It's like you're always stuck in second gear
When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year...
Teambuilding Process
This team began with a trio: Mega-Gyarados, Belly Drum Azumarill and Klefki. The idea was simple: use Mega-Gyarados to punch holes in the opposing team, drawing out things like Rotom, Quagsire and Venusaur, in order to open things up for a Belly Drum sweep with Azumarill. Klefki was provided to give provide Spikes support to soften up Mega-Venu and friends, as well as screens to help Azumarill truck along.
From there, I wanted a way to remove entry hazards while keeping up offensive pressure on the opposing team. There was only one choice for that: Excadrill. Mold Breaker Excadrill is just insanely useful. I tried out a couple of versions here, but the one that stuck was Choice Scarf, as it provides a reliable check to Mega-Pinsir and Talonflame who want to come and ruin my fun.
Bisharp was an obvious choice at this point, thanks to his ability to just demolish most common defoggers who would ruin Klefki's day. A simple Swords Dance set tied things together nicely.
For the last slot, I experimented with all sorts of things. I knew I wanted yet another offensive choice here that could reliably check threats like Terrakion, Azumarill and Air Balloon Heatran, and prevent opposing set-up sweepers from taking me out. In the end, Techni-Breloom fit like a glove. It was surprisingly speedy, able to Spore an opposing Dragonite or Gyarados before it could set up, and its fast Mach Punch was often all it needed to clean up. I originally used a set with three attacks plus Spore, but once again I found that going all out with Swords Dance was the superior option.
So, I had a team. The addition of Breloom made the whole thing click nicely, and I had a lot of fun playing with this. However, for all that Breloom was great, its addition made my team even more vulnerable to Mega-Venu. Also, I was still pretty vulnerable to birdspam. Excadrill could usually check Mega-Pinsir or Talonflame, but would take heavy damage in doing so, and without Stealth Rock to discourage them from switching in and out, I had trouble.
Finally, after looking at my team, I decided that as sad as it was, the weak link was Azumarill. Most of my sweeps were coming from Excadrill, Breloom and Bisharp, while Azu mostly served to die to priority. So, back to the drawing board. In the end, I ended up replacing him with Dragonite. He was a powerful sweeper in his own right, and with Lum Berry, he could get reliably get a Dragon Dance up against Mega-Venu and deal ~80% with Outrage. Perhaps most importantly, he also had a powerful Extremespeed to keep Talonflame and Mega-Pinsir at bay.
This team began with a trio: Mega-Gyarados, Belly Drum Azumarill and Klefki. The idea was simple: use Mega-Gyarados to punch holes in the opposing team, drawing out things like Rotom, Quagsire and Venusaur, in order to open things up for a Belly Drum sweep with Azumarill. Klefki was provided to give provide Spikes support to soften up Mega-Venu and friends, as well as screens to help Azumarill truck along.
From there, I wanted a way to remove entry hazards while keeping up offensive pressure on the opposing team. There was only one choice for that: Excadrill. Mold Breaker Excadrill is just insanely useful. I tried out a couple of versions here, but the one that stuck was Choice Scarf, as it provides a reliable check to Mega-Pinsir and Talonflame who want to come and ruin my fun.
Bisharp was an obvious choice at this point, thanks to his ability to just demolish most common defoggers who would ruin Klefki's day. A simple Swords Dance set tied things together nicely.
For the last slot, I experimented with all sorts of things. I knew I wanted yet another offensive choice here that could reliably check threats like Terrakion, Azumarill and Air Balloon Heatran, and prevent opposing set-up sweepers from taking me out. In the end, Techni-Breloom fit like a glove. It was surprisingly speedy, able to Spore an opposing Dragonite or Gyarados before it could set up, and its fast Mach Punch was often all it needed to clean up. I originally used a set with three attacks plus Spore, but once again I found that going all out with Swords Dance was the superior option.
So, I had a team. The addition of Breloom made the whole thing click nicely, and I had a lot of fun playing with this. However, for all that Breloom was great, its addition made my team even more vulnerable to Mega-Venu. Also, I was still pretty vulnerable to birdspam. Excadrill could usually check Mega-Pinsir or Talonflame, but would take heavy damage in doing so, and without Stealth Rock to discourage them from switching in and out, I had trouble.
