Better Battlers Project: UU

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Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
Original thread idea stolen from Flamer's thread. Approved by Hikari.



You've got the team of champions at your fingertips. Your Pokemon choices are sublime. Your movesets could blow minds. Your EV spreads are a goddamned masterpiece. You're ready to take the world by storm... and then you actually play a few battles, and find yourself going down in flames. Where did you go wrong?


It's easy to focus on teambuilding and metagame theory, but to truly improve at this game, there is another aspect perhaps even more important: battling. What makes a good battler? What can you do to improve?

Enter the UU Better Battlers Project. Here, you can hear from veteran battlers about their thought process throughout games, and even have experienced battlers analyze your gameplay to help you perform better. The purpose is twofold: to help newer and more experienced battlers alike sharpen their skills through critical analysis, and to showcase the thought process of veteran battlers during high-stakes games.

Each week, the panel will select a featured replay from a tournament or other high-level battle, and we will hear from the players as to why they made the choices they did. Questions and discussion are highly encouraged! Feel free to discuss the battles and ask the battlers about their choices throughout the match.

In addition, you may submit one of your own battles for analysis by the panel. The process is simple: post a replay of one of your battles, alongside an importable of the team you used, and someone from the panel will analyze your battle. This way, you can see that same level of decision making applied to one of your own battles, and hear from veterans as to how they would have played things if in your position.

Featured Battle
  • Each week, the panel will choose a featured battle, usually from a tournament, to showcase good battling skills. I'll also ask the players a few questions about the battle and link them to the thread.
  • These battles are posted to encourage discussion - so please, discuss them!
  • If you have suggestions for a featured battle, please PM them directly to me.

Submitting a Battle

  • Make sure to include a replay of the battle, an importable of your team, and a brief summary of the match.
  • Try to choose a battle where the outcome wasn't mostly determined by hax - it's hard to analyze someone's gameplay when all their Kyurem counters get frozen on the switch-in.
  • Our panel will be analyzing your battle, not your teambuilding skills - if you want suggestions on the team itself, I suggest starting an RMT or checking out the Simple Questions thread.
  • Don't feel like you have to be new or inexperienced to submit a battle for analysis. Anyone may submit a battle for analysis, even a member of the panel.
  • Be courteous and civil to those who are analyzing your battle, even if you disagree with them!
  • UU battles only, please.
Analyzing a Battle
  • When analyzing a battle, make sure to think of things from the player's perspective.
  • Try to focus on all aspects of the battle - don't just focus onwhat moves they should have clicked or what switches they should have made. Instead, try to talk about things like what you can tell from team preview, choice of lead and what you feel like the game's pivotal turns were.
  • This isn't a team rate; if you feel like giving suggestions on the team itself you are welcome to, but the focus is on how to play the best with the team they are using.
  • Don't shy away from being critical, but please, no flaming or being actively rude. If someone is submitting a battle it means they have an honest desire to improve.
  • I will keep an updated queue of battles that have not yet had analyses done - try not to leave any battles unrated!

It is impossible to perfectly analyze someone's playstyle from a single battle. However, there are some specific things you can focus on to make sure that the feedback you are providing is helpful.

1. Focus on long-term decision making. One common problem among newer battlers is that they do not think about the game in the long-term, instead playing everything turn by turn as it comes. When analyzing the battle, think about what you can see from team preview and what it tells you about the opposing team, and how that influences your plan. Try to identify how you intend to win the match, what the opponent's biggest threats are, and what some key concerns are. Then, go into how that changes throughout the course of the battle.

2. Don't get too hung up on "making plays" or individual turns. A lot of newer battlers think that being a great battler is all about "making plays" - getting into their heads and predicting what they'll do before they do it. Of course, in actuality, those really ballsy plays are actually just a careful case of risk versus reward. In general, try not to focus on predictions during individual turns.

For example, if I've got a scarfed Mienshao that I bring in against my opponent's +2 Cobalion, and the opponent has a Chandelure sitting in the back, I'm essentially facing a 50/50. It doesn't really help to say "Oh, you should have clicked Knock Off, he obviously was going to switch to Chandy."

If you want to focus on that turn at all, then instead try focusing on the potential implications that the turn has for the rest of the game. Does his Cobalion sweep the rest of my team at +2? How will the game play out if I use Knock Off or U-turn and he stays in? How will the game play out if I risk a High Jump Kick and he brings out Chandelure? Which wrong prediction am I most likely to recover from? There's often no 100% correct answer, but our goal when analyzing battles is to encourage players to think critically rather than clicking buttons blindly.

3. Try to first give general advice, then use examples from the game to reinforce them. The goal is to improve someone's battling overall, so zeroing in on particular turns is rarely helpful. Instead, try to give general advice to encourage planning and proper decision making, and then use specific examples from the game to reinforce that advice.

For example, if you see that the opposing team has a Slurpuff, and the only things I have on my team that stop a +6 Slurpuff from sweeping are Crocune and Forretress, you might want to point out that I need to make it a priority to keep Forry healthy, as Suicune lacking Roar is an unreliable counter to Slurpuff (since Scald doesn't KO, and Slurpuff can KO with Drain Punch + Play Rough if it doesn't catch a burn).

Then, when looking at the actual match itself, you can point out times where I recklessly brought in Forry to tank a hit that it didn't have to, as a way to reinforce in practice what you discussed in theory.


The Panel
 
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Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
Hi, all! Welcome to the UU Better Battler's Project! Each week, we'll be featuring high-profile battles from tours and discussing the strategies and decision making that makes them successful.

This week to start things off we will be featuring TWO battles:

FEATURED BATTLE #1: Jirachee v dodmen, UUPL Week 7

Jirachee and dodmen are both notable battlers who had great seasons in UUPL. This match in the final week of the regular season featured Jirachee's semistall, boasting a defensive backbone of Alomomola and Florges, with some strong offensive threats such as LO Hydreigon and Nidoqueen, against dodmen's offensive Beedrill team that featured Slurpuff as a sweeper.

On the outset the match was a fairly straightforward one, with dodmen building to a Slurpuff sweep at turn 21.

