Hey Smogon! I've been testing a few teams lately (thus loosing a lot of points on the Ladder...) but this team got me nearly back up to my previous records. As said in the title, this team is based on Tailwind, which may not be as reliable as TR, but is surprising enough to snap victory on a great number of occasions. My idea was to use Pokémons that were to slow to be performant on their one, but to quick to be good on a TR team. So let's get started, here's a first glance at the team:
I know it might just not look that cool at first glance, but it holds up together. Let's take a look:
Talonflame @ Leftovers
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Tailwind
- Roost
- Will-O-Wisp
- Brave Bird
Let's start with the begining, ie the TW setters. TF is, to me, the best possible setter any TW team could have, as priority TW almost ensures you to get set straight away. I've chose the bulky TF over the offensive one, but maybe that's a mistake, although to me, with Brave Bird, you kind of want Roost to ba able to set TW up at least once again, ans Will-o-Wisp is important to resist a rock slide from Garchomp, say. But Flare Blitz would be a very good move on this slot. I've also considered using Bulk Up over Will-o-Wisp, but I don't really know if it's that good.
Weaknesses:
Crobat @ Black Sludge
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Tailwind
- Taunt
- Defog
- Poison Fang
This is our second setter. As it is one of the quickest mons in Doubles, Crobat is very likely to set the Tailwind very quickly. But there was another problem, making any TW setter a little unsure to play it's part, and that was Fake Out, hence Inner Focus. OK so now we have our two Flying-typed TW setters, so we are pretty sure not to appreciate Stealth Rocks floating around us, and that's why I wanted to use Defog. Plus, it also rids us of Sticky Web, which can sometimes be a little tricky. As Tailwind teams are usually overpowered by TR teams, I saw fit to give Crobat Taunt. I chose Poison Fang as Crobat's only offensive move because Talonflame already ran Brave Bird, so I chose a physical Poison-STAB attack, and the prospect of 50% Toxic poisoning an opponent mon was pretty sexy as it sticks well ith the idea of support Crobat. I'm just really not sure about the EVs, I was thinking a fast bulky support but maybe the Spe EVs should be divided among Def and SpD or even Atk...
Weaknesses:
Togekiss takes Crobat's spot in the team:
Togekiss @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 192 Def / 64 SpD
Calm Nature
- Air Slash
- Follow Me
- Tailwind
- Roost
Excadrill @ Focus Sash
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Shadow Claw
- Protect
With these two setters, our team becomes quite vulnerable to Electric-, Ice- and Rock-typed mons. To cover those weaknesses, I chose Excadrill. That kid is incredibly well-suited for the job, as it takes care of Rotom-Wash (TF's possible worst enemy), and Earthquake+Rock Slide takes care of any bothering mon of the three types he's supposed to deal with. I chose to run Shadow Claw rather than Iron Head in order to take care of any Psychic-type Pokémon that would try to cripple Crobat, and because later on, you'll see we have Steel-type coverage on another mon. I'm really not sure about those EV's either, Im still testing a little to make sure you can be as bulky as possible while still outspeeding Landorus-T under TW and 2HKO it. Focus sash was chosen over Life Orb, mainly because of Air Balloon Heatran (which sometimes requires to take a Heat Wave in the face before using Earthquake) and Landorus-T.
Weaknesses:
Rotom-Wash @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Def / 84 SpA / 124 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Electroweb
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect
Rotom-Wash comes in as the the third support Pokemon. As you might have just seen, he covers pretty much all of Excadrill's weaknesses if you're willing to consider that Will-o-Wisp takes care of Fighting-type opponents (now I know that's not true, especially considering Keldeo, but it does a nice trick still). I chose Electroweb over Thunderbolt because it's a very good substitute for TW if our two setters are already down and because it doesn't last only five turns, although sometimes the speed lowering isn't good enough to ensure the entire team strikes first. The EV spread is the one from KyleCole (I'm really sorry to go on copycat, but I'm really bad at manipulating EVs spreads, I hope you don't mind...), except I obviously didn't boost the speed because of TW/Electroweb. I'm just not that at ease with Excadrill inevitably breaking his mold, but with this EV spread Excadrill doesn't OHKO him, so I guess we're good.
Weakness:
Heracross @ Heracronite
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 64 HP / 252 Atk / 192 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Pin Missile
- Close Combat
- Rock Blast
- Protect
Originally, the team was built for him. Mega-Heracross is a bit slower than Heracross, but this EV spread, he's supposed to out speed any mon under TW, while packing enough bulk and power to do the job. He is our most reliable response to Mega-Khangaskhan and Rock-type mons that threaten our TW setters. Pin Missile was chosen over Bullet Seed because I wanted another STAB move, as Heracross' shere power is sometimes quite enough to KO any mon that doesn't resist it's attacks. Bullet Seed would have been a good option if Rotom-W wasn't already dealt with, but we already have Excadrill to do that.
