Project USM RU Cores

[spookysocialist]

Can't believe no one has posted this yet so I guess I'll do it.

Offensive Core

Standard Sand Offense core, Gigalith provides rocks, toxics things and racks up passive damage to weaken for sweeps, and of course provides the sand that supports stoutland and reun. Stoutland uses the sand to become one fast doggo, outspeeding everything but the fastest scarfers and spamming CB return. Meanwhile, Reun is another sweeper immune to sand that loves a bit of extra passive damage sand gives, and it hits from the special side to crush the physical walls that wall stoutland. Also gives a switch in to choiced fighting attacks aimed at the other two.

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Gigalith @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 240 HP / 16 Def / 252 SpD /
Impish Nature
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock

Stoutland @ Choice Band
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Return
- Superpower
- Crunch
- Facade

All I Do Is Win (Reuniclus) @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Psychic
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast

The things that stop this core are tough steel types, mainly escavalier and doublade. So a good mon to use with this core is gligar, especially since it also forms a core with Gigalith, as Rider posted. Chesnaught can also be a good escavalier counter that also can lay spikes down to help stoutland and reun sweep. It can't do anything to doublade though, and can't use synthesis when paired with gigalith.


Also T E A M B L U E

 

[Natan]

The things that stop this core are tough steel types, mainly escavalier and doublade. So a good mon to use with this core is gligar, especially since it also forms a core with Gigalith, as Rider posted. Chesnaught can also be a good escavalier counter that also can lay spikes down to help stoutland and reun sweep. It can't do anything to doublade though, and can't use synthesis when paired with gigalith.

Just pointing out that FastTaunt Chesnaught help against Doublade with Taunt+Leech Seed

 

[Dharma]

(first ru post pls forgive)

Defensive Core

Sets

Jellicent @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 172 SpD / 84 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Toxic
- Recover
- Taunt

Chesnaught @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Leech Seed
- Drain Punch
- Synthesis
- Spiky Shield

Ditto @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Serious Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Transform

Description

This is a fun little defensive core that I like to use sometimes. Jellicent is an excellent special wall and has great type synergy with defensive Chesnaught. Jellicent is able to put a timer on other defensive or offensive mons alike with Toxic, while being able to fish for burns with Scald. Chesnaught on the other hand can force switches with Leech Seed, and can cause significant chip damage combined with Jellicent's Toxic. Spiky Shield allows it to stall out an extra turn of Leech Seed or Toxic, as well as to scout out incoming moves. Being a very passive core, it is prone to being set up fodder, which is where Ditto comes in, since its presence alone is enough to deter set up sweepers, and may act as a wincon after the opposing team has had enough chip damage dealt to it.

Edit: added 84 speed EVs on jellicent.

 

[MrAldo]

Looking good, just wanna point some things.

HNBL the core looks good but Ill like some sets to be optimized. Run 84 speed EVs for Jellicent to outspeed Mantine cause this core can be prone to it. Id push for the jellicent to be phys def but if spdef works for you I can get behind that. Good first post, welcome.

Rest of the cores have been added. Keep it up everyone, I appreciate it.

 

[Sam I Yam]

Here is a heavily Offensive Core that I have had success with.

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Set Importable

Froslass @ Focus Sash
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Spikes
- Icy Wind
- Will-O-Wisp / Destiny Bond

Doublade @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head
- Shadow Sneak
- Sacred Sword

Sharpedo @ Life Orb
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Psychic Fangs
- Protect

This commonly seen HO Archetype, is seen as an iconic template for fast paced teams. The dual ghost Hazard Setter + Spin Blocker + Cleaner can be seen replicated in OU, UU and other various tiers. Froslass as a dedicated lead can help prevent hazards being set against you with fast taunt, and also prevent the suicide rapid spin spam that is seen with blastoise, donphan etc. It is my unpopular opinion that Willow-Wisp is better than DBond since I have found people love to switch in their own doublade, or defensive pivots in to stall out predicted D-Bond turns, and being able to cripple them with burn early game is a huge advantage. Doublade as the obligatory 2nd ghost type's main function is to act as reliable spin blocker. Doublade is a great mon in it's own right but with spikes up from froslass to help wear down bulky waters/ground types, it can put huge pressure on the opponent by boosting it's attack or just acting as a pivot to fire off an iron head/sacred sword. Sharpedo is the ultimate RU late game cleaner with access to speed boost and enhanced coverage this gen thanks to Psychic Fangs. With the help of Froslass and Doublade keeping hazards up thru the game, Sharpedo can sometimes sweep entire teams if the right mons are worn down to appropriate percentages. Overall this is a very solid offensive core and is complimented by some of the best mons in the tier. Try it out and let me know how it works for ya.

 

[Punchshroom]

Venusaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Houndoom @ Psychium Z
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Dark Pulse
- Dream Eater

This is a highly unconventional Sun core I've been experimenting with, capitalizing on the fact that it makes it extremely difficult for Scarf Gardevoir to sweep the team, and each member can even attempt to switch into the right STAB and maintain offensive momentum. This core does more than just deter Scarf Gardevoir, however. As you can see, Houndoom is equipped with Z-Dream Eater, which allows it to utterly demolish Kommo-o and KO Dragalge after Stealth Rock damage with just +0 (unlike another potential lure in Z-Double-Edge Leafeon, which needs +2 Atk to accomplish the same feat), which is very good news for Venusaur. Even if the opponent happens to have a Kommo-o and a Diancie on the same team, the opponent would likely be much more wary about going into Diancie for fear of SolarBeam, not to mention Diancie risks giving Venusaur a setup opportunity anyway, and who would expect Z-Dream Eater? Finally, Houndoom is very capable of taking on Umbreon and Cresselia, which otherwise give Venusaur a rough time.

