Canada Day: Canadian Nationals Top 8 Report
After creating this team sometime around late February, I was highly impressed with how it worked for me and how it fared in best of 3 situations against high class opponents. I used this team for the Regionals, took first place, and decided not to change my team for the Nationals. Knowing the risks, since I would end up facing some people who knew my team, I was still quite confident in the combination of my team’s strength and my own prediction skill to be able to pull off a win.
The Team
I’ve been a big user of Rain teams since the beginning of the VGC 2012 metagame. The initial team I made was based off of a Battle Subway team I had made that had reached 828 wins at the time. My VGC Rain team started with a Politoed, Ludicolo, Kingdra, Gastrodon, Arcanine, and Zapdos and slowly changed to what I have now. IVs are stated, since the Pokémon I ran on my team do not have flawless IVs.
Politoed (F) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Drizzle
IVs: 31/11/20/31/31/31
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
– Surf
– Ice Beam
– Perish Song
– Hypnosis
The Politoed I use in my Rain teams have always held a Choice Scarf. Although it isn’t the easiest Pokémon to run on a team, I’ve used a Choice Scarf Politoed for a few thousand battles, when you include the Battle Subway, so it is a Pokémon that I’m very comfortable using. Surf and Ice Beam are no brainers, Rain-boosted Surfs hit for respectable damage against both opponents, while Ice Beam helps cover Grass- and Dragon-type Pokémon. Politoed often ends up being a mid or late game Pokémon for me, unless I don’t see any weather changers on the opponent’s team — then it may make an early entrance to provide me with the weather advantage. Perish Song and Hypnosis may seem like strange choices for a Scarfer, but I found myself never using any damaging attacks aside from Surf and Ice Beam, so I went with Hypnosis as a desperation move, and Perish Song as a late game Cresselia killer. Unfortunately for me, Hypnosis had an accuracy of about 20% or so when I used a Scarfed Politoed in the most recent Wi-Fi tourney, so I’m not exactly keen to use it. But when it hits, it can completely flip a losing battle.
Ludicolo (M) @ Absorb Bulb
Trait: Swift Swim
IVs: 30/23/31/31/31/31
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
– Fake Out
– Giga Drain
– Surf
– Ice Beam
There really isn’t much to say about Ludicolo here. It is the only member of my team that hasn’t had any change at all throughout the entire VGC season. Timid is to outspeed and Fake Out Hitmontops before they can move, allowing my partner to finish them off, since I found that the team often operates outside of the rain. Absorb Bulb powers up Ludicolo when it is hit by a Water-type attack. While it doesn’t activate too often for me, having an Abosrb Bulb has really bailed me out of tough spots on many occasions.
Metagross @ Psychic Gem
Trait: Clear Body
IVs: 31/31/27/01/30/19
EVs: 244 HP / 116 Atk / 4 Def / 144 SDef
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
– Meteor Mash
– Zen Headbutt
– Bullet Punch
– Protect
Ever since 2010, I’ve been running a Metagross with Special Defensive bulk. It was originally supposed to be used to guarantee taking a Modest Palkia’s Fire Blast, non-Life Orb’d. Too bad when it was put to the test, the one Palkia that Fire Blasted it got a critical hit. Fast forward to 2012, I found the extra bulk to be especially useful in allowing Metagross to have a high chance at taking 2 STAB Thunderbolts, 2 Zapdos Heat Waves, or Rain-boosted Life Orb Hydro Pump from Ludicolo, while still having a decent chance at taking out Latios with a Meteor Mash followed by Bullet Punch. Much like the accuracy of its moves, none of these are guarantees, and yet somehow it always felt like it held out when I depended on it. Psychic Gem Zen Headbutt was primarily to give the team an Amoonguss killer while still dealing decent amounts of damage to many common Pokemon. Being a Steel-type, and my only Pokemon with any priority moves, Metagross played a pivotal role on the team, covering weakened opponents and being an excellent switching option for the rest of my team.
Gastrodon (F) @ Rindo Berry ***Kerykeion
Trait: Storm Drain
IVs: 31/20/31/28/31/00
EVs: 116 HP / 92 Def / 232 SAtk / 68 SDef
Quiet Nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
– Surf
– Earth Power
– Ice Beam
– Protect
It’s an offensive Gastrodon and my Anti-Trick Room Pokémon. Storm Drain is very useful to the rest of the team, redirecting water away from Metagross and Volcarona, and getting powered up by Ludicolo and Politoed. The EV spread is slightly better than simply going for 252 HP defensively. Since Gastrodon outslows a number of Pokémon under Trick Room and can hit decently hard after getting a Storm Drain boost or two, it can allow me to keep up some pressure against opponents during Trick Room. My usual usage of Gastrodon often involves having it on reserve and switching it in on an opponent Water-type move or one of my own Surfs. Due to being a bit too balanced in it’s role, I found it a bit tough at times to determine when I wanted to be bringing Gastrodon to a battle.
