The first International Championships event of the 2025 Pokémon Championship Series is right around the corner, and the Pokémon VGC environment has arguably never been more exciting. The 2025 Pokémon Latin America International Championships in São Paulo, Brazil will feature Regulation Set H, a unique ruleset where Legendary Pokémon and Paradox Pokémon are banned, potentially allowing tons of different Pokémon to run amok.

A wide variety of Pokémon from Tentacruel to Yanmega have succeeded in this lower power environment, and it feels like every event features a wonky new strategy ready to turn the format on its head. Powerful Pokémon like Incineroar and Kingambit continue to make their mark and challenge these new ideas rising to the top, so will creativity or consistency take the crown at LAIC? We don’t have the answer to that question, but we know just the people who might.

We’ve gathered three amazing experts for an exciting roundtable to talk us through what the metagame has in store for fans at LAIC this year: Joe Ugarte, Lou Akcoş-Cromie, and Aaron Traylor, joined by Chris Shepperd from Pokemon.com. From intriguing Pokémon to top players to surprise strategies, the group has it covered. Read on so you’ll be ready to watch all three days of action, from November 15 to November 17, on Twitch.tv/Pokemon.

Shepperd: OK, well, let’s kick this thing off! Thanks everyone for participating in another roundtable.

Ugarte: Happy to be here!

Akcoş-Cromie: I’m super excited! We just wrapped up the Lille Regionals and it was EPIC! The whole season has been awesome so far, in all honesty.

Shepperd: This is a great format to talk about, so I’m super excited to learn more myself. Lou, let’s start there! What’s the feeling been about this season? What have people enjoyed about the current format?

Traylor: The ban on Legendary Pokémon in Regulation H has a lot of people excited to play, Chris. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve spoken to at my local tournaments and in the community who are giving competitive play another shot now that a wider variety of Pokémon are available to them.

Akcoş-Cromie: I think taking restricted Pokémon out of rotation has really enabled team building to get super creative again. Some Pokémon have been consistently strong for the first time, like Sneasler—and old favorites like Rillaboom and Kingambit have been popular.

Ugarte: I think a really cool part of this format is how diverse it is, and how you can make so many unique picks work! You have the capability to really innovate on some Pokémon that typically don’t have play, along with also being able to bring back some fun Pokémon from previous formats due to the lower power level.

Shepperd: I can see how this format can be exciting for both newer players and for crafty teambuilders.

Akcoş-Cromie: Lille really flipped the team-building script. We saw Hisuian Samurott, Hisuian Decidueye, Avalugg (yes, really!), and Tentacruel do well, to name a few. And let’s not forget that the throwback duo of Tyranitar and Excadrill actually won the whole thing! It was really inspiring and exciting to be a part of—I can’t wait to try out some of the Pokémon I spotted in day two in my own teams over the next few weeks.

Traylor: I personally really like restricted formats for the complexity of play that they bring. And, honestly, they do bring some unique strategies and Pokémon, like Farigiraf and Bronzong, to the forefront. I think it’s much more about perception of the format than anything.

Ugarte: Right, I think the notable difference between restricted building and non-restricted building is the approach.

Traylor: LAIC is going to be awesome for Regulation H, though—the biggest international tournament of the format!

Ugarte: Usually the more niche picks for restricted team building are centered around supporting a specific piece, whereas in the lower power level non-restricted team formats, the roles are more team oriented and there’s a bit more flexibility in what they can be.

Akcoş-Cromie: Restricted formats have their own merits for sure, but I think people are enjoying the changeup post-Worlds. I think we’re seeing differences based on region for sure.

Shepperd: Has the season had a lot of “flipping the script”? Is any metagame to speak of just a momentary flash?

Traylor: Great question, Chris. I think the metagame is evolving at a pretty quick pace because of the newness of the format, as well as people exploring some new tools for the first time—such as Sneasler, as well as Magmar and Electabuzz with Vital Spirit and Follow Me. ...Well, some new old tools in the latter case. And some old new tools in the former (from ancient Hisui).

Ugarte: I would say that the metagame is open but still has a clear progression, and there are certain meta teams you have to respect. For example, a lot of the strong balance teams created throughout the format still have merit at every event. That being said, it does feel like more people are opting to create and use more unique builds than previous formats. I also think, because of how many events we have had before LAIC, it’s given so many opportunities for the metagame to continue developing.

