DALLAS REGIONAL
I know that this is pretty late, but I decided to put it up as a way to introduce myself to part of the smogon community. So here it is, my journey to become the VGC 2011 Senior champion:
My VGC warstory begins three weeks before the Dallas Regional. I had heard of the VGCs, and was kind of interested, so I persuaded my parents to let me go to Dallas and compete. I got to work immediately, with a sandstorm team in mind. After working nonstop until the day of the tournament, I managed to get a team together. In hindsight, I can see that this team is pretty bad, but that’s retrospect for you.
Terrakion @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Justified[/FONT]
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
-Swords Dance
-Sandstorm
-Stone Edge
-Close Combat
Basically just a lead that would set up sandstorm.
Whimsicott @ Quick Claw
Ability: Prankster
Evs: 248 Def, 248 Sp. Def, 12 Hp
Nature: Timid
-Taunt
-Leech Seed
-Toxic
-Tailwind
Quick Claw was for the genies. Whimsicott’s main point is just to get Tailwind up.
Reuniclus @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Evs: 252 Sp. Atk, 252 Hp
Nature: Modest
-Thunder
-Recover
-Psychic
-Shadow Ball
Conkeldurr @ Flame Orb
Ability: Guts
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Hp
Nature: Naughty
-Stone Edge
-Fling
-Hammer Arm
-Superpower
Excadrill @ Razor Claw
Ability: Sand Rush
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
-Sandstorm
-X-Scissor
-Earthquake
-Attract
Haxorus @ King’s Rock
Ability: Mold Breaker
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe
Nature: Bashful
-Dragon Claw
-Swords Dance
-Earthquake
-Dragon Tail
My family and I drove up to Dallas the day before the tournament and we got checked into our hotel room at around 10 pm. I went and checked out the Arlington Convention Center before getting some sleep so I would be rested up for some battles.
I woke up at 5 and quickly got ready for the day that I had been preparing for. There were already quite a few people in line when I got to the Convention Center, but not enough to where I was worried about getting a spot in the tournament. It was about an hour until we were aloud into the building, and another hour until they started registering. My game was hack checked and I was immediately sent into the line for the first round battles. At this point, I was really nervous about my first battle. I got paired against a kid who said he lost in the first round last year, but I didn’t want to underestimate him. There was about a half hour wait until the battle actually began, which did not help. They finally announced that the battles were beginning, and my first ever VGC battle started.
Round 1: Vs. Caleb S.
I led with Terrakion and Whimsicott, and he led with Serperior and Samurott. I somehow realized immediately that sandstorm just wouldn’t work in this tournament, and just went with tailwind. The battle went pretty quickly, and we ended up 1 vs. 1 at the end, my Reuniclus vs. his Musharna. His Musharna was already down to very little health, so I used shadow ball for the win.
I couldn’t believe that I just won my first round! All that time I spent on my team paid off. I called one of the staff members over to check off my victory on my card, and I proceeded to the second round.
Round 2: Vs. Ethan R.
Making it past the first round was a big achievement for me, so I was far less nervous than I was at the start of the tournament. I still wanted to win, of course, but I was proud of what I had done already. Anyways, my opponent didn’t give me a fantastic first impression of him when he started to laugh at my in game name. I led with Haxorus and Whimsicott, he led with Serperior and Emboar. I set up tailwind and used earthquake for SE damage on Emboar and a bit of damage to Serperior. Emboar survived, so it took out Whimsicott and I was able to bring out Terrakion. After that, I took control of the match and won 2-0. I shook my opponents hand and got another win checked off on my game card. I headed to the third round, more confident than ever.
Round 3: Vs. Elijah B.
I really wasn’t nervous at all anymore. I had exceeded my expectations by getting this far and would be happy even if I lost. Because I finished the first two rounds quickly, there weren’t many other people in the third round area, so I got worried I would have to play someone from smogon or something. My opponent said that he wasn’t, though, so I went into the match confidently. I led with Haxorus and Whimsicott again, he led with Serperior and Samurott. What’s with all these starters? Anyways, I set up Tailwind and use earthquake, and I find out that his Serperior is actually a Zoroark, and its OHKO’d. After that, Whimsicott got KO’d and I was able to send out Terrakion. Two sweepers with a tailwind boost was enough for me to win the match 3-0. I shook my opponent’s hand and called over a staff member to check off my win. I headed to the round 4 area, knowing that this was the last obstacle between me and the Finalists Lounge.
Round 4: Vs. Christian A. (nballer)
My opponent and I were among the first ones to enter the round 4 area. I didn’t know it at the time, but my opponent was actually nballer. I led with Haxorus and Whimsicott, and he led with Thundurus and Mienshao. He used Fake Out on Haxorus and Taunt on Whimsicott and I figured it was over from there. I just let Whimsicott struggle to try and survive the taunt without having to switch out. Haxorus lasted long enough to 2HKO Thundurus, but it was able to set up Rain Dance. I sent out Reuniclus to take out Mienshao and he sent out Hydriegon. He made a bad prediction and protected with Hydreigon, while Whimsicott was able to set up Tailwind before Mienshao KO’d it. Reuniclus used Psychic to bring Mienshao to it’s sash, and I sent out Terrakion. Terrakion used Close Combat on Hydreigon for the OHKO, while Mienshao took out Terrakion before being KO’d by Reuniclus. My opponent sent out Jellicent, and it was 1 vs. 1, with both pokemon at full health. I used Rain Dance to my advantage and Thundered Jellicent, leaving it in red HP. Jellicent’s Shadow Ball didn’t KO Reuniclus, so I won 1-0 the next turn. I called over a staff member, who checked off a win on my card and directed me to the Finalist Lounge sign-ins, where they took my game card to hack check.
I was the third senior done with the preliminaries, so I had about an hour-long wait for the rest of the battles to finish. I started to get nervous again, knowing that I was extremely close to making the Top 16. I figured that there would be the maximum 32 seniors that made it past the first four rounds, but it turned out that there were only 20. There would be 12 byes, with 8 competitors having to battle for their spot at Nationals.
Round 5:
With 12 byes, I felt like my chances weren’t so bad of getting a free ticket to Nationals. I flipped the card over that was given to me and…I got a bye! However, the staff member that was handling the whole bye thing mixed up the senior’s and junior’s bye cards, so they had to pass them out again…When they started passing them out again, I was the third person he gave a card to, and the two competitors next to me got byes, so I didn’t like my chances. I flipped it over and got a bye again though, and they fortunately did not mess up that time. So yeah, free ride to Nationals. At that point, I didn’t care if I made it any further, I got what I came for. The people who got byes and those who didn’t went to separate tables. Our table had to wait for the fifth round to finish before we got started, and I learned that I would be playing someone who didn’t get a bye.
Top 16: Vs. Trevor C.
My opponent and I shook hands and started our battle. I led with Haxorus and Whimsicott again, and my opponent had another Thundurus and Mienshao lead. The first turn ended up going the same way, Fake Out and Taunt. This time, I couldn’t recover and he quickly beat me 3-0.
Soon after my defeat, I left the Arlington Convention Center, happy with my performance. I managed to convince my parents to let me go to Nationals, but I knew that if I wanted to have a chance, my team would need to be improved. I had around a month to prepare, and I made an account on smogon and began to lurk. I decided to drop Excadrill and Conkeldurr completely, and get a new Haxorus with better stats. I also changed movesets and held items.
NATIONALS
My Nationals Team:
Terrakion @ Focus Sash
Ability: Justified
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
-Swords Dance
-Protect
-Stone Edge
-Close Combat
Haxorus @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Mold Breaker
Evs: 252 Atk. 252 Spe, 4 HP
Nature: Jolly
-Earthquake
-Dragon Dance
-Dragon Claw
-Shadow Claw
I only have Dragon Dance on it because I didn’t have time to change it.
Tornadus @ Flying Gem
Ability: Prankster
Evs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe, 4 HP
Nature: Timid
-Taunt
-Acrobatics
-Protect
-Tailwind
Amoonguss @ Quick Claw
Ability: Effect Spore
Evs: 252 HP, 244 Sp. Def, 12 Def
Nature: Gentle
-Rage Powder
-Protect
-Spore
-Giga Drain
Reuniclus @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Evs: 252 Sp. Atk, 252 HP
Nature: Modest
-Shadow Ball
-Protect
-Psychic
-Thunder
Whimsicott @ Wide Lens
Ability: Prankster
Evs: 248 Def, 248 Sp. Def, 12 HP
Nature: Timid
-Taunt
-Leech Seed
-Protect
-Tailwind
There was a deal for a charter bus going up to Nats, so I went up to Indianapolis on that. It was an 18-hour drive from Dallas, and we got there the day before the LCQ. We got some much needed sleep that night and went down to the convention center to watch the LCQs. This is where I discovered one of the greatest things about going to Nationals: side events. They started 8 man VGC tournaments every 10 minutes or so, and you got TCG packs just for playing. I pretty much did that all Friday, practicing with my team and getting free cards. I met a few smogon masters playing those, occasionally beating them. I was happy with how my team had been doing, and was ready for the next day.
I arrived at the convention center the next day ready to compete for one of the spots in worlds. I met up with some of the people I met at Dallas and got in line for registration. After everyone had registered, the first round pairings were put up. I wasn’t too nervous, since it wasn’t single elimination this time, but I still wanted to make it to worlds, so I knew I had to have a pretty good record. Round 1 began a few minutes after pairings were put up.
Round 1: Vs. ???
I don’t remember the name of who I was playing, but I do remember that this battle was on one of the big screens. I led with Terrakion and Tornadus, my opponent led off with Terracott. He used Beat Up on his Terrakion, like I thought I would, so I was just hoping to win the speed tie. After we made our moves, though, he told me that his Terrakion didn’t have max speed IVs, so Close Combat took it out, while Acrobatics brought Whimsicott down to it’s Sash. After that, I swept the rest of his team and won 4-0. Being on the big screen worried me, but I’m glad it was that match that ended up there.
Record: 1-0
Round 2: Vs. Kristian M. (Mosquitox216)
I was supposed to play somebody else, but the pairings were messed and we had to switch opponents. Ugh, Mosquito doesn’t remember this battle and neither do I. I won’t reveal his team since he made it to Worlds, but I led with Haxorus and Tornadus. He made a good prediction at some point and he won 3-0.
Record: 1-1
Round 3: Vs. ???
This match was incredibly close the whole way through, and I had a slight advantage at the end; I was winning 2-1, Reuniclus and Tornadus vs. Jellicent. However, he managed to get Tailwind up the turn before, and his Jellicent was able to outspeed them and used Water Spout, causing me to lose 1-0.
Record: 1-2.
Round 4: Vs. Bruno C. (Kid Kadabra)
I went to check the pairings for round four and I saw that I would be the only competitor with a 1-2 record playing somebody with a 2-1 record. To make matters worse, when I went to take my seat across from my opponent, he was wearing a smogon shirt. I asked him who he was on smogon, and he said Kid Kadabra. At that point, I had pretty much given up hope of winning. Anyways, before our match started, he offered me fried rice to throw the game. But chance at Worlds > fried rice, so I said no. I led with Tornadus and Terrakion, and reveal what he had, in case he goes to the Worlds LCQ. I made a good prediction somewhere, which caused him to start yelling to someone about how I was prediction haxing him, lol. In the end, I pulled off a 2-0 victory.
Record: 2-2
Round 5: Vs. Ryan A.
I’d talked to this guy before, and he told me that a duck made his team for him. Yeah, I really didn’t stand a chance here. I don’t remember his lead, but he beat me 3-0 pretty quickly.
Record: 2-3
Round 6: Vs. ???
Before our match started, we made an agreement that whoever won had to go 4-3 so that they would have a chance at making it to the second day. Unfortunately, he won. He out predicted me several times in the battle and won 3-0. I wished him good luck in the next round.
Record: 2-4
Round 7: Vs. ???
I knew I didn’t have a chance at making it to Sunday now, but going 3-4 would be better than 2-5. My match was on the big screen for the second time at Nats, so I wanted to win more than ever. I led with Tornadus and Terrakion, and he led with Thundurus and Terrakion. I protect with Tornadus and use Stone Edge on Thundurus fro the OHKO. His Terrakion uses Close Combat to bring mine to it’s sash, and he sent out Hydreigon. I protect with Terrakion to avoid quick attack and use acrobatics to bring his Terrakion to it’s sash. He uses Draco Meteor, and Tornadus is left with it’s HP in red, and Hydreigon’s white herb raises it’s special attack back to normal. I try to double protect with Terrakion, but it fails and is KO’d by quick attack. Tornadus uses acrobatics to KO my opponents Terrakion, but Tornadus is then KO’d by Hydreigon. I send out Reuniclus and Amoonguss, and he sends out his own Amoonguss. Hydreigon uses Flamethrower on my Amoonguss, but it doesn’t even take away half of it’s HP. Reuniclus OHKO’s my opponent’s Amoonguss with psychic, while my Amoonguss Spores his Hydreigon. Over the next two turns, I use Shadow Ball and Giga Drain to KO Hydreigon for a 2-0 win.
Record: 3-4
After the final round, the final results were put up: I got 40th place overall. Considering this is the first competitive thing I’ve ever done, I’d say that I did pretty well. After it was over, I went and got some lunch at the food court, and then went and played some more side event tournaments until about 9 pm. After that, I went back to my hotel and played some TCG games in the lobby with other people that were on the bus I took up to Nats.
On Sunday, I just kind of hung out at the convention center. I played some more side events and watched the finals. When we got back to our hotel, I went swimming with some of the other Dallas qualifiers and TCG players before I had to leave Indianapolis.
My first VGC season ends at Nationals, without the chance to make it to Worlds. There was no way I would have done as well as I did if I didn’t begin lurking here. Hopefully, I’ll be able to make it further next year, since it will be my last year in seniors. I’m going to try to go to two Regionals next year, so that should at least improve my chances of going to Nats, anyway.
Props:
1. Making it to Nats on my first try
2. Going 3-4 at Nats
3. Winning a ton of TCG cards from side events
4. Meeting people from smogon
5. Winning a side event 8-man tournament that had six masters competing in it, most of whom were from smogon
6.Winning both of my on-screen battles at Nats
Slops:
1. Not making it to Worlds
2. Knowing that I probably would have made it to the Top 8 at Dallas if I had used my Nats team
