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The primary game plan centers on Garchomp (Stealth Rock lead), Mega Florges (Grass Oath for Speed boosting), and Choice Scarf Basculegion as a straightforward offensive trio. Against teams that hold Basculegion for last, a secondary plan runs Basculegion plus pivot Corviknight. Facing a proliferation of anti-Florges techs late in the season, Mega Lucario was added as the second Mega: its All-Out Pummeling has a similar damage profile to Florges's Ruination and handles Scizor and similar threats that Florges loses to. The fifth slot went to a bulky Leech Seed plus Substitute Meowscarada, extremely effective against Starmie-Umbreon-style cores and Mega Gengar teams. The author's most painful weakness is Sash Ceruledge—nothing on the team deals with it cleanly and the only answer is to get Stealth Rock up first.Build article →

The team is built around Scovillain supported by Mega Glimmora, Orthworm, Aegislash, Mega Blastoise, and Meowscarada. The author found that in the M-A metagame without power items and without legendary Pokemon, setup sweepers face less resistance, making Scovillain's Leech Seed plus Substitute loop consistently effective across many matchups. Mega Glimmora's disguise benefits from Scovillain's Leftovers bluffing a non-Mega set, while Toxic Spikes plus Glimmora's passive damage form a steady drain chain. Orthworm's Shed Tail creates clean pivot opportunities for Aegislash or Blastoise to set up, and directly counters the popular Gengar+Umbreon pair. Aegislash with Focus Sash uses Orthworm relays for Swords Dance+Shadow Sneak sweeps. Meowscarada runs Electric Seed Trick and keeps opponents guessing. The author's identified weakness is Mega Gyarados, which the team struggles against structurally.Build article →

The team is built on a Toxic Spikes strategy combining Umbreon, Mega Gengar, and Focus Sash Glimmora, finishing M-1 at rank 301. The author argues that the standard Umbreon build with Stealth Rock and Yawn has three problems in this meta: reduced sleep mechanics, predictable Stealth Rock turns, and widespread Lum Berry usage. Instead, Glimmora leads with Toxic Spikes while Mega Gengar and Umbreon run a cycle against poisoned opponents using Cursed Body and Will-o-Wisp pressure. Mega Gengar's Hex becomes devastatingly powerful under poison. Umbreon runs a maximum Special Defense set with -Speed nature so Corviknight's U-turn imposes cost on the opponent. Primarina flexes between lead, cycle anchor, and Perish Song finisher. Mega Starmie is used purely for speed tier above Florges. The author identified the critical flaw post-season: Gengar and Starmie attract Dark-type answers that the team has no good answer to, and Starmie should have been Lopunny.Build article →

The team was built around Garchomp as the lead and entry hazard setter, ultimately forming a core of Glimmora Mega or Meganium Mega disruption plus Basculegion as the win condition, finishing 308th at 2589 in Champions Season M-1. Garchomp doubles as a physical wall and Stealth Rock setter whose Rough Skin passive mimics a Rocky Helmet without the item. Basculegion is the non-negotiable ace: it holds the Cursed Charm, sets up Agility to outspeed Choice Scarf threats, then nukes with Poltergeist — enough firepower to one-shot Garchomp, Mega Venusaur, Mega Scizor, and even Defense-invested Corviknight. Mega Glimmora is the mid-game disruptor: it lays Toxic Spikes on arrival, and when knocked out by Garchomp it becomes an Agility pivot for Basculegion; its Adaptability-boosted Power Gem plus entry hazards chips everything down. The team's weakness is that Weavile and Hydreigon force Basculegion's hand, narrowing the selection line.Build article →

The team was built around Mega Starmie, exploiting Rapid Spin's dual role of clearing hazards and boosting the user's Speed to enable a sweeping relay, reaching 312th place at 2585 in Champions Season M-1. Mega Starmie holds Choice Specs and uses Rapid Spin to remove Stealth Rock while ramping its own Speed, then blasts through with Surf, Psychic, and Ice Spinner. Volcarona's Butterfly Dance, Will-O-Wisp, and Fiery Dance weaken physical attackers while creating setup turns for Kingambit and Mega Florges. Kingambit answers Basculegion with Swords Dance plus Sucker Punch. Mega Florges pressures opponent team selection — simply appearing draws out Steel-types that Volcarona handles for free. Garchomp leads with Stealth Rock and Speed control; Archaludon patches weaknesses to Gyarados and Starmie. The author singles out Volcarona as the MVP and notes that Basculegion, Mega Gengar with Umbreon, and Hisuian Samurott are the most difficult matchups.Build article →

