Teambuilding
A VGC team takes careful thought. We’ll take you from idea to battle-ready, and show you how to create the best VGC teams for yourself.
First Steps
Brainstorming Ideas to Start Teams
3min 9sec read
Brainstorming ideas: Starting points when you want to begin building a team. Read More
Picking a Team Without Teambuilding
You Don't Need to Teambuild to Play Pokémon
2min 36sec read
How to play Pokémon if you don't want to worry about making the teams yourself. Read More
How to Use Someone Else's Team
8min 59sec read
Learn how to approach using a team you didn't build yourself. Read More
Concrete Building Blocks
Utility Moves
11min 25sec read
Moves that aren't used for damage are a huge part of competitive Pokémon. Here's why. Read More
Speed Control
10min 24sec read
Learn why moving before your opponent is crucial and what tools you can use to do it. Read More
Trick Room
9min 18sec read
Trick Room can turn a battle on its head (ha!) by flipping the order in which Pokémon move Read More
Abstract Building Blocks
What Makes a Pokémon Good
7min 56sec read
Learn how to evaluate the strength of individual Pokémon. Read More
Cores and Modes
14min 13sec read
Learn about how we look at some of the relationships between Pokémon within a team. Read More
Your Team Determines Your Luck
7min 56sec read
Never lucky? The choices you make when teambuilding affect your luck in battle. Read More
Accuracy vs Power
8min 53sec read
When do you want a more accurate move, and when do you want a higer power move? Lean about the tradeoff. Read More
Surprise Factor
7min 56sec read
When and how to make teambuilding choices that catch your opponents off guard. Read More
Team Playstyle and Pace
6min 3sec read
Learn why the time a team takes to finish games is important. Read More
Putting it all Together
How to Pull it all Together
12min 5sec read
A complete guide to building a team from start to finish. Read More
How to Win (Sometimes) With Your Favorites
6min 58sec read
A guide to building a team around your favorite Pokémon. Read More
EVing #2: The Next Step - Why Would You Want a More Complex EV Spread?
4min 55sec read
Why would you want to make more complex EV spreads? Read More
Pitfalls
Sixth Pokémon Syndrome
5min 22sec read
For readers who feel like they are "so close" to finishing a team. Read More
How to Beat a Pokémon
10min 28sec read
Is one particular Pokémon bothering you? Learn how to change your team to beat it more frequently. Read More
"Island" Pokémon
5min 7sec read
Make sure your team doesn't have Pokémon that get stuck doing nothing. Read More
When do You Move on From a Team?
9min 36sec read
Learn how to decide when it's time to stop working on a team. Ream More
Why You Should Keep an Open Mind
5min 25sec read
Don't rule out an idea just because it's unorthodox. Read More
Getting Ready for Battles
Best of 1 vs. Best of 3
9min 51sec read
Learn about how different tournament styles influence team selection. Read More
How Do You Know if a Team You've Made is Good?
10min 48sec read
Learn how to assess the teams you build. Read More
How do You Know Which Team to Take to a Tournament?
4min 40sec read
Things to consider when a tournament is approaching. Read More
What do You Do When Time is Running Out?
7min 7sec read
A guide to approaching crunch time before a tournament. Read More