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Tournament 2025 Old Gens Invitational - Top 16

Smudge

NatDex Doubles TL
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DPL Champion
Welcome to the 2025 Old Gens Invitational!
Hosted by Smudge and LogIce

All sets will be Best-of-5.
The higher seed will pick the starting tier, and the loser of the previous game will pick the next tier, with no repeat tiers.
Based on both player's preferences, one tier will be excluded from the list of the tiers that can be picked during a set.

Seeding ties were resolved via deepest placement.

!! IMPORTANT !!
Please do not play your sets yet!
If you sent me a list of tiers and wish to change it based on who you are playing this week, send me a PM on Discord or the forums within the next ~22 hours, as that is when the selected tiers will be posted. If you don't need to change it, you don't need to do anything, and the tiers will be released at <t:1768291140:F>.

If you wish to change your tier order for any other week, please send me a message via discord or forum PM - at most 24 hours before the current round deadline.

The higher seed's two most preferred tiers, the lower seed's two most preferred, and the higher seed's preferred pick amongst the last two tiers will determine the tier lineup for the set.

Smogon tournament rules and guidelines are listed here.
The bracket can be viewed here.

As always, replays are required for this tournament.
Please play on SmogTours, post times in #match-times, and link your games in Discord!

The tiers that will be played are:
:latias: ADV :metagross:
:hitmontop: DPP :tyranitar:
:thundurus: BW :kyurem-black:
:landorus-therian: XY :gengar-mega:
:metagross-mega: SM :incineroar:
:rillaboom: SS :urshifu:

Rules and clauses of each tier can be found in the respective threads.

Round of 16
1768213724858.png

1. Yoda2798 vs 16. DaWoblefet
ADV/DPP/BW/SM/SS
8. Smudge vs 9. SingleThunder
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SS
4. AIRedzone vs 13. Arcticblast
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SM
5. Sunrose vs 12. SMB
ADV/BW/XY/SS/SM
2. Hugo vs 15. eragon
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
7. Actuarily vs 10. Grandmas Cookin
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
3. Amaranth vs 14. DaAwesomeDude1
ADV/DPP/BW/SM/SS
6. Nephtyrix vs 11. GenOne
ADV/BW/XY/SM/SS

Deadline: <t:1768798740:F>
Extensions allowed if needed.

Feel free to DM or PM me if you have any questions or concerns.
Have fun everyone!!!​
 
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Yoda vs DaWob - not much thoughts about this, just think yoda is prolly the better player when spread across 5 tiers but could also easily go the other way id say.
Smudge vs SingleThunder - still need my extension granted so im not gonna predict against the host
AIRedzone vs Arctic - show em how its done mr zone
Sunrose vs SMB - I am not that knowledgable of SMB's skill in the old old gens like BW and ADV and im also not that knowledgable on Sunrose's skill outside of SM (or XY I always confuse the tiers), so honestly im not sure but SMB has proven himself to be one of the most consistent and skilled players across gens and tiers so that has to count for something
Me vs Eragon - Overall id say eragons chances are looking better, I got not that much time + my teams are gonna be stunt or die, we'll see if ill stunt or if ill die
Actu vs GMA - 2 absolute titans when it comes to old gens (and current), this to me is the highlite match of the week
Amaranth vs DAD1 - I am not super knowledgable on amaranths old gen skill outside of BW but ik DAD1 is really good at several old gens so ill give it to him
Neph vs GenOne - My goat Neph, I am rooting for you. Go get em tiger!
 
Double posting because I wanted to write predicts

Yoda2798 vs DaWoblefet
ADV/DPP/BW/SM/SS
Battle of the oldheads. DaWob is mostly known for his BW prowess in teamtours, but he's a very solid all-around player who can hold his own in pretty much any gen when he puts in the effort. Yoda, on the other hand, has played every tier at a high level, as seen by her solid placing in each tour, capped off by wins in ADV Cup and Vintage. I give DaWob the edge in BW, while Yoda has the advantage in ADV and DPP. SM and SS both feel like toss-ups, so this could very easily go to game 5. I don't know how motivated DaWob is to really grind prep here. Because of that, I'll be bolding Yoda but could easily see this go either way. Highlight match of the week for sure.

Smudge vs SingleThunder
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SS
This one feels like a toss-up. ST is mostly known as an XY player, but she's also become a legit threat in SS, capped by an SS Cup win. Smudge, meanwhile, has quietly put together a really solid oldgens circit run this year, performing well across a wide range of tiers. I give Smudge the edge in DPP and BW. That said, this matchup could go to 5 games as well. ST tends to play more aggressively, while Smudge usually opts for safer plays. In no-team preview tiers like ADV and DPP though, that aggressive playstyle gives her an advantage imo, so I'll lean ST here but again, I could easily see this going either way.

AIRedzone vs Arcticblast
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SM
Arcticblast had a huge breakout in XY this year, going an insane 9-1 in DPL and proving you really can teach an old dog new tricks. Meanwhile, Redzone has put together yet another strong oldgens circuit run, highlighted by a BW cup win. I'm not sure how motivated Arcticblast is to prep heavily for the other tiers, whereas Redzone has been actively building and playing across multiple gens more recently so I'll give the edge to Redzone here.

Sunrose vs SMB
ADV/BW/XY/SS/SM
Both of these players like to use builds outside of the box, but they do it in very different ways. Sunrose tends to overcook a bit opting for unorthodox picks (for example Dragonite in BW), while SMB usually stick to small changes to established builds (things like Ghost Gem Jelli, Dark Gem Hitmontop, and scarf dragons in BW) that end up being much more consistent. Even though I think Sunrose is somewhat underrated in oldgens, it's hard to bold against SMB who has been elite in pretty much every oldgen at one point or another.

