Golden Goddesses (OU Volt-Turn 2000+)

[Engdrew]

GOLDEN GODDESSES​

​

Introduction

Hey Smogon! A little bit about myself first :) I've been battling competitively (mostly OU) since 4th gen and been a long time lurker on the forums. I learned prediction/team-building/decision making by watching battling greats like Eternal, Ojama, Kevin Garrett, ToF, Ashton Michaels, Tabloo, and Delko through tournament replays, warstories, RMT's, etc. I've hit 2100 in BW/BW2 OU ladder but I've always been too shy to post on the forums, and now here I am - ready to share with you one of my very own teams that I've had great success with on the ladder.

This team is inspired by the great Golden Goddesses of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, a legendary game that I hope all gaming enthusiasts around the world get a chance to play. It relies heavily on offensive momentum, forcing switches, and wearing down opponents with residual burn, poison, and hazard damage to gain crucial 1HKO revenge kills and 2HKO prediction kills.

Team At a Glance

Team Building Process

I really wanted to make use of one of XY's greatest offensive threats: Choice Band Talonflame.

Relying on a Pokemon that was 4x weak to Stealth Rocks as a revenge killer was going to be an issue (especially since I wasn't planning on running Roost on Talonflame), so I decided to go with a bulky Excadrill to help spin away those pesky hazards that would limit my switch-heavy team.

I needed a good Choice Scarf pivot with a large movepool to keep opponents guessing. I was leaning towards Greninja, but Genesect fit the mold a little better.

Fire-type moves were obviously going to be a huge problem, so I chose Specially Defensive Air Balloon Heatran to spread status, tank Dragon moves, set-up my own Stealth Rocks, and be a temporary switch-in for predicted ground moves.

Rotom-Wash and Celebi round off my FWG core. I'm able to add Will-o-wisp to my arsenal of status inducing moves, keep momentum with Volt Switch and U-turn respectively, and cover my weaknesses to common offensive threats in Pokebank OU.

The Team

"They say that the owl named Kaepora Gaebora is the reincarnation of an ancient sage."
-Gossip Stone​

Kaepora Gaebora (Talonflame) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Flare Blitz
- Brave Bird
- Return/Tailwind

Kaepora Gaebora is the owl that appears in The Legend of Zelda series and provides knowledge and guidance for Link on his adventures. Talonflame dictates the flow of battle with Gale Wings turning her into an absolute monster revenge killer. Without Stealth Rocks, Talonflame can freely come in and threaten many Pokemon with a priority Brave Bird and/or Flare Blitz. The threat of the OHKO allows Talonflame to U-turn or Tailwind to keep momentum up for the other offensive Pokemon on the team.

Many of OU's premier physical walls crumble to the sheer power of CB Talonflame, and most offensive Pokemon don't have the bulk to survive Talonflame's STAB attacks. Talonflame is the answer to all Steel types not named Heatran and bulky Grass types like Mega-Venusaur and Trevenant.

Damage Calcs

252+ Atk Choice Band Talonflame Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 232+ Def Skarmory: 270-320 (80.8 - 95.8%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Choice Band Talonflame Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 564-664 (160.2 - 188.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Talonflame Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Forretress: 540-636 (152.5 - 179.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Latias: 256-303 (84.7 - 100.3%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Choice Band Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Mega Venusaur: 320-380 (87.9 - 104.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

126 base speed and 252 speed EV's allow Talonflame to outspeed Gengar, Latios, and Infernape - very potent Pokemon if left unchecked. Gengar can setup a substitute and start pounding on my team with Shadow Ball (since steel lost Ghost resist :() and threaten most of my team with Focus Blast. Infernape would otherwise punch holes in my team with Close Combat and Flare Blitz. Jolly can be used if you want to outspeed Timid Greninja, but you lose out on the OHKO on Mega Venusaur.

"Don't tell me you don't know about the Peahat! Just remember that its root area is soft!"
-Tatl​

Peahat (Excadrill) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide

The Peahat is that flying helicopter plant that appears in Hyrule Field - its spinning blade-like propellers repelling all attacks that you throw at it. In this case, Excadrill would be repelling all entry hazards thrown at the team. Keeping hazards off the field is crucial on Volt-Turn teams as residual damage severely limits the number of switches you can make while trying to maintain offensive momentum. Excadrill is basically the best offensive spinner in the metagame at the moment.

Earthquake is the obvious STAB of choice - when combined with Mold Breaker, Excaldrill can hit Rotom-W and Gengar for SE damage. Rock Slide provides Excadrill great Rock/Ground coverage hitting Flying types not named Skarmory for good damage. Iron Head is a filler coverage move for any Fairy types like Clefable or Togekiss.

