- dirty south -
Hii, Smogon. ~
Hii, Smogon. ~
After missing out on the last suspect round I took the recent ladder reset as an incentive to play a little more actively again. Naturally I needed a new team. Somehow it ended up performing rather well, but I still feel like it is missing… something and could easily be improved.
While it is once again neither the most elaborate nor original team and chances are you have seen something similar before it excels at applying constant pressure to its opponents and apparently is quite hard to play against. The team at hand follows a rather simple concept. Pick a Pokemon, find a few 2 'mon cores it works well on, throw them all together and see if it works.
The Pokemon I chose was one I greatly enjoyed using in the past and one I admittedly have a hard time building teams without nowadays, Keldeo. We all know that Keldeo works amazingly well when paired with Choice Band Tyranitar. We all know that the combination of the two musketeers Keldeo and Terrakion is extremely hard to play against. We all know that Keldeo and Landorus have great synergy and fairly similar counters. But what happens if you use all of these cores on the same team?
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 148 HP / 252 Atk / 108 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Tail
Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Hydro Pump
- Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Terrakion @ Salac Berry
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
Landorus @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
EVs: 64 HP / 252 SAtk / 192 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
- Roost
Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 SAtk / 232 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest
- Breloom
- Celebi
- Lucario & setup sweepers in general
- Gengar & other particular special sweepers
So, that's my latest team. Thank you for reading! I'm looking forward to any feedback, rates, questions, criticism or concerns you may have.
Feel free to use the team if you like it. Test it, fix it, tear it apart, do whatever you want with it.~
Pokemon sprites from Pokecheck. Item sprites from Serebii.
Shout-out to HungryMoth for helping me to write this up, proof-reading and turning it into slightly less of a grammatical clusterfuck. :3
Posted this at 4 AM, if anything is blatantly wrong with it please let me know.
While it is once again neither the most elaborate nor original team and chances are you have seen something similar before it excels at applying constant pressure to its opponents and apparently is quite hard to play against. The team at hand follows a rather simple concept. Pick a Pokemon, find a few 2 'mon cores it works well on, throw them all together and see if it works.
The Pokemon I chose was one I greatly enjoyed using in the past and one I admittedly have a hard time building teams without nowadays, Keldeo. We all know that Keldeo works amazingly well when paired with Choice Band Tyranitar. We all know that the combination of the two musketeers Keldeo and Terrakion is extremely hard to play against. We all know that Keldeo and Landorus have great synergy and fairly similar counters. But what happens if you use all of these cores on the same team?
Namesake alt 'dirty south' and ladder alt 'Skittehz'.
If it ain't broken, don't fix it. Choice Scarf Keldeo had worked incredibly well for me in the past so I decided to build around it again. While it certainly isn't the underrated threat it was just a few months ago anymore it still works like a charm.
In the past I had already used Keldeo with rain support multiple times as well as shoehorning it into various hyperoffensive teams. The one popular strategy I had yet to try out was pairing it with a Pursuit trapper able to remove its main counters. Thus Choice Band Tyranitar became the second member of my team.
Some people argue that the combination of Keldeo and Terrakion is absurdly hard to play around. Frankly, they are right. It's a core I never liked to face simply because of how much pressure it can put on your team. Well, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
Seeing how I was essentially just stacking huge threats already throwing in one more seemed like it wouldn't hurt. From my attempt at the Outsiders Challenge I learned that Keldeo and Landorus-T make a great core. This time however I went with Landorus-I instead since it synergizes extremely well with both Keldeo and Terrakion by softening up or downright knocking out most of their counters.
At this point the team looked like it would be able to overwhelm most defensive setups with relative ease. But at the same time just about any offensive threat would've been able to plow through it with relative ease. It also lacked the ever-so-important entry hazard support any offensive core should have. Not wanting to go full-on hyperoffense I threw in one of the safest walls in the metagame, Skarmory.
Soon thereafter the team's sixth slot was taken by what is often considered a “band aid” Pokemon. A rather fitting description. Rotom-W patches up a plethora of weaknesses. Apart from Keldeo it is the only thing that stands between my team and rain offense… or any special attacker to be perfectly honest. Furthermore its slow Volt Switch is extremely helpful when it comes to keeping momentum and switching any of my sweepers into a favorable matchup without risking to lose them.
