If you haven’t been following the 2016 Video Game Championship season, you may be surprised by the battles at the upcoming Winter Regional Championships. This season, instead of seeing battles that look like this one:

You’ll probably see battles that look more like this:

This year’s Video Game Championship format allows players to include two Pokémon from a group of Pokémon that were restricted from play last season—most commonly Groudon, Xerneas, Kyogre, and Rayquaza. This weekend’s Winter Regionals Championships will be the first large events in North America to use the 2016 Video Game Championship format—but players have been practicing with these rules since their announcement in early December. Take a look at some of the top teams to look out for in this new format as we head into the first major events.

Boss Battles

The trio of Xerneas, Groudon, and Smeargle make up the core of the most feared team leading into the Winter Regionals. All signs point to Trainers seeing a lot of this awesome threesome over the next few weeks. Smeargle may seem like the odd Pokémon out next to the power of the two Legendary Pokémon it joins, but make no mistake—its role is critical on this team. Let’s take a look at a sample team using these three Pokémon, as well as some Pokémon that often accompany the trio.

The combination of Pokémon on this team may test their opponent’s skill (and nerves) more than any other team in the history of the Video Game Championships. Xerneas holds Power Herb, which causes its Geomancy move to boost its Speed, Special Attack, and Special Defense by two levels in a single turn. This extra power makes Xerneas one of the key attackers on this team. All that potential makes it tempting for opponents to try to knock out Xerneas before it can take advantage of its elevated stats, but this team has a number of ways to protect Xerneas. Smeargle can use Follow Me and Fake Out to stop opponents from attacking Xerneas directly, or just use Dark Void and attempt to put both opponents to sleep. Both Smeargle and Xerneas are Pokémon that demand immediate attention—this strategy puts opponents into the difficult situation of having to pick which Pokémon to try to take down.

The rest of the team isn’t much easier to handle. Kangaskhan can help Smeargle use Dark Void or Xerneas use Geomancy by causing an opponent to flinch with its own Fake Out attack. Kangaskhan can also discourage opponents from focusing on Xerneas or Smeargle: attacking into Xerneas’s Protect or Smeargle’s Spiky Shield while Mega Kangaskhan uses Power-Up Punch to boost its Attack by two levels with minimal penalty can quickly change the course of a battle.

It’s a testament to the volume of tricks on this team that we haven’t even mentioned Groudon yet, a Pokémon many Trainers consider to be the strongest available. Primal Groudon often only needs a couple of turns to decimate an opposing team with a combination of powerful moves, and the huge number of distractions on this team often gives it the time it needs.

Talonflame can help the team gain a speed advantage with Tailwind, and it can move before an opposing Xerneas even after a Geomancy boost, thanks to Gale Wings. Quick Guard is Talonflame’s key move: it can defend Xerneas and Smeargle from moves with increased priority, particularly Fake Out from Mega Kangaskhan and Prankster-boosted Thunder Wave or Taunt from Thundurus.

Salamence can sometimes help its teammates endure an extra hit thanks to the Attack drop from its Intimidate Ability, and it becomes a serious damage threat as Mega Salamence, particularly to Rayquaza.

Each Pokémon on this popular team can cause match-ending pitfalls, so make sure to plan your turns carefully if you come up against a team similar to this one. And if you’re playing in a Winter Regional Championships this year, you probably will!

Other Pokémon frequently used on teams with Groudon, Xerneas, and Smeargle:

Only Two Can Stop Forest Fires

The combination of Kyogre and Rayquaza has been the second most common pairing of restricted Pokémon so far this season, falling short of only Groudon and Xerneas. This duo tries to leverage Groudon’s popularity to win battles, as their greatest strength is the constant pressure they apply to enemy Groudon. The combination of Primal Kyogre’s Primordial Sea, Rayquaza’s Air Lock, and Mega Rayquaza’s Delta Stream Abilities make it very difficult for Primal Groudon to keep its Desolate Land Ability active, allowing Rayquaza and Kyogre to knock it out with their Water-type attacks.

With Mega Rayquaza and Primal Kyogre providing most of the team’s offensive power, their teammates are typically selected to help tip important matchups in their favor.

Controlling the dangerous Xerneas is the first priority for teams built around this duo. Since neither Pokémon resists Fairy-type attacks, a Xerneas with a boost from Geomancy can quickly end the game if Kyogre and Rayquaza don’t get some assistance. The Steel- and Grass-type Ferrothorn is the most common solution to this problem. It can do huge damage to Xerneas with Gyro Ball, as well as to opposing Kyogre with Power Whip. Some players opt to use Amoonguss instead of Ferrothorn, gaining Spore and Rage Powder at the cost of doing significantly less damage.

