PHOENIX APRICARI!
~
~
Peak:
The team at a glance:
Yo, My name's Mrjamvad, or Mencemeat as I go by on the PO server, and this is the first team I'm sharing on the forums. So, in this RMT that I made with my good friend Morning Sun, I'm going to be showcasing an Ubers Sun Volt Turn team based around Sub Recover Ho-Oh that peaked at #1 on the PO ladder, and has shown me a great deal of success in the time I've had it. Essentially, the purpose of the team was to abuse Ho-Oh's ability to rip apart the metagame with its respective weather in play, and I surrounded it with teammates that I felt could deal with opposing weather and just in general support it well. Also, this team really allowed for Xatu, an excellent supporter in the Ubers metagame to shine.
On to the team!
Groudon @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 240 HP / 172 Def / 96 Spd
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Roar
So, in the lead spot, we've got Ho-Oh's right hand man Groudon. Groudon is a dominating presence in the metagame because of its ability to manipulate the ever important weather that allows Ho-Oh to excel. The moveset is fairly straightforward; Groudon is my main Physical tank, and sets up the ever important Stealth Rocks which aid in applying pressure offensively for Volt Turn to function effectively, seeing as there is no other form of entry hazard on this team. EdgeQuake coming from Groudon's impressive attack stat even uninvested makes sure that Groudon is not setup fodder, and Roar allows me to phaze threats such as Extreme Killer and Substitute abusers. The EV spread is such that Groudon can outspeed sub Giratina-O and Roar before the Dragon Tail, as well as being able to catch things like slower Ho-Oh off guard. 172 Defense EVs is still plenty bulky. Again, Groudon functions mainly as a defensive pivot into things like Zekrom, and a sturdy shuffler.
Arceus (Arceus-Water) @ Splash Plate
Trait: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 204 SDef / 56 Spd
Calm Nature
- Recover
- Spacial Rend
- Perish Song
- Flamethrower
This is a bit of an interesting choice. Arceus-Water was my Arceus of choice on this team, mainly because I wanted to try something different, as opposed to Latias, a very common sight on Sun teams, as a Kyogre switch-in. Also, Arceus-Water's great defensive typing gave me a check to Kyurem-White which otherwise does give this team problems. As far as EVing is concerned, it's a standard Specially Defensive build with enough Speed to outspeed Adamant Rayquaza and Modest Kyurem-W. The moveset is a bit specialized: Recover, of course, is pretty standard; Spacial Rend, however, was thrown on here as opposed to perhaps Ice Beam because of its ability to hit Palkia, Reshiram, and Kyurem-W for Super Effective damage. Ice Beam wasn't necessary because the only thing of relevance it hits harder is Rayquaza, which is still nailed by Spacial Rend. Flamethrower is the next move on the set, and it on here mainly to hit unsuspecting Ferrothorn and Forretress which see Arceus-Water as a free switch and a free spin respectively. Dragon/Fire is in generally is just good coverage, so there's that. Now for perhaps the most important move on the set: Perish Song. Perish Song is essentially here so that Arceus-Water does not become set up fodder for pokemon such as Calm Mind
Arceus formes and Substitute Ho-Oh, and forces switches like no one's business, aiding in building momentum for the rest of the team.
Arceus formes and Substitute Ho-Oh, and forces switches like no one's business, aiding in building momentum for the rest of the team.
Genesect @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Download
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SAtk / 224 Spd
Naive Nature
- U-turn
- Iron Head
- Ice Beam
- Explosion
Next up is the first of our double scarf Volt Turn core, the newly banished Genesect! Physically based mixed Genesect is definitely among the best Revenge killers and scouters in the Ubers metagame. Access to a STAB U-turn coming off of a base 120 attack stat is nothing to laugh at, and the dominance of things like Mewtwo, Lati@s, and Darkrai makes a strong Bug attack all the more useful. Iron Head is used as a Secondary STAB which, honestly, is not all that useful most of the time. However, it does come in handy against the occasional Kyurem formes and Terrakion. Ice Beam is used as the special attack for its ability to revenge Dragons like Rayquaza who manage to nab a boost, while Explosion is used as a last ditch nuke to deal as much damage as possible before sacrificing Genesect. A Naive nature is used over a Hasty one because Genesect in Ubers greatly appreciates the ability to take Psytrikes from Mewtwo and ExtremeSpeeds from Arceus and Rayquaza a bit better, and the EVs are such that Attack is maximized and I can outspeed Positive Natured base 95s after a boost, while the rest is poured into Special Attack to have a better chance at OHKOing Rayquaza without the SAtk boost from Download.
