Since Showdown is currently down, I guess I'll have to get my pokemon fix this way. This then here is my weird but oddly effective RU team. I play a beatdown/revenge heavy game, and this team has had a ton of success, including winning several tournaments. It has a decent amount of synergy, whether that's through my own genius or, the far more likely explanation, dumb luck, and manages to win in spite of its horrendous Fighting and Rock type weaknesses. Also, it features Clefable, a personal favourite, and a surprisingly effective oddball of a powerhouse. Down to business then:
Aerodactyl
Name: StuckWithThisGuy
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Focus Sash
Moveset:
-Stealth Rock
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake
-Roost (I'm considering Fire Blast for even more surprise-factor)
The logic behind him:
I wanted a lead, and I figured rocks would help out my team a bit. I may be one of the few people who still uses leads, but I find that they help me immensely. The first three moves are standard fare, and the strategy behind them is simple: Kill things while you can still guarantee you can get rocks up. Translation: Hit Stone Edge/Earthquake until you've been hit or statused, then Stealth Rock if the opponent lacks a sufficient knockout method. The focus sash is to give me a free turn to hit other leads and whatnot, especially other Jolly Aerodactyls who win the speed draw. Roost is a bit of an odd decision for such a frail beast, and it seems like a poor choice. Which is exactly WHY I use it. No one expects Aerodactyl to have recovery. If I can safely get rocks out and feel it's better to save him for later in the game rather than suiciding him off for a free revenge, I can usually set up a roost oppostunity.
Main problems: Rock Blast Rhydon, Gear Grind Klingklang, anything else that hits hard multiple times
Next we have Archeops
Name:NotAsGoodAsShrimp (It was originally a Crawdaunt, and the name just kinda stuck for some reason)
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Ability: Go kill yourself
Item: Flying Gem
Moveset:
-Acrobatics
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake
-Roost
A nice fast and overwhelmingly powerful threat to all who oppose it. While its typing may seem redundant on a team that features Aerodactyl, the two are worlds apart in functionality. Where Aerodactyl is my suicide lead, Archeops is one of my late game sweepers and a wall breaker too. That powerful flying gem boosted acrobatics really surprises those pesky ghosts in the tier, usually securing me a 2HKO on them. EdgeQuake is... EdgeQuake. Roost is there for the same reason it is on Aerodactyl, with the added bonus of negating Defeatist. It helps me out plenty against walls too, as they cannot wittle me down for a free switch out.
Main problems: Priority of any kind, but especially Bullet Punch
Every team has one. That generic fallback OH SHIT I MESSED UP Pokemon that can get you out of a bind. That brings us to number 3
Cryogonal
Name: SomeFuckerFromTron
Nature: Calm
Ability: Levitate
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Sp Def, 252 Speed
Item: Leftovers
Moveset:
-Haze
-Ice Beam
-Recover
-Rapid Spin
This was the first team I made when I started playing on Showdown a few weeks ago. I'd read Smogon quite a bit so I was familiar enough with the metagame to realize that I needed something to stop Calm Minds, Cosmic Powers, and Hazards. Also, I forgot that phazing was a thing. Naturally, Cryogonal was my first choice, and I have had no regrets since choosing him. He's that lovely catch-all utility with a surprisingly unique and good base stat spread going for him. He walls special attackers to hell and back. On the hazards front, 4 of my team's Pokemon are immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, but 4 are also weak to Stealth Rock, so Rapid Spin is invaluable. Due to his speed, finding an opportunity to spin with Cryogonal is not hard, and I usually aim to set him up once I've dealt with the hazard setter, so he only has to do his job once, which means I can sacrifice him to set up a revenge kill. Which I do. A lot. He finds it difficult coping with all the Fighting types in his new tier, but his performance is admirable to say the least.
Main problems: Priority attacks, any physical move stronger than Tackle
Being the revenge killer that I am, the next thing I sought out was priority. I passed over Hitmonlee and Gallade in favour of something a little spicier.
Medicham:
Name: SpaghettiInMyEars
Ability: Telepathy. Definitely Telepathy.
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Life Orb
Moveset:
-Fake Out
-Drain Punch
-Bullet Punch
-Zen Headbutt (It's previously been Focus Punch and Pain Split, for sheer surprise value)
This guy will revenge kill you. Hard. He will also sweep your team if you can't stop that Drain Punch. He plays simply, and I use him lots, especially on the revenging front. The Fake Out/Bullet Punch combo is enough to take care of Scarfers usually, and Zen Headbutt destroys all those Fighting types who think they can sweep my team.
Main Problems: Life Orb recoil, Steadfast Shadow Sneak Gallade
I needed a special attacker. I always seem to build physical teams, but I guess physical attackers are just that much cooler in general (No offence Nidoking, you're still the boss)
Typhlosion:
Name: TheEntire2ndGen
Ability: Blaze
Nature: Modest
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Sp Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Choice Scarf
Moveset:
-Eruption
-Flamethrower
-Focus Blast
-HP Grass
Boom. You hear that? That's Typhlosion's Eruption finishing off another team. This guy's a monster. Get those Rocks and Spikes off your side and let him rip, his Eruption will make mincemeat of other teams. I save this guy for late in the game usually, because I spend the beginning bits trying to neutralize all threats to him, and debilitating or removing all his walls. The moveset is generic and straightforward: Eruption to kill things, Flamethrower to sweep things (if there are hazards and it's safe, I'll usually wittle him down to Blaze rangemyself for this), Focus Blast to miss things when I'd really rather hit them, and HP Grass as a big ol' middle finger to you, Quagsire.
Main Problems: Not enough nachos
And that brings us to the big bad boss himself, the head honcho, the biggest threat in the entire tier...
Clefable:
Name: Potato
Ability: Magic Guard
Nature: Brave
Ev's: 252 HP, 252 Attack, 4 Sp Attack
Item: Life Orb
Moveset:
-Double-Edge
-Fire Blast
-Softboiled
-Heal Bell
Offensive Tank. Sturdy Wall. Status Absorber. Switch killer. Potato does it all and more. It brings a ton of surprise factor, and it's immune to all hazards damage. It gives a mighty Double-Edge to all who dare throw Whimsicott in its face, and it Fire Blasts all those cocky Steelix's and Ferroseed's to a nice crisp. Ambiguity is the mighty Potato's main weapon, and it fills several different roles nicely, while landing many surprise OHKO's on overconfident switches. Live and learn, opponents. Live and Learn.
Main Problems: The tier has like 80 different fighting types
Well that's them. Feel free to give me some pointers if you'd like, but remember I've had huge amounts of success with these guys. Thanks for your time, have a nice day.
Aerodactyl
Name: StuckWithThisGuy
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Focus Sash
Moveset:
-Stealth Rock
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake
-Roost (I'm considering Fire Blast for even more surprise-factor)
The logic behind him:
I wanted a lead, and I figured rocks would help out my team a bit. I may be one of the few people who still uses leads, but I find that they help me immensely. The first three moves are standard fare, and the strategy behind them is simple: Kill things while you can still guarantee you can get rocks up. Translation: Hit Stone Edge/Earthquake until you've been hit or statused, then Stealth Rock if the opponent lacks a sufficient knockout method. The focus sash is to give me a free turn to hit other leads and whatnot, especially other Jolly Aerodactyls who win the speed draw. Roost is a bit of an odd decision for such a frail beast, and it seems like a poor choice. Which is exactly WHY I use it. No one expects Aerodactyl to have recovery. If I can safely get rocks out and feel it's better to save him for later in the game rather than suiciding him off for a free revenge, I can usually set up a roost oppostunity.
Main problems: Rock Blast Rhydon, Gear Grind Klingklang, anything else that hits hard multiple times
Next we have Archeops
Name:NotAsGoodAsShrimp (It was originally a Crawdaunt, and the name just kinda stuck for some reason)
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Ability: Go kill yourself
Item: Flying Gem
Moveset:
-Acrobatics
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake
-Roost
A nice fast and overwhelmingly powerful threat to all who oppose it. While its typing may seem redundant on a team that features Aerodactyl, the two are worlds apart in functionality. Where Aerodactyl is my suicide lead, Archeops is one of my late game sweepers and a wall breaker too. That powerful flying gem boosted acrobatics really surprises those pesky ghosts in the tier, usually securing me a 2HKO on them. EdgeQuake is... EdgeQuake. Roost is there for the same reason it is on Aerodactyl, with the added bonus of negating Defeatist. It helps me out plenty against walls too, as they cannot wittle me down for a free switch out.
