Meta

The most popular and effective strategies, teams, and Pokemon in the current competitive environment.

Regulation

The ruleset that defines which Pokemon, items, and moves are allowed in official competitive play for a given season.

Restricted Pokemon

Powerful legendary Pokemon that are limited to a certain number per team (usually 2) in competitive formats.

VP (Victory Points)

The in-game currency used to recruit Pokemon, change moves, switch abilities, and apply Mega Stones in Champions mode.

Type Effectiveness

The damage multiplier system where certain types deal more (super-effective, 2x) or less (not very effective, 0.5x) damage against others. Some types are immune (0x) to others.

VGC

Video Game Championships — the official competitive format for Pokemon, played as Doubles (2v2) battles.

Doubles

The standard competitive format where each player sends out 2 Pokemon at a time, allowing for team synergy and positioning strategies.

Team Audit

An analysis tool that scores your team from 0-100 based on type coverage, shared weaknesses, meta threat exposure, and speed advantages.

Core

A combination of 2-3 Pokemon that work well together, covering each other's weaknesses and creating offensive or defensive synergy.

Archetype

A team style built around a central strategy, such as Rain, Sun, Trick Room, Hyper Offense, or Bulky Balance.

Type Coverage

The range of types your team can hit super-effectively. Good coverage means fewer blind spots against the meta.

Weakness Report

A breakdown of your team's shared type weaknesses — types that multiple team members are weak to.

Matchup Matrix

A grid comparing your team members against top meta threats, showing advantages, disadvantages, and mutual threats.

Lead

The Pokemon you send out first in battle. Good leads set the pace with speed control, intimidate, or offensive pressure.

Bring 4

In Doubles, you see your opponent's 6 Pokemon in Team Preview but only bring 4 to the actual battle. Choosing the right 4 is a key skill.

STAB

Same Type Attack Bonus — moves that match the user's type deal 1.5x damage. A Fire-type using Flamethrower gets STAB.

Trick Room

A move that reverses speed order for 5 turns, making slower Pokemon move first. Enables strategies built around slow, powerful Pokemon.

Tailwind

A move that doubles your team's speed for 4 turns. A key speed control option in Doubles.

Weather

Field conditions (Sun, Rain, Sand, Snow) that boost certain types and activate abilities like Chlorophyll, Swift Swim, and Sand Rush.

Terrain

Field conditions (Electric, Grassy, Psychic, Misty) that boost certain move types by 30% and provide secondary effects.

Intimidate

An ability that lowers both opponents' Attack by one stage when the user enters battle. One of the most important abilities in Doubles.

Pivot

Switching out a Pokemon strategically, often using moves like U-turn, Volt Switch, or Flip Turn to gain momentum.

Priority

Moves with priority (like Protect, Fake Out, Extreme Speed) go before normal moves regardless of speed. Higher priority beats lower priority.

Spread Move

A move that hits both opponents in Doubles (like Earthquake, Heat Wave). Spread moves deal 75% of their normal damage.

Protect

Shields the user from all moves for one turn. Essential in Doubles for scouting, stalling, and positioning. Fails if used consecutively.

Base Stats

The innate stat values of a Pokemon species. Higher base stats mean stronger Pokemon. BST (Base Stat Total) is the sum of all six stats.

Stat Points

Points you allocate to boost individual stats in Champions mode. Max 32 per stat, 66 total across all stats.

EVs (Effort Values)

The traditional stat investment system. In Champions mode, EVs are converted to Stat Points (1 SP ≈ 4 EVs).

Nature

Each Pokemon has a nature that boosts one stat by 10% and reduces another by 10%. Choosing the right nature is crucial for optimization.

Speed Tier

The speed bracket a Pokemon falls into after stat investment and nature. Knowing speed tiers helps you decide who moves first.