I used to play Netbattle way back when, and I had an ok offensive team. Then I took a long break from competitive battling, and now I'm here. I tried an offensive team, but I was never able to get it right. Searching for team ideas, I came across LonelyNess's Trick Room Analysis. It looked like an interesting tactic and something that could work out, so I built up a team and tried it out. After all sorts of little tweaks and changes and whatnot I had a team that was moderately successful. I know there are things I need to do to make this thing better, I just need some ideas.
Changes will be in red.
Exeggutor (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk/4 Def/252 SAtk
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Sleep Powder
- Trick Room
- Explosion
- Leaf Storm
---
I've burned through a few leads. I had Bronzong here at first, then I switched to Kecleon, then I tried Porygon2, and now I'm here at Exeggutor. His job is to use Sleep Powder first, absorbing an attack with Sash. Once the Pokemon is asleep, I Trick Room and Explode. If I can't get Sleep Powder off and Sash is gone, I switch to Bronzong or Dusknoir to use it instead. If I don't use my Sash, I just Trick Room and save Explosion for later. Leaf Storm is for emergencies, and things like Swampert if I can't switch in Clamperl safely.
I'm actually considering Smeargle for this spot, because it can do this set except with Spore, but I'm not entirely sure yet.
I was stolen from a Steeple (Bronzong) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/252 SDef
Sassy nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Trick Room
- Hypnosis
- Gyro Ball
- Earthquake
---
Bronzong is my special tank and a mid-game Trick Roomer. Usually I just use Trick Room, and Hypnosis if I really need to put something to sleep. Gyro Ball is amazing on this thing, a lot of stuff gets OHKO'd by it. Earthquake is for stuff Gyro Ball won't hit well, which is just about anything with decent Special Defense.
BOO! (Dusknoir) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Trick Room
- Will-o-wisp
- Confuse Ray
- Payback/Night Shade
---
Dusknoir is for mid to late game Trick Rooming, and Physical Walling. Will-o-Wisp is to cripple those pesky physical attackers. Confuse Ray is for annoyance, it makes it more likely that I can switch into a sweeper safely while irritating the opponent. My attacking move here is what I can't really decide on. Right now I have Payback, which is mostly for Rotom and attempts at revenge killing. I'm thinking about switching it for Night Shade, which would allow me to put the Attack EVs into Special Defense for more efficient tanking, but then Blissey would wall me. There's also the matter of a recovery move. I've been contemplating putting Pain Split in place of Confuse Ray, and slapping it on Clamperl instead, but I'm not too sure about it.
Do not steal pearl plox (Clamperl) (M) @ Deepseatooth
Ability: Shell Armor
EVs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SAtk
Quiet nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Ice Beam
- Surf
- Brine
---
The only special sweeper for Trick Room. Hidden Power Grass for those pesky Swamperts and other water types. Ice Beam is for coverage. Surf is for STAB, and Brine is there for things that are already weakened. If I can manage to switch in safely with this thing, especially late game, it's game over for the other team. Most of the time Surf will OHKO everything that comes in, and HP Grass and Ice Beam are in place to make sure my fun isn't ruined.
The end of your face (Machamp) (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 128 HP/252 Atk/128 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Dynamicpunch
- Fire Punch
- Thunderpunch
- Bullet Punch
---
This thing is lovely. Dynamicpunch hurts. A lot. And it causes confusion as an added bonus. Fire Punch and Thunderpunch provide sweet coverage for all sorts of stuff, like Gyarados, Celebi, Bronzong, and Skarmory. If, God forbid, I'm caught without the ability to refresh Trick Room and I need a priority move for some reason, Bullet Punch does the trick. There is one huge problem here, if Machamp dies then I'm left without a fighting attack, electric attack, and a fire attack. This means that all sorts of things can proceed to massacre me. Heatran has an easy time killing me, Lucario is met with less resistance and can usually get in a kill or two before I can get it, and I might as well just forefit if Wish Vaporeon comes in.
