By 4TheBattles
Hello and welcome to Battle Frontier! I am 4TheBattles and have played Master League in several competitive formats with most of my experience playing as a ML Specialist for Silph from Silver through Emerald Tier. My GBL Leaderboard Peak is #9 and I’ve been playing PvP since day 1. I had a great time in the first cycle of Battle Frontier and I’m honored to take a look at the new Master League Format for the upcoming Cycle!
The points meta
Going into this meta, I expect trainers to feel just enough change for a fresher feeling Master League, but also a lot familiarity to feel comfortable to explore it. A couple of the impactful changes include a lift to the ban of one of the bigger players in Mega Salamence and several adjustments to the cost of different Pokémon. For the Battle Frontier Master League each trainer can use Pokémon powered to their highest level as there is no CP limit but each Pokémon carries its own point value and each team of 6 must not go above 8 points. Several Pokémon are banned and trainers can only register one Mega per team (though this is not required).
After play testing and the releases of Sandsear Storm and Annihilape, the following changes were made from the initial released ruleset: Mega Tyranitar is now banned, Landorus (Therian) is 2 points, and Annihilape remains at zero points.
The highest value a Pokémon can carry is 6 points and for this cycle there are just two Pokémon whose strength warrants that kind of commitment: Mega Salamence and Mega Scizor. The stat product of Salamence warps a dragon like Dialga and Scizors new access to Trailblaze puts a huge threat on Kyogre who has acted as an important counter to Scizor in the past. These bigger threats are posed to centralize the meta. Though as intimidating as these Pokémon may feel, they will be expensive. If you want to add one of these big guns to your team you’ll need to adjust the rest of your squad using just 2 points and utilize Pokémon in the “free” category. A team composition like this is a commitment decision but one that could pay off if your opponent isn’t careful with their coverage! A runaway Salamence or Scizor will lead to an easy victory.
First look and analysis
As we are about to jump into the early weeks of competition, trainers will need to navigate a balance between creating healthy teams and covering for some new big kids on the block. Around these big threats we have a delicate meta surrounding the Pokémon that are strong but flexible in their cost. Gyarados as a zero point Pokémon has held a stronghold in the format and will continue to be a force this season. In a meta where dragons have such viability and some of the bigger threats are Steel-types, it should be no surprise Gyarados flexible coverage options as a functional dragon or water type pair nicely with many winning teams. Buzzwole and Mega Sceptile will join Pokémon like Gyarados in the “free” category this cycle. After an adjustment to Breaking Swipe some of Sceptile’s power has been cut, yet it still boasts an interesting type and wide range of attacks that could prove useful in a format where movesets can be changed post team-reveal. Several choices like Metagross and Tapu Bulu will continue to fill important rolls rounding out your team should you need those affordable yet very viable options. Choices like Tapu Bulu and even Buzzwole can provide coverage for some of the more expensive choices like Kyogre (Buzzwole can actually take the one shield scenario vs big whale!).
Taking a look at the usage from some helpful Candle Cult tournaments and the winning teams from those, we can see a bit of a watery theme this season. Gyarados’ flexibility and cost and Mega Blastoises bulk and access to coverage moves have pushed them to the forefront of this meta. These powerful water types will hold important rolls as resistance to some of the heavy hitters like Mega Scizor and a newly buffed Ho-oh. On the subject of buffs we have an interesting Pokémon making its “meta debut” in Avalugg. In a territory where gaining advantage is big and dragons are everywhere, the addition of Icy Wind to this family is a welcome change for a free Pokémon.
Joining this debuffer in some high usage is Rhyperior. Though he took a hit with the Breaking Swipe nerf, Rhyperior’s flexibility as a rock chucker or mud slapper combined with an array of flexible charge moves have kept Rhy Rhy as a strong force to contend with. Though it’s no longer guaranteed to debuff, having access to a quick Breaking Swipe will continue to help Rhyperior act as a heavy multi-functional player for many trainers.
Closing words
As the points add up, the importance of the meta around these free Pokémon is clear. Subtle shifts will be noticed like Heatran leaving the free category and now costing a point and Landorus jumping from 1 to 2 points with the addition of Sandsear Storm. As trainers have had access to this Pokémon in raids several times and will again soon I expect to see a good amount of Landorus (likely mostly Therian) despite its price raise. Landorus use of mud shot for quick charging powerful (and soon a debuffing!) attacks will let it shine as a versatile Pokémon to dance around teams.
Whether you choose to build with several lower cost options or 1 big guy and a few cheaper backups, it’s interesting to see the variance change in Master league teams. I’m excited to see new strong cores emerge as trainers navigate to find their own synergy through several interesting move and cost adjustments!
