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Animus Vox

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Introduction

I started playing RU in September when I decided that I hated OU and I wanted a new tier to play, and at the time, I was able to study the metagame extensively enough to come up with a few teams and even take the number one spot on the ladder. It's a pretty offensive metagame, and I was amazed at how powerful Pokemon could dominate the lower tier, such as Entei, Sceptile, Moltres, and many other dominant threats. I wanted to try something creative in the tier, so I browsed the forums and stumbled upon a cool set: SubCM Entei. After testing it out, I realized that it was a terribly potent sweeper that could wreak havoc given the opportunity. With all the Smeargle leads and weaker Pokemon, it has plenty of opportunities to set up at any point of the game. I pretty much credit my first ladder run to Entei alone (and Escavalier I guess, though Entei carried the team). The team was a typical offensive team with a hazard layer, assorted sweepers, and a Choice Scarf user.

I stopped playing RU for a while when Cresselia and Durant dropped, but at the end of Round 11, I decided to pick it back up. I made a new team, again built around a SubCM Entei sweep, and decided to surround Entei with some new toys and powerful threats. When teambuilding, I decided that I wanted a synergetic Fire / Water / Grass core, so I built around Entei / Kabutops / Sceptile. Kabutops provides Rapid Spin support, and all three Pokemon can sweep given the opportunity. I paired the core with Uxie for Stealth Rock and paralysis support, and then I decided to go with on more physically offensive and one more specially offensive Pokemon. Durant was a pretty solid choice with its base 109 Speed and its decent Attack, boosted by Hustle and Choice Band. Life Orb Sigilyph decimated me a few times when I first started RU, so I decided to give it a shot. There really wasn't too much trouble in teambuilding because all the Pokemon meshed together quite well, and I never really made any major changes after this point.

The Team
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Uxie @ Leftovers *** NOT AFRAID
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 120 Def / 136 Spe
Bold Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- U-turn
- Psychic

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Sceptile @ Life Orb *** LOSE YOURSELF
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Giga Drain
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power Ice

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Entei @ Leftovers *** TILL I COLLAPSE
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 136 HP / 120 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Flamethrower
- Hidden Power Grass

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Kabutops @ Leftovers *** 8 MILE
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Waterfall
- Stone Edge

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Durant @ Choice Band *** I NEED A DOCTOR
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- X-Scissor
- Superpower
- Return

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Sigilyph @ Life Orb *** LIGHTERS
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Roost
- Psyshock
- Air Slash
- Calm Mind

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Conclusion

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Introduction:

Hello friends, this is a team that I made after listening to august tell me about how great Uxie and Escavalier were when used on the same team for paralysis support. He gave me a bunch of damage calcs and I was pretty impressed, as Escavalier could pretty much wreck even Pokemon that resist it with its STAB moves. I got pretty interested in RU after that, and I went straight to the usage stats to see what was used and read a lot about the Pokemon in analyses. The first Pokemon that stood out to me was Entei, an old favorite of mine. I really wanted to use it on my team so I decided to try and build around both the core with Uxie and Escavalier and then with Entei. I needed Rapid Spin support, and a lot of people said good things about Kabutops (another old favorite) so I chose to go with an offensive spinner set that has a bit more durability than the one on-site (Leftovers rather than Life Orb). After all these changes, I knew I needed a Choice Scarf user because I needed a way to prevent opposing sweeps, and Rotom looked like the perfect choice because of its immunities to Ground-, Normal-, and Fighting-type moves and its handy base 91 Speed. My last Pokemon was Nidoqueen, partially because I heard very good things about it, partially because I needed a way to break down all walls without risking any of my sweepers.

The general goal of the team is to get down Stealth Rock early and spread paralysis when I can. After doing that, I can get rid of Stealth Rock on my side with Kabutops and start a mid-game sweep with either it or Nidoqueen to break down anything in my path. Once I remove most walls, I can try to sweep with one of my many sweepers; if Uxie has paralyzed the opposing team as necessary, I can send out Escavalier and spam a powerful STAB move, but if that hasn't happened, I can stick with Entei and try a slower sweep with Calm Mind. I generally use Kabutops only as a spinner because I'm in the habit of preserving spinners for as long as possible, but if the need arises, I send Kabutops into the fray to do a bit of damage after a Swords Dance boost if it doesn't happen to go out mid-game. The basic goal follows the principles of most heavy offense teams—do as much damage as possible and rely on synergy and momentum instead of using defensive prowess. This basically guides all my battles, and if you want to try out the team, definitely play with this mindset.