I asked dodmen some questions about the battle:

1. Tell me a little bit about your game plan this match. From looking at Jirachee's team in team preview, what was your thought process for how to win this match?

The first thing I noticed from team preview was that both my hazard setters, Forretress and Swampert, beat the only possible Defogger on his team, Aero, and that Stealth Rock and Spikes would really help me wear down his defensive mons. I also noticed that Mega Beedrill could do some work, though I had to be careful of Rocky Helmet Alomomola. Additionally, he had no hard counter to Slurpuff (like Doublade or Mega Aggron), and the only possible priority he could've had was Fake Out on Mienshao, which couldn't have really stopped a Slurpuff sweep thanks to Drain Punch. Slurpuff had setup opportunities on quite a few of his Pokemon, depending on their sets. On the other hand, not much on my team wanted to deal with Alomomola (my Hydreigon was Specs, and he could play around my locked move with Protect), and I also had to play carefully around Nidoqueen. Jirachee's Hydreigon was also a threat if it was LO as I could only really revenge with Beedrill. To sum it up, my plan was to Memento or U-turn to Slurpuff and win after getting prior damage on the appropriate things, most likely with Beedrill.

2. Obviously scouting out sets/spreads was important to ensure you did not set up Slurpuff too early. How did you go about scouting Jirachee's spreads?

There were quite a few things I had to scout on Jirachee's team I made it a priority to scout the spreads of Alomomola and Nidoqueen to estimate prior damage that +6 Slurpuff would need to OHKO both. Turn 8 revealed that Nidoqueen was Life Orb, and the hazard damage taken that turn ensured that Slurpuff would kill it from there at +6. Turns 14 and 16 revealed that he had a TON of SpD on Alomomola, and that Play Rough was almost guaranteed to kill after the hazards that were up (from what I estimated at the time).

I also had to scout his Hydreigon and Mienshao sets, since a Life Orb set from either one would prevent Slurpuff from setting up safely (Taunt/Steel move or Poison Jab respectively). His Hydreigon turned out to be Life Orb so I couldn't risk setting up on that, and his Mienshao was probably Scarf. It didn't end up mattering because I set up on his Florges anyway, but if it came down to it I could have set up on Mienshao too (Florges was still safest)

3. This was a fairly short battle, but was there anything in your game plan that changed or evolved during the battle?

Not much changed, other than the fact that I needed much less prior damage on Alomomola than I initially thought due to it being specially defensive. As you can see on turns 24 and 25, Jirachee posted his spread and +6 Play Rough was enough to kill after SR and a Spike, both of which were on the field by the time I set up. Crit didn't matter! xD

gg Jirachee again, and shoutout again to Meru for the team!
FEATURED BATTLE #2: TewMew v Euphonos, Lower Tiers Tour Finals, Week 4

For the finals of the fourth UU tournament in the Lower Tiers Tour, Euphonos faced off against TewMew. Euphonos brought an Omfuga team that appeared mostly straightforward but actually sported a whopping three stallbreakers, while TewMew brought his trademark semi-stall, with a nice surprise in Dugtrio.

This was a long battle - about 120 turns - but TewMew managed to gain control of the game and hold onto it despite Euphonos having the team matchup. After a lot of patient play and careful planning, TewMew won in the end.

I asked TewMew some questions about the battle:

1. When you saw Euphonos' team during team preview, what were your initial thoughts on his team? What did you see as potential problems for your team?

First, i see his team as a classic balance with an additional porygon-z which should be taken cautiously. At first glance, i have an answer for everything on his team and even if one of my answer get worn down i have dugtrio to revenge kill the threat.

2. What was your overall game plan for how to win this game? As the game went on, how did this plan change?

My initial game plan was to focus on beating empoleon since stealth rock is a massive pain for my team, mainly aerodactyl which must stay healthy and no one really want to switch on scald anyway.

To do that, i need to find a free turn to put dugtrio in against empoleon, my best bet are to cripple it with knock off, leech seed and scald burn, forcing aromatisse to wish it.

After it being down, i just defog and the game should be slowly but surely win.

I decide to start with tangrowth to scout his lead since regenerator make sure it won't be damage too much and it can eventually cripple something with knock off or a surprise toxic which will help later to force free turn.

After discovering, both his hydreigon and aero were stallbreaker, the stealth rock problem became even bigger since i needed aero to beat at the same time hydreigon and p-z, while only my tangrowth and slowking could gave me some kind of edge by crippling his team.

3. Dugtrio is a pokemon that can be difficult to use, but can completely turn the tides of the game. You waited 48 turns before switching him in. What made you choose to bring him in when you did?

I finally choose to switch onto dugtrio because the odds he wouldn't use scald were the highest of the game at that point because:

1) He might have forgot about dugtrio at this point or simply thought i wouldn't switch on him outside of revenge kill.

2)I have made almost no risky play until that point.

3) I have play with a pattern very distinct during the game and empoleon was systematically oppose to tangrowth

4) The empoleon was seeded while my tangrowth was not burned or poisoned , toxic or switching out were his best play if i stay.

4. Do you have any thoughts overall on how you played this game? How about on how Euphonos played?

After empoleon was KO, i have to take care of that hydreigon which was still quite threatening has a random DM crit could break my team but overall most of the game was already decide, even if some hax keep him alive a bit longer.

My opponent played this well, if i haven't choose to switch on dugtrio the game would have turn in his favor most likely.

Hope it helps understanding my reasoning, if you have some other questions or points you want me to elaborate just say it.
And there we have our first two featured battles! Do you have any questions for the battlers, or thoughts on how they handled the game?
 
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Thoughts on both games:

dod vs jirachee

Honestly I don't think there were any terrible plays on either side here. The game seemed to be lost at the team building stage, due to the lack of any credible way for Jirachee to beat a set up Slurpuff. That isn't to say it's bad teambuilding though, and it's one of the reasons why Slurpuff is such a good mon. 9/10 times it is an autowin button with just a bit of prior work done.

