Tuesday 26 September 2017

Update #2

I think I'm done with my PFA Season 5 report transfer. The last two reports have nothing to do with my team or teambuilding method. I can't really say for sure what my fellow coaches were thinking or even what their teams stats and movesets looked like for sure. The finals came down to Ralker from the blue conference vs. BigEZ66 from the red conference. EZ ended up taking the bo1 finals, despite Ralker's strong record. I think Ralker's team just had a hard time breaking EZ's down. EZ had some bulky mons.

I think my next two reports will be on how to run a league and how to prepare for one, for people just getting into that sort of thing. They can be really fun, but can also fall apart on u, too. Stay tuned! :)

Wednesday 20 September 2017

PFA Quarter Finals Results: Toronto Maple Leafeons

Time for the playoffs! The time when the top 8 coaches of a division come together to see which of them deserves the right to be called Champion. I really want that title, but there is some stern competition (especially in the blue conference). Up first for my quarter finals battle, I face Alec of the Indianapolis Keldeos. If you remember, he beat me 5-0 the last time I faced him, so better make sure I don't get rekt like that again. Maybe I can even sweep through his team. I have the tools to do so. Let's see what those tools I'm referring to are.

☠️ THE LOSER OF THIS MATCH WILL BE ELIMINATED FROM THE CHAMPIONSHIP RUN! ☠️

The Team Line-ups

My Team: M-Pinsir, Clefable, Zygarde-50%, Empoleon, Arcanine, Hitmontop, Vanilluxe, Dhelmise, Heliolisk, Jellicent, Malamar

Alec (Indianapolis Keldeos): M-Beedrill, Latios, Marowak-Alola, Swampert, Metagross, Komala, Raichu, Keldeo, Florges, Pangoro, Tangela


Ludwig (Pinsir) @ Pinsirite
Ability: Hyper Cutter
Level: 50
EVs: 68 HP / 252 Atk / 188 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Return
- Earthquake
- Quick Attack

If I can find the right opportunity, Mega Pinsir can run through Alec's team with ease. Everything that's faster than Mega Pinsir falls after it gets 2 Swords Dance boosts. Definitely my greatest wincon in the battle. I must preserve it until the correct moment. Return hits bulkier Pokemon very hard and makes for powerful STAB option. Earthquake hits what Return doesn't well. Flying + Ground coverage is one of the best offensive combinations. And defensive really. Looks at Gliscor and Landorus-T. Quick Attack is my priority option for faster threats.

I went with the same EV spread as last time. This simply has enough speed to outspeed Modest Latios by 1 point, which might be relevant. It's invested as much in Attack as I could for the damage output. Every little bit counts. And the rest was dumped into HP, keeping in mind that I wanted it to be able to come in on Stealth Rock three times if necessary. Which means an odd HP number is in order.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Quick Attack vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Keldeo: 198-234 (61.1 - 72.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Beedrill-Mega: 186-218 (132.8 - 155.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +2 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Keldeo: 204-240 (122.8 - 144.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +4 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Latios: 166-196 (107 - 126.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +2 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Return vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Florges: 216-255 (116.7 - 137.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +2 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Return vs. 240 HP / 252+ Def Swampert: 183-216 (89.2 - 105.3%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
Defensive Calcs:

  • 252+ Atk Choice Band Metagross Bullet Punch vs. 68 HP / 0 Def Pinsir-Mega: 51-60 (34.2 - 40.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO | I was worried about that because it was his only form of priority for stopping the sweep.



Oryx (Zygarde) @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Aura Break
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 108 Atk / 36 Def / 76 SpD / 36 Spe
Impish Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Thousand Arrows
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Another reused EV spread, but with some modifications to the set. Most notably, Dragon Dance and the Weakness Policy. Because Florges did such a good job walling this thing last battle, I figured I would use it's power against him in this match. I knew I could easily take a Moonblast from full. If he brought Alolan Marowak and used that as his go-to again, I would expect this and go for a Dragon Dance. Or if it switches in after something of his has dropped, I would still Dragon Dance in it's face because then I would have no trouble breaking it at +3. And if I had +2, could outspeed the majority of things he has to combat that. Of course, this time I have to watch out for Tangela, which I'm pretty sure he will bring. It walls Zygarde pretty good, even with boosts. So I would like to make sure to take that down quickly if possible. I think I've already basically gone over the moveset, so I don't think I need to explain why I chose each individual move to you this time.

Just as a reminder from my last report against Alec, Alolan Marowak's Shadow Bone is a 3HKO meaning that (without defense drops) I can stall it out and heal off the damage with Rest. As well as other physical attackers lacking the proper coverage to break this Pokemon. After one Dragon Dance, this set has enough speed to outspeed non-Scarf Latios by 1 point, which in turn means that it outspeeds non-Scarf Keldeo too (which is also a big threat with access to Icy Wind).

Offensive Calcs:

  • 108 Atk Zygarde Thousand Arrows vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Metagross: 92-110 (49.1 - 58.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
  • +3 108 Atk Zygarde Thousand Arrows vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Florges: 129-153 (69.7 - 82.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Life Orb Raichu Hidden Power Ice vs. 252 HP / 92 SpD Zygarde: 135-161 (62.7 - 74.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252+ Atk Thick Club Marowak-Alola Shadow Bone vs. 252 HP / 36+ Def Zygarde: 87-103 (40.4 - 47.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 0 SpA Florges Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 92 SpD Zygarde: 114-134 (53 - 62.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Icy Wind vs. 252 HP / 84 SpD Zygarde: 180-216 (83.7 - 100.4%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO


Rupert (Dhelmise) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Steelworker
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 108 Atk / 148 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Power Whip
- Shadow Claw
- Anchor Shot
- Earthquake

A great defensive pivot and all-out attacker, I feel like Dhelmise could be pretty good in this matchup. It has Power Whip to hit Swampert and Keldeo for some big damage. Shadow Claw for Latios and Metagross. Anchor to trap, as well as hit Florges very hard. And Earthquake is good against most things. His team is pretty grounded, barring Latios. And only Tangela can take it well. With triple STAB coverage like Dhelmise does, I don't know what Alec could hope to switch into this Pokemon. Dhelmise also gets relatively free switch ins on Tangela because it is immune to it's powder moves like Sleep Powder, and Leech Seed. The only thing I really fear from it is Knock Off, which hurts and also takes away from Dhelmise's special tanking capability.

I actually considered Assault Vest Heliolisk for this spot first because it has been such a good tank for me and takes on Raichu pretty good, but realized that Dhelmise just does it better in every way in this matchup. It can't pivot like Heliolisk can with it's U-turn or Volt Switch, but it can stop switches with Anchor Shot. I invested pretty heavily into bulk, even taking Latios out of range of dependably being OHKO'd by Shadow Claw. The main thing I had in mind was surviving Choice Specs Keldeo's Icy Wind, which it can survive 3 of. That's pretty good. It also takes Raichu's Hidden Power Ice really well, which I kinda had trouble with last time.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 108+ Atk Steelworker Dhelmise Anchor Shot vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Florges: 126-150 (68.1 - 81%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 108+ Atk Dhelmise Shadow Claw vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Latios: 144-170 (92.9 - 109.6%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Raichu Hidden Power Ice vs. 244 HP / 156 SpD Dhelmise: 50-60 (28.4 - 34%) -- 1.1% chance to 3HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Assault Vest Dhelmise: 103-123 (58.1 - 69.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Icy Wind vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Assault Vest Dhelmise: 58-70 (32.7 - 39.5%) -- 99.8% chance to 3HKO
  • 0 SpA Florges Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Assault Vest Dhelmise: 37-45 (20.9 - 25.4%) -- 0% chance to 4HKO
  • 0 SpA Swampert Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Assault Vest Dhelmise: 38-46 (21.4 - 25.9%) -- 0.9% chance to 4HKO



Tatl (Clefable) @ Kebia Berry
Ability: Unaware
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 108 SpA / 148 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psyshock
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect

My Clefable this time around is a little more offensive oriented, rather than completely defensive. I wanted to bait Mega Beedrill this time around by staying in and OHKO'ing it with Psyshock, while Clefable takes Poison Jab due to it's Kebia Berry. Last end game against Alec, I didn't really have anything to touch it with. Just Moonblast. But of course, Moonblast is still good against a lot of his good Pokemon, like Keldeo and Latios. Wish and Protect work together to keep Clefable healthy, to heal up teammates, and/or to scout what opponent wants to do.

For the most part, I wanted this set to take hits well on the physically defensive side, since it can wall special attackers better. With max HP, this Clefable can live a Choice Band Gunk Shot from Pangoro and a Poison Jab from Mega Beedrill comfortably enough, so I didn't bother investing in Defense. 108 Special Attack with a Modest nature allows Clefable to dependably OHKO your standard Mega Beedrill with Psyshock. And I just dumped the rest into Special Defense for the reason I mentioned before. No big Poison or Steel attacks I was worried about from the special side of Alec's team.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 108+ SpA Clefable Psyshock vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Beedrill-Mega: 140-166 (100 - 118.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 108+ SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Keldeo: 138-164 (82.6 - 98.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 108+ SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Latios: 116-140 (74.3 - 89.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252+ Atk Choice Band Pangoro Gunk Shot vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Kebia Berry Clefable: 141-166 (69.8 - 82.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 Atk Adaptability Beedrill-Mega Poison Jab vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Kebia Berry Clefable: 132-156 (65.3 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Keldeo Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Clefable: 87-103 (43 - 50.9%) -- 4.7% chance to 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Latios Psychic vs. 252 HP / 148 SpD Clefable: 72-85 (35.6 - 42%) -- guaranteed 3HKO



Squishy (Jellicent) @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Cursed Body
Level: 50
EVs: 236 HP / 4 Def / 188 SpA / 44 SpD / 36 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Trick Room
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball
- Recover

A tanky Jellicent with some offensive capability. This set's main intention is help me which defensively into certain Pokemon on Alec's team. Jellicent can do a better job in some cases than Clefable. It also has Trick Room potential because so many threats on Alec's team are pretty fast, and it can help set up slower members of my team to plow through, like Dhelmise. Dazzling Gleam gives me a really good option for damaging Pangoro, as well as Keldeo. Shadow Ball hits things like Alolan Marowak and Latios. And Recover keeps Jellicent around to take more hits. It has such good defensive typing that it can wall so many strong Pokemon.

