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

[pipasonze]

Xatu guys. Xatu. It can be used both as a support and a stallbreaker, and packs Magic Guard. It has a quad resist to fighting as well, meaning it checks Hitmonlee not locked into Knock Off. It threatens some of the good mons in the tier, making Toxicroak, Escavalier, Rhyperior and Hitmonlee run away in fear. There are two sets you can run, with support details in blue and offensive details in red:

Xatu @ Leftovers / Life Orb
Ability: Magic Bounce
Nature: Calm or Careful / Modest or Timid
EVs: 252 HP, 240 SpD, 16 Spe / 32 HP, 252 SpA, 8 SpD, 216 Spe
- Roost
- Thunder Wave, Toxic, Psyshock (If Modest), Psychic (If Timid)
- U-Turn, Heat Wave
- Psychic, Night Shade, Grass Knot​

I've never used Xatu, but i think that it can provide valuable support if used right.
The offensive set seems a bit outclassed by Sigilyph, which has better stats all around (72/58/80/103/80/97) vs (65/75/70/95/70/95) and has Magic Guard, which means no LO recoil. Offensive Xatu isn't entirely outclassed because it has Magic Bounce, which lets it bounce back hazards and status on switch-in.

Set:
Sigilyph @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Psyshock / Psychic
- Heat Wave
- Air Slash / Energy Ball
- Roost / Energy Ball

 

[Srn]

So um, how does one counter Azelf in Stall?

It's sorta desperate, but for NP azelf, what I use is drapion:

Drapion @ Leftovers
Ability: Battle Armor
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Knock Off
- Taunt
- Whirlwind
- Toxic Spikes

This guy does a good job of practically countering the psychics and some of the ghosts of the tier. So, his match-up against Azelf:
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Drapion: 263-309 (76.4 - 89.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
So just switch-in as it NP's
0 Atk Drapion Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Azelf: 254-302 (87.2 - 103.7%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
After LO recoil, there's a VERY good chance to just finish with Knock Off.

I have double wish passers, and use this guy solely to counter CM reuniclus and Sub CM cress, which are normally huge threats to stall, so this guy is gonna say healthy enough to take a +2 fire blast.

 

[aVocado]

I found that 252/252+ SpD Uxie also does good vs. Azelf, as Foul Play does quite a number on Timid Azelf, and it can Knock Off and tank anything from NP Azelf.. sadly though it has no recovery :/

 

[Mymble]

It's sorta desperate, but for NP azelf, what I use is drapion:

Drapion @ Leftovers
Ability: Battle Armor
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Knock Off
- Taunt
- Whirlwind
- Toxic Spikes

This guy does a good job of practically countering the psychics and some of the ghosts of the tier. So, his match-up against Azelf:
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Drapion: 263-309 (76.4 - 89.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
So just switch-in as it NP's
0 Atk Drapion Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Azelf: 254-302 (87.2 - 103.7%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
After LO recoil, there's a VERY good chance to just finish with Knock Off.

I have double wish passers, and use this guy solely to counter CM reuniclus and Sub CM cress, which are normally huge threats to stall, so this guy is gonna say healthy enough to take a +2 fire blast.

4 Atk Drapion Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Azelf: 258-306 (88.6 - 105.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

There is literally no reason not to run the four EVs in Attack. I don't really see those Defense EVs doing anything.

20 Atk Drapion Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Azelf: 264-312 (90.7 - 107.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO

However, I would run twenty to guarantee an OHKO after one LO recoil. And it doesn't hugely effect the damage it takes either.

+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Fire Blast vs. 248 HP / 232+ SpD Drapion: 266-315 (77.5 - 91.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

It is a 31% chance to OHKO rather than 18% after SR, not factoring in Black Sludge. Which when you do guarantees its survival.

 

[dingbat]

Am I the only person who doesn't think Shaymin is all that good? I've been using it, and I'm about to replace it because it has been so underwhelming. It needs Life Orb HP Fire to 2HKO Assault Vest Escavalier (in fact, even without Assault Vest, it would need Specs for a chance to KO with HP Fire), but HP Fire does shit to everything else. Like seriously everything else that you would want to hit with a Fire move except for Durant which should never go toe-to-toe with Shaymin anyways takes nothing. Seed Flare is cool when it actually fucking hits, but it misses about as much as it hits for me, which is probably skewing my perception of how good Shaymin is. And then Earth Power can hit Poison- and Steel-types, but it's not all that powerful either. I think I might need to run Modest if I'm going to use Shaymin because without it, it's so weak. I'm trying to come up with something else to use over Shaymin as an offensive Grass-type, but there's really not much that comes close to it, which is sad considering how low my opinion of it is. I'm just tired of my nuke getting walled by shit like Gogoat and Meganium lol.

