Levi
[PKMN] perhaps the only thing funnier than Budew ruining the TCG is non TCG players being confused about why so many people are upset and scared of Budew
Levi
"Why's everyone so mad about Budew just switch to your fire type and use flamethrower???"
Levi
"If you can't beat a Budew maybe you should just sell your switch"
ｓｔａｒ✯ｂｒｅａｋ！
please. I need to know the card game story. why is budew ruining the tcg
TENtacle :3c
please tell us why Budew is a menace
FISH CITIZEN
i also want to know what budew is doing
Levi
okie okie
Levi
This is Budew
Levi
It is a common in the most recent set, Prismatic Evolutions
Levi
It looks super unassuming at first
Levi
It only has 30 HP, which is abysmally low
Levi
It can only do 10 damage in a game where doing 200+ damage is what players want to do per turn
Levi
However, it has a bunch of very distinct and key qualities that cause it to be a menace
Levi
The most important of which is its attack, it only does 10 damage, yes, but it does more than that
Levi
The effect is the most important thing, it prevents your opponent from using Item cards from their hand
Levi
One of the most powerful things you can do in a trading card game is preventing your opponent from playing at all
Levi
Budew locks opponents out of playing any and all item cards, and item cards are a current important part of the TCG
Levi
Item cards are crucial to getting your gameplan going
Levi
Normally, you are very restricted on what you can do on any given turn in the Pokemon TCG
Levi
You're stuck with what's in your hand in a game where the minimum deck size is 60 cards, you can only attach one energy per turn, etc.
Levi
So it's very common for players to use item cards to help jumpstart their games
Levi
There are item cards that help you get Pokemon out of your deck and into play directly, grant special properties to your mons (that might be essential to gameplay), etc.
Levi
It's really crucial, especially in the first few teams, to build up your board of cards as quickly as possible, because the opponent is doing the same thing
Levi
So when you get hit by Budew's menacing Itchy Powder, your gameplay is probably being hindered to a significant degree
Levi
The TCG saw the effects preventing someone can play item can over 10 years ago with the fearsome Seismitoad-EX, who ruled over the entire game with a froggy fist
Levi
10 years of power creep later, stopping your opponent from playing has pretty much just gotten stronger
Levi
But not only that, Budew is pretty much better than Seismetoad-EX in every way
Levi
How???
Levi
Well, if you look at the Itchy Pollen attack, you will see the weird grey circle next to it
Levi
Attacks in Pokemon TCG require energy cards, a type of resource you assign to individual Pokemon you have in play and each attack has a minimum energy requirement you must meet before you can attack
Levi
The grey circle means the attack does not require any energy whatsoever
Levi
you do not have to give Budew any energy at all
Levi
So you can use your precious energy resources building up your mons in the back while Budew holds the fort
Levi
And Budew can attack right away instead of being possibly hampered by the energy attach limit of one energy per turn (barring cards that let you circumvent that limit, just so happens some of those cards are ITEM CARDS)
Levi
(and even if you did want to surpass the limit you want to start building your stronger dudes)
Levi
Budew also has zero retreat cost. A retreat cost in the Pokemon TCG is a minimum number of energy you have to remove from a mon in order to switch it with a different mon you have on the bench
Levi
Because it costs nothing to switch Budew it out, means that it can easily dip out once you're ready to send something else in
Levi
This also means that Budew is an entirely resource free card that costs nothing except a slot in your 60 card deck to play
Levi
This is an extremely unique situation in the Pokemon TCG, because almost every card, even the smallest and basic of cards, usually need you to invest energy in them somehow, or they require you to play certain types of decks
Levi
This means you can put Budew in any deck at all and it will function at full strength
Levi
Grass deck? Fire deck? Water deck? Dragon deck? Hybrid decks? Doesn't matter. Budew can be played in all of them because you do not need to dedicate any resources to it
Levi
anyway also imagine if you play multiple Budews, the Pokemon TCG allows you to have up to 4 copies of a card in your deck (I believe different cards featuring the same mon are combined)
Levi
if you put two Budews into play, you can switch between them infinitely in case your opponent tries to do anything funny to your Budew like paralyze it or sleep it. Retreating a Pokemon cures all status ailments
Levi
Anyway due to its free retreat cost, Budew can switch in and out of battle multiple times very easily
Levi
So it can be used to position and shield your more important mons once its job of crippling the opponent's gameplan is done