In the past I had already used Keldeo with rain support multiple times as well as shoehorning it into various hyperoffensive teams. The one popular strategy I had yet to try out was pairing it with a Pursuit trapper able to remove its main counters. Thus Choice Band Tyranitar became the second member of my team.
Some people argue that the combination of Keldeo and Terrakion is absurdly hard to play around. Frankly, they are right. It's a core I never liked to face simply because of how much pressure it can put on your team. Well, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
Seeing how I was essentially just stacking huge threats already throwing in one more seemed like it wouldn't hurt. From my attempt at the Outsiders Challenge I learned that Keldeo and Landorus-T make a great core. This time however I went with Landorus-I instead since it synergizes extremely well with both Keldeo and Terrakion by softening up or downright knocking out most of their counters.
At this point the team looked like it would be able to overwhelm most defensive setups with relative ease. But at the same time just about any offensive threat would've been able to plow through it with relative ease. It also lacked the ever-so-important entry hazard support any offensive core should have. Not wanting to go full-on hyperoffense I threw in one of the safest walls in the metagame, Skarmory.
Soon thereafter the team's sixth slot was taken by what is often considered a “band aid” Pokemon. A rather fitting description. Rotom-W patches up a plethora of weaknesses. Apart from Keldeo it is the only thing that stands between my team and rain offense… or any special attacker to be perfectly honest. Furthermore its slow Volt Switch is extremely helpful when it comes to keeping momentum and switching any of my sweepers into a favorable matchup without risking to lose them.
Changes in bold
Tyranitar @ Choice Band
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 148 HP / 252 Atk / 108 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Tail
Choice Band Tyranitar is a complete monster. When it comes in something will go down. Simple as that. Its primary role is of course to punch holes into the opposing team to allow other members to sweep, but it actually brings a lot more to the table than just trapping problematic Pokemon with Pursuit.
Most of the time I will use the team preview to determine which opposing Pokemon need to be removed or weakened to allow either Keldeo or Landorus to sweep. The usual suspects are the likes of Latias, Latios, Celebi, Jellicent, at times even Amoonguss or a pink blob. Once I manage to bring in Tyranitar against either of them getting rid of them can be as easy as pressing Pursuit. Tyranitar's other moves serve a rather trivial purpose, hitting as many things as possible as hard as possible. Stone Edge and Crunch are generic STAB moves and shouldn't need any further explanation. Tyranitar's fourth move used to be Superpower, but since it was rarely ever used I replaced it with Aqua Tail. Unlike Superpower, Aqua Tail is a rather safe move to be locked into and provides some neat coverage that doesn't require much prediction. Being able to hit the likes of Gliscor, Hippowdon or the newly popular Nyandorus hard should they dare to switch in against Tyranitar has proven to be rather helpful. The last major asset Tyranitar adds to the team is Sand Stream. While only Tyranitar itself and Terrakion benefit directly from Sandstorm the team as a whole greatly benefits from situations where the Pokemon in play are in a wounded state due to its offensive nature. Effectively disabling Leftovers recovery or even dealing residual damage to them greatly helps to wear down a bunch of problematic Pokemon such as the aforementioned Lati-twins.
Most of the time I will use the team preview to determine which opposing Pokemon need to be removed or weakened to allow either Keldeo or Landorus to sweep. The usual suspects are the likes of Latias, Latios, Celebi, Jellicent, at times even Amoonguss or a pink blob. Once I manage to bring in Tyranitar against either of them getting rid of them can be as easy as pressing Pursuit. Tyranitar's other moves serve a rather trivial purpose, hitting as many things as possible as hard as possible. Stone Edge and Crunch are generic STAB moves and shouldn't need any further explanation. Tyranitar's fourth move used to be Superpower, but since it was rarely ever used I replaced it with Aqua Tail. Unlike Superpower, Aqua Tail is a rather safe move to be locked into and provides some neat coverage that doesn't require much prediction. Being able to hit the likes of Gliscor, Hippowdon or the newly popular Nyandorus hard should they dare to switch in against Tyranitar has proven to be rather helpful. The last major asset Tyranitar adds to the team is Sand Stream. While only Tyranitar itself and Terrakion benefit directly from Sandstorm the team as a whole greatly benefits from situations where the Pokemon in play are in a wounded state due to its offensive nature. Effectively disabling Leftovers recovery or even dealing residual damage to them greatly helps to wear down a bunch of problematic Pokemon such as the aforementioned Lati-twins.
Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Hydro Pump
- Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Aqua pony is best pony. Choice Scarf Keldeo is one of the best, if not the best, revenge killers and lategame sweepers in the current metagame. Base 129 Special Attack coupled with a blazing base 108 Speed make it a force to be reckoned with.
While Keldeo was originally intended to be a dedicated lategame sweeper it has been the most valuable as a revenge killer in practice. I usually have to bring it in multiple times over the course of a match to stop any given sweeper. Luckily Keldeo's great speed stat allows it to outrun virtually all relevant setup sweepers in the tier as well as at least tying with most common Choice Scarf users. I personally believe that anything short of base 105 speed just doesn't cut it as a team's sole scarfer anymore, but as long as other players disagree with this sentiment Keldeo will be able to outrun a bunch of teams completely. Not that I'm gonna complain, it's one of Keldeo's major selling points after all. Apart from protecting the team from blazingly fast threats and cleaning up late in the game once the opposing team has been sufficiently weakened Keldeo is also reasonably bulky. Should my primary checks fail it can act as a fallback check to various threats such as Lucario or Rock Polish Landorus. Alongside Rotom, Keldeo also happens to be a rather solid answer to most rain teams. Keldeo works well enough in the sand, but saying it doesn't appreciate rain would be flat out lying. Knowing how well it performs in the rain and that I can always fall back on it if worst comes to worst makes playing weather wars against Politoed a whole lot easier.
While Keldeo was originally intended to be a dedicated lategame sweeper it has been the most valuable as a revenge killer in practice. I usually have to bring it in multiple times over the course of a match to stop any given sweeper. Luckily Keldeo's great speed stat allows it to outrun virtually all relevant setup sweepers in the tier as well as at least tying with most common Choice Scarf users. I personally believe that anything short of base 105 speed just doesn't cut it as a team's sole scarfer anymore, but as long as other players disagree with this sentiment Keldeo will be able to outrun a bunch of teams completely. Not that I'm gonna complain, it's one of Keldeo's major selling points after all. Apart from protecting the team from blazingly fast threats and cleaning up late in the game once the opposing team has been sufficiently weakened Keldeo is also reasonably bulky. Should my primary checks fail it can act as a fallback check to various threats such as Lucario or Rock Polish Landorus. Alongside Rotom, Keldeo also happens to be a rather solid answer to most rain teams. Keldeo works well enough in the sand, but saying it doesn't appreciate rain would be flat out lying. Knowing how well it performs in the rain and that I can always fall back on it if worst comes to worst makes playing weather wars against Politoed a whole lot easier.
Terrakion @ Salac Berry
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
It's Terrakion. It hits things. Hard. In a way it is a lot like Tyranitar. An offensive behemoth in its own right with the potential to easily wipe out unprepared teams, but ultimately not meant to sweep. Instead of downright wiping out teams Terrakion's main purpose is to further soften them up so Keldeo or Landorus can go to town.
With that said it may seem counter-intuitive to not use Choice Band Terrakion for its insane wallbreaking prowess, but the versatility SubSD brings to the table is simply too valuable to give up. First and foremost it assures that Terrakion itself stays a threat, but it also helps to play around certain problematic Pokemon. Should Tyranitar fail to get rid of them for some reason Terrakion is usually my best bet at breaking through the likes of Jellicent or Amoonguss. While I certainly don't like switching Terrakion in against them it's fairly bulky provided that I manage to keep Sandstorm up and should usually be able to beat them one on one. This is, however, a contingency plan and I'd much rather just let Tyranitar handle them so Terrakion is free to just rip holes into whatever it hits. Terrakion's moves are bog-standard and shouldn't need much explanation. I originally used a Rock Gem on Terrakion to maintain some of a Choice Band set's wallbreaking prowess, but as multiple raters have pointed out a Salac Berry makes Terrakion much more versatile and assures it can be used as a win condition if need be.
