NU Teambuilding

[watashi]

Speaking of spinners, I'll do Torkoal and Armaldo for today. This thread REALLY needs spinners posted, I've seen way too many people claiming Wartortle to be amazing on PS chat. (ö.ö)

(No fancy picture for today as looking back at it, if I was running this thread my CDO (More like OCD, but alphabetical order strong) would kill me about not having every post formatted exactly the same and mine stick out the most.

Torkoal (F) @ White Herb
Trait: Shell Armor
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Shell Smash
- Rapid Spin
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass] / Earth Power

Role: Rapid Spinner / Special Sweeper (Secondary)

What it does: While Torkoal is normally looked at as a defensive Pokemon, it actually does have a pretty good base 85 Special Attack and access to Shell Smash. Now you might ask yourself, "How could this possibly work out?". Well the answer is simple, Torkoal is capable of beating Golurk, Drifblim, and Misdreavus with Fire Blast, while OHKOing Haunter easily. With Shell Smash Torkoal is capable of not only outspeeding potential spinblockers, but can easily destroy them to allow a free opportunity to Rapid Spin or even sweep if need be. Torkoal's spread allows it outspeed positive Speed natured base 70 Pokemon and hit as hard as possible, while White Herb makes up for Shell Smash's decrease in defenses. With max Speed Torkoal also hits 139 Speed, enough to outspeed standard Golem to get off a Hidden Power Grass early game. While it won't be outspeeding Haunter at +2, Haunter is easily just taken down by a Fire Blast on the switch. (If they switch at all, otherwise it's a free Spin regardless) HP Grass is there to provide some pretty good coverage alongside Fire Blast and allows Torkoal to give the Alomomola + Amoonguss some trouble.

• 252 +2 SpAtk Torkoal (+SpAtk) Fire Blast vs 172 HP/0 SpDef Golurk: 107.18% - 126.24% (Guaranteed OHKO)
• 252 +2 SpAtk Torkoal (+SpAtk) Fire Blast vs 252 HP/0 SpDef Eviolite Misdreavus: 75.93% - 89.81% (2 hits to KO) [Not a big deal though as Missy can't do much with Shadow Ball after White Herb. You can even set up another Shell Smash on it to sweep if needed]
• 252 +2 SpAtk Torkoal (+SpAtk) Fire Blast vs 0 HP/4 SpDef Drifblim: 119.73% - 141.04% (Guaranteed OHKO)

Good Teammates: Torkoal functions best on more offensive Fire/Water/Grass cores as it provides the bulk and power that those team look for, and it's too offensive to function all that well on defensive cores such as Alomoonguss. Special Samurott and Torterra make good partners for this as they can easily keep the offensive momentum and cover a huge amount of threats.

What counters it: Most Fire-types such as Emboar, Rapidash, and Camerupt can easily stop Torkoal from sweeping although they can't stop it from accomplishing its main goal of getting off a Rapid Spin.

Any Additional Info: Let's hope that next gen White Smoke stops Overheat SpA drops. :)

I've been using this set on the ladder and it's actually really good except for Fire Blast misses. It's even gotten some sweeps against unprepared people. Props for finding a viable spinner in NU!

 

[Incon]

What i have here is my orgasmic revenge killer set. I posted originally in Project Neverused, but since its gotten good feedback i decided to post it here. So here it is... Choice scarf Tauros.

Tauros @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
Evs: 4hp/ 252Atk/ 252Spd
Adamant Nature

Retaliate/ Double Edge
Return
Stone Edge/ Zen Headbutt
Earthquake

Role: Revenge Killer

What it does: Well, to put it simply, it revenge kills. After one of his teammates faints, he can come in and retaliate full force. Tauros' great 110 base speed equipped with a scarf allows him to outspeed the entire, non scarfed tier which lets him easily deal with speedy threats such as Cincinno and Swellow. Intimidate is used to give Tauros pseudo bulk and makes switching in easier. I prefer to use an adamant nature because he doesn't need the speed boost from a jolly nature and the extra attack helps to nab some extra kills. Tauros has a great base 100 attack stat, so he is hitting really hard while outspeeding mostly everyone. Retaliate is the main move on this set as it basically Ohko's any offensive mon after stealth rock damage after a teammate has fainted. Double Edge is only slashed because Retaliate currently doesn't work on PS! and that is the best alternative, however it is far less powerful and the recoil damage sucks. Return is on this set for reliable damage in case you don't need the Retaliate boost. The rest of the moves are basically filler. Stone edge or Zen headbutt are the only way to hit ghost types. Stone edge has a higher base power but zen headbutt hits Haunter for super effective damage. Earthquake is to hit rock and steel types that otherwise wall this set.

Good Teamates: Tauros can fit basically on any team in need of a revenge killer. His attributes already mentioned make him a great addition but there are some mons that help this set to its full potential. Golurk or Gurdurr are great partners as they can destroy the Steel and Rock types that wall Tauros' stab moves, while Golurk is immune to fighting attacks that Tauros is weak to. Skuntank or Absol is a great partner to trap those pesky ghosts that Tauros struggles against.

What counters it: Well i've mentioned that Rock, steel, and ghosts types give this set trouble. Probopass and Bastiodon can easily shake off a boosted Retaliate, forcing Tauros to switch out. Haunter and Misdreavus are little bitches that are immune to his stab moves as well as earthquake, only being hit by stone edge/zen headbutt. The latter can burn Tauros with Will-O-Wisp which ruins this set, but you're dumb if you stay in. Finally, mons with great physical bulk, particularly the Regen core can be tough to deal with. Tauros cant ohko either of them and they can just switch out to heal off the damage. They can also hit back with status moves that greatly cripple this set, so watch out for that.

Additional Info: I think this is an original set that i first poste in project neverused. Everyone should use it! Retaliate doesn't work on PS! last time i checked, so be wary of that. And yes, I said orgasmic.

 

[ebeast]

Charizard @ Life Orb
Trait: Blaze
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant / Jolly Nature
-Dragon Dance
-Outrage
-Flare Blitz
-Roost

Role: Physical Sweeper

What it does: Well seeing as it would most likely be an unexpected set till a dragon dance just kill whatevers out there

Good Teammates:Ninetales and not sure what else

What counters it:SR, Rock moves, Electric moves and water moves

Any Additional Info: Never did competitive battling except against my friend back in 3rd gen so any advice would be appreciated

Ninetales is sadly tucked away safely under the blankets of OU, so no Drought support for poor old Zard. As for Outrage, you should never use it on a Pokemon that doesn't get STAB (Same Type Attack Bonus) because otherwise you're locked in for 3 turns with a weaker attack. The reason Outrage is good is because for Dragon-types it is hitting neutral targets much much harder and their coverage such as Earthquake or Low kick are hitting the Steel-type Pokemon hard enough. (Think Probopass, Lairon, and Klang)

While I'm talking about Charizard I might as well post my own set on here:

Charizard (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Blaze
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Roost
- Fire Blast
- Air Slash
- Substitute / Hidden Power [Grass]

Role: Special Sweeper

What it does: This is a bread-and-butter Charizard set, that imitates Moltres's trademark set to Charizard's fullest. It can either use SubRoost to take advantage of all of the switches it will force with its decent coverage and excellent power or use Hidden Power Grass to hit the Rock-type Pokemon that gives it trouble. Charizard is capable of breaking many Pokemon and cores down such as Alomomola + Amoonguss without much trouble thanks to its great base 109 Special Attack and Blaze ability that takes advantage of Charizard's LO recoil and Substitute spam. However, Charizard is not just another slow, but hard hitting Pokemon as it has an excellent base 100 Speed to take advantage of that allows it to outspeed many key Pokemon such as Zangoose, Haunter, and Rotom-S.

Good Teammates: Charizard loves Spikes support as it lets it rack up free damage on the Rock-type Pokemon that can switch into Charizard (watch out for Champions Solrock and Lunatone though) For this job Cacturne actually pairs up quite nicely with it as Cacturne shares some decent type synergy with Charizard while even being capable of beating Rock-types that trouble Zard without having it rely on Spikes stacking. Special Samurott also pairs quite nicely with it as the main things that can trouble it, Regice and Ludicolo, and easily beaten by Charizard while Samu can return the favor and destroy any Golem or Regirock.

What counters it: If not using HP Grass Rock-types such as Golem, Regirock, and Relicanth can take Charizard's attack and either retaliate with Rock-type attacks or set up Stealth Rock to cripple Zard on each switch in. When using HP Grass its checks/counters suddenly change right over to Probopass who can take a hit and Thunder Wave Charizard. When using Substitute Charizard could just Roost to prevent Probopass's Volt Switch from breaking the Sub so with that Probopass isn't much of a problem.

Any Additional Info: Black Charizard is the only Charizard

 

[ChaoticaMortis]

Incon, Choice Scarf Tauros has been posted in the Normal-types thread, project NU, and one of the NP threads iirc. Regardless, it's a good set and someone had to put it in here.

EDIT: I think physical Charizard should go under "What not to use". Bellyzard is impossible to play unless you're up against someone that has no idea what they're doing, and any other physical version doesn't hit hard enough and relies on surprise value to be successful. Also, if you're going to be posting sets in this thread, make sure you've written more than one sentence, and make sure those sentences actually tell us why the Pokemon is good / bad.

 

[Elegy96]

Illumise @ Damp/Heat Rock
Prankster
252hp/4def/252spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk) / Jolly Nature (+Spe, -Sp.A)
-Rain Dance / Sunny Day
-Encore
-Thunder Wave
-Bug Buzz/U-Turn

Role: Support / Weather Setter

What It Does: Leads a weather team and guarantees that weather is set up. As Ilumise has decent enough bulk (better than Volbeat) it can take any priority attack, as it is neutral or resistant to all (apart from Bullet Punch but nobody uses that). Encore forces switches by keeping a 'mon into a move such as Stealth Rock. Thunder Wave cripples sweepers that rely on speed such as Cincinno, whereas an attack stops you from being Taunt bait. I personally use Bug Buzz for power, but U-Turn gives you more momentum.

Good Teammates: Obviously anything that benefits from the weather. In the rain sweepers like Ludicolo, Golduck, Beartic, Relicanth, Emolga, Swanna etc are all good choices, whereas in the sun go for Victreebel, Charizard, Vileplume, Emboar, etc. I don't play Sun so I can't help as much here. If you don't intend to sacrifice Illumise on Turn 1 then Rapid Spin support from the likes of Armaldo (or Torkoal on a sun team) is appreciated to stop her losing 25% of her health by switching in.

What Counters It: While Illumise's bulk is decent it's by no means excellent. Anything carrying a decent super-effective attack can easily OHKO or 2HKO the firefly. Leads like Golem or Cincinno can do the trick, but watch out for Encore or Thunder Wave respectively.

Additional Info: Many prefer Volbeat as it can pass Tail Glow, so keep that in mind as an option too. Personally I prefer Illumise due to her superior bulk (and cuteness)

 

[WhiteDMist]

Illumise @ Damp/Heat Rock
Prankster
252hp/4def/252spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk) / Jolly Nature (+Spe, -Sp.A)
-Rain Dance / Sunny Day
-Encore
-Thunder Wave
-Bug Buzz/U-Turn

Role: Support / Weather Setter

What It Does: Leads a weather team and guarantees that weather is set up. As Ilumise has decent enough bulk (better than Volbeat) it can take any priority attack, as it is neutral or resistant to all (apart from Bullet Punch but nobody uses that). Encore forces switches by keeping a 'mon into a move such as Stealth Rock. Thunder Wave cripples sweepers that rely on speed such as Cincinno, whereas an attack stops you from being Taunt bait. I personally use Bug Buzz for power, but U-Turn gives you more momentum.

Good Teammates: Obviously anything that benefits from the weather. In the rain sweepers like Ludicolo, Golduck, Beartic, Relicanth, Emolga, Swanna etc are all good choices, whereas in the sun go for Victreebel, Charizard, Vileplume, Emboar, etc. I don't play Sun so I can't help as much here. If you don't intend to sacrifice Illumise on Turn 1 then Rapid Spin support from the likes of Armaldo (or Torkoal on a sun team) is appreciated to stop her losing 25% of her health by switching in.

What Counters It: While Illumise's bulk is decent it's by no means excellent. Anything carrying a decent super-effective attack can easily OHKO or 2HKO the firefly. Leads like Golem or Cincinno can do the trick, but watch out for Encore or Thunder Wave respectively.