Credit to dodmen for scouting as much as he did, and then laying the pieces into place methodically. Unless Jirachee's MAero was defog, I do question a bit a lack of hazard removal, considering he has four grounded mons and MAero takes 25% from SR, so one layer of each is plenty to put immense pressure on his team. I also think that this was noticed pretty immediately by dod, as he got the layers up right away which ended up helping ensure the win later on.

Unfortunately, I think switching out against Hydrei was the wrong play at the time, but was an immensely difficult one to make. If it hadn't been for the level of scouting performed earlier in the match then the BD wouldn't have been successful at all as dod would have had to wait longer.

Turn Analysis:

Turn 19: I think this was the pivotal turn of the match. By switching in Hydrei, Jirachee obviously forced out dodmen's Chandelure, which we were shown was not Choice Specs. The options for the two players at this point were:

dodmen:
  • stay in, go for a crit and let Hydrei roost up or lose Chandelure
  • predict a dpulse or a roost and switch to Hydrei
  • predict a dpulse or a roost and go into Slurp
Jirachee:
  • go for a dpulse and hit Chandy or the switchin
  • roost to keep Hydrei alive for longer which was getting difficult beacuse of LO recoil and rocks damage and few Roost opportunities
  • double, predicting the switchin to Hydrei or Slurpuff
  • go for a draco on the switchin or Chandy
Now as we saw from the replay, dodmen went for choice D2 and Jirachee went for choice J2

Of the two choices Decision Trees, dodmen's was much clearer. He had very little to lose by switching into Hydreigon on this turn, as the worst case scenario would have been if Jirachee had predicted his switch and doubled. Not only would Jirachee add more hazards damage to his own mon at this point, but dodmen could at least "reset" the decision tree and decide what to do next turn. Point being, he was in no place to lose the game on this turn, while Jirachee had to play very specifically in order to not lose it at this point.

Jirachee's tree was a lot harder to navigate. I believe doubling into Florges would have been his most optimal choice, but with a relatively healthy SpDef Alo I could see that being an option at the moment as well. Roosting with Hydrei was probably one of the worse options he had but also the one that spoke "loudest", by which I mean it seems to make the most sense if you are not looking as far down the lines of choices as possible. Frankly, it's what I would have done as well.

Following this as we know the next turn truly decides the game, as Jirachee brings in Florges on a very easy U-Turn play by dodmen. Again, switching in Florges is the "loudest" play, it frankly makes the most sense to switch in a Fairy type on a Dark/Dragon that can support the rest of the team and take nothing from Hydreigon. I do not know if Florges was the kind with Synth and Wish on the same set, but I would think so, and then it all comes back down to the hazards damage. In my estimation, if I am correct that he has both Wish and Protect, the idea Jirachee had would be to take advantage of a free turn provided by Hydreigon to Wish up the next switch in and try and wrestle back momentum from there. Unfortunately this is a psychological fault as we obviously saw, and goes to prove how big an influence "pressure" in the form of hazards and chip damage really is.

TewMew vs Euphonos

This match was too many turns for my liking haha. But in all seriousness I really think that both players played quite well, making optimal decisions for a large portion of the match. TewMew's reasoning as to why he switched in Dugtrio is admirable, it's essentially a 50 turn trap that put him in position to win the game. This is why he is frustrating to play against I think.

I do think that, later in the match (when it was 3v3) the momentum was turned harshly against Euph. But I don't think it was unsalveagable. Though this is the advantage of Regenerator mons, TewMew was able to coast out the last billion turns by just making simple plays over and over. While Euph seemed to make the "right" decision most of the time, you can even see in the chat that Omfuga and others asked why Slowking wasn't toxic'd. I think that is being a bit harsh on Euph, as he never really got the chance to get the Toxic off in the first place, but this was largely in part to not fully deciding to take advantage of TewMew's psychology and making a risky play/double switch. While it may not have been "optimal" to do so (as in say, a 30% chance of getting a desired result vs a 50% chance of getting a desired result) I think that Euph could have taken advantage of both the gameplay up to that point (TewMew had made literally one risky play) as well as the advantage of knowing the player you are playing against (seriously, I don't think there is anyone in UU at the moment that has more of a reputation for playstyle than he does).

All in all though, quite a good game, even if it did drag on for a while. Knowing who won, I was trying to put myself in the shoes of Euph to see if there were any points in which I would/could have made a better play. I can honestly say that early-mid game, I'd likely have played worse than him due to a tendency for risky playing, but later game I think I would have played a little bit better, though this is easy to say watching a replay of course (and, obviously, if I didn't play as well early/mid I wouldn't be in the same situation later on).

edit: Will add a bit more (e.x. turn specific analysis) but my internet is spazzing out a bit so I didn't want to lose what I'd written
 
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Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
My own thoughts...

dodmen v Jirachee: I really like this battle because I think it's a textbook example of how to play a high-risk, high-reward pokemon like Slurpuff, and a good way to show off playing offensive teams in general. I see a lot of people talk about how Slurpuff is an easy 'mon to use - click Belly Drum, win the game - but I think in practice a lot of newer players struggle with using something like Puff because they just wait for an opportunity to set up to fall in their laps, or they get their sweep ended early because they didn't properly scout first.

In fact, I'd say that dodmen's thought process this game is pretty good advice for anyone who is trying to improve in battling. In short...

1. Identify the ways in which you plan to pressure or beat the opponent during Team Preview (hazards, Beedrill, Slurpuff), and what the potential threats to that are (Aero/Alomomola limiting Beedrill's effectiveness, the potential for Alomomola or Nidoqueen to stop a Slurpuff sweep, offensive pressure from Hydreigon/Mienshao depending on sets). Come up with a rough plan on how to win (get hazards down, find out Momo/Queen's sets, get Slurpuff in safely against something it beats via U-turn or Memento).

2. Scout out the "maybes" in the early game (discovering that Hydreigon was LO, that Alomomola was specially defensive and lacked Rocky Helmet, and that Nidoqueen was LO) before you over-commit yourself.

This sounds simple, but it's useful to keep in mind whether you're a brand new player or a grizzled veteran. I think this Jirachee v dodmen game shows that this kind of forward planning is just as effective against some of the tier's top players as it is on the ladder. Jirachee is an excellent player and really didn't make any mistakes this game, but dodmen's methodical gameplay brought his team the win.