Tangrowth is a decent offensive Grass-type alternative, although it is A LOT slower and has much weaker special defense (assuming no AV) than Shaymin. However Tangrowth has better durability assuming things don't go awry and it has a somewhat better offensive moveset than Shaymin has bar its primary STABs, and it can effectively run a life orb as well. With a life orb, it has a few options as to if it wants to run a pure Physical/Special Attacker or Quiet/Brave nature mixed set with moves such as:

Leaf Storm (Nukes things that don't resist it or doesn't have high spD)
Knock Off (Not too shabby with a base 100 Attack)
Focus Miss Blast (For steel types)
Sludge Bomb (For fellow Grasses and Fairies)
HP Fire (For Escavalier and weakened Amoongi, see what I did there)
Power Whip (Physical, but it's as strong as Shaymin's Seed Flare)

If you want a fast Grass type, Sceptile is certainly an option although it isn't nearly as durable as both Shaymin and Tangrowth. I don't know exactly what people are running on Sceptile nowadays, but I'd assume an all-out Special Attacker or a (inferior) Swords dance attacker are the two best options on that thing.

 

[atomicllamas]

I want to talk about a set I've had some success with, so I am going to n_n.

Emboar @ Expert Belt / Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 72 Atk / 252 SAtk / 184 Spd
Rash Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Fire Blast
- Grass Knot
- Superpower

So I was making a team that was based around abusing Meloetta-P and spikes, but I had a really big problem with my team by the end, I had a problem with Sableye (mostly dark moves + wisp), as well as needing a solid lure for Gligar / Rhyperior (mostly the former). This Emboar does all of this (and more!). Emboar is actually really useful, because against many slower Pokemon, such as Escavalier, Bronzong, and most Pokemon on stall teams are forced out by Emboar, and people often switch into a bulky Fire Resist such as Milotic, Rhyperior, or Gligar (it doesn't resist fire, but it might as well resist flare blitz). This Emboar is able to lure in all of them and kill them with a nicely timed Grass Knot or Fire Blast.

252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 446-526 (102.7 - 121.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Emboar Fire Blast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Gligar: 231-273 (69.3 - 81.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Milotic: 199-235 (50.5 - 59.6%) -- 84.4% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
72 Atk Emboar Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Milotic: 199-235 (50.5 - 59.6%) -- 84.8% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Alomomola: 271-319 (50.7 - 59.7%) -- 84% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (this is with a layer of spikes cause protect, its also a shitty Alomomola spread, but w/e).

Remember those are all stronger with Life Orb, but that also gets you worn down very quickly, and Expert Belt bluffs Scarf with Super Power.

As you can see none of these pokemon enjoy switching into Emboar (well Milotic is a crap shoot, but spikes will hopefully be down). But this gen, Emboar also got the gift of priority in the form of sucker Punch, allowing it to still function against offensive teams. This can be pretty helpful at picking off top offensive threats like Azelf and Delphox, two of the best set up sweepers / choice users in the tier.

Anyways, this set has been doing pretty well for me, and is definitely a lot of fun to use n_n.

 

[Yellow Cheese]

I want to talk about a set I've had some success with, so I am going to n_n.

Emboar @ Expert Belt / Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 72 Atk / 252 SAtk / 184 Spd
Rash Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Fire Blast
- Grass Knot
- Superpower

So I was making a team that was based around abusing Meloetta-P and spikes, but I had a really big problem with my team by the end, I had a problem with Sableye (mostly dark moves + wisp), as well as needing a solid lure for Gligar / Rhyperior (mostly the former). This Emboar does all of this (and more!). Emboar is actually really useful, because against many slower Pokemon, such as Escavalier, Bronzong, and most Pokemon on stall teams are forced out by Emboar, and people often switch into a bulky Fire Resist such as Milotic, Rhyperior, or Gligar (it doesn't resist fire, but it might as well resist flare blitz). This Emboar is able to lure in all of them and kill them with a nicely timed Grass Knot or Fire Blast.

