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Ryusei, a Korean player, could only start the season in May due to personal circumstances. He initially prepared a stall-oriented team around Venusaur and Skeledirge, but the revised draw rules made it unplayable, so he rebuilt from scratch after three days. Observing that Corviknight, Bellibolt, Umbreon, Hippowdon, and Slowking were dominating as cushion Pokemon, he built around Basculegion (Mystic Water) as an immediate high-power threat whose Aqua Burial power scales up after allies faint. White Herb Archaludon fills the lead role, able to voluntarily collapse to trigger Basculegion. Espathra + Mega Clefable Baton Pass provides misdirection, while Mega Lopunny handles Ghost and Fighting threats at lead, with Mimikyu as the back-line anchor. His self-assessed weaknesses are that a missed Giga Impact from Lopunny often means a lost game, and the Espathra-Clefable combination rarely saw play. Final result: 2603 rating, 248th place, Champion rank.Build article →

The author, Shie, struggled against offensively dominant Pokemon, so instead built a team designed to absorb hits and win through counter-damage. The plan is straightforward: Kingambit with Focus Sash + Metal Burst takes one Pokemon down, a Mega attacker (primarily Mega Victreebel or Mega Scovillain) forces a 1-for-1 trade, and Vanilluxe closes out the final matchup. Basculegion acts purely as a decoy: its presence on the team sheet forces opponents to bring counters, creating favorable final matchups for Vanilluxe against Garchomp, Meowscarada, and Hydreigon. Mega Emboar handles the Steel, Normal, and Dark types that Basculegion's Aqua Burial cannot hit. The team collapsed from 2400 to under 2000 late in the season until Vanilluxe was added, after which the author climbed back to 2600. The team's strength is its clear, readable game plan requiring no complex prediction; the weakness is reliance on Kingambit's Focus Sash going live. Final result: 2603 rating, 249th place.Build article →

Bouno, returning to competitive play after years away, built the team around Mega Venusaur, a Pokemon he has relied on since Generation 7. He assessed the current meta as favorable for defensive play due to the absence of Choice Band and Specs, initially planning Venusaur as the special wall and a separate physical wall. When Mega Dragonite became a consistent problem, he switched Venusaur to the physical wall role and paired it with Umbreon as the special wall — a combination that confused opponents' read on which side each handled. Umbreon ran Toxic instead of the standard Yawn, catching opponents off-guard. Scarf Garchomp checked Charizard and Volcarona and laid Stealth Rock. Rotom-W served as a secondary physical wall for Scizor and Kingambit. Aegislash covered Florges, eventually shifted to Shield-dominant for more stability. Delphox was the last addition specifically to break stall teams and threaten Mega Gengar + Corviknight cores. The author identified Starmie and sub-Hydreigon as the biggest threats to this team. Final placement: 257th, Champion rank.Build article →

Gon built around a Focus Sash + Scale Shot Garchomp and centered the team on a three-way relationship between Garchomp, Archaludon, and Primarina, which beat all three. Primarina was configured with HB investment to take two Garchomp Earthquakes and handle all common Garchomp variants solo, pivoting out to Garchomp when facing Archaludon. Corviknight ran Taunt to shut down stall and cycle teams and serve as the main physical wall. Mega Gyarados closed out matchups with Dragon Dance against offensive teams and disrupted stall alongside Corviknight's Taunt. The team later replaced Mega Lucario with Mega Scizor after Mega Lopunny became too common: Scizor used Curse to build physical bulk until even Corviknight's Body Press could not break through, while also handling Meowscarada and Gengar. Bellibolt was a last-minute addition for physical matchups but lacked practice. The author felt there was still a clear skill gap compared to top players. Final placement: 261st, Champion rank.Build article →

Prominence756 based this team on the Mega Florges plus Scizor framework observed at the Raigeki offline tournament, incorporating refinements from top finisher Nanatuki. Toucannon and Basculegion were added to complete the final version. Mega Florges is the anchor: its near-universal coverage cannot be stopped by half-measures, and Ruinous Light chips away at otherwise safe switch-ins to set up cleaner finishes for the rest of the team. Toucannon runs Focus Sash with Attack and Speed investment; Beak Blast's high base power (boosted by Skill Link multi-hit moves) routinely surprises opponents who underestimate its 120 base Attack stat, and the burn it inflicts limits physical threats on the back foot. Garchomp leads with Stealth Rock to push Fire-types into Florges's OHKO range. Scarf Basculegion mostly baits counters but can sweep when the path is clear. Skeledirge uses Substitute to turn setup-heavy opponents into momentum opportunities and beats Corviknight and Volcarona reliably with Torch Song. HD Mega Scizor pairs with Toucannon's burns to stack Sword Dance safely. The author identified Mega Delphox cycle teams and Steel/Fire mirrors as the toughest matchups. Final result: 265th, Champion rank.Build article →

Ksun started with Focus Sash Basculegion and gradually replaced teammates until the team became a patchwork offensive squad. Mega Blastoise was added after a streamer recommendation and consistently delivered through confusion and flinch procs; Vanilluxe countered the Garchomp, Meowscarada, and Hydreigon opponents brought specifically to beat Basculegion; Mega Aegislash checked Lopunny and Florges threats; Mega Glimmora answered fast special attackers and Mega Dragonite; and Garganacl filled a disruptive role using Metal Burst with Focus Sash and Sturdy. The standard lead combination was Blastoise plus Vanilluxe or Blastoise plus Archaludon, with Basculegion in the back. The team's toughest matchup was Bellibolt, whose Electric moves ran through the whole squad essentially unchecked, and the Starmie plus Aegislash offensive cycle was also difficult due to poor cycle compatibility. The author acknowledged the team was somewhat improvised and hopes for a top-two-digit finish in a future season. Final result: 2600 rating, 267th place.Build article →