Finally, after looking at my team, I decided that as sad as it was, the weak link was Azumarill. Most of my sweeps were coming from Excadrill, Breloom and Bisharp, while Azu mostly served to die to priority. So, back to the drawing board. In the end, I ended up replacing him with Dragonite. He was a powerful sweeper in his own right, and with Lum Berry, he could get reliably get a Dragon Dance up against Mega-Venu and deal ~80% with Outrage. Perhaps most importantly, he also had a powerful Extremespeed to keep Talonflame and Mega-Pinsir at bay.
With that, I had a team I was finally happy with. Right now it's at 1714 on the ladder, and while it still has some issues, I'm confident that with a few tweaks, I can take it further. So, without further ado, I present the Super FRIENDS!
Rachel (Gyarados) @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Taunt
Mega-Gyarados, how I love thee, let me count the ways. Like her namesake, Rachel may seem egotistical at first, but she's really a team player! The goal of Gyarados here is rarely to sweep, but rather to force the opponent to bring out checks like Rotom-W, Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Unaware Quagsire and Mega-Venu early to take heavy damage. Depending on the team, I'll often lead with Gyarados, especially if it looks like my opponent plans to lead with something like Ferrothorn or Hippodown.
Taunt is pretty key here, since it's what allows Gyarados to set up on and take down guys like Ferrothorn and Clefable. I considered Ice Fang to take on Dragonite and Mega-Venu better, but every time I switched it out, I found myself wishing I could have Taunt back. Besides, bulky Mega-V doesn't like being Taunted and forced to rely on Giga Drain for healing.
EVs are standard; Adamant lets him best take advantage of that incredible attack (449 after evolving). I've considered going Jolly to outspeed Breloom before a dance, and Mega-Manectric after, but the power loss hurts too much.
The biggest question with Mega-Gyarados is when to evolve. In general, I almost never evolve her until I have need of Mold Breaker (ie, against Lati@s, Rotom or Quagsire), or if I need the increased defenses. Keeping her flying makes her easy to set up on enemies like Conkeldurr and Azumarill. In the end, even if Rachel doesn't close the game, she almost always steals your heart.
Ross (Dragonite) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Multiscale
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- ExtremeSpeed
What is Rachel without Ross? Ross is a bit of a geek, but behind that goofy face is one of the kindest hearts you'll ever find. Ross was one of my last additions to the team, and I still sometimes miss the old version (Belly Drum Azumarill), but Ross just fares much better against Mega-V, Talonflame and Mega-Pinsir. Having a powerful ExtremeSpeed has been a huge boon to the team, and often prevents opposing hyper-offensive teams from taking me out.
Lum Berry is more or less required, because without a Choice Band, Ross really needs a Dragon Dance under his belt to do significant damage to the enemies he's meant to check, and getting slapped with Sleep Powder or Will-o-Wisp while he boosts is just not an option. EVs are also standard; since he rarely uses anything but ExtremeSpeed if he doesn't have a Dragon Dance in, Adamant is fine here.
Phoebe (Breloom) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
- Spore
Phoebe seems like a gimmicky character at first, but she quickly became my favorite! This flower-child has done so much to help this team, it's hard to believe. Even unboosted, Technician Mach Punch hurts, and keeps enemies like Greninja, Tyranitar and Excadrill well at bay. She's fast enough to outspeed both Gyarados and Dragonite, and even most of its counters (at least, the ones not named Venusaur) hate switching in to this thing. The amount of damage a boosted Bullet Seed does to even a resisted enemy is incredibly impressive.
I toyed with three attacks plus Spore, but Rock Tomb really wasn't helping me with anything. I can't stay in versus Talonflame or Mega-Pinsir regardless, and catching them with a Spore on the switch is just as valuable as catching them with a Rock Tomb. If I've already got an enemy asleep, I usually just double-switch when I expect a bird to come in. On the other hand, Swords Dance lets me continue to keep up ridiculous pressure on the opposing team, forcing them to struggle to find a counter.
