Wailord ex deck: the core, the flex slots, and what beats it

What Wailord ex looks like when you open the box

Across the 20 lists we counted, this deck runs 10 to 20 Pokémon, 28 to 39 Trainers and 11 to 14 Energy. Its attacks are paid for in Water.

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

The bit they tack on the end, « PBL », is a set code: Pitch Black. They spell it out because several cards share that name, and this deck plays that particular printing.

Look at the Energy: 11 to 14 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. Wailord 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 39 cards out of 60, against a median of 31 across the 97 decks we track. Inside that, 10 to 16 Supporters, and the rule there is strict — one a turn, even if you are holding three. The 8 to 22 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.

How Wailord ex actually wins

Wailord ex attacks with Falling Down for 270. It needs 5 Water Energy attached, and it has 380 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 Pokémon is now Asleep."

The cost of Falling Down decides your first few turns. You only get to attach one Energy a turn, and that attack asks for 5. On your own attachments alone, your first real swing lands on turn 5. Except you are not on your own. Misty's Vitality, which the list runs 4 of, goes into your deck for Energy and attaches it. That is where this deck buys its turns, and it is the first thing to look for in your opening hand.

Energy is not your only clock. Wailmer has to climb a step before it becomes Wailord ex, 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 2 of, goes into your deck for an evolution. Careful, though: only 11 of the 20 lists bring it, so it is a choice, and players are still arguing about it.

Here is the detail that quietly loses games. To pull Wailord 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.

Wailord ex carries the "ex" suffix, and your opponent takes 2 Prize cards instead of one when Wailord 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 Wailord exStage 1	380	Falling Down	270	Water + Water + Water + Water + Water	Lightning ×2	4
Close WailmerBasic	130	Wave Splash	80	Water + Water + Water	Lightning ×2	4

The core: the 7 cards every list runs

These 7 cards appear in all 20 lists, without a single exception. That is 31 of the 60 slots. The other 29 are decided player by player.

Look at how those 31 slots break down: 16 Trainers, 7 Pokémon, 8 Energy. Trainers outweigh everything else put together, which is the mark of a deck that goes and fetches its cards rather than waiting to draw them.

7 of those 7 cards do not sit at the same count from list to list: Wailmer (3 to 4), Wailord ex (3 to 4) and Lillie's Determination (3 to 4), plus 4 more. Add those spreads up and you get 11 copies the 20 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
3–4	Close Wailmer	PBL 15	Pokémon
3–4	Close Wailord ex	PBL 16	Pokémon
3–4	Close Lillie's Determination	MEG 119	Trainer
2–4	Close Misty's Vitality	PBL 80	Trainer
3–4	Close Poké Pad	POR 81	Trainer
2–4	Close Ultra Ball	MEG 131	Trainer
7–10	Water Energy	MEE 3	Energy

The 61 cards that change from list to list

61 cards fight over the 29 slots that are left: 5 above three lists in four, 45 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 95 %, Bubbly Water Energy at 95 % and Heavy Baton at 90 %, plus 2 more above 75 %. Add those to the core and you have the common build.

The dividing line runs through Munkidori, at 50 %: 10 of 20 players took it, 10 put something else there. The ones who run it bring 4 copies. Right at the bottom of the table, AZ's Tranquility (4 lists out of 20) and Great Haul Net (4 lists out of 20).

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
95 %19/20	Close Boss's Orders	1–3	MEG 114	Trainer
95 %19/20	Close Bubbly Water Energy	1–4	CRI 84	Energy
90 %18/20	Close Heavy Baton	1–4	TEF 151	Trainer
85 %17/20	Close Jumbo Ice Cream	2–4	PFL 91	Trainer
75 %15/20	Close Surfing Beach	1–3	MEG 129	Trainer
65 %13/20	Close Secret Box	1	TWM 163	Trainer
55 %11/20	Close Hilda	1–3	WHT 84	Trainer
50 %10/20	Close Munkidori	1–4	TWM 95	Pokémon
50 %10/20	Close Meowth ex	1	POR 62	Pokémon
50 %10/20	Close Pokégear 3.0	1–4	SVI 186	Trainer
50 %10/20	Darkness Energy	2–4	MEE 7	Energy
45 %9/20	Close Cinderace	4	MEG 28	Pokémon
45 %9/20	Close Team Rocket's Petrel	2–4	DRI 176	Trainer
40 %8/20	Close Dunsparce	1–3	JTG 120	Pokémon
40 %8/20	Close Dudunsparce	1–3	TEF 129	Pokémon
35 %7/20	Close Night Stretcher	1–2	ASC 196	Trainer
20 %4/20	Close AZ's Tranquility	2	CRI 76	Trainer
20 %4/20	Close Great Haul Net	1	CRI 78	Trainer
20 %4/20	Close Special Red Card	1	CRI 82	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Psyduck	1	ASC 39	Pokémon
15 %3/20	Close Buddy-Buddy Poffin	2–4	TEF 144	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Call Bell	3	SSP 165	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Air Balloon	2	ASC 181	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Dark Bell	2	PBL 75	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Hero's Cape	1	TEF 152	Trainer
15 %3/20	Close Lana's Aid	1	TWM 155	Trainer
10 %2/20	Close Vulpix	2–3	CRI 8	Pokémon
10 %2/20	Close Ninetales	2	CRI 9	Pokémon
10 %2/20	Close Alomomola	1	BLK 24	Pokémon
10 %2/20	Close Crispin	2–3	SCR 133	Trainer
10 %2/20	Close Energy Recycler	1	DRI 164	Trainer
10 %2/20	Close Kieran	1	TWM 154	Trainer
10 %2/20	Close Prime Catcher	1	TEF 157	Trainer
10 %2/20	Fire Energy	3	MEE 2	Energy
5 %1/20	Close Mega Kangaskhan ex	4	MEG 104	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Budew	2	ASC 16	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Dewgong	2	POR 19	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Seel	2	POR 18	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Delibird	1	MEG 105	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Dudunsparce ex	1	JTG 121	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Fezandipiti ex	1	ASC 142	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Goldeen	1	PBL 13	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Kyurem	1	SFA 47	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Moltres	1	PFL 14	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Seaking	1	PBL 14	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Volbeat	1	TWM 9	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Wailord	1	JTG 41	Pokémon
5 %1/20	Close Gravity Mountain	2	SSP 177	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Judge	2	POR 76	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Kofu	2	SCR 138	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Bianca's Devotion	1	TEF 142	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Brock's Scouting	1	JTG 146	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Drayton	1	SSP 174	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Poké Vital A	1	SFA 62	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Pokémon Center Lady	1	MEG 123	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Surfer	1	SSP 187	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Switch	1	MEG 130	Trainer
5 %1/20	Close Team Rocket's Factory	1	DRI 173	Trainer
5 %1/20	Metal Energy	2	MEE 8	Energy
5 %1/20	Close Legacy Energy	1	TWM 167	Energy
5 %1/20	Close Magnetic Metal Energy	1	CRI 85	Energy

