Chapter 181
A match was found.
Mike looked at his opponent’s rating and saw that it was fairly close to Manryo’s.
For the first time that morning, he felt a small amount of pressure.
’If I lose badly in front of this many people, that’s going to be incredibly embarrassing.’
Fortunately, Mike had already prepared the team he wanted to use in the standard format.
It was deliberately constructed around Pokémon that beginner Trainers could realistically obtain and raise:
Poliwrath, Kingdra, Pelipper, Ludicolo, Raichu, and Staraptor.
Of those six, Kingdra was probably the hardest to obtain.
As for the Electric-type special attacker, Mike had deliberately chosen Raichu—the evolved form of Pikachu, a Pokémon so common that in some places it felt more plentiful than stray dogs.
[Kalos Lady: That lineup... can actually win?]
[GardevoirDoesntUnderstandMyLove: Are we sure this team is reliable?]
While the chat continued questioning his roster, the battle officially began.
The opponent sent out Torkoal first.
Drought immediately activated, and harsh sunlight flooded the battlefield.
Mike led with Poliwrath.
He checked the opponent’s remaining Pokémon and immediately noticed a Venusaur in the lineup.
"I’m telling all of you right now, if he doesn’t switch to Venusaur here, I’ll eat this screen."
Mike recalled Poliwrath.
"So we answer by bringing out Pelipper."
Both Trainers switched at the same time.
Venusaur and Pelipper appeared together, but Pelipper’s Drizzle immediately replaced the sunlight with rain.
Mike saw Venusaur and grinned.
"Drought plus Chlorophyll? You want to put me to sleep and start setting up? Dream on. Eat a U-turn!"
Pelipper struck Venusaur with U-turn, knocking it down to around half health before retreating into its Poké Ball.
Kingdra entered the field.
With the rain active, Swift Swim doubled its Speed.
The opponent immediately withdrew the weakened Venusaur and sent Torkoal back out. Drought activated once again, overwriting the rain with harsh sunlight.
Mike raised an eyebrow.
"You’re really going to fight me for weather every single turn? Fine. Take a Surf!"
Kingdra unleashed a towering wave that crashed over Torkoal.
Its HP bar plummeted almost all the way to zero.
Mike stared at the tiny sliver remaining.
"Wow! That actually survived?"
The opponent recalled Torkoal and brought Venusaur back onto the field.
Under harsh sunlight, Chlorophyll activated and Venusaur’s Speed doubled.
Sleep Powder hit Kingdra, putting it to sleep.
Mike immediately withdrew Kingdra and sent Pelipper back out.
Drizzle activated again.
Rain returned to the field.
The chat was already beginning to lose its mind over the repeated weather changes.
Mike stared at the rain and took a breath.
"I’m betting he sends Torkoal back in again to overwrite my weather."
[Professor Purple: Is this seriously a battle at this rating?]
[Oldesst_dream: My grandma could play this. They’re literally just taking turns changing the weather.]
Mike sighed.
"To be fair, this really shouldn’t look like this. The problem is that this guy is unbelievably stubborn about forcing Chlorophyll Venusaur. His plan is obviously to use the sun to outspeed me, put something to sleep, then either start dealing damage or spread status and slowly grind the team down."
Sure enough, Venusaur was recalled.
The nearly defeated Torkoal returned to the field.
Mike had Pelipper use U-turn.
The attack finished Torkoal off, then Pelipper retreated and Mike brought the sleeping Kingdra back out.
His opponent used the opportunity to have Venusaur use Growth.
Mike frowned.
"Growth? So this Venusaur is probably running Chlorophyll, Growth, Sleep Powder, and then Solar Beam or Giga Drain for damage."
He stared at the screen, increasingly confused.
"But if you’re using a set like that, why didn’t you just hit my sleeping Kingdra with Giga Drain? You could’ve finished it off and healed yourself at the same time."
Mike genuinely couldn’t understand what his opponent was doing.
