Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex deck: the core, the flex slots, and what beats it

What Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex looks like when you open the box

Across the 10 lists we counted, this deck runs 14 to 17 Pokémon, 28 to 32 Trainers and 13 to 15 Energy. Its attacks are paid for in Lightning and Fighting.

On results pages and on stream you will see it written « reging-bolt-bellibolt ». The cards we can recognise in that label are Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex. The bit « reging » does not point at any one card in the list, so we leave it out of the name rather than make up a meaning.

Look at the Energy: 13 to 15 out of 60, when half the 97 decks we track run 10 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 sets up fast. Iono's Bellibolt ex is a Stage 1 Pokémon: a Basic, one evolution on top, and you are attacking. Two cards instead of three. You lose fewer turns building, and you rebuild much more easily when an early knockout lands on you.

Look at the Trainers: 28 to 32 cards out of 60, against a median of 31 across the 97 decks we track. Inside that, 9 to 14 Supporters, and the rule there is strict — one a turn, even if you are holding three. The 11 to 18 Items you can play all of in the same turn. It also brings up to 3 Stadiums, and 91 of the 97 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

Raging Bolt ex and Iono's Bellibolt ex give this deck its name. Here is what is written on them.

Raging Bolt ex is in all 10 lists, 2 copies of it. Its attack Burst Roar costs 1 Energy (Colorless) and has no damage number printed next to it. That is why you will not find it in the attacker table lower down, which sorts by printed damage. Everything it does lives in its text: « Discard your hand and draw 6 cards. »

Iono's Bellibolt ex is in all 10 lists, 3 copies of it. Its Ability is called Electric Streamer, and here is what is printed on it, word for word: « As often as you like during your turn, you may attach a Basic {L} Energy card from your hand to 1 of your Iono's Pokémon. »

How Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex actually wins

Iono's Bellibolt ex attacks with Thunderous Bolt for 230. It needs 4 Energy, 3 Lightning and 1 Colorless attached, and it has 280 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: "During your next turn, this Pokémon can't attack."

The cost of Thunderous Bolt decides your first few turns. You only get to attach one Energy a turn, and that attack asks for 4. On your own attachments alone, your first real swing lands on turn 4. Except it charges itself. Iono's Bellibolt ex, which the list runs 3 of, has an Ability called Electric Streamer: it attaches Energy from your hand on top of the one you already play. An Ability costs you nothing: not your attack, not your card for the turn. That is where this deck buys its turns, and it is the first thing to look for in your opening hand.

Here is the detail that quietly loses games. To pull Iono's Bellibolt ex back to the Bench you have to discard 2 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 2 Energy you spent 2 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.

Iono's Bellibolt ex and Raging Bolt ex carry the "ex" suffix, and your opponent takes 2 Prize cards instead of one when one of them falls. They need 6 to win: 3 well-placed knockouts on those cards 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 Iono's Bellibolt exStage 1	280	Thunderous Bolt	230	Lightning + Lightning + Lightning + Colorless	Fighting ×2	2
Close Raging Bolt exBasic	240	Bellowing Thunder	70×	Lightning + Fighting	none	3
Close Iono's KilowattrelStage 1	120	Mach Bolt	70	Lightning + Colorless + Colorless	Lightning ×2	1
Close Iono's TadbulbBasic	60	Tiny Charge	30	Lightning + Colorless	Fighting ×2	2

The core: the 16 cards every list runs

These 16 cards appear in all 10 lists, without a single exception. That is 52 of the 60 slots. The other 8 are decided player by player.

Look at how those 52 slots break down: 24 Trainers, 13 Pokémon, 15 Energy. Nothing stands out in that split. What sets this deck apart is how thick its core is: 52 of the 60 slots are the same for everybody, when half the 97 decks we track fix 34 or fewer. Fewer choices left to you than usual, and fewer ways to get them wrong.

15 of those 16 cards do not sit at the same count from list to list: Iono's Bellibolt ex (2 to 3), Iono's Tadbulb (2 to 3) and Iono's Kilowattrel (2 to 3), plus 12 more. Add those spreads up and you get 22 copies the 10 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
2–3	Close Iono's Bellibolt ex	JTG 53	Pokémon	stays
2–3	Close Iono's Tadbulb	JTG 52	Pokémon	stays
2–3	Close Iono's Kilowattrel	JTG 55	Pokémon	stays
2–3	Close Iono's Wattrel	JTG 54	Pokémon	stays
2–3	Close Raging Bolt ex	TEF 123	Pokémon	leaves
1–3	Close Iono's Voltorb	JTG 47	Pokémon	stays
2–4	Close Buddy-Buddy Poffin	TEF 144	Trainer	leaves
4	Close Lillie's Determination	MEG 119	Trainer	stays
2–4	Close Ultra Ball	MEG 131	Trainer	stays
1–4	Close Canari	ASC 185	Trainer	stays
2–3	Close Levincia	JTG 150	Trainer	stays
2–3	Close Boss's Orders	MEG 114	Trainer	stays
2–3	Close Energy Retrieval	SVI 171	Trainer	stays
1–3	Close Night Stretcher	ASC 196	Trainer	leaves
10–12	Lightning Energy	MEE 4	Energy	stays
2–3	Fighting Energy	MEE 6	Energy	stays

The 19 cards that change from list to list

19 cards fight over the 8 slots that are left: 1 above three lists in four, 6 below one in four, and the percentage on each row says how many players took it.

