Pokemon Card of the Day #1783: Jirachi EX (Plasma Blast)
When it was first revealed, Jirachi EX received a mixed reaction. The value of a Pokemon that could fetch a Supporter when put onto the Bench was obvious. If you didn’t have the Supporter you needed but did have any sort of Item that could let you find a Pokemon, you had a way to get what you needed. The problem was that this was on an extremely frail Pokemon EX, which could easily become 2 Prizes for the opponent. That was some extreme risk, even after the nerfing of Pokemon Catcher. Lysandre was extremely popular, after all. The question was: Were the obvious benefits worth that sort of risk?
90 HP was an atrocious number for a Pokemon EX. A huge number of decks could reach 90, which made Jirachi EX a prime target for a Lysandre play into a KO for 2 Prizes. You had to be very, very careful with Jirachi EX even though it could open up so many opportunities when you did so. Due to that low HP, the Fire Weakness and Psychic Resistance meant little. If Jirachi EX was somehow out front, it could Retreat for a single Energy. This was only notable if you were stuck with Jirachi EX as your only Pokemon on the first turn, which was a terrible scenario.
Why would you use a Pokemon with such poor stats? Because Stellar Guidance was a spectacular Ability. When you played Jirachi EX from your hand and put it onto your Bench, you could search your deck for a Supporter card and put it into your hand. Did you need that Skyla, N, Juniper, Sycamore, or Archie’s Ace in the Hole? Maybe a Lysandre of your own could clinch the win? A simple Ultra Ball could now be a ticket to the card you needed. There were a ton of possibilities from just putting Jirachi EX into play.
Hypnostrike was bad. 60 damage for 3 Energy on an attack that put both Jirachi EX and the Defending Pokemon to Sleep? Not worth it at all.
Jirachi EX was indeed extremely frail and a huge risk. It could also completely change a game by getting that one big Supporter at the perfect time. That utility was so good that Jirachi EX use kept rising throughout its time as a legal card. By the end of the BCR-On format, this card may have been used in over half of competitive decks. Enabling the important moves that Supporters provided to a deck turned out to be worth the risk to many players.