252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 446-526 (102.7 - 121.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Emboar Fire Blast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Gligar: 231-273 (69.3 - 81.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Milotic: 199-235 (50.5 - 59.6%) -- 84.4% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
72 Atk Emboar Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Milotic: 199-235 (50.5 - 59.6%) -- 84.8% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Expert Belt Emboar Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Alomomola: 271-319 (50.7 - 59.7%) -- 84% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (this is with a layer of spikes cause protect, its also a shitty Alomomola spread, but w/e).

Remember those are all stronger with Life Orb, but that also gets you worn down very quickly, and Expert Belt bluffs Scarf with Super Power.

As you can see none of these pokemon enjoy switching into Emboar (well Milotic is a crap shoot, but spikes will hopefully be down). But this gen, Emboar also got the gift of priority in the form of sucker Punch, allowing it to still function against offensive teams. This can be pretty helpful at picking off top offensive threats like Azelf and Delphox, two of the best set up sweepers / choice users in the tier.

Anyways, this set has been doing pretty well for me, and is definitely a lot of fun to use n_n.

I used Mixed emboar back in Gen 5 NU (EQ, Fire blast, Wild charge and Focus blast If i remember correctly) And it was terrifying. I can see Mixed Emboar being a massive treath in RU when the tier calms down (Kyurem and gang needs to move) Especially since it now has Sucker punch. But as the tier is atm I think the Physical LO set is better (Still no reckless sadly)

 

[Meru]

I've had a thing there for Spiritomb for a hot minute up until just yesterday, where I rearranged my team so I could fit in this bad baby and still have a good grip on countering a lot of threats

Sableye @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 Def
Careful Nature
- Recover
- Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
- Knock Off

I never actually understood the hype behind Sableye in UU until trying out this bad baby in RU. Sableye is pretty disgustingly good. You'll constantly hear people groaning "ugh my team is Sableye weak" whether they're running an offensive or defensive team. All of you moaning about how Sableye doesn't counter Delphox, honestly, I say cover that with another slot and reap the rewards of sloughing off all the other Psychic-types of the tier bar NP Azelf and Moonblast Cresselia, although Delphox and NP Azelf can be countered by AV Slowking with good hazard support. Both Reuniclus sets get shut down due to how disgustingly good Knock Off is on Sableye, allowing it hard counter Reuniclus just as hard as Jirachi did last gen.

Beyond countering the basic stall counters out right now, Sableye himself is also anti-stall, which is good as stall vs stall is a very common match-up right now. Even though this gen we got Aromatisse who is immune to Taunt and resists Knock Off, she ironically still gets subjected to being worn down by hazards alongside Knock Off and WoW, due to her reliance on Wish-Protect for recovery. Sableye often turns into a late-game win condition against stall, even though it's meant to be a wall.

And then beyond Stall, although Sableye is hard to switch in, it's also hard to force out, as not very many things on an Offense team want to take a Knock off or a WoW. Common early-game switch-ins like Shaymin get worn down forcing Sableye out, dying in the late game. Emboar has been rising on offense teams lately just to cause Sableye to switch out without incurring too much damage. If Knock Off wasn't so ridiculously good, I would say Foul Play could make a comeback to threaten that.

One last thing I want to emphasize overall about Sableye is that I wouldn't say it's a good spinblocker, and shouldn't be used as such. Having other counters to Kabutops and Hitmonlee is better than risking something that will comeback to turn the tables on them late game.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-108407451

Here's a replay of Sableye making every turn it gets potent toward the end goal of winning.

 

[EonX]

On the subject of late-game win-cons for stall teams, I want to bring up something that started to really gain traction late in BW:

Slowking @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SAtk
Nature: Bold
- Calm Mind
- Scald
- Fire Blast / Psyshock
- Slack Off​

Defensive CM Slowking is a cool win-con for stall teams. The Knock Off buff hurts it a bit, but Slowking is able to take on quite a few threats early and mid-game and can use Calm Mind when the opportunity arises to end the game. Scald is the chosen STAB move as the burn chance it has can be incredibly useful later on in the game. Fire Blast is for Escavalier, Registeel, and other Steel-types. However, if you want a better chance against other CM users as well as special walls. Psyshock also allows Slowking to more easily check Fighting-types early on. Slack Off keeps Slowking in good health so it can continue to check threats early on so it can be healthy to sweep late-game.

