Hello everyone. I've been away from PS for a few months now, and only recently had the whim to return. I was kinda fiddling around, trying different things, browsing through the strategy dex, and pulled a whole bunch of random stuff together into a team. Seeing that it was so whimsically built, I really didn't expect it to perform very well. But after some play testing and a few tweaks, this team has really exceeded my expectations (went on like a 25-3 roll, where one of the losses came from a misclick) and I'd like to share it. Also there are quite a few undecided things that I'm still working on, and all suggestions are appreciated.
Team at a Glance
Team Details
Hawlucha @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
- High Jump Kick
- Acrobatics
After discovering it on the strategy dex and putting it on a team, I've had so much fun with this little sweeper/cleaner. How it works is simple: set up Substitute when the chance arises. With the EVs in HