XY OU XY OU Arcanine Greatness (Currently 1600+)

[FroMonster]

Hey everybody,

This is the first time I am using this feature, and I am hoping to get some pretty great advice. Ive looked around and the thread can really improve teams. I hope you can do the same to mine.

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Team Preview

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First Look
A single glance at this team shows its large bulk. Very few offensive teams have counters to L-T, Arcanine, and Megasuar. This team can check almost all offensive threats. After predicting a switch, one of my offensive threats can take out at least 1 and most times 2 or 3 mons in a row before dying. I don't have a set lead. I scout the opponent and play my best hand.

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Analysis

Arcanine @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Morning Sun
- ExtremeSpeed
- Will-O-Wisp

This mon is the reason I created this team. His awesome defensive bulk and great ability check some of the most dangerous physical threats in the OU Metagame. When Life Orb Talon hits with Brave Bird, he takes 45% recoil and Arcanine takes 16% damage. Arcanine also easily checks Aegislash, Mega-Mawile, Mega-Pinser, Mega-Medicham and many others. Rocky Helmet is a great addition that surprises and weakens so many opponents. Morning Sun is the most important move here, allowing Arcanine to last longer into battles. Flare Blitz is the main attacking move taking care of steel and grass pokemon easily. E-Speed is for some priority to take care of weakened opponents, and Will-O Wisp is to cripple most switchins. Arcanine shines at being a major defensive pain in the ass.

Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Giga Drain
- Synthesis
- Leech Seed
- Sludge Bomb

What Arcanine can't handle, Megasaur can. This is a standard Venusaur set, but works in perfect conjunction with Arcanine, handling almost all the special threats that Arcanine can't handle. With his mega ability Thick Fat Megasaur shines at being a fantastic special wall. Giga Drain, Leech Seed, and Synthesis are all used to enhance Megasaur's lifespan, seeing as it can't hold lefties. Sludge Bomb is for other grass types and an occasional random fairy type.

Landorus-Therian (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 172 Def / 88 Spe
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Stealth Rock
- Hidden Power [Ice]

L-T functions as my offensive pivot. He can take many offensive hits, set up rocks, and U-Turn away to gain momentum. Intimidate is amazing here, allowing it to take absorb many physical hits. The best part about LT is his ability to pack a really hard EQ, crippling many opponents who would like switch in. HP Ice is used to counter other LTs, Gliscor, and Garchomp.

Greninja @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Extrasensory
- Grass Knot
- Ice Beam
Now we move to the offensive part. Greninja is one of my favorite mons in the game. He can come in and just wreck so many mons. He works great in tandem with Mega-V. Most teams will deal with Mega-V with psyshock, and a predicted switch is a huge momentum shift leaving the door open for Greninja to rock on. Hydro Pump on this ninja is one of the most powerful moves in the entire metagame. Extrasensory is used to deal with Mega-V and Fighting types. Grass Knot is a huge plus on this set. It takes out other pesky Greninjas and can pack a punch hard on any water type. Ice beam for dragon and grass types.

Weavile @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Ice Punch
- Ice Shard
- Low Kick
It took me a while to find my physical wall breaker, but Weavile really seems to find his niche on this team. With excellent speed and attack, Weavile is a fantastic late game sweeper. Knock Off is a fantastic move, which includes STAB and removing the opponent's item. Ice Punch hits just as hard, taking care of almost all dragon threats. Ice shard is for priority and Low Kick hits steel and dark types hard. Only problem is that he is very fragile, which brings me to my next mon

Donphan @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Shard
- Earthquake
- Seed Bomb
There is only one reason to carry Donphan on a team, and that reason is Rapid Spin. My team is quite weak to rocks, and Arcanine cannot function well without a clear path. Sturdy works great for Donphan, allowing him to successfully spin. Assault Vest is also great because most water, grass and ice attack are special attacks. Donphan's job is spinning, and he does it well, but apart from that he hasn't been doing much. Donphan has a decent EQ that can pack a punch against electric types. Ice shard is for priority and seed bomb is to hit Rotom-W on a switch in. He may not do much but he does his job well.