Closer Look:

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Uxie @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 Spe
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- U-turn
- Psychic

Most teams don't have dedicated leads, but I figured that I would choose one because that's how I play heavy offense. Uxie almost always leads unless I see either a Smeargle or an Accelgor. If one of these two are present, I send out Rotom and Volt Switch out to take a decent chunk of health and then find a favorable matchup. Unless one of my Pokemon looks like it will be immediately expendable from the start of the battle, Uxie becomes sleep fodder in the first situation. Stealth Rock is fairly important because of the hard-hitting Fire-types in the tier, but I can do without it provided I have a decent backup plan for Moltres or Entei in the situation.

Against offensive teams, I try to paralyze as many Pokemon as possible because it really helps when I want to take Escavalier out for a spin. However, Thunder Wave's use comes in handy for late-game Entei sweeps as well, as I can set up Substitute with greater ease and boost up much quicker. I chose Psychic because Uxie is my primary answer to most Fighting-types. The defensive spread and EVs allow me to survive even super effective hits, so Uxie can actually stick around for quite a while.

U-turn is obviously used to retain momentum, and it can get me out of sticky situations against Dark-types while still doing damage. It also has more perks, though, as it lets me form a sort of VoltTurn core between Rotom and Uxie. This comes in handy more than usual, actually, because I can always predict switches and either wall the opponent appropriately or do some decent damage with Rotom. U-turn also helps against the occasional Sceptile that attempts to set up on Uxie, as it breaks the Substitute and allows me to switch out to a better-equipped Pokemon for the job.

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Kabutops @ Leftovers
Ability: Battle Armor
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Waterfall
- Stone Edge

Like I said before, I prefer reliable spinners over strictly offensive ones. While Kabutops may still appear fully offensive given the set, I chose to run Leftovers instead of a Life Orb because I want reliability, and I hate losing 10% of my health every time I go for a Rapid Spin.

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Nidoqueen @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature (+SpA, -Atk)
- Earth Power
- Fire Blast
- Thunderbolt
- Sludge Wave

Nidoqueen generally makes her appearance mid-game because she sweeps so easily. If I play correctly, I can dispatch at least two of my opponent's Pokemon before having to do much else. Her sweeping is critical because it allows me to play with a lot more ease in the late-game with Entei and Escavalier, as the opponent loses most of his walls in the process of trying to bring Nidoqueen down.

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Rotom @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Volt Switch
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power Ice
- Trick

Rotom is pretty much strictly for momentum, and I tend to use it a lot even though it is weak. I almost always try and use at least one Pokemon with a Choice Scarf on almost all my offensive teams because it allows me to be a bit more lenient and give the opponent a free boost that I can correct later on.

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Escavalier @ Choice Band
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 4 Spe
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Megahorn
- Iron Head
- Pursuit
- Return

I was very surprised as soon as I started using Escavalier, as it OHKOed almost everything that my opponent could throw at it. I'm pretty happy to say that august was definitely right, and Escavalier has been one of the team members that has pulled the most weight in the late-game. I generally don't send out Escavalier early on because its base defenses are very high, and I like keeping its bulk intact so that I have an easier time when sweeping. It can take some fairly powerful hits (it's even survived Hidden Power Fire from random Pokemon), and once an opponent expends its best chance of keeping Escavalier in check, it can really soar. If Uxie has done its job and paralyzed a lot of my opponent's team, Escavalier doesn't even have to worry about tanking hits, which is always a boon.

I chose a Choice Band set because Escavalier doesn't really need to switch moves, given that its only options for coverage are Pursuit and Return. I use Megahorn about 90% of the time because there's really no need to use any of the other moves, but if my opponent is carrying a lot of Pokemon that resist Bug-type hits, then I go for an Iron Head. I typically never use Pursuit, so it's an unimportant moveslot, and I only use Return when I see an opposing Moltres or Entei and I don't have Stealth Rock up. Entei takes very heavy damage from Megahorn anyways, so if I do have Stealth Rock up, I generally use Megahorn. Given the Choice Band and Escavalier's low base Speed, I believe the spread and nature are pretty self-explanatory. I chose Swarm because the boost to Megahorn can sometimes come in handy.

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Entei @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 136 HP / 120 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Lava Plume
- Hidden Power Grass

Entei is an old favorite of mine so naturally I wanted to try it out. It's been a great late-game sweeper and really good addition to the team to say the least. If I see a bulkier team in team preview, I know that I'll probably try and finish the game off with an Entei sweep, granted that Nidoqueen doesn't already do the job. I've actually been very impressed by how powerful the weaker moves on Entei are after a few boosts—if I can rack up a few Calm Minds I can generally sweep pretty easily in the late-game. Entei's base 100 Speed is great because it allows me to outspeed a majority of the unboosted tier.

I chose to run Lava Plume over Flamethrower because of the burn chances. They have the same PP, and while the small bit of damage is pretty apparent when Entei is unboosted, I don't usually attack until Entei is boosted sufficiently anyways. Hidden Power Grass provides the coverage I need, and for some reason people tend to forget that Heatran can carry it, as they send out Kabutops and don't use Aqua Jet only to get wrecked by a super effective move. Substitute is to give me momentum and ease prediction, as I don't have to worry about what the opponent responds with when I am protected by a Substitute.

The spread gives me the bulk I need to effectively soak up hits with my Substitute, and it provides 101 HP for each Substitute I make. 405 HP gives me a Stealth Rock number, and while it isn't really important due to Leftovers recovery, I still like being safe in case I get hit by Trick or something. The Timid nature lets me tie with positive nature Kabutops, but from what I gather it seems that most people run Adamant because of Aqua Jet anyways.

The surprise value of this set has actually been ridiculous. If I don't let my opponent see what set I'm running on Entei, they almost automatically assume that it is a Choice Band or Life Orb version. This set plays completely differently, so it's easy to see why predicting the wrong set is quite problematic. I have contemplated using less bulk with Flamethrower or Fire Blast so that I can sweep earlier, but the sheer amount of times I have survived an Earthquake or Stone Edge from an Unburden Hitmonlee or Sceptile is incredible.

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Conclusion:

The team has been exceptional for me, and during my first ladder run it achieved a near-undefeated record of 30-1, with the only loss coming from Molk in a battle with ridiculous hax on both sides. It's basically a cookie-cutter offense formula that you can mix and match with to make a team that suits you; the formula works well in pretty much every tier except for those that lack viable spinners. While this team has been really successful for me, there have been a few weaknesses that I've had to play around, namely Life Orb Sigilyph and some variants of Sceptile and Lilligant. I've been able to do so, but I've had to rely on Entei or Escavalier a bit more than I would usually like. Aside from these, I really haven't had many problems with this team. It has matched up well against most teams I've seen, so there haven't been many tough situations where I've been put at a disadvantage from the start. Thanks to august, DittoCrow, Pocket, and ShakeItUp for dragging me into this tier, it's actually a ton of fun. If you see something you think could be done better on my team, feel free to point it out. Thanks for reading.

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Introduction

Spanish Armada, or Sand Balance 6 (of 17) as it's known to me from the filename, is one of my most solid BW2 teams. It's not particularly successful, as I've only achieved a modest record of 2-1 with it in SPL, and I've only hovered in the top 20 with a few alts because I don't ladder very often. However, I think it's a good example of BW2 balanced teams that can match up well against most teams and utilize a solid balance between offense and defense. These teams are probably the easiest to play with because they don't require much prediction and they allow you to make a few mistakes and still recover later on. Offense requires a lot of prediction against more defensive teams and stall is very punishing if you make a mistake — balance combines both elements and lets you play however you like to. You can be risky with your offensive Pokemon and play conservatively with your defensive Pokemon, meaning that your opponent will lose momentum at some point when he tries to outpredict you.

The team was born from my wanting to build a team around Choice Band Terrakion. While it was one of the biggest threats in BW OU, it's nowhere near as common this generation. I wanted to complement it with a special attacker that fit a balanced playstyle so I chose Latias, as Life Orb Latias is a great pivot that packs plenty of power. It also gave me an ideal switch-in in case Terrakion was locked into the wrong move, allowing Thundurus-T or Landorus to set up. I added a Hippowdon because I don't like playing without some insurance to opposing weather, and Hippowdon is very useful in that it serves as a physical wall, a hazard setter, and a sandstorm inducer. Celebi came next because it acts an excellent pivot when I don't want Latias to lose health, and it can absorb status and blows from rain teams. I wanted Spikes on this team to support Terrakion and help it break through some of its standard switch-ins, and I generally like having a Rapid Spin user on my teams, so I went with Forretress. To complete the team I wanted a Choice Scarf user, and I also felt as though my team needed another Steel-type, so I went with Jirachi.

