Pauper’s Problem Periods

Today I woke up to messages about this – Pauper is in such a state that a tournament was set to fire and to fill the seats 11 people joined with decks containing only basic lands and due to a quirk of human behavior one of them won the event.

I’m not going to go over the various problems that exist in Pauper today (I’ve done that enough). Instead I want to respond to this question from SaffronOlive:

My gut reaction is that yes, this is the worst, but that is a recency bias. However I think this is one of the more egregious delays in my memory.

Cloudpost/Temporal Fissure

The utter dominance of these strategies is what led me to start tracking the Pauper metagame in the first place. Cloudpost was Tron before Tron and it was better. The mana engine took up fewer slots and thanks to Glimmerpost it could road block aggro decks simply by playing lands that helped up your mana production. Cloudpost was the best control deck of its day but it also enabled a powerful combo deck using the Cloud of Faeries/Ghostly Flicker engine. Looping Flicker through Cloud and Mnemonic Wall would generate a large Storm count and a similarly large amount of mana. You could then cast a one sided Upheaval with Temporal Fissure and then end the game with with Mulldrifter beats.

Peregrine Drake

I hated what Cloud of Faeries did to Pauper. Not only was it part of dominant combo engines – Fissure Post evolved into Familiar combo, using Cloud to generate mana – but it also created a lockdown play of Delver of Secrets into Cloud of Faeries, leave up Spellstutter Sprite. Cloud of Faeries lasted as a legal card for far too long, but when it was banned it signaled that Wizards was taking the format a bit more seriously.

And then they downshifted Peregrine Drake in Eternal Masters. To be clear, Drake was in the card file before Cloud was banned and a lot of people, myself included, felt that at five mana it would not be as oppressive. We were wrong. At the end of its five month life in the format Izzet Drake was around 75% of the competitive metagame.

Yikes.

This, to me, might be the most egregious, but we’ll get to that later.

Gush

Gush is a broken card, no ifs ands or buts. But despite how broken it was it actually fostered a diversity of Gush decks. And so while I felt that Gush was a significant problem for Pauper (and the metagame bore it out), it was not as reviled as some of these other options since it still allowed for some choice.

Choice is the animus here. Drake was egregious because it removed agency from your ability to select a deck – you had to play Drake, attempt anti-Drake (which did not work), or resolve yourself to losing your entry fee. Gush let you pick your variety of broken blue deck. Cloudpost and Temporal Fissure both came in an era where there were not as many people playing Pauper and there were tons of other choices that had some game (this might have been an illusion born of small sample size in Daily Events as opposed to Leagues, but that’s another post).

So that brings us to today. Squirrel Storm, Affinity, and Dimir Faeries are dominant to the point where they are removing the agency of choice beyond those three. However the nature of Squirrel Storm and Affinity is that the decisions you make may not matter and they simply run you over anyway.

These issues come on the heels of issues with Arcum’s Astrolabe, Fall from Favor, and persistent questions about whether or not Tron and the Monarch should be legal. Is this era any more problematic than the others? It’s definitely on par. But, just like the cycle of Standard with Throne of Eldraine, Pauper players are tired. Worse than that, they see other formats (Standard and Historic) getting attention and wonder how their (admittedly smaller) format continues to be ignored despite clear problems.

Everyone knew Chatterstorm was going to be a problem the day it was revealed. It has been legal for three months and in that time the big three have been ubiquitious:

Image

Pauper appeared to be in a good place before the release of Modern Horizons 2. After Fall from Favor was banned there was a proliferation of interesting decks that could keep pace with Monarch and Tron. We never got a chance to see that format develop.

So is this the worst stretch? No. But considering how many people are playing Pauper these days and the number of eyes on the format, it’s approaching an egregious amount of format neglect.

Not Very Effective: Remixing the Remix Cup

Season 9 is underway and with it I am renewing my goal of finishing in the Veteran Rank, above a 2500 ELO. While I started this season battling in the Great League it only took one day for me to switch to the Great League Remix.

The first team I ran through the wringer was a fairly standard line of Obstagoon – Double Poison (Nidoqueen on the switch and Shadow Golbat as the closer). As expected this team got me some wins on raw strength and a number of double Charm back lines. But starting day three I noticed a trend – there were a ton of Ice types.

For a cup that is largely defined by two Ground types – Diggersby and Nidoqueen – this makes sense. Ice attacks are effective against both of these options while maintaining utility against any Grasses that might show up and taking down Flying types as well. Considering that both Drifblim and Mandibuzz are viable, running a Dewgong or a Frosslass seems like a solid choice.

