NDWC III Coverage
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Art by Swiffix.
Introduction
National Dex's first team tournament of Generation 9 burst onto the stage in the form of National Dex World Cup, featuring the best players from all regions coming together in a tournament to see which region will come out on top. This year, following the hype of the new generation, the tournament has increased its size to 12 regions, each featuring 12 capable players ready to innovate and explore the new and volatile Generation 9 metagame. As a result, the teams were divided into two pools of six, with the top two teams from each advancing to a playoffs stage. Featuring four SV National Dex OU slots, as well as the debut of National Dex Ubers in a tournament setting, this World Cup seeks to reward those able to translate their creativity into success.
Rosters
Scarlet Pool
China (AL, hi.naming is hard)- AL, hi.naming is hard, chansey and lulu, Bilibili w, akarihikari, Unowndragon, Alsang, GeZi, KanzakiHAria, kaifengyyds, luckyluckygo, Raceding
This edition of NDWC was China’s first time shoring up a team, captained by familiar faces in the NatDex scene AL and hi.naming is hard (gewwge), the team had some familiar faces as well as some new faces in the tier. Most notable was Unowndragon, who played for Asia + Oceania last edition and performed well while also putting up good records in the other tours in the tier. Gewwge is a newer face in the tier but has been making waves on ladder as of late and has also made it decently far in the late NatDex Winter Seasonal. Overall a decent team, but it has a lot of tough competition to get past.
France (Ryuji, Clementine)- Wait2Seconds, SiTuM, Ryuji, Hyssou, BlazingDark, Clementine, Eledyr, Cherbou, AzZoCcX, RichardMillePlain, Carkoala, Cielau
A strong playoff contender, as well as having a good shot at winning the entire thing, France has had a big turnover starting from the last edition, where they reached the finals. They're captained by NatDex Council Member Ryuji with Clementine, with both being familiar faces in NatDex team tours and Ryuji having a long history of high places in NatDex tournaments, coming fresh off a NDPL win and determined to go for a second ring and make up for last years finals wash to US Northeast + South. They have a very deep roster as well, with NatDex Ubers head Eledyr, strong SV pilots in BlazingDark and Wait2Seconds, with Ryujis building support, their SS slots covered by Clementine, and a decent Monotype slot in Cherbou. Overall, it is a very strong team on all fronts, one of the strongest playoff contenders from the pool, with no slots really raising an eye.
India (Piyush25, Dj Breloominati♬)- RaJ.Shoot, TDR, frostyicelad, Saurav the great, Piyush25, Dj Breloominati♬, Ashbala, skimmythegod, ASKid679, Greentea570, Miyoko, Rhmsitb
India is not a team new to the tour, but they've never made it to playoffs; this edition, they might lend themselves to a similiar fate, as the teams around them have only gotten stronger, and they were placed in arguably the deeper of the two pools. Led by Piyush25 and Dj Breloominati♬, familiar faces in the tournament scene, their roster overall isn't too strong. Dj Breloominati♬ and Piyush in SS and skimmythegod in Ubers seem to be their strongest slots, with skimmy being a renowned Ubers player, but their building support for SV looks dire. They're definitely one of the weaker teams in the pool, but they have potential to make it big if they get sufficient support and manage their slots accordingly.
Latin America (Ferenia, Athena's Myth)- Mrbanana45, SpectralThief, AmyQuaris, Hollow Soul, Ikaishi, kaipro, Tempo di anguria, One Last Kiss, Taki1223, Maxisc23, Imagina 2 vacas, Estuardo19
LA has completely rebuilt their roster from last year, even changing managers with Ferenia and Athena's Myth taking the reins from Kaede and Luisin this year. SpectralThief is the only remaining member from the previous roster, with everyone else including the bench changed. Some of the new notable names include AmyQuaris, Ferenia, Mrbanana45, and Ikaishi, all having previous tournament experience, be it NatDex or not. This roster feels like a similiar case to China, in which a good bit of the roster is relatively unproven and unknown from a tournament standpoint. However, they do have a strong base, and I would not be surprised if they performed well, though they have a lot of competition to push through.
