Team at-a-glance:
I began with Swampert because I was interested in seeing how he worked in OU. I named him Shrek because Shrek is love, Shrek is life.
I added Magnezone immediately after because I knew Magnezone could handle a few threats to Swampert. Magnezone traps Ferrothorn and destroys it. That alone is often enough to let Swampert come in and wreak havoc on teams.
Mega Swampert needs rain. I could choose Rain Dance or Politoed. I chose Politoed. I was somewhat apprehensive picking something with such mediocre base stats; however, Politoed’s special bulk has surprised me and has effectively run a RestTalk set thus far.
Keldeo was added next. Why? Shrek needs Donkey on his team. Keldeo was a surprisingly strong compliment to Swampert because of its massive damage on the special end of the spectrum. Rain boosted Hydro Pumps often OHKO stuff that doesn’t resist it. I decided a Calm Mind set was a good secondary win condition.
In a team with no physical wall, no hazard support, and no phazing whatsoever, I had to look to Skarmory. Skarmory provides all of those things and manages to scare off some grass and fighting types with Brave Bird. I briefly considered Ferrothorn but I had a large weakness to fighting already.
I first tried a specially defensive Togekiss to act as a Defogger in my last slot. The shared weakness of Electric between Politoed, Skarmory, and Togekiss was a massive turn-off. Togekiss proved to be very frail in the first couple of games by getting destroyed by… just about everything. What was I thinking?
Still looking for Defog support, I thought back to Scizor. Scizor appreciates the rain because it allows him to survive certain Fire type attacks and get damage in or clean up hazards as needed.
Team Detail
Shrek (Swampert) @ Swampertite
Damp -> Swift Swim
Adamant Nature
252 Att, 152 Spe, 104 HP
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Power-up Punch
- Ice Punch
"This is MY swamp!"
Mega Swampert is a highly underrated threat and I think it, by itself, raises the value of rain teams in OU. Mega Swampert is a wrecking ball. Not much can wall it, but Mega Swampert is my win condition and I prioritize taking out anything that can wall it or revenge kill it. EV spread is just fast enough to outrun Mega Sceptile in rain. The small number of walls that can handle it are generally handled well by the rest of my team, but when I need huge physical firepower then Swampert does the job. I run Power-up Punch to get attack boosts on a predicted switch and then I decide whether or not a boosted attack will finish off the switch in.
Donkey (Keldeo) @ Life Orb
Justified
Timid Nature
252 SpA, 252 Spe, 4 SpD
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Icy Wind
- Calm Mind
"It's amazing what you've done with such a modest budget. I like that boulder. That is a NICE boulder."
I've never actually used Keldeo before. I've been pleasantly surprised with its performance! The Calm Mind set can boost on a predicted switch and potentially threaten switch ins with a Rain Boosted +1 Hydro Pump. Even those that resist it get pummeled. Keldeo does a fantastic job of defeating some of Swampert's common threats. Hydro Pump's poor accuracy can be a burden; however, Keldeo's sheer firepower with it is incredible. Keldeo's role is to scare off physical walls, deal damage to switch-ins, or set-up and sweep. It does all 3 fairly well.
Politoed @ Damp Rock
Drizzle
Calm Nature
252 HP, 252 SpD, 4 SpA
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
I wanted rain, and I got rain. I was reluctant to use a Pokemon with such lackluster base stats, but I managed to give it a useable niche. I use Politoed to absorb status and act as a buffer for incoming special attacks. It's surprisingly effective at forcing Rotom-W and Rotom-H to Volt Switch out without taking too much damage. Politoed's usable special bulk combined with a RestTalk set makes it excellent at absorbing status. Politoed's special bulk surprises me often. Politoed takes Grass Knots from Greninja without losing much HP at all. This being my only rain setter does pose a problem though. I can't get it in safely on physical attackers.
Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Magnet Pull
Timid Nature
252 SpA, 252 Spe, 4 Def
- Thunder
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power Fire
Magnezone is key to my team's success. I need to carefully analyze my opponent's team early in the game and figure out my priority. I need to make sure I don't set rain before trapping certain problematic Steel types like Scizor and Ferrothorn. I choose to run Thunder over Thunderbolt given that I am running a rain team and I value the moderate damage increase and significant chance of paralysis. Outside of rain it can be unreliable but I've found myself quite enjoying it for taking out certain bulky threats. Sometimes it can be difficult for my team to function around me trying to trap enemies with Magnezone. Rain isn't totally necessary, but is valuable in my team's proper function. Rain weakens HP Fire significantly. So far I've been able to play around not bringing in the rain when I need to trap Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress.
Scizor @ Leftovers
Technician
Adamant Nature
252 HP, 252 Att, 4 Def
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Defog
- Roost
Defog Scizor has been a gigantic blessing to this team. Scizor's priority is necessary for revenge-killing outside of rain. Scizor is exceptional at handling the rising popularity of Mega Diancie and handling the ever-present Sylveon. Knock-Off support has also been very useful for removing Shed Shells and Eviolites to make it easier to pick apart enemy teams. Scizor is also useful in taking out Tyranitar - rain even helps it survive variants that run Fire Blast. Scizor's role is to provide priority to remove severely weakened targets, repeatedly switch in to clear hazards, and remain reusable by using Roost to stay topped off.
Skarmory @ Shed Shell
Sturdy
Impish Nature
252 HP, 232 Def, 24 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Roar
- Brave Bird
Skarmory is my toughest physical defensive team member and my one hazard setter. Skarmory provides important phaze support that my team otherwise lacked. I need it to be able to come in on physically oriented foes that threaten to remove Swampert or Keldeo. The double resistance to Grass is very valuable for that reason. My lack of other strong physically defensive team members makes it hard to repeatedly switch into super effective physical hits or impressive STAB hits.
- Is it bad that my best answer to a physical wall is a physical wall? Chesnaught doesn’t have much problem dealing with any of my team members except for Skarmory. Magnezone’s Hidden Power Fire deals mediocre damage and Chesnaught can retaliate with Drain Punch. Skarmory threatens it with Brave Bird – but there’s a risk there if it gets caught in a Leech Seed on the switch and Brave Birds into a Spiky Shield.
– Mega Lopunny’s High Jump Kick tears holes into my team and does about half to my best physical wall. If rain is up Swampert can outspeed it and kill it at least.
/
– Their type coverage is strong enough to destroy my walls. I can revenge kill them if I get rain up at least.
– Sets with Grass Knot pull apart my team something fierce. Outspeeds my whole team out of the rain and threatens to kill every last one of them with any one of its possible moves. Sets without Grass Knot are a little easier to handle but are still problematic.
– Mega Slowbro can tank most of the toughest hits my team can dish out. It totally walls Swampert and Keldeo struggles to hit it hard without boosting. Magnezone can do some serious damage to it; but if it’s a Calm Mind variant then even Magnezone will have a hard time.
– If Politoed is gone this guy will take down the other 5 without breaking a sweat.
– Keldeo can do some pretty solid damage to it and play a Calm Mind arms race with it. If Keldeo is gone it will have no problem walling my entire team. Non-mega also threatens Swampert with a free burn.
The replays are actually pretty embarassing right now. Had a very nice win streak up until about 1350 then had some trouble managing my weaknesses. Looking to tweak my team to handle them better.
I began with Swampert because I was interested in seeing how he worked in OU. I named him Shrek because Shrek is love, Shrek is life.
I added Magnezone immediately after because I knew Magnezone could handle a few threats to Swampert. Magnezone traps Ferrothorn and destroys it. That alone is often enough to let Swampert come in and wreak havoc on teams.
Mega Swampert needs rain. I could choose Rain Dance or Politoed. I chose Politoed. I was somewhat apprehensive picking something with such mediocre base stats; however, Politoed’s special bulk has surprised me and has effectively run a RestTalk set thus far.