So what did I do? I thought about the backlines I had been seeing, most of which had Ice, Poison, and Fairy types. I figured that Steel types would make a good back line and looked at my options. I had a decently ranked Steelix that did not need a ton of dust to level up so I bought into that, hopeful that Crunch would do work against Ghost types. I then looked for a lead I could pair with Steelix and saw that Pidgeot provides great coverage for most of Steelix’s bad matchups (both lose to Registeel, but I haven’t seen any of those just yet). When looking at other back line options I thought about Excadril but hated how it lined up. I looked at Toxicroak and realized that I could craft a decent Flying – Double Ground line. I originally picked Toxicroak since it wasn’t weak to Counter users and figured Sludge Bomb might steal some wins.

After a few battles I came to two conclusions: I loved the Pidgeot-Steelix core and I did not like Toxicroak. And so I went back to the drawing board and reached back to the Kanto Cup. While it doesn’t look great on PVPoke, putting Electrode on the swap was exactly what the doctor ordered.

Lead– Pidgeot (Gust – Brave Bird/Feather Dance): Unless you hard lose you want to stay in with the bird (who definitely is the word). While Feather Dance has been nerfed it still does great work and can often let you farm up energy and chew up shields. I will often farm up past Dance and throw, hoping to nab a shield and then build up to Brave Bird, throw it, and duck out to Electrode. You swap out against every Ice type and anything where you think Electrode can do better work. The tough call is Unova Stunfisk – you have to wait a move to see if they’re running Mud Shot. If they are, it might be correct to stay in and go Dancing (considering our backline), but I haven’t tested that out yet.

Switch – Electrode (Volt Switch – Discharge/Foul Play): While you might suffer against Diggersby or Nidoqueen switches, the hope is that you can pressure enough with Foul Play to soften them up. When I switch in Electrode I do my best to time my moves to get off two charge moves while only using up one of my shields. Usually you can get both shields thanks to the damage output and then farm with either your lead or your closer. Electrode does great work against opposing Pidgeots, Drifblims, and every Ghost or Psychic you see.

Closer – Steelix (Dragon Tail – Crunch/Earthquake): What’s the play here? Just chew up damage. Steelix has solid resistances against non-Fighters and can apply decent pressure with Dragon Tail. I have found success in farming up to two Crunch and either throwing back to back or just going for Earthquake (against say, a Wigglytuff). Given the overall bulk of the team you can often save a shield or two for Steelix and if you can go into the endgame with a shield advantage it can often be game over.

I’m enjoying this team so far and will likely run it first thing tomorrow as well. That being said there’s something obvious about it that gives me pause: it has 3 and 4 turn fast moves. That downside is real as it can leave you caught throwing a charge move against a switch in or allow for opponent’s to sneak in moves. That being said the upside exists if you can play tightly. I see this team as a test of my skill and dedication – I can’t pilot this one if I’m not focused on the battle at hand.

What are you seeing in Great League Remix? What do you think of the Pidgeot-Steelix core? Sounds off and let me know!

August 28-29 Pauper Weekend in Review

Let’s cut right to the chase. The current format has been dominated by Affinity, Dimir, and Storm since Modern Horizons 2 came out. Since that set was released there have been 26 Challenges, which means 208 Top slots and 832 Top 32 finishes. Looking at just these big three – Affinity, Dimir Faeries, and Squirrel Storm, here is how things shake out:

Affinity: 10 wins (38%), 49 Top 8s (23.56%), 224 Top 32 appearances (26.9%)

Dimir Faeries: 5 wins (19%), 44 Top 8s (21.12%), 126 Top 32 appearances (15.1%)

Squirrel Storm: 7 wins (26.9%), 57 Top 8s (27.4%), 173 Top 32 appearances (20.8%)

All told these decks account for almost 85% of all Challenge wins, over 72% of all top 8s, and almost 63% of all Top 32 appearances.

This is 13 weeks of the same metagame. 13 weeks of three decks crowding everything else out of the meta. By comparison the three most popular decks from Strixhaven season (Dimir Faeries, Flicker Tron, Burn) accounted for just under 33% of all Top 32 appearances. These decks also had the most Top 8s and accounted for just over 40% of all Top 8s in that season.

Pauper deserves better than this stale format. It boggles my mind that right now Stompy, a perennial contender, has made exactly zero Top 32 appearances in Forgotten Realms season. Rancor has only two Top 32 finishes.