The most agreed on first: Energy Switch at 80 %. Add those to the core and you have the common build.

The dividing line runs through Poké Pad, at 50 %: 5 of 10 players took it, 5 put something else there. The ones who run it bring 3 copies. Right at the bottom of the table, Meowth ex (2 lists out of 10) and Shaymin (2 lists out of 10).

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
80 %8/10	Close Energy Switch	1–2	MEG 115	Trainer
70 %7/10	Close Energy Search	1–2	POR 72	Trainer
70 %7/10	Close Special Red Card	1	CRI 82	Trainer
60 %6/10	Close Fezandipiti ex	1	ASC 142	Pokémon
50 %5/10	Close Poké Pad	1–3	POR 81	Trainer
50 %5/10	Close Crispin	1–2	SCR 133	Trainer
50 %5/10	Close Judge	1–2	POR 76	Trainer
40 %4/10	Close Switch	1	MEG 130	Trainer
40 %4/10	Close Unfair Stamp	1	TWM 165	Trainer
30 %3/10	Close Budew	1	ASC 16	Pokémon
30 %3/10	Close Lana's Aid	1–2	TWM 155	Trainer
30 %3/10	Close Max Rod	1	PRE 116	Trainer
30 %3/10	Close Prime Catcher	1	TEF 157	Trainer
20 %2/10	Close Meowth ex	1	POR 62	Pokémon
20 %2/10	Close Shaymin	1	DRI 10	Pokémon
20 %2/10	Close Air Balloon	1–2	ASC 181	Trainer
20 %2/10	Close Team Rocket's Petrel	1	DRI 176	Trainer
10 %1/10	Close Morty's Conviction	1	TEF 155	Trainer
10 %1/10	Close Sacred Ash	1	DRI 168	Trainer

What Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex costs to build, and how long it will last

You need 35 different cards to cover every version of this deck, 16 of which nobody argues about. We do not have card prices, so we are not going to put a number on it.

All 10 lists bring an ACE SPEC, and that is where they part ways: 4 took Unfair Stamp, 3 took Max Rod and 3 took Prime Catcher. 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 Unfair Stamp and watch what the others do with theirs before you switch.

Then there is time. 3 of the 16 core cards carry the letter H, the one that goes at the next rotation: Raging Bolt ex, Buddy-Buddy Poffin and Night Stretcher. The core table marks every one of them. In copies, that is 8 of the 52 slots the core fills. Which day it lands, we do not know yet.

What Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex struggles against

The attackers in this deck are Weak to Fighting and Lightning, so they take DOUBLE damage from those types. 16 of the 97 decks we track attack in exactly those types.

Concretely, here is what is waiting for you: Mega Lucario ex, Mega Lucario ex / Hariyama and Cynthia's Garchomp ex, plus 13 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 16 decks out of the 97 we track. The other 81 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 Lightning and Fighting, and 24 of the decks we track have an attacker Weak to one of those: Festival Lead, Toucannon and Raging Bolt ex, among others. That is you doubling, for once. Second half of the table.

Questions people ask

What is the Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex deck list?

There isn't one. Across 10 tournament lists harvested between 16 August 2026 and 3 September 2026, 16 cards turn up in every single one, 52 slots out of 60. The remaining 8 change from player to player, with 19 different cards competing for them. Both tables are above.

How many lists is this counted on, and where do they come from?

10 lists, played across 10 different tournaments, harvested between 16 August 2026 and 3 September 2026 from play.limitlesstcg.com. All 10 were read card by card, and every card recognised.

Where do I start if I want to build Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex?

With the whole core: 16 cards, 52 slots. Inside it, buy the 24 Trainer slots and the 15 Energy first: they carry over into your next deck. Leave the 13 Pokémon slots for last. Only then work down the flex table and add the cards the most lists agree on, starting with Energy Switch at 80 %.

What beats Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex?

Its attackers are Weak to Fighting and Lightning, so they take double damage from an attacker of that type. 16 of the 97 decks we track play an attacker of that type: Mega Lucario ex, Mega Lucario ex / Hariyama, Cynthia's Garchomp ex and Greninja ex, among others.

Will Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex survive the next rotation?

Not intact: 3 core cards out of 16 carry the letter H, starting with Raging Bolt ex, Buddy-Buddy Poffin and Night Stretcher.

Are a lot of people playing Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex?

We have read 10 lists of it, which puts it 93rd of the 97 decks we track by lists read. The platform those tournaments run on counts 10 entries for it, 0.02 % of the field, across all its players. That figure is theirs.

These pages are about the same corner of the game. If you came away from this one still wondering about something, start with one of them.