The Pokémon strategy that helped a 7-year-old win the 2023 Pokémon North America International Championships

We are just over a month away from the start of the 2023 Pokémon World Championships in Yokohama, Japan, and we are beginning to meet many of the participants who will be taking to the Pacific Ocean to show who is the best in the Pokémon world, and this 7-year-old boy may have what it takes.

Last weekend, the 2023 Pokémon North America International Championships were held in Columbus, OH. This competition was the last chance for players in the region to earn the Championship Points needed to qualify for the World Championships. Among them was Avery V., who ended up taking home the title in the Junior Division, using a strategy that the competitive community deemed nearly unviable: hard Trick Room.

Avery’s impressive strategy

Trick Room is a status condition that reverses the turn order, making slower Pokémon move first. This can be a powerful strategy, but it’s also very difficult to pull off reliably. Avery’s opponent, Takumi M., was expecting a Trick Room team, but he didn’t expect Avery to use Oranguru as his Trick Room setter.

Oranguru is a Pokémon that is typically used as a support Pokémon, but Avery found a way to make it work as a Trick Room setter. He did this by using the move Terastallization, which increases Oranguru’s defense and allows it to survive even the most powerful attacks. This gave Avery the opportunity to set up Trick Room without fear of being KO’d.

Once Trick Room was set up, Avery brought in his Torkoal, a Pokémon that is known for its high attack and special attack stats. Torkoal is also very slow, so it benefited greatly from the reversed turn order. Avery’s Torkoal was able to deal massive damage to Takumi’s Pokémon, and it eventually led to Takumi’s defeat. You can watch the full battle in the video bellow:

Next Stop: Yokohama

The Pokémon World Championships 2023 is just a few weeks away, and for the first time, the franchise’s premier tournament will be held in Japan. The tournament, which will take place at the Pacifico Yokohama Convention Center from August 11-13, and will feature a number of events before and during the main event that will appeal to all Pokémon fans.