Contributors

As a South African, Acreland spends most of his time trying not to be eaten by animals. When he's not evading wildlife, he enjoys playing competitive Pokemon and has done so since 2007.

started playing competitive Pokemon in the VGC 2012 season. He finished 2nd place at 2014 US Nationals, 10th place at 2013 US Nationals, 7th place at the Fall 2013 Ft. Wayne regionals, and 7th at APEX 2014.

Long time VGC player, has beaten Deagle.

referred to as "cakes," is a Foongus-loving, Carly Rae Jepsen obsessed trainer who has been playing VGC since 2010 where he made his debut in Atlanta. After training to be the very best, cakes began to shine in 2012 where he managed to place 2nd at the Virginia Regional and reach the the round of 16 at US Nationals.

is a small town girl living in a competitive pokeworld. What she lacks in height or testosterone she more than makes up for in bone-crushing embraces and gimmicky team building.

a student at Al-Azhar Indonesia, started playing VGC on 2014 and finished 13th at Asia Cup Spring 2014 Tournament.

has been playing VGC since 2010 on Netbattle Supremacy and misses the days that Kyogre was legal. He is working hard to obtain his first World Championships Invitation in the VGC 15 season.

has been playing Pokémon casually until January 2012, but didn't buckle down in it seriously until November. His first competition was Winter Regionals at Lake Buena Vista, and he's only looking forward in the competitive field ready to take on the next challenges.

has been playing VGC since 2010. When he's not overachieving with awful Pokemon teams, he enjoys long walks on the beach and failed attempts to create Pokemon simulators.

is the 2013 Juniors Video Game World Champion. He placed 3rd at both 2011 and 2012 Worlds. He is a five time Regional Champion and finished 2nd at US Nationals in 2011. He will be a senior in the 2014 season. Also officially better than his brother Aaron "Cybertron" Zheng now.

I'm Omari Travis. I've been competing in VGC since its inception, making me one of Pokemon's OGs. I won two Regional Championships in the 2013-14 season and I competed in Worlds in 2010 and 2014. I am mostly known on Nugget Bridge for dishing out nothing but real talk.

has a wealth of knowledge and experience playing Pokémon VGC, most notably placing 9th at Worlds in 2013 and becoming Nugget Bridge Invitational Champion in 2014. He works as an animal ranger, writes as a heavy metal critic and has a degree in Psychology.

is an avid lover of Jigglypuff and all things VGC. He also runs a youtube channel named "bearsfan092drums", which hosts a series of RNG abuse tutorials. He recently won the 2012 Philadelphia Fall Regional for VGC.

started playing in VGC when he went to the 2011 Arlington Regional. After he lost in the first round, he realized he needed work. He found many online forums including Team Magma and Nuggetbridge and started working alongside his good friend Mrbopper. Since his horrid first VGC experience he finished top 20 in the 2012 Texas Regional, before finishing 5-3 at the US National Championships. Starting VGC 2013 off the right way he won the Autumn Regional in Texas, facing fellow magmas in the semi finals and finals. Outside of VGC, he lives in Texas and is on his way to being a four year letterman in soccer. And yes, the rumors have been confirmed, his favorite Pokemon is indeed Scrafty!

Hi

Boomguy has been playing VGC since 2010 despite not being available in his home country in Australia back then. In 2013 he won the Brisbane Regional VGC and in 2014 he has became Australia's first representative in the Nugget Bridge Invitational.

started playing competitive VGC in 2012. He now looks at VGC as not only a competition, but a great way to meet up with friends and meet new people who share the same interests as him. Outside of Pokemon, Mrbopper is studying Mechanical Engineering at Texas Tech Univeristy

started playing competitive Pokemon in April 2011. Since then he has been fortunate enough to compete in numerous official live events, qualifying for Worlds in 2013 and winning four Regionals along the way.

is known for being the Pokemon supplier for a lot of Nugget Bridge users, and has just recently proved she can battle as well by making Top Cut in 2012 Nationals. Although she lost to the eventual Champion, she placed 29th overall.

might be a familiar face to anyone who played in the days of Red and Blue. After taking his leave from Azure Heights during RSE, Cat-Gonk entered the ring again in 2007 and has been part of the West Australian scene ever since.

is a Part-Time Editor for Nugget Bridge. Outside of Pokemon, Chalkey makes his living through running a small homeless shelter in Boston, focusing largely on helping clients search for jobs, apartments, and other charities for various resources. As a writer, he also works for Retroware.

has participated in VGC since 2009 and recently has taken the title of Nation VGC Champion of Canada by winning the VGC Nationals of 2012. He enjoys trying out and discovering new and creative ideas and tries to incorporate them into VGC teams whenever possible instead of using what is considered the standard. Outside of VGC, Tony likes battling at the Battle Subway / Tower. Outside of Pokemon, Tony regularly plays many boardgames that often involve strategy and planning. Outside of games, Tony currently works as a freelance programmer.

