This is a team that has evolved since April, when I first encountered an RMT on CAL. Thank god I'm a member there, as an opening note. It's titled (R)Evolution because, like I said, it's evolved through two bans and playing with it has taught me to be a... Better player, lol.
The saga of how this team got me to the leaderboard began in April, when I saw Ciaran's The Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer RMT, which had these members:
So yeah, this was right before Latias was on the recieving end of the banhammer. To say the least, this team was pure, unadulterated offense; Baitran using Magma Storm and Taunt to kill Blissey and Suicune to open up a Suicune/Jirachi assault, Tyranitar focused on taking out Suicune's checks/counters (Mauling Jolteon in the process since Tyranitar has that godly special defense in the storm of sand he conveniently summons), and Mixmence... Being a menace.
I loved this team. But it didn't fit me. I started competitive battling around March, when I got back in the game for the first time in eight years. After some painful losses and a few crises of faith that I experienced, I was looking for a way to rise above 1350 CRE that I'd achieved with other, far crappier teams. So, I took 3 and a half members (I changed one of the sets, but kept the Pokemon, so technically that's half a member), added the last two and a half, and after testing came up with this:
This arrangement spiked me up into the 1450s, but... Let's just say it emerged that lead Yanmega epically fucked my team over (Especially since this was when I didn't realize that my Scizor accidentally had Swarm as its ability). I went into another crisis of faith, dropping to 1400.
And then, Latias was inflicted the mortal wound.
I didn't play that day, but I was trying to find out the next day- How the hell to replace her?
As it turned out, this one would actually get me on the leaderboard:
This team put me at 1567 CRE right before Mence, like his cousin, received the boot. Damn you Smogon Council.
I was in a tilt for the next three days, before I made quite a few changes to the team. Before, it was bulky, fast offense- Now, it became speed speed speed speed... And a mushroom. And a mantis that punches things like a bullet... But wait, that counts as fast. Whatever. And guess who came back, letting the team come into full circle!
And so, this is the final result!
Azelf @ Leftovers
Jolly
252 HP/16 Defense/20 Special Defense/220 Speed
~U-turn
~Explosion
~Stealth Rock
~Taunt
This Azelf has had many people question exactly why the hell I'm running Leftovers... But they get it once I beat them- The leftovers are to help keep this ticking time bomb alive until I need to flip the killswitch.
This is not Colbur Azelf. If you search for "The Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer," you'll find this Azelf in existence long before SDS coined the set. I believe that Colbur Azelf has very inefficient EVs; It should be noted that with Leftovers recovery this Azelf will survive a 232 Attack Adamant Meteor Mash from Metagross followed by the Bullet Punch. Also, this set easily survives pretty much all special hits of the lead game (Besides the occational Modest Roserade/Specstran)
The set is self explainatory- Taunt or SR as needed, then U-turn repeatedly until I'm sure my opponent has been fooled into thinking I'm not carrying Explosion, then flick the killswitch. Below is a detailed guide to what exactly I do for each lead:
On Legendary_07's suggestion, I've taken out 32 Speed EVs to beat out other Colbur Azelf leads and put it into my defenses; this allows me to take Starmie's hits first and then U-turn to Tyranitar to take it out.
Scizor @ Choice Band
248 HP/216 Attack/44 Special Defense
Adamant
~U-turn
~Bullet Punch
~Superpower
~Quick Attack
Scizor may have been knocked off from his place as the king, but who the hell cares, he’s still a beast. This is Choice Band Scizor as you all know it with a few twists- A further focus on special defense at the cost of slightly less attack. I run no speed because I want to win the U-turn war with opposing Scizor, Choice Scarf, Band, or whatever. When I say win I say go last, since I get the better switch. With arguably one of the game’s best typings defensively (And giving two crucial STABs in Bullet Punch and U-turn) it’s not hard to see his beastliness.
You’ll notice I chose to run Quick Attack over Pursuit; nothing on this team likes Kingdra at all, so dealing at least 30% damage to it per shot is a massive bonus. Besides, my next member is my designated trapper, and he arguably can perform this job better.
Tyranitar @ Choice Scarf
252 Attack/4 Defense/252 Speed
Jolly
~Stone Edge
~Crunch
~Pursuit
~Superpower
BANGIRAAAASSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!! <3333333
Oh yes, another Scarftar. It seems to me that people forget that Scarftar has other purposes beyond killing Latias; killing anything less than or at 364 speed with the appropriate move, unless Tyranitar gets trumped by priority of a move that Tyranitar’s Rock and Dark typing is weak do (Ugh fuck you CB Infernape… Maybe not you Scizor since I have plenty of things to kill you with). This includes Starmie, non-priority/scarfed Infernape, offensive variants of Celebi……… Holy crap, everything that takes neutral damage from at least one of T-tar’s moves at 30% health or less.
