Altaria & Walking Wake Deck Guide

Strategy Overview

Bench Swablu early and start accelerating Water energy through Mantyke onto Walking Wake. Evolve into Altaria when you can stack multiple energy types to maximize Dragon Arcana damage, then alternate between Sweeping Billow spread and big Dragon Arcana swings to control the prize race. Use Lisia and Professor Sada to keep the bench reloaded.

Gameplay Video

Early Game

Bench Swablu and Mantyke, start ticking Water energy with Splashy Toss and develop your second attacker. On turn one with Altaria & Walking Wake, your priority is finding Altaria or Walking Wake so you can start attaching Water and Fire energy on schedule. If you open with the wrong basic, search aggressively with Professor's Research or Poké Ball before committing energy you might waste. Bench every basic you intend to evolve as early as possible — Altaria and Walking Wake need time to come online, and an empty bench turn one usually loses you the tempo war. Preserve removal Supporters like Cyrus or Sabrina for the mid game; using them on turn one is rarely worth the lost draw. Against fast aggressive openings hinted at by your unfavored matchups (stage 1 altaria evolution can be slow against fast aggro), bench a pivot so a surprise knockout on the active does not strand your evolution line.

Mid Game

Evolve into Altaria, stack mixed energy for Dragon Arcana, and spread damage with Walking Wake's Sweeping Billow. By the mid game Altaria & Walking Wake should have Altaria powered and at least one back-up attacker on the bench. This is the window where the deck's core engine — Altaria, Walking Wake, Mantyke — has to actively trade prizes. Sequence your attacks so each knockout sets up the next: leave a damaged opposing Pokémon active for Cyrus, or use Sabrina to drag out a benched threat before it can power up. Track your prize trade carefully. Altaria & Walking Wake leans on the strengths "Walking Wake's Sweeping Billow punishes wide benches" and "Altaria's Dragon Arcana scales hard with mixed energy", so push the board state that maximises those lines rather than auto-attacking the active. If you fall behind on board, pivot to a single-prize attacker and use this turn to rebuild instead of giving up a multi-prize knockout.

Late Game

Use Sabrina and Cyrus to drag damaged Pokémon active and close with Dragon Arcana knockouts. Late game with Altaria & Walking Wake is about closing on your terms. Count your remaining prizes and the opponent's, then build the exact attack sequence that wins before they can stabilise. If you are ahead, deny the comeback: knock out their last realistic attacker or use Sabrina to strand a benched Pokémon that cannot retreat. If you are behind, look for an OHKO line using Altaria — Altaria & Walking Wake typically wins from behind by chaining a single huge turn rather than grinding back evenly. Be ready to spend every remaining Supporter and energy on the closing turn; holding resources "just in case" after the prize race is decided is the most common way to throw a winning position with this deck.

Mulligan Guide & Opening Priorities

The ideal opener for Altaria & Walking Wake is Altaria + Walking Wake in hand with a way to attach Water and Fire energy on the first turn. Mulligan decisions in Pokémon TCG Pocket are limited, so focus on what you keep: prioritise basics that evolve into your key attackers, plus at least one draw Supporter like Professor's Research or Iono. Hold onto Rare Candy or stage-up pieces even if they look dead early — they enable the explosive mid game this deck depends on. Preserve removal cards (Cyrus, Sabrina) for when the opponent has a damaged or vulnerable bench rather than spending them on the first available target.

Common Mistakes

• Benching Altaria too early without protection, letting the opponent snipe your main attacker before it is powered.
• Attaching Water energy to a Pokémon that will not attack this game instead of building toward your win condition.
• Spending Cyrus or Sabrina on turn one for tempo when they would have closed a prize two turns later.
• Evolving on curve into Altaria without first checking whether you have the energy to attack the same turn.
• Ignoring the weakness "Stage 1 Altaria evolution can be slow against fast aggro" and not boarding a pivot or single-prize back-up in unfavored matchups.
• Auto-attacking the active Pokémon instead of using Sabrina/Cyrus to set up the knockout sequence the deck actually wants.
• Burning Professor's Research with a full hand and losing the cards you still needed for the closing turn.