Metagame NP: RU Stage -1: Message to Oglemi, Nails, and Honko (VENOMOTH STOLEN FROM US))

[Eashy]

So I tried the Endure Hitmonlee set and one thing I noticed was that Hitmonlee was too bulky. And yes thats a bad thing. It has decent special defense which means it doesn't get into Berry range as easily. And if Hitmonlee does not eat the Berry, the set is a big load of shit.

So I was thinking of changing the set to this.

Hitmonlee (M) @ Liechi Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Naughty Nature
IVs: 0 SDef
- Endure
- Reversal
- Mach Punch
- Knock Off

Is this in anyway a good idea at all?

 

[Based Kakashi]

So I tried the Endure Hitmonlee set and one thing I noticed was that Hitmonlee was too bulky. And yes thats a bad thing. It has decent special defense which means it doesn't get into Berry range as easily. And if Hitmonlee does not eat the Berry, the set is a big load of shit.

So I was thinking of changing the set to this.

Hitmonlee (M) @ Liechi Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Naughty Nature
IVs: 0 SDef
- Endure
- Reversal
- Mach Punch
- Knock Off

Is this in anyway a good idea at all?

It seems gimmicky but I see no reason why it wouldn't, as long as it got to set up right.

 

[Arcticblast]

So I tried the Endure Hitmonlee set and one thing I noticed was that Hitmonlee was too bulky. And yes thats a bad thing. It has decent special defense which means it doesn't get into Berry range as easily. And if Hitmonlee does not eat the Berry, the set is a big load of shit.

So I was thinking of changing the set to this.

Hitmonlee (M) @ Liechi Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Naughty Nature
IVs: 0 SDef
- Endure
- Reversal
- Mach Punch
- Knock Off

Is this in anyway a good idea at all?

Ideally you should be setting up on Pokemon that are typically decent checks to Hitmonlee (stuff like Delphox / Azelf / etc.), and many of these hit its physical defense. Things like Kyurem aren't going to be bringing it down to Sash with anything but their strongest attacks.

 

[skies]

Ideally you should be setting up on Pokemon that are typically decent checks to Hitmonlee (stuff like Delphox / Azelf / etc.), and many of these hit its physical defense. Things like Kyurem aren't going to be bringing it down to Sash with anything but their strongest attacks (even Specs Draco Meteor probably still gets tanked anyway).

252+ SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Draco Meteor vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Hitmonlee: 322-381 (133 - 157.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
?

Arcticblast edit: implying I wanted to put effort into doing calcs

 

[Eashy]

Things like Kyurem aren't going to be bringing it down to Sash with anything but their strongest attacks.

252+ SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Draco Meteor vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Hitmonlee: 322-381 (133 - 157.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Modest Specs Draco isn't Kyurem's strongest attack?

But yea maybe I should just keep it normal because Hitmonlee may be able to switch into more attacks.

 

[EonX]

TheSwagger , Endure + Reversal Hitmonlee wants to sweep late-game. It's basically like a trump card for that CM Delphox or NP Azelf that thought it could set up and sweep late-game. If you're really worried about having too much bulk, you can just run 0 IVs in HP, Defense, and Special Defense to make most moves drop you into Liechi Berry range, with Endure being a safety net for things that would probably OHKO you. It's not like you're trying to get a certain Hidden Power type with Lee or anything and you want as many things as possible to bring you down to Liechi / Endure range to ease your sweep.

EonEdit: 1K posts... well, back to laddering with new stuff.

 

[pj]

starmie is in bottom starmie is best its not for RU

 

[MAMP]

Bronzong @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Stealth Rock
- Gyro Ball
- Toxic/Hypnosis
- Protect/Earthquake