USA Northeast + Canada (Isza, spellcaster)- Isza, Lameflame, Kyo, peap, jay, Finchinator, Booty, LBN, 3d, Fc, Elfuseon, sensei axew
Winners of the previous edition, USA Northeast is looking to 2-peat the tour. In this edition, however, they traded in being merged with US South for Canada, with South being able to field their own team this year. Led by Isza and Spellcaster, both very familiar faces in the community, US Northeast + Canada is looking like the number one choice to win the entire tour just based on their lineup. Having top 5 players in pretty much every slot, as well as motivated and consistent building support from all of them, there isn't much to say about this team. It would be extremely surprising if this team flopped, and even not making the finals would be quite shocking, but upsets have happened before and can happen again.
USA South (Sulo, style.css)- hidin, spoo, gamer but swag, sulo, kDCA, Togkey, Felines, pdt, sealoo, Takatk, Runoisch, 2020 idm boomer
US South is fresh from splitting from US Northeast, and with that have took on a ton of new faces. Taken on by Sulo and style.css, US South have gotten a major rebuild from last year, with only pdt and style.css remaining from the previous roster. Their SV slots, while they shouldn't be struggling with builds any time soon, do lack experience in the tournament scene, but all do have some previous SV tournament experience and should perform decently if they can adapt to the big stage. The two SS slots look decent; both Togkey and kDCA have had a lot of previous experience in tournaments, with kDCA playing the tier last NDPL as well. Their Monotype and Ubers slot are notable too, as Felines with support from style.css and pdt are both top tier in their respective slots and expected to perform well. Overall, South is a solid team but placed in a hard pool; they're a strong contender for playoffs but might have issues against the more established teams.
Violet Pool
Asia + Oceania (vstra, anique)- vstra, anique, baconeatinassassin, DugZa, trace, gorex, Drifting, ChrisPBacon, ninjadog, adem, Velcroc, Coolcodename
Asia + Oceania return in this tournament with a similar roster to that of last year, aiming to make it past semifinals this year. vstra and anique have taken on the role of managers from adem and gorex, although the latter two remain on the team. Their OU core and Ubers seem to be quite solid in both generations, with vstra, anique, adem, and ChrisPBacon all being prominent players, as well as baconeatinassassin being solid in either OU or Ubers. However, their other slots raise some more questions, as they seem to be mainly filled up by known tournament players such as ninjadog, Drifting, and DugZa, who may require more support to succeed. Regardless, this seems to be a solid roster, with good chances to make playoffs.
Brazil (KeldeoCrowned, Mateeus)- KeldeoCrowned, Beraldo, Thiago Nunes, Leafium Z, siras, Ampha, Lextrevis, Tico, Seraphz, Mateeus, RiloBR, mateospulario
Brazil makes their debut in the tournament this year, splitting off from the main Latin America region. Accompanying this new roster are solid tournament players such as KeldeoCrowned, Thiago Nunes, and Beraldo, all of whom have the potential to do well in the tournament. Accompanying them is Mateeus, a well-known and solid Monotype player who could excel in the relatively weak Monotype pool. However, the roster afterwards takes a bit of a hit, as most of their players don't necessarily excel in particular, and their team lacks solid National Dex builders, which could be to their detriment in a tier that encourages creativity and new teams, although the high-variance nature could also mean that less solid builds could go unpunished. Overall, the team has potential to do well, but they might have some issues getting through some of the more established teams.
Europe (AtraX Madara, Mihowk)- Lily, Lunala, tlenit, Latiasboy, pannu, Stareal, Guard, AtraX Madara, Ainzcrad, Aera, Mihowk, Entrocefalo
Europe sports a formidable roster this edition of World Cup, with great chances of making it deep in the tournament. Their OU core comprises strong tournament players in Lily, Lunala, and tlenit who are supported by the recent seasonal winner and third-place Latiasboy and Entrocefalo, respectively. Their other slots seem solid as well, with Guard and AtraX Madara being quite experienced in Ubers and Monotype respectively, and their SS slots being solid and flexible, as pannu alongside an array of known tournament players should have the potential to achieve good results in the tier. Overall, their team seems incredibly solid, being a strong playoff contender in this pool and achieving great results throughout.