I knew I wanted to be able to stall out Keldeo, thus Hidden Power Electric from the Choice Specs varient is a 3HKO. That means I can just Recover on it and stall them out. I also wanted to make sure that Pangoro went down rather easily, because it can be a bit of a nuisance with it's typing and movepool. As well as the fearsome Z Snatch set which gives it +2 Speed. Also stuck a Colbur Berry on Jellicent to make sure it survives a possible Banded Knock Off. The rest of the EVs went into Speed to get the upper-hand on something slower.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 188 SpA Jellicent Dazzling Gleam vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Pangoro: 172-204 (100.5 - 119.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 188 SpA Jellicent Shadow Ball vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Latios: 90-108 (57.6 - 69.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 188 SpA Jellicent Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Marowak-Alola: 116-138 (85.9 - 102.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Hidden Power Electric vs. 236 HP / 44+ SpD Jellicent: 86-102 (41.9 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 236 HP / 44+ SpD Jellicent: 139-165 (67.8 - 80.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252+ Atk Choice Band Pangoro Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 236 HP / 4 Def Colbur Berry Jellicent: 174-205 (84.8 - 100%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO



Neptune (Empoleon) @ Wacan Berry
Ability: Torrent
Level: 50
EVs: 244 HP / 100 Def / 20 SpA / 4 SpD / 140 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
- Scald
- Defog

Empoleon is my hazard setter and hazard control for this match. It helps defensively with being able to take attacks or attack combinations that the other teammates do not want to. Like from Beedrill and Latios. It dual walls both of their STAB attacks. Roar helps phaze out setup like Calm Mind Florges. and Scald helps deal with Alolan Marowak.

On the physically defensive side, Empoleon has a good chance to survive a Flare Blitz from Alolan Marowak, and eat hits from Mega Beedrill. On the specially defensive side, it takes moves from Latios with no problem. With Wacan Berry, I would have nothing to fear if I wanted to just lead and get Stealth Rock up with Empoleon. Raichu's Electric type attacks would not be able to OHKO. And I would not be pressure to switch, while he Volt Switches with Raichu and gets back his momentum. This set is also fast enough to outspeed Adamant Alolan Marowak. So I can just get the Scald off before it can hit me with a really powerful attack, potentially KOing it.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 20+ SpA Empoleon Scald vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Marowak-Alola: 134-158 (99.2 - 117%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252+ Atk Thick Club Marowak-Alola Flare Blitz vs. 244 HP / 100 Def Empoleon: 162-192 (85.2 - 101%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 244 HP / 0 SpD Empoleon: 83-98 (43.6 - 51.5%) -- 8.6% chance to 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Psychic vs. 244 HP / 0 SpD Empoleon: 57-68 (30 - 35.7%) -- 35.2% chance to 3HKO
  • 252 Atk Adaptability Beedrill-Mega U-turn vs. 244 HP / 100 Def Empoleon: 45-53 (23.6 - 27.8%) -- 83.3% chance to 4HKO
  • 252+ Atk Choice Band Komala Return vs. 244 HP / 100 Def Empoleon: 65-77 (34.2 - 40.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 252+ SpA Choice Specs Florges Moonblast vs. 244 HP / 4 SpD Empoleon: 59-70 (31 - 36.8%) -- 73.8% chance to 3HKO


The Aftermath

Here is the battle code: BL6G-WWWW-WWW7-BWA2
Playoffs Round 1: Toronto Maple Leafeons (Tommy) .vs. Indianapolis Keldeos (Alec)
Team Bruno brought: Mega Beedrill, Swampert, Keldeo, Latios, Florges, Tangela

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Turn by Turn Analysis

I'm using the numbers on the bottem of the screen during the battle's progression. The turn the first two Pokemon enter is more like a Turn 0 if you will. But in the replay's case, it's Turn 1.

Turn 0: I figured it would be alright just to scout with Clefable to check his lead.
Turn 1: I hope that he'll stay in with Mega Beedrill and Poison Jab, but he doesn't. And I launch Psyshock into Swampert.
Turn 2: Swampert sets up Stealth Rock after I switch into Dhelmise. It has a pretty good matchup against everything Alec has. Especially this particular mon.
Turn 3: I figure he'll fear Power Whip or Anchor Shot, so I throw off a Shadow Claw and catch the Latios switching in. Dhelmise gets a kill :D In comes Mega Beedrill.
Turn 4: I switch into my designated Mega Beedrill answer, being Empoleon, as he U-turns out again with Mega Beedrill. Into Keldeo.
Turn 5: Keldeo uses Secret Sword, but I anticipate it and withdraw into Dhelmise.
Turn 6: Alec makes a weird play by switching Keldeo out for Swampert since they are both weak to Power Whip, and I trap the Swampert with Anchor Shot. I think he expected a Rapid Spin and just wanted to keep his rocks up.
Turn 7: Swampert uses Ice Punch and freezes Dhelmise. Not great since I was about to kill it with Power Whip.
Turn 8: Swampert continues to Ice Punch as Dhelmise is still frozen.
Turn 9: Goodbye, Dhelmise :/ Was really hoping you'd put in more work. I send out Jellicent.
Turn 10: Alec switches out into Florges as I have Jellicent set up a Trick Room.
Turn 11: I switch Jellicent for Empoleon on the Moonblast.
Turn 12: Florges goes for Wish as I remove the Stealth Rock from the field.
Turn 13: Expecting Keldeo to come in, I Roar it out into Mega Beedrill.
Turn 14: Alec switches into Tangela to eat up whatever from Empoleon, but I decide to get Stealth Rock up. No more Latios to get rid of them.
Turn 15: I decide to switch into Zygarde expecting Sleep Powder. Tangela reveals Leech Seed instead.
Turn 16: I don't want Zygarde's health sapped and figure Tangela has Hidden Power Ice as a designated Zygarde counter, so I switch into Clefable to scout. Sure enough, he has it.
Turn 17: I go for Wish with Clefable as he switches into Swampert.
Turn 18: I throw off a Moonblast to damage it. While he sets up his Stealth Rock. Clefable gets it's health back.
Turn 19: Assuming he will make a play by going into Mega Beedrill on my Clefable, I throw off a Psyshock. He stays in however, and chips at Clefable with Earthquake.
Turn 20: I have Clefable use Wish again. I'm trying to stall him in such a way that it will force him to switch. Swampert is pretty much unchecked without my Dhelmise and I'm sure he knows this. He uses Earthquake again.
Turn 21: Being low on health, I use Protect to get my recovery, as his Earthquake fails.
Turn 22: I use Wish again to further stall him, as he Earthquakes again.
Turn 23: I go for Psyshock expecting him to switch to Mega Beedrill on my Protect, but he continues to attack into Clefable.
Turn 24: I use Wish again to heal myself. Yet again, he uses Earthquake. I'm getting a little frustrated.
Turn 25: I decide to just sac Clefable for an attempt at catching a switch again, but to no avail. Clefable goes down. Jellicent comes in.
Turn 26: I use Shadow Ball to try and get this pest out of my sight. It does good damage. He uses Earthquake again, but it gets disabled by Cursed Body.
Turn 27: I try to set Trick Room again as he switches into Florges.
Turn 28: I Recover with Jellicent while Florges Moonblasts.
Turn 30: Instead of that rinse and repeat, I switch into what I know walls this thing.
Turn 31: He continues to attack as I use Stealth Rock, forgetting I put it up. I planned to sac Empoleon anyway, so I'm not too bothered.
Turn 32: I throw off a Scald as Florges finishes Empoleon off. I switch into Pinsir to try and end this.
Turn 33: I use Swords Dance on his Wish.
Turn 34: Worried about Hidden Power Rock or a crit Moonblast, I take the time to calc how well defensive Florges takes this. It's a OHKO. So I take it out with Return. One kill of Mega Pinsir. Keldeo comes in.
Turn 35: The way he brought this time made me feel like it had to be Coba Berry. And it was. Unfortunately, no critical hit. Mega Pinsir goes down to Keldeo's Hidden Power Rock. I send in Jellicent.
Turn 36: Keldeo switches out for Tangela to take me on better. And I have Jellicent use Shadow Ball.
Turn 37: I continue to use Shadow Ball to weaken Tangela for Zygarde to possibly help me make my comeback. Tangela uses Leech Seed.
Turn 38: I want to finish Swampert off so that I can get Florges to come in. So I repeatedly attack Swampert will Shadow Ball til one of us goes down. This is kind of complicated by the Leech Seed on Jellicent unfortunately.
Turn 40: I almost take out Swampert as it finishes Jellicent off with Earthquake. I send in Zygarde.
Turn 41: I don't want to take an Ice Punch from Swampert, so I just get rid of it with Thousand Arrows. One kill for Zygarde. Tangela comes in.
Turn 42: Not what I was hoping for, but I can still get the boost from Tangela's Hidden Power Ice. So I Dragon Dance up to help Zygarde's speed and damage output, as he Leech Seed on Zygarde and I'm thinking 'crap'.
Turn 43: I went for Thousand Arrows to try and widdle it down, as he finally activates my Weakness Policy.
Turn 44: Being so low on HP, I use Rest to get back to a good amount of health, but he's still chipping at me with Hidden Power Ice and Leech Seed damage.
Turn 45: I actually get Thousand Arrows out of Sleep Talk, but it's too little-too late. Even a crit wouldn't have killed it. But another Hidden Power Ice will kill my chance of becoming PFA champion this season.

In Conclusion

Good game Slec ! I was quite upset about the early game freeze on Dhelmise, the one Pokemon I didn't want to get frozen. But I definitely could've played things better. You played safely and did a fine job in team prep. I should've expected the Coba Berry on Keldeo considering I used [b]THREE[/b] damage-reducing berries this week. And you didn't have Raichu like you did last time to take Quick Attacks from Mega Pinsir. I even had in my notes that I basically outright win at +4 Attack on Mega Pinsir, but I ignored them. And to be honest, deserve to suffer for it. I probably put the most effort into my notes than anyone else in the PFA at the moment. Some people don't even have notes. They have a team list, and highlight a few mons they figure their opponent will bring. Another mistake was not conserving my Pokemon better. I could've probably risked Mega Beedrill on Clefable, as long as I kept Moonblasting and Wishing. And Swampert going down certainly wouldn't have been a bad thing for me. As much trouble as it caused. Good luck on your playoff run! I hope I got beat by the future champion OpieOP Tangrowth vs Tangela team next week. Should be fun to watch.

