Inspirited
There is usually higher ground.
A double DPP Ubers RMT
These two teams here are ones that I built much earlier this year both featuring the two lesser used weather setters as actual weather setters instead of Groudon's sole role being sweeping while the rest of the team doesn't benefit from sun much and Tyranitar's sole role being an anti lead with Sand Stream being more of a hinderance than anything to the rest of the team until the weather was changed. Although this has been done before, most of my old DPP builds for laddering and such were Double Dragon and builds that used Kyogre as the primary weather setter (some having both aspects). These two concepts are still pretty fresh to me as a result and I have to say, even though they aren't anything like a crazy looking but effective Iris build, they are a lot of fun when played right.
The people I play DPP Ubers "regularly" with have seen these time and time again, so i feel like it is time to share them.
Just Some Formatting Things I Will Use:
I will give the order of the team first, then I will give the descriptions based on when i picked them when team-building. I will still mark the lead in the descriptions though.
The First Era:
Sun
Team Order:
The Sun Core:
- Baked Dinosaur:
Groudon @ Life Orb
120 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Def / 120 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rock Polish
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Dragon Claw
You can't have a team that likes Drought without this guy.
Groudon is a monstrosity that isn't used to its full potential a lot of the time I feel because of how good Kyogre and Giratina-O are. Drought is fantastic and is't used to its fullest potential even on this team, but it is used more than most which is one of the concepts I wanted to achieve with this team.
As far as the set is concerned, I had a neat core idea that I have seen put to good on some other teams with it being Rock Polish Groudon + a Ho-Oh of some kind. The EVs are pretty straight forward with 120 Speed giving Groudon enough to outrun Choice Scarf Palkia after a Rock Polish, Max Attack for the best damage output, 120 HP for a Life Orb number, and the rest in Defense in order to slightly boost his physical tanking abilities. I run Dragon Claw on him for Giratina-O, Latias, Latios, and other Dragons since my team has reliable ways of weakening multiple them but not outright KOing them in greater numbers. It is also a reliable way of hitting Rayquaza who is a very large threat to the team but weakens itself with its Life Orb a lot of the time. Edge Quake is Edge Quake and will always be Groudon's best 2 move coverage options.
- Prehistoric Bird:
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
216 HP / 252 Atk / 40 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire
- Roost
Sub Roost Ho-Oh helps weaken Rock Polish Groudon checks like you would not believe. Ho-Oh in general is a very underrated threat and a lot of teams don't have very good switch ins to the turkey. He needs a lot of support through hazard control but once he is in behind a Substitute, at least one of Groudon's checks will either come out burned and weakened, or in KOing range of one of his moves.
The decision to use Sub-Roost began as a bit of an experiment to see if a terror of BW could be equally as menacing in the DPP era. I began playing competitive (if you call ladder droning competitive) in late summer 2010 so there wasn't much time for me to experiment with this sort of thing before BW was all the rage. It worked out very well with Substitute giving me another shot at a burn with Sacred Fire or an easier chance to Roost when compared to other sets. I ran 40 Speed for some creep but the HP number means nothing really. Max Attack should always be used on Leftovers Ho-Oh because it lacks the power to do much otherwise. I am open to spread suggestions, if there are better ones of course, but for now this is it; nice, clean, and generic.
Hazard Control Core:
-Primitive Man
(lead)
Darkrai @ Choice Scarf
4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Dark Void
- Trick
- Dark Pulse
- Focus Blast
Having Ho-Oh means you absolutely NEED an anti-hazard lead and this guy is by far the laziest way of going about that. He is also very effective at this... less than 85% of the time. I swear, sometimes the Dark Pulse flinch chance is more reliable than Dark Void, but in theory it is the best way of going about stopping those sneaky pebbles from clipping Ho-Oh's wings. He also helps with Giratina-O (the best mon in DPP imo) who puts a big gash into Groudon's sweeping potential and spin-blocks Forretress should Stealth Rock get up on my side of the field anyways. Checking offensive Life Orb Mewtwo is also important but he does require Mewtwo to take a couple rounds of Life Orb recoil before Dark Pulse can KO. he is a pretty solid (but slightly weak) revenge killer mid-game with the Dark Pulse flinch chance coming through at clutch times.
I use a Timid nature because although this guy is scarfed, I still want him to be able to revenge kill mons even after he tricks his scarf away. The rest of the set is standard.leadrai and shouldn't require explanation.
- A Rock:
Forretress @ Leftovers
248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Payback
- Toxic Spikes
- Explosion
This guy is the back up plan in case Stealth Rock does get up. Although he has trouble matching up to ubers in the tier, he is the best user of Rapid Spin available. He is bait for Fire-type attacks that Heatran, Ho-Oh, and Palkia all snack on so this doesn't hurt him much. If fact, having something locked into a fire move is a free Substitute for Ho-Oh a lot of the time. He does his primary job better than any and also has a couple nasty surprises in his shell as well.
