Quite often in articles I talk about adding draw supporters you like to your deck. There are a few to choose from though, so how do you know which one's right for your deck? In this article I will look at some of the top draw supporters in format at the moment and their benefits and draw backs.
What is a draw supporter?
A draw supporter is basically any supporter card that helps you to draw more cards from your deck. There are a lot of supporters that help you draw cards, but many of them (Skyla, Pokemon Fan Club, etc) check your deck for specific cards. This article will only be looking at the cards that simply let you draw from your deck at random.
As with all supporters, you can only play 1 per turn, so it's very important to make sure you've got the right ones in your deck so you don't waste that 1 per turn. I would usually suggest running around 10 draw supporters in your deck, however this does vary depending on the deck. 10 per deck is a pretty good guide if you're starting out though!
So now that you know all about draw supporters, lets get started!
Professor Sycamore
Professor Sycamore allows you to discard your entire hand and draw 7 cards. This is one of the supporters that sees the most play in the competitive scene. As a very new player, I never understood why everyone loved this card so much (a variant of this card has been in every single format that I know of, so it's a very well known card). I thought it was bad to discard your entire hand as there may be things in your hand that you want. While that's true, here's why it's good:
- Very few other cards give you the opportunity to draw 7 cards, this card helps you get the cards you need so fast that it's just a staple in every deck
- With decks that want cards in the discard (i.e. Night March and Bronzong), getting rid of some of the cards in your hand may be very helpful
- In most good decks, you should be running multiple copies of most cards, so getting rid of one isn't a huge deal
- You get to choose when you play it, so use all the cards you can in your hand first and then play it, so often you're not discarding many cards at all
When shouldn't you use it? If you have a lot of cards in your hand that could be very handy later in the game and you have a different draw supporter in your hand, you may be better off using that so you can keep those cards in your deck for later. Also if you don't have many cards left in your deck, you may want to consider playing a different card.
My view: This is a must-have in every deck. You can choose to use other supporters when this one isn't ideal, but it is just so powerful that it really can't be ignored. You can get Professor Sycamore in breakpoint booster packs. I'd advise running 3-4 in every deck.
Shauna
Shauna allows you to shuffle your hand into your deck and draw 5 cards. This is a very consistent supporter because you always know what you're going to get. I personally run Shauna in most of my decks and have found it to be hugely valuable. Since you shuffle cards back into your deck, you also don't have to discard anything you may want later.
Sometimes 5 cards isn't quite enough, so if you find you're not drawing enough cards, you may want to look at running Birch (see below). I personally prefer Shauna for the consistency, but Birch is technically better.
My view: I would highly recommend running either Shauna or Birch (see below) in every deck. Being able to shuffle cards back into your deck is a great alternative when discarding isn't what you'd like to do. I'd advise running 3-4 of Shauna or Birch in every deck.
Professor Birch's Observations
This card is similar to Shauna, but instead of simply drawing a set amount of cards after you shuffle your hand into your deck, you flip a coin. If heads, you draw 7 cards and if tails, you draw 4. This means that you're statistically likely to draw 7 cards half the time and 4 cards half the time, meaning the average amount of cards you'll draw is 5.5 (you'll never draw 5 and a half cards, but this is how many cards per draw it averages out to, if you use it a lot), making it slightly better than Shauna. Many people don't like it because it's less consistent than Shauna but it's really down to personal preference.
This card can be as good as Juniper, without even having to discard any cards. However, only drawing 4 can be a real set-back, so using this card in crucial moments of the game can be quite risky.
My view: As with Shauna, I'd advise running 3-4 of this or Shauna in every deck. Play around and work out which one you personally like better. It's really down to if you like to take the small gamble that you might only draw 4. You can get Birch in Primal Clash.
Tierno
Tierno allows you to draw 3 cards. This is a bit of a strange card. In almost every other card game, it would seem that Tierno is an incredibly good card and should be run in every deck, however, we don't see it run in decks very often at all. Tierno did see more play about 9 months ago, because there weren't many supporters to choose from at the time. While the ability to draw 3 is good, and if you don't have many cards I would advise you use it, it just isn't as good as some of the other options. Usually people decide to run other supporters instead of Tierno, because other draw supporters just let you get more cards. Also, if you have a bad hand, Tierno may not help that much because it doesn't let you shuffle away the cards that aren't useful.
My view: If you don't have any other options, Tierno is still a good card. I would just advise running plenty of Sycamore and Shauna so you have other cards that let you draw more when your hand becomes bad. You can find Tierno in Breakpoint.