Additional Info: Many prefer Volbeat as it can pass Tail Glow, so keep that in mind as an option too. Personally I prefer Illumise due to her superior bulk (and cuteness)

Elegy96, Illumise doesn't have superior bulk to Volbeat. Sure, she has the same SDef stat that Volbeat has in Def, but Bug is a better type when defending on the physical spectrum. Plus you EV spread doesn't even use Illumise's superior Special bulk to its advantage by investing in it. Illumise has no real use for significant Speed investment except to speed creep Volbeat after all, and Prankster makes sure she goes first most of the time regardless. You would also prefer a slower U-turn so that you can get in your weather sweeper safely. You should also mention that Substitute and Baton Pass are also good options for the last two slots, if not the better options (all are outclassed by Volbeat most of the time though).

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Elegy96, Illumise doesn't have superior bulk to Volbeat. Sure, she has the same SDef stat that Volbeat has in Def, but Bug is a better type when defending on the physical spectrum. Plus you EV spread doesn't even use Illumise's superior Special bulk to its advantage by investing in it. Illumise has no real use for significant Speed investment except to speed creep Volbeat after all, and Prankster makes sure she goes first most of the time regardless. You would also prefer a slower U-turn so that you can get in your weather sweeper safely. You should also mention that Substitute and Baton Pass are also good options for the last two slots, if not the better options (all are outclassed by Volbeat most of the time though).

In fact, volbeat and illumise have the same stats defenisvely and only differenciate with thier attack stats. The other difference is in the movepool, but competitively speaking, it's only wish vs tail glow and a stronger u-turn.

(why did it have to be wish, healing wish illumise would have been really cool)

That set is decent btw, I've already used similar. You can also try to find place for roost somewhere.

 

[A Critical Hit]

Frankly, i am surprised nobody took skuntank yet, because even though it took a drop in usage, it is still as great as ever in trapping psychics and ghosts, although he can't really switch into golurk. But either way, I present you with skuntank.

Skuntank @Dread Plate/Life Orb/Leftovers
Trait: Aftermath
Nature: Adamant (+Atk -SpA)
Evs: 252 Atk, 236 Spe, 20 Hp
- Crunch / Poison Jab
- Taunt
- Pursuit
- Sucker Punch
​

Role: Bulky Attacker / Stallbreaker
Why it's Good: Skuntank is undoubtedly one of the best pokemon in the metagame, and for good reason. With this set, he takes hits fairly well thanks to his typing and hits hard due to his spread. And even though his coverage isn't the greatest, it is very effective in removing the likes of gardevoir and haunter. It also hits hard enough to break through stall, thanks to the toxic immunity (including being able to absorb tspikes), great typing, and taunt. The moves allow him to trap weaker things, as well as being able to nail faster things hard with a powerful STAB sucker punch. Aftermath is the icing on the cake, so if he is KOed by an impact attack, the opponant takes 25% damage.
Good Partners: Skuntank fits very well on a variaty of teams. His unique typing and trapping/stallbreaking abilities allow it to work on stall teams to remove the likes of musharna, especially when paired with weezing who's typing fits perfectly with tank's. He is also great on offensive teams, getting rid of threats that would ruin teammates like gurdurr, sawk, and haunter. The last of which gets a special mention due to it's perfect type synergy with skun.
Additional Info: Why did people stop using itttttttttttttttttttttt?????????????????????


There will be more to come, but just starting with the most noticable to me. I will be the orangest of the root veggies.

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I use Skuntank on my team and while he can't take an HP Ground very well (Musharna usually carried it), let alone EQ, he's very useful for taking on the psychics and ghosts. Disable Gengar get's a special mention, really annoying to deal with that set. That's why i put him on my team. He laughs at Sludge Bomb and Shadow Ball.

Maybe that's why he dropped? The EQ weakness?


I am still bad to making teams though, in fact i am horrible at making that perfect team that goes 100 w 10 L but Skuntank was there when i needed him. I seriously need this threads help for NU. I thought OU had a ton of things to keep track of lol.

 

[ebeast]

I use Skuntank on my team and while he can't take an HP Ground very well (Musharna usually carried it), let alone EQ, he's very useful for taking on the psychics and ghosts. Disable Gengar get's a special mention, really annoying to deal with that set. That's why i put him on my team. He laughs at Sludge Bomb and Shadow Ball.