 

[cyanize]

Here to give this thread a bit more love :>

I've got a pretty solid Balanced Core involving two somewhat underrated mons in the meta rn, Diancie and Rotom-H.

candy kids (Diancie) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Clear Body
252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD (there was a better spread somewhere but i can't find it)
Sassy Nature
- Diamond Storm
- Moonblast
- Stealth Rock
- Heal Bell

no time (Rotom-H) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
252 HP / 108 SpD / 152 Spe OR 252 HP / 168 SpD / 88 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Overheat
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
- Pain Split

over it (Gligar) @ Eviolite
Ability: Sand Veil
252 HP / 244 Def / 12 Spe
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Defog
- Roost


Diancie is a very solid SR setter rn due to its unique set of resistances, solid bulk, and nice offensive presence (especially since diamond storm is really broken lol). However, it struggles quite a bit with quite a few common threats such as Nidoqueen, Shaymin, and Doublade as well as most Ground-types - which is where Rotom comes in. SDef Rotom handles the three aforementioned mons (bar the increasingly rare Sludge Wave Queen) with ease and can pivot on them or put a huge amount of damage of them. It also appreciates Diancie's Dragon resist in turn as Rotom often lets Dragons in mostly for free bar a status move, and likes that Diancie can heal off any poisons it may get. The first spread for Rotom lets it outspeed Adamant Hera and below, whereas the second is a bit slower, only outpacing max Modest Queen.
Gligar compliments the base core well as it provides a more sturdy Ground resist, a Fighting resist, auxiliary Steel stop, hazard control, and forms Volturn with Rotom, though it honestly isn't a necessary member.
Some of the resistsances of the core overlap, most notably on Bug, Flying, and Fire which may seem redundant but with so many threatening mons of each of these typings it's definitely not a bad thing to be too safe. Since all of the members of this core are weak to water, something that takes care of them on the side is appreciated - I've been liking Shaymin, which appreciates Rotom-H pivoting around and taking care of steels for it, and Taunt+Toxic Jellicent which beats all the relevant waters 1v1 and beats Salazzle which can be problematic if it sets up.

 

[MrAldo]

Some offensive cores to give this thread life

Offensive Core

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Sets

Dhelmise @ Choice Band
Ability: Steelworker
EVs: 48 HP / 252 Atk / 208 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Claw
- Power Whip
- Heavy Slam / Anchor Shot
- Earthquake / Rapid Spin

Moltres @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn
- Flamethrower
- Hurricane
- Fire Blast

Despite Dhelmise's controversial effectiveness as a spinner, it is actually an extremely fearsome wallbreaker that can be really difficult to switch into. Ghost + Grass makes for a good offensive STAB combination and if you combine that with its ability Steelworker alongside its coverage, it makes for an excellent punishing tool against defensive teams. Moltres takes advantage of Dhelmise's wallbreaking capabilities really well, since the Anchor thingy can destroy most of the stuff that would aim to check most Moltres sets, in this case scarf. To mention a few: Diancie, Cresselia, Rhyperior, Mantine, Umbreon, Slowking among others are all pressured really hard by Dhelmise while Moltres, with a scarf equipped, can pressure Ice-types like Mega Glalie and Sneasel, and other faster Grass-types like Roserade and Shaymin that Dhelmise could have a problem dealing with. Good pair tbh, earthquake is generally a filler on dhelmise so rapid spin could be run on the last slot imo, of course take into account the risks of getting looked into it.

Offensive Core

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Sets

Swellow @ Choice Specs
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn
- Hidden Power [Grass] / Air Slash
- Boomburst
- Heat Wave

Roserade @ Life Orb
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 29 HP / 0 Atk
- Sleep Powder / Spikes
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Sludge Bomb
- Leaf Storm

Offensive core with the emphasis of overwhelming common checks. We all know how effective Swellow is with its amazing speed tier, the gratuitous SpA buff gamefreak gave to it and scrappy boomburst being a great move to spam with like no drawbacks it makes for a really good Pokemon that is a nightmare for offense and can put in work against Defensive teams. Roserade is a rather underappreciated Pokemon, excellent Pokemon that doesnt see enough usage imo. It makes for a great partner cause it can beat the defensive Rock-types like Diancie and Gigalith hate dealing with, and both can aim to overwhelm steel-types in Doublade, Registeel and Bronzong and blanket special walls like Umbreon and Mantine. Roserade can also provide Spikes which in conjunction with Swellow can be a real pain. Gotta point that this core can fail to pressure spdef Cresselia so take that into account, shit is too bulky.

Will update the thread after this, thanks for your contributions everyone!