The spread is straight forward in order to hopefully come in on the powerful Draco Meteors thrown around. The first oddity is he has both Payback and Explosion. Explosion gives him means of KOing Latias and other dragons that feel like they can set up on him after his purpose has been served while Payback aids in weakening Giratina-O for Groudon or himself. Toxic Spikes more than normal Spikes, I have found, and entices other Forretress to come out and attempt to spin which will usually end up with Ho-Oh behind a Substitute or Groudon with a Rock Polish up.
The Glue and Dragon Checks:
- Primitive Dinosaur:
Palkia @ Haban Berry
4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Spacial Rend
- Outrage
- Fire Blast
- Hydro Pump
This Dinosaur's aim is to abuse Kyogre and weaken / KO / revenge kill a Dragon or two. In all seriousness, I feel like I rely on this dino too much. He does a good job, but he is also the teams cleaving point a lot of the time; especially if I miss-predict the last. I could replace him with a Dialga, but being more Groudon weak than I already am sounds like a bad idea altogether. A Latias might also be a good idea here, but then other eon twins and scarf Dragons become a problem. For now, he works and he does his job very well.
I don't care how Kyogre weak a team is, I refuse to run thunder on a sun team. A hasty nature was chosen to guarantee the OHKO on the eon twins with Outrage lthough it gives other Rock Polish Groudon a healthy chance to OHKO Palkia unfortunately. The moves are all pretty straight forward but to clarify briefly: Fire Blast abuses Groudon's sun, Hydro Pump abuses a checked Kyogre's rain, Outrage is an eon twin slayer, and Spacial Rend is his primary STAB.
Active Earth:
Heatran @ Shuca Berry
248 HP / 32 Def / 100 SpA / 128 Spe
Modest Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Overheat
- Dragon Pulse
- Explosion
Heatran does almost too much for the team in my honest opinion. She carries Stealth Rock, checks Reflect Mewtwo sets in sun, roasts support and all Groudon to the point of no return (these are big threats to the team), and her evs even allow her to live Earthquake from non offensive Groudon running around (no Heatran is taking 252+ LO EQ even with Shuca :P). She is a nuisance to Dragons which the team likes very much. Overall I think Heatran is relied upon to do too much, but I am unsure of what to do about this. Feedback on this slot would be greatly appreciated.
This entire set is an oddity to be fair. Stealth Rock, Overheat, and Dragon pulse are moves i have already gone over for the most part. Explosion is to KO Palkia and is to be used on an un-scouted Kyogre should Heatran's duties be complete.
Threats:
Offensive ones are the scariest and you have to catch them setting up on Heatran (Overheat OHKOes) explode Forretress on it as it sets up and hope it isn't EVed to outrun Scarf Darkrai etc. These are scary to any team that doesn't have an eon twin or Giratina-O.
Support variations can be almost as bad depending on if they outrun Ho-Oh or not. Heatran lives their Earthquake though and brings them to the brink / OHKOes them with Overheat.
Dragon Dance variants eat the team alive but can be forced to lock into Outrage should Palkia be healthy and Heatran or Forry can explode on it from there. Swords Dance is a different animal since it will always get a KO at +2 and can sweep the team should Groudon be low and Palkia in ExtremeSpeed range.
Mixed variants are handled by Heatran who can tank the random mixed Earthquake as well.
Keep your own Palkia very healthy and try to keep sun up for as much time as you possibly can so Heatran can potentially check it.
are handled by smart play with Heatran and Palkia
Import:
Darkrai @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Bad Dreams
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Void
- Dark Pulse
- Focus Blast
- Trick
Groudon @ Life Orb
Ability: Drought
EVs: 120 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Def / 120 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rock Polish
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
Forretress @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Payback
- Explosion
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 216 HP / 252 Atk / 40 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Substitute
Palkia @ Haban Berry
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Fire Blast
- Spacial Rend
- Hydro Pump
- Outrage
Heatran @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 248 HP / 32 Def / 100 SpA / 128 Spe
Modest Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Overheat
- Explosion
- Dragon Pulse
Ability: Bad Dreams
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Void
- Dark Pulse
- Focus Blast
- Trick
Groudon @ Life Orb
Ability: Drought
EVs: 120 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Def / 120 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rock Polish
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
Forretress @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Payback
- Explosion
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 216 HP / 252 Atk / 40 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Substitute
Palkia @ Haban Berry
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Fire Blast
- Spacial Rend
- Hydro Pump
- Outrage
Heatran @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 248 HP / 32 Def / 100 SpA / 128 Spe
Modest Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Overheat
- Explosion
- Dragon Pulse
Shoutouts and Sand Team coming tomorrow :]