So yea, sacking Dhelmise and Clefable in the ways I did helped make it a safer game for Alec. I should've even had Dhelmise come in later on a predicted Scald from Swampert or maybe Keldeo (I don't know if Keldeo had Scald). And my season ends with an 0-3. It's been a crazy time overall. I've had some fun, I've felt some pain. I still love how my team turned out, even if I couldn't bring it the success it deserved. I got to use some interesting movesets that I never tried before, and some Pokemon that I never did either. I thank you for following me on my journey. Maybe next season I can snag it. I did so much better this year than the last. I learned a lot about teambuilding. The preparation that goes into a team to make it successful. I would strongly recommend league format to anyone struggling with teambuilding against the meta. I had big issues with that. I was always second-guessing myself because I'd notice that one Pokemon would give my team issue. And end up just scrapping the team. But I feel more confident now. Maybe with some practice, I can call myself a lord. I think I might take a break from Pokemon for a bit though. It can be a little too much at times and you can easily burn yourself out with playing more than you want to.

I know my thoughts aren't the most organized, but I still hope you enjoyed all of what I had to offer you. I will be continuing my reports until the season is over. However, I will be doing it as an outsider looking in. I can't speak for what my opponents do unless they tell me. I can only assume through my knowledge of the game. Turn by Turn Analysis will be given a rest. I will simply critique my fellow coaches. Comment on how I think they did, how they could've improved their play, their preparation going into the match, and more. Stay tuned for the semifinals of the Pokemon Forever Association. I'm Tommy AKA AbruptFury. Coach of the Toronto Maple Leafeons, signing off. :)

PFA Week 12 Results: Toronto Maple Leafeons

It's the final week of the regular season! Alas! This is Coach Abrupt of the Toronto Maple Leafeons, here to give you a rundown on week 12 of the PFA. The field is thinning out, as playoffs is becoming more cemented. Basically, the only one who has a chance of getting in that is not in the top 8 is Danny of the New York Islandorus. If I beat my opponent this week, then he might be able to get in. Then it would be 5 blue conference teams vs 3 red conference. All hail the blue conference!

My opponent this week however is Bruno of the Elite Four of the Ottawa Dracos. A fellow Canadian I met back in another league called IBL. He was a very promising trainer then, and has only been dishing out results since entering the PFA as well. Including the accolade of being the only one to beat top team, the Orlando Magikarp, coached by Ralker. Definitely a task ahead of me. Interestingly enough, I could potentially eliminate him right here from playoff contention, because he does not have his 8 wins due to technical difficulties with his computer. Making it hard to schedule matches. We figured that he probably gave up on this league by week 12 since we heard nothing from him, but he messaged me on Sunday telling me that he was interested. So let's see how it went, shall we.

The Team Line-ups

My Team: M-Pinsir, Clefable, Zygarde-50%, Empoleon, Arcanine, Hitmontop, Vanilluxe, Dhelmise, Heliolisk, Jellicent, Malamar

Wenwuk (Ottawa Dracos): M-Scizor, Thundurus-T, Mamoswine, Tyrantrum, Blastoise, Uxie, Lanturn, Silvally, Virizion, Chandelure, Greninja

The Game Plan


Graci (Clefable) @ Kebia Berry
Ability: Unaware
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 172 Def / 4 SpA / 76 SpD / 4 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Moonblast
- Moonlight
- Heal Bell

First up, my Stealth Rocker for the week. This Clefable was designed to be a support and a switch-in for certain Pokemon of his, like Swords Dance Virizion. Moonblast was my sole damaging move. Good for hitting most things. I considered another move to damage or cripple like Flamethrower or Thunder Wave, but ultimately decided against them because of immunities that could take advantage of it like Flash Fire Chandelure, Volt Absorb Thundurus-T, and Mamoswine (probably the best attacker in league). Moonlight for the healing. Didn't bring weather, so no complications for Clefable. Heal Bell could clear up any status ailments that my Pokemon might face. Kebia Berry was used to take Greninja's Gunk Shot a lot better, then I could just beat it down with Moonblast.

With Clefable's massive physical defense investment, it could tank hits, or at least a hit, from Pokemon like Tyrantrum and Virizion. Then KO them back (or at least Tyrantrum) with Moonblast. I pumped the rest into special defense to allow me to tank those hits better from Thundurus-T and Greninja, except for 4 special attack and speed EVs which I used to creep on damage and speed. The 4 Special Attack EVs allowed Clefable to OHKO Tyrantrum 100% of the time.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Tyrantrum: 158-188 (100 - 118.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Greninja: 138-164 (93.2 - 110.8%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Virizion: 84-102 (50.6 - 61.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Virizion Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 172 Def Clefable: 63-75 (31.1 - 37.1%) -- 77.8% chance to 3HKO
  • 252 Atk Tyrantrum Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 172 Def Clefable: 127-151 (62.8 - 74.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Thundurus-Therian Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 76+ SpD Clefable: 76-91 (37.6 - 45%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 4 Atk Life Orb Protean Greninja Gunk Shot vs. 252 HP / 172 Def Kebia Berry Clefable: 90-107 (44.5 - 52.9%) -- 24.2% chance to 2HKO



IAmLegendary (Arcanine) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 4 Def / 148 SpD / 100 Spe
Careful Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Bulldoze
- Morning Sun
- Toxic

You've probably seen the defensive Arcanine set on Smogon or in battle on Pokemon Showdown. I figured, what's stopping me from running it specially defensive? This set helps my matchup against Chandelure greatly. Arcanine already walls Mega Scizor well with Intimidate and it's Fire typing, so making it more specially defensive wouldn't hurt me much. Flare Blitz is for Mega Scizor and Virizion. Bulldoze is for Chandelure. The menace to my team. Choice Scarf Chandelure could very easily run through my team. I have no trapped like Dugtrio or Tyranitar to stop it. Morning Sun is for recovery. And Toxic is used to put a timer on bulkier Pokemon like Lanturn.

I started off by taking the Smogon set and switching the physical defensive investments to it's special side. Then I made changes for my matchup. 100 Speed EVs allowed Arcanine to outspeed the offensive Swords Dance Mega Scizor set by 1 point. That way, even if he were running Superpower. I would be able to stall it out if I lost a big chunk of health beforehand. I had 4 EVs leftover after that, so I put them back into Defense.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 4 Atk Arcanine Bulldoze vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Chandelure: 56-66 (41.4 - 48.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 4 Atk Arcanine Flare Blitz vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Virizion: 192-228 (115.6 - 137.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 4 Atk Arcanine Flare Blitz vs. 248 HP / 116+ Def Scizor-Mega: 16524-19440 (127107.6 - 149538.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO | Ahhh. Nice and OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • -1 252+ Atk Scizor-Mega Superpower vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Arcanine: 67-79 (34 - 40.1%) -- 35% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Chandelure Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 148+ SpD Arcanine: 69-82 (35 - 41.6%) -- 77.9% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • +1 252 Atk Virizion Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Arcanine: 306-360 (79.6 - 93.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery



Beyblade (Hitmontop) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 140 Atk / 116 Def
Impish Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Revenge
- Stone Edge

Let it rip! My Hitmontop is ready to tear up some enemies with this heat set. Hitmontop can take on the toughest of Bruno's physical attackers while being able to dish out some of it's own. As well as being able to heal the damage dealt to it all the way off with Rest. In conjunction, Sleep Talk can allow it to keep swinging it's fist, even while asleep. Revenge does a massive amount of damage when it goes last, which isn't hard to do for Hitmontop. It's pretty slow already, and I didn't invest any speed in it. Besides, most coaches/trainers shoot for faster to take out a Pokemon before RNGesus has his way with them. Stone Edge beats Chandelure and Thundurus-T's butts.

I knew I wanted Hitmontop to tank Tyrantrum and Mamoswine, so I invested in it's physical bulk first. Then moved some EVs into Attack for better damage output vs certain Pokemon. Pretty simple, really. Advice to someone getting into teambuilding: work with what ya got to beat all that you need to. And ofc course, some Pokemon are more concerning than others. Like the top 50 or top 5 of a list of mons. So you don't feel like you have to stop everything, because you can't. Every team has a bad matchup.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 140 Atk Hitmontop Revenge vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Mamoswine: 182-216 (97.8 - 116.1%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO
  • 140 Atk Hitmontop Stone Edge vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Chandelure: 92-110 (67.6 - 80.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 140 Atk Hitmontop Revenge vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tyrantrum: 132-156 (84 - 99.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • -1 240 Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 116+ Def Hitmontop: 62-74 (39.4 - 47.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • -1 252 Atk Virizion Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 116+ Def Hitmontop: 45-54 (28.6 - 34.3%) -- 99.5% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • -1 252+ Atk Choice Band Tyrantrum Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 116+ Def Hitmontop: 56-66 (35.6 - 42%) -- 94.4% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery



Rupert (Dhelmise) @ Kasib Berry
Ability: Steelworker
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Anchor Shot
- Power Whip
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin

Dhelmise was my Rapid Spinner for the week. It also gave me a switch-in to the Water types of Bruno's team. Anchor Shot would allow me to stop pivoting and to trap the bulky Water types in with me. This way, I could finish them off with Power Whip [s]best segway ever[/s]. It also beats down Mamoswine. And Anchor Shot was actually Dhelmise's best way to deal with Virizion. Earthquake was useful for Chandelure. Didn't want to run Shadow Claw because Silvally was a good switch-in for Shadow Claw. Thundurus-T would be less likely to switch in on Earthquake. Rapid Spin gets rid of my opponent's hazards. He had a lot of potential for setting hazards up. Greninja get Toxic Spikes and Spikes. Mamoswine gets Stealth Rock.

I just went for general bulk and damage output this time around. Nothing special. I did however slap a Kasib Berry onto Dhelmise to beat Chandelure before it beat me.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252+ Atk Dhelmise Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Chandelure: 138-164 (101.4 - 120.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252+ Atk Dhelmise Power Whip vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Mamoswine: 270-320 (145.9 - 172.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252+ Atk Dhelmise Power Whip vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blastoise: 164-194 (88.1 - 104.3%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
  • 252+ Atk Dhelmise Power Whip vs. 104 HP / 192 Def Lanturn: 270-318 (126.7 - 149.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252+ SpA Blastoise Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Dhelmise: 92-110 (51.9 - 62.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Chandelure Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Kasib Berry Dhelmise: 81-96 (45.7 - 54.2%) -- 47.3% chance to 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Kasib Berry Dhelmise: 120-142 (67.7 - 80.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Chandelure Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Kasib Berry Dhelmise: 81-96 (45.7 - 54.2%) -- 47.3% chance to 2HKO



Geico (Heliolisk) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Dry Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 244 HP / 4 Def / 12 SpA / 164 SpD / 84 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 30 Atk
- U-turn
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Dark Pulse

I wanted something to make him think twice about locking his Chandelure into Shadow Ball. Something that could punish it. Malamar doesn't resist Ghost because it is part Psychic. But Heliolisk is immune. It could also tank another fast, hard-hitting Electric type in Thundurus-T. Something my Arcanine could not do dependably. I put U-turn on Heliolisk for a situation where I expected him to switch his Pokemon out so that I may keep my momentum. Thunderbolt beats Blastoise and Greninja. Hidden Power Fire is for Mega Scizor. And Dark Pulse hits Chandelure, Uxie, and Thundurus-T for some good damage.