Armor-clad end of your face (Rhyperior) (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/6 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Megahorn
- Ice Punch
---
This guy is a monster in Trick Room. I outspeed a whole lot of things, and this set has some sweet coverage. Stone Edge is for those Flying types and Gyaradoses that attempt to ruin everything. Earthquake is the reliable STAB move for anything that isn't Levitating or Flying, most things are OHKO'd or 2HKO'd by it regardless of resistances. Megahorn is for Levitating Psychic types, and grass types. It makes Celebi cry, and even does respectable damage to Bronzong. Ice Punch is for Dragons and Ground types. One punch OHKO's them easily.
General Threat List:
Wish Vaporeon: Forget it. If Machamp, and Exeggutor are dead, I might as well just give up. First of all, it uses Protect all the time, and then heals with Wish, making it necessary to OHKO it. Machamp can Thunderpunch it dead, and Exeggutor can Leaf Storm it. Outside of that, I have absolutely no means of retaliation. Bronzong is walled, Dusknoir isn't strong enough, Clamperl can't OHKO it, and Rhyperior will get stalled and then surfed when I need to Trick Room again.
Curse anything: Pretty hard to deal with. They can usually get at least one or two of my Pokemon. The big issue is that eventually they'll benefit positively from Trick Room, which is a major issue for my team.
Snorlax: Snorlax is one tough cookie. If it Curses, then it will inevitably outspeed me in Trick Room. If it hasn't used that many curses yet, then Machamp and Rhyperior have a shot at it. Otherwise, Clamperl will have to kill it. However, if Clamperl gets hit after a few Curses, then it's dead. Plus it can always rest away the hard earned damage I caused. Rest also renders Dusknoir's weakening capabilities useless.
Heatran: Heatran is a tough one. I have Clamperl, Rhyperior, and Machamp there to handle it, but it always switches to a counter that kills it. I can usually kill it, but one of my sweepers is likely to die.
Kingdra: Pretty sturdy. I have Exeggutor, Clamperl, and Machamp to hopefully get it. Nothing I have will OHKO it, which is a slight issue. Thankfully I don;t see these often.
Scizor: Oh god. If Machamp is dead then it's awfully hard. Clamperl can't OHKO, but it can survive a Bullet Punch and dent it pretty badly. Rhyperior also has a shot but it's unlikely to work.
---
That concludes my RMT. Hopefully you guys can help me out with this. All critiques are appreciated.
Team At A Glance
Changes will be in red.
The Trick Roomers:
Exeggutor (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk/4 Def/252 SAtk
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Sleep Powder
- Trick Room
- Explosion
- Leaf Storm
---
I've burned through a few leads. I had Bronzong here at first, then I switched to Kecleon, then I tried Porygon2, and now I'm here at Exeggutor. His job is to use Sleep Powder first, absorbing an attack with Sash. Once the Pokemon is asleep, I Trick Room and Explode. If I can't get Sleep Powder off and Sash is gone, I switch to Bronzong or Dusknoir to use it instead. If I don't use my Sash, I just Trick Room and save Explosion for later. Leaf Storm is for emergencies, and things like Swampert if I can't switch in Clamperl safely.
I'm actually considering Smeargle for this spot, because it can do this set except with Spore, but I'm not entirely sure yet.
I was stolen from a Steeple (Bronzong) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/252 SDef
Sassy nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Trick Room
- Hypnosis
- Gyro Ball
- Earthquake
---
Bronzong is my special tank and a mid-game Trick Roomer. Usually I just use Trick Room, and Hypnosis if I really need to put something to sleep. Gyro Ball is amazing on this thing, a lot of stuff gets OHKO'd by it. Earthquake is for stuff Gyro Ball won't hit well, which is just about anything with decent Special Defense.
BOO! (Dusknoir) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP/128 Atk/128 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Trick Room
- Will-o-wisp
- Confuse Ray
- Payback/Night Shade
---
Dusknoir is for mid to late game Trick Rooming, and Physical Walling. Will-o-Wisp is to cripple those pesky physical attackers. Confuse Ray is for annoyance, it makes it more likely that I can switch into a sweeper safely while irritating the opponent. My attacking move here is what I can't really decide on. Right now I have Payback, which is mostly for Rotom and attempts at revenge killing. I'm thinking about switching it for Night Shade, which would allow me to put the Attack EVs into Special Defense for more efficient tanking, but then Blissey would wall me. There's also the matter of a recovery move. I've been contemplating putting Pain Split in place of Confuse Ray, and slapping it on Clamperl instead, but I'm not too sure about it.
