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The author built around Mega Froslass, using Aurora Veil to set up and then sweeping with Nasty Plot. Ice and Electric coverage lets Froslass pressure Garchomp, Primarina, and Corviknight simultaneously without needing Shadow Ball. Sash Glimmora leads to lay Toxic Spikes and use Mud Shot for speed control, giving Froslass priority-action opportunities. Kingambit with Black Glasses was chosen as a physical powerhouse that handles non-Fighting-type megas. Substitute-Calm-Mind Primarina dismantles Umbreon-based stall cycles. Hippowdon provides a switching buffer and activates sand for Excadrill, which sweeps Florges-plus-Scizor teams using Sand Rush. The author notes Glimmora is indispensable; removing it once caused a 300-point drop. Final result: 2501, 640th.Build article →

The author was hooked after seeing his fully Special-Attack-invested Delphox knock out HB Umbreon in two Fire Blast hits, and built around exploiting advantageous matchups with overwhelming firepower to break cycles. HB Archaludon was added as a pivot to block Starmie, Basculegion, and Kangaskhan that one-shot Delphox, while setting Stealth Rock. Scarf Garchomp became the de facto ace (highest usage rate) by reliably cleaning up against all Mega types. Those three formed the core. Mimikyu handled Basculegion and Umbreon; Mega Florges applied team-preview pressure and acted as a secondary ace; and Greninja with Toxic Spikes covered Sash Gengar, Sash Ceruledge, and Espathra-Clefable threats. Final: 2501, 642nd. Noted weaknesses: Hippowdon as a team-wide burden, and Archaludon struggling against several popular late-season sets.Build article →

Garchomp was locked in as the required cornerstone for the author. He wanted Aguav Berry but settled on Lum Berry to handle sleep-and-burn cycles. When Corviknight repeatedly walled Garchomp, Scovillain was added as a gamble-style counter, exploiting Moody's random boosts to find winning lines. Mid-season, HB Mega Victreebel was spotted in recommendations and adopted after proving extremely tanky in practice. Mega Florges, Scarf Archaludon, and Sash Basculegion filled the remaining slots. Scarf Archaludon surprised opponents and repeatedly cleaned up Mega Lopunny and Mega Gengar. Basculegion applied pure offensive pressure. Victreebel's key trait was its bulk combined with Leaf Storm for Steel-types and Belly Drum as insurance. Default lead was Archaludon plus one of Victreebel, Scovillain, or Garchomp, with Basculegion as anchor. Result: 2501, 643rd—huge personal record. Florges never appeared on the final day but its preview pressure was constant.Build article →

The author specializes in Baton Pass teams and started from a core of Espathra, Corviknight, and Clefable that had already shown results. Dragapult with Will-O-Wisp, Thunder Wave, and Hex serves as the lead, inflicting status regardless of Substitute and maintaining momentum even after speed drops. When the Baton Pass route fails, Sleep-plus-Focus-Blast Mega Gengar provides a secondary option that turns losing matchups into coin-flips. The last alternate slot went to Eevite Volcarona over Scarf Basculegion, because Kingambit, Glimmora, Mega Scizor, and Primarina—common Baton Pass counters—all fall to boosted Fiery Dance or Morning Sun recovery. The Baton Pass route covers 95% of games; the standard offense route 5%. Biggest weakness: Scarf Garchomp tears through the team if not properly managed. Final: 2501, 655th.Build article →

Finishing 663rd at 2500 in Champions' first season, the author built around a Scarf Sneasler / U-turn Corviknight / Mega Glimmora cycle. Sneasler outspeeds the meta's scarfers, beats Meowscarada and isn't bossed around by Normal Mega leads, and even in bad matchups it slaps a 30% poison touch on the switch. Corviknight is both a shield protecting Sneasler and Glimmora, and bait that lures Mega Dragonite, Volcarona and Skeledirge into Glimmora's range. Glimmora, with Adaptability, smashes favorable matchups and uses Spiky Shield to force Aegislash into Blade Forme and nullify Focus Sashes. The remaining holes are patched by Focus Sash Garchomp (for Gengar and bulky Garchomp), Mega Charizard Y (for Hippowdon, Scizor, Mega Venusaur) and Mega Gyarados (cleaning Mega Delphox and Scarf Basculegion). Running both Charizard and Gyarados also tricks opponents into thinking Glimmora isn't the MegaBuild article →

