Introduction:
Hello! I'm MisterKumquat, I've been a lurker on Smogon for years now. I usually stick to OU, and I don't ever really consider myself the greatest battler out there. I have made plenty of OU teams and i have a pretty good grasp of the metagame, even into Gen 8. Though the VGC was always so confusing to me. I'm pretty bad at it, and I think it would benefit me to get some help on the team that I made. i would love to get better at it, as it is the official video game championship rules. And, also because VGC is so much easier to play in Sword and Shield because of the battle timer limit. I would love to know any improvements I could possibly make to my team, from someone more skilled in VGC than I am! Thanks in advance you wonderful people.
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Team Explanation:
Machamp:
This is part one of the reason I made this team. I wanted to use some of the new features, and because I play mainly Smogon rules pokemon in Showdown and against other people online in Sword and Shield, I rarely get a chance to take advantage of the Dynamax feature. I eyeballed Machamp as the Gigantamax I wanted to use. I'm familiar with the Pokemon and it did not take much change to get it road worthy for the team. I chose the ability No Guard, for the Cross Chop hits. This can be risky, however because things like Will-O-Wisp will never miss against you and have to either play around it or use your Lum Berry, which is the reason for the held item. Machamp's G-Max move is 'G-Max Chi Strike,' which sets up +1 to Critical hit ratio, which is the reason behind the Cross Chop decision, as it has a high critical hit ratio. It stacks with Focus Energy, and that was the original idea behind this team, with pokemon 1 and 2 coming solely from this idea, and filling it in with pokemon I know do well in VGC. The other two moves are just for priority/coverage. Bullet punch lets you knock weak opponents and get some extra damage on Fairy types that are threatening you, and Knock Off is for the ever-present Dragapult, with the added bonus of being able knock off anyone's item! Protect is standard.
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Inteleon:
This is part of the idea behind this team. Sobble was the initial starter I chose soon as Sword/Shield were announced and I have never left the Sobble Squad. I do think Inteleon got shafted in terms of viability and design but I still want to use it. Since the hidden abilities of the starters just came out I felt it was the perfect time to take advantage of G-Max Chi Strike's crit chance boost. With the ability sniper, he is able to do some major damage to any pokemon, even with screens up, or even a resisted hit. Snipe Shot already has a high critical hit ratio, but with G-Max Chi Strike, Scope Lens and Focus Energy up, I believe 'Snipe Snot' will sniper crit 100% of the time, and is pretty good if you can get it off. However, inteleon is not bulky enough usually to survive enough hits to get fully set up, usually the best way is to run Togekiss and Inteleon together in a favorable situation while Togekiss uses 'Follow Me' to help, but we will get to Togekiss.
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Incineroar:
This is the third member of the team, and I chose it just because of the use of utility Incineroar brings to the table. I'm not sure about the fit on the team but, I know at least in the S/M and US/UM VGC meta's that Incineroar put in work, so I thought to put it on. Intimidate is very useful ability, helping slow down some of the powerful physical attackers running around. Sitrus berry for recovery to keep it lasting, with a bulky spread with 8 EV's in speed to make sure you outspeed any other encountered Incineroar's running bulky, to get off Fake Out first. Darkest Lariat for Pokemon that try to set up (and because Knock Off hasn't been released for Incineroar yet in Gen 8), and Flare Blitz for stab. Parting shot for pivoting and weakening opposing Dynamax-ed mons. This is one of the question marks on the team, as he did put in work almost every game I played, but maybe he could be replaced by something else.
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Togekiss:
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Durant:
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Dhelmise:
I chose Dhelmise on this team, solely for power and Anti-Trick Room. I made him as slow as possible, just to stay competitive against good Trick Room teams, which seem very common in the lower ladder I was playing on. With the ability Steelworker, he has triple STAB with his 3 attacks. Expert Belt let's super-effective damage hit that much harder, and he is good at countering teams that run Trick Room. Anchor Shot for trapping, Power Whip and Shadow call for taking care of business. Protect for standard. I'm also not sure about this. I want advice on whether this is even a good idea or not. Dhelmise is my least brought pokemon but has been extremely useful against the Trick Room mons I send him out on.
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Final Thoughts:
Overall, I'm torn about this team. I want to practice VGC a lot more and get better, with a team I know well and built. But I was not that successful with this team. I put it into Showdown and ran 20 games with it. Now, granted, I have played VGC before, but not heavily at all, and these were the first ever VGC 2020 games I've played. With those Twenty games, I went 9-11 and finished with only 1102 ELO.
I'm not sure if its my inexperience or the team that caused me to be less than stellar. It could be a combination of both. I would appreciate some feedback on this. I would love to get better. [: You guys are awesome if you took the time to read and help.
Hello! I'm MisterKumquat, I've been a lurker on Smogon for years now. I usually stick to OU, and I don't ever really consider myself the greatest battler out there. I have made plenty of OU teams and i have a pretty good grasp of the metagame, even into Gen 8. Though the VGC was always so confusing to me. I'm pretty bad at it, and I think it would benefit me to get some help on the team that I made. i would love to get better at it, as it is the official video game championship rules. And, also because VGC is so much easier to play in Sword and Shield because of the battle timer limit. I would love to know any improvements I could possibly make to my team, from someone more skilled in VGC than I am! Thanks in advance you wonderful people.
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Team Explanation:
Machamp:
- Machamp-Gmax @ Lum Berry
Ability: No Guard
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Cross Chop
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Protect
This is part one of the reason I made this team. I wanted to use some of the new features, and because I play mainly Smogon rules pokemon in Showdown and against other people online in Sword and Shield, I rarely get a chance to take advantage of the Dynamax feature. I eyeballed Machamp as the Gigantamax I wanted to use. I'm familiar with the Pokemon and it did not take much change to get it road worthy for the team. I chose the ability No Guard, for the Cross Chop hits. This can be risky, however because things like Will-O-Wisp will never miss against you and have to either play around it or use your Lum Berry, which is the reason for the held item. Machamp's G-Max move is 'G-Max Chi Strike,' which sets up +1 to Critical hit ratio, which is the reason behind the Cross Chop decision, as it has a high critical hit ratio. It stacks with Focus Energy, and that was the original idea behind this team, with pokemon 1 and 2 coming solely from this idea, and filling it in with pokemon I know do well in VGC. The other two moves are just for priority/coverage. Bullet punch lets you knock weak opponents and get some extra damage on Fairy types that are threatening you, and Knock Off is for the ever-present Dragapult, with the added bonus of being able knock off anyone's item! Protect is standard.
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Inteleon:
- Inteleon @ Scope Lens
Ability: Sniper
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Snipe Shot
- Dark Pulse
- Focus Energy
- Protect
This is part of the idea behind this team. Sobble was the initial starter I chose soon as Sword/Shield were announced and I have never left the Sobble Squad. I do think Inteleon got shafted in terms of viability and design but I still want to use it. Since the hidden abilities of the starters just came out I felt it was the perfect time to take advantage of G-Max Chi Strike's crit chance boost. With the ability sniper, he is able to do some major damage to any pokemon, even with screens up, or even a resisted hit. Snipe Shot already has a high critical hit ratio, but with G-Max Chi Strike, Scope Lens and Focus Energy up, I believe 'Snipe Snot' will sniper crit 100% of the time, and is pretty good if you can get it off. However, inteleon is not bulky enough usually to survive enough hits to get fully set up, usually the best way is to run Togekiss and Inteleon together in a favorable situation while Togekiss uses 'Follow Me' to help, but we will get to Togekiss.
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Incineroar:
- Incineroar @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 244 HP / 144 Def / 112 SpD / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
- Fake Out
- Darkest Lariat
- Flare Blitz
- Parting Shot
This is the third member of the team, and I chose it just because of the use of utility Incineroar brings to the table. I'm not sure about the fit on the team but, I know at least in the S/M and US/UM VGC meta's that Incineroar put in work, so I thought to put it on. Intimidate is very useful ability, helping slow down some of the powerful physical attackers running around. Sitrus berry for recovery to keep it lasting, with a bulky spread with 8 EV's in speed to make sure you outspeed any other encountered Incineroar's running bulky, to get off Fake Out first. Darkest Lariat for Pokemon that try to set up (and because Knock Off hasn't been released for Incineroar yet in Gen 8), and Flare Blitz for stab. Parting shot for pivoting and weakening opposing Dynamax-ed mons. This is one of the question marks on the team, as he did put in work almost every game I played, but maybe he could be replaced by something else.
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Togekiss:
- Togekiss @ Leftovers
Ability: Super Luck
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 112 SpD / 64 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dazzling Gleam
- Heat Wave
- Follow Me
- Protect
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Durant:
- Durant @ Life Orb
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- First Impression
- Superpower
- Rock Slide
- Iron Head
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Dhelmise:
- Dhelmise @ Expert Belt
Ability: Steelworker
EVs: 192 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Def / 52 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Anchor Shot
- Power Whip
- Shadow Claw
- Protect
I chose Dhelmise on this team, solely for power and Anti-Trick Room. I made him as slow as possible, just to stay competitive against good Trick Room teams, which seem very common in the lower ladder I was playing on. With the ability Steelworker, he has triple STAB with his 3 attacks. Expert Belt let's super-effective damage hit that much harder, and he is good at countering teams that run Trick Room. Anchor Shot for trapping, Power Whip and Shadow call for taking care of business. Protect for standard. I'm also not sure about this. I want advice on whether this is even a good idea or not. Dhelmise is my least brought pokemon but has been extremely useful against the Trick Room mons I send him out on.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Final Thoughts:
Overall, I'm torn about this team. I want to practice VGC a lot more and get better, with a team I know well and built. But I was not that successful with this team. I put it into Showdown and ran 20 games with it. Now, granted, I have played VGC before, but not heavily at all, and these were the first ever VGC 2020 games I've played. With those Twenty games, I went 9-11 and finished with only 1102 ELO.
I'm not sure if its my inexperience or the team that caused me to be less than stellar. It could be a combination of both. I would appreciate some feedback on this. I would love to get better. [: You guys are awesome if you took the time to read and help.
