Incomparable
On December 2, 2011, Smogon user Malekith posted a signup thread for a tournament known as UU Olympus. I saw the thread on the recent posts list while browsing, and I thought it would be fun. However, I was immediately faced with a problem.
What was the problem, you may ask? Well, for one I had no good BW UU teams, and I had never played DPP UU. I wasn't planning on playing ADV UU anytime soon (I barely do well in ADV OU, what makes you think I'd do well in ADV UU?), so I decided: Make a team for DPP UU, and use it in the tournament. This team was born.
The team has gone through heavy modification since its original creation in the beginning of December, with very frequent member changes. In mid-December, shortly before my battle vs. Agammemnon, I managed to get the team to its current and arguably best form, with the help of my UU Olympus teammate Raseri.
This is the team.
On December 2, 2011, Smogon user Malekith posted a signup thread for a tournament known as UU Olympus. I saw the thread on the recent posts list while browsing, and I thought it would be fun. However, I was immediately faced with a problem.
What was the problem, you may ask? Well, for one I had no good BW UU teams, and I had never played DPP UU. I wasn't planning on playing ADV UU anytime soon (I barely do well in ADV OU, what makes you think I'd do well in ADV UU?), so I decided: Make a team for DPP UU, and use it in the tournament. This team was born.
The team has gone through heavy modification since its original creation in the beginning of December, with very frequent member changes. In mid-December, shortly before my battle vs. Agammemnon, I managed to get the team to its current and arguably best form, with the help of my UU Olympus teammate Raseri.
This is the team.
Kangaskhan (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Frustration
- Hammer Arm
- Sucker Punch
- Fake Out
Kangaskhan in the lead spot seems like a pretty terrible idea, but my idea here is to have a Fake Out lead that can actually hurt the occasional Spiritomb lead who attempts to trap the ever-so-predictable Ambipom lead with Pursuit. Outside of the lead spot, it also serves a useful utility in its stellar Normal+Fighting coverage thanks to Scrappy, only resisted by Shedinja who is pretty much nonexistent. This also lets me deal with most variants of Spiritomb easily, since Hammer Arm will hit Spiritomb for super effective damage due to Scrappy ignoring the immunity.
Frustration is for a respectable-power non-recoil STAB attack and I'm too lazy to change my happiness values. I run Hammer Arm over Low Kick because Hammer Arm will hit Spiritomb almost as hard, and also hits Chansey harder than Low Kick. Sucker Punch lets me bypass faster foes, while Fake Out lets me break Focus Sashes on leads like Qwilfish who may commonly carry it.
Spiritomb (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SDef
Sassy Nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Shadow Sneak
- Pursuit
- Psychic
- Dark Pulse
This is the only member of my team that has stayed on the team with no modifications whatsoever. From what I've heard about DPP UU, Alakazam seems like one of the most dangerous threats, and ignoring it is PokeSuicide. Spiritomb is without a doubt the best counter to Alakazam, sporting an immunity to both of its most powerful attacks: Psychic and Focus Blast, and also neutral to all of the coverage moves it can carry (i.e. Shadow Ball) due to its incredible Ghost/Dark typing. To make everything even better, Spiritomb has access to STAB Pursuit to eradicate Alakazam before it can switch out.
Shadow Sneak gives me access to some priority to pick off faster, weakened foes with reliability, such as Alakazam and Mismagius, should they attempt to stay in. Pursuit is the main reason why I've used Spiritomb on all of the forms of this team, as it will punish Alakazam and Mismagius for switching out, making the jobs of my team members a lot easier. Psychic in particular nails Toxicroak (won't OHKO, but does bring it down into the range that Shadow Sneak will KO) and hits Fighting-types like Blaziken who think they can safely switch in on a Dark Pulse. Speaking of Dark Pulse, I use it on this set because it will hit Uxie harder than any of Spiritomb's attacks.
Venusaur (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Overgrow
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Leaf Storm
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder
- Synthesis
This spot on the team had been occupied by Blaziken, Arcanine, and Rhyperior prior to Venusaur taking it over. Raseri suggested it to me when I found I was having troubles with Electric-types, which Rhyperior couldn't cover due to not liking Grass attacks, or Special hits in general. It's been truly incredible. Sleep Powder is just amazing for allowing me to end an Absol sweep before it can cut through my team like a hot knife through butter, hit hard with Leaf Storm which helps me kill Milotic, and just when you thought it was almost dead, nope! Synthesis.
Leaf Storm is my STAB move of choice because I need Venusaur to hit as hard as possible. Sludge Bomb is to hit the Grass-types that resist Leaf Storm, Sleep Powder lets me put a potential counter to sleep, and then Synthesis lets me recover damage from Life Orb.
