ORAS UU Mega Camerupt and its Squad

[EpicalMan01]

This is my first RMT so I decided to do one of my favorite UU laddering teams

The Team

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 20 HP / 252 Spa / 136 Spe
Modest Nature
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Ancient Power
- Will-O-Wisp

Mega Camerupt is a great Wallbreaker in the UU meta game. Solid Rock, Camerupt's ability before Mega Evolving, helps it take super effective hits better if an opponent predicts the switch allowing for possible switch ins. Fire Blast is a very powerful STAB attack that does massive damage to all pokemon that don't resist and is boosted by Sheer Force. Earth Power is a secondary STAB attack with great coverage as well as being boosted by Sheer Force. Ancient Power is boosted by Sheer Force and hits Mega Aerodactyl and Salamence that would usually wall Mega Camerupt. Stealth Rocks is basically a necessity on all teams and it helps get important OHKOs on opposing threats allowing for Salamence to sweep easier.

Mienshao @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Stone Edge

(Formerly Hydreigon) Mienshao seems to improve on Hydreigon's role, taking on opposing Hydreigon, Krookodile, and Lucario, having a faster speed tier, and keeps U-turn for momentum. What it does that Hydreigon does not, however, is beat CurseLax, and Mamoswine, both of which seem to have a lot of fun on your team. As you already have a dragon-type sweeper, that even has Fire Blast, I can't see what Hydreigon does for you that Salamence and Mienshao can't. The utility of Knock Off is incredibly helpful against opposing Cresselia, Porygon2 and Stone Edge hits Crobat, Fatmence and Mega Aerodactyl, which are common switch-ins. However, Poison Jab can be added if you're having problems against Florges, Whimsicott, or the rare Virizion (Credit to Eeyore for the idea)

Empoleon @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Defog
- Scald
- Roar

Empoleon is a great support pokemon being used for defogging of hazards and inflicting status conditions on the opposing team. Scald is a decently powerful STAB move that has a 30% chance to burn helping it to take on physical attackers. Roar is used to get rid of Pokemon that setup such as Reuniclus and Suicune that would otherwise wall it.

Salamence @ Lum Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake

Salamence is one of the best sweepers in the current UU meta game. Dragon Dance boosts Salamence's already massive Attack and Speed allowing it to sweep. Outrage is by far Salamence's most powerful move and after a D-Dance the only thing that doesn't get OHKO'd is Fairy types and bulky Steel types. Iron Tail helps beat out the Fairy types that walls Salamence's Outrage. Earthquake is used to beat most Steel types and helps beat bulky Arcanine and Nidoqueen.

Reuniclus @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Psyshock
- Focus Blast
- Recover

Reuniclus is my favorite setup sweeper in the UU meta game. Calm Mind is used to boost Special Attack and Special Defense allowing him to sweep after two or so CMs. Psyshock is used as Reuniclus's primary STAB move, as it lets Reuniclus win Calm Mind wars against Pokemon such as Suicune and do more damage to Blissey than Psychic. Focus Blast hits Steel-types and Dark-types covering its resistances and a portion of its weaknesses. Recover allows for easy recovery after being beaten down after Calm Minding or its attacking moves.

Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Bold Nature
- Encore
- Leech Seed
- Moonblast
- Stun Spore

Whimsicott is a great support pokemon that stops most setup sweepers. Prankster Stun Spore provides a form of speed control that benefits the slower pokemon on the team. Prankster Encore helps stop the aforementioned setup sweepers by trapping the pokemon into the setup move. Leech Seed helps Whimsicott gain back some of the much needed health from a switch in and allows for it to beat most bulky setup sweepers.​

Importable

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 120 HP / 252 SpA / 136 Spe
Modest Nature
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Ancient Power
- Stealth Rock

Mienshao @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Stone Edge

Empoleon @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Toxic
- Defog
- Scald
- Roar

Salamence @ Lum Berry
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Iron Tail
- Earthquake

Reuniclus @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Psyshock
- Focus Blast
- Recover

Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Bold Nature
- Encore
- Leech Seed
- Moonblast
- Stun Spore


.