Xatu (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SAtk / 8 Spd
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
- Roost
- Grass Knot
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SAtk / 8 Spd
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
- Roost
- Grass Knot
"Uhm, why is there a Xatu on an Ubers team?" is what you're probably wondering, but you'd be dead wrong to assume this guy can't function well in an environment with Draco's off base 170 Special Attack stats flying around. Now, Xatu isn't exactly the first choice that comes to mind for a spot on a Sun team; generally something like a Forretress would be used here to provide Ho-Oh with much needed Rapid Spin support. However, I found that the majority of the time it was very difficult for Forretress to actually get a spin off, with things like the Giratinas and Arceus-Ghost blocking poor forry's attempts at spinning. In response to this, I decided to give Xatu a go, taking a more bold approach to preventing hazards. Xatu works wonders in preventing hazards, in particular Spikes because it completely shuts down the most common spikers in the tier being Ferrothorn and Forretress, and having the ability to beat opposing defensive Groudon 1v1. Getting into the moveset, I decided to go with a defensive 3 attacks + Roost set as opposed to screens. U-turn is the first move on the set; it's a great tool in gaining momentum for the rest of the team, and fits with the whole Volt Turn combo along with Genesect and Zekrom. Heat Wave works very well in Sun to get rid of common Spikers as mentioned previously, and is quite a powerful attack in general when boosted by the Sun. Roost is there to keep Xatu healthy and allows it to beat Groudon carrying Stone Edge 1v1 in conjunction with the next move on the set: Grass Knot. I chose Grass Knot in the last slot because it is very useful in dealing damage to the two most Common weather inducers in Groudon and Kyogre. Grass Knot has base 120 power against both of these and can generally 2HKO standard Defensive Groudon. The EV spread maximizes Xatu's physical bulk while the Special Attack investment allows Grass Knot to hit incoming Kyogre for a bit more damage.
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Atk / 96 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Recover
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
And now onto the star of the show, one of the biggest threats in the entire Ubers metagame, Ho-Oh! Ho-Oh is easily one of the most volatile threats in the metagame, and this is the case due the very specific traits Ho-Oh possesses in Sky high Special Defense and HP along with great Attack and one of the best abilities in the entire game, making Ho-Oh very difficult to switch into, and even harder to take down. These traits allow Ho-Oh to set up with surprising ease, and when in Sun its Sacred Fire absolute shreds through anything without a 4x resist or an outright immunity. Subsitute is the crux of the set, as Ho-Oh's bulk forces plenty of switches and allows it to fire off a free attack on the switch in, while Regenerator forgives the HP lost. Sacred Fire is an amazing move, as its 50% burn chance is very handy in crippling just about any incoming Pokemon. Brave Bird hits just about anything Sacred Fire doesn't for huge damage, dealing upwards of 70% to offensive Kyogre among other common switch ins. Any free switch to Ho-Oh is much obliged, and the Volt-Turning provides just that, which is why I felt Ho-Oh would thrive in this type of environment. On to the EVs: 232 HP EVs retains a great deal of bulk while giving up a few EVs to invest in Speed, 180 Atk to hit like a truck and 96 speed to outspeed the majority of oppsing Ho-Oh and Groudon.
