ORAS UU Rock 'N Roll Suicide (Gyarados HO)

[Hogg]

(RIP David Bowie :(((()

Rock 'n' Roll Suicide - Gyarados HO
You're too old to lose it, too young to chase it...

Introduction
Time takes a cigarette, puts it in your mouth...​

Hey, all. I wanted to share a hyper offense team I've been playing with lately. I built this around Gyarados, and I think it does an excellent job of showcasing its offensive potential. When it dropped, most of the talk surrounded the SubDD set - which makes sense, as it's an incredibly threatening set. However, I wanted to build around an offensive DD + 3 attacks set focused on breaking down common bulky cores.

The team has been very successful. Though obviously I've only been running it for a week total, I've used it in test games against a lot of talented players and it consistently puts in work against just about every playstyle. Just dicking around with it on the ladder easily brought one of my alts into the top 25 on the ladder, and it has won all but one roomtour I've entered it into.

Teambuilding
You're so natural, religiously unkind...
​

I knew I wanted to build around offensive DD Gyarados. In particular, I wanted to run DD with a Life Orb and Waterfall/EQ/Double-Edge. While Double-Edge seems like an odd choice, I found it was the most consistent move at breaking down opposing teams, as it can smack dragons, bulky waters, Rotom-Mow and similar threats without needing to rely on Bounce (which is fairly easy to play around). I knew I wanted to use it alongside Salamence, as DDos + DDmence seemed really threatening for a lot of teams.

Since my goal was to use Gyarados to break down bulky teams for another sweeper, I decided to play around to find a set of sweepers that could consistently take on every common team archetype. I toyed around with a lot of different threats, including Haxorus, Absol and Slurpuff, before settling on a core of five offensive 'mons I was happy with: Gyarados, Salamence, Lucario, Infernape and Mega-Swampert.

To tie things together I went with a suicide lead Aerodactyl. Aero is in my opinion the most consistent suicide rocker in the tier, as Azelf struggles with faster 'mons in general and can't consistently get multiple turns as Aero often can.

The Team

Oh no love, you're not alone... Just turn on with me
​

Aerodactyl @ Focus Sash

Ability: Pressure
EVs: 176 Atk / 80 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Double-Edge
- Fire Blast

Aerodactyl is the most consistent Stealth Rock lead in UU right now, able to outspeed the entire unboosted tier and use Double-Edge to kill itself to block Spin/Defog. Unfortunately Double-Edge is illegal alongside Unnerve, so you can't block berries, but it's still worth the sacrifice here. Anyhow, there's nothing super fancy about this. Block hazards and set up, get rocks up, die. Everything else on the team should provide enough offensive pressure that rocks will stay up (and if they don't, it usually means you've gotten an extra turn of setup, which is almost always worth the sacrifice). EVs guarantee the OHKO on Forretress with Fire Blast while also giving you a 90% chance to 2HKO Cobalion, with the rest in Attack to power up Double-Edge.

Gyarados @ Life Orb

Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 29 HP
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Double-Edge

This was what I more or less built this team around. Double-Edge surprises and smacks a lot of things that think they can come in and play around your STABs, hitting Grass types, Dragons and Waters as hard as Waterfall normally would without ceding momentum like Bounce often does. It's a great surprise also in the inevitable Gyarados v. Gyarados matchups that I often see. Life Orb and Double-Edge is suicidal as hell, but Gyarados is not really here to sweep; it's here to break teams down so that one of your other teammates (most often Salamence or Swampert) can sweep. I went with Jolly both for the Speed ties and because otherwise Mega-Sceptile is actually pretty threatening to this team - but you can set up a DD on any of its moves, outspeed and OHKO with Double-Edge.

Salamence @ Lum Berry

Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Iron Tail

This is in my opinion the scariest 'mon in UU. MoxieMence is so punishing with only a single turn of setup, and often it doesn't even need that single turn. I love bringing this in early game to nab an easy revenge KO with EQ or something, since nobody wants to give Salamence a free turn. Alongside Gyarados, it is an incredibly scary DD sweeper, and better still, it sets up on a lot of the things that beat Gyarados. It also is one of the several ways you have for beating Sableye, who otherwise plagues teams like this, thanks to Lum Berry.