Same old Heliolisk set, but with some minor tweaks for the specific matchup. A bit less speed for special attack. It was still fast enough to outspeed all variants of Mega Scizor. I love this Pokemon, with this set. It is so good at walling fast Electric types, which are very good in league format.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 12+ SpA Heliolisk Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 128 SpD Scizor-Mega: 96-116 (54.5 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 12+ SpA Heliolisk Dark Pulse vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Chandelure: 78-94 (57.7 - 69.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 12+ SpA Heliolisk Thunderbolt vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Greninja: 158-188 (107.4 - 127.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 244 HP / 164 SpD Assault Vest Dry Skin Heliolisk: 76-90 (45.2 - 53.5%) -- 34% chance to 2HKO
  • 0 SpA Uxie Psychic vs. 244 HP / 164 SpD Assault Vest Heliolisk: 25-30 (14.8 - 17.8%) -- possible 6HKO
  • 252+ SpA Blastoise Aura Sphere vs. 244 HP / 164 SpD Assault Vest Heliolisk: 46-56 (27.3 - 33.3%) -- 0% chance to 3HKO



Oryx (Zygarde) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Aura Break
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 116 SpA / 140 Spe
Naive Nature
- Thousand Arrows
- Outrage
- Stone Edge
- Hidden Power [Fire]

A mixed Scarf Zygarde set. Made to take on Bruno's faster threats, while still having a way to hit Mega Scizor. Thousand Arrows destroys Chandelure, Tyrantrum, and Lanturn. Outrage can sweep through things better than Thousand Arrows because of it's higher base power. And Bruno didn't have any Fairy or Steel types. Stone Edge hits Thundurus-T for supereffective without requiring two hits like Thousand Arrows. And Hidden Power Fire is another way of hitting Mega Scizor for good damage because it can be really bulky and has recovery in Roost.

I went all in on Attack and enough into speed to outspeed max speed Choice Scarf Chandelure. The rest went into making the best of HP Fire.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Zygarde Thousand Arrows vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Chandelure: 140-168 (102.9 - 123.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252 Atk Zygarde Stone Edge vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Thundurus-Therian: 126-150 (81.8 - 97.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
  • 116 SpA Zygarde Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 128 SpD Scizor-Mega: 80-96 (45.4 - 54.5%) -- 49.6% chance to 2HKO


The Aftermath

Here is the battle link: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7customgame-586228489
Week 11: Toronto Maple Leafeons (AbruptFury) .vs. Ottawa Dracos (Wenwuk)
Team Bruno brought: Mamoswine, Thundurus-Therian, Silvally-*, Uxie, Greninja, Chandelure

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Turn by Turn Analysis

This week, the turns won't be all wonky because we're using Showdown. I will once again guide you through my turns. What I was thinking and stuffs. There is a chat this week, however.

*WARNING: The following battle chat may contain coarse language, and memes. Viewer discretion is advised.*

It's a shame how much battles have been coming in on 3DS, though it's probably more convenient for you. You don't have to pull out your 3DS and connect to online just to see them. Anyway, onto the battle.

Turn 0: Looking at his team, I know that there's no way he can get rid of hazards once they are up. So I lead off with Clefable immediately to set them up. Bruno leads Silvally.
Turn 1: He Parting Shot's out into Greninja as I put the Stealth Rock up.
Turn 2: Greninja uses Hydro Pump as I throw off a Moonblast. I'm not afraid of Gunk Shot because Clefable is holding a Kebia Berry.
Turn 3: Greninja uses it's Z move and knocks out Clefable. I didn't really take that into account when I let Clefable go, but I was able to put Stealth Rock up, so I wasn't feeling too bad about it. Into Heliolisk, I go-go!
Turn 4: Greninja U-turns outta there for Silvally, as I follow suit and get Heliolisk out of there myself. I didn't expect him to stay in. I go into Hitmontop.
Turn 5: He throws off a Tri Attack and gets demolished by Revenge. One kill for Hitmontop! He sends in Uxie.
Turn 6: I don't want Hitmontop to take a hit from Uxie, so I switch into Dhelmise and take a Toxic.
Turn 7: Uxie U-turns out into Thundurus-T as I go for Anchor Shot. Now Thundurus-T is trapped unless it has Volt Switch.
Turn 8: I go into my Thundurus-T check, Heliolisk, to take whatever it wants to go for. As well as to stop Toxic damage from racking up on Dhelmise. And Heliolisk takes a Dark Pulse. It crits and does nothing! Heliolisk 2 stronk!
Turn 9: Bruno decides to just stay in and beat on my Heliolisk. I figure he must've saw it as a real threat. I stay in with Heliolisk and show him what a real Dark Pulse looks like.
Turn 10: Heliolisk takes another Thunderbolt before Thundurus-T goes down to Heliolisk. One kill for Heliolisk. Uxie comes in.
Turn 11: It's faster and takes down Heliolisk. I wanted to try and get damage off on it, but my Heliolisk is a lot more bulky than fast. I go into Arcanine after seeing that this Uxie is holding Leftovers. I figured it would be a bulkier set.
Turn 12: Uxie and Arcanine trade Toxics on each other. Unfortunately, my cleric fainted turn 2 lol.
Turn 13: I switch into Zygarde and take a Psychic. I wanted to get this Uxie out of the way quickly. It was starting to become a problem with it's Toxic.
Turn 14: Uxie U-turns out after Zygarde hits it with a Thousand Arrows for alright damage. He switches into Mamoswine. He was probably expected a setup sweep and wanted to be able to end it quickly with Ice Shard.
Turn 15: I decided to switch into Arcanine to take an Ice Shard and get an Intimidate off, but Bruno predicts this and goes for Earthquake.
Turn 16: Arcanine is finished off by another Earthquake. RIP. I send in Hitmontop and get a double Intimidate off.
Turn 17: Knowing he wouldn't want to stay in with Mamoswine's crippled Attack stat, I go for Stone Edge to damage whatever comes in as much as possible. I was really hoping Chandelure would come in and I could KO it, but Bruno sacs off his Greninja. Two kills for Hitmontop. In comes Uxie.
Turn 18: I switched into Zygarde to tank another Psychic and get some damage off later. It takes the Psychic.
Turn 19: I went for the move that could do the most damage, Outrage. It barely misses out on the KO. So does Psychic from his Uxie.
Turn 20: One more Outrage takes it out and Zygarde is confused. One kill for Zygarde. Bruno brings in Chandelure.
Turn 21: Rather than risk the confusion, I see my end game. It comes down to Zygarde taking out Chandelure and Hitmontop finishing off Mamoswine. I switch into Dhelmise to sack it off. It actually lives thanks to it's Kasib Berry.
Turn 22: Dhelmise falls to another Shadow Ball from Chandelure. I send out Zygarde again.
Turn 23: Chandelure takes out Zygarde. Apparently when I made my Zygarde set on Showdown, I used levels 50s. And the IVs get messed up because Hyper Training can only happen with level 100s. So I switch it to level 100. Then back to level 50 for our match, but I forgot to change the IVs back in the first place. So it was a speed tie, and I lost. Not just the speed tie, but the game. I send out Hitmontop.
Turn 24: Hitmontop takes a Shadow Ball well enough as I have it use Rest to recover off all it's damage.
Turn 25: Time to pulls moves out of a hat with Sleep Talk. I was hoping to close the differential at the very least, but my first Sleep Talk hits Rest.
Turn 26: I get Stone Edge on the second Sleep Talk, and it misses.
Turn 27: Chandelure takes out Hitmontop and the Ottawa Dracos will be making playoffs. Drat. Kappa

In Conclusion

Good game Bruno . You are a very good battler. I hate to think of what you would've had cooked up for me to face if you had had more than 20 minutes to prepare. I knew it would be hard to play against your team, but my fatal error in teambuilding really messed things up as well. You've got a powerful team and I wouldn't be surprised to see you win the whole dang thing. But I will try to stop you Kappa

We end our season off with an 8-4. That's probably my best record in league yet. And it could've just as easily have been a 9-3. I've been loving my team so much. No changes throughout the whole season. Hopefully this season I can get passed the quarter finals. I got beat by Marcusube last time DansGame Oh, and last years champion, Danny AKA Drub89 isn't going to be in the playoffs. So we are guaranteed a new champion.  Here's how playoffs seeding looks:


I face the Indianapolis Keldeo first. The team that beat me down the hardest with a 5-0 :/ Wish me luck. And I hope you are looking forward to playoffs! If I lose early, I will still post results on how the other coaches battles went down and who will become the new Pokemon Forever Association league champion. Stay tuned for my analysis on my quarter finals match! And have a good day!

Wait! There's More!



Vanilluxe took the award for 'Best 7th Pokemon'. It was the 7th best in the MVP race and got this nifty little title. Not a particularly amazing title, but still something to go home with. For probably my favourite Pokemon on my team all season.

PFA Week 11 Results: Toronto Maple Leafeons

Welcome back to my little weekly segment ain't that a load of barnacles where I give you the breakdown on my team for the week, my reasons for what I chose to do with it, and how it all went down in battle. So with playoffs upon us, every win counts. And the way I figured it out to be. You see - there have been a few coaches that have dropped out, so the bar to get into the playoffs is at least 7 wins in the 12 week leading up to it. This is because of those free wins boosting everyone up. The thing about 7 wins is that that does not guarantee you a spot, but it means you are eligible. It is left up to your differential amongst your battles. I have 7 wins, so if I can capture another one in the last two weeks, I'm golden. I have my ticket to the playoffs. In order to get it however, I must get through either Amant of the Bayern Munchlax, or Bruno of the Ottawa Dracos. Amant has been a solid player in previous seasons. Last season, making it to the semifinals of the playoffs. Bruno, a newcomer, has been making his presence felt in his record this season. He was also the only one to defeat the top coach in the league thus far, Ralker.

Anyway, so my opponent this week is Trafalgarlaw. Or known by his previous alias of Sir Shinny Groudon the First. He has some powerful hitters/wallbreakers on his team. Most notably, Landorus-I. "Where's your Landorus switch-in?" - Danny 2016. It has some nice coverage in it's movepool and good typing for switching in on common attacks such as Thunderbolt and Earthquake, taking literally 0 damage from them. He also has Tapu Koko on his team, which you may remember from my week 1 battle against Reed. They traded Tapus. Amant has Koko and Reed has Fini. So yeah, hopefully I don't get out-muscled in this match...