I chose Superpower as my fourth moveslot because now I have a way of bushwhacking Breloom that come my way, expecting a Crunch or a Stone Edge. The standard Smogon set takes roughly 60% the first Superpower; with Stealth Rock and Sandstorm damage, it’s a done 2HKO. Also, Blissey takes an easy 2HKO from Superpower; but if they succeed in Softboiling/Wishing the turn I fire off the first Superpower... Well, I have a problem. The rest of this set in terms of moves is common knowledge.
Breloom @ Toxic Orb
120 HP/252 Attack/136 Speed
Adamant
~Seed Bomb
~Focus Punch
~Spore
~Substitute
Breloom has been called out as a suspect by some players… And it’s not hard to see why. Salamence’s banning created the perfect environment for Breloom- One of the ways to reduce the mushroom’s effectiveness was to simply switch in as Breloom Substitutes, and break the sub since Salamence easily resists both Seed Bomb and Focus Punch, Breloom’s most common moves. From there, Mence could terrorize whatever switched in… Or it could Dragon Dance for kicks and start killing junk.
And then guess what? The Smogon Council inflicted the ban, and Salamence flew the coop (After eating everyone else, probably). In addition to being Breloom’s worst nightmare, even if it set up a sub on the turn Salamence switched in (Substitute is no priority move, so before Breloom hides it takes the Intimidate drop) the metagame has turned slightly slower.
Awesome. Now I can terrorize everybody with the game’s best move: Spore (Fuck you Honchkrow, you’ve got about 50 other flaws to exploit in addition to being neutral to Focus/Falcon Punch). Hippowdon? Check. Blissey? Check. Swampy? Check. Skarm? Check check check for every relevant stall threat. They’re all setup fodder! This EV spread aims to make Breloom viably fast, outspeed no-speed Suicune and Metagross/Empoleon that aim to reach 209 speed before they use Agility, and as bulky as possible- With 120 HP EVs no-attack neutral natured Gliscor can’t break my subs about 80% of the time with Earthquake. 252 Attack EVs and an Adamant nature is for bringing on the pain. A lot of it. Even Gyarados, not factoring in Leftovers recovery and factoring in sandstorm, can be 2HKOed after Intimidate with Seed Bomb due to it taking neutral damage from Seed Bomb!
Rotom-H @ Choice Scarf
4 HP/252 Special Attack/252 Speed
Timid
~Discharge
~Overheat
~Shadow Ball
~Trick
Ahhh, yes. Rotom-H, who I replaced Latias with. I think that the mischievous ghost who possesses machines has done his job better than Latias has; Rotom now completely patches up my Yanmega weakness, save for the rare Specsmega. Rotom-H breaks stall like a mofo by directly threatening Skarmory and Forretress, the main Spikers of Stall teams; and when they switch to Blissey, I’m handing over an awesome Scarf in exchange for some free food!
I chose Discharge over Thunderbolt because I really don’t understand what the extra 15 base power does for Rotom- What 2HKOs does it achieve that Discharge doesn’t? Besides, I loooooove paralysis. Rotom also happens to be part two of my Breloom killing duo; get slept, switch in Scizor, then U-turn to break the Substitute and send in Rotom to terrorize the foe with that awesome Fighting immunity. I went with Overheat over Will-o-Wisp because being Choice-locked on a status move is a terrible terrible thing.
Heatran @ Life Orb
4 HP/252 Special Attack/252 Speed
Timid
~Fire Blast
~Taunt
~Explosion
~Earth Power
On the basis of popular opinion, I've replaced Choice Scarf with Life Orb in order to take on stall better. I've realized that Heatran is now packing a lot more power, and easily shuts down stall; ResTalk Gyara is still OHKOed after SR with the killswitch flicking, thanks to the LO boost (Lol!)
This is a retirement RMT. At least, from the Overused tier of the fourth generation (On Shoddy at least). I’m glad that I’ve had the chance to go to Smogon so early in my competitive battling career, where I’ve learned… To learn. Special thanks to CAL for their great community, and Kennisiou, my CALibur tutor!
Well, that’s the final tribute to this team. Credits to Ciaran for forming the basis of Team (R)Evolution with his Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer RMT!
The saga of how this team got me to the leaderboard began in April, when I saw Ciaran's The Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer RMT, which had these members:
So yeah, this was right before Latias was on the recieving end of the banhammer. To say the least, this team was pure, unadulterated offense; Baitran using Magma Storm and Taunt to kill Blissey and Suicune to open up a Suicune/Jirachi assault, Tyranitar focused on taking out Suicune's checks/counters (Mauling Jolteon in the process since Tyranitar has that godly special defense in the storm of sand he conveniently summons), and Mixmence... Being a menace.
I loved this team. But it didn't fit me. I started competitive battling around March, when I got back in the game for the first time in eight years. After some painful losses and a few crises of faith that I experienced, I was looking for a way to rise above 1350 CRE that I'd achieved with other, far crappier teams. So, I took 3 and a half members (I changed one of the sets, but kept the Pokemon, so technically that's half a member), added the last two and a half, and after testing came up with this:
This arrangement spiked me up into the 1450s, but... Let's just say it emerged that lead Yanmega epically fucked my team over (Especially since this was when I didn't realize that my Scizor accidentally had Swarm as its ability). I went into another crisis of faith, dropping to 1400.
And then, Latias was inflicted the mortal wound.
I didn't play that day, but I was trying to find out the next day- How the hell to replace her?
As it turned out, this one would actually get me on the leaderboard:
This team put me at 1567 CRE right before Mence, like his cousin, received the boot. Damn you Smogon Council.
I was in a tilt for the next three days, before I made quite a few changes to the team. Before, it was bulky, fast offense- Now, it became speed speed speed speed... And a mushroom. And a mantis that punches things like a bullet... But wait, that counts as fast. Whatever. And guess who came back, letting the team come into full circle!
And so, this is the final result!
....................
Into The Depths
....................
Azelf @ Leftovers
Jolly
252 HP/16 Defense/20 Special Defense/220 Speed
~U-turn
~Explosion
~Stealth Rock
~Taunt
This Azelf has had many people question exactly why the hell I'm running Leftovers... But they get it once I beat them- The leftovers are to help keep this ticking time bomb alive until I need to flip the killswitch.
This is not Colbur Azelf. If you search for "The Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer," you'll find this Azelf in existence long before SDS coined the set. I believe that Colbur Azelf has very inefficient EVs; It should be noted that with Leftovers recovery this Azelf will survive a 232 Attack Adamant Meteor Mash from Metagross followed by the Bullet Punch. Also, this set easily survives pretty much all special hits of the lead game (Besides the occational Modest Roserade/Specstran)
The set is self explainatory- Taunt or SR as needed, then U-turn repeatedly until I'm sure my opponent has been fooled into thinking I'm not carrying Explosion, then flick the killswitch. Below is a detailed guide to what exactly I do for each lead:
-Azelf: I usually SR turn one; when I first used this team I started off by Taunting every Azelf I saw. However, with Colburzelf and CB Azelfs on the rise, Stealth Rock turn one is the best option.
- Aerodactyl: Muahaha. Most still Taunt, but I just U-turn out of the way. Even better, there's someone who can OHKO after the U-turn...
-Swampert: Wahahaha. Taunt that motherfucking mud fish, watch it uselessly Ice Beam as I set up SR, then U-turn back to Scizor.
- Machamp: Okay, this one is tough. I set up SR turn one, hope Azelf survives, then switch to Scizor to take the Bullet Punch. I U-turn with Scizor out the way to Rotom, switch back to take the Payback, then pray that I can kill it with a Superpower.
- Metagross: Ugh. I pray I make the right decision when I either SR or Taunt, but I always seem to be wrong. However, I'll always survive the MM + Bullet Punch with lefties, and set up SR either way. Then, batter it with U-turns and Overheats/Fire Blasts.
- Jirachi: A bitch to face. Pray I don't get haxed both turns (Iron Head from a Scarfed variant is a 3HKO), and/or I don't get T-waved if it's a paraflincher. I usually set up SR turn one (Or try to. Fuck you Serene Grace).
- Infernape: Ugh again. I pray that I can predict right whether or not it'll SR or Fire Blast me. If it Fire Blasts me, I go to Heatran ASAP for the kill, since U-turn will break the Sash.
- Ninjask: LoL Jask for n00bs. SR turn one, then Taunt the mofo.
- Roserade: Taunt turn one, because I don't want to risk the Sleep. If it uses Leaf Storm, then I'll U-turn out to Scizor and then U-turn again (After 2 Leaf Storms? HP Fire can't OHKO me. Actually, after two it's a 3HKO).
- Hippowdon: Screw you Hippo. I chuckle as they SR in expectancy that they knock of my Sash... When I Taunt and reveal, kaboom, I actually have Lefties. I can't kill it with Explosion, but I can most certainly batter it. However, I don't do it, because I have people in reserve that are far better suited to kill Hippo...
