Final #158by もちゃらてぃ

Team Concept

A sequential knockout build in the form of "all-out baseball," where Espathra's special attack-boosting moves significantly lower the opponent's special defense, followed by Greninja with its wide move coverage, and finally Mimikyu cleans up the remaining opponents. 80% of the initial selections were this three-Pokémon combination. [Key Pokémon Points]Espathra (Focus Sash, C·S max, Calm nature, Speed Boost ability) is a core Pokémon with an initial selection rate of over 95%. It is strong against the Hydreigon + Metagross combination that was popular in the early to mid-season; with one stage of Speed increase from its ability, it can use Dazzling Gleam faster than a Calm Hydreigon, and it can chip away at Metagross with Shadow Ball, creating a line where a non-Mega Greninja can finish it off with Dark Pulse. Even in early encounters with Scarf Meowscarada and Focus Sash Greninja, which were frequent in the late season, it performs its minimum role with Dazzling Gleam. If it deals damage beforehand against an opponent's pattern of trying to finish with Hippowdon's sand damage after U-turn, the subsequent Greninja can finish them off without Mega Evolution. Greninja (Greninjaite, C·S max, Calm nature, Timid nature was considered but ultimately not adopted) is an ace that takes advantage of Espathra's special defense reduction to widely chip away at opponents with Protean STAB moves. Protean has the weakness that once its type is changed, it cannot be reverted unless Mega Evolution is canceled or it switches out, so the timing of Mega Evolution and using Espathra, left with 1 HP, as a shield to revert the type is crucial. Mimikyu (Life Orb, A·S max, Adamant nature) is the finisher that cleans up opponents chipped away by Greninja with its Disguise ability's overwhelming face-to-face performance. HP investment was considered, but Mimikyu mirror matches occurred frequently, so A·S max was chosen to be strong against opponents with less Speed investment. Blaziken (Blazikenite, A·S max, Adamant nature) was almost completely wiped out in the mid-to-late season but was used against rain teams. It was rarely brought out only when the basic initial selection (Espathra-Greninja-Mimikyu) couldn't win against an opponent, and its role in somewhat suppressing Mega Gyarados and Kingambit's initial selection just by being in the lineup was significant. Vivillon (Leftovers) adopted the same adjustment with good Leftovers recovery efficiency, referencing the EV distribution of other top builds. It was operated simply by bringing it out if possible and not if not, but it had high selection pressure, and depending on the opponent, Vivillon alone sometimes collapsed the build. Archaludon (Sitrus Berry) had its EV distribution roughly determined as the author stated they could not finalize its form. It was only selected when there was a Kingambit on the opponent's team. [Basic Initial Selection and Operation]The basic strategy is all-out baseball in the order of Espathra → Greninja → Mimikyu. The author emphasized that the timing of Greninja's Mega Evolution, whether to preserve Espathra left with 1 HP by Focus Sash, and the judgment of when to maintain Mimikyu's Disguise determine the win rate. [Opponents to Watch Out For]Mega Gyarados (after Espathra cleans up opponents, if Mega Gyarados appears, one Dragon Dance can end the game, which is a significant burden), Kingambit (so powerful that there are no Pokémon in the basic initial selection to defeat it), Pawmot using Volt Switch (becomes the strongest Pokémon in the team as there is no Ground type, difficult to break through without thorough care).