Return to the rain,A RU rain team

[Dragonmist19]

- Return To The Rain -_
The team at a glance:

Well first off,this is my first RU team RMT on smogon,i have done other RMT's here on smogon but i dont know everything about RU so if i dont go into so much detail on what threats each member of my team can take out i probally dont know there are a threat in RU.Now if thats out of the way lets get into the team itself...oh i almost forgot,chances will be made in bold,if its a changed pokemon the name will be bold,if its a move then the (-'s) around the move will be underlined and anything else changed besides description will be bold,i will not bold the description if its bolded.

Lead #1/Physical Tank/:

BigDaddy (Rhydon) (M) @

Eviolite
Ability: Lightningrod
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Impish Nature
- Aqua Tail -
- Earthquake -
- Stealth Rock -
- Dragon Tail -

Info:
The first member of my team,rhydon is quite a dependable pokemon when it comes to setting up entry hazards or just tanking physical hits.With max defense and max HP rhydon dose not mess around when it comes to walling those physical attacks.Rhydon is also able to deal out some decent amount of damage.Rhydon can surprisingly take some super affective moves on the physical side and the special side.But one drawback of rhydon is that since this is a rain team rhydon isn't able to always switch in Scott free,with those water moves about it can potentially KO or 2hko rhydon if i make the wrong switch.Now that the negative is out of the way lets focus more on the moves and item.First off standard eviolite on a nfe pokemon is obvious.I have aqua tail on rhydon for if by some chance rhydon is in the rain and earthquake dosent hit something at neutral damage or above aqua tail will usually be able to hit for neutral or above damage and get a boost from the rain.Earthquake is sorta already explained in the previous sentence with the fact that it can deal out a good chunk of damage to anything that comes rhydons way and if it doesn't that's what aqua tail is for and also earthquake gets stab.After that i have SR to get up entry hazards for the team so i can get a slight upper hand on a incoming pokemon and SR's are never a bad choice weather its at the begging of the game or late game.Then a move replacing toxic is dragon tail,i found myself not using toxic at all so i switched it to something that i could find uses for on this set(i am not saying toxic is not usable on this set,i just dont want to have a move i am not using at all on a set where another move could be),dragon tail is good for if i predict a switch to a threat of rhydons and dragon tail it out to something that may not be a threatening or not threatening at all and make them think if they switch to that again it will get another dose of dragon tail and to add onto that the dragon tail forced switching can help the SR's deal a decent amount of damage to the opponents team.

Physical Sweeper #1:

Jouster (Escavalier) (F) @

Leftovers
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Iron Head -
- Megahorn -
- Pursuit -
- Swords Dance -

Info:
The second member of my team and a might fine physical attacker,Escavalier is a great attacking pokemon that most pokemon don't want to be on the receiving end of a attack from,especially if i manage to get up a swords dance.One drawback of escavalier is it's extremely low speed which can stop escavalier in its tracks and sometimes even lead to it's untimely end and.But now that i quickly got the negative part out of the way which if you haven't already realized,i am going to be going over the negatives for each pokemon on my team but onto the other aspects of escavalier.With the item leftovers it helps recover some hp and even help it live one more turn to deal some extra damage to the opponent and the foes team overall.First off i have iron head and megahorn for a good amount of power with stab and a good type coverage.Then i have swords dance so if i predict a switch i can go for a swords dance and get a attack boost or if i am just needing more attack power i can go for the swords dance.Then i don't use pursuit at all with the fact that i can just go for a swords dance and get allot of power instead of dealing some damage,i can't think of a move to go into this slot so if any of you reading this can think of a move to go here please let me know a good move to put here besides pursuit,i am thinking of going with counter or aerial ace.

Physical Sweeper #2:

DM19 (Feraligatr) (M) @

Rocky Helmet
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 128 Spd / 252 Atk / 128 HP
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance -
- Ice Punch -
- Rock Slide -
- Waterfall -

Info:
Now time to talk about the last but not the worst physical attacking pokemon on my team,feraligatr.Being a well balanced pokemon feraligatr is a good pokemon on any team in RU.But feraligatr is kinda a jack of all traits but doesn't master any,besides maybe attack and defense.Feraligatr is a pokemon with a good amount of natural bulk so when you are setting up with your feraligatr you can take a hit or two before you have to start attacking and sweeping and even if you don't set up you can deal out a good amount of damage even without using star raising moves.I spread out the evs into 128 speed and 128 hp over 252 speed so i could give feraligatr some more bulk to its hp stat and still be able to recover that speed through dragon dance.I gave ferlaigatr rocky helmet over something like life orb or a expert belt because with feraligatr's natural defense stat it can take a hit and deal out some good damage to the foe.Then i have ice punch for coverage to feraligatr's weaknesses.Then i have waterfall for stab and damage output.Then i have rock slide to have good coverage but if earthquake would be the better choice let me know.Then finally i have dragon dance over swords dance so i can give feraligatr more bulk and be able to regain the speed lost by having only 128 speed evs instead of 252 speed evs.