"And you’re seriously this greedy? Using Growth right in front of me?"
He withdrew Kingdra and sent Pelipper back out.
Drizzle immediately returned the battlefield to rain.
The screen displayed the message that Venusaur was gathering sunlight.
Mike blinked.
"Solar Beam? Everyone, this is exactly where you can see the value of a Power Herb. If you insist on using Solar Beam outside reliable sun, you really don’t want to be stuck charging for a turn."
Then he smiled.
"But it doesn’t matter. Take a Hurricane!"
Venusaur’s delayed Solar Beam hit Pelipper, but under the rain it failed to do anything particularly threatening.
Pelipper immediately answered with Hurricane.
Thanks to the rain, the attack landed cleanly and wiped out Venusaur’s remaining HP.
Mike leaned forward.
"So what’s the third Pokémon going to be?"
He had barely finished speaking when the opponent forfeited.
Mike stared at the victory screen.
The entire chat seemed to stare with him.
[...]
[...]
[...]
Mike slowly covered his forehead with one hand.
"I get it now. This guy must have copied a team from somewhere and memorized exactly one sequence: set sun, use Sleep Powder, boost with Growth, then mindlessly try to sweep."
He shook his head helplessly.
"That was a perfectly usable sun team. I genuinely don’t know how he managed to play it like that."
Mike immediately queued for another match.
"The important thing here is that battling isn’t about copying a template and repeating it no matter what happens. This is only a game, and even here that kind of thinking gets punished. In a real Trainer battle, it would be even worse because your opponent and their Pokémon can react in ways a fixed sequence can’t account for."
As matchmaking continued, Mike’s tone became more serious.
"Battling tests the Trainer’s tactical judgment, the coordination between Trainer and Pokémon, and your ability to adapt when the situation changes. If you already know your opponent has seen through your plan and you still force the exact same strategy anyway, you’re not improving. If anything, doing that for too long teaches you bad habits and makes you worse."
The first battle had been entertaining, but it hadn’t demonstrated much about rain teams, so Mike could only hope the second one would provide a better example.
The next opponent opened with Tyranitar.
The massive Pokémon appeared on the battlefield like a true desert tyrant, and Sand Stream immediately whipped the arena into a violent sandstorm.
Mike once again led with Poliwrath.
"Same principle as before. Since we’re using a rain team, we want control of the weather first."
He recalled Poliwrath and sent out Pelipper.
Pelipper entered the field, and Drizzle effortlessly replaced the sandstorm with rain.
Then Tyranitar’s fist suddenly lit up with yellow electricity.
A Thunder Punch slammed directly into Pelipper.
Mike watched Pelipper’s entire HP bar disappear.
For a moment, he simply stared.
Then he shouted, "WHO PUTS THUNDER PUNCH ON TYRANITAR?!"
The chat immediately filled with laughter.
[optiums_prime: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA]
[Mimikyu_DCX: THINGS THATONLY HAPPEN IN MATCHMAKING.]
[Shadow_Dragon_9805: MATCHMAKING MOMENT.]
Mike sent Poliwrath back out.
His opponent withdrew Tyranitar and brought in Milotic.
Mike immediately leaned forward.
"Milotic? I’m betting you switch Tyranitar back in to catch my Water move, so take a Waterfall!"
Poliwrath leaped high and came crashing down with Waterfall.
Milotic barely moved.
Its HP bar lost only a small amount.
Mike’s eyes widened.
"You didn’t switch? Damn it, that last opponent completely messed with my expectations."
[Immortal_Collector: HAHAHAHA! They give you one bot and suddenly you think you’ve ascended.]
[ItsMeJimbo: Awkward now, isn’t it?]
[Justindemigod: Let’s see how you deal with Milotic.]
[Blackko: Milotic: Rain team? Sorry, that tickles.]
[Siamus_404: This is what happens when you bring Raichu. What are you going to do now?]