is a big fan of Corsola and Olivine City and also co-president of a growing Pokemon community at the University of California San Diego. Long time Pokemon player; his competitive roots have been planted since gen IV, however he has only been playing vgc since the XY era. His motto is "Keep trying, you can only get better!" 8)

started playing VGC off-and-on in 2011, but only really jumped into competitive play starting in 2014. He founded and runs the University of Victoria Pokemon Club and weekly league, and hosts Premier Challenges in Victoria BC. He also writes for the blog http://www.vgcwithhats.com/

is Nugget Bridge's Japanese correspondent. His fluency in English and Japanese helps keep the English-speaking Pokémon community informed about the going-ons in Japan. He is also an accomplished battler placing highly at both the 2012 Ontario Regional and Canadian National tournaments.

Kaw Kaw! Twitter: @CrowVGC

After trying out VGC in 2011, Crys has been fascinated with the format and how to get better and better at it. After finally making Top Cut in the 2014 Virginia Regional, he now has the self confidence to reach out towards other people and attempt to make himself known.

is a five time Worlds qualifier ('08, '11, '12, '13, '14), a three-time Regional Champion, and a two-time National Champion. Aaron also placed 3rd at the 2013 Pokemon World Championships. He is sponsored by CLASH Tournaments and aims to promote competitive VGC through his YouTube channel, CybertronProductions. Aaron is currently a senior at Trinity School NYC.

(Charzaro) is mainly a RNGer, but he got into VGC during VGC 11. He spends his time rnging pokemon and making less than standard VGC teams.

fell in love with double battling after going to Journey Across America in 2006. Dan is the only person in North America who has has made the top cut at Nationals and received an invite to the Pokemon VGC World Championships in 2010, 2011, and 2012 -- and earned paid trips in the latter two years, as well. In real life, Dan is a student at the University of Maryland, College Park where he's dual majoring in Communication and Japanese.

Is a mutt.

Keegan B. has been playing competitive Pokemon since 2010, but started competing in VGC in 2012, and has been improving his swiss records with every event he goes to. When not playing Pokemon, Keegan is a student at the University of Michigan, entrepreneur, and game designer.

, aka Leonard Craft III, is a diehard Pokémon fan who has been involved with competitive battling since 2011. He enjoys hanging out and practicing with the Anistar Aliens (Oreios, Stats, KermitTheFrog14, and tlyee61), making the best EV spreads possible, and glitching the entirety of Generation I. When he's not playing Pokémon, DaWoblefet enjoys playing Quiz Bowl and ping-pong, hanging out with friends, and helping at his church.

Hello, my name is Noah! I am from Austria and I enjoy playing Pokémon VGC. Besides Pokémon I like to watch Anime, boxing and to hang out with my friends. Follow me on Twitter @Kadoya97 ! :D

I started playing Pokemon as a kid with Red and Blue however long ago it was, playing competitively during 5th gen with singles, before finally starting to play VGC format at the beginning of 6th gen. Aside from playing Pokemon I also tend to play a lot of DotA

is relatively new to VGC, with last year being his first. He started out by playing singles and enjoying the 4th Gen UU Metagame before the transition to Black and White. Dillon also previously helped out with Wi-Fi related activities such as trading, but has now made battling his priority. He is also associated with his VGC 2011 Nationals team in which he used Fissure Stunfisk on screens.

has been playing competitive Pokemon for 5 years now. In 2012 he won the Pokemon World Championships in the senior division. He likes chocolate, running, gaming, and coming up with weird ideas about gaming.

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is a British player and Interactive Design student who splits his time between the UK, and the Sunny state of Florida. He's done nothing of note since taking Durant to Worlds in 2011, but still turns up to entertain with a silly accent.

DrDimentio is an Australian VGC player who likes using non-standard movesets and support moves. Since VGC's introduction to Australia in 2013, a Top 4 finish in Adelaide's regionals has been his only notable finish so far.

has been playing Pokémon competitively for longer than a decade. He has participated in the 2009 Pokémon World Championships, also qualified in 2015 and still hopes to eventually make it back into the most important tournament of the year. His all-time favorite Pokémon is Moltres.

Drizzleboy has been playing VGC since 2011. His first success was at 2013 Massachusetts regionals placing 2nd. since then he has made top 4 in both nationals and worlds.

is a producer and editor for Nugget Bridge and a recent graduate of Penn State. A television/pop culture enthusiast and sports connoisseur, Alan started playing VGC competitively after attending Nationals in 2010.

is NuggetBridge's finest playboy

Location: Southern California Occupation: Mental Health Care Giver School: Los Angeles Harbor College Major: Business About Me: I have been a closet pokemon player essentially my whole life. I do not have many friends who care for it. I have lurked here on NB for awhile, reading and learning. I play Showdown! and Battle Spot constantly for practice. Watching poketubers is also a way I picked up many tips and tricks. I am also an avid Arsenal F.C. fan, as well as a fan of cars and racing; mainly Formula 1 and DPGT. I own a 2013 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution which is my pride and joy.