Akcoş-Cromie: I think weather is really emerging as a mechanic we are seeing. Sun and rain have always been popular. But there is this team composition with Alolan Ninetales that has been in three Regional Finals and has gotten some victories too! Having the snow to improve the accuracy of Blizzard and give Ice-type Pokémon a Defense boost has been really helpful in certain matchups.

Shepperd: You’re all throwing out Pokémon names that we almost never get to see here. As fun as it is for players, that’s absolute nirvana for viewers. Joe, when you say “unique builds,” do you mean where they’re coming up with a fresh team, and not necessarily just iterating on a popular one?

Ugarte: I mean, in the end, most teams will be iterations on specific compositions to a degree, but I would say building concepts that include some niche or less common Pokémon as important tools to make those teams function.

Shepperd: Got it!

Ugarte: We have already discussed some of the niche Pokémon that have done well, but my thoughts go to Pokémon like Wolfe’s Yanmega, Parker Simmons’ Exeggutor, and Edu’s Hisuian Samurott.

Akcoş-Cromie: Yes—Exeggutor in particular has really found a lot of success lately.

Shepperd: Does this format allow for more surprises for players? Do they have to be more prepared for the unexpected?

Traylor: One sign that experienced players look for as a sort of “Oricorio in the coal mine” (if you will) for metagame centralization is whether a strong team can have a splashy finish, catch a lot of attention, and gain usage percentage and results that continue over time.

We’ve seen two big opportunities for this to happen: a team of Dragapult, Sneasler, Primarina, Kingambit, and Rillaboom with Magmar or Electabuzz—and Gabriel Agati’s Dragonite, Alolan Ninetales, Kingambit team that Paul Chua used to get second place at Baltimore. Both Gabriel Agati and Sebas Escalante also used that team in the finals of the Joinville Regionals in LATAM. Both teams gained popularity, but neither has really stuck around as ahigh usage, top-placing demon of the format in the way it has in the past, and the format has continued to evolve.

Akcoş-Cromie: It’s good analysis, though! And I agree that the team itself is being picked up, but it’s not overly dominating the meta, which is quite refreshing. Its consistency in results, though, is impressive, and I would be surprised to see it become more dominant over the next few events. Or maybe a counter will be produced—we’ve already seen a rise in preventative measures to status afflictions, like Misty Terrain or Lum Berry, to counter Sneasler’s devastating Dire Claw.

Ugarte: Building on Aaron’s point, in formats there are typically strong builds that permeate through the format’s life cycle and are key threats to always respect. But the “best” teams still feel very beatable and don’t usually require a lot of specific resources in your team building to beat, which I think is overall a good thing.

Shepperd: Yeah, it seems like this format isn’t going to have a dominant team everyone has to build against.

Traylor: This is a really good thing for format health—I don’t think people would mind for the most part if we had this format up until Worlds.

Ugarte: I think back to Regulation F’s Raging Bolt balance… That team was a nightmare in the format because of how strong it was, and it really bogged down the format’s remaining development ‘cause it beat so many teams.

Shepperd: This is all good discussion for heading into LAIC. We’re less than a month out and we’re coming off some big Regional events. What can players glean from recent competitions that will instruct them on what to do in São Paulo?

Traylor: This is a great question. I think it’s important for teams to have multiple ways to threaten opponents; you can’t go all-in on one strategy, because if your opponent can cover for it, you’re on the back foot immediately. But no team can cover for every threat, and if your Pokémon have lots of different ways to work together, you’ll have more opportunities to exploit weaknesses in your opponents’ teams.

Ugarte: I think despite the fact there are many unique teams, there are cores of teams you need to respect. These are some of main ones that come to my mind.

• Double Dragon Snow: Alolan Ninetales, Dragonite, Garchomp, Kingambit

• Bulky Trick Room: Ursaluna, Incineroar, Amoonguss, Porygon2

• Gholdengo setup: Incineroar, Amoonguss, Sneasler, Gholdengo

• Standard rain core: Basculegion, Pelipper, Amoonguss, Archaludon

• Psychic Spam: (Typically) Male Indeedee, Sneasler, Delphox

• Hard Trick Room: Hatterene, Female Indeedee, Torkoal, Ursaluna

• Kingambit SD Balance: Electabuzz or Magmar, Kingambit, Primarina, Rillaboom

Akcoş-Cromie: I think the main takeaway I got from Lille was that you need to be intensely well-versed with your team and ensure it has flexible options. We often saw “hard Trick Room” or “pure sun”-based teams struggling in the best-of-three scenario because their opponents had adaptations they could make. Additionally, there are some Pokémon out there like Corviknight or Dondozo that you need to have an answer to or game-plan against; otherwise your opponent will be able to exploit that weakness and get the victory. There are also some Pokémon you will not have had on your bingo card that you need to at least have some knowledge or use game one to find out about. The team-building options are so varied right now that there should be plenty of room to find them—it’s just whether players can find the time or find a cohesive core to work with.

