Lucaronite

Lucaronite


Welcome to my third RMT! My last team, Stupid Name Awesome Team, was a great team, but because of the rising popularity of U-turn Scizors
and Shed Shells on steels, the team became obsolete. So I decided it was time for a new time, and something a little more... original. (i.e. not a remake of a popular RMT) I had been Brawling a lot with Lucario, so I decided to build a team with him. So afterwards I conveniently heard someone talking about an effective Lucario*+ Dragonite offensive core, so I went with it. So, here's my team building process so you can get a better idea of the team's strategy.*

Team Building Process (open) Team Building Process (close)

Like I said, this team focuses on the offensive combo of *Lucario and Dragonite. I'll go more indef. on the synergy later, so let's move on.

Alright, now to the defensive core. To help deal with Dragonite's glaring ice weakness and Lucario's fighting and fire weaknesses, I put in Jellicent.*

I needed a physical wall, so I went with Skarmory. Skarmory was a major help with it's ability to lay hazards, phase, and cover Lucario's ground weakness.*

Having a electric weak defensive core and no Pokemon to take those hits was a problem, so I put in Jolteon to cover electric moves and serve as a late-game sweeper/revenge killer. *

With Dragonite's Multiscale, Skarmory's Sturdy, and all the general switching I had to do with this team, I needed a reliable Rapid Spinner. I chose Hitmontop because of his ability to spin even against ghosts. Plus he helped cover Dragonite's rock weakness.

As much as I like Jolteon... she... wasn't that helpful. Lucario and Dragonite both served the roll of late game sweeper, so Jolteon was redundant. Also, my team was getting destroyed by Rotom-W. I decided to put in Gastrodon since Gastrodon was able to take electric moves and stop Rotom-W in it's tracks. With Gastrondon serving as my special wall, another water type special wall was redundant, so I replaced Jellicent with Heatran. I really liked having Heatran since, unlike Jellicent, Heatran was able to wall and poss an offensive threat at the same time.

With all the hazards I was using I really needed a spinblocker, but none of the roles I needed could be filled by a ghost type. To make room, I combined Skarmory's and Hitmontop's roles into one Pokemon with Forretress and then put in Spiritomb as my spin blocker. Spiritomb was especially helpful because helped cover my Reuniclus and Lati@s weaknesses.​

Now that you know how I made the team, here it is:


Lucario @ Choice Specs
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Nature: Modest (+SAtk-Atk)​

•Aura Sphere: Specs Lucario's Aura Sphere is so dang powerful! With 90 BP, Stab, and the boost from Specs, Aura Sphere will put a dint in anything that doesn't resist it. It able to destroy many physical walls who switch in expecting a physical set.*
•Vacuum Wave: A great priority move. With Specs, Vacuum Wave has decent power, and is very helpful for late game sweeping.*
•Dark Pulse: Dark Pulse has perfect coverage with my fighting moves, and is a great move in general. I chose it over Shadow Ball because of the sometimes life saving flinch chance.
•Hidden Power Ice: One of the great things about Lucario is his ability to kill dragons and Gliscor with HP Ice, especially since they never see it coming.

Dragonite @ Leftovers
Ability: Multiscale*
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Nature: Adamant (+SAtk-Atk)​

•Dragon Dance: The crux of this set. Getting one up is easy with Multiscale, and getting two isn't too difficult if the opponent switches. After one boost, Dragonite can sweep fairly easily late game, but after two, it's pretty much GG.*
•Dragon Claw: Basic stab move. I chose it over Outrage since I don't like getting locked into to a move and then having to switch and lose my boosts.*
•Fire Punch : Here to deal with those pesky steels.*
•Roost: Even thou this is more of an offensive Dragonite, I love the added longevity Roost give me, as it allows my sweeps to last longer. I've tried Extreme Speed, but it didn't seem as helpful as Roost, especially since I already had Lucario's powerful Vacuum Wave to pick off weakened threats.

