I haven't played competitively since Gen IV, but lately I've been trying to come back, because I found competitive battling fun. I didn't know much about the current metagame (pretty much nothing, to be specific), but I wanted to set up around a pokemon that I had been wanting to use for a while: Multiscale Dragonite. I really liked using Gyarados's bulky Dragon Dance set from Gen IV, and I figured that with its superior natural bulk, more reliable recovery, higher base Attack, and now Multiscale, Dragonite should be quite difficult to kill.
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 224 SDef / 32 Spd
Careful Nature
- Wish
- Stealth Rock
- Iron Head
- Body Slam
Versatile, annoying, hax, these are some of the many terms used to describe Jirachi. With a BST of 600, and a base of 100 in every stat, it does seem like there's not a lot the little pixie can't do. Jirachi here serves as my main special wall, wish support for the team, and Stealth Rock. Wish helps in quite a few ways. It can heal any team member low on health, in can help to keep Dragonite at 100% after Stealth Rock, and it can heal Jirachi itself. Stealth Rock is pretty much mandatory for any team, and since Jirachi has Stealth Rock it will largely be serving as my lead. With Body Slam and Iron Head, Jirachi can paralyze annoying opponents and flinch-hax them to death. Because of the investment into SDef and HP, it can switch in on pokemon that are very threatening to my team, namely Tornadus-T.
Hydreigon (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Mild Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Superpower
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Hydreigon is an absolute monster. His 125 base Special Attack can rip through a great many Pokemon, and with 105 Attack, he's no slouch in that category, either. His 98 base speed, inferior to the likes of Salamence and Latias, is offset by fairly decent 92/90/90 defenses, but he is by no means a tank. This set is the standard mixed set, and I use it as a wallbreaker. STAB Draco Meteor can rip through most Pokemon - in fact, it is only resisted by Steel-types, with which Hydreigon has quite a few ways of dealing. Fire Blast gives it excellent coverage off of that 125 base Special Attack, and Earthquake rounds out the unresisted Dragon/Fire/Ground combo, Air Balloon and Occa Berry users notwithstanding. For users of the aforementioned items, as well as quite a few others, there is Superpower. With the Choice Scarf, Hydreigon can serve as one of the best revenge killers around, with great power and coverage.
Breloom @ Fighting Gem
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Spore
- Swords Dance
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
Another recent addition is Breloom. In Gen V, Breloom was blessed with Technician and a STAB priority move, the same combo that vaulted Scizor to the top of Gen IV OU. Breloom's STAB Fighting, however, is far superior to Scizor's STAB Steel. Breloom also gains access to Spore, one of two 100% accurate sleep moves in the game - the other being Dark Void, Darkrai's signature move. Bullet Seed gained a big boost this gen, and with the Technician boost it will have a power between 75 and 187.5 - and that's before factoring in STAB! Breloom replaced Infernape, which was a bit overwhelmed in the current metagame, what with Scarf Tyranitar, Tornadus-T, and all.
Gengar @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Timid Nature
- Disable
- Substitute
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
Gengar has been one of the most perennially successful Pokemon in history. It is one of two Pokemon to have been OU every generation, and in the four years since I started competitive battling, I do not recall a time when it was not a major threat. This set I find particularly fun to use. Shadow Ball provides excellent STAB, and Focus Blast is all it needs to go unresisted. Blissey (and Chansey) are more of a problem than ever, though, thanks to the change in Explosion's mechanics in Gen V. However, Gengar can do more than just roll in and Shadow Ball. It can set up a substitute, and from behind that substitute, it can Disable one of the opponent's moves. It requires an opening to set up, but once set up, it can be deadly. It can force switches, or render useless a Pokemon with one attack. Leftovers provides me with reliable recovery, which, quite frankly, I need. Life Orb recoil + Substitute damage would be too much.
Gengar is the first Pokemon I have not seriously considered replacing at one point. While he can be walled fairly easily, he is also extremely dangerous, and can take down or weaken many Pokemon to the point where it should be easy for Dragonite to pull off a sweep. That said, I am open to suggestions, otherwise why would I bother with this?
