Reports

Published on May 11th, 2015 | by Red Striker

20

No Brakes From Here! A 10th Place Oregon Regionals Report

Yo, the name’s Josh Krieger, though most people online know me as Red Striker. I’ve been around since Nov. 2011 and, over time, have been trying to step up my game. The 2012 and 2013 seasons were good to me (28th at Nationals 2012, 9th at San Jose Regionals 2013, and 10th at Salem Regionals 2013), but when VGC 2014 came about, it just didn’t feel quite right.

After failing to launch, I decided to take a break from VGC and was itching to swing back in 2015. I got good experience at the Oregon Winter Regional tournament and knew what I needed to do to catch up after my break. I was determined to make 2015 a revival year for me.

Looking back at my past successful teams, I knew I needed to pinpoint certain aspects of what I’d done well before and adapt it to the new metagame. Like any consistent TCG deck, the successful components of my teams often had a clear objective. In 2012, my Nationals team of Raikou / Scizor / Staraptor / Cresselia / Rhyperior / Politoed worked in part because I was sick and tired of seeing weather everywhere (ironic, ain’t it?).

With VGC 2015 being rather nascent, the only thing to really counter was the metagame itself.

Team Background

My team building process involved testing a few teams similar to the final product. Eventually, I ran out of time and made my final team decision out of sheer desperation.

My first real VGC 2015 team. In testing, it was determined to be a far better Singles team than anything else. Still, it served as a precursor to future teams.

The first true rough draft of my final team. I remember testing this team only briefly before I realized major flaws here and there, notably in the survivability department.

Here we go, one of my final drafts. Truthfully, I intended to bring this version to Regionals, but it never happened because nobody responded to my Terrakion trade requests. I had a month left before Regionals and decided to make a contingency plan. In retrospect, it’s probably better that I never brought this team, as I would discover a number of problem match ups in later testing.

I decided to change to Blaziken because my team lacked a good way to deal with Mega Kangashkahn. I wasn’t overly confident about replacement options for Terrakion. My good friend Stormfront suggested Blaziken and I saw how it performed elsewhere, solidifying its place on the team.

Eventually, Blaziken would raise to MVP status, proving more than worthy of usage. My change from Rotom-Mow to Mega Venusaur stems from needing a good way to handle Sylveon, a popular threat. Additionally, I wasn’t keen on using both Zapdos and a Rotom forme on a team and Mega Venusaur had better overall bulk anyways.

Drawing only from my in-game supply of Pokemon, I had started to build my team. I didn’t have time to waste breeding and I obviously wasn’t getting a Terrakion anytime soon. While browsing my PC, I knew I didn’t want to make the same mistake twice of having two Water-types on a team with no way to combat their common threats. This turned out not to be an issue, as I didn’t have the Starmie I wanted anyways.

Looking at what was popular in the metagame—Terrakion, Sylveon, Gengar, etc.—Scizor felt like a good replacement for Starmie. I also knew I needed more Rock coverage to threaten common Pokemon. Thinking Choice Specs Tyranitar could replace Terrakion, I tested it in my team up until the night before Regionals, but I felt like something was off and wasn’t confident in it…

… until I found the assistance of KillerOrcas, who helped shrug away any uncertainties. After pinpointing my weak matchups in Charizard-Y, Mega Metagross, and (to some extent) Mega Kangaskhan, my change to Krookodile came almost too late. I have absolutely no regrets adding Krookodile. Many games were saved by this decision.

The Team

Venusaur @ Venusaurite *** ♣Measure♣91♣
Ability: Chlorophyll → Thick Fat
EVs: 204 HP / 100 Def / 36 SpA / 164 SpD / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
– Giga Drain
– Sludge Bomb
– Protect
– Sleep Powder

Nickname reference: See Oregon’s recently passed measures.

• Survives neutral 252 Tough Claws Zen Headbutt from Mega Metagross 100% of the time
• Survives Adamant 252 Life Orb Brave Bird from Talonflame ~94% of the time
• Survives neutral 252 Life Orb Psychic from Latios 100% of the time
• No notable offensive calculations

On Battle Spot I noticed a heavy influx of Suicune and Milotic usage. I found it kind of surprising when I considered usage in previous formats (though Competitive didn’t exist back then). On top of Suicune and Milotic, we had our usual suspects of Rotom-Wash, Swampert, and an occasional Gastrodon.