 

[sol]

eifo's Hazard Stack Core

Sets

Glalie-Mega @ Glalitite
Ability: Refrigerate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Double-Edge
- Freeze-Dry
- Spikes
- Ice Shard

Mismagius @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Nasty Plot
- Dazzling Gleam
- Taunt

Nidoqueen @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam
- Earth Power

"This is a core made for HO and Offense. Queen and M-Glalie beats all forms of removal in the tier, hence they work great as setters. Queen also beats most hazard setters available barring Zong and suicide leads. Missy spinblocks Cryo for days and prevents defog with taunt. Donphan/Dhelm has a hard time spinning vs HO due to how easily they're whittled, and will therefore typically only get the chance to spin once. To add to this Missy lives offensive Donphan’s knock, so the only remover left to worry about is Dhelm, which as insinuated before will get overwhelmed eventually. I could see mons such as Sharpedo and Autotomize Kommo-o greatly appreciating the support this core gives them, as its wallbreaking potential in tandem with the hazards wears down Kommo-o’s/Pedo’s checks, and thus makes their job of cleaning a lot easier."

Randomnick's core (toxic over heal bell on diancie)

Sets

Reuniclus @ Electrium Z
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Thunder
- Psyshock
- Calm Mind

Heracross @ Flame Orb
Ability: Guts
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Facade
- Knock Off
- Swords Dance

Diancie @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Moonblast
- Diamond Storm
- Toxic

This core work well because it can basically beat a lot of Pokémon in the tier. First Reuniclus, Calm Mind Reuniclus find a lot of space to set up in the tier, setting up in common Pokémon like Cresselia, Mantine and Milotic without Haze, Gligar, Registeel, Florges, Diancie and Bronzong, with Magic Guard to prevent Toxic and any passive damage being an awesome ability, also Gigavolt Havoc is awesome to threaten Water-types. SD Guts Heracross is an awesome Pokémon who can threaten the entire tier at +2, helping again with some Steel-types that Reuniclus would have some problem breaking (Knocking off Doublade's Eviolite), these 2 are awesome togheter. The third Pokémon is used to set Rocks and to have a way to take Special moves, also thanks to it's typing Diancie can take strong Fire- and Flying- moves. I recommend pairing this set a check to Doublade, even though Hera beats Doublade on 1v1 it will lose HP each turn, so a reliable way to stop these swords can help (like Mantine or Gligar who could Defog), also something able to check Durant like Defensive Nidoqueen (which could help with Toxic Spikes) or again Gligar or Mantine. I have been using this core and it worked really well.

I think I'll be doing these every 2 weeks if allowed.

 

[EonX]

Couple of neat cores I've been using lately:

Defensive Core

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Sets

Nidoqueen @ Black Sludge
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earth Power
- Ice Beam
- Poison Jab

Umbreon @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Heal Bell
- Foul Play
- Protect

Nidoqueen and Umbreon actually work quite well together as a defensive backbone for balance or bulky offense teams. Their typings mesh really well together as defensive Nidoqueen is a relatively reliable check to most Bug-, Fairy-, and Fighting-types while Umbreon is outright immune to Psychic moves while also checking most Grass- and Water-types that threaten Nidoqueen. Nidoqueen has really solid coverage that allows it to 2HKO most of what it hits for super effective damage. Poison Jab is used over Sludge Wave due to higher damage output against Florges and Comfey whom have higher Special Defense. It also hits Heracross for an easy 2HKO whereas Sludge Wave would never be able to 2HKO without some prior damage. Unfortunately, Nidoqueen needs a neutral Attack nature to guarantee the 2HKO on Florges with Poison Jab, but the loss in Speed generally doesn't hurt.
As for Umbreon, it's what you would expect out of a typical Umbreon. Typing is amazing and lets it check the likes of Roserade, opposing Nidoqueen, Sharpedo, and Bruxish. Wish and Heal Bell compliment Nidoqueen quite well as Queen lacks reliable recovery and dislikes burns nerfing Poison Jab's power. Foul Play punishes Araquanid, Escavalier, and Feraligatr if they try to switch in and, in the case of Escavalier, alleviates pressure on Nidoqueen to check it. Protect lets Umbreon scout and guarantee healing for itself, but it can be abused if used at the wrong time. This core obviously wants help against Feraligatr, so something like Chesnaught or Scarf Shaymin is worth a look to either check it or revenge kill it respectively. Bulky Psychic-type boosters are problematic as well, so a strong Bug- or Dark-type can be nice. Escavalier is most notable thanks to its ability to check Gardevoir, a more offensive Fairy-type Nidoqueen can't handle for Umbreon.

Other Options:

If a Steel-type is used with this core, then Nidoqueen can opt for Flamethrower over Poison Jab to smack around Escavalier and Heracross as well as OHKO Durant. Toxic Spikes over Stealth Rock is fine if another Stealth Rock user is present. Umbreon can use Toxic over Heal Bell if another cleric is present. Moonlight is an option over Protect if you want instant reliable healing for Umbreon. It will most notably let Umbreon survive much longer against sun teams.