The Sweepers:
Do not steal pearl plox (Clamperl) (M) @ Deepseatooth
Ability: Shell Armor
EVs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SAtk
Quiet nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Ice Beam
- Surf
- Brine
---
The only special sweeper for Trick Room. Hidden Power Grass for those pesky Swamperts and other water types. Ice Beam is for coverage. Surf is for STAB, and Brine is there for things that are already weakened. If I can manage to switch in safely with this thing, especially late game, it's game over for the other team. Most of the time Surf will OHKO everything that comes in, and HP Grass and Ice Beam are in place to make sure my fun isn't ruined.
The end of your face (Machamp) (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 128 HP/252 Atk/128 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Dynamicpunch
- Fire Punch
- Thunderpunch
- Bullet Punch
---
This thing is lovely. Dynamicpunch hurts. A lot. And it causes confusion as an added bonus. Fire Punch and Thunderpunch provide sweet coverage for all sorts of stuff, like Gyarados, Celebi, Bronzong, and Skarmory. If, God forbid, I'm caught without the ability to refresh Trick Room and I need a priority move for some reason, Bullet Punch does the trick. There is one huge problem here, if Machamp dies then I'm left without a fighting attack, electric attack, and a fire attack. This means that all sorts of things can proceed to massacre me. Heatran has an easy time killing me, Lucario is met with less resistance and can usually get in a kill or two before I can get it, and I might as well just forefit if Wish Vaporeon comes in.
Armor-clad end of your face (Rhyperior) (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/6 Def
Brave nature (+Atk, -Spd)
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Megahorn
- Ice Punch
---
This guy is a monster in Trick Room. I outspeed a whole lot of things, and this set has some sweet coverage. Stone Edge is for those Flying types and Gyaradoses that attempt to ruin everything. Earthquake is the reliable STAB move for anything that isn't Levitating or Flying, most things are OHKO'd or 2HKO'd by it regardless of resistances. Megahorn is for Levitating Psychic types, and grass types. It makes Celebi cry, and even does respectable damage to Bronzong. Ice Punch is for Dragons and Ground types. One punch OHKO's them easily.
General Threat List:
Wish Vaporeon: Forget it. If Machamp, and Exeggutor are dead, I might as well just give up. First of all, it uses Protect all the time, and then heals with Wish, making it necessary to OHKO it. Machamp can Thunderpunch it dead, and Exeggutor can Leaf Storm it. Outside of that, I have absolutely no means of retaliation. Bronzong is walled, Dusknoir isn't strong enough, Clamperl can't OHKO it, and Rhyperior will get stalled and then surfed when I need to Trick Room again.
Curse anything: Pretty hard to deal with. They can usually get at least one or two of my Pokemon. The big issue is that eventually they'll benefit positively from Trick Room, which is a major issue for my team.
Snorlax: Snorlax is one tough cookie. If it Curses, then it will inevitably outspeed me in Trick Room. If it hasn't used that many curses yet, then Machamp and Rhyperior have a shot at it. Otherwise, Clamperl will have to kill it. However, if Clamperl gets hit after a few Curses, then it's dead. Plus it can always rest away the hard earned damage I caused. Rest also renders Dusknoir's weakening capabilities useless.
Heatran: Heatran is a tough one. I have Clamperl, Rhyperior, and Machamp there to handle it, but it always switches to a counter that kills it. I can usually kill it, but one of my sweepers is likely to die.
Kingdra: Pretty sturdy. I have Exeggutor, Clamperl, and Machamp to hopefully get it. Nothing I have will OHKO it, which is a slight issue. Thankfully I don;t see these often.
Scizor: Oh god. If Machamp is dead then it's awfully hard. Clamperl can't OHKO, but it can survive a Bullet Punch and dent it pretty badly. Rhyperior also has a shot but it's unlikely to work.
---
That concludes my RMT. Hopefully you guys can help me out with this. All critiques are appreciated.