Hi guys my name is Stefan Smigoc or Eekthegeek and I love pokemon! I recently started playing VGC where I got to go to US nationals and compete in the senior division! I got top 8 and now I will be a master next year.

is one of the few dutch Pokémon players playing some VGC via wifi since 2009. Originally starting out as a collector instead of battling, he likes his quirky Pokémon, and poised to get better with VGC battling and hopefully win something.

is the Editor-in-Chief of Nugget Bridge and author of the arts and pop culture blog Preposterous Uncle. From his home in Washington, DC, he ensures that content posted to the site is up to snuff. Evan is known for his strict deadlines and wants you to have your article on his desk by 5.

Otherwise known as feathers, Aryana has been playing VGC since 2009 and now spends all her money traveling to VGC events. She thinks it's pretty swell that she placed 13th in the Winter Wifi and 5th at the Oregon regional. Her hobbies include drawing, video games, and helping local friends learn the basics of VGC. Her favorite pokemon is nidoking and cryogonal is a cutie.

is one of the co-founders of Nugget Bridge and the Community Manager for eSports Tournament Platform Battlefy. He has been playing Pokémon since 1999, competitively since 2007, and attending tournaments since 2010. He lives in Vancouver, Canada with a degree in Interactive Art & Technology + Communications. You can follow him on Twitter at @rushanshekar.

Abel Martín Sanz, better known as flash_mc or just Flash, was the first player in Spain to play VGC. He placed 3rd in the Masters Division at the 2012 Pokémon Video Game World Championships after having placed 2nd in the Swiss rounds the day before with a 5-1 record - the highest of any Spanish player in the Masters Division.

Hi there. My name is Brendan Webb, over wise known as FloristtheBudew. My hobbies range from Pokemon battling in the VGC format, drawing digital art and living on the Nugget Bridge Forum. I decided to no longer continue my engineering degree, with myself pondering my career and what to pursue. For the time being I will just under take adult education courses until something catches my fancy.

Footballfreak99 is a Senior who is looking to make it to Worlds. After winning Kansas Regionals, he has a renewed interest in the game and is hungry for more CP. Outside of Pokemon, he enjoys Academic Team, reading, playing the piano, and listening to EDM.

Gazooki has been playing Pokémon since he got a pirated copy of Gold in Gran Canaria, and never looked back. In 2013 he started taking it seriously and has had moderate success in Swiss-based tournaments. He also just finished doing a Psychology degree, and as such, has a lot of time on his hands.

GENGARboi is always striving to become a better player.

Gilbert is fairly new to the competitive scene of Pokemon, he has been playing Pokemon for years but only in the last year or so has been creating competitive teams for all formats including VGC.

Australian. Currently in High School. Working on making Australia a top country in VGC through good Worlds performances. I also watch some anime. #ToquillCult

gave VGC a shot during Autumn Friendly in '11, fell in love with it and never looked back. World's #1 Stunfisk fan.

Greyson G. first stepped into the competitive scene in 2010 and hasn't looked back since. His most notable accomplishment includes qualifying for Worlds during the 2011 season. While not playing Pokemon, Greyson loves to play the saxophone and draw in his spare time. He's currently a student at Illinois Central College.

Eddie "Guru" Fernandez is a Chemistry major at Queens College who shares a passion for both research and Pokemon battling. After playing competitive Pokemon on the sidelines since Black and White, I decided to step out of the shadows and debut into the official competitive scene with VGC'15. I'm looking forward to attending many events and meeting all sorts of battlers.

is a player from Hong Kong and start playing VGC format from 2014. He is the first representative of Master Category from Hong Kong in the World Championships.

has competed in the VGC series since 2009 when it was first introduced to Europe, qualifying for the World Championships in 2011. Since 2009, he has also been a big influence in the United Kingdom's competitive scene by helping run local tournaments.

While his school may recognize him as a teacher in training, do not be fooled. In reality, Hayden Morrison is the one who does the training- Pokemon training! A competitive battler of three years, Hayden hopes to make a name for himself in the Pokemon community so he can have something to tell his students about...when he finally has his own students, of course.

has been playing Pokemon for years, yet is completely new to the competitive scene. Having made Top Cut at his first Nationals Tournament he aspires to achieve much and more in the years to come.

Chris N., better known as HeroOfTheWinds, is a Masters Division player living in Hawaii who only picked up on VGC in the August of Worlds '12, but has been playing the series since 8 years old. He might not be a big-ticket player now, but he is continually striving to better himself, as evidenced by his placing 26th in North America (269th overall) during the June International Challenge. He enjoys playing games and RPGs on Nintendo.

is a grizzled Pokemon veteran. Having played competitively since RBY, he picked up VGC in 2009 and never looked back. He has played in 3 World Championships (Second only to Ray Rizzo) and has placed in the Top 10 in all 3 while managing to secure Top 8 in 2. He is the only American in the world to have won two Customized Worlds DS'es.