After meeting Mega Greninja in ZA, the author committed to using it in Champions. Its wide move coverage and high Speed are strong, but the low base power meant it couldn't anchor a team solo. An early core with Mimikyu and Scarf Garchomp stalled in the Hyper Ball tier, so the author pivoted to the familiar Mega Kangaskhan as the primary damage dealer, reaching Master Ball rank. Primarina joined to answer the troublesome Garchomp matchup and handle Mega Lopunny, with Perish Song providing soft answers to Baton Pass and setup. Aegislash replaced Mimikyu to cover Corviknight and Archaludon and absorb Ice moves aimed at Garchomp. Volcarona was the final addition against Gengar-Umbreon cores and Skeledirge cycles. In practice, Greninja was selected roughly 4 times as often as Kangaskhan late-season. Primary weaknesses: HD Archaludon and Scarf Garchomp. Final: 2500 (peak 2575), 666th.Build article →

The author's concept was to build around the combination of status damage, Umbreon, and Mega Gengar as a defensive-cycle core. Sash Glimmora was chosen to spin away Stealth Rock and counter Archaludon, solving a persistent weakness of cycle teams to hazard stacking. Sneasler replaced Scarf Urshifu, because its Poison Touch gives a 30% chance of poisoning on contact, synergizing perfectly with Gengar's Hex and Umbreon's Protect-cycling for passive chip. Mega Gyarados handled Hippowdon-type stall with Taunt, preventing passive plays. Volcarona served as the Fighting-type resist and setup sweeper, with added value against Lopunny teams. The primary lineup was Sneasler-Gengar-Umbreon; secondary was Glimmora-Gengar-Umbreon. The author's stated goal each game was to maintain a 2v2 situation with both Gengar and Umbreon alive. Mega Gyarados was the MVP on the final day. Final: 2500, 668th.Build article →

The author centered the team on Mega Heracross, reasoning that the absence of Mega Aggron and Mega Ninetales in this generation gives Heracross more room than in Gen 6 or 7. HB Aguav Pelipper and Scarf Adaptability Basculegion formed a rain backbone, with rain both powering Basculegion and reducing Heracross's Fire weakness. Sash Kingambit handled Ghost and Fairy threats that trouble Heracross, changing from Black Glasses to Sash after unexpected 4x KOs and Mirror issues. HB Mega Florges countered Mega Dragonite and Dragon-types broadly, while managing physical attackers like Mega Lopunny. Lum Swords Dance Garchomp with Fire Fang quickly dispatched Scizor and Umbreon teams drawn out by Florges. Mega Pidgeot was the final addition for Corviknight and Moody Scovillain, using Substitute-Roost to stay safe, Hurricane for Garchomp in two hits, and Heat Wave for Steel-types. Florges was selected ~70-80% of games; Corviknight was the primary culprit in losses on the final day. Final: peak 2620, ended 2497, 675th.Build article →

The team is built around three dedicated dual-screen setters, with Espathra acting as the Speed Boost pivot that passes boosts into the main Mega-evolution sweepers. After one Quiver Dance boost, Espathra outruns even Mega Greninja, and its Lumina Crash sometimes closes out games without needing to pass at all. The two Mega aces are Mega Clefable (Calm Mind breaker that can overwhelm physically bulky builds after two boosts) and a Mega Espathra itself as backup. The author highlights the team's simplicity—just pick the right wall-setter and ace per matchup—while noting players still need solid damage intuition. Final standing: 2495 / 679th.Build article →

A cycle team built around Mega Starmie as a high-power breaker, replacing an earlier Mega Lopunny core after finding that Hippowdon-heavy matchups were too difficult and Lopunny lacked immediate firepower. Mega Starmie uses Mighty Cleave to dish out enormous damage, and Aqua Jet to clean up faster threats or late-game sweeping. Corviknight handles physical attackers via U-turn and Iron Defense, while Bellibolt acts as the special-defensive pivot. Hisuian Samurott covers Gengar, Basculegion, and Aegislash. Mega Gengar is the alternate Mega for difficult matchups involving Archaludon or Scovillain. Key weaknesses: Mimikyu (narrow removal routes), Araquanid's sticky webbing disrupting speed tiers, and Ceruledge's wide coverage leaves no reliable answer. Final result: 691st / 2488.Build article →

