Pokémon Analysis 9 – Toucannon!

When my other half declared Toucannon an ‘amazing’ Pokémon I confess, like all of you reading this article, I mocked. Barring Talonflame (and perhaps Staraptor), the early catchable bird Pokémon from any region tends to be pretty trash. This season, Talonflame’s signature ability Gale Wings received a substantial nerf which prevents the bravest bird from running riot in the VGC 17 format. But which list of early birds will Toucannon add itself to? The usable or the trash?

Pokémon Analysis 8 – Nihilego!

Now that we’ve (for the most part) completed our analysis of Trick Room setters, it’s time to move on to something… a little quicker than the previous 7 analysis articles. As voted for by members of Facebook’s VGC Battling Hub, analysis eight will focus on the first Ultra Beast we see during our Alolan adventures; Nihilego!

Pokémon Analysis – Trick Room Setter 7: Porygon2!

Our analysis of Trick Room setters has taken us from the more commonly seen Mimikyu and Oranguru to the more obscure options of Misdreavus, Comfey, Trevenant + Exeggutor and the Slow Trio. However, in our final Trick Room setter analysis, we’ll now turn our attention to THE premier dimension twister of the VGC 17 meta, Porygon2!

Pokémon Analysis – Trick Room Setter 6: Oranguru!

When revealed before the release of Pokémon Sun and Moon, Oranguru became almost the mascot of VGC 17; its signature move Instruct – which allows the targeted Pokémon to use the same move a second time in the same turn – decent bulk, a solid typing and access to Trick Room made it appear that Oranguru was specifically designed for use in the competitive circuit.

Lancaster Premier Challenge, VGC 17

On 21st January, I attended a Premier Challenge hosted by Lancaster Elites. It had only a small turnout of eight masters but the chance to gain more competitive practice in a meta game which was more than two weeks old (Europe getting the short straw with the earliest International Championship) and a chance at some CP would be invaluable, regardless of the amount of players!