So, I've been playing around on the non-Pokébanked Ubers metagame, and because of it being a very limited Ubers setting to play in, there are, predictably, an extremely finite number of threats around. I put this team together and found it consistently performed well - didn't win every time, but became pretty definitive of what that strange metagame is about. I'm certainly new to these forums but in some ways I'm a veteran battler; I've been around since the beginning of 4th Gen on the competitive scene, and since I went through 5th without really being a part of it, I wanted to post something significant up here as a first RMT of the gen! So, here it is, not an unbeatable or even cookie-cutter team, but a team based on a concept that anyone playing the 'official' Ubers meta should be prepared for; at the moment, I think that these threats will define their metagame.
Lead - Crippling Baton Pass
Blaziken @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Baton Pass
- Protect
- Swords Dance
- Toxic
This set holds a simple concept that we've all been used to for generations, taken to the extreme when they gave Speed Boost to Blaziken. Despite a first look, getting a Swords Dance isn't always necessary since everyone on the team is a potential target and can function without the attack boosts, hence the inclusion of Toxic, which can cripple opposing Baton-Pass receivers or opposing Blaziken, removing sashes and limiting later use. I'm not too worried about Taunters, because the team includes offensive threats that can deal with most defensive Taunt users; less bulky Taunt users tend to be there for stall breaking anyway (in a Crobat/Tornadus-T-esque style), and so pose even less of an issue for a more or less hyper-offensive team.
Bulky-Offence, Revenge-killing, Priority
Scizor @ Scizorite
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Roost
- Brick Break
A powerhouse of damage that can wreck teams once he's received a Speed-Boost; he's still a hard-hitter without. Roost sacrifices coverage (which might otherwise be filled by fighting coverage), but helps Mega Scizor use his respectable bulk to some advantage, especially since he's suffering a bit from the lack of BW2 tutor-move Superpower. He dents most walls effectively but is only really given trouble by Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Forretress and switching-in fire-types, none of which like boosted Xerneas very much and can still be broken through if Mega Scizor has a Swords Dance from Blaziken. This is my best (and only) way of properly dealing with Xerneas, but as such has become a staple on the team; Bullet Punch will 2HKO and Xerneas can only 2HKO in return with it's STAB Moonblast, assuming unboosted. This means I basically can't switch out of Xerneas with anything and just have to dent it with whatever I can while it sets up; this isn't, by any means, a switch in to Xerneas, but provides a soft check.
Scizor's base attack customised up to 150 to match his Mega; custom represents Timid Xerneas:
252+ Atk Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def (custom): 252-296 (63.95 - 75.12%) -- guaranteed 2HKO.
Defensive Spinning
Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 176 HP / 60 Atk / 242 SDef / 20 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Part of the defensive presence on the team, he's here to let Blaziken get out quickly while still creating a threat of a heavily boosted attacker. His defensive spinning set is lifted straight out of the BW metagame, where he was viable as a defensive threat who could reliably force out some of the biggest other threats at the time (Zekrom, Rayquaza and Dialga, to name a few that he could push out). Now, with the powerhouses that dealt with him nicely (some Arceus formes, Kyogre, Groudon, Palkia, etc.) all out of the picture, his defensive presence is pretty hard to beat in this meta and the rapid-spin support can keep Blaziken passing the odd Speed Boost around much later than you'd expect, as well as saving those without recovery (namely himself and Xerneas, but also Salamence who has the ever-present weakness to Rocks) from being chipped away at. After a Swords Dance he has a 6.25% chance to 1HKO Xerneas, but even at +2 Xerneas can only 2HKO, with not even a guarantee of that (91.02% chance).
Walling Point, Surprise Offence, PHazing, Spikes
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 232 Def / 252 HP / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Roost
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind
This is the answer to heavy hitting Dragons (and others, namely Salamence, Garchomp, etc. and also can switch in to a couple of hits from Yveltal and unboosted Xerneas using anything but Thunderbolt with the right prediction; some calculations to come when I come back to edit this). It's fairly cookie-cutter but also serves a pseudo-purpose in that it can be a target for Blaziken's passes, in order to put an unexpected dent in anything that knows it can 1-2HKO Skarmory.