With that said it may seem counter-intuitive to not use Choice Band Terrakion for its insane wallbreaking prowess, but the versatility SubSD brings to the table is simply too valuable to give up. First and foremost it assures that Terrakion itself stays a threat, but it also helps to play around certain problematic Pokemon. Should Tyranitar fail to get rid of them for some reason Terrakion is usually my best bet at breaking through the likes of Jellicent or Amoonguss. While I certainly don't like switching Terrakion in against them it's fairly bulky provided that I manage to keep Sandstorm up and should usually be able to beat them one on one. This is, however, a contingency plan and I'd much rather just let Tyranitar handle them so Terrakion is free to just rip holes into whatever it hits. Terrakion's moves are bog-standard and shouldn't need much explanation. I originally used a Rock Gem on Terrakion to maintain some of a Choice Band set's wallbreaking prowess, but as multiple raters have pointed out a Salac Berry makes Terrakion much more versatile and assures it can be used as a win condition if need be.
Landorus @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
EVs: 64 HP / 252 SAtk / 192 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish
Keldeo's partner in crime. Landorus and Keldeo make an amazingly strong offensive core. Not only do they have near flawless defensive synergy, but they also happen to share a lot of checks and counters very few of which have any chance to take on both of them in succession. Unlike Tyranitar and Terrakion and despite my initial intentions Landorus should not be seen as some sort of support Pokemon for Keldeo. It's a sweeper, plain and simple.
While Landorus does an admirable job at supporting Keldeo it is perfectly capable of sweeping on its own given the possibility. Sometimes all it takes for it to wipe out a team is some residual damage and a single turn of setup. After Rock Polish Landorus easily outruns every Pokemon in the entire metagame. In fact my game plan against offensive teams oftentimes boils down to forcing an opportunity for Landorus to set up to downright sweep them. It should also be noted that Landorus can still be used as the wallbreaker it was meant to be at some point in time. If it manages to remove an opposing Pokemon along the lines of Skarmory, Gliscor or Nyandorus it instantly makes the rest of my sweepers a whole lot more threatening. Seeing how granting Landorus a single free turn can have catastrophic results opponents simply sacrificing their walls to it aren't exactly a rare sight. Landorus' moves are rather self-explanatory. Rock Polish is a given, Earth Power is its go-to move to hit things hard and Focus Blast and Hidden Power add some coverage against things Earth Power doesn't hit. The choice between Hidden Power Ice and Hidden Power Flying is a tricky one. While both are rarely ever used more than once or twice per match they both have their own different niches uses. Hidden Power Ice arguably grants better coverage overall, cleanly OHKOs Gliscor and Nyandorus. Furthermore it allows Landorus to break through Latias and Latios provided they have taken some previous damage. Hidden Power Flying on the other hand allows it to beat Celebi and Amoonguss and a second STAB move is always nice to have.
While Landorus does an admirable job at supporting Keldeo it is perfectly capable of sweeping on its own given the possibility. Sometimes all it takes for it to wipe out a team is some residual damage and a single turn of setup. After Rock Polish Landorus easily outruns every Pokemon in the entire metagame. In fact my game plan against offensive teams oftentimes boils down to forcing an opportunity for Landorus to set up to downright sweep them. It should also be noted that Landorus can still be used as the wallbreaker it was meant to be at some point in time. If it manages to remove an opposing Pokemon along the lines of Skarmory, Gliscor or Nyandorus it instantly makes the rest of my sweepers a whole lot more threatening. Seeing how granting Landorus a single free turn can have catastrophic results opponents simply sacrificing their walls to it aren't exactly a rare sight. Landorus' moves are rather self-explanatory. Rock Polish is a given, Earth Power is its go-to move to hit things hard and Focus Blast and Hidden Power add some coverage against things Earth Power doesn't hit. The choice between Hidden Power Ice and Hidden Power Flying is a tricky one. While both are rarely ever used more than once or twice per match they both have their own different niches uses. Hidden Power Ice arguably grants better coverage overall, cleanly OHKOs Gliscor and Nyandorus. Furthermore it allows Landorus to break through Latias and Latios provided they have taken some previous damage. Hidden Power Flying on the other hand allows it to beat Celebi and Amoonguss and a second STAB move is always nice to have.