Tentacruel @ Leftovers
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 36 Spd / 248 HP / 224 Def
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
- Substitute
Tentacruel is a wonderful supporter. With a wide movepool that includes Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin, along with solid 100 base Speed, and excellent Special bulk, not to mention excellent defensive typing, Tentacruel can be a special wall, a Rapid Spinner, a Toxic Spikes user, or more. Here it functions as my Rapid Spinner as well as an excellent check for Rain teams (specifically those carrying Keldeo or Tornadus-T), which I have trouble with. Tentacruel cannot act as an outright wall on either side of the spectrum, but with the EV investment, can take hits reasonably well on both sides. With Rain Dish and Leftovers, I restore 18.75% of my health each turn in Rain, making Tenta an excellent option to use against Rain teams. Toxic helps prevent opposing Pokemon from setting up, while Rapid Spin can get rid of Stealth Rock, which is so important to setting up Dragonite. Scald provides STAB and decent neutral coverage, with a chance of a Burn - usually helpful, unless the opponent has Guts.
Tentacruel replaced a Starmie in this slot, and so far it is doing better than its predecessor! Thanks to Jimbon of Smogon for suggesting this set.
Dragonite @ Leftovers
Trait: Multiscale
EVs: 252 HP / 80 SDef / 176 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Substitute
- Roost
Now we come to the star of the show. The original Dragon-type, Dragonite has the best bulk of all the non-uber Dragons except for Kyurem and perhaps Latias. In Gen IV, its 91/95/100 defenses have gained it a bit of a niche as the bulky dragon, but was generally inferior to Salamence or Flygon due to its underwhelming 80 Speed. With Multiscale, Dragonite's bulk is doubled; its crippling 4x Ice weakness is lessened, and it can easily take most Ice moves from full health, or when using Roost. It is very easy to get an opening to get up a first Dragon Dance, after which it will outspeed slower Scarf user such as Modest Politoed. Once one Dance is up, it can sweep, but there should be plenty of openings to get up a second Dragon Dance, after which it will outspeed even Scarf Landorus. Dragon Claw is my main STAB here. Although Outrage has more power, Dragonite does not want to get locked in, as every chance to heal with Roost or set up an extra Dragon Dance is welcomed. Besides, once two Dragon Dances are up, the difference between Outrage and Dragon Claw doesn't matter as much. Substitute allows me to block incoming status moves, while Leftovers can negate sand/hail damage.
Thank you for reading, and thank you in advance for rating!
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 224 SDef / 32 Spd
Careful Nature
- Wish
- Stealth Rock
- Iron Head
- Body Slam
Versatile, annoying, hax, these are some of the many terms used to describe Jirachi. With a BST of 600, and a base of 100 in every stat, it does seem like there's not a lot the little pixie can't do. Jirachi here serves as my main special wall, wish support for the team, and Stealth Rock. Wish helps in quite a few ways. It can heal any team member low on health, in can help to keep Dragonite at 100% after Stealth Rock, and it can heal Jirachi itself. Stealth Rock is pretty much mandatory for any team, and since Jirachi has Stealth Rock it will largely be serving as my lead. With Body Slam and Iron Head, Jirachi can paralyze annoying opponents and flinch-hax them to death. Because of the investment into SDef and HP, it can switch in on pokemon that are very threatening to my team, namely Tornadus-T.
Hydreigon (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Mild Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Superpower
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Hydreigon is an absolute monster. His 125 base Special Attack can rip through a great many Pokemon, and with 105 Attack, he's no slouch in that category, either. His 98 base speed, inferior to the likes of Salamence and Latias, is offset by fairly decent 92/90/90 defenses, but he is by no means a tank. This set is the standard mixed set, and I use it as a wallbreaker. STAB Draco Meteor can rip through most Pokemon - in fact, it is only resisted by Steel-types, with which Hydreigon has quite a few ways of dealing. Fire Blast gives it excellent coverage off of that 125 base Special Attack, and Earthquake rounds out the unresisted Dragon/Fire/Ground combo, Air Balloon and Occa Berry users notwithstanding. For users of the aforementioned items, as well as quite a few others, there is Superpower. With the Choice Scarf, Hydreigon can serve as one of the best revenge killers around, with great power and coverage.