Offensive Core

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Sets

Shaymin @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Seed Flare
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Healing Wish

Gardevoir @ Choice Specs
Ability: Trace
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Psyshock
- Focus Blast
- Shadow Ball

Like with many other top offensive cores right now, this core focuses on putting immense pressure on shared checks and counters. In the case of Gardevoir and Shaymin, this would mean Steel-types primarily. The great part about this core is that you can pull role reversal on them, thus making it harder for the opponent to play around them. Scarf Shaymin is a pretty underrated set right now as most people use it to wear down walls (for good reason) but base 100 Speed and access to Healing Wish is really neat. The added Speed most notably lets it revenge kill opposing Scarf Heracross. Seed Flare is still a pretty sketchy move to switch into due to the SpDef drop chance. Psychic is useful for the many Fighting-types in the tier and it also revenge kills Salazzle while dealing hefty damage to Roserade and Venusaur, two key targets that Earth Power can't hit for good damage. HP Ice is almost exclusively for DD Flygon, but it is one of the bigger reasons to use Scarf Shaymin over other Scarfers as they fail to outspeed it and fall to +1 Attacks pretty easily. Healing Wish gives Shaymin great late-game utility that lets it bring back a crippled sweeper or weakened wall for the end-game if Shaymin can't finish off the opposing team itself.
Specs Gardevoir just hits insanely hard. In the 40+ battles I've had with it, very rarely have I encountered a team with more than one reliable Fairy resist. With Offensive Nidoqueen and Doublade taking nearly 50% from Specs Moonblast, it's very easy to wear down resistances by yourself. Psyshock is used over Psychic so Gardevoir can come in on Florges and still 2HKO reliably bar Special Attack drops. Focus Blast allows Gardevoir to deal with Registeel and do some significant damage to Escavalier. Shadow Ball deals with Bronzong and smacks Doublade really hard while also hitting bulky Psychic-types slightly harder than Moonblast.

Other Options:

As mentioned earlier, Shaymin and Gardevoir can easily swap roles with Shaymin using its more common Life Orb set while Gardevoir uses its more common Scarf set. HP Fire is notable for Shaymin to revenge kill Durant, but it becomes less reliable against DD Flygon due to Seed Flare's lower accuracy and damage output. Psychic is an option on Gardevoir if you aren't worried about Florges and / or you want to always have a way to abuse Sheer Force after switching into Nidoqueen off of a KO or predicted entry hazard turn. Air Slash is an option over Psychic to increase Shaymin's performance against Heracross, but losing the ability to revenge kill Salazzle can be annoying. Trick can be useful on Gardevoir if either Focus Blast or Shadow Ball coverage isn't needed.

 

[TheHungrySnorlax]

This is my first post in this thread, so any advice is highly appreciated!

Defensive Core

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Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 248 HP / 152 Def / 108 SpD
Careful Nature
- Curse
- Earthquake
- Recover
- Toxic

Moltres @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 44 Def / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roost
- Flamethrower
- Air Slash/Toxic

Gastrodon, in my opinion, is quite an anti-meta pokemon due to the fact that it can set up curses against numerous foes such as Salazzle, Nidoqueen, Umbreon without toxic, scarf heracross, dragalge, and non SD-Feraligatr(most are dragon dance). It happens to have wonderful type synergy with moltres, being able to withstand water, rock, and electric moves aimed at moltres. Meanwhile, moltres takes grass type attacks for gastrodon, and provides a check to threats to defensively-inclined teams such as pangoro and flame orb heracross. The evs on gastrodon allow it to avoid the 2HKO from modest nidoqueen's earth power, adamant feraligatr's crunch(meaning, barring crits, you can setup alongside it), and scarf hera's close combat(after a curse boost), amongst other attacks. Toxic is there to catch things on the switch-in such as mantine and cresselia which otherwise wall this set.

252+ Atk Life Orb Sheer Force Feraligatr Crunch vs. 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 157-186 (36.9 - 43.7%) -- 99.7% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Life Orb Sheer Force Nidoqueen Earth Power vs. 248 HP / 108+ SpD Gastrodon: 179-212 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 214-253 (50.3 - 59.5%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Heracross Close Combat vs. +1 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 144-169 (33.8 - 39.7%) -- 25.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

This core is very weak to strong neutral special attacks such as swellow's boomburst, so the best options as teammates would be a stealth rock user such as diancie or bronzong(which provides a more sturdy nidoqueen check). Hazard removal is mandatory, as moltres's role is severely hampered each time it switches into stealth rock, so rapid spin users such as dhlemise, cryogonal, or donphan work well alongside this core(unfortunately, the best defog users stack weaknesses with this core). Finally, a cleric such as umbreon or florges is highly appreciated to remove status, pass wishes, and to provide an even greater defensive backbone against the likes of kommo-o and swellow. Thanks for reading! :)

 

[banks]

This is my first post in this thread, so any advice is highly appreciated!

Defensive Core

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Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 248 HP / 152 Def / 108 SpD
Careful Nature
- Curse
- Earthquake
- Recover
- Toxic

Moltres @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 44 Def / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roost
- Flamethrower
- Air Slash/Toxic

Gastrodon, in my opinion, is quite an anti-meta pokemon due to the fact that it can set up curses against numerous foes such as Salazzle, Nidoqueen, Umbreon without toxic, scarf heracross, dragalge, and non SD-Feraligatr(most are dragon dance). It happens to have wonderful type synergy with moltres, being able to withstand water, rock, and electric moves aimed at moltres. Meanwhile, moltres takes grass type attacks for gastrodon, and provides a check to threats to defensively-inclined teams such as pangoro and flame orb heracross. The evs on gastrodon allow it to avoid the 2HKO from modest nidoqueen's earth power, adamant feraligatr's crunch(meaning, barring crits, you can setup alongside it), and scarf hera's close combat(after a curse boost), amongst other attacks. Toxic is there to catch things on the switch-in such as mantine and cresselia which otherwise wall this set.

