XY NU Rate my NU Team! Plus First Time Posting

[ThisIsDAC]

My friend and I recently got into Smogon battling and for our first dive into the metagame, we decided to do a NU tier battle as from what we've heard is the most fun. I tried this team on Pokemon Showdown and it has pretty good results, but I want to find the few tweaks needed to make the team the best it can be so I can work to get it in the actual game. Thanks in advance for you advice!

Krabby Block (Crustle) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Rock Tomb
- Spikes
- X-Scissor

I chose Crustle as my lead, depending on enemy team, for Stealth and Spikes support. It has great defensive bulk and it is a type of of defensive wall. I chose Rock Tomb for the STAB plus it lowers the Poke's speed which is a great side affect. X-scissor is for good attacking power and STAB. I chose the EV spread for maximum attacking and defensive power.

BP (Ninjask) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Protect
- Baton Pass
- X-Scissor

This Ninjask is named BP for a reason, he is one hell of a baton passer. Depending on enemy team, Ninjask is an occasional lead to get a Swords Dance up (or hopefully two thanks to the EV spread on HP) as well as the Speed Boost to Baton pass it. X-scissor is for the obvious STAB.

Dancing Boy (Ludicolo) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Ice Punch
- Seed Bomb
- Waterfall
- Synthesis

This Ludicolo is a surprise physical sweeper after the Ninjask Baton Pass. It's pretty decent bulk allows it to survive any incoming hits and proceed to sweep. Waterfall has nice flinch side effect that comes in handy. Seed bomb for strong STAB. And Ice Punch for coverage. Synthesis is to recover any residual damage. I have the Lum Berry there in case of any status affects that might try to slow down the Ludicolo.

Birdie (Xatu) @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Calm Mind
- Shadow Ball
- Psyshock

The Xatu kind of acts like a deflector thanks to Magic Bounce. To prevent setting up Spikes or Stealth Rock on my side I use him as a quick switch in. I have the Thunder wave to kind of annoy. Calm mind is used as a quick set up and the moves are for pretty good coverage and damage after the stats raised. The item is for max damage on the attacks.

Smelly (Garbodor) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Stench
EVs: 252 HP / 124 Def / 132 SpD
Careful Nature
- Gunk Shot
- Toxic
- Explosion
- Drain Punch

Garbador I use more as special wall. I chose the EV spread to maximize it's bulk. One of the suggestions might be too fully invest in Special Defense but I feel it'll leave him too vulnerable on the defensive side (If I am wrong on this can you explain why? Thanks!) The moves are too cause as much damage as I can and if I'm left with few too litle HP, the Explosion comes in handy for nice damage.

Jurassic (Aurorus) @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Refrigerate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
- Hyper Beam
- Freeze-Dry
- Calm Mind
- Flash Cannon

Aurorous I use as sort of a special sweeper, even though it doesn't sweep as I would like but still causes massive damage. The Sitrus berry is for the recovery of damage. Hyper beam if the super Powerful Ice STAB. Freeze dry I use for water types that may be a bother. Flash Cannon I use for Rock Types and fairy types that'll annoy my team. Calm mind is for sweeping capabilities.

That's my first attempt at a NU team, hope you guys can help a new member of the Smogon family! Thanks :)

 

[Comet7]

Okay, I don't even mess around in NU at all, but I'll try to critique your team. With that in mind, feel free to take this with a grain of salt.

Screw hyper beam. Use Ice Beam instead. Heat Wave is probably better than shadow ball on your Xatu. You also have stuff to get hazards down, but nothing to get rid of them, other thanyour Xatu which only discourages them, so that might be a problem. You also have nothing that's fast, so you might want to invest some speed into stuff like Ludicolo. It also seems like you're trying to have a hyper offensive team, so I'd reccomend getting a volt-turn core. For the total of 20 minutes I've played in this tier, I've grown to love Electivire, but something like Electabuzz or Raichu might work. IDK what in this tier uses U-Turn effectively, so I can't help you there. Your team is also weak to stuff with edgequake coverage, with only Ludicolo being able to deal with that, so that needs to be addressed.

 

[Pinkin Lark]

Only thing I'll comment on is the Aurorus: Don't use Hyper Beam -or- Ice Beam. Nature Power is your best option. Unless your opponent uses one of the "Terrain" moves, it will default to Tri-Attack, giving you a 104 BP(after Refrigerate) STAB move with a chance of 3 status effects. Oh, and take 4 HP EVs off Ninjask/Xatu/Aurorus, as it makes them have even HP against Rocks.

