Gholdengo ex at a glance
- Loads Basic Energy into hand and fires massive Make It Rain attacks each turn.
- Suits patient players who enjoy engine-building and managing a hand economy.
- Medium difficulty - one Stage 2 line plus a Stage 1 evolution to manage.
How Gholdengo ex wins
The deck's central plan is straightforward: stockpile Basic Energy cards in hand, then spend them all on a single Make It Rain attack. Gholdengo ex costs just one Metal Energy to attack, but the damage scales with every Basic Energy you discard from your hand - 50 damage per card. Discarding four energy in one turn means 200 damage; discarding five means 250. The challenge is refilling your hand with energy after each attack, and the deck is built entirely around solving that problem.
Genesect ex is the engine that finds the attackers. Its Metallic Signal Ability lets you search your deck for up to 2 Evolution Metal Pokémon once per turn and put them into your hand. That reliably gets Gholdengo ex or the non-ex Gholdengo into hand without spending a Supporter. Gimmighoul feeds the energy side: Minor Errand-Running searches your deck for up to 2 Basic Energy cards and puts them in hand, so even a Gimmighoul stuck in the Active Spot is contributing to the next attack.
Superior Energy Retrieval is the card that makes repeated big attacks possible. You discard 2 cards from your hand and then retrieve 4 Basic Energy cards from your discard pile. Because Make It Rain already sends energy to the discard, Superior Energy Retrieval turns last turn's attack fuel directly into this turn's attack fuel. Running four copies means you can chain this effect across multiple turns without running dry. Coin Bonus, Gholdengo ex's Ability, adds a free card draw each turn - two cards if it is in the Active Spot - which keeps the hand topped up between Supporters.
Togekiss adds a prize-racing layer. Its Wonder Kiss Ability means that when your opponent's Active Pokémon is Knocked Out, you flip a coin - heads earns one extra Prize card. Because the effect does not stack, you need only one Togekiss in play, but the single Rare Candy in the list is there specifically to evolve Togepi into it quickly. Munkidori rounds out the support: if it has Darkness Energy attached, its Adrena-Brain Ability lets you move up to 3 damage counters from one of your Pokémon to one of your opponent's, nudging targets into Knock Out range when Make It Rain leaves something just short.
The cards that make it work
The full 60 cards
7th, World Championships 2025, 15 Aug 2025 · played by Piper Lepine · list on Limitless TCG
| Qty | Card | Set | Today's price | In stock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pokémon (15) | ||||
| 3 | Gimmighoul | SSP 97 | £0.99 | 0/3 |
| 1 | Gimmighoul | PAR 87 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 4 | Gholdengo ex | PAR 139 | £2.05 | 0/4 |
| 1 | Gholdengo | SSP 131 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 2 | Genesect ex | BLK 67 | £0.99 | 0/2 |
| 1 | Togepi | OBF 83 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Togekiss | SSP 72 | £0.99 | ✓ 1/1 |
| 1 | Fezandipiti ex | SFA 38 | £4.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Munkidori | TWM 95 | £0.99 | ✓ 1/1 |
| Trainer (34) | ||||
| 4 | Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking | TEF 145 | £0.99 | 1/4 |
| 3 | Arven | OBF 186 | £0.99 | 0/3 |
| 3 | Boss's Orders | PAL 172 | £0.99 | ✓ 3/3 |
| 1 | Professor Turo's Scenario | PAR 171 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 4 | Superior Energy Retrieval | PAL 189 | £0.99 | 0/4 |
| 4 | Buddy-Buddy Poffin | TEF 144 | £0.99 | 1/4 |
| 3 | Nest Ball | SVI 181 | £0.99 | 0/3 |
| 1 | Ultra Ball | SVI 196 | £0.99 | ✓ 1/1 |
| 1 | Tool Scrapper | WHT 85 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Pokégear 3.0 | SVI 186 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Night Stretcher | SFA 61 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Earthen Vessel | PAR 163 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Rare Candy | SVI 191 | £0.99 | ✓ 1/1 |
| 1 | Energy Search Pro | SSP 176 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 3 | Air Balloon | BLK 79 | £0.99 | 0/3 |
| 1 | Artazon | PAL 171 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Levincia | JTG 150 | £0.99 | ✓ 1/1 |
| Energy (11) | ||||
| 3 | Basic Metal Energy | SVE 8 | £0.99 | 0/3 |
| 2 | Basic Lightning Energy | SVE 4 | £0.99 | 0/2 |
| 1 | Basic Grass Energy | SVE 1 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Basic Water Energy | SVE 3 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Basic Fire Energy | SVE 2 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Basic Fighting Energy | SVE 6 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Basic Psychic Energy | SVE 5 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
| 1 | Basic Darkness Energy | SVE 7 | £0.99 | 0/1 |
Copy this list for Pokémon TCG Live
Today's prices and stock from our shop. Every card name above links to its product page.
