Bringing New Variables in Battles with X and Y

With the introduction of Fairy-type Pokémon, the type-chart saw its first overhaul since Gold and Silver. But how will this affect Pokémon battles in the futures? Not much about this new type was known until the type-chart's official confirmation through Coro Coro Magazine.

New type-chart for X and Y. Props to Pokémon XY News for the chart.

Here's a summary of the changes. Fairy is super effective against Fighting, Dark and Dragon Pokémon. Fairy is not very effective against Fire, Poison and Steel Pokémon. Fairy is weak to Poison and Steel-type moves. Fairy is resistant against Fighting, Bug and Dark-type moves. And Fairy is IMMUNE to Dragon-type moves. Talk about a hard counter! Game Freak also sneaked in a slight nerf for Steel-types. Steel Pokémon no longer resist Dark and Ghost-type attacks.

It's obvious that Fairy-type Pokémon will play a key role in shaping the metagame. Sylveon's ribbons slaps Dragonite right in the face. And to think, I made that prediction about Xerneas being one of the best competitive Pokémon in jest. Fairy-type's lucky immunity to Dragon-type moves prevent Draco Meteor and Outrage spam.

I'd hate to see Iris encounter a Flabébé

Imagine Gardevoir switching in on Salamence's Outrage. Your Trace activates, throwing his Intimidate right back at him. Salamence will probably switch out, giving you ample time to set up a Calm Mind and possibly sweep.

Besides their ruthless thirst for dragon blood, Fairy-types also have it in for Dark and Fighting-types. Their resistance allows them to switch in on powerful moves and immediately threaten tough Pokémon out. Hydreigon and Scrafty now sport a nasty 4x weakness after a generation of favorable typing. STAB options for strong Pokémon like Scrafty and Heracross are severely limited.

It's hard out here for a pimp

Fairy's only weakness to Poison and Steel-type moves makes it a strong defensive type, especially since Poison and Steel moves are quite uncommon. While people might predict that Poison-type moves would be on the rise, I will have to disagree on this. Besides Fairy, Poison only hits Grass-types for super effective coverage. But why would you use a Poison move to knock out a Grass-type? You have Ice, Fire, Flying, Bug...you get the point! There are better options. Furthermore, many types resist Poison, including Steel which is actually immune to it. Defensively, Poison gets a boost which is great for Pokémon like Weezing.

Now only if it could do something about that horrendous cough...

Steel's loss of resistance might not seem like much, but it does cause problems for some Pokémon. The haunted sword Honedge now has to contend with two weaknesses in Ghost and Dark-type moves. Being as smart as a supercomputer gives Metagross a hard time. Everyone's coming up to it asking for help with taxes, quantum physics and damage calculations. Now it has to worry about things that go bump in the night. Metagross's Steel/Psychic type now becomes a hinderence. Tyranitar, Absol and Pangoro now can rely on their STAB moves to take on the four-brained behemoth.

It's not all bad for Steel-types though. The resistance to Fairy-type attacks and their super effective coverage against them will be what shapes the metagame. In 4th gen, a concept called "4 Drag, 2 Mag" was introduced. Basically, the only thing that stood in a Dragon's way were Steel-types. So Magneton and Magnezone were used to trap and knock them out. This concept can easily make a comeback to counter Fairy-types as well, but with a few modifications. Heatran's Steel/Fire type gives him a 4x resistance to Fairy. Plus, he can finally find a use for Flash Cannon to immediately threaten any Fairy-types out. Heatran's Fire-type moves can burn up most Steels and either Hidden Power Ice or Dragon Pulse can take on opposing Dragons. I wouldn't be surprised if Heatran's usage skyrocketed. Scizor also finds itself in a similar situation. Bullet Punch from Scizor is already a strong move, but the additional super effective coverage is icing on the cake. If you feel the opponent will switch out, simply use U-turn to maintain momentum.

