Well I have been doing some Pokemon Showdown and I must say I have been doing much better than I have before. I was struggling to break 1.1k points, but now have gotten from 1100 to 1450ish in less than one hour now and am still climbing. Part of it was mostly my previous team was just not good enough to handle threats, and I just started Gen V battling less than 2 weeks ago so I was unprepared. Now I know what threats are lurking and what needs to be done. Now that I am climbing the ladder and am facing better opponents some help would be nice.
Now comes the team:
1. Bronzong@Leftovers
Nature: Sassy
EV: 252 HP / 132 SP Def /40 Def / 84 Attack
IV: 2 Speed (for HP Ice)
Ability: Levitate
1. Stealth Rock
2. Gyro Ball
3. HP Ice
4. Earthquake
Bronzong is probably one of the best SR layers in the game. His only weakness is Fire, which synergizes very well with Heatran's Flash Fire and can redirect any potential Fire Blast's to Heatran. In addition, Bronzong checks a lot of the top threats in the game, namely Landorus.Gliscor, and the LaTwins. In addition, those such as Breloom that hit Bronzong for STAB Neutral cannot out duel Bronzong, as his sheer bulk and powerful Gyro Ball can take care of them. The threats I have listed are all taken care of by HP Ice. Earthquake rounds off the set for Heatran and Magnezone predictions as well as Ferrothorn vs Bronzong.
2. Slowbro@Leftovers
Nature: Bold
EV: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Ability: Regenerator
1. Scald
2. Thunderwave
3. Psychic
4. Slack Off
Slowbro can deal with a lot of threats to Bronzong (Heatran + Infernape) +more (Conkeldurr + Terrakion + Gyarados+ Dragons+ Keldeo) are scared off by Slowbro, and for good reason. It's high Defense means it can soak up damage and can hope to cripple with Scald Or Thunder Wvae. When I know a switch out is going to happen I Slack Off to restore lost HP and re switch to allow Regenerator to restore even more HP. Scald is my main STAB and is useful vs Terrakion and physical Landorus as well as any physical Pokemon as Scald has that burn chance and Thunder Wave can cripple incoming Gengars or even Keldeo or Rotom-W who would otherwise switch into me. Psychic is another useful STAB providing decent damage vs neutral opponents and is very threatening vs Breloom and Infernape.
3. Heatran@Choice Scarf
Nature: Timid
EV: 252 Speed/ 252 Sp. Attack /4 HP
1. Flamethrower
2. Earthpower
3. HP Electric
4. Dragon Pulse
Good ol ScarfTran. It was one of the #1 sets in D/P/P however the addition of Air Balloon and nerf to Explosion say a rise in Defensive Heatran. However, with a Timid + Scarf, Heatran still outspeeds all of the Pokemon in the OU Tier (even Jolteon) except those who are holding a Scarf themselves. This makes Heatran's strong power and type coverage to be an effective revenge killer. Flamethrower is a preferred STAB as opposed to Overheat as Overheat can be inadvisable in some scenarios and late game, because the 2X reduced Sp. Attack has screwed me over. Sometimes when any Fire resists are down, Heatran can more than likely spam Flamethrower and win the game, which he cant do with Overheat. Plus my luck is AWFUL and the 90% accuracy on Overheat seems more like 60% to me. Anyway, Earthpower covers other Heatran and Rock types (CB Terrakion) and is useful vs Steel types if Rain is up. HP Electric also covers Waters (Politoed/Jellicent/Starmie) as well as do something in the Rain as Heatran is otherwise usless vs Rain teams, and Dragon Pulse covers the LaTwins and other Dragons, who unless Scarfed or use a predicted Earthquake, can't dent Heatran or outspeed him. Heatran is my check to Venasuar/ Scizor/ Volcarona.
4. Sceptile@Leftovers
Nature: Timid
EV: 252 Speed / 252 Special Attack / 4 HP
Ability: Overgrow
1. Substitute
2. Leech Seed
3. Giga Drain
4. HP Fire
Ok I know a lot of Smogoners judge a RU in an OU team without even trying it out. That is actually very unfortunte, as Sceptile is a very effective Pokemon. Many teams on this page and page 2 are Venasaur weak as the Fire/Grass combo is very strong. I decided to variate that using Scpetile since Sceptile has higher base speed+ Sp Attack and doesn't require the Sun to be up. In fact, compared to other Pokemon in OU, Sceptile has the #2 highest base Speed in the game, shortly behind Jolteon and tied with Alakazam + Dugtrio. Now I know a second thing other Smogoners who actually know Sceptile's true potential are thinking: isn't Sceptile better off as pure Special Sweeper? I say, maybe, but I have been using this set originally to troll (yes I did it for laughs at first) but it works. Sceptile is the best SubSeeder in the game (tied with Whimsicott) and even though Whimsicott lays seeds faster (due to Prankster) Sceptile actually has the ability sweep due to it's higher Speed+Special Attack in the case the opponent actually knows how to deal with SubSeed. If I feel the need for a true special sweeper later, I might use Jolteon or go pure sweeper Sceptile, but this set is effective.