Salamence (F) @ Dragon Gem
Trait: Intimidate
IVs: 23/19/31/31/31/31
EVs: 4 HP / 4 Def / 244 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
– Draco Meteor
– Heat Wave
– Dragon Pulse
– Protect
This is the simple Dragon Gem Salamence that I’ve been using on teams since the November regionals, which I think has gained some of popularity over time. I have Dragon Pulse over Hydro Pump since I wanted a move that had 100% accuracy on Salamence’s moveset, even though I have a Drizzle Politoed on this team. Its ability to OHKO many different Pokémon with Dragon Gem Draco Meteors, along with its Intimidate, is very handy, especially when I have two different émon that can intercept opponent Fake Outs. Salamence was epsecially important for one of this team’s Cresselia killing measures, which I will talk about with my next and last Pokémon.
Volcarona (F) @ Bug Gem
Trait: Flame Body
IVs: 31/xx/26/31/31/29
EVs: 244 HP / 48 Def / 120 SAtk / 68 SDef / 28 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
– Bug Buzz
– Heat Wave
– Rage Powder
– Protect
This is probably the most unique Pokémon on this team. Like my original VGC rain team, I have a Fire-type on this team as well. It’s a Specially Defensive Volcarona. The EVs allow it to outpace Modest Ludicolo by 1 outside of the rain and survive a Gem Draco Meteor from Latios when at full HP. It also has a high chance at surviving a Garchomp’s Rock Slide even without Salamece’s Intimidate Support, provided two Pokémon are on the field. Due to it’s bulk, it can use Rage Powder to decent results and shines through when diverenting away Grass- and Ice-type moves. The Bug Gem causes Volcarona’s Bug Buzz to do tremendous damage to non-Ghost Trick Room users such as Reuniclus and Cresselia. It can also OHKO 252/0 Tyranitar if I cancel out the Sand by sending out Politoed. One big feature is that between Salamence and Volcarona, they can KO a Cresselia in one attack round with a high chance of success. Gem Dragon Pulse, followed by a Gem Bug Buzz has a 70% chance to KO Cresselia in the worst case scenario of 252/252 Calm, and bypasses the Sitrus Berry that it may hold. This catches a ton of people off guard, as Cresselia would normally be expected to stand tall when it’s at full HP, often leading to the opponent simply collapsing from the loss of Cress’s support.
The team as a whole fits very well with my own personal playing style. It had a lot of ways to surprise opponents, punishing people hard for being too standard and predictable, but was still flexible enough to handle just about any situation, provided I was on my game. Although I consider the team a Rain Team, it does most of its work outside of its weather, while forcing people to bring their own answers to the Rain. If you aren’t familiar with the team, it can also be hard to read my moves, since I like switching a lot, and will use Surf quite liberally. I think the Pokemon that scares me the most for this team would be Sableye with Sunny Day and Dry Skin Jynx.
The Matches
Rounds 1 & 2 were Byes, due to my 1st Place finish in the Surrey, BC Regionals.
Round 3 is where things start for real for me.
Round 3 – Griffin Pelletier
Opponent: Cresselia, Hariyama, Escavalier, Crawdaunt, Xatu, Rhyperior
R Inanimate: Salamence, Ludicolo, Gastrodon, Volcarona
My opponent ran a Trick Room team based on the Team Preview, so I went with Salamence and Ludicolo as leads, with Gastrodon and Volcarona, expecting him to bring Cresselia and Hariyama as his leads. His leads meet my expectations.
Since I know that I won’t be able to stop his Trick Room from going off I try to plan ahead. I decide to intentionally trade Fake Outs on turn 1 instead of going for a Draco Meteor on Hariyama like I normally would. Hariyama activates a Flame Orb. I then switch out Salamence for Gastrodon and Surf with Ludicolo. This does about 30% to Hariyama who goes for a Rock Slide, dealing a small amount to Gastrodon, and about 30% to Ludicolo. I proceed to Earth Power Hariyama, which KOs it. Cresselia sets up Light Screen, and Ludicolo Surfs again, rising Gastrodon to +2.