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
- Roost
Skarmory has two jobs on this team. Set up Stealth Rock and keep a bunch of setup sweepers and Choice Scarf users from walking all over my team. Without Skarmory facing even a single scarfed Terrakion could potentially end in catastrophic failure.
The way Skarmory is played largely depends on the opponent's team. At times it can be the single most important member of my team and win matches virtually on its own. At other times it ends up being largely useless and doesn't do much outside of maybe putting some dents into a frail sweeper after hanging on with Sturdy. Speaking of Sturdy, it may sound silly, but as long as I can keep Sturdy up Skarmory is actually a rather solid fallback check against… well, everything. Sometimes Skarmory can even take on Pokemon that supposedly counter it with ease thanks to its deceptively powerful Brave Bird. Skarmory also provides the team with the Stealth Rock support any good offensive team should have. It's really just a rock-solid Pokemon, does exactly what it's supposed to do and you all know how it works.
The way Skarmory is played largely depends on the opponent's team. At times it can be the single most important member of my team and win matches virtually on its own. At other times it ends up being largely useless and doesn't do much outside of maybe putting some dents into a frail sweeper after hanging on with Sturdy. Speaking of Sturdy, it may sound silly, but as long as I can keep Sturdy up Skarmory is actually a rather solid fallback check against… well, everything. Sometimes Skarmory can even take on Pokemon that supposedly counter it with ease thanks to its deceptively powerful Brave Bird. Skarmory also provides the team with the Stealth Rock support any good offensive team should have. It's really just a rock-solid Pokemon, does exactly what it's supposed to do and you all know how it works.
Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 SAtk / 232 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest
Rotom-W, the band aid Pokemon. Weak to rain? Scared of your own Landorus? Getting styled on by any generic special attacker? Just add Rotom-W! Rotom is here to patch up a few of the teams glaring weaknesses. First and foremost it is meant to stop offensive rain teams from destroying my team completely, but it also has a lot of other amazing qualities.
While Tyranitar can trap a bunch of potentially problematic special attackers there are some, like Gengar or Alakazam, it simply can't handle. Even when not facing any of those threats there are still times where I prefer to keep Tyranitar healthy. This is where Rotom comes in. Between its amazing defensive typing and great special bulk Rotom is able to take on a good amount of special attackers with relative ease. But its usefulness extends far beyond being able to not faint from random attacks. Rotom's Volt Switch is invaluable for the team seeing how some of its members need nothing but a safe switch to wreak havoc. Whenever I find myself in a matchup where Tyranitar needs stay healthy for some reason I tend to use Rotom as a pivot to bring it in if at all possible. Rotom also serves as the team's status absorber. While most of its members don't mind Toxic all that much having the wrong Pokemon paralyzed or burned can easily cost me the match and Rotom greatly helps to circumvent this issue. This is the reason I choose Rest and Chesto Berry instead of Leftovers and Pain Split. While the lack of Leftovers and reusable recovery can certainly hurt at time the way I tend to play Rotom pretty much guarantees that it will be burned or poisoned at some point in most matches. It should also be noted that the lack of Leftovers can at times allow me to bluff a Choice Scarf set. Sadly this works nowhere near as good as it used to since ChestoRest Rotom-W seems to be quite common nowadays, but if nothing else it can still make for some rather funny matches. Hydro Pump is a generic STAB move and allows Rotom to dish out some damage if need be. Even more so should my opponent be so kind to provide it with some rain. Rotom's last move, Will-O-Wisp, serves not only to cripple physical attackers, but also to wear down some problematic Pokemon. At times getting an early burn in on the likes of Jellicent or Amoonguss can be game-changing.
