ORAS NU Settle Down (Peaked #13 For Now)

[Rapture]

Hello friends, today I bring you a unique take on offense, a playstyle that has seen a resurgence in NU as of late. The team started out as a bit of joke one night when I was building around Choice Specs Basculin with fellow NU player Swagcaliber. After a couple of easy wins on ladder I decided to take a more serious approach to the team, eventually leading up to the squad I present before you all today. Overall it's a pretty fun team that got me pretty high on the NU ladder while showing off some cool sets.

Team Overview

Basculin @ Mystic Water/Choice Specs
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Surf
- Aqua Jet
- Ice Beam
- Brine

Basculin is a destroyer of worlds and can be a pain for opposing teams to switch into since most people expect the physical variant which is nice and all, but the special set takes all of its conventional checks out of the picture being able to do big damage to walls like Mawile, Weezing, Tangela, Vileplume, etc. Surf, Aqua jet, and Brine are all stab moves that each possess their own utility, Surf being good early game to weaken checks and is just a hard hitting move in general. Aqua Jet is a pretty handy priority move to handle faster mons in the tier like Pyroar and Archeops. Ice Beam has decent synergy and hits hard enough to handle most grass types despite lacking the boost from Adaptability. Brine is our last move for the fact that its ability to pick off weakened teams is unrivaled, boasting a 260 base power if the opposing Pokemon is under 50% health after the Adaptability boost. Mystic Water gives a good overall boost to Basculin’s water moves, although Choice Specs can work in the item slot if you're feeling real.

Archeops @ Focus Sash
Ability: Defeatist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Endeavor
- Head Smash
- Taunt

The team’s rocker and lead mon 93% of the time, Archeops does a splendid job of getting hazards up quickly and shutting down most attempts of hazards removal all while also preventing opposing hazards from being set. Stealth Rock is the best move in the game and Archeops high base speed more or less guarantees they’ll be set at least once in a match. Endeavor is a great move in conjunction with Focus Sash as it allows Archeops to threaten most mons in the tier by bringing them to one hp if sash is activated. Head Smash is an incredibly strong stab move whose recoil damage is actually beneficial as it foils any attempt of spinning away hazards if Archeops manages to knock itself out from the recoil. Finally, Taunt is a good support move for stopping hazards, status moves, and Defog.

Mismagius @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball
- Will-O-Wisp

Nasty Plot Mismagius has been one of my favorite sets to play with as of late mainly because of what a good win condition it is versus slower teams. Nasty Plot gives missy a good shot at sweeping since Mismagius has a bunch of immunities that it can take advantage of due to its typing. Dazzling Gleam and Shadow Ball gets a lot of coverage while being decently powered moves in their own right. Wisp is for getting chip damage while also punishing switches to pursuit trappers. Colbur Berry is necessary for easing prediction vs. dark types and making Mismagius a better fighting type check.

Jumpluff
Ability: Chlorophyll
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Seed Bomb
- Acrobatics
-Memento / Swords Dance

The team's secondary fighting and water type check comes in the form of an adorable Pokemon named Jumpluff. Sleep Powder is nice for killing the opponent's momentum when it actually hits. Seed Bomb and Acrobatics are the stab moves of choice as they have respectable base power while threatening out the aforementioned water and fighting types. The choice of the last move slot is one of preference. Memento gives free turns for Klinklang and Mismagius to set up, while Swords Dance makes Jumpluff into a fearsome sweeper all on its own. Overall both are worth trying out and shows how underrated Jumpluff’s utility is in NU.

Pyroar (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Unnerve
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Fire Blast / Flamethrower
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Hyper Voice
- Substitute

Standard Pyroar set with a slight tweak, Fire Blast hits ridiculously hard, but Flamethrower is nice for accuracy. Hidden Power grass bops typical fire resists for a lot of damage. Hyper Voice is Pyroar’s most reliable Normal stab and its added effect of hitting through substitute has come in clutch quite a few times. Substitute is a move I wanted to try out on Pyroar after seeing someone post it on the NU forums and I’ve had decent success with it. With so much priority running around and how many switches Pyroar forces, its rather easy to get up the substitute and go to work on the opponent's team.