TewMew v Euphonos: I think TewMew is a really fun battler to watch, because he has taken one particular playstyle (semi-stall) and made it his own. He's also a really frustrating player to play against, even when you know what kind of team he's going to bring. This match Euphonos had three 'mons that could potentially do major work against any TewMew team - bulky Toxic/Taunt Aero, LO Taunt Hydreigon and mixed PZ - and while he played well, TewMew's patient, careful playing brought him the win in the end.

One thing I like about this game is how it shows that good battling isn't about crazy predictions and thinking five steps ahead of your opponent. Sometimes it's all about making the safe, smart move again and again and again. I think a lot of people make a big deal about "plays" and predictions. In ~120 turns, TewMew only had one remotely risky play - switching Dugtrio in to Empoleon in turn 48 - and even that was something he methodically built toward and planned out. In fact, his careful playing was what made his one risky play (which arguably won him the game) possible.

In particular, TewMew focused on the long term, thinking about what he would switch in to most threats down the road. Notice how as soon as Hydreigon was revealed to be LO Taunt and PZ was revealed to be mixed, he kept his Aerodactyl healthy enough to always switch in. For example, look at turn 43 - Hydreigon was in Stone Edge range, but TewMew didn't just jump in for the kill. If he had missed Stone Edge, Hydreigon would have killed with Draco and the game would be all but over. If he HAD taken out Hydreigon, he would be weakened and if Euphonos forced him out after the kill, Aero would no longer have been able to effectively check PZ. Not going for the kill where a lot of other players would have might not have been the most exciting play, but it was the smart one. In fact, once rocks were gone, Aero mostly remained healthy enough to even live a crit on the switch. In a game 120 turns long, crits and other hax are an inevitability, but TewMew mostly tried to play in a way that would prevent them from killing his chances at a win.

I also think Euphonos played this well. I know people were ragging on him for not Toxicing Slowking on turn 84, but I don't think it would have won him the game. He would have had to sacrifice Aero to do it, and even then it may not have worked out. Hydreigon wasn't going to break through TewMew's own Aerodactyl any time soon, and any time Euphonos brought in Aromatisse TewMew would have been able to pivot in Tangrowth and Slowking until Euphonos was out of Heal Bells and Toxic or burn won the day. Euphonos did what he could and managed to stay with it for 70 turns after Duggy trapped his Empoleon, which was arguably the pivotal turn of the game.

So while dodmen's game was a textbook example of how to play offense, I think TewMew's game was a textbook example of how to play semi-stall. He played it patiently, relying on his regen core's ability to switch in again and again until passive damage wore down Euphonos' team and focused on the long term, and it paid off for him.
 
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LeoLancaster

does this still work
is a Community Contributor Alumnus
Battle Submission

This was my first battle in the original auth vs non-auth tour, where I faced Donphantastic (Patwinking on smogon). It's a bit nostalgic for me because it could be seen as my entry into this community, and I think I played well overall despite my lack of experience.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-220721041

Heil Hail (Abomasnow) @ Abomasite
Ability: Soundproof
EVs: 200 HP / 252 Atk / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Ice Shard
- Seed Bomb
- Earthquake

Entei @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sacred Fire
- Extreme Speed
- Stone Edge
- Flare Blitz

Empoleon @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 248 HP / 52 Def / 208 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Scald
- Stealth Rock
- Ice Beam

Snorlax @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 144 HP / 188 Def / 176 SpD
Careful Nature
- Body Slam
- Curse
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Florges @ Leftovers
Ability: Flower Veil
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect
- Heal Bell

Suicune @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Calm Mind
- Rest
- Roar


Summary: First few turns I maneuvered around Donphantastic's SD Toxic Orb Heracross, probably the biggest threat to my team after losing Florges on turn 2 (should've scouted with Protect). During this time I managed to take out his both of his possible Entei switchins with a series of predictions. After that I made relatively safe plays for the win. I can expand more if needed; I'm not sure how much detail I'm supposed to include. If I need to say more just say so ^.^
 

YABO

King Turt
is a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
Not available to make a detailed post at the moment but looking forward to utilizing this thread as not only an avenue to help others but also to improve my own game by actively viewing replays which is probably one of the best ways to improve.
 

Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
Battle Submission

This was my first battle in the original auth vs non-auth tour, where I faced Donphantastic (Patwinking on smogon). It's a bit nostalgic for me because it could be seen as my entry into this community, and I think I played well overall despite my lack of experience.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-220721041

Heil Hail (Abomasnow) @ Abomasite
Ability: Soundproof
EVs: 200 HP / 252 Atk / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Ice Shard
- Seed Bomb
- Earthquake

Entei @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sacred Fire
- Extreme Speed
- Stone Edge
- Flare Blitz

Empoleon @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 248 HP / 52 Def / 208 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Scald
- Stealth Rock
- Ice Beam

Snorlax @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 144 HP / 188 Def / 176 SpD
Careful Nature
- Body Slam
- Curse
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Florges @ Leftovers
Ability: Flower Veil
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect
- Heal Bell

Suicune @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Calm Mind
- Rest
- Roar


Summary: First few turns I maneuvered around Donphantastic's SD Toxic Orb Heracross, probably the biggest threat to my team after losing Florges on turn 2 (should've scouted with Protect). During this time I managed to take out his both of his possible Entei switchins with a series of predictions. After that I made relatively safe plays for the win. I can expand more if needed; I'm not sure how much detail I'm supposed to include. If I need to say more just say so ^.^
OK, this was a fairly short match, so there's only so much I can focus on the gameplay itself. Instead I'll talk about what I noticed from team preview, and how that actually played out.

Right from the get-go, it looks like you've got a pretty nice team matchup. As you said, the biggest threat to your team was Heracross, as it outspeeds everything on your team bar Entei and, depending on its set, can potentially 2HKO your whole team as well. My first thought when looking at his team from preview would be to find out whether it is CB or SD - CB would mean you could play around it as long as you kept Florges healthy, while a status orb set would just have to be worn down with residual damage. If he managed to get rocks down, Feraligatr could potentially apply a lot of pressure to your team as well, as it only needs to get to +1 to outspeed and 2HKO everything on your team bar Suicune, who can be worn down since you lack Sleep Talk.

