Intro
I made this team some time around April and it changed quite a bit since then. The reason why I'm posting this now is because I've reached 1000 posts, and I guess I have to do something for it. I thought that making a rmt would be the best idea for this since over half my posts are from this subforum!!! Anyway, I've decided to post this team since it's my favourite team to use and I think it's actually really cool! The main idea behind this team is to weaken Latias' counters using Spikes to allow it to hammer the opponent's team with Choice Specs'ed Draco Meteors.
Team Building Process
In depth
The Pokemon I wanted to build around was Latias. Originally I had the Substitute + Calm Mind set because it is ridiculously difficult to stop without something like Tyranitar, and it can just set up on so many things, like Ferrothorn, etc..
I wanted Spikes because they are just that good with Latias, weakening its counters like Jirachi, Tyranitar, etc.. to points where they won't be able to handle it after a couple of boosts. Since I was using a really bulky spread on Latias, I decided to use a defensive Spiker to make a bulkier team. I considered Ferrothorn and Skarmory and finally decided on Skarmory because thanks to Whirlwind it makes it easier to weaken Latias' counters. The Water resist Ferrothorn provides was not that necessary at that point since Latias can set up on Water types.
I wanted something that could control the weather and set up Stealth Rock... Hippowdon seemed like an obvious choice. I didn't want to use a Rain team and Hippowdon fits bulkier teams very well since it fucking tanks everything. This would provide Latias all the hazards it would need to sweep.
At this point Jellicent seemed like such an obvious choice to me that I had to add it. First of all, it removes a lot of pressure from Latias allowing me to keep it healthy for late game when it will be much more effective for a sweep. Secondly, it blocks Rapid Spin, keeping my hazards safe from spinners like Starmie, Forretress, etc.. It also has nice defensive synergy with Skarmory and Hippowdon.
I wanted something that could give my team a nice offensive punch to help against defensive teams. I decided to use Terrakion since it can force out many of Latias' counters making them take more hazard damage. It also gets a special defense boost from sandstorm which makes it a little bit easier to switch it in, which is always appreciated on more defensive teams like this one.
I wanted a scarfer to make it easier to deal with offensive teams and clean up late game. Something that could handle Latias and Latios better would also be appreciated. That is why I decided to use Jirachi. I think that Scarf Rachi is the best scarfer in ou at the moment thanks to the moves it gets, its typing, etc. so yeah... not a hard choice.
The team was great! But after using it, I was kinda disappointed with Latias' sweeping potential, as often it wouldn't do anything at all. I decided to change its set to an offensive Choice Specs set which greatly improved the team. The other Pokemon I decided to change was Terrakion. It didn't mix so well with the team. I decided to change it for a Breloom since it's much easier for it to switch into like Ferrothorn etc. and can provide a nice status absorber for the team, as sometimes it would be annoying. It also made it easier to play against opposing Jellicent.
Latias @ Choice Specs *** I Can't Wait
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
~Draco Meteor
~Surf
~Dragon Pulse
~Trick
Choice Specs Latias is a monster. You may ask, why not use Latios instead? Well there are two reasons for that. First of all, Latias is much bulkier than Latios. It has 10 extra base Defense and 20 extra base Special Defense which allows it to take hits from stuff like Keldeo more easily, which is always appreciated. For such a slow team this can be crucial since it's more difficult for the likes of Landorus-I or Thundurus-T to sweep me, as it's easier to bring Latios to HP Ice range. The second reason is that Choice Specs Latias is much more of a surprise. When the opponent goes against Latios, they know that the next move is probably gonna be a mighty strong Draco Meteor. However, against Latias, there is much more of a mind game when it comes to guess what set it is using, and for such a bulky team like this one it's easy to think that it is going to be a Calm Mind set. Of course, that is a minor advantage, but the extra bulk is really the best thing about Latias.