Teams with Kyogre and Rayquaza vary greatly in composition after this point. Our sample team is rounded out with Thundurus, Landorus in its Therian Forme, and Gengar. Thundurus can slow down troublesome Pokémon such as Xerneas and Mega Salamence by paralyzing them with Thunder Wave, Taunt Smeargle to stop Dark Void, and damage enemy Kyogre and Talonflame with Thunderbolt. Landorus helps the team by weakening physical attacks with Intimidate and further improving the team’s matchup against Groudon, Ho-Oh, and Talonflame. On its surface, Gengar might seem like a strange final choice: if it Mega Evolves into Mega Gengar, Rayquaza is unable to Mega Evolve in the same battle. However, using Mega Gengar’s Shadow Tag Ability to trap an enemy Primal Groudon and allow Kyogre or Rayquaza to knock it out often leads to victory.

Other Pokémon frequently used on teams with Rayquaza and Kyogre:

Groudon, Xerneas, Rayquaza, and Kyogre are all such powerful Pokémon that Trainers are sure to try out all the potential pairings of them during the Winter Regional Championships.

Now we’ll turn our attention to some teams that feature less heralded restricted Pokémon that could leave their mark on the upcoming tournaments.

A Veil of Darkness

Without a powerful spread attack, a Mega Evolution, or a stat-boosting move like Xerneas’s Geomancy, it’s easy to overlook Yveltal. But because of its powerful Dark Aura Ability, some players are trying out Yveltal as they prepare for the Winter Regional Championships. Unlike Xerneas’s Fairy Aura, which typically only helps Xerneas itself, teams built around Yveltal usually feature several Pokémon with Dark-type attacks to benefit from Dark Aura. Yveltal can be challenging to use because its team needs to be based on great synergy instead of individual power. If Trainers can overcome the challenges of building around Dark Aura, they may be able to take this dark horse team to the top at the Winter Regional Championships.

Players normally start their Yveltal teams by selecting teammates that benefit from Dark Aura. Liepard is a common choice, giving the team access to Foul Play and Fake Out. Even though Foul Play uses the Attack stat of the defending Pokémon to determine its initial power, Dark Aura and the damage boost from using a same-type move still apply. Some Yveltal teams use several Pokémon with Foul Play and Swagger to confuse targets while raising their Attack (and Foul Play’s damage), but outside of Liepard this sample team takes a more conservative approach.

The other Pokémon with a Dark-type attack on this team is Mega Mawile, which is the Mega-Evolved Pokémon most commonly paired with Yveltal. The two Pokémon have great natural synergy: Dark Aura boosts the power of Mawile’s Sucker Punch, and Mawile’s Iron Head can help take down opposing Xerneas for Yveltal.

It’s tough to build a promising team around Yveltal without several Pokémon that trouble the popular Xerneas. On our sample team, we’ve chosen to pair Yveltal with Primal Groudon, the restricted Pokémon that tends to do best against Xerneas. The combination of Groudon and Yveltal can struggle against Kyogre, so Ferrothorn also joins the team. With Mawile, Ferrothorn, and Groudon on the team, the matchup against Xerneas becomes more favorable.

Yveltal is holding Weakness Policy, which enables Yveltal’s Trainer to focus its training on Speed and defense. The hope is that Yveltal’s offensive power will come from Weakness Policy after enduring a supereffective attack, such as Kyogre’s Ice Beam or Groudon’s Rock Slide. The combination of Yveltal’s Snarl reducing both foes’ Special Attack and Oblivion Wing healing Yveltal makes it difficult to knock out while it’s attacking.

Since this Yveltal doesn’t know Tailwind, getting some form of speed control from the final Pokémon is important. Thundurus is a reliable choice, as Thunder Wave can slow down most troublesome Pokémon. We chose not to go all-in with Dark Aura by teaching Thundurus Swagger and Foul Play, instead going with Taunt and Protect to take on Smeargle more safely.

Other Pokémon frequently used on teams with Yveltal:

A Change of Pace

While Palkia lacks the raw power of the restricted Pokémon mentioned so far, it could vault to the top because of some interesting tactical options it allows. One of Palkia’s strengths is that it’s naturally quicker than Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. However, Palkia often forgoes its Speed advantage to run a slower build using the move Trick Room, serving a similar role to the one Dialga performed in 2010. Palkia must be wary of Rayquaza and Xerneas, but as a Water- and Dragon-type Pokémon it takes very little damage from both Primal Groudon’s Eruption and Primal Kyogre’s Water Spout, making it a great fit for Trick Room teams.

As you can see in our sample team above, Palkia trained defensively typically aren’t taught any Water-type attacks. Instead we chose Earth Power to help against Primal Groudon. Few Pokémon take advantage of Trick Room better than Primal Groudon and its Eruption attack, so we’ve also included it as a teammate in our sample team. Mega Kangaskhan’s Fake Out and Amoonguss’s Rage Powder are great tools either to help Palkia use Trick Room successfully or to help Palkia and Primal Groudon attack safely. Amoonguss’s low Speed and Spore make it particularly difficult to tackle while Trick Room is active.

These four Pokémon are so strong together that the final two Pokémon often aren’t called into battle, enabling them to serve specialized roles on the team. Crobat helps fill out this sample team by giving its teammates access to Tailwind and helping against Smeargle. Smeargle will usually try to use Dark Void early, and has better odds of doing so if its partner can use Fake Out to flinch any threat. Crobat’s Inner Focus prevents Smeargle’s partner from causing Crobat to flinch, allowing Crobat to use Taunt and stop Smeargle’s Dark Void. Even if Smeargle has a Choice Scarf and moves before Crobat, Crobat’s Lum Berry will allow it to wake up after being hit with Dark Void. Landorus is a solid option against teams with lots of physical attackers, and as one of the few Pokémon with Rock-type attacks this season it can really help out against Ho-Oh and Thundurus.

We’ve also seen players using Palkia in a way that focuses much more on Trick Room. Take a look at this alternative Palkia team:

With the team’s Speed much lower overall in this composition, Cresselia is added as a second Trick Room user to improve the chances of being able to use Trick Room safely. Cresselia can also use Gravity to help increase the accuracy of Primal Groudon’s Precipice Blades, and even allow it to hit Flying-type Pokémon and Pokémon with Levitate. Smeargle can help the team get Trick Room up with Follow Me, Fake Out, or Dark Void, and the rare Crafty Shield may turn heads. Normally only learned by Klefki, Crafty Shield is a move with increased priority that protects Smeargle and its teammates from the effects of most status moves the turn it is used. Crafty Shield’s most impressive use is stopping other Smeargle from using Dark Void, but it can also notably stop Cresselia or Palkia from being afflicted with Taunt.

Other Pokémon frequently used on teams with Palkia:

Rising From Sacred Ashes

One Pokémon Trainers have seemed eager to experiment with is Ho-Oh, but we’ll have to see how much attention it will get at Regionals. The Rainbow Pokémon can’t rival the damage output of some of the other restricted Pokémon, but its fantastic Special Defense and its type matchup against Fairy-, Fire-, and Ground-type attacks make it an intriguing choice for players. Ho-Oh can be more difficult to use in single game matches than in best-of-three matches because it is exceptionally weak to unexpected Rock-type attacks, but its sturdiness and the flexibility to play well with most other restricted Pokémon may make Ho-Oh worth the challenge.

We’ve chosen a sample team that pairs Ho-Oh with Kyogre, but it can also synergize well with Groudon, Rayquaza, or Xerneas. With Ho-Oh’s resistances to most of Primal Groudon’s attacks and Primal Kyogre’s Primordial Sea, this duo starts out with a great matchup against some of the most common restricted Pokémon. Adding Ferrothorn as the next member of the team helps against two more restricted Pokémon, thanks to its advantageous matchup against both Xerneas and opposing Kyogre.

Ho-Oh and Kyogre both have middling Speed compared to other popular Pokémon this season, so Cresselia’s Trick Room often allows them to move first against teams of quick Pokémon, particularly teams using Tailwind. Cresselia’s Skill Swap allows Kyogre to avoid Ground-type attacks from Groudon by giving it Levitate, in addition to reactivating Primordial Sea if Desolate Land or Delta Stream is active. Skill Swap is especially important on this team because Kyogre is the key to protecting Ho-Oh against any Primal Groudon that know Rock-type attacks.

The wild card is the risky Magic Coat, a move with greatly increased priority that reflects most non-damaging moves used on it back to the user. It can look a little silly to Magic Coat during a turn when both opponents attack, but if Cresselia’s Trainer predicts well, Cresselia can change the course of a battle by reflecting moves such as Taunt, Swagger, and Dark Void. This team doesn’t have many ways to deal with Smeargle’s Dark Void, so even deterring Smeargle from using Dark Void by revealing Magic Coat can make battles easier. If you’re not a fan of Dark Void, make sure to teach Magic Coat to any Pokémon you have that can learn it. Magic Coat can be a nasty surprise for Smeargle!

Salamence’s Intimidate is welcome on any team, but here it notably allows Ho-Oh to survive a single hit from most Rock-type attacks. Mega Salamence can also outrun and deal huge damage to Kyogre and Rayquaza, easing the matchup with those Pokémon. Kangaskhan doesn’t have a lot of benefits specific to this team, but it’s normally a safe choice and Fake Out is always helpful when using Trick Room or Tailwind.

Other Pokémon frequently used on teams with Ho-Oh:

Full Speed Ahead

We’ve only touched on a few of the strategies Trainers have showcased so far this year, but we’re sure to see more during the Winter Regional Championships, so make sure to watch the stream of the St. Louis Regionals on February 20–21 at Pokemon.com/regionals. Check back to Pokemon.com/strategy each week to see the winning teams and find out which strategies are rising to the top. Check out our overview of all of the restricted and some unrestricted Pokémon in the 2016 Video Game Championships to help prepare for your next tournament.