All-Out Attacker, Offensive Stag
Xerneas @ Power Herb
Ability: Fairy Aura
EVs: 208 HP / 252 SAtk / 60 Spd
Modest Nature
- Geomancy
- Moonblast
- HP Fire
- Substitute
This is the real heavy hitter on any team that uses it, and so far that's been almost all teams I've seen. There isn't really a right answer to dealing with this as after a boost it'll at least 2HKO the entire Ubers meta, with the majority falling to 1HKOs. Because of Xerneas' bulk and the SpD boost it gets from the 1-turn Geomancy, it's quite easy to find an opportunity to set up, and the only things that threaten it are the STAB Bullet Punch users, which, available at the moment, are Scizor and Lucario; they still don't like switching in on a Thunderbolt (or Psyshock in Lucario's case), and it's often easy to predict their switches and delay Geomancy until I know I won't be forced out. It's again another less expected target for some Baton Passes, but passing it some Speed Boosts can sometimes let it win out against opposing set-ups.
Cleaner, Anti-Meta Coverage
Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Roost
- Flamethrower
- Earthquake
The final link in the team; this is the last target for stray Speed Boosts that Blaziken can nab, and functions as a great late-game cleaner who can keep himself up if he sees use early on or comes up against priority. Moxie means that he functions well with or without Swords Dances, and guarantees a couple more 1HKOs in may favour than Intimidate would prevent against me in Ubers. He can 1-2HKO Xerneas with Earthquake, who might switch in on me, and he outspeeds Xerneas (just) too, meaning that although he can't switch in and won't be killing boosted Xerneas, if he gets in first or gets more than 2 Speed boosts from Blaziken (pretty easy) he can easily dent Xerneas early on, letting Excadrill come in and survive even boosted Xerneas and KO with his own Earthquake. Of course, this isn't to say I'd ever bring him in on Xerneas myself, not with Scizor sitting above, but it seemed worth pointing out that he's not pure setup fodder for Xerneas. The rest of his coverage is anti-meta and wall breaking; Flamethrower is chosen over Fire-Blast in Ubers for added reliability over the sheer power of Fire-Blast - he still 2HKOs or, at the very worst, threatens all he needs to (4 SpA Salamence Flamethrower vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Skarmory: 200-236 (59.88 - 70.65%) -- guaranteed 2HKO, for example).
There's the team, and most of the synergy and some discussion of threats is left in the individual descriptions. It's 01:00 here in the UK so I'll pop back tomorrow and give it a thorough checking-through again, as well as adding in some sprites and such. Thanks all, have fun pulling it apart!
Lead - Crippling Baton Pass
Blaziken @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Baton Pass
- Protect
- Swords Dance
- Toxic
This set holds a simple concept that we've all been used to for generations, taken to the extreme when they gave Speed Boost to Blaziken. Despite a first look, getting a Swords Dance isn't always necessary since everyone on the team is a potential target and can function without the attack boosts, hence the inclusion of Toxic, which can cripple opposing Baton-Pass receivers or opposing Blaziken, removing sashes and limiting later use. I'm not too worried about Taunters, because the team includes offensive threats that can deal with most defensive Taunt users; less bulky Taunt users tend to be there for stall breaking anyway (in a Crobat/Tornadus-T-esque style), and so pose even less of an issue for a more or less hyper-offensive team.
Bulky-Offence, Revenge-killing, Priority
Scizor @ Scizorite
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Roost
- Brick Break
A powerhouse of damage that can wreck teams once he's received a Speed-Boost; he's still a hard-hitter without. Roost sacrifices coverage (which might otherwise be filled by fighting coverage), but helps Mega Scizor use his respectable bulk to some advantage, especially since he's suffering a bit from the lack of BW2 tutor-move Superpower. He dents most walls effectively but is only really given trouble by Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Forretress and switching-in fire-types, none of which like boosted Xerneas very much and can still be broken through if Mega Scizor has a Swords Dance from Blaziken. This is my best (and only) way of properly dealing with Xerneas, but as such has become a staple on the team; Bullet Punch will 2HKO and Xerneas can only 2HKO in return with it's STAB Moonblast, assuming unboosted. This means I basically can't switch out of Xerneas with anything and just have to dent it with whatever I can while it sets up; this isn't, by any means, a switch in to Xerneas, but provides a soft check.
