[Top 10] Pokemon TCG Best Fighting Cards!

A look at the top 10 Fighting type Pokemon cards.

Updated:

13 Jul 2021

Hello all you fans of the Pokemon Trading Card Game and casual readers. The Pokemon Trading Card Game thrives on the multitude of playable strategies. While it is easy to zoom out and say that the only objective in Pokemon is to hit your opponent harder than they hit you, it is a lot more nuanced than that. For example, which Pokemon Type do you prefer to play? There are the hard hitting fire types that burn away energy when they attack. There are electric types that specialize in lightning fast attacks. There are the cerebral psychic types that manipulate energy cards, other Pokémon, and damage counters to pull off unusual attacks. And there are the powerful fighting types that deal big hits for big energy with big HP.

There are many great fighting cards that have found their way into the META of Pokemon over time, but I’m just going to be honest here for a bit. Most of them are reliable as counter picks to other popular decks. And they almost always rely on some kind of gimmick to get more powerful, such as a special energy or a specific scenario in the game. Unfortunately we won’t be considering any of these things for this list, so it may be lacking in popular cards. However, know that there is a lot more promise out there if you’re a fan of fighting type Pokemon.

We’re going to be looking at the top 10 best fighting type cards in the Pokemon TCG. This list will only take into consideration cards released before July of 2021. We will be judging these cards based on the abilities printed on the cards alone so unfortunately multi-card combos are off the table. With that said, let’s get into the list.

10. Archeops

This Stage 1 Pokemon has 130 HP.
The Ancient Power ability prevents either player from evolving their Pokemon. That’s right. You can easily block all evolved Pokemon out of the game on the second turn with this card. And this ability is so powerful that this card is banned from the Expanded format by Pokemon.
For three energy, Rock Slide deals 60 damage and 10 more damage to two of your opponent’s Benched Pokemon.

9. Mega Lucario EX

This Mega Pokemon has 220 HP.
Mega Pokemon are powerful, but unfortunately the time needed to set them up and their comparatively low HP keeps them from being higher on this list.
Rising Fist deals 140 damage and discards an Energy attached to your opponent’s Active Pokemon. It costs three energy and that’s not bad for consistent disruption.

8. Galarian Zapdos V

This Basic V Pokemon has 200 HP.
For four energy, Thunderous Kick deals 170 damage and discards a special energy from your opponent’s Active Pokemon.
The Fighting Instinct ability says that this Pokemon’s attacks cost one less for each V Pokemon your opponent has in play. This can bring your attack cost down to an amazing one energy but relies entirely on what your opponent plays down.

7. Lucario EX

This Basic EX Pokemon has 180 HP.
Lucario EX features three attacks. The first of which is Missile Jab. Theis attack costs one energy and deals 30 damage.
The next attack is Corkscrew Smash. It costs two energy and deals 60 damage. You can also draw cards until you have six in your hand.
Finally is Somersault Kick. This attack deals 100 damage for three energy. These three attacks make Lucario EX a very well rounded card.

6. Sandaconda

This Stage 1 Pokemon has 130 HP.
For one energy, the Big Sand Cannon attack discards the top six cards of your deck and deals 60 damage for each fighting energy you discarded. This can be an incredibly powerful attack, capable of dealing 360 damage. You just need to build your deck around it.
Skull Bash deals 130 damage for three energy.

5. Donphan

This Stage 1 Pokemon has 150 HP.
For one energy, the Earthquake attack deals 120 damage to your opponent and 20 damage to each of your Benched Pokemon. This quick attack can either help you out if you have the right benched Pokemon or hinder you later so be careful.
For three energy, Heavy Impact does 90 damage.

4. Sandaconda VMAX

This VMAX Pokemon has 320 HP.
For one energy, Sand Pulse deals 60 damage to your opponent’s Active Pokemon and 20 to each of their Benched Pokemon. This is a fast attack that can easily get damage all over the board.
G-MAX Cyclone deals 180 damage and allows you to move your energy around your Pokemon in any way you like. It costs three energy and can easily be used to save your energy if you’re about to be KO’d.

3. Excadrill

This Stage 1 Pokemon has 140 HP.
Eleventh Hour Tackle deals 30 damage for one energy. If you have three or fewer cards left in your deck it deals an additional 150 damage. A powerful late game attack that is surprisingly easy to achieve. Why?
Excadrill’s other attack, Drill Bazooka deals 120 damage and discards four cards from your deck. This attack also costs one energy.

2. Marshadow GX

This Basic GX Pokemon has 150 HP.
For three energy, Beatdown deals 120 damage.
Peerless Hundred Blows GX, maybe the longest attack name in Pokemon, deals 50 damage for each basic energy on Marshadow GX.
Now these attacks are good but Marshadow’s ability, Shadow Hunt, allows you to use the attacks of any Basic Pokemon in your discard pile (you still need the necessary energy to use each attack), even powerful attacks from a non-fighting Pokemon.

1. Coalossal VMAX

This VMAX Pokemon has 330 HP.
For one energy, Eruptions Shot does 40 damage. You also discard the top card of your deck and, if it’s an energy card, you deal 90 more damage and can attach it to Coalossal VMAX. With the right mixture of luck and skill this can be a great early attack to power up the other attack.
For four energy, G-Max Boulder deals 240 damage. This strong attack combined with Coalossal’s impressive HP makes it a tough Pokemon to contend with.