This team built around the Mega Lopunny and female Basculegion core reached 2584 and 314th in Champions Season M-1, the author's personal record after three years. The concept drew from a friend's builds: Mega Florges primes the field to draw out Steel-types, then Mega Lopunny harvests the Choice-locked Dark-types (Meowscarada, Hydreigon, Hisuian Samurott) with Swords Dance into High Jump Kick or Stomping Tantrum. Female Basculegion holds Kasib Berry to absorb a hit and still act, intentionally trading against Dark-types to create a free Swords Dance turn for Lopunny. Ceruledge uses Focus Sash to reach +2 speed before Swords Dance and Shadow Claw as the late-game cleaner. Garchomp holds Lum Berry for Hippowdon leads, Scovillain, and Archaludon. Corviknight was the surprise last addition: holding Metal Coat with Thunderbolt, it punished opponents who assumed Corviknight would not run special moves and heavily suppressed Clefable from being selected. The author notes that Florges rarely needed to be deployed in practice but forced defensive adjustments from opponents, freeing the rest of the team.Build article →

The team centered on aggressive offense with Florges, Lopunny, and Garchomp as the core, finishing 330th at 2570 in Champions Season M-1. The build evolved over the season: an initial Espathra-Lopunny framework was overhauled after the author encountered Mega Florges leads that simply one-shot Hippowdon on turn one. Garchomp with Lum Berry was added to deal with Hippowdon setups and Mega Pinsir. The final additions were female Basculegion with Focus Sash and Mimikyu. Mega Florges is the primary win condition: Doomsday Beam immediately removes Hippowdon and, against bulky cycle teams, Calm Mind gradually overwhelms. Mimikyu holds Cursed Charm with a Swords Dance and Shadow Claw kit, directly countering Basculegion and covering Choice Scarf Garchomp speed threats. Lopunny's post-Swords-Dance Stomping Tantrum carries the highest burst damage. Archaludon with White Herb and Mirror Coat targets Gyarados and Starmie while disrupting Meowscarada's selection. Significant weaknesses include Choice Scarf Garchomp's Outrage punishing both lead options and Pinsir, Hisuian Samurott being called out as very heavy.Build article →

Starting from Kingambit's strong win rate, the author built around it with Mega Delphox for type coverage and Archaludon as an entry hazard setter and speed reader, ending at 337th and 2568 in Champions Season M-1. Mega Delphox is deliberately slow — Speed EVs are traded for bulk and power to avoid being checked by Choice Scarf users and priority moves, at the cost of not naturally beating Gengar in Speed; teammates need to cover that. Will-O-Wisp and Encore lock opponents in place, creating Kingambit's Swords Dance windows. Kingambit's post-Swords-Dance Sucker Punch punishes nearly everything, including Corviknight and Hippowdon walls. Archaludon holds Leftovers and uses Dragon Tail, Stealth Rock, and Thunder Wave, luring Florges in so it can be punished. Vaporeon runs Wish-passing to restore Delphox's health. Basculegion handles Choice Scarf Garchomp. Mega Meganium (with a weather-specific coverage move) fills the gaps against Gyarados and Umbreon. The author is self-critical, listing Gyarados, Umbreon, Hisuian Samurott, Volcarona, Clefable, and Mega Charizard X as serious weaknesses.Build article →

The team was assembled around the strong field presence of Mega Delphox, finishing 342nd at 2565 in Champions Season M-1. Mega Delphox intentionally sits below max Speed investment, channeling EVs into power and bulk to hard-check Gengar, Florges, and Corviknight while resisting being checked back by Choice Scarf or priority. Encore plus Will-O-Wisp disrupt physical attackers, setting up Kingambit's Swords Dance. Kingambit is similarly low-Speed and HP-heavy, dominating Basculegion and Will-O-Wisp-burned opponents. Vaporeon passes Wish to restore Delphox's longevity and provides a pivot out of Encore traps. Choice Scarf Garchomp handles Mimikyu and speed control. Mega Meganium is the second Mega choice against Meowscarada, Hisuian Samurott, and Choice Specs Dark-types, also covering Scizor and Aegislash. The final slot went to Torterra against Gyarados and Corviknight, but Earthquake-carrying Gyarados was too much for Torterra alone — the author identifies this as the biggest flaw.Build article →