Scizor's base attack customised up to 150 to match his Mega; custom represents Timid Xerneas:
252+ Atk Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def (custom): 252-296 (63.95 - 75.12%) -- guaranteed 2HKO.
Defensive Spinning
Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 176 HP / 60 Atk / 242 SDef / 20 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Part of the defensive presence on the team, he's here to let Blaziken get out quickly while still creating a threat of a heavily boosted attacker. His defensive spinning set is lifted straight out of the BW metagame, where he was viable as a defensive threat who could reliably force out some of the biggest other threats at the time (Zekrom, Rayquaza and Dialga, to name a few that he could push out). Now, with the powerhouses that dealt with him nicely (some Arceus formes, Kyogre, Groudon, Palkia, etc.) all out of the picture, his defensive presence is pretty hard to beat in this meta and the rapid-spin support can keep Blaziken passing the odd Speed Boost around much later than you'd expect, as well as saving those without recovery (namely himself and Xerneas, but also Salamence who has the ever-present weakness to Rocks) from being chipped away at. After a Swords Dance he has a 6.25% chance to 1HKO Xerneas, but even at +2 Xerneas can only 2HKO, with not even a guarantee of that (91.02% chance).
Walling Point, Surprise Offence, PHazing, Spikes
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 232 Def / 252 HP / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Roost
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind
This is the answer to heavy hitting Dragons (and others, namely Salamence, Garchomp, etc. and also can switch in to a couple of hits from Yveltal and unboosted Xerneas using anything but Thunderbolt with the right prediction; some calculations to come when I come back to edit this). It's fairly cookie-cutter but also serves a pseudo-purpose in that it can be a target for Blaziken's passes, in order to put an unexpected dent in anything that knows it can 1-2HKO Skarmory.
All-Out Attacker, Offensive Stag
Xerneas @ Power Herb
Ability: Fairy Aura
EVs: 208 HP / 252 SAtk / 60 Spd
Modest Nature
- Geomancy
- Moonblast
- HP Fire
- Substitute
This is the real heavy hitter on any team that uses it, and so far that's been almost all teams I've seen. There isn't really a right answer to dealing with this as after a boost it'll at least 2HKO the entire Ubers meta, with the majority falling to 1HKOs. Because of Xerneas' bulk and the SpD boost it gets from the 1-turn Geomancy, it's quite easy to find an opportunity to set up, and the only things that threaten it are the STAB Bullet Punch users, which, available at the moment, are Scizor and Lucario; they still don't like switching in on a Thunderbolt (or Psyshock in Lucario's case), and it's often easy to predict their switches and delay Geomancy until I know I won't be forced out. It's again another less expected target for some Baton Passes, but passing it some Speed Boosts can sometimes let it win out against opposing set-ups.
Cleaner, Anti-Meta Coverage
Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Roost
- Flamethrower
- Earthquake
The final link in the team; this is the last target for stray Speed Boosts that Blaziken can nab, and functions as a great late-game cleaner who can keep himself up if he sees use early on or comes up against priority. Moxie means that he functions well with or without Swords Dances, and guarantees a couple more 1HKOs in may favour than Intimidate would prevent against me in Ubers. He can 1-2HKO Xerneas with Earthquake, who might switch in on me, and he outspeeds Xerneas (just) too, meaning that although he can't switch in and won't be killing boosted Xerneas, if he gets in first or gets more than 2 Speed boosts from Blaziken (pretty easy) he can easily dent Xerneas early on, letting Excadrill come in and survive even boosted Xerneas and KO with his own Earthquake. Of course, this isn't to say I'd ever bring him in on Xerneas myself, not with Scizor sitting above, but it seemed worth pointing out that he's not pure setup fodder for Xerneas. The rest of his coverage is anti-meta and wall breaking; Flamethrower is chosen over Fire-Blast in Ubers for added reliability over the sheer power of Fire-Blast - he still 2HKOs or, at the very worst, threatens all he needs to (4 SpA Salamence Flamethrower vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Skarmory: 200-236 (59.88 - 70.65%) -- guaranteed 2HKO, for example).
There's the team, and most of the synergy and some discussion of threats is left in the individual descriptions. It's 01:00 here in the UK so I'll pop back tomorrow and give it a thorough checking-through again, as well as adding in some sprites and such. Thanks all, have fun pulling it apart!
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