High Pressure System · Dragon (DR) #85

4 comments

1. 

   Ambassador

   (3 years ago)

   This card’s benefit to {R} and {W} Pokémon isn’t arbitrarily chosen – rather, it matches the typical attack costs of Salamence in the TCG. However, Salamence can’t really take advantage of it, since it itself isn’t actually an {R} or {W} Pokémon. Rather, it’s specifically meant to help the Camerupt [K-37-#; EXD 24] and Crawdaunt [K-68-#; EXD 13] in the Salamence Constructed Starter Deck.

   The FireFang deck released alongside EX Dragon did include this card, the same Camerupt, a Crawdaunt, as well some random lines that can’t evolve to their final stages because the English theme decks like to do that even more than the JP decks do.

   (See also Low Pressure System, which is to Flygon what this card is to Salamence.)

   https://archive.ph/mhZVJ
   https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/FireFang_(TCG)

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     TwylisAmbassador

     (3 years ago)

     I wonder if the pairing of Flygon and Salamence in the TCG is partially why so many people were under the mistaken belief that Flygon is a pseudo-legendary (which I still see sometimes, somehow). Probably more to do with them both just being three-stage Dragon-types, though.

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2. 

   Ambassador

   (3 years ago)

   Open question; do the Pressure System cards (and Magnetic Storm) seem like the kind of cards WOTC might’ve come up with – flavor-wise and/or functionally (but ideally both)? Bear in mind they’re followed in short order by HL’s Castform cards, which feature attacks that function as “If [specific Stadium] is in play, [this attack has some additional effect]”, a fairly novel effect even to this day and one which we also saw featured on a few EX Power Keepers cards.

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     TwylisAmbassador

     (3 years ago)

     Well, they’re the first stadiums to focus on supporting specific types, for one. A stadium staple nowadays.

     It’s hard to say how much of it is Wizards and how much of it is just the prevailing mentality of people in general at the time, but there does seem to be a tendency for them to perceive decks as inherently “typed” — hence their preoccupation with supporting the Lightning-type. Jamboree Jolteon was a direct continuation of this line of thought, with its attack functioning best in a purely Lightning deck.

     But — not knowing too much about MTG — it also tracks with how MTG decks are structured around specific colors with their own distinct identities. I imagine someone with a lot more MTG experience would be better at sussing out what effects scream Wizards.

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