u/HBAS

Just hit the Hall of Fame on my second Lazarus run (Hard Mode). Team ended up: Mega Greninja, Mega Tyrantrum, Aegislash, Incineroar, Alolan Raichu, and Noctowl.
Genuinely proud of this roster. Built it around a simple rule, two physical attackers, two special attackers, one dedicated wall, one flex piece, and it held up the whole way. Three separate Mega options meant I could shape the team differently depending on the fight, rather than being locked into one gameplan every battle.

Have to mention the shiny Tyrunt I found on Marmaro Island, completely random encounter, and maybe my 2nd or 3rd shiny in my entire life. I’ve been playing since before shinies even existed, so that one genuinely stopped me in my tracks. Became my Mega Tyrantrum and never looked back.

Alolan Raichu deserves a special shoutout, Surge Surfer plus Electro Ball was unbelievable, hitting stupidly hard and fast almost every time it switched in. Noctowl ended up leading my team most battles, Hypnosis into Hex was deleting things before they got a turn. Incineroar played a similar role to Greninja, not needed every fight, but exactly the mon I wanted at crunch time.

And then there’s Aegislash. Absolutely blew me away, strongest Pokémon on the team by a distance, incredible moveset, running the classic “make it the slowest thing on the field” King’s Shield strategy. Tank a hit in Shield Forme, swing hard in Blade Forme, King’s Shield resets you before the next hit lands. Will use him again wherever I can.
Planned this team properly rather than catching as I go like my first run, so Hard Mode felt noticeably easier this time, but enjoyed the process even more because of it.
This is roughly my tenth ROM hack this year, after playing my first ever (this exact game) at the end of last year. Working through a curated list of 60+ hacks and fan games that’ll probably take years, with new ones getting added all the time. Getting back into Pokémon after 15 years away, and enjoying it more with every run.