Rainy Day (Coldplay, anyone) [OU Rain Dance RMT]

Swordsman95

Hey everyone, this is my first RMT post, so go easy on me. This is the second incarnation of this team, and the second team I made.
I thought it would be a worthwhile experiment to create a rain team, and thus far I've had pretty good success.
I can deal pretty well with Sandtorrm teams, Sunny Day Teams and other rain teams are fun, plus I can ususally take them down.
I'll give a description of the Pokemon I use, and why. They may be a bit short, seeing as I'm inexperienced at this, but I'll improve. If you have any questions, just ask.

So here we go:

Lead:


jirachi.png

Jirachi@ Damp Rock
Serene Grace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid
Moves:
~Rain Dance
~Thunder
~Stealth Rock
~U-Turn

Jirachi Rainmaker. That was the movie wasn't it? He's not the fastest lead (I would need an Azelf for that, which I've considered), but he's brilliant. No-one taunts him for fear of an Iron Head, so I get a free Rain Dance if nothing else. I can then Thunder and Water Pulse for Parafusion or a KO, whichever comes first. I can always U-Turn out too, to let a sweeper in for 7 turns or rain – great for breaking Focus Sashes too. Interesting fact: Every Roserade lead I’ve faced has swapped out to a Heatran – free Rain Dance and a dead Heatran: I think so!

Rain Dancer/Utility Sweeper:


Poke479(Platino)(N)(washer)(1).png

Rotom-W@ Leftovers
Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest
Moves:
~Rain Dance
~Thunder
~Hydro Pump
~Shadow Ball

What an amazing specimen. So many uses. “Triple STAB”, very handy, especially to take out Celebis with Shadow Ball. I can set up Rain Dance, and take a few hits. I often have enough speed to do some damage too, and recover at the same time. Hates Tyranitar though, and Gengars too. At least the latter can’t get rid of rain, which means a free kill next turn with a sweeper. This is also brilliant for absorbing Focus Punches from my sworn enemy Breloom, who incidentally, can’t do too much with Seed Bomb or Stone Edge.

Mixed Sweeper:


kingdra.png

Kingdra@ Life Orb
Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 240 SpA / 16 Spe
Naughty
Moves:
~Waterfall
~Hydro Pump
~Draco Meteor
~Outrage

This is a beast, when used right. The great trick is to disguise the physical or special side, so that they either swap in a Blissey, Skarmory or other wall, which I can take out in 1-2 hits. The main problem is the slow speed out of rain and the inability to OHKO Blissey, and some Celebis – they all hit back with Thunder Wave. That’s the definition of pain for this team. Would an electric absorber like Electivire be suggestible?

Physical Sweeper:


kabutops.png

Kabutops@ Life Orb
Swift Swim
EVs: 32 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Def / 204 Spe
Adamant
Moves:
~Waterfall
~Stone Edge
~Aqua Jet
~Swords Dance

Heeeeeeeere’s Johnny! Pretty simple, actually. I normally forgo Swords Dance for fear of a OHKO. I’ve thought about Focus Sash, but never bothered. Stone Edge’s accuracy fails me at the worst times, however, especially against Suicunes. Nonetheless, the principle here is hit hard and fast. It’s great for nerfing Tyranitars too, seeing as Sandstorm isn’t a problem for Kabutops.

Wall/Rain Dancer:


bronzong.png

Bronzong@ Damp Rock
Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 152 Atk / 8 Def / 96 SpD
Impish
Moves:
~Rain Dance
~Explosion
~Light Screen
~Hypnosis

Hi, I’m an enemy Kingdra on an Outrage… oh damn… Bronzong! Great special and physical wall, and my best screw you to Kingdra. I can set up Rain Dance and often incapacitate and opponent, which means free Stealth Rock mid-game. When low on health, or if my work is done, Explode for glory, usually on a Kingdra, Snorlax (they’re everywhere now), Suicune, Celebi, Dragonite, or whatever they’re left with once their team is gone. Great to switch into Earthquakes, no doubt as well. Gotta watch out for Gengars that switch into Explosion though.