Sure, Zapdos could neutralize Suicune and Milotic, but Hidden Power Ice doesn’t tend to go far when facing a Swampert or Gastrodon. Rotom-Wash or Mow? Duplicate Electric-types have never flown well with me. Virizion? No way, my matchups against things like Talonflame would only be worse. With nothing else in my PC Box being viable, Mega Venusaur stood as my last, and best hope against some of the metagame’s aforementioned threats.

Venusaur oftentimes ended up in coming from the back unless I felt confident in being able to Sleep Powder my opponent’s setup Pokemon (typically Trick Room). During most of my matches, I was stuck between a demon wall and the pale doors of defeat, but Venusaur brought back the match into my favor, turning fatal 2-4 and early 3-4 situations into 2-0 and 3-0 victories.

In round seven against Chalkey Horenstein (Chalkey), my Blaziken—which would’ve been helpful against his Zapdos—went down early unexpectedly, leaving me with a Venusaur/Gyarados/Scizor core. Midway through, Venusaur’s efforts took down Zapdos through a mix of Sleep Powder, Sludge Bomb, and various partner attacks, which ultimately secured victory.

My set was pretty typical. I initially questioned using Giga Drain over Energy Ball but, in the end, offense wasn’t essential and I couldn’t pass up on the recovery option. For those of you saying, “Sleep Powder is inconsistent. Why not use Leech Seed? Or Safeguard? Or Toxic? Or anything other than Sleep Powder?” Geez, calm down. Sleep Powder misses suck, I know that. If my team’s functionality allowed for Venusaur to sit a lot longer than it normally did, I would’ve gone for a different move.

Besides, it’s VGC 2015, not 2014. If Sleep Powder misses, it’s not game over and I can easily bounce back to recover momentum. I considered Leech Seed, but I didn’t see myself using it a lot. I understand that it pressures opponents to switch out, granting me free damage in the meantime, but my preferred kind of offense doesn’t offer too many opportunities for Leech Seed.

I wanted to focus my spread on having absolute bulk, taking inspiration from a friend of mine. Despite the metagame being young at the time, I still knew what attacks I needed to survive. During the tournament, however, I didn’t encounter any Mega Metagross, but apparently it was seen by a fair number of my friends.

I’m not sure why I never went back to calculate for Talonflame’s Life Orb Brave Bird. Had I done so, I would have found out that just another eight Defense EVs would allow Mega Venusaur to survive the attack 100% of the time. Despite my extra Special Defense helping out against various Cresselia, Gardevoir, and Rushan Shakar’s (Firestorm) +2 Ice Beam from Gastrodon in round one, I still question EVing against the uncommon Latios. Were I not rushed to complete the team, I might’ve changed my investments around (for example, more Speed EVs to take advantage of Gyarados’ Icy Wind). Still, I’m fairly satisfied with this Venusaur’s spread overall.  

Zapdos @ Expert Belt
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 112 Def / 140 SpA / 4 Spe
IVs: 30 Def
Modest Nature
– Thunderbolt
– Hidden Power [Ice]
– Roost
– Tailwind

• Survives neutral 252 Life Orb Stone Edge from Landorus-T 100% of the time
• Can OHKO nearly any Mega Salamence, Landorus-T, or Garchomp running just over regular 4 HP / 0 SpD bulk
• Can 2HKO 252 HP / 4 SpD Thundurus-I 100% of the time with Hidden Power
• Outspeeds neutral 252 Speed Scarf Terrakion under Tailwind

I’m loving what Zapdos does in this format and consider it the second most important member in my team’s functionality as well as a threat to common metagame sightings. Your standard Mega Charizard-Y? Consider it gone after Feint damage from Scizor (most Charizard Protect after going Mega. Weird). Talonflame being a pest? First off, that’s nothing new. Secondly, Zapdos couldn’t care less after one Thunderbolt. Oh, Mega Salamence and Landorus-T standing in your way? No problem. If one looks closely, they can spell out “Hidden Power Ice Bait” by rearranging the letters in their names.