I chose Adamant nature over Jolly because of my lack of investment into speed EV's and the possibility of getting Tailwind support from Talonflame which would give Excadrill base 176 speed. I also prefer the investment into HP EV's as I find being able to live through a 2HKO/3HKO and getting rapid spin off is far better than trying to get a fast rapid spin off with Excadrill's middling 88 base speed. I'm open to suggestions for my Excadrill set (like changing coverage moves or switching to an Assault Vest set) or even finding a better spinner/defogger.

"What a worthless creature that ghost was! I will banish it to the gap between dimensions."
-Ganondorf​

Phantom Ganon (Genesect) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Download
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature
- U-turn
- Flamethrower
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt

In the Forest Temple boss fight, Phantom Ganon runs into the arena from two different paintings hoping to confuse Link. The fake Phantom Ganon will turn around at the last moment and the real Phantom Ganon will launch a lightning blast that explodes after touching the ground. Genesect fights the same way - with its arsenal of coverage moves it threatens to do decent damage to any Pokemon that stands in his way.

Prediction is key when using Genesect to his full potential. Threaten a dragon with Ice Beam? No problem, hit the Steel type that comes in to soak the ice move with a Flamethrower. Threaten a bulky water type with Thunderbolt? Hit the ground type that hopes to nullify your electric move with an Ice Beam. Need I say more?

When it's early in the battle I usually opt to U-turn out - this allows me to scout their Pokemon, gain insight on my opponent's thought process, get some chip damage in so my Pokemon can cleanly OHKO them later.

The 99 Speed tier is tricky as 100 Base Speed Scarfed Pokemon can cause issues. This includes Victini, Mew with Flamethrower (which I did encounter once on the ladder), and Jirachi with Fire Punch. Good scouting will ensure that these Pokemon will never catch you by surprise.

"Din...With her strong flaming arms, she cultivated the land and created the red earth."
-Great Deku Tree​

Din (Heatran) (F) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar

Din, the Goddess of Power grants Link the ability to engulf everything in flames with the magic of Din's Fire. Heatran provides a great specially defensive pivot to go to when I predict a Fire/Ground move or Toxic. He's also able to soak up Dragon/Ice moves and strike back with crippling status. Since I'm running Air Balloon, I chose not to run Protect to gain more HP through Leftovers recovery (though it could help with extra racking up extra Toxic damage).

Heatran with Air Balloon serve as a temporary check to Landorus-I, Landorus-T, Excadrill, and Garchomp. That one crucial turn before my Air Balloon is popped allows me to set up Stealth Rocks or Toxic a threat that's trying to set-up boosts. Heatran also serves as a great check to Talonflame (especially those with Swords Dance), as well as Genesect and Scizor that are not carrying Superpower.

"Nayru... Poured her wisdom onto the earth and gave the spirit of law to the world."​

Nayru (Rotom-Wash) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
IVs: 0 Atk
Bold Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split

Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom grants Link the power of Nayru's Love, a crystal-like shield that protects him from damage. Rotom-W is the protector of the team - soaking physical attacks like Bullet Punch, Flare Blitz, Brave Bird, Aqua Jet, and Waterfall with ease. I like to keep Rotom-W alive as long as possible, its key resistances to Fire, Flying, Water, and immunity to ground allow me to force a lot of switches, and after taking some damage, Pain Split as a semi-reliable source of recovery off your opponent's switch-ins, especially on high base HP Pokemon (Chansey comes to mind).

Rotom-W helps me remove opposing Heatran and chip away at other Rotom-W with Will-o-Wisp, both of which hinder my Talonflame's sweeping/revenge killing capabilities. The defensive EV spread provides great synergy with my specially defensive Heatran - after its Air Balloon has been popped, Rotom-W can come in on predicted Earthquakes and Earth Powers and keep offensive momentum up by Volt Switching out and spreading burn on physical threats. Gastrodon and Quagsire can be burned with Will-o-Wisp on predicted switches but can also otherwise be dealt with by Celebi. Gliscor can be a problem if it already has a Sub set-up as it can stall out Hydro Pump's PP and dodge status with Substitute/Poison Heal/Toxic Orb.

"Farore... With her rich soul, produced all life forms who would uphold the law."​

Farore (Celebi) @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SAtk / 8 Spd
Mild Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Psychic
- Earth Power
- U-turn

Farore, the Goddess of Courage grants Link with the power of Farore's Wind - the ability to teleport.

Early in the battle, Celebi's usually comes into tank a Fighting or Water attack or status move then pivots out with U-turn which allows me to keep offensive pressure on the enemy team. Celebi is my main way of dealing with Breloom and Azumarill without Ice Punch. Leaf Storm is used over Giga Drain to maximize damage on Ground and Water types. Earth Power hits unsuspecting Steel types (especially Heatran). Psychic is used to deal with Fighting types like Conkeldurr. This particular Celebi set has to be very wary of Sucker Punch users like Mega-Mawile, Mega-Absol, and Dugtrio.

