Battling / Annotated Battles

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Teams:

Edoardo's team

Alister's team

Concepts:

• Protect

• Momentum with Dynamax (Dynamax stalling)

• Double Targeting

• Pressure

Series 5 Information

• Dynamax is allowed. Dynamax is the major mechanic of Pokemon Sword and Shield, and you can find out more information about it here. 

• Only Pokemon in the Galar Pokedex or the Isle of Armor Pokedex could be used. (Not the Crown Tundra)

Game 1

Team Preview

This set is open sheet, so players won’t be surprised by moves, abilities, or items.

The most important thing to note about each team here is the pace at which they play. Although they have similar concepts– each team features Porygon2, Dragapult, and Fire-type, Water-type, and Grass-type Pokemon, Alister’s team wants to set up with Rotom-Wash and Ferrothorn. Togekiss assists with its Follow Me and Serene Grace Air Slash, and Porygon2 and Incineroar can make it easier for the setup to happen. Dragapult offers pure offense for a dynamic change of pace (and the Incineroar is strangely offensive as well!). 

The Pokemon on Edoardo’s side are more immediately offensive– Terrakion, Rillaboom, and Primarina all do strong damage right out the gate. However, Edoardo’s team features the Beat Up + Terrakion combo, which applies offensive pressure on Turn 1. Allister’s leads are therefore going to have to respect that combination.

Turn 1, Game 1

Edoardo did not lead with Dragapult plus Terrakion, perhaps wisely because Togekiss + Life Orb Dragapult puts a stop to it pretty quickly (with Follow me Max Wyrmwind/Phantasm). 

Many players Dynamax on Turn 1 to try and gain momentum, taking an advantage over their opponent as soon as possible. However, note that Alister’s Dragapult is not in a great spot to do that on this turn. Both Incineroar and Porygon2 will survive a Dynamax attack, and Porygon2 can easily Trick Room and Recover off any damage.

—

Alister opts to U-Turn with Dragapult instead of Dynamaxing, saving its strength for later. Note that Dragapult is challenging to make work outside of Dynamax, and Alister’s team features several Pokemon that don’t make great use of Dynamax themselves (Ferrothorn/Togekiss), so from Edoardo’s perspective, it’s pretty likely that Alister will Dynamax Dragapult later in the game. 

On first instinct, switching Primarina into Ferrothorn is a fool’s errand because of Ferrothorn’s Grass typing. Note, however, that Ferrothorn doesn’t have a Grass-type attack! This is because it’s the Iron Defense Body Press set that became popular in Generation 8. Primarina is thus safe to Dynamax. 

Turn 2, Game 1

Alister Protects Togekiss, but Edoardo double targets Ferrothorn. Is this a prediction? Not really– think about how much pressure Togekiss is exerting at this point in time. It can Air Slash for minimal damage on either Pokemon, or Yawn– which will be quickly blocked the next turn by Max Starfall.

Alister is fortunate that Ferrothorn survived that attack (plus the Hail chip): if it fainted, he would have been in a rough spot. 

As a side note, this is why it’s often suboptimal to Protect with a Rage Powder or Follow Me Pokemon: your opponent can always double target the Pokemon you would be redirecting attacks from. 

Turn 3, Game 1

Togekiss continues to not do much. Edoardo needs it gone, though, or his Trick Room will run out. He’s on two clocks: he needs to do as much damage as possible while his Dynamax is up, and he needs to chew through Alister’s team before Trick Room ends and Dragapult hits the field.

—

I’m curious if a Leech Seed from Ferrothorn would have helped Alister out more than an Iron Defense: there is a risk that Edoardo would just switch Porygon2 out in response.

Turn 4, Game 1

Dragapult hits the field. This should set off alarm bells for both players given that Primarina will knock it out in one hit, even through Dynamax. Dragapult also cannot protect itself, even with Max Guard.

Given from Edoardo’s perspective, we know that Alister wants to Dynamax Dragapult later in this game, it would be possible to make a prediction that it was going to switch out. Now we have to think about the different Pokemon it could switch to: Incineroar, Porygon2, or Rotom-Wash. 

If Edoardo wanted to make a hard prediction, he could Max Geyser that slot. What if Dragapult Dynamaxes? He could also Ice Beam with the +1 Special Attack Porygon2. But this play is risky: you leave Ferrothorn open to deal a lot of damage to Porygon2, and if Rotom-Wash comes in instead, you might just lose.  

—

However, Incineroar coming in and not fainting means that Edoardo has run out of Dynamax time and is now on the back foot, especially with Trick Room ending next turn. 

Turn 5, Game 1

This is the last turn of Trick Room, which is a big deal. Alister has nicely set himself up to have Fake Out pressure, and Ferrothorn is applying a lot of pressure to Porygon2.

—

Edoardo double switches. This play is hard for me to interpret: my best guess is that he is responding both to the Fake Out pressure + Leech Seed in Primarina’s case, and Body Press in Porygon2’s case. Then next turn Edoardo can maybe reposition his Porygon2 back on the field for another Trick Room.

Alister opts to go for the U-Turn (!) into the Porygon2 slot (!!). This is because Porygon2 cannot Protect, so he has an assured switch into Dragapult– right as Trick Room is ending! 

Alister has gained a ton of momentum with this play.

Turn 6, Game 1

Dragapult is ready to chew through Edoardo’s team.

Note that before he moves, Edoardo considers switching Incineroar in for Primarina, predicting a Max Wyrmwind. However, he doesn’t pull the trigger, instead opting to try to knock out Ferrothorn.

—

Incineroar takes the hit and now the clock is ticking quickly indeed. Edoardo’s only hope is that Porygon2 can survive whatever attack Alister throws at it.

Turn 7, Game 1

Edoardo is drastically limited by not having any way to target down Dragapult with a Dark-type attack from Incineroar. 

—

The double knockout makes short work of Porygon2. 

Turn 8, Game 1

Primarina is forced to Protect to try and stay in this game. Alister, in turn, is forced to attack it: predicting the Protect and being wrong (if it Moonblasted anyway) could have drastic consequences in a locked-up position. There’s no need to go overboard here.

Turn 9, Game 1

This Phantom Force seals the game, as it breaks Protect and Edoardo’s Incineroar has no way to target Dragapult.  

Game 2

Team Preview between Game 1 and Game 2

Alister successfully stalled out Trick Room in a pretty dominant fashion– the weakest he looked was on Turn 4, when Dragapult was out in front of Dynamax Primarina. From Alister’s end, he probably knows that the same tactic won’t work twice, however. 

From Edoardo’s end: in all honesty, the events of the last game weren’t that bad in the long run: he just needed to prevent Ferrothorn from stalling out Trick Room. He also knows that Alister is going to make smart plays (e.g. switching the Dragapult out, U-turn instead of Fake Out with Incineroar) that take advantage of the way that each Pokemon puts pressure on each other.

Turn 1, Game 2

Both players have changed one Pokemon. Note that Alister still has to cover for Dragapult + Terrakion. Edoardo perhaps hoped to accelerate the speed at which Primarina hit the field. Furthermore, if Alister were to lead Dragapult again, Edoardo could easily Max Guard, Dynamax attack, or safely switch out with Primarina, while Porygon2 continued to do whatever it pleased (set Trick Room, get strong attacks out).

Alister can kind of do whatever he wants here– either Nasty Plot (aided by Follow Me), or just clicking Max Geyser/Lightning.

—

Rotom and Primarina trade blows. It’s not too unfortunate for Alister if Trick Room does get set up– because Togekiss can give Rotom the space that it needs to take out Primarina, and then Ferrothorn is nicely positioned. But the flinch is definitely a benefit. This is a good example of how trying for luck can, in the best case, make a decent situation great, and in the worst case maintain positioning. 

Turn 2, Game 2

Edoardo is forced to Protect with Primarina here, and is now in a definitely bad spot. Alister again has options: he can predict the Protect and hit Porygon2 with Rotom, or just minimize his risk and target down Primarina. 

—

Edoardo takes a chunk out of Togekiss– if Air Slash flinched again, he was most likely unable to come back.

