Approved by Raseri
Weather teams are rather unique though simple playstyles. There are 4 types of weather, 3 of which are rather viable in NU. This thread will discuss all 4 types of weather, and how they fair in the metagame.
Notable Weather Abusers are in bold. Pokemon that can work outside their weather are in italics.
(Images and sets will be added later)
Weather setters:
Most weather teams need a Pokemon to set-up the weather. Pokemon with the ability Prankster such as Liepard and Meowstic work. And bulky setters like Regirock and Uxie also work well (As they have moves like Explosion and Memento to help bring in a sweeper). Some abusers can set-up weather for the team as well (Such as Ludicolo in rain teams). Sand and Hail have auto inducers, though both are useless on their own. Volbeat can use Baton Pass to safely bring a sweeper after setting up weather, and also has Prankster giving it priority. If that's not your thing, it can also use a Slow U-Turn which also safely brings in a sweeper. However, Volbeat is high risk as a Sun Setter due to his Fire weakness, and as such he's better used for setting up rain.
Rain:
Swift Swim Users: Floatzel, Gorebyss, Huntail, Ludicolo, Lumineon, Luvdisc, Mantine, Relicanth, Seaking, Seismitoad, Qwilfish, Armaldo, Beartic, Carracosta, Golduck, Omastar, Poliwrath (NFEs too)
Other notable Pokemon on rain teams: Swanna, Jynx, Vivillon, Electric-types, Parasect, Phione
Weather Setters: Regice, Uxie, Ludicolo, Prankster Users
Rain is often considered the best weather in the higher tiers, and this remains true here. Though there is no auto-inducer, Rain is fairly easy to keep up and a lot of abusers are very good sweepers.
Swift Swimmers:
Ludicolo is generally seen on most Rain-types for it's ability to deal with other Swift Swimmers (Most anyway). It always works fairly well on non-rain teams as well. Mantine can deal with Grass-types due to it's Flying-STAB, which may be useful on some teams. Omastar and Carracosta can set-up Shell Smashes a bit faster, and both can work when rain is done as well. Qwilfish is a rather unique Swift Swim user because it is physically based, and can deal with Grass-types while not being weak to Rock. (Electric attacks will decimate both Mantine and Qwilfish the majority of the time) It also can set up Spikes for Rain teams which at times can be useful. Poliwrath does have a unique STAB combo which can help beat Magneton and Rotom-F, pests to Rain-teams. Seismitoad is also notable because of his Electric-immunity, though Swift Swim sets aren't the best sets for him, but they can still work. Beartic has reduced Fire-weakness and a typing to beat Grass-types, though that's it.
Other Abusers:
Swanna often received use on Rain Teams last gen because while it's speed didn't get raised, it had a nice STAB in Hurricane, and also Hydration making it easy to throw in a move like Rest for instant recovery. While it is not seen much nowadays, it can still be fairly unique and is very good when used with right support. Though being frail and having average speed. Jynx can get Recovery via the rain and counters the majority of Swift Swimmers and has a nice STAB combo. Vivillon's main use on Rain is that it has Hurricane, and can also boost with Quiver Dance, and it's Fire weakness is halved as well. Electric-types can spam Thunder though you have to keep rain up to do this. Parasect, while being very bad, can be a pretty good check to Ludicolo (Though that's it really, also gets recovery but whatever Para sucks)
Sun:
Chlorophyll Users: Sawsbuck, Vileplume, Lilligant, Shiftry, Sunflora, Bellossom, Victreebel, Tropius, Leavanny, Exeggutor, Maractus, Leafeon, Jumpluff
Other notable Pokemon on sun teams: Fire-types, Charmeleon (Not good but throwing it out there anyways), Combusken
Weather Setters: Uxie, Regirock, Prankster Users with access to Sunny Day
Sun is a bit worse than Rain, though is still fairly viable. The main problem is that the majority of the Pokemon on Sun teams are very frail. A majority of the Chloro users can still be used effectively even when Sun is over, though some (Like Victreebel) depend on Sun to be viable. Also, Chlorophyll is not the best choice for the ability on a few of these Pokemon (Most notably Vileplume because Effect Spore sets are generally better).
Cholorophyll Users:
Shiftry can provide Defog support on Sun Teams if necessary, and can also pull off all out attacking, Swords Dance and to an extent Nasty Plot sets well on Sun Teams as well. Lilligant gets Quiver Dance which with the increased Speed can be used to sweep teams (Even when Sun is over Lilligant can sweep teams effectively). Exeggutor has a unique though kinda bad defensively typing and also has the highest Special Attack stat of all Chlorophyll users, making him a bit of a devasting force. Sawsbuck is not as effective on these teams as last gen due to the Nature Power nerf, though he does have semi-unique coverage moves in Jump Kick and Megahorn, as well as his Normal-STAB. Leafeon is very similar to Sawsbuck, but has lower speed and Knock Off and X-Scissor as coverage moves instead. (Not the greatest but can still work) Victreebel has Poison-STAB which is useful for taking out other Chloro users, and also has decent special and physical potential with moves like Knock Off and Weather Ball. Unlike other users, Victreebel depends on the sun to be viable, which is a major downer.
