So Many Choices...

Electrolyte

Wouldn't Wanna Know
is a Top Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus

BW2 is here, and what better way to test out the new meta-game than to make an unusual team? This is my first RMT, though I have been around on the forums for a long time and have quite a lot of experience battling. Not so long ago, a friend of mine challenged me to make a team full of choice users- that's right, not one of my pokemon are allowed to have an item other than a choice scarf, choice band, or choice specs. That means that there will always be threats that counter some, or even most of my team. My goal is not to make a solid full fledged team, because I know you can only go so far with a team of 6 choicers, but I want my team to be able to cover as much as possible. Here's where you guys come in!
Meet the team:

As you can see, I went with a standard rain team, with Volt-turn as a core, because hit+run is probably the best strategy for a team like this. This team works well despite it's 'disadvantage'- I reached a ranking of 1730 on the OU PS ladder. Latios and Rotom-W can Trick away their items and cripple walls that bother me, though this tactic does not fare as well against people that are experienced battlers.

THE TEAM:


Politoed @ Choice Scarf
Timid Nature (+ Spe, -Atk)
252 Sp Atk, 4 Sp Def, 252 Spe
~Hydro Pump
~Focus Blast
~Perish Song
~Ice Beam
Some people think that Politoed is useless for things other than setting up rain. I disagree. Slapping on a Choice Scarf, Politoed becomes a great revenge killer, and though it only tops 262 Speed as a max, he still barely outspeeds a large portion of the metagame- 32 EV+Bold Wish CM Jirachi and 72 EV SubStall Gliscor to name a few. Rain boosted Hydro Pump deals massive damage to anything that doesn't resist it; it does 90-110% to Physically Defensive Skarmory and 92-108% to Specs Tornadus. Ice beam OHKO's Salamence, Gliscor, and deals 50% to Multiscale Dragonite. Focus Blast hits steel types hard, dealing 44-52% to Standard Ferrothorn. Hidden Power Grass rounds off but hitting Jellicent, but it's rarely used because Jellicent is easily handled by other team members.


Thundurus-Therian @ Choice Specs
Timid Nature
4 HP, 252 Sp Atk, 252 Spe
~Thunder
~Volt Switch
~Focus Blast
~Hidden Power Ice
Thundurus-T is a great rain sweeper, firing Specs boosted Thunders just like he did in BW1, this time with much greater power. His ability is great too, as it helps the team cover its other-wise troubling electric weakness. Volt Switch is to keep momentum on my side, and Focus Blast is to hit steel types. Hidden Power Ice is to hit other Thundurus-T switch ins for 75% damage.


Rotom-W @ Choice Scarf
Timid Nature
4 HP, 252 Sp Atk, 252 Spe
~Volt Switch
~Thunder
~Trick
~Hydro Pump
Rotom-W is my lead, though I don't put him in the front of the list. Many people assume that weather players will always lead with their weather inducer, and they will throw in a counter to Politoed (such as Amoonguss). I start with Rotom-W and Trick the counter a Scarf, crippling it for the rest of the match and opening up room for Thundy and Latios. If I don't face a wall, I just Volt Switch out to a proper counter. Thunder and Hydro Pump are the main STABs, each hitting different targets but dealing massive damage either way. Rotom's trick is very essential to this team, because it helps against stall, which would otherwise Protect me to death while I fruitlessly try to Volt Switch out.


Scizor @ Choice Band
Adamant Nature
248 HP, 252 Atk, 8 Sp Def
~Bullet Punch
~U-turn/Bug Bite?
~Pursuit
~Superpower
The only physical attacker on the team, but he sure can hold his place. He is the second revenge killer of the team, hitting boosted foes with Bullet Punch and eliminating them. With U-turn, he completes the switching core, and with Pursuit, he can play endless mindgames with psychic types that give me trouble. Superpower is for hitting the ever rare Magnezone, which I have not encountered as much. Scizor's typing is great too, allowing it to tank many hits for its frailer team members.