FISH CITIZEN
holy shit lmao
Levi
Budew, also due to being a basic bitch Pokemon, also only gives up one prize to the opponent when it's knocked out
Levi
The goal of the Pokemon TCG is to take six prizes from knocking out your opponent's mons, and there are several really powerful mons you want to play who come with the drawback of giving your opponent extra prizes when they faint
Levi
So if your mon is about to faint, you can switch in Budew to take your opponent's next attack and they only get 1 prize instead of 2 or more
Levi
oh right also another thing I forgot about Budew that is a critical advantage over Seismitoad-EX is that you have to evolve into Seismitoad-EX to use it
Levi
Meanwhile Budew is ready to go from frame 1
Levi
The only real weakness of Budew is it only has 30 HP, which is like the lowest a mon can have generally
Levi
But because it costs nothing for Budew to attack, it can attack faster than your opponent can kill it because most of the time, even the weakest of attacks in the TCG require at least 1 energy
Levi
and it's very typical for players to play Pokemon dedicated to building resources or denying the opponent resources rather than ones that aim for KOs in the beginning
Levi
so your opponent would rather not dedicate resources to killing your shitty little Budew instead of preparing for the 250 HP monster that can do 200+ damage you have in the back
Levi
But if they don't kill it, Budew will continue to be a tiny little asshole to them
Levi
This card is hampering the gameplan of so many decks singlehandedly that many people are calling for its ban
Levi
It's a common, so it's not like it's hard to get
Levi
It slows the game down significantly by straight up just not letting players play
Levi
If your opponent drew Budew in their opening hand and you didn't, you're at a significant disadvantage
Levi
Anyway is TCPI aware of how strong Budew is? Well, they probably didn't realize how powerful it would be when they made it but they certainly know now
Levi
It's tournament season, Pokemon EUIC is currently happening, the top cut duels even
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and they posted this tweet
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Pokémon TCG (@PokemonTCG) on X
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And that is the story of how Budew, a baby Pokemon, is terrorizing the entire TCG metagame
Levi
anyway here are some fun facts
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The first that this is the first Budew card printed in 16 years
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the last time they made a new Budew card was in July 2008, and this Budew premiered in January 2025
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Second fun fact: Budew is my favorite baby pokemon, so this is extra funny to me
FISH CITIZEN
i do have a soft spot for budew. it's very cute.
Levi
Third fun fact: If Budew is, in fact, not banned, it is going to singlehandedly change how players play the Pokemon TCG and build their decks
Levi
Item cards, while previously highly desirable cards, will plummet in useage
Levi
Budew can't bother you as much if you don't rely on item cards
Levi
Cards that can counter Budew by killing it quickly or discouraging it from being played or being the active mon will rise in popularity
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And the game as a whole will take more turns due to Budew restricting the amount of stuff a player can do on any given turn
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And all of that will last until Budew is eventually rotated out of the standard format
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Rotation is a system where older cards become illegal to play as time goes on to make way for new ones
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This encourages players to buy more cards, but also stymie powercreep as instead of having to design stronger and stronger cards, you just rotate the powerhouses out eventually
Levi
I think it takes a few years for cards to rotate out in Pokemon TCG, so if Budew is not banned, it will be allowed to terrorize the metagame for literal years
Levi
meanwhile, other TCGs are laughing because they all have been dealing with Budew-like cards in their own games, cards with little to no cost to play that restrict your opponent's actions in similar ways to Budew does
Levi
Anyway may Budew's reign be merciful
Levi
It's not common for Pokemon TCG to have cards that shut your opponent out of certain actions, but every time one shows up they always become a top tier card
Levi
Even ones that don't directly stop your opponent, but rather punish your opponent for doing a certain thing, have a somewhat similar effect
TENtacle :3c
incredible
Levi
I love you Budew you are a perfect creature
ｓｔａｒ✯ｂｒｅａｋ！
came back from a nap to read this glorious writeup thank you
Levi
' v '
doomed 🤖 yaoi
this is SO FUNNY