More often than not, Zapdos was a leading Pokemon, and not just for Tailwind. Many other opposing leads are either weak to one of Zapdos’ moves or can be put into KO range with neutral damage from Thunderbolt. Because of its versatility, Zapdos ended up being my Fake Out bait. A lot of people ended up targeting it on Turn One, allowing me to switch into a bulkier Pokemon from the back if desired. When I did setup Tailwind, my party was a force to be reckoned with, especially Venusaur. Comebacks made with Venusaur were usually only possible because of Tailwind. An extra one or two turns are all you need to catch up sometimes.

I didn’t do anything special for Zapdos’ set. Heat Wave and Roost are fairly common, but my team had no use for Heat Wave. I wanted Zapdos to have a bulky offense role, making Roost essential. In practice, I noticed how people typically predict Heat Wave and respond with Wide Guard. Fire coverage would have been nice, but surprising opponents with one of the other moves was better in my experience. Ice coverage was more important than fire coverage and, when combined with Thunderbolt, gave Zapdos unresisted offense.

Now, I sometimes struggle with non-Choiced bulky offensive sets, so I turned to my friend Stormfront for help yet again and he suggested running the above spread. I consider Expert Belt to be an underrated item, especially on Zapdos, as it can hit a huge list of Pokemon for super-effective damage. Most calcs don’t factor in Expert Belt, giving my Zapdos a surprise factor.

On top of possibly feigning a pair of Choice Specs, Mega Salamence, non-Yache Berry Landorus, 92 HP / 4 SpD Charizard Y, and other Pokemon EVed to survive a typical Thunderbolt or Hidden Power [Ice] from Zapdos find themselves suddenly down a Pokemon. My Life Orb was taken by Blaziken and Life Orb recoil didn’t fit in with the bulky offense mentality. At the same time, my desire to use Tailwind and Roost prevented me from using Choice Specs.

At the end of the day, had Blaziken not shone like it did, Zapdos could’ve easily taken my MVP slot. I’m sure you noticed how it stayed in every team variation that I tested, including the very first team I made at the start of VGC 2015. I am under the strong impression that Zapdos’ pliability to a plethora of situations cannot be replicated by any other contender for its role on my team.

Gyarados @ Sitrus Berry *** BrooklynRAGE
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 244 HP / 20 Atk / 4 Def / 28 SpD / 212 Spe
IVs: 30 SpA
Jolly Nature
– Waterfall
– Icy Wind
– Protect
– Taunt

Can’t beat my- can’t beat my, no they can’t beat my Brooklyn Rage~!

• Outspeeds Jolly max Speed Smeargle
• Lots and lots of bulk

In the first serious version of the Regionals team, I originally had Gyarados as a filler since I wasn’t sure what to put for my last slot. When I started making adjustments to the team, however, I knew Gyarados had earned its place. Between team synergy and Intimidate support, I had no reason to choose another Water-type, especially since none could pull off fast attacks while providing teammate support like Gyarados. Although Gyarados did not directly countered any specific metagame threat, being able to put your opponent at -1 Attack and Speed hurts more than one might think.

Gyarados, paired alongside Zapdos, Venusaur, Blaziken, or Krookodile made for an excellent lead. In practice and at Regionals, Zapdos / Gyarados had to have been my most common lead pairing. Remember when I said Zapdos was Fake Out bait? With Gyarados as its partner, I usually switched to a more favorable matchup while Gyarados used Icy Wind, thus making my new switch-in faster than what was on the field.

If Zapdos didn’t switch, it was still taking reduced Physical damage and setting up a Tailwind or putting Pokemon into KO range with Thunderbolt. Venusaur paired with Gyarados’ almost as often. Opponent’s weren’t able to hit Venusaur too hard after an Intimate (and it was already specially defensive!). Icy Wind, unlike Thunder Wave, provided speed control without leaving a status condition that would prevent Sleep Powder. Gyarados / Krookodile lead-outs sported the classic double Intimidate..

I think Icy Wind caught a lot of people off-guard. There’s a pretty good reason I’m running it over Thunder Wave, aside the one I mentioned above. In a Gyarados / Blaziken vs. Mega Salamence scenario, my opponent would typically predict a Protect from Blaziken and put me at a disadvantage by setting up Dragon Dance. Icy Wind negates their Speed increase while also allowing Hidden Power [Ice] from Blaziken to OHKO 100% of the time. Similarly, unsuspecting Landorus-T would U-Turn into a Protect only to be OHKO’d next turn.