The Team

Hippowdon @ Leftovers *** TYRANO
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 16 SpD / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
- Slack Off

I generally don't run teams without some type of weather control, and I picked Hippowdon for a balanced team because it provides a good physical wall and a Stealth Rock user. I need Stealth Rock because a lot of the damage I do comes from my walls forcing switches, as only Terrakion, Latias, and Jirachi can do any real damage (and even then, saying Jirachi does a lot of damage is definitely an overstatement). It also controls Volcarona, a rather large threat to my team. I could have used Stealth Rock on Celebi and saved room for Rock Slide on Hippowdon, but Celebi has a rather bad case of 4 Moveslot Syndrome as it is, and it doesn't actually force as many switches as Hippowdon unless I face a rain team.

My EV spread gives me a jump point in Defense with 24 spare EVs after I invest in HP and Defense. I always use 8 Speed on Hippowdon in order to beat out people that use 4 Speed on their Hippowdon, meaning that I can Whirlwind them away every time without risking a Speed-tie. I can also Earthquake Hippowdon that are low on health before they use Slack Off, which can be useful in rare cases when I'm up against opposing sand balance teams. Slack Off is necessary, and its what makes Hippowdon such a good weather inducer, as it's the only decent recovery move that any weather inducer has bar Rest, which isn't exactly reliable. Earthquake is the filler move because it gets a STAB bonus and it hits Terrakion and Jirachi, two of the main threats that Hippowdon can take on.


Celebi @ Leftovers *** ELMANZANO
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 232 SpD / 24 Spe
Calm Nature
- Giga Drain
- Thunder Wave
- Recover
- Baton Pass

Celebi is definitely one of the best defensive Pokemon in the game for its favorable resistances and its stats. While it has a lot of weaknesses, the resistances to Water, Fighting, Grass, and Electric attacks makes it a great Pokemon to combat rain teams. Because Celebi does a majority of walling special threats, as Latias is mostly used for attacking late-game, it has a standard specially defensive spread with enough Speed to beat out opposing specially defensive Celebi (that aim to beat Timid Magnezone) and neutral-natured Politoed and Breloom. While outpacing Breloom, especially Poison Heal variants, may seem useless, I can actually break its Substitutes with Giga Drain, which makes it a lot less threatening.

Baton Pass is the key to this set, and it helps alleviate the dual Pursuit weakness my team faces. It lets me escape from opposing Tyranitar and Scizor to get a favorable matchup, meaning that Celebi is free to wall or paralyze other threats throughout the rest of the game. I use Thunder Wave a lot when I get the chance to, but more and more people have started switching their Landorus into my Celebi which is quite frustrating, as they get a free U-turn and momentum while I gain nothing. For this reason, I only use Thunder Wave when I'm certain that it will accomplish something beneficial. It's not really meant for use against stall teams, but it can be a game-changer against sun offense if the opponent tries to bring in their Chlorophyll user.

Recover and Giga Drain are pretty self-explanatory, as I needed a move that guaranteed Celebi stayed healthy in order to do its job well, and I needed an attacking move. Giga Drain has STAB and the added effect of healing a bit of HP, which is actually quite useful as it helps avoid the 2HKO from Landorus (and sometimes the 3HKO) and in turn beats Landorus down. While mono-Grass coverage is a pittance, Celebi will mainly be using Baton Pass to give me momentum, not attacking.


Terrakion @ Choice Band *** HOT N COLD
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Quick Attack

Choice Band Terrakion isn't really a set you see in this metagame infested with Focus Sash + Stealth Rock, SubSalac, and Choice Scarf sets, but it's just as effective at breaking holes as it was in old BW. The biggest problem Terrakion faces is that there are a host of faster threats in this metagame, compounded by the presence of teams that carry two Choice Scarf wielders and a base 110 Speed Pokemon, meaning that Terrakion won't be able to attack as often as it wants. However, I can appropriately deal with those Pokemon, so after removing them or finding a favorable matchup for Terrakion to come in on, I can start spamming Close Combat. I probably have used Close Combat at least 90% of the time, and Stone Edge takes up about 9.9% of the rest of the time. I've actually faced a (single) situation where I really needed Quick Attack, but it doesn't serve much of a purpose unless I let a Pokemon boost its Speed too much. Earthquake is pure filler, though I assume that it may come in handy against a Toxicroak at some point.

