The Knockout Punch: Looking Back at the Haymaker Deck
The Haymaker deck archetype was a dominant force in the early days of the Pokemon Trading Card Game (TCG), popular for its aggressive strategy and quick-hitting, high-impact attacks to reel in an easy prize. It’s been more than two decades since its reign, and the Pokemon TCG is still alive and well. There are players from back then still drawing cards to this day, and some others like myself, are finding their way back. That being said, I wanted to commemorate the Haymaker archetype as my first blog for the website, so join me as we walk down memory lane and explore the Haymaker deck’s history, key components, and gameplay strategies during the 2000’s.
A Legacy of Speed and Power: Why was the Haymaker Archetype Effective?
The Haymaker deck, primarily composed of basic Pokemon with low-cost attacks that dealt respectable damage, thrived in the earliest era of the Pokemon TCG – back when most other deck builds relied on a string of ability-driven combos and high-damaging attacks of evolved Pokemon. Unlike complex decks (such as the Rain Dance, Do the Wave, or Damage Swap/Curse deck archetypes) that relied on evolving a basic Pokemon into their Stage 1 or Stage 2 forms, Haymaker capitalized on the efficiency of engaging with basic ‘mons, allowing for quick setup and early aggression. The deck’s core consisted of a formidable trio, which I refer to as the Haymaker’s “Big Three”: Electabuzz, Hitmonchan, and Scyther.
These Pokemon boasted 70 HP, a decent amount for basic Pokemon at the time, enabling them to take a hit while delivering anywhere between 10 to 50 damage – capable enough to take down early stage ‘mons at every turn. And while 10 to 50 damage seems like a tickle, their attacks offered exceptional damage output relative to their energy cost.
Take, for example, how Electabuzz’s Thundershock could potentially paralyze the opponent on turn 1, setting the stage for a devastating Thunderpunch on turn 2. Hitmonchan’s Jab provided a solid 20 damage on turn 1, and its Special Punch could knock out many basic ‘mons with 40 damage for three Energy. Scyther, with its Fighting Resistance and free Retreat Cost, offered consistent damage with Slash, thanks to Double Colorless Energy. Played with the right Trainer cards, these attacks can be unexpectedly lethal in the early game.
The Engine of Haymaker’s Success: Strategic Gameplay
The Haymaker archetype can come off as straightforward and simple in strategy, given the Big Three as its core Pokemon, but there’s more to its gameplay than just a barrage of cost-effective attacks. Trainer cards, of course, were another cornerstone of the Haymaker deck – and card advantage was often always key to getting leverage.
Bill, Professor Oak, and Computer Search fueled the deck’s draw power, ensuring a smooth flow of cards to the trainer’s hand and enabling a swift setup. Depending on the situation, you can choose to draw two cards, or when your hand is near-empty, play Professor Oak for a fresh hand of seven, or if you need a specific card to pull off a combo, Computer Search does the trick in exchange for a couple of discards.
One of my favorite tech cards, PlusPower, boosted attacks for crucial or surprise knockouts, while Energy Removal and Super Energy Removal disrupted the opponent’s strategy by discarding their attached Energy. These cards helped delay the opposing trainer from setting up an evolution or a high-cost attack, or prevent a weak Pokemon from retreating back to the enemy bench. Ultimately, these cards could buy you a turn or two when you don’t have a playable hand.
Item Finder, which many consider to be a variant or alternative to Computer Search, allowed for the reuse of valuable Trainer cards, maximizing their effectiveness. For instance, during a match, you can catch opposing trainers off-guard with Item Finder, taking a PlusPower from your trash pile and going for another K.O. when they’d been expecting their active Pokemon to at least last another turn.
Energy Retrieval works similarly, but for less cost and only limited to energy cards that have already been discarded – which can still be quite handy, seeing as the deck is tricolor (Electric, Fighting, Grass) when it comes to energy costs. Many, however, will skip including Grass Energy cards in the deck, as the Haymaker archetype has never been too keen in using Scyther’s Swords Dance.
Scoop Up is another unique tech card that works well in combination with Energy Retrieval. Essentially, it is used to “save” your Pokemon from fainting and prevent the opponent from picking up a prize, and since all your ‘mons are in their basic stages, you won’t have to worry about losing their evolutions to the discard pile. However, when playing Scoop Up – which requires discarding all attached cards – you get to recycle Energy cards through Energy Retrieval.