Special Sweeper #1:

Anubis (Manectric) (F) @

Choice Scarf
Ability: Lightningrod
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Thunder -
- Hidden Power [Ice] -
- Switcheroo -
- Overheat -

Info:
Now that all the physical attackers are out of the way i get to talk about the "special" attackers,HAHAHAHA...yep,i know it wasn't funny;i tried at least.no?Fine,then let us just talk about manectric already.Being the only electric pokemon on my team that is able to use thunder to it's advantage in the rain it comes in handy allot like for a revenge kill or just sweeping with a scarfed pokemon.The bar part about manectric is that it dosn't have the greatest defenses in the world but they are doable.I gave manectric a choice scarf so it could outspeed stuff and sweep or use its move switcheroo to give the choice scarf to a enemy to cripple it.With the move thunder to to massive damage in or out of the rain but preferably in the rain so it can get that 100% hit rate compared to 70% out of rain.Then hidden power ice to deal a good amount and is good coverage.Switcheroo is there to take that choice scarf away and cripple the foe hopefully.Then finally overheat to deal a insane amount of damage without stab and to be a all or nothing attack when i can't do much more with manectric and it also helps with coverage as far as what manectric is weak against.

Special Tank/Heal Bell User/Special Attacker:

MountyC. (Articuno) @

Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Hurricane -
- Ice Beam -
- Heal Bell -
- Roost -

Info:
Now that we are at articuno we are after this going to be done with the special attackers and the walls of the team.Articuno is a monster of a pokemon when it comes to taking attacks from the special defense side of attacks.When this articuno i am able to take eruptions from typlosions and make them switch out or ko them and carry on with walling other pokemon.Leftovers is overall a good item to have on any pokemon when it comes to restoring health.Then articuno has hurricane and ice beam to have stab moves and in the case of hurricane get a accuracy boost from the rain when it is present but articuno can still land some hurricanes without the rain around.Then articuno has heal bell to remove status ailments from the rest of the team or articuno itself.Then finally roost to heal back health that has been lost from those devistating moves like a eruption that was at 100% power then at 50% power after the turn and healing back that health after living that 50% power eruption is very nice.

Lead #2/Baton Passer/Rain User:

Beetiful (Volbeat) @

Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SDef
Careful Nature
- Rain Dance -
- Encore -
- Substitute -
- Baton Pass -

Info:
That was ALLOT of typing,now we have come close the the final part of this RMT but before we get there i need to go over the final member of my team,volbeat.One problem with volbeat is that volbeat has no attacking moves at all so if something comes in and taunts volbeat i am forces to siwtch or use struggle which would not be fun either way beacuse then the foe can prepare for a switch.But one exellent thing is that with the ability prankster i can user all of my moves on this set with priority,yeah.Now i have a damp rock so i can have the precious rain up for more turns.So i havr rain dance to set up the said rain.After that i have encore to make the foe to use the same move over and over and over again.Subsitute can help volbeat live a hit and then with the aid of baton pass i can take that subsitute or as everyone calls it,sub,and give it to a ally to help them take a hit or have a bit of help for a sweep.

Pokemon replaced

NotABomb (Electrode) @ Damp Rock
Trait: Aftermath
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Timid Nature
- Thunder
- Rain Dance
- Foul Play
- Taunt

Other stuff:

Importable Version

=== [ru] RU team ===

BigDaddy (Rhydon) (M) @ Eviolite
Trait: Lightningrod
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Impish Nature
- Aqua Tail
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic

Jouster (Escavalier) (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Swarm
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Iron Head
- Megahorn
- Pursuit
- Swords Dance

DM19 (Feraligatr) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 128 Spd / 252 Atk / 128 HP
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Ice Punch
- Rock Slide
- Waterfall

Anubis (Manectric) (F) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Lightningrod
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Switcheroo
- Overheat

MountyC. (Articuno) @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Hurricane
- Ice Beam
- Heal Bell
- Roost

Beetiful (Volbeat) @ Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SDef
Careful Nature
- Rain Dance
- Encore
- Substitute
- Baton Pass

PO matches with team

Before manectric was given scarf over specs:
http://www.pokemonshowdown.com/replay/ru12630541
Current team matches:
http://pokemonshowdown.com/replay/ru12909713
Ludicolo over manectric:
http://pokemonshowdown.com/replay/ru13391450
Volbeat over electrode and no ludicolo:
http://pokemonshowdown.com/replay/ru13490193

I hope you enjoyed looking at my team and i would appreciate all the help i can get with this team to make it the best team it can be.