Since I tend to not play Latias until I have Spikes down on the field. The main reason for that is that its effectiveness is multiplicated after there are (multiple) rows of Spikes as many teams have shaky switch-ins for boosted Draco Meteors or Surfs, like let's say Scizor. If the opponent uses Choice Band Scizor, it will not be able to switch into Latias reliably with SR + Spikes, denying them that option. Latias is the main offensive Pokemon on my team and very often it will decide the outcome of a match. It is so important for everything on the team that it is easily the mvp. Latias is cute n_n
Skarmory @ Leftovers *** Unshakeable
Ability: Sturdy
Nature: Careful
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
~Brave Bird
~Spikes
~Roost
~Whirlwind
Spikes are cool. Specially Defensive Skarmory sets them up. It's really one of the most reliable Spikers in the current metagame. It walls many common Pokemon like Landorus-T, Garchomp, Scarf Jirachi, etc. and even some special attackers like Life Orb Latias (if it comes on a Draco Meteor!) giving it plenty of opportunities to set up Spikes. I really like Skarmory because it's always a gamble for the opponent if they want to set up on it, thanks to Whirlwind if hazards are up, as opposed to Forretress which is just lame set up fodder for half the metagame, and that's not counting the other half. I originally had the Physically Defensive spread which fucking walls physical pokes but after I had finished the team, I changed to a Specially Defensive one, simply because I needed a Dragon resist that could take on both Physical and Special Dragons, even though I have Jirachi, I want to keep it healthy and taking ~50% from specsed Draco Meteors isn't exactly a reliable switch in.
I considered changing Brave Bird to Taunt simply because that way I could stop the annoying Ferrothorn from Leech Seeding/Spiking/whatevering my team. I like Brave Bird though as it gives me the ability to hit stuff for decent damage and Skarmory has to check stuff like Celebi and Amoonguss who just don't give a single fuck about getting Whirlwinded out.
Hippowdon @ Leftovers *** Blackstar
Ability: Sand Stream
Nature: Impish
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
~Earthquake
~Stealth Rock
~Slack Off
~Whirlwind
Hippowdon is such a convenient Pokemon. It fucking walls everything physical since it has ridiculous HP and Defense. It also has cool resists to stuff like Rock and its weaknesses are from mainly Special types (most notably Water) which are easily handled by other Pokemon on my team anyway. Hippo's main job is to set up Stealth Rock and... switch into stuff. I guess. Sand Stream is great as while I don't really need the weather, it's cool to neutralize the opponent's Rain and especially Sun since it's such an annoying weather to face, with Venusaur being such a retarded mon. The fact that Hippo can't get trapped by Dugtrio is really cool too!
I opted for a Physically Defensive spread for multiple reasons. First of all, it makes it so much easier for my team to deal with Terrakion, which is quite frankly one of the most annoying Pokemon to face. Also, since my Skarmory was specially defensive, a physical hippo removes a lot of pressure on Skarmory, who no longer has to switch into everything physical and recover all the time, giving it more time to set up its Spikes.
Jellicent @ Leftovers *** Against The Tide
Ability: Water Absorb
Nature: Calm
EVs: 240 HP / 160 SpD / 108 Spe
~Surf
~Will-O-Wisp
~Toxic
~Recover
Jellicent is incredible. It stops many Rain teams cold with its immunity to Water typed moves which is really a godsend. Jelli is a cold stop to Scarf Keldeo and most offensive Politoed making it very difficult for them to beat me if I can get some hazards. Jellicent checks many Pokemon for me that would otherwise be very difficult to beat. While I do have Latias, I want to be able to keep it for later in the game, so Jellicent acts as my main switch in to Water types early game, allowing me to spread status and stuff. It also checks Volcarona who curbstomps my team, and that's the reason why I use both Will-O-Wisp and Toxic. Speaking of which, I like Will-O-Wisp since Tyranitar will often try to trap Jellicent, and with all the Speed I have I can outspeed it pretty often and burn it before it attacks. That makes it much easier for Latias as then it doesn't have to worry about its #1 nemesis and can proceed to wreck the shit.
Let's face it though, the main reason why I use Jellicent is to block Rapid Spin. Jellicent wrecks Rapid Spinners, except for the extremely annoying Substitute + Toxic Tentacruel but... yeah. I also use all that Speed to make sure CB Tyranitar can't remove me easily, since cbtar + spinner is a very common combination. I guess I could drop the speed a bit but Tyranitar's speed creep tends to always rise which is lame.