Traylor: Oh, let’s go Lou—same hat!

One example of healthy synergy is Dragapult and Sneasler, which work well together as a lead combination, but can also apply that pressure alongside other strong Pokémon on your team.

An example of something that is less flexible but still strong is Annihilape and Maushold with Beat Up. It’s an incredibly strong combo, but many opponents at an international level will have a lot of knowledge about how to play around it. Putting Beat Up on your Maushold takes away flexibility in the long term.

Akcoş-Cromie: We clearly have fashionable hats, Aaron.

I think you raise a good point there, too, Joe. Setup is everywhere at the moment, from Nasty Plot users on the special side to Swords Dance on the physical side—not to mention the Bulk Up or Iron Defense options too! We saw a big rise in Haze users in Lille for this exact reason.

Traylor: Yes, great point—it’s hard to have one Pokémon just burst through your opponent’s team, so setting up can be key. There’s also a corresponding uptick in Unaware Pokémon such as Clefable and Dondozo (maybe even on its own, perhaps).

Ugarte: To follow up on Lou and Aaron’s comments, the teams that I had mentioned before all operate in a way where you are playing to enable a certain Pokémon or strategy, whether it’s through enabling your Kingambit with Swords Dance along with redirection, utilizing Dragapult and Sneasler’s useful offensive synergy, or taking advantage of Nasty Plot Gholdengo next to Incineroar and Amoonguss.

Shepperd: I think you’re heading toward what I’d like to discuss next. It’s a wide-open format, but there are clearly some trends and specific Pokémon that have risen to the top. Joe, you put together a nice list to start.

Ugarte: They all have defined visions and ways they play to win the game, whether it’s through direct offense or setting up for a win condition

Shepperd: Explain “hard” Trick Room vs. the regular Trick Room teams we’ve seen in the past.

Traylor: Hard Trick Room is fully committal to Trick Room—perhaps the fastest Pokémon on your team is a minimum-Speed Gallade. If Trick Room gets up, you likely win. If your opponent can stop it, you likely lose.

Akcoş-Cromie: Exactly—it’s an all-eggs-in-one-strategy-basket approach.

Shepperd: That’s what I was guessing. Why is a build like that popular now compared to previous Trick Room teams, which were much more situational?

Ugarte: Trick Room is less of an option than a requirement for the team to function in most cases, where at best you have one non-Trick Room mode, but you’re still fairly dependent on it. Some Pokémon that are used to try and give a bit more flexibility are Hisuian Zoroark or Hisuian Lilligant and Exeggutor.

Akcoş-Cromie: I don’t know if it is reflective of the format, honestly—I’ve seen hard Trick Room teams in most formats, but I think people are really testing them out again as there are newer Pokémon to experiment with in the compositions.

Traylor: Hard Trick Room is an archetype that has seen many evolutions through many different generations and formats. In Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet, it’s mostly enabled by Female Indeedee with Trick Room.

Ugarte: I think when the power level is lower in a format, hard Trick Room can thrive a bit better because you can use weirder Pokémon to help enable it to do better. Following up on what Aaron said too, it’s worth noting that Male Indeedee is now seeing a niche on a new form of Psyspam that has recently been developing more than hard Trick Room.

Shepperd: Does the lack of overwhelmingly strong Pokémon make team styles more important?

Ugarte: I think you can definitely approach teambuilding a bit more uniquely and can create differently functioning concepts that are a bit less linear. I would say that the lowered power level still allows certain Pokémon to flex their muscles a bit as a product of less powerful Pokémon being around.

Traylor: The win conditions for hard Trick Room are very straightforward and the team introduces variance in complex ways, which creates challenges for your opponent no matter who they are. If I lead Indeedee and Gallade, am I going to use Follow Me and Trick Room? Am I going to Protect with Gallade and Trick Room with Indeedee? Am I going to Wide Guard and Trick Room? Am I going to Follow Me and attack? Et cetera.

It’s a great team to give to beginners for these reasons—introducing variance against experienced opponents is a great way to ensure an even playing field. The variance is a real double-edged sword, though, and it’s hard to control whether you come out on top for the same reasons.

