Overview
I wanted to make a balance team centered around Weavile. The premise of the team is to set up a bunch of hazards, and start forcing switches, which racks up damage, allowing for either Weavile or Greninja to sweep.
The Team
Weavile @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Icicle Crash
- Knock Off
- Pursuit
As stated before, Weavile is the star of the show. The combination of Icicle Crash and Knock Off covers just about everything, except for Magearna and Mawile. Ice Shard with Water Shuriken from Ash-Greninja allows me to pick off any problematic Pokemon at +1 Speed or the few Pokemon with higher base speed like Mega Alakazam or Mega Lopunny late game if I really need to. Often times, when I have Tapu Bulu or Heatran out, my opponent will usually switch into their counters, like Zapdos and Tornadus-T for Bulu, or Zygarde and Garchomp for Heatran. Weavile is able to deal with all of these, so it’s a really good switch in when I predict them to switch out into these counters.
Heatran @ Steelium Z
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Flash Cannon
- Taunt
Heatran provides great offensive presence, dealing with the likes of Magearna, Celesteela, Ferrothorn, and Scizor. Weavile does have Knock Off which does do neutral damage to Steel types, but it rarely is enough to knock them out, and the majority of them have some kind of recovery. It also has passable bulk with its typing, but it isn’t anything too crazy. I’m not really sure whether Firium Z or Steelium Z is better here. I’ve been using Steelium Z as it hits more things for neutral damage. I’m also not sure what is the best move for the last slot. It’s a toss-up between Stealth Rocks, Taunt, and Toxic. Stealth Rocks fits with the premise of hazard stacking, and Heatran often is able to beat many of the Defoggers of the tier. Taunt allows me to trap and cripple Pokemon like Toxapex and Chansey, allowing Heatran to 1v1 them if needed. Toxic helps against bulky Water types like Gastrodon and Rotom-W, common switches to Heatran.
Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Water Shuriken
- Dark Pulse
- Spikes
I found Ash-Greninja to be a wonderful partner to Weavile. Both have a great speed tier and hit very hard, which opens up opportunities for one of them to sweep. Spikes also contributes to the hazard stacking, but is a bit more difficult as Greninja really can’t take many hits at all.
Toxapex @ Shed Shell
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Haze
- Recover
- Toxic Spikes
The defensive trio of Toxapex, Hippowdown, and Tapu Bulu does a really good job of covering the majority of the offensive threats in OU. Each threat generally can be checked by two out of the three of these Pokemon. Generally, Toxapex does a good job of scouting, with Regenerator and it’s bulk. Toxapex specifically is able to check strong Fire types like Volcarona, Heatran, and Charizard. It does a great job of scouting to see which form of Charizard I’m facing. If it is Y, then Toxapex has enough bulk to outlast it. If it is X, Toxapex generally is able to take one Earthquake, and then Hippowdon can handle the job. Toxapex also scouts for the type of Heatran that I’m facing, as more offensive variants of Heatran is able to threaten Hippowdon. Shed Shell prevents me from being trapped by Heatran while I’m scouting. I also use Toxapex as a pivot on Choice-locked Kartana, as Knock Off isn’t that big of a deal on it, and Kartana doesn’t have a move that hits Heatran, Hippowdown, Bulu, and Toxapex.