The Team Line-ups

My Team: M-Pinsir, Clefable, Zygarde-50%, Empoleon, Arcanine, Hitmontop, Vanilluxe, Dhelmise, Heliolisk, Jellicent, Malamar

Trafalgarlaw456 (Bayern Munchlax): Tapu Koko, Landorus-I, Mandibuzz, Kyurem, Porygon2, Zoroark, Klinklang, Heracross, Venusaur, Delphox, Plusle


Soft Serve (Vanilluxe) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Snow Warning
Level: 50
EVs: 252 SpA / 76 SpD / 180 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Blizzard
- Ice Beam
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Ground]

Everyone's favourite ice cream cone is back to take some souls! I wanted to use Vanilluxe in a similar way as week 1 because I don't like to switch-in on Tapu Koko. So Choice Scarf Vanilluxe is a good way to outspeed it (as long as it isn't Choice Scarf itself) and take it down to low health. Against a lot of Amant's team, it can just spam Blizzard quite freely. This also works out against non-Scarf Landorus-I. These aren't really the best Pokemon to put a Choice Scarf onto because you want their coverage to take on anything your opponent wants to throw at you without having to just switch it out. Flash Cannon works as a nice way of hitting Kyurem. Hidden Power Ground hits the things that Blizzard doesn't, for supereffective damage. And Ice Beam was just kind of filler. It also works out if I switch out with Vanilluxe and back in later, but hail leaves after Vanilluxe is in. That way, I don't have to risk Blizzard missing the target.

Same old set as week 1. It's very much built around dealing with Tapu Koko. Vanilluxe can KO it before it KOs Vanilluxe. Thunderbolt is a guaranteed 2HKO thanks to the Special Defense investment. Of course, there is the chance to crit. There always is :p

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Blizzard vs. 80 HP / 0 SpD Klinklang: 48-57 (33.1 - 39.3%) -- 99.8% chance to 3HKO after hail damage and Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Blizzard vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Tapu Koko: 105-124 (72.4 - 85.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after hail damage
  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Blizzard vs. 240 HP / 216+ SpD Mandibuzz: 132-156 (61.3 - 72.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Blizzard vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Yache Berry Landorus: 204-240 (123.6 - 145.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Flash Cannon vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 90-106 (44.7 - 52.7%) -- 17.2% chance to 2HKO 
  • 252 SpA Vanilluxe Blizzard vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Heracross: 87-103 (56.1 - 66.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after hail damage


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Life Orb Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 0 HP / 76 SpD Vanilluxe in Electric Terrain: 118-140 (80.8 - 95.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Flash Cannon vs. 0 HP / 76 SpD Vanilluxe: 132-156 (90.4 - 106.8%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO


[img]http://play.pokemonshowdown.com/sprites/xyani/zygarde.gif[/img]

Oryx (Zygarde) @ Leftovers
Ability: Aura Break
Level: 50
EVs: 76 HP / 252 Atk / 180 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Thousand Arrows
- Zen Headbutt
- Stone Edge
- Dragon Dance

After a couple Dragon Dances, there wouldn't be much on Amant's team that could stop me. Especially if I got chip earlier on Mandibuzz and Porygon2. Nothing could outspeed me and the damage output would be phenomenal. He only has one form of priority in Zoroark's Sucker Punch, which might not hit all that hard considering Zygarde's physical bulk is really good by default. Thousand Arrows could break most things and can't be avoided. Zen Headbutt hits the only thing that resists Thousand Arrows for supereffective, which is Heracross. Stone Edge beats Mandibuzz more effectively than Thousand Arrows. I could KO it before it could Whirlwind or Toxic Zygarde.

252 EVs into Attack for maximum damage output. I put 180 into Speed to outpace Jolly Heracross. The rest was thrown into bulk just to make this thing take a hit or two better. Nothing really calc'd for the bulk.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Zygarde Thousand Arrows vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Delphox: 168-200 (111.2 - 132.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +1 252 Atk Zygarde Zen Headbutt vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Heracross: 146-172 (93.5 - 110.2%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
  • +2 252 Atk Zygarde Stone Edge vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kyurem: 206-244 (103 - 122%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +3 252 Atk Zygarde Zen Headbutt vs. 232 HP / 0 Def Venusaur: 222-262 (120.6 - 142.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +4 252 Atk Zygarde Stone Edge vs. 240 HP / 216+ Def Mandibuzz: 206-244 (95.8 - 113.4%) -- 75% chance to OHKO



Rupert (Dhelmise) @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Steelworker
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 220 Atk / 36 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Toxic
- Anchor Shot
- Earthquake
- Shadow Claw

Dhelmise makes for a good switch-in to some powerful attacks my opponent might go for. Such as Thunderbolt/Wild Charge from Tapu Koko, Earth Power/Earthquake from Landorus-I, and Close Combat from Heracross. A very good pivot Pokemon in this situation. Toxic would be used to put Amant's bulkier Pokemon, Mandibuzz and Porygon2, on a timer. Making it easier for something else to pick them off. Anchor Shot could be used to damage Kyurem, or just to trap something in general. Stopping any chance of a double switch outside of Pokemon that have a pivot move like Volt Switch or U-turn. Earthquake would beat Tapu Koko and Klinklang. And Shadow Claw can hit a bunch of Pokemon for neutral damage. Those it doesn't, are affected neutrally at the very least by the other moves. Aguav Berry was chosen so that I may use Toxic and Dhelmise can get a lot of health back once it hits 25%.

Wanting to keep a very good chance of OHKOing Tapu Koko with Earthquake, I decreased Dhelmise from max attack to 220 Attack. This would allow me to stick some extra bulk somewhere else. Of course I also invested into it's HP all the way. The rest went into Special Defense. I think what I had in mind was being able to survive Choice Scarf Kyurem's Ice Beam better. It's not by much, but still could definitely matter.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 220+ Atk Dhelmise Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 142-168 (97.2 - 115%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO
  • 220+ Atk Dhelmise Shadow Claw vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Delphox: 168-198 (112 - 132%) -- guaranteed OHKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 36 SpD Dhelmise: 162-192 (91.5 - 108.4%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
  • 4 Atk Life Orb Tapu Koko Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Dhelmise: 133-159 (75.1 - 89.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO



The Kraken (Malamar) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Contrary
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 44 Atk / 212 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Psycho Cut
- Knock Off
- Superpower
- Rock Slide

Malamar would help my matchup against Venusaur and Delphox. Without access to Z-Happy Hour, Venusaur wasn't quite as scary of a threat as Delphox. Delphox can terrorize frailer Pokemon with powerful hits and it's high speed, and can cripple walls with a Trick Choice item set. Venusaur could be a problem with it's movepool. Moves like Knock Off, Sleep Powder, and Toxic/Leech Seed can be annoying. A Chlorophyll sweeper set with a manual Sunny Day setter on his team would give Venusaur to capability of outspeeding probably everything but a Choice Scarf Heliolisk set, which lacks damage output. I had to consider all possibilities for my opponent's team. So I chose to straight up wall the poop out of them with a very bulky Malamar will offensive potential. Psycho Cut would help me damage the Venusaur. Knock Off beats Delphox, and removes items. Superpower can build onto Malamar's bulk and help it strong-arm Amant's mons into submission. As well as a way of hitting Zoroark and Klinklang supereffectively. Rock Slide hits Mandibuzz for weakness damage. Which is very useful because it is one of his two best walls.

First thing I wanted to make sure, was that Delphox would always fall to Knock Off. I didn't really have any priority of my team this week, so I didn't really want to risk the roll. Of course, it's also useful to have [i]some[/i] damage output against Pokemon like Venusaur to make it harder for them to stall me out, or so I'm less likely to miss out on KOs. It took 44 Attack EVs to accomplish this. I then went with max HP and put the rest into Special Defense. I was interested in being able to survive Choice Specs Signal Beam from Delphox, or Savage Spinout, since that was it's best move to hit me with. I found that I could survive the Spinout, but could only survive Life Orb for boosting item. Being locked into Signal Beam would probably be quite easy to abuse for me anyway.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 44+ Atk Malamar Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Delphox: 152-182 (100.6 - 120.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +4 44+ Atk Malamar Rock Slide vs. 240 HP / 216+ Def Mandibuzz: 132-156 (61.3 - 72.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery | Just something for me to keep in mind in case I think about getting ballsy and try to 1v1 Mandibuzz.
  • 44+ Atk Malamar Psycho Cut vs. 232 HP / 0 Def Venusaur: 102-120 (55.4 - 65.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 212 SpD Assault Vest Malamar: 109-130 (56.4 - 67.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 180+ SpA Venusaur Sludge Bomb vs. 252 HP / 212 SpD Assault Vest Malamar: 43-52 (22.2 - 26.9%) -- 32.7% chance to 4HKO
  • 252 SpA Life Orb Delphox Signal Beam vs. 252 HP / 212 SpD Assault Vest Malamar: 135-161 (69.9 - 83.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO



Graci (Clefable) (F) @ Iapapa Berry
Ability: Unaware
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 4 SpA / 156 SpD / 4 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Ice Beam
- Heal Bell
- Stealth Rock

Clefable was a case of 5 Moves Syndrome this week unfortunately. There were a bunch of moves I wanted it to use, but was limited to the 4. I wanted a healing move on it, so it was definitely a hard thing for me to give up. Moonblast was mainly to damage Mandibuzz and Kyurem. Both very big threat on my opponent's team. I wanted Clefable to be able to function as a bait as well for Landorus-I, so I chose Ice Beam. As another good method of being able to deal with it. The other being Vanilluxe of course. Heal Bell would help heal my Pokemon from status afflictions like Toxic poison from Mandibuzz, Porygon2, and Venusaur. And perhaps paralysis from Tapu Koko or a possible Plusle. Stealth Rock makes Zygarde's job of sweeping a lot easier, and heavily damages some threatening Pokemon on Amant's team. Also, his only form of hazard control is in Mandibuzz, which Clefable beats.

