We are back once again with another Pokémon Doubles Battle Team. Last month was our first foray back into Pokémon Scarlet and Violet battle teams. We started with something nice and easy to sink our teeth into. Well for May, I decided I wanted to share a winning team with you from the Vancouver Regionals. So here is Sempra’s Vancouver Regional Championship team from March 12, 2023.
Team Characteristics
This Pokémon team has a lot of cool things we have access to. We can deal a ton of damage with Dragonite, Great Tusk, Kingambit, and Torkoal. We have access to Terraforming which also allows us to deal out the additional damage with our powerhouses. Lilligant is a very good support with the After You Pokémon move. She also works well with Torkoal because of Torkoal’s Drought ability powering up her gras move. You have a few different options depending on what you need at the time.
We have a couple of Pokémon that have high health and defense to tank when need be. Focus Sash has saved me a lot on Lilligant. Flutter Mane continues to be a popular choice for teams too. Each Pokémon is well put together and went undefeated when testing with this team for the article.
Lilligant
Kicking off this Pokémon battle team is none other than the Grass-type Lilligant. We have a female Lilligant with the Chlorophyll ability. Chlorophyll is very useful with Torkoal’s Drought ability because it increases her speed in sunlight. Lilligant is holding a Focus Sash which if she has full HP and is hit with a move that should knock it out, will allow her to survive at 1 HP. Only works once though. Focus Sash proved useful many times when I was using the team. When it comes to her best stats, they are Special Attack and Speed. Speed is even better when combined with Torkoal as I mentioned.
The Pokémon moves she has are Sleep Powder, Leaf Storm, After You, and Protect. Sleep Powder is self-explanatory as you can use it to put the target to sleep. Which prevents it from attacking until it wakes up. Leaf Storm is a very good Grass-type move but lowers the user’s Special Attack stat. After You is a good support move that helps the target and makes it use its move right after the user. Then the last move is Protect which you know makes you invulnerable to most attacks but fails if used in succession. Lilligant is weak to Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, and Bug-type Pokémon.
Torkoal
Next up on our Pokémon team is the Fire-type Torkoal. We have a female Torkoal that I like to lead with my Lilligant. Torkoal has the Drought ability which causes the battlefield to be enveloped with harsh sunlight. This lasts for 5 turns whenever she enters the battlefield. Like I mentioned before this ability works great with Lilligant. She is holding a Charcoal which will boost the holder’s Fire-type Pokémon moves. Our 2 best stats for Torkoal are her Defense and Special Attack.
Torkoal knows Eruption, Flamethrower, Earth Power, and Protect. Eruption is very powerful the more health Torkoal has. The lower Torkoals’d HP is, the lower the move’s power. Flamethrower is a good Fire-type attack that benefits from the Charcoal she is holding. Earth Power is a strong move that may lower the target’s Special Defense stat. Lastly, we have Protect which you will see a lot. Protect makes us invulnerable to most damage for a turn. She is weak to Water, Ground, and Rock-type Pokémon.
Flutter Mane
Third on our Pokémon team is the ever-popular Ghost/Fairy-type Flutter Mane. Flutter Mane is genderless and has the ability of Protosynthesis. A Pokémon with Protosynthesis will have stat increases in harsh sunlight. We are also holding Choice Specs which boosts our Special Attack at the cost of only being able to use one move. Flutter Mane has a few good stats with her Special Attack, Special Defense, and definitely Speed being the highest stats.
The Pokémon moves Flutter Mane uses are Moonblast, Dazzling Gleam, Shadow Ball, and Power Gem. Moonblast is an attacking move that may also lower the target’s Special Attack stat. Dazzling Gleam is a good Fairy-type attacking move. Shadow Ball is a Ghost-type move that may lower the target’s Special Defense stat. The last move is Power Gem which is also a good attacking move. Flutter Mane can put out some damage and is a popular Pokémon. Our weaknesses are Ghost and Steel-type Pokémon.
Kingambit
Next up on the team and one I like quite a bit is the Dark/Steel-type Kingambit. We have a female Kingambit that has the Defiant Pokémon ability. Defiant is a good ability because if Kingambit has any stat lowered by an opposing Pokémon, its Attack stat will be boosted sharply. She is also holding an Assault Vest which raises the holder’s Special Defense by 50%. This is at the cost of preventing the holder from selecting any status moves pretty much. I found myself using Kingambit a lot. Her best stats are Hit Points and Attack.
Kingambit knows Kowtow Cleave, Sucker Punch, Iron Head, and Tera Blast. Kowtow Cleave inflicts damage and bypasses accuracy checks to always hit, long as the target hasn’t used moves like Dig or Fly. Also if used by a Pokémon with Sharpness, its power is increased by 50%. Sucker Punch is a priority move that attacks first, but will fail if the user isn’t readying an attack. Iron Head is a good attacking move that might cause the target to flinch. Tera Blast is an attacking move that if the user has Terastallized, will unleash the energy of its Tera Type. Her weaknesses are Fire and Ground-type Pokémon, but super weak to Fighting-type moves.
Dragonite
The second to last Pokémon we have on the team is the Dragon/Flying-type Dragonite. Our Dragonite is a female with the Multiscale ability. Multiscale reduces damage taken from damage-dealing moves by half when at maximum HP. Although it doesn’t reduce the amount of HP taken from moves that deal direct damage. She is holding a Lum Berry which will heal any non-volatile status condition or confusion. Definitely useful at various times. Her best stats are Attack and Hit Points.
Dragonite knows Tera Blast, Ice Spinner, Extreme Speed, and Protect. Tera Blast is an attacking move that if the user has Terastallized, will unleash the energy of its Tera Type. Ice Spinner is a good attacking move that deals damage and removes any terrain that is on the battlefield. Extreme Speed is a priority move that deals damage. The last move for Dragonite is Protect which we know protects her for a turn from most moves. If used in succession it can fail. She is weak to Rock, Dragon, and Fairy-type Pokémon but Super weak to Ice types.
Great Tusk
The final Pokémon on our Doubles Battle Team is the Fighting/Ground-type Great Tusk. Great Tusk is genderless and has the Pokémon ability of Protosynthesis. A Pokémon with Protosynthesis will have stat increases in harsh sunlight. Which means it works well with Torkoal’s ability as well. Great Tusk is holding a Choice Scarf which boosts the Pokémon’s Speed by 50% but only allows the use of the first move selected. Great Tusk is a true powerhouse for the team. The best stats for Great Tusk are Attack, Defense, Speed, and Hit Points. 4 really solid stats!
Our last Pokémon on the team knows Headlong Rush, Earthquake, Close Combat, and Rock Slide. Headlong Rush is a strong move, but once used lowers our Defense stat for 3 turns. Earthquake is a strong move that hits everyone around the user as long as the Pokémon aren’t immune. Close Combat is a really good attack but lowers the user’s Defense and Special Defense stats. The last move we have is Rock Slide and it is a good attacking move that can target all adjacent opponents. Great Tusk is weak to Water, Grass, Ice, Flying, Psychic, and Fairy-type Pokémon.
Wrap-Up
After using this Pokémon team for a little bit I can see why it got first place. I usually lead with Torkoal and Lilligant and pretty much threw whoever else I wanted to use for the other 2 for that battle. Each Pokémon is built well and can mutually benefit from each other. Torkoal’s Drought is a great ability with 3 Pokémon being able to take advantage of it. I will say I really enjoyed this Pokémon team and it’s only a couple of months old at this time. I’ll be looking for something special for next month’s team!