 

[Eeyore]

Good looking team!
I'd recommend changing Hydreigon to Scarf Mienshao

Mienshao @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Stone Edge / Poison Jab

For every reason you (and the smogon dex) stated, Mienshao seems to improve, taking on opposing Hydreigon, Krookodile, and Lucario, having a faster speed tier, and keeps U-turn for momentum. What it does that Hydreigon does not, however, is beat CurseLax, and Mamoswine, both of which seem to have a lot of fun on your team. As you already have a dragon-type sweeper, that even has Fire Blast, I can't see what Hydreigon does for you that Salamence and Mienshao can't. The utility of Knock Off is incredibly helpful against opposing Cresselia, Porygon2 and Stone Edge hits Crobat, Fatmence and Mega Aerodactyl, which are common switch-ins. However, Poison Jab can be added if you're having problems against Florges, Whimsicott, or the rare Virizion

Good Luck, and Happy Laddering!

 

[EpicalMan01]

Good looking team!
I'd recommend changing Hydreigon to Scarf Mienshao

Mienshao @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Stone Edge / Poison Jab

For every reason you (and the smogon dex) stated, Mienshao seems to improve, taking on opposing Hydreigon, Krookodile, and Lucario, having a faster speed tier, and keeps U-turn for momentum. What it does that Hydreigon does not, however, is beat CurseLax, and Mamoswine, both of which seem to have a lot of fun on your team. As you already have a dragon-type sweeper, that even has Fire Blast, I can't see what Hydreigon does for you that Salamence and Mienshao can't. The utility of Knock Off is incredibly helpful against opposing Cresselia, Porygon2 and Stone Edge hits Crobat, Fatmence and Mega Aerodactyl, which are common switch-ins. However, Poison Jab can be added if you're having problems against Florges, Whimsicott, or the rare Virizion

Good Luck, and Happy Laddering!

Thanks for the input. I'll try it out

 

[Vapo]

Hey EpicalMan01, really nice team you have here! I've been meaning to build with Mega Camerupt; it's very underrated and has very few safe switch ins. Your team composition is pretty solid, but I see a few small improvements that could be made:

• Your team is overall pretty slow, so I don't really see it benefiting from Tailwind (the only real abusers of it are Salamence and Mienshao). I believe changing Tailwind -> Stun Spore on Whimsicott will help you out in the long run, as it provides a form of speed control that benefits even your slower pokemon (anything appreciates the free turns created by full paralysis).
• While Mega Camerupt may seem like a pokemon that does not require any speed EVs due to its pitiful base 20 speed, that really is not the case in UU. There are a lot of base 30 speed pokemon that you need to be faster than to beat reliably. Slowking is one of the only pokemon in the tier that can semi-reliably switch into Mega Camerupt, and the physically defensive CM set is 2HKO'd by Earth Power, so being able to outspeed and KO this is important. You also outspeed and 2HKO/OHKO Reuniclus, Mega Abomasnow, and Doublade by running speed creep. An EV spread I had in mind is 120 HP / 252 Spa / 136 Spe with a Modest Nature. These EVs allow you to outspeed everything up to Doublade. With these EVs, you also outspeed every unboosted pokemon in the tier, including Jolly Mega Aerodactyl, if they are paralyzed by Stun Spore. I would also change Will-O-Wisp -> Stealth Rock, as this clears up some space in your Empoleon slot that will help you cover more threats. I personally don't see wisp being that useful on Camerupt anyways, as getting a huge hit off will usually be more beneficial than statusing a wall or physical attacker.
• Mamoswine and Lucario pop out to me as huge threats to your team, and since you no longer need Empoleon for Stealth Rock, I believe a good change you could make is Empoleon -> Suicune. A moveset of Calm Mind / Scald / Rest / Sleep Talk or Roar with max bulk is your best bet (if going with Roar, I would run at least 40 Spe EVs to creep other RoarCunes). Sleep Talk prevents you from giving your opponent free turns every time you rest, which you will most likely be doing pretty often considering Suicune is one of the only things on your team that can take on Mamoswine and Mega Aerodactyl. However, RoarCune allows you to phase out opposing set up sweepers like Curselax and CM Reuniclus that may beat you otherwise.
• Without Empoleon, you lack Defog and therefore cannot remove rocks once they are up on your side. While rocks are not that detrimental to your team, if you still want it on your team you can add it on Salamence over Fire Blast. Alternatively, you could change your DD set to a Special LO set with a moveset of Draco Meteor / Fire Blast / Roost / Defog with max speed and special attack, and a Life Orb. This would provide you with a pretty reliable defogger with a lot of staying power due to roost. DD Mence fits well on your team though, so I suggest you test out the sets and see what you prefer.

Other than that, you have a pretty solid team. Props to you for building with Mega Camerupt again :] It's nice to see people using unorthodox pokemon. Good luck with the team!

 

[Christo]

Hey EpicalMan01 you have a very well made team here. I do not have any big suggestions because I think you have most of your bases covered. I am only going to suggest basic changes that will definitely optimize this teams potential.

I main suggestion is changing Tailwind to U-Turn. As Vapo stated, Tailwind does not aid your team too much at all, and Whimsicott is one of those pokemon that love running a variety of moves. U-Turn is for sure your best bet as it is almost mandatory on any Encore Whimsicott. Encore and U Turn grant you free momentum after Encoring a pokemon in a Setup move. And regardless of Encore, Whimsicott forces a lot of switches making U-Turn a great move to have on it. Stun Spore is another great move Whimsicott loves to run, although you need Leech Seed so you are not as weak to CM + Roar Suicune which would otherwise demolish your whole team.

I agree with Vapo in the suggestion to give Camerupt Stealth Rock as well as the EV spread he suggested in 120 HP / 252 Spa / 136 Spe with a Modest Nature. Camerupt may be slow, but outspeeding common base 30 pokemon like Reuniclus, Slowking, and Snorlax is mandatory. Since you have a free moveslot on Empoleon, I would try Toxic. Bulkier waters are a problem for your team and Toxic will force pokemon like Suicune to use Rest which is huge.

My final suggestion is to opt for Moxie > Intimidate and Iron Tail > Fire Blast on Salamence. Although Intimidate is a great ability and it can help in setting up Dragon Dances, in my experience Moxie is the superior item on Lum Berry DD mence. Salamence is bulky enough to setup without Intimidate and after a Dragon Dance and a kill, it is at +2 attack and there is nothing that wants to take that on. It almost always guarantees 2 kills on most teams after successfully Dragon Dancing. Fire Blast is really only beneficial for Forretress and Iron Tail is better coverage most of the time. Hitting Fairies on the switch in is huge, and it can always come in handy if you want to kill something without locking your self into outrage.

With these suggestions, this team looks very solid. Congrats on making a successful looking Mega Camerupt team!

 

[teal6]

Hi EpicalMan,

I really enjoy your team. Mega Camerupt is interesting, a mon I've mentioned liking a lot but of course, very difficult to make work in comparison to some of the more splashable megas of the tier. Still, though, I think your team does cover most of its bases and compensates for his weaknesses decently well.

There are a few changes I would like to suggest:

Firstly, I would recommend changing your Mega Camerupt to carry Stealth Rock. When I think of mons that force switches, MCam comes immediately to mind. These are the best options to put a move like Stealth Rock on, as you can likely get "free rocks" at some point in the match by virtue of threatening out an opposing mon. This sort of utility is rare, whereas having rocks on something like Empoleon, which doesn't necessarily force very much in the tier out (fire types like Entei and Infernape can deal it massive damage, while grounds hit it SE as well). I would put this in over Will-O-Wisp, as common targets that you'd like to hit won't really be switching in all that much anyway - there are few MAero's that want to take rocks + a fire blast, and they'll usually pivot to it accordingly to do so.

Secondly, the speed IVs suggested by Vapo work very well hitting an important benchmark. You could potentially run even a few more EVs in order to creep the creep present on a lot of those mons, but this is a matter of personal preference. The more you outspeed, the more often you are likely to get a massive hit off at any given point. While this does compromise the bulk of MCam, he's surprisingly frail really, and does not take even neutral hits with aplomb, so I do not think you will miss much here.

The biggest top tier issue I see with your team is something like Mega Blastoise. MBlastoise's coverage and ability to severely dent or OHKO a lot of your team means you'll have to play incredible carefully around it, and frankly each time it comes in you'll have to make a relatively risky prediction to be able to deal with it with Whimsicott in a very passive way (encoring into Scald, for example). To help mitigate this and put this mon under pressure I would recommend switching Stealth Rock to Toxic on Empoleon. Frankly, without changing the team structure totally, you're destined to struggle to switch into this mon, but many teams have one big weakness like that. By being able to put it on a timer and then pivot with smart switches with Whimsicott I think that you can stall it out, just be wary of Heal Bell mons and ensure you have enough damage on it to revenge it successfully.

 

[EpicalMan01]

Thanks for the very helpful advice teal6 Christo The Gr8 Vapo
The changes I've made include the following

• Change Mega Camerupt from Will-o-Wisp to Stealth Rocks and changed the EV spread to 120 HP / 252 Spa / 136 Spe with a Modest Nature
• Change Tailwind to Stun Spore on Whimsicott
• Change Stealth Rocks to Toxic on Empoleon
• Change Intimidate to Moxie and Fire Blast to Iron Tail on Salamence