Ugarte: My mind immediately jumps to Hisuian Typhlosion using Eruption in sunny weather, Ice–Tera Type Alolan Ninetales using Blizzard with Choice Specs, and Psychic–Tera Type Delphox using Expanding Force in Psychic Terrain.

Traylor: Male Indeedee is definitely picking up in usage, too—finally, the forgotten sibling gets to share the spotlight.

Akcoş-Cromie: For me, it’s like a different kind of balance. Hard to articulate, but I’ll try. We’ve seen balanced teams previously in formats where teams really focus on alignment and board positioning, forcing constant adjustments and setting up an opportune moment to strike. Lots of switches and defensive plays. The balance at the moment is more like the “big picture” of the meta. We are seeing such diversity in terrain, weather, Pokémon types, moves, archetypes, etc., that the overall meta is really balanced and teams have strengths and weakness which don’t necessarily mean you have an “auto loss.” This leads to exciting thrillers, rather than drawn-out matches. At least in Lille, this was very much the story.

If you haven’t watched it, please go watch Nils’ Top 4 and Finals game three set. Male Indeedee was absolutely on a rampage and literally left me speechless!

Ugarte: I think Nils winning is a great example of how this format has so much more innovation left.

People obviously look at the six Pokémon at face value, but I thought the tech of Corviknight holding Psychic Seed and using Bulk Up and Power Trip was genius.

Akcoş-Cromie: Yes! Power Trip was such a throwback!

Traylor: Incredibly cool—I don’t know if we’ve ever seen Power Trip succeed at such a high level outside of rogue Eevee strategies in 2017.

Ugarte: Typically, Gholdengo is one of Corviknight’s worst matchups, and the tools Nils had allowed that matchup to be a lot more doable.

And yeah, Power Trip is such an interesting move that doesn’t get much play because of how fast paced VGC is relative to Single Battles and how you want to build up your momentum fast. It only really works on fast, aggressive setup strategies, or Pokémon that can sit there for a while and set up, which Corviknight can. I think it’s also worth noting that Sneasler with Coaching helps Corviknight get going even faster too.

Ugarte: Bulk Up, a Coaching boost, and a Psychic Seed boost—in one turn, you’re making your Power Trip hit for insane amounts of damage.

Shepperd: With so many different teams and tactics in play, what would you tell spectators to watch for to make sense of it all?

Traylor: I think what I would say to spectators, as Joe is alluding to above, is that you have got to watch out for the type chart—the real foundation of everything in competitive Pokémon. Normally, Gholdengo resists every attack Corviknight wants to use. When Corviknight has the supereffective Power Trip, that’s a different story. These interactions make Pokémon fun and interesting.

Akcoş-Cromie: I think a lot of veterans are “throwing back” to wisdom learnt from past formats as well, giving them a different perspective when it comes to teambuilding. Nils also having the sandstorm core and seeing Pokémon like Primarina and Garchomp shows there is an edge veterans might have when it comes to being more comfortable with these types of teams.

I would tell spectators to watch out for Gastrodon, obviously.

Shepperd: Obviously.

Akcoş-Cromie: Sorry I had to—plus, it’s actually valid. It got a Top 8 finish in Louisville, so it has credibility right now too.

I think viewers also need to watch out for the game two adjustments. There’s a lot you can learn about a team in game one right now, especially when they’re more unique, and knowledge about Speed and total defense may not be as commonly known. So seeing how players adapt to that information throughout the set and pull out new tricks and strategies to work around it will be interesting.

Traylor: Definitely! There’s no guarantee that two games in a row are going to be even remotely similar.

Ugarte: I think this format also allows you to use some wacky item combinations and move combinations that are really cool, allowing people to come up with creative solutions to issues that a team might have.

Shepperd: A lot of really innovative and original Pokémon builds have been thrown out during the conversation, but is there a core of Pokémon that people should expect to see a lot of?

Traylor: AMOONGUSS INCINEROAR GHOLDENGO!

Akcoş-Cromie: Little louder in case anyone missed it!

Ugarte: I would say you can’t play a tournament in this format without respecting rain Teams, Incineroar/Amoonguss/Gholdengo, Alolan Ninetales balance, Kingambit Swords Dance balance, and all forms of Psychic spam.

Also, every team probably should have a Dondozo check...

Shepperd: That’s...a lot.