252+ Atk Life Orb Sheer Force Feraligatr Crunch vs. 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 157-186 (36.9 - 43.7%) -- 99.7% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Life Orb Sheer Force Nidoqueen Earth Power vs. 248 HP / 108+ SpD Gastrodon: 179-212 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 214-253 (50.3 - 59.5%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Heracross Close Combat vs. +1 248 HP / 152 Def Gastrodon: 144-169 (33.8 - 39.7%) -- 25.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

This core is very weak to strong neutral special attacks such as swellow's boomburst, so the best options as teammates would be a stealth rock user such as diancie or bronzong(which provides a more sturdy nidoqueen check). Hazard removal is mandatory, as moltres's role is severely hampered each time it switches into stealth rock, so rapid spin users such as dhlemise, cryogonal, or donphan work well alongside this core(unfortunately, the best defog users stack weaknesses with this core). Finally, a cleric such as umbreon or florges is highly appreciated to remove status, pass wishes, and to provide an even greater defensive backbone against the likes of kommo-o and swellow. Thanks for reading! :)

Just for future reference use theses sprites or from another generation, oh, and nice core ;))

 

[TheHungrySnorlax]

Thank you, also I was wondering where do you find the animated sprites? I can't seem to find them.

 

[banks]

Thank you, also I was wondering where's do you find the animated sprites? I can't seem to find them.

https://pldh.net/dex/sprites/gastrodon

If you just search up "_________ sprite" there should be a website called PLDH.net which gives you all the sprites that you can imagine ;))

 

[eifo]

Offensive Core

Qwilfish @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 216 Def / 40 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Scald
- Pain Split

Sharpedo @ Life Orb
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Waterfall
- Psychic Fangs
- Protect

Mismagius @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 8 Def / 248 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Nasty Plot
- Taunt
- Dazzling Gleam

I've used this core a lot, and it's been working wonders. Who knew Shark+spikes support+taunt spam would work... It's fairly self explanatory. Qwilfish whittles the opposing team down with spikes+helmet+pain split. Missy wallbreaks and functions as a spinblocker. Taunt prevents defog and recovery moves, so that the opposing walls are in range of Shark. Once everything is weakened enough (this is incredibly easy to accomplish, Shark's busted af lol), Shark cleans up. May do a bigger post about this later on where i go more into detail about the core (possibly an rmt), but right now i'm too worn out (yay, exam season). Anyways, get spikes, keep them there, whittle down whatever mon you need to, finish by clicking buttons with mr broken.

 

[NG Spencer]

Snorlax @ Choice Band
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 212 SpD / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Return
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Self-Destruct


Nidoqueen @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 176 HP / 252 SpA / 80 Spe
Modest Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earth Power
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt

These two mons work very well together, providing offensive presence while still retaining respectable bulk and offering utility for the rest of the team. Nidoqueen sets up rocks and switches into fighting types for snorlax, who easily handles ice types and can pursuit psychics that can give nidoqueen and other team members trouble. This core works well on more bulky offensive builds that want a good defensive backbone that can still apply offensive pressure.

 

[MrAldo]

Took quite some time but... THREAD UPDATED AND ARCHIVE UP TO DATE!

Thanks everyone for your contributions, really appreciate it.

 

[HotFuzzBall]

Core

Slowbro @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Scald
- Psyshock
- Slack Off

Registeel @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Seismic Toss
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
- Protect

Defensive Core

I've noticed that there are quite a lot of defensive / utility-centric Pokemon that are really viable in the RU tier, this did surprise me tbh... Anyways, this is similar to the infamous RegiMola core back in the ORAS days, except it is now RegiBro now that Alomomola is in UU. So this core is a very solid backbone for any semi-stall, full stall (haven't tried it out yet but, it looks like it'd work on paper), and balanced teams due to their synergy. These mons have really good type synergy since Registeel usually invites in mons like Moltres, Rhyperior, and Flygon which Slowbro can deal with. With Protect, Registeel can also make things more annoying against Choiced users such as Kommo-o and Gardevoir if they lock themselves into Focus Blast, which Slowbro can capitalize on to set up (or if they try some fancy prediction then Registeel can probably stay in). On the other hand, Slowbro invites in Pokemon like Doublade and Roserade which Registeel can deal with as well.

sharkmafia was the one who told me about this back in the early days of RU beta (around the beta tour) so yeah. (the core could also probably work with Slowking if you want something more specially defensive).

 

[Take Azelfie]

Two Balanced cores

EZ Slap

Rhyperior @ Icium Z / Leftovers
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 248 HP / 16 Atk / 244 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Rock Blast
- Ice Punch

Mantine @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
- Scald
- Roost
- Defog
- Toxic

This core is really flexible on its onto a lot of teams mainly because they both provide utility that you almost always want to have on your team. First and foremost they give a Stealth Rocker and a Defogger which is great. Second is that there typings pair extremely well together. Rhyperior can pivot into Volt Switchers and eat any Rock-type move while Mantine can Toxic bulky Waters or Scald Ground-types. Although this ckre has theyre fair share of weaknesses like Rotom-H and Heliolisk, it fits really well on balance teams and is a good backbone if you ask me.

