and your opponent takes 2 Prize cards instead of one when Mamoswine ex falls. They need 6 to win: 3 well-placed knockouts on that card beat you, where it would take 6 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 Mamoswine exStage 2	340	Rumbling March	180+		Grass ×2	4

The core: the 2 cards every list runs

These 2 cards appear in all 41 lists, without a single exception. That is 17 of the 60 slots. The other 43 are decided player by player.

Look at how those 17 slots break down: 0 Trainers, 3 Pokémon, 14 Energy. Pokémon dominate, which is unusual: this deck needs bodies on the board, and it depends on any single attacker less than it looks.

2 of those 2 cards do not sit at the same count from list to list: Mamoswine ex (2 to 4) and Fighting Energy (3 to 23). Add those spreads up and you get 22 copies the 41 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
2–4	Close Mamoswine ex	JTG 79	Pokémon
3–23	Fighting Energy	MEE 6	Energy

The 127 cards that change from list to list

127 cards fight over the 43 slots that are left: 6 above three lists in four, 108 below one in four, and the percentage on each row says how many players took it.

The most agreed on first: Boss's Orders at 98 %, Swinub at 95 % and Lillie's Determination at 93 %, plus 3 more above 75 %. Add those to the core and you have the common build.

The dividing line runs through Team Rocket's Petrel, at 49 %: 20 of 41 players took it, 21 put something else there. The ones who run it bring 1 copy. Right at the bottom of the table, Air Balloon (9 lists out of 41) and Grand Tree (9 lists out of 41).

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
98 %40/41	Close Boss's Orders	2–4	MEG 114	Trainer
95 %39/41	Close Swinub	2–4	JTG 77	Pokémon
93 %38/41	Close Lillie's Determination	1–4	MEG 119	Trainer
80 %33/41	Close Rare Candy	2–4	MEG 125	Trainer
78 %32/41	Close Ultra Ball	1–4	MEG 131	Trainer
76 %31/41	Close Piloswine	1–4	JTG 78	Pokémon
73 %30/41	Close Switch	1–4	MEG 130	Trainer
63 %26/41	Close Mega Lucario ex	3–4	MEG 77	Pokémon
63 %26/41	Close Riolu	3–4	MEG 76	Pokémon
63 %26/41	Close Premium Power Pro	1–4	MEG 124	Trainer
61 %25/41	Close Fighting Gong	2–4	MEG 116	Trainer
49 %20/41	Close Team Rocket's Petrel	1–4	DRI 176	Trainer
41 %17/41	Close Hero's Cape	1	TEF 152	Trainer
37 %15/41	Close Night Stretcher	1–2	ASC 196	Trainer
32 %13/41	Close Buddy-Buddy Poffin	1–4	TEF 144	Trainer
32 %13/41	Close Dawn	2–4	PFL 87	Trainer
32 %13/41	Close Pokégear 3.0	1–4	SVI 186	Trainer
32 %13/41	Close Hilda	1–3	WHT 84	Trainer
27 %11/41	Close Poké Pad	1–4	POR 81	Trainer
22 %9/41	Close Air Balloon	1–2	ASC 181	Trainer
22 %9/41	Close Grand Tree	1	SCR 136	Trainer
22 %9/41	Close Rocky Fighting Energy	1–4	POR 87	Energy
20 %8/41	Close Salvatore	1–3	TEF 160	Trainer
17 %7/41	Close Urbain	3–4	ASC 214	Trainer
17 %7/41	Close Colress's Tenacity	2–3	SFA 57	Trainer
15 %6/41	Close Meowth ex	1–2	POR 62	Pokémon
15 %6/41	Close Fezandipiti ex	1–2	ASC 142	Pokémon
15 %6/41	Close Maximum Belt	1	TEF 154	Trainer
15 %6/41	Fire Energy	1–4	MEE 2	Energy
12 %5/41	Close Cinderace	4	MEG 28	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Blaziken ex	2–3	JTG 24	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Garganacl	2	MEG 84	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Nacli	2	MEG 82	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Mamoswine	1	PFL 25	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Togekiss	1	SSP 72	Pokémon
12 %5/41	Close Gravity Mountain	2	SSP 177	Trainer
12 %5/41	Close Tarragon	1	POR 85	Trainer
12 %5/41	Close Team Rocket's Watchtower	1–2	DRI 180	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Dudunsparce	1–3	TEF 129	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Bastiodon	2–3	PBL 62	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Combusken	1–2	DRI 41	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Greninja ex	1–2	TWM 106	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Lunatone	2	MEG 74	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Torchic	2–4	DRI 40	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Naclstack	1	MEG 83	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Togepi	1	SSP 70	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Togetic	1	SSP 71	Pokémon
10 %4/41	Close Antique Armor Fossil	2–3	PBL 72	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Crushing Hammer	1–3	POR 71	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Cheren	1–2	WHT 81	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking	2–4	TEF 145	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Judge	1–2	POR 76	Trainer
10 %4/41	Close Sacred Ash	1	DRI 168	Trainer
10 %4/41	Water Energy	1–4	MEE 11	Energy
10 %4/41	Close Ignition Energy	1	WHT 86	Energy
7 %3/41	Close Dunsparce	2–3	TEF 128	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Froakie	1–2	CRI 20	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Hariyama	1–2	MEG 73	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Makuhita	1–2	MEG 72	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Pikipek	2–3	PBL 66	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Solrock	2	MEG 75	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Toucannon	2	PBL 68	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Klinklang	1	SCR 101	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Shieldon	1–2	PBL 61	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Trumbeak	1–2	PBL 67	Pokémon
7 %3/41	Close Crispin	2–4	SCR 133	Trainer
7 %3/41	Close Energy Recycler	1	DRI 164	Trainer
7 %3/41	Close Kieran	1	TWM 154	Trainer
7 %3/41	Close Tool Scrapper	1	ASC 212	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Cornerstone Mask Ogerpon ex	2	TWM 112	Pokémon
5 %2/41	Close Dusknoir	1–2	PRE 37	Pokémon
5 %2/41	Close Frogadier	1–2	CRI 21	Pokémon
5 %2/41	Close Mega Zygarde ex	1	POR 47	Pokémon
5 %2/41	Close Academy at Night	2–3	SFA 54	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Iris's Fighting Spirit	2–3	JTG 149	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Battle Cage	2	PFL 85	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Dusk Ball	2	SSP 175	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Fossil Quarry	2	PBL 76	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Surfer	1–2	SSP 187	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Team Rocket's Transceiver	2	DRI 178	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Core Memory	1	POR 70	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Cyrano	1	SSP 170	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Energy Search	1	POR 72	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Lt. Surge's Bargain	1	MEG 120	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Precious Trolley	1	SSP 185	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Rosa's Encouragement	1	POR 84	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Secret Box	1	TWM 163	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Special Red Card	1	CRI 82	Trainer
5 %2/41	Close Bubbly Water Energy	3	CRI 84	Energy
2 %1/41	Close Solosis	4	TEF 70	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Cranidos	3	PBL 44	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Rampardos ex	3	PBL 45	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Reuniclus	3	TEF 72	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Tatsugiri ex	3	SSP 142	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Duosion	2	BLK 38	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Infernape	2	TWM 33	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Mega Delphox ex	2	PBL 8	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Munkidori	2	TWM 95	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Blaziken	1	DRI 42	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Bloodmoon Ursaluna ex	1	TWM 141	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Budew	1	ASC 16	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Drilbur	1	TEF 85	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Dunsparce	1	JTG 120	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Fan Rotom	1	SCR 118	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Ludicolo	1	JTG 37	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Mega Dragonite ex	1	ASC 152	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Mega Kangaskhan ex	1	MEG 104	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Tatsugiri	1	TWM 131	Pokémon
2 %1/41	Close Tera Orb	4	SSP 189	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Antique Skull Fossil	3	PBL 73	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Arven's Sandwich	2	DRI 161	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close AZ's Tranquility	2	CRI 76	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Energy Retrieval	2	SVI 171	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Wally's Compassion	2	MEG 132	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Energy Switch	1	MEG 115	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Heavy Baton	1	TEF 151	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Jamming Tower	1	TWM 153	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Lana's Aid	1	TWM 155	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Levincia	1	JTG 150	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Max Rod	1	PRE 116	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close N's Castle	1	JTG 152	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Prism Tower	1	CRI 80	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Sparkling Crystal	1	SCR 142	Trainer
2 %1/41	Close Waitress	1	ASC 215	Trainer
2 %1/41	Darkness Energy	3	MEE 15	Energy
2 %1/41	Close Prism Energy	2	ASC 216	Energy
2 %1/41	Close Neo Upper Energy	1	TEF 162	Energy