[Red_Dragon_7597: And it’s Flame Orb Milotic too. That thing is going to be ridiculously bulky.]
Milotic used Body Slam, knocking Poliwrath’s HP down significantly.
Electrical arcs immediately flickered across Poliwrath’s body, and Mike fell silent when he saw the paralysis status appear.
[Dini_Jimenez: HAHAHAHA, BODY SLAM PARALYSIS TOO?!]
[Dracul91: Oh no, paralyzed!]
After a brief pause, Mike’s expression hardened. "...Fine. I’m paralyzed. So what? Poliwrath, use Belly Drum!"
Poliwrath began pounding its large stomach, sacrificing half of its remaining HP to maximize its Attack.
The Sitrus Berry it was holding immediately activated afterward, restoring a substantial portion of the lost health.
Milotic answered with Scald, lowering Poliwrath’s HP again, but Mike remained calm as he watched the damage.
"We might look like we’re barely scratching Milotic right now, but believe me, Milotic is doing even less to us. As long as Poliwrath stays on the field, he can’t comfortably bring Tyranitar back in unless he wants to eat a Waterfall."
Mike smiled as he selected his next move. "So now we go with Drain Punch!"
The opponent withdrew Milotic and sent Tyranitar back onto the field. Sand Stream immediately activated, replacing the rain with another sandstorm.
Mike laughed the moment he saw the switch.
"You’re actually bringing Tyranitar back in? Poliwrath hits you for four-times super effective damage. What exactly are you planning to survive this with?"
Poliwrath drove a Drain Punch straight into Tyranitar’s stomach.
Tyranitar’s HP bar vanished almost instantly, while Poliwrath recovered all the way back to full health.
Mike leaned toward the camera with a grin.
"You really sent Tyranitar back in? Did you seriously think my Fighting-type Poliwrath wouldn’t carry a Fighting-type move?"
[Sølaris: Wait, Poliwrath is actually this strong?]
[eggnomius: Isn’t its base stat total pretty low? I thought its Attack wasn’t that impressive either.]
"Poliwrath’s overall base stats really aren’t exceptional, and its Attack isn’t absurdly high by itself," Mike explained while the opponent selected their next Pokémon.
"But on a rain team, its Ability synergizes very well with Belly Drum, which lets it become a powerful physical attacker once it gets the chance to set up."
He gestured toward the screen as he continued.
"Poliwrath also has a fairly broad movepool, so it has plenty of coverage options. That makes it a good fit for ordinary Trainers because you’re not relying on some incredibly rare Pokémon or complicated gimmick. If you can safely get Belly Drum off, its offensive power jumps to a completely different level."
The opponent’s third Pokémon appeared on the battlefield.
Garchomp.
Garchomp immediately unleashed Draco Meteor, and the devastating attack dropped Poliwrath deep into the red.
Poliwrath managed to survive, however, and Mike’s grin widened as he immediately selected his response.
"Ice Punch."
Poliwrath struck Garchomp cleanly with the four-times super effective attack and knocked it out in a single blow.
Mike laughed.
"Oh? Garchomp? What exactly were you planning to do against an Ice Punch?"
He pointed proudly toward Poliwrath on the screen.
"See that? That’s why Belly Bro is terrifying. He can take hits, recover with Drain Punch, and once Belly Drum is active, he starts knocking Pokémon out one after another. He’s bulky enough to survive punishment while still hitting like a truck."
With only Milotic remaining, the opponent chose to forfeit.
The victory screen appeared, and Mike immediately raised his chin with an unbearably smug expression as he looked toward the chat.
"We won. You may praise me now."
[Haphaestus_Forger: Amazing!]
[D_King07: Why are you calling our adorable Poliwrath ’Belly Bro’?!]
[Tomodachi_UwU: I’ve decided. I’m building a rain team too!]
[Yopleasee: Still not convinced. I’m watching a few more matches first.]
The messages continued pouring across the screen while Mike, clearly pleased with himself, prepared to queue for another battle.