That said, your team has a few really solid ways to pressure his team. In particular, SD Abomasnow can really threaten his team. The only thing that can switch into it from preview is Cress, but Abomasnow can use just about any Cress set for setup bait, as the worst thing most Cresselia's can do to you is paralyze you. Heracross and Entei can't switch in but can both revenge, although Heracross takes >50% from a +2 Ice Shard (and possibly as much as 72% if it's uninvested in HP), so get rocks down and neither of them become reliable answers. The other thing is that his only possible Mega is MegaPert, and Swampert is his only possible rocks setter, which means that he's either running no Mega, or he's running the offensive SR MegaPert set. If the latter, that's great for you, because it means that your Entei craps all over his team. Your Snorlax probably won't do a ton of work against a team with Gatr and Hera, but it's probably good to have it in your back pocket as a blanket answer to most Cresselia sets and another Entei answer.

So I'd say your biggest priority during the battle would be to scout that Hera set, since that was potentially Donphantastic's most dangerous mon in this matchup. I'd also be really careful about Resting with Suicune until you find out what Gatr's set is, because Gatr pretty much eats your team at +2.

In actual play... well, scouting Hera turned out to be really easy, since he led with it and revealed Toxic Orb turn one. I can't really criticize anything about your gameplay, as it was fairly straightforward - you made good solid plays that were mostly the safe choice (and safe plays are a good thing in my book). That said, one thing I might keep in mind is that after losing Florges turn two, Suicune became your best bet for handling his one-two punch of Gatr and SD Hera. For that reason, I would have perhaps leant on your other 'mons a bit more for checking his less scary threats. For example, on turn 6 you used Suicune as your switch-in for Entei. It worked out alright for you, but as you had Snorlax, who wasn't nearly as valuable given the team matchup, I would have probably favored that.

In general, though, you played well, applying enough offensive pressure to prevent Donphantastic from taking control of the game despite having two of the scariest sweepers in the game, Feraligatr and SD Hera, on his roster. I think I'll leave things there, but if you have any specific questions, let me know!
 
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Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
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Alright, all, it's time for this week's FEATURED BATTLE!

Featured Battle: SPL Week 5, JeyTheGrey v destinyunknown

This battle between JeyTheGrey and DestinyUnknown was one of my favorite UU battles from this year's SPL. It featured JeyTheGrey's offensive VoltTurn, which relied on a VoltTurn core of Beedrill and Magneton to break down teams for such powerhouses as Scarf Salamence and Snorlax, against a solid semi-stall team by dunk that started with a classic M-Aggron/Florges/Tentacruel core, and built off of it with the always scary CB Hera and CM Cresselia.

JeyTheGrey's VoltTurn team managed to apply consistent pressure to dunk's team, wearing down his defensive threats and aggressively keeping rocks off the field to allow him to VoltTurn with impunity. Meanwhile, destinyunknown's Heracross in turn heavily threatened Jey's team, at worst 2HKOing every member of it. In the end, though, JeyTheGrey was able to successfully trap M-Aggron and keep his opponent on the defensive, and brought home the win for the Raiders.

I asked JeyTheGrey a few questions about the game:

>> Tell me a little about your game plan this match. When you looked at dunk's team during Team Preview, what was your thought process for how you planned to win?

> well looking at his team i was afraid of that aggron so i had to get rid of it as soon as possible so he would not have a beedrill switch-in or counter anymore
> that’s why it was important for me to preserve my magneton and my bedrill
> i was rather afraid of the heracross. i did not know whether it was banded scarf or sd… banded would just demolish me so i was hoping he was scarfed
> my way of winning was through getting up rocks, prevent rocks on my side and then start voltturning, seeing as he does not have a ground type
> maybe lategame sweep with scarfed mence

>> How much of your gameplan changed as the game progressed and some of dunk's sets were revealed?

> well i had to make aggressive plays when my snorlax was in because he could definitely switch in his banded hera and as i said, i dont really have anything to take a hit (beedrill i think gets 2 hit ko’d by 4 times resist cc lol)
> though that was really the only thing that could threaten my team on his side
> cresselia would be a concern if it is calm mind and i would lose beedrill
> the rest of the team was pretty standard i was not expecting him to have something weird or uncommon
> i was thinking specs hydreigon / scarf hera
> i was happier with scarf hydreigon for sure
> just the band hera that was a problem
> i dont think my gameplan changed during the game
> i just had to preserve and play aggressive

>> You definitely made some aggressive plays that worked out well for you, such as your double on turn 6, and staying in with Beedrill against (a potentially scarfed) Hydreigon on turn 23.
>> How do you decide when to make aggressive plays that carry some risk?


> i try to get to know a player in the first 5-10 turns of the battle to know how he plays and what type of gameplan and playstyle he has
> i was risking my beedrill potentially getting burned by a scald when tenta was in
> but the chance was in my favor and if he switched to hera, i’d have all the momentum on my side
> also i’d live scarfed dark pulse from hydreigon and if he happened to be specs i’d outspeed

>> You say you try to get to know a player and his or her gameplan/playstyle. What did this battle tell you about dunk's playstyle?

> i know him obv. we played a lot on the ladder so i had in the back of my head.
> i knew with the first few turns that he was playing rather safely and not risk too much because the team advantage was definitely in my favor
> team matchup*
> his only counter to my beedrill gets trapped
> so he has to play carefully if he wants to win
> that was my mentality behind my plays

>> Sounds good. Anything else you want to add about this game?

> should have poison jabbed on the hydreigon, because it was going to kill regardless and also potentially kill the possible hera switchin which he risked
> if i killed his hera there the game would have been over sooner
> but that’s pretty much all, i hope you understood what i was trying to tell you lol​

And that is our second week's featured battle! What did everyone think about the game and how JeyTheGrey and DestinyUnknown played? Any thoughts on the game?
 

YABO

King Turt
is a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
I liked this game because it showed how to really break a defensive team. Defensive teams thrive on players making the passive play so they can make their safe switches and outlast their opponent until they eventually win the game. This game was a prime example to show how playing aggressively can pretty much hand you the win. All that Jey really had to do was control hazards and he was pretty much set with his beedrill proving to be a monstrous threat to his opponents team. Iirc, this was around the time where Beedrill still hadn't really gained too much popularity in higher tier play. Early in the game you see a trade off made in the form of removing rocks for Jey and chunking the Forretress for Dunk. It's a very even trade as both teams central strategies for the match involve controlling hazards or punching holes in the opponents team with strong CCs. I also liked Jey's safe U-Turn plays as even if Heracross stayed in predicting the U-Turn, then it would be so weakened that stuff like Forretress' Volt Switch and hazards would just end the game right there. Even though a trade like that would initially appear to be in Dunk's favor, it would likely haunt him in the future. The main thing that made this game so one-sided was the lack of electric immunity which just allowed Jey complete freedom every time his magneton came in. The only play I didn't really like was Turn 12 when Jey switched his Beedrill into Tentacruel's Scald. Had that Scald burned, Cresselia would have likely been a massive problem as nothing else could really deal with it reliably if it was cm moonlight (toxic pert maybe). CM Moonlight Cress could have still been a huge issue regardless since it can heal the damage from Beedrill's U-Turns. However, it looks like it didn't have it since Dunk forfeited after Beedrill U-Turns into Magneton. Overall, a pretty solid showcase of a nice voltturn team.
 
I believe this game was really well executed on Jey's part. He U-Turned every single turn with Beedrill until he finally caught his Aggron on the switch. Luckily, Jey did not have to worry about anything stopping his volt switch making the game very easy for him. The game was played perfectly imo minus the U Turn over Poison Jab on Hydreigon(As pointed out). I believe the Switch into Beedrill on Tentacruel was a fine play to make, since it was an all purpose play. If destinyunknown had switched in Heracross, Jey got momentum. If Tentacruel stayed in, Scald not burning is in Jey's favor. Overall, I think this was a prime example of Volt Turn showing its dominance.

PS: JeyTheGrey start uploading to your yt again bro, I liked watching your videos a lot.
 
U-Turn on the Hera was safe (almost 100%) because that was the only thing he really had to break down my team so he had to preserve it... U-Turn gave me momentum which allowed me to win this game!
Christo The Gr8 i might start uploading in about 1-2 months again, when university starts! atm i'm working full time which doesn't really give me a lot of opportunities to record. I don't even have access to my laptop on weekdays... so yea lol
 

warzoid

I have several gelatinous friends
is a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
I'd like some analysis on my PSPL game against xShiba: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-uu-64242

At first glance, the matchup doesn't look too bad for me, since I have Mega Abomasnow for Mega Swampert and Empoleon for Fletchinder. However, I lack a Volt Switch immunity and have no poison type to remove Toxic Spikes. I'm also running some special defense on Slowking to help against Nidos, which makes it much less reliable at checking Swampert. I feel like I shouldn't have let my Abomasnow get weakened in the early game, but if I went into Florges I would just get T-spiked.

My team for the match: http://pastebin.com/fUwbFDyH
 

Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
Sorry for the delays, all. A lot going on, so I haven't had a chance to update things. I'll have a featured battle and warzoid's analysis posted by the weekend.
 
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Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
I'd like some analysis on my PSPL game against xShiba: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-uu-64242

At first glance, the matchup doesn't look too bad for me, since I have Mega Abomasnow for Mega Swampert and Empoleon for Fletchinder. However, I lack a Volt Switch immunity and have no poison type to remove Toxic Spikes. I'm also running some special defense on Slowking to help against Nidos, which makes it much less reliable at checking Swampert. I feel like I shouldn't have let my Abomasnow get weakened in the early game, but if I went into Florges I would just get T-spiked.

My team for the match: http://pastebin.com/fUwbFDyH
Again, really sorry for the delay in responding. I know that some others on the panel have been working on notes on this game, so I won't go too in-depth here, but I figure I'll at least put in some comments.

Like you said, you had a fairly solid team matchup here. Shiba's team was more or less straightforward, with no real surprises. The lack of any other potential rocker meant that you didn't really have to worry a ton about RD Pert, as he was most likely carrying bulky offensive rocks Mega-Pert (or possibly defensive Pert and no Mega, but that seemed unlikely). Lax could be fairly scary, as you're running Scarfnape and thus will have trouble breaking it after a Curse, but as long as you keep Empoleon healthy, it and Linda shouldn't be too big of a problem.

That said, his team relied heavily on wearing you down in the early game with VoltTurn, and he did just that. As you pointed out, going into Florges instead of Abomasnow would have opened up free turns for Tentacruel to come in, but in the early game with a fully healthy Empoleon and a cleric, that's not really a huge problem for you. Still, I don't think that's what lost you the game.

In general, Shiba really benefited from the fact that you mostly made the safe plays. Nine times out of ten making the safe play also means making the best play, but you had enough of a team matchup advantage that I think you could have played more aggressively overall. In particular, by a couple of turns into it, there were a couple things that were clearly problematic for you:

1. Tentacruel. It spun away your rocks (which in turn let him VoltTurn with Shao/Helio with impunity), dropped T-Spikes that prevented Abomasnow from doing its thing, and came in for free on a couple of your mons. You had no easy way of killing it, especially as your Infernape lacked EQ.

2. Linda Pressure. You pretty much needed to keep Empoleon fairly healthy to prevent a mid-late game Fletchinder sweep, as that was the only thing you had that could stop it at +2.

Number 1 was a big part of number 2, as Tentacruel was the only way Shiba had of keeping rocks off the field, which in turn allowed Linda to remain a threat. So for that reason, in your shoes my goal would have been to try to draw Tentacruel out as much as possible and wear it down. You started that out alright by dropping rocks early, but in some ways bringing in Florges to draw in Tentacruel actually helps with that goal. I'd also make sure to put as much offensive pressure on Tentacruel as possible whenever it's in - attack it with whatever you can to wear it down, since Shiba did not have a cleric.

