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Resource ORAS OU Teambuilding
- Thread starter Sanger Zonvolt
- Start date
- Status
CM Mega Gardevoir's actually already listed under wallbreakers.
Sorry if this question isn't worthy of attention, but which Pokemon would be the best 'starters' for competitive? I've only just started breeding for IV's and so far I have one perfect Pokemon (a Medicham. Is that noob? I don't know).
There are still 5 empty spaces that need to be filled before I even have a hope of fielding a competitive team. Which Pokemon would be a good starting point? I've read through the tier lists, but I don't think getting Pokemon such as Keldeo and Landorus is even a feasible idea at this point. Do you have any suggestions for Pokemon that would form a solid core to any competitive teams I make in the future. Thank you in advance for any advice you can provide! I'm still new to the whole concept of competitive Pokemon so any and all comments are welcome :)
There are still 5 empty spaces that need to be filled before I even have a hope of fielding a competitive team. Which Pokemon would be a good starting point? I've read through the tier lists, but I don't think getting Pokemon such as Keldeo and Landorus is even a feasible idea at this point. Do you have any suggestions for Pokemon that would form a solid core to any competitive teams I make in the future. Thank you in advance for any advice you can provide! I'm still new to the whole concept of competitive Pokemon so any and all comments are welcome :)
Dangojk if you're looking for good cores to build around, you should check out the Good Cores Thread. It lists a lot of good cores that you can build around, and a lot of them don't require legendaries if you're trying to build a team in-game. In the future, you should ask questions like this in the Simple Questions, Simple Answers thread. It's designed to answer questions players have and it gets a lot more traffic than this thread. Lastly, welcome to Smogon.
Pokemon that can have multiple sets are a good option such as Tyranitar and Azumarill. Alternatively, sweepers that rely on 252/252 spreads are also easy to reuse. When I did this (Just EV training), I looked for pokemon that I could easily obtain that were also competitively viable, and trained as many of these as possible. Then I made a team out of these.
Yeah, not really the place for this question, but since you asked, Medicham isn't really a noob Pokemon, as long as you're using its Mega form. It's not as good as it used to be, or even as good as some things in the tier right now, but it's still a pretty powerful wallbreaker, especially with the dual priority set. If you're looking for other Pokemon to breed for perfect IVs, I'd recommend checking out the OU viability rankings thread, and breed for some of the high-ranking Pokemon in the tier. A few off-hand recommendations would be Azumarrill, Bisharp, Tyranitar, Scizor, Talonflame, and Clefable, as all of these are really good in OU right now, and all have number of different sets that are all great. Hope this helps. Oh, and welcome to Smogon.
On an unrelated topic, I completely forgot I was supposed to be doing Scarfed Terrakion. I'll try to have it up today or tomorrow.
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After looking at many people's opinions, particularly from the ones of the OU tiering council and QC, I'll reserve LO Alakazam.
Alakazam @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Focus Blast
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Ice] / Encore / Substitute / Taunt / Hidden Power [Fire]
Role: Special Sweeper, Stallbreaker
What It Does:
Equipped with a Life Orb, Alakazam is a terrifying special sweeper and stallbreaker. A blisteringly-fast speed tier of 120 lets it outspeed many Pokemon such as Mega Metagross, Mega Gallade, Keldeo and Starmie, as well as solid 135 Special Attack to top it all up. However, it does have extremely frail defenses, therefore making it extremely vulnerable to various means of priority such as Bullet Punch, Sucker Punch and Talonflame's Brave Bird, not to mention Psychic is a terrible typing both offensively and defensively.
Psychic is the main STAB move here, and is chosen over Psyshock for the increased damage output as well as the ability to hit physically defensive foes such as bulky Garchomp and Landorus-Therian much harder. Focus Blast deals with Dark- and Steel-types that Psychic misses out on, such as Tyranitar and Bisharp. Shadow Ball provides great all-around coverage with Psychic and Focus Blast and hits bulky Psychic- and Ghost- types that the aforementioned two moves cannot deal with. Hidden Power Ice is the main candidate for the last slot, boasting the ability to OHKO both Landorus forms, Specially Defensive Gliscor, as well as Garchomp and Multiscale-broken Dragonite. Encore has a secondary slash, and shuts down defensive cores such as Alomomola + Heatran effectively by locking them into only one move.