Special Sweeper:


ludicolo-f.png

Ludicolo@ Life Orb
Swift Swim
EVs: 60 HP / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
Modest
Moves:
~Surf
~Energy Ball
~Ice Beam
~Rain Dance

This thing is devastating in rain. The coverage is amazing at any time in a game, and it’s bulky enough to set up its own rain too, as necessary. Yesterday, this thing caused a massive ragequit with much swearing, simply because I outpredicted a team, hit super effective a few times and a Sleep Powder missed. The role is pretty simple though. Come in at any time, and sweep for it’s life. Energy ball works better,s o as to deal with the oh-so-common Vaporeon switches, while still hurting everything else.

So that’s that. Have at it, feedback, changes, team member swaps, lawsuits, let me know!
 
Hey I got your message, this seems like a fairly competent rain dance team. I think you accidentally copy and pasted the intro twice though lol. Onto the team:

I'm not sure if Rotom is really a good idea... Merging the two ideas of bulky rain setter and sweeper isn't usually a good idea. I'd go for a more bulky spread on him, try checking the analysis.

Bronzong , in my opinion, shouldn't be wasting rain turns with the bad-accuracy hypnosis. I'd run Gyro Ball instead, if only to have a reliable Tyranitar and Abomasnow counter/check.

If you find that you really don't like Kaputops, don't be afraid to run Qwilfish, whom is also a brilliant swords dancer. I think Kabutops works fine though.

That's all the advice I have, hope it helped.
 
This rain team is competent, but there's something you should note- YOU NEED STEALTH ROCK.

Replace Water Pulse on Jirachi with it; although now you're helpless against Swampert lead.... Wait a minute you're not doing much with Water Pulse either. With Stealth Rock you can now OHKO Scizor, assuredly, after SR damage from Ludicolo's Surf in rain. Without Stealth Rock you can't do it and risk eating a U-turn.

I'm not a fan of Mixed Kingdras in rain, because they simply don't carry the power to break down dedicated walls like Celebi. Swap it out for:

Kingdra @ Life Orb
72 HP/252 Special Attack/164 Speed
Modest
Swift Swim

~Surf
~Ice Beam
~Hidden Power Electric
~Rain Dance

This gets walled by Blissey, but now you have a chance against Vaporeon.

If you do this, swap out Ludicolo's current set to be:

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
4 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Adamant
Swift Swim

~Swords Dance
~Waterfall
~Seed Bomb
~Ice Punch

This has perfect neutral coverage. AND IT'S NOT A GIMMICK. Blissey is OHKOed by a +2 Waterfall in rain, Vaporeon is OHKOed by Seed Bomb (Something Grass Knot/Energy Ball cannot do), Scizor is OHKOed WITHOUT STEALTH ROCK, and Gyarados after Intimidate is 2HKOed by Seed Bomb.

Oh, and Smith, Rotom-W is awesome as a supporter and sweeper in Rain. With three moves that get STAB of different types in Rain, why the hell wouldn't you want it? However, change your spread to be 78 HP/252 special attack/188 speed and keep your timid nature. This allows you to outspeed Adamant Lucario and... OHKO with Thunder, lol. You're not outspeeding anything special with your spread or Rotom's base 86 speed, so you might as well hit one benchmark and add the rest of your EVs to bulk.
 
I recommend Qwilfish > Kabutops as it has a better typing, more speed, and Explosion. Swords Dance Waterfalls will still hurt, trust me.
 
Thanks everyone, especially Smith, appreciate that you could reply so quickly. I'll definitely try some of these suggestions, some may be easier than others, seeing as I've got a Shoddy and a real version of this team.

@GaRgAnt: The physical Ludicolo's nto a bad idea, but Kingdra can usually deal with Vaporeons,a dn I usually get a free switch as they use Protect. As for the Jirachi, Water Pulse has two main purposes: Parafusion and 2HKOing Heatran, namely leads.
The Stealth Rock however, may work pretty well, because then I could switch Bronzong to a Scizor, to still deal with Tyranitars and Abomasnows, or give Bronzong Gyro Ball and Reflect.

This'll take some thought. The floor's still open to other suggestions.

I've now made some preliminary changes, in bold. I'm considering replacing Stealth Rock on Bronzong, with something else, either Reflect or maybe Gyro Ball. Suggestions?
 
This team looks decent but you should change Hypnosis and Stealth Rock to Reflect and Light Screen on Bronzong. First of all Hypnosis only has 60 per cent accuracy and therefore only a sixty per cent chance to actually do anything. With dual screens Kabutops will find it much easier to set up, and rotom will be able to take out Tyranitar and gengar.
 