The most common Mamoswine ex list, all 60 cards

Here they are in full, ready to build. 17 slots come from the core, the cards all 41 lists run. The remaining 43 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 14 more cards to reach 60. The whole thing comes to 17 Pokémon, 29 Trainers and 14 Energy.

One thing to know before you build it: the 41 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: 17
3 Mamoswine ex JTG 79
4 Swinub JTG 77
2 Piloswine JTG 78
4 Mega Lucario ex MEG 77
4 Riolu MEG 76

Trainer: 29
4 Boss's Orders MEG 114
4 Lillie's Determination MEG 119
4 Rare Candy MEG 125
4 Ultra Ball MEG 131
2 Switch MEG 130
4 Premium Power Pro MEG 124
4 Fighting Gong MEG 116
1 Team Rocket's Petrel DRI 176
1 Hero's Cape TEF 152
1 Night Stretcher ASC 196

Energy: 14
14 Fighting Energy MEE 6

Total Cards: 60

How many different cards Mamoswine ex needs, and how long it will last

You need 129 different cards to cover every version of this deck, 2 of which nobody argues about. The rest is where lists differ from one another, and that is where you have room to choose.

39 of these 41 lists bring an ACE SPEC, and that is where they part ways: 17 took Hero's Cape, 9 took Grand Tree and 6 took Maximum Belt. The flex table shows you all 8. 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 Hero's Cape and watch what the others do with theirs before you switch.

Then there is time, and the answer is a good one: not one of the 2 core cards carries the letter H, the one that goes at the next rotation. This deck walks through the change whole.

What Mamoswine ex struggles against

The attackers in this deck are Weak to Grass, so they take DOUBLE damage from that type. 21 of the 132 decks we track attack in exactly that type.

Concretely, here is what is waiting for you: Teal Mask Ogerpon ex / Meganium / Hydrapple ex, Festival Lead (Thwackey) and Crustle, plus 18 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 21 decks out of the 132 we track. The other 111 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 Fighting, and 42 of the decks we track have an attacker Weak to one of those: Dragapult ex, Latias ex / Mega Kangaskhan ex and Slowking, among others. That is you doubling, for once. Second half of the table.