I am trying to make a sandstorm semi-stall team, and this is what I've come up with-
Latias @ Soul Dew
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 120 SDef / 136 Spd
Calm Nature
- Light Screen
- Roar
- Roost
- Dragon Pulse
Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 40 Def / 216 Spd
Impish Nature
- Substitute
- Taunt
- Toxic
- Earthquake
Scizor @ Lefovers
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248HP / 60 Atk / 200 SDef
Careful Nature
- Roost
- U-Turn
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit/Swords Dance
Basically, I put Latias to deal with Kyogre and Gliscor handles Groudon. Then, I thought of using a steel-type, and Scizor came to my mind. Better special bulk than Forry, reliable recovery, an offensive prescence and great synergy with both teammates.
1) Should I use Hippowdon or Tyranitar? It's simple - Hippo is a physical wall while Tyranitar is a special sponge, so I can use them according to what threatens my team. Speaking of which...
2) Any significant threats to this core? Gliscor+Latias+ Scizor has perfect synergy, but I'm sure there is something that can break through the trio (or maybe not).
3) SD on Scizor? That thing can get up to +6 with amazing ease on certain things (read: Lugia), and offers me a second back-up sweeper other than my main one (probably Excadrill/Chomp, but I'm also thinking of trying out Double dancer Terrakion). This is because I feel Pursuit trapping isn't really good in Ubers. Mewtwo OHKOes with Fire Blast and Giratina/Ghostceus can just burn me. Also, if I go with Tyranitar, I can use Pursuit on it.
Why all the OU Pokemon? I don't mean Latias, as Soul Dew is banned in OU and makes a huge difference, making Latias an excellent pivot in Ubers. Tyranitar/Hippowdon are obviously necessary for a sandstorm team, but Gliscor? Scizor? Garchomp? Terrakion? It almost feels as if you're trying to avoid playing Ubers in Ubers, and while most of these Pokemon aren't bad in Ubers, many of them also aren't that great. There's no point in giving yourself a 500 BST handicap.
Hippowdon and Tyranitar are both great. Tyranitar is a good anti-lead and offensively capable, while also having quite significant bulk. Hippowdon, however, has reliable recovery, which is great because you want it to stick around to keep the sandstorm up. I would leave this decision until the rest of your team has been figured out.
As for your core, while I can only theorymon here (I have never used Gliscor in Ubers, nor Scizor since DPP), while the core has solid defensive synergy in terms of resisting each other's weaknesses and having both special and physical bulk, I'm not too sure about it being a particularly effective core.
That Latias can handle any Kyogre all day long, but apart from trying to rival Chansey's bulk (while having a much worse weakness in dragon, lacking natural cure and being unable to wish pass) it doesn't do much else with that set. A somewhat more offensively capable set, while losing out on being a 100% counter for all Kyogre sets, would generally be much more capable. Roar isn't doing much other than preventing CM Pokemon setting up either, what with there currently being no entry hazards on the team.
I feel like Gliscor here is quite similar to said Latias, only with Groudon instead of Kyogre. It will handle most any Groudon with little difficulty, but I'm not sure what else it will do. Spreading toxic poisoning is nice, and taunt means things like Ferrothorn/Forretress/Skarmory can't just come set up entry hazards on you, but I don't see it doing much other than annoying the opponent and hard countering Groudon. The more specially-based Ubers metagame means that many offensive Pokemon will blow Gliscor to bits, and its merely decent (by Uber standards) physical bulk means that it can't safely switch in on powerful physical attackers. Something like Extremekiller Arceus (one of the most dangerous sweepers that all teams must have an answer for), for example, can SD while Gliscor is switched in, and the best Gliscor can accomplish is to toxic Arceus before being KO'd.
Scizor, however, is the Pokemon I see as having the least potential to be useful. I simply don't see this Scizor accomplishing anything effectively. Its Attack stat is its only respectable stat in Ubers, and between a defensive item, little investment, low base power attacks and poor super effective coverage, it won't be hurting a lot of Ubers. At the same time it is slower than most Ubers (even defensive ones) and is NOT bulky. Few Ubers actually have worse overall defences than Scizor, meaning that reliable recovery and good defensive typing or not, it does not handle being hit by anything other than resisted moves well.
As for SD/Pursuit, honestly (just as the rest of this Scizor) I don't see either being very useful. With little offensive investment and no LO/CB, Pursuit is simply weak (and yes, Tyranitar would do it better, thanks to STAB). However, SD isn't useful either. Firstly, no competent player will ever let you get +6. Secondly, Scizor does not get many set up opportunities. Most offensive Pokemon will simply destroy it if it tries to set up, due to aforementioned lack of bulk (really, the only exception is Scarfed Pokemon locked into a resisted move). Meanwhile, defensive Pokemon will snicker at its lousy damage (even if it did get a SD under its belt) and can then proceed to burn or phaze it. Scizor will never beat Lugia. It either carries Whirlwind/Dragon Tail, effortlessly preventing Scizor from ever getting +6, or (although NO ONE uses this) it is a CM set, which will KO Scizor long before Scizor KOs it (Scizor can't even OHKO at +6). U-Turn+SD is terrible, because U-Turn will lose any boosts. Regardless of which moveset you run, you're not hurting steel types.
As for some more general advice, in stall or semi-stall, you want to handle as many threats effectively with your Pokemon as you can, while still having a solid winning strategy that is somewhat flexible. With semi-stall I assume it would be to deal significant damage with many entry hazards, combined with phazing and forcing switches with solid walls that the opponent cannot break through without dedicated wallbreakers, and then cleaning up a weakened team witha powerful scarfer or a bulky set-up sweeper.
Because you need to have solid checks for as many Pokemon as possible in a team of 6, Pokemon such as Gliscor which hard counter Groudon, but are outclassed in many other roles are rarely viable. Really, the only time to have a hard counter to a Pokemon is when it would otherwise run through your entire team and is a prominent threat (every team has weaknesses, but if it is a weakness to an obscure set that rarely gets used, it's not worth worrying about). For example, a somewhat more offensive Latias with Grass Knot may occasionally struggle against Kyogre and lose some special bulk, but gains significant offensive presence and the ability to deal with most Groudon (freeing up Gliscor's spot for something more useful). Then, replacing Scizor with Ferrothorn gives you a much bulkier dragon resist, entry hazards, another way to deal with most Kyogre/Groudon, a good answer to most Zekrom and generally a good physical sponge. It can also spread status with Toxic/Thunder wave.
If you're playing semi-stall, your team needs a good amount of hazards (SR+Spikes, SR+Toxic Spikes or all three), a solid spinblocker (else the hazards are pointless), solid defensive Pokemon that can handle a vast variety of threats, and late game sweeping power. Use Pokemon that can perform as many different roles effectively as possible. Scarf Terrakion can clean late-game, can check Extremekiller Arceus, deal with Darkrai, revenge kill many threats such as Kyurem formes/Reshiram/Rayquaza/Shaymin-S/Deoxys-A. Giratina can spin-block, wall a number of threats and phaze to rack up entry hazard damage. Excadrill is a fast, powerful sweeper in sand, can offer spin support and adds useful resistances (although it must under no circumstances be the only dragon resist in a semi-stall team). And so on.
Your 6 Pokemon are aiming to defeat numerous different combinations of 6 Pokemon. They must be versatile, or they will simply not be able to do so.
This thread could be quite useful to you for teambuilding. It simultaneously offers Pokemon to consider including in your own team (especially S-rank and A-rank), as well as giving you a checklist for threats that your team wants to be able to handle (if you can cover most of S-, A- and B-rank, you're doing really well).