I have a comfey fetish

Doublade @ Eviolite
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Atk / 96 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head
- Shadow Claw
- Shadow Sneak

Comfey @ Leftovers
Ability: Triage
EVs: 252 HP / 192 Def / 64 Spe
Bold Nature
- Draining Kiss
- Calm Mind
- Taunt
- Synthesis

The synergy between these two is pretty simple. Doublade covers Comfey's weaknesses and Comfey can set up on the Dark-types that try to kill it. The both also provide priority to your team adding some good revenge killers and handle Kommo-o pretty well. Although they struggle versus offensive Ground-types, Fires, and especially Sallazle so make sure to bring a good water-type to fight alongside this core.

 

[MrAldo]

This was pending

*Removed cores that had Nidoqueen. RIP.

 

[EonX]

Gonna add a couple of neat offensive cores:

+

Sets

Dragalge @ Dragonium Z
Ability: Adaptability
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 204 HP / 252 SpA / 52 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Sludge Wave
- Toxic Spikes
- Hidden Power [Fire] / Focus Blast

+

Sharpedo @ Life Orb
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 29 HP
- Waterfall
- Psychic Fangs
- Crunch
- Protect

With Nidoqueen gone, offensive teams aren't really going to be the same. However, Dragalge is here to at least put intense pressure on hazard removers while still maintaining some pressure on Steel-types and as a soft check to Heracross. Toxic Spikes seems like a weird option, but there aren't any Poison-types out there that really envy switching into Dragalge or Sharpedo. This also helps Sharpedo against fatter teams that have multiple Pokemon with reliable recovery moves as it helps to wear them down to the point where Sharpedo can cut through them. Draco Meteor and Sludge Wave are obvious STAB moves for Dragalge and they hit incredibly hard thanks to the Special Attack investment and Adaptability boosts. I prefer HP Fire as it smacks Doublade without having to lower Dragalge's Special Attack while also drilling Escavalier, both of which can bother specific variants of Sharpedo due to their bulk. Both variants of Sharpedo can work with Dragalge, but I do prefer the physical variant as Dragalge struggles in wearing down specially bulky Steel-types safely because Focus Blast is, well, Focus Blast. Physical variants of Sharpedo also are able to more easily punish common Poison-types for removing Dragalge's Toxic Spikes. Perhaps the best reason this core works well is due to Dragalge's ability to switch into most Pokemon that can either tank a hit from Sharpedo or hit it with priority while Dragalge can keep up the pressure on the opposing team. EVs on Dragalge outspeed base 50 Speed Pokemon which most notably includes Registeel.

Other Options

The most apparent is obviously using Sharpedo's special set, but considering Dragalge can wipe out most physical walls anyway, it's largely a change that's unnecessary. Dragalge can forego Toxic Spikes for a Choice Specs set to increase overall power, but Toxic Spikes really helps Sharpedo against fatter teams with the likes of Chesnaught, Umbreon, and Porygon2 as it typically struggles with these Pokemon due to their high bulk and, in the case of Umbreon and P2, their typing.

+

+

Sets

Torkoal @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Toxic
- Explosion

Charizard @ Choice Specs
Ability: Solar Power
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- Solar Beam
- Focus Blast
- Flamethrower

Leafeon @ Normalium Z
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Leaf Blade
- Knock Off
- Double-Edge

I'm kind of surprised this core hasn't been posted yet as it's one of the best sun cores you can utilize. Torkoal is obvious as its the best Drought user for Sun teams to use (Ninetales is more of a standalone wallbreaker) Torkoal's job is pretty basic. Set up the Sun and Stealth Rock for the team while spreading status when it comes in to check something. Explosion lets it go down late-game to get in Charizard or Leafeon to finish off the opposing team while also being a nice way to get a free switch on a threatening Pokemon you wouldn't switch into reliably otherwise. Charizard is the premier wallbreaker on Sun teams thanks to its access to Solar Power and a solid movepool. Fire Blast quite simply will nuke something upon impact. Even most resists without heavy SpDef investment are going to be 2HKOed thanks to the Solar Power and Choice Specs boosts. Solar Beam and Focus Blast are there to deal with the select few Pokemon that can handle Fire Blast with Focus Blast being most notable for catching an incoming Gigalith for heavy damage. Flamethrower is a reliable Fire-type STAB that Charizard can use when the extra power of Fire Blast isn't needed (such as against more offensive teams or teams without a bulky Fire resist) As for Leafeon, it's one of the biggest beneficiaries of Z-moves as they have allowed it to go from obscurity to becoming the 2nd best Chlorophyll sweeper the tier has to offer. Thanks to Leafeon's higher Speed tier over Venusaur, it can run an Adamant nature while still outpacing non-Scarf Gardevoir in spite of Trace. Leafeon's physical bulk lets it easily set up on the likes of Rhyperior, Gligar, and any un-boosted hit from Flame Orb Heracross. This physical bulk also makes it slightly harder to revenge kill with priority as most priority moves fall on the physical side. Leaf Blade and Knock Off give Leafeon pretty solid coverage overall and Double-Edge gives Leafeon access to an extremely powerful Breakneck Blitz that can allow it to overcome Grass-type resists that Knock Off can't quite overcome, most notably Heracross.