Klinklang @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Clear Body
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Gear Grind
- Shift Gear
- Frustration
- Substitute

One of the few good steel types and most threatening sweepers in NU, Klinklang’s decent bulk and typing give plenty of set up opportunities with proper prediction and timing, as very rarely will Klinklang be able to set up and win turn one. Instead, it is best to wait it out and find the most opportune time to set up. Gear Grind is a move that likes to miss, but it destroys everything when it does manage to hit. Shift Gear makes for a staple on any self-respecting Klinklang set because even after one boost it can become incredibly tricky to handle. Frustration is Klinklangs best neutral coverage move and throws off the occasional Ditto you’ll see on ladder. Substitute helps with status moves and weaker moves that Klinklang resists. Shuca Berry is the item of choice to chew an Earthquake if need be from Pokemon like Rhydon and Sandslash, the chance to set up on these Pokemon has come in pretty handy overall. Also for those unfamiliar the speed Ev's let you bop scarf Pyroar with the rest invested in HP and attack for some power and bulk.

shoutouts

Sorry in advance if I forget anyone D:

The NU voice crew: Winter's Howl SilverReaper21 Shaneghoul metaphysical

NU Skype frens: iplaytennislol Disjunction Kiyo Can-Eh-Dian boltsandbombers Realistic Waters QueenOfLuvdiscs

People who keep the NU room fun: Pokedots Adaire Sir Kay NV Orphic MARCU5tehBAW5 Syncrasy allstar124 Aladyyn Brick Small.

Importable

Basculin @ Mystic Water
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Surf
- Aqua Jet
- Ice Beam
- Brine

Archeops @ Focus Sash
Ability: Defeatist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Endeavor
- Head Smash
- Taunt

Mismagius @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball
- Will-O-Wisp


Jumpluff
Ability: Chlorophyll
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Seed Bomb
- Acrobatics
- Memento


Pyroar (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Unnerve
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Flamethrower
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Hyper Voice
- Substitute


Klinklang @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Clear Body
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Gear Grind
- Shift Gear
- Frustration
- Substitute

proof of peak

http://imgur.com/8IEel8q

​

 

[MZ]

Can you give an example of a KO that brine actually gives? Once they're under 50% won't most targets go down anyway? It seems like HP fire to lure Ferroseed for Klinklang might be better, or even taunt. Don't really rate NU tho so that's all I got

 

[Syncrasy]

mfw not in voice crew :[

 

[Mr.Murkrow]

I agree with Megazard on the Brine thing, and as a UU Basculin connoisseur, I'd recommend HP Fire, Taunt, OR Endeavor, Endeavor's pretty neat to hit fat stuff when you're real low, and gives a neat little lure for shit like MAud so that mons not named Klinklang can beat it!

 

[HJAD]

Hey Rapture.

Sweet team you have here. I was theorymonning the other day about Basculin itself, and the calcs it kept throwing up were ridiculous. Brine itself is a gimmick, but over 2 turns assuming the first brine takes over half the opponents HP, you can do more damage than 2 surfs, consolidating 2hko's on the likes of Lilligant after SR. I would definitely say that hazards are most certainly the easiest way to get this free residual damage for Basculin, and therefore help it destroy lives with that Specs brine. Other weakness' include, Electric Types. With no Immunity, electric type Pokémon such as Lanturn (which is an additional check to Basculin which you must wear down.) The fact you also lack a switchin for Scald can often lose you games, since your best switchin for the feared move is Basculin, which can't do much back with its entire moveset resisted by Water Type Pokémon. You lack a universal Water Type Pokémon check and with Hyper Offense, you only need one time switch ins for Pokémon assuming you break their defensive core first. So the secondary fighting type resist is kinds just redundant at this point which leads onto my main suggestion:

Lum QD Lilligant > Jumpluff could be a really cool addition. Admittedly, Lanturn doesn't have too many switch ins that don't relieve momentum. So I decided to go with the next best option, which was to run the most offensive check there is for it. Lum Berry allows you to soak up burns from Scald (one of your weaknes') and not lose HP from Life Orb recoil. This is because you may want to keep this Mon around to clean in the late game. Lilligant, as well as Lanturn, gives you an extra win-condition. With only 2 settup sweepers i feel like memento isn't all too neccesary, and the extra offensive presence can do nicely. Also, it gives you an extra Quagsire / Rhydon check, since Jumpluff really isn't the best Mon to take scalds and then beat it, Lilligant is much more reliable.