Keldeo was added next. Why? Shrek needs Donkey on his team. Keldeo was a surprisingly strong compliment to Swampert because of its massive damage on the special end of the spectrum. Rain boosted Hydro Pumps often OHKO stuff that doesn’t resist it. I decided a Calm Mind set was a good secondary win condition.
In a team with no physical wall, no hazard support, and no phazing whatsoever, I had to look to Skarmory. Skarmory provides all of those things and manages to scare off some grass and fighting types with Brave Bird. I briefly considered Ferrothorn but I had a large weakness to fighting already.
I first tried a specially defensive Togekiss to act as a Defogger in my last slot. The shared weakness of Electric between Politoed, Skarmory, and Togekiss was a massive turn-off. Togekiss proved to be very frail in the first couple of games by getting destroyed by… just about everything. What was I thinking?
Still looking for Defog support, I thought back to Scizor. Scizor appreciates the rain because it allows him to survive certain Fire type attacks and get damage in or clean up hazards as needed.
Team Detail
Shrek (Swampert) @ Swampertite
Damp -> Swift Swim
Adamant Nature
252 Att, 152 Spe, 104 HP
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Power-up Punch
- Ice Punch
"This is MY swamp!"
Mega Swampert is a highly underrated threat and I think it, by itself, raises the value of rain teams in OU. Mega Swampert is a wrecking ball. Not much can wall it, but Mega Swampert is my win condition and I prioritize taking out anything that can wall it or revenge kill it. EV spread is just fast enough to outrun Mega Sceptile in rain. The small number of walls that can handle it are generally handled well by the rest of my team, but when I need huge physical firepower then Swampert does the job. I run Power-up Punch to get attack boosts on a predicted switch and then I decide whether or not a boosted attack will finish off the switch in.
Donkey (Keldeo) @ Life Orb
Justified
Timid Nature
252 SpA, 252 Spe, 4 SpD
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Icy Wind
- Calm Mind
"It's amazing what you've done with such a modest budget. I like that boulder. That is a NICE boulder."
I've never actually used Keldeo before. I've been pleasantly surprised with its performance! The Calm Mind set can boost on a predicted switch and potentially threaten switch ins with a Rain Boosted +1 Hydro Pump. Even those that resist it get pummeled. Keldeo does a fantastic job of defeating some of Swampert's common threats. Hydro Pump's poor accuracy can be a burden; however, Keldeo's sheer firepower with it is incredible. Keldeo's role is to scare off physical walls, deal damage to switch-ins, or set-up and sweep. It does all 3 fairly well.
Politoed @ Damp Rock
Drizzle
Calm Nature
252 HP, 252 SpD, 4 SpA
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
I wanted rain, and I got rain. I was reluctant to use a Pokemon with such lackluster base stats, but I managed to give it a useable niche. I use Politoed to absorb status and act as a buffer for incoming special attacks. It's surprisingly effective at forcing Rotom-W and Rotom-H to Volt Switch out without taking too much damage. Politoed's usable special bulk combined with a RestTalk set makes it excellent at absorbing status. Politoed's special bulk surprises me often. Politoed takes Grass Knots from Greninja without losing much HP at all. This being my only rain setter does pose a problem though. I can't get it in safely on physical attackers.
Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Magnet Pull
Timid Nature
252 SpA, 252 Spe, 4 Def
- Thunder
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power Fire
Magnezone is key to my team's success. I need to carefully analyze my opponent's team early in the game and figure out my priority. I need to make sure I don't set rain before trapping certain problematic Steel types like Scizor and Ferrothorn. I choose to run Thunder over Thunderbolt given that I am running a rain team and I value the moderate damage increase and significant chance of paralysis. Outside of rain it can be unreliable but I've found myself quite enjoying it for taking out certain bulky threats. Sometimes it can be difficult for my team to function around me trying to trap enemies with Magnezone. Rain isn't totally necessary, but is valuable in my team's proper function. Rain weakens HP Fire significantly. So far I've been able to play around not bringing in the rain when I need to trap Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress.