One main reason I chose Clefable was to stop a certain Pokemon named Heracross (and to check Kyurem). Guts-boosted Heracross can seriously brutalize teams. As well as the Choice Scarf set, which outspeeds my Choice Scarf Vanilluxe. Because Clefable's typing already resists Heracross' STAB moves so well, I decided to invest more in it's Special Defense than physical Defense. The rest leftover went into it's Special Attack and Speed for funzies.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Heracross: 110-132 (70.5 - 84.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 240 HP / 0 SpD Mandibuzz: 110-132 (51.1 - 61.3%) -- 92.2% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 4 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 116-138 (57.7 - 68.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Guts Heracross Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 92 Def Clefable: 85-101 (42 - 50%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Flash Cannon vs. 252 HP / 156+ SpD Clefable: 116-138 (57.4 - 68.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252 Atk Guts Heracross Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 92 Def Clefable: 133-157 (65.8 - 77.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO | That actually really hurts ;-; Such power



Beyblade (Hitmontop) @ Expert Belt
Ability: Technician
Level: 50
EVs: 68 HP / 244 Atk / 196 Def
Impish Nature
- Aerial Ace
- Mach Punch
- Earthquake
- Toxic

As another precaution to Kyurem and Klinklang, as well as Zoroark, I decided to use Technician Hitmontop again! I love this ability so much. And it's cool to see Hitmontop play a more offensive role, rather than a bulk-heavy, support one. Hitmontop is pretty big for checking these fast, powerful threats. They could just kind of push through my team with ease. Definitely helps the matchup. Mach Punch destroys Kyurem, Zoroark, and Klinklang. Earthquake beats Delphox, Tapu Koko, and Plusle. Aerial Ace beats what those two don't pretty effectively. The two Pokemon being Venusaur and Heracross, which takes x4 damage from the move. Toxic allows me to whittle Mandibuzz and Porygon2 down.

Initially, I wanted to run Adamant to get the most out of Hitmontop's Attack stat. However, this did not allow me to dependably take out Zoroark with Mach Punch. But I learned that I could run an Impish set to help Hitmontop take physical hits better, and Expert Belt would end up giving me the damage I was looking for.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Technician Hitmontop Mach Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kyurem: 108-130 (54 - 65%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Technician Hitmontop Aerial Ace vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Heracross: 250-298 (161.2 - 192.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Technician Hitmontop Mach Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Zoroark: 151-180 (111 - 132.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Hitmontop Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko in Electric Terrain: 127-151 (86.9 - 103.4%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Hitmontop Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Delphox: 144-170 (95.3 - 112.5%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Technician Hitmontop Aerial Ace vs. 232 HP / 0 Def Venusaur: 118-139 (64.1 - 75.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 244 Atk Expert Belt Technician Hitmontop Mach Punch vs. 76 HP / 0 Def Klinklang: 89-108 (61.3 - 74.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 Atk Guts Heracross Close Combat vs. 68 HP / 196+ Def Hitmontop: 117-138 (87.3 - 102.9%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO
  • 252 SpA Magnet Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 68 HP / 0 SpD Hitmontop in Electric Terrain: 103-123 (76.8 - 91.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • +1 252+ Atk Klinklang Gear Grind (2 hits) vs. 68 HP / 196+ Def Hitmontop: 92-110 (68.6 - 82%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


The Aftermath

Here is the battle link: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7customgame-582542731
Week 11: Toronto Maple Leafeons (AbruptFury) .vs. Bayern Munchlax (Trafalgarlaw)
Team Amant brought: Porygon2, Zoroark, Landorus, Venusaur, Mandibuzz, Tapu Koko

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Turn by Turn Analysis

This week, the turns won't be all wonky because we're using Showdown. I will once again guide you through my turns. What I was thinking and stuffs. There is a chat this week, however.

Turn 0: Same as week 1, not taking any chances with Tapu Koko. I lead my Scarf Vanilluxe. He leads Porygon2, likely predicting my Vanilluxe, as it is the best thing on his team to take a hit from it.
Turn 1: I switch into Hitmontop on it, but it takes a Thunder Wave for it's troubles. Probably better on it than Vanilluxe though.
Turn 2: Amant makes a safe switch by sending out his Venusaur to take a hit from my Hitmontop. With it being so early on, I didn't want to outpredict anything. I simply go for Toxic, which Venusaur is immune to.
Turn 3: Wanting to preserve my Hitmontop, I switch into the tanky Malamar. It dodges a Sleep Powder.
Turn 4: Sleep Powder connects. ZZ no re.
Turn 5: He switches in Tapu Koko while I burn a sleep turn.
Turn 6: Didn't wanna take hits from this thing on anything else, so I stay in and take a U-turn. To my surprise, Malamar survives this even though it is boosted by Life Orb. Amant sends in his Mandibuzz.
Turn 7: I send in Vanilluxe on the expected Foul Play. I knew I could take it rather well and just wanted to threaten his incredibly Ice-weak team. As well as get a chance to freeze one of his Pokemon.
Turn 8: Porygon2 comes in to take the Blizzard. It takes it very nicely, showing me that this is a more specially defensive set.
Turn 9: I switch into Hitmontop on his Recover.
Turn 10: Porygon2 reveals Reflect while my Hitmontop suffers from it's paralysis.
Turn 11: Hitmontop takes Tri Attack rather poorly as it can still no longer get a move off.
Turn 12: I try and preserve Hitmontop for later by sending in Dhelmise in it's place, while Porygon2 continues to go for Tri Attack.
Turn 13: I wanted to attempt to trap Porygon2 so I could poison it later with Toxic, but it's switches out. This is an interesting play to me, since Porygon2 usually has a hay day walling Ghost types. Venusaur takes it's place. It becomes trapped by the Anchor Shot.
Turn 14: I decide to sac off my sleepy, low health Malamar to the Venusaur. In order to bring in my Vanilluxe and Blizzard spam some more.
Turn 15: Amant allows his Venusaur to go down to Vanilluxe. Presumably so that he wouldn't have to take too much damage on his Porygon2. One kill for Vanilluxe, as P2 hits the field.
Turn 16: I decide to sac Hitmontop this time so that I may get Dhelmise in to deal with this Porygon2.
Turn 17: Once again, P2 switches out of my Dhelmise, into Mandibuzz this time. It becomes trapped by Anchor Shot.
Turn 18: I send out Clefable to take any attack Mandibuzz might want to go for. It puts a timer on my Clefable with Toxic.
Turn 19: I feel like he might want to switch out in fear of Moonblast, so I take the opportunity to get my Stealth Rock up. I feel like this is a no drawback play because Moonblast damage will cause him to Roost as I send out something like Vanilluxe in Clefable's place. He switches into P2.
Turn 20: Knowing by now that Dhelmise walls P2, I go directly into it.
Turn 21: Another switch into Mandibuzz and it is getting rather low from these Anchor Shots.
Turn 22: I see this as the perfect opportunity to get Vanilluxe in again as Mandibuzz Roosts.
Turn 23: Vanilluxe goes for Blizzard. It does a lot, but doesn't kill. However, it does get the freeze.
Turn 24: I take this opportunity to make an aggressive play and go straight into my Zygarde to try and set up Dragon Dances on my frozen opponent.
Turn 26: So after using Dragon Dance, I start getting a little paranoid that the freeze may not last like I hoped. And I was also feeling rather safe going for Thousand Arrows because Zygarde was now faster than everything non-Scarfed. I finish off the Mandibuzz and Zygarde gets a kill. Amant sends in P2.
Turn 27: Testing the waters, I have Zygarde use Thousand Arrows to scout the damage. I believe Porygon2 can survive at least one Ice Beam, but he instead uses Reflect.
Turn 28: Because of the health that P2 is now at, I set up another Dragon Dance. This will also help me break through Porygon2's defenses, along with this Reflect.
Turn 29: I try to damage it again as Amant decides to try and take down this threat with Tri Attack. This has me quite worried because any of the 3 status chances would be quite bad for my sweeper to take.
Turn 30: I continued to set up. I expected him to Recover, but he knows very well that he can't stall Zygarde out. He makes the smart play by going for Tri Attack continuously.
Turn 31: Once again, I go for Thousand Arrows. And once again, Amant goes for Tri Attack. Still no status. I'm so relieved. Also, Reflect wore off. So that's quite nice for my Zygarde.
Turn 32: Porygon2 falls to Zygarde.
Turn 33: Landorus-I falls to Zygarde.
Turn 34: Zoroark falls to Zygarde.
Turn 35: Tapu Koko falls to Zygarde and we make playoffs for the PFA! :D

In Conclusion

Good game to Amant. I felt like I didn't really misplay for once, but my only regret that match is that it means that you won't have enough wins to make it into the playoffs with me :c I know you are a good player, and that you were a little down on yourself for your performance this season, but I think it just some issues with the team. You did make some trades a little prior. It can definitely be hard to adapt to that kind of change when you were so used to running your team one way. Like how Clefable has often been functioning as support for me, even though I would like to use an offensive set sometime. But yeah, your play was not bad during our match. I was a little confused about you not bringing your Ice resists, like Delphox and Klinklang. I did some planning for those two, because they could've really given my team trouble. They still could've, if I had lost certain mons. Your team definitely had mine beat in the speed game. I do hope that you will consider joining PFA again next season :) KappaTrio

Alrighty. I think I've wrapped just about everything up here. Gotta get some sleep. I had one crazy shift at work earlier. Thought I'd get this out for you sooner than later. I hope you enjoyed my report and stay tuned for the final week of the PFA scheduled matches! I look forward to seeing who I face in the playoffs.

To stay up to date on the statistics of the Pokemon Forever Association, you can visit the Season 5 spreadsheet : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1rtDI8iVtjymGgxlom4GphVjk6U8NTCDcE2Tj_7-Nt5k/edit#gid=0

Personal Note

You may have noticed the name change on Clefable earlier. It was named Graci instead of Tatl. Graci is my sister's name. She was in the hospital for a few weeks because of her heart. It was causing her severe nausea and she was fatigued all the time. We thought that it might've been the flu or possibly even acid reflux disease, like I have. But we eventually found out that it was scar tissue from where she had an operation done as a baby. She had a heart murmur. She's been growing like a weed over the last few years, so her heart has been having a hard time trying to keep up. The doctors say it's a miracle that she didn't have a stroke simply walking up the steps into Yarmouth Hospital. And she was legally dead for 24 minutes as the doctor's struggled to find a pulse, later on in the IWK. No brain damage however. Then after she got a pacemaker, the doctors expected her heart to be healed up in a week or two. She was good in 2 days. She's quite resilient. Graci is doing a lot better now with a combination of pacemaker and medicines. But for about a month, I was scared we might lose her. It was getting really bad. So out of love and respect for my sister, I decided to name one of my Pokemon after her. I think she'd like Clefable. I haven't really asked her. But she does like pink and cute things. A lot of stress from these family issues I've been having recently. I thought I'd share that with you guys because it is important to me. Hopefully, we won't have to worry about anymore problems like that for a while. Thank you for reading :D

PFA Week 9 & 10 Results: Toronto Maple Leafeons

Your coach of the Toronto Maple Leafeons has returned! Hello everyone. I hope you are having a good day. It's been really sunny and cool because of the ocean breeze for me. Very nice. Pepped me right up. I'm ready to get into this report.