How is any of this okay?

Not Very Effective: Missing the Mark

I did not hit my stated goal in Season 8 of GO Battle League. I wanted to not only hit Veteran (which I did), but I wanted to end the season at above 2500 ELO. After finishing my battles today I’m ending at 2248. Not only did I fall short of my target, but I also will finish lower than I did last season (Veteran, 2257).

Where did things go wrong?

In breaking down my season, I can identify three times when I tanked myself. Let’s go over them.

Great League Remix

I never got a good read on the meta for this cup. Instead of running a team from a content creator or just a good overall squad, I jumped around almost every day. This kept me from finding a rhythm and establishing a practiced cadence. The result was a Cup where I could have made gains but instead I dug myself a hole.

Ultra League Premier Cup

During this Cup I actually hit Veteran and reached a new high ELO at 2614. If there was any one point that prevented me from hitting my goal it would be that: 2614. In my mind I had hit my mark – I knew that no matter what I would end at Veteran and if I had stuck to my guns with the team that got me there (Roserade – Alolan Muk – Lapras) I might have been able to climb higher. But that wasn’t my goal. And instead I tried learning other Pokemon in anticipation of Season 9. That dropped me down below 2400, again putting me at the bottom of the hill.

The Final Week

I put too much pressure on myself for the final week of Season 8. I knew that I could still hit my goal and tried to find a fun team for the climb. Some of the teams I put together worked for fits and spurts but were easily squashed by more meta picks. I should have done a better job selecting a team knowing that there would be tons of top meta options seeing play. And while I finally found a team that did well enough against the meta, I didn’t find it until the day before the season turned over.

So where does that leave me ahead of Season 9? The same place at the start of Season 8. My goal is to hit Veteran and finish the season above 2500. When I hit Veteran I am going to take a moment to see if hitting Expert is a possibility.

Without knowing that all the moves will look like for Season 9, I am planning on using the same team I used for my final day of Season 8. Skarmory lead, Jellicent on the switch, and Gliscor as a closer.

This A-B-A line came about because I kept running into Bastiodon – Medicham cores. I wanted to have Gliscor in the back as a Flying type attacker for the various Fighting types I saw, but also one that could put a hurt on Bastiodon and Galarian Stunfisk. Gliscor fit the bill, but I knew it would be weak to Ice types. That led me to Skarmory in the lead and Jellicent – which is all around fantastic – taking the safe swap role. The teams gets most of its work from Skarmory and Jellicent, both of which are top tier for a reason. I switch out of any bad matchup immediately to try and gain an energy advantage on Jellicent. Gliscor is best when you have a shield advantage (the other two work just fine down a shield) and can apply pressure with Night Slash and Earthquake.

The team does have some glaring weaknesses. Unova Stunfisk is a nightmare that can do work against the lead and switch. In a shields down scenario, Grass types are dangerous as they can take down both Jellicent and Gliscor.

I’m under no illusions that this is a fantastic team but it is one I am comfortable with after a day of battles. It has a good amount of bulk and as long as there are not a ton of Galvantual running around it can put in some work.

So here we go. One season down and another begins. I’m excited to try and reach my goals in Season 9. I look forward to keeping you all up to date on my journey.

Not Very Effective: A Fearless GBL Inventory

After climbing to about 2614 in Ultra League Premier Cup I hit a wall that I put up myself. After years I finally had access to a decent PVP IV Heracross and wanted to put it to use, and so I spent the final few days of the Premier Cup trying out team comps only to drop about 150 ELO. But it was alright because Great League was right around the corner and I had a couple of decent lineups ready to go for the home stretch and final push to my goal (ending above 2500 ELO). But my rebound never materialized. My sets continued to end in more losses than wins and I got frustrated. I fell into old habits.

After a few practice battles with a friend I realized that I had to work on my mental game. And to that I turned to the other game I play regularly: Magic. There’s a concept from the game – coined by a former high level player and later designer of Magic Sam Stoddard – called the Fearless Magical Inventory.

The idea is simple: you are ruthlessly honest with yourself about your shortcomings with a game. This is not to beat yourself up but rather to find places to improve. And so with that in mind, I am going to attempt my first Fearless GBL Inventory:

1. I don’t practice enough: This one is simple as I still see the game as a diversion. I know I should practice battling more, especially with regards to reading team comps and move counting. It’s easy for me to say that I have a full-time job, freelance work, and a toddler at home as reasons that I don’t practice enough, but if I want to continue to improve at GBL I have to practice more. Maybe that means dedicating a set everyday to practicing, focusing on playing correctly and trying new things, or maybe it means expanding my friend network in game to get more practice in. However I can’t improve if I don’t take battles a little more seriously.