Other options include: Substitute, which allows Alakazam to evade Sucker Punch, status and scout the opponent's moves, Taunt, which denies opposition's use of recovery and status, and Hidden Power Fire, which OHKOs Ferrothorn and Scizor on the switch.
Good Teammates: Because of Alakazam's frailty, VoltTurn support is really appreciated so that Alakazam can switch in safely and grab free momentum. Said users include Pokemon such as Rotom-W and Landorus-Therian, and to top it off they can also lure in and pivot out of Pokemon that Alakazam beat easily such as Chansey and Alomomola. Moreover, Pursuit support is really appreciated to weaken bulkier Psychic-types such as Metagross and Latias so that Alakazam can have an easier time dealing with them, as Shadow Ball, the main move Alakazam uses to hit them with, is not STAB. As this set does great against stall-oriented Pokemon such as Chansey and Clefable, Pokemon that generally struggle against them are ideal partners. Examples include Mega Manetric and Latios, who struggle against stall archetypes in general.
What Counters It: Dark-types, Pursuit users, Priority users, Psychic-types, Faster Pokemon. Bisharp can play mind games with Alakazam i.e Pursuit or Sucker Punch, Tyranitar has sand so it can take Focus Blast, Priority users like Talonflame can downright OHKO Alakazam, Psychic-types such as Cresselia are relatively bulkier and can take Shadow Ball quite easily, and faster Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Mega Lopunny score easy OHKOs with their respective moves.
Any Additional Info: Last slot is team-dependent - Encore and Taunt deal with stall, Hidden Power Ice/Fire beat its usual checks and counters like Gliscor and Scizor. Stuff like Grass Knot could also be used to have an easier time with Alomomola and Quagsire but Psychic hits them hard enough.
Alakazam @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Focus Blast
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Ice] / Encore / Substitute / Taunt / Hidden Power [Fire]
Role: Special Sweeper, Stallbreaker
What It Does:
Equipped with a Life Orb, Alakazam is a terrifying special sweeper and stallbreaker. A blisteringly-fast speed tier of 120 lets it outspeed many Pokemon such as Mega Metagross, Mega Gallade, Keldeo and Starmie, as well as solid 135 Special Attack to top it all up. However, it does have extremely frail defenses, therefore making it extremely vulnerable to various means of priority such as Bullet Punch, Sucker Punch and Talonflame's Brave Bird, not to mention Psychic is a terrible typing both offensively and defensively.
Psychic is the main STAB move here, and is chosen over Psyshock for the increased damage output as well as the ability to hit physically defensive foes such as bulky Garchomp and Landorus-Therian much harder. Focus Blast deals with Dark- and Steel-types that Psychic misses out on, such as Tyranitar and Bisharp. Shadow Ball provides great all-around coverage with Psychic and Focus Blast and hits bulky Psychic- and Ghost- types that the aforementioned two moves cannot deal with. Hidden Power Ice is the main candidate for the last slot, boasting the ability to OHKO both Landorus forms, Specially Defensive Gliscor, as well as Garchomp and Multiscale-broken Dragonite. Encore has a secondary slash, and shuts down defensive cores such as Alomomola + Heatran effectively by locking them into only one move.
Other options include: Substitute, which allows Alakazam to evade Sucker Punch, status and scout the opponent's moves, Taunt, which denies opposition's use of recovery and status, and Hidden Power Fire, which OHKOs Ferrothorn and Scizor on the switch.
Good Teammates: Because of Alakazam's frailty, VoltTurn support is really appreciated so that Alakazam can switch in safely and grab free momentum. Said users include Pokemon such as Rotom-W and Landorus-Therian, and to top it off they can also lure in and pivot out of Pokemon that Alakazam beat easily such as Chansey and Alomomola. Moreover, Pursuit support is really appreciated to weaken bulkier Psychic-types such as Metagross and Latias so that Alakazam can have an easier time dealing with them, as Shadow Ball, the main move Alakazam uses to hit them with, is not STAB. As this set does great against stall-oriented Pokemon such as Chansey and Clefable, Pokemon that generally struggle against them are ideal partners. Examples include Mega Manetric and Latios, who struggle against stall archetypes in general.
