[XY UU Beta] Azelf Smash!

[Poison_Us]

Finally, XY UU! I've always tried to include an interesting/unexpected set on my teams in order to maintain control at certain times. This time around I went with Azelf, the poor guy who hasn't seen much usage since DPPt. Anyway, here goes.

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Azelf->Focus Sash
Jolly Nature
4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
-U Turn
-Knock Off
-Zen Headbutt
-Explosion

This was my unique set. Sure, it isn't all that special, but try and remember the last time you saw a physical Azelf? :P I'll usually lead with him, as most people will expect rocks, and instead will usually get a wonderfully boosted Knock Off to the face. U Turn aids in scouting and Zen Headbutt is for STAB (and hits surprisingly hard. Explosion is a last ditch effort to eliminate a specific threat. I have him wearing a Focus Sash because Latias is incredibly good at getting rid of hazards, and it has helped once or twice in revenge killing something that would certainly KO me otherwise.


Florges->Leftovers
Calm Nature
252 HP / 144 Def / 112 SDef
-Wish
-Protect
-Aromatherapy
-Moonblast

Staple special wall and counter to damn near every dragon/dark/fighting/bug move out there. The moveset is a typical wish passing cleric. I've invested a good chunk into defense to assist in sponging strong neutral physical attacks, as well as Psyshock from Latias. This thing can seriously tank hits :3


Hippowdon->Leftovers
Impish Nature
252 HP / 144 Def / 112 SDef
-Stealth Rock
-Slack Off
-Earthquake
-Stone Edge

Staple physical wall with investment in special bulk, it too can tank a multitude of hits. It is damn near guaranteed to get rocks up provided you don't stay in on a silly super strong super effective move, and heals with Slack Off or switches to an appropriate counter. I ran Toxic before Stone Edge but found it almost useless in the metagame, so I chose the wonderfully inaccurate move over Ice Fang because it hurts more and well...I like to live dangerously. Until it misses. Then I cry.


Latias->Life Orb
Modest Nature
40 HP / 252 SAtk / 216 Spe
-Draco Meteor
-Psyshock
-Defog
-Roost

Fairly standard, from what I've seen. Speed is there to outpace stuff that I can't remember, and the rest is in HP. Modest Nature and Life Orb means that Draco Meteor is going to hit nice and hard. Latias was meant to be a solid Defogger who could do some damage, but she's a pretty efficient late game sweeper. IMO she's the best Pokemon in UU at the moment, hands down. Even without SAtk investment, non-stab SE moves can rarely harm her.
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Keldeo->Life Orb
Timid Nature
4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
-Calm Mind
-Hydro Pump
-Secret Sword
-HP Ghost

Newly implemented late game sweeper is proving to be quite valuable :3 A lot of people seem to automatically assume it is scarfed and switch out, leaving a free opportunity to Calm Mind. Even after one boost I was surprised how much damage he could manage. Hydro Pump misses suck, but I'd definitely take risk and power over a lost KO and accuracy. I have no issues with Keldeo, aside from wishing that HP wasn't nerfed this Gen.


Rotom-N->Choice Scarf
Timid Nature
4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
-Thunderbolt
-Volt Switch
-Shadow Ball
-Trick

I've kinda been saving this guy to handle M-Gardevoir after it has been slightly weakened, and the occasional revenge killing or scouting provided my opponent doesn't have a ground type. I find his damage to be underwhelming at times but that is strictly my fault, because I shouldn't be relying on him to overpower and KO certain threats (live and learn, I guess.) Seriously, thanks to Treecko, because Rotom-N has proved to be pretty damn awesome in this new XY UU.​

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After updates I'm at 7w 3l, but my rating is a hell of a lot higher so I haven't been facing the trash I was with my old team. I'll be practicing with it today, I'll update and let everyone know how it does :3

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[nkhlshnd99]

Terrakion is not staying in UU for long. U might want 2 find a replacement.

 

[RowDog]

Well one, Mega-Heracross is currently BL here on Smogon so there is no need for Terrakion's Aerial Ace which you could replace with something else like perhaps Earthquake to help hit Doublade on the switch who would otherwise wall you, as well as Pokemon such as Metagross. We all know how great the EdgeQuake combo can be and Terrakion is a great abuser. Alternatively you could run Substitute, Poison Jab to really hit Fairies or something else, as Terrakion has quite a few choices.

As for Pangoro what are you after specifically? Another Dark type replace or want do you want out of the slot? As there are quite a few things to hit Fairies.