- Tyranitar: U-turn turn one, I'm not risking a Payback. They usually do, in which my switch into Tyranitar leaves them dead thanks to my use of UBAH POWAH!
- Heatran: Ugh. More mind games. SR turn one, since most Fire Blast me. Then Taunt, since they'll probably feel safe about Stealth Rocking. Then, U-turn to Tyranitar and start Stone Edging/Superpowering.
- Smeargle: LoL Taunt.
- Starmie: Ick. U-turn turn one, and hope it misses when I swap it into Tyranitar. When I say "it," I mean the imminent Hydro Pump.
- Aerodactyl: Muahaha. Most still Taunt, but I just U-turn out of the way. Even better, there's someone who can OHKO after the U-turn...
-Swampert: Wahahaha. Taunt that motherfucking mud fish, watch it uselessly Ice Beam as I set up SR, then U-turn back to Scizor.
- Machamp: Okay, this one is tough. I set up SR turn one, hope Azelf survives, then switch to Scizor to take the Bullet Punch. I U-turn with Scizor out the way to Rotom, switch back to take the Payback, then pray that I can kill it with a Superpower.
- Metagross: Ugh. I pray I make the right decision when I either SR or Taunt, but I always seem to be wrong. However, I'll always survive the MM + Bullet Punch with lefties, and set up SR either way. Then, batter it with U-turns and Overheats/Fire Blasts.
- Jirachi: A bitch to face. Pray I don't get haxed both turns (Iron Head from a Scarfed variant is a 3HKO), and/or I don't get T-waved if it's a paraflincher. I usually set up SR turn one (Or try to. Fuck you Serene Grace).
- Infernape: Ugh again. I pray that I can predict right whether or not it'll SR or Fire Blast me. If it Fire Blasts me, I go to Heatran ASAP for the kill, since U-turn will break the Sash.
- Ninjask: LoL Jask for n00bs. SR turn one, then Taunt the mofo.
- Roserade: Taunt turn one, because I don't want to risk the Sleep. If it uses Leaf Storm, then I'll U-turn out to Scizor and then U-turn again (After 2 Leaf Storms? HP Fire can't OHKO me. Actually, after two it's a 3HKO).
- Hippowdon: Screw you Hippo. I chuckle as they SR in expectancy that they knock of my Sash... When I Taunt and reveal, kaboom, I actually have Lefties. I can't kill it with Explosion, but I can most certainly batter it. However, I don't do it, because I have people in reserve that are far better suited to kill Hippo...
- Tyranitar: U-turn turn one, I'm not risking a Payback. They usually do, in which my switch into Tyranitar leaves them dead thanks to my use of UBAH POWAH!
- Heatran: Ugh. More mind games. SR turn one, since most Fire Blast me. Then Taunt, since they'll probably feel safe about Stealth Rocking. Then, U-turn to Tyranitar and start Stone Edging/Superpowering.
- Smeargle: LoL Taunt.
- Starmie: Ick. U-turn turn one, and hope it misses when I swap it into Tyranitar. When I say "it," I mean the imminent Hydro Pump.
On Legendary_07's suggestion, I've taken out 32 Speed EVs to beat out other Colbur Azelf leads and put it into my defenses; this allows me to take Starmie's hits first and then U-turn to Tyranitar to take it out.
Scizor @ Choice Band
248 HP/216 Attack/44 Special Defense
Adamant
~U-turn
~Bullet Punch
~Superpower
~Quick Attack
Scizor may have been knocked off from his place as the king, but who the hell cares, he’s still a beast. This is Choice Band Scizor as you all know it with a few twists- A further focus on special defense at the cost of slightly less attack. I run no speed because I want to win the U-turn war with opposing Scizor, Choice Scarf, Band, or whatever. When I say win I say go last, since I get the better switch. With arguably one of the game’s best typings defensively (And giving two crucial STABs in Bullet Punch and U-turn) it’s not hard to see his beastliness.
You’ll notice I chose to run Quick Attack over Pursuit; nothing on this team likes Kingdra at all, so dealing at least 30% damage to it per shot is a massive bonus. Besides, my next member is my designated trapper, and he arguably can perform this job better.
