Irida, the Best New Supporter in Pocket's Triumphant Light

This guide will cover the new Supporters introduced in Pocket's Triumphant Light mini-set, and why Irida is the best among them.

In [[Pokemon TCG Pocket: Triumphant Light]], four new Supporters were introduced, and while many players are considering Irida the best among them, there's no definitive "best" card in any game or set. It depends on the perspective and what aspect is being highlighted.

For instance, if comparing the new Supporters, Celestic Town Elder (commonly known as "Grandma") is capable of returning a Basic card to the hand and putting a card from the top of the deck into the Lost Zone, which could be useful in certain situations.

However, excluding her, Irida could easily be considered the strongest new Trainer card in Pokemon TCG Pocket.

Irida's main ability heals 40 damage from each of your Benched Pokemon that has Water Energy attached to it. This is similar to Erika's effect, which can remove 50 damage from one Benched Pokemon. However, Irida's healing is nearly 220% stronger than Erika's, and it applies to multiple Pokemon.

What makes Irida unique is that her effect depends on the attached Energy type rather than the Pokemon's type. This means, in theory, she can heal any Pokemon as long as it has Water Energy, making her incredibly versatile. One popular deck, discussed below, has already leveraged this synergy by using Irida to heal Grass-type Pokemon. And with upcoming expansions, TCG Pocket's metagame is likely to see even more creative strategies built around her.

Here are three decks that highlight Irida's strength and adaptability in different archetypes:

At first glance, pairing Irida with two Grass-type Pokemon seems counterintuitive, given that her effect only applies to cards with Water Energy. But there's a clever setup at play here.

Leafeon ex's Energy-generating ability allows it to quickly fetch the necessary Water Energy for Irida's activation. At the same time, Celebi ex can easily convert Colorless Energy into any type, making it compatible with Irida's healing effect.

This synergy is highlighted by the fact that Irid's Leafeon ex & Celebi ex deck is currently placing in the top three in the PvP meta. It seems that this combo is performing well and racking up wins in the competitive scene.

In the early days of TCG Pocket, the 18-Trainer archetype with Articuno ex was a dominant force. This critter didn't really need support from other Pokemon to win matches; it just needed to be backed by synergizing Trainer Cards. For a while, this build was a top-tier PvP option, though it eventually fell out of favor with the rise of tanky setups with snipping capabilities.

Now, with the arrival of Irida and Pokemon Tools like Giant Cape and Rocky Helmet, the 18-Trainer archetype has returned to the forefront, placing Articuno ex back in the top ten of the meta.

When combining Irida's healing with these tools and Trainer cards that grant immunity to Special Conditions or serve as Item lock, Articuno ex becomes incredibly durable, capable of withstanding and countering high-damage decks effectively.

The Palkia ex & Vaporeon setup is perhaps the most obvious fit for Irida. This Water-focused deck relies on Palkia ex's burst damage, which comes with the drawback of Energy discard after each attack, making it risky to leave in the Active Spot. Normally, this would force frequent switching, but Irida provides a perfect workaround, allowing for multiple Palkia ex attacks.

However, Irida's value in this deck goes beyond just Palkia ex. The current meta still features disruptive chip-damage decks like Magnezone & Darkrai ex, which can slow down Palkia ex's setup and target Vaporeon, a key support piece. With Irida, not only can you sustain Palkia ex, but you can also keep Vaporeon healthy on the Bench, as her effect applies to all Pokemon with Water Energy. This makes the Palkia ex & Vaporeon setup more resilient against these pesky strategies.