Other Options

The most notable is obviously using Venusaur over Leafeon as the Chlorophyll sweeper. While I feel Sun teams can't really afford to use 2 Chlorophyll abusers on one team, using Venusaur over Leafeon is perfectly plausible. However, the big difference is that Sun teams often-times can't fit in a reliable check to Gardevoir, especially Specs variants, and Leafeon always outspeeds it whereas Venusaur will only Speed tie Specs Gardevoir due to sharing the same base Speed. Charizard can opt for Dragon Pulse if luring in Goodra, Kommo-O, etc. is appealing to your team. This is more notable if Venusaur is used as Leafeon can use Breakneck Blitz to overcome these bulky Dragon-types.

 

[CawnShonnery]

My first core that I made for RU. (Balanced)

+

(+

)

Durant, being a powerful physical attacker, can threaten quite a few things in the metagame with its massive Hustle-boosted Attack stat - most notably outspeeding Guts Heracross and OHKOing with Iron Head, as well as being able to live a Close Combat from the Scarf Moxie set. However, physical walls like Doublade, and fast special attackers, can stop it in its tracks.
Enter Porygon2 - with its Download Ability, it gets a free +1 to its Special Attack when switching in on a Pokemon with higher Physical Defense. Holding an Eviolite boosts its 85/90/95 bulk to an effective 85/144/151. And with Normal/Ghost coverage in Tri Attack and Shadow Ball, its STAB is basically unresisted in the RU metagame.
However, passive Toxic damage shuts Porygon2 down cold. Enter Durant, who eats poison for breakfast. Fighting-types also hit Porygon2 super-effectively, and Durant can switch in on a physical attack quite well.

I know I'm not the best at teambuilding, but my experience shows that this core can be devastating on a bulky offense team.

After Ningildo pointed out weaknesses to Heracross and Salazzle, I put something that could deal with both of these threats - Jellicent. Although its stats aren't the best, it can deal with Hera (resisting STAB and 2HKOing with HP Flying) and force Sally out by resisting everything it runs.
I have not really used Jellicent with this core, but I have used it on other teams (most notably a webs team in the NU alpha), and it makes a good defensive wall.

Sets

Kevin (Durant) @ Choice Band
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- X-Scissor
- Crunch / Rock Slide / Stone Edge
- Superpower

Why was this in NU (Porygon2) @ Eviolite
Ability: Download
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Tri Attack
- Toxic
- Recover
- Shadow Ball

UNTESTED (Jellicent) @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Hidden Power Flying
- Recover
- Taunt

Other Options
Running Choice Scarf or a Hone Claws set on Durant over Choice Band is an option, if you want to gain speed or accuracy over instant raw power. Defensive investment on Porygon2 is an option if you want to make it even bulkier.

 

[Ningildo]

My first core that I made for RU. (Balanced)

+

Durant, being a powerful physical attacker, can threaten quite a few things in the metagame with its massive Hustle-boosted Attack stat - most notably outspeeding Guts Heracross and OHKOing with Iron Head, as well as being able to live a Close Combat from the Scarf Moxie set. However, physical walls like Doublade, and fast special attackers, can stop it in its tracks.
Enter Porygon2 - with its Download Ability, it gets a free +1 to its Special Attack when switching in on a Pokemon with higher Physical Defense. Holding an Eviolite boosts its 85/90/95 bulk to an effective 85/144/151. And with Normal/Ghost coverage in Tri Attack and Shadow Ball, its STAB is basically unresisted in the RU metagame.
However, passive Toxic damage shuts Porygon2 down cold. Enter Durant, who eats poison for breakfast. Fighting-types also hit Porygon2 super-effectively, and Durant can switch in on a physical attack quite well.

I know I'm not the best at teambuilding, but my experience shows that this core can be devastating on a bulky offense team.

Sets

Kevin (Durant) @ Choice Band
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- X-Scissor
- Crunch / Rock Slide / Stone Edge
- Superpower

Why was this in NU (Porygon2) @ Eviolite
Ability: Download
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Tri Attack
- Toxic
- Recover
- Shadow Ball

Other Options
Running Choice Scarf or a Hone Claws set on Durant over Choice Band is an option, if you want to gain speed or accuracy over instant raw power. Defensive investment on Porygon2 is an option if you want to make it even bulkier.

You might want to stress that an answer to Salazzle is needed, as +2 Acid Downpour OHKOs P2 after SR and Durant is obviously forced out, netting Salazzle the NP to get to +2 in the first place.

You also seem to be overstating how well Durant can deal with Hera (both variants) and tanking hits in general. Should Hera come in via U-turn or just switch in directly into P2, you're guaranteed to lose something if it's the Wallbreaker set or be in a rough spot should you lack a Download boost against the Scarf set. Wallbreaker post Flame Orb activation OHKOs both Durant and P2 with no prior damage, while Scarf 2HKOs Durant and P2 (and lives a Tri Attack at -1 Sp. Def, assuming you lack a boost) and outpaces Durant, meaning it dies the next turn if you switch it in.