Final Glance At the Team:

 

[PTJon7]

Hey pretty good team, here are some things I think will help make it better:

1. First and foremost, you have no Swift Swimmers! Being able to abuse the crap out of Swift Swim is one of the best parts of a Rain team. I would recommend replacing Feraligatr with Kabutops:

Hide

Kabutops @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 HP / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Jet
- X-Scissor/Swords Dance

2. I don't think Articuno is very good, but to be honest I don't have the grounds to say that until I use it for my self. If you ever wanted to replace it with another Hurricane spammer Swanna could be a good option, as it gets a boost for its other STAB attack and doesn't have a crippling 4x SR weakness. If you really want to keep Articuno then I would change its Lum Berry to Leftovers, since you already have Heal Bell on it.

3. I think you should replace Rhydon with Uxie. Uxie can both set up Rocks, Rain Dance, and U-Turn out to a sweeper. It also has amazing bulk and help wall Fighting types.

4. Escavalier is a good idea for a rain team, and its move set looks good. I would replace the Dark Gem with Leftovers though, they will be much more useful in the long run.

Thats about it, hope this is helpful and good luck!

 

[speed ghilliesniper]

I definitely agree with everything PTJon7 said, the main purpose of using a rain team is to out speed most every threat under rain with Swift Swim and smash them with rain boosted Water attacks. With this in mind I'd recomend Life Orb Ludicolo over Manectric. You already have a fast Thunder abuser in Electrode and under rain Ludicolo out speeds Manectric and out damages it with Hydro Pump. Plus it's fantastic typing allows it to take on water moves and bulky water types that can give Kabutops trouble.

summary: Manectric ----> Ludicolo

Set:

Hide

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Modest Nature
- Giga Drain
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Surf

 

[Dragonmist19]

1. idk if i should replace feraligatr with kabutops bc kabutops is very frail and thats something i like about ferlaigatr,it can take some hits...one time i was able to live a wild charge from a klingklang with my feraligatr set,i know klingklang isnt the best physical attacker i know if that was a kabutops taking the hit it would have been done for and kabutops dosen't have the moveset varity like feraligatr

2.articuno is my special wall,i am pretty sure swanna would do worse as a special wall,articuno can also roost off sr damage and still tank a special hit from 50%

3. i like to keep my team balanced inbewteen physical and special attackers and if i used uxie the special attackers would be more then the physical ones and i dont want to be walled by a special wall

4. i will replace dark gem and lum berry on excalalier and articuno for lefties

now onto the next comment

1. on the ludicolo set could i try something like hp fire over hydro pump or surf bc i dont like having two moves of the same type on a set,i feel that it limits my coverage but i will test out ludicolo on the team and if i like it i will change it or even try out a ev spread like my feraligatr but instead of 252 attack 252 special attack to get some extra bulk(i know its not really set up to take hits but i prefer some bulk for if i dont ohko the foe and then i could live a rebound hit)

 

[Yonko7]

Hiya Dragonmist, this looks like an interesting rain team but it hasn't reached its full potential yet.

The biggest problem I see is that your team lacks an identity: it's neither a full-fledged rain team nor an offensive team. I think your closest to making a rain team, which would give you some advantages when facing Hail teams and non-weather teams.

First, to help you set up rain with more ease I suggest Volbeat over Electrode. This might seem like a minor change with Electrode's blistering Speed, but Prankster Rain Dance can be a life-saver when facing a Pokemon that already set-up and you need rain up. Also, Volbeat can pass Substitutes and give you more free turns with Encore, so you can switch in your offensive powerhouses. Because Volbeat is invested defensively, it can also set up Rain Dance more often.