Turn 3, Game 2

Alister saves his Togekiss, despite being at low HP: Ferrothorn could switch in safely that turn.

Turn 4, Game 2

Nothing to say about a bit of bad luck

Turn 5, Game 2

Alister is jockeying for Ferrothorn positioning with this Protect + Switch play. It’ll be able to either Iron Defense or Leech Seed.

Turn 6, Game 2

This double up play takes advantage of the fact that Alister’s Incineroar doesn’t carry Protect. However, it leaves the other slot wide open– Rotom heals in an attempt to get back in the game.

Turn 7, Game 2

Nothing can really save Alister’s Rotom from Porygon2, as Edoardo can always target the Rotom slot (to avoid shenanigans like Nasty Plot).

Turn 8, Game 2

Alister has quite simply run out of resources at this point in the face of Terrakion + Incineroar.

Game 3

Team Preview between Game 2 and Game 3

This game was much rougher for Alister once the Dynamax sort of shook out. Edoardo positioned his Incineroar and Terrakion very nicely to prevent the Ferrothorn from getting out of control. Edoardo’s Porygon2 was able to stay on the field and Alister didn’t have a way to threaten it immediately. 

How should Alister proceed? It’s tricky. He has to generate some momentum somehow, but it’s challenging to fight through Edoardo’s bulk and the type advantage that Edoardo is able to generate over the course of the game. Edoardo got into a groove as Game 2 wrapped up and found a strong strategy that demands Alister’s response going into Game 3.

Turn 1, Game 3

Note that in this situation, Edoardo might just force the same turn as in Game 2 and hope that Alister gets less lucky.

—

And here we see Alister’s idea to generate momentum! With Togekiss’ protection, Nasty Plot Rotom-Wash may be able to fight its way through Trick Room and give Ferrothorn enough of an opening to set up on its own.

Note that Trick Room may not benefit Edoardo in the long run because Ferrothorn is so strong under Trick Room. However, it’s definitely beneficial in the short term, because Primarina can attack again, and if Edoardo knocked out Togekiss with a double-up, then Ferrothorn would hit the field. Edoardo would then be in a lot of trouble versus +2 Rotom outside of Trick Room, and Ferrothorn could set up for free, probably for the game.

Turn 2 Game 3

It is obvious to both players that Rotom will probably Dynamax on this turn.

—

The players trade Protects. This is favorable for Edoardo because he can get extra damage onto Rotom, and he doesn’t necessarily care too much about Trick Room’s duration, despite having set it himself– Primarina will probably have done its job before Trick Room expires.

Turn 3 Game 3

From a health perspective, Edoardo has come out vastly ahead on this turn. Note that Electric Terrain is powering up Porygon2 here!

Turn 4 Game 3

Incineroar has Fake Out pressure here, but the Ferrothorn is much more concerned about Burning Jealousy, which also threatens to chip Rotom into a knockout from Thunderbolt as well.

—

This is a nice switch from Alister that would be hard (or dangerous!) to call. Protect allows him to get momentum with Rotom: remember, Edoardo’s Incineroar doesn’t have a Dark-type move, so Alister can Fake Out Porygon2 and Hydro Pump into Incineroar for free.

Turn 5 Game 3

 Both players are keenly aware that this is the last turn of Trick Room and there will probably not be another one (Edoardo has no reason to set it).

—

Edoardo fires back with a great switch of his own– and perhaps the most important play of the game! Taking advantage of the Focus Sash to secure the survive, Edoardo has now created a situation where Terrakion can Close Combat into Incineroar without any drawbacks– he’s going to either KO Incineroar or deal a lot of damage to Ferrothorn, because again, this Incineroar can’t Protect. This is sometimes referred to as a “pin”: Alister has run out of room to maneuver. Also, if Rotom responds with a knockout into Terrakion, it just faints to Porygon2.

Note that even if Alister saw this switch coming, there was likely little that he could do. If Incineroar didn’t Fake Out Porygon2 then his Rotom probably fainted. 

Turn 6 Game 3

The Iron Barbs damage is the best that Alister can hope for. 