So, for example, on turn 9 when you're facing a weakened Tentacruel, you have the option of attacking again (risking Snorlax switching in for free - and as mentioned earlier, Snorlax could be problematic) and KOing Tentacruel, or switching out and potentially letting Tentacruel recover. The latter choice was definitely the safe play - and again, there's nothing wrong with the safe play. But then when you've got Empoleon in again, you continue to focus on keeping your side clear of T-Spikes instead of trying to pressure Tentacruel further with Scald or keep rocks up, and in the process you let Tentacruel heal itself up to almost 50%. Safe plays, all of them, so I don't want to come down on them too hard, but you still had the team advantage, and when you're faced with what is possibly the single biggest obstacle to your winning, it often pays off to go for the more aggressive plays.

I'll let some of the others chime in more on this particular battle, but I did want to point off that in games like this, playing more aggressively can be key to winning. It's not about any particular play, but more how you played overall.

This week's featured battle has been chosen; just waiting on hearing from the winning battler about his thoughts on the game.
 

Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
Alright all, it's a bit delayed, but the new FEATURED BATTLE is up!

FEATURED BATTLE: Bouffalant v xMarth, UUPL Week 7

This week we're looking at another battle from UUPL between two veteran UU players Bouffalant and xMarth. This was an interesting game where both teams brought bulky offensive teams featuring Mamoswine, Hydreigon and Whimsicott, plus a bulky Water (Empoleon for Bouffalant and Tentacruel for xMarth) for hazard control. Both teams were immensely pressured by the opposing Mamoswine, who could potentially get a kill every time it came in. It was a close match all around, but in the end Bouffalant pulled ahead with the win.

I asked Bouffalant a few questions about the battle:

1. Looking at team preview, what were your thoughts going into this game? Did you have a specific gameplan for how you planned to play?

well uh i found it a bit amusing that we had pretty similar teams. i just kinda wanted to break shit down with mamo and chandy so i could clean up with hydrei later in the game. i was also aiming to lure in mamo / aero with shuca empo. other than his mamo, nothing was rly worrying me that much. i was a bit worried about the possibility of him running something like LO hydrei with fire blast or something to donk my whimsi, but other than that everything seemed pretty straightforward on his team, save for move choices on whimsi which didn't bother me too much.

2. This match was interesting because both of you had a Mamoswine that was able to apply a ton of offensive pressure to the opposing team, and you both had to be careful to play around that. How did you play around xMarth's Mamoswine to keep it from punching too large a hole in your team?

first off i got a little chip damage off of it with hydrei's uturn + lo recoil, saccing empo in retrospect might have not been too great of an idea though seeing as how it benefited me getting rid of his hazards n settin up me own. after that i just had to play aggressively against it and i had to apply my own pressure with candle and mamo. i ended up having to lose my own mamo in the process but by that point the game was kinda in da bag 4me lol.

3. Do you have any overall thoughts on how you played this game? How about on xMarth?

i think we both played pretty good. there's not much to say considering we both played pretty straightforward. only thing i was kinda confused by on his end was switching in whimsi from doublade on my hydrei, cus he hadn't even scouted the possibility of me having a fire move or not, and whimsi would have been nice to have for my hydrei later in the game. i guess his dragon was more instrumental but i feel like he didn't lose too much from switching into his own hydrei there because there was no way i was going for draco there lool.​

And that's our fourth featured battle! What did you think about this game and how Bouffalant and xMarth played? Any questions for the battlers?
 
This game was very straight forward and both players made the safe play every turn. It is quite funny how both of the teams were pretty much identical but with alternative options that filled similar rolls. Bouff ended up on top mainly because he got the early lead by killing Marth's Mega Aerodactyl and weakening Hydreigon which was Marth's last Earthquake switch in. At that point, I think Marth needed to make the play in Fire Blasting Chandelure on the predicted Whimsicott(assuming he had it) so Hydreigon could drop free Dracos the rest of the match. If such happened, I think the game could have gone differently and possibly in Marth's favor.

After Bouff got the kill on Tentacruel, he just needed to play safe the rest of the game to end off with a win. Overall, it was a really good game and both players played well.
 
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I submit to the council a recent game I played in which I actually struggled with because I really, really hate stall.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-257091458

Shedinja @ Focus Sash
Ability: Wonder Guard
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch
- Shadow Sneak
- X-Scissor

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 248 HP / 84 SpA / 176 SpD
Calm Nature
- Flamethrower
- Earth Power
- Toxic
- Ancient Power

Kyurem @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Ice Beam
- Flash Cannon
- Dragon Pulse
- Earth Power

Cobalion @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Iron Head
- Taunt

Crobat
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Defog
- Roost
- Acrobatics
- U-turn

Suicune @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Roar
- Calm Mind
- Scald


So most of the early game was setting up with Cune, with that being my bulkiest anything and being all-around useful, and fishing for burns. Then there's the stall shenanigans where he brought out a Slowking, which gave me a good bit of trouble until I could get it down to an acceptable level and finish it off after a Camerupt Earth Power + Kyurem Dragon Pulse, then the game was pretty much whittle down Chesnaught until it either was ko'ed or ran out of moves, which ended up happening.

I can't help but feel that I could've ended the game much sooner, so I'm wondering what could be done.

here's to hoping i did this right
 

Hogg

grubbing in the ashes
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnusis an Administrator Alumnus
For the next few weeks of featured battles, I plan to look at UU Open for battles. There have been a lot of great battles already, and for this week's FEATURED BATTLE we're looking at one of the better matches from this week: Luigi. versus Christo The Gr8.

FEATURED BATTLE: UU Open Round 2 - Christo the Gr8 v. Get Backer Luigi.

Both players brought bulky offense teams with solid defensive backbones. Christo's team utilized Forry/Swampert/Roserade as a bulky hazard core, with Florges and Mandibuzz pulling double duty as stallbreakers and offensive threats and Mega-Aerodactyl as revenge killer. Luigi also had Forry and Florges (though in a more traditional cleric role), with Mega-Aero as a stallbreaker, P2 as an all around defensive pivot, and Slowking and the utterly terrifying CB Machamp providing the bulk of his offense. In this game Luigi started off with a very solid lead, with Christo lacking any reliable switch-ins to his CB Machamp. However, Christo managed to regain control, and in a tight back-and-forth game that lasted more than 80 turns, Christo managed to pull away with the win.