The author spent the full five-week season refining the Di-Anthus team — named for its dual flower-themed Megas, Glimmora and Meganium — reaching 343rd at 2564 in Champions Season M-1. The main strategy is a 2-attacker-plus-1-receiver formation: Corviknight pivots between the two Mega attackers with U-turn and keeps the pressure rotation smooth, while male Basculegion leads with Choice Scarf to probe the opponent's Speed tiers and item reads, also serving as the late-game cleaner. Mega Glimmora's key innovation is setting Toxic Spikes before evolving, then Mega evolving once a Ground-type switches in and using Spiky Shield to punish contact moves, which dramatically stabilizes the cycle. Mega Meganium enters against Dark-types, Water-types, and HP-invested Garchomp, using Synthesis in sun and weather-boosted coverage to clear the threats that stop Glimmora. The backup selection runs 2-receivers-plus-1-attacker: Mega Lopunny with Corviknight and Galarian Slowking to handle Mega Kangaskhan and tanky stall. The author credits Spiky Shield on Glimmora as the single biggest rating contributor, and notes that Mega Charizard and Mega Gyarados require careful selection to manage.Build article →

The team uses Mega Victreebel to draw Steel types and lay Toxic Spikes, then lets Volcarona set up with Quiver Dance against the Steel opponents that come in. When Victreebel is knocked out early, Mimikyu steps in as a secondary setup relay and late-game sweeper. Basculegion spreads Stealth Rock to tighten Mimikyu's Shadow Sneak kill ranges. Scarf Garchomp provides speed control and direct coverage. Mega Froslass enables Aurora Veil setups for Volcarona and handles Charizard matchups. The author notes Volcarona's Quiver Dance sweep was frequently unstoppable when the strategy worked, including several 3-0 wins. The major regret is personal: after being in top 100 at 6 AM on the final day, the author went out with friends after work and ran out of time to push further.Build article →

The team is anchored by Mafoxyier and Kingambit, supported by Archaludon, Basculegion, Mega Blastoise, and Garchomp, finishing season M-1 at 349th place. The author started with Kingambit's consistently high win rate and added Delphox to directly patch the Fighting-type weakness. Delphox's Encore locks opponents for Kingambit setup, while Encore into Nasty Plot applies enormous pressure — particularly useful on Florges-heavy final days. Archaludon runs Mirror Coat with Sitrus Berry to handle special attackers and uses Rock Tomb to lower Mimikyu's speed into Kingambit's Diamond Storm kill range. Basculegion provides raw power, Scarf Garchomp gives speed control, and Mega Blastoise patches Gyarados and Umbreon weaknesses. The acknowledged weakness is Garchomp being too frail on the lead — it frequently fainted before contributing, which the author identifies as a clear structural problem.Build article →

The team centers on Mega Meganium paired with Garchomp, Basculegion, Archaludon, Mimikyu, and Delphox, reaching 357th in M-1. The author built the team specifically to use Mega Meganium, which they acknowledge is weak to every top Mega — Gengar, Charizard, Lucario, Florges — but favors many common non-Mega picks like Garchomp, Primarina, Hippowdon, and Aegislash. The strategy is multi-route: Basculegion's three layers of Stealth Rock plus weather ball bring Mega Gengar into Solar Beam range; Charizard is handled by getting a favorable pivot through Hippowdon before attaching Substitute and firing Atomic Force; Mimikyu's Trick Room enables Meganium to sweep from below. Archaludon uses Mirror Coat to punish special attackers and Basculegion lays entry hazards. Delphox replaced Charizard X two days before the end to answer Scizor. The author's biggest regret is not logging in on the final day.Build article →

The author settled on Scarf Basculegion as the team's core after finding its matchup and cycling performance strong early in the season. The team runs Mega Dragonite and Archaludon as the main duo — Dragonite for wide offensive coverage, Archaludon as a pivot that also lays Stealth Rock. Mimikyu disrupts setup teams via Curse, Hippowdon Garchomp denies Electric-type attacks from cycling through, and Mega Lucario cleans up stall builds with entry hazard support. Strengths include versatile face-to-face pressure; weaknesses are Fairy types (Floette, Sylveon, Gardevoir) and defensive cycling teams. The author also admits the EVs were barely optimized and sees room for improvement.Build article →