Taunt was used maybe once or twice through the tournament. Trick Room didn’t make an appearance after round one, where the setter had Oblivious, so I didn’t use Taunt. Cresselia wasn’t very popular at the tournament either. Despite the usage shortfall, Taunt did matter a lot in the few instances I did use it. I used Waterfall over Aqua Tail because I preferred accuracy over power. Knowing RNGsus, I would’ve missed Aqua Tail every time. Besides, RNGsus has also been known to lend an ear to flinch rate abusers, so why not?

Regarding the spread…I have no clue what it does beyond outspeeding 252 +Speed Smeargle by one point. I snipped it from Demitrios Kaguras’ (kingdjk) VGC 2014 NorCal team (found here). As it was intended for Mega Gyarados, I knew I was probably going to need to make small edits. After much practice, however, I decided to “not fix what isn’t broken,” and I didn’t regret it. Running 244 HP / 12 SpD / 252 Spe would’ve done almost the same thing on top of outspeeding all max Speed Base 80s such as Dragonite, Mamoswine, etc. Luckily, none of the possible max Speed Base 80s showed up.

There’s no special reason for having 30 SpA IVs. I wanted to ensure Icy Wind did the most possible, so 20-31 in SpA IV was desired.

Krookodile @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
– Earthquake
– Knock Off
– Stone Edge
– Superpower

• Outspeeds 252 +Speed Landorus

Krookodile was incredibly important to the team, I can’t imagine my team functioning too well without it. Unsurprisingly, Terrakion saw an uprise in usage right before the event which, on top of my other qualms with Tyranitar, gave me all the more reason to stick with Krookodile. Choice Scarf Knock Off from anything can be downright annoying, if not powerful.

Being able to cripple Pokemon that relied on items, such as Scarf Landorus-T, really put the pressure on my opponents. They could either stay in to be KO’d or switch out and risk losing another item. Some players don’t Mega evolve immediately to keep their opponents guessing, but Knock Off would clue me into this plan immediately. Nice Garchomp nerd, I sure hope you didn’t need that Lum—oh look, it’s a Mega-in-hiding. Totally called it.

Krookodile’s flexibility was were handy in Team Preview, as I could lead with it or keep it in the back. Dual Intimidate gave me a huge advantage in momentum while keep Krookodile in the back allowed for revenge KOs. Krookodile’s set is straightforward, which was honestly all I needed.

I debated on using Adamant Nature but, in the end, I opted for Jolly to outspeed the possible Jolly Scarf Landorus. Well over 50% Landorus faced ran a Scarf before Regionals, so even if they were Jolly instead of Adamant, Krookodile could easily be the bane of their existence with Intimidate and Knock Off (though I’ll admit that U-Turn still hurts!). Jolly also outspeeds all Scarf Base 80s, something that was more common in previous years.

Superpower isn’t enough to OHKO Mamoswine by itself (83 – 98%), but that’s perfectly fine as any chip damage gives me a 50% chance to finish them off, assuming they run 0 HP / 0 Def. To those saying, “Dude, if they’re a Mega Pokemon or they don’t have an item, Knock Off won’t be doing much. Why not use Crunch?”, I agree that it’s a valid question, but being able to scarf Knock Off consumable items like Sitrus and resist Berries was invaluable. I quickly learned to play my cards right so that these items are not consumed before Krookodile hits the field. I just gotta play it cool and then BAM! Trap Card. Gg no re. Shadow Realm for you, sucker. *Maliciously stares at Sitrus Berry Cresselia and Zapdos*

Superpower and Stone Edge are fairly self-explanatory. Like I mentioned earlier, I needed more Rock-type offensive coverage. Between Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, and Rock Slide, I might as well have only had one option. I didn’t need any more Speed control, so Rock Tomb was a no. Rock Slide’s damage output would’ve been absolutely terrible even with Adamant Nature. Despite what I said about Waterfall, I don’t believe in relying on constant flinches either, putting Rock Slide in the same boat as Rock Tomb. Superpower was needed against Mega Kangaskhan.

Blaziken @ Life Orb *** GOTTAGOFAST
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 52 Atk / 204 SpA / 252 Spe
IVs: 30 HP / 30 Def
Naive Nature
– Overheat
– Superpower
– Protect
– Hidden Power

Go, go, go, go, go, go!
Gotta go fast, gotta go fast,
Gotta go faster, faster, fasterfasterfaster!

