SM OU Tapu Lele semi-stall


Introduction

First of all, I'm sorry if my grammar is not that good, English is not my native language. This is actually the first and only OU team I have created in gen 7 and my first smogon post, even though I have played showdown and had this acc for quite some time. After some time away from pokemon, I finally have the time to come back and restart playing. From the moment I first saw Tapu Lele's stats and ability, I knew I wanted to make a choice scarf set to abuse it, so I built my team around her. Since my favorite playstile is semi-stall, making the first gen 7 OU team a semi-stall one was an easy choice. As a side note,
there is no pokemon with a priority move in the team.


Teambuilding Process


Like I said before, the main pokemon of the team, designed to abuse psychic terrain with astonishing speed (courtesy of choice scarf).

Another gen 7 pokemon I wanted to try out, this felt to me as a new, more balanced and versatile version of skarmory without reliable recovery. chosen mainly because of its typing and unpredictability.

One wall without sinergy or backups is nothing. Mega venusaur was the next choice because it complemented celesteela's weaknesses without adding many threats the rest of the team couldn't handle. Also, I HATE keldeo, and megasaur checks it really well.

This spot was originally filled with zygarde but I was unhappy with the result. Since both garchomp and zygarde have the same typing, the sinergy with the team didn't change, and the immediate speed and power garchomp provides was gladly accepted by the rest of the team.

At this point, I realised I had no form of hazard control, so Latias is here mainly for being a defensive and fast defogger not weak to SR.

One of my favorites, he made it into the team to fill some holes, e.g. an answer against strong ice STAB or even coverage.


The Team


Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Moonblast
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Shadow Ball
Used both as a revenge killer and a late game cleaner, this thing should be feared mainly because of the raw power of STAB, psychic terrain-boosted psychic. I like to play safely with her so that she can really clean the late game effortlessly. Moonblast is a secondary STAB with better coverage (I'm looking at you dark types) that doesn't hit as hard. HP fire is there against 4x weak pokemon like ferrothorn and mega scizor. Shadow ball is just coverage that hit ghost types the team really struggles against and the EVs are pretty straightforward. Sadly, running HP fire means that she will be slower than other scarf base 95 pokemon.


Celesteela @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 SpD
Careful Nature
- Leech Seed
- Heavy Slam
- Earthquake
- Protect
Just a basic defensive celesteela set. Lefties are absolutely necessary for some passive healing and together with leech seed+protect it can really restore a chunk of hp. Heavy slam will often have 120 base power in OU because of celesteela's weight and earthquake is a nice coverage that also uses phisycal attack. I believe it is better than flamethrower because I already have three other pokemon with fire moves on the team. Nature and EVs give it a lot of mixed bulk and it makes beast boost activate for special defense.


Venusaur (F) @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 248 HP / 96 Def / 4 SpA / 144 SpD / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Sludge Bomb
- Giga Drain
- Synthesis
Mega venusaur, a wall with reliable recovery, average typing but great because of its ability, and offensive presence. It doesn't do much against steel types, specially ferrothon who is immune to leech seed. I made the EV spread some time ago, so I can't really remember what it was supposed to tank. A second leech seed user to support the team is important, even more because there are two walls lacking reliable recovery (celesteela and heatran) who actually make quite a good core with mega venu. My immediate answer to most grass, water and electric types, along with some other situational stuff. Leech seed, giga drain and synthesis are for longevity and team support and sludge bomb is its main damage output with a solid 30% chance of poisoning the foe.


Garchomp @ Focus Sash
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang
Not much defensive potential or versatility here, serves both as an early game sweeper/surprise factor and can put a dent on many pokemon if preserved throughout the match. The EVs are self-explanatory and I dare say mandatory on every non-mega garchomp. The surprise factor comes in the form of swords dance and focus sash. Since I usually lead with it, people tend to believe I will set up SR, so they prepare for that while I set up one swords dance. After that, it won't stop even against checks (if the opponent has switched on the first turn and the focus sash is still intact). However, if my opponent is faster than garchomp, i strike hard right off the bat or switch to a check/counter. Dragon claw over outrage so I can have the freedom to switch out and alternate between moves, EQ is its main STAB, and fire fang is there for coverage.


Latias @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 72 HP / 184 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Draco Meteor
- Recover
- Thunderbolt
The team's defogger. Also the one I use the least on the team and a secondary check to keldeo (have I mentioned how much I hate this pokemon?). It has an amazing defensive synergy with heatran and reliable recovery to keep coming back to defog in case the opponent sets up hazards again. Thunderbolt is an electric type coverage no other pokemon on the team has and draco meteor is a nuke to use against non-fairy opponents. Maximum speed is important for her to do her job well, but she still has to watch out for prankster taunt users or faster threats that might KO her. EVs split between special attack and hp to keep her role as a wall while still scaring opponents with a powerful draco meteor.


Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Lava Plume
- Protect
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
The last pokemon on the team. Max speed and hp to stay as bulky as possible while being as fast as possible, but I feel like it could be better somehow. Lava plume is a solid STAB with 30% chance to burn the opponent, really useful against physical attackers, but he must beware of EQ. I chose lefties over air baloon because I have two non-grounded pokemon on the team and some healing outside of the leech seed provided by its teammates is very welcome. SR deals chip damage and breaks focus sashes and sturdies, making the cleaner's job easir by the end of the match (mostly tapu lele, but occasionally garchomp may do that). Toxic breaks other stall teams without the fear of a comeback, since half my team is immune to it. Protect is for scouting and accumulatting toxic and maybe leech seed damage.

Conclusion

I know it is not the strongest team one could find, that is why I came for this RMT. Really weak against ghost and dark type pokemon, and maybe even fighting types who like to carry knock off for coverage (m-venu is the best "check" my team has againt these). Suggest changes wherever necessary, but don't remove tapu lele and don't turn this into another kind of team (not semi-stall). Importable in hide tag below.

Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Moonblast
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Shadow Ball

Celesteela @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 SpD
Careful Nature
- Leech Seed
- Heavy Slam
- Earthquake
- Protect

Venusaur (F) @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 248 HP / 96 Def / 4 SpA / 144 SpD / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Sludge Bomb
- Giga Drain
- Synthesis

Garchomp @ Focus Sash
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang

Latias @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 72 HP / 184 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Draco Meteor
- Recover
- Thunderbolt

Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Lava Plume
- Protect
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic


EDIT: Sorry about the problem with the images, I just used smogon's provided skeleton to write this RMT.
 
Last edited:

Gross Sweep

Plan Ahead
is a CAP Contributoris a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
Hey Le Annoyer really cool team. A semi stall team using Tapu Lele is something I haven't seen a lot of at this point, so it was cool to see newer strats still appearing. While I like the team concept there are a few issues that need to be addressed such as dealing with Zygarde, Volcarona, and mainly Stall. Throughout my rate I'll look to bolster your defenses vs common threats (including those mentioned prior) along with improving the teams ability to fight off stall, while keeping Lele and a more semi stallish theme. Also since you've just recently come back to mons I'll try to explain a few new meta trends/threats that will help justify the changes/help you build teams with as much prior knowledge as possible in the future.

Major Changes:

>
The seventh generation hasn't been kind to Latias. The rise of new fairies, and most teams being basically required to run a steel type (if not multiple) has hurt the overall effectiveness of Latias. With that said I want to suggest Mantine>Latias. This change will give the team a solid check to Volcarona, a strong boosts vs Rain teams as you wont be relying on M-Venu so heavily, and it also helps vs threats like Ash Greninja once again easing the pressure on your M-Venu in each game (it also is a really good check to Keldeo which I know you appreciate). The Move Set I'm suggesting is Scald / Roost / Defog / Haze with the EV Spread: 240 Hp / 196 Def / 72 SpDef Calm Nature, ability Water Absorb, and the item Leftovers. The EVs help it check Ash Gren while not sacrificing to much physical bulk. Scald is a solid stab that can fish for burns, Roost is great recovery helping Mantine's longevity, Haze helps it check threats like Volcarona (also keeps Mantine from becoming set up bait), and Defog is there to simply remove hazards. Overall I feel this change will help improve the teams ability to check top tier threats while keeping the goal of a semi stall strongly intact. Also you can’t really argue with the flexibility of Mantine checking Volc freeing up the teams scarfer (Tapu Lele) to not be forced to hit the sacred 101+ speed tier that’s become almost required on most teams due to Volcarona.

>
Two of the biggest issues with the team were handling Zygarde and Stall, and this change of Clefable>Heatran will help with both of those. The Move Set I’m suggesting is Moonblast / Stealth Rock / Soft-Boiled / Flamethrower* with the EV Spread: 252 Hp / 252 Def / 4 SpDef Bold Nature, ability Magic Guard, and the item Leftovers. The EVs are to avoid the 2hko from Banded Zygarde’s Thousand Arrows allowing you to check it well in conjunction with M-Venusaur and Tapu Lele. Moonblast is a strong stab, Soft-Boiled is solid recovery, and Stealth Rock provides chip (it should be noted Clefable threatens out M-Sableye allowing Clef to get rocks vs stall improving that match up). The last move had an asterisk as it’s pretty flexible. Flamethrower lures steels like Ferrothorn who can annoy M-Venusaur and Tapu Lele, Calm Mind is an option as it gives the team a solid win condition that likes Lele wearing down opposing steels, another option in Knock Off removes items as your opponent switches to their check/counter which is nice, and finally Thunder Wave can be used to cripple mons on switch in. I personally like Flamethrower or Calm Mind the most, but I encourage you to play around with the options to find the one you prefer. This switch also finishes the Venu + Cele + Clef core which is very strong in the current meta, and an extremely solid base to any fatter team.

>
This is by far the smallest major change as the reasoning is almost solely based on taking on stall. Garchomp is serving as the team’s primary breaker, but it’s sadly easily removed by Groundium-Z Dugtrio making stall extremely hard to break. With improving the stall match up in mind I’m suggesting Landorus-T>Garchomp. The Move Set I’d recommend is Swords Dance / Earthquake / Smack Down / Fly with the EV Spread: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 Def Jolly nature, and the item Flyinium Z. The spread maximizes speed and power (Jolly over Adamant Nature so you out speed Mew who creep Adamant Zygarde). Swords Dance is to boost breaking potential, Earthquake is strong stab, Smack Down makes annoying mons like Skarmory and Celesteela vulnerable to Earthquake, and Fly when paired with Flyinium Z is a complete nuke that also beats some would be checks like Tangrowth and Tapu Bulu. As I mentioned before this change is the smallest Major change as it’s replacing one offensive ground for another, just one happens to avoid being trapped by Dugtrio giving the team a real shot vs stall. Another difference worth noting is that Landorus-T provides the team with another ground immunity, which is always nice.

Minor Changes:

I really like M-Venusaur in the current meta, and this team specifically – I just feel the set could be improved a tad. The EV Spread I would suggest is 248 Hp / 16 Atk / 88 Def / 156 SpDef Sassy Natured. The spread allows Venusaur to check threats like Tapu Koko and Greninja efficiently. I’m also recommending you try Earthquake>Leech Seed. Earthquake has a 93% chance to OHKO zero Hp Heatran after rocks, which helps Tapu Lele, along with allowing M-Venusaur to check Shift Gear Magearna who could otherwise terrorize the team with BoltBeam coverage + Calm Mind. These changes should help M-Venusaur perform a bit more efficiently for the team.

Celesteela is another mon I really like on this team (part of that Cele + Venu + Clef core), but I just feel it could be optimized a bit better (or just differently as I’m not 100% sure what your spread does specifically). I’m going to suggest the spread 252 Hp / 132 Def / 124 SpDef Relaxed Nature. This set is pretty efficient in checking Specs Tapu Lele and M-Pinsir. I’m also going to suggest Flamethrower>Earthquake as I feel it’s better coverage for Celesteela hitting mons like Ferrothorn that would wall it completely otherwise, and M-Venusaur now has Earthquake which does the job of luring mons like Heatran with Earthquake. Once again this is a small change, I just feel it could help the team perform as effectively as possible.

Review of Changes:
  • ->
  • ->
  • ->
  • : Leech Seed -> Earthquake, Spread Change
  • : Earthquake -> Flamethrower, Spread Change

Leaving an importable of team with changes in case you want to try some of them out, just click on this line.

Conclusion:

I Really enjoyed rating this team, and I really hope you have fun with the team. At the beginning of the rate I mentioned wanting to bolster this teams match ups vs some top tier threats while keeping the Lele Semi Stall sorta theme, which I feel was achieved. If you have any questions or concerns on the rate feel free to let me know either in the thread or pms. That's all I have, have a good day and happy laddering!
 
Last edited:
Thank you for rating, I will definetely be testing the changes today (they all sound really good though). Overall, the team looks very refined and I couldn't think of these changes alone, so thank you one more time. If you don't mind, I will DM you with any doubts after testing tonight
 
Solid looking team, just here to let you know hp fire doesn't require 30 speed ivs anymore. In your tapu lele description you mentioned losing speed ties vs other 95 mons, that's not the case. Hp fire spread is 31/0/31/31/31/31.
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 0)

Top