Hi! I'm Oliver Reilly, a VGC player from the UK. I enjoy physics and maths, sport and STOMPING ON PLAYERS ON THE BATTLE SPOT LADDER I'm relatively new to VGC. I won the Pokemon Battle Tournament UK 2014, which has sparked me create this profile.

Eugene is an avid Pokémon player from Singapore and he started competitive battling since Year 2007 and started playing VGC since Year 2011. He is the winner of VGC2012 tournament held at Singapore. Outside of Pokémon, enjoys play other games which includes DotA 2 and fighting games like King of Fighters and Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3.

Isaac is a veteran member of Singapore's growing competitive Pokemon scene, having been an active participant in the community since its roots during the HGSS era. Though he does frequently participate in local grassroots tournaments, finishing Top 8 in two consecutive Elite Four challenges, he now prefers to organize and provide commentary for events to help the community grow.

Jamesspeed1 is a competitive VGC player starting in the 2014 season. He is not afraid to try new pokemon and qualified for the 2014 Senior World Championship using Sawk. He does Lets Plays and competitive battles on his YouTube channel and enjoys streaming when not practicing for pokemon events.

I am known Jhoqk, or Jake HT, and I have been a competitive pokemon player since 2009, I hope to eventually make it to Worlds, and end up competing. I like to use unusual stuff on my teams, and have won several regionals so far (Seniors), and have competed in nationals twice.

started his competitive career in 2010 at that year's Nationals LCQ. He has always been interested in using favorites to win, and has a very unhealthy obsession with confusion moves. When he's not playing Pokémon, he's probably playing Fire Emblem.

began his Pokemon career as a singles player but became interested in VGC after seeing his friends compete in 2011. He managed to be able to attend VGC 2012 events by attending Rhode Island and Philadelphia regionals and US nationals. On IRC he's been able to supply RNG'd pokemon and/or EV spreads to help any member of the community to improve their teams. He is also a very huge fan of Blissey despite the hate she receives and considers it his favorite pokemon.

Nick: JJK★ / JJK13P★ Soy Eeveemaniaco XD, vivo en México y mi versión favorita es Pokémon Gold!!!

is currently 18 and a freshman at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Known for living in Arkansas, he spends his time eating food with his fingers and saying "y'all" and "ain't".

kamikaze17 has been playing VGC for nearly 2 years since he saw the 2013 VGC World Championships. He is mainly involved in the International Collegiate Pokémon Association (ICPA), growing the VGC scene on the college front.

Kelly is a Irish residing Canadian who has been playing VGC since 2013. He first attended a live event at UK nationals 2014, finishing amongst the top 4. Enjoying creating different teams with a mix of standard and niche Pokemon, Kelly works hard at keeping his Pokemon skill level up with the other top European players. Give him a Follow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/KellsterCartier

A Dutch Pokémon trainer, made it top 8 at my first tournament. I like to use weird stuff. Played Pokémon from the beginning and still love to play, fight and breed. When I am not playing games I like to paint, draw and calligraphy. And when I am not doing all above I study at an Art School in the Netherlands where I study Graphic Design.

Pokemon player since 2011. Has gotten 3 top 4 placements in Regionals for the 2013 Season (2nd Salt Lake City 3rd San Jose 4th Long Beach) Just won the Pleasanton, CA regional, so my regional resume for Seniors is complete. I always want to have fun playing pokemon and am looking forward to succeeding in VGC.

Gavin has been playing VGC since 2011, with notable finishes including Top 8 at Worlds 2012 and 1st at 2013 US Nationals. He also keeps track of everyone's championship points in a format that isn't horrible to navigate. He will be attending the University of Southern California in the fall.

Genius, playboy, philanthropist. Kinneas has been playing competitive Pokémon since before people on the internet even cared. He qualified for the 2010 World Championships after placing 2nd at the UK Nationals, and it doesn't matter how he did at Worlds that year, so don't ask, okay?!

is a battle hardened Pokemon trainer who has Pokemon origins that date back to 1996, as a young boy playing the original Fire on his now ancient 8-bit Game Boy. He started playing competitively in VGC events on June 15, 2009 in Nashville, Tennessee and has attended events annually ever since. He enjoys attending VGC events with his brother and other friends.

is a relatively new competitive player. He joined Nugget Bridge this year with high goals of doing well at big league tournaments in the future. When not devising new strategies and playing online, Kortex enjoys activities such as basketball, biking, swimming, drawing and parkour. His favorite Pokemon is Tyranitar.

Lajo plays competitive since 2012 and is known for using underused Pokémon. He loves to use Trick Room and his favorite Pokémon is Scrafty.

