Hi. I'm really new to this site- I only registered and started playing on pokemon showdown yesterday- and after seeing this thread, I was wondering if I could get some advice from more experienced players about my team. I had been reading about competitive battling for a while before I joined, and I managed to win a few battles with it (after some modifications), to the point where I did a small bit of climbing on the ladder. Since this is my first time team building, I'm sure I've made some mistakes, and I would be grateful if they could be pointed out.
First off, my trick room team has two pokemon knowing trick room:
Bronzong
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Quiet
Move 1: Trick Room
Move 2: Shadow Ball
Move 3: Earthquake
Move 4: Psychic
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 SpA
Bronzong tends to be my lead. It has good physical and special defense, so it can usually take a hit and set up trick room without too much of a problem. I think that the other three moves offer decent coverage- with psychic, of course, being the obligatory STAB. Leftovers helps Bronzong to survive- after all, I don't want my trick room setters to be fainted early on.
Exeggutor
Item: Sitrus Berry
Ability: Harvest
Nature: Quiet
Move 1: Trick Room
Move 2: Giga Drain
Move 3: Sludge Bomb
Move 4: Ancient Power
EVs: 244 HP/12 Def/252 SpA
This isn't what Exeggutor's original move set had been before I tested the team. When I first tested the team, Sludge Bomb's slot had been occupied by Psyshock. However, there were two battles in a row in which I was walled by Tangrowth and beaten by the enemy team, and I quickly realized that the only pokemon on my team with a move super effective against grass was Carracosta. I looked up Tangrowth's stats and realized it was a physical wall, so I decided to give the move to fix my problem to a special attacker which resisted grass. I had originally planned on giving Exeggutor hidden power bug, but when I played actual battles the hidden power type kept on coming out different, so I then gave it Sludge Bomb instead.
The combination of Sitrus Berry with Harvest and the move Giga Drain seem to make Exeggutor an effective tank. Not only can I use it to set up trick room, but it can hold its own as a special attacker as well.
As for the other four members of my team:
Gigalith
Item: life orb
Ability: Sturdy
Nature:Brave
Move 1: Stone Edge
Move 2: Earthquake
Move 3: Explosion
Move 4: Heavy Slam
Evs: 252 HP/252 Atk/4 SpD
Gigalith is my physical sweeper on the trick room team. My main question about this move set is whether more experienced players think stone edge should be replaced with rock blast. When testing out my team, there was a time when Gigalith was my last pokemon standing against an opponent with only a fire type pokemon left, and the other pokemon kept on using a combination of substitute, protect, and leftovers to beat me. I know that rock blast can break through substitutes such as that one- however, stone edge offers more dependable power, and there were multiple times when I could OHKO Abomasnows with it before the opponent could do any sort of mega-evolved damage.
Carracosta
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Solid Rock
Nature: Brave
Move 1: Stealth Rock
Move 2: Waterfall
Move 3: Earthquake
Move 4: Ice Beam
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 SpA
Carracosta offers bulky mixed sweeping for a trick room team. Also, it can lay stealth rocks- there have even been some times when, in team preview, I noticed my opponent had multiple super-slow pokemon (such as Escavalier), and decided to lead with Carracosta setting stealth rocks, so as not to give my opponent help with that.
Throh
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Guts
Nature: Sassy
Move 1: Superpower
Move 2: Circle Throw
Move 3: Stone Edge
Move 4: Rest
Evs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SpD
Throh offers some strong fighting-type coverage for a trick room team, and also acts as a pseudo-hazer through Circle Throw if the opponent has been stat boosting their pokemon. The move slot occupied by Superpower had previously been held by Bulk up, but Throh kept on fainting before it could sweep, and I needed a better fighting move than Circle Throw, so I chose Superpower. Since this is a trick room team, there was going to be plenty of switching, anyway. The only reason I dared to put Rest on this set was because Granbull has Heal Bell.
Granbull
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Relaxed
Move 1: Roar
Move 2: Toxic
Move 3: Heal Bell
Move 4: Play Rough
Evs: 252 HP/4 Atk/252 Def
Granbull offers my team support. Initially, I had been nervous about only having a single attacking move, and the move slot occupied by Roar had been held by Fire Punch. However, there were multiple psychic-type pokemon that boosted their stats which Throh couldn't use Circle Throw to pseudo-haze, and so I switched the move to Roar. Granbull's Toxic and Heal Bell support help the team, and Play Rough is strong STAB for a physical attacker.