Main problems: Priority of any kind, but especially Bullet Punch
Every team has one. That generic fallback OH SHIT I MESSED UP Pokemon that can get you out of a bind. That brings us to number 3
Cryogonal
Name: SomeFuckerFromTron
Nature: Calm
Ability: Levitate
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Sp Def, 252 Speed
Item: Leftovers
Moveset:
-Haze
-Ice Beam
-Recover
-Rapid Spin
This was the first team I made when I started playing on Showdown a few weeks ago. I'd read Smogon quite a bit so I was familiar enough with the metagame to realize that I needed something to stop Calm Minds, Cosmic Powers, and Hazards. Also, I forgot that phazing was a thing. Naturally, Cryogonal was my first choice, and I have had no regrets since choosing him. He's that lovely catch-all utility with a surprisingly unique and good base stat spread going for him. He walls special attackers to hell and back. On the hazards front, 4 of my team's Pokemon are immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, but 4 are also weak to Stealth Rock, so Rapid Spin is invaluable. Due to his speed, finding an opportunity to spin with Cryogonal is not hard, and I usually aim to set him up once I've dealt with the hazard setter, so he only has to do his job once, which means I can sacrifice him to set up a revenge kill. Which I do. A lot. He finds it difficult coping with all the Fighting types in his new tier, but his performance is admirable to say the least.
Main problems: Priority attacks, any physical move stronger than Tackle
Being the revenge killer that I am, the next thing I sought out was priority. I passed over Hitmonlee and Gallade in favour of something a little spicier.
Medicham:
Name: SpaghettiInMyEars
Ability: Telepathy. Definitely Telepathy.
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Life Orb
Moveset:
-Fake Out
-Drain Punch
-Bullet Punch
-Zen Headbutt (It's previously been Focus Punch and Pain Split, for sheer surprise value)
This guy will revenge kill you. Hard. He will also sweep your team if you can't stop that Drain Punch. He plays simply, and I use him lots, especially on the revenging front. The Fake Out/Bullet Punch combo is enough to take care of Scarfers usually, and Zen Headbutt destroys all those Fighting types who think they can sweep my team.
Main Problems: Life Orb recoil, Steadfast Shadow Sneak Gallade
I needed a special attacker. I always seem to build physical teams, but I guess physical attackers are just that much cooler in general (No offence Nidoking, you're still the boss)
Typhlosion:
Name: TheEntire2ndGen
Ability: Blaze
Nature: Modest
Ev's: 4 HP, 252 Sp Attack, 252 Speed
Item: Choice Scarf
Moveset:
-Eruption
-Flamethrower
-Focus Blast
-HP Grass
Boom. You hear that? That's Typhlosion's Eruption finishing off another team. This guy's a monster. Get those Rocks and Spikes off your side and let him rip, his Eruption will make mincemeat of other teams. I save this guy for late in the game usually, because I spend the beginning bits trying to neutralize all threats to him, and debilitating or removing all his walls. The moveset is generic and straightforward: Eruption to kill things, Flamethrower to sweep things (if there are hazards and it's safe, I'll usually wittle him down to Blaze rangemyself for this), Focus Blast to miss things when I'd really rather hit them, and HP Grass as a big ol' middle finger to you, Quagsire.
Main Problems: Not enough nachos
And that brings us to the big bad boss himself, the head honcho, the biggest threat in the entire tier...
Clefable:
Name: Potato
Ability: Magic Guard
Nature: Brave
Ev's: 252 HP, 252 Attack, 4 Sp Attack
Item: Life Orb
Moveset:
-Double-Edge
-Fire Blast
-Softboiled
-Heal Bell
Offensive Tank. Sturdy Wall. Status Absorber. Switch killer. Potato does it all and more. It brings a ton of surprise factor, and it's immune to all hazards damage. It gives a mighty Double-Edge to all who dare throw Whimsicott in its face, and it Fire Blasts all those cocky Steelix's and Ferroseed's to a nice crisp. Ambiguity is the mighty Potato's main weapon, and it fills several different roles nicely, while landing many surprise OHKO's on overconfident switches. Live and learn, opponents. Live and Learn.
Main Problems: The tier has like 80 different fighting types
Well that's them. Feel free to give me some pointers if you'd like, but remember I've had huge amounts of success with these guys. Thanks for your time, have a nice day.