I'm considering using Baton Pass over U-turn for the sole purpose of not being complete Pursuit bait (Scizor, Tyranitar). Let me know what you think.


Threat List

Threat List

Mega-Absol: Can be difficult to deal with after one Swords Dance boost, but burning with Will-o-Wisp is key here. Without +2, Talonflame can OHKO with Brave Bird (since it only takes 64.7 - 76.5% with one unboosted Sucker Punch)

Greninja: Takes prediction - scout the item first (Life Orb, Expert Belt, Choice Scarf, Specs), Brave Bird for revenge kill after residual damage with Stealth Rock other Volt-Turns

Jirachi: Nightmare to deal with unless you know the set you're up against. Usually Celebi can hit it with Earth Power or Heatran can hit it with Lava Plume

Zapdos: Heat Wave and whatever electric move it carries makes it very hard for my Genesect to come in and Ice Beam it and Excadrill to come in to Rock Slide it. Even harder to play against behind a substitute.

Gyarados: Mold Breaker makes my Rotom-W NOT able to withstand boosted Earthquakes from Mega-Gyarados. Only hope is to hit is hard with Genesect (U-turn/Thunderbolt) or priority Brave Bird it until it dies.

Importable

Please Keep the Nicknames if you use my team!

Kaepora Gaebora (Talonflame) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Flare Blitz
- Brave Bird
- Return

Peahat (Excadrill) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide

Phantom Ganon (Genesect) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Download
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature
- U-turn
- Flamethrower
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt

Din (Heatran) (F) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar

Nayru (Rotom-Wash) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SAtk
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split

Farore (Celebi) @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SAtk / 8 Spd
Mild Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Psychic
- Earth Power
- U-turn

Special Thanks
Shoutouts to peachpuppy and outofdashdwz for getting me so into competitive battling. Special thanks to ToF for the main inspiration behind my Volt-Turn team.

 

[bobismoi]

First off, love the Zelda references!

This is a very solid team. The FWG core is very good and supports each other well. Although I would recommend adding Recover on Celebi to increase its longetivity and its ability to tank more hits. That would preferably go over Psychic as Leaf Storm and Earth Power have good enough coverage. I could see Psychic being useful for Gengar, but Gengar can wreck Celebi with STAB moves. Also on Genesect, I usually run Iron Head over Thunderbolt to smack fairy types. But you said Gyarados gives you trouble so it's your call.

So good luck with the team and hope I helped!

 

[Tonzzza]

I really like the idea and execution behind this team!
Have you considered dropping Pain Split from Rotom-W to ChestoRest variant? It gives you one free status absorb and more reliable healing.
Also as bobismoi stated, I too would prefer Recover over Psyshic, but that is also just a preferability. Mainly becouse you said you use Celebi to soak certain moves, you can switch in, Recover while forcing switch, and then U-Turn for momentum.

Solid team overall!

 

[Engdrew]

First off, love the Zelda references!

This is a very solid team. The FWG core is very good and supports each other well. Although I would recommend adding Recover on Celebi to increase its longetivity and its ability to tank more hits. That would preferably go over Psychic as Leaf Storm and Earth Power have good enough coverage. I could see Psychic being useful for Gengar, but Gengar can wreck Celebi with STAB moves. Also on Genesect, I usually run Iron Head over Thunderbolt to smack fairy types. But you said Gyarados gives you trouble so it's your call.

So good luck with the team and hope I helped!

I really like the idea and execution behind this team!
Have you considered dropping Pain Split from Rotom-W to ChestoRest variant? It gives you one free status absorb and more reliable healing.
Also as bobismoi stated, I too would prefer Recover over Psyshic, but that is also just a preferability. Mainly becouse you said you use Celebi to soak certain moves, you can switch in, Recover while forcing switch, and then U-Turn for momentum.

Solid team overall!

Thanks for the suggestions. I will try using Recover over Psychic and see if it helps. Usually Leftovers gives me enough recovery over time. I'll try it out and let you guys know. Same goes for Chesto Rest Rotom-W - I feel like this is the more commonly seen set on ladder since the Hidden Power nerf (people used to run HP Ice for dragons or HP Fire for Ferrothorn). I'll give this a shot as well but I feel Pain Split has more wallbreaking potential on high base HP Pokemon.

 

[jg1198]

Very solid team, and I can only think of one real suggestion that isn't just total personal preference, and that would be to move the 8 SpAtk EV's on Rotom-W to Speed EV's, as this gives Rotom-W the ability to scout the sets of other Rotoms, by seeing who outspeeds who, and because it will allow you to get the jump on other defensive Rotoms, which could allow you to KO a weakened one before it uses rest, or could allow you to pain-split before you are knocked out yourself, which I feel is much more important than perhaps 1 or 2% more damage.

One personal preference suggestion would be to consider swapping Excadrill for a defog latias, as that would make your team much less weak to fighting, and take a lot of pressure off celebi.