Ugarte: The joys of a wide-open format! And there’s probably even more I’m missing. But I think one thing worth noting is certain checks to certain teams carry over between matchups.

Traylor: As always, the Pokémon [I mentioned] are an extremely powerful core that has a ton of flexibility. It’s a real check to see if opponents can survive the pace at which they play. Andrew Zheng just used those Pokémon in a masterclass performance to win his first ever Regional Championships!

Ugarte: So, for example, if I run Primarina with Misty Terrain, it covers for Ursaluna, Amoonguss, and Incineroar—and also covers for Psychic Terrain matchups (to a degree).

Traylor: I think it’s important to watch out for strategies that have really explosive Turn 1s, such as Choice Band Dragapult with Sneasler, or Tailwind with a heavy-hitting partner.

I guess Archaludon or Annihilape with Maushold with Beat Up or Population Bomb would work there as well.

Ugarte: Yeah, there are so many different teams that can operate completely differently with pacing.

Akcoş-Cromie: I think the six cores that have been in finals (Dragonite, Amoonguss, Kingambit, Incineroar, Alolan Ninetales, and Garchomp) will pick up even more. There will also be a lot of Sneasler around, possibly on the same squad as Volcarona or Kingambit.

You’re right about Dondozo too, but at least it’s solo Dondozo at the moment, as Tatsugiri has had enough of being eaten! The Fissure and Yawn strategy can be tricky to deal with, though.

Ugarte: Absolutely. Solo Dondozo seems to be a bit more popular, but it’s still worth being careful about the two as a pair. Carson Confer made a strong run in Louisville with them.

Traylor: I think a key team building element is that you need to be flexible in the face of your counters, as well. Maushold with Population Bomb can not only attack your own Archaludon for boosts with Stamina, but it can also threaten your opponent’s Pokémon. Ursaluna really wants its burn from Flame Orb, but in the face of Misty Terrain Primarina, an unboosted Headlong Rush will still do the trick.

Shepperd: OK, that’s a pretty good picture of the Pokémon to watch for, but someone’s got to choose the attacks. Which players should we keep a particular eye on in São Paulo?

Ugarte: I’d have to say, I’d be very interested to see how Gabriel Agati performs at LAIC—whether he still uses the same team that’s been performing great over the course of the format or opts for something new going into the tournament.

Akcoş-Cromie: Agreed—and Sebastian Escalate.

Shepperd: A couple players who get to compete in their own backyard.

Akcoş-Cromie: I actually think the Latin American players in general will be very interesting to follow. The Lima Special Event was recently won with a Flamigo, and so I think their creativity will also be fun to watch!

Ugarte: I’d also be very interested to see Aurelien Soula—their story felt a little incomplete to me after Worlds, and I feel like they still have that drive to win a major.

Akcoş-Cromie: Other notable names include some of the Italian community. Marco Silva will be trying to defend the title! But I also think Mattia Cognetta has a lot of potential. It’s his first year in the Masters division. He had a lot of credibility as an International Champion and had a good showing in Lille. One to watch!

Ugarte: The Italian players have been on a roll recently. Definitely a new Pokémon Renaissance for Italy. World champ, multiple players throughout European top cuts—most being specifically from the same friend group/team as well. Italy has been incredibly strong as of late.

Traylor: Juan Salerno finished Top 4 at Joinville Regionals; he had a strong season in 2023 as well. Definitely another name to watch out for.

Shepperd: Who are some of the North American players to look for?

Akcoş-Cromie: Is the Louisville runner-up going? I hear he’s doing well at the moment.

Traylor: Joe Ugarte!

Akcoş-Cromie: That’s him!

Shepperd: Yep, he’s on my list.

Ugarte: Y’all flatter me too much.

Traylor: Do we know who is going?

Ugarte: I’m really excited for Brazil! It’s always a great time, and you get to have great games of Pokémon.

Ugarte: I believe Justin Tang is going, and he’s always a threat to take it home.

Traylor: LAIC is hard because the travel is such a bear, and EUIC and NAIC are a lot easier to get to for both EU/NA folks.

Akcoş-Cromie: I actually think viewers should watch out for new names.

Traylor: I wonder if past LAIC winners such as Carson Confer, James Baek, and Ashton Cox are considering another trip—definitely names to watch out for.

Akcoş-Cromie: NA in particular has a habit over the past few seasons of having newcomers absolutely break out with fantastic runs early on in their Pokémon career—so looking out for new names and following their journey through the tournament could be a great storyline!

