Element - A bulky rain offence team by Aeromence

[Aeromence]

Element​

Originally I was using this team in ST8, but I accidently deleted it and then I lost next round. The team is built around Specs Rotom and CB Dragonite to punch holes in the opponent's team, and Mamoswine to clean up later and beat the dragons that are the bane of my offencive core. Defencively, the team has a solid core of Skarmory and Tentacruel, to set up hazards to help the offencive mons. Overall the team isn't very fast, but it has 2 powerful priority moves to make up for the loss of speed. I haven't laddered with this team much, because in theory it looked good, and I only laddered to fix up the rough edges. Overall, it suits my style well, and it isn't the style of offence that you 6-0 or get 6-0d with, and it has good synergy and enough bulk to take hits all game.​

Politoed (M) @ Choice Scarf​

Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Perish Song
- Focus Blast

Politoed is imo the best weather inducer out there so I chose him for the job of countering other weathers, more than actually providing the weather for the team. I chose Politoed over other weather inducers because sandstorm breaks Dragonite's MultiScale, and sun is too hard to keep up without Duggy. But I enjoy using this set, even though Focus Blast sometimes misses 4 times in a row, but sometimes it hits on the first go, which I'm happy to see. Politoed is kinda derp, but he's a good mon.​

Dragonite (M) @ Choice Band
Trait: Multiscale
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Outrage
- Waterfall
- ExtremeSpeed
- Earthquake

This is my main sun counter and a perfect Outrage spammer. It has the strongest priority on the team, able to OHKO Tornadus after SR, and is a failsafe against Volcarona. This is my favourite mon to use at this stage in the meta. It's also a great mon to use against Rain teams, because it can OHKO Jirachi with Earthquake, and easily 2HKO Defencive versions (or OHKO with some prior damage). Fire Punch hits a Ferrothorn or Scizor wanting to take an Outrage. Basically the glue of the team, and without him, there will be a few more threats on the threatlist

Ferrothorn (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD
Impish Nature (+Def, -SpA)
- Spikes
- Thunder Wave
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip

Ferrothorn was suggested over Skarmory by New World Order, and it feels like it just fits on this team. The paralysis helps Rotom and Dragonite actually sweep when the faster mons are slowed. The spikes help even more so, with the pair causing lots of switches and even one layer of spikes can be incredibly destructive for the opponent. It is my main Starmie and Rotom-W counter, who can cause a bit of destruction with out Ferrothorn, and Leech Seed helps here, giving it some more survivability. To be honest, I have no idea why Ferrothorn is dropping in usage, it can check the majority of the OU metagame under rain. It's probably the rise in Scizor usage, but whatever, it's a great mon.

Mamoswine (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Snow Cloak
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- Icicle Spear
- Ice Shard
- Superpower

Mamoswine is an awesome mon, and his astonishingly powerful Earthquake is an amazing tool to use, and Ferrothorn often switches into it, only to be KOd with Superpower next turn. Superpower hits Rotom-W on the switch-in, which is my best hope of doing some quick damage to it. It's also my main Dragon Counter, which helps with the domination of Dragonite and Rotom-W, and it's Ice Shard is another awesome priority to have, completely smashing Salamence, Dragonite and most other Dragons into oblivion. Icicle Spear is great when facing Substitute Gliscors, Dragonites and Breloom. Overall one of my favourite mons to use.

Claydol @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spe)
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam

The perfect sand counter is Claydol, alongside Bronzong and Skarmory. Claydol walls Terrakion and Landorus without breaking a sweat. On top of that, it has decent-ish offencive stats, Rapid Spin, and Stealth Rock. It doesn't only counter the two san mons, but also Dragonite, Salamence and loads of other physical threats. Again, thanks to New World Order for suggesting it to me, it fits on this team so well.

Rotom-W @ Choice Specs
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 68 HP / 252 SAtk / 188 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Thunder
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Grass]

The star of the show, Rotom-W is incredibly powerful with Choice Specs, and double STAB Hydro Pump puts the icing on the cake, and Thunder puts the chocolate sprinkles on the iced cake :) HP Grass is for Gastrodon, cos it's a (BAN ME PLEASE) and would wall Rotom without it. The EVs are to outspeed neutral base 90s, I've maxed Special Attack for max damage output, and the rest in HP for some bulk. Volt Switch is still a good move even without Scizor, giving Mamoswine or Dragonite a free switch. If you haven't used this set yet, pair it with a Politoed and watch pure apocalyptic horror unfold before your pathetic little eyes (I may have exaggerated slightly).