Lucario @ Life Orb

Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 29 HP
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Bullet Punch
- Extreme Speed

Porygon2 can be a real pain for Gyarados and Salamence (although Mence can actually break through it or wear it down), so adding a strong Fighting type made sense here. The Diamond Dog remains one of the hardest 'mons for bulky teams to deal with, especially as you have to play guessing games around its set, since it can often pop its counters with coverage or with NP. I considered NP Luke, which I usually prefer to SD Luke in this meta, but SD fit the team better. Strong priority is pretty important for a team like this, and it does nasty things to Whimsicott, who can otherwise be annoying. I went with Bullet Punch because Mega-Aero can be a pain to this team otherwise, and because you can use Bullet Punch to pop Sableye - +2 Bullet Punch hits before the wisp and does ~70% damage on average, and with good rolls you can 2HKO a healthy Sableye and pave the way for one of your other sweepers. I went with Jolly primarily for Entei, although I've toyed with switching back to Adamant.

Infernape @ Life Orb

Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Grass Knot
- Vacuum Wave

If you haven't noticed a bit of a theme here, I like to have at least two decent answers to every common anti-offense 'mon such as Sableye or Whimsicott. Infernape was a solid fit, then, as it can switch into anything Sableye wants to through at you. This also helps breaks down most common bulky Waters with Grass Knot, and with Vacuum Wave can stop some problematic 'mons such as Crawdaunt, Mega-Sharpedo and Cobalion cold.

Swampert-Mega @ Swampertite

Ability: Damp
EVs: 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rain Dance
- Earthquake
- Waterfall
- Ice Punch

Even with BP Luke, Mega-Aerodactyl was annoying, as was VoltTurn, so in went Mega-Pert. Also, I found that the combination of MPert/Mence was particularly threatening against Zapdos, as Mence sets up on non-HP Ice Zapdos and Pert sets up on non-HP Grass Zapdos. This is actually my main win condition in most games, as the rest of the team tends to do a pretty good job at breaking down most threats. I'd originally had Jolly here, but I found that against teams with Scarf Mienshao/Hydreigon, I could usually use them as setup bait with my other 'mons, so I went with Adamant for the much-appreciated power boost. This spread outspeeds M-Aero while giving the rest some extra bulk. Not much else to say here - there's a reason this is one of the top dogs fish swamp monsters of UU.

Conclusion & Replays
No matter what or who you've been
No matter when or where you've seen
All the knives seem to lacerate your brain
​

Though the Gyarados meta is obviously still fresh as hell, I thought I'd post this team as I think it has a lot of potential in the current meta, and because it showcases a more offensive Gyarados set than the SubDD that I suspect will remain the standard. I think a lot of people think that making a team like this is as simple as "pick suicide lead, slap on five random setup sweepers," but the team was actually put together to have an answer to every relevant metagame threat.

I don't have a ton to say else to say about this team. I don't have a huge number of replays saved, because I mostly built this to help friends test teams, but like I said I did play with it on the ladder for a couple of days and used it in a few roomtours, so I managed to nab a couple of replays:

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-314989156 - vs Aquadext
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-315525590 - vs pif (sorry pif, didn't save the replay of you later kicking my ass with the same team)
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-314729744 & http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-314735847 - A couple of random ladder games against a team that seems like it should have a god matchup against this team, with multiple Speed Boost users and solid anti-offense 'mons like bulky Zapdos and Mamoswine
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/uu-319811259 - Another random ladder battle, but a pretty textbook case of how to break down bulky threats like Doublade and Reuniclus.

If I get any more decent replays I'll post them. I don't really ladder much these days, but the team matches up well against most playstyles, so it's a solid ladder team.

Shout-Outs & Importable
And you're not alone...
Gimme your hands, 'cause you're wonderful
Gimme your hands, 'cause you're wonderful
​

I don't really like doing shout-outs in general just because I know I'm going to leave a million people out, but the main two people to shout out are the two people who I worked with the most when I was making this team, teal6 and Christo. - both of these guys listened to me obsess over ideal Aerodactyl spreads and helped me test and fine-tune the team. You guys are awesome and I really appreciate all you do. teal6, kick some ass and take some names this SPL - I'll queue up some Meek Mill for you every time you play. Christo., as always I expect nothing but greatness from you even if you're no longer Christo the Gr8.

importable

Aerodactyl @ Focus Sash
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 176 Atk / 80 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Double-Edge
- Fire Blast