4-3
Griffin sends out Escavalier. This is a bit bad, since Escavalier will be faster than Gastrodon in the Trick Room. However, I manage to keep ahead of the game. I switch out Ludicolo for Salamence, cutting Escavalier’s attack. And just in time too, as Cresselia goes for a Helping Hand to boost Megahorn against Gastrodon, who survives at about 30HP, and retaliates with an Earth Power on Escavalier for 60% or so. I switch Salamence back for Ludicolo, and Protect with Gastrodon. Escavalier attacks Gastrodon and is blocked, while Cresselia uses Psychic on Ludicolo putting it at about 40%.
There is one turn remaining in Trick Room, so I Fake Out Escavalier, and go for a Surf. Escavalier Protects to block the Fake Out, and Cresselia does something, though I can’t quite remember what it does. Trick Room ends, and I go for a Double Surf on the next turn. He goes for the attack with Cresselia, taking out Gastrodon, allowing Escavalier to move and finish off Ludicolo.
2-3
I send out my remaining two Pokemon, Volcarona and Salamence. I go for the Bug Buzz and Heat Wave, taking out his front line. I then hope that his last Pokemon isn’t Rhyperior.
2-1
His last Pokemon is Crawdaunt, and it is taken out by a Gem Dragon Pulse. After the battle a person hack checks me, and I’m clear.
Record 3-0
Round 4 – Ren Zhu (crobert)
Opponent: Cresselia, Hitmontop, Metagross, Hydreigon, Politoed, Kingdra
R Inanimate: Salamence, Volcarona, Metagross, Ludicolo
My next opponent is crobert, who I noted also had byes since his name is right below mine on the roster. His team looked quite interesting on first glance, which I read as being some sort of Rain team. Since I was concerned about Cresselia, I lead with my Volcarona and Salamence, and had Metagross and Ludicolo in the back. I was thinking of bringing Gastrodon but ended up deciding against it. I think that was probably a mistake in the end.
He leads with Cresselia and Hitmontop which I didn’t find very threatening at the time. I double protect, and he Trick Rooms. Thinking “what’s the worst he can do to me?” I decide to go on the attack, knowing that Cresselia could potentially KO Salamence with Ice Beam. He goes for a Swagger on Hitmontop which I’m thinking, “that’s okay, wait… not it isn’t”, as I remember that Hitmontop can sometimes run Rock Slide. Naturally, it does just that, KOing Volcarona and doing about 2/3s of Salamence’s HP. I do get a critical hit Gem Dragon Pulse to keep me in the game a bit though.
3-4
I send out Metagross. crobert goes for a Helping Hand Close Combat on Metagross, leaving it at about 14HP, and I counter back by KOing Hitmontop with Zen Headbutt, while Cresselia barely survives Salamence’s Dragon Pulse.
3-3
crobert sends out his own Metagross. I am somewhat worried about Bullet Punch but still decide that the best thing I can do is keep up the offensive pressure. I KO his Cresselia with Bullet Punch, and he takes out my Metagross with Hammer Arm. Salamence’s Heat Wave does about 2/3s of his Metagross’s HP, since it was the only remaining target.
2-2
crobert sends out Hydreigon, and I send out Ludicolo. I had a bit of a feeling that the Hydreigion would be scarfed, and thus my Salamence can outrun it during the final Trick Room turn. So I could either Fake Out Metagross, and attack Hydreigon, or Protect with Salamence, and Fake Out Hydreigion to burn the last turn of Trick Room. I decided to go with the latter. The Hydreigon was Scarfed.
0-2
Record 3-1
Round 5 – Gordon Coates (The198)
Opponent: Cresselia, Zapdos, Latios, Tyranitar, Metagross, Hitmontop
R Inanimate: Salamence, Volcarona, Metagross, Politoed
My Round 5 opponent was Gordon Coates, who was one of the remaining undefeated players. It wasn’t a name I recognized, but I did recognize the trainer name of THE198 from playing on the SkarmBliss server. There is always a possibility I didn’t fight The198, and it was just a person who happened to have the name, like the many Ben700x, and MSankeys around, but I’ll just assume it was him. His team looked pretty standard looking, and I lead off once again with Volcarona and Salamence, while having Metagross and Politoed in the back. First turn I double target and KO his Cresselia… or that’s what was supposed to happen had we not started our match early.
There was was a re-pairing and some of the matches were changed, but not all. Mine wasn’t changed, but since the move timer continued on while we were confused of the situation, some turn timers ended resulting in the CPU choosing moves. In the end we agreed to restart the battle, and choose different Pokémon if we wanted to. Well, at least we didn’t have to restart the battle twice like the person beside me.
Opponent: Cresselia, Latios, Zapdos, Tyranitar, Metagross, Hitmontop
R Inanimate: Salamence, Volcarona, Metagross, Politoed
I decided not to change my selection, but my opponent switched from Cresselia and Zapdos to Cresselia and Latios. Our first turn was him using a Gem Meteor on a switched in Metagross, while I burn my Gem Bug Buzz on a switched in Zapdos. The following turn, he Protects Latios and Heat Waves with Zapdos, dropping Metagross into the red, and doing a bit of damage to Volcarona. Zapdos is taken out by a Heat Wave followed by a Zen Headbutt.
4-3
Since Metagross is crippled I expected it to go down this turn, so I threw a Bullet Punch at Latios along with a Bug Buzz. Gordon uses Helping Hand to boost a -2 Draco Meteor against my Volcarona leaving it at about 50HP before Latios goes down.
4-2
Tyranitar is sent out. I do not know it’s item, and I want to keep something alive as I plan to finish the battle using Perish Song. I throw another Bullet Punch, which ends up being a Critical Hit on Tyranitar for about 70% of its HP. Tyranitar Rock Slides and KOs Metagross while Volcarona uses Protect.
3-2
I send Politoed out. I switch out Volcarona for Salamence for Intimidate Support, and use Perish Song, expecting his Tyranitar to Protect. Instead, my Politoed is hit with Thunder Wave, then hit by a critical hit Rock Slide, that ends up KOing it. Perish Count 3.
2-2
I’m a bit freaked out now, since there is now a good chance that I may have screwed myself over. I double Protect to burn a turn. Perish Count 2. His Cresselia goes for Icy Wind while Tyranitar Rock Slides again. I then proceed to attack and KO Tyranitar, and though I haven’t yet seen him use it, hoped he didn’t use Psychic on my Volcarona. He uses Icy Wind, which fails to KO either of my Pokemon. Perish Count 1.
2-1
The match is over at this point as I then Protect with Volcarona. Perish Count 0.
1-0
Record 4-1
Round 6 – Sean Wen
Opponent: Hitmontop, Scizor, Thundurus, Breloom, Volcarona, Terrakion
R Inanimate: Politoed, Ludicolo, Gastrodon, Salamence
I managed not to be paired with anyone I know well. Sean defeated my brother a few rounds back. I gave some thought on what I could do to beat his team. And… for some reason I thought that leading with a Politoed and Ludicolo, the same as my brother, was a good idea. Especially after he went and commented on how my team looked familiar.
To be honest there was a possibility that leading with Politoed and Ludicolo would cost me dearly, but luck hax was on my side in this match to an insulting degree. I critical hit Surf to KO his Scizor on the first turn, after switching for Gastrodon. This is followed by Gastrodon getting a Critical hit Surf on the Thundurus he sends out after,
4-1
He sends out a Breloom, which gets to get a useless critical hit Seed Bomb on a half HP Gastrodon, and my paralyzed Salamence finishes the battle with a Gem Dragon Pulse.
3-0
Record 5-1.
Due to my byes, I end up 3rd place, and end up facing 6th: Chinese Dood.
Top 8 – Tony (Chinese Dood)
Game 1
Opponent: Gyarados, Latias, Rotom-W, Heatran, Hitmontop, Hydreigon
R Inanimate: Salamence, Volcarona, Gastrodon, Politoed
Of all opponents that I could fight, he was probably the one that I was most worried about facing against. This is due to me running the same team as I did in the Regionals, and the fact that I faced him in said Regionals.
I can’t get a particularly good read on what his team was going to do. Although I know that his Rotom-W would have Hidden Power Grass, I felt that Gastrodon would still be helpful in the battle. In the end, I settled for Volcarona and Salamence leading with Gastrodon and Politoed in the back for my first battle. Tony leads with Gyarados and Latias.
I wasn’t too sure what to expect, so I went for a switch with Salamence to Gastrodon to try to redirect Gyarados’s attack, and went for a Bug Buzz on Latias. Tony, however, reads my opening move perfectly, using Sub to block my Bug Buzz and pulling off a surprise Stone Edge to OHKO my Volcarona.
