Well, I've just returned home from a long day of good, old-fashioned fun and an eight-round-long competition. I did a lot better than I expected! I won five out of eight matches and ranked in 42 out of 148 players.

Rather than single-elimination rounds, we played in Swiss rounds. We were put on rosters, and then the judges randomly determined who would fight against whom, based on how many wins and loss each player scored.  The ranks were measured now only by how many wins and loss, but also against the percentages of victories against opponents, as well as the strength of your opponents when they played against others. The Championship event lasted for eight rounds, and it took three hours, just to get started on the first match. X|

Still, it was a lot better than the last three events I went to. Even when I lost, I could still compete. I didn't expect to make the top eight or anything, though; just to do my absolute best. Registration went by fairly quickly, and the best part was that every player had their game checked for hacked Pokemon. Apparently, Nintendo and The Pokemon Company actually listened to us! I shared my story about losing to a cheater, and others told me about how they lost to cheaters in the past. So, I think I'm not the only one who wrote a complaint about it, before. I'm just glad they no longer cater to all those cheaters who hack their Pokemon or create monstrosities on PC software like PokeSav just to win or to collect Pokemon the easy way. It's people like them who have no honor. The people I battled with and I studied and worked hard for our teams, and we've all found that to be a lot more rewarding.

Anyway, one thing I didn't realize was that Pokemon of any generation were legal! I only had Unova Pokemon because, earlier on, I thought I could only use those. I had Sigilyph, Thundurus, Mienshao, Terrakion, Krookodile, and Hydreigon. I always opened with Sigilyph's Tailwind for a head-start and Thundurus' Nasty Plot to make his Thunderbolt or Psychic even deadlier. It didn't always work, though, as either 1) Tailwind would seem to wear off too soon or 2) I'd keep getting hit with Rock Slide. So, I'm gonna find that TM for Rock Slide and teach that to Pokemon I may use if I can go to the National Championships in Indianapolis, which will be late in July. Also, I'm going to find and raise Pokemon from other generations, and not without EV-training them! Overall, I think I did pretty well. I could have done better, but I'm content with the outcome.