Hugo vs eragon
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
Another matchup featuring two players who aren't afraid to use unconvenitional stuff. I've been a huge fan of eragon's oldgens builds. He's not afraid to use structures from the stone ages and clearly show a deep understanding of the meta. When he puts in the work to prep, it shows, as seen in his XYPL and SMPL records. Hugo is also very underrated and has been consistently solid across the oldgens circuit, with SS probably being his best tier. Still, I give eragon the edge in DPP, XY, and SM so I'll be picking him here.

Actuarily vs Grandmas Cookin
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
Two of my favorite players in the tour. Act is the definition of consistent, playing every oldgen at a high level. GMA might be the goat of ADV and is no slouch in the other tiers either. Both of them also have some pretty unique takes on certain Pokemon in these metas and aren't afraid to use them (sorry Act, I still think G-Zapdos is ass). I rate both players very highly, but I think Act has the edge in four of the five tiers overall. Either way, I'm really excited to see what these two end up cooking.

Nephtyrix vs GenOne
ADV/BW/XY/SM/SS
Neph is another player I think is underrated in oldgens, and has put together a strong circuit showing this year. GenOne is mostly known as an SM player, but he's also really solid in XY. While GenOne can get very creative in SM, he tends to stick to more standard builds in tiers he's less familiar with. Neph, on the other hand, likes to experiment with more unorthodox stuff across multiple gens. I think the two are pretty close in playing skill, but I'll give the edge to Neph due to the builder advantage and slightly better consistency this year.
 
Double posting because I wanted to write predicts

Yoda2798 vs DaWoblefet
ADV/DPP/BW/SM/SS
Battle of the oldheads. DaWob is mostly known for his BW prowess in teamtours, but he's a very solid all-around player who can hold his own in pretty much any gen when he puts in the effort. Yoda, on the other hand, has played every tier at a high level, as seen by her solid placing in each tour, capped off by wins in ADV Cup and Vintage. I give DaWob the edge in BW, while Yoda has the advantage in ADV and DPP. SM and SS both feel like toss-ups, so this could very easily go to game 5. I don't know how motivated DaWob is to really grind prep here. Because of that, I'll be bolding Yoda but could easily see this go either way. Highlight match of the week for sure.

Smudge vs SingleThunder
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SS
This one feels like a toss-up. ST is mostly known as an XY player, but she's also become a legit threat in SS, capped by an SS Cup win. Smudge, meanwhile, has quietly put together a really solid oldgens circit run this year, performing well across a wide range of tiers. I give Smudge the edge in DPP and BW. That said, this matchup could go to 5 games as well. ST tends to play more aggressively, while Smudge usually opts for safer plays. In no-team preview tiers like ADV and DPP though, that aggressive playstyle gives her an advantage imo, so I'll lean ST here but again, I could easily see this going either way.

AIRedzone vs Arcticblast
ADV/DPP/BW/XY/SM
Arcticblast had a huge breakout in XY this year, going an insane 9-1 in DPL and proving you really can teach an old dog new tricks. Meanwhile, Redzone has put together yet another strong oldgens circuit run, highlighted by a BW cup win. I'm not sure how motivated Arcticblast is to prep heavily for the other tiers, whereas Redzone has been actively building and playing across multiple gens more recently so I'll give the edge to Redzone here.

Sunrose vs SMB
ADV/BW/XY/SS/SM
Both of these players like to use builds outside of the box, but they do it in very different ways. Sunrose tends to overcook a bit opting for unorthodox picks (for example Dragonite in BW), while SMB usually stick to small changes to established builds (things like Ghost Gem Jelli, Dark Gem Hitmontop, and scarf dragons in BW) that end up being much more consistent. Even though I think Sunrose is somewhat underrated in oldgens, it's hard to bold against SMB who has been elite in pretty much every oldgen at one point or another.

Hugo vs eragon
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
Another matchup featuring two players who aren't afraid to use unconvenitional stuff. I've been a huge fan of eragon's oldgens builds. He's not afraid to use structures from the stone ages and clearly show a deep understanding of the meta. When he puts in the work to prep, it shows, as seen in his XYPL and SMPL records. Hugo is also very underrated and has been consistently solid across the oldgens circuit, with SS probably being his best tier. Still, I give eragon the edge in DPP, XY, and SM so I'll be picking him here.

Actuarily vs Grandmas Cookin
ADV/DPP/XY/SM/SS
Two of my favorite players in the tour. Act is the definition of consistent, playing every oldgen at a high level. GMA might be the goat of ADV and is no slouch in the other tiers either. Both of them also have some pretty unique takes on certain Pokemon in these metas and aren't afraid to use them (sorry Act, I still think G-Zapdos is ass). I rate both players very highly, but I think Act has the edge in four of the five tiers overall. Either way, I'm really excited to see what these two end up cooking.

Nephtyrix vs GenOne
ADV/BW/XY/SM/SS
Neph is another player I think is underrated in oldgens, and has put together a strong circuit showing this year. GenOne is mostly known as an SM player, but he's also really solid in XY. While GenOne can get very creative in SM, he tends to stick to more standard builds in tiers he's less familiar with. Neph, on the other hand, likes to experiment with more unorthodox stuff across multiple gens. I think the two are pretty close in playing skill, but I'll give the edge to Neph due to the builder advantage and slightly better consistency this year.
idk what you're on but gapdos is not ass >:(( beats both incin and rilla, what more do you want! ps I like your indepth reasonings for the picks
 
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