Jolly is a necessary evil, because Breloom really needs to outspeed Gyarados to do his job well. Even Jolly he's impressively strong. I've considered switching from Focus Sash to Life Orb, but I worry that the recoil will leave him vulnerable to Bullet Punches and Aqua Jets. Focus Sash also lets me lead with him against teams without a grass type to eat a Spore.
Joey (Klefki) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 152 Def / 104 SpD
Bold Nature
- Spikes
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Foul Play
Much like Phoebe, Joey seems like a guy you wouldn't have to take seriously. He's a bit of a joke, sure, but in truth he's the glue that holds the FRIENDS together. Without his feigned dumbness and dogged persistence, the sharp edges of Monica and Chandler would cut the group apart, and Ross and Rachel would never have found their way back together. Here, Joey provides the FRIENDS with the support they need to succeed!
Joey is my other common lead besides Rachel. Dual screens are an obvious choice here, making some of the bulkier offensive threats like Bisharp and Mega-Gyarados surprisingly hard to take down. Spikes are also essential, preventing stall teams from switching freely and drawing out defoggers for Bisharp to take advantage of. Joey's typing and the ability to almost always guarantee half damage is what really drives him - even Adamant Excadrill doesn't quite have a guaranteed 2HKO.
EVs were suggested by Smogon, and they've worked alright thus far. I originally had Bold and max Defense, but it's nice being able to take things like Lava Plumes after a Light Screen. Foul Play is to take advantage of enemies who think they can set up, and it's a great move in general against some of Klefki's most common switch-ins - it deals more than 50% to Adamant Excadrill, for example. I've toyed around with Dazzling Gleam in its place, mostly because opposing Brelooms are a pain to deal with, but Joey's uninvested SpAtt just doesn't cut it.
I've also considered replacing Klefki with another dual screen user, preferably one that gets Stealth Rock to help keep birds at bay, but every other option I've tried out (Clefable, Diancie, Azelf) just can't compare with the typing and ability of Klefki.
Monica (Excadrill) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin
Everyone knows that Monica is basically the mother hen of the group. She can be sharp-tongued, even with her friends, but she would jump in front of a bus to protect them.
Honestly, it's easy to look at this set and think of Monica as a spinner, but it's pretty rare that she actually bothers to spin. Instead, she spams Mold Breaker earthquakes and iron heads off of that incredible 403 Attack stat of hers. The list of things she checks is ridiculously high, and includes Talonflame, Mega-Pinsir, Greninja, Rotom and more. In many ways, the job of the sweepers on the team is not actually to sweep, but to soften them up enough that Monica can come in and clean things up.
That said, Rapid Spin support IS important, and it's nice to be able to do things like preserve Phoebe's focus sash or Ross' multiscale. The main question is whether she can do it without relaxing the offensive pressure on the opposing team. If the answer is no, then it's almost always advantageous to use her primarily as a revenge killer, check and late game cleaner rather than as a spinner.
Chandler (Bisharp) @ Black Glasses
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
Chandler's sarcasm can certainly be cutting, and without the rest of the FRIENDS to temper him, he'd almost be too much to bear. But there's a reason his best friend is Joey, who brings out the best in him while keeping him from getting too hurt! Bisharp + Klefki is really a pretty amazing combination. Chandler actually has decent bulk, and with screens support can get a Swords Dance up pretty reliably. On the other side of the coin, Chandler's Defiant nature keeps opposing teams from blowing away Joey's spikes and screens.
This set isn't fancy, and doesn't really need to be. Sucker Punch is a must, and with a Swords Dance, KOs just about anything that doesn't resist it. Knock Off is deadly enough to force enemies to stay in and attack, because no one wants to take a boosted Knock Off on the switch. I don't actually use Iron Head all that often, but without it, Chandler would be walled by things like Clefable. That said, I've considered dropping it for Stealth Rock, to further discourage birdspam.
I had Life Orb originally, but Chandler ended up becoming one of my main end-game sweepers, and Life Orb left him too vulnerable to things like Brave Bird. Black Glasses have been doing alright in their place, although I miss the guaranteed OHKO of Spikes + Iron Head against Unaware Clefable that Life Orb provided. Without LO, Iron Head actually maxes out at 73.6% against max defense Clefable, which might mean eating a flamethrower for poor Chandler...
I toyed with three attacks plus Spore, but Rock Tomb really wasn't helping me with anything. I can't stay in versus Talonflame or Mega-Pinsir regardless, and catching them with a Spore on the switch is just as valuable as catching them with a Rock Tomb. If I've already got an enemy asleep, I usually just double-switch when I expect a bird to come in. On the other hand, Swords Dance lets me continue to keep up ridiculous pressure on the opposing team, forcing them to struggle to find a counter.
Jolly is a necessary evil, because Breloom really needs to outspeed Gyarados to do his job well. Even Jolly he's impressively strong. I've considered switching from Focus Sash to Life Orb, but I worry that the recoil will leave him vulnerable to Bullet Punches and Aqua Jets. Focus Sash also lets me lead with him against teams without a grass type to eat a Spore.
Joey (Klefki) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 152 Def / 104 SpD
Bold Nature
- Spikes
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Foul Play
Much like Phoebe, Joey seems like a guy you wouldn't have to take seriously. He's a bit of a joke, sure, but in truth he's the glue that holds the FRIENDS together. Without his feigned dumbness and dogged persistence, the sharp edges of Monica and Chandler would cut the group apart, and Ross and Rachel would never have found their way back together. Here, Joey provides the FRIENDS with the support they need to succeed!
Joey is my other common lead besides Rachel. Dual screens are an obvious choice here, making some of the bulkier offensive threats like Bisharp and Mega-Gyarados surprisingly hard to take down. Spikes are also essential, preventing stall teams from switching freely and drawing out defoggers for Bisharp to take advantage of. Joey's typing and the ability to almost always guarantee half damage is what really drives him - even Adamant Excadrill doesn't quite have a guaranteed 2HKO.
EVs were suggested by Smogon, and they've worked alright thus far. I originally had Bold and max Defense, but it's nice being able to take things like Lava Plumes after a Light Screen. Foul Play is to take advantage of enemies who think they can set up, and it's a great move in general against some of Klefki's most common switch-ins - it deals more than 50% to Adamant Excadrill, for example. I've toyed around with Dazzling Gleam in its place, mostly because opposing Brelooms are a pain to deal with, but Joey's uninvested SpAtt just doesn't cut it.
I've also considered replacing Klefki with another dual screen user, preferably one that gets Stealth Rock to help keep birds at bay, but every other option I've tried out (Clefable, Diancie, Azelf) just can't compare with the typing and ability of Klefki.
Monica (Excadrill) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin
Everyone knows that Monica is basically the mother hen of the group. She can be sharp-tongued, even with her friends, but she would jump in front of a bus to protect them.
Honestly, it's easy to look at this set and think of Monica as a spinner, but it's pretty rare that she actually bothers to spin. Instead, she spams Mold Breaker earthquakes and iron heads off of that incredible 403 Attack stat of hers. The list of things she checks is ridiculously high, and includes Talonflame, Mega-Pinsir, Greninja, Rotom and more. In many ways, the job of the sweepers on the team is not actually to sweep, but to soften them up enough that Monica can come in and clean things up.
That said, Rapid Spin support IS important, and it's nice to be able to do things like preserve Phoebe's focus sash or Ross' multiscale. The main question is whether she can do it without relaxing the offensive pressure on the opposing team. If the answer is no, then it's almost always advantageous to use her primarily as a revenge killer, check and late game cleaner rather than as a spinner.
Chandler (Bisharp) @ Black Glasses
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
Chandler's sarcasm can certainly be cutting, and without the rest of the FRIENDS to temper him, he'd almost be too much to bear. But there's a reason his best friend is Joey, who brings out the best in him while keeping him from getting too hurt! Bisharp + Klefki is really a pretty amazing combination. Chandler actually has decent bulk, and with screens support can get a Swords Dance up pretty reliably. On the other side of the coin, Chandler's Defiant nature keeps opposing teams from blowing away Joey's spikes and screens.
This set isn't fancy, and doesn't really need to be. Sucker Punch is a must, and with a Swords Dance, KOs just about anything that doesn't resist it. Knock Off is deadly enough to force enemies to stay in and attack, because no one wants to take a boosted Knock Off on the switch. I don't actually use Iron Head all that often, but without it, Chandler would be walled by things like Clefable. That said, I've considered dropping it for Stealth Rock, to further discourage birdspam.
I had Life Orb originally, but Chandler ended up becoming one of my main end-game sweepers, and Life Orb left him too vulnerable to things like Brave Bird. Black Glasses have been doing alright in their place, although I miss the guaranteed OHKO of Spikes + Iron Head against Unaware Clefable that Life Orb provided. Without LO, Iron Head actually maxes out at 73.6% against max defense Clefable, which might mean eating a flamethrower for poor Chandler...
So there you have it. I know there is still tweaking to do (that's why I've brought the team here), but I've been having a ton of fun with this team, and managed to surprise even opposing teams that seemed like they should hard counter me. The power of a boosted Breloom, Mega-Gyarados, Dragonite or Bisharp is enough to break through almost anything, as long as I don't lose momentum.
That said, I have been having trouble with a few threats....
BRELOOM. Oh goodness, I hate opposing brelooms. They are usually fast enough to outspeed Gyarados before a dance, and force me to scramble for an appropriate counter (which usually means sacrificing something to take a Spore and then taking at least one hit, often an annoying speed-dropping Rock Tomb). Remember how I said I can usually overwhelm most of my counters if I can manage to keep momentum? This guy. This guy usually kills my momentum. Late game I can often deal with him, especially if I haven't evolved Gyarados, but early game he is surprisingly tough.
MEGA-VENUSAUR. So, in general, I actually do alright here, despite having no direct counters. A boosted Earthquake or Outrage knocks down Mega-V pretty quickly, although it's rarely an OHKO (boosted Outrage after Spikes damage is my best shot at an OHKO, dealing 76-88%). However, a smart player with some clever switching can keep Mega-Venusaur healthy until later in the game, where she is a lot more difficult to deal with. If I try not to be too reckless with Gyarados and Dragonite I can often still win here, but it can be tough.
BIRDSPAM. I have a couple of solid checks to Talonflame and Mega-Pinsir, but the only thing that can comfortably switch in to a Brave Bird or Frustration is Klefki, who will get wrecked by Flare Blitz or Earthquake. Worst of all, without Stealth Rock, they can usually just switch around to avoid getting checked by Excadrill or Dragonite. I can usually beat teams with just one or the other here, since they'll often need to weaken or sacrifice their bird/bug to stop one of my sweepers, but it seems like a lot of teams I face carry both. I've actually considered swapping out Klefki for Diancie or something, since Diancie can easily switch it to a flying or fire move, and gets Stealth Rock and Diamond Storm to threaten them.
MEGA-HERACROSS. This is almost totally dependent on how they play it. There is absolutely nothing in my team that can switch in to MegaCross. My best bet is usually to screen up with Klefki, take a Pin Missile or Close Combat with Gyarados to drop attack, then either evolve or switch in Excadrill to eat the Rock Blast. At that point, Iron Head or boosted Waterfall drops him down enough that any of my other sweepers can finish the job - but if it's well-played, this can be a serious pain.
CHESNAUGHT. It's rare, but when I do see it, it's surprisingly tough to deal with.
Code:
Rachel (Gyarados) @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Taunt
Chandler (Bisharp) @ Black Glasses
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
Ross (Dragonite) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Multiscale
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- ExtremeSpeed
Joey (Klefki) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 152 Def / 104 SpD
Bold Nature
- Spikes
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Foul Play
Phoebe (Breloom) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
- Spore
Monica (Excadrill) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Rapid SpinSo there you have it! The team isn't perfect, but it has been incredibly fun to play, and I'm interested to see what I can do to tweak or improve it. Thanks, and remember...
I'll be there for you
(Cause you're there for me too...)
(Cause you're there for me too...)
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