What Counters It: Dark-types, Pursuit users, Priority users, Psychic-types, Faster Pokemon. Bisharp can play mind games with Alakazam i.e Pursuit or Sucker Punch, Tyranitar has sand so it can take Focus Blast, Priority users like Talonflame can downright OHKO Alakazam, Psychic-types such as Cresselia are relatively bulkier and can take Shadow Ball quite easily, and faster Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Mega Lopunny score easy OHKOs with their respective moves.
Any Additional Info: Last slot is team-dependent - Encore and Taunt deal with stall, Hidden Power Ice/Fire beat its usual checks and counters like Gliscor and Scizor. Stuff like Grass Knot could also be used to have an easier time with Alomomola and Quagsire but Psychic hits them hard enough.
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Sorry for the delay, but I finally managed to get enough free time to get this done.
Terrakion @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly / Naive Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Iron Head / Rock Slide
- Iron Head / Rock Slide / X-Scissor / Earthquake / Toxic / HP Ice
Role: Revenge Killer, Late-Game Cleaner
What It Does: While Terrakion may not be quite the monster he once was in OU, he's still a force to be reckoned with. Terrakion has an excellent physical attack stat of 129, giving him great power, and his 108 Speed allows him to pull off a scarf set fairly effectively. He also has a good bulk of 91 / 90 / 90, giving him the ability to take a few hits if necessary. Combined, these qualities make him an excellent, though by no means flawless, revenge killer. Terrakion is especially effective at cleaning up late game, once all of his checks are down. Close Combat is the mandatory powerful fighting STAB. Stone Edge provides a powerful Rock STAB. In slot 3, either Iron Head or Rock Slide can be run. Iron Head is very useful in this meta. The abundance of Fairies make it a good idea for Terrakion to run this, since only one Fairy (Azumarill) has any chance of going before Terrakion. Concealing the Choice Scarf by sending Terrakion out against something it would outspeed no matter what is a good way to lure Fairies like Mega Diancie in and take them out with Iron Head, as they might be expecting to outspeed Terrakion. Rock Slide, on the other hand, is arguably just as useful, since it provides a more reliable alternative to Stone Edge. Rock Slide makes cleaning significantly easier, as it retains a fair amount of power, has a nice flinch chance, and doesn't suffer from Stone Edge's infamous accuracy issues. Both moves are very useful for Terrakion, so which you choose comes down to a simple matter of what you think your team will benefit the most from Terrakion having a more reliable answer to. An alternative is to run both moves, negating the problem of choosing entirely, though this may deny Terrakion a useful coverage move. There are quite a few other moves that could be used in the final slot, depending on what you need Terrakion to revenge kill. X-Scissor gives Terrakion an option to hit most psychic types hard. Given Terrakion's weakness to them, it is best used on predicted switches (especially against potential Scarf material like Latios), unless Terrakion is guaranteed to outspeed and OHKO. Earthquake is a highly damaging move that provides excellent coverage with Stone Edge, and gives Terrakion a good way to damage certain Steel types that are not hit super-effectively by Close Combat, such as Mega Metagross. One more option for the last slot would be Toxic. While this denies Terrakion a fourth coverage move, it does provide him with a better way of punishing bulky switch-ins he wouldn't otherwise be able to do much against. One final option for the final slot is Hidden Power Ice. While it may seem odd to run a Special Attack for coverage on a Pokemon with a mediocre SAtk of 72, HP Ice does allow Terrakion to lure in Garchomp and either form of Lando (and, to a much lesser extent, Gliscor) and hit them fairly hard on the switch, likely 2HKOing them. The EVs and nature are pretty standard.