Breloom @ Fighting Gem
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Spore
- Swords Dance
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
Another recent addition is Breloom. In Gen V, Breloom was blessed with Technician and a STAB priority move, the same combo that vaulted Scizor to the top of Gen IV OU. Breloom's STAB Fighting, however, is far superior to Scizor's STAB Steel. Breloom also gains access to Spore, one of two 100% accurate sleep moves in the game - the other being Dark Void, Darkrai's signature move. Bullet Seed gained a big boost this gen, and with the Technician boost it will have a power between 75 and 187.5 - and that's before factoring in STAB! Breloom replaced Infernape, which was a bit overwhelmed in the current metagame, what with Scarf Tyranitar, Tornadus-T, and all.
Gengar @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Timid Nature
- Disable
- Substitute
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
Gengar has been one of the most perennially successful Pokemon in history. It is one of two Pokemon to have been OU every generation, and in the four years since I started competitive battling, I do not recall a time when it was not a major threat. This set I find particularly fun to use. Shadow Ball provides excellent STAB, and Focus Blast is all it needs to go unresisted. Blissey (and Chansey) are more of a problem than ever, though, thanks to the change in Explosion's mechanics in Gen V. However, Gengar can do more than just roll in and Shadow Ball. It can set up a substitute, and from behind that substitute, it can Disable one of the opponent's moves. It requires an opening to set up, but once set up, it can be deadly. It can force switches, or render useless a Pokemon with one attack. Leftovers provides me with reliable recovery, which, quite frankly, I need. Life Orb recoil + Substitute damage would be too much.
Gengar is the first Pokemon I have not seriously considered replacing at one point. While he can be walled fairly easily, he is also extremely dangerous, and can take down or weaken many Pokemon to the point where it should be easy for Dragonite to pull off a sweep. That said, I am open to suggestions, otherwise why would I bother with this?
Tentacruel @ Leftovers
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 36 Spd / 248 HP / 224 Def
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
- Substitute
Tentacruel is a wonderful supporter. With a wide movepool that includes Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin, along with solid 100 base Speed, and excellent Special bulk, not to mention excellent defensive typing, Tentacruel can be a special wall, a Rapid Spinner, a Toxic Spikes user, or more. Here it functions as my Rapid Spinner as well as an excellent check for Rain teams (specifically those carrying Keldeo or Tornadus-T), which I have trouble with. Tentacruel cannot act as an outright wall on either side of the spectrum, but with the EV investment, can take hits reasonably well on both sides. With Rain Dish and Leftovers, I restore 18.75% of my health each turn in Rain, making Tenta an excellent option to use against Rain teams. Toxic helps prevent opposing Pokemon from setting up, while Rapid Spin can get rid of Stealth Rock, which is so important to setting up Dragonite. Scald provides STAB and decent neutral coverage, with a chance of a Burn - usually helpful, unless the opponent has Guts.
Tentacruel replaced a Starmie in this slot, and so far it is doing better than its predecessor! Thanks to Jimbon of Smogon for suggesting this set.
Dragonite @ Leftovers
Trait: Multiscale
EVs: 252 HP / 80 SDef / 176 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Substitute
- Roost
Now we come to the star of the show. The original Dragon-type, Dragonite has the best bulk of all the non-uber Dragons except for Kyurem and perhaps Latias. In Gen IV, its 91/95/100 defenses have gained it a bit of a niche as the bulky dragon, but was generally inferior to Salamence or Flygon due to its underwhelming 80 Speed. With Multiscale, Dragonite's bulk is doubled; its crippling 4x Ice weakness is lessened, and it can easily take most Ice moves from full health, or when using Roost. It is very easy to get an opening to get up a first Dragon Dance, after which it will outspeed slower Scarf user such as Modest Politoed. Once one Dance is up, it can sweep, but there should be plenty of openings to get up a second Dragon Dance, after which it will outspeed even Scarf Landorus. Dragon Claw is my main STAB here. Although Outrage has more power, Dragonite does not want to get locked in, as every chance to heal with Roost or set up an extra Dragon Dance is welcomed. Besides, once two Dragon Dances are up, the difference between Outrage and Dragon Claw doesn't matter as much. Substitute allows me to block incoming status moves, while Leftovers can negate sand/hail damage.
Thank you for reading, and thank you in advance for rating!