Maybe that's why he dropped? The EQ weakness?


I am still bad to making teams though, in fact i am horrible at making that perfect team that goes 100 w 10 L but Skuntank was there when i needed him. I seriously need this threads help for NU. I thought OU had a ton of things to keep track of lol.

It's always been weak to Ground-type attacks (obviously) so that was definitely not the main reason why it dropped in usage as it was always supported by a Ground-type immunity or resist. With the dropping of Golurk though, Stuntank had to deal with another Ghost-type that it couldn't necessarily switch into safely. (The other being SubDisable AcroBlimp) Not only would a Sucker Punch / Crunch not kill a full health 172 HP Golurk, but Skuntank at that point would be taken down by Earthquake or take massive damage from everything CB Golurk uses other than Shadow Punch. Even so, I feel like Skuntank usage should have been at an all time high due to Shadow Tag Gothitelle being released and Musharna being the massive threat that it has always been.

 

[Elegy96]

Ninjask
@Liechi Berry
Adamant Nature
252atk/252spe
-Protect
-Substitute / Endure
-Baton Pass
-X Scissor

Role: Baton Passer

What It Does: Well, it Baton Passes. Very well. Stall as long as it deems safe with Protect/Sub/Endure, get Liechi Berry to activate if need be, and pass out. Either to be used as a lead, as part of a baton pass chain, or mid-game, to give some vital speed to a slower sweeper. X-Scissor prevents him from being Taunt bait.

Partners: If being used as part of a baton pass chain, then Mr. Mime, Mawile and Musharna are all great partners to rack up Calm Mind, Nasty Plot, Swords Dance and Iron Defense boosts. Good BP recipients include Octillery and Marowak. If being used mid-game, then Rapid Spin support from the likes of Armaldo or Torkoal is vital for Ninjask's survivability.

Counters: Rock Blast. Pokemon such as Golem, Garbodor, or Armaldo can blast Ninjask out of the sky given a chance. Phasing is the best way to stop Ninjask from creating an unstoppable Baton Pass chain, so Roar and Whirlwind users would be good choices. Watch out for Suction Cups/Soundproof pokemon, though. Clear Smog and Haze are good to stop Boosts accumulating, so Amoonguss would be a good option.

 

[Annoyer]

18:17 Yoshi annoyer there is something wrong
18:17 Yoshi with your pokemon teambuilding submission
18:17 Yoshi that pokemon is not golbat
18:17 Yoshi it's batman

Hide

Golbat @ Eviolite
Trait: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Taunt
- Super Fang / Toxic

Role: Stallbreaker

What it does: Golbat is an amazing stallbreaker due to it's unique typing, good defenses boosted by Eviolite, a high speed and a great movepool. It can outstall many threats such as Alomomola and Lickilicky with a combination of Taunt+Roost+Super Fang/Toxic. Brave Bird allows Golbat to deal a good chunk of damage to mons such as Amoonguss while also chipping their HP away. It's immunity to Toxic helps it a lot in stalling out key threats. It's 4x resistances to Fighting, Grass, and Bug moves gives it multiple opportunities to switch in during a match.

Good Teammates: Rocks limit Golbat's walling capabilities so spinners such as Armaldo are appreciated. Armaldo can also take out the Psychic-types that harm Golbat with STAB X-Scissor. Toxic Spikes alleviate the need for Toxic but most Toxic Spikes users are Poison-types and stacking Psychic weaknesses is unadvised. Omanyte is one of the good Toxic Spikes users to be paired with Golbat since it's weakness to Grass-type moves are resisted by Golbat. Probopass has excellent synergy with Golbat as well.

What counters it: Steel-types put a stop to Golbat's plan as they resist Brave Bird and are immune to Toxic. Pokemon with super-effective moves such as Psychic, Electric, Ice, and Rock-types can usually put a stop to Golbat, but beware of Roost as it negates the last three weaknesses listed when Golbat goes first. Powerful attacks will take a big toll on Golbat as it will have a hard time Roosting off the damage. Stealth Rocks will always be a thorn in Golbat's side as it strips away 25% of its health.

Any Additional Info: Whirlwind for phazing. U-turn for switch advantage. BATMAN