Good Teammates: Due to Terrakion's speed tier, he can outspeed most common Dragon Dance users even after 1 Dragon Dance. For this reason, any team that has problems with Charizard X, Mega Altaria, Mega Gyarados, Dragonite, or Mega Tyranitar all appreciate having Terrakion around, as he (depending on what coverage moves are used) possesses super-effective attacks against all of them. Likewise, with Terrakion's speed, he is capable of outspeeding the vast majority of Pokemon that are covered by one of his attacks and taking them down pretty easily. Given just how many types he is capable of covering, this means Terrakion can fit on a great many teams with little difficulty. A specific example of a Pokemon benefiting from Terrakion's presence would be Mega Alakazam, as many of Mega Alakazam's checks and counters (such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, Talonflame, and Mega Lopunny) are handled fairly effectively by Terrakion. In terms of partners Terrakion likes having around, it is very important to have reliable hazard setters on your side, as hazards can help ensure critical OHKOs for Terrakion. Water Pokemon are a major problem for Terrakion, as he lacks any kind of coverage against them. Especially dangerous is Azumarill, since the Water typing nullifies any steel weakness, while CB boosted Aqua Jet destroys Terrakion with Priority. Thundurus, Celebi, Rotom-W, Venusaur, Raikou, Serperior, and many others are capable of filling this role. Terrakion also has some problems with physically bulky Ground types such as Hippowdon. Potential answers to them include Rotom-W, Venusaur, Celebi, Starmie, Slowbro, Serperior, and Gyarados are all capable of filling this role. Something to handle Scizor, who ruins Terrakion's day with Bullet Punch, is advised too. Almost anything capable of using a good fire attack, such as Talonflame, Heatran, Charizard X or Y, and many others are all great for this. Depending on what moves are run, it will be necessary to have Pokemon capable of taking on Psychic and Fairy types, as well as something with Ice attacks for Lando, Garchomp, and Gliscor.
What Counters It: Anything with priority that is super-effective against Terrakion, and that Terrakion can't reliably KO on the switch will always force Terrakion out. Both Scizor and Azumarill are excellent in this regard, as Terrakion can do very little against either of them on the switch. Conkeldurr is also worth mentioning, as Mach Punch also hits Terrakion super-effectively. While Terrakion can generally outspeed any other Fairy, it has to be very careful switching in on them. Anything with Will-O-Wisp can put a stop to Terrakion's run pretty quickly. As mentioned above, any bulky Water or Ground types are pretty safe switch-ins (unless Terrakion is running Toxic). Examples would include Suicune, Slowbro, and Hippowdon. Terrakion is also very vulnerable against Psychic types unless running X-Scissor to hit them on switches. Scarf Latios is especially dangerous as it completely outspeeds Terrakion. Mega Metagross also has very little to fear from Terrakion. If Terrakion is running Earthquake, he can hit MegaGross on the switch, but he will still be forced out. While Terrakion isn't really a case of 4MSS, he is going to end up with a major vulnerability to something, depending on what coverage moves you're running. Don't run Iron Head, and Fairy types become a problem. Don't run X-Scissor, and Terrakion will always be forced out by Psychic types, with no guarantee of taking them out on the switch. Don't run HP Ice, and Lando, Garchomp, and Gliscor become problems. Don't run Rock Slide, and even the Pokemon Terrakion is supposed to check or counter may stand a chance against him due to Stone Edge's decidedly less than stellar accuracy.
Any Additional Info: While Terrakion does have a little bit of bulk, he's going to be worn down pretty quickly. Play conservatively with him early on, and save him for later on when the opponent's team is worn down. If you do need to bring him in earlier, try to bring him in on resisted hits or free switches. Don't let him get burned, or you will deeply regret it. Also, if you put Terrakion on a team with a member who can use Focus Blast, you may notice that Stone Edge seems to miss twice as often as Focus Blast despite being supposedly 10% more accurate. Ah, the mysteries of life.
EDIT: Okay, I made some significant changes based on the comments below. Hopefully, the set as I have listed it will be satisfactory now. For the record, I think the best set is probably CC, Stone Edge, Rock Slide, and Iron Head, but I'll be leaving the other options in the post as options for the fourth slot, as they are all usable. Also, before someone makes claims of being satisfied, I'd like to point out that what I have here is a compromise. The essence of compromise is that no party is completely happy with the result. If you vehemently believe that this needs to be changed further, you're more than welcome to take it up further with me, however.