Ugarte: Lou is making a great point; it definitely seems new American talent is popping up every tournament now. From Tim Edwards to Patrick Connors at both of the most recent International Championships.

Shepperd: It feels like this format should also be of interest to longtime players who can lean on their experience of past formats too.

Akcoş-Cromie: It’s a really nice mix to be honest—lots of newer players finding the game more accessible and intriguing to play, and veterans being able to use experience to make themselves more adaptable and see more win conditions than newer players.

Shepperd: Yeah, Lou. Joe mentioned that this is a wide-open format. It seems like anyone who puts their mind to it can come up with something crafty.

Ugarte: Some other NA names to note are Brady Smith and Kyle Livinghouse, both strong players in their own right and no stranger to attending LAIC. We also can’t forget about some of the most consistent players this format. Junxi top-cutting both Baltimore and Louisville and Riley Factura—arguably one of NA’s best right now.

Shepperd: Is that the vibe, or should we still always expect top players to rise to the top?

Traylor: It seems like part of the draw of LAIC is getting to experience Regulation H on the big stage.

Akcoş-Cromie: I think both. You can’t underestimate anyone right now.

Traylor: Riley will definitely be there. Definite name to watch for sure. He got Top 16 last year too, right?

Ugarte: He got Top 4 last year, when he was on that monster run with the same team he used throughout all of Regulation E.

Traylor: I wonder if Alberto Lara will make the trip; we just saw him at Lille in day two as well—this is totally his kind of format.

Akcoş-Cromie: Yeah, he’s having a great time with Corviknight and Garchomp!

Shepperd: OK, one last chance to get spicy. What are your hottest takes for LAIC?

Akcoş-Cromie: GASTRODON.

OK, for real…

Ugarte: Corviknight, Garchomp, screens, ride into the California sunset...the Alberto Lara way.

Akcoş-Cromie: I expect weather to win again—not sure which, but weather setting will be part of the team.

Traylor: My hot take is that Ursaluna isn’t done with this format yet—I think we’ll see the bear take it all. Either of the bears. It’s important to bet on Pokémon with multiple powerful forms.

Ugarte: I think that my hot take is that we will see an America vs. EU finals this year. Specifically, Italy vs. USA would be my prediction.

Shepperd: With all the amazing South American players in the field, that is a hot take!

Akcoş-Cromie: I think a previous IC finalist will win it all this year. There are a lot of veterans out there proving their consistency—I think they will go all the way as they’re hungry for that prestigious win.

Ugarte: Absolutely, they have so many strong players, and I’d absolutely be happy to see my hot take be incorrect, as so many players deserve to be on that final stage.

Traylor: I think we’ll get some awesome streamed games between LATAM’s finest defending their championship from players from all over the world. I really can’t wait.

Akcoş-Cromie: LAIC is also the International Championship for video games where we’ve seen double winners—Ashton Cox won it twice and Marco Silva has won two International Championships, including LAIC.

Ugarte: Thiago Lattanzi vs. Marco Silva rematch, round one!

Traylor: Thiago Lattanzi is a great name to mention—he is an extremely strong Trainer who really popped off at last year’s LAIC. Who knows what he’s brewing for this one.

Akcoş-Cromie: If viewers like making bingo cards for the broadcast, they might need a bigger card!

Shepperd: This has been a great discussion. The diversity of Pokémon alone should make this a fascinating competition to watch. And this is (I think) the largest LAIC, so there’ll be no shortage of names to watch for. Any last thoughts for viewers before we wrap up?

Ugarte: Absolutely. With such a large International Championship, who knows what’s gonna happen! To be honest, I think Regulation H is a very special format... I would maybe even argue one of the most creative and unique in the Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet era. I was super skeptical coming into the format, but it’s been a pleasant surprise. I would say to enjoy it while it lasts; it’s a one-of-a-kind of format in my opinion.

Traylor: I personally can’t wait for Regulation G again. But I’m excited to see the tail end of Regulation H play out!

Akcoş-Cromie: Agreed. It’s going to be a very unique event where we really get to see all the creativity in this format brought to one place from all around the world. It’s going to be very special.

Ugarte: Also, Jumpluff #1. Had to throw that in there quick.

Shepperd: Alright, thanks everybody! This was another really fun chat.

Ugarte: Thanks for having us, Chris! Always happy to be here.

Akcoş-Cromie: Thanks again, Chris! It’s been great chatting to everybody.

Traylor: Thank you for having us! This was a lot of fun.