I've considered trying a Life Orb Terrakion with Protect over Quick Attack and Hidden Power Ice over Earthquake in this slot, but I'm not really a big fan of it. Additionally, Landorus-T that switch in might happen to carry a Choice Scarf, ruining Hidden Power Ice's purpose altogether (as Gliscor is not nearly common enough to warrant the use of it). I have appropriate answers to all of the Pokemon that Hidden Power Ice hits so I haven't actually given it a shot. The power that Choice Band grants is ridiculous, though, and with sandstorm's enhancing Terrakion's Special Defense, it can tank and dole out hits without much trouble. Terrakion is my main source of offense against bulkier teams, though it can falter against faster teams because it won't always get a chance to fire off an attack. Additionally, the presence of Dugtrio on some sun and rain teams means that I have to be extremely careful with Terrakion. All-in-all, Terrakion is pretty much a high-risk, high-reward type of Pokemon, but the rewards it brings more than outweigh the risks of using it.


Latias @ Life Orb *** M DRAGON
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 72 HP / 184 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Recover

Life Orb Latias is one of the most popular sets in the metagame for a reason — while it may seem more intuitive to use Latios with a Life Orb due to its higher Special Attack, Latias is both powerful and bulky if equipped with a Life Orb. While I do have to watch for sand damage, entry hazard damage, and Life Orb damage adding up, Recover can take care of Latias, especially with all the switches it forces. I already have Celebi as my main rain team sponge, but Latias can help out with rain as a backup, and it acts as an answer to most sun teams. Once I sac a Pokemon to sleep, Latias can take on entire sun teams, as it can sponge a hit from the Chlorophyll user, wait until the opposing Choice Scarf user is KOed, and then simply spam Draco Meteor or Psyshock.

While my team is already a bit weak to Ferrothorn, I chose not to use Hidden Power Fire because I wanted to at least Speed-tie with other Latios, Latias, and Gengar and I wanted to be able to hit weakened Tyranitar with enough power to 2HKO it so that I don't have to worry about being trapped by Pursuit. Psyshock is basically mandatory so that I can hit Keldeo, while Draco Meteor provides more STAB. The power that Draco Meteor grants is ridiculous, but I do have to watch out due to its drawback. I try not to use it if the opponent would be able to set up after I KO one of their Pokemon. The EV spread seems a little odd, but it prevents Choice Scarf Keldeo from 2HKOing Latias in sandstorm, which is always a boon if Celebi goes down early.


Forretress @ Leftovers *** FAFUS
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 40 Atk / 216 Def
Relaxed Nature
- Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Gyro Ball [0 Spe IVs]
- Volt Switch

Forretress is the first Steel-type on my team, and it's the more defensive of the two that I have. I decided to use it because I wanted Rapid Spin support, with most of my Pokemon being grounded. Ferrothorn has a relatively easy time setting up Spikes on this team so I wanted some added insurance against entry hazards to make sure I wasn't punished for my switches. Forretress was the ideal Pokemon here because it provides me with spin support, and it additionally gives me Spikes so that Terrakion can punch larger holes and sweep with more ease. I always run Volt Switch on Forretress for momentum, and I like it much better than any of the other options available (Pain Split and Toxic).

The EV spread I run probably looks weird to all of you, but I stuck with it because 216 Defense EVs gives me a jump point and 40 Attack EVs guarantees a 2HKO on Latios and nearly guarantees a 2HKO on Latias after Stealth Rock and sand damage. While this doesn't come into play that often, Gyro Ball is a good move and discourages opposing Pokemon from trying to set up. The Relaxed nature and 0 Speed IVs ensure that I have the strongest Gyro Ball possible, and they also allow my Volt Switch to be as slow as possible, meaning that Forretress will usually tank a hit before using Volt Switch. With that, I can bring in the next Pokemon unharmed and gain momentum without having to risk a bad prediction.

Forretress fits my team better than a defensive Starmie would because I already have two Pokemon that are weak to Pursuit, and I like being able to use Spikes. Additionally, I think having at least two Steel-types on balanced teams is necessary, as they can stand up to Dragon-types if Hippowdon or Celebi are too weak to take them on. The added insurance against these threats is worth more than a Scald burn in my opinion.