Terrakion @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly / Naive Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Iron Head / Rock Slide
- Iron Head / Rock Slide / X-Scissor / Earthquake / Toxic / HP Ice
Role: Revenge Killer, Late-Game Cleaner
What It Does: While Terrakion may not be quite the monster he once was in OU, he's still a force to be reckoned with. Terrakion has an excellent physical attack stat of 129, giving him great power, and his 108 Speed allows him to pull off a scarf set fairly effectively. He also has a good bulk of 91 / 90 / 90, giving him the ability to take a few hits if necessary. Combined, these qualities make him an excellent, though by no means flawless, revenge killer. Terrakion is especially effective at cleaning up late game, once all of his checks are down. Close Combat is the mandatory powerful fighting STAB. Stone Edge provides a powerful Rock STAB. In slot 3, either Iron Head or Rock Slide can be run. Iron Head is very useful in this meta. The abundance of Fairies make it a good idea for Terrakion to run this, since only one Fairy (Azumarill) has any chance of going before Terrakion. Concealing the Choice Scarf by sending Terrakion out against something it would outspeed no matter what is a good way to lure Fairies like Mega Diancie in and take them out with Iron Head, as they might be expecting to outspeed Terrakion. Rock Slide, on the other hand, is arguably just as useful, since it provides a more reliable alternative to Stone Edge. Rock Slide makes cleaning significantly easier, as it retains a fair amount of power, has a nice flinch chance, and doesn't suffer from Stone Edge's infamous accuracy issues. Both moves are very useful for Terrakion, so which you choose comes down to a simple matter of what you think your team will benefit the most from Terrakion having a more reliable answer to. An alternative is to run both moves, negating the problem of choosing entirely, though this may deny Terrakion a useful coverage move. There are quite a few other moves that could be used in the final slot, depending on what you need Terrakion to revenge kill. X-Scissor gives Terrakion an option to hit most psychic types hard. Given Terrakion's weakness to them, it is best used on predicted switches (especially against potential Scarf material like Latios), unless Terrakion is guaranteed to outspeed and OHKO. Earthquake is a highly damaging move that provides excellent coverage with Stone Edge, and gives Terrakion a good way to damage certain Steel types that are not hit super-effectively by Close Combat, such as Mega Metagross. One more option for the last slot would be Toxic. While this denies Terrakion a fourth coverage move, it does provide him with a better way of punishing bulky switch-ins he wouldn't otherwise be able to do much against. One final option for the final slot is Hidden Power Ice. While it may seem odd to run a Special Attack for coverage on a Pokemon with a mediocre SAtk of 72, HP Ice does allow Terrakion to lure in Garchomp and either form of Lando (and, to a much lesser extent, Gliscor) and hit them fairly hard on the switch, likely 2HKOing them. The EVs and nature are pretty standard.
Good Teammates: Due to Terrakion's speed tier, he can outspeed most common Dragon Dance users even after 1 Dragon Dance. For this reason, any team that has problems with Charizard X, Mega Altaria, Mega Gyarados, Dragonite, or Mega Tyranitar all appreciate having Terrakion around, as he (depending on what coverage moves are used) possesses super-effective attacks against all of them. Likewise, with Terrakion's speed, he is capable of outspeeding the vast majority of Pokemon that are covered by one of his attacks and taking them down pretty easily. Given just how many types he is capable of covering, this means Terrakion can fit on a great many teams with little difficulty. A specific example of a Pokemon benefiting from Terrakion's presence would be Mega Alakazam, as many of Mega Alakazam's checks and counters (such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, Talonflame, and Mega Lopunny) are handled fairly effectively by Terrakion. In terms of partners Terrakion likes having around, it is very important to have reliable hazard setters on your side, as hazards can help ensure critical OHKOs for Terrakion. Water Pokemon are a major problem for Terrakion, as he lacks any kind of coverage against them. Especially dangerous is Azumarill, since the Water typing nullifies any steel weakness, while CB boosted Aqua Jet destroys Terrakion with Priority. Thundurus, Celebi, Rotom-W, Venusaur, Raikou, Serperior, and many others are capable of filling this role. Terrakion also has some problems with physically bulky Ground types such as Hippowdon. Potential answers to them include Rotom-W, Venusaur, Celebi, Starmie, Slowbro, Serperior, and Gyarados are all capable of filling this role. Something to handle Scizor, who ruins Terrakion's day with Bullet Punch, is advised too. Almost anything capable of using a good fire attack, such as Talonflame, Heatran, Charizard X or Y, and many others are all great for this. Depending on what moves are run, it will be necessary to have Pokemon capable of taking on Psychic and Fairy types, as well as something with Ice attacks for Lando, Garchomp, and Gliscor.