Onto my next suggestion, which is preference for me, as I feel it would work better than what you have at the minute. If you look at Mismagius, Lilligant, Pyroar, Klinklang and Basculins checks, they all share one common feature. They are all grounded Pokémon. Grounded Pokémon take damage from Spikes as well as SR, which leads me onto my final suggestion: Lead SR/ Spikes Crustle > Archeops. I mainly justified this ontop of my suggestion, but Spikes could pass that threshold where you need to get passed half HP to get a full powered brine off for Basculin. It's also extremely useful for HO, as it pressures defoggers / Spinners to get rid of hazards, which you can take advantage of. The best thing about Crustle is the fact that it can settup with Shell Smash along side (settup sweeper) and can often win 1v1 (thanks to sturdy) and get up SR at the same time.

sets

Lilligant @ Lum Berry
Ability: Chlorophyll / Own Tempo
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Quiver Dance
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice] / whatever

Bonus:
Crustle @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Shell Smash / Knock Off
- Rock Blast

Best of luck in the future flen
~HJAD

 

[A]

Glad to see Rapture is using my very powerful fam set. :]. I'm a bit busy at the moment, so I'll give a proper rating soon. <3.

 

[Rapture]

Hey Rapture.

Sweet team you have here. I was theorymonning the other day about Basculin itself, and the calcs it kept throwing up were ridiculous. Brine itself is a gimmick, but over 2 turns assuming the first brine takes over half the opponents HP, you can do more damage than 2 surfs, consolidating 2hko's on the likes of Lilligant after SR. I would definitely say that hazards are most certainly the easiest way to get this free residual damage for Basculin, and therefore help it destroy lives with that Specs brine. Other weakness' include, Electric Types. With no Immunity, electric type Pokémon such as Lanturn (which is an additional check to Basculin which you must wear down.) The fact you also lack a switchin for Scald can often lose you games, since your best switchin for the feared move is Basculin, which can't do much back with its entire moveset resisted by Water Type Pokémon. You lack a universal Water Type Pokémon check and with Hyper Offense, you only need one time switch ins for Pokémon assuming you break their defensive core first. So the secondary fighting type resist is kinds just redundant at this point which leads onto my main suggestion:

Lum QD Lilligant > Jumpluff could be a really cool addition. Admittedly, Lanturn doesn't have too many switch ins that don't relieve momentum. So I decided to go with the next best option, which was to run the most offensive check there is for it. Lum Berry allows you to soak up burns from Scald (one of your weaknes') and not lose HP from Life Orb recoil. This is because you may want to keep this Mon around to clean in the late game. Lilligant, as well as Lanturn, gives you an extra win-condition. With only 2 settup sweepers i feel like memento isn't all too neccesary, and the extra offensive presence can do nicely. Also, it gives you an extra Quagsire / Rhydon check, since Jumpluff really isn't the best Mon to take scalds and then beat it, Lilligant is much more reliable.

Onto my next suggestion, which is preference for me, as I feel it would work better than what you have at the minute. If you look at Mismagius, Lilligant, Pyroar, Klinklang and Basculins checks, they all share one common feature. They are all grounded Pokémon. Grounded Pokémon take damage from Spikes as well as SR, which leads me onto my final suggestion: Lead SR/ Spikes Crustle > Archeops. I mainly justified this ontop of my suggestion, but Spikes could pass that threshold where you need to get passed half HP to get a full powered brine off for Basculin. It's also extremely useful for HO, as it pressures defoggers / Spinners to get rid of hazards, which you can take advantage of. The best thing about Crustle is the fact that it can settup with Shell Smash along side (settup sweeper) and can often win 1v1 (thanks to sturdy) and get up SR at the same time.

sets

Lilligant @ Lum Berry
Ability: Chlorophyll / Own Tempo
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Quiver Dance
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice] / whatever

Bonus:
Crustle @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Shell Smash / Knock Off
- Rock Blast

Best of luck in the future flen
~HJAD

Hi friend, haven't had a chance to try these suggestions yet but on paper they certainly make sense. Crustle was a potential change before I put up the RMT but felt that archeops utility was a little good to pass up. That being said the spikes support would help to weaken things for the rest of the team so I'll be sure play around with it. The Lum berry QD Lilligant suggestion helps to keep to lanturn off my back so it is definitely an attractive option over Jumpluff, having an extra win con doesn't hurt as well. Overall both are choices are worth trying out to switch things up and keep the team intersting.

Glad to see Rapture is using my very powerful fam set. :]. I'm a bit busy at the moment, so I'll give a proper rating soon. <3.

Nice rating, nerd.

 

[Frostsama]

threats upon threats. a fun team to use.