The most common Wailord ex list, all 60 cards

Here they are in full, ready to build. 31 slots come from the core, the cards all 20 lists run. The remaining 29 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 12 more cards to reach 60. The whole thing comes to 13 Pokémon, 33 Trainers and 14 Energy.

One thing to know before you build it: the 20 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.

There is no price total on this page. The readings we have are Cardmarket's, in euros, and the shop link further down sends you to TCGplayer, which quotes in dollars. Putting a euro figure next to a dollar shop would be one currency too many. The French and German pages carry the total.

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: 13
4 Wailmer PBL 15
3 Wailord ex PBL 16
4 Munkidori TWM 95
1 Meowth ex POR 62
1 Dunsparce JTG 120

Trainer: 33
4 Lillie's Determination MEG 119
4 Misty's Vitality PBL 80
4 Poké Pad POR 81
4 Ultra Ball MEG 131
2 Boss's Orders MEG 114
2 Heavy Baton TEF 151
4 Jumbo Ice Cream PFL 91
2 Surfing Beach MEG 129
1 Secret Box TWM 163
2 Hilda WHT 84
4 Pokégear 3.0 SVI 186

Energy: 14
8 Water Energy MEE 3
2 Bubbly Water Energy CRI 84
4 Darkness Energy MEE 7

Total Cards: 60

What Wailord ex costs to build, and how long it will last

You need 68 different cards to cover every version of this deck, 7 of which nobody argues about. We do not have card prices, so we are not going to put a number on it.

All 20 lists bring an ACE SPEC, and that is where they part ways: 13 took Secret Box, 3 took Hero's Cape and 2 took Prime Catcher. The flex table shows you all 5. 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 Secret Box 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 7 core cards carries the letter H, the one that goes at the next rotation. This deck walks through the change whole.

What Wailord ex struggles against

The attackers in this deck are Weak to Lightning, so they take DOUBLE damage from that type. 5 of the 97 decks we track attack in exactly that type.

Concretely, here is what is waiting for you: Mega Manectric ex / Eelektrik, Iono's Bellibolt ex and Joltik, plus 2 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 5 decks out of the 97 we track. The other 92 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 Water, and 10 of the decks we track have an attacker Weak to one of those: Dragapult ex / Blaziken ex, Ethan's Typhlosion and Ceruledge ex, among others. That is you doubling, for once. Second half of the table.

Questions people ask

What is the Wailord ex deck list?

There isn't one, so we built one for you: all 60 cards are written out further up this page. Across 20 tournament lists harvested on 11 August 2026, 7 cards turn up in every single one, 31 slots out of 60. The remaining 29 change from player to player, with 61 different cards competing for them. Both tables are above.

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

20 lists, played across 18 different tournaments, harvested on 11 August 2026 from play.limitlesstcg.com. All 20 were read card by card, and every card recognised.

Where do I start if I want to build Wailord ex?

With the whole core: 7 cards, 31 slots. Inside it, buy the 16 Trainer slots and the 8 Energy first: they carry over into your next deck. Leave the 7 Pokémon slots for last. Only then work down the flex table and add the cards the most lists agree on, starting with Boss's Orders at 95 % and Bubbly Water Energy at 95 %.

What beats Wailord ex?

Its attackers are Weak to Lightning, so they take double damage from an attacker of that type. 5 of the 97 decks we track play an attacker of that type: Mega Manectric ex / Eelektrik, Iono's Bellibolt ex, Joltik and Raging Bolt ex / Iono's Bellibolt ex, among others.

Will Wailord ex survive the next rotation?

Yes, whole: not one of the 7 core cards carries the letter H. At equal price, that is the argument that should settle where your money goes.

Are a lot of people playing Wailord ex?

We have read 20 lists of it, which puts it 80th of the 97 decks we track by lists read. The platform those tournaments run on counts 76 entries for it, 0.19 % 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.