Fire-types:
There are several usable Fire-types to use on Sun Teams. Typhlosion can fire off meaty Eruptions in the sun, Magmortar has useful coverage moves and can run Earthquake to get past Pokemon like Dragalge and Flareon. (Also due to Thunderbolt he makes a great check to Fletchinder which is a pest for Sun Teams) Pyroar is very similar to Typhlosion but has Normal STAB and more reliable Fire STAB. There are several usable physical Fire-types such as Rapidash and Flareon, which can break through Special walls in the sun. Combusken can be used in order to have a decent counter to Shiftry.
Sand:
Setters: Hippopotas (Back-up setters can work I guess?)
Sand Rush Users: Stoutland, Sandslash
Other notable Pokemon: Probopass, Cacturne, Gigalith
Sand is one of two weathers with an auto-inducer, and is decently viable despite being very uncommon. However what sucks is that Hippopotas is very useless on his own, and Stoutland kind of is if Sand is out of reach. Stoutland is a great wallbreaker on Sand teams due to his pretty decent coverage and fire power. The only other notable Sand Team member is Sandslash, which can fire STAB Earthquakes and has good coverage moves in Knock Off, X-Scissor (To an extent) and Stone Edge. Sand Force and Veil Pokemon are usable, though are often less viable than the Sand Rushers. Sand teams rely on their weather to be available to do good, however, and can be beaten by bulky means.
Hail:
Hail teams are rarely seen, and for good reason as Hail is a very poor playstyle due to the lack of great abusers (Especially with the lack of a speed boosting ability) and the fact that they are often beaten by many threats. Though, one cool thing is that Blizzard is 100% accurate, and as such, the only notable Hail abusers are Pokemon that can use this move effectively such as Rotom-F and to an extent Glaceon. Due to Ice's common weaknesses and the overall slowness of the abusers (Unless they are scarfed) it is generally easy to beat Hail though unprepared teams will get smashed hard.
So, is there any notable users I missed, and things I got wrong? (Also this may need reconstructing later, but for now i'll leave it like this) Discuss your experiences with weather teams, what your favorite sets to use on these teams, and other things relating to weather.
Weather teams are rather unique though simple playstyles. There are 4 types of weather, 3 of which are rather viable in NU. This thread will discuss all 4 types of weather, and how they fair in the metagame.
Notable Weather Abusers are in bold. Pokemon that can work outside their weather are in italics.
(Images and sets will be added later)
Weather setters:
Most weather teams need a Pokemon to set-up the weather. Pokemon with the ability Prankster such as Liepard and Meowstic work. And bulky setters like Regirock and Uxie also work well (As they have moves like Explosion and Memento to help bring in a sweeper). Some abusers can set-up weather for the team as well (Such as Ludicolo in rain teams). Sand and Hail have auto inducers, though both are useless on their own. Volbeat can use Baton Pass to safely bring a sweeper after setting up weather, and also has Prankster giving it priority. If that's not your thing, it can also use a Slow U-Turn which also safely brings in a sweeper. However, Volbeat is high risk as a Sun Setter due to his Fire weakness, and as such he's better used for setting up rain.
Rain:
Swift Swim Users: Floatzel, Gorebyss, Huntail, Ludicolo, Lumineon, Luvdisc, Mantine, Relicanth, Seaking, Seismitoad, Qwilfish, Armaldo, Beartic, Carracosta, Golduck, Omastar, Poliwrath (NFEs too)
Other notable Pokemon on rain teams: Swanna, Jynx, Vivillon, Electric-types, Parasect, Phione
Weather Setters: Regice, Uxie, Ludicolo, Prankster Users
Rain is often considered the best weather in the higher tiers, and this remains true here. Though there is no auto-inducer, Rain is fairly easy to keep up and a lot of abusers are very good sweepers.
Swift Swimmers:
Ludicolo is generally seen on most Rain-types for it's ability to deal with other Swift Swimmers (Most anyway). It always works fairly well on non-rain teams as well. Mantine can deal with Grass-types due to it's Flying-STAB, which may be useful on some teams. Omastar and Carracosta can set-up Shell Smashes a bit faster, and both can work when rain is done as well. Qwilfish is a rather unique Swift Swim user because it is physically based, and can deal with Grass-types while not being weak to Rock. (Electric attacks will decimate both Mantine and Qwilfish the majority of the time) It also can set up Spikes for Rain teams which at times can be useful. Poliwrath does have a unique STAB combo which can help beat Magneton and Rotom-F, pests to Rain-teams. Seismitoad is also notable because of his Electric-immunity, though Swift Swim sets aren't the best sets for him, but they can still work. Beartic has reduced Fire-weakness and a typing to beat Grass-types, though that's it.