3-4
I’m put in a pretty bad position right from the start. I decide to send out Politoed, and go for Surfs to boost my Gastrodon. Tony swaps Latias for Rotom-W, and Thunder Waves my Politoed with Gyarados as Gastrodon uses Ice Beam on Rotom. Tony gets a Critical Hit HP Grass against my Gastrodon on the following turn, severely crippling my chances at victory, so from there I try to play turns with the intent of getting some more information about his team. I manage to take out Rotom-W, and I think Gyarados as well.
0-2
0W-1L
Game 2
Opponent: Gyarados, Hydreigon, Rotom-W, Latias, Hitmontop, Heatran
R Inanimate: Politoed, Ludicolo, Gastrodon, Metagross
I decide to go full Rain, using Politoed and Ludicolo, with Metagross and Gastrodon in the back. Tony leads with Hydreigon and Gyarados. I go for a Fake Out on Gyarados, which is blocked by Protect, and Hydreigion uses Hidden Power on Politoed for about 60% while Politoed fires back with an Ice Beam for roughly half. I swap out Politoed for Gastrodon, and use Surf. Hydreigon retreats for Rotom-W, and Gyarados hits Gastrodon for a small amount with Stone Edge. I go for a double Surf this turn, doing a large amount of damage to both Gyarados and Rotom-W. Rotom-W hits Gastrodon with Hidden Power Grass for about 45% due to the Rindo Berry, while Gyarados hits Ludicolo with Thunder Wave. Noting that Tony can only KO one of my Pokemon for this turn, I continue to use Surf. He double targets and KOs Ludicolo, but Gastrodon defeats both of his Pokemon with +2 Rain Surf.
3-2
Tony sends out Latias and Hydreigon, while I send Metagross. Hydreigon finishes off Gastrodon with Dragon Pulse while Latias uses Substitute. Metagross KOs Hydreigon with a Meteor Mash.
2-1
I send out Politoed. Ice Beam breaks Sub, and Dragon Pulse KOs Politoed, Meteor Mash then connects, and a Bullet Punch wins me the battle.
1-0
1W-1L
Game 3
One more battle decides who moves on.
Opponent: Latias, Rotom-W, Hydreigon, Gyarados, Hitmontop, Heatran
R Inanimate: Salamence, Metagross, Gastrodon, Politoed
In this battle, I decide to bring Salamence again, since I felt it would be useful against Tony’s Rotom-W. I lead with Metagross and Salamence, while he leads with Rotom-W and Latias. In the first game, his Latias opened with Substitute, which would let Salamece attack, so I decided to go on the offense and use Zen Headbutt and Draco Meteor on Rotom-W. Before finalizing my move, I hesitated. I came to the conclusion that there was no way that he would do the same opening move twice, and that he would attack me this turn. And yet, despite my reasoning, despite knowing that I shouldn’t play such a risky opening turn I go for it anyways.
All the warning signs were there, and I ran myself off the cliff. Latias uses Dragon Pulse and KOs my Salamence. To make things worse, Zen Headbutt misses.
3-4
I’m at a severe disadvantage, and I only have one option now. I send out Politoed and go for the desperation move: Hypnosis. As I’ve stated earlier, Hypnosis has been failing for me for quite a while now, and it fails me once again. Hypnosis misses, Latias uses Recover, probably predicting an Ice Beam, and Rotom-W Thunderbolts Politoed, who survives with 6HP. Gem Zen Headbutt does about 80% and activates a Sitrus Berry. Hypnosis misses again, and that seals the deal, as Politoed is taken out. Rotom is defeated by a second Zen Headbutt, but it’s too late for a turn around.
2-3
Tony sends out Hydreigon, and I send out my Gastrodon. I protect with Metagross, expecting an attack towards it, but instead he double targets my Gastrodon, where I find that Hydreigon runs Hidden Power Grass.
1-3
Metagross is pretty much screwed here. Tony switches one of his Pokemon for Gyarados, and finishes it with Aqua Tail.
0-3
1W-2L
Final Ranking: 6th Place
Results
I had pretty much lost the match on Turn 3, so the remainder of the match gave me time to accept my loss. I congratulated Tony and joined the others who were standing on the side spectating. Since Tony and Skarm made the finals and Tony won, I can say that “I did my best, I have no regrets!”. With this, my 2012 season has come to an end, barring one last Wi-Fi tourney. I’ve had a lot of fun at the events this season, and feel like I’ve come a long way as a trainer. Good luck to those going to the Worlds, and hopefully I can continue battling strong in the future. See you next season.
About the Author
R Inanimate 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.
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