Project Rarelyused TeamBuilding Competition [New Thread Open]

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Pearl

Romance は風のまま
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eh, sorry for cockblocking you this hard, but

New Breed said:
  • You can only have one of the following Pokemon on your team: Doublade, Hitmonlee, Moltres and Meloetta. I want to emphasize creativity in this thread so this helps prevent the same stuff from being posted every round.
With that in mind, I'd probably suggest you to run Fletchinder over Moltres, and while the former doesn't have the immense power Moltres has, it can lure in some Pokemon that Gligar can set up on (Steel-types, some Rock-types too), and serve as a revenge killer too, which is something your current team is lacking on. It doesn't really improve the team by much, but at least it allows you to stay within the rules.

Also, it's likely that I won't build a team this round (mostly because the requested core is really boring, and I already have like 2 or 3 teams with those two), or that it'll take me a while to figure out something creative and worth posting.
 

Molk

Godlike Usmash
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Atomicllamas

Really interesting team i've gotta say, i haven't seen Mesprit used well in a very long time.
 

atomicllamas

but then what's left of me?
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
Okay, cool I won n_n, sorry for the delay

I've received complaints that people want a more offensive core, so here we go

+


Froslass + Sharpedo was a really common core before Froslass was banned, now Spikes Shark offense is not as common and the meta has become very BO / Balance oriented, so lets see some cool HO teams imo n_n
 

Molk

Godlike Usmash
is a Top Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
well here's a team i've had for a decent while. Speed creep removed for once



Whenever people see Accelgor and Sharpedo together, the first thing they'll automatically think of is "hyper offense" and this is exactly what this team is, spikestacking hyper offense that focuses on keeping entry hazards up and ending the game with a late game Sharpedo sweep. Both sets for the pokemon in question are pretty standard: Accelgor is the usual Spikes suicide lead that uses Encore to stop set up and force switch and Final Gambit to stop Rapid Spin/Defog for a turn, and Sharpedo is the physical varient with Aqua Jet tacked on the last slot to nail Fletchinder, Scarf Moltres, and weakened Hitmonlee.

Now of course priority number one when stacking up entry hazards like this is to make sure they stay up, and this is what i focused on first. Doublade is a great spinblocker in the current metagame and really appreciates the hazards itself to pull off a sweep of its own, so it was an obvious choice for the third slot of the team. Doublade isn't just here for its spinblocking/sweeping purposes though, it also provided a valuable check to many of the Pokemon that give my current Sharpedo set trouble, including Virizion, Cobalion, healthy Hitmonlee, and Aromatisse, as well as the always threatening Bulk Up Braviary, making it even more valuable and practically irreplaceable here. Speaking of Braviary, i really wanted a Pokemon with Defiant/Competitive to punish users of Defog such as Gligar, Braviary fit perfectly here given it didn't just have the ability i was looking for, but had very little to fear from what's by far the most common Defog user in RU: Gligar. I decided to go with SubBU Braviary here just because of how valuable it is against defensive teams, often winning games vs those kinds of teams on its own if played well (bar things like Infiltrator etc), Brav gets a free Substitute on Gligar with the given EV spread too, which is really great. Although i'm more than willing to try Life Orb Roost Braviary too.

Now that i had my Spikes mon, cleaner, and two Pokemon to discourage hazard removal that doubled as big offensive threats themselves, i noticed that my team as it was had quite a bit of trouble with Electric-types, Braviary and Sharpedo were weak to Thunderbolt and nothing else really wanted to take an Electric-type move either. After some thought i decided to add on a SD Lum Virizion to cover this. Virizion's resistance to Electric-type moves and excellent special bulk even uninvested make it one of the best offensive checks to Electric-types in the tier, fixing up that issue quite nicely. Virizion happened to patch up a bunch of other issues with the team too, giving me a resistance to Water-type moves that wasn't extremely frail, a solid check to Shiftry and Rhyperior, and an easy way to take advantage of Alomomola (that could take a toxic)/OHKO Exploud. I might consider changing Virizion to a Calm Mind set later, but for now SD seems fine.