I don't know if anyone has talked about SpDef Bronzong, but I think its really good in the current meta as one of the best answers to a wide variety of threats such as Rhyperior, Shaymin, Mega Abomasnow, and Kyurem (however, subroost can stall it out of gyro balls). It can also take on Exploud's Boomburst, something not very many other Pokemon can boast (although you have to watch out for a Specs Fire Blast). It is a very reliable Stealth Rock setter, and finds plenty of opportunities throughout the match to set them up. As well, it is no slouch offensively, as it's STAB Gyro Ball always has a very high base power thanks to its base 33 speed, and base 89 attack is decent. As well, it can run Earthquake to hurt fire types like Delphox hard on the switch. However, Protect is a good option over it for getting lefties recovery, racking up toxic damage, and scouting out choiced attackers. I've tried out both Hypnosis and Toxic, and I think Toxic is a lot better; Hypnosis is too inaccurate, and it's very nice to hit something like Moltres or Gastro with a Toxic on the switch. If you want a sleep inducer, there are heaps of better options, like Tangrowth, Vivillon, and Amoonguss. Some people are running Heatproof, to allow it to better take on things like Delphox, Exploud and Azelf, however this means it can't take on Shaymin, Kyurem, and ground types like Rhyperior and Dugtrio, which are more threatening imo. However, if your team already has good answers to these, Heatproof could be a good option. Bronzong can do a lot more than this though, it has access to Trick Room and dual screens if that's more your thing. Bronzong does suffer from a lack of recovery, so it should be paired with a Wish passer. I'd recommend Aromatisse as it has good type synergy with Zong, but there are plenty of good options. Bronzong unfortunately has issues with slower, bulkier Pokemon, but many of them are susceptible to Toxic. Overall, I've found Bronzong to be a very effective pivot and Stealth Rock setter for balanced and defensive teams alike, and is definitely one of the best Pokemon in RU right now.

Here are some calcs showing off its bulk:

252 SpA Life Orb Shaymin Seed Flare vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 69-82 (20.4 - 24.2%) -- guaranteed 5HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Shaymin Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 94-112 (27.8 - 33.1%) -- 75% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Life Orb Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 62-74 (18.3 - 21.8%) -- possible 5HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 114-134 (33.7 - 39.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Mega Abomasnow Blizzard vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 65-77 (19.2 - 22.7%) -- possible 5HKO after hail damage and Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Exploud Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 96-113 (28.4 - 33.4%) -- 0% chance to 3HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Exploud Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 202-238 (59.7 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Delphox Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 281-330 (83.1 - 97.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 198-234 (58.5 - 69.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Rhyperior Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 63-75 (18.6 - 22.1%) -- possible 5HKO
252 Atk Dugtrio Sucker Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 112-132 (33.1 - 39%) -- 99.8% chance to 3HKO
252 Atk Cobalion Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 135-159 (39.9 - 47%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
4 SpA Cofagrigus Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 108-128 (31.9 - 37.8%) -- 0.5% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 133-157 (39.3 - 46.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Mega Banette Shadow Claw vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 266-314 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Drapion Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 240-284 (71 - 84%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Life Orb Zoroark Dark Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 211-250 (62.4 - 73.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+6 252+ Atk Slurpuff Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 204-241 (60.3 - 71.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Slurpuff Flamethrower vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 74-88 (21.8 - 26%) -- possible 5HKO after Leftovers recovery


As you can see, Bronzong is really bulky on both sides of the spectrum, being able to take even STAB super effective hits from some of the hardest hitters in the tier. Here are some calcs showing what it can do in return:

0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (134 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Zoroark: 198-234 (75.8 - 89.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (143 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Azelf: 187-222 (64.2 - 76.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (113 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kyurem: 242-288 (61.8 - 73.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 Atk Bronzong Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Delphox: 170-202 (58.2 - 69.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Slurpuff: 332-392 (108.4 - 128.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO (this assumes it has Belly Drummed and has the unburden boost)
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (125 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Yanmega: 139-165 (44.2 - 52.5%) -- 18.4% chance to 2HKO (does even more if Yanmega has picked up any Speed Boosts)
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (147 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Dugtrio: 249-294 (117.4 - 138.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (130 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Shaymin: 127-151 (37.2 - 44.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

 

[Braden Mower]

i don't care what people say whimsicot is top 5 tier poke
1. in a slow tier 116 speed beats almost everything
2. taunt prankster enough said
3. offensive, sub seed, encore, prankster asshole it doesn't matter its good
4. poison stops it run but it gets psychic
5. can handle kyrum with moon blast whack is a huge treat
mix role is my favorite
max speed and sp atk
moonblast and giga drain for offense
sub encore to bullshit the rest

 

[migzoo]

Cobalion @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rock Polish

I swear this set is not as dumb as it looks. It's served me quite well on the ladder. Mostly used to shit on Escavalier and friends.