I asked Christo the Gr8 some questions about the game:

1. What were some of your thoughts during team preview? Did you have a specific game plan for this match from preview, or recognize any particular threats?

From team preview I saw that Machamp could give me a world of trouble. I had no switch in whatsoever since my fighting resist is weak to Heavy Slam. Other than that, I noticed Aerodactyl could be an issue if Machamp widdled my Swampert and Forretress enough. On my side, I noticed that Taunt Toxic Spdef Mandibuzz shut down his whole defensive core but is threatened by both Aerodactyl and Machamp. I also noticed that CM Florges swept after i dealt with Slowking, or got the Slowking Toxic'd.

2. You mentioned that Machamp was a big threat, and indeed it put a ton of pressure on your team from turn 1. How do you play around major threats to your team such as this?

In this case, I do not think I played optimally against Machamp from the start. I should have recognized that it would be a good lead for him and leading Aerodactyl on my end would have been better. If I had forced out his Machamp turn 1, I could have gotten free Stealth Rock with Swampert on the incoming Porygon2 or Forretress.

But since the lead matchup was Swampert v Machamp, I thought getting Earthquake damage was my best option so I could take it out easier later on. But in general and not directed towards this game in particular, I usually try and deal with threats to my teams by letting such threat have minimal free switch ins and to make sure i can pressure with hazards.

3. From the early game, this match appeared to be going strongly in Luigi.'s favor. How did you adjust in order to regain control of the game?

The game definitely looked like it was in Get Backer's favor. I knew my win condition was Mandibuzz and that I needed to pressure his team with Toxic and Taunting his Florges not allowing it to Aromatherapy. Get Backer having an Aerodactyl without Stone Edge really helped since I could check it with Florges and Mandibuzz since my Swampert and Forretress were practically dead. I needed to play near perfect to end up with a win and if anyone watched the game live, you probably noticed I spent a while to pick some of my moves. Once I widdled Machamp and Aerodactyl enough, I knew my Mandibuzz could pull through in the end.

4. Do you have any final thoughts overall on how you played this game? How about on how Luigi. played?

Overall, I think I played the game really well given my bad start. I needed to really think about which pokemon was right to sack in situations when I had to sack, as well as having to make a play when I thought the time was right. I believe once was a double switch at Turn 31.

As for my opponent, I think he played decently well throughout the whole match. I do think he made a pretty big misplay on Turn 57 by going for Knock Off. I do not think it was necessary as Dynamic Punch was relatively free and Knock didn't even hit anything for a lot of damage anyway. This let me get my sack of Mega Aerodactyl in at a good enough HP to take a Bullet Punch. Other than that, the game was played well on both ends. GG Get Backer, this was one of the most fun games I have had in a while n_n
What did you all think of the match? Do you have any questions for Christo? Share your thoughts below!
 
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Christo defos had the matchup here as explained, CM florges really did good work that match and forced luigi to go to slowking when florges was in lest it 2hko.
Spdef mandibuzz was also rly good as basically only aero did something back. Altho he did kinda misplay dealing w/ champ luckily he didnt confuse and he managed to apply enough offensive pressure after; man that thing is a threat ~_~. After pert/forry gone if aero werent toxic'ed, that would've been in GB's favor much more considering how nothing really stopped it and Florges was para'ed. Overall a pretty solid match and fun to watch :3
 
Christo defos had the matchup here as explained, CM florges really did good work that match and forced luigi to go to slowking when florges was in lest it 2hko.
Spdef mandibuzz was also rly good as basically only aero did something back. Altho he did kinda misplay dealing w/ champ luckily he didnt confuse and he managed to apply enough offensive pressure after; man that thing is a threat ~_~. After pert/forry gone if aero werent toxic'ed, that would've been in GB's favor much more considering how nothing really stopped it and Florges was para'ed. Overall a pretty solid match and fun to watch :3
Well he had the match up until the first five turns went down. If Luigis Aero had stone edge it would have been a tougher game.
 
I do have a question for Christo:
Turn 10 why did you chose to use Moonblast with Florges vs Forry instead of getting another Calm Mind ? The third Calm Mind would ensure that PhysDef Slowking is 2HKOd no matter what he tries and gives a decent chance to OHKO Mega-Aerodactyl (assuming little to no bulk investment). Unless I'm missing something the game would have been yours right after the Volt-Switch to Slowking. So yeah, I don't get the play. Did you fear speedy Machamp with Heavy Slam ?
Cool game otherwise, SpDef Mandibuzz was pretty impressive
 

Hogg

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Re: early Florges sweep, while I can't speak for Christo The Gr8's thought process, CB Machamp has a guaranteed OHKO on 252/252+ Florges with Heavy Slam, and almost always runs max Speed or close to it. An extra Calm Mind still might have been a solid play, but it almost certainly wouldn't have led to a Florges sweep with Machamp still healthy.

So one interesting point of discussion from a battling perspective is choice of lead how best to utilize a 'mon that pressures the hell out of your opponent's team. This discussion of how things would have been different if Luigi.'s MAero had Stone Edge is true - but only because Luigi.'s CB Champ utterly destroyed Pert and Forry in the first couple of turns, to the point where they were no longer switch-ins.

Looking back at the game, Luigi. absolutely made the right choice in leading Machamp, since if Christo led anything but Aero it was able to do nasty things, and if Christo led Aero he had an easy switch out to Forry and probably free rocks, or an easy pivot into P2 to start spreading paralysis. Meanwhile, Christo was pretty much forced to lead Aero or he'd take heavy casualties, as we saw happened in those first few devastating turns.

I really enjoyed this battle, which I thought was really well played by both parties. Luigi. did a fantastic job early game of mitigating any matchup advantage Christo had off the bat, while Christo kept his head and regained control, winning the late game.
 
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