Started playing VGC with the 2011 season, and fell in love. Formerly a singles exclusive, he has made VGC his main tier and will never look back. Although he has never been to an official event yet, he hopes to go soon!

hails from the (usually) sunny island of Singapore. Although his Pokémon skills are currently mediocre at best, he hopes to one day compete in the Pokémon World Championships.

Competitive Pokemon player since 2010. Started VGC early 2014 and have been in love with doubles ever since. Alex is going to school to be an Electrical Engineer. While he should be studying, he spends most of the time playing Pokemon and Zelda.

LightCore is a 15 year old Master who is looking to go all the way. I have had a pretty pathetic past but I think that the Masters Division is my time to shine. I constantly try to balance practice with my swimming practice and Boy Scouts. I'm currently going for my Eagle rank and are working on my Eagle Scout Service Project

@miyukihimeVGC

started playing competitive Pokemon in 2011 and returned in 2014 after taking two years off. When not playing Pokemon, he studies Computer Science at the University of Central Florida. Go Knights! You can follow him on Twitter @LovetrainVGC

Playing VGC since 2009, Aaron Grubbs is a seasonal player who is mainly up and down. Ever since he took a disqualification in 2009, he never looked back. He has had many accomplishments in the junior and senior categories including an excellent 7th place finish at the 2010 Pokemon World Championships, top cut USA nationals in 2010, 2012, 2013, two regional wins, and two worlds invites. He is finally in the masters division and is trying to earn his third invite to be one of those guys with a worlds invite in all three age divisions.

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started playing in VGC tournaments in 2009, but had his breakout success in 2011 at the World Championships. He qualified via the Last Chance Qualifier and finished 19th in the main event. He then went on to secure a 1st place finish at the Fort Wayne Regional Championships 3 months later. Outside of Pokemon, Luke attends school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison majoring in Philosophy. He enjoys playing other competitive video games such as League of Legends as well as single player games, and also plays physical games such as Magic: the Gathering and Chess. Regardless of the activity, Luke is highly competitive and always strives to be the best.

has been playing VGC since 2010. Although he's done well in online venues such as the Global Battle Union and ShoddyBattle, he's still honing his skills in Regional VGC events. When he's not playing Pokémon, he's trying to get out of Georgia Tech.

MajorBowman started playing VGC in late 2013 after stumbling across the live stream of the 2013 World Championships and instantly falling in love with the format. Now he travels to events whenever and wherever he can, while also playing in just about every online tournament imaginable. Notable accomplishments include winning the Season 4 Nugget Bridge Major and qualifying for the World Championships in 2015.

started playing VGC in 2008 and has been an advocate for VGC play since then. With three Regional Championship victories and multiple other high placings, makiri is a seasoned competitor ready to impart knowledge of the game to others.

has been providing Pokemon for VGC players since 2010. While he has only gone to two VGC events, he hopes to be more active in the battling community in upcoming years.

started playing VGC at the end of 2008. He enjoys reading the Bible, shooting guns, and voting for Republicans.

better known as Matty, is an an italian Pokémon trainer that started playing VGC in 2011, ranking 2nd in both Italian Nationals and World Championships. Already qualified for Worlds, in the 2012 season he finished 15th, ending with a 3-3 record.

Mean has been playing VGC competitively since the late 2012 with the 2013 being his first season. He then topcutted in all the (two) nationals he attended earning an invite for the Worlds held in Vancouver, where he becomes the first European World Champion.

A relatively new VGC player that has an insatiable desire to learn new things all the time. Is still pretty much an unknown nobody to the community as a whole, but seeks to make a place for his name one day. One day.

Is a VGC player in Singapore. His favourite pokemon is Sylveon and mega is Mega Salamence. Best finishes to date: Top 8 VGC 17 Malaysia Open Outside Pokemon, he enjoys football (Manchester United is his favourite club) and he's a process engineer at MSD a.k.a Merck and Co. in US/Canada.

has represented his country internationally in athletics several times. When not busy training for the Olympics, he likes to train Pokemon, drink tea, and read history books.

I am a competitive Pokemon player from Minnesota. I officially started playing competitively in the VGC format in the spring of 2014 and never looked back. Although I am new to the format, I have been playing Pokemon my entire life in one format or the other.

has been playing Pokemon since 1998, shortly after the release of Red/Blue. He has played casually as a breeder until recently, when he became interested in VGC. Unable to participate in the 2014 season, he has instead competed in the online friendlies, placing 1st in the USA in the Fairy Face-Off.

Jonathan Hiller has been really playing competitive Pokemon since 2011, although he attended an event in 2010 with his in-game team and died round two. He's currently in the seniors age division, and is home schooled, a Christian, and plays other games as well.