 

[ryan]

Hey Poison_Us, cool UU team you've got here. Great spreads on your Hippowdon and Florges as well. I've got some recommendations for you to try out. Hopefully they'll work for you.

The first thing I see when I look at this team is a massive Crawdaunt weakness. You have three Dark resists, but your only Water resist is easily taken out by a Knock Off and 2HKOed by Crabhammer, which means that early on in the game, Crawdaunt can spam Crabhammer to break down your defensive core and clean up later on with Aqua Jet. In order to help out with this weakness, I'd recommend trying out Keldeo over Terrakion. You get the same huge firepower that Terrakion offers, only now you can hit from both the physical and the special side thanks to Secret Sword and also check physical Water-types and Weavile far more comfortably. The set is ultimately up to you, but considering Terrakion's role, you'd probably be best off running the offensive Calm Mind set.

I can also see a slight Slowbro weakness. Pangoro's Crunch can only 2HKO 60% of the time after Stealth Rock (without Stealth Rock, it never gets the 2HKO). And of course, with Regenerator, it can just pivot out anyways. Azelf's Knock Off (if you're lucky enough to land it) only does ~40% when it is holding an item, and Explosion does around 50%. +2 Terrakion does 55-65% with Stone Edge assuming it hits, while Scald does about the same back and of course has its burn chance. If you choose to run Keldeo, +1 HP Ghost does 78-91%, so that's a decent answer, but with that being the best answer, it can definitely be an issue. In order to help you out a bit with Slowbro, you could try out a Choice Scarf Rotom-N in place of your Pangoro. This would give you a way to hit Slowbro really hard and still gain momentum just like you did with Pangoro, and it also gives you a reliable way to revenge kill Mega Gardevoir, which you noted was an issue for your team. If you'd prefer something that hit a bit harder, you could also try out Choice Scarf Chandelure, but its lack of Volt Switch and the lower consistency it has in handling Slowbro can be offputting.

Another small suggestion to help you in combating Terrakion and Keldeo in case Hippowdon or Florges gets taken out is to tweak Latias's EV spread just slightly. By running 16 HP / 252 SpA / 240 Spe with a Timid nature, you outspeed all unboosted base 108 Pokemon, including all of the four musketeers, and either KO them or hit them for a lot of damage with a Life Orb Psyshock. Alternatively, you can just run 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe and tie with opposing Latias, but that's ultimately your call. Having Florges means you probably don't need to worry about the Speed tie, but you only lose out on 3 HP if you go this route.

As a very minor note, with a team of five Pokemon susceptible to sandstorm damage (if you choose to replace Terrakion of course) and one with a Focus Sash, it's probably a good idea to run Sand Force on Hippowdon rather than Sand Stream for this particular team. Not sure what you're running right now, but it's not a huge deal anyways.

Your team looks like a lot of fun! Best of luck with it, and I hope my changes help.

Summary of Changes:

Terrakion → Offensive CM Keldeo

@ Life Orb / Expert Belt | Ability: Justified
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Timid Nature
Calm Mind / Hydro Pump / Secret Sword / Hidden Power Ghost

Pangoro → Choice Scarf Rotom-N

@ Choice Scarf | Ability: Levitate
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Timid Nature
Volt Switch / Shadow Ball / Thunderbolt / Trick

Latias EVs →
16 HP / 252 SpA / 240 Spe, Timid Nature
or
4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe, Timid Nature

 

[Patrick1088]

Terrakion is not staying in UU for long. U might want 2 find a replacement.

Why would terrakion not stay uu? Ive been playing with it and its pretty balanced. Well see how the meta shifts but i think its a nice welcome change.

Ill rate the team in detail later...

 

[nkhlshnd99]

Why would terrakion not stay uu? Ive been playing with it and its pretty balanced. Well see how the meta shifts but i think its a nice welcome change.

Ill rate the team in detail later...

It is most likely going to ou it barely went down and I think he will move up a tier.

 

[RowDog]

Here is not the place to speculate whether Terrakion will jump to BL or OU, and is not a very good rate. If and when Terrakion is banned you can come back and say that it needs to be changed or offer a replacement.

 

[Poison_Us]

Thanks Treecko, I've implemented your suggestions and find that Keldeo is, indeed, just as useful as Terrakion, if not more :) Rotom-N is doing ok, I'm still having trouble with M-Gardevoir but who isn't these days? That Hyper Voice really hurts >_<;