Spain (Dorron, Mandibuladel5555)- Javi, Guille, Shiek, Dasmer, CharlyHunter98, Docutel, seroo, RacsoZeta, adricraxk, Irene-2002, Dorron, Mandibuladel5555
Spain finds themselves separated from UK unlike last edition of the tournament, although this may result in an overall weaker roster. Although none of their slots seem egregiously out of place, even their more established slots such as Dasmer and Guille don't necessarily seem like standouts in the pool. Additionally, maybe with the exception of Dorron in Monotype, their players seem relatively unfamiliar to the tier, which could be a problem when it comes to providing solid teams and building support. As a result, it could be a challenge for this team to make playoffs, but if they can support their consistency with success, then they could have the potential for a breakthrough result.
UK (Milo, Jho)- Jho, autumn, Banbadoro, Amir, Milo, SOMALIA, LORD SAGIS, TTK, SwordIsBored, Toto, Pokemonrainer, Galarian Blades
On the other hand, UK sports their own roster this year with some solid and known talent backing them up. Managers Jho and Milo take the reins, with both being solid and experienced builders who should provide adequate support to their other OU slots in Banbadoro and Amir, who should be able to achieve solid success. However, outside of these slots, with the exception of LORD SAGIS in Ubers, their lineup seems relatively unproven, which may result in some struggles if their upper slots perform poorly. However, this team has solid potential if they're able to pull some of their less favored slots to victory.
USA Midwest + USA West (sasha, avarice)- Adriyun, avarice, Clawed Winter, FatFighter2, maroon, Mollymiltoast, sasha, Sputnik, about15guys, sanguine, sh0shin, Starfox.
USA Midwest + USA West make their reappearance in this tournament after a middling performance last time, in this edition without the addition of Canada. Similarly to last time, their roster is stacked with solid players such as sasha and avarice alongside good building support, although it'll be up to them to see if they can utilize their players to success. They also feature great slots in SS and Monotype with Mollymiltoast and maroon, respectively. However, they also feature newer, less proven players such as Adriyun, about15guys, and sh0shin. For Midwest + West to achieve success this tournament, it'll be up to these newer players to succeed; otherwise, this could be another premature elimination for them.
Pool Stages
In the early weeks of the Scarlet Pool, France got themselves to a breakneck lead, with the combined consistency of players such as Cherbou, Clementine, Eledyr, Ryuji, and Hyssou all achieving at least 3-1 records in the first four weeks. As a result, they were able to secure themselves a spot in the playoffs following a string of 5-3 wins, followed by another win against Latin America in Week 4. Meanwhile, in the same week, USA Northeast + Canada and USA South found themselves facing each other, with both teams only suffering one loss to France at the time. This was a tense matchup, given the victor would find themselves incredibly likely to make playoffs, while the loser would be all but certainly knocked out. Although each individual game was close, the combined strength of players such as Finchinator and Kyo from Northeast + Canada resulted in a blowout 7-1 victory for the former team, with another win against the struggling Latin America guaranteeing their spot in playoffs.
| Team | Wins | Losses | Ties | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USA Northeast + Canada | 4 | 1 | 0 | 12 |
| France | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| India | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| USA South | 2 | 3 | 0 | -5 |
| China | 1 | 4 | 0 | -5 |
| Latin America | 1 | 4 | 0 | -10 |
Meanwhile, in the Violet Pool, Europe had written a similar story to that of France in the other pool. With only one loss to Spain in Week 2 that was mitigated by a 7-1 victory against UK in Week 4 with the full strength of their most consistent players like Lily, Latiasboy, and entrocefalo, they too were able to secure their spot in playoffs before all five weeks had ended. However, the final week was not to be discounted, as there was still a vivid battle going on for second place. US Midwest + West and Spain both had the same record going into Week 5, with two wins, one loss, and one tie, meaning the victor would accompany Europe in playoffs. However, if they were to tie, then UK would be able to snipe the placement from them, provided they defeated the struggling Asia + Oceania. The score between the former two teams was incredibly close, however, US Midwest + West's dominant players in maroon, Adriyun, and sasha persisted, with all of them achieving 5-0 records and winning the week for their team, granting them a spot in the playoffs.