Started playing competitively in late 2014 after watching Sejun Park defeating Jeudy in Pokemon World Championships 2014. One could say I have made some great progress along the way. Aiming to become a Pokemon Master someday. When I'm not playing Pokemon, I spent my day playing Yugioh and doing arts.

is a purveyor of all types of jazz. His first event was the massive Philadelphia regional in the spring of 2012, placing 17th out of a huge crowd in the Seniors Division. The only event he has attended so far in the Masters Division was the Ft. Wayne regional in the fall of last year, where he placed 34th. He is entering his second year in the Masters division.

The prince of #imoutos

My name is Jan Doek and am currently living in Limburg, The Netherlands. Got back into playing Pokémon when they announced Charizard X and have been playing ever since. Now I spend most of my time making teams and testing them.

Hi , I'm James Tarbuck one of the old guys that plays Pokemon. I like video games, mainly Pokemon and Street Fighter. I have been playing competitively since 2014, so I am not the greatest player but I am improving my skills all the time.

Nofil Nadeem "Oryx" is a novice competitive Pokemon player with middling finishes at the 2012 and 2013 Toronto Regionals. When he's not playing Pokemon, he's an avid reader, actor, swimmer and Management student at the University of Toronto. Isn't Sylveon the best!?!

is a UK based Pokémon player, achieving 3 World Championship invitations since 2010. Obtaining two invites from placing 3rd at the UK Nationals in 2010 & 2013 and the other after finishing 26th in the European CP Rankings during the 2014 season which was followed by a 7th Place finish at that years World Championships in Washington D.C.

Hi, my name is Pat Ball. I write songs, go running, and play pokemon. I love Golden Retrievers and my favorite pokemon are Shuckle, Raikou, Lucario, Cobalion, Landorus, Mew, and Laporas. While I can't brag about my performance at Regionals, I can say that I am a Premier Challenge Master, being the first to reach the best finish limit with two straight victories. Hi :3

British competitive Pokemon player since 2006-7, playing VGC seriously since 2014. Way too old for this.

Sejun is the 2014 Pokémon World Champion. He is also Korea's 2011, 2013, and 2014 National Champion. Additionally he has two Top 8 finishes in the Masters division at Worlds and a 2nd place finish in the Senior division.

Polecat is a relatively new player to VGC, placing 5th in his first appearance at 2012 Philadelphia Senior Regionals using Guard Split Shuckle and Chansey and top cutting at 2014 U.S. Nationals with Poliwrath and Electrode. His favorite pokemon is Slakoth and favorite move is Rest.

BIRD UP

has been playing VGC since 2011 and has been heavily involved with his local Pokémon community, PokéMelbourne, since its inception. He has a degree in anthropology, and when he's not playing Pokémon, Prof Teak is teaching first year university students how to write essays and not be racist.

I started reading up on competitive battling in 2013 after I couldn't beat Ray in the PWT. I became addicted to the competitive scene in Feb 2014 when I found showdown and Nugget Bridge

started playing competitive VGC in February 2014, and has played ever since. When he's not playing Pokemon, Qertyk enjoys collecting trading cards, watching sitcoms, playing Baseball, and being an all-round Cool Cat.

R Inanimate is a long time participant in official Pokemon Tournaments, first attending the 2005 Battle in Seattle Tournament. Known for using teams that are a bit off from the standard, and not using RNG'd Pokemon. Avid Battle Frontier fan. Worlds 2013 competitor, known for running Togekiss and Mold Breaker Excadrill.

"The girl" of Team Michigan. Been playing since 2009, only starting to attend events regularly in 2014, and starting to actually take it seriously in 2015-2016. Follow me on Twitter @RandomVGC

VGC Player since '11 Founder of TheCROC and Trainer Valley, both communities to play and promote VGC in Costa Rica. I'm a Software Developer, Casual Chess Player, Ex-TCG Player, and of course a Pokemon Fan since 12 years old. Best achievement yet to be found...

is the three-time Pokemon Video Game World Champion, having won the most prestigious title in competitive Pokemon three straight years: 2010, 2011, and 2012.

Runner athlete and new competitive Sm4sher, Red Striker's competitive fires have had a lock-on with the Pokemon VGC since Nov. 2011. His path began when he took 3rd at Salem's Regionals, which led to a Top Cut at Nationals 2012 (Weather Ball Raikou ftw). Since then, consistency seems to favor him more-so than actually making it into the World Championships. Proud member of Team Magma.

a pokemon player of old, has been an avid VGC player since the days of Hoenn! Since then he has become an advocate for Pokémon within Australia, and helps to run tournaments within his own state. Never one to keep knowledge to himself, he is here impart what he knows onto the next generation of Pokémon world champions.

Pokemon Competitive Battler Since 2011, but went into VGC since 2013. One of the mastermind in making an Indonesian VGC Community and forum http://pkmn-id.com Right now he is more into building the Community rather than polishing his Battling Skills. But he still has a dream to win the Nationals in his home Country, Indonesia where there would be one some time soon enough.