Hippowdon @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Force
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 SpD
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
- Whirlwind
Hippowdon is the main switch in to strong physical attackers like Medicham, Lopunny, and Mawile. It also does well against set up sweepers like Zygarde, Charizard X, and to an extent, Reuniclus and Volcarona, with Whirlwind. Whirlwind also messes with VoltTurn Pokemon like Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, and Scizor, and generally is able to rack up damage with the hazards set. Although there is little investment in SpDef, Hippowdon does a great job checking Tapu Koko, as Dazzling Gleam or HP Ice doesn’t do terribly much to Hippowdon, unless it’s the uncommon Choice Specs variant. After scouting for the type of Heatran I’m against, Hippowdon can possibly serve the role of threatening Heatran, as Toxapex doesn’t do nearly enough damage and Greninja can’t afford to take many hits. Sand Force is taken over Sand Stream so it doesn’t inhibit Synthesis from Tapu Bulu
Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Synthesis
As stated before, Tapu Bulu is part of the defensive core of this team, but unlike the others, Tapu Bulu has great offensive presence. It easily switches into Ground types like Zygarde, Garchomp and Landorus-T, or offensive water types like Greninja and Swampert, eating any hits. It does an okay job of checking Tapu Lele and Alakazam, and does threaten them with Grassy Terrain boosted Horn Leech, but can’t switch into their attacks freely as they both hit very hard. I took Swords Dance over Bulk Up to pose a further threat, forcing switches with the hazards up. Tapu Bulu sometimes is able to clean up late game itself, with Swords Dance, if Weavile and Greninja aren’t able to break through a Water defensive core, for example. As stated before, Weavile hits what Tapu Bulu cannot, so Weavile works well with Tapu Bulu.
Major Issues for the Team
- I straight up lose to this Pokemon. It has the coverage to hit my entire team super-effectively, except for Weavile, but Weavile can probably take 1 hit from it, maybe two, if Stealth Rocks aren't up, and can only do 50%-60% to it. The only way I have of dealing with it is to hope that my opponent doesn't lead with Kyurem-Black, try to poison it with Toxic Spikes, and then dance around with Toxapex, Hippowdon, and Bulu, hoping my opponent doesn't predict correctly, until it is in range of my Weavile revenge killing it.
- Most sets that Magearna run are a problem for my team. It resists all of Weavile's moves, and if it's the Assault Vest variant, then Greninja doesn't do much to it either. Shift Gear + 3 Attacks Magearna has enough coverage to hit my entire team. Heatran does threaten Magearna, but only if it is AV Magearna, as offensive variants generally run Focus Blast.
- The only real switch in I have to Mega-Medicham is Hippowdon, but that gets 2OHKO'd by High Jump Kick. Yes, Weavile and Greninja can revenge kill it, but for those two to get in on Medicham, it either has to come in after I sack one of my Pokemon, or on a predicted Zen Headbutt. Even then, my opponent can just switch out into another Pokemon and claim another kill later with it.
- I decided to forego Defog on my team because a) I couldn't really figure out who to replace for a Defogger and b) the premise of the team is to stack hazards, so getting rid of all of them myself isn't all that productive in my eyes. Generally, I depend on my opponent to Defog, by stacking hazards. It's either he gets rid of his own hazards with mine, or sucks it up and eats a bunch of residual damage. However, because I depend on my opponent, if they're adamant on keeping their hazards up, my team, specifically Weavile, just has to suck it up. This also means that Sticky Web heavily cripples my team, as I have no way of removing it.
ReplaysI wanted to make a balance team centered around Weavile. The premise of the team is to set up a bunch of hazards, and start forcing switches, which racks up damage, allowing for either Weavile or Greninja to sweep.
The Team
Weavile @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Icicle Crash
- Knock Off
- Pursuit
As stated before, Weavile is the star of the show. The combination of Icicle Crash and Knock Off covers just about everything, except for Magearna and Mawile. Ice Shard with Water Shuriken from Ash-Greninja allows me to pick off any problematic Pokemon at +1 Speed or the few Pokemon with higher base speed like Mega Alakazam or Mega Lopunny late game if I really need to. Often times, when I have Tapu Bulu or Heatran out, my opponent will usually switch into their counters, like Zapdos and Tornadus-T for Bulu, or Zygarde and Garchomp for Heatran. Weavile is able to deal with all of these, so it’s a really good switch in when I predict them to switch out into these counters.