The Grass+Fire combo is strong as HP Fire 2HKO Ferrothorn, Foretress, and Skamory and OHKOs Breloom Scizor as well.
5. Garchomp@Yache Berry
Nature: Jolly
EV: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Ability: Rough Skin
1. Swords Dance
2. Dragon Claw
3. Bulldoze
4. Fire Fang
Late game sweeping, Garchomp is unstoppable. Outrage is normally the best skill for this, however there have been times in which Garchomp was needed way earlier, and by using Outrage early I have screwed myelf over so no I will NOT use Outrage. With Swords Dance, Garchomp's ability to OHKO/2HKO shows, as a +2 Fire Fang 2HKO Ferrothorn+Forretress. Dragon Claw is there for my main STAB as it has a base 120 power vs neutral opponents (due to STAB) and is nothing to scoff at. Bulldoze I agree is pretty gimmicky and a niche, however most people do not understand that Bulldoze is a Defensive move as opposed to Earthquake. Garchomp may have decent Speed but it is still not special. Any Pokemon that I switch Garchomp into is going to switch out to something else, which is where either Swords Dance or Bulldoze comes in. If in that situation Swords Dance cannot be optimized, Bulldoze can be used to lower whatever they switch in's Speed. Also, Bulldoze's Speed reduction has helped me severely, as it helped pave the way for a surprise Swords Dance and help my other sweepers as well. Maybe with enough convincing I might drop it for Earthquake but so far I don't want to. One way I look at it is this: Bulldoze serves as a mini Dragon Dance in tandem with Swords Dance. Because the opponent has -1 Speed, that equates to me having +1 Speed vs that opponent as well
6. Conkeldurr@Flame Orb
Nature: Adamant
EV: 252 Attack / 128 HP / 128 Special Def
Ability: Guts
1. Drain Punch
2. Mach Punch
3. Payback
4. Ice Punch
With Toxic/Will-O-Wisp being in high usage, I decided to take advantage of it by using Guts Conkeldurr. With Guts, Conkeldurr has the ability to OHKO Gliscor with Ice Punch after SR damage. Mach Punch however, will be my main form of Attack as anything even neutral vs this has the potential to be 2HKOd. Drain Punch will be used as my recovery seeing as how I can't leave Conkeldurr in forever, and is what I will be using as a prediction. If I switch in Conkeldurr vs something that switches out (Blissey for example) I use Drain Punch and whatever comes in, and unless it is a Ghost, I will recover sufficient HP, even if Drain Punch itself did not hit for much. Payback is for said Ghosts as well as Psychic types (namely LaTwins).
---------At A Glance--------
Now comes the team:
1. Bronzong@Leftovers
Nature: Sassy
EV: 252 HP / 132 SP Def /40 Def / 84 Attack
IV: 2 Speed (for HP Ice)
Ability: Levitate
1. Stealth Rock
2. Gyro Ball
3. HP Ice
4. Earthquake
Bronzong is probably one of the best SR layers in the game. His only weakness is Fire, which synergizes very well with Heatran's Flash Fire and can redirect any potential Fire Blast's to Heatran. In addition, Bronzong checks a lot of the top threats in the game, namely Landorus.Gliscor, and the LaTwins. In addition, those such as Breloom that hit Bronzong for STAB Neutral cannot out duel Bronzong, as his sheer bulk and powerful Gyro Ball can take care of them. The threats I have listed are all taken care of by HP Ice. Earthquake rounds off the set for Heatran and Magnezone predictions as well as Ferrothorn vs Bronzong.
2. Slowbro@Leftovers
Nature: Bold
EV: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Ability: Regenerator
1. Scald
2. Thunderwave
3. Psychic
4. Slack Off
Slowbro can deal with a lot of threats to Bronzong (Heatran + Infernape) +more (Conkeldurr + Terrakion + Gyarados+ Dragons+ Keldeo) are scared off by Slowbro, and for good reason. It's high Defense means it can soak up damage and can hope to cripple with Scald Or Thunder Wvae. When I know a switch out is going to happen I Slack Off to restore lost HP and re switch to allow Regenerator to restore even more HP. Scald is my main STAB and is useful vs Terrakion and physical Landorus as well as any physical Pokemon as Scald has that burn chance and Thunder Wave can cripple incoming Gengars or even Keldeo or Rotom-W who would otherwise switch into me. Psychic is another useful STAB providing decent damage vs neutral opponents and is very threatening vs Breloom and Infernape.
3. Heatran@Choice Scarf
Nature: Timid
EV: 252 Speed/ 252 Sp. Attack /4 HP
1. Flamethrower
2. Earthpower
3. HP Electric
4. Dragon Pulse
Good ol ScarfTran. It was one of the #1 sets in D/P/P however the addition of Air Balloon and nerf to Explosion say a rise in Defensive Heatran. However, with a Timid + Scarf, Heatran still outspeeds all of the Pokemon in the OU Tier (even Jolteon) except those who are holding a Scarf themselves. This makes Heatran's strong power and type coverage to be an effective revenge killer. Flamethrower is a preferred STAB as opposed to Overheat as Overheat can be inadvisable in some scenarios and late game, because the 2X reduced Sp. Attack has screwed me over. Sometimes when any Fire resists are down, Heatran can more than likely spam Flamethrower and win the game, which he cant do with Overheat. Plus my luck is AWFUL and the 90% accuracy on Overheat seems more like 60% to me. Anyway, Earthpower covers other Heatran and Rock types (CB Terrakion) and is useful vs Steel types if Rain is up. HP Electric also covers Waters (Politoed/Jellicent/Starmie) as well as do something in the Rain as Heatran is otherwise usless vs Rain teams, and Dragon Pulse covers the LaTwins and other Dragons, who unless Scarfed or use a predicted Earthquake, can't dent Heatran or outspeed him. Heatran is my check to Venasuar/ Scizor/ Volcarona.
4. Sceptile@Leftovers
Nature: Timid
EV: 252 Speed / 252 Special Attack / 4 HP
Ability: Overgrow
1. Substitute
2. Leech Seed
3. Giga Drain
4. HP Fire
Ok I know a lot of Smogoners judge a RU in an OU team without even trying it out. That is actually very unfortunte, as Sceptile is a very effective Pokemon. Many teams on this page and page 2 are Venasaur weak as the Fire/Grass combo is very strong. I decided to variate that using Scpetile since Sceptile has higher base speed+ Sp Attack and doesn't require the Sun to be up. In fact, compared to other Pokemon in OU, Sceptile has the #2 highest base Speed in the game, shortly behind Jolteon and tied with Alakazam + Dugtrio. Now I know a second thing other Smogoners who actually know Sceptile's true potential are thinking: isn't Sceptile better off as pure Special Sweeper? I say, maybe, but I have been using this set originally to troll (yes I did it for laughs at first) but it works. Sceptile is the best SubSeeder in the game (tied with Whimsicott) and even though Whimsicott lays seeds faster (due to Prankster) Sceptile actually has the ability sweep due to it's higher Speed+Special Attack in the case the opponent actually knows how to deal with SubSeed. If I feel the need for a true special sweeper later, I might use Jolteon or go pure sweeper Sceptile, but this set is effective.
The Grass+Fire combo is strong as HP Fire 2HKO Ferrothorn, Foretress, and Skamory and OHKOs Breloom Scizor as well.
5. Garchomp@Yache Berry
Nature: Jolly
EV: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Ability: Rough Skin
1. Swords Dance
2. Dragon Claw
3. Bulldoze
4. Fire Fang
Late game sweeping, Garchomp is unstoppable. Outrage is normally the best skill for this, however there have been times in which Garchomp was needed way earlier, and by using Outrage early I have screwed myelf over so no I will NOT use Outrage. With Swords Dance, Garchomp's ability to OHKO/2HKO shows, as a +2 Fire Fang 2HKO Ferrothorn+Forretress. Dragon Claw is there for my main STAB as it has a base 120 power vs neutral opponents (due to STAB) and is nothing to scoff at. Bulldoze I agree is pretty gimmicky and a niche, however most people do not understand that Bulldoze is a Defensive move as opposed to Earthquake. Garchomp may have decent Speed but it is still not special. Any Pokemon that I switch Garchomp into is going to switch out to something else, which is where either Swords Dance or Bulldoze comes in. If in that situation Swords Dance cannot be optimized, Bulldoze can be used to lower whatever they switch in's Speed. Also, Bulldoze's Speed reduction has helped me severely, as it helped pave the way for a surprise Swords Dance and help my other sweepers as well. Maybe with enough convincing I might drop it for Earthquake but so far I don't want to. One way I look at it is this: Bulldoze serves as a mini Dragon Dance in tandem with Swords Dance. Because the opponent has -1 Speed, that equates to me having +1 Speed vs that opponent as well
6. Conkeldurr@Flame Orb
Nature: Adamant
EV: 252 Attack / 128 HP / 128 Special Def
Ability: Guts
1. Drain Punch
2. Mach Punch
3. Payback
4. Ice Punch
With Toxic/Will-O-Wisp being in high usage, I decided to take advantage of it by using Guts Conkeldurr. With Guts, Conkeldurr has the ability to OHKO Gliscor with Ice Punch after SR damage. Mach Punch however, will be my main form of Attack as anything even neutral vs this has the potential to be 2HKOd. Drain Punch will be used as my recovery seeing as how I can't leave Conkeldurr in forever, and is what I will be using as a prediction. If I switch in Conkeldurr vs something that switches out (Blissey for example) I use Drain Punch and whatever comes in, and unless it is a Ghost, I will recover sufficient HP, even if Drain Punch itself did not hit for much. Payback is for said Ghosts as well as Psychic types (namely LaTwins).