Keldeo-R @ Choice Specs
Timid Nature
4 HP, 252 Sp Atk, 252 Spe
~Hydro Pump
~Secret Sword
~Hidden power Ghost
~Icy Wind
A valuable member of the team; this death pony usually comes in late-game and sweeps for the win. With specs, this cute little guy transforms into a hard hitting tank, scoring many kills with its Specs boosted, STAB boosted, and Rain boosted Hydro Pump, which is the strongest attack on my team. Secret Sword is another thing that makes this pony so great; it OHKO's Blissey and Chansey, clearing the way for Latios and Thundy. Hidden power Ghost is used to hit Jellicent and Latias, though it doesn't do much damage. The last move is focus blast- I use it if a want a bit more power, but its miss factor is really annoying. I'm sure all of you can connect to that.


Latios @ Choice Specs
Timid Nature (+Spe -Atk)
4 HP, 252 Sp Atk, 252 Spe
~Draco Meteor
~Surf
~Psyshock
~Trick
The final member of the team, Latios is my Kamikaze. It switches in, fires a Specs boosted Draco Meteor or Surf, and just stays in until it dies or until I think it's done enough damage. Psyshock hits Blissey and Chansey hard, though it doesn't OHKO like Secret Sword does. Trick cripples steel type switch-ins, because I don't have HP fire and nothing will even scarf them. Once Latios's Specs have been Tricked away, I play him much more conservitavely, holding off Draco Meteor until I have to use it and spamming Surf and Psyshock much more. As a Dragon type, his numerous resistances also helps the team tank hits.


COUNTERS:
~Jirachi. No, not the paraflincher that most people are afraid of, but the SubCM set. At +2, it takes almost nothing from anybody, and I can't trick it because it's usually behind a substitute.
~Volcorona. Quiver Dance shits all over me, especially because it outspeeds my whole entire team at +1. Keldeo can kind of handle it, but if it gets too many boosts I'm dead.
~Amoonguss. It tanks hits so well, and unless I Trick it something, it can wall my team to no end. Can't believe it's not OU.
~Jolteon. It outspeeds my team, and can selectively KO every single one of them with Thunder or HP Ice.
~Set up sweepers in general. My plan of attack for these pokemon are to either Trick them something or eliminate them before they set up too much. Scizor helps a lot, but without Scizor I don't function too well against these guys.
~Hazards. This one is so-so, it's a bit annoying but doesn't really alter my matches that much (mainly because not many people use them anymore). I don't have a spinner, and I frequently switch out, so I start to rack on a ton of damage after a while.

IDEAS:
~I would like to not use rain. Someone on PS suggested Sand for me, and I haven't tried it yet. I prefer not to use weather in general, but it seems as if it's a must for this team.
~Volt-Turn I would also like to ditch. It's such an effective strategy for this team, but I still hate it. It makes me so weak to stall teams.

TESTING
~Specs Starmie
~Banded Mamoswine
~Specs Jolteon


So there you have it. That's my team. I know it's not perfect, so I'm asking you guys for your opinions. Please, try to give suggested pokemon a choice item. If it doesn't have one, I most likely will not use that suggested pokemon. Thanks for reading!

Please, try out the team!
EXPORTABLE
Politoed @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SAtk
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Thundurus-Therian @ Choice Specs
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Rotom-Wash @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Spd / 0 Atk
- Trick
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Hydro Pump

Scizor @ Choice Band
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SDef
Adamant Nature
IVs: 0 SAtk
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Superpower

Keldeo-Resolution @ Choice Specs
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 30 Def / 30 SDef / 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ghost]
- Focus Blast

Latios @ Choice Specs
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Surf
- Trick
- Psyshock
 

Trinitrotoluene

young ☆nd foolish
is a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
Hey Electrolyte. This is a great team, and I'm surprised that it hasn't accrued more rates than it currently has. Now, to deal with your main issues: hazards (both your lack of hazard setters and removers) and Volcarona. Latios seems to be the least-needed member of the team, especially considering that you have Keldeo and Thundurus-T for Specs attacking and Rotom-W to revenge-kill Keldeo that try to move through your team. To fix up those two problems, I'd recommend the use of Mamoswine over Latios, due to the fact that it can lay Stealth Rock down and threaten Volcarona fairly easily with a powerful Earthquake, all while providing another source of priority, which is essential in dealing with the powerful, speedy threats that OU has to offer. Thanks to Thick Fat and the rain, it actually has a pseudo-resistance to Fire-type attacks, making it all the more solid as a solution for dealing with Volcarona and Jolteon. It also deals spectacularly with Amoonguss, another problem your team has, thanks to its powerful Ice STAB. For a Rapid Spinner, I'd go with that Specs Starmie you've listed out, preferably over your Thundurus-T, seeing how Mamoswine can cover the Electric weakness your team has. Other than that, I can't really recommend much else.

Sets:

Mamoswine (M) @ Life Orb | Thick Fat
Adamant Nature | 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Ice Shard | Icicle Crash | Earthquake | Stealth Rock



Starmie @ Choice Specs | Natural Cure
Timid Nature | 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Surf | Rapid Spin | Trick | Psyshock


Nitpicks:
---->

Latios ----> Mamoswine


----------->

Thundurus-T ---> Starmie


These sets can help you depart from VoltTurn, and they're all powerful in their own right. Mamoswine was explained earlier, so I'll take some time to explain Starmie. Surf is Starmie's most powerful STAB move, and it's also boosted by the rain, giving it an incredible amount of power. Rapid Spin is Rapid Spin, and Trick helps ruin stall teams. Psyshock was chosen over moves like Thunder and Ice Beam because it gives you a reliable answer to Techniloom and Keldeo. Besides, Mamoswine and Rotom-W give you enough Ice and Electric coverage. With all that being said, good luck with your team!
 

Sayonara

don't forget
Hi!

Solid team, Electrolyte! On a team with 6 Choiced mons and no Rapid Spin user, I don't think you'd want a teammate weak to Stealth Rock (Thundurus-T). It's not too effective of a threat, as Stealth Rock makes it lose 25% of its health each time it switches-into Stealth Rock. That's why I would replace it for a faster guy, and that also has Volt Absorb as ability; a Choice Specs Jolteon. It's the naturally fastest OU mon (at the exception of Choiced Users), which allows it to outspeed more threats than Thundurus-T would (i.e. Latios, Terrakion, Starmie), and revenge-kill them with a Choice Specs Thunder, as well as not being weak to Stealth Rock. Hidden Power Ice is useful to beat Gliscor and Landorus, while Volt Switch allows you to scout, providing your team with offensive momentum, giving you an edge in matches. Shadow Ball hits Reuniclus, Gengar and Celebi hard, but it's just a coverage move. The EV spread maximize Special Attack and Speed, in order for Jolteon to be a reliable sweeper. The set can be found below. Cool team, and good luck!

Jolteon @ Choice Specs | Volt Absorb
Timid | 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
~ Thunder
~ Volt Switch
~ Shadow Ball
~ Hidden Power Ice
 
Im not great with offensive teams, but 2 things jumped out at me:

-use icy wind on Keldeo over focus blast, this eases prediction as you can fire off icy wind at a predicted faster threat, and proceed to 2HKO with icy wind, Lati@s and Tornadus-T are key examples
-perish song on Politoed over HP grass or focus blast, can help you take out something after a few boosts and force it switch or just die in the end game, could be very useful for Jirachi, Volc, and Keldeo

Something else to consider is bug bite > u-turn on scizor to help against CMjirachi, because with a little luck you actually have a chance to 2HKO it (the luck comes from not being parahaxed and confused to death). Although I am not sure its worth the loss of momentum.

I think mamoswine is a great choice as well since this team desperately needs rocks.
 

Shurtugal

The Enterpriser.
is a Tiering Contributor
Hey, this will probably be the laziest rate ever XD But I am typing at school, so please understand time is not on my side >:

Sun seems like such a problem. +2 Venusaur = gg for this team, as despite your choice users, you have only one priority user. Politoed is too weak to keep weather up for long against sun teams with Duggy and Magna Storm Tran. Suggesting you use Mamoswine of Latios, to help against sun (like the a rater above me suggested). Hazards seem like such a pain to deal with on choice offense, that pretty much going to second specs Starmie. Lastly, I would scarf Keldeo, for both a better revenge killer and a way to murder current HO teams, who can't do much but cry as Keldeo sweeps them flat.
 

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