Threats

- If I can lure it in with Mamoswine and Superpower it, it's no problem, because it's dead. It can't take much torture from from switching into Rotom-W's Hydro Pumps, especially if it doesn't have Leech Seed.

- SubCM is the only dangerous varient, especially Undisputed's rain one. Politoed can Perish Song to force it out, but really only once, because it'd be killed by Thunder/Thunderbolt afterwards. Mamoswine might be able to take it on if it has Psyshock and Thunderbolt, and Claydol does well against it.


Thanks for reading, and feel free to suggest any changes.

 

[Black Rain]

Hi. This is a pretty excellent team. I don't see any radical changes you could make. I have a few nitpicks though:

-On Politoed, change the spread to 4/252/252. That extra 2 HP won't matter.
-4/252/252 on Mamoswine. I don't believe the extra few HP of bulk will matter.

Edit: I think you could use Starmie over Tentacruel. This gives you more offensive momentum, and Starmie also threatens many spin blockers. Starmie can also speed tie and weaken / kill opposing Starmies.

 

[Aeromence]

Hi. This is a pretty excellent team. I don't see any radical changes you could make. I have a few nitpicks though:

-On Politoed, change the spread to 4/252/252. That extra 2 HP won't matter.
-4/252/252 on Mamoswine. I don't believe the extra few HP of bulk will matter.

Edit: I think you could use Starmie over Tentacruel. This gives you more offensive momentum, and Starmie also threatens many spin blockers. Starmie can also speed tie and weaken / kill opposing Starmies.

I guess that i can change mamoswine's spread, just because there are more pokemon in his speed tier, but i don't need anything extra for politoed. I think i'd rather have 2 extra hp than the ability to tie with... other timid scarfed politoeds, which can't really do much to other politoeds anyway. about the starmie change, i think that i'd rather have toxic spikes, more longevity, better bulk and better typing than a little bit more offencive presence. I have most defencive threats covered with mamo/nite/rotom anyway, and losing tenta would only make me more ferrothorn weak. thanks for your suggestions though

 

[Woe of Tyrants]

Honestly, this team is really solid. Normally when I look at a team, I pick at it because I have odd personal preferences, but you actually seem to play/build teams the same way I do, so that's pretty awesome. The only thing I feel you should change is Specs -> Expert Belt on Rotom-W, because honestly it's going to do a LOT more work when it's not stuck spamming Hydro Pump into a bulky Water like Gastrodon. Also, it lets you bluff a Choice set and catches people by surprise more often than not.

And try Hitmontop in place of Cruel to help with your Starmie/Ferrothorn weakness. (Sucker Punch/Close Combat.)

 

[eriados]

Honestly, this team is really solid. Normally when I look at a team, I pick at it because I have odd personal preferences, but you actually seem to play/build teams the same way I do, so that's pretty awesome. The only thing I feel you should change is Specs -> Expert Belt on Rotom-W, because honestly it's going to do a LOT more work when it's not stuck spamming Hydro Pump into a bulky Water like Gastrodon. Also, it lets you bluff a Choice set and catches people by surprise more often than not.

And try Hitmontop in place of Cruel to help with your Starmie/Ferrothorn weakness. (Sucker Punch/Close Combat.)

Expert Belt isn't really useful on his Rotom-W outside of catching Gastrodon with a surprise HP Grass which will only 2HKO anyway IIRC. The drop in power from Specs to Expert Belt will be noticeable and means that he can no longer 3HKO Ferro with Hydro Pump. Expert Belt is better for something speedy that commonly runs a Choice set and has coverage moves to deal with checks (e.g. HP Fire EBelt Latios) or something with really good coverage and power (e.g. Hydreigon). Rotom-W doesn't really work well because Hydro Pump is good for blasting holes in stuff, and doesn't mind having to switch out. The only scenario I can see EBelt being good is where Jellicent or something switches in and then gets smacked with Thunder, but Jellicent is taking a risk switching in anyway because it might eat a Volt Switch. Also Hitmontop is really weak in OU, unless you run a lot of Attack investment, but then it's really frail and can't switch in on anything.

0Atk Hitmontop (Neutral) Close Combat vs 252HP/44Def Ferrothorn (Neutral): 53% - 63% (188 - 224 HP). Guaranteed 2HKO.

Defensive 'Top can't even 2HKO Ferrothorn from full health taking into account Lefties and Leech Seed.

 

[Aeromence]

Honestly, this team is really solid. Normally when I look at a team, I pick at it because I have odd personal preferences, but you actually seem to play/build teams the same way I do, so that's pretty awesome. The only thing I feel you should change is Specs -> Expert Belt on Rotom-W, because honestly it's going to do a LOT more work when it's not stuck spamming Hydro Pump into a bulky Water like Gastrodon. Also, it lets you bluff a Choice set and catches people by surprise more often than not.

And try Hitmontop in place of Cruel to help with your Starmie/Ferrothorn weakness. (Sucker Punch/Close Combat.)

Expert Belt isn't really useful on his Rotom-W outside of catching Gastrodon with a surprise HP Grass which will only 2HKO anyway IIRC. The drop in power from Specs to Expert Belt will be noticeable and means that he can no longer 3HKO Ferro with Hydro Pump. Expert Belt is better for something speedy that commonly runs a Choice set and has coverage moves to deal with checks (e.g. HP Fire EBelt Latios) or something with really good coverage and power (e.g. Hydreigon). Rotom-W doesn't really work well because Hydro Pump is good for blasting holes in stuff, and doesn't mind having to switch out. The only scenario I can see EBelt being good is where Jellicent or something switches in and then gets smacked with Thunder, but Jellicent is taking a risk switching in anyway because it might eat a Volt Switch. Also Hitmontop is really weak in OU, unless you run a lot of Attack investment, but then it's really frail and can't switch in on anything.

0Atk Hitmontop (Neutral) Close Combat vs 252HP/44Def Ferrothorn (Neutral): 53% - 63% (188 - 224 HP). Guaranteed 2HKO.

Defensive 'Top can't even 2HKO Ferrothorn from full health taking into account Lefties and Leech Seed.

Without specs i lose out on some massive damage output, SE or not, and i always have hp grass to deal with Gastrodon, and it's the most common switch in to rotom-w. earlier in the game most people are afraid to switch ferro incase of a will o wisp burn, so gastro is generally the first switch in, who is hammered by a stronger HP Grass.

About Hitmontop, it seems interesting, so i might give it a spin (see what i did there :} ), but normally ferro is burnt or slept early in the game, so it doesn't end up being too problematic, and it's dealt with by tenta anyway. But as i said, I'll give it a go. thanks for your suggestions guys

 

[Aeromence]

I tested hitmontop, and i think i might just stick with tenta. this is also a bump

 

[Aeromence]

is anyone going to rate this? if it's too perfect to rate, why no luvdisc?

 

[New World Order]

Hi, got the request. First of all, Perish Song over Haze on Politoed. Not only does this give you a win button against last man stat-uppers, it also helps you phaze Pokemon who've gotten too many boosts. The extra HP EVs are pretty much useless, just go with 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe like normal. You never know when you have a Politoed vs Politoed final matchup. Spikes IMO would benefit your team immensely. Not only would this help Dragonite and Rotom-W, your two best offensive options score numerous KOs, it would also help you in the weather war, as you don't really have anybody to answer to Sun teams bar Dragonite. As well, your team doesn't have anybody to take Draco Meteors from monsters like Latios, Hydreigon, and Salamence, as Skarmory doesn't really have the Special bulk to tank them. Ferrothorn seems like an ideal replacement over Skarmory. Not only can it deal with DD Dragons in the Rain almost as easily, it can set up Spikes. Since your team's offense is centered around two slow, powerful Choice item users, Thunder Wave would help them immensely when plowing through an opposing team. It also takes Draco Meteors with ease, but best of all, it's probably the perfect Starmie counter, and does well against Rotom-W that don't carry Will-O-Wisp. One annoying side effect of this is that you lose out on Skarmory's Ground immunity, Stealth Rock, and phazing. However, I shall address the first two parts next.

It seems that your team is currently manhandled by Terrakion as well as SubCM Jirachi, both of whom can set up and tear your team a new one. SubCM Jirachi can sort of be handled by Mamoswine, but you never know when you'll get one that carries Flash Cannon. A spinner that patches up these problems is Claydol. Levitate and it's typing give it useful immunity to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, as well as a resistance to Stealth Rock. Ground and Electric immunities, as well as Rock and Fighting resistances will all prove useful. It does an even better job of checking Sand than Skarmory, as it can take on both Terrakion and Landorus. The ability to check annoying old SubCM Jirachi is also useful. It also brings Stealth Rock back into the equation. While losing Toxic Spikes is annoying, keep in mind that your team isn't exactly defensive, so it shouldn't hurt too much. Infernape is more than handled by Dragonite's Extremespeed.

GL

TLDR version

Perish Song>Hypnosis+new EVs on Politoed
pros: better for taking out set up sweepers, no point in not speed tying opposing Scarftoeds lol
cons: none really, Hypnosis sucks

Ferrothorn>Skarmory
pros: takes both physical and special dragon moves, sets up Spikes, spreads paralysis
cons: lose out on phazing

Claydol>Tentacruel
pros: checks Sand/ SubCm Jirachi, gets Stealth Rock back from Skarmory, Rapid Spins
cons: lose out on Toxic Spikes

Sets

Politoed (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Perish Song
- Focus Blast

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD
Impish Nature (+Def, -SpA)
- Spikes
- Thunder Wave
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip

Claydol @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spe)
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam

 

[Aeromence]

Hi, got the request. First of all, Perish Song over Haze on Politoed. Not only does this give you a win button against last man stat-uppers, it also helps you phaze Pokemon who've gotten too many boosts. The extra HP EVs are pretty much useless, just go with 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe like normal. You never know when you have a Politoed vs Politoed final matchup. Spikes IMO would benefit your team immensely. Not only would this help Dragonite and Rotom-W, your two best offensive options score numerous KOs, it would also help you in the weather war, as you don't really have anybody to answer to Sun teams bar Dragonite. As well, your team doesn't have anybody to take Draco Meteors from monsters like Latios, Hydreigon, and Salamence, as Skarmory doesn't really have the Special bulk to tank them. Ferrothorn seems like an ideal replacement over Skarmory. Not only can it deal with DD Dragons in the Rain almost as easily, it can set up Spikes. Since your team's offense is centered around two slow, powerful Choice item users, Thunder Wave would help them immensely when plowing through an opposing team. It also takes Draco Meteors with ease, but best of all, it's probably the perfect Starmie counter, and does well against Rotom-W that don't carry Will-O-Wisp. One annoying side effect of this is that you lose out on Skarmory's Ground immunity, Stealth Rock, and phazing. However, I shall address the first two parts next.

It seems that your team is currently manhandled by Terrakion as well as SubCM Jirachi, both of whom can set up and tear your team a new one. SubCM Jirachi can sort of be handled by Mamoswine, but you never know when you'll get one that carries Flash Cannon. A spinner that patches up these problems is Claydol. Levitate and it's typing give it useful immunity to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, as well as a resistance to Stealth Rock. Ground and Electric immunities, as well as Rock and Fighting resistances will all prove useful. It does an even better job of checking Sand than Skarmory, as it can take on both Terrakion and Landorus. The ability to check annoying old SubCM Jirachi is also useful. It also brings Stealth Rock back into the equation. While losing Toxic Spikes is annoying, keep in mind that your team isn't exactly defensive, so it shouldn't hurt too much. Infernape is more than handled by Dragonite's Extremespeed.

GL

TLDR version

Perish Song>Hypnosis+new EVs on Politoed
pros: better for taking out set up sweepers, no point in not speed tying opposing Scarftoeds lol
cons: none really, Hypnosis sucks

Ferrothorn>Skarmory
pros: takes both physical and special dragon moves, sets up Spikes, spreads paralysis
cons: lose out on phazing

Claydol>Tentacruel
pros: checks Sand/ SubCm Jirachi, gets Stealth Rock back from Skarmory, Rapid Spins
cons: lose out on Toxic Spikes

Sets

Politoed (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Perish Song
- Focus Blast

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD
Impish Nature (+Def, -SpA)
- Spikes
- Thunder Wave
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip

Claydol @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spe)
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam

Thanks for the rate :) Ferrothorn actually seemed like a pretty obvious switch after testing for a bit, so i was probably going to change it anyway, but the claydol option sound pretty cool. in theory it sounds like the best change possible, but ferro still stands out as a bit of a threat. i'll defiently implement these changes straight away. thanks again for the rate

 

[Aeromence]

bump