Both are manageable once you know their shape: Altered cards and mislabeled Unlimited copies Sealed packs, where nothing can be inspected Vintage listings on resale apps and online marketplaces come with a real risk of counterfeits, condition problems, and bad-faith sellers
You get versatility with Derevi, with Birthing Pod or Winter Orb builds
Other decks like Rampardos and Hitmonlee have higher win rates, proving value in lesser-known options
Scraggy McDonalds 2016, 7/12 As a fan of the Pokmon video games and trading card game since the very beginning (yes, I am that old), I like to think that I recognize most Pokmon, even if Ive never actually used them in a game myself
(And, of course, the sweet spot is when you have very strong tribal rewards and very strong individual creatures!) Sometimes you might have to play a couple creatures that are just below the bar of normal playability, but you certainly don't want to fill your deck up with those