Tyranitar @ Choice Scarf
252 Attack/4 Defense/252 Speed
Jolly
~Stone Edge
~Crunch
~Pursuit
~Superpower
BANGIRAAAASSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!! <3333333
Oh yes, another Scarftar. It seems to me that people forget that Scarftar has other purposes beyond killing Latias; killing anything less than or at 364 speed with the appropriate move, unless Tyranitar gets trumped by priority of a move that Tyranitar’s Rock and Dark typing is weak do (Ugh fuck you CB Infernape… Maybe not you Scizor since I have plenty of things to kill you with). This includes Starmie, non-priority/scarfed Infernape, offensive variants of Celebi……… Holy crap, everything that takes neutral damage from at least one of T-tar’s moves at 30% health or less.
I chose Superpower as my fourth moveslot because now I have a way of bushwhacking Breloom that come my way, expecting a Crunch or a Stone Edge. The standard Smogon set takes roughly 60% the first Superpower; with Stealth Rock and Sandstorm damage, it’s a done 2HKO. Also, Blissey takes an easy 2HKO from Superpower; but if they succeed in Softboiling/Wishing the turn I fire off the first Superpower... Well, I have a problem. The rest of this set in terms of moves is common knowledge.
Breloom @ Toxic Orb
120 HP/252 Attack/136 Speed
Adamant
~Seed Bomb
~Focus Punch
~Spore
~Substitute
Breloom has been called out as a suspect by some players… And it’s not hard to see why. Salamence’s banning created the perfect environment for Breloom- One of the ways to reduce the mushroom’s effectiveness was to simply switch in as Breloom Substitutes, and break the sub since Salamence easily resists both Seed Bomb and Focus Punch, Breloom’s most common moves. From there, Mence could terrorize whatever switched in… Or it could Dragon Dance for kicks and start killing junk.
And then guess what? The Smogon Council inflicted the ban, and Salamence flew the coop (After eating everyone else, probably). In addition to being Breloom’s worst nightmare, even if it set up a sub on the turn Salamence switched in (Substitute is no priority move, so before Breloom hides it takes the Intimidate drop) the metagame has turned slightly slower.
Awesome. Now I can terrorize everybody with the game’s best move: Spore (Fuck you Honchkrow, you’ve got about 50 other flaws to exploit in addition to being neutral to Focus/Falcon Punch). Hippowdon? Check. Blissey? Check. Swampy? Check. Skarm? Check check check for every relevant stall threat. They’re all setup fodder! This EV spread aims to make Breloom viably fast, outspeed no-speed Suicune and Metagross/Empoleon that aim to reach 209 speed before they use Agility, and as bulky as possible- With 120 HP EVs no-attack neutral natured Gliscor can’t break my subs about 80% of the time with Earthquake. 252 Attack EVs and an Adamant nature is for bringing on the pain. A lot of it. Even Gyarados, not factoring in Leftovers recovery and factoring in sandstorm, can be 2HKOed after Intimidate with Seed Bomb due to it taking neutral damage from Seed Bomb!
Rotom-H @ Choice Scarf
4 HP/252 Special Attack/252 Speed
Timid
~Discharge
~Overheat
~Shadow Ball
~Trick
Ahhh, yes. Rotom-H, who I replaced Latias with. I think that the mischievous ghost who possesses machines has done his job better than Latias has; Rotom now completely patches up my Yanmega weakness, save for the rare Specsmega. Rotom-H breaks stall like a mofo by directly threatening Skarmory and Forretress, the main Spikers of Stall teams; and when they switch to Blissey, I’m handing over an awesome Scarf in exchange for some free food!
I chose Discharge over Thunderbolt because I really don’t understand what the extra 15 base power does for Rotom- What 2HKOs does it achieve that Discharge doesn’t? Besides, I loooooove paralysis. Rotom also happens to be part two of my Breloom killing duo; get slept, switch in Scizor, then U-turn to break the Substitute and send in Rotom to terrorize the foe with that awesome Fighting immunity. I went with Overheat over Will-o-Wisp because being Choice-locked on a status move is a terrible terrible thing.
Heatran @ Life Orb
4 HP/252 Special Attack/252 Speed
Timid
~Fire Blast
~Taunt
~Explosion
~Earth Power
On the basis of popular opinion, I've replaced Choice Scarf with Life Orb in order to take on stall better. I've realized that Heatran is now packing a lot more power, and easily shuts down stall; ResTalk Gyara is still OHKOed after SR with the killswitch flicking, thanks to the LO boost (Lol!)
In closing
This is a retirement RMT. At least, from the Overused tier of the fourth generation (On Shoddy at least). I’m glad that I’ve had the chance to go to Smogon so early in my competitive battling career, where I’ve learned… To learn. Special thanks to CAL for their great community, and Kennisiou, my CALibur tutor!
Well, that’s the final tribute to this team. Credits to Ciaran for forming the basis of Team (R)Evolution with his Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer RMT!