For this game, I faced Justin AKA Justin Clynn AKA Epiclolz. Another long time member of the Justin Flynn/PokemonForever community. Like Alec, who I faced last week. Epic's success during this season has been pretty good. He's definitely one of the top dudes. His team has some threats and some possibility for hidden techs. Like an offensive Technician Roserade with Hidden Power Ice. That would give old Zygarde a walloping. So yeah. I definitely had to keep a bunch of things in mind to play safely around these. Oh! We both also went into this with the same record. 5-3.

The Team Line-ups

My Team: M-Pinsir, Clefable, Zygarde-50%, Empoleon, Arcanine, Hitmontop, Vanilluxe, Dhelmise, Heliolisk, Jellicent, Malamar

Epiclolz53 (Indy Latis): Jirachi, Tyranitar, Milotic, Ninetales-Alola, Jolteon, Typhlosion, Crustle, Roserade, Type: Null, Gourgeist (any form)


Neptune (Empoleon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Atk / 4 Def / 156 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Defog
- Stealth Rock
- Knock Off
- Earthquake

I knew I wanted to stop Alolan Ninetales' Aurora Veil. If that gets left unchecked. Ninetales could rotate around me, setting it up and switching out into something else. It would make tanking hits easier, setting up something like Tyranitar to Dragon Dance sweep. It would make everything harder. The main reason people use Defog might be to clear away field hazards like Stealth Rock and Spikes, but Defog also removes screens. So with Empoleon and it's typing which walls Ninetales' STAB moves, I could easily come in on it and remove Aurora Veil every time. Stealth Rock was put onto Empoleon for chip and potentially removing Focus Sashes. Knock Off could be used to remove some annoying items, as well as a way of hitting Gourgeist for supereffective. And Earthquake, an option for damaging various things weak to Ground on Epic's team, and a way of damaging Ninetales, Roserade, Milotic decently, so they couldn't just spam something like boosted item Hidden Power Ground against my Empoleon or something like that.

Empoleon's special bulk was used to take Hidden Power from Alolan-Ninetales really well, to preserve it. The attack EVs helped Empoleon 3HKO 252 HP Jirachi, as well as damaging some other Pokemon weak to the move better. Knock Off wasn't considered in the calcs because it was more of a hit-and-run option. Remove something's item and switch out, since there would most likely be something to come in that threatens Empoleon. The rest was put into Defense and Speed. The extra speed could help Empoleon speed tie with speed creepers.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 92 Atk Empoleon Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Jirachi: 76-90 (36.7 - 43.4%) -- 99.2% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 92 Atk Empoleon Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 68-82 (38.6 - 46.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
  • 92 Atk Empoleon Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Roserade: 53-63 (39.2 - 46.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Black Sludge recovery


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252 SpA Life Orb Ninetales-Alola Hidden Power Ground vs. 252 HP / 156+ SpD Empoleon: 52-62 (27.2 - 32.4%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after hail damage and Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Jolteon Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 156+ SpD Empoleon: 162-192 (84.8 - 100.5%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Typhlosion Focus Blast vs. 252 HP / 156+ SpD Empoleon: 142-168 (74.3 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • +2 252+ SpA Jirachi Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 156+ SpD Empoleon: 146-174 (76.4 - 91%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery



Oryx (Zygarde) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Aura Break
Level: 50
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Core Enforcer
- Earth Power
- Grass Knot
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Something I had in mind since I found out about Sludge Wave as a move option for Zygarde, was a Choice Specs set. 81 base Special Attack isn't anything spectacular, thus the reason I invested in Modest nature, but the power behind Choice Specs and Zygarde's special movepool in this matchup made it seem kind of hard to deny it's usefulness. I didn't want Tyranitar to come in and set up Dragon Dances on my Zygarde after I fired off a Draco Meteor to take something out. So I decided to go with Zygarde's cool new signature move, Core Enforcer. A 100 base power special Dragon type move that nullifies your opponent's ability if they move before you. This could serve some purpose with Modest nature. And it means that I could remove an ability like Serene Grace on Jirachi, Volt Absorb on Jolteon, Competitive/Marvel Scale on Milotic making it less offensive or less bulky, Type: Null's Battle Armor so I may crit it. It just seemed fun to try out. And the animation for the move in-game Kreygasm Earth Power could make use of that massive Ground type weakness I mentioned earlier. It hits so many of his Pokemon hard. Who needs power when you have x2 damage modifiers? And a x1.5 one from Choice Specs. And a x1.5 one from STAB. Yea. That won't hurt Kappa Note: I didn't feel it was necessary to run a physical set with Thousand Arrows this week because my opponent had no Flying types to speak of on his team. Grass Knot was purely for Milotic if it came down to a stand-off between the two. Choice Specs Grass Knot is a 2HKO from Zygarde, believe it or not. I was really impressed by this calc. So I had to include it. Also, because Milotic is so good at stalling with it's bulk and Recover. Hidden Power Fire was mainly for Gourgeist, so I could hit it supereffectively. I considered other supereffective Hidden Powers, but didn't like them for various reasons. Like how Hidden Power Dark would invite in Alolan-Ninetales. Or Hidden Power Ghost was immune against Type: Null. Yes, Typhlosion could be immune through Flash Fire. But who switches a Typhlosion in on a Zygarde in the first place? Whoever does is actually a madman. Please turn them in to your nearest authorities so they may get the help they need.

I was interested in getting the most bang for my earthworm dragon, so I invested all the way into it's Special Attack and Speed, and the last 4 EVs into Defense as it was Zygarde's best natural stat. I just wanted Zygarde to plow through his team. Another reason why I didn't take anything out of Speed was because a Timid max speed Milotic is outsped by non-boosting nature max speed Zygarde by 1 point only.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 252+ SpA Choice Specs Zygarde Grass Knot (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Milotic: 114-136 (56.4 - 67.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252+ SpA Choice Specs Zygarde Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Tyranitar in Sand: 126-150 (71.5 - 85.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO | Curse you, sand boost!
  • 252+ SpA Choice Specs Zygarde Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Jirachi: 186-222 (105.6 - 126.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252+ SpA Choice Specs Zygarde Core Enforcer vs. 252 HP / 104 SpD Gourgeist-Large: 115-136 (63.1 - 74.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery



IAmLegendary (Arcanine) @ Iapapa Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
Level: 50
EVs: 20 HP / 236 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Wild Charge
- Close Combat
- Toxic

So I don't know if you guys know anything about Choice Scarf or Specs Typhlosion Eruption, but it's pretty freaking strong. I gave Arcanine Flash Fire so I could sponge that up into a Fire type attack boost. Without a Choice item, I would've have any real problem going for Flare Blitz, predicting the switch, but could also change it up to go for something else to damage it. Just a really powerful attack that few Pokemon on his team will want to take on. Wild Charge is obviously to help beat down Milotic. The big bulky threat it is. Close Combat helps Arcanine be able to take on Tyranitar and Type: Null, and is actually an attack that doesn't cause recoil for Arcanine. Because of all of these recoil attacks and other chip Arcanine might take, I decided to give it an Iapapa Berry for the one-time use Recover. Toxic would be used to wear things down to ease predictions, so I didn't have to waste HP or be forced to switch out because of stat drops from Close Combat.

I wanted Arcanine's HP number to be divisible by 4 so that hazard switch-ins would allow it to proc at 25%, rather than have it come up short and have my Arcanine put into a difficult situation where my opponent would have an easier time picking it off or I would be forced to come back in later and take another 25% perhaps to activate the berry. I could be at 1% when that happens. That's some risky stuff. Similarly to Zygarde, I didn't want to reduce Arcanine's speed because of Milotic. I took the EVs out of Attack, but still ran with Arcanine very offensively. Even using Adamant over Jolly to break through Epic's Pokemon better.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 236+ Atk Arcanine Flare Blitz vs. 44 HP / 0 Def Gourgeist: 168-200 (115 - 136.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 236+ Atk Arcanine Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Jirachi: 200-236 (96.6 - 114%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
  • 236+ Atk Arcanine Wild Charge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Milotic: 84-100 (41.5 - 49.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery | Just something to keep in mind. Better to go for Toxic.
  • 236+ Atk Arcanine Close Combat vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 248-292 (140.9 - 165.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO



Geico (Heliolisk) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Dry Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 244 HP / 4 Def / 12 SpA / 156 SpD / 92 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Dark Pulse
- Hyper Voice
- Dragon Tail

Geico is back! Saving you 10% or more on your win chances! One of the Pokemon I was considering when I schemed up the Assault Vest set was Jolteon. My opponent this week just so happens to have Jolteon. I knew I wanted to use this in this battle. Milotic only made it an even easier decision. Thunderbolt would lay waste to it, no problem. As well as hitting a bunch of his Pokemon for good damage. Dark Pulse would help me to hit Gourgeist if he brought it. Also a supereffective option for Jirachi. Hyper Voice was mainly for Jolteon. I needed something to hit it. It could also hit other things well because of the STAB boost. Dragon Tail was an interesting choice. I considered an old set from VGC that @"Heavy" enlightened me on back in 2015. Mirror Coat Milotic. It can take a special attack and double the damage you dealt to it right back. And that goes by HP, so Heliolisk is not surviving that. And I knew that I would not be able to OHKO a bulky Milotic with Thunderbolt at all. Not when I'm using an Assault Vest set. So I could scout for Mirror Coat by taking nothing and forcing it out. I wasn't too afraid of what Milotic might do outside of Mirror Coat so I felt this was fine. Toxic would definitely suck though. Putting my tank on a timer. Though I could keep recovering HP off of Scald's from Milotic due to Dry Skin.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 12+ SpA Heliolisk Hyper Voice vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Jolteon: 64-76 (45.7 - 54.2%) -- 45.3% chance to 2HKO
  • 12+ SpA Heliolisk Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Milotic: 102-122 (50.4 - 60.3%) -- 87.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery | I probably could have invested more into Special Attack from Speed.