Now that I have shown the team I'm using, I'm hoping that some veteran Smogon players will be able to give me some advice about what I need to change.
First off, my trick room team has two pokemon knowing trick room:
Bronzong
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Quiet
Move 1: Trick Room
Move 2: Shadow Ball
Move 3: Earthquake
Move 4: Psychic
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 SpA
Bronzong tends to be my lead. It has good physical and special defense, so it can usually take a hit and set up trick room without too much of a problem. I think that the other three moves offer decent coverage- with psychic, of course, being the obligatory STAB. Leftovers helps Bronzong to survive- after all, I don't want my trick room setters to be fainted early on.
Exeggutor
Item: Sitrus Berry
Ability: Harvest
Nature: Quiet
Move 1: Trick Room
Move 2: Giga Drain
Move 3: Sludge Bomb
Move 4: Ancient Power
EVs: 244 HP/12 Def/252 SpA
This isn't what Exeggutor's original move set had been before I tested the team. When I first tested the team, Sludge Bomb's slot had been occupied by Psyshock. However, there were two battles in a row in which I was walled by Tangrowth and beaten by the enemy team, and I quickly realized that the only pokemon on my team with a move super effective against grass was Carracosta. I looked up Tangrowth's stats and realized it was a physical wall, so I decided to give the move to fix my problem to a special attacker which resisted grass. I had originally planned on giving Exeggutor hidden power bug, but when I played actual battles the hidden power type kept on coming out different, so I then gave it Sludge Bomb instead.
The combination of Sitrus Berry with Harvest and the move Giga Drain seem to make Exeggutor an effective tank. Not only can I use it to set up trick room, but it can hold its own as a special attacker as well.
As for the other four members of my team:
Gigalith
Item: life orb
Ability: Sturdy
Nature:Brave
Move 1: Stone Edge
Move 2: Earthquake
Move 3: Explosion
Move 4: Heavy Slam
Evs: 252 HP/252 Atk/4 SpD
Gigalith is my physical sweeper on the trick room team. My main question about this move set is whether more experienced players think stone edge should be replaced with rock blast. When testing out my team, there was a time when Gigalith was my last pokemon standing against an opponent with only a fire type pokemon left, and the other pokemon kept on using a combination of substitute, protect, and leftovers to beat me. I know that rock blast can break through substitutes such as that one- however, stone edge offers more dependable power, and there were multiple times when I could OHKO Abomasnows with it before the opponent could do any sort of mega-evolved damage.
Carracosta
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Solid Rock
Nature: Brave
Move 1: Stealth Rock
Move 2: Waterfall
Move 3: Earthquake
Move 4: Ice Beam
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 SpA
Carracosta offers bulky mixed sweeping for a trick room team. Also, it can lay stealth rocks- there have even been some times when, in team preview, I noticed my opponent had multiple super-slow pokemon (such as Escavalier), and decided to lead with Carracosta setting stealth rocks, so as not to give my opponent help with that.
Throh
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Guts
Nature: Sassy
Move 1: Superpower
Move 2: Circle Throw
Move 3: Stone Edge
Move 4: Rest
Evs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SpD
Throh offers some strong fighting-type coverage for a trick room team, and also acts as a pseudo-hazer through Circle Throw if the opponent has been stat boosting their pokemon. The move slot occupied by Superpower had previously been held by Bulk up, but Throh kept on fainting before it could sweep, and I needed a better fighting move than Circle Throw, so I chose Superpower. Since this is a trick room team, there was going to be plenty of switching, anyway. The only reason I dared to put Rest on this set was because Granbull has Heal Bell.
Granbull
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Relaxed
Move 1: Roar
Move 2: Toxic
Move 3: Heal Bell
Move 4: Play Rough
Evs: 252 HP/4 Atk/252 Def
Granbull offers my team support. Initially, I had been nervous about only having a single attacking move, and the move slot occupied by Roar had been held by Fire Punch. However, there were multiple psychic-type pokemon that boosted their stats which Throh couldn't use Circle Throw to pseudo-haze, and so I switched the move to Roar. Granbull's Toxic and Heal Bell support help the team, and Play Rough is strong STAB for a physical attacker.
Now that I have shown the team I'm using, I'm hoping that some veteran Smogon players will be able to give me some advice about what I need to change.