Jirachi @ Choice Scarf *** THE MADCHINE
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Iron Head
- Ice Punch
- Trick

Jirachi rounds out the team with its versatility. While it's not extremely bulky or powerful, it provides a good balance between the two. I generally don't like using Choice Scarf Jirachi because it's not the strongest Choice Scarf wielder, but it does have a few niche roles it can play. For one, Jirachi possesses its Steel typing, meaning it can sponge Outrage or Draco Meteor (but not too often; it's not that bulky!). Additionally, it can cripple stall teams with Trick, meaning that some of my opponent's walls become dead weight. U-turn access is a plus because it gives me momentum and forms a VoltTurn duo with Forretress, while Jirachi's good coverage between just two leftover moves allows it to revenge kill a host of common threats.

Iron Head is an obvious STAB move that can be a real help with flinches (especially combined with paralysis from Celebi). It is generally the move I'll use if I want to revenge kill a Pokemon that's not Landorus or a Dragon-type. Ice Punch is for the threats I just mentioned, though I don't really use it until later in the game when I'll need it to be safe and ensure a KO. I'll generally lead with Jirachi and U-turn out so that I can get entry hazards up. While I do end up revealing my set, I also get momentum right off the bat, which pretty much outweights revealing my team, especially given that nearly every BW2 game is decided on who can pick up momentum the fastest. Losing some surprise value is a small price to pay, and it can work well down the road!

Conclusion

I'd like to give a giant thank you to my teammates and friends who raided with me this season: JabbaTheGriffin, locopoke, Birkal, [K-12] The Madchine, Atoni, Dubulous, Elmanzano, FAFUS, Faint, GaryTheGengar, Gl4ss, Hot N Cold, Human, Jackal, Jirachi, Kidogo, kokoloko, Leftiez, M Dragon, mfhoundoom, Nails, TheFourthChaser, ToF, TyranoWins, and the largest contributor to the cause — that's right, you guessed it — MINGOT. We may not have gotten where we wanted to in regards to our title hopes (or anywhere near there, for that matter...), but I had a ton of fun playing and chatting with all of you throughout the season. I'm not actually retiring this team for what it's worth, as BW2 is pretty much a stable metagame now. I'll probably try out any of the suggestions you throw at me to make it better (given that I haven't already done so with another one of my sand balance teams!). The reasoning behind my posting this is that I don't think I'll be playing any serious matches until World Cup or some other tournament I get pressured into joining, and I've spread this team around so much that there's no real point in trying to keep it a secret. Thanks for reading, if you would like you can go ahead and give the team a shot.

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How do I deal with...

Sand Offense http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/248.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/639.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/647.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/645.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/381.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/212.png

Celebi is key here, as I need it to wall Keldeo and Landorus (Rock Polish variants, as U-turn variants are a bit trickier to play around). Additionally, it works as a good Latios sponge, though I have Jirachi to take that out if need be. I generally try and get Spikes up as quickly as possible, as these are the kinds of teams that don't have a spinner. I play defensively first, but once the opponent starts to get worn down by entry hazard damage, he's bound to do something risky. If I can anticipate this, I can take advantage of it through a double switch, though whether or not I rely on risky moves will depend on how the opponent has played throughout the match and what his win conditions against my team are. Generally they'll aim for a Rock Polish Landorus sweep, as Keldeo has too many stops on my team, and Tyranitar and Scizor can attempt to Pursuit trap some of my Pokemon. However, Baton Pass keeps Celebi alive, and Latias is saved for later on in the game once the two Pokemon are weakened. I'll aim to finish off these games with either Latias or Jirachi.

Sun Offense http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/038.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/003.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/051.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/178.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/494.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/373.png

My win condition against sun offense teams is Latias, so I'll generally just aim to win the weather war in the first half of the game and eventually sac either Forretress or Hippowdon to sleep (after I can get a few layers of entry hazards up). Once that's done, I just need to prevent Venusaur, or whatever other Chlorophyll user the opponent has, from getting a Growth up, and then I can eventually bring in Latias to hit the opponent hard with whatever coverage move will do the most damage. I'll generally use Psyshock because it has STAB and it hits every common Pokemon on sun teams hard, but if need be I'll use Draco Meteor. I do risk sacrificing a bit of momentum, but sometimes that's necessary in order to KO a threat. If the opponent doesn't have a Chlorophyll user, then I can also use Terrakion as my win condition, but considering the ubiquity of Dugtrio on sun teams, I'll generally just hit hard with Close Combat or Stone Edge early on instead of preserving Terrakion. I do have to be careful with Xatu, so I won't go for the Stealth Rock or Spikes layers until I'm sure Xatu won't come out (or it gets KOed).