The team is built around a core of Mega Gengar, Umbreon, and Garchomp. The author's concept began with admiring Mega Gengar and then systematically patching its weaknesses. Will-o-Wisp on Gengar handles slow physical attackers using Earthquake; Umbreon pairs as the ghost/dark sponge and uses Toxic to pressure Hippowdon that Gengar cannot break alone; Scarf Garchomp provides entry hazards safely while also shutting down Substitute Archaludon before it can lock Umbreon. Archaludon with Stamina plus White Herb suppresses any item-dependent opponent. Primarina and Mega Gyarados fill coverage gaps against Lopunny, Espathra, Mimikyu, and Scizor. The author identified two key weaknesses: no answer to fast Mega threats that outspeed Gengar, and Mimikyu naturally punishing the standard lead trio.Build article →

The team centers on Mega Charizard Y and Mega Aggron, assembled by a returning player with a simple framework: put Charizard at the core, then build outward to cover its weaknesses. Charizard Y runs a bulk investment with Rock Tomb as its surprise tech — countering Volcarona that normally walls it and enabling speed manipulation for late-game pivots. Hippowdon drops Stealth Rock+Yawn in favor of Cute Charm+Coil, countering Swords Dance Garchomp at +1 in a 1v1. Clefable (non-Mega) with Leftovers uses Cosmic Power to stall out Encore PP from Primarina and eventually set up an impenetrable moon-light loop. Aggron invests heavily in Special Defense to take on Aegislash and Milotic, with Sleep Talk being the only gap. Weavile with Choice Scarf runs Switcheroo for item theft, and Gardevoir fills the anti-stall and fire coverage role. The author notes Clefable's setup time gives opponents too many crit chances as the main weakness.Build article →

The team is built around Mega Lopunny (Adamant, full Attack investment), exploiting the fact that Fake Out plus Thunder Punch nearly OHKOs uninvested Starmie and Fake Out plus High Jump Kick lands a high-probability OHKO on Garchomp and Glimmora. Core members are Lopunny, Archaludon, Corviknight, and Basculegion; the last two slots go to Mega Clefable as a setup platform and Espathra to handle fast threats like Gengar and Delphox that outspeed Lopunny. The standard lead is Lopunny plus Corviknight with a flexible third; Basculegion is prioritized when Hippowdon is on the opponent's team. The author acknowledges the team is not top-tier — no Fire-type move means Scizor is problematic, no Ice move leaves Dragonite as a weakness, and a late-season swap to Sash Garchomp cost 100 rating points before reverting to Espathra, an outcome the author admits they cannot explain.Build article →

The team pairs Scizor and Hydreigon as complementary attackers covering each other's weaknesses. Hydreigon runs Choice Scarf as a lead, scouting opponent sets and applying immediate pressure; Mega Scizor uses Leftovers to sustain through cycles, sweeping after a Swords Dance, and exploits Corviknight and Umbreon as involuntary setup fodder via Taunt-forced situations. Supporting members include Mimikyu (creating setup opportunities via Taunt tricks), Scovillain (running down cycle teams with burns and Wrap chip damage), and Toxapex (passive residual damage). The author's key insight is that Hydreigon draws far less defensive preparation than Florges, meaning Stealth Rock lands freely and lures numerous Charizard into bad matchups. Acknowledged weaknesses are the lack of a Fire-type move making Scizor matchups problematic, and inconsistency against the Florges-plus-Charizard dual-ace structure.Build article →

The team is built around Mega Dragonite as the primary sweeper-and-cycler, pairing its wide coverage and Roost recovery with Corviknight (Swords Dance plus Sucker Punch) as the steel partner. To protect Dragonite from Stealth Rock chip, Hatterene was added for Magic Bounce to reflect entry hazards while also pressuring Garchomp and Umbreon. Sneasler (Sash) and Scizor (Metal Coat) were added to handle Florges matchups. The last slot went to Mega Gyarados to address Starmie, though the author reflects post-season that Basculegion or Meowscarada would have been better choices there. Dragonite is the most frequently selected member. The author's main self-critique is that the team was assembled too loosely late in the season, leaving a major hole against opposing Mega Gyarados.Build article →

The core trio of Milotic, Mega Venusaur, and Garchomp forms the primary lead combination. Milotic retains Scald from previous generations, and its Scald plus recovery plus Marvel Scale provides excellent cycle durability; Mega Venusaur holds down Meowscarada and Primarina while covering the Grass matchups Garchomp cannot handle; Choice Scarf Garchomp cleans up Incineroar and Lucario. The remaining slots include Aegislash (Substitute plus King's Shield to stall Florges), Mega Kangaskhan (broad coverage for Fairy Mega situations and Espeon-meta matchups), and Sash Magic Guard Clefable (specifically for Scizor and Blastoise, plus Magic Coat to bounce Stealth Rock). The author concludes that Marvel Scale is clearly superior to Cute Charm on Milotic, that Umbreon's Wish-Protect is too PP-heavy for Milotic to grind down easily, and that Scald's burn chance is essentially mandatory for Milotic's role.Build article →