10 strongest Trainer cards from Pokemon TCG Twilight Masquerade

Twilight Masquerade is one of the biggest Pokemon TCG sets of the year for collectors. With a blend of stunning artwork and heavy-hitting cards, this expansion is bound to shake up the meta completely.

Pokemon-centric cards tend to get all the attention in an expansion set, but there are some Trainer cards in Twilight Masquerade that could be game-changers for both competitive players and collectors who enjoy casual matches.

Here are the 10 strongest Trainer cards from Twilight Masquerade, ranked including the best Items, Stadiums, Supporters, and Tools.

1. Kieran (218/167)

Kieran is a rare Supporter that offers 2 different benefits to choose from during a match. We’ve picked the Ultra Rare version of the Kieran Supporter card, but these pointers would apply to any of the Kieran cards in Twilight Masquerade.

When playing the Kieran card, players can choose between either switching their Active Pokemon with a Benched Pokemon or getting a 30 damage buff to Attacks against an opponent’s Pokemon ex or Pokemon V for a turn, before applying Weaknesses and Resistances.

Dual-choice Supporter cards like this one are rare, and they give players plenty of flexibility in a match. This card is one to watch as a competitive player and as a collector, too, as the Ultra Rare and Special Illustration Rare will likely pick up in price drastically.

2. Festival Grounds (149/167)

Twilight Masquerade has a strong festival theme to it, following Kitakami’s lore closely. This particular Trainer card is one of the only Stadiums in the expansion set, and it holds a lot of competitive potential. On top of this, it also holds the potential to be quite annoying.

When the Festival Grounds Stadium is played, any Pokemon with attached Energy recovers from Special Conditions and cannot be affected by Special Conditions.

This Stadium could prove powerful in both the early and late stages of the game, especially if you have a way to move Energy off of your opponent’s Active Pokemon.

3. Handheld Fan (150/167)

Speaking of Energy movement, the Handheld Fan offers great Energy control over the opposing Pokemon. Moving Energy away from an opponent’s Active Pokemon is a solid way to slow down a set-up deck and it can prevent heavy-hitting Attacks, too.

Once a Pokemon has the Handheld Fan Pokemon Tool attached to it and is in the Active Spot, any damage (including a Knock Out) towards it means you can move an Energy card off of the Attacking Pokemon to one of the Benched Pokemon.

Using the Handheld Fan in tandem with a card like Festival Grounds could ensure your opponent’s Active Pokemon ends up essentially stuck on the battlefield – after all, if you remove enough Energy, it won’t be able to pay a Retreat Cost.

4. Jamming Tower (153/167)

Alongside the Festival Grounds card, the Jamming Tower is one of the best Stadium cards in Twilight Masquerade. It has an Ability that feels almost like an ACE SPEC Ability, as it’s immensely powerful and could disrupt a match.

Playing the Jamming Tower card means that Pokemon Tools attached to any Pokemon in the match no longer have any effect. This does affect your own Pokemon, but it’s well worth the play as it can prevent your opponent from using Tools like the Handheld Fan.

5. Ogre’s Mask (159/167)

Twilight Masquerade is a very Ogerpon-heavy expansion set, offering lots of powerful cards themed around the Mask Pokemon.

This card works in perfect synergy with any of the Ogerpon cards in the set, allowing the user to choose any discarded Ogerpon ex cards (e.g. Wellspring Mask Ogerpon ex or Teal Mask Ogerpon ex) and switch them with an Ogerpon ex card currently in play.

This is powerful, allowing for discarded Ogerpons to get a second chance in battle. The revitalized Ogerpon gets to keep any attached cards but also keeps any damage counters or Special Conditions.

6. Lucky Helmet (158/167)

The first version of the Lucky Helmet card can be found in the Ancient Origins expansion set from the Pokemon X & Y era of the game. It’s an older card, but that doesn’t mean that it’s easy to overlook or leave out of your deck.

When a Pokemon with the Lucky Helmet Tool attached is in your Active Spot, a damage condition is in play. When your Pokemon with the Lucky Helmet is damaged by an Attack from your opponent, you can draw 2 cards – even if the Pokemon is Knocked Out.

For decks where you need to find specific cards to set up quickly, Lucky Helmet is an immensely helpful Tool to have on hand. It can allow for speedy evolutions and strategic openers.

7. Bug Catching Set (143/167)

This is a card that we got to see in action during the pre-release events for Twilight Masquerade. This expansion set is quite focused on Grass-types, so the Bug Catching Set Item card comes in very handy during matches.

This handy Item allows you to look at the top 7 cards of your deck, revealing up to 2 of any Grass-type Pokemon or Grass Energy in the process. You can add these into your hand, then you must shuffle the other cards back into your deck.

8. Cook (147/167)

The Cook card is a deceptively simple one, allowing players to heal 70 HP worth of damage from their Active Pokemon. It’s not a particularly new card, originating in the Sword & Shield era of the game a few years ago, but it’s an effective Supporter to have on hand in tricky line-ups.

While Cook won’t be able to mitigate One Hit Knock Outs in the same way that a card like Ogre’s Mask could in theory, it can help to minimize damage output from an opponent relying on Damage Counters and ensure that your Pokemon survives for as long as possible.

9. Hassel (205/167)

Several Pokemon Trainer cards in Twilight Masquerade rely on your Pokemon initially being Knocked Out, and this is one of the best. It’s situational, but it can help you to bounce back quickly if you lose your Active Pokemon.

Assuming your Pokemon was Knocked Out during your opponent’s last turn, playing this card allows you to look at the top 8 cards in your deck, draw 3 of them, and then shuffle the rest back into your deck. Cards with this sort of Ability act as a reset button, which can be useful in tricky matches.

10. Love Ball (156/167)

The Ultra Ball Trainer card is often thought of as one of the best Ball cards in the game, but this Love Ball card is arguably much more useful – especially if you end up playing against an opponent who is using the same Pokemon as you.

The Love Ball card means that you can search your deck for a Pokemon with the same name as one of your opponent’s in-play ‘mons. You then have to reveal it, put it in your hand, and shuffle your deck.

All in all, Twilight Masquerade is looking like it’ll play host to some meta-changing cards. The Trainer cards above are enough on their own to significantly impact current decks, but the addition of the new ACE SPEC cards makes this expansion set one to watch as a competitive player.

For now, make sure to check out the top chase cards from this iconic set. There’s plenty to get excited about as an art collector here too, with some stunning Pokemon and Trainer cards to watch out for, along with some beautiful full art pieces.