What Counters It: Anything with priority that is super-effective against Terrakion, and that Terrakion can't reliably KO on the switch will always force Terrakion out. Both Scizor and Azumarill are excellent in this regard, as Terrakion can do very little against either of them on the switch. Conkeldurr is also worth mentioning, as Mach Punch also hits Terrakion super-effectively. While Terrakion can generally outspeed any other Fairy, it has to be very careful switching in on them. Anything with Will-O-Wisp can put a stop to Terrakion's run pretty quickly. As mentioned above, any bulky Water or Ground types are pretty safe switch-ins (unless Terrakion is running Toxic). Examples would include Suicune, Slowbro, and Hippowdon. Terrakion is also very vulnerable against Psychic types unless running X-Scissor to hit them on switches. Scarf Latios is especially dangerous as it completely outspeeds Terrakion. Mega Metagross also has very little to fear from Terrakion. If Terrakion is running Earthquake, he can hit MegaGross on the switch, but he will still be forced out. While Terrakion isn't really a case of 4MSS, he is going to end up with a major vulnerability to something, depending on what coverage moves you're running. Don't run Iron Head, and Fairy types become a problem. Don't run X-Scissor, and Terrakion will always be forced out by Psychic types, with no guarantee of taking them out on the switch. Don't run HP Ice, and Lando, Garchomp, and Gliscor become problems. Don't run Rock Slide, and even the Pokemon Terrakion is supposed to check or counter may stand a chance against him due to Stone Edge's decidedly less than stellar accuracy.
Any Additional Info: While Terrakion does have a little bit of bulk, he's going to be worn down pretty quickly. Play conservatively with him early on, and save him for later on when the opponent's team is worn down. If you do need to bring him in earlier, try to bring him in on resisted hits or free switches. Don't let him get burned, or you will deeply regret it. Also, if you put Terrakion on a team with a member who can use Focus Blast, you may notice that Stone Edge seems to miss twice as often as Focus Blast despite being supposedly 10% more accurate. Ah, the mysteries of life.
EDIT: Okay, I made some significant changes based on the comments below. Hopefully, the set as I have listed it will be satisfactory now. For the record, I think the best set is probably CC, Stone Edge, Rock Slide, and Iron Head, but I'll be leaving the other options in the post as options for the fourth slot, as they are all usable. Also, before someone makes claims of being satisfied, I'd like to point out that what I have here is a compromise. The essence of compromise is that no party is completely happy with the result. If you vehemently believe that this needs to be changed further, you're more than welcome to take it up further with me, however.
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HP Ice should definitely get a mention somewhere; it can bop Gliscor and is great to lure in Landorus-T and Garchomp. Also, if anything, slash Iron Head with X-Scissor and Toxic and the other stuff, Rock Slide shouldn't be slashed with anything as it's more reliable than Stone Edge and can be a good cleaning tool.
Yeah, Stone Edge hits most fairies hard enough already, and Terrakion really appreciates HP Ice to get rid of Lando. Terrakion actually survives a Banded Azu Aqua Jet, albeit not well, and proceeds to 2HKO with Stone Edge. Keep in mind that Azu will most likely have taken damage from hazards early game, so it's a potential OHKO.
252+ Atk Choice Band Huge Power Azumarill Aqua Jet vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Terrakion: 260-308 (80.4 - 95.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 88 HP / 4 Def Azumarill: 195-231 (53.7 - 63.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Huge Power Azumarill Aqua Jet vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Terrakion: 260-308 (80.4 - 95.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 88 HP / 4 Def Azumarill: 195-231 (53.7 - 63.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Alright, I'll mention HP Ice. It's not terrific against Gliscor, though, as even with a Naive nature, it's still only a 3HKO, and that's ONLY guaranteed if SR is up (otherwise it becomes a 0.2% chance to 3HKO its two most common sets SDef and SD Stallbreaker).