• OHKOs 4 HP / 4 SpD Mega Salamence 100% of the time with Hidden Power [Ice].
• OHKOs up to 252 HP / 52 Def Heatran 100% of the time with Superpower.
• Outspeeds Timid max Speed Mega Sceptile after a +1 Speed boost.
• IVs are the most optimal for a mixed set.

Ladies and gentlemen, people of all ages, the time has finally come! The true master of faster, the “over” in “Overheat,” “overkill,” and “game over,” the OG Fire / Fighting-type himself, Blaziken is here to stay. Striking down the meta where it stands. Metagross, Landorus-T, Kangashkahn, Terrakion—pah, send them back home, son. Blaziken will have none of ’em, for this is his era and his alone.

You know, until a Talonflame shows up.

I’m proud to say that Blaziken was the crown jewel of a team for once. When Speed Boost was released in 2012, I always felt there was potential. I tried running a set in 2013, but it didn’t pull through (although I was running a fully physical set). Now in 2015, Blaziken does so well against most of the meta, it’s almost scary. Nobody really runs Jolly Scarf Landorus-T, which meant any Landorus-T not running an Assault Vest, Focus Sash, or Yache Berry stood forfeit to Blaziken’s surprise Hidden Power Ice. I never bothered to calculate for Garchomp because Landorus-T dropped Garchomp usage so much.

OHKOing 4 HP / 4 SpD Mega Salamence meant I could OHKO anything I needed to. I originally ran Double Kick over Superpower for Focus Sash Bisharp and Smeargle. After encountering many Life Orb Bisharp and failing to do more than 32% to a typical Milotic quickly changed my mind. For the record, 52 Attack EVs guarantees 252 HP / 0 Def Smeargle is OHKOed by a -1 Double Kick.

With Wide Guard finding itself on a fair number of Pokemon and lacking an effective way to remove opposing Pokemon in one fell swoop, I chose Overheat over Heat Wave as the fire STAB. Flamethrower still lacked the power I wanted and Fire Blast’s 85% Accuracy was unreliable. Essentially being forced to switch out after an attack drop made my team’s functionality shift for the better. As opposed to getting greedy with power and Speed, I preserved Blaziken longer than I probably would’ve with Fire Blast or Flamethrower.

Blaziken proved itself versatile as a lead or switch-in option. Zapdos / Blaziken was my most offensive lead, though Gyarados / Blaziken and Scizor / Blaziken were also threatening in their own ways. When times got rough, Venusaur’s Sleep Powder gave Blaziken enough time to pick up Speed Boosts safely, allowing me to better manage Scarf revenge hitter in my opponent’s reserves. In fact, when Blaziken stayed in back, it was essentially a revenge hitter/sweeper. Overall, Blaziken paired well with any member of the team and could go toe-to-toe with a great deal of common Pokemon.

Typically with my teams, I have a sort of “niche Mon.” Sometimes it’s something completely out of the ordinary and sometimes it’s a standard Pokemon running a set most people would consider weird. In my experience, Blaziken almost falls into both categories. It was kind of common, but most Blaziken were running a Mega Stone and a fully physical set at Regionals. I personally disliked these variants due to Intimidate Pokemon running rampant and a lower damage output compared to Life Orb variants.

Aside from Krookodile, I knew I needed another answer to Mega Kangaskhan, which meant more Fighting coverage. I also needed to maintain Fire coverage and there were only two viable Fire / Fighting types to consider (sorry, Emboar!). I like Infernape and all, but I didn’t want to rely on Focus Sash and speed tying against all three Musketeers. When Blaziken hits the inevitable +1 Speed mark, Infernape becomes rather outclassed for what I needed in my team. Welcome to my team, Red Sanic.

Scizor @ Lum Berry *** RStriker
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 172 Atk / 84 Spe
Adamant Nature
– Bullet Punch
– Bug Bite
– Protect
– Feint

Does “Green Striker” really ring to you? Yeah, I didn’t think so, either. Besides, green is the color of the Illuminati. Trust no one using a green Scizor.

• Outspeeds neutral 0 Speed Base 75 Pokemon.
• Outspeeds 252 +Spe. Talonflame under Tailwind.
• Maximum bulk over max offense means Scizor is able to do more for extended periods of time.

