5 Best Pokemon VGC Teams From the VR September Challenge, Ranked

Learn which players and their teams excelled at September’s Pokemon VGC VR Challenge, an online tournament held by Victory Road.

The Pokemon VGC VR September Challenge just concluded. Unlike the Regionals taking place at the same time, this was held entirely online. However, the players of this tournament end up bringing some rather creative sets and interesting Pokemon. So, we’re going to take a look at the best teams in this article.

5 of the Best Teams From the Pokemon VGC VR September Challenge

Each of these teams made Top Cut at the VGC VR September Challenge. Additionally, they brought at least one relatively lesser-used Pokemon, making their teams noteworthy and their placement admirable.

• Juan Manuel Santizo’s Team (Rillaboom, Garchomp, Kingambit, Sneasler, Alolan Ninetales, Basculegion)
• Dimitri Koziaris’s Team (Amoonguss, Incineroar, Gholdengo, Kilowattrel, Porygon 2, Ursaluna)
• Yuki Kitano’s Team (Indeedee-M, Weezing, Slaking, Sneasler, Tatsugiri, Dondozo)
• João Leite’s Team (Amoonguss, Incineroar, Gholdengo, Flamigo, Porygon 2, Ursaluna)
• Lucas Mester-Christensen (Amoonguss, Blaziken, Kingambit, Baxcalibur, Electabuzz, Primarina)

1) Juan Manuel Santizo’s Team (Rillaboom, Garchomp, Kingambit, Sneasler, Alolan Ninetales, Basculegion)

Pokemon	Ability	Tera Type	Held Item	Moves
Ninetales-Alola	Snow Warning	Ice	Life Orb	Blizzard, Moonblast, Encore, Protect
Sneasler	Unburden	Stellar	Focus Sash	Close Combat, Dire Claw, Coaching, Fake Out
Basculegion	Adaptability	Water	Choice Scarf	Last Respects, Wave Crash, Aqua Jet, Flip Turn
Rillaboom	Grassy Surge	Fire	Assault Vest	Wood Hammer, Grassy Glide, High Horsepower, Fake Out
Kingambit	Defiant	Fire	Safety Goggles	Kowtow Cleave, Sucker Punch, Protect, Swords Dance
Garchomp	Rough Skin	Steel	Loaded Dice	Stomping Tantrum, Iron Head, Scale Shot, Protect

Juan was the only player to have a Garchomp make Top Cut at the Pokemon VGC VR September Challenge. As this Dragon usually faces stiff competition from both Dragonite and Baxcalibur for a spot on most teams, this placement is impressive. The rest of his team is a standard “goodstuffs” team, consisting of Reg H staples like Rillaboom, Kingambit, and Sneasler.

2) Dimitri Koziaris’s Team (Amoonguss, Incineroar, Gholdengo, Kilowattrel, Porygon 2, Ursaluna)

Pokemon	Ability	Tera Type	Held Item	Moves
Ursaluna	Guts	Fairy	Flame Orb	Facade, Headlong Rush, Earthquake, Protect
Kilowattrel	Competitive	Ghost	Focus Sash	Thunderbolt, Air Slash, Tailwind, Protect
Incineroar	Intimidate	Grass	Assault Vest	Knock Off, Flare Blitz, U-turn, Fake Out
Gholdengo	Good as Gold	Flying	Life Orb	Make It Rain, Shadow Ball, Nasty Plot, Protect
Amoonguss	Regenerator	Water	Sitrus Berry	Spore, Rage Powder, Sludge Bomb, Protect
Porygon2	Download	Fighting	Eviolite	Tera Blast, Ice Beam, Recover, Trick Room

Kilowattrel is the odd choice here, though it has a few useful traits that make it usable in VGC. It can set up Tailwind for its side of the field to make them move faster. But what really makes it interesting is its ability, Competitive, which boosts its Special Attack sharply when one of its stats is lowered. As VGC is a format where Incineroar reigns supreme, it’s easy for it to get these boosts.