My problem with reducing Iron Head to a slash is that it simply shifts the reliability issue. In exchange for getting a more reliable move against opponents weak to Rock is that you then have to rely on the same move you've already noted for its unreliability as Terrakion's best move in order to take on the most prevalent type in the current meta. You also miss out on a completely reliable method of staying in against almost every Fairy type, meaning that when a Fairy survives a Stone Edge on coming in, if it even connects, you won't be able to stay in unless you're feeling really lucky with the RNG. Honestly, I think the ability to take on Fairies is more important right now. However, I'll compromise. I'll slash Iron Head with Rock Slide on Slot 3, and mention that the other one can be an option for the last slot.
The best set would probably be CC / Stone Edge / Rock Slide / Iron Head and then the stuff like x scissor and toxic are slashed after iron head. Again, Rock Slide shouldn't be slashed with anything as it's one of terrak's best cleaning tools without leaving it open to stuff like ghost-types and priority.
Hmm...this thread appears to be going dormant. Well, in that case, I may as well bump it to the top by reserving Specs Raikou, since I'm using it on one of my main teams right now.
There should be a Cleric section.
I don't think that's necessary. There are only about 5 mons in OU that commonly act as Clerics (Altaria, Clefable, Lopunny, Chansey, Blissey) which in my opinion is too small to merit their own section, especially when they usually have a much more prominent role, such as being a sweeper or a wall. Clerics are fine being listed under Support.
I'd like to reserve Mega Blastoise if that's alright.
Go for it.
I suck at making sets and I don't know if I'm allowed to do this but may I request a defog Non-Mega Scizor set and spread? That would be great thanks. :)
Here you go: Defog Scizor
Just swap Scizorite for Leftovers and swap Light Metal for Technician. For future reference, if you're looking for a set, your best bet is to just check any roles it would likely fall under.
K thanks man
Raikou @ Choice Specs
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt / Thunder
- Hidden Power Ice
- Extrasensory / Shadow Ball
Role: Wallbreaker, Pivot
What It Does: Raikou's excellent speed tier makes it a major force to be reckoned with in OU. While its Special Attack stat is a bit lower than average for a Wallbreaker, equipping Choice Specs on it turns it into an absolute wrecker of many common teams in the current OU metagame. Volt Switch is the most spammable attack in the early game, as it allows Raikou to deal a major amount of damage without having to worry about something surviving and crippling Raikou, due to its low physical bulk. Thunderbolt is generally the best option for Raikou's primary STAB attack, as it deals a ton of damage with Specs equipped, and doesn't have to worry about accuracy. However, if Raikou is being used on a rain team, Thunder might be the better option for its extra power. Hidden Power Ice is mandatory on most Electric types these days thanks to the prevalence of both forms of Lando, Hippowdon, Garchomp, and many other Ground and Dragon types that would take little or no damage from Raikou's electric attacks. HP Ice is obviously best used on predicted switches, to take a good chunk of health off one of those to make things easier for whatever you're planning to switch in next turn. The last slot comes down to team preference. If your team has problems with things like Venusaur and Amoongus, who would otherwise wall Raikou, Extrasensory is the better option, since it can hit them relatively hard. If Psychic types like the Latis are a bigger problem, then Shadow Ball is your best bet. The EV spread maximizes speed and special attack to make it a very fast and effective Wallbreaker.
Good Teammates: Anything that appreciates having bulky water types weakened or eliminated could make good use of Raikou's abilities. Raikou also forms half of a VoltTurn core, so anything with U-turn will go well with Raikou. Mega Scizor appreciates Raikou's help even if it's not running U-turn, since it tends to be walled by bulky water types, while Raikou also has a better matchup against most Steel types that would wall Mega Scizor. Since having hazards down can help to pressure your opponent, most hazard setters will go fairly well with Raikou. Lando-T in particular stands out, thanks to its access to U-turn and their overall type synergy. Lando-T provides an immunity to Raikou's only weakness, while Raikou can eliminate water-types that might give Lando a problem. Since Raikou's bulk is a bit lackluster, it's worn down pretty easily. Therefore, it is essential to have good hazard removers around so Raikou won't have to lose at least an eighth of its HP every time it wants to switch in (which will be often). The Latis and Starmie are probably the best bets in this regard. It might also be worthwhile to pack a cleric or status absorber (if your team is condusive to the inclusion of one of them), as Raikou absolutely hates residual damage from Burns or Toxic.