Weaknesses:
Magnezone @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Magnet Rise
- Hidden Power [Fire]
With two physical sweepers, we needed a special sweeper. And Magnezone provides just the right balance between "low-but-not-to-low" speed, great SpA and bulk. I was reluctant to go for the Choice Specs set, which is IMO not that good in doubles, but I figured Life Orb was kind of lame with Sturdy. So I went for Sitrus Berry, which I like better than Leftovers with Sturdy. Thunderbolt is mandatory because Rotom-W's Electric move is prett weak in terms of raw power. Plus, it can OHKO CharY in the sun, which is an incredible threat to the team. Flash Canon provides the Steel-type coverage I've evoked with Excadrill. HP Fire is here because of the bulky set of TF, which doesn't run any Fire-type move, but it gives an incredible coverage. This is very important, as Rotom-W is very important in this team (as it is Excadrill's best friend, and very useful with Magnezone as well), I felt like I needed Fire-type moves to protect him. HP Ice could be cool sometimes, when you want to get rid of a Dragon-type mon, but you can usually easily play around that with those sets. With these EVs, Magnezone can use Magnet Rise before Landorus-T moves (under TW), thus screwing him whole if he choses to go for Earthquake. He also moves before Excadrill, so he can rise before the Earthquake. All in all, it seemed to me like an excellent move in those conditions (Magnet Rise), and that's why I didn't want to go for Assault Vest.
Magnezone is to be changed, testing SubLatios, Tailwind Salamence and Support and Specs Hydreigon for now.
Weaknesses:
So that's that. I've made sure that every weakness of every pokemon was covered by at least another pokemon in the team. There still are a few issues that I have to deal with though:
So I sincerely hope you've enjoyed this team, and if you feel like you can answer one of these questions or point out a weakness I hadn't noticed, you're very welcome!
I know it might just not look that cool at first glance, but it holds up together. Let's take a look:
Talonflame @ Leftovers
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Tailwind
- Roost
- Will-O-Wisp
- Brave Bird
Let's start with the begining, ie the TW setters. TF is, to me, the best possible setter any TW team could have, as priority TW almost ensures you to get set straight away. I've chose the bulky TF over the offensive one, but maybe that's a mistake, although to me, with Brave Bird, you kind of want Roost to ba able to set TW up at least once again, ans Will-o-Wisp is important to resist a rock slide from Garchomp, say. But Flare Blitz would be a very good move on this slot. I've also considered using Bulk Up over Will-o-Wisp, but I don't really know if it's that good.
Weaknesses:
- Rock: Excadrill, Magnezone, Heracross
- Electricity: Excadrill
- Water: Rotom-W
Crobat @ Black Sludge
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Tailwind
- Taunt
- Defog
- Poison Fang
This is our second setter. As it is one of the quickest mons in Doubles, Crobat is very likely to set the Tailwind very quickly. But there was another problem, making any TW setter a little unsure to play it's part, and that was Fake Out, hence Inner Focus. OK so now we have our two Flying-typed TW setters, so we are pretty sure not to appreciate Stealth Rocks floating around us, and that's why I wanted to use Defog. Plus, it also rids us of Sticky Web, which can sometimes be a little tricky. As Tailwind teams are usually overpowered by TR teams, I saw fit to give Crobat Taunt. I chose Poison Fang as Crobat's only offensive move because Talonflame already ran Brave Bird, so I chose a physical Poison-STAB attack, and the prospect of 50% Toxic poisoning an opponent mon was pretty sexy as it sticks well ith the idea of support Crobat. I'm just really not sure about the EVs, I was thinking a fast bulky support but maybe the Spe EVs should be divided among Def and SpD or even Atk...
Weaknesses:
- Rock: Excadrill, Magnezone, Heracross
- Ice: Excadrill, Magnezone, Heracross
- Electricity: Excadrill
- Psychic: Excadrill, (Heracross)
Togekiss takes Crobat's spot in the team:
Togekiss @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 192 Def / 64 SpD
Calm Nature
- Air Slash
- Follow Me
- Tailwind
- Roost
Excadrill @ Focus Sash
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Shadow Claw
- Protect
With these two setters, our team becomes quite vulnerable to Electric-, Ice- and Rock-typed mons. To cover those weaknesses, I chose Excadrill. That kid is incredibly well-suited for the job, as it takes care of Rotom-Wash (TF's possible worst enemy), and Earthquake+Rock Slide takes care of any bothering mon of the three types he's supposed to deal with. I chose to run Shadow Claw rather than Iron Head in order to take care of any Psychic-type Pokémon that would try to cripple Crobat, and because later on, you'll see we have Steel-type coverage on another mon. I'm really not sure about those EV's either, Im still testing a little to make sure you can be as bulky as possible while still outspeeding Landorus-T under TW and 2HKO it. Focus sash was chosen over Life Orb, mainly because of Air Balloon Heatran (which sometimes requires to take a Heat Wave in the face before using Earthquake) and Landorus-T.
Weaknesses:
- Ground: Rotom-W
- Water: Rotom-W, Magnezone
- Fire: Rotom-W
- Fighting: Talonflame, (Rotom-W)
Rotom-Wash @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Def / 84 SpA / 124 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Electroweb
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect
Rotom-Wash comes in as the the third support Pokemon. As you might have just seen, he covers pretty much all of Excadrill's weaknesses if you're willing to consider that Will-o-Wisp takes care of Fighting-type opponents (now I know that's not true, especially considering Keldeo, but it does a nice trick still). I chose Electroweb over Thunderbolt because it's a very good substitute for TW if our two setters are already down and because it doesn't last only five turns, although sometimes the speed lowering isn't good enough to ensure the entire team strikes first. The EV spread is the one from KyleCole (I'm really sorry to go on copycat, but I'm really bad at manipulating EVs spreads, I hope you don't mind...), except I obviously didn't boost the speed because of TW/Electroweb. I'm just not that at ease with Excadrill inevitably breaking his mold, but with this EV spread Excadrill doesn't OHKO him, so I guess we're good.
Weakness:
- Grass: Talonflame, Heracross, Magnezone
Heracross @ Heracronite
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 64 HP / 252 Atk / 192 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Pin Missile
- Close Combat
- Rock Blast
- Protect
Originally, the team was built for him. Mega-Heracross is a bit slower than Heracross, but this EV spread, he's supposed to out speed any mon under TW, while packing enough bulk and power to do the job. He is our most reliable response to Mega-Khangaskhan and Rock-type mons that threaten our TW setters. Pin Missile was chosen over Bullet Seed because I wanted another STAB move, as Heracross' shere power is sometimes quite enough to KO any mon that doesn't resist it's attacks. Bullet Seed would have been a good option if Rotom-W wasn't already dealt with, but we already have Excadrill to do that.
Weaknesses:
- Flying: Rotom-W, Magnezone, Excadrill
- Fairy: Magnezone, Crobat
- Fire: Rotom-W, Excadrill
- Psychic: Excadrill
Magnezone @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Magnet Rise
- Hidden Power [Fire]
With two physical sweepers, we needed a special sweeper. And Magnezone provides just the right balance between "low-but-not-to-low" speed, great SpA and bulk. I was reluctant to go for the Choice Specs set, which is IMO not that good in doubles, but I figured Life Orb was kind of lame with Sturdy. So I went for Sitrus Berry, which I like better than Leftovers with Sturdy. Thunderbolt is mandatory because Rotom-W's Electric move is prett weak in terms of raw power. Plus, it can OHKO CharY in the sun, which is an incredible threat to the team. Flash Canon provides the Steel-type coverage I've evoked with Excadrill. HP Fire is here because of the bulky set of TF, which doesn't run any Fire-type move, but it gives an incredible coverage. This is very important, as Rotom-W is very important in this team (as it is Excadrill's best friend, and very useful with Magnezone as well), I felt like I needed Fire-type moves to protect him. HP Ice could be cool sometimes, when you want to get rid of a Dragon-type mon, but you can usually easily play around that with those sets. With these EVs, Magnezone can use Magnet Rise before Landorus-T moves (under TW), thus screwing him whole if he choses to go for Earthquake. He also moves before Excadrill, so he can rise before the Earthquake. All in all, it seemed to me like an excellent move in those conditions (Magnet Rise), and that's why I didn't want to go for Assault Vest.
Magnezone is to be changed, testing SubLatios, Tailwind Salamence and Support and Specs Hydreigon for now.
Weaknesses:
- Ground: Auto-sufficient, Rotom-W
- Fire: Rotom-W, Excadrill
- Fighting: Talonflame, (Rotom-W)
So that's that. I've made sure that every weakness of every pokemon was covered by at least another pokemon in the team. There still are a few issues that I have to deal with though:
- Which set for Talonflame? (which could have an impact on Magnezone's choice for Hidden Power)
- What EVs for Crobat?
- What attack move for Crobat?
- What Item for Magnezone?
- And so on, and so forth...
So I sincerely hope you've enjoyed this team, and if you feel like you can answer one of these questions or point out a weakness I hadn't noticed, you're very welcome!
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