Defensive Calcs:
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Jolteon Thunderbolt vs. 244 HP / 156 SpD Assault Vest Heliolisk: 30-36 (17.8 - 21.4%) -- possible 5HKO
  • 252 SpA Life Orb Roserade Leaf Storm vs. 244 HP / 156 SpD Assault Vest Heliolisk: 86-101 (51.1 - 60.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 252 SpA Life Orb Technician Roserade Hidden Power Fire vs. 244 HP / 156 SpD Assault Vest Dry Skin Heliolisk: 49-58 (29.1 - 34.5%) -- 7.4% chance to 3HKO
  • 252 SpA Choice Specs Typhlosion Eruption (150 BP) vs. 244 HP / 156 SpD Assault Vest Dry Skin Heliolisk: 127-150 (75.5 - 89.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Ludwig (Pinsir) @ Pinsirite
Ability: Hyper Cutter
Level: 50
EVs: 36 HP / 252 Atk / 220 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Return
- Earthquake
- Brick Break
- Swords Dance

For Mega Pinsir, I decided to go with a standard Swords Dance set, with a twist. I added Brick Break as another way to break through Aurora Veil. Return was the main STAB attack to hit everything hard. Earthquake hits Tyranitar, Jolteon, Jirachi. And Swords Dance was obviously to give Mega Pinsir the power to crush anything in it's path. I figured it had a pretty good matchup here. It just applies so much pressure to take it out.

Mega Pinsir has enough Speed to outspeed a Jolly/Timid max speed Jirachi. I maxed out Attack for the damage output. And the rest of the EVs fit fine into HP so that Mega Pinsir may switch in on Stealth Rock twice without fainting. Nothing further I really need say on this set.

Offensive Calcs:

  • +2 252 Atk Pinsir-Mega Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Jirachi: 260-306 (147.7 - 173.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • +2 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Return vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Milotic: 198-234 (98 - 115.8%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO
  • 252 Atk Aerilate Pinsir-Mega Return vs. 252 HP / 88+ Def Gourgeist-Large: 170-204 (93.4 - 112%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO
  • 252 Atk Pinsir-Mega Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Jolteon: 194-230 (137.5 - 163.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252 Atk Pinsir-Mega Brick Break vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 180-216 (102.2 - 122.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO



Beyblade (Hitmontop) @ Leftovers
Ability: Technician
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 228 Atk / 20 Def / 4 SpD / 4 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Mach Punch
- Toxic
- Close Combat
- Aerial Ace

Hitmontop would be my main revenge killer for Tyranitar. A 228 Adamant Mach Punch with a Technician boost would OHKO non-Chople Berry Tyranitar 75% of the time. Perfect for stopping a Dragon Dance sweep or Choice Scarf set (which outspeeds Mega Pinsir unfortunately). And speaking of it's ability, I bet you noticed that both of my Intimidaters were used, but didn't run Intimidate this week. While I did feel that these other abilities were more useful, it was in fact intentional. I didn't want to Intimidate spam against a team with a Competitive mon.

I went with Toxic to wear down bulkier Pokemon like Milotic and Gourgeist, which I couldn't hit super hard. Close Combat was to combat a possible Eviolite Type: Null, which is bulkier base stat-wise than Porygon2. Aerial Ace was a cool move to pair with Technician. It also gave me a way to hit both Roserade and Gourgeist.

I decided to build Hitmontop fairly bulky due to the fact that I wanted to make sure it stayed around, wouldn't get KO'd by Tyranitar really easily, and since it lacked Intimidate helped out it's Defense stat. Fully invested, I noticed that Mach Punch would never OHKO Tyranitar more than 75% of the time with no boosting item. So I decided to lower it's Attack to where I could still keep that chance, but have some EVs left to add to Hitmontop's bulk. I gave Hitmontop max HP and a little bit of Defense investment so it could dependably survive a Choice Band Superpower from Tyranitar, even after Stealth Rock damage and sand (though I think Leftovers goes before sand). Pretty strong hit to take. The 8 remaining EVs were put into Special Defense and Speed. That little bit of speed could help against speed creepers.

Offensive Calcs:

  • 228+ Atk Technician Hitmontop Mach Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 168-204 (95.4 - 115.9%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
  • 228+ Atk Technician Hitmontop Aerial Ace vs. 240 HP / 0 Def Roserade: 126-150 (76.3 - 90.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
  • 228+ Atk Technician Hitmontop Aerial Ace vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Roserade: 124-148 (92.5 - 110.4%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
  • 228+ Atk Technician Hitmontop Aerial Ace vs. 44 HP / 0 Def Gourgeist: 78-92 (53.4 - 63%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
  • 228+ Atk Hitmontop Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Eviolite Type: Null: 126-150 (62.3 - 74.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Defensive Calcs:

  • 252+ Atk Choice Band Tyranitar Superpower vs. 252 HP / 20 Def Hitmontop: 117-138 (74.5 - 87.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after sandstorm damage and Leftovers recovery
  • 252 SpA Roserade Sludge Bomb vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Hitmontop: 69-82 (43.9 - 52.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
  • 252+ Atk Type: Null Double-Edge vs. 252 HP / 20 Def Hitmontop: 93-111 (59.2 - 70.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery


The Aftermath

Here is the battle link: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7customgame-576484031
Week 9: Toronto Maple Leafeons (AbruptFury) .vs. Indianapolis Keldeos (Epiclolz53)
Team Justin brought: Jolteon, Jirachi, Milotic, Roserade, Staraptor, Typhlosion

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Turn by Turn Analysis

This week, the turns won't be all wonky because we're using Showdown. I will once again guide you through my turns. What I was thinking and stuffs. There is a chat this week, however.

Let's a go!

Turn 0: So I'm sure you were already plunged into confusion because my opponent has a Staraptor. Now you feel how I felt during my battle with him. Turns out, I should've stayed up to date on his team transactions. I built my team like a week or two prior. Staraptor can learn Defog. But I didn't care. I needed that thing gone if it was Scarf or Banded. I sent out Empoleon, banking on Scarf and knowing I could take a Close Combat from that set. He sends out Roserade.
Turn 1: He decides to Leech Seed me as I go for Stealth Rock.
Turn 2: I don't want Roserade stealing all my Empoleon's health, I switch out into Pinsir to try and knock it out or get damage on it, but he also switches. Into his Milotic.
Turn 3: A rather unfavourable matchup for me, I switch into Heliolisk and it slurps up that Scald. Yummy!
Turn 4: Not wanting to risk Thunderbolting it, I use Dragon Tail. As he switches out into Jolteon. He gets sent into Jirachi.
Turn 5: I got no problem with Jirachi so I just go for Dark Pulse as he hits Heliolisk and does nothing. Maybe I should've been more wary of Zen Headbutt.
Turn 6: Wanting to go into something better to take on Jirachi, I switch into Arcanine. As he switches into Typhlosion. That's fine by me. I wall this.
Turn 7: Little did I know, I don't wall this, it had Earthquake. Physical Typhlosion! My opponent is too heat for me! I throw off a Close Combat and it gets Typhlosion low.
Turn 8: I decide to switch into Hitmontop as a sac or a mid-ground play. Without Tyranitar, Hitmontop doesn't have much of a job here.
Turn 9: I finish the Typhlosion off with Mach Punch. One kill for Hitmontop! In comes Staraptor, taking some sweet Stealth Rock damage.
Turn 10: Predicting me to switch into presumably Empoleon, he goes for Close Combat and is taken down by one of my own. Two kills for Hitmontop. It was a pretty risk free play to stay in and Close Combat because, as I said before, Hitmontop had no real purpose this match. But instead, ended up putting in some great work against Justin :D Roserade comes back.
Turn 11: Hitmontop is at less than half HP with two stat drops. It could literally go for anything and probably take me out. So I let him. That way, I could get the free switch into something to revenge kill. FYI, I went for Aerial Ace with Hitmontop ;p Last ditch cheekiness. I send in Pinsir to get the mega evolution off.
Turn 12: Not predicting anything, I go straight for damage. Milotic takes the place of Roserade and takes a ton from Return.
Turn 13: I could've predicted Jolteon, but I don't think Earthquake would've finished off Milotic. And I still had Heliolisk. Mega Pinsir gets it's first kill of the match against Milotic with another Return. In comes Jirachi.
Turn 14: I called the Scarf bluff and Mega Pinsir gets it's second kill against Jirachi. Jolteon comes to counter Mega Pinsir.
Turn 15: I switch into Heliolisk and eat the Thunderbolt.
Turn 16: Roserade comes in and takes a Hyper Voice from Heliolisk.
Turn 17: I decide to stay in and finish off Roserade with Hyper Voices. Roserade uses Sludge Bomb and poisons Heliolisk. Lame.
Turn 18: Heliolisk Hyper Voices Roserade and doesn't quite take it out. Roserade goes for another Sludge Bomb.
Turn 19: Roserade is taken out by Heliolisk. All that remains is Jolteon.
Turn 20: Jolteon knocks out Heliolisk. Noticing that I don't have the best answers left, I decide to bring in Arcanine and IT'S BERRY ACTIVATES. Arcanine goes back up to 75%. A chance at survival.
Turn 21: Unfortunately, Jolteon fails to take out Arcanine and Flare Blitz picks up the knock out. I do lose a differential point because it went down though. Bleh. But I pick up the victory against a formidable opponent! 3-0 in the battle, 6-3 in the season!

In Conclusion

Good game Justin ! I feel bad that weren't feeling well the week of our match and hope you are feeling better now. Not sure how much it influenced your decisions in our match. I know you know about the Hitmontop play. We discussed that. How it wasn't really crucial to the matchup. Looking at your team however, I can understand the play, as Empoleon was pretty good against much of your team. Though, I definitely would not let it take the chip damage so that I may survive Close Combat and be able to attack. But I certainly didn't play things flawlessly. My worst mistake was trying to finish off Roserade with Heliolisk because Heliolisk handled Jolteon so well. And the rest of my team did not. If it were choiced, then I could play around it easily, but it was Life Orb.

Thank you for reading through :) I hope you have enjoyed this report and I am glad to have been doing them again. I like being able to look back at what I did and why I did it so that I may become a better player. And maybe help someone else out in which ever format they may enjoy playing. Stay tuned for week 11!

What About Week 10?

My opponent was supposed to be Travis AKA yugiohtrav of the Syracuse Swellows, but he decided to end his season early for unknown reasons. I know he had some personal problems back in season 3 when I took over his team for him. So I hope he's doing alright this time around too.

As dictated by the auto-win rules, I gave 3 of my Pokemon 2 kills and 1 death. I chose Vanilluxe, Zygarde, and Arcanine. My MVP Vanilluxe is now sitting at 11 kills. It is either in or around the top 10. I can't say for sure yet. This  puts me at 7-3 going into week 11. Will I be able to grasp the playoffs or will it be just out of reach? I believe that 9-3s are safe and that it might come down to differential if I lose one of my last two matches. Wish me luck D: