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Tournaments 2026 SS OU SPL Discussion Thread
- Thread starter Slowpoke Fan
- Start date
I've been really pleased with the quality games so far this season and I wanted to make a post about some of my favorite games from Week 1 up until the midseason since no one else has really done any game review so far.
Overall, this pool has felt super balanced, but I guess one can't be too surprised with the average price of week 5 SS starters being only 7.85k, which is narrowly second behind the ADV pool of starters at 7.75k (which is helped by the loss of Skarpherim). Another interesting factoid about the week 5 SS starters is that the price of Mattz_, SS's most expensive player, is the cheapest most expensive player out of all pools closely at 16.5k, closely followed by Garay oak in ADV at 18k.
I don't blame the managers lack of willingness to spend however, maybe unlike some classic gens, SS isn't necessarily the hardest tier to pick up and learn, especially for a fairy gens player. Which, in my mind, makes it much easier to hypothetically sub out your budget SS pick rather than a budget classic gen player who's slot already lacks depth as is. I think this idea combined with the notion that there aren't any major tiebreak candidates starting week 5 in SS explains the relatively low average price of starters.
Going chronologically, the first game I wanted to take a look at was Fc vs Corazan. It starts normally with both sides, trading rocks, knocks, and Corazan trying to gain momentum with Future Sight which he is able to do on turn 10 across from a Moonblast-ing Clef in sand. Tran comes in on the port successfully traps the Clef, but I would actually argue the trade was really close to equal.
Because neither side switched out, Clef was able to leave Bro at around 33% after regen and rocks, making its job to counter Melm and Shifu infinitely harder. And this is what happens in the ensuing turns: Fc's team puts on the pressure, forcing Corazan to switch repeatedly and take chip on over half of his team and lose his Clef in the process. With Pult looking much stronger now as the only thing stopping it is a Spdef drop on Hippo, and that's exactly what it finds.
But with no Clef to pivot through, Fc is able to keep bringing in his physical threats on Hippo, unthreatened by a Slowbro forced to click recover every time it enters (which is the only thing it does from turn 25-46). The bleeding continues as Pult trivializes Corazan's slow and weakened team to secure the endgame. But my interest in this game comes from Clef's important sacrifice, although it was trapped and killed in the first 15 turns it opened up the game massively for Fc's physical attackers to never let up pressure.
In the second week Fc faced off against MDB in my favorite game of the week. I've mostly thought that MDB has brought some really cool teams every week this season but I think he got a bit lost in the sauce in this one. Toxic Zap just has a field day with his team, especially one that gets a bit of help through RNG... but even without RNG MDB needs to play very thoughtfully to ever break through Zap.
The first 50(!) or so turns are literally just Fc trolling with said Zapdos where it looks like it's just going to single-handedly win the game—however, Fc makes a crucial error that allows MDB to claw his way back into this one. As MDB gets his band Kart on the field facing Zap using Teleport, Fc opts to sac his Fini, not realizing that knocked Zap can safely scout any set and Volt into something that forces Kart out (maybe there was some sort of mind game going on where Fc was predicting knock into fini but I'm unsure). Things get bad quick for Fc, as he takes the safe route and volts on +1 Band LB, bringing out his own Kart to try and regain momentum.
Both players are forced to sac until MDB makes the hard play and goes Tran on Kart LB which forces Blace to revenge and subsequently be fodder for a very threatening Scarf Fini. Fc thinks hard for around 3 minutes, as either mon he goes to is risking losing the game by MDB going Tran on resisted moves. Fc chooses his own Tran(avoiding the(imo) riskier prediction tree of going Kart) opting to chip it enough to be dead to Kart Sacred Sword, but by choosing not to trap Fini, MDB makes another ballsy play and brings in his own Tran on the attempted stall-out. Now, MDB's Tran can pick up the kill and Fini can tank the forced Sacred from Kart.
This was such an awesome reversal by MDB, being able to capitalize on your opponents errors when you have little chance of winning shows why he is one of the all time best. Furthermore, this was truly one of the best endgames I've ever seen, that last interaction had such little room for mental error on both players' ends, and I'm just genuinely fortunate to be able to witness a game like this.
MDB returns for my favorite week three game vs Gtcha, bringing what I think is my favorite team of the tour so far. I have been enjoying whatever the Sharks' SS team-building laboratory have been creating these first weeks as they are some of the freshest builds of the tour.
MDB's team this week is no exception, not afraid to deviate from standard sets, offensive Nature Power Tran ends up being a great pick into Gtcha's HDB spam spike stack. It also helps when Band Rilla just steals kills with or without Future Sight support in front of the most useless Buzzwole ever loaded...
Not much really else to say about this game, great team choice into Gtcha by MDB and the Sharks, and kudos for making teams that are more what I'll call "off the beaten path" in terms of deviating from standard set choices, it's been very fun as a spectator to watch.
Lastly, Mattz_ vs Gtcha is another one of my faorite games of the season. It highlights the dominating style so far this SPL being Lando-Tran-Clef/Kart/Pult offensive structures where you can realistically use any combination of the last three mons in conjunction with each other. I find these types of teams are often most fun to watch, especially when they face off against each other, which is what we have here. Mattz_'s Double Specs team looks extremely potent if Tran is removed and Gtcha's Pult future-port offense is equally threatening.
The game starts with Gtcha sacfrifing his Kart's health and scarf to put the opposing Lando in Pult range. After both players reposition, Goltres is threatening to set-up and punch a big hole through Mattz_'s team, and Gtcha makes the tough decision to go for it, as risking his Tran on a potential Specs FBlast would put him in an even worse position than a +3 +2 Goltres staring him down. However, after Tran revenges the Goltres, the combination of Pult and CM Clef is now too much for Gtcha to overcome, even with Kart future-port set-ups.
This game felt very in control by Mattz_, starting from that Goltres sequence, he doesn't get cute and gets guaranteed damage before dying and killing with Tran and even getting the opportunity to set rocks. Being down a sac in these offense vs. offense games can usually be quite dire but Mattz_ consistently finds ways for Pult to get in and do a million damage with the ghost resist no longer around.
To do some shameless Monday-morning-quarterbacking, I think the correct play for Gtcha was to always go Bro(who looked like max spdef) on Lele to scout, then reposition through Tran or Chomp to try and force progress with rocks or just putting damage onto Lando, Tran, or Pult. Mattz_'s team becomes infinitely easier for Goltres to push through once rocks are up and Tran is chipped.
This game's notable to me just because of how enigmatic it felt of the tier feels as a whole so far this SPL, offense in this tier is so fun to watch, but all if not most of the SS games this SPL have felt really great quality no matter the teams.
I think I'll call it there... but I had a fun time writing this! And please correct me if I missed something glaringly obvious or just got something wrong! I'm looking forward to the upcoming SS games, and maybe if this is received well I'll make a second half version of this post after poffs.
Overall, this pool has felt super balanced, but I guess one can't be too surprised with the average price of week 5 SS starters being only 7.85k, which is narrowly second behind the ADV pool of starters at 7.75k (which is helped by the loss of Skarpherim). Another interesting factoid about the week 5 SS starters is that the price of Mattz_, SS's most expensive player, is the cheapest most expensive player out of all pools closely at 16.5k, closely followed by Garay oak in ADV at 18k.
I don't blame the managers lack of willingness to spend however, maybe unlike some classic gens, SS isn't necessarily the hardest tier to pick up and learn, especially for a fairy gens player. Which, in my mind, makes it much easier to hypothetically sub out your budget SS pick rather than a budget classic gen player who's slot already lacks depth as is. I think this idea combined with the notion that there aren't any major tiebreak candidates starting week 5 in SS explains the relatively low average price of starters.
SS | SM | ORAS | BW | DPP | ADV | GSC | RBY |
7.85 | 8.25 | 12.00 | 13.8 | 8.85 | 7.75 | 15.15 | 8.30 |
Going chronologically, the first game I wanted to take a look at was Fc vs Corazan. It starts normally with both sides, trading rocks, knocks, and Corazan trying to gain momentum with Future Sight which he is able to do on turn 10 across from a Moonblast-ing Clef in sand. Tran comes in on the port successfully traps the Clef, but I would actually argue the trade was really close to equal.
Because neither side switched out, Clef was able to leave Bro at around 33% after regen and rocks, making its job to counter Melm and Shifu infinitely harder. And this is what happens in the ensuing turns: Fc's team puts on the pressure, forcing Corazan to switch repeatedly and take chip on over half of his team and lose his Clef in the process. With Pult looking much stronger now as the only thing stopping it is a Spdef drop on Hippo, and that's exactly what it finds.
But with no Clef to pivot through, Fc is able to keep bringing in his physical threats on Hippo, unthreatened by a Slowbro forced to click recover every time it enters (which is the only thing it does from turn 25-46). The bleeding continues as Pult trivializes Corazan's slow and weakened team to secure the endgame. But my interest in this game comes from Clef's important sacrifice, although it was trapped and killed in the first 15 turns it opened up the game massively for Fc's physical attackers to never let up pressure.
In the second week Fc faced off against MDB in my favorite game of the week. I've mostly thought that MDB has brought some really cool teams every week this season but I think he got a bit lost in the sauce in this one. Toxic Zap just has a field day with his team, especially one that gets a bit of help through RNG... but even without RNG MDB needs to play very thoughtfully to ever break through Zap.
The first 50(!) or so turns are literally just Fc trolling with said Zapdos where it looks like it's just going to single-handedly win the game—however, Fc makes a crucial error that allows MDB to claw his way back into this one. As MDB gets his band Kart on the field facing Zap using Teleport, Fc opts to sac his Fini, not realizing that knocked Zap can safely scout any set and Volt into something that forces Kart out (maybe there was some sort of mind game going on where Fc was predicting knock into fini but I'm unsure). Things get bad quick for Fc, as he takes the safe route and volts on +1 Band LB, bringing out his own Kart to try and regain momentum.
Both players are forced to sac until MDB makes the hard play and goes Tran on Kart LB which forces Blace to revenge and subsequently be fodder for a very threatening Scarf Fini. Fc thinks hard for around 3 minutes, as either mon he goes to is risking losing the game by MDB going Tran on resisted moves. Fc chooses his own Tran(avoiding the(imo) riskier prediction tree of going Kart) opting to chip it enough to be dead to Kart Sacred Sword, but by choosing not to trap Fini, MDB makes another ballsy play and brings in his own Tran on the attempted stall-out. Now, MDB's Tran can pick up the kill and Fini can tank the forced Sacred from Kart.
This was such an awesome reversal by MDB, being able to capitalize on your opponents errors when you have little chance of winning shows why he is one of the all time best. Furthermore, this was truly one of the best endgames I've ever seen, that last interaction had such little room for mental error on both players' ends, and I'm just genuinely fortunate to be able to witness a game like this.
MDB returns for my favorite week three game vs Gtcha, bringing what I think is my favorite team of the tour so far. I have been enjoying whatever the Sharks' SS team-building laboratory have been creating these first weeks as they are some of the freshest builds of the tour.
MDB's team this week is no exception, not afraid to deviate from standard sets, offensive Nature Power Tran ends up being a great pick into Gtcha's HDB spam spike stack. It also helps when Band Rilla just steals kills with or without Future Sight support in front of the most useless Buzzwole ever loaded...
Not much really else to say about this game, great team choice into Gtcha by MDB and the Sharks, and kudos for making teams that are more what I'll call "off the beaten path" in terms of deviating from standard set choices, it's been very fun as a spectator to watch.
Lastly, Mattz_ vs Gtcha is another one of my faorite games of the season. It highlights the dominating style so far this SPL being Lando-Tran-Clef/Kart/Pult offensive structures where you can realistically use any combination of the last three mons in conjunction with each other. I find these types of teams are often most fun to watch, especially when they face off against each other, which is what we have here. Mattz_'s Double Specs team looks extremely potent if Tran is removed and Gtcha's Pult future-port offense is equally threatening.
The game starts with Gtcha sacfrifing his Kart's health and scarf to put the opposing Lando in Pult range. After both players reposition, Goltres is threatening to set-up and punch a big hole through Mattz_'s team, and Gtcha makes the tough decision to go for it, as risking his Tran on a potential Specs FBlast would put him in an even worse position than a +3 +2 Goltres staring him down. However, after Tran revenges the Goltres, the combination of Pult and CM Clef is now too much for Gtcha to overcome, even with Kart future-port set-ups.
This game felt very in control by Mattz_, starting from that Goltres sequence, he doesn't get cute and gets guaranteed damage before dying and killing with Tran and even getting the opportunity to set rocks. Being down a sac in these offense vs. offense games can usually be quite dire but Mattz_ consistently finds ways for Pult to get in and do a million damage with the ghost resist no longer around.
To do some shameless Monday-morning-quarterbacking, I think the correct play for Gtcha was to always go Bro(who looked like max spdef) on Lele to scout, then reposition through Tran or Chomp to try and force progress with rocks or just putting damage onto Lando, Tran, or Pult. Mattz_'s team becomes infinitely easier for Goltres to push through once rocks are up and Tran is chipped.
This game's notable to me just because of how enigmatic it felt of the tier feels as a whole so far this SPL, offense in this tier is so fun to watch, but all if not most of the SS games this SPL have felt really great quality no matter the teams.
I think I'll call it there... but I had a fun time writing this! And please correct me if I missed something glaringly obvious or just got something wrong! I'm looking forward to the upcoming SS games, and maybe if this is received well I'll make a second half version of this post after poffs.
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Corazan
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Ikaishi vs Gtcha
SS OU: entrocefalo vs Fc HIGHLIGHT
SS OU: damien the genius vs ChrisPBacon
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Ikaishi vs Gtcha
SS OU: entrocefalo vs Fc HIGHLIGHT
SS OU: damien the genius vs ChrisPBacon
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SS OU: Mattz_ vs Corazon
I’m going with Corazan. He’s been bringing more creative prep and is good at capitalizing on common SS OU trends. When games go off-script, he tends to adapt better. If Mattz keeps it linear and clean it can be close, but overall I give a slight edge to Corazan.
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs MichaeldeBeste2
He’s very fundamentally solid and rarely beats himself. In SS, where positioning and hazard control are huge, that consistency matters a lot. Lycan has higher volatility, but Michael usually makes fewer midgame mistakes.
SS OU: Ikaishi vs Gtcha
He usually comes in with a clear game plan from preview and plays tightly around his wincon. He’s patient and doesn’t force unnecessary predicts, which is really valuable in longer SS games.
SS OU: entrocefalo vs Fc
The edge here is stability. Fc tends to control tempo well and understands when to take middlegrounds instead of overpredicting. If he avoids falling behind early, he should manage resources better over the course of the game.
SS OU: damien the genius vs ChrisPBacon
I think he’s more likely to apply early pressure and create favorable positions for his endgame. If his prep and execution line up especially with pivot usage and breaker positioning he can dictate the pace of the match.
I’m going with Corazan. He’s been bringing more creative prep and is good at capitalizing on common SS OU trends. When games go off-script, he tends to adapt better. If Mattz keeps it linear and clean it can be close, but overall I give a slight edge to Corazan.
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs MichaeldeBeste2
He’s very fundamentally solid and rarely beats himself. In SS, where positioning and hazard control are huge, that consistency matters a lot. Lycan has higher volatility, but Michael usually makes fewer midgame mistakes.
SS OU: Ikaishi vs Gtcha
He usually comes in with a clear game plan from preview and plays tightly around his wincon. He’s patient and doesn’t force unnecessary predicts, which is really valuable in longer SS games.
SS OU: entrocefalo vs Fc
The edge here is stability. Fc tends to control tempo well and understands when to take middlegrounds instead of overpredicting. If he avoids falling behind early, he should manage resources better over the course of the game.
SS OU: damien the genius vs ChrisPBacon
I think he’s more likely to apply early pressure and create favorable positions for his endgame. If his prep and execution line up especially with pivot usage and breaker positioning he can dictate the pace of the match.
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Fc vs damien the genius
SS OU: ILoveGarchom vs Setsu
SS OU: Gtcha vs entrocefalo
SS OU: Corazan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Mattz_
SS OU: Me qualifying for sslt vs Lose and rage
SS OU: Fc vs damien the genius
SS OU: ILoveGarchom vs Setsu
SS OU: Gtcha vs entrocefalo
SS OU: Corazan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Mattz_
SS OU: Me qualifying for sslt vs Lose and rage
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs Mattz_
SS OU: Ikaishi vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Zaza vs Corazan
SS OU: damien the genius vs Gtcha
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Fc
SS OU: Ikaishi vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Zaza vs Corazan
SS OU: damien the genius vs Gtcha
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Fc
SS OU: Gtcha vs Metallica126
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
SS OU: Gtcha vs Metallica126
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
SS OU: Gtcha vs Metallica126
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
SS OU: Fc vs 1 True Lycan
SS OU: Corazan vs damien the genius
SS OU: MichaelderBeste2 vs Zaza
SS OU: Mattz_ vs Ikaishi
Last edited:
SS OU: damien the genius vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Zaza vs Mattz_
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Corazan
SS OU: Fc vs Gtcha
SS OU: Zaza vs Mattz_
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Corazan
SS OU: Fc vs Gtcha
SS OU: damien the genius vs MichaelderBeste2
SS OU: Zaza vs Mattz_
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Corazan
SS OU: Fc vs Gtcha
SS OU: Zaza vs Mattz_
SS OU: 1 True Lycan vs Ikaishi
SS OU: ChrisPBacon vs Corazan
SS OU: Fc vs Gtcha
My first SPL run is over. It sucks we didn’t make playoffs, but I’m still proud of how I performed overall, even if I couldn’t clutch when it mattered most.
Huge thanks to my managers for trusting me when nobody else did, and to my teammates for always supporting me throughout the entire run. I really hope we get to team up again in the future. Losing like this always hits hard, especially when you feel like you had more to prove, but I’m taking the L with my head high and hoping to get another shot next season.
When I got drafted, I set a goal for myself to improve my building as much as possible, and I promised in the SS server that I’d share my teams at the end of the run. I also wanna push back on the idea that SS OU is a “boring” or repetitive tier — there’s a lot of room for creativity if you’re willing to step outside of standard structures. If I could do it, you can too.
Anyway, here’s my SPL run:
W1 vs Finchinator [TIG] (W)
https://pokepast.es/a959291c3ba378db
Going into week 1 I was really nervous and built a lot of different teams without being able to fully commit to one. I ended up going with this Rillaboom HO, which is pretty straightforward in concept — it aims to bait in flying-types early so that Garchomp or Scarf Kartana can clean later on.
The game itself wasn’t my best. I had some pretty questionable plays, like switching on Turn 3 even though I already had a Sub up with Garchomp, or later on Turn 21 where I didn’t go for another Sub when I probably should have. Despite that, I managed to recover and bring it back. Overall I think the prep was solid, and starting with a win helped a lot with confidence going forward.
W2 vs damien the genius [CLA] (W)
https://pokepast.es/9fe80a8a90f8f2dd
This week I felt pretty stuck while building, and it wasn’t until shortly before the game that I decided to go with Hydreigon. Once I committed to it, the team came together pretty naturally, and my teammates liked it so I locked it in. The idea is simple: FSight + Specs Hydreigon to break, with Buzzwole supporting in a similar style to Ox's team last SPL.
In-game I was really nervous and made mistakes early on, like not clicking Dark Pulse on Turn 3 and not anticipating the Eject Button from Ferrothorn on Turn 6. That put me in a worse position than necessary, and I had to play from behind for a bit. I managed to regain control later despite the pressure from Urshifu’s U-turn, and ended up winning on timer. Not the cleanest win, and definitely a bit unfortunate for Damien.
W3 vs ChrisPBacon [RUI] (W)
https://pokepast.es/c763b15dfb3fbf55
After starting 2-0, I wanted to try something I don’t usually play, so I went with my own version of a pretty common 6. The general idea is familiar — stack hazards and apply pressure with Weavile/Clef to keep making progress — but I adjusted it in a way that felt more comfortable to me.
I think this was one of my most consistent games. I didn’t have any clear chokes, and it ended up being a back-and-forth where both sides had chances. There was definitely some luck involved, but I handled the key moments well enough to come out on top. Overall a really fun game, and probably one of my favorite teams from the tournament.
W4 vs Fc [RAI] (L)
https://pokepast.es/d568c9c0affaf98b
My first loss, and it’s one I regret because I really liked this team. I was expecting something more on the fat/stall side, and since I hadn’t used Tapu Lele much, I decided to build around it. The structure was actually very similar to something I made years ago, and I felt really confident going into the match.
Unfortunately, I ran into something completely different from what I expected, and I couldn’t adapt properly in-game. I also had to play outside home, which affected my focus in some key turns where I could’ve pressured more aggressively, especially with Urshifu in a game that was very trade-heavy. Still, no excuses — full credit to Fc for the prep and execution.
W5 vs Gtcha [WOL] (W)
https://pokepast.es/c2ca531c7914b188
After my first loss, my confidence wasn’t at its best, especially since I was facing someone who inspired me when I first started playing. I decided to go with a Clef / Skarm / Gastro structure, noticing that fat wasn’t being used as much lately. I initially tried building with Zeraora, but it felt too inconsistent in testing, so I switched to Rillaboom.
The team has really nice synergy — Skarm and Gastro spread Toxic to put threats like Zapdos, Garchomp, and Dragapult on a timer, which makes it much easier for Rillaboom to clean later. I also ran double Knock to pass Sticky Barb to things like Tornadus-T and Buzzwole, which adds a lot of long-term pressure.
The game started terribly — I fell into a 3-6 position that felt almost impossible to come back from. Somehow I managed to stabilize, especially after realizing that my opponent didn’t have good ways to break Gastrodon and couldn’t get through the Skarm-Gastro core. From there, I focused on pivoting carefully and managing resources. At one point, I noticed I was running low on Roost PPs, so I knew I had to make a decisive play soon — I read the Weavile switch at the right time, regained momentum, and turned the game around. Definitely one of the most satisfying wins I’ve had.
W6 vs Corazan [CRY] (L)
https://pokepast.es/0e28c9f00ca01cc3
I made the same mistake again here by overprepping for fat/stall. The team was built around using U-turn Zapdos to bait in ground-types and bring in Urshifu or Weavile to keep constant pressure, and the rest of the team with more offensive spreads to catch opp off guard.
I don’t want to go too deep into this one because it was honestly one of my worst performances ever. I had technical issues and couldn’t log into Smogtours from my laptop, so I had to play almost the entire match on my phone. That completely threw me off, and I made several bad, unjustifiable plays. I got run over in under 20 turns. Nothing to say here — full credit to Corazan and their prep.
W7 vs MichaelderBeste2 [SHA] (W)
https://pokepast.es/ceacf995c50e311a
This week started off rough due to scheduling issues — I usually try to be flexible, but I ended up having to play at times that didn’t really work for me.
The team idea wasn’t fully mine this time. I wanted to use Slowking-G with Urshifu, built a rough version, and then remembered I already had a team with those same 6 in the builder. I reused it and adjusted the sets and spreads. At some point we realized the team had a really bad matchup against most offensive Grounds, so LNumbers suggested a spread that would let me live an Earthquake from those threats and immediately threaten back with Ice Beam.
In-game, I think I played really well, especially considering how bad W6 went. There was a key moment on Turn 6 where I stayed in with Urshifu and take the Tornadus-T kill, which was a pretty decisive turn and ended up giving me a huge advantage early. Clean performance overall.
W8 vs Mattz_ [BIG] (L)
https://pokepast.es/1b263cf058620fa6
This week I didn’t have much time to prepare. I initially tried building something with Mandibuzz + Blaziken, but after scouting I felt it was better to go more offensive, so I went back to Rillaboom HO. I replaced Mandibuzz with Moltres-G, built the base, and then realized the same 6 were already used in the Garcomp Fan's sample, so I refined it with some adjustments based on the scout.
In the game, the matchup wasn’t what I expected at all, but it was still playable as long as I could prevent Toxic Spikes from going up. I actually managed that pretty well early on and was building momentum, but a missed Draco Meteor completely flipped the game. From there it snowballed into me losing the position I had worked to build. I still almost brought it back, but needed a favorable roll on Moltres and flinch on Blissey that didn’t happen. Anyways, I really had fun playing into a strong player like Mattz_, he made fire plays on this game and I wanna face him one day again.
W9 vs 1 True Lycan [SCO] (L)
https://pokepast.es/9fcd3e33f2c3acad
Last week, must-win situation, and I really struggled to decide what to bring. I ended up going with Sand + Melmetal, and overall I think the team structure was very solid. The problem was one specific decision: Tyranitar.
I had been wanting to try max Attack Tyranitar for a while, and I kind of forced it here even though I knew the team would benefit more from a SpD + TWave set. That version would’ve helped a lot against Corviknight and Skarmory, which were already problematic. I basically let that decision go through even knowing the risks, and it came back to bite me.
The matchup itself was really bad — I had no consistent way to break Skarmory, and my main path to winning relied on playing Tyranitar perfectly. Instead, it got paralyzed early by Discharge, which made things even worse, and then got fully paralyzed again on a crucial turn where I tried to set rocks to pressure Skarm’s switches. From that point on, it was just too much to recover from. I kept trying, but it wasn’t enough.
This loss ended up being one of the ones that sealed our elimination, which makes it even harder to take.
Here is the team dump:
https://pokepast.es/4e6044a3a03af13a
Overall, it was a really fun and meaningful season for me. I learned a lot, both in terms of building and in-game decision making, but also about how I handle pressure, preparation, and setbacks across multiple weeks. SPL is a very different environment compared to anything else, and going through that for the first time taught me a lot about myself as a player.
I also got to meet and interact with a lot of really great players throughout the tour, which is something I value just as much as the results. Being able to test, share ideas, and just talk about the game with people at this level is something I don’t take for granted.
From a personal standpoint, I think this run showed me that I can compete at this level. Starting around 10th in PRs and managing to hold my own throughout the season is something I’m genuinely satisfied with, even if the ending wasn’t what I wanted. At the same time, I’m fully aware there’s still a lot I can improve on, especially when it comes to consistency in high-pressure moments.
I'd like to give a especial shoutout to one person in particular (aside from my teammates and managers - they were a big part of this clearly):
Bloshh de todo corazón, gracias por todo el apoyo que me has dado desde siempre, y en esta situación en particular. Leer mis mensajes a tus 3am diciéndote que hice el mejor team de la historia, pidiéndote opiniones o yendo a sacar mi frustración a tu DM cada vez que perdía son una de las tantas cosas que hiciste y que de verdad aprecio. No desaproveches el talento que tienes, se que si sigues vas a llegar lejos y espero algún día te den la oportunidad que me dieron a mi este año, y también estaré para apoyarte igual o más de como lo hiciste conmigo. Gracias, twin.
If there’s one thing I want people to take away from this post, it’s that building creatively is always worth it. A lot of the ideas I brought weren’t perfect, and some clearly had flaws, but being willing to experiment and trust your own approach is what helps you grow the most. It’s easy to default to standard builds, but pushing beyond that is what makes the tier — and the player — more interesting.
I’m definitely motivated to keep improving and come back stronger next time, both as a builder and as a player. Hopefully I get another opportunity in a future SPL to prove that.
If you’ve got any questions about the teams, spreads, specific choices, or just wanna talk about building in general, feel free to DM me on Discord (ikaishi). I will try to reply asap.
Thanks a lot for reading, I really appreciate it.
And yeah — SCREAM IF YOU LOVE TYRANTS.
Huge thanks to my managers for trusting me when nobody else did, and to my teammates for always supporting me throughout the entire run. I really hope we get to team up again in the future. Losing like this always hits hard, especially when you feel like you had more to prove, but I’m taking the L with my head high and hoping to get another shot next season.
When I got drafted, I set a goal for myself to improve my building as much as possible, and I promised in the SS server that I’d share my teams at the end of the run. I also wanna push back on the idea that SS OU is a “boring” or repetitive tier — there’s a lot of room for creativity if you’re willing to step outside of standard structures. If I could do it, you can too.