While Tyranitar can trap a bunch of potentially problematic special attackers there are some, like Gengar or Alakazam, it simply can't handle. Even when not facing any of those threats there are still times where I prefer to keep Tyranitar healthy. This is where Rotom comes in. Between its amazing defensive typing and great special bulk Rotom is able to take on a good amount of special attackers with relative ease. But its usefulness extends far beyond being able to not faint from random attacks. Rotom's Volt Switch is invaluable for the team seeing how some of its members need nothing but a safe switch to wreak havoc. Whenever I find myself in a matchup where Tyranitar needs stay healthy for some reason I tend to use Rotom as a pivot to bring it in if at all possible. Rotom also serves as the team's status absorber. While most of its members don't mind Toxic all that much having the wrong Pokemon paralyzed or burned can easily cost me the match and Rotom greatly helps to circumvent this issue. This is the reason I choose Rest and Chesto Berry instead of Leftovers and Pain Split. While the lack of Leftovers and reusable recovery can certainly hurt at time the way I tend to play Rotom pretty much guarantees that it will be burned or poisoned at some point in most matches. It should also be noted that the lack of Leftovers can at times allow me to bluff a Choice Scarf set. Sadly this works nowhere near as good as it used to since ChestoRest Rotom-W seems to be quite common nowadays, but if nothing else it can still make for some rather funny matches. Hydro Pump is a generic STAB move and allows Rotom to dish out some damage if need be. Even more so should my opponent be so kind to provide it with some rain. Rotom's last move, Will-O-Wisp, serves not only to cripple physical attackers, but also to wear down some problematic Pokemon. At times getting an early burn in on the likes of Jellicent or Amoonguss can be game-changing.
dirty south (Tyranitar) @ Choice Band
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 148 HP / 252 Atk / 108 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Tail
Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Hydro Pump
- Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Terrakion @ Salac Berry
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
Landorus @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
EVs: 64 HP / 252 SAtk / 192 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
- Roost
Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 SAtk / 232 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 148 HP / 252 Atk / 108 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Tail
Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Hydro Pump
- Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Terrakion @ Salac Berry
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
Landorus @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
EVs: 64 HP / 252 SAtk / 192 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 Def
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
- Roost
Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 SAtk / 232 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest
Skarmory walls it completely, but I need to sleep fodder something first. Seeing how Breloom can potentially OHKO any other Pokemon on my team this can be quite tricky at times. My team also slightly weak to Fighting type attacks in general and a simple +X Mach Punch can be extremely hard to play around.
Among all the Pokemon that check Keldeo and Landorus Celebi stands out. Unlike other problematic Pokemon it can actually take on Tyranitar with relative ease provided it runs the right set. I have yet to run into any sets with Baton Pass, but truth be told I simply wouldn't know what to do against those.
If, for some ungodly reason, Lucario ever manages to set up against my team and I have taken minimal prior damage on Skarmory and Keldeo I just lose. The same is true for a few more setup sweepers, but Lucario stands out so I chose it to represent them. My usual course of action against these threats is…. not giving them any chance to set up…?
Once again I chose a single Pokemon to represent a group of threats. Fast special attackers that can break through Tyranitar and aren't knocked out by one of Keldeo's reliable moves can be extremely problematic. Should I misplay Tyranitar or if my opponent simply has too many of them for it to handle fast special sweepers in general can become a huge problem.
I am aware that I essentially just said that the team is weak to... everything, but most of the threats can usually be played around somehow. In fact some of the things I listed are rather manageable on their own and only turn into a serious problem when combined with other threatening Pokemon.
So, that's my latest team. Thank you for reading! I'm looking forward to any feedback, rates, questions, criticism or concerns you may have.
Feel free to use the team if you like it. Test it, fix it, tear it apart, do whatever you want with it.~
Pokemon sprites from Pokecheck. Item sprites from Serebii.
Shout-out to HungryMoth for helping me to write this up, proof-reading and turning it into slightly less of a grammatical clusterfuck. :3
Posted this at 4 AM, if anything is blatantly wrong with it please let me know.