Milotic (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Marvel Scale
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spd
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Haze
- Recover
Milotic is the best wall in the DPP UU metagame. It trolls by switching in on Will-O-Wisps (Sweet!) and Thunder Waves (Even better!), then takes hits all day, doesn't die, and just recovers the damage taken like it was nothing. Milotic is my primary switch-in against Fire-type powerhouses such as Blaziken, Charizard, and Arcanine, taking them on quite easily.
Surf is for a STAB move to actually hit the Fire-types I intend to wall, and then Hidden Power Grass lets me hit opposing Waters, as well as the occasional Gastrodon/Quagsire. I run Haze over Ice Beam because I have Altaria pretty well covered already, and I need a reliable way of beating Calm Mind Spiritomb/Slowbro. Recover lets me heal all the damage taken.
Absol (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Super Luck
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch
- Superpower
- Night Slash
Absol is, along with Spiritomb, one of the two members to never leave the team. Absol is just a complete monster; a +2 Sucker Punch OHKOs Primeape! Hitmonlee will also struggle to hurt Absol unless it has Mach Punch. Registeel? I don't think so mate. Chansey? Nice try.
Adamant is the chosen nature because Absol will not be outspeeding anything significant by going Jolly, except maybe Adamant Choice Band Blaziken, but it's not like that matters anyway because I do not run Psycho Cut.
Swords Dance lets me boost Absol's already sky-high Attack to godlike levels, and then Sucker Punch somewhat makes up for the Speed problem. Superpower lets me actually hurt Registeel and Chansey, and Night Slash is for a reliable (not Sucker Punch) STAB attack to hit the walls that Absol cannot hit super effectively.
Primeape (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Vital Spirit
EVs: 32 HP / 252 Atk / 224 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Ice Punch
Primeape was, honestly, the last Pokemon I would have considered adding. That base 105 Attack is truly miserable. This was another suggestion Raseri made, and it has honestly helped me a lot.
The first Pokemon to occupy the spot of fast, hard-hitter was Dugtrio. However, Dugtrio and its frailness making Lucario up in OU look like it takes hits like Wonder Guard Spiritomb has never ended up particularly impressing me. Swellow was my next choice. Swellow, while an amazing late-game cleaner, just died too quickly due to Toxic Orb, Stealth Rock, and Brave Bird recoil all working against it. Choice Scarf Medicham occupied this spot before Primeape, and even though it was good for bypassing Sucker Punch with Trick, that limited its ability to revenge kill in the late game. Finally, I'd end up actually using Primeape, and it's been truly incredible, combining the scouting ability of Swellow, Altaria-killing ability of Medicham, and that nice bonus that with its Vital Spirit ability, it makes an almost flawless switch-in on the Sleep Powder-carrying Grass-types that litter the tier.
U-turn is the draw to this Primeape set, as it lets me scout for switches. Close Combat is for STAB, as it is the most powerful Fighting-type attack in DPP, excluding Focus Punch. Stone Edge allows me to actually hit Moltres, while Ice Punch is for Altaria.
So, I hope you enjoyed this RMT! Rate, hate, whatever floats your boat.
Also, whoever can name which band released the album I got the RMT title from gets a cookie.
Trait: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Frustration
- Hammer Arm
- Sucker Punch
- Fake Out
Kangaskhan in the lead spot seems like a pretty terrible idea, but my idea here is to have a Fake Out lead that can actually hurt the occasional Spiritomb lead who attempts to trap the ever-so-predictable Ambipom lead with Pursuit. Outside of the lead spot, it also serves a useful utility in its stellar Normal+Fighting coverage thanks to Scrappy, only resisted by Shedinja who is pretty much nonexistent. This also lets me deal with most variants of Spiritomb easily, since Hammer Arm will hit Spiritomb for super effective damage due to Scrappy ignoring the immunity.
Frustration is for a respectable-power non-recoil STAB attack and I'm too lazy to change my happiness values. I run Hammer Arm over Low Kick because Hammer Arm will hit Spiritomb almost as hard, and also hits Chansey harder than Low Kick. Sucker Punch lets me bypass faster foes, while Fake Out lets me break Focus Sashes on leads like Qwilfish who may commonly carry it.
Spiritomb (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SDef
Sassy Nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Shadow Sneak
- Pursuit
- Psychic
- Dark Pulse
This is the only member of my team that has stayed on the team with no modifications whatsoever. From what I've heard about DPP UU, Alakazam seems like one of the most dangerous threats, and ignoring it is PokeSuicide. Spiritomb is without a doubt the best counter to Alakazam, sporting an immunity to both of its most powerful attacks: Psychic and Focus Blast, and also neutral to all of the coverage moves it can carry (i.e. Shadow Ball) due to its incredible Ghost/Dark typing. To make everything even better, Spiritomb has access to STAB Pursuit to eradicate Alakazam before it can switch out.
