[The opponent's avatar is so cute, another adorable one!]
[Unfortunately, they encountered Teacher Azure. As we all know, Teacher Azure never goes easy on cuteness…]
[Women only slow down Teacher Azure's command speed!]
After discovering that the opponent was a sweet-looking female trainer, the barrage became noticeably more excited.
However, compared to cuteness, they seemed to prefer watching Aiden torment his opponents in battle...
Hmm, as expected of my own live stream; everyone here is a hardcore player at heart.
Thinking this way, Aiden also glanced at the opponent's lineup.
Plusle, Minun, Whimsicott, Slowbro (Galarian), Granbull, and Primarina.
Classic double Plusle and Minun opener.
Moreover, except for Slowbro, her entire team consisted of pink-themed or cute-looking Pokémon.
In Lacey's eyes, even Granbull probably counted as cute...
"Except for Whimsicott, the other Pokémon don't require special countermeasures. Our side should handle this easily."
After a quick glance, Aiden quickly came to a conclusion.
Lacey's lineup only had Whimsicott as a support Pokémon, and in doubles, the influence of a support Pokémon could far outweigh other damage dealers.
Whimsicott, in particular, was one of the best—renowned in its previous life for its powerful support capabilities, it was called "Black-hearted Cotton" by countless players.
So, he needed to pay a bit more attention to it.
Having already made up his mind, Aiden decisively chose his two starting Pokémon—
Talonflame and Whimsicott.
The opponent hesitated for a few seconds before making their selection.
Soon the battle began, both trainers' avatars appeared, and four Poké Balls were thrown simultaneously.
"It's decided! Plusle and Minun!"
"Go, Flame Flapper and Cotton Flapper!"
As soon as Aiden spoke, the audience burst into laughter.
[Teacher Azure, are these names legit?]
[Don't laugh at the challenge, you've already won!]
[Is this predicting the opponent's starter Pokémon and deliberately messing around?]
The red and blue electric rodents and Aiden's Talonflame + small airplane appeared simultaneously, and both sides immediately issued commands without hesitation:
"Plusle, Discharge; Minun, Helping Hand!"
"Talonflame, Tailwind; Whimsicott, Air Slash!"
Lacey's choice was very standard, a classic opener for Plusle and Minun.
Since Plusle and Minun's abilities were Plus and Minus respectively, when they were both on the field, their Special Attack would be boosted due to the electrical influence.
At the same time, Minun's Helping Hand effect further enhanced the power of Plusle's Discharge.
An Electric-type move that already heavily countered Aiden's two Flying-type Pokémon became even more deadly.
But Aiden showed no reaction to their actions.
Because both sides issued commands simultaneously, everything depended on the speed of the four Pokémon on the field.
With near-perfect teamwork, Minun acted first, helping its teammate further boost the move's power.
After Minun used Helping Hand, Talonflame, with its Gale Wings ability followed closely, quickly gathering wind power and creating a strong gust on the field.
During the duration of Tailwind, Aiden's side would gain a significant speed advantage.
Thus, Whimsicott, which was not originally known for speed, acted first instead. Soon, blades of air formed stealthily, indiscriminately attacking the opponent's half of the field.
Due to the influence of Tailwind, this Air Slash's execution speed far exceeded Plusle's Discharge.
Although the power was average and did little damage to the Electric-resistant Plusle and Minun, under the effects of Serene Grace and Whimsicott's own high Luck stat, it astonishingly succeeded in causing the opponent to flinch, halting their charging move halfway.
At this point, the viewers instantly understood—
[Damn, so the goal is to make the opponent flinch infinitely? Indeed, it's simple but effective...]
[This time I can really learn something. Just leave it to luck, and that's it!]
[Compared to Whimsicott, Talonflame seems more important as a supporter who sets up Tailwind?]
"That's right, this Talonflame is actually the soul of the team!"
Aiden nodded, acknowledging the barrage's observation.
"Besides having decent offensive capabilities, Talonflame is also an incredibly powerful support Pokémon."
"Thanks to its Gale Wings ability and its naturally high speed, its Tailwind activation speed is unmatched by almost any other Pokémon."
"As long as it can set up Tailwind, the next moves—whether attacking or using Taunt, Will-O-Wisp, Roost, etc.—can consistently secure the first move."
"And Tailwind is also crucial for teammates that need to outspeed others, like our star Whimsicott."
Whimsicott's speed wasn't particularly fast. Without Tailwind and a Choice Scarf, he couldn't guarantee being faster than Plusle and Minun...
Air Slash itself wasn't particularly strong. Whether it works depends entirely on whether RNG gives it a favorable roll, allowing it to flinch the opponent first.
Therefore, this lineup was still more for having fun and not ideal for climbing the ranks/grinding.
However, if it could continuously cause the opponent to flinch and frustrate them into rage-quitting, it would feel much more satisfying than ranking up.
[Though it sounds absurd, there's still a problem now, right?]
[Based on Whimsicott's damage earlier, to whittle down two Plusle and Minun, it would need to flinch them at least five times... Teacher Azure, are you sure you have that kind of luck?]
[Has Azure finally lost it, daring to use a luck-based strategy?!]
"..."
Actually, there was no need for the barrage to remind him—Aiden already felt a bit uneasy.
But since the lineup was already set, he had no choice but to go all-in!
"Whimsicott, Talonflame, continue with Air Slash!"
Due to the effects of Tailwind and their abilities, both Pokémon could act first and consecutively unleash the same move again, further improving their margin for error.
However...
Perhaps because the earlier Air Slash gave Plusle some resistance, this time it unexpectedly didn't flinch despite enduring two hits.
Simultaneously, thanks to Minun's Helping Hand boosting its charge beforehand, this fully powered terrifying electric current instantly swept across the entire battlefield!
The overwhelming power instantly depleted Whimsicott's HP completely. If Talonflame hadn't been holding a Focus Sash, it too would have been instantly KO'd.
The surging electricity didn't even spare its helped teammate, dealing indiscriminate damage that nearly took out Minun, despite its resistance to Electric moves.
"This..."
Aiden twitched the corner of his mouth.
Statistically speaking, the probability of Plusle not flinching was 28%, which wasn't low.
After all, in Pokémon battles, 80% accuracy = 0% accuracy. Such small-probability events happening felt unsurprising to him now.
Indeed, relying on luck isn't suitable for me!
"But it doesn't matter, this lineup has another variation!"
Without pausing even a moment to mourn Whimsicott's downfall, the next Pokémon arrived on the battlefield—
Dedenne!
If relying on luck doesn't work, then let's bring out a playstyle that guarantees a 100% flinch rate against the opponent!
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