Wish people would stop using BPass Ninjask.. A waste of a good physical Bug type...

 

[ThisIsDAC]

Only thing I'll comment on is the Aurorus: Don't use Hyper Beam -or- Ice Beam. Nature Power is your best option. Unless your opponent uses one of the "Terrain" moves, it will default to Tri-Attack, giving you a 104 BP(after Refrigerate) STAB move with a chance of 3 status effects. Oh, and take 4 HP EVs off Ninjask/Xatu/Aurorus, as it makes them have even HP against Rocks.

Wish people would stop using BPass Ninjask.. A waste of a good physical Bug type...

I replaced Hyper beam with Nature Power, and the first time I used it my opponent got frozen. So I'm sticking with it. But can you explain what you said about the $ EVs thing. I don't get it.

 

[ThisIsDAC]

Okay, I don't even mess around in NU at all, but I'll try to critique your team. With that in mind, feel free to take this with a grain of salt.

Screw hyper beam. Use Ice Beam instead. Heat Wave is probably better than shadow ball on your Xatu. You also have stuff to get hazards down, but nothing to get rid of them, other thanyour Xatu which only discourages them, so that might be a problem. You also have nothing that's fast, so you might want to invest some speed into stuff like Ludicolo. It also seems like you're trying to have a hyper offensive team, so I'd reccomend getting a volt-turn core. For the total of 20 minutes I've played in this tier, I've grown to love Electivire, but something like Electabuzz or Raichu might work. IDK what in this tier uses U-Turn effectively, so I can't help you there. Your team is also weak to stuff with edgequake coverage, with only Ludicolo being able to deal with that, so that needs to be addressed.

As the second person recommended Nature Power I'll do that instead of Ice Beam. Heat Wave has been working good, so thanks for that. I do need a Pokemon to rid of hazards, or else my Ninjask is shut down. Would Invested Speed in Ludicolo actually be better if he's already at +2 speed? Maybe Raichu will work, but what Pokemon shall it replace? Also, I just battled someone who had the edgequake combo on Sawk, and completely decimated my team, so that is a bother. Any suggestions to combat this?

 

[Pinkin Lark]

I replaced Hyper beam with Nature Power, and the first time I used it my opponent got frozen. So I'm sticking with it. But can you explain what you said about the $ EVs thing. I don't get it.

Simply, any Pokemon with 252 EVs will end up with an even numbered HP. All 3 I mentioned have a weakness to Stealth Rock, dealing 25% to Xatu and Aurorus and 50% to Ninjask, pretty much reducing their ability to switch in; Ninjask is dead if you switch him into Rocks twice. Reducing it by 4(248 EVs) puts them at an odd number, changing the damage to 24% and 49% respetively. This way, Ninjask can come in twice(leaving him at 1 HP), giving him a chance to do more work.

Doesn't matter for Ludicolo and Garbordor, as they either resist or are neutral to Rocks.

It's generally a small thing(and for some reason Showdown likes to dump 4 EVs into HP for a lot of Speed spreads...), but can generally help you out.

 

[ThisIsDAC]

Simply, any Pokemon with 252 EVs will end up with an even numbered HP. All 3 I mentioned have a weakness to Stealth Rock, dealing 25% to Xatu and Aurorus and 50% to Ninjask, pretty much reducing their ability to switch in; Ninjask is dead if you switch him into Rocks twice. Reducing it by 4(248 EVs) puts them at an odd number, changing the damage to 24% and 49% respetively. This way, Ninjask can come in twice(leaving him at 1 HP), giving him a chance to do more work.

Doesn't matter for Ludicolo and Garbordor, as they either resist or are neutral to Rocks.

It's generally a small thing(and for some reason Showdown likes to dump 4 EVs into HP for a lot of Speed spreads...), but can generally help you out.

Ohhhhh, okay. It's a small change that makes a huge difference, I like it. Thanks :)

 

[Comet7]

As the second person recommended Nature Power I'll do that instead of Ice Beam. Heat Wave has been working good, so thanks for that. I do need a Pokemon to rid of hazards, or else my Ninjask is shut down. Would Invested Speed in Ludicolo actually be better if he's already at +2 speed? Maybe Raichu will work, but what Pokemon shall it replace? Also, I just battled someone who had the edgequake combo on Sawk, and completely decimated my team, so that is a bother. Any suggestions to combat this?

