Oct 4, 2007

Singles tennis and doubles tennis might as well be different games. Sure, the court is the same, the balls are the same, and the net is the same, but a doubles match requires a different mentality and subset of skills than its more popular sibling. The same holds true for Pokemon battles. The arenas are the same, the moves are the same, and the Pokemon are the same. However, the 2v2 style adds a nice layer of strategy and requires you to put a little more thought in your Pokemon battles. In this issue of Pokemusings, we're going to take a look at some techniques to consider for 2v2 battles.

For doubles battles, using complementary moves - whether they're offensive, defensive, or buffing - is vital to success. In many cases, it's foolish and dangerous to use the same strategies you use during singles matches. You have to think about combos your team can pull off. There are several commonly known doubles combos that are fairly obvious - Earthquake + Protect, Substitute + Swagger, Belly Drum + Psych Up, Helping Hand + anything, etc. Since so many of you are offensive minded, we're going to look at combos that do not require one of your Pokemon to give up a striking turn.

Our first technique is based around Electivire. One of the most popular fourth-gen Pokemon, Electivire is an offensive dynamo... that's a wee bit hampered by its speed. Lots of Pokemon are faster and can take advantage of Electivire's poor defense. This is where its ability, Motor Drive, comes in. When Electivire is hit by an electric attack, its speed rises. While Thunderbolt is the most popular electric attack, you want to pair Electivire with a Pokemon that knows Discharge. Not only will Discharge hit both your opponents, it'll also give Electivire a jolt and up its speed!