Anyway, here’s my SPL run:
W1 vs Finchinator [TIG] (W)
https://pokepast.es/a959291c3ba378db
Going into week 1 I was really nervous and built a lot of different teams without being able to fully commit to one. I ended up going with this Rillaboom HO, which is pretty straightforward in concept — it aims to bait in flying-types early so that Garchomp or Scarf Kartana can clean later on.
The game itself wasn’t my best. I had some pretty questionable plays, like switching on Turn 3 even though I already had a Sub up with Garchomp, or later on Turn 21 where I didn’t go for another Sub when I probably should have. Despite that, I managed to recover and bring it back. Overall I think the prep was solid, and starting with a win helped a lot with confidence going forward.
W2 vs damien the genius [CLA] (W)
https://pokepast.es/9fe80a8a90f8f2dd
This week I felt pretty stuck while building, and it wasn’t until shortly before the game that I decided to go with Hydreigon. Once I committed to it, the team came together pretty naturally, and my teammates liked it so I locked it in. The idea is simple: FSight + Specs Hydreigon to break, with Buzzwole supporting in a similar style to Ox's team last SPL.
In-game I was really nervous and made mistakes early on, like not clicking Dark Pulse on Turn 3 and not anticipating the Eject Button from Ferrothorn on Turn 6. That put me in a worse position than necessary, and I had to play from behind for a bit. I managed to regain control later despite the pressure from Urshifu’s U-turn, and ended up winning on timer. Not the cleanest win, and definitely a bit unfortunate for Damien.
W3 vs ChrisPBacon [RUI] (W)
https://pokepast.es/c763b15dfb3fbf55
After starting 2-0, I wanted to try something I don’t usually play, so I went with my own version of a pretty common 6. The general idea is familiar — stack hazards and apply pressure with Weavile/Clef to keep making progress — but I adjusted it in a way that felt more comfortable to me.
I think this was one of my most consistent games. I didn’t have any clear chokes, and it ended up being a back-and-forth where both sides had chances. There was definitely some luck involved, but I handled the key moments well enough to come out on top. Overall a really fun game, and probably one of my favorite teams from the tournament.
W4 vs Fc [RAI] (L)
https://pokepast.es/d568c9c0affaf98b
My first loss, and it’s one I regret because I really liked this team. I was expecting something more on the fat/stall side, and since I hadn’t used Tapu Lele much, I decided to build around it. The structure was actually very similar to something I made years ago, and I felt really confident going into the match.
Unfortunately, I ran into something completely different from what I expected, and I couldn’t adapt properly in-game. I also had to play outside home, which affected my focus in some key turns where I could’ve pressured more aggressively, especially with Urshifu in a game that was very trade-heavy. Still, no excuses — full credit to Fc for the prep and execution.
W5 vs Gtcha [WOL] (W)
https://pokepast.es/c2ca531c7914b188
After my first loss, my confidence wasn’t at its best, especially since I was facing someone who inspired me when I first started playing. I decided to go with a Clef / Skarm / Gastro structure, noticing that fat wasn’t being used as much lately. I initially tried building with Zeraora, but it felt too inconsistent in testing, so I switched to Rillaboom.
The team has really nice synergy — Skarm and Gastro spread Toxic to put threats like Zapdos, Garchomp, and Dragapult on a timer, which makes it much easier for Rillaboom to clean later. I also ran double Knock to pass Sticky Barb to things like Tornadus-T and Buzzwole, which adds a lot of long-term pressure.
The game started terribly — I fell into a 3-6 position that felt almost impossible to come back from. Somehow I managed to stabilize, especially after realizing that my opponent didn’t have good ways to break Gastrodon and couldn’t get through the Skarm-Gastro core. From there, I focused on pivoting carefully and managing resources. At one point, I noticed I was running low on Roost PPs, so I knew I had to make a decisive play soon — I read the Weavile switch at the right time, regained momentum, and turned the game around. Definitely one of the most satisfying wins I’ve had.
W6 vs Corazan [CRY] (L)
https://pokepast.es/0e28c9f00ca01cc3
I made the same mistake again here by overprepping for fat/stall. The team was built around using U-turn Zapdos to bait in ground-types and bring in Urshifu or Weavile to keep constant pressure, and the rest of the team with more offensive spreads to catch opp off guard.
I don’t want to go too deep into this one because it was honestly one of my worst performances ever. I had technical issues and couldn’t log into Smogtours from my laptop, so I had to play almost the entire match on my phone. That completely threw me off, and I made several bad, unjustifiable plays. I got run over in under 20 turns. Nothing to say here — full credit to Corazan and their prep.
W7 vs MichaelderBeste2 [SHA] (W)
https://pokepast.es/ceacf995c50e311a
This week started off rough due to scheduling issues — I usually try to be flexible, but I ended up having to play at times that didn’t really work for me.
The team idea wasn’t fully mine this time. I wanted to use Slowking-G with Urshifu, built a rough version, and then remembered I already had a team with those same 6 in the builder. I reused it and adjusted the sets and spreads. At some point we realized the team had a really bad matchup against most offensive Grounds, so LNumbers suggested a spread that would let me live an Earthquake from those threats and immediately threaten back with Ice Beam.
In-game, I think I played really well, especially considering how bad W6 went. There was a key moment on Turn 6 where I stayed in with Urshifu and take the Tornadus-T kill, which was a pretty decisive turn and ended up giving me a huge advantage early. Clean performance overall.
W8 vs Mattz_ [BIG] (L)
https://pokepast.es/1b263cf058620fa6
This week I didn’t have much time to prepare. I initially tried building something with Mandibuzz + Blaziken, but after scouting I felt it was better to go more offensive, so I went back to Rillaboom HO. I replaced Mandibuzz with Moltres-G, built the base, and then realized the same 6 were already used in the Garcomp Fan's sample, so I refined it with some adjustments based on the scout.
In the game, the matchup wasn’t what I expected at all, but it was still playable as long as I could prevent Toxic Spikes from going up. I actually managed that pretty well early on and was building momentum, but a missed Draco Meteor completely flipped the game. From there it snowballed into me losing the position I had worked to build. I still almost brought it back, but needed a favorable roll on Moltres and flinch on Blissey that didn’t happen. Anyways, I really had fun playing into a strong player like Mattz_, he made fire plays on this game and I wanna face him one day again.
W9 vs 1 True Lycan [SCO] (L)
https://pokepast.es/9fcd3e33f2c3acad
Last week, must-win situation, and I really struggled to decide what to bring. I ended up going with Sand + Melmetal, and overall I think the team structure was very solid. The problem was one specific decision: Tyranitar.
I had been wanting to try max Attack Tyranitar for a while, and I kind of forced it here even though I knew the team would benefit more from a SpD + TWave set. That version would’ve helped a lot against Corviknight and Skarmory, which were already problematic. I basically let that decision go through even knowing the risks, and it came back to bite me.
The matchup itself was really bad — I had no consistent way to break Skarmory, and my main path to winning relied on playing Tyranitar perfectly. Instead, it got paralyzed early by Discharge, which made things even worse, and then got fully paralyzed again on a crucial turn where I tried to set rocks to pressure Skarm’s switches. From that point on, it was just too much to recover from. I kept trying, but it wasn’t enough.
This loss ended up being one of the ones that sealed our elimination, which makes it even harder to take.
Here is the team dump:
https://pokepast.es/4e6044a3a03af13a
Overall, it was a really fun and meaningful season for me. I learned a lot, both in terms of building and in-game decision making, but also about how I handle pressure, preparation, and setbacks across multiple weeks. SPL is a very different environment compared to anything else, and going through that for the first time taught me a lot about myself as a player.
I also got to meet and interact with a lot of really great players throughout the tour, which is something I value just as much as the results. Being able to test, share ideas, and just talk about the game with people at this level is something I don’t take for granted.
From a personal standpoint, I think this run showed me that I can compete at this level. Starting around 10th in PRs and managing to hold my own throughout the season is something I’m genuinely satisfied with, even if the ending wasn’t what I wanted. At the same time, I’m fully aware there’s still a lot I can improve on, especially when it comes to consistency in high-pressure moments.
I'd like to give a especial shoutout to one person in particular (aside from my teammates and managers - they were a big part of this clearly):
Bloshh de todo corazón, gracias por todo el apoyo que me has dado desde siempre, y en esta situación en particular. Leer mis mensajes a tus 3am diciéndote que hice el mejor team de la historia, pidiéndote opiniones o yendo a sacar mi frustración a tu DM cada vez que perdía son una de las tantas cosas que hiciste y que de verdad aprecio. No desaproveches el talento que tienes, se que si sigues vas a llegar lejos y espero algún día te den la oportunidad que me dieron a mi este año, y también estaré para apoyarte igual o más de como lo hiciste conmigo. Gracias, twin.
If there’s one thing I want people to take away from this post, it’s that building creatively is always worth it. A lot of the ideas I brought weren’t perfect, and some clearly had flaws, but being willing to experiment and trust your own approach is what helps you grow the most. It’s easy to default to standard builds, but pushing beyond that is what makes the tier — and the player — more interesting.
I’m definitely motivated to keep improving and come back stronger next time, both as a builder and as a player. Hopefully I get another opportunity in a future SPL to prove that.
If you’ve got any questions about the teams, spreads, specific choices, or just wanna talk about building in general, feel free to DM me on Discord (ikaishi). I will try to reply asap.
Thanks a lot for reading, I really appreciate it.
And yeah — SCREAM IF YOU LOVE TYRANTS.
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