 

[Anty]

i don't care what people say whimsicot is top 5 tier poke
1. in a slow tier 116 speed beats almost everything
2. taunt prankster enough said
3. offensive, sub seed, encore, prankster asshole it doesn't matter its good
4. poison stops it run but it gets psychic
5. can handle kyrum with moon blast whack is a huge treat
mix role is my favorite
max speed and sp atk
moonblast and giga drain for offense
sub encore to bullshit the rest

0 SpA Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 52 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 182-216 (45 - 53.4%) -- 0.4% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 52 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 240-284 (59.4 - 70.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
220+ SpA Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Whimsicott: 398-470 (123.2 - 145.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Whimsicott has had a 4mss and running two offensive moves has never helped it, it has always been used as a defensive annoyance. THere is no point as using it as an attacker with 77 base spatk. Without leach seed it is worn down too much, without taunt it is still sort of settup fodder (for spikes, encore doesnt help when you have little offensive presence). Whimsicott isnt great in this meta, it can wall the overhyped shaymin, but not anything much else.

252 SpA Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Goomy: 278-330 (120.3 - 142.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Goomy Sludge Bomb vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Whimsicott: 292-344 (90.4 - 106.5%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO

 

[Mudkip727]

i don't care what people say whimsicot is top 5 tier poke
1. in a slow tier 116 speed beats almost everything
2. taunt prankster enough said
3. offensive, sub seed, encore, prankster asshole it doesn't matter its good
4. poison stops it run but it gets psychic
5. can handle kyrum with moon blast whack is a huge treat
mix role is my favorite
max speed and sp atk
moonblast and giga drain for offense
sub encore to bullshit the rest

Moonblast dosen't ohko and most kyurem runs scraf and ohko whimsicott, and Esc can take attacks all day and ohko, amoongus can take a hit also and ohko with Sludge Bomb, subseed gets walled by grass types(like the afterformentioned amoongus), and generally steel type can always take a hit and ohko (even bronzong or maybe even ferroseed)

 

[Evilfaic]

i don't care what people say whimsicot is top 5 tier poke
1. in a slow tier 116 speed beats almost everything
2. taunt prankster enough said
3. offensive, sub seed, encore, prankster asshole it doesn't matter its good
4. poison stops it run but it gets psychic
5. can handle kyrum with moon blast whack is a huge treat
mix role is my favorite
max speed and sp atk
moonblast and giga drain for offense
sub encore to bullshit the rest

This is the most epic thing I've ever read.
First of all, Taunt + Prankster doesn't make a good Poke. Whimsicott's easily taken out by offensive things. Poison isn't a very common attacking type, but no one runs Psychic on Whimsicott, even for coverage. Kyurem destroys Whimsicott with Ice Beam and Moonblast doesn't OHKO Kyurem. Sometimes it doesn't even 2HKO. Really the only reason one should run Whimsicott is, as you call it, "prankster asshole".

Calcs (Whimsicott vs. Scarf Kyurem):
Best-case scenario: 252+ SpA Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 264-312 (67.5 - 79.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Whimsicott: 372-440 (142.5 - 168.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO

 

[Arcticblast]

I ran Encore / Leech Seed / Taunt / U-turn Whimsicott for a bit actually, and it's incredibly easy to shut down a fair number of Pokemon. A lot of typical Whimsicott answers (besides Escavalier and Fires) are bulkier for some reason and don't like Taunt, and nothing likes taking a Leech Seed either.

 

[doinktonberry]

everybody going on and on about kyurem, shaymin, whimsicott and raikou while I'm over here crapping on people's lives with a sub-calm mind grumping. XD
Grumpig @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 248 HP / 132 Def / 128 SAtk
Bold Nature
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Psyshock
- Signal Beam
first used it back in 5th gen when smogon was allowing PU on their OM of the month, and before choice banded mold breaker sawk was a thing. the whole point of it was to come in on threats that it could set up on, such as not-banded sawk, and rotom-fridge in pu and proceed to sweep teams with a couple of boosts under its belt. The ev spread allows a good balance of offense and defense while its fantastic natural bulk along with thick fat gave it ample opportunities to set up on multiple threats. (I think the physical defense evs were to set up subs that wouldn't be broken by a few things' flare blitzes allowing it to snag more boosts in the process back when I was using it in 5th gen) Pokémon that it sets up on include kyurem, hitmontop, azelf without shadow ball, and pretty much the majority of defensively inclined Pokémon in the tier unless they run roar, perish-song, haze etc. It manages to be pretty beastly and sweeps fairly consistently. to prove that I'm not just talking out of my ass, here's a video of it in action. http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-109306066

 

[Golemman]

Awesome set alert!

Poliwrath @ Sitrus Berry
SwiftSwim 248At 252Spe 8hp

Belly Drum
Waterfall
Brick Break/low sweep
EQ/Stone Edge/Ice punch/knock off

This set rocks! I've already gotten two sweeps in three battles after adding it to my team! It needs rain support, I have Cresselia and Alomomola, both with damp rock and obviously, rain dance. Basically, here is how you use this mon. Set up rain, get rain setter out and to a pivot or directly to poliwrath is a safe manner when there is something incapable of burning or dealing 50%+ damage (a wide variety of things). After Poliwrath is in and rain is up, he can belly drum to 75% thanks to sitrus berry, now at +6 Attack and +2 speed, with rain boosting it's STAB waterfall. After that, it's nearly impossible to stop. Nothing can really take a hit (phys def Jellicent if it doesn't hav dark coverage can take a bit and burn with WoW). Final step: sweep the opponent so hard that their tears will set up a rain dance after yours wears out lol.

Good partners for this set are rain dance setters (Almomola, Cresselia, Bronzong, other waters, etc.), water/Ghost type removers (pursuit users, Heliolisk who appreciates rain for dry skin and thunder) and hazard clearers to that Poliwrath's berry stays intact when switching in.

 

[skies]

Awesome set alert!

Poliwrath @ Sitrus Berry
SwiftSwim 248At 252Spe 8hp

Belly Drum
Waterfall
Brick Break/low sweep
EQ/Stone Edge/Ice punch/knock off

This set rocks! I've already gotten two sweeps in three battles after adding it to my team! It needs rain support, I have Cresselia and Alomomola, both with damp rock and obviously, rain dance. Basically, here is how you use this mon. Set up rain, get rain setter out and to a pivot or directly to poliwrath is a safe manner when there is something incapable of burning or dealing 50%+ damage (a wide variety of things). After Poliwrath is in and rain is up, he can belly drum to 75% thanks to sitrus berry, now at +6 Attack and +2 speed, with rain boosting it's STAB waterfall. After that, it's nearly impossible to stop. Nothing can really take a hit (phys def Jellicent if it doesn't hav dark coverage can take a bit and burn with WoW). Final step: sweep the opponent so hard that their tears will set up a rain dance after yours wears out lol.

Good partners for this set are rain dance setters (Almomola, Cresselia, Bronzong, other waters, etc.), water/Ghost type removers (pursuit users, Heliolisk who appreciates rain for dry skin and thunder) and hazard clearers to that Poliwrath's berry stays intact when switching in.

This set is really hard to pull off because you won't always get a Belly Drum off and you're weak without it, and you will only have 4 turns of rain if you can safely switch in (3 if using Lunar Dance and shit), and then you get only 3 if you successfully Belly Drum. Then you have to deal with being piss slow after Rain runs out. It can be scary, but I think it is far too gimmicky to actually make it in the long run.

 

[EonX]

Another replay approaching:

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-109907544 - If the build of this team looks familiar to anyone from BW RU, it should. The core of it is similar to that of my Flare Swords team with a few additions / modifications to suit XY RU. Anyway, this was an interesting match full of sets that I don't think have been explored all that much. In the end, Delphox + Cobalion is enough to get around my opponent's Toxicroak, but the match wasn't without its surprises. I'll go over them in short order here:

