Thavorian Trials celebration! results and metagame recap

The Thavorian Trials celebration! was a 57-player online event on Limitless, played under Pokemon Champions Regulation Set M-B on 2026-08-29. Andrew R [US] finished first at 8-1-0, ahead of Okarin [JP], PokemonIsFun [JP], and BroDudeIII. The listed final round results included BroDudeIII over harodtheone, ander_arch over pokemonisfun, and okarin over rick_onion21.

Place	Player	Record	Team
1	Andrew R [US]	8-1-0	Sneasler, Delphox, Kingambit, Sinistcha, Incineroar, Blastoise
2	Okarin [JP]	6-3-0	Archaludon, Charizard, Pelipper, Venusaur, Swampert, Grimmsnarl
3	PokemonIsFun [JP]	6-2-0	Eternal Flower Floette, Charizard, Whimsicott, Garchomp, Basculegion, Kingambit
4	BroDudeIII	6-2-0	Farigiraf, Kingambit, Sylveon, Camerupt, Raichu, Aerodactyl

Andrew R’s winning team is a flexible offense built around layered support and multiple setup angles. Sneasler leads the disruptive side of the team with Focus Sash, Poison Touch, Fake Out, Quick Guard, Close Combat, and Poison Jab, giving the team immediate pressure while protecting key turns. Incineroar adds the expected Intimidate, Fake Out, Parting Shot, and Helping Hand package, with Sitrus Berry supporting repeated pivots.

The center of the team’s positioning is Sinistcha with Colbur Berry, Hospitality, Rage Powder, Trick Room, Matcha Gotcha, and Protect. That set gives Andrew R both redirection and speed control, letting the team choose between slowing the game down or enabling its stronger attackers safely. Kingambit is the main physical closer, using Life Orb, Defiant, Adamant, Kowtow Cleave, Sucker Punch, Swords Dance, and Protect. It punishes Intimidate and offers strong priority into faster boards.

The special attacking side is split between Delphox and Blastoise. Delphox carries Delphoxite, Blaze, Nasty Plot, Heat Wave, Psychic, and Protect, while Blastoise uses Blastoisinite, Rain Dish, Shell Smash, Water Spout, Dark Pulse, and Protect. Together, they give the team two different setup threats that can take advantage of Fake Out, Rage Powder, Parting Shot, and Helping Hand support.

Across the top tables, Kingambit was the clearest repeated pick, appearing on seven of the top eight teams. The sets varied by item, with Life Orb, Black Glasses, and Chople Berry all represented, but every listed Kingambit used Defiant and an Adamant nature. Focus Sash was also everywhere, appearing somewhere on every top-eight team, including Sneasler, Venusaur, Whimsicott, Aerodactyl, Hisuian Arcanine, and Lycanroc Dusk.

Speed control was diverse rather than centralized. Tailwind appeared on Pelipper, Whimsicott, Aerodactyl, and Staraptor, while Trick Room showed up on Sinistcha and Farigiraf. Fake Out support was similarly common through Sneasler, Incineroar, and Raichu. Other repeated attackers included Basculegion on three top-eight teams, Raichu on three, Sylveon on three, and Sneasler on four.

Takeaway for ladder players: prepare for Kingambit, Focus Sash disruption, and teams that can pivot between Tailwind pressure and Trick Room positioning.

Source: Limitless