Forretress @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs:*252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Nature: Relaxed (+Def-Spd)​

•Spikes: Spikes are Spikes. Punishes the opponent for switching. Helps sweeping. Just an awesome thing to have.*
•Pain Split: I'm debating running Toxic Spike over Pain Split. I'm running Pain Split right now though since poison types like Tentacruel, Toxicroak, and Venusaur are popular and since they aren't really necessary on my team. Pain Split is also nice to have since I don't have any wish support and it increases Forretress' longevity.*
•Rapid Spin: The reason I chose Forretress over Ferrothorn. With Dragonite's Multiscale and all the switching I do, Rapid Spin was a must.*
•Gyro Ball: Prevents Forretress from becoming complete taunt bait. It does decent damage to many of the faster threats in the metagame, particularly Terrakion. **

Heatran @ Air Balloon*
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk / 4 Spd
Nature: Modest (+SAtk-Atk)​

•Lava Plume: Basic stab move. It has nice accuracy, decent power, and that handy burn chance that has saved me occasionally.*
•Earth Power: Another useful attacking move that I usually use to beat fire types. The possible SDef drop can help me break down some walls.*
•Stealth Rock: More hazards? Yes please! Helps beat stuff like Dragonite and Volcarona.*
•Roar: Very useful on this team. Helps soften up the opponent to make Dragonite's sweep easier. It also protects me from some set up sweepers and baton pass teams.*

Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 Spe
Nature: Impish (+SDef-Atk)​

•Scald: Chosen for the same reason I chose Lava Plume on Heatran.*
•Earth Power: Gives me something to hit water types with, particularly Tentacruel.*
•Toxic: Toxic is very helpful on this team. Along with all my hazards, Toxic can start to chip away at my opponents health very quickly. If the opponent stays in too long, I'll sometimes bring in Spiritomb to Pursuit trap them to their death.*
•RecoverHelps keep Gastrodon around longer to take more hits.*

Spiritomb @ Choice Band
Ability: Infiltrator*
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
Nature: Adamant (+Atk-SAtk)​

•Shadow Sneak: Nice priority move, but I don't use it too much. It's mainly for Latias or for when I need priority but don't want to risk locking myself into Sucker Punch on a set up move.*
•Pursuit: My favorite move on this guy. Just bring it in on any psychic type and Pursuit them when they switch out fearing a Shadow Sneak.*
•Sucker Punch: Very useful against choice locked Pokemon.*
•Trick: Trick is a... *cough* nice trick to have up you're sleeve. Helps shut down walls and special set up sweepers.*


Since the team is really divided into 2 parts, I'll talk about it like that.*

The Defensive Core


Why the defensive core first? Because that's what I begin with. I usually use them to stall out the opponent for a bit and make it easier for Dragonite and Lucario to sweep. Leading with them also allows me to wait for the perfect moment to bring Dragonite in to set up.*
The core itself is a variation of the the Skarmory, Heatran, and Gastrodon anti-weather core. The biggest change is Forretress over Skarmory. Although Forretress isn't as good at stoping SS teams due to being grounded, he makes up for it with his ability to Rapid Spin, an important role on this team. Plus, with SS teams being less common now with the banning of Excadrill, walling SS is less important. Gastrodon is my special wall, and with it's immunities to common Water and Electric moves, Gastrodon is able to wall rain and other special attackers to kingdom come. Heatran is the glue that holds the core together, as he is immune to the Fire moves that destroy Forretress and 4X resistant to the Grass moves that destroy Gastrodon. He also allows me to beat the sun teams that are common sights on the ladder these days. The set may seem odd, but I like it's ability to wall the opponent while still providing an offensive threat.
I'm very happy with this core due to it's ability to defeat most of the common threats in today's metagame.*

The Offensive Core


Alright, now for the offensive core. The main Pokemon here are Lucario and Dragonite, with Spiritomb acting as a sort of utility Pokemon.*
The Lucario and Dragonite core is rather simple: Lucario punches holes in the opponents team and destroys the steels (and some dragons) that give Dragonite trouble while Dragonite comes in late game and sweeps. Specs Lucario does an excellent job of punching holes, as he can easily force switches and hit the switch in with a powerful Aura Sphere. He also lures in the physical walls that can get in Dragonite's way, *as they'll switch in on what they thing is is a Swords Dance or Close Combat only to be met by a powerful special attack.*
With the opponent's team softened up and their physical walls and steels gone or severally damaged, it's time to find an opportunity to bring in Dragonite. I usually try to force a switch with Dragonite by bringing him in on something that can harm him. I then DD when they switch and sometimes, of my Multiscale is still intact, go for the second DD. With a few DDs under his belt, Dragonite can easily sweep a weakened team with his near perfect coverage.*
Spiritomb may seem like an odd choice, but he actually fits perfectly on the team, as he fills many rolls I need. With all the hazards I use, Spiritomb serves as nice spin blocker, and even has the nice advantage of trapping and killing Starmie, one of the best rapid spinners available. One that note, he is also my answer to spin blockers, allowing me to spin away SR with ease. He is also serves to beat several physic types that would otherwise trouble this team, namely Reuniclus and Lati@s. Another, although less important, role he serves is using his fighting immunity, which is a nice addition to a team with 2 fighting weaknesses and only one other resist who doesn't to take the hit and lose his Multiscale. Finally, Spiritomb can trick his CB to cripple a wall in a pinch. The only thing I wish is that Spiritomb had better stats (base 90 Atk isn't impressive), but he more than makes up for that with his utility.*
I am very satisfied with this core, I only wish there was a better option than Spiritomb to take his place.*


Conclusion


So far, this team has been one of my favorites and has been very successful so far. It hasn't gotten very far on the ladder, but I think that's just because I'm not a very good battler. ;) This team has also accomplished my goal of making a successful team with the Lucaronite offensive combo.*
I hope you enjoyed reading this. Comments and suggestions are appreciated!

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Lucario (F) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Inner Focus
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Vacuum Wave
- Aura Sphere
- Dark Pulse
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Nite>Mence (Dragonite) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Multiscale
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Fire Punch
- Roost

Forretress (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SDef
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Gyro Ball

Heatran (M) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk / 4 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Lava Plume
- Earth Power
- Roar
- Stealth Rock

Gastrodon (Gastrodon-East) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Storm Drain
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Earth Power
- Scald
- Toxic
- Recover

Spiritomb (M) @ Choice Band
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Shadow Sneak
- Pursuit
- Sucker Punch
- Trick

Hey there :]
One thing I notice is you are very vulnerable to Nasty Plot Celebii. so maybe switch say Gastrodon to Chansey with Eviolite?
Also I feel like you need a sweeper other then Dnite so I'd either Make Lucario a Nasty Plot set or switch Spirtom to Calm Mind Latias
Probably the 2nd option is better because heatran latias lucario and dnite is a verry good offensive core
Hope I helped! :]

@Kobra- My team has no trouble with Celebii, as I have 4 pokes that can deal with it. Spiritomb is my usual solution, as I can just switch him in on the NP and kill him with Shadow Sneak. Heatran can deal with it if it lacks HP ground, Dragonite can set up on it if it has HP fire or ground, and Lucario might be able to take care of if it has Phychic.
As for the Latias, I'm not sure if my team needs another sweeper, but I might try that.

Hey, Pippy, this team is fairly solid. I think, however, it can be still improved.

Firstly, I would like to recommend, on Heatran, an EV spread of 244 HP / 252 SpDef / 12 Speed Calm, and using Leftovers instead of Air Balloon. That would help you immensely when switching on Latios' Draco Meteor, Tornadus' Hurricane as well as taking other weak resisted hits much better (such as Volcarona's ones).

Doing that change would make you more vulnerable to Earthquake spammers, though, since your only immunity is Dragonite. I'm noticing weakness to Dragon Dance users such as Haxorus, opposing Dragonite, Salamence, etc, because, after they setup, they will OHKO your entire team with the apropriate move. The fact that the fastest member of the team hits only 279 Speed doesn't help either. For this reason, I would like to recommend a Scarf Landorus with Earthquake / Stone Edge / U-turn / Hidden Power Ice or Hammer Arm over your current Spiritomb set. It would still resist Fighting, but would add a Ground immunity as well. Not only that, it would still outspeed the mentioned threats and KO them with either Hidden Power Ice or Stone Edge. It also outspeeds Volcarona, which can be a nuisance if it packs Hidden Power Ground. Doing that change would, however, leave you vulnerable to Reuniclus. For this reason, I recommend a 252 HP / 192 Speed / 64 Atk Adamant Dragonite (192 Speed EVs are used to outspeed Scarf Tyranitars after a Dragon Dance, 64 EVs + a positive nature give Dragonite a stat jump and the rest is dumped into HP for a bulkier Dragonite) over your current set. That set takes 30% max from a +1 Reuniclus' Psychic with Multiscale active, so you can take on Reuniclus with boosted Dragon Claws.

Good Luck!

hmm...yup I need to try this team as it looks pretty fun to use. It does seem to be a bit ground weak though IMO. (More edit: nope I was wrong. It handles ground moves just fine.)

EDIT: Well I tried your team but, I found I really could not use it very well... This is probably because I'm only avg. at best at Pokemon. At the end of the day it IS intresting to use though.

Really nice team. And thank you for the export, however, I'm just gonna try NP celebi in place of ....I'm not sure. Maybe fort because celi can lay rocks, recover has natural cure and can somewhat take on Terrakion without x-scissor
EDIT: Am gonna miss the spin and toxic spikes though