Building it in the UK
Today's prices from our shop, refreshed as stock changes. Cards we cannot fill can be requested in the builder and we email you when they land. Free UK delivery over £100; singles dispatch within 2 working days.
Your first turns, and what to aim for
In the opening turns, focus on spreading Gimmighoul onto the Bench using Buddy-Buddy Poffin, which searches your deck for up to 2 Basic Pokémon with 70 HP or less - it hits all four Gimmighoul in the list. Get Genesect ex onto the Bench so Metallic Signal can start pulling Gholdengo ex into hand. Use Gimmighoul's Minor Errand-Running to fetch Basic Energy cards early, and attach Metal Energy to a Gholdengo ex as soon as you have one in play. Ciphermaniac's Codebreaking lets you search your deck for 2 specific cards and place them on top, so prioritise it when you need a missing evolution piece or a Superior Energy Retrieval.
Once you have an active Gholdengo ex with Metal Energy attached, the loop begins. Use Gimmighoul or Earthen Vessel to gather energy into hand, play Superior Energy Retrieval to refill from the discard after each attack, and use Coin Bonus to draw through the deck between turns. Air Balloon reduces Retreat Cost by two energy, so you can promote and retreat Gholdengo ex freely to keep the Active Spot bonus from Coin Bonus whenever it matters. If your opponent's Active Pokémon survives at low HP, Munkidori's Adrena-Brain with Darkness Energy attached can shift those final damage counters across to seal the Knock Out. Keep Togekiss on the Bench and flip for bonus Prizes whenever you secure a Knock Out, and use Boss's Orders to pull up the target that gives you the most favourable exchange.
Why it is not Standard legal any more
Artazon, Arven, Gimmighoul, Nest Ball, Superior Energy Retrieval, and Togepi all left Standard, removing the energy-gathering and search tools that the deck depended on - without Superior Energy Retrieval in particular, the Make It Rain loop cannot sustain itself. The deck is no longer Standard legal but remains fully playable in Expanded and casual formats where all those cards are still permitted.
Sources and method
- List: 7th, World Championships 2025, 15 Aug 2025 · played by Piper Lepine · list on Limitless TCG
- Card details come from the official card text.
- Prices and stock are today's figures from our own shop, not market averages.
- Format: TEF-30C. Not Standard legal · 6 rotated cards · fine for Expanded and casual play
- Drafted with AI from tournament results and official card text, then checked and approved by our team before publishing.
Gholdengo ex, answered
Quick answers about playing and building this deck.
01Is Gholdengo ex good for beginners?⌄
Gholdengo ex is not the ideal starting point for a complete beginner. The deck asks you to track energy in hand and discard across multiple turns, judge the right moment to play Superior Energy Retrieval, and decide how many energy to discard with Make It Rain each attack for the right damage number. There is also a Stage 1 evolution in Gholdengo ex and a Stage 2 in Togekiss to manage. If you are comfortable with evolution decks and hand-management, though, the core loop is logical and satisfying to pilot.
02What are the key cards in Gholdengo ex?⌄
The four key cards are Gholdengo ex, Superior Energy Retrieval, Genesect ex, and Gimmighoul. Gholdengo ex is the attacker - Make It Rain does 50 damage for each Basic Energy you discard from hand, so the more energy you hold, the harder it hits. Superior Energy Retrieval refuels you by returning 4 Basic Energy from the discard pile at the cost of discarding 2 cards. Genesect ex's Metallic Signal finds up to 2 Evolution Metal Pokémon from the deck each turn. Gimmighoul's Minor Errand-Running fetches up to 2 Basic Energy cards directly from the deck to keep the attack fuelled.
03How much does a Gholdengo ex deck cost in the UK?⌄
Every card at the cheapest printing we list comes to £67.64 at today's prices, and we can send 10 of the 60 cards today (£11.10). Prices and stock change daily, so the list above always shows the current figures.
04Is Gholdengo ex Standard legal?⌄
No. Gholdengo ex rotated out of Standard on 10 April 2026. It is still fine for casual games and Expanded.
05Where does this list come from?⌄
This guide uses the list that finished 7th, World Championships 2025, 15 Aug 2025, played by Piper Lepine.
Last updated 8 Oct 2026
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