The "Showdown Special"

Today we'll be talking about a team that has been making the headlines in the VGC community throughout the world. Yes, this is the infamous Kangaskhan/Groudon/Xerneas/Smeargle/Talonflame/Salamence team, also dubbed as the "Showdown Special" for it's ease of use and staggering popularity. 

This team is incredibly diverse, and extremely hard to "counter" per se, due to the existence of a certain pokemon named Smeargle. The team preview pressure provided my Smeargle is immense, and forces opponents to counter lead it. That being said, because Smeargle is so diverse, it is virtually impossible to beat it consistently. With options like Fake Out, Wide Guard, Follow Me, Transform, and every other move in the game, you can't be certain which moves Smeargle is carrying until you've seen them all. Let's not forget about Dark Void or it's ability, Moody, which can both win a game in a single turn. Playing it in best of one is a tricky task, as it can hold a multitude of items, mainly being Focus Sash, Choice Scarf or Mental Herb. Calling it's item wrong can mean an instant game loss.

Xerneas by itself is a huge threat, but partnered with Smeargle it is capable of winning games all by itself. When faced with the common Smeargle - Xerneas lead, more often than not the opponent has to choose whether to stop the Geomancy or stop the potential Dark Void. Failing to shut either down can result in the game ending very quickly.

The rest of the team pivots around Smeargle and Xerneas, as their primary functions are to support Xerneas after it has set up. Kangaskhan has Fake Out support, Talonflame usually has Tailwind and Quick Guard to prevent Xerneas from going down, and Groudon acts as a defensive pivot, being able to switch into Kyogre to override the weather, as well as dealing with all the steel types that "threaten" Xerneas. Salamence acts as the secondary mega here, being able to hit both Primals and Mega Rayquaza for good damage. It's usefulness is extended by it's pre-mega ability - Intimidate - providing even more support for Xerneas. 

I made a VGC 2016 teambuilding guide for lazy people pic.twitter.com/j2UVwb1a0K

— Simon (@YopYopTDS) January 24, 2016

In response to Simon's tweet, we've made our own teambuilding guide for even lazier people! 

With all that being said, this is a definitely a team you can expect to see at events throughout the next few months. There are variations of this team, so not every team with these 6 pokemon will have the exact same movesets and EV spreads. It is also popular on the Battle Spot Special ladder, so definitely keep this team in mind when building your own teams.