Again, it bears noting how these Trainers emphasize the importance of “card advantage” as a core strategy of a Haymaker deck.
And finally, here we have Gust of Wind, another of my favorite Trainer cards, as it offered valuable utility for getting a quick prize – often one-hit K.O.’s – enabling more opportunities for strategic sweeps. Here are some use cases that make it a requirement in any Haymaker deck:
Notice a benched Pokemon getting powered up for a huge attack or preparing to evolve? Gust of Wind.
See your opponent saving their Pokemon from fainting and retreating it back to the bench? Gust of Wind.
Not only is Gust of Wind effective on offense, but it can also double for defense, especially when you need to stall. If the opposing bench has a “slow” Pokemon (high attack and/or retreat costs) and your hand isn’t too favorable? Gust of Wind.
Playing Gust of Wind with PlusPower or Energy Removal is a usual combo that a Haymaker deck employs to pick up an easy prize in the early stages of a game.
A Haymaker Deck list: How to Create
So, you want to construct a vintage Haymaker deck? Here’s a list of all the cards you will need to recreate the core of the typical Haymaker deck at its peak:
Pokemon (12)
4x Electabuzz
4x Hitmonchan
4x Scyther
Trainer (32)
4x Bill
4x PlusPower
4x Gust of Wind
3x Scoop Up
2x Item Finder
Energy (16)
A “Counterable” TCG Play style: Power Creep and the Haymaker’s Decline
As the Pokemon TCG grew in popularity and the number of cards exponentially scaled in volume through succeeding expansions, promos, and rereleases, it was inevitable that the Haymaker archetype’s dominance eventually waned. But what happened?
The introduction of faster and bulkier Basic Pokemon alongside newer gameplay mechanics challenged the Haymaker’s straightforward approach. Nevertheless, by the time the Haymaker archetype had been buried and forgotten, the archetype had already left its mark on the TCG’s history. It exemplified the effectiveness of a well-constructed Basic Pokemon deck and demonstrated the importance of efficient resource management and strategic use of Trainer cards – unknowingly, it had served as the foundation of many successful TCG championship decks in the future.
In the YouTube video below, Ruby Retro talks about the Pokemon TCG history and competitive meta in 1999:
He narrates to us the beginnings of the Pokemon TCG tournament scene in the United States, which saw various reiterations of the core Haymaker deck, taking win after win across tournaments.
In the couple of years that followed, the Haymaker deck archetype started to fall short of a successful knockout. The hard-hitting punches no longer hurt as much, and many other cards started to catch up to its speed, as every expansion – notably, the EX series – introduced more powerful ways to build decks, allowing for more deck archetypes that can resist, counter, or tank a Haymaker, and take over in the competitive scene.
Power creep, as Jake Gearhart of Cutortap.com defines, “broadly, describes the phenomenon of cards becoming gradually more ‘powerful’ over long periods of time.” This incremental increase in overall effectiveness eventually renders older cards obsolete in the competitive scene. And in the Pokemon TCG, power creep had manifested itself in different ways as more and more deck archetypes came and went.
It is natural for one to consider how it’s been more than two decades since the Pokemon TCG’s Base Set had been released (October 20, 1996 in Japan and January 9, 1999 in the US). Innovating the TCG’s game mechanics was necessary to sustain its player base and gain new interest. After all, the franchise can’t just rely on players to stay in the TCG scene because they're loyal fans. But to last more than it already has, and with it still going strong as of today, the Pokemon TCG and its history of power creep seem justifiable.
If you’re interested in learning more, here’s another YouTube video by DeltaSeeker, who takes a deep dive into the Pokemon TCG’s history of power creep:
Additional Notes:
Haymaker was one of the first decks to be unofficially banned from organized play due to its overwhelming power in the early stages of the TCG.
While the Haymaker deck may not be the most competitive option in the current Pokemon TCG environment, it holds historical significance and can be a fun choice for nostalgic matches or casual play.
The word “haymaker” (noun) is an agricultural term in the mid-15th century, which refers to the occupation of cutting and drying grass; and in the early 1900s, the swinging motion of a punch is reminiscent of the powerful swing of a scythe in hay-making.
