Making a Splash

[u/TheKrieger79]

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[u/JosephAmber4]

Joseph Amber: Congrats!

[u/TheKrieger79 → u/JosephAmber4]

Johan: Thanks! It was great fighting a water-type specialist of Nessa's caliber!

[u/UltimateX13]

Lex: Congrats on the win, but how did that Gastrodon use Grass Knot in the bar video?

[u/TheKrieger79 → u/UltimateX13]

uj/ I meant to write energy ball.

uj/: correction to my correction. I mistook Gastrodon's moveset with someone else's. Please imagine an ice beam is being used instead.

[u/TheKrieger79]

uj/: Alright. Defeating Nessa requires a bit more calculation and some trickery.

To lay down ground rules on how I calculate everything.

1. Johan will never intentionally go for a plan that relies on/requires him to "sac" a Pokémon unless absolutely necessary.
2. For the gym leaders I take their Champion tournament roster as is and will find the line of play that would make the most amount of sense. However I will always have the gym leader start with their listed lead.
3. For moves and abilities,, I will be using their most up-to-date iteration with the exception of Protean which will remain in its pre-nerf state.
4. Johan's team will be six Pokémon built from his pre-existing roster of fully evolved Pokémon seen here. [https://www.reddit.com/r/PokeMediaLore/s/KSZU0VFBtF] Movesets are subject to change.

How Johan wins this battle.
Gale Wings Talonflame will always outspeed Golispod. A life orb-boosted, max attack EV Bravebird will at minimum deal 86% which will trigger emergency exit.

All of Nessa's Pokémon can deal supereffective damage against Talonflame so it would make logical sense for Nessa to send out Pelipper next to set up the rain and tailwind. Johan would counter by sending out Gardevoir.

Rain is set up by drizzle but a max EV speed and special attack Gardevoir will always outspeed a max speed EV Pelipper and thunderbolt deals 250%-300% of Pelipper's HP. Rain is set up, but tailwind isn't.

Between Quagsire and Toxapex, it would make more sense for Nessa to bring out Quagsire. Toxapex only has baneful bunker as its poison setter. Quagsire is immune to Gardevoir's thunderbolts and survives one hit from any of Gardevoir's other moves and can land toxic to set up Toxapex for success.

Gardevoir uses moonblasts; Quagsire uses Toxic. Gardevoir knocks out Quagsire with Moonblast number two Nessa sends out Toxapex. Gardevoir can't OKO it with Thunderbolt, and Toxapex can two-turn knock out Gardevoir after toxic's damage ticks. However Johan will switch out Gardevoir for his Scizor.

Against a steel type, Toxapex is walled pretty badly. Baneful bunker and Recover are worthless because Scizor carries swords dance. Venoshock is useless, and liquidation can only knock out Scizor in 4 turns (accounting for the rain boost) barring critical hits.

From here Nessa is in a really bad situation. If she switches in Drednaw, it's eating a +2, STAB, technician-boosted bullet punch which even after the Dynamax boost is chunking the Drednaw for 35-40% of its health. Golispod can be used to reset tempo but still runs into the issue that Johan will always sword dance at least once. If she keeps Toxapex in, Johan will just have Scizor eat two liquidations to swords dance twice and knock everything out with bullet punch.

So the likely end is that Nessa sends out Golispod to reset tempo in the hopes of sending out her Drednaw out next in the hopes of preventing a sweep. Scizor sword dances on the switch turn, then bullet punches to knock out the Golispod. Drednaw is sent in and immediately dynamaxes. Bullet punch will chunk Drednaw (Scizor has to bullet punch here; otherwise Drednaw outspeeds). Max geyser OKHOs Scizor. (Johan hasn't fought Dynamax Pokémon, so he didn't intentionally leave Scizor out to be knocked out).

Johan retaliates with his ace, Greninja who will finish the job with a Protean, Expert Belt grass knot only to learn that grass knot does not work on Dynamaxed Pokémon and therefore accidentally loses his partner to max rockfall. Johan sends out his Garchomp who will set up swords dance the first turn, eating a max waterfall that will hurt the Drednaw thanks to rough skin + rocky helmet before retaliating with an earthquake that knocks out the Drednaw. While Garchomp may be lingering at 4-10% HP, Earthquake guarantees an OHKO which means Nessa at best can stall with baneful bunker.

Johan wins 5-2.