Volbeat

Volbeat @ Damp Rock
Prankster | Bold
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
- Rain Dance
- Encore
- Substitute
- Baton Pass

Second, because your team is offensively-oriented (non-OU rain teams cannot effectively pull off slower, defensive teams), Articuno just wastes your rain turns. I suggest Moltres rather than Articuno, which might seem odd to add it to a rain team, but it's a bit like Volcarona on rain teams in OU. Moltres can take advantage of perfectly accurate Hurricanes and fire off Fire Blasts when rain isn't up, while HP Grass takes care of Lanturn, Roost tops off the moveset to heal Moltres when the other team switches Pokemon. Additionally, it gives you another tool to combat Hail teams that can easily switch in and cancel the rain that you set up.

Moltres

Moltres @ Life Orb
Pressure | Timid
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
- Hurricane
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power Grass
- Roost

Third, Escavalier can be adjusted to be more efficient; it's also a great way to halt opposing Hail teams thanks to its typing. Rain Dance Escavalier is a great stop to Hail teams because it can set up rain and its Fire-type weakness gets reduced. It can even live a Leftovers Moltres's Fire Blast in rain! As it is, you lack a sufficient number of rain inducers so it helps to have about 3-4. This variant of Escavalier can be invested defensively because its Attack is naturally high anyway, and with the investment it can live a lot of attacks it would otherwise wouldn't.

Escavalier

Escavalier@Damp Rock
Overcoat | Careful
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
- Megahorn
- Ironhead
- Sleep Talk
- Rain Dance

Sleep Talk is so you can have a sleep absorber.

Lastly, with either Articuno or Moltres, both are crippled by Stealth Rock, so you need a spinner to support them. I suggest Kabutops over Feraligatr. It is true that Feraligatr has better bulk compared to Kabutops, but Kabutops provides greater Speed under rain and can spin to further support everyone. Also, Kabutops can provide priority so it can still do something before dying.

Kabutops

Kabutops@Life Orb
Adamant | Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Rapid Spin
- Stone Edge
- Aqua Jet
- Waterfall / Swords Dance

good luck~

 

[Dragonmist19]

i have a few questions about the help you are giving me:
(i have no problems with volbeat over electrode so i will go with that but if i do i wont have any pokemon that can use thunder to its fullest like manectric or electrode and i am not sure if i should replace manectric if i am replacing electrode)

1.[moltres] i would replace articuno for moltres if it wasent for articuno being my special tank so i am not to sure about going with that choice of switch

2.[escavalier] i am assuming this is supposed to replace articuno as a special wall and i did a calculation on weather escavalier would do a better job at walling then my articuno when it comes to there shared weakness,fire.the attacking pokemon in this situation will be a scarfed typlosion like the one shown in one of my showdown battles.
In rain(A):39% - 45% damage
Out of rain(A): 76% - 90% damage
In rain(E): 97% - 115% damage
Out of rain(E): 193% - 227% damage

so yeah...i dont like the fact that a special wall wouldent live a special hit at neutral,and the only way articuno has a 100% chance of being ko'd is in the sun and i dont belive sun teams are common o a common threat in the ru metagame(and if they are ont there i have for sure never seen one)

3.[kabutops] and now i will do some more calculations on damage taken and given in the situation of my feraligatr living a wild charge from a klingklang and ko'ing it after.
Hit by attack(F):
Attacking(F): 83% - 98% damage
Attacking rain(F): 125% - 147% damage
Attacking w/ neutral attack rain(F): 41% - 49% damage
Attacking w/ neutral attack no rain(F): 62% - 74% damage
Hit by attack(K): 77% - 91% damage
Attcking waterfall(K): 58% - 68% damage
Attacking Waterfall rain(K): 87% - 102% damage
Attacking Aqua jet(K): 28% - 34% damage
Attacking Aqua jet rain(K): 41% - 53% damage

so if i were to go with swords dance over waterfall feraligatr would still overall do more but if i went with waterfall then kabutops would do more.(edit)[and in my newest showdown battle my feraligater was able to live a thunderbolt from a rotom mow form,i am sure a kabutops couldn't do that](edit)

i appreciate the help with suggesting volbeat for the team and i think i will like that addition but i dont get why so far nobody has really seen tht articuno is a special wall.
I like the fact that your helping me out and i would hope that after i make revisions to the team you will come back to the product of that and try to help me out again but sorry i didn't go with all of your suggestions but overall thanks for the help and i would appreacite if you could help me with this again in the future.

 

[Dragonmist19]

the team has been changed since the last post i did so i am bumping this so if anyone wanted to rate it yesterday but couldn't bc i put up a notice that i was editing it and don't post on the thread till the finishes were done,well now there done

 

[Dragonmist19]

bump