Alrighty, so at this point i had just one more teamslot to cover all the little holes i still had in the team. I still needed a Stealth Rock setter, and Doublade still looked like a potential problem. Because of this i decided to add Sandslash in the last teamslot. Sandslash can set up Stealth Rock pretty reliably and handles Doublade quite well because of its solid bulk and access to Knock Off+STAB Earthquake. Another notable thing about Sandslash is that it's pretty good at using Rapid Spin too given the most common spinblocker flat out loses to it and that most of RU's SR setters match up poorly against it, giving me a reliable way to remove Stealth Rock for Braviary and to just generally keep opposing entry hazards from piling up too much on my side of the field so i can switch more freely. Lastly, Sandslash gave this team a secondary check to Electric-types and Rhyperior too thanks once again to its bulk and typing. The current EV spread lets Sandslash outrun 0 Speed Alomomola and take Adamant Reckless Hitmonlee's High Jump Kick from full HP while retaining as much power as possible. 252/0 Sandslash can take a Fire Blast from Timid Choice Scarf Moltres and Knock Off its scarf too, letting +1 Sharpedo and Virizion outspeed it in the future.

NOTE: If you don't feel like you need Rapid Spin support, Rhyperior fits pretty well in this teamslot too, and helps out quite a bit against Scarf Moltres and Fletchinder. I'm kinda considering just adding Rhyperior here for my final submission, but Rapid Spin is p. damn nice for Braviary in particular. Thoughts? I'm really not sure about this.

Accelgor @ Focus Sash
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Encore
- Bug Buzz
- Final Gambit

Sandslash @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 HP / 192 Atk / 60 Defense / 4 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
- Rapid Spin

Doublade @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head
- Shadow Claw
- Shadow Sneak

Sharpedo @ Life Orb
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Aqua Jet

Braviary (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 HP / 212 SpD / 44 Spe
Careful Nature
- Substitute
- Bulk Up
- Brave Bird
- Roost

Virizion @ Lum Berry
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Leaf Blade
- Stone Edge
 
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atomicllamas

but then what's left of me?
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
Well thanks for posting Molk n_n

idk if this is dying because I am picking dumb cores or if people are just too lazy to make a team and explain them but I will probably post another core tomorrow and give it another go.

Molk wins this week and will be added to the Hall of Fame.
 
atomicllamas If I can suggest one core that I have a ton of fun using this days for Week4

The Boss Cupcake called Slurpuff + Dug , i really do like to see what the best builders in RU can do with that

The Sand core should be interesting also
 
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Pearl

Romance は風のまま
is a Tournament Director Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis the 7th Grand Slam Winneris a Past SPL Champion
I think that, in general, the core chosen for the last challenge was sort of underwhelming (not really blaming you tho llamas), for two reasons mainly:

a) It locks you to hyper offense automatically, since both Pokemon lack any defensive backbone
b) It automatically locks you to a really specific style of hyper offense too, since pretty much gives you both the win condition and the hazard setter, giving room for little versatility.

I've been playing with hyper offense lately and, in my opinion, it really needs that extra innovation (both in win conditions and in Pokemon to put that early game pressure) in order to thrive in the current metagame, which is really harsh towards the playstyle in general, thanks to stuff like Choice Scarf Moltres and Fletchinder.

But yeah, I probably should've posted something here n____n sorreh
 

atomicllamas

but then what's left of me?
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
Okay, thanks to a suggestion from user: Molk we are going to try building around just one mon this week, feel free to let me know if you prefer a core or just a single mon in the future, as I am open to change. This weeks mon is:


Zangoose

Often overlooked, Zangoose is an absolute monster with the right support, so get creative and show me what you've got!
 

Molk

Godlike Usmash
is a Top Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
I'm not gonna post a team here this round (or at least not yet). But i'll just drop a few ideas that might help you guys build your mangoose team :).

1) Zangoose is decently fast (as fast as Moltres) but still loses out on some faster threats such as the musketeers, Delphox, and Jolteon. Quick Attack helps out with this a little bit, but sometimes it's still not enough to pick off these fast threats if they're healthy. Because of this Zangoose really really appreciates Sticky Web and other methods of Speed control such as paralysis support and Tailwind.

2) Zangoose is really frail and needs to survive for a turn to get its Toxic Orb activated, Pokemon that can provide it with safe switch ins are great teammates (U-turn, Volt Switch, etc).

3) Zangoose is insanely strong and can break through most bulky Pokemon quite easily, especially with an Adamant Nature. Maybe take advantage of Zangoose's great wallbreaking abilities to help it clear the way for something else.

4) Zangoose baits in Spiritomb decently well since its immune to everything but Knock Off and can checkmate it with Sucker Punch/Pursuit. Pokemon that can take advantage of tomber will work well ofc.
 