What Counters It: Even with HP Ice, any bulky Ground-types are going to force Raikou out 9 times out of 10. Sashed Dugtrio is a threat Raikou users need to be particularly wary of, since you will be unable to OHKO it if you don't have hazards down, and it can trap Raikou, outspeed it, and KO it. While Choice Specs give Raikou a lot of power, Special Walls like Chansey are still gonna give it immense problems. Ferrothorn is another nasty opponent for Raikou to be up against, since it resists Electric attacks, Raikou lacks any real coverage against it, and it can set up hazards to make it difficult for Raikou to come back in once it is forced out. Likewise, Dragon types will give Raikou a problem even with HP Ice. Raikou is also very weak to status, as it gets worn down quickly enough as it is. Any status users that Raikou doesn't have an immediate advantage over poses a serious danger. Mega Venusaur also can barely be touched by Raikou if it isn't running Extrasensory.
Any Additional Info: Raikou is obviously best used on HO and BO teams. Also, if Volt Absorb ever gets released, that might be something to consider over Pressure, since Raikou's frailty means that it won't be around long enough to deprive the opponent of a lot of PP, unlike Suicune, while Volt Absorb makes it an even better switch-in for things like Thundurus, MegaMan, and even other Raikou.
EDIT: Made the below changes. I've been kinda iffy on that spread for a while anyway, as I've been finding max speed to be more important when I've used it on my recent teams. I don't know how I missed adding Pivot, I thought I had put it there. Thanks for the corrections, bludz.
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I'd maybe slash Pivot on there as one of the roles and also Raikou runs max speed as you need to outspeed Serperior and you don't want to always be slower than offensive Starmies (LO Hydro Pump does a shitton) or the rare Mega Houndoom.
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Originally had this in an edit of the above post but I feel like it's different enough for its own post plus making a new post will get it some views which is kind of the point
I've been combing through looking for stuff that hasn't been done yet. So far I've found a few writeups that have yet to be done:
1. Support Mega Latias (Reflect Type / Roar / T-Wave type sets, I don't exactly know)
2. Nasty Plot Togekiss
3. Any other variants of Togekiss? I guess support w/ heal bell / t-wave or defog or something
4. Specially Defensive Skarmory
5. Blissey
6. Non-AV Slowking
7. AV Slowking
8. Calm Mind Latios
9. Choice Scarf Latios
10. Choice Scarf Gengar
11. Sub / Will-O / Hex Gengar (if this is still enough of a thing)
12. Power Herb Heatran
13. Custap Skarmory
14. Rest-Talk Gyarados
15. Specially defensive Jirachi
We also have a Tyranitar as a Focus Sash SR setter but not the Smooth Rock support set for Excadrill (probably pretty similar), so I'm not sure what the consensus there is.
Anyway it's possible some of these have been done but I missed them. Correct me if I'm wrong but it looks like they're all open for business. I really thought AV Slowking and Custap Skarm were done but I was unable to find them for some reason :/
If I'm right, I'd like to reserve AV Slowking but I do have a feeling someone did it I just can't find it >.>
I've been combing through looking for stuff that hasn't been done yet. So far I've found a few writeups that have yet to be done:
1. Support Mega Latias (Reflect Type / Roar / T-Wave type sets, I don't exactly know)
3. Any other variants of Togekiss? I guess support w/ heal bell / t-wave or defog or something
5. Blissey
6. Non-AV Slowking
8. Calm Mind Latios
9. Choice Scarf Latios
10. Choice Scarf Gengar
11. Sub / Will-O / Hex Gengar (if this is still enough of a thing)
13. Custap Skarmory
14. Rest-Talk Gyarados
15. Specially defensive Jirachi
We also have a Tyranitar as a Focus Sash SR setter but not the Smooth Rock support set for Excadrill (probably pretty similar), so I'm not sure what the consensus there is.
Anyway it's possible some of these have been done but I missed them. Correct me if I'm wrong but it looks like they're all open for business. I really thought AV Slowking and Custap Skarm were done but I was unable to find them for some reason :/
If I'm right, I'd like to reserve AV Slowking but I do have a feeling someone did it I just can't find it >.>
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I used the search engine; only 5 posts even mentioning Slowking came up, so I think you're just imagining that someone else did it. As for everything else on the list, it looks good. I'll link it to the OP when I get a chance (along with the 3 sets I managed to miss)bludz said:
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