The team is built around the Heal Wish strategy: Clefable uses Heal Wish to fully restore a Mega-evolved ace mid-game, effectively letting the player use the same Mega twice. The other five members are Mega Kangaskhan (primary physical attacker), Basculegion with Choice Scarf (speed control plus Shadow Rider Calyrex suppression via Mourning), Mega Blastoise (Wave-Launcher boosted moves plus Aqua Jet for finishes), Armarouge as a Focus Sash anti-Corviknight lead, and Aegislash added in the final stretch to deal with rising Florges usage. Clefable's Unaware ability also stopped several setup sweepers. Key weaknesses: electric and Ground coverage runs freely through the whole team; Umbreon-based balance squads are hard to crack, especially when paired with Mega Gengar to trap Clefable. Final result: 725th.Build article →

The team pairs Mega Froslass and Focus Sash Volcarona as two complementary lead attackers. Mega Froslass opens Hail for perfect-accuracy Blizzard, uses Taunt to shut down setup and cycle plays, and hard-counters the ever-present Garchomp. Volcarona with Sash can be brought in safely because Froslass suppresses Stealth Rock setters; after a Quiver Dance, it tears through balance teams. Kingambit with Black Glasses handles Ghost-types and Aegislash, protecting Froslass from behind. Choice Scarf Garchomp closes out games from the back. Mega Greninja is the second Mega, covering Froslass's bad matchups such as Lucario, Delphox, and Gengar. Primarina handles Lopunny and Delphox with Perish Song as a draw option. Author notes the team's anti-cycle power is a strength, but the wide Mega pool meant individual matchup knowledge was shallow. Final: 727th / 2474.Build article →

The author viewed the meta as dominated by four pillars—Garchomp, Archaludon, Corviknight, and Basculegion—and built a good-stuff team to handle all four. Garchomp runs a Stealth Rock-spreader role to synergize with Florges. Corviknight takes an Iron Defense setup set rather than U-turn. Basculegion uses Choice Scarf for speed control against fast Megas. Mega Florges is the core, covering Garchomp's weaknesses; it was held back on the final day due to heavy Corviknight usage. Mega Charizard Y handles Corviknight and Archaludon, complementing Florges. Umbreon covers Aegislash, Mega Dragonite, and Mega Gengar, giving Corviknight a stable support partner. Key trouble spots: Mega Lopunny/Starmie/Gengar paired with cycle, Perisong loops, and Corviknight+Garchomp mirror matchups coming down to luck. Final: 728th.Build article →

The team runs a setup-cycle strategy anchored by Glimmora with Focus Sash as the entry hazard setter, Mega Gyarados as the primary setup sweeper, and four other setup attackers to supplement it. Glimmora's Toxic Debris produces poison spikes passively and delays opponents before the Focus Sash kicks in. Mega Gyarados drops Ice Fang in favor of Power Whip to hit Water-types, sweeping after Dragon Dance. Volcarona uses Sitrus Berry and physically bulky investment to set up Quiver Dance while probing for Flame Body burns. Aegislash with Cursed Body item combines Stealth Rock damage with Sword Dance plus Shadow Sneak to crack sturdy targets. Garchomp uses Haban Berry to bait and set up against Dragon callers, with Scale Shot providing both damage and Speed boosts. Mega Clefable closes the team as a Calm Mind backup answer to defensive foes. The author notes the concept was easy to pilot but personal play skill was the limiting factor. Final: 733rd.Build article →

The team builds around a three-member cycle of Mega Delphox, Archaludon, and Primarina, with Kingambit as the Swords Dance sweeper set up via Delphox's Will-O-Wisp. Delphox outspeed Mega Gengar, using Fire Blast and Psycho Shock as primary coverage and Will-O-Wisp to cripple physical attackers for Kingambit. Archaludon absorbs physical hits and runs Dragon Pulse, Flash Cannon, Thunderbolt, and Foul Play to handle various threats. Primarina cuts Dragon and Dark coverage with Encore to disrupt setup Pokémon like Aegislash. Garchomp provides general high-stat coverage against Volcarona and Glimmora. Kingambit is the endgame sweeper capitalizing on burnt opponents; Iron Head was kept over Low Kick for Primarina matchups. Mega Florges is an invitation-bait for opponents' Scizor, enabling Mega Delphox to function more freely. The author regrets missing Champion-rank opportunities due to mental fatigue. Final: 2472.Build article →