3) Yuki Kitano’s Team (Indeedee-M, Weezing, Slaking, Sneasler, Tatsugiri, Dondozo)

Pokemon	Ability	Tera Type	Held Item	Moves
Indeedee-M	Psychic Surge	Psychic	Focus Sash	Protect, Helping Hand, Tera Blast, Expanding Force
Sneasler	Unburden	Dark	Psychic Seed	Close Combat, Dire Claw, Throat Chop, Protect
Slaking	Truant	Ghost	Choice Band	Double-Edge, High Horsepower, Knock Off, Earthquake
Weezing	Neutralizing Gas	Flying	Sitrus Berry	Protect, Toxic Spikes, Poison Gas, Assurance
Tatsugiri	Commander	Fairy	Safety Goggles	Protect, Helping Hand, Muddy Water, Draco Meteor
Dondozo	Unaware	Grass	Leftovers	Protect, Order Up, Earthquake, Wave Crash

Yuki Kitano attempted to make use of the Slaking and Weezing combo. While a bit gimmicky, the strategy involves using Weezing’s Neutralizing Gas to remove Slaking’s ability Truant so that it can attack freely. The reason this doesn’t work consistently is the need for both ‘mons to be on the field. This often leads to Weezing being double-targeted or forced out. Still, making Top Cut with this core is very admirable.

4) João Leite’s Team (Amoonguss, Incineroar, Gholdengo, Flamigo, Porygon 2, Ursaluna)

Pokemon	Ability	Tera Type	Held Item	Moves
Amoonguss	Regenerator	Fairy	Rocky Helmet	Pollen Puff, Spore, Rage Powder, Protect
Ursaluna	Guts	Ghost	Flame Orb	Facade, Headlong Rush, Earthquake, Protect
Incineroar	Intimidate	Ghost	Safety Goggles	Flare Blitz, Knock Off, Parting Shot, Fake Out
Porygon2	Download	Fighting	Eviolite	Tera Blast, Ice Beam, Recover, Trick Room
Gholdengo	Good as Gold	Fighting	Life Orb	Make It Rain, Shadow Ball, Nasty Plot, Protect
Flamigo	Scrappy	Ghost	Focus Sash	Close Combat, Brave Bird, Tailwind, Protect

Once again, we have an odd bird in this Pokemon VGC VR Challenge team. Much like Kilowattrel, Flamigo has a few useful tricks up its wings. It can also set up Tailwind. This Pokemon also has a useful ability, Scrappy, letting it hit Ghost-types with its Fighting-type attacks. This lets it spam Close Combats without a care.

5) Lucas Mester-Christensen (Amoonguss, Blaziken, Kingambit, Baxcalibur, Electabuzz, Primarina)

Pokemon	Ability	Tera Type	Held Item	Moves
Kingambit	Defiant	Dark	Black Glasses	Kowtow Cleave, Sucker Punch, Swords Dance, Protect
Blaziken	Speed Boost	Fire	Focus Sash	Heat Wave, Aura Sphere, Coaching, Protect
Electabuzz	Vital Spirit	Ghost	Eviolite	Taunt, Electroweb, Follow Me, Protect
Rillaboom	Grassy Surge	Fire	Assault Vest	Wood Hammer, Grassy Glide, U-turn, Fake Out
Baxcalibur	Thermal Exchange	Ghost	Loaded Dice	Icicle Spear, Scale Shot, Ice Shard, Protect
Primarina	Liquid Voice	Fairy	Choice Specs	Moonblast, Hyper Voice, Dazzling Gleam, Haze

Lucas Mester-Christensen won the Pokemon VGC VR September Challenge with a pretty anti-meta team. Yes, he had staples like Rillaboom, Baxcalibur, and Kingambit. But the rest of his selections included a Primarina (which was also part of a runner-up team in the Pittsburgh Regionals) and an Electabuzz (for Follow Me over Maushold or Clefairy). However, his strangest selection was a Blaziken as a Fire-type over something like Incineroar or Arcanine.

Blaziken’s ability Speed Boost lets it boost its speed at the end of each turn. This makes it a great Pokemon for Singles, but often leaves it to be double-targeted in VGC. So, the fact that Lucas was able to utilize his Blaziken all the way to win the VR September Challenge is impressive.

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