Been playing VGC since 2014, Singles since 2012, and Pokemon ever since Yellow! n_n Follow me on Twitter @SamVGC!

also known as DrFidget, works at a hospital and despite this, is not actually a doctor. He finished in the top 32 at his first event, the 2009 National Championships, and recently attended his first regional taking 7th at Ft Wayne in 2012. Beyond just playing Pokémon, he also hosts, produces, and edits the VGC centered podcast The Lava Pool.

Formly Sapphire Birch, MikotoMisaka has been playing VGC since 2008 and is known mostly for playing Pokemon TCG. Outside of Pokemon MikotoMisaka is a big competitive Smash Bros player and is sponsored by ClashTournaments.

started playing VGC in 2011. He finished 17th at US Nationals, then lost in the final round of 2011 Worlds LCQ. He finished 10th in the 2012 World Championships and qualified for Worlds again in 2013 after going into US Nationals second in CP. Instead of playing, he commentated at US Nationals and the World Championships in 2013 and 2014. Follow him on Twitter @NBNostrom!

A VGC player from Taiwan, a small country located in east Asia. Trying to develop competitive VGC community in Taiwan, so that one day Taiwanese players can compete with other great players from all over the world on the stage of world championship.

I started out playing smogon doubles when XY first came out but picked up VGC a few months later because the idea of real life tournaments interested me a lot!

has played Pokemon since the release of the original Red and Blue games but has played at a casual level until 2010 where he earned his first invite to Nationals. In 2012, Simon conquered the Nationals LCQ and earned a Top 4 spot in Nationals to win his first invite to the World Championships. He is also the "father" of our beloved Aaron and Brendan Zheng and is frequently referred to as Papa Zheng.

is a senior-division VGC player who has played in the official format since the fall of 2013, however only began to see real success this past season, becoming a two-time regional champion securing his worlds invite. He hopes to continue performing well this season. He also loves food and traveling.

has been playing competitive Pokemon since 2009, but was mostly a singles player until relatively recently. Oliver has been attending the Southern Regional for 3 years, landing in the top 10 each time, and recently, to his astonishment, cinched 2nd place at the 2013 regional. When he isn't building more teams then he can use, he benchwarms in his 4th season on high school JV Hockey and procrastinates on college applications.

started playing competitive Pokémon in 2007. He dreams of competing in the World Championship and wants to find the best VGC team. He also likes to spread love wherever he goes.

is a competitive Video Game player since 2010; co-founded "The Mirage Island" Pokemon Community in Singapore. Soon has been organizing Pokemon Video Game Tournament Since 2010. He has been promoted to be official PTO for TCG since 2012 and both Pokemon Video Game/TCG PTO from 2015.

Sprocket hails from Phoenix, a warm desert city in the southwestern United States. He has been playing VGC since 2012

squirtwo is a long time TCG player from Salt Lake City, UT. Since he turned 18, he has also been trying his hand at Judging the TCG up to a regional level. He started getting into VG when X and Y came out, quickly catching on to the new format. squirtwo enjoys using quirky strategies, whether they are popular or not. Especially Trick Room and Gravity. Outside of Pokemon he is a student at the University of Utah, where he is studying physics, music, and Japanese.

Ansel Blume was first enraptured by competitive VGC after watching a replay of the finals match of the 2012 World Championships. Ever since the beginning of his competitive career, he was fascinated by EV spreads and wanted to understand the logic behind them. When he's not playing Pokemon, Ansel can be found playing baseball and break dancing.

SuperIntegration is a relatively new UK VGC player. He played in Season 2 in the NPA in only his first VGC season, prior to making the top 32 of UK Nationals in 2014.

History major that enjoys watching speed runs, Melee, and Street Fighter on Twitch.

started competing in the Pokemon Video Game Championship in 2010. He is a Houston Regional Champion and will be moving into the Masters division in 2014.

Tan is the current manager of the Celestic Stars and a member of the Boiler Room. Being around the VGC scene since 2009, Tan hasn't gotten the headlining success as his friends, but loves the game anyways. Other than playing Pokemon and advertising coffee products, Tan studies bioengineering in Santa Clara University.

is a VGC player hailing from the tropical island of Singapore. Previously involved mostly in translating Japanese VGC blog articles for the rest of the world, organising official VGC events and friendlies with other countries for Singapore has come to be his primary role.

Tapin played the hell out of Blue and then Yellow on his yellow Game Boy Color when they first came out, and then didn't think much about Pokémon at all until his nine-year-old daughter came home from school one day asking questions about Scraggy and Ponyta. He's currently the eighth-best Pokédad in his TCG league.

Team Rocket Elite is a Pokemon game mechanics researcher from Canada who has been playing since 1997. If you want to know about the past or an obscure game scenario, he may be able to help you out.

Zack started playing VGC in 2010 without any knowledge of IVs and only a basic knowledge of EVs. Besides VGC, Zack is a homeschooled Freshman in high school, a Christian, and enjoys playing other games such as Chess, Dominion, and the Fire Emblem series.

is a washed up has-been who purchased Pokémon Blue the day it came out in 1998. In 2000 he helped maintain and run the Internet's first online battle simulator. He won't stop talking about it.