 

[Kawaii Kyouko]

A mon I've used to great success lately is Liepard. The thing about Liepard is that he is great against any and all team archetypes aside from perhaps bulky offensive teams, as he discourages set up sweepers with encore+twave, stallbreaks with taunt and knock off, combats trickroom teams with taunt/encore and simply brings general support goodness. With a specially defensive set will non-specs kyurem fail to ohko it, so subroosters will also have issues with him, and trickroom setters bar aromatisse rarely touches him too hard. Additionally, if your team is very weak to stall, you can opt to run toxic, as toxtaunt kibda says no to those teams. Also, SmashPass gets encored into setup or gets twaved on the passed sweeper, meaning that he works against those too. And with U-turn+Encore will you be easily switch in checks/counters to their switch in.

He does have competition against Sableye in a teamspot, but having encore does distinguish him from the Gremlin and I think he fits more in on offensive teams with access to u-turn as well.

Liepard @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP, 252 SDef, 8 Def
Nature: Careful
-Encore
-Taunt/U-turn
-Thunder Wave/Toxic
-Knock Off/U-turn

 

[The Shellder Smuggler]

Xatu guys. Xatu. It can be used both as a support and a stallbreaker, and packs Magic Guard. It has a quad resist to fighting as well, meaning it checks Hitmonlee not locked into Knock Off. It threatens some of the good mons in the tier, making Toxicroak, Escavalier, Rhyperior and Hitmonlee run away in fear. There are two sets you can run, with support details in blue and offensive details in red:

Xatu @ Leftovers / Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Nature: Calm or Careful / Modest or Timid
EVs: 252 HP, 240 SpD, 16 Spe / 32 HP, 252 SpA, 8 SpD, 216 Spe
- Roost
- Thunder Wave, Toxic, Psyshock (If Modest), Psychic (If Timid)
- U-Turn, Heat Wave
- Psychic, Night Shade, Grass Knot​

Yeah man lemme go get my magic guard xatu right out of the pc and I can started building!

 

[Darnell]

A mon I've used to great success lately is Liepard. The thing about Liepard is that he is great against any and all team archetypes aside from perhaps bulky offensive teams, as he discourages set up sweepers with encore+twave, stallbreaks with taunt and knock off, combats trickroom teams with taunt/encore and simply brings general support goodness. With a specially defensive set will non-specs kyurem fail to ohko it, so subroosters will also have issues with him, and trickroom setters bar aromatisse rarely touches him too hard. Additionally, if your team is very weak to stall, you can opt to run toxic, as toxtaunt kibda says no to those teams. Also, SmashPass gets encored into setup or gets twaved on the passed sweeper, meaning that he works against those too. And with U-turn+Encore will you be easily switch in checks/counters to their switch in.

He does have competition against Sableye in a teamspot, but having encore does distinguish him from the Gremlin and I think he fits more in on offensive teams with access to u-turn as well.

Liepard @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP, 252 SDef, 8 Def
Nature: Careful
-Encore
-Taunt/U-turn
-Thunder Wave/Toxic
-Knock Off/U-turn

In my whole time on PS, I have not battled one Liepard on the ladder without SwagPlay, not even an exaggeration...lol :C. It kind of feels strange to see different sets now that Swagger is banned, at least Liepard isn't being frowned upon for that reason but I tried this set and it hasn't disappointed me ^.^ (Should get some battle replays)

 

[Kawaii Kyouko]

In my whole time on PS, I have not battled one Liepard on the ladder without SwagPlay, not even an exaggeration...lol :C. It kind of feels strange to see different sets now that Swagger is banned, at least Liepard isn't being frowned upon for that reason but I tried this set and it hasn't disappointed me ^.^ (Should get some battle replays)

He does have that reputation sadly. However, his competitive sets are most doable. As you've experienced :]

Also, I would add in a replay or two if I was on my comp amd not phone :]]]

 

[NeinLives]

W

So um, how does one counter Azelf in Stall?

Azelf is 100% countered by Skuntank. It's immune to psychic and there's nothing Azelf can hit it super effectively, and Foul Play and Pursuit OHKO the offensive variant(Not sure about max def one). Skuntank can also Defog hazards away, and since Azelf runs Rocks it's pretty useful as well. Definetly one of the more underrated pokes in RU.

 

[The Shellder Smuggler]

He does have that reputation sadly. However, his competitive sets are most doable. As you've experienced :]

Also, I would add in a replay or two if I was on my comp amd not phone :]]]

Meh. Liepard is Meh. Prankster was it's best set, and when I think of another one the only ones that come to mind are Nasty Plot + Dark Pulse. But hey, Liepard does have base 88 attack and does get Play Rough this gen.

