Johto x Alola RNG Team Analysis

Pokemon-GL: Johto X Alola and the Random Number Generator

The rules are nearly the same as standard Video Game Championship, simply with a restricted Pokedex. However, for this team, I decided to be less orthodox in my team building. After getting Pokedex numbers from a random number generator, it was up to me to make sure those Pokemon were able to work together.

The Team

Lucario fills our mega evolution, giving us a versatile starting point for the team. With near even offensive stats and a devastating ability to take advantage of, I was given an opportunity to fill voids left by the rest of the team composition. I had chosen to focus on Special Attacks, with Dark Pulse to help out in those rare occasions that Adaptability boosted moves weren't as effective. In hindsight, however, a physical set would have given me access to Blaze Kick, which could have added a much needed fire type attack to my otherwise lacking team. Even then, it's unlikely that a Blaze Kick would have really done much better than type-boosted moves, due to its ability. Because of the double battle format, a support role with Follow Me or using Final Gambit in combination with some other setup might have also been viable, but such tricks did not seem to fit the team's overall dynamic... or lack thereof.

Get used to this little guy! Emolga offers quite a bit as a support Pokemon. It has options with four different methods of speed control! Paralysis with Nuzzle, Electroweb which is essentially the same as Icy Wind, Tailwind which has been left off of this set, and the criminally underappreciated Speed Swap. Similar to how Pachirisu helped control the field in World Championships 2014, I personally think the flying squirrel could be a niche player in higher level competition, given the right team to support. What's more, people seem to forget its access to Motor Drive. It gives an extra edge when it comes to switching into predicted moves, especially those powerhouse Tapu Koko that are pretty common in tournaments. Changes to the set might include Tailwind over one of its electric moves. Tickle or Charm can weaken enemy strengths to help survive longer. Volt Switch and U-Turn with its high speed stat offer an alternative to hard switching which achieving at least some chip damage. Taunt offers about as much disruption as Encore. Similarly, an item other than Red Card would be in order, and trading off its nature for a Timid or Jolly, depending on its overall move set, instead of the Naive chosen to maximize damage of both Nuzzle and Electroweb seen here. This build would possibly work better trained to survive certain key attacks, picking a defense stat to split Hit Points with. Unfortunately, there seems to be no reliable way to build it to survive Mega Metagross using Ice Punch without significantly losing speed.

Honestly, I was not too sure how to put together Dragalge to work effectively. I knew I had a Speed Swap option to make it ridiculously fast, but other than that I could only work off its Adaptability. Instead of adding something like Scald for coverage, I opted to carry two dragon type moves to take advantage of the power difference between them, depending entirely on how much damage I felt needed to be done. A Poisonium Z with Sludge Bomb offered a surefire way to abuse Adaptability against anything that was not resistant, and its naturally high special defense did help against instances of Kommo-o trying to pull off its own Z Move, especially through protect or Wide Guard.

Toxapex is an interesting case. In several conversations about the championships double battle format, Toxapex is often written off, and understandably so. Weakness to Psychic with Tapu Lele and Metagross running around, with low offensive stats and little else it can provide in team support, I was a little concerned when the random number generator landed on its Pokedex entry. I resigned myself to dedicating it to status affliction, landing Toxic on things like Porygon 2 or other bulky special attackers, and hoping for Scald to land a burn against physical attackers. Pain Split gave me opportunity to turn some damage back towards opponents, instead of using Recover to simply recover health with no secondary effect. And finally, Wide Guard. This was the first wifi event on Pokemon Ultra Sun and Moon, and I expected to see a fair amount of Kommo-o with its new Z Move. And the opposition did not disappoint. I got a lot of mileage out of Wide Guard over the course of the tournament, so all things considered I can't say I'm disappointed with how Toxapex performed when I did need it.

Mudsdale, as I understand it, has been no stranger to competitive play, and for good reason! A strong single-target Ground move that isn't hindered by Grassy Terrain, a fighting move to threaten Snorlax and Porygon2, and Heavy Slam to combat the massive rise of Fairy types since the Tapu made their appearance give it a lot to work with offensively. Its natural bulk and Stamina ability make it difficult to take down, though its special defense is a little bit lacking. Choosing between Leftovers and Assault Vest was difficult, but I'm content with how this performed. After all, max Hit Points and Protect does a lot for lasting power. And just in case you forgot, dear reader, this team included a Speed Swap Emolga. What that Speed Swap means is that its actual numerical stat gets traded to Mudsdale. Not just base stat, but Emolga's base 103 speed stat, plus its maximum Individual and Effort Values. I don't know about you, but if I stared down a bulky powerhouse like Mudsdale while it was moving faster than Garchomp, I'd be scared.

Bewear with an Assault Vest. By no means a unique build, but I had to try something to cover some of my team's lacking bases. Thunder and Ice Punches help against Salamence, Garchomp and Gyarados, while hopefully surviving whatever they try to throw. Drain Punch threatens common powerhouse Pokemon like Snorlax and Tyranitar, while recovering health simultaneously. When none of those options offer a higher damage output, I always have Double Edge to fall back on.

Afterthoughts

All things considered, this was an ineresting experiment for team building. I figured I would not get a lot of decisive wins or a high ranking on the ladder with this team, but that's not entirely unwelcome. Having my Pokemon picked randomly gave me a chance to try out things that I may not have otherwise used, and a couple of the Pokemon in this roster will be seeing future play. I've particularly enjoyed messing around with Speed Swap, as my other team report from this tournament will show as well, and intend to try refining the strategy to work more effectively in future events.

Paste bin

Lucario (M) @ Lucarionite 
Ability: Steadfast 
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe 
Timid Nature 
IVs: 5 Atk 
- Aura Sphere 
- Flash Cannon 
- Dark Pulse 
- Protect 

Emolga (F) @ Red Card 
Ability: Motor Drive 
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe 
Naive Nature 
- Nuzzle 
- Electroweb 
- Encore 
- Speed Swap 

Dragalge (F) @ Poisonium Z 
Ability: Adaptability 
Level: 85 
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA 
Modest Nature 
IVs: 25 Atk 
- Sludge Bomb 
- Dragon Pulse 
- Draco Meteor 
- Protect 

Toxapex (F) @ Black Sludge 
Ability: Regenerator 
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD 
Bold Nature 
- Toxic 
- Scald 
- Pain Split 
- Wide Guard 

Mudsdale (F) @ Leftovers 
Ability: Stamina 
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD 
Careful Nature 
IVs: 10 SpA / 15 Spe 
- High Horsepower 
- Close Combat 
- Heavy Slam 
- Protect 

Bewear (F) @ Assault Vest 
Ability: Fluffy 
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD 
Adamant Nature 
- Double-Edge 
- Drain Punch 
- Ice Punch 
- Thunder Punch