He began playing VGC in the 2012 under advice of his friends and never turned back. He made the top 8 of Italian Nationals in 2013 and top 4 the following year.

Thage is a professional gamer and who played the first few generations of Pokémon games. After a lengthy break, he got back into Pokémon with B/W 2 and started playing VGC with X/Y. He hopes to use what he's learned playing other games to bring VGC players up to the next level.

also known as TheZeroVirus, is an up and coming player who got his first taste of VGC play in 2011. Tired of entering tournaments with a casual attitude, Alex joined Team Magma and buckled down to get his act together. When he's not playing Pokemon, he enjoys climbing terrain and handing out bags of Starburst to the students of Camp Hill Sr. High School.

played Pokemon trivia in a pool with Ian Garvey once, and that may have been the highlight of their career in this infernal game. Apart from that, they are a part time tea shop manager, a part time microbiology student, and a part time blogger.

Ryan G. has been playing Pokemon competitively since 2011. He placed decently in 2013 Regionals and Nationals, and recently finished 15th in the top cut of Virginia Regionals. He is currently attending University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

has been playing VGC since 2010 and has been a fan of Pokemon for quite a long time. Recently, he has attended the 2013 Autumn Regionals in San Jose, CA, earning a second place finish there. He has gone to a Regional every year. Although he hasn't placed very well in them, he still enjoys playing the game and socializing with other members of the community.

is a programmer and RNG researcher. He is the author of EonTimer and has contributed to RNG Reporter among other things.

Brandon Ikin started playing VGC in the 2013 season, where he placed 11th at UK Nationals in the Senior division. Since then he's been performing well in the UK's underground grassroots scene.

Pokémon Blue was his first game and he never stop playing Pokémon ever since. He Discovered the VGC meta when Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver came out and never stop dreaming of one day becoming the very best ever since. Loves to use unique teams and loves to troll.

is a Graphic Designer based in Mexico City. He loves Pokémon since his childhood and recently started playing competitively for meeting people and getting free stuff. In his free time, when he is not working or playing videogames he would probably be playing soccer.

Hi! I'm Aaron "Unreality" Traylor and I love short walks on the beach and making lots and lots of friends. Following mild success in the Seniors division in 2011, I quickly lost all steam upon entering Masters and have done slightly well since. Now I am a moderator on Nugget Bridge! Hooray!

VibeZ (Differentology on Showdown) has been playing VGC since 2013. Aside from playing Pokemon, he is studying Biology in college, is a 2nd degree black belt, and claims to be the #1 Trini Pokemon player.

is a mexican player that found his love for Pokémon in his early years. He got into semi-competitive gaming with gen IV games but it wasn't until the release of gen VI that he started attending to local events with relative success.

Churros for Breakfast, Churros for Lunch, Churros for Dinner. Anyway My Name is Jonathan Melendez, I'm a Senior, I guess, I Top Cut Athens, so does that make me cool?

A player of the games since the inception of the franchise, Werford only really got into the competitive scene late in the 2012 season. Since then, he's top cut two Regionals and a Premiere Challenge. A player more known for his terrible hockey pun nicknames, will he go on to even greater success in the future?

is the 2x US National Champion and the only person to ever hold the title in the Masters division. He has top cut both World Championships he has played in hitting a top 8 finish in his inaugural year in 2011 and making a finals appearance in 2012.

aka Nigel Gower started playing the VGC format in late 2013 following the release of Pokemon X and Y. Since then, his unusual style has seen him become a solid player within the community, culminating in an impressive NPA Season 3 run with the Mistralton Jets.

Xenoblade Hero first appeared on the Pokemon scene at VGC '12. From there, he's been consistently practising and team building to become the trainer he is today. Xeno is also a rhythm-action game fanatic, eagerly awaiting Rock Band 4. He also studies video game design at University.

Zekira Drake has played various Singles 6v6 Formats of different communities since 2005. Recently started studying VGC during the middle of VGC2014. Self-proclaimed hugest Absol fan.

Daniel Rivera aka Zlatant it's a somewhat clumsy mexican player who's trying to make himself a name in the VGC Circuit meanwhile works and dream about getting a Worlds Invitee.

A veteran tournament player, Daniel "Zog" Nolan is proud of his no-nonsense attitude and silly sense of humour. When he's actually doing work, Zog likes to hide toy snakes in the wilderness (and other decidedly more lab-based activities) in the name of scientific progress. Follow on Instagram at dan_z_nolan and Twitter @Zoggykins!

is currently a 1st year master reigning from Australia. His most notable achievement would be winning his home town regional 2 years in a row and winning a Nationals in 2015. In his down time you will likely find him Skyping other Australian seniors or doing Martial Arts 2 times a week