Other Abusers:
Swanna often received use on Rain Teams last gen because while it's speed didn't get raised, it had a nice STAB in Hurricane, and also Hydration making it easy to throw in a move like Rest for instant recovery. While it is not seen much nowadays, it can still be fairly unique and is very good when used with right support. Though being frail and having average speed. Jynx can get Recovery via the rain and counters the majority of Swift Swimmers and has a nice STAB combo. Vivillon's main use on Rain is that it has Hurricane, and can also boost with Quiver Dance, and it's Fire weakness is halved as well. Electric-types can spam Thunder though you have to keep rain up to do this. Parasect, while being very bad, can be a pretty good check to Ludicolo (Though that's it really, also gets recovery but whatever Para sucks)
Sun:
Chlorophyll Users: Sawsbuck, Vileplume, Lilligant, Shiftry, Sunflora, Bellossom, Victreebel, Tropius, Leavanny, Exeggutor, Maractus, Leafeon, Jumpluff
Other notable Pokemon on sun teams: Fire-types, Charmeleon (Not good but throwing it out there anyways), Combusken
Weather Setters: Uxie, Regirock, Prankster Users with access to Sunny Day
Sun is a bit worse than Rain, though is still fairly viable. The main problem is that the majority of the Pokemon on Sun teams are very frail. A majority of the Chloro users can still be used effectively even when Sun is over, though some (Like Victreebel) depend on Sun to be viable. Also, Chlorophyll is not the best choice for the ability on a few of these Pokemon (Most notably Vileplume because Effect Spore sets are generally better).
Cholorophyll Users:
Shiftry can provide Defog support on Sun Teams if necessary, and can also pull off all out attacking, Swords Dance and to an extent Nasty Plot sets well on Sun Teams as well. Lilligant gets Quiver Dance which with the increased Speed can be used to sweep teams (Even when Sun is over Lilligant can sweep teams effectively). Exeggutor has a unique though kinda bad defensively typing and also has the highest Special Attack stat of all Chlorophyll users, making him a bit of a devasting force. Sawsbuck is not as effective on these teams as last gen due to the Nature Power nerf, though he does have semi-unique coverage moves in Jump Kick and Megahorn, as well as his Normal-STAB. Leafeon is very similar to Sawsbuck, but has lower speed and Knock Off and X-Scissor as coverage moves instead. (Not the greatest but can still work) Victreebel has Poison-STAB which is useful for taking out other Chloro users, and also has decent special and physical potential with moves like Knock Off and Weather Ball. Unlike other users, Victreebel depends on the sun to be viable, which is a major downer.
Fire-types:
There are several usable Fire-types to use on Sun Teams. Typhlosion can fire off meaty Eruptions in the sun, Magmortar has useful coverage moves and can run Earthquake to get past Pokemon like Dragalge and Flareon. (Also due to Thunderbolt he makes a great check to Fletchinder which is a pest for Sun Teams) Pyroar is very similar to Typhlosion but has Normal STAB and more reliable Fire STAB. There are several usable physical Fire-types such as Rapidash and Flareon, which can break through Special walls in the sun. Combusken can be used in order to have a decent counter to Shiftry.
Sand:
Setters: Hippopotas (Back-up setters can work I guess?)
Sand Rush Users: Stoutland, Sandslash
Other notable Pokemon: Probopass, Cacturne, Gigalith
Sand is one of two weathers with an auto-inducer, and is decently viable despite being very uncommon. However what sucks is that Hippopotas is very useless on his own, and Stoutland kind of is if Sand is out of reach. Stoutland is a great wallbreaker on Sand teams due to his pretty decent coverage and fire power. The only other notable Sand Team member is Sandslash, which can fire STAB Earthquakes and has good coverage moves in Knock Off, X-Scissor (To an extent) and Stone Edge. Sand Force and Veil Pokemon are usable, though are often less viable than the Sand Rushers. Sand teams rely on their weather to be available to do good, however, and can be beaten by bulky means.
Hail:
Hail teams are rarely seen, and for good reason as Hail is a very poor playstyle due to the lack of great abusers (Especially with the lack of a speed boosting ability) and the fact that they are often beaten by many threats. Though, one cool thing is that Blizzard is 100% accurate, and as such, the only notable Hail abusers are Pokemon that can use this move effectively such as Rotom-F and to an extent Glaceon. Due to Ice's common weaknesses and the overall slowness of the abusers (Unless they are scarfed) it is generally easy to beat Hail though unprepared teams will get smashed hard.
So, is there any notable users I missed, and things I got wrong? (Also this may need reconstructing later, but for now i'll leave it like this) Discuss your experiences with weather teams, what your favorite sets to use on these teams, and other things relating to weather.
Last edited: