Regulation M-C Beyond the Opening Days: Lessons from Victory Road and Baltimore

Introduction

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This is the Showdown Tier team.

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In our early Regulation M-C column, we highlighted the broad adoption of Rillaboom and Salamence, the strong results of Archaludon rain teams, and the changing positions of M-B's established Pokémon. Since then, the ladder sample has grown, and tournament results have given us more concrete examples of successful teams.

This article revisits those early observations alongside the Victory Road September Challenge and Baltimore Regional Championships. As the new additions settle into the format, established Pokémon are also finding success with different partners. Those changes in team composition are a central part of the story.

Sources and Scope

Our ladder comparison uses the previous sample of 25,987 battles from September 9–12 and a larger sample of 98,087 battles from September 9–20. All current ladder figures in this article come from the report updated on September 20, 2026, at 11:01 UTC. The average rating has changed from 1196 to 1237, and the larger sample includes the opening days. These are overlapping snapshots, rather than two independent periods or a sample taken after Baltimore concluded. M-C Tier List

The tournament comparison covers the VR September Challenge #1 on September 12–13, an online event with 392 players, and Baltimore on September 19–20, for which Victory Road lists 1,081 participants. The “2027” in Baltimore's event name refers to the Championship Series season; the event took place in 2026. VR Circuit · Baltimore event information

Usage, ladder win rate, and tournament advancement rate measure different things. Our ladder figures are species-level statistics: they do not isolate particular Mega Evolutions, held items, or sets. Win rates describe the results of teams containing each Pokémon. The linked statistics update daily, so their current values may differ from this article's snapshot. Methodology

The Early Leaders Remain, While Other Options Recover

First, let us revisit several Pokémon from the opening analysis.

Sources: September 12 column and the M-C Tier List updated on September 20.

Rillaboom remains widely used. Salamence and Golisopod have lower usage and win rates than in the opening sample, while Staraptor and Sylveon show signs of recovery. The Pokémon that attracted early attention have not all continued to gain ground.

These changes alone do not establish that counters have been perfected or that one Pokémon has replaced another. The tournament results add useful context by showing how different combinations of the same species can perform.

At Victory Road, Popularity and Advancement Diverged

Rillaboom appeared on 57.9% of teams in VR's Phase 1, and Salamence on 41.6%. Both were prominent in the prepared tournament field, as they had been on the early ladder. Their adoption did not, however, translate into the same advancement rates.

Source: Victory Road usage statistics. Advancement rates are calculated from the published counts. Species groups overlap and do not isolate each Pokémon's contribution.

Archaludon's results lend support to the promise of rain teams highlighted in our previous article. Salamence's below-average advancement is also worth considering when refining teams. These figures describe the teams registered for this particular event, with substantial differences in team composition and players still behind each species' results.

Mega Raichu Y and Mega Staraptor Find New Partners

VR winner Michael Kelsch used Mega Raichu Y, Mega Staraptor, Hisuian Arcanine, Gholdengo, Sylveon, and Rillaboom. VR results and teams

Raichu, Staraptor, Hisuian Arcanine, and Sylveon were also part of the team family discussed in our Worlds retrospective. A version incorporating Gholdengo and Rillaboom has now earned a major result in M-C.

On the ladder, the group containing these six species records a 55.17% win rate across 1,965 team appearances. Its average rating is 1318, above the overall sample's 1237. Both the tournament result and ladder figures make this combination worth following, although they do not imply that every player should expect the same results. Matching six species also does not establish that moves, items, or stat spreads match the winning team. M-C major archetypes

Our previous article noted the declining usage of Staraptor and Sylveon. Their subsequent results show why it is useful to keep examining which parts of an M-B team can be retained and which partners can be changed for M-C.

Indeedee Sand Wins Baltimore

Joseph Ugarte won Baltimore, with Aditya Subramanian finishing second. Joseph's team was Mega Salamence, Mega Tyranitar, Excadrill, Corviknight, Sneasler, and male Indeedee. Baltimore results and streamed teams

Five of those species—Salamence, Tyranitar, Excadrill, Sneasler, and male Indeedee—match the combination highlighted near the end of our opening column. That group recorded a 55.51% win rate across 726 appearances in the early sample. In the current list, it stands at 55.25% across 2,219 appearances, maintaining strong results as the sample has grown. Previous column · M-C major archetypes

The ladder data did not predict the precise sets on the winning team. Still, seeing the same five-species combination win with Corviknight in the final slot gives us another reason to examine that direction.

Salamence's below-average advancement at VR and its Baltimore victory can both be true. They illustrate differences between team structures that a species' aggregate results cannot fully capture.

Rain Develops Beyond Pelipper

The Archaludon + Golisopod + Pelipper + Rillaboom group from our previous article still performs well, with a 55.02% win rate across 3,368 appearances. Another group—Archaludon + Gengar + Incineroar + Politoed + Rillaboom—records 54.88% across 2,017 appearances. M-C major archetypes · Politoed group details

Baltimore runner-up Aditya used Mega Charizard Y, Mega Golisopod, Farigiraf, Archaludon, Politoed, and Grimmsnarl. Semifinalist Brady Smith used the five-species Gengar group above with Vivillon in the sixth slot. Baltimore streamed teams

Our early view that Archaludon rain was a promising direction remains worth following. Its development now includes different rain setters, Mega Evolution options, and support choices. Aditya's combination of Charizard Y and Politoed is one example of why rain teams should not be treated as a single fixed six-Pokémon composition.

The four- and five-species ladder groups include multiple complete teams. Their appearance counts are not counts of unique builds or players, and overlapping groups cannot be added together. Tournament Mega names identify options registered with the corresponding Mega Stones; they do not mean that two Pokémon can Mega Evolve in the same battle.

A Tournament Breakthrough for an Initially Slower Starter

In our previous article, we explained why Garchomp's species-level win rate could not be used to judge Mega Garchomp Z alone. At VR, Shunsuke Minami placed fourth with Mega Garchomp Z + Mega Golisopod, while Shuji Endo placed tenth with Mega Garchomp Z + Mega Metagross. VR results and teams

These are concrete tournament successes for teams containing Mega Garchomp Z. Evaluating a new Mega Evolution requires following those team structures alongside the species average. A small number of high finishes does not establish that the same advantage will carry over to every other team using it.

What to Watch Next

The comparison shows early leaders settling into the format and new successes emerging through changes in team composition. Raichu Y and Staraptor teams incorporating Rillaboom, sand teams with male Indeedee, and Archaludon teams with Politoed each offer a different example of adapting to M-C.

The next question is whether these combinations can sustain their results as tournament teams become more widely known. Our ladder snapshot ends before Baltimore concluded, so any subsequent rise in adoption or development of counterplay will need to be examined in later data.

Early statistics help identify Pokémon and combinations worth exploring. Tournament teams then add examples of how those pieces were assembled and how far they progressed. We will continue following both overall usage and the results of specific team structures as M-C develops.

See you in the next column.