Scizor @ Leftovers
Technician
Adamant Nature
252 HP, 252 Att, 4 Def
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Defog
- Roost
Defog Scizor has been a gigantic blessing to this team. Scizor's priority is necessary for revenge-killing outside of rain. Scizor is exceptional at handling the rising popularity of Mega Diancie and handling the ever-present Sylveon. Knock-Off support has also been very useful for removing Shed Shells and Eviolites to make it easier to pick apart enemy teams. Scizor is also useful in taking out Tyranitar - rain even helps it survive variants that run Fire Blast. Scizor's role is to provide priority to remove severely weakened targets, repeatedly switch in to clear hazards, and remain reusable by using Roost to stay topped off.
Skarmory @ Shed Shell
Sturdy
Impish Nature
252 HP, 232 Def, 24 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Roar
- Brave Bird
Skarmory is my toughest physical defensive team member and my one hazard setter. Skarmory provides important phaze support that my team otherwise lacked. I need it to be able to come in on physically oriented foes that threaten to remove Swampert or Keldeo. The double resistance to Grass is very valuable for that reason. My lack of other strong physically defensive team members makes it hard to repeatedly switch into super effective physical hits or impressive STAB hits.
- Horribly weak to strong Fighting types. I have no Fighting type resistance on my entire team.
- Horribly weak to status. Politoed can absorb status a few times but that’s all.
- Moderately weak to stall. I can wallbreak with rain boosted attacks but that stops as soon as a bulky water type is in my way.
- Moderately weak to huge special attacks. Politoed has reasonable special bulk but has no business switching into Draco Meteors.
- Horribly weak to status. Politoed can absorb status a few times but that’s all.
- Moderately weak to stall. I can wallbreak with rain boosted attacks but that stops as soon as a bulky water type is in my way.
- Moderately weak to huge special attacks. Politoed has reasonable special bulk but has no business switching into Draco Meteors.
- Run Toxic on Politoed? Maybe some gimmicky Whirlpool + Perish Song combo? I’m avoiding specs because that steps into Keldeo’s role.
- Diversify my team’s typing? I have 3 steel types and 3 water types. They work well together in the rain, but I worry that in higher levels of play that this is just unviable.
- Diversify my team’s typing? I have 3 steel types and 3 water types. They work well together in the rain, but I worry that in higher levels of play that this is just unviable.
- I'm trying my hardest to take advantage of my team at the team preview screen. I look at every possible opener they could do and weigh my best choices. I also take a look at their largest threats and assess how I should remove them.
- I need to figure out how to Mega Evolve Swampert earlier in my games. Sometimes I need that Swift Swim boost and he isn't mega yet. I'm not very good at finding openings.
- I need to learn how to predict, but not overpredict. Sometimes I switch something in and pick a move in anticipation of a switch, only to be wrong and get punished for it.
- I need to learn how to value different members of my team differently each game. Sometimes I sacrifice something only to realize I need it to handle a threat later on.
- I need to figure out how to Mega Evolve Swampert earlier in my games. Sometimes I need that Swift Swim boost and he isn't mega yet. I'm not very good at finding openings.
- I need to learn how to predict, but not overpredict. Sometimes I switch something in and pick a move in anticipation of a switch, only to be wrong and get punished for it.
- I need to learn how to value different members of my team differently each game. Sometimes I sacrifice something only to realize I need it to handle a threat later on.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/ou-194296702 (1332 rating)
Mega Swampert team vs. Mega Swampert team. I got caught by a surprise set on Dragonite. Swampert flexes its large muscles.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/ou-194299290 (1351 rating)
I learn a harsh lesson about my fighting type weakness and Hydro Pump's 80% accuracy.
Mega Swampert team vs. Mega Swampert team. I got caught by a surprise set on Dragonite. Swampert flexes its large muscles.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/ou-194299290 (1351 rating)
I learn a harsh lesson about my fighting type weakness and Hydro Pump's 80% accuracy.
The replays are actually pretty embarassing right now. Had a very nice win streak up until about 1350 then had some trouble managing my weaknesses. Looking to tweak my team to handle them better.
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