VGC VGC 2018 Mega Mawile + Trick Room

[Hello Fellow Human]

Introduction:

This was a fun team I threw together that has changed a lot over time based around Mega Mawile and Trick Room. I have officially decided on this version unless I find some good rates by you guys. So far, I have gotten to 1324 (Still climbing, this could be higher, but honestly, I’m mainly a singles player) on the ladder and won a VGC 2018 Tournament on Showdown with this.

The Team:

Mawile-Mega @ Mawilite
Ability: Intimidate
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 112 Atk / 68 Def / 76 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Play Rough
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
- Protect

Role:
Trick Room Abuser (Physical) / Sweeper

Why I Use It:
Mega Mawile is an amazing fit for this team and the first Pokemon I decided on using. First, it has an amazing damage output combining a pretty good 105 Attack and the ability Huge Power, which makes its Attack sky high. Also, it has access to Sucker Punch, so if Trick Room ends, you still have a chance at clutching games (I won a 1v3 with this once). Finally, it fills the crucial role of Intimidator, which can allow it to cripple opponents and even force switches.

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
Level: 50
EVs: 248 HP / 148 Atk / 112 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang
- Protect

Role:
Trick Room Abuser (Physical) / Sweeper

Why I Use It:
Alolan Marowak is amazing due to 2 things - Its signature item, Thick Club and its ability. This item gives Marowak a free Huge Power boost at no cost whatsoever. Also, it has access to an amazing ability in Rock Head, which allows Marowak to be able to spam Flare Blitz with no recoil damage being taken. The reason I use Rock Head over Lightning Rod is because people will just think you run Lightning Rod until you use Flare Blitz, which means that they will avoid using electric attacks besides possibly discharge. Also, I have lost many games due to Lightning Rod because I faint to my own recoil and Lightning Rod didn't do anything. Because of this, I prefer Rock Head personally.

Tapu Bulu @ Assault Vest
Ability: Grassy Surge
Level: 50
EVs: 248 HP / 132 Atk / 116 Def / 12 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Rock Slide
- Megahorn

Role:
Tank / Terrain Setter

Why I Use It:
Tapu Bulu is an overall solid Pokemon and a good fit for this team. It has good physical bulk, and with Assault Vest, it becomes specially defensive aswell. Another reason I use it is for its ability - Grassy Surge. With a free Grassy Terrain setup, Tapu Bulu has a boosted Horn Leech to get in good damage and stay around longer and also give my whole team a leftovers boost aside from Togekiss.

Hariyama @ Fightinium Z
Ability: Thick Fat
Level: 50
EVs: 244 HP / 96 Atk / 132 Def / 28 SpD / 8 Spe
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Close Combat
- Ice Punch
- Fake Out
- Wide Guard

Role:
Setup Assist / Tank

Why I Use It:
Hariyama was originally only put on this team for assisting a Trick Room setup, but then I realized how good it could be at other tasks. I decided on besides using it mainly for Wide Guard / Fake Out, it could also be an amazing Z-Move user. All-Out Pummeling is amazing on Hariyama and I'm surprised I don't see it at all in the meta. I understand Flame Orb is great, but I also thought that Hariyama is a good Z-Move user. Due to this, I gave Hariyama the ability Thick Fat (Originally was Guts just in case they thought Will-O-Wisp was a safe choice, but it was too unreliable). Thick Fat allows it to eats Blizzards and Heat Waves like no one else.

Togekiss @ Figy Berry
Ability: Serene Grace
Level: 50
EVs: 244 HP / 12 SpA / 252 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Air Slash
- Dazzling Gleam
- Follow Me
- Protect

Role:
Setup Assist / Chip Damage

Why I Use It:
Togekiss is another reliable setup assist like Hariyama, but also has another job, a rather annoying one to my opponent. Yes, it can Follow Me redirect, but it gets Serene Grace, which is why most people actually use it. So, I decided to also give it the role of chip damage with Air Slash to flinch certain Pokemon so I can deal with them later.

Porygon-Z @ Life Orb
Ability: Download
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
- Trick Room
- Protect

Role:
Trick Room Setter / Trick Room Abuser (Special)

Why I Use It:
Porygon has 2 important roles on this team, 1 of them being the most important one. Trick Room is what makes this team work, and I decided to use Porygon-Z as my setter. This was chosen over more "meta" picks like Cresselia, Mimikyu, and Porygon-2 because they don't have the damage output I'm looking for, with the exception Mimikyu. Mimikyu wasn't used because it's mainly a physical attacker (My team has a huge Intimidate weakness, so I tried special and it worked because my Mimikyu was bulkier so there wasn't much difference, but it wasn't what I really wanted). Not only can Porygon-Z is a reliable and consistent setter with the above setup assist Pokemon, but also has a high special damage output combined with the Life Orb.

Thanks for reading my post! ​

 

[Garris_san]

Amoonguss > Togekiss
Personally, I've never liked Togekiss in VGC. True, it has Serene Grace and follow me, but it's speed tier is pretty bad without Tailwind and a follow me user that is weak to rock slide is sort of bad. It has a 4x resistance to fighting, which would make it a good partner for Tyranitar or Stakataka synergy wise, other than that, it's a silly looking mon that doesn't do much. Amoonguss on the other hand can put Pokemon to sleep, utilize Regen recovery to act as a defensive pivot, and rage powder all while being much slower than Togekiss to fully utilize Trick Room and still resisting fighting.
Amoonguss @ Iapapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
Level: 50
EVs: 236 HP / 84 Def / 188 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk 0 Spe
- Rage Powder
- Spore
- Protect
- Sludge Bomb

Other than that I don't know what to tell you. The team is heavily reliant on setting up trick room, but it only has one setter, easing prediction for the opponent. Not only that, but you use a frail af PorygonZ as your only method of speed control. I built a semi-room team not too long ago with Cress, Hitmontop, and Ferrothorn. This was my Trick Room mode. My tailwind mode was Char-Y, Lando-T, and Koko. You notice my team isn't soley reliant on one strategy. It may seem bad to have Pokemon from varied parts of the speed tier, but as I'm sure you're aware, you won't always have Trick Room up and for a team that doesn't utilize Trick Room, it can be helpful to have a slow Mon that can play well against Trick Room. Look at other Trick Room teams to get an idea about teambuilding. Teams that are fully dedicated to Trick Room usually have a bulky Trick Room setter or two. Teams that aren't fully dedicated to Trick room might have one setter, a FO or redirection user to facilitate setting up trick room, and an abuser. This is all my thought process, though. It's hard to get out of the 1300s when you're just starting. It's not like any of these mons are low on viability rankings or anything.