Oh, I was thinking about suggesting nature power, but I wasn't sure how the automatic tri attack worked with refrigerate. You learn new things every day~ I suggested that you consider speed investmenton Ludicolo in case you for some reason didn't to baton pass to him or if there would be scarfs that are still faster. As for stuff that deals with edgequake, I don't know. Again, I rarely play in the NU tier. :/

 

[ThisIsDAC]

Oh, I was thinking about suggesting nature power, but I wasn't sure how the automatic tri attack worked with refrigerate. You learn new things every day~ I suggested that you consider speed investmenton Ludicolo in case you for some reason didn't to baton pass to him or if there would be scarfs that are still faster. As for stuff that deals with edgequake, I don't know. Again, I rarely play in the NU tier. :/

Alright then, I'll invest some speed since Choice Scarf will be problem. But that Edgequake will be problem, but I'll find something. Thanks anyways :)

 

[soulgazer]

Hey ThisIsDAC

While Ninjask with a Ludicolo recipient sounds cool on paper, it is unfortunately a bad strategy that will have problems working against good opponents. If you do want to use a team based around Baton Pass, I am going to suggest changing Ninjask to Gorebyss:

Gorebyss @ White Herb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Shell Smash
- Baton Pass
- Ice Beam

While Gorebyss isn't as fast as Ninjask, its access to Shell Smash + Baton Pass makes it one of the premier Baton Pass user in the tier as it can either sweep by itself or Baton Pass +2 Atk +2 SpA +2 Spe to its teammates. This set is also straightforward so there's not much to say about it.

Next, I am going to suggest you to change Ludicolo to a Kangaskhan as one of your main recipient:

Kangaskhan (F) @ Assault Vest / Lum Berry
Ability: Scrappy
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Frustration
- Drain Punch
- Earthquake
- Sucker Punch

Kangaskhan is arguably one of the best recipient on Baton Pass teams thanks to its good bulk, speed, and offensive stats. Thanks to Scrappy, it also has amazing coverage with Frustration, Drain Punch (recovery), and Earthquake (Steel- and Rock-types). Kangaskhan also has access to Sucker Punch which gives it a nice priority move to revenge kill faster threats if you didn't get to Baton Pass a boost to it yet. As for the choice between Assault Vest and Lum Berry, I will leave that up to you as both works: Assault Vest lets Kangaskhan take special hits a bit better as it is bound to take a hit as it gets passed a Shell Smash, while Lum Berry makes it easier for Kangaskhan to receive a boost against something that may use Thunder Wave, Toxic, or Will-O-Wisp.

Now, I am going to suggest a different Xatu set that will work better on your team:

Xatu @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stored Power
- Dazzling Gleam
- Calm Mind
- Roost

Now the set might looks weird, but Xatu is another good recipient on Baton Pass teams thanks to Magic Bounce and its access to Stored Power, which paired with a Shell Smash boost or a couple of Calm Mind boosts, will be enough for Xatu to potentially sweep your opponent's team. Dazzling Gleam is used alongside Stored Power so that you won't get walled by Dark-types. Speaking of Dark-types, this is also why I am suggesting you to use a Colbur Berry on the Xatu; so that it doesn't die to Dark-types that might try to Sucker Punch it to OHKO it. The EV spread is to outspeed Jolly Sawk incase you can't afford to pass a Shell Smash to Xatu just yet and that you need to revenge kill it.

Finally, I am going to suggest you to change your Lead Crustle's set to make its job easier:

Crustle @ Red Card
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Rock Blast
- Knock Off / Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes

I am suggesting this as Rock Tomb + X-Scissor aren't the best coverage moves Crustle can use. Rock Blast lets Crustle break Focus Sashes and break Substitutes and also let Crustle hit harder. Knock Off and Earthquake are both really good options that offers better coverage than X-Scissor: Knock Off lets Crustle remove items such as Eviolite or Leftovers from annoying opponents while Earthquake lets Crustle hit Steel-types and other Rock-types for more damage, so I will leave the choice between these two coverage up to you. Finally, Red Card is a better item than Leftovers as it will allow Crustle to phaze out opponents that may think they are safe setting up turn 1 infront of Crustle. Oh and the EV spread is simply to outspeed as many Pokemon as possible so that Crustle can set up as many entry hazards as possible.