Shadow Sneak gives me access to some priority to pick off faster, weakened foes with reliability, such as Alakazam and Mismagius, should they attempt to stay in. Pursuit is the main reason why I've used Spiritomb on all of the forms of this team, as it will punish Alakazam and Mismagius for switching out, making the jobs of my team members a lot easier. Psychic in particular nails Toxicroak (won't OHKO, but does bring it down into the range that Shadow Sneak will KO) and hits Fighting-types like Blaziken who think they can safely switch in on a Dark Pulse. Speaking of Dark Pulse, I use it on this set because it will hit Uxie harder than any of Spiritomb's attacks.
Venusaur (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Overgrow
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Leaf Storm
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder
- Synthesis
This spot on the team had been occupied by Blaziken, Arcanine, and Rhyperior prior to Venusaur taking it over. Raseri suggested it to me when I found I was having troubles with Electric-types, which Rhyperior couldn't cover due to not liking Grass attacks, or Special hits in general. It's been truly incredible. Sleep Powder is just amazing for allowing me to end an Absol sweep before it can cut through my team like a hot knife through butter, hit hard with Leaf Storm which helps me kill Milotic, and just when you thought it was almost dead, nope! Synthesis.
Leaf Storm is my STAB move of choice because I need Venusaur to hit as hard as possible. Sludge Bomb is to hit the Grass-types that resist Leaf Storm, Sleep Powder lets me put a potential counter to sleep, and then Synthesis lets me recover damage from Life Orb.
Milotic (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Marvel Scale
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spd
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Haze
- Recover
Milotic is the best wall in the DPP UU metagame. It trolls by switching in on Will-O-Wisps (Sweet!) and Thunder Waves (Even better!), then takes hits all day, doesn't die, and just recovers the damage taken like it was nothing. Milotic is my primary switch-in against Fire-type powerhouses such as Blaziken, Charizard, and Arcanine, taking them on quite easily.
Surf is for a STAB move to actually hit the Fire-types I intend to wall, and then Hidden Power Grass lets me hit opposing Waters, as well as the occasional Gastrodon/Quagsire. I run Haze over Ice Beam because I have Altaria pretty well covered already, and I need a reliable way of beating Calm Mind Spiritomb/Slowbro. Recover lets me heal all the damage taken.
Absol (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Super Luck
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch
- Superpower
- Night Slash
Absol is, along with Spiritomb, one of the two members to never leave the team. Absol is just a complete monster; a +2 Sucker Punch OHKOs Primeape! Hitmonlee will also struggle to hurt Absol unless it has Mach Punch. Registeel? I don't think so mate. Chansey? Nice try.
Adamant is the chosen nature because Absol will not be outspeeding anything significant by going Jolly, except maybe Adamant Choice Band Blaziken, but it's not like that matters anyway because I do not run Psycho Cut.
Swords Dance lets me boost Absol's already sky-high Attack to godlike levels, and then Sucker Punch somewhat makes up for the Speed problem. Superpower lets me actually hurt Registeel and Chansey, and Night Slash is for a reliable (not Sucker Punch) STAB attack to hit the walls that Absol cannot hit super effectively.
Primeape (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Vital Spirit
EVs: 32 HP / 252 Atk / 224 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Ice Punch
Primeape was, honestly, the last Pokemon I would have considered adding. That base 105 Attack is truly miserable. This was another suggestion Raseri made, and it has honestly helped me a lot.
The first Pokemon to occupy the spot of fast, hard-hitter was Dugtrio. However, Dugtrio and its frailness making Lucario up in OU look like it takes hits like Wonder Guard Spiritomb has never ended up particularly impressing me. Swellow was my next choice. Swellow, while an amazing late-game cleaner, just died too quickly due to Toxic Orb, Stealth Rock, and Brave Bird recoil all working against it. Choice Scarf Medicham occupied this spot before Primeape, and even though it was good for bypassing Sucker Punch with Trick, that limited its ability to revenge kill in the late game. Finally, I'd end up actually using Primeape, and it's been truly incredible, combining the scouting ability of Swellow, Altaria-killing ability of Medicham, and that nice bonus that with its Vital Spirit ability, it makes an almost flawless switch-in on the Sleep Powder-carrying Grass-types that litter the tier.
U-turn is the draw to this Primeape set, as it lets me scout for switches. Close Combat is for STAB, as it is the most powerful Fighting-type attack in DPP, excluding Focus Punch. Stone Edge allows me to actually hit Moltres, while Ice Punch is for Altaria.
So, I hope you enjoyed this RMT! Rate, hate, whatever floats your boat.
Also, whoever can name which band released the album I got the RMT title from gets a cookie.
