League Teambuilding

[Notus]

Here's a question for that good people up in the Hall of Fame: what should one look for when building a team for the Reborn League? Which are the main diferences between a league team and a laddering one?

[Tenshine]

I believe they might be bringing in more rules for the new season, so keep tuned for that, but here: http://www.pokemonreborn.com/league/rules.html

The main things to note are no legendaries, and you have to register your team and keep it the same throughout your challenge run. Apart from that, just make a team you think can win. All the leaders are mono-types (with dual-typing) so you do have that 'handicap'. I wouldn't think too hard about covering all the types, just think about some of the gimmicks the leaders might use, considering their possible pokemon.

Edited February 14, 2014 by Tenshine

[Joker]

Team Building in league can be simple, or it can be hard. It really depends on the person. A good rule of thumb is to plan your team for every single leader. You want to always have a Pokemon, or move that can deal with a certain type. Similarly, you don't want to be too weak to a certain type. So try to work towards good synergy at the same time. Another good thing to consider is moves that hit all opposing Pokemon on the field. For example: Rock Slide. Leaders don't always battle in singles, so having those types of moves is really useful. Of course, you don't have to use them, but it's better to be prepared. Obviously, planning for everything is impossible, but you can come extremely close. When I battled in season 2 I would usually plan for my battle for around 2 hours, unless I was short on time or forgot. You want to make sure you're ready, trust me. Lastly, you want experience. You're a new face to me so I don't know if you've taken our league on before or not, but don't get discouraged if you lose. You can always try again the next time that leader is available, or if you prefer, take another leader on and save that one for another time.

[Cowtao]

Generally you also want to be fast with your predictions. These Gym Leaders aren't your average trainers. During battle you gotta calm and relax. Play it smart and play it to win. Also like Renzo said it isn't always gonna be singles. You have to have a decent arsenal of moves that you can use to your advantage. For teambuilding, try to get as many flexible pokemon as possible. Pokemon like Conkeldurr have many useful abilities it can use and you can use this to your advantage in battle.

Also if you do feel pressured by having your battle spectated then you can ask the gym leader for a private match. This tip has generally saved many people in battle.

[Notus]

Yeah,it seems tough, but what would be the fun if it wasn't, right?

Thanks for the tips, I'm pretty new at competitive battle so it's always good to have a opinion from more experienced trainers. From what you've said I think I will wait until the new rules come out to actually go for building something, but I'm gonna try to practice battle and do some research on pokémon I don't know well (which is basically all gen 5 and 6 ).

[Shanco]

You need to be ready for Doubles/Triples as well as efficiently be able to deal with Trick Room threats when they arise (and they will). In fact, some of the best teams in League history were Trick Room teams themselves.

These are all from last gen but strategies will probably largely remain the same in the transition between generations.

[Chevaleresse]

I was actually wondering; legendaries aren't allowed, but what about other Pokemon that are typically ubers? (i.e., kung fu chicken)

[Noivy]

They're allowed.

My tips for general League beating is to have a very diverse moveset. and to not have a common weakness. A rule that I broke, and somehow, still won.

It helps to predict before every battle what certian leaders might do. I predicted that Hardy would use a Trick Room Team, so my solution was to give all my mons 0 Speed IVs, Speed lowering natures, and give the faster ones Iron Balls to slow them down enough so that they out-slowed Hardy's rock types. You also want to have moves like Heat Wave, Rock Slide, and others like that so that you can hit all opponets while not harming your own. I practiacally glorified Heat Wave spam early in the league, especiallly with Solar Power Charizard. Another challenge is keeping the weather in your favor, if you're running a weather team. The leaders have an annoying habit of switching the weather on you with moves, which always dictated strategic non weather leads, which for me most of the time, was a Scarfed Shadow Tag Chandelure (rip you will be missed). It helps to have Stealth Rocks because that can easily change the game and break sashes/Sturdy. It also is nice to have switch fodder, which for me was almost always Rhyperior. Priority is also important. I learned that lesson the hard way.

I highly advise to not have a team like this. 4 mons weak to water, 3 to ground, 3 to rock, and 3 to ice.

I'm still wondering how I eventually beat Amaria tbh.

[Notus]

Ah, so we can change EVs and items between battles... That was something I was about to ask, thanks. About priority, it seems also a neat way to deal with trick room...

Another question: how do we deal with weather teams without having one too? I saw some teams in the Hall of Fame had both sunny day and rain dance, and it made me curious.

[Shanco]

The leaders will be discouraged from using weather, especially if they're a fan of singles; thus, as Double/Triple Battles tend to last a shorter time you can expect that any weather will come in Double or Triple Battles (making moves such as Rock Slide, Petal Blizzard, Surf, Heat Wave and Earthquake considerably strong).

As for priority moves, you have to keep in mind that those moves are weak without the right pokemon (scizor/breloom) and those pokemon get eaten alive without proper switches. It's okay to have one or two priority moves, but you should mostly be fixed on the balance between strength and adaptability.

EDIT: Sucker Punch is a really strong move here now that I think about it.

[Notus]

I'd never even seen a triple battle before, so that's other thing to learn. Now that I think of it, it would be nice to test/practice with other challengers, so everibody could test teams. In the ladder it seems to be hard, because other teams won't have the same limitations as a league team.

[Noivy]

Another difference, being that finding a triple battle in ladder is as good of a joke as the Rapture apocalypse theory.

I'll be on later tonight, and I'll throw some triples at you and give advice.

[Notus]

Thanks Noivy! My time online is sort of irregular, but I'll try to be there.