
| HIGH | 4.99 | USD | |
| MID | 0.09 | USD | TREND![]() |
| LOW | 0.02 | USD |
Mandibuzz soars into the TCG arena with a fascinating ability that turns your opponent's hand against them.
This Stage 1 Darkness-type Pokémon combines tactical disruption with moderate offensive capabilities, making it an intriguing tech option for players who enjoy controlling the battlefield while applying steady pressure.
Offensive rating: 5/10Mandibuzz offers decent but unspectacular offensive output with its Cutting Wind attack.
At 90 damage for three energy of any type, it falls short of the one-hit KO threshold for most relevant Pokémon in the current meta.
The damage-to-energy ratio is mediocre at best, providing just 30 damage per energy without any beneficial side effects or scaling mechanisms.
The attack lacks any bonus effects that could improve its utility, such as discarding energy, applying status conditions, or piercing defensive abilities.
While its colorless energy requirement offers flexibility in deck building, Mandibuzz simply doesn't hit hard enough to serve as a primary attacker in competitive play.
Survival rating: 7/10Mandibuzz demonstrates solid defensive capabilities that help it stick around to use its ability multiple times.
With 110 HP, it sits in a comfortable middle range for a Stage 1 Pokémon - not immediately vulnerable to smaller attacks but not tanky enough to withstand concentrated assault.
Its Fighting-type resistance (-30) provides significant protection against popular Fighting-type attackers, effectively boosting its HP to 140 in those matchups.
The single-energy retreat cost offers welcome flexibility, allowing players to pivot strategies without significant resource commitment.
However, its Lightning weakness could prove problematic in certain matchups, particularly against the ever-popular Electric-type attackers that populate the competitive landscape.
Versatility rating: 7/10The Look for Prey ability gives Mandibuzz impressive versatility as a disruptive tech card.
Being able to force an opponent to bench a vulnerable Basic Pokémon from their hand serves multiple strategic purposes: it can disrupt hand composition, force suboptimal bench setups, enable targeting of specific Pokémon with other effects, and potentially create bench space issues.
This ability works effectively against setup-focused decks that hold evolving Basics in hand.
However, Mandibuzz offers little versatility outside this niche disruption role.
Its mediocre attack doesn't allow it to pivot effectively between roles, and it lacks synergistic abilities that would help it fit into various deck archetypes beyond dedicated disruption strategies.
Speed/Setup rating: 6/10As a Stage 1 Pokémon, Mandibuzz requires finding and playing both itself and its pre-evolution Vullaby, creating inherent consistency challenges.
The evolution line demands deck space for both cards and typically requires at least one turn of setup before Mandibuzz can hit the field.
On the positive side, the Look for Prey ability provides immediate value once Mandibuzz is in play, requiring no additional resources to activate.
Its attack needs three energy attachments to power up, which normally takes multiple turns, though energy acceleration effects can mitigate this drawback.
Darkness-type support cards can potentially help find both evolution pieces, but Mandibuzz lacks any built-in search or recovery mechanics to improve its own consistency.
Mandibuzz performs best in disruption-focused decks that can capitalize on forced bench positioning.
Consider pairing it with cards that punish benched Pokémon, energy denial strategies to keep those forced-out Basics stranded, or control archetypes that benefit from manipulating the opponent's options.
Cards that accelerate energy attachment also help Mandibuzz contribute offensively more quickly.
Spiritomb from Paradox Rift can capitalize on Mandibuzz forcing low-HP Basics to the bench by using its Eerie Voice to spread damage, potentially setting up quick KOs on the vulnerable Pokémon that Mandibuzz exposes.
Gengar (particularly variants with snipe or bench damage abilities) synergizes perfectly with Mandibuzz by allowing you to target and eliminate the low-HP Basic Pokémon your opponent was trying to protect in their hand.
Hisuian Sneasler complements Mandibuzz's control strategy by using Star Poison to limit your opponent's options further, applying Poison to their Active Pokémon while Mandibuzz disrupts their hand and bench composition.
Mandibuzz carves out a unique niche in the current meta as a hand disruption specialist with its Look for Prey ability.
While its offensive capabilities are limited and it requires some setup as a Stage 1 Pokémon, the strategic advantage of forcing opponents to bench vulnerable Basic Pokémon cannot be understated.
This card shines brightest in control or disruption-oriented decks that can capitalize on manipulating the opponent's board state.
Players will get the most value by using Mandibuzz's ability early and often, potentially creating vulnerable targets on the opponent's bench while simultaneously disrupting their hand.
Its modest energy requirements and reasonable survivability make it a worthwhile tech inclusion against decks that rely on protecting key Basic Pokémon in hand.
Consider Mandibuzz not as a star attacker, but as a tactical tool that creates opportunities for your more offensively capable Pokémon to exploit.
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