Keeping up with the meta on a budget

ichooseYOU456

After casually collecting for a long time, I'm trying to get into competitive play, but I've always hesitated because of the insane speed at which new cards and strategies are introduced, before fading into obscurity just as quickly. I assume this requires buying new cards regularly, but I don't have the budget to just buy new shiny cardboard all the time. And when cards are no longer useful, they aren't good for anything but taking up residence in a binder, so it's not beneficial to buy beat-up cards for cheap. How can I keep up with Leagues and tournaments without breaking the bank, and have cards that are good enough for keeping after they've run their course?

Zach020304

Think about gardy… since the release back in S&V, it has remained very meta relevant, and while there is probably 10 cards that have come and gone, the deck has stayed pretty consistent. Looking back at the lifespan of Gardy, I believe we are in the most "expensive" era of gaudy with the need for 2 $4 Jellicent ex, along with the basics. Each rotation Gardy has had "key" cards rotate out, but has still remained a S-Tier deck. And Gardy is just one example, over my 12 years of playing there is a theme that really good decks remain really good after rotations with minimal changes once new cards get released, maybe 1-2 new cards a set (items or supporters most of the time that are pennies to buy).

So I guess what I am trying to say is that if you purchase a top tier meta deck, you should be able to consistently have a great deck for 2-3 years before it gets rotated. I would bite the bullet on a new S-Tier deck that comes out and continue to play that until it rotates out, maybe something in the Mega Format. I would recommend Dragopult right now, but I believe it only has 1.5 years left of play. Goldengo is in the same boat, so is Zard. We have I think if you wanted to get a deck right this moment, Marnies Grimsnarl is seeing pretty good play now here in current rotation, and will be in rotation for a while, only issue is that it is definitely not a BDIF.

The most expensive part about this hobby is getting started, once you have decks, or a deck, it is minimal effort to keep up with format.

TL:DR, Buy a strong (semi-expensive) S-Tier deck, and you should be good for a few years.

ichooseYOU456

Thanks for your help! Quick question about a specific deck though: do you think that Joltik Box is a good idea? The strategy and also just the Pokémon are really fun to me, but I don't want to make a bad decision and get a junky deck. Again, thank you for the advice!