Rain Offense http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/186.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/641.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/445.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/385.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/647.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/454.png

Rain offense without a spinner isn't too difficult to face, as I can generally find openings to get a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock down. After a couple switches into Stealth Rock, the opponent will be a bit reckless with Tornadus, so I always have to watch there. These teams require a lot more prediction than my team does, so I already have an upper hand matchup-wise even though it may not seem like it. Celebi and Latias are important to preserve so that they can wall Keldeo and Politoed. Toxicroak and Jirachi are generally dealt with by Hippowdon, though sometimes my opponent will sac one to let the other sweep. Garchomp is a bit problematic because I like to keep Hippowdon for Toxicroak and Jirachi, but I can deal with it through my own Jirachi, Forretress, or Latias. Terrakion also KOes 4 HP variants with ease, but using Terrakion to beat Garchomp reveals the Choice Band. If the opponent carries specially defensive Jirachi, they'll gain a bit of recovery, but I'll be able to preserve Hippowdon for longer because it can't do any real damage to my weather inducer. If the opponent carries a spinner, it'll generally be a frail Starmie, so I can remove it early on and get my entry hazards down later on. Latias is basically my win condition here because Terrakion is too slow, but I can also find opportunities to sweep with Jirachi if Keldeo gets weakened.

Rain Stall http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/186.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/598.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/073.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/385.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/380.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/645-therian.png

Rain stall is not that hard of a playstyle to face because Terrakion and Latias are effective at beating most common rain stall builds with just a little help from the rest of the team. I generally play against rain stall teams by using Jirachi to Trick a key component early on, as making Ferrothorn or Jirachi useless can be a big help. The opponent will usually put less importance on a Pokemon that carries a Choice Scarf, so with either Steel-type gone Latias can sweep much more easily. Winning the weather war is not that big of a deal, but I do like to make sure to keep Hippowdon alive so that Tentacruel doesn't get so much recovery per turn and so that opposing Jirachi are useless. Celebi isn't very important in this matchup, though it can paralyze opposing Latias and Jirachi, and Baton Pass can help me eliminate its common switch-ins. Ultimately, I can't really win the entry hazard war against a Tentacruel, so I'll aim to just break holes with Terrakion and clean up at the end with Latias.

Sun Stall http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/038.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/488.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/205.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/593.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/485.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/051.png

Sun stall is really annoying for this team because the most powerful Pokemon on my team, Terrakion, can be trapped by Dugtrio, and its main STAB attack does no damage to whichever Ghost-type the opponent settles on (Jellicent or Sableye). Additionally, Cresselia is a major pain because of its ridiculous bulk. The one thing I have to do is get my hazards up early and win the weather war — once that is done, playing against sun stall becomes much easier. All you need to do once you win the weather war is get rid of the opposing spinner, and eventually the opponent will only be left with Cresselia (whose Moonlight will only recover 25% in sand). Latias can't really do too much damage because of Heatran, while Terrakion fears Dugtrio too much to come out early on, so I generally start the match off with Jirachi and U-turn out to see what my opponent will do. Once I see their lead, I can play mind games between Baton Pass Celebi, Volt Switch Forretress, and U-turn Jirachi, and if I can get some layers of Spikes down, this is even more effective. Eventually I can Trick a key Pokemon, but I generally will only do that once I KO Dugtrio.

Sand Balance http://pldh.net/media/pokecons/450.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/479-wash.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/251.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/645.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/508.pnghttp://pldh.net/media/pokecons/380.png

If the opponent uses Forretress, I'll start off the game by using Jirachi and then scouting with U-turn. If not, I'll stack as many entry hazards as I can early on. Once I do this, playing the game will be much easier, as all I need to do to clear up a Latias sweep is spam Close Combat with Terrakion. Celebi is useful in that it keeps opposing Rock Polish Landorus and Rotom-W at bay, but opposing Celebi are a bit annoying because my main way of dealing with them is through Jirachi's U-turn. Thankfully Celebi will get weakened by entry hazards to the point where Terrakion can generally 2HKO with Close Combat. I always have to be weary of opposing Stoutland's movesets, as if they carry Pursuit, they might be able to trap and KO my main win condition, Latias. For this reason I only bring Latias out when the coast is clear for a sweep — Celebi can deal with the special sponging, and it can repeatedly come in due to its access to Recover.