OU Rain Team

[Sun Spirit]

Hello Smogon! Long time, no see! I've been messing around in XY and I wanted prove that Weather Teams are not dead because of Weather nerf. Soooo... what do you guys think?

Politoed @Damp Rock

Ability: Drizzle
Nature: Bold
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Def/ 4 Sp.Def

- Perish Song
- Toxic
- Protect
- Surf

The inducer for rain. Politoed is incredibly bulky, allowing it to take a Thunder and other super effective moves fairly nicely. I chose to run Damp Rock over Leftovers because the extended rain is something that 4 of the other Pokemon will enjoy the bonuses of. Toxic is also great because it allows the sweepers on the team to get KOs and sometime helps to KO by itself because of how long Politoed can stay in play. Perish Song is also very useful in forcing switches on certain threats especially when used in combination with...

Goodra Leftovers

Ability: Hydration
Nature: Bold
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Def/ 4 Sp. Def

- Dragon Pulse
- Thunder
- Infestation
- Rest

The best partner for Politoed and the main wall on this team is easily Goodra. While Assault Vest was an attractive item, this set allows me to create more plays, options, and KOs. The Thunder that can be used immediately is very reliable as it helps to KO the Water-types that try to use my rain. Infestation is amazing when paired with Perish Song. The reason for this is the natural bulk of Goodra and the fact that Leftovers extends the longevity of Goodra, allowing it to set up this type of "lock", which usually guarantees at least one KO. Rest + Hydration in the rain is what allows Goodra to stay alive during longer battles because it can heal all damage, take a hit or two, restore with Leftovers, and then wake up because of Hydration, allowing it to repeat the cycle.

Gyarados Life Orb/ Gyaradosite

Ability: Intimidate/ Mold Breaker (Mega)
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/ 252 Atk/ 252 Spe

- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Ice Fang
- Dragon Dance

First off, the Jolly nature is debatable. While Adamant is good for a higher Attack stat, I found that my team had quite a few Pokemon that were a little on the slow side. Jolly with 252 Spe allows me to outspeed lots of threats. Second, the HP investment is questionable. It may change to 4 Def instead but it has been useful in that it helps my to endure more hits. Ice Fang is great because it allows Gyarados to hit Dragons and Grass-types that it would normally have trouble with. In Mega Forme, His ability allows a hit with Earthquake on Rotom-W and other Levitate users that would normally stop Gyarados in its tracks. Gyarados is also an amazing partner for...

Salamence Life Orb

Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Naive
EVs: 72 Atk/ 184 Sp. Atk/ 252 Spe

- Draco Meteor
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Protect

Salamence allows for some amazing sweeping potential on this team, aside from Gyarados. Draco Meteor is great because it is a strong STAB that usually get a KO and doesn't affect the power of other moves. Earthquake is awesome for hitting Steel and Electric-types such as Mega Mawile, as well as Dry Skin Toxicroak. I decided to run Stone Edge over Dragon Claw because Togekiss would be immune to two of the main attacks on this set. It also leaves Togekiss with roughly 10 - 15% of its HP every time it hits, allowing Jolly Gyarados to finish the job.

Volcarona Life Orb

Ability: Flame Body
Nature: Timid
EVs: 4 HP/ 252 Sp. Atk/ 252 Spe

- Bug Buzz
- Hurricane
- Fire Blast/ Heat Wave
- Quiver Dance

The Special Sweeper of this team is none other than Volcarona. The fact that Bug Buzz now hits behind Substitute was so attractive because this team has trouble breaking them. Hurricane is great for spamming with 100 Accuracy and allows it to KO Grass, Bug, and Fighting-types that Fire Blast or Heat Wave wouldn't be able to KO easily without a boost from Quiver Dance. The only issue is the Fire Blast vs Heat Wave decision. While Fire Blast has incredible power, Heat Wave hits two Pokemon at the same time, something that is invaluable in Double Battles.

Scizor Life Orb/ Scizorite/ Lum Berry

Ability: Technician
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 Atk/ 4 Sp. Def/ 252 Spe

- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Swords Dance
- Roost

I wanted a Scizor that was very offensive. While I do sacrifice bulk for power, this set OHKOs both Mega- and Normal Gengar with Pursuit. A Bullet Punch that is STAB, boosted by Technician, Life Orb/Scizorite on an Adamant Scizor with 252 Atk investment is deadly to anything that doesn't resist it. Swords Dance is great for boosting an already powerful Attack stat. Even without a boost from Life Orb or Mega Evolution, Lum Berry is great for getting rid of a crippling status ailment such as Burn or Paralyze. Roost is also useful when on the defensive to keep Scizor alive. This set is great for a mid-game sweeper and a late-game cleaner.

So this is my team, please drop a comment here so that I can improve it and get some advice on any possible changes. Feel free to leave a Friend Code here as well! Mine is: 5043 - 2250 - 5508

 

[Stratos]

This team is not fit for the Doubles metagame. The sets you are using seem often to be very dichotomous between stallish and sweepish which is a strategy that basically just doesn't work in doubles, and team synergy is minimal. I suggest heading over to the mentoring subforum or #mentor on irc to get some advice on doubles and doubles teambuilding.

 

[Sun Spirit]

This team is not fit for the Doubles metagame. The sets you are using seem often to be very dichotomous between stallish and sweepish which is a strategy that basically just doesn't work in doubles, and team synergy is minimal. I suggest heading over to the mentoring subforum or #mentor on irc to get some advice on doubles and doubles teambuilding.

Care to elaborate on which one? You seem rather knowledgeable and I would like to hear what it is specifically that you disagree with.

 

[Stratos]

at the risk of being a dick: every set on this team needs work. It's one of the teams I legitimately thought was a mistagged singles team except that you said like one line in here about spread moves or something. you're using terms like "late-game cleaner," sets like infestation rest goodra, and not even considering how this team actually handles many threats. You really should get on irc so you can learn the metagame more thoroughly—instructions for joining irc are linked on the site's front page

 

[Sun Spirit]

at the risk of being a dick: every set on this team needs work. It's one of the teams I legitimately thought was a mistagged singles team except that you said like one line in here about spread moves or something. you're using terms like "late-game cleaner," sets like infestation rest Goodra, and not even considering how this team actually handles many threats. You really should get on irc so you can learn the metagame more thoroughly—instructions for joining irc are linked on the site's front page

Hm, well to be honest, I'm not very good at stating threat lists. When I do use this team, I've had some pretty good success, though there are people who don't EV train and whatnot. And do I have to download IRC or anything? Because I can't do that. You mentioned my Goodra set. I have had a lot of succes with that set, even on other teams. But I do appreciate your thoughts, though if you could choose a Pokemon, say my Salamence, and alter the set to something more fit for Double Battles that would help. And you stated that my team seems to be a mix of stall and sweep. I thought about that and read a guide on Double Battles to try and understand them better. Anyway, thanks for your thoughts!