Well well, my very own in-game personification returns. I’m glad to have him back, as I haven’t used a Scizor in competition since Nationals 2012. When I scouring my PC Box for Pokemon, I didn’t have many Steel-types to choose from. I knew I needed Steel coverage, as well as a way to hit Cresselia. Aegislash didn’t feel quite right. Aegislash also lacked priority, lacked concurrent bulk and offense, added more team weaknesses than necessary, and slowed down the team’s functionality whenever it changed Formes.

Scizor was also versatile in the front and back. I’ve noticed a lot more people opting to Protect at least one of their Pokemon during turn one. This made sense to me, seeing as how some Mega Pokemon had a higher base speed stat than their default forme. Scizor allowed me to take advantage of this by using Feint on Turn One. After breaking an opponent’s guard, the possibilities were endless. I could fire off a Sleep Power from Venusaur, Icy Wind from Gyarados for speed control, or pick up a KO with Zapdos or Blaziken (I never led Krookodile with Scizor).

If it was coming in from the back, Scizor was a great revenge hitter / sweeper, depending on the remaining health of my opponent’s Pokemon. Brave Bird from Jolly Talonflame and Extreme Speed from Arcanine, neither of which could OHKO Scizor, were some of the few moves that could outspeed Scizor’s Bullet Punch under Tailwind.

The combination of Lum Berry and Bullet Punch / Bug Bite made Scizor an excellent answer to Gengar, Amoonguss, and Breloom, as most people probably expect Life Orb. The extra turn provided by Lum Berry puts my opponents in bad positions, allowing me ample time to KO the offending Pokemon.

I’d like to give the genius behind move design at Game Freak some props for creating Bug Bite. Lum and Sitrus Berries appear to be scattered on nearly every team I encounter. On top of 2HKOing most neutral targets, removing berries let Scizor’s partners secure the KO that turn and allowed Venusaur to Sleep Powder freely. Without a method to handle these berries, I can imagine my matches not going too smoothly; Suicune and Cresselia being among those I care nothing for.

I’d also like to give a big thanks to the designer behind Feint’s creation. There were moments where I was just short of the KO and wasn’t sure if my opponent would Protect or Quick Guard, anticipating Bullet Punch. Psych, Feint for the KO! I’m not going to lie, I found it pretty satisfying.

As for the spread, I never bothered to re-EV Scizor due to my time crunch. I used Scizor’s spread back in VGC 2014 to outspeed neutral uninvested Klefki, Mega Banette, and Mega Scizor, leting me win the priority war. Today, I use it more for plus neutral uninvested Base 70s and any Pokemon EV’d just above them (Politoed, Ludicolo, Breloom, Bisharp, Mega Swampert, etc.). The bulk is appreciated against any Pokemon I don’t outspeed. I’m not certain if I would’ve changed Scizor’s spread even if I had time. 252 HP / 252 Attack Scizor doesn’t feel right for my team.

Scizor feels like another one of those Pokemon that I couldn’t have replaced. My other option for a Bug / Steel type was Escavalier. Not only would I have to breed one, but it lacks priority and is too slow to take advantage of Tailwind. Every other viable Steel-type added weaknesses I didn’t want. Metagame-wise, Scizor was perfect, hitting the popular Fairies hard before they can hit him. With Terrakion’s rising sage, Scizor’s utility in the team increased. Of course, Terrakion and Fairies aren’t the only threats, but I feel they’re the most significant in terms of what Scizor can deal with effectively.

At the End of the Day…

Unfortunately, outside of what I mentioned in my report earlier, I can’t remember too many details from my matches. Sorry!

Winter Regionals felt more and more like a learning experience throughout the course of the day. An entire year had passed since I attended any major premier event. This meant that some of my old tendencies, in and out of battle, still lingered. Don’t get me wrong, not all of them were bad, but I will list some of my learnings below. Hopefully, you can learn from them like I did!

Take your time and think!

Before pairings for round three, I heard a parent tell their kid to “take their time and think”. I never bothered to remind myself to do that and, though the comment was obviously not directed to me, I took what they said to heart. Even when you have less than 15 seconds left to input your moves, don’t start worrying and choke yourself up. I’ve done just that in practice and other events. Sometimes just a few extra seconds is all you need to clear your mind and put the match in your favor. Make every second you have count.

If you lose, reflect, but don’t overdo it.