The updated type chart for X and Y creates an interesting shift in the game. This post barely scratches the surface of what to expect in future battles, and rightfully so. What happens if Fairy moves have wide distribution like Flamethrower and Thunderbolt? What new tools can Dragons use to help outmaneuver these pixies of doom? Will the recent setback for Dark and Fighting-types lead to a reemergence of Psychic and Normal-types? Will Dunsparce get an evolution (or God forbid mega evolution) so grand that not even Arceus can stand up to it? Only the future will tell...or you can have Xatu use Future Sight. Whatever.

These trainers are way ahead of their time

The Ultimate Showdown on a Global Scale!

Last weekend, I fought in 70 matches while competing in Pokémon's online tournament, the Global Showdown. Global Showdown was my first online tournament and the last for Black and White 2. With school and moving out of my apartment, I didn't have much time to prepare a team. So I got some old Pokémon, changed a few movesets, and threw this together:

Sheik, Waluigi, Dhalia, Raymond, Bolin and Macho Man "Mewtwo" Savage are ready for battle!

So I know what you're thinking. "Smiles is using a Mewtwo!? Isn't that cheating?" Actually, no. The Global Showdown allows for any Pokémon to be used (except oddly enough Chatot). If I wanted to stand a fighting chance against Kyogre, Arceus, Kyurem, and opposing Mewtwos, I had to pack a Mewtwo of my own. You might also notice that some of my Pokémon come straight from my VGC team. Like I said, I didn't have much time between school and moving out, so I quickly threw them in. They actually performed pretty well.

 The first day of battling went well. I had a few wins here, a few losses there. It was definitely a learning experience fighting against Uber legendaries, but I got the hang of it. My first win against a full legendary team was a huge confidence booster, and I owe my thanks to Sableye.

 

For the most part, I was able to use strategy to get out of tough situations. My most memorable battles however come from Lady Luck. Sometimes, a dose of good ol' fashioned hax is all you need to get out of a sticky situation. I, however, did rely on Lady Luck more than I'd like to admit.

                                  

Lady Luck can be a cruel mistress. Just as easily as she'll flinch your opponent, she'll flinch you right back! This is one of the reasons why I hate the Wishmaker Pokémon Jirachi. I just wish I didn't have to deal with it.

                             

The worst thing that can happen during an online tournament is that your WiFi stops working. The second day of the tournament, my WiFi stopped working. I went insane! I was having so much fun and didn't want to stop competing. I decided to scour the area and bum WiFi wherever I could find it. My search led me to Big Bite, the greasiest place in town. Let's just say their slice of pizza has enough grease to create Muk. I bought the healthiest thing I could find and sat there for five hours playing Pokémon. It was glorious. 

A grilled cheese sandwich with tomato was the healthiest thing available.

Like before, I had my fair share of wins and losses. But that day, I felt that it was easier to pull off  my strategies. It was like the Big Bite grease was a good luck charm or something. Originally, my Volbeat was more of a gimmick that Baton Passed his Tailglow boost to Mewtwo for a clean sweep. Obviously, there's so many things that could go wrong with this, but I was surprised how often I pulled it off. Especially when I faced a full team of legendaries.

Probably my most memorable match was against a really bulky Lugia. I barely scratched it with a Super Effective Ice Beam! It planned to outstall me until I would struggle myself to death. However, a few good hits on Kyogre gave me the advantage as far as health is concerned. So what did I do? I planned to outstall the clock! It was a bloody war of attrition as his Lugia kept on using Substitue, Protect and Roost. Luckily, he gave in when we had 8 minutes left. Still, this was my most difficult match yet. I had to fight him and the urge to use the restroom! This battle took over 40 turns, so I suggest you make some popcorn if you want to watch the match below.

I had a blast competing in my first online tournament. Sure, I had a few disconnects (looking at you Rocky from Texas!), but for the most part I enjoyed the competition. It was great to see all the creative teams and movesets from trainers around the world. And to top it all off, I ended up with a 1547 rating! Basically, that means I won more than I lost. My biggest regret is that I didn't compete in online tournaments sooner. Hopefully X and Y continues the tradition of hosting fun tournaments.

Feel free to watch some of my other battles on YouTube