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Atk / 96 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Recover
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
And now onto the star of the show, one of the biggest threats in the entire Ubers metagame, Ho-Oh! Ho-Oh is easily one of the most volatile threats in the metagame, and this is the case due the very specific traits Ho-Oh possesses in Sky high Special Defense and HP along with great Attack and one of the best abilities in the entire game, making Ho-Oh very difficult to switch into, and even harder to take down. These traits allow Ho-Oh to set up with surprising ease, and when in Sun its Sacred Fire absolute shreds through anything without a 4x resist or an outright immunity. Subsitute is the crux of the set, as Ho-Oh's bulk forces plenty of switches and allows it to fire off a free attack on the switch in, while Regenerator forgives the HP lost. Sacred Fire is an amazing move, as its 50% burn chance is very handy in crippling just about any incoming Pokemon. Brave Bird hits just about anything Sacred Fire doesn't for huge damage, dealing upwards of 70% to offensive Kyogre among other common switch ins. Any free switch to Ho-Oh is much obliged, and the Volt-Turning provides just that, which is why I felt Ho-Oh would thrive in this type of environment. On to the EVs: 232 HP EVs retains a great deal of bulk while giving up a few EVs to invest in Speed, 180 Atk to hit like a truck and 96 speed to outspeed the majority of oppsing Ho-Oh and Groudon.
Zekrom @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Sleep Talk
- Volt Switch
- Bolt Strike
- Outrage
Last but certainly not least is the Volt in our Volt-turn. Zekrom is easily one of the hardest pokemon to switch into in this metagame, mainly due to the phenomonal coverage provided by its dual Dragon/Electric STAB, the only common resists being Ferrothorn and Excadrill. Zekrom is a great all around answer to Rain teams, as Ferrothorn is the only common pokemon on Rain that can really shut down Zekrom. It may seem odd to have two Choice Scarf users on the same team, but I needed a powerful attacker with a sizable speed, so I decided to run Scarf Zekrom. The Adamant nature is used because Zekrom is not used as a revenge killer per se, so the extra power is much obliged. The moveset is fairly simple: Volt Switch, along with Zekrom's 2 most powerful Physical STABS, and Sleep Talk as the fourth move to absorb sleep from things like Darkrai and hit it with an attack next turn. EV spread is standard of an attacker.
So, in conclusion, a lot of this team's success came from the momentum provided by my Volt Turn Core, in conjunction with Ho-Oh's ability to rip through a good portion of teams, and Zekrom's ability to clean up very well late game. While this team can handle pretty much anything in the meta, but Calm Mind Arceus-Electric has got to be one of if not the biggest threat to this team, mainly because it can beat my answers to other Calm Mind Arceus formes in Ho-Oh and Arceus-Water 1v1.
And there we are. Thanks for reading! Importable below:
Groudon @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 240 HP / 172 Def / 96 Spd
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Roar
Arceus (Arceus-Water) @ Splash Plate
Trait: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 204 SDef / 56 Spd
Calm Nature
- Recover
- Spacial Rend
- Perish Song
- Flamethrower
Genesect @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Download
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SAtk / 224 Spd
Naive Nature
- U-turn
- Iron Head
- Ice Beam
- Explosion
Xatu (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SAtk / 8 Spd
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
- Roost
- Light Screen
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Atk / 96 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Recover
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
Zekrom @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Sleep Talk
- Volt Switch
- Bolt Strike
- Outrage
Trait: Drought
EVs: 240 HP / 172 Def / 96 Spd
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Roar
Arceus (Arceus-Water) @ Splash Plate
Trait: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 204 SDef / 56 Spd
Calm Nature
- Recover
- Spacial Rend
- Perish Song
- Flamethrower
Genesect @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Download
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SAtk / 224 Spd
Naive Nature
- U-turn
- Iron Head
- Ice Beam
- Explosion
Xatu (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SAtk / 8 Spd
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
- Roost
- Light Screen
Ho-Oh @ Leftovers
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Atk / 96 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Recover
- Sacred Fire
- Brave Bird
Zekrom @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Sleep Talk
- Volt Switch
- Bolt Strike
- Outrage