2. I blame my team comps: I probably spend too much time trying to craft good teams on PVPoke. Teams with good coverage and ones that handle the perceived metagame well. And then when I test out those teams I believe they should carry me and not the other way around. And so I get frustrated and blame the team almost more than myself in these situations. This is a bit of the inverse of the dreaded “algorithm”, where you blame your opponent’s team comps for your losses. The truth is, I picked the team, I built it, and if a team failed that isn’t the team comp’s fault but rather my own.

3. I get attracted to new and off-meta picks: I consume a decent amount of content and when something off meta or new gets featured, I immediately want to try it out for myself (cough cough Heracross cough cough). This happened with Galvantula before the Lunge buff and happened earlier this week with Greedent. Heck, it happened in the first half of this season where I was dead set on making a purified Dusclops work. I was so concerned with trying to make one element of my team function that I put wins at risk. I need to cut this out if I want to hit my goals in Season 9.

4. I have trouble reading meta shifts: If there is one thing I have noticed in my various climbs this season it is that ever 150-200 ELO points, the meta will shift. But sometimes the metagame can shift from set to set within that band. I struggle to see these changes and anticipate what changes I should make to my team (if any) or changes in strategic approach. This influences my next point…

5. I am too quick to change teams: If a team struggles for more than a day I tend to abandon it even though my best runs have come when I stick with a team through rough times. I can’t always handle losing set after set.

6. I don’t like ABB line ups: I feel that ABB team compositions leave you very vulnerable in the back and as a result I don’t give them proper credit. This is a leak in my game and one I have to work on as ABB lineups are an important tool in one’s arsenal.

7. I lose count of moves: Not much else to say here – I am still working on counting moves during competing animations.

8. I haven’t memorized move sets and charge times

9. I over estimate my ability to get off “one more move”

10: I have to improve at the physical mechanics of the game

11. I sometimes play when I am not able to fully focus on the game

12. I don’t have a good trade network to reroll IVs

13. I don’t have a good raid network to chase high value options with greater consistency

14. I am stingy with Elite TMs even if they would improve my options

15. I have not put in the work to grind to level 40 to access XL options

And this isn’t everything. I know there are more elements of my game that need improvement. But most of these are things that I can work on in the short and long term as a way to be a better battler.

So where does that leave me on the precipice of Go Battle Night? Well, I’m starting out with Shiftry – Skarmory – Galarian Stunfisk. And we’ll see where things go from there.

August 21-22 Pauper Weekend in Review

There is not a ton to say at this point. After three weekends in the second block of Forgotten Realms season, only 8 archetypes clear the 2% threshold for Top 32 volume.

I’m trying to think of other things to say – of other ways to talk about this format. But words are failing me. The top three decks account for almost 68% of the Top 32 volume and almost 75% of the Wins above X-3. Not only are these decks the most popular by a wide margin, but they are also performing a little above expectation overall. Combined these three archetypes have 34 of the possible 48 Top 8s in the past three weeks (almost 71%).

And yet Pauper soldiers on. Over time these three will continue to chew up more metagame share and push other strategies to the fringes. Pauper can be salvaged, action just needs to be taken.

August 14-15 Pauper Weekend in Review

We are in the second four week chunk of Adventures in the Forgotten Realms season. After the Saturday and Sunday Challenges here is what the winner’s metagame looks like over the past four events (minimum 3 Top 32 appearances):

I am not going to spend a lot of time talking about the metagame as very little has changed. The best decks are the best by a proverbial order of magnitude. Instead I want to talk about what it is going to take to fix Pauper beyond a Chatterstorm ban.

First up, I think you absolutely have to hit Affinity. There are two viable options in my estimation: Atog and the new Indestructible Artifact Lands. While the Atog camp has some valid opinions I think the better target are the lands. Affinity has been in the format forever and Atog has been a part of the deck for much of its history. The big thing that held Affinity back was the vulnerability of its mana base. The fact that Affinity was such a high power deck and yet could be constrained if the meta was prepared was something I considered a feature of the format – someone who metagamed correctly could pick their spot with Affinity and do exceedingly well. The Indestructible Lands take away that vulnerability, making Affinity a low risk-high reward choice.