I know many of you will think me stupid to keep Hypnosis, but after playing aroud with Bronzong's moveset, I found that it's saved me so many times, especially as a failsafe. Also, Reflect works to at least help somewhat with setup. Signal Beam was temporary on Kingdra, Outrage is better. I don't really need anything else other than the STAB combination, and it helps me to beat down walls and attack from both sides of the spectrum, as well as bluff, as I suggested before.
 
Hi Swordsman, congrats on your first RMT!

Rain Dance is a very effective strategy, and I've had some experience with this playstyle myself, so I'll help you out however I can.

Leading with Rain Dance Jirachi is an excellent idea, taking advantage of many people's fear of a Choice Scarfed Iron Head.

Overall, I can't think of any major changes to be made. You might want to consider putting in Qwilfish over Kabutops, as it can absorb Toxic Spikes and sweep through Celebi, which is an obstacle for many members of Rain Dance teams, but other than that, this looks quite solid. If you do decided to try Qwilfish use this set:

211.png

Qwilfish @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant nature
- Swords Dance
- Waterfall
- Poison Jab
- Explosion

Explosion can also be used to get rid of any major threat to the team, and is a helpful move to maintain offensive momentum; Rain Dance teams should focus on attacking offensively and keeping pressure on the opponent.


Good luck with your team!
 
I use the same exact moveset for the lead Jirachi but with a bulkier EV spread, i suggest using it as it can survive basically any hit.


Jirachi @ Damp Rock
Bold
252 HP, 80 Def, 176 SpD
- Thunder
- U-Turn
- Rain Dance
- Stealth Rock

I also suggest using Scizor instead of Bronzong, cause Bronzong always used to fail me.

Scizor @ Damp Rock
252 HP, 58 Atk, 200 SpD
Adamant
- U-Turn
- Rain Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Roost

And on Ludicolo, i highly suggest you use the Swords Dance set.

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Adamant
60 HP, 252 Atk, 196 Spe
- Ice Punch
- Swords Dance
- Seed Bomb
- Waterfall

Everyone expects a special Ludicolo, so they usually switch out to a special wall, and when they do that, you take the opportunity to Swords Dance on they're face, and if you can, Swords Dance again and you have a +4 boosted Waterfall plus a +50% boost from Rain, who wouldn't fear that ???
 
Thanks guys, I like your thinking. I'll definitely consider some of these. My only issue with Qwilfish is the lack of coverage on Gyarados and Dragonite, and priority.
The Ludicolo is attractive, but I get a bit put off by the inability to restart rain. Could screw over Blissey though.
Jirachi is much of a muchness, but may be worth a try. i enjoy the speed and power though. I've got one of those Scizors, so that might be cool, but my Bronzong's served me well, and it's my "Outrage stopper" - when you're in rain, a Kingdra (and scarfed Flygons) can be deadly, Exploding on them is a saving grace.
 
This sounds weird but defensive lanturn could really help your team. Try a set like this.

40 HP / 216 SpA / 252 SpD

Rain Dance
Surf / Hydro Pump
Thunder
Ice Beam
 
SsAaVv said:
This sounds weird but defensive lanturn could really help your team. Try a set like this.

40 HP / 216 SpA / 252 SpD

Rain Dance
Surf / Hydro Pump
Thunder
Ice Beam
Click to expand...

That's not actually a bad idea. I suppose you mean it as a Rain Dance restorer, Electric absorber and some decent rain offence? My only question is, where could I put it?
 
I agree with Scizor over Bronzong since it can deal with Tyranitar which can take away your rain and gets a free switch on Bronzong. Even if Hypnosis hits Tyranitar will continue to switch in on Bronzong thus making it harder for you to sweep.

Also I think its worth running Rain Dance on Kingdra over Hydro Pump. Hydro Pump is not doing much for you and Rain Dance means that you have much greater control over the weather.

Have a Nice Day!
 
Hi Swordsman, I like this team a lot. I only have a few suggestions.