I reminded myself of this prior to the event. In round three, I was playing from behind early on and lost the game due to a sub-optimal play:

Their side: 49% HP Mega Kangaskhan, 100% HP Conkeldurr
Their reserves: 100% HP Talonflame, 100% HP Milotic
My side: 1% HP Scizor, 80% HP Zapdos
My reserves: 77% HP Gyarados

My opponent sent in Mega Kangaskhan as a switch-in the turn before to take a Thunderbolt in place of Milotic, putting Scizor at risk of a Fake Out KO. I over predicted and got ballsy, leaving Scizor and Zapdos in and attacking. Fake Out seemed too obvious and Scizor could only dent Kangaskhan with Bug Bite, leaving Conkeldurr open to KO with Mach Punch, which was what I predicted.

Instead, they Fake Out Scizor for a KO and Ice Punch my Zapdos for game. The play to make would’ve been to send in Gyarados to take the -1 Attack Ice Punch for Zapdos and Protect Scizor. After that match, I made sure to analytically reflect without taking it too personally. I knew myself well enough that overdoing would affect my performance in future rounds.

(I probably could’ve chosen my Pokemon better, too. Round three usually isn’t my strong suit for some reason.)

Side note: in relation to round three, if you’re that guy who blurts out what your opponent has [move/item/etc.] on their Pokemon at a premier event mid-battle out of shock or whatever the reason, please stop. No, really. Anyone sitting near you could end up being a future opponent. Don’t be that guy.

Finally, don’t psych yourself out!

Ask anyone what Terrakion’s item is typically. What will they say? Lum Berry. What would I have said prior to round six? Lum Berry. During round six? Focus Sash. Without a reason to believe my opponent’s Terrakion had Sash, I clung to the idea, choking myself out of a win in in latter turns. I remember vividly:

Their side: 100% HP Terrakion, 100% HP Mega Charizard Y
Their reserves: none
My side: 70% HP Blaziken (+2 Spe.), 65% HP Mega Venusaur (Paralyzed)
My reserves: 67%-ish HP Zapdos

I deliberately played around Terrakion in early turns, since I knew I had more than enough to deal with it. At this moment, I was poised to land the KO with Blaziken’s Superpower.

Only, I don’t. Instead, I Overheat Charizard. I got in over 50% damage, so there’s something I guess.

Even now I don’t know why I did that. Perhaps I thought there was an offshoot chance of Terrakion Protecting for Heat Wave to do damage followed by a Heat Wave / Rock Slide combo later, but Protecting would’ve been futile as Terrakion would still go down on the following turn. It should’ve occurred to me that Blaziken was the biggest threat. A Paralyzed Venusaur at half health against Charizard-Y / Terrakion was not a large threat.

If I had taken out Terrakion, Zapdos would be able to win out with Venusaur there to make Heat Wave a double-targeted attack. Even if Terrakion had a Focus Sash, my chances to win were still favorable after Superpower. Venusaur could Sleep Powder Charizard the same turn I lost Blaziken to Close Combat, leaving me in a still-favorable position. Long story short, I eventually lose Zapdos after KOing Charizard and Venusaur goes down a couple of turns later after a Full Paralysis. After the match, my opponent even revealed that he had a Lum Berry on Terrakion.

My point is, the outcome would’ve been significantly different if I wasn’t scared of things that weren’t there. Remembering Focus Sash Terrakion being common at some point in 2013, I got myself locked up inside the wrong metagame mindset somehow and paid for it dearly. Suspect something? Ask yourself why. If you can’t provide a valid answer based on evidence, it’s probably best to not get worked up about it.

Conclusion

6-2 and a 10th place finish after a year of hardly any activity? I ain’t overly upset by it. Like I said: I needed to learn or reflect on a few things. At the end of the day, if what I take with me can be used elsewhere, who am I to reject it? No brakes—or Johns—for me!

Also, shoutouts to my fellow Northwest Magmas and my Oregon crew. Thanks for making the tournament what it was. It felt great to be back at an event.

About the Author

Red Striker 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.

Related Posts

Memoirs of a World Champion: by 2015 World Champion SHADEviera →

The Other Fire Doge: A Top 8 Lancaster Report →

Blazing Forward! A Malaysian Regionals 2nd Place Report →

Top 4, Top 4, We’ve Never Used This Team Before →