Turn 7 Game 3

This situation is now pretty precarious for both players. Edoardo has a very slight advantage, despite being down in Pokemon, because critically, Rotom-Wash just used Protect, and Alister probably will not gamble on a double Protect. This is relevant because Edoardo just gained Fake Out pressure, so he could knock out Rotom on this turn– if it stays in. However, he could just as easily knock out Ferrothorn with Burning Jealousy. This is a stressful situation for both players but Alister faces the loss more plainly.  

Some players might refer to this situation as a “50-50”– where each player has two two choices and you have to guess which they’re going to pick. They are called 50-50s because if you guess right you win, and if you guess wrong you lose– however, there are very few true 50-50 situations, as we’ll see.

—

This play could have gone either way. Here are Edoardo’s two plays:

• Porygon2 Thunderbolt into Rotom-Wash, and Incineroar Fake Out into Rotom-Wash

• Porygon2 Thunderbolt into Rotom-Wash, and Incineroar Burning Jealousy (targets both)

Alister’s play dealt with both of them, which is a pretty good solution for staying in the game. However, I don’t think it was the best solution (and I hope it is not overstepping to say this!). If Alister targeted Incineroar with Hydro Pump instead of switching it out, he would surely be sacrificing it to Porygon2. However, this allows Ferrothorn to act without fear of Burning Jealousy (assuming Hydro Pump connects, so this play will work 80% of the time). Even if Incineroar uses Fake Out on Rotom, Ferrothorn is unfettered and can set up an Iron Defense or a Leech Seed. Then Incineroar can switch in when Rotom faints (or with a Protect), Fake Out + Body Press damages Incineroar, and Porygon2 cannot clear Ferrothorn and Incineroar at the same time. Maybe I overlooked something, though.

This play, however, I found while sitting comfortably in my chair in my home on a quiet Wednesday night: it would be much harder to find in the heat of the moment of a high-stakes battle. Always keep that in mind when you critique other people’s tournament play!

Turn 8 Game 3

Alister’s play is now pretty clear.

Leech Seed is better than Body Press here (although it invites a miss): Ferrothorn needs to get some of Porygon2’s HP and fast. Alister’s Incineroar loses to Porygon2 in the long run.

Turn 9 Game 3

Earthquake is a nice tech and allows an extremely safe play from Alister that slowly marches him towards victory.

Turn 10 Game 3

You can tell that Edoardo has a lot to think about on this turn from the speed at which he is choosing his moves. He has to consider whether Rotom will switch in for Ferrothorn (thus gaining the Leech Seed for itself).

From Alister’s point of view, if he targets Porygon2, he can knock it out this turn or next. However, if Porygon2 uses Recover, he’s in a load of trouble. Switching in Rotom takes advantage of the Recover play.

—

Edoardo calls the switch correctly, and the scales have tipped in his favor.

Turn 11 Game 3

Alister is now in a bind: he needs Porygon2 off the field. Ferrothorn is as good as fainted in front of this Incineroar, and is actually getting in the way of Earthquake: Earthquake deals reduced damage as a spread move. 

—

Letting Ferrothorn faint may actually be the better move for Alister here. 

Turn 12 Game 3

So close! A photo finish to an excellent set that was well-played by both players.

Wrapping Up

This set showed off some of the nice parts of early Sword and Shield: slow, methodical games where the Dynamax was incredibly important but not the end of the story for both players. 

It is hard to say what Alister could have done better for sure in this set. He played well throughout the whole set and made some very nice plays that capitalized on Edoardo’s hesitation, especially in Game 1. This set was a grind for both players– in part due to the bulky Pokemon that they had on their teams. 

I think there are many things that can be learned from this set, even after Series 5 is long gone:

• Delaying your Dynamax can be quite strong

• Be careful when a team has to make the most of its Trick Room turns: and know what will happen on the turns immediately following Trick Room

• Look for “pins” where your Pokemon can deal damage for sure, no matter what your opponent does (even if they switch out!)

• Focus Sash can actually make your Pokemon a great switch-in, even on powerful, super effective attacks