[TOURNAMENT] Amethyst 0mega Presents: Little Hail Cup 2017!

[PerchPond]

It turned out I had a somewhat different read on the format than my opponents, ending up bringing mostly different sets and some unique Pokémon to the tournament. Here's my winning team:



Vullaby @ Eviolite
Overcoat
Modest nature
- Heat Wave
- Dark Pulse
- Tailwind
- Protect

I started out by looking through all available Pokémon and their move sets, primarily looking for if anyone gets a Fire-move, since this Cup was packed with Ice-, Grass- and Bug-types. I found that Vullaby was the only one with a Fire-move - Heat Wave - so I built a team around that. It worked well and chunked most of the format with just two attacking moves. Eviolite allows it to live pretty much any Ice- move from faster threats like Sandshrew and Vulpix even without additional investment, and hit back with Heat Wave.



Seel @ Mago Berry
Ice Body
Adamant nature
- Fake Out
- Waterfall
- Aqua Jet
- Drill Run

Seel covers Vullaby's Ice-weakness and can switch in to most attacks. Fake Out + Aqua Jet was really really strong and I brought Seel to all my matches. Fake Out was gold against Aurora Veil, Tailwind and Trick Room and the overall access to priority helped against Focus Sash, Sturdy and Speed disadvantages.



Alolan Sandshrew @ Focus Sash
Slush Rush
Jolly nature
- Ice Punch
- Iron Head
- Brick Break
- Protect

I knew right away that Sandshrew was gonna be the best Pokémon in the format due to its Steel-typing, speed under Hail and good coverage. I built the set to win mirror match-ups aswell as answer Aurora Veil and Ice-types with Hidden Power Fire.



Alolan Vulpix @ Light Clay
Snow Warning
Timid nature
- Freeze Dry
- Icy Wind
- Moon Blast
- Aurora Veil

I chose Vulpix as my Hail-setter beacause it seemed more consistent than the other two: Amaura and Snover are too slow in general but too fast for Trick Room and the number of weaknesses they have are too hard to build around, while also lacking the massive utility Vulpix brings. Freeze Dry hits hard with STAB aswell as answering Seel and Shellder primarily. Icy Wind is speed control and Aurora Veil is Vulpix main charm.



Solosis @ Psychium-Z
Overcoat
Relaxed nature
- Psychic
- Trick Room
- Helping Hand
- Protect

Solosis has the highest base special attack in the format and it gets Trick Room. I built my team to have both a Tailwind and a Trick Room option for flexibility. Psychium-Z coming off of Solosis STAB Psychic deals insane damage even through Aurora Veil, while negating Knock Offs Item-damage and giving Solosis a strong presence even when Taunted.



Pineco @ Assault Vest
Overcoat
Brave nature
- Bug Bite
- Gyro Ball
- Rock Slide
- Double Edge

Pineco was the last Pokémon to get on the team. It gets good coverage, okay bulk and hits rather hard under Trick Room. Bug Bite hits Smoochum and Solosis for good damage, Gyro Ball hits Ice-types in general while Rock Slide hits hard, is spread damage and has a high flinch chance under Trick Room.

What I ended up facing was somewhat surprizing, mostly the Vullaby sets going super bulky without Heat Wave, which I didn't even consider, bringing my own full special attacking Vullaby. Some things I prepared for like Shell Smash Shellder and Belly Drum Spheal didnt make an appearence, while other stuff I hadn't considered did. It was fun overall even though we were quite few participants.

Cheers