Affinity before Modern Horizons 2 is the deck many Pauper players want Storm to be – a strong option that can win but has available counterplay. Something Storm will likely never have. But we can return to this model of Affinity with banning the lands.

Now this is not great! It’s ten cards from the latest set as opposed to one card form the earliest years of Magic. And if Affinity were the only decks using these lands then maybe you could make a case for Atog. But we have also seen a rise of “good card soup” decks using the combination of these lands and Cleansing Wildfire to both ramp and draw cards. These decks are slowly creeping towards Arcum’s Astrolabe levels of core homogenity and if Pauper leaves the lands in tact I believe they will lead to less diversity in midrange decks over time.

After that I think you have to hit Tron and Monarch. These two cores have been dominant for far too long and have hindered development/diversity in both control and midrange decks. Tron makes any other long game deck obsolete thanks to its mana abundance. Monarch provides a hard to assail card advantage engine. Four years ago there were relatively few Pauper cards that could draw you a card every turn and now the list is far more robust (there are three new cards in Modern Horizons 2 alone).

Those are the bans I would make. I see Snuff Out bandied about a bunch since it’s a “free” spell that some see as running afoul of the justification for banning Daze and Gush. I think Snuff Out is a fair card and in a format with true aggro decks the four life is a significant drawback.

That takes care of cards I think need to leave the format. But that won’t be enough to rescue Pauper from its current state. There needs to be a reason to play Pauper if you aren’t a format regular. Before the proliferation of Cubes on Magic Online Pauper was a common pre-rotation distraction. Now, between Cube and Arena, if you’re sick of Standard then there are plenty of other formats to play and occupy your time. Now I could sit here all day and yell all day about how when Pauper is good, it’s a great format to play.

But that won’t matter if there isn’t something in it for people. Maybe it’s more Showcase Qualifiers or PTQs (or whatever they are called today). Maybe it’s making the MOCS – the one broadcast every quarter – use Pauper as one of its formats. I am not sure that the vocal and vibrant community can sustain Pauper without being able to draw more people in.

And that’s a shame because as I said, when Pauper is good, it’s great.

Not Very Effective: Hitting Veteran

When we last left off I had a team set for my climb to Veteran. I had Roserade in the front with Gallade on the switch, Magnezone in the back. After running into one too many Dragonite leads I flipped my lead and close and was ready to make my run.

And then I dropped down to a 2315 ELO. Thankfully someone had commented on my post, suggesting a team that lead on Roserade with an Alolan Muk on the switch, Sirfetch’d in the back. I commented that the team was incredibly soft to flyers which prompted a “well you’re right” but it got me thinking as to what flying types I was seeing. Usually they were Charizard, Dragonite, and Talonflame. The redditor had suggested meshing my two teams and they were right, but got the closer wrong.

The team I have been using since that post is as follows:

Roserade on the lead with Bullet Seed – Weather Ball (Fire)/Leaf Storm.

Alolan Muk as a safe swap with Poison Jab – Dark Pulse/Sludge Wave

Lapras as the closer with Ice Shard – Surf/Ice Beam

Here are my end of day ELOs since running that squad:

  • 2356
  • 2444
  • 2545

So yes, this is the team I used to hit Veteran and am likely to keep using for the time being as I try to push my ELO higher still. My goal is to end this season as Veteran with an over 2500 ELO with a stretch goal of hitting expert. Both are in my grasp but I need to play smart.

Roserade is a strong lead. It has relatively few bad matchups (I only instantly swap if I see a flying type or a fire type). You can easily build up to a Weather Ball or Leaf Storm to pressure opponents and force them to shield. Against Empoleon leads I tend to build up to a Leaf Storm and unleash it before swapping into Muk in an effort to catch their move. If they don’t shield it almost one shots them and if they do, I am in a position to farm. The other interesting lead to face is Abomasnow as you can get to a Weather Ball before they get to theirs, allowing you to pressure shields and swap.

A-Muk is a great switch and Poison Jab gives it some fast move pressure. At the advice of that same redditor, I build up to a Sludge Wave and then lead with a Dark Pulse. This usually gets the shield which then lets me either farm down or pressure with Dark Pulse.

Lapras does Lapras things. It chews through Dragonite and most flyers while pressuring Talonflame with Surf. While not the fastest attacker, it serves as a solid anchor for the team that can help cover many of Roserade’s shortcomings.

This team is about energy management and well timed swaps. Roserade can generate energy at a pretty good clip and as such to can easily have a move stored on it when you swap. Leaf Storm is also a move some people do not anticipate to come first – I took out a Lapras lead today by unloading a Leaf Storm which prompted an instant concession. Muk can pressure some opposing swaps with Poison Jab, letting you build up a move on your swap. I also will often build up to two Surfs on Lapras in an effort to chunk down the opponent and have something in the tank.

I am under no illusions that this is a top tier team – it’s serviceable. What it is, however, is accessible to players under level 40, giving those of us without access to XL Pokemon a shot against the bulkier battlers. And while it is not a guarantee, this team does have game against XL Umbreon, XL Mandibuzz, and XL Stunfisk. Lapras is decent against all three and Roserade can pressure Umbreon and Stunfisk.

Since finishing my climb to Veteran I’ve bumped up to 2603 ELO with a few more sets to finish today. Here’s to keeping my head on straight as I keep on climbing.

Not Very Effective: Time for Premier Cup

It’s been a hot minute since I updated the world on my trials in PokemonGo Battle League. Participating in Open Ultra League was interesting. After settling into Gengar-Gyarados-Lapras, I had a fairly steady climb. After my last post where my ELO stood at 2248, here is how things went leading up to the switch to Ultra Premier Cup (these represent my end of day ELO rating):

  • 2318
  • 2302
  • 2290
  • 2417
  • 2431
  • 2431
  • 2474

That 2474 came on last Saturday. I took off Sunday, confident that Veteran rank was in reach. I did one set of Open Ultra on Monday where I went 1-4 and dropped to 2432. I was not worried as I knew I had a good line for the Premier Cup and waited for the roll over before getting in a few more sets.

My line starting Premier Cup was Sirfetch’d in the lead (Counter-Leaf Blade/Brave Bird), Alolan Muk on the swap (Poison Jab – Dark Pulse/Acid Spray) and Lapras in the back (Ice Shard – Ice Beam/Surf). This was the team I had settled on last Premier Cup and carried my final few sets in a positive direction.

After going 3-2 in my first set to boost my rating back 2447 I went 2-8 across my next two sets with this team and ended Monday at 2363. My confidence in the lineup wavered and I tried to figure out where I was losing.

Some of it was me being out of practice. There was one match I lost where I had a Brave Bird loaded against a Venusaur with one shield. Connecting with Brave Bird would win me the match. Instead I tried to bait with Leaf Blade and they didn’t shield. This was a mistake as I should have realized Brave Bird was my best win condition. I had a Lapras left that they did not know about. The Lapras could have chunked down Venusaur and maybe I would have been able to get off another Brave Bird in the end.

That being said I was seeing a number of backlines that were giving me trouble. Abomasnow, Empoleon, and Venusaur in the back gave me fits. Once I get more reps in this time around in Ultra Premier, these are the kind of lines I can reliably predict and then line up my Sirfetch’d line correctly. This early in a cup’s life, however, I am still sussing out what people are running and have not built up enough pattern recognition to figure out proper alignment.

After two match losses Tuesday morning, I switched to my other old reliable Ultra Premier line. This one sees Roserade (Bullet Seed – Weather Ball-Fire/Leaf Storm) in the lead with Gallade on the switch (Confusion – Leaf Blade/Close Combat) and Magnezone (Spark – Mirror Shot/Wild Charge) in the back. The idea behind this comp is that Roserade can put on a ton pressure early with its quick charging moves. It also can chew up leads like Venusaur and Empoleon while holding its own against anything that isn’t Flying or Fire type. Gallade is a solid swap and Confusion can chunk down a ton. Magnezone is there as a way to handle problematic flyers and deal with Dragon types while also putting in work against Abomasnow.

After going 0-2 with my original line I managed a 2-0-1 to round out my first set of Tuesday (2362). I then rattled off three straight 3-2 sets to boost me up to 2404. I should have put down my phone and called it a day. I had a positive run and was getting the hang of my team again as I am pretty sure I left at least three wins on the table from being out of practice.

Reader, you can see where this is going.

My last set was a 1-4 affair that plummeted me to 2360. Here there were at least two games I could have conceivably won if I had played correctly. I think I was too distracted and too eager to get my sets in. I saw the chance to make more progress towards my season goal (hitting Veteran and ending above a 2500 ELO) and instead got jumpy.

So tomorrow I’m going to try something different. I’m going to take my time and if I can end up going positive after two sets, I might do one more. If I’m negative, there’s a good chance I’ll let it lie for a day until I can get my head right again. There are a few more weeks to go and I know I can hit my target.

I just can’t get in my own way.