Judge
Judge makes you AND your opponent shuffle your hands back into your decks and draw 4 cards each. While this isn't many cards, sometimes 4 is enough if you don't need much at the time. Also, this helps to disrupt your opponent. If you think your opponent has a good hand, you can play a Judge so they have to shuffle their good cards back into their deck.
Also, if you're playing a deck that has benefits if you have the same amount of cards in your hand as your opponent (Noivern BREAK, for example), this can be a very useful card.
My view: If you run a deck that doesn't rely on having a lot of cards in your hand, this can be a good option. I would advise running 2-3 in a deck so you still have space for plenty of other draw supporters that can draw more cards. You can find Judge in Breakthrough.
Giovanni's Scheme
Giovanni's Scheme has 2 effects, you get to choose which one you use. Either:
- Draw until you have 5 cards in your hand OR
- During this turn, your Pokémon's attacks do 20 more damage to your opponent's Active Pokémon (before applying Weakness and Resistance).
Having the option to be able to pick either of those effects means it's a great card to run a couple of copies in your deck, especially if there are going to be times where you need the extra damage. If you don't think you will ever need the second effect, you may be better off running more Shauna, Birch and Sycamore. Drawing until you have 5 cards is helpful, but if this is the only effect you're going to use, other draw supporters may be more useful in getting you cards. This card should only be run if you want the versatility it offers.
My view: If you think you may need to use the second effect from time to time, run a couple of these in your deck. Giovanni's Scheme can be found in Breakthrough.
Ace Trainer
Ace Trainer makes you and your opponent shuffle your hands into your deck and you draw 6 cards, your opponent draws 3 cards. This can only be played if you have more prize cards left than your opponent. This makes it a very good card if you're losing the game, but because it is so situational it's not a great card. Ace Trainer relies on your opponent taking prize cards, so it can't be used on your first turn (except in extreme circumstances) and can't be used if you're winning. If you play a deck that relies on making a come-back late in the game, this may be a good card but generally it's not as good as other options.
My view: I'd generally advise against using Ace Trainer. The only exception to this is if you're playing a deck that you expect your opponent to take a few prizes early. Limit it to 2 in these decks. Ace Trainer can be found in Ancient Origins.
Battle Reporter
Battle Reporter allows you to draw until you have the same amount of cards in your hand as your opponent. This means that if your opponent has less cards than you, you can't use this card at all, making it useless in some situations, much like Ace Trainer. Generally your opponent won't have more than 3 cards more than you, so you'd be better off using Tierno if you just wanted to draw cards. The only time this card is useful is if you play against a lot of people who draw heaps of cards with their deck, then you may have some benefit of using it.
My view: Don't run this card unless you're sure it will be useful and limit it to 2 copies. There are lots of better options and the card is so situational that it can be hard to use at all. Battle Reporter can be found in Furious Fists if you decide this card would benefit your deck.
N
N makes both players shuffle their hand into their deck and draw the same amount of cards as they have prize cards left. While N isn't currently in the format, there are a lot of people who expect it to come back so I'll give you a quick run-down. N is a great supporter because:
- If you haven't taken any prizes yet, you get 6 cards (more than Shauna)
- You get to disrupt your opponents hand, like Judge
- If your opponent has taken lots of prizes and you haven't taken any, you get lots of cards and your opponent doesn't get many
N can be good for your opponent if they have a bad hand though, so be careful when you use it.
My view: If N comes back, I would advise running 2-4 in every deck. It's so versatile and consistent that it really deserves to be in every deck.
How would you rank these supporters?
As I've said previously, it depends on your deck, but in general, I would say:
- Professor Sycamore
- Shauna
- Professor Birch's Observations
- Judge
- Giovanni's Scheme
- Tierno
- Ace Trainer
- Battle Reporter
What are some alternatives to draw supporters?
If you already have around 10 draw supporters in your deck and find you're still not drawing enough cards, try out the following cards:
- Trainers Mail: Helps you find other search cards you need, this can be found in Roaring Skies.
- Roller Skates: You have a 50% chance of drawing 3 cards. This can be hugely useful, however it is very luck based
- Acro Bike: If you run a deck that can benefit from having cards in your discard, this is a great option, this can be found in Primal Clash.
Also remember to run plenty of VS Seekers, to get back the supporters you need!
If you have decided that you need some more supporters in your deck, you can grab yourself a pack or two of the trainer packs we have on the website here! These usually come with a few supporters in each pack. Remember that supporters are essential to making your deck very fast, so make sure you include enough in your deck!
Let us know what you think of this article in the comments section below! Cards are linked to copies so you can read what they do if you're unsure. Not sure what some of the words in this article mean? Check out our glossary here!