| Team | Wins | Losses | Ties | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 4 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| USA Midwest + USA West | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| UK | 3 | 2 | 0 | -2 |
| Spain | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Asia + Oceania | 0 | 2 | 3 | -5 |
| Brazil | 0 | 3 | 2 | -9 |
Metagame Developments
Being the first team tournament of a highly volatile new generation, NDWC was bound to see metagame innovation as people experiment with new teams and playstyles. Here are some of the most notable examples:
The idea of combining Tapu Koko's Electric Terrain with the newly introduced Quark Drive ability seems rather intuitive—after all, what could be more dangerous than these top threats blessed with a built-in Booster Energy? However, the playstyle never really took off before the tournament, as it was viewed as somewhat inconsistent, struggling to withstand other offensive onslaughts in the tier from Pokémon such as Dragapult and rain-boosted Mega Swampert and Barraskewda. Regardless, Quark Drive offense burst into the forefront this WC, as shown in Week 1 by Isza, where they showed that the reward could easily outweigh the risk when bringing these teams. This team focused on using Tapu Koko to boost the Speed of already fast Pokémon in Iron Valiant, Iron Moth, and Hawlucha, making them almost impossible to revenge kill. This results in a lights-out matchup against slower offense and bulky offense teams such as the team brought by Saurav the Great, which typically focuses on offensively checking and revenge killing threatening wallbreakers.
Isza goes up against Saurav the Great's bulky offense team, which features offensive threats such as Kingambit and Dragonite that also provide a fair amount of defensive utility. However, the defensive cornerstone in this matchup is Gholdengo, as it is required to stay at high health in order to keep Mega Scizor and Hawlucha in check late-game. As a result, Isza starts the game off by making aggressive Thunderbolts with their Iron Valiant, which backfires and results in Lopunny KOing it, albeit heavily damaging the Lopunny and KOing Gastrodon in the process. With Gastrodon out of the picture, Iron Moth is able to come in to revenge Lopunny, with Saurav's lack of pivots resulting in Tornadus-T and Mega Lopunny being sacrificed to allow for setup with Dragonite. Although Dragonite poses a threat with Tera Normal Extreme Speed, Hawlucha is able to answer it with a Terastallization of its own, in this case, Steel. Thus, with only Kingambit and Gholdengo remaining, Landorus-T is able to withstand an attack from either Pokémon and fire off a super effective Earthquake to close out the match. This replay perfectly demonstrates the offensive blow-for-blow nature these teams operate on and the subsequent success they can achieve, represented in following games here and here.
The debut of Generation 9 was seemingly unkind to Gliscor, as the recovery nerf coupled with the much more offensive nature of the metagame looked to be quite the hindrance. As a result, it was largely relegated to stall and fat teams as a Defogger—viable, but a far fall from its dominant stance in the previous two generations. However, this changed come Week 1 of World Cup, where Swords Dance Gliscor came roaring back with a vengeance, ready to tear unprepared balance teams to shreds. The recovery nerf turned out to benefit Gliscor, as its natural longevity was still plentiful thanks to Poison Heal, while it can now burn through the recovery of checks such as Skarmory, Buzzwole, and Skeledirge with much greater ease. Meanwhile, although the advent of Terastallization brought more offensive Pokémon that could outmuscle Gliscor, Gliscor was itself an excellent user of Terastallization, using either Tera Fairy or Water to neutralize its Ice and Water weaknesses while making itself harder to revenge kill, as the likes of Gholdengo and Tapu Koko fear its STAB Earthquake. Swords Dance Gliscor's balance breaking expertise was perfectly demonstrated in the game between Adriyun and tlenit, where Adriyun used a defensive team with Dragapult to keep offensive wallbreakers in check, while Gliscor and Reuniclus could outlast opposing defensive teams.
Adriyun faces tlenit's balance team featuring wallbreakers in Zamazenta and Kyurem supported by a pivot core of Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Toxapex. tlenit's primary wincon looks to be Kyurem, as its Ice-type attacks are incredibly difficult to switch into, which they facilitate by removing Reuniclus with Kingambit and crippling Garganacl by removing its Leftovers. However, Garganacl's item was traded in exchange for baiting in Covert Cloak Toxapex so as to not withstand Salt Cure chip, allowing Adriyun to risklessly bring in Gliscor and set up Swords Dance. With the threat on the field, tlenit sacrifices Landorus-T in order to bring Kyurem in to force Gliscor out ... until Gliscor uses Tera Fairy and effortlessly survives Freeze-Dry and forces Kyurem out! tlenit is now forced to sacrifice Kingambit in order to play to his out—Iron Head flinches versus Gliscor with Zamazenta, but Adriyun makes the safe play of switching to Toxapex, bringing Gliscor in later to force Tera Dragon from Toxapex and open it up to Dragapult, resulting in Kyurem being sacrificed. With tlenit's team losing its wallbreaking power, Adriyun is able to dance around the remaining Pokémon until Zamazenta and Tornadus both faint, resulting in a win. This game showcased how Terastal supports Gliscor in acting as a phenomenal wincon against more balanced teams, which was applied in a similar fashion here.