I agree with Pearl, cores that are fairly one dimensional give much less depth for teambuilding and are going to be a lot more similar in general. Zangoose is a cool mon (and I plan to do one for this) but I feel like it would be nice to have more mons that can easily run multiple effective sets (Gallade/Drapion/Druddigon are all great ones.)
 
Zangoose has been one of my fetish Pokemon for a while now, so I was definitely motivated to build for this.



I built this team around the duo of Zangoose and Doublade. Almost all of Doublade's checks -- Gligar, Golbat, Tangrowth, Cobalion if you predict right, and Steel types in general -- can be lured in and either severely weakened or outright destroyed by Zangoose's incredible attacking power. Close Combat smashes Steel-types that would otherwise handle Zangoose, and Knock Off nails Ghost-types such as Mismagius. Pokemon lacking a Normal resist or immunity will fare even worse. When Toxic Orb activates, Facade has a base power of 315 coming off a terrific 361 Attack stat. Doublade can take advantage of Zangoose's ability to destroy walls by doing Doublade things with its Swords Dance set.

To maximize their destructiveness, I made the team hazards-based, and it is very difficult to pull off a spin or Defog against it (at least without being severely punished). Omastar is a good spiker, but I don't really like running both Spikes and Stealth Rock on the same Pokemon - role compression and all that. I'm running Shell Smash instead to threaten certain offensive teams, though it's a very situational move and I usually just set up Spikes. Shell Smash also helps Omastar break specially defensive variants of Golbat, since Ice Beam does not 2HKO it. Cobalion sets SR for this team while easily Taunting all common Defoggers. Whimsicott provides a secondary Taunt user (Ubers players are aroused by the move Taunt) while checking Spiritomb. It also provides Tailwind support, which Zangoose absolutely loves, but HP Fire can be used over this. Finally, Slowking provides a glue for handling Cobalion, Moltres, and other threats. Max Special Attack and a Modest nature is used to punish Defoggers and hits fairly hard in general. Doublade is typically the team's win condition, but I pulled off a match with based god Omastar once and Zangoose can clean teams if you get off a Tailwind mid-to-late game.

Importable: http://pastebin.com/C49rdJQu (Omastar should be Weak Armor, not Swift Swim, sorry lol)

There are other directions you can go with Zangoose! I know cute user: atomicllamas has a nice team with it that has a sturdier defensive backbone than this one.
 
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atomicllamas

but then what's left of me?
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
There are other directions you can go with Zangoose! I know cute user: atomicllamas has a nice team with it that has a sturdier defensive backbone than this one.
Now I feel obligated to post my Zangoose team also I am procrastinating when I should be studying



So I actually built this team around Stunfisk a couple days before this round because Stunfisk seems usable on paper (and it is actually not that bad). The idea behind this team is that Cresselia and Stunfisk are bulky as fuck and can spread paralysis super easily, while AV Tangrowth patches up some of Stunfisk's weaknesses on the special side, can knock off Choice Scarfs, and is cute. Against Offensive teams, these three mons attempt to wear down / paralyze the opponent's team to the point that they can no longer take my dual priority or are outsped by my offensive Pokemon. Zangoose really enjoys some variant of speed control, as offensive teams rely on outspeeding Zangoose to take it down, and spreading Paralysis is an often overlooked way to do this. Against Stall / Balance, Sheer Force Druddigon, SD Drapion and Zangoose all put in solid work, especially when backed up by Lunar Dance Cresselia which can let one of them sweep twice. Definitely not the most conventional team but it is pretty fun to play with and it demolished Pearl.

EVs on Cresselia are to always break Sub BU Gallade's Sub with Moonblast.

Stunfisk @ Leftovers
Ability: Static
EVs: 252 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Earth Power
- Stealth Rock
- Discharge
- Toxic

Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Quiet Nature
- Knock Off
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Earthquake

Zangoose @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Toxic Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Facade
- Quick Attack
- Close Combat

Cresselia (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 140 Def / 116 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Lunar Dance
- Thunder Wave
- Psyshock
- Moonblast

Drapion @ Life Orb
Ability: Sniper
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Poison Jab
- Aqua Tail

Druddigon @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 152 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Gunk Shot
- Fire Punch
- Sucker Punch
- Dragon Claw
 
Zangoose ;;;;