 

[The Lucky Absol]

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-108534115
Welp, I got accused of making a team that was copy/pasted from this thread.
I put like 2 or 3 of those sets on here myself lol.

 

[DopestDope]

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-108534115
Welp, I got accused of making a team that was copy/pasted from this thread.
I put like 2 or 3 of those sets on here myself lol.

If I had made that Meloetta modest like I was thinking of doing I would have won :< (granted your Doublade didn't have shadow sneak)

 

[The Lucky Absol]

If I had made that Meloetta modest like I was thinking of doing I would have won :< (granted your Doublade didn't have shadow sneak)

It did. I even put the set here.

One pokemon I've been running with a surprising amount of success is Doublade. This is the set I'm using:
Check these dubs (Doublade) (M) @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Gyro Ball
- Sacred Sword
- Shadow Sneak
- Swords Dance

This set utilizes doublade's great attack stat. Sacred sword is fantastic for steel types and slow dark types who wouldn't mind taking it's other attacks. Additionally, unlike Aegislash, Doublade is slow enough to properly utilize gyro ball. The low speed also helps if the opponent is using a trick room team, which I am seeing more of now. Shadow sneak is a great priority move on this set, though you have to remember unless you swords dance first it will not be as powerful as Aegislash's. Also, unlike many other Eviolite users, Doublade still has great bulk on the physical side even without the boosts, you have to be careful of special attacks though.

Also, I ran the calc.
252+ SpA Meloetta Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Delphox: 190-224 (65.2 - 76.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

 

[T-Bolt]

Meloetta's immune to shadow sneak anyway......

It's actually funny about how often people forget that Meloetta has a normal type. I forget about it sometimes myself when using meloetta lol.

 

[The Lucky Absol]

Meloetta's immune to shadow sneak anyway......

It's actually funny about how often people forget that Meloetta has a normal type. I forget about it sometimes myself when using meloetta lol.

Yeah, I've almost used a ghost type move on meloetta several times, but I always remember at the last second.

 

[Anty]

I was just gonna talk about juanmega, but now we're listing sets.....

Yanmega @ Choice Specs
Ability: Tinted Lens
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 Def
Modest Nature
- U-turn / Giga drain
- Air Slash
- Bug Buzz
- Hidden Power [Fire]

There is genuinly no safe switches, what bug buzz doesnt. The only thing that is safe from a 2hko is spdef regice and jelli. With modest it reaches 363 spatk which is incredible considering you have a (nearly) unresisted base 90 STAB move. The only ones that resist it are emboar, cobalion and esca, hence the hp fire and air slash which 2hko them. Giga drain is only usefull for 2hko'ing jelli after rocks

Calcs:

Hide

252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Hidden Power Fire vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Cobalion: 260-308 (80.2 - 95%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Escavalier: 256-304 (74.4 - 88.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Air Slash vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Amoonguss: 312-368 (72.2 - 85.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Slowking: 302-356 (76.6 - 90.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Cofagrigus: 156-184 (48.7 - 57.5%) -- 49.2% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (who uses spdef cofag anyway.....)
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Giga Drain vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Jellicent: 174-206 (43 - 50.9%) -- 47.7% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Gastrodon: 264-312 (61.9 - 73.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Dragalge: 186-220 (55.6 - 65.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Tangrowth: 518-612 (128.2 - 151.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Mega Banette: 260-306 (78.3 - 92.1%) -- 31.39% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Malamar: 1128-1332 (300 - 354.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO (LAWL)

This and kyurem-n need to go.

 

[skies]

W


Azelf is 100% countered by Skuntank. It's immune to psychic and there's nothing Azelf can hit it super effectively, and Foul Play and Pursuit OHKO the offensive variant(Not sure about max def one). Skuntank can also Defog hazards away, and since Azelf runs Rocks it's pretty useful as well. Definetly one of the more underrated pokes in RU.

It cannot switch into it:
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Skuntank: 452-533 (110.2 - 130%) -- guaranteed OHKO
And if you predict wrong with Sucker Punch then Azelf lives through the process anyways. Pardon me for the stupid question, but is it Nasty Plot / Fire Blast / Psyshock / Thunderbolt?

 

[Mymble]

And if you predict wrong with Sucker Punch then Azelf lives through the process anyways. Pardon me for the stupid question, but is it Nasty Plot / Fire Blast / Psyshock / Thunderbolt?

Grass Knot over Thunderbolt, otherwise your beaten by Rhyperior if it is physically defensive.

+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psyshock vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Rhyperior: 199-235 (45.8 - 54.1%) -- 4.7% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

 

[EonX]

Just had a pretty sweet match on the ladder with one of my newer teams:

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/rubeta-108567965 - This was a fairly interesting match. From the start, I realized one of the big weaknesses to my team being Toxic Spikes and that I would need to be very careful with Cobalion, but some really good predictions with LO Raikou really helps me move along early on. Lum SD Cobalion had a legit chance of sweeping, but damage rolls were a bit unkind to me against the opposing Milotic. Drudd didn't do a ton, but it was able to get down a clutch SR that set the stage for the end-game. At the end, AV Meloetta just barely hangs on long enough to prevent Top from getting a spin off that may have allowed his Milotic to Toxic stall Cress (no idea if he had Speed EVs on it or not, but I didn't want to take that chance) So what set am I sharing from this team?

Cobalion @ Lum Berry
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Nature: Jolly
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge​

SD Cobalion is really cool atm. I feel Lum variants are better on average due to how much better they perform against stall teams which are fairly common atm. It shouldn't be played as an overpowering sweeper. Instead, you should simply utilize your STAB moves early on when checks and counters to Cobalion still exist and are still in good health. Once those checks and counters are removed or weakened enough, then you can Swords Dance to sweep. Iron Head and Close Combat get good coverage together and are solid moves in general. I personally run Stone Edge so I can keep Cobalion's decent enough special bulk in check to get Cobalion to check Kyurem in a pinch and KO it with Close Combat should Meloetta and / or Cress be gone already. EVs are fairly standard and Jolly is needed to outpace the likes of Shaymin and Delphox. Note that HP Ice can be used over Stone Edge if you're using SD Cobalion as part of a double Fighting core and you need it to lure in and 2HKO Gligar.

Chesnaught , NP, Psyshock, and Fire Blast are shoe-ins. That said, i think Grass Knot is the most common final move cuz it donks Rhyperior and still does good enough against most bulky Waters. Some do run Psychic + Thunderbolt to do better against Rhyperior while gaining a slightly stronger hit on Milo and Jelli.

 

[The Lucky Absol]

I was just gonna talk about juanmega, but now we're listing sets.....

Yanmega @ Choice Specs
Ability: Tinted Lens
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 Def
Modest Nature
- U-turn / Giga drain
- Air Slash
- Bug Buzz
- Hidden Power [Fire]

There is genuinly no safe switches, what bug buzz doesnt. The only thing that is safe from a 2hko is spdef regice and jelli. With modest it reaches 363 spatk which is incredible considering you have a (nearly) unresisted base 90 STAB move. The only ones that resist it are emboar, cobalion and esca, hence the hp fire and air slash which 2hko them. Giga drain is only usefull for 2hko'ing jelli after rocks

Calcs:

Hide

252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Hidden Power Fire vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Cobalion: 260-308 (80.2 - 95%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Escavalier: 256-304 (74.4 - 88.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Air Slash vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Amoonguss: 312-368 (72.2 - 85.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Slowking: 302-356 (76.6 - 90.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Cofagrigus: 156-184 (48.7 - 57.5%) -- 49.2% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (who uses spdef cofag anyway.....)
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Giga Drain vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Jellicent: 174-206 (43 - 50.9%) -- 47.7% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Gastrodon: 264-312 (61.9 - 73.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Dragalge: 186-220 (55.6 - 65.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Tangrowth: 518-612 (128.2 - 151.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Mega Banette: 260-306 (78.3 - 92.1%) -- 31.39% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ SpA Choice Specs Yanmega Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Malamar: 1128-1332 (300 - 354.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO (LAWL)

This and kyurem-n need to go.

If you ask me, Yanmega may be great, but that doesn't mean it is "Too powerful for RU" great. I use it and while I do manage to sweep full teams with it, It does have its downsides. It is slower than Raiku and easily OHKO'd by thunderbolt. It can't OHKO Kyurem with bug buzz and gets OHKO'd back. Those may be very strong opponents, but basically if it can't OHKO the opposing pokemon, usually it gets taken out or at least severely crippled in return.