P2 deals well enough with Doublade (taking only a moderate amount of damage from a boosted Iron Head and a +2 Sacred Sword not OHKOing even after SR, while outpacing and 2HKOing back with Shadow Ball), but Durant is too frail to consistently cover for P2's Fighting weakness.

Although, to be fair, this is just from a glance.

 

[CawnShonnery]

You might want to stress that an answer to Salazzle is needed, as +2 Acid Downpour OHKOs P2 after SR and Durant is obviously forced out, netting Salazzle the NP to get to +2 in the first place.

You also seem to be overstating how well Durant can deal with Hera (both variants) and tanking hits in general. Should Hera come in via U-turn or just switch in directly into P2, you're guaranteed to lose something if it's the Wallbreaker set or be in a rough spot should you lack a Download boost against the Scarf set. Wallbreaker post Flame Orb activation OHKOs both Durant and P2 with no prior damage, while Scarf 2HKOs Durant and P2 (and lives a Tri Attack at -1 Sp. Def, assuming you lack a boost) and outpaces Durant, meaning it dies the next turn if you switch it in.

P2 deals well enough with Doublade (taking only a moderate amount of damage from a boosted Iron Head and a +2 Sacred Sword not OHKOing even after SR, while outpacing and 2HKOing back with Shadow Ball), but Durant is too frail to consistently cover for P2's Fighting weakness.

Although, to be fair, this is just from a glance.

thanks for pointing this out. i will fix it to accommodate this.

 

[sketchy ecchi]

Offensive Core

Suicide Lead Froslass + Offensive Stealth Rock Mesprit + Sucker Punch & Pursuit Zoroark

This is a basic spike stack core, typically froslass teams would use Nidoqueen, but here that was obviously not an option so I went with an unfamiliar face, Mesprit. These types of teams typically run another ghost to help spinblock, in this role Doublade and Mismagius come to mind, as they benefit from hazards to support a sweep. Sharpedo is a common sight on spike stack teams for a good reason, the chip damage can turn 2hkos into a Ohko, a very important distinction for the glass cannon it is. Set-up sweepers (especially those that appreciate pursuit support from Zoroark) are the center pieces of spike stack teams, and should fill the final slots available. In this category Flygon, Feraligatr, Linoone, Salazzle, Durant, Virizion, Kommo-o and Bruxish all appreciate and take sufficient advantage of hazard support while keeping offensive pressure on the opponent which is critical in keeping hazards on the right side of the field.

Froslass Set

Froslass @ Focus Sash
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Spikes
- Icy Wind
- Destiny Bond

Froslass is the premier spike lead in RU and it functions effectively as a suicide lead thanks to its access to taunt and destiny bond along with its above-average speed. Its ghost typing prevents rapid spin kills and if preserved it can spinblock later in the game, if necessary. Froslass helps prevent stealth rocks which is always desirable, but especially so with the use of zoroark.

Mesprit Set

Mesprit @ Electrium Z
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder
- Ice Beam
- Healing Wish

Nidoqueens absence from RU has left the tier without any effective offensive stealth rock users. Consequently, I had to get creative to find a stealth rock user that could keep enough pressure on opposing teams to prevent hazard removal by defog or rapid spin and also magic bouncers. Gligar, Mantine, and Donphan and Xatu are the prevailing utilizers of such support roles and they are all quite susceptible to Mesprit’s bolt beam coverage which is complimented by a nice 105 special attack stat. Healing wish is an excellent support move and allows one to play more recklessly with sweepers usually preserved until late game.

Mesprit calcs

252 SpA Mesprit Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Eviolite Gligar: 320-380 (95.8 - 113.7%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Mesprit Gigavolt Havoc (185 BP) vs. 252 HP / 24+ SpD Mantine: 464-548 (124 - 146.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO (doesn't Ohko without electrium z)
252 SpA Mesprit Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Donphan: 256-302 (66.6 - 78.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Mesprit Gigavolt Havoc (185 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Xatu: 464-548 (138.9 - 164%) -- guaranteed OHKO (doesn't Ohko without electrium z)

Zoroark set

Zoroark @ Darkinium Z
Ability: Illusion
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Knock Off
- Pursuit
- Memento

Zoroark compliments Froslass and Mesprit by targeting magic bounce users Xatu and Espeon, with the help of the confusion of the illusion. Zoroark also supports froslass indirectly by incorporating a degree of uncertainty into the first turn match up scenario, and can some instances function as a lead itself. This set is slightly redundant with Mesprit’s as they both have z crystals and and a healing wish-type move. In Mesprit’s case holding a z crystal ables it to take less damage from knock offs, which it often faces from Donphan, allows it to get crucial Ohkos on Mantine and Xatu. Zoroark appreciates the flexibility it gets from having Darknium Z. It can choose the appropriate time when it needs the power boost, and having a mono-dark moveset can apply the positive effects to a variety of moves. Not to mention Life Orb can give away Zoroark’s identity after it takes damage. Z-Memento is a godsend for offensive teams and this is even more true for spike stacking since it’s all based around sweeping. Mesprit’s healing wish is slower and therefore more unreliable and it also doesn’t provide the same set-up opportunity that memento does.