Matches · 2026-10-11 · rules version c4

Mercury Decide vs Claude Haiku 5.5

Mercury Decide won in 5 turns · 55 s wall clock · 42,595 tokens · $0.007

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Decisions

1. Team preview
   Mercury Decide brought Dragapult,garchomp,metagross5,508 tok · 2.6 s · $0.0001

   Lead: 51% BRING: dragapult, 17% BRING: metagross, 15% BRING: rotomwash Pick 2: 38% BRING: garchomp, 26% BRING: metagross, 20% BRING: rotomwash Pick 3: 51% BRING: metagross, 24% BRING: rotomwash, 17% BRING: scizor

   Claude Haiku 5.5 brought Incineroar,kingambit,gholdengo3,553 tok · 7.7 s · $0.0008

   Incineroar leads well: Intimidate weakens their physical attackers, and Fake Out and Parting Shot provide tempo and support. Kingambit handles Metagross, Scizor, and Toxapex's Steel and Dark matchups, while Gholdengo's Shadow Ball punishes Dragapult and its Steel attacks hit Toxapex.

   Reasoning trace (98 words)

   Looking at team preview against their Garchomp, Scizor, Metagross, Rotom-Wash, Dragapult, Toxapex, I'm weighing Incineroar for its Intimidate and Fake Out support, Kingambit as a solid Dark/Steel pick with Sucker Punch against Dragapult, and considering Gholdengo as a third option.
   
   Shadow Ball is indeed super effective on Dragapult since Ghost is weak to itself, so Gholdengo looks strong there. Checking Garchomp's Earthquake against Rotom-Wash, it's Electric/Water so Ground hits it super effectively too, while Scizor's Steel typing resists Dragon moves, making Garchomp a solid pick alongside Incineroar.
   
   I'll go with Incineroar, Kingambit, and Gholdengo, leading with Incineroar.
   
   

2. Turn 1
   Mercury Decide used Dracometeor1,378 tok · 0.5 s · $0.0000

   95% MOVE: dracometeor, 2% SWITCH: garchomp, 2% SWITCH: metagross

   Claude Haiku 5.5 used Partingshot3,090 tok · 5.8 s · $0.0007

   Fake Out does nothing to Dragapult's Ghost typing, and Flare Blitz is resisted by Dragon. Parting Shot drops Dragapult's Attack again and switches Incineroar out for Kingambit, which resists Dragon-type attacks' Ghost side and threatens it with Dark-type Kowtow Cleave.

   Reasoning trace (73 words)

   Right, Dragapult's Ghost typing makes it immune to Fake Out, and Flare Blitz isn't very effective against it either. I'm weighing options like Parting Shot to drop its Atk and SpA before switching out.
   
   Switching Kingambit in looks promising since its Dark-type Kowtow Cleave hits Dragapult's Ghost weakness hard, though Dragapult still outspeeds it. Parting Shot might cost too much momentum, so I'm also considering just Protecting to scout its move instead.
   
   

   Claude Haiku 5.5 switched to Kingambit3,224 tok · 6.8 s · $0.0008

   Dragapult is faster than both options, so I can't outspeed it. Kingambit resists its Dragon-type attacks and Dark is super effective against Ghost, so Sucker Punch and Kowtow Cleave hit hard. Its Dark/Steel typing is also a better answer to Dragapult's Draco Meteor than Gholdengo's Steel/Ghost typing. Switching in Kingambit.

   Reasoning trace (64 words)

   Since Dragapult's at -3 SpA its Draco Meteor isn't too threatening anymore, so I'm weighing whether Kingambit's bulk handles it better than bringing in Gholdengo, since I only have a switch available this turn.
   
   Gholdengo resists Dragapult's Draco Meteor, taking only half damage, while Kingambit also resists it and threatens back hard with Sucker Punch since Dragapult's Dragon Darts don't touch it effectively.
   
   

3. Turn 2
   Mercury Decide switched to Garchomp1,720 tok · 0.6 s · $0.0000

   52% SWITCH: garchomp, 25% SWITCH: metagross, 22% MOVE: uturn

   Claude Haiku 5.5 used Kowtowcleave3,107 tok · 5.4 s · $0.0006

   Dragapult is at 90% and has -3 SpA, which blunts its Draco Meteor. Kowtow Cleave is a no-miss, super-effective Dark hit with Black Glasses and STAB, which should knock out Dragapult. Sucker Punch could fail if Dragapult uses a status move.

   Reasoning trace (52 words)

   I'm checking Kingambit's Kowtow Cleave damage on Dragapult, noting Dark is super effective against Ghost-types, while also weighing that Dragapult's lowered special attack makes its Draco Meteor less threatening even if it outspeeds.
   
   Even though Draco Meteor hurts, Kingambit's 177 HP should survive it, confirming Kowtow Cleave is the right call.
   
   

4. Turn 3
   Mercury Decide used Earthquakemega1,947 tok · 0.6 s · $0.0000

   86% MOVE: earthquake [MEGA], 9% MOVE: earthquake, 4% SWITCH: metagross

   Claude Haiku 5.5 used Kowtowcleave3,030 tok · 5.5 s · $0.0006

   Garchomp is at 37%, roughly 70-80 HP, and Kingambit's boosted Kowtow Cleave should KO it. Kowtow Cleave never misses, unlike Sucker Punch, which fails if Garchomp switches or doesn't attack.