Bronzong and Kingdra have the best synergy of any two pokemon in the OU metagame. Not only do they resist each other's only weakness (Bronzong resists Dragon 2x, Kingdra resists Fire 4x), but they also work together amazingly well. Bronzong sets up Rain Dance and screens, Kingdra comes in and sets up easily. This is the Bronzong set I suggest you use:

Bronzong @ Light Clay, Levitate
Impish, EVs: 252 HP/ 152 Atk/ 8 Def/ 96 SDef
Rain Dance | Reflect | Light Screen | Explosion

Hypnosis is useful if and only if it hits. Then, even if it hits, you are only able to set up one screen. That is not a good idea. The idea here is to use Light Screen on a predicted switch (most Fire type moves used against Bronzong are special), Then proceed to use Light Screen, Rain Dance, and Explosion. The goal of Explosion is NOT to hurt something badly, but to let Kingdra come in without taking a hit. With these moves and Light Clay, Kingdra will hopefully come in with 5 turns of Light Screen, 6 turns of Reflect, and 4 turns of Rain Dance. This will make it extremely easy to set up Dragon Dances will sponging hits thanks to the Dual Screens. One problem with your Kingdra set is that it can be ended by a well-timed status move. Here is my suggested set:

Kingdra @ Chesto Berry, Swift Swim
Adamant, EVs: 144 HP/ 160 Atk/ 164 Spe/ 42 SDef
Dragon Dance | Waterfall | Outrage | Rest

This Kingdra gets one or two Dragon Dances before using Rest, then wakes up instantly thanks to Chesto Berry. You can even get a couple more DDs after you wake up! Status is not an issue. If you do not get screens up in time, Kingdra still takes hits very easily with this spread, only being 3HKOd from offensive Suicune with one Calm Mind. Starmie's Thunderbolt cannot 2HKO this Kingdra. The speed EVs allow it to outspeed +natured +1 opponents (Choice Scarf Flygon, etc) after 2 Dragon Dances.

I like Kabutops in OU, it is extremely scary to any team when it gets +2 in the rain. Kabutops really fits on this team. The Qwilfish set above can be used over it, and Aqua Jet can be put in over Waterfall. However, Aqua Jet on Qwilfish is usually not strong enough to do anything. That is why I say keep Kabutops.

Ludicolo is my #1 favorite pokemon of all time. The set you have works perfectly, but keep in mind that if Kabutops and/or Kingdra have fainted in a battle, your team is easily walled by that fat pink slut known as Blissey. The Swords Dance Ludicolo set works very well, and usually puts your opponent in a very rough spot. GaRgAnt posted it earlier.

All in all this is a very solid team. You have plenty of Rain Dancers, great synergy, and Ludicolo. GL in the future :D
 
^ Woah, why so much Speed on Kingdra ?

16 is enough, 76 [i think, not really sure, read it somewhere but forgot where.] and naive if you want to beat ScarfGon, but i don't think you can outspeed it if it's Jolly.
 
Arikado said:
^ Woah, why so much Speed on Kingdra ?

16 is enough, 76 [i think, not really sure, read it somewhere but forgot where.] and naive if you want to beat ScarfGon, but i don't think you can outspeed it if it's Jolly.
Click to expand...

The speed EVs allow it to outspeed +natured +1 opponents (Choice Scarf Flygon, etc) after 2 Dragon Dances.
Rain is not always a given, the rain might run out. Relying on constant rain is not a good idea, this is 'insurance' kind of.
 
Well i use a spread of 252 Atk, 240 SpA and 16 Spe, and it's awesome, even if it's not in the rain.

You only need 6 turns of rain for Kingdra and you'll win anyway. :P Unless the opponent has a Swift Swim Pokemon.. But i think Kingdra can pretty much take it down.
 
Bump, sorta. Plus I'm kinda wondering what to do with Bronzong. I've changed Reflect to Light Screen, though I haven't put it down yet, and I've toyed with the Dual Screener idea, but it rarely gets everything upand if it does, I don't have enough rain to exploit. I could do Dua lScreens but keep Rain Dance, but the screens barely last that way? THe team I find workes great otherwise. What do you guys think I should do?
 
Gyro Ball over Reflect is your only other choice, to hit Gengar who may be troublesome if she gets in withiut a hitch. Or Earthquake over Reflect for Magnezone and Heatran.
For Kingdra I suggest running 247 speed (not EVs)h to get ScarfGon upon the hip.
 
min min said:
Gyro Ball over Reflect is your only other choice, to hit Gengar who may be troublesome if she gets in withiut a hitch. Or Earthquake over Reflect for Magnezone and Heatran.
For Kingdra I suggest running 247 speed (not EVs)h to get ScarfGon upon the hip.
Click to expand...


For 247 Speed Kingdra needs 164 EVs. (neutral speed nature) With a +Spe nature, it needs 76.
 
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