Battle Strategies – Competitive Pokemon Explained Part 2

Now that we’ve laid the groundwork with stats, it’s time to talk strategy. Here are some competitive battle tactics that every trainer should know in Pokemon Sword and Shield.

Even if you’ve played every Pokemon game, there’s a good chance you’ve never played it competitively. That’s because competitive Pokemon has a high barrier to entry, and there’s a lot you need to know just to start battling. That said, competitive battling is exciting and incredibly rewarding–it’s worth it, and Sword and Shield are a great place to get started.

In the last video we broke down how a Pokemon’s stats are laid out. In Part 2, we dig into how battling works: abilities, speed and priority, weather, shutting down strong attackers, and much more.

In GameSpot’s Pokemon Sword and Shield review, Kallie Plagge wrote, "In collecting, battling, and exploring, Sword and Shield cut out the bloat and focus on what makes these pillars of the Pokemon games so captivating in the first place. You’re not held back by overly complicated back-end systems or hoops to jump through; from the outset, you can start wandering the Galar region, seeing its new Pokemon, and trying out its new battle strategies with very little in your way. This leaves you free to enjoy what Pokemon is all about, and that makes for an incredibly strong showing for the series’ proper debut on Switch."

Timestamps:
00:52 – Abilities Breakdown
01:24 – Stat Changes
03:01 – Speed & Priority
06:02 – Shutting Down Attackers
07:23 – Redirection
08:11 – Protect & Switching Out
08:58 – Common Held Items
10:37 – Weather
12:42 – Terrain
13:38 – Dynamaxing
15:09 – Conclusion

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