As some of you may have noticed, I really don't quite know what my theme is. I suppose the "star" of the team, as many people put it, would be Salamence. It's pretty standard DD, but it's deadly once its threats are gone.
Pink Pest (Ambipom) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Fake Out
- U-turn
- Taunt
- Counter
This is personally one of my favorite leads I've tried. I always thought orthodox leads were pretty boring, and they never worked very well for me. The basic principle is that Ambi starts by using Fake out. This way, I can pretty much tell what item the foe has. If they recover health, they have leftovers. Then I definitely want to use Taunt. If not, I still probably want to use Taunt. I do not like having rocks set up on me. Those silly Metagross leads always think that they're free to set up SR. They're wrong. After being Taunted, they think the best course of action is to get rid of this stupid thing. That is also not the greatest course of action since they get Countersashed. In the event that some strange things happen, Ambi is always able to U-turn away to take hits later. He deals surprisingly well with almost all leads. The most trouble usually comes from Tyranitar or Dragonite because of their respective abilities. I was actually very surprised to learn that the standard Ambi lead set is very different from this, but I suppose it's meant for UU use.
Breloom (M) @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 6 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Spore
- Substitute
- Focus Punch
- Leech Seed
He's pretty self-explanatory. I love Breloom for his great stall-breaking and immunity to status once his Toxic Orb is up. In the surprisingly common event that someone switches in an annoying Dragon type, Breloom can always use Leech seed. If the Dragon type DD's instead of attacking straight out, I get in a Focus Punch. That's when I have to switch out (Usually so Ambi can absorb the blow since that's what I use him for when his sash is broken. Against a lot of teams, Ambi can become less useful as time wears on. Fake Out is great for being difficult and picking things off, but a lot of the time I let him go so I can send in a revenge killer, usually Weavile).
Weavile (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 6 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Ice Shard
- Night Slash
- Pursuit
- Low Kick
This is also a pretty standard revenge killer Weavile. He deals (not solely, but pretty well) with any problems I may have with Rotom, Latias, Gengar, Scarftar, and especially Outraging Dragons. Mostly the non-outraging dragons leave. Yeah. He's Banded, and he kills lots of psychic and ghost types.
Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Rapid Spin
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
I used to have a bulkier water in this position, but I really hate entry hazards and considered it worth my while to invest in a rapid spinner. It used to be a defensive recovering variant, but I think the offensive is generally more useful. All of those Rotoms who think they are switching into rapid spins fail to take two Hydro Pumps. Boltbeam and Hydro Pump provides good type coverage. Unfortunately, Starmie cannot deal with my problem of Gyarados that get a Dragon Dance. Usually someone else has to come in there. Ambi's Fake Out actually does more than 1/3 of Gyara's hp, and if his sash is still there, he can just countersash to stop the sweep. Otherwise, I have to work around it based on what I've got left.
Salamence (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- Outrage
- Stone Edge
- Dragon Dance
This is the real sweeping power of the team. With Zone to get rid of those pesky steel types, Mence's DD'd outrages are not something on which you want to be on the receiving end. This is also the reason I have Stone Edge instead of Fire Blast. I'm really not sure about this, though, and want opinions on if I should change him up to include Fire Blast (I'd probably not want him Jolly, then).
Magnezone @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 6 HP/252 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Thunderbolt
- Explosion
- Hidden Power [Grass]
Zone is also relatively standard. He kills Steel types. He also uses HP grass to get rid of Ground types, particularly Swampert. He clears the way for Mence. I'm wondering if I should change his nature to make his explosions more powerful, though... I tried to get him to explode on a Celebi the other day and it only did 54% or something.
Yeah... Tell me how this team is. It's been doing pretty well, with the exception of obscene luck (a surprisingly common occurrence for me).
Pink Pest (Ambipom) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Fake Out
- U-turn
- Taunt
- Counter
This is personally one of my favorite leads I've tried. I always thought orthodox leads were pretty boring, and they never worked very well for me. The basic principle is that Ambi starts by using Fake out. This way, I can pretty much tell what item the foe has. If they recover health, they have leftovers. Then I definitely want to use Taunt. If not, I still probably want to use Taunt. I do not like having rocks set up on me. Those silly Metagross leads always think that they're free to set up SR. They're wrong. After being Taunted, they think the best course of action is to get rid of this stupid thing. That is also not the greatest course of action since they get Countersashed. In the event that some strange things happen, Ambi is always able to U-turn away to take hits later. He deals surprisingly well with almost all leads. The most trouble usually comes from Tyranitar or Dragonite because of their respective abilities. I was actually very surprised to learn that the standard Ambi lead set is very different from this, but I suppose it's meant for UU use.
Breloom (M) @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 6 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Spore
- Substitute
- Focus Punch
- Leech Seed
He's pretty self-explanatory. I love Breloom for his great stall-breaking and immunity to status once his Toxic Orb is up. In the surprisingly common event that someone switches in an annoying Dragon type, Breloom can always use Leech seed. If the Dragon type DD's instead of attacking straight out, I get in a Focus Punch. That's when I have to switch out (Usually so Ambi can absorb the blow since that's what I use him for when his sash is broken. Against a lot of teams, Ambi can become less useful as time wears on. Fake Out is great for being difficult and picking things off, but a lot of the time I let him go so I can send in a revenge killer, usually Weavile).
Weavile (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 6 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Ice Shard
- Night Slash
- Pursuit
- Low Kick
This is also a pretty standard revenge killer Weavile. He deals (not solely, but pretty well) with any problems I may have with Rotom, Latias, Gengar, Scarftar, and especially Outraging Dragons. Mostly the non-outraging dragons leave. Yeah. He's Banded, and he kills lots of psychic and ghost types.
Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Rapid Spin
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
I used to have a bulkier water in this position, but I really hate entry hazards and considered it worth my while to invest in a rapid spinner. It used to be a defensive recovering variant, but I think the offensive is generally more useful. All of those Rotoms who think they are switching into rapid spins fail to take two Hydro Pumps. Boltbeam and Hydro Pump provides good type coverage. Unfortunately, Starmie cannot deal with my problem of Gyarados that get a Dragon Dance. Usually someone else has to come in there. Ambi's Fake Out actually does more than 1/3 of Gyara's hp, and if his sash is still there, he can just countersash to stop the sweep. Otherwise, I have to work around it based on what I've got left.
Salamence (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- Outrage
- Stone Edge
- Dragon Dance
This is the real sweeping power of the team. With Zone to get rid of those pesky steel types, Mence's DD'd outrages are not something on which you want to be on the receiving end. This is also the reason I have Stone Edge instead of Fire Blast. I'm really not sure about this, though, and want opinions on if I should change him up to include Fire Blast (I'd probably not want him Jolly, then).
Magnezone @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 6 HP/252 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Thunderbolt
- Explosion
- Hidden Power [Grass]
Zone is also relatively standard. He kills Steel types. He also uses HP grass to get rid of Ground types, particularly Swampert. He clears the way for Mence. I'm wondering if I should change his nature to make his explosions more powerful, though... I tried to get him to explode on a Celebi the other day and it only did 54% or something.
Yeah... Tell me how this team is. It's been doing pretty well, with the exception of obscene luck (a surprisingly common occurrence for me).