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Importable

Landorus-Therian (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 172 Def / 88 Spe
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Stealth Rock
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Greninja @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Extrasensory
- Grass Knot
- Ice Beam

Arcanine @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Morning Sun
- ExtremeSpeed
- Will-O-Wisp

Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Giga Drain
- Synthesis
- Leech Seed
- Sludge Bomb

Donphan @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Shard
- Earthquake
- Seed Bomb

Weavile @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Ice Punch
- Ice Shard
- Low Kick

 

[aim]

Hey FroMonster, cool team! Weavile is such an underrated threat and it's cool to see someone using it. I do have two suggestions though that I believe will benefit it! One change i'd like to suggest is putting HP Fire on Mega Venusaur over Leech Seed. While leech seed does support the extra recovery and lack of leftovers, hp fire gives you a secondary check/counter to Mega Scizor who currently sets up on 5/6 of your team and if Arcanine is pressured and gets low enough or dies, it can potentially sweep. My last suggestion is changing grass knot to hp grass on greninja.
Hidden power grass hits Azumarill just as hard
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Azumarill: 265-312 (65.5 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Hidden Power Grass vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Azumarill: 265-312 (65.5 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
AND on top of that it allows you to hit rotom-w and manaphy for tons more damage and psychic manaphy could potentially be a threat!
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Grass Knot (20 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Rotom-W: 49-62 (16.1 - 20.3%) -- possible 7HKO after Leftovers
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Hidden Power Grass vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Rotom-W: 151-179 (49.6 - 58.8%) -- 65.2% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Grass Knot (20 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Manaphy: 73-88 (21.4 - 25.8%) -- possible 5HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Life Orb Protean Greninja Hidden Power Grass vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Manaphy: 218-257 (63.9 - 75.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Anyway that's basically all i've got. Hope i was of some sort of help!

 

[Inflikted]

Hi FroMonster, pretty neat team you have here, and welcome to Smogon!

As you said, Donphan isn't doing much for you except spinning, as it does not cover any threat that Landorus-T doesn't. This is why I suggest you replace it with Excadrill. Excadrill deals with Rotom-W much more reliably than Donphan, as it does not have to rely on hitting it with a non-STAB move on the switch, but it can actually hurt with a much stronger Mold Breaker Earthquake. Excadrill also helps against mixed Kyurem-B to an extent, which can easily dismantle your defensive core with Earth Power and Ice Beam (as it ignores Venusaur's Thick Fat with Teravolt).

There are two sets you can potentially try: the standard Air Balloon set, and the less used Assault Vest set. The Air Balloon set packs a really nice offensive presence; with a Jolly nature, it outspeeds a standard KyuB and OHKOes with Iron Head after Stealth Rock, while Air Balloon allows it to actually switch into it at least once, something no other member of your team can do. On the other hand, the Assault Vest set has surprising special bulk that allows it to tank quite powerful hits; it also plays more similarly to your current Donphan set if you prefer a more defensive approach.

Sets

Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Iron Head

Excadrill @ Assault Vest
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 120 HP / 136 Atk / 220 SpD / 32 Spe
Careful Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide

(32 speed EVs allow it to outspeed 44 speed Rotom-W)

Calcs for the Assault Vest set:
252+ SpA Teravolt Kyurem-B Earth Power vs. 120 HP / 220+ SpD Assault Vest Excadrill: 134-158 (34.2 - 40.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Teravolt Kyurem-B Earth Power vs. 120 HP / 220+ SpD Assault Vest Excadrill: 174-205 (44.5 - 52.4%) -- 48.4% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock
136 Atk Mold Breaker Excadrill Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Kyurem-B: 276-326 (70.5 - 83.3%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

Life Orb variants are still dangerous but AV Excadrill still wins 1v1 as Iron Head is guaranteed to KO after 1 turn of Life Orb recoil

252 SpA Life Orb Greninja Hydro Pump vs. 120 HP / 220+ SpD Assault Vest Excadrill: 260-307 (66.4 - 78.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
This does not mean you should use Excadrill as a Greninja check, but it shows how bulky AV excadrill is on the special side, so that you can basically get off a spin against many dangerous special attackers if Excadrill is at full health.

Hope I helped, good luck with the team!

 

[Axily]

Cool team without any doubt :) ...

I agree with aim and Inflikted but I have another tip for you :)

I noticed that talonflame can give some troubles with his brave bird . You should give Stone Edge > HP Ice. With stone edge it kills thundurus in switch too. To kill gliscor and other lando t greninja is a better choice.

 

[FroMonster]

Thanks so much for the responses guys.

I think i am going to go for the AV excadrill set. Seems like it will work great with my team. He will be able to get rid of Rotom-W pretty easily.
Stone Edge will also be a good addition because hp Ice isn't doing enough damage.

Someone suggested switching the EV's on venusaur from spd to DEF.

What do you think?

 

[Calm_Mind_Latias]

There is only one reason to carry Donphan on a team, and that reason is Rapid Spin. My team is quite weak to rocks, and Arcanine cannot function well without a clear path. Sturdy works great for Donphan, allowing him to successfully spin.

Ha ha...

No, it does because hazards that you want to spin away would break Sturdy
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If Donphan functions as an effective Rotom-W or grass weak Pokemon lure, then it may be good for your team, but still a weak Ice Shard and non-stab attacks other than the predictable Earthquake mean it is typically outclassed bu Excadrill.