Continental Destruction
"I will give up our plans for Mt. Chimney for the time being... But no one can ever stop us! Team Magma will prevail! Don't you ever forget that!" ~ Team Magma's boss Maxie - Pokémon Ruby GBA
Team Magma's Groudon is quite possibly one of the most remembered cards in the history of the game. Even players who didn't play 20 years ago know of this card, as Groudon in its famous Team Magma deck (listed below) won the 2004 World Championships in ALL THREE AGE DIVISIONS! A feat no other deck has ever accomplished... But did you know that it was a secret deck that hardly anyone even knew about leading up to Worlds?!
"We had no words for what had happened at the 2004 World Championships, as the American players watched in horror as all the Japanese players came into Orlando and won each division with the Magma deck. We... we had no idea what was happening!" ~ Kyle Sabelhaus
In 2004, social media was lacking to say the least. The World was cut off from Japanese event results, thus outside of Japan, most countries felt that they had the format solved leading into the World Championships. We saw players bring back familiar decks that saw success at the US National Championships and from other countries National events prior to August. The likes of Blaziken, Gardevoir, Swampert and Walrein decks were seen all across the top tables once again. But amongst them were a slew of then-unknown Japanese players piloting what looked like a theme deck from afar. But to everyone's surprise, were dominating the best players in the west. (Much like what happened at the 2016 World Championships with Mega Audino EX!)
Not only did Tsuguyoshi Yamato win the first ever official World Championship with Team Magma, but three other master division players from Japan made Top 8 in this historic event! Three of the four having made up the Top 4 alone and a few more sprinkled throughout the Top 32.
Even though the success of this deck was shortlived after its surprise appearance, it has lived on as one of the best decks in the 2004 format! With the exciting online 04 event approaching soon, (Oct 21 w/ IRL Booster Box prizing) link to registration and details here, will you be considering this deck for that event? You can also look forward to an article coving the 04 format prior to the tournament, coming soon!
Whether you're interested in playing in said online event or just want to watch a fun 2004 game. Here's a 2004 finals "rematch" that was recently broadcasted during the 2023 World Championships, played by Kyle "Pooka" Sucevich (Team Magma) and Ethan Hegyi (Blaziken).
Fun Fact
Team Magma's Groudon is such a historial figure in the game, that it was one of the few specially selected cards to be amongst the celebratory reprints in the Celebrations set in 2021! (left: Original Groudon card from 2004 | middle: English Celebrations reprint | right: Japanese "Celebrations" equivelant)
Enjoy this Card of the Month excerpt? Any cool stories regarding Team Magma's Groudon? Is this your favorite deck from 2004? Will you play in the upcoming online 04 event? Tweet us at @PTCG_Legends using the button below and let us know! And if you enjoy what you see, consider supporting us on Patreon, link below!