1. EBelt Azelf is intruiging, but it doesn't hit hard enough on neutral hits, as proved by my opponent's SubSplit Mega-Banette, which is actually quite interesting considering you get priority on both moves after Mega Evo, and you have a fairly strong priority combo in Sucker Punch + Shadow Sneak to hit attackers with as they try to break Subs.
2. Weakness Policy SS Carracosta has some potential. Pretty sure my opponent was running Adamant / Naughty by mistake as I was very surprised Cobalion outsped. I was actually expecting to lose the match at this point as this team lacks a Scarfer. Not even Physically Defensive Milotic is taking that +4 Stone Edge to the face. I'm assuming my opponent was running Sturdy on this Carracosta, so it's guaranteed to survive any super effective hit to get the Weakness Policy + SS boosts off provided hazards are off the field.
3. Defog Skuntank is a thing. Honestly, this isn't a bad Defog user. Absorbing Toxic Spikes on the switch-in is really cool and can lessen the amount of turns you ahve to spend just to use Defog. The fact you're immune to Poison entirely makes it harder to wear down. It has a neat defensive typing, respectable Attack, and a good combo in Sucker Punch + Pursuit to handle Psychics. Makes it a very cool check to Azelf as it can choose to invest in bulk rather than Speed if one wishes. This Sucker Punch + Pursuit combo ended up saving me as I didn't have a lot of things to deal with the variant of M-Banette I was facing (honestly don't think my opponent expected Sucker Punch after he saw Pursuit)
4. Choice Specs Delphox hurts.... a lot. Honestly, it is quite difficult to counter this thing as there are very few defensive Pokemon that can switch into Fire Blast, Psyshock, and Grass Knot at the same time. Very easy to start spamming your STAB moves, and Switcheroo can just kill an otherwise reliable win-con for your opponent (like it did for me in the replay shown above)
5. My god, Sub + 3 Attacks Gallade is amazing. I'll go over the set in more detail later, but the Knock Off buff makes this set absolutely amazing. Sub up on something that is scared to death of you, and then just Knock Off your defensive response to make it that much easier for your team to break it. Very, very useful way of luring out Gligar, Tangrowth, and other such defensive Pokemon like Aromatisse who may otherwise handle Gallade reliably.

Gallade @ Life Orb
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
- Substitute
- Drain Punch
- Knock Off
- Psycho Cut / Ice Punch​

Quick history lesson: I was (probably) the first to use this set in BW. That said, this set got so much better in XY. Knock Off is such a better move than Night Slash with the power buff. The ability to bait bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Cofagrigus, Cresselia, and Sableye is awesome as Gallade can easily use Sub as they come in and then smack them with Knock Off at no cost at all since Sub will shield it from whatever move they use. Sure, it may not KO them, but the lack of Leftovers recovery can make them a fair bit easier to manage. In a double Fighting core, this can be a great way to lure and and kill Gligar. Knock Off already cripples Gligar by removing Eviolite, but if you just want to bash its head in, Ice Punch can be used over Psycho Cut. Outside of double Fighting cores, it's probably best to just use Psycho Cut so Gallade can deal damage to Fairies and act as a solid check to Toxicroak (Sub bypasses Sucker Punch and you resist Drain Punch) Speaking of Drain Punch, that's the move that makes this set tic so well. Drain Punch recovers the health Gallade loses to Sub and allows for the use of Life Orb to pump up the damage output from Gallade's attacks. While most Gallade sets run Adamant and some bulky (bulky SD, AV, and fully SpDef sets) this one runs Jolly and maximum Speed and Attack EVs to be a pain for offensive and defensive teams alike. So long as there aren't Toxic Spikes on the ground, Gallade can simply scout for checks with Sub, and regain health with Drain Punch to try and outlast them.

TL;DR: use Sub + 3 Attacks Gallade. Specs Delphox hurts like hell. Defog Skuntank is actually kinda cool. SubSplit Mega-Bannette deserves a looking into.

 

[Shaymin :D]

Everyone prepare your anus because there's a new savior in the house. Yes, it is indeed the one, the only...

OMG SUCH HELIX (Omastar) @ White Herb
Ability: Shell Armor
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SAtk
- Shell Smash
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Grass]

I don't know whether its me, or I just like Rock-type Shell Smashers .-. Anyways, Omastar, like most other Shell Smashers, is a dangerous threat that should be accounted for. Unlike most Shell Smashers, Omastar is a special sweeper with great coverage and generally higher BP moves. Unlike Gorebyss, its closest competition, Omastar can set up using its nice set of resistances, a la Rock typing. With pretty decent resistances, including 4x to Fire, 2x to Normal, 2x to Flying, and 2x to Ice, Omastar can often set up on a number of threats. However, there is one thing Omastar, like most other SSers, love to set up on: walls. Thanks to its ability to set up on walls, Omastar is a very useful tool vs Stall.

Shell Smash is self-explanatory, making Omastar reach 722 SpAtt and 418 Speed, nothing special. Surf > Hydro Pump cause no one likes misses and you 2HKO everything anyways. Ice Beam hits Dragons and Grass types. Hidden Power Grass hits Water types, especially Milotic and Gastrodon. Modest for more power, letting you 2HKO Cresselia. Yeah... Shell Armor bc bs crits so bad much rage ahhh help me the other abilities aren't as helpful imo. White Herb takes priority better along with Scarfed hits. IV's are the minimal Attack IV's and maximum SpAtt IV's possible for HP Grass.

So yeah, should you need a special (hahaha) stallbreaker that even has the power of 2HKO Cresselia, Milotic, and Registeel, Omastar's yo guy.

Replay :o http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-109898155 Kinda confused why he didn't D-Bond, but it would have opened up Durant sweep anyways. Also confirming SpDef Toxic Stalling Kyurem is swag.

 

[atomicllamas]

everybody going on and on about kyurem, shaymin, whimsicott and raikou while I'm over here crapping on people's lives with a sub-calm mind grumping. XD
Grumpig @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 248 HP / 132 Def / 128 SAtk
Bold Nature
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Psyshock
- Signal Beam
first used it back in 5th gen when smogon was allowing PU on their OM of the month, and before choice banded mold breaker sawk was a thing. the whole point of it was to come in on threats that it could set up on, such as not-banded sawk, and rotom-fridge in pu and proceed to sweep teams with a couple of boosts under its belt. The ev spread allows a good balance of offense and defense while its fantastic natural bulk along with thick fat gave it ample opportunities to set up on multiple threats. (I think the physical defense evs were to set up subs that wouldn't be broken by a few things' flare blitzes allowing it to snag more boosts in the process back when I was using it in 5th gen) Pokémon that it sets up on include kyurem, hitmontop, azelf without shadow ball, and pretty much the majority of defensively inclined Pokémon in the tier unless they run roar, perish-song, haze etc. It manages to be pretty beastly and sweeps fairly consistently. to prove that I'm not just talking out of my ass, here's a video of it in action. http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-109306066

I don't think that Grumpig has any real niche in the tier, as it is pretty much outclassed by a lot of other defensive calm mind users, the most obvious one to me is Cresselia, which can run the same exact set, while having a higher stat in literally every stat. Even with your investment, a Cresselia with 0 investment in HP or defense, is still physically bulkier than Grumpig. While Cresselia does have a lower Special Attack stat, because of its greater bulk it can invest more in its special attack (although I usually just run max HP max defense bold on CM Cresselia). It does have access to thick fat which is cool for an extremely niche Delphox counter, but I don't think that really justifies using a clearly inferior pokemon. Also the person in your replay is 6-5 currently and by the looks of it had either player 0 games before yours or only lost at that point, I don't think it is fair to post a replay vs an opponent of that quality and say, "Look it works," when it has a lot to do with your opponents lack of skill.

Anyways so this post isn't all just completely pointless I may as well post the CM Cresselia set, because it is actually really good in the current meta, while it faces competition from Reuniclus, it does differentiate itself with really good speed for a defensive mon, better bulk, and fairy-type coverage moves.

Cresselia (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 8 SAtk / 248 HP / 252 Def
Bold Nature
- Substitute
- Moonblast
- Psyshock
- Calm Mind

This set absolutely destroys balanced / bulky offensive teams that don't have a response to it such as roar or whirlwind. Moonblast is really nice on Cresselia, because unlike most bulky Calm Mind Users, this gives Cresselia a legitimate shot at beating Sableye (its still kinda difficult, but it is possible unlike with Grumpig), which is pretty much the best mon on stall teams to counter bulky calm mind users. It can also forgo Substitute and use Moonlight, but this leaves it vulnerable to status, and at base 85 speed Cresselia is very adept at dodging status. Anyways Cresselia is a cool but (as usual) underrated threat in RU right now, try it out imo.

 

[KingQuags]

This is a set that a friend recommended to me since he's been enjoying it so much on Showdown, so I thought I'd give it a whirl and slap this up here for a little bit of discussion and see peoples thoughts and such.

Vileplume @ Assault Vest
Ability: Effect Spore
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Modest Nature
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Dazzling Gleam
- Hidden Power [Fire]

I've been using this Vileplume along side Defensive Bronzong and Sp. Defensive Milotic since it covers weaknesses really nicely.

Vileplume has become nice for some clutch situations where it can take a hit that it otherwise couldn't without Assault Vest.

Calcy Calcs

252+ SpA Life Orb Yanmega Air Slash vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Vileplume: 237-281 (66.9 - 79.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Sludge Bomb vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Yanmega: 229-270 (72.9 - 85.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Shaymin Air Slash vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Vileplume: 100-118 (28.2 - 33.3%) -- 0% chance to 3HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Sludge Bomb vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Shaymin: 288-338 (84.4 - 99.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Life Orb Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Vileplume: 281-330 (79.3 - 93.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Kyurem Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Vileplume: 200-238 (56.4 - 67.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Dazzling Gleam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 186-220 (47.5 - 56.2%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Sludge Bomb vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Kyurem: 157-186 (40.1 - 47.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Vileplume: 273-322 (77.1 - 90.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Sludge Bomb vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Azelf: 192-226 (65.9 - 77.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vileplume Giga Drain vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Azelf: 160-189 (54.9 - 64.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Obviousbly Kyurem is just plain stupid and is almost always a problem, and without a Defogger or Spinner to keep Vileplume healthy you can't entirely rely on it for late game stuff, but I have found myself late game with a fairly healthy Vileplume saving the day.

Also love this thing for dealing with Whimsicott.

Some things I've been disliking about it are that it doesn't take some hits as well as I feel like it should (I might try playing around with taking some investment out of HP and putting it into Sp.Def to see how much that helps.).
It's super shallow move pool also brings it down. Decided to go with HP Fire just because Escavalier is a thing.

The team I have this on only has Stealth Rock, but hazard support is always nice if you want this set to do a bit more work.


I don't know how much use it will have in RU in the long run, but I feel like it will be super cool in NU whenever it happens sometime this summer (crossing my fingers).

 

[Golemman]

I always have my rain setters holding damp rock, providing 6 turns of speed, 1 to setup, and enough time to kill 5 mons.
With a belly drum (which surprisingly is not too hard to get up with sitrus berry and swift swim) Poliwrath can OHKO everything in the entire tier with SR up (barring Alomomola) with very low BP moves (80 and 75 :/ ).Not bad.

Hide

+6 252+ Atk Poliwrath Waterfall vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Cresselia in Rain: 441-519 (99.3 - 116.8%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

+6 252+ Atk Poliwrath Waterfall vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Cofagrigus in Rain: 382-451 (119.3 - 140.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO

+6 252+ Atk Poliwrath Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Jellicent: 346-408 (85.6 - 100.9%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO

+6 252+ Atk Poliwrath Brick Break vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Shaymin: 433-510 (107.1 - 126.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO

+6 252+ Atk Poliwrath Brick Break vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Alomomola: 360-424 (67.4 - 79.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Without a belly drum..

Hide

252+ Atk Poliwrath Ice Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Shaymin: 146-172 (36.1 - 42.5%) -- 93.2% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

252+ Atk Poliwrath Waterfall vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Cresselia in Rain: 111-132 (25 - 29.7%) -- 0% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

252+ Atk Poliwrath Brick Break vs. -1 4 HP / 0 Def Omastar: 270-320 (95.7 - 113.4%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO

+2 252+ SpA Omastar Hidden Power Grass vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Poliwrath: 288-340 (89.4 - 105.5%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
Much less impressive to look at, but he has low BP moves and these are some bulky mons.
He has a solid shot at beating Omastar after a shell smash

 

[s_aman]

What does everyone think of this :

CRORIGUS
Cofagrigus @ Leftovers
evs : 252 HP / 252 def / 4 spe
nature : bold
- Calm Mind
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Shadow Ball

I have not used it yet but sounds good on paper. I will use it tommorow. Mono-ghost coverage is quite good this gen. Cofag has very good mixed bulk and above average special attack. But, its low base HP hurts and knock off is everywhere. Taunt also hurts quite a lot. Can't post calcs as currently on my phone. If someone could post them that would be appreciated.

On another note, Sub-Roost Kyurem is a beast with toxic spikes support. Molk gave me a team he made to abuse this strategy and i am currently undefeated with it (although, i did not play many games).

 

[The Lucky Absol]

Speaking of toxic spikes, what are some good users of it? I have of course ran spikes in the past, but never toxic spikes. It seems like a really powerful support move.

 

[s_aman]

Speaking of toxic spikes, what are some good users of it? I have of course ran spikes in the past, but never toxic spikes. It seems like a really powerful support move.

cofagrigus, weezing, drapion, garbodor. That's all i can think off the top of my head.