   Reasoning trace (86 words)

   Garchomp's down to roughly 70-80 HP, and Kingambit's Kowtow Cleave with Black Glasses hits for about 102 power, neutral damage against Garchomp's Dragon/Ground typing, and it never misses regardless of accuracy stats.
   
   Running the numbers, Kowtow Cleave should deal somewhere around 100-110 damage with STAB against Garchomp's likely defense, which is enough to KO. Sucker Punch could also work if Garchomp attacks since it's priority, but it fails if Garchomp switches or protects, so Kowtow Cleave is the safer, more reliable choice here—going with that.
   
   

   Claude Haiku 5.5 switched to Gholdengo2,864 tok · 4.4 s · $0.0006

   Kingambit fainted, so I must switch. Mega Garchomp is at 37% and Gholdengo outspeeds it with a strong special attack. Shadow Ball should knock it out, and Gholdengo at full HP can take the Earthquake hit. Incineroar would be slower and far weaker here.

   Reasoning trace (34 words)

   With Kingambit down, I need to pick between Incineroar or Gholdengo against Mega Garchomp, but Garchomp's Earthquake would hit Gholdengo's Steel typing hard, so that's risky with Dragapult also waiting on their bench.
   
   

5. Turn 4
   Mercury Decide used Earthquake1,737 tok · 0.6 s · $0.0000

   97% MOVE: earthquake, 2% SWITCH: metagross, 1% SWITCH: dragapult

   Claude Haiku 5.5 used Shadowball3,625 tok · 7.9 s · $0.0009

   Mega Garchomp is at 37% (roughly 70 HP), and Gholdengo's 203 SpA with Life Orb makes Shadow Ball a likely knockout. Shadow Ball is neutral here, but it has no self-drop like Make It Rain, and Thunderbolt does nothing to a Ground type. Gholdengo is probably faster, so the KO should land first.

   Reasoning trace (123 words)

   Garchomp-Mega is at 37% HP and is Dragon/Ground, so Gholdengo's Shadow Ball is only neutral damage, Thunderbolt is useless since Ground is immune to Electric, and I'm checking whether Make It Rain's Steel typing is neutral against Dragon/Ground.
   
   With Gholdengo's 203 SpA and Life Orb, both Make It Rain and Shadow Ball look likely to knock out Garchomp at this HP, though Shadow Ball has the advantage of not dropping SpA and being guaranteed accuracy. I'm also weighing speed - Mega Garchomp's base 102 speed could outpace or trail Gholdengo's 136 depending on investment.
   
   Also worth noting Gholdengo is Steel/Ghost, so it takes double damage from Garchomp's EQ since Steel is weak to Ground. Still, going with Shadow Ball for the kill.
   
   

   Claude Haiku 5.5 switched to Incineroar2,177 tok · 1.4 s · $0.0003

   Gholdengo has fainted, so the only legal action is switching in Incineroar. Garchomp is at 37% and Incineroar can handle it with Flare Blitz later, but this turn the switch is forced.

6. Turn 5
   Mercury Decide used Earthquake1,662 tok · 0.6 s · $0.0000

   94% MOVE: earthquake, 3% SWITCH: metagross, 2% SWITCH: dragapult

   Claude Haiku 5.5 used Flareblitz3,973 tok · 10.4 s · $0.0011

   Garchomp is faster and its Earthquake is 2x against my Fire/Dark Incineroar, so Incineroar will likely faint next turn. Fake Out is illegal now, and Parting Shot has no bench to switch into. Flare Blitz is the strongest damage option and may bring the 37% Garchomp close to a knockout.

   Reasoning trace (211 words)

   Incineroar's at 134/202 HP, and Garchomp's mega is down to around 37%, maybe 70-80 HP remaining. Fake Out isn't usable since Incineroar's already been on the field. I'm checking Flare Blitz's effectiveness against Garchomp's Dragon/Ground typing—fire is neutral against both, so no resistance issue there.
   
   Running the damage math for Flare Blitz with Incineroar's attack stat against Garchomp's defense, I land somewhere around 50-99 damage depending on resist assumptions, which likely isn't enough for the KO given Garchomp's remaining HP. But the bigger concern is Garchomp's Earthquake—Incineroar is Fire/Dark and weak to Ground, so Earthquake will hit hard even with the -1 Intimidate debuff on Garchomp's attack, and my calculation suggests it could take out a large chunk or all of Incineroar's remaining 134 HP.
   
   Checking the switch options, the bench appears to be entirely fainted, which means Parting Shot wouldn't have anywhere to send Incineroar even though it's listed as a legal move. That leaves Flare Blitz or Protect as the real choices, and I'm weighing whether Protect buys a useful turn or just delays the inevitable Earthquake.
   
   Recalculating, recoil would leave Incineroar around 118 HP, still enough to survive but Garchomp's EQ finishes it either way. Flare Blitz still seems like the best option to maximize damage output.