I am also going to suggest you to try out different Pokemon over Garbodor and Aurorus as they simply doesn't seem to fit on such a team, especially Garbodor as it is really redundant with Crustle and the sets that you are currently using on it isn't the best it can do ( I don't want to tell you what to change them to as a lot of things can be used in these last two slots).

Hope I helped, and if you have any questions feel free to pm me

 

[ThisIsDAC]

Hey ThisIsDAC

While Ninjask with a Ludicolo recipient sounds cool on paper, it is unfortunately a bad strategy that will have problems working against good opponents. If you do want to use a team based around Baton Pass, I am going to suggest changing Ninjask to Gorebyss:

Gorebyss @ White Herb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Shell Smash
- Baton Pass
- Ice Beam

While Gorebyss isn't as fast as Ninjask, its access to Shell Smash + Baton Pass makes it one of the premier Baton Pass user in the tier as it can either sweep by itself or Baton Pass +2 Atk +2 SpA +2 Spe to its teammates. This set is also straightforward so there's not much to say about it.

Next, I am going to suggest you to change Ludicolo to a Kangaskhan as one of your main recipient:

Kangaskhan (F) @ Assault Vest / Lum Berry
Ability: Scrappy
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Frustration
- Drain Punch
- Earthquake
- Sucker Punch

Kangaskhan is arguably one of the best recipient on Baton Pass teams thanks to its good bulk, speed, and offensive stats. Thanks to Scrappy, it also has amazing coverage with Frustration, Drain Punch (recovery), and Earthquake (Steel- and Rock-types). Kangaskhan also has access to Sucker Punch which gives it a nice priority move to revenge kill faster threats if you didn't get to Baton Pass a boost to it yet. As for the choice between Assault Vest and Lum Berry, I will leave that up to you as both works: Assault Vest lets Kangaskhan take special hits a bit better as it is bound to take a hit as it gets passed a Shell Smash, while Lum Berry makes it easier for Kangaskhan to receive a boost against something that may use Thunder Wave, Toxic, or Will-O-Wisp.

Now, I am going to suggest a different Xatu set that will work better on your team:

Xatu @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stored Power
- Dazzling Gleam
- Calm Mind
- Roost

Now the set might looks weird, but Xatu is another good recipient on Baton Pass teams thanks to Magic Bounce and its access to Stored Power, which paired with a Shell Smash boost or a couple of Calm Mind boosts, will be enough for Xatu to potentially sweep your opponent's team. Dazzling Gleam is used alongside Stored Power so that you won't get walled by Dark-types. Speaking of Dark-types, this is also why I am suggesting you to use a Colbur Berry on the Xatu; so that it doesn't die to Dark-types that might try to Sucker Punch it to OHKO it. The EV spread is to outspeed Jolly Sawk incase you can't afford to pass a Shell Smash to Xatu just yet and that you need to revenge kill it.

Finally, I am going to suggest you to change your Lead Crustle's set to make its job easier:

Crustle @ Red Card
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Rock Blast
- Knock Off / Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes

I am suggesting this as Rock Tomb + X-Scissor aren't the best coverage moves Crustle can use. Rock Blast lets Crustle break Focus Sashes and break Substitutes and also let Crustle hit harder. Knock Off and Earthquake are both really good options that offers better coverage than X-Scissor: Knock Off lets Crustle remove items such as Eviolite or Leftovers from annoying opponents while Earthquake lets Crustle hit Steel-types and other Rock-types for more damage, so I will leave the choice between these two coverage up to you. Finally, Red Card is a better item than Leftovers as it will allow Crustle to phaze out opponents that may think they are safe setting up turn 1 infront of Crustle. Oh and the EV spread is simply to outspeed as many Pokemon as possible so that Crustle can set up as many entry hazards as possible.

I am also going to suggest you to try out different Pokemon over Garbodor and Aurorus as they simply doesn't seem to fit on such a team, especially Garbodor as it is really redundant with Crustle and the sets that you are currently using on it isn't the best it can do ( I don't want to tell you what to change them to as a lot of things can be used in these last two slots).

Hope I helped, and if you have any questions feel free to pm me

Wow, you completely changed my whole team lol, but I appreciate the constructive criticism :). I'll PM you some Pokes to see if they are good fits as replacements for Garbador and Aurorus. But other than that, Thanks! I definitely want to get better and this will sure help.