Heatran @ Steelium Z
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Flash Cannon
- Taunt
Heatran provides great offensive presence, dealing with the likes of Magearna, Celesteela, Ferrothorn, and Scizor. Weavile does have Knock Off which does do neutral damage to Steel types, but it rarely is enough to knock them out, and the majority of them have some kind of recovery. It also has passable bulk with its typing, but it isn’t anything too crazy. I’m not really sure whether Firium Z or Steelium Z is better here. I’ve been using Steelium Z as it hits more things for neutral damage. I’m also not sure what is the best move for the last slot. It’s a toss-up between Stealth Rocks, Taunt, and Toxic. Stealth Rocks fits with the premise of hazard stacking, and Heatran often is able to beat many of the Defoggers of the tier. Taunt allows me to trap and cripple Pokemon like Toxapex and Chansey, allowing Heatran to 1v1 them if needed. Toxic helps against bulky Water types like Gastrodon and Rotom-W, common switches to Heatran.
Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Water Shuriken
- Dark Pulse
- Spikes
I found Ash-Greninja to be a wonderful partner to Weavile. Both have a great speed tier and hit very hard, which opens up opportunities for one of them to sweep. Spikes also contributes to the hazard stacking, but is a bit more difficult as Greninja really can’t take many hits at all.
Toxapex @ Shed Shell
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Haze
- Recover
- Toxic Spikes
The defensive trio of Toxapex, Hippowdown, and Tapu Bulu does a really good job of covering the majority of the offensive threats in OU. Each threat generally can be checked by two out of the three of these Pokemon. Generally, Toxapex does a good job of scouting, with Regenerator and it’s bulk. Toxapex specifically is able to check strong Fire types like Volcarona, Heatran, and Charizard. It does a great job of scouting to see which form of Charizard I’m facing. If it is Y, then Toxapex has enough bulk to outlast it. If it is X, Toxapex generally is able to take one Earthquake, and then Hippowdon can handle the job. Toxapex also scouts for the type of Heatran that I’m facing, as more offensive variants of Heatran is able to threaten Hippowdon. Shed Shell prevents me from being trapped by Heatran while I’m scouting. I also use Toxapex as a pivot on Choice-locked Kartana, as Knock Off isn’t that big of a deal on it, and Kartana doesn’t have a move that hits Heatran, Hippowdown, Bulu, and Toxapex.
Hippowdon @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Force
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 SpD
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
- Whirlwind
Hippowdon is the main switch in to strong physical attackers like Medicham, Lopunny, and Mawile. It also does well against set up sweepers like Zygarde, Charizard X, and to an extent, Reuniclus and Volcarona, with Whirlwind. Whirlwind also messes with VoltTurn Pokemon like Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, and Scizor, and generally is able to rack up damage with the hazards set. Although there is little investment in SpDef, Hippowdon does a great job checking Tapu Koko, as Dazzling Gleam or HP Ice doesn’t do terribly much to Hippowdon, unless it’s the uncommon Choice Specs variant. After scouting for the type of Heatran I’m against, Hippowdon can possibly serve the role of threatening Heatran, as Toxapex doesn’t do nearly enough damage and Greninja can’t afford to take many hits. Sand Force is taken over Sand Stream so it doesn’t inhibit Synthesis from Tapu Bulu
Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Synthesis
As stated before, Tapu Bulu is part of the defensive core of this team, but unlike the others, Tapu Bulu has great offensive presence. It easily switches into Ground types like Zygarde, Garchomp and Landorus-T, or offensive water types like Greninja and Swampert, eating any hits. It does an okay job of checking Tapu Lele and Alakazam, and does threaten them with Grassy Terrain boosted Horn Leech, but can’t switch into their attacks freely as they both hit very hard. I took Swords Dance over Bulk Up to pose a further threat, forcing switches with the hazards up. Tapu Bulu sometimes is able to clean up late game itself, with Swords Dance, if Weavile and Greninja aren’t able to break through a Water defensive core, for example. As stated before, Weavile hits what Tapu Bulu cannot, so Weavile works well with Tapu Bulu.
Major Issues for the Team
Replay 1 (vs. Bulky Offense)
Replay 2 (vs. Mega Medicham)
Replay 3 (vs. Tapu Lele)
Replay 4 (vs. Mega Alakazam)
Replay 5 (vs. Magearna + Kyurem-B)
Importable