Alright so I started off with the almighty Zangoose + Doublade Core. Zangoose can lure Ghost-Types out, while Doublade knocks them out. Pretty sure the Zangoose + Doublade has already been beaten to death, but I'm explaining it anyways :D. Its your typical Zangoose that everybody always uses. Close Combat, Facade, Quick Attack, Knock Off, Life Orb. No need to explain that. Doublade is same old Doublade as well; Swords Dance, Shadow Sneak, Shadow Claw, Iron Head, and Eviolite. Some people may choose Secret Sword over Iron Head. In my opinion, I see that Secret Sword is a way to get rid of Dark-Types (Zoroark, when that piece of shit was still around), other Steel- Rock-, everything weak to Fighting Types. However, now that one of the biggest threats Secret Sword was countering, Zoroark, is gone there is no need to run Secret Sword anymore, plus the team needs to be able to KO annoying Fairy-Types such as Aromatisse. Slowking acts as a bulky special attacker on this team. With only Zangoose and Doublade, that will get recked by Moltres in no time, so I decided to include Slowking. Kricketune is used to set Sticky Webs, the main attackers; Zangoose, Doublade, and Exploud, need some way to outspeed other mons as they are preeeeety slow. Kricketune comes in for that. Exploud is a super hard core screamer (special attacker). It does huge damage, even more so with Choice Specs, thats why its carrying Choice Specs. Finally Gligar acts as my pivot to Zangoose. Knowing that Zangoose is frail, a U-turn from Gligar is perfect to activate Toxic Orb. Not only that Gligar is great for doing chip damage, and Roosting, and being annoying in general. It is also my Defogger on this team.

"Typical Zangoose and Doublade Core explanation"
lol you think i would actually write it when there were two other people who wrote about it? :P


Violent Hobo (Zangoose) @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Toxic Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Quick Attack
- Facade
- Close Combat
- Knock Off

Nipple Blades of Fury (Doublade) @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Shadow Claw
- Shadow Sneak
- Iron Head

Big Ass (Slowking) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Slack Off
- Calm Mind
- Psychic

Long Stuff (Kricketune) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sticky Web
- Endeavor
- Taunt
- Knock Off

Suckeysuckey 5$ (Exploud) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
- Boomburst
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Fire Blast

Nipple Pinch (Gligar) @ Eviolite
Ability: Hyper Cutter
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog
- Earthquake
 
chicken pass!


so zangoose is lacking in speed? well guess what bitches friends, the fiery chicken named combusken is here to S-O-S (that's save our souls). combusken can just swords dance up and protect once (or twice), and all of the sudden you have a +2 attack/+2 (or 3) speed boosted baton passer. the added speed lets zangoose nail through stuff, and the attack boosts seem redundant but bring zangoose's attack from wallbreaking levels to "why do i play this shitty game" levels. yes i know, it can be hazed or phazed. however, sticky web can be defogged and spun away once your blocker is dead, so its not like that option's the most full-proof either. also, you may be thinking: "why baton pass when goose can only stay in for a few turns?" well, first of all, a zangoose with those boosts only needs a few turns to sweep, as it can ko a ton of the meta at +2 attack with toxic boost. as for the other team members, they work out pretty nicely. cresselia is there because its a pretty good spiritomb lure/killer, as it can bring them in with its psychic typing and ko with moonblast. sub lets it get around tomb's sucker punch and get up a cm, which is pretty cool. kabutops, cobalion, and abomasnow are all cool recipients of swords dance, speed boosts, or both, as all three run swords dance sets and kabutops and cobalion could do some damage with speed boosts (mega abomasnow could outspeed rhyperior with one i believe, which is pretty cool). cobalion obviously sets rocks and can volt switch to zangoose for the toxic orb activation if you can baton pass right away. kabutops clears hazards for goose to keep it alive longer, which can be crucial, and abomasnow mainly takes care of stuff that could give the rest of the team trouble, such as gligar. i dont consider myself the best teambuilder, so this could be trash in your eyes, but yeah i think its pretty cool

importable:
Cobalion @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
- Close Combat
- Volt Switch

Kabutops @ Life Orb
Ability: Weak Armor
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Stone Edge
- Knock Off
- Aqua Jet

Combusken @ Eviolite
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 64 Def / 192 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Protect
- Baton Pass
- Bulk Up
- Flare Blitz

Zangoose @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Toxic Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Facade
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Quick Attack

Cresselia @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Bold Nature
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Moonlight

Abomasnow @ Abomasite
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Wood Hammer
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Blizzard
 
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