Breloom @ Toxic Orb *** Louder Than Words
Ability: Poison Heal
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 112 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 140 Spe
~Focus Punch
~Seed Bomb
~Spore
~Substitute
SubPunch Breloom is a cute set. Yeah I know, Technician is released, etc. but that set was exactly what my team needed. I wanted something that could switch into Ferrothorn easily, which Breloom is a beast at. Furthermore, I wanted something that could switch into Jellicent, and thanks to Poison Heal, Breloom is safe from Will-O-Wisp burns. It can absorb all sorts of status thanks to that which is really cool for bulkier teams, as they really hate Toxic etc. Breloom is cool because Focus Punch does an absolute fuckton of damage to anything that doesn't x4 resist it or is immune to it. Stuff like Latios dislike taking it, and many teams don't carry a really bulky Fighting resist which allows me to take advantage of that! It's also very good against stall teams since they tend to have a hard time handling Substitute + Focus Punch which I get plenty of opportunities to get against.
The EVs might seem a little weird. I wanted the biggest punch possible so I just sticked to max attack Adamant which happens to be really fucking high for loomer. I use enough Speed to outspeed 8 Speed Rotom which is a thing I guess. I put the rest in HP to make Breloom a little bulkier, and the random 4 SpD is so I have an odd HP number for Spikes shenanigans. Breloom doesn't check many offensive threats though since it's so squishy. It's best used against slow things, but I have other Pokemon for offensive teams so yeah!!!
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf *** The Lucky One
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 148 Spe
~Iron Head
~Ice Punch
~U-turn
~Zen Headbutt
Jirachi rounds the team up by fixing up weaknesses and giving it an emergency button. And it's extremely good at that. Iron Head and U-turn are givens on that set I guess. Ice Punch is nice since Jirachi will often be used to revenge kill Dragons, and well, Ice Punch OHKOes them. Zen Headbutt might be the weirdest move on this set but it's really good. Hitting Fighting types for Super Effective damage is really useful since they're amongst the hardest to wall in the metagame, and having something to revenge them is cool I guess. Zen Headbutt is also Jirachi's best bet against Volcarona. I considered Fire Punch and Healing Wish as well, but I didn't use them since I'm not really weak to Scizor and HW is not that useful on such a bulky team anyway, especially given the ton of recovery I have. I used to have Trick on that slot to ruin Ferrothorn which was cool, but ever since I switched to Choice Specs on Latias, it can do that on its own.
The EV spread is made so I can outspeed max speed neutral base 100s like Modest Volcarona and Adamant Salamence and then attempt to RK them. Then I wanted more bulk since Jirachi's typing allows it to switch into some of the most dangerous threats like Latios, etc.. I wanted max Attack since well, if I want to revenge stuff I need to be able to kill them. I considered an Adamant nature but the Speed is much too important to drop.
Importable:
Code:
I Can't Wait (Latias) (F) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Surf
- Dragon Pulse
- Trick
Unshakeable (Skarmory) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 8 Def / 248 HP / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
Against The Tide (Jellicent) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Water Absorb
EVs: 240 HP / 160 SDef / 108 Spd
Calm Nature
- Surf
- Will-O-Wisp
- Toxic
- Recover
Blackstar (Hippowdon) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SDef / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind
The Lucky One (Jirachi) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 148 Spd / 4 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- Ice Punch
- U-turn
- Zen Headbutt
Louder Than Words (Breloom) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 Atk / 140 Spd / 112 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Focus Punch
- Seed Bomb
- Spore
- Substitute
Code:
Funkasaurus: cute user n_n. one of my best friends here! you're one of the main reasons I stick around here and I enjoy listening to the music you give me. oh and, :|
tab: is cute n_n
harsha: I refuse to give you a shoutout until you stop delaying your own 1k.
BKC: kev! you're awesome, I hope you don't leave again after wcop :(
Nachos: I think nigchode is an excellent name n_n
cbb: easily the best user on all of smogon. cbb n__________________________n
ficcion: sam! I enjoy talking to you a lot, and as you can see, I chose the name of an album you made me listen to to title this team I showed you often.
peng: stop being a (BAN ME PLEASE)
bloo: !_ 9.9 _!
Jimbon: come back man, we miss you... I always looked at your rates to improve mine, and I guess that motivated me to continue rating. You're cute n_n
TGMD: you've disappeared after a while... I really enjoyed our laddering sessions, these were so great! It'd be nice if we could do some again
Huntofthelion: I miss you man, from the old tr rule days...