Playoffs
After five weeks of qualifiers, France found itself facing Europe, while USA Northeast + Canada was matched up against USA Midwest + West. Between France and Europe, although Clementine and Wait2Seconds got France to an early lead, Lily and Guard quickly brought the match back, with the two teams trading games between each other until a 4-4 tie was settled. Meanwhile, between Northeast + Canada and Midwest + West, the former team managed to secure a 4-2 lead thanks to Finchinator, peap, Isza, and LBN, leaving it up to FatFighter2 and Adriyun, who were to play at the same time, to fight back to a tie. Miraculously enough, both were able to win their crucial games, resulting in a double tiebreaker between the four semifinalists.
The tiebreak paired tlenit, Lily, and Guard from Europe against Ryuji, BlazingDark, and RichardMillePlain from France in SV NDOU, SV NDOU, and SV NDUbers respectively, while Isza, Finchinator, and Booty represented Northeast + Canada against Midwest + West's sasha, Mollymiltoast, and maroon in SV NDOU, SS NDOU, and Monotype. Between the two European teams, tlenit and Ryuji would play first, and although Ryuji would be able to force pressure early on with Bulk Up Great Tusk and a surprise Toxic Corrosion Glimmora, Tera Water Gholdengo would ultimately be able to sweep through his team, handing the game to Europe. Immediately afterwards, Lily and BlazingDark fought, with both parties bringing Electric Terrain hyper offense featuring the newly released Sneasler. In the near-mirror match, it would be Lily's Sneasler that came out on top, with Dire Claw shenanigans incapacitating Landorus-T, forcing BlazingDark to pull out Sneasler prematurely to revenge kill it. With Lily having momentum on her side, Kommo-o backed by dual screens support would clean up the game, making Europe the first team to make it to finals.
Afterwards, in the North America clash, Booty would make up for his previous loss against maroon, with a fortunate Fairy vs Fighting matchup facilitating a quick offensive beatdown. However, avarice would soon tie up the match, disrupting Finchinator's undefeated record with a balance team that paved the way for Mega Heracross to clean up with defensive support from Toxapex, Heatran, and Landorus-T. This set up a climatic final showdown between Isza and sasha, with both players bringing offensive teams that hinged on certain Terrain effects. However, it would be Isza's Mega Swampert and Barraskewda in rain that held the upper hand, breaking through most of sasha's Electric Terrain offense until Zapdos and Baxcalibur were able to secure the win.
Finals
For the finals, the strongest teams from each pool found themselves against each other for their debut match.
- Europe (2) vs (5) USA Northeast + Canada
- SV: Lily vs Isza
- SV: Latiasboy vs Kyo
- SV: entrocefalo vs peap
- SV: tlenit vs LBN
- SS: pannu vs Finchinator
- SS: Stareal vs 3d
- Monotype: AtraX Madara vs Booty
- Ubers: Guard vs Fc
The match began strongly for USA Northeast + Canada, as Booty and 3d got their team off to a strong start in their respective tiers. However, Latiasboy and Lily evened the series out with wins in SV National Dex, with the latter taking the win in a Psyspam mirror match. Regardless, peap, LBN, and Finchinator were able to achieve wins, all coincidentally using different structures involving sand, securing the win for USA Northeast + Canada.
Conclusion
After eight dynamic weeks, USA Northeast + Canada emerged victorious for the second time in a row, with Isza and Spellcaster claiming the first team tournament win of Generation 9. Throughout the tournament, National Dex saw some new and innovative strategies being explored, with the most effective eventually proving their success. To see more on the tournament, check out the replay thread, and stay tuned for the upcoming NDPL IV to see the next step in National Dex tournaments!
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