Gyarados @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 29 HP
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Double-Edge

Salamence @ Lum Berry
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Iron Tail

Lucario @ Life Orb
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 29 HP
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Bullet Punch
- Extreme Speed

Infernape @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Grass Knot
- Vacuum Wave

Swampert-Mega @ Swampertite
Ability: Damp
EVs: 80 HP/ 252 Atk / 176 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rain Dance
- Earthquake
- Waterfall
- Ice Punch

 

[Pacers2k7]

I have played you on the ladder a few times (dude with the choice scarf heliolisk lol)
I was wondering if you have tried return/frustration over DE yet? I remember you bopped my hydreigon with DE but the recoil put you in range of hyper voice so i didnt have to predict around pert.

 

[Hogg]

I have played you on the ladder a few times (dude with the choice scarf heliolisk lol)
I was wondering if you have tried return/frustration over DE yet? I remember you bopped my hydreigon with DE but the recoil put you in range of hyper voice so i didnt have to predict around pert.

Hi!

Unfortunately, I was a little bit disappointed with the power of Return. Water/Normal is surprisingly good coverage, but Gyarados doesn't quite have enough power to consistently break through with a non-STAB Return to make it worthwhile.

In particular there are some notable KOs it misses, including that Hydreigon you mentioned: +1 Return will never KO a healthy Hydreigon, even if rocks are down, unlike Double-Edge. Rotom-Mow is another big reason for DE over Return (although in this case Return does have a chance of KOing if rocks are down - but +1 DE actually has an 81% chance to KO Mowtom even if there are no rocks on the field). Double-Edge is also more effective in general against bulky waters.

Mostly Gyarados' role is to break down walls rather than to sweep, and I've found the power of DE is able to surprise people who try to wall it. That said, if you are interested in something a bit less suicidal, I'd recommend Stone Edge rather than Return; it carries more or less the same power as Return, but has more useful coverage alongside Waterfall/EQ.

 

[DiscoDucky]

Hey Hogg. This is a fantastic team and really shows how wonderful HO (and waterspam) is in UU. Beautiful tribute to David Bowie, too. Have you thought about running Crunch over Double Edge on Gyarados to deal with some forms of Jellicent?

 

[Sovjet Onion]

Max speed jolly gyarados? Sam approves
Really great team nothing left to be said. Mb you could switch luc to adamant the extra power could be helpful and I feel like you have covered all the +speed base 90s

 

[pokemonisfun]

I'm disappointed you would put a replay of me where you haxed me to death but didn't even bother to save the replay where I 6-0d you with the same team with no had involved.

 

[Hogg]

I'm disappointed you would put a replay of me where you haxed me to death but didn't even bother to save the replay where I 6-0d you with the same team with no had involved.

Aw, don't be disappointed, pif! I didn't really save many replays at all, so I didn't have much that showed off the team to good effect. If I get some decent replays with the team soon, I'll replace the haxy replay with something else.

 

[AmountingSilver]

Team looks pretty sick but can you explain the 29 IV's on your Gyarados? I'm curious to know what's it's for.

 

[Hogg]

It takes 1 fewer HP from Life Orb recoil that way, as Life Orb does 10% rounded down - basically, I trade away 2 HP, and make up the difference if I attack two or more times (which I basically always do).

 

[shooting star]

Hey man nice team. However can you explain how would you respond to a lead Suicune? Sure Aero gets up rocks but what next? Gyarados and MegaPert hate burns and will never OHKO it, Luke is frail, Infernape only 2HKO Suicune with GK unboosted but gets OHKO back by scald and Salamence can't break it unboosted either. Other than that nice team!

 

[Hogg]

Hey man nice team. However can you explain how would you respond to a lead Suicune? Sure Aero gets up rocks but what next? Gyarados and MegaPert hate burns and will never OHKO it, Luke is frail, Infernape only 2HKO Suicune with GK unboosted but gets OHKO back by scald and Salamence can't break it unboosted either. Other than that nice team!

To be honest it's not too hard to play around Suicune with this team. While nothing OHKOs it unboosted, literally everything on the team wears it the heck down, and if it uses Rest it risks becoming setup bait. Also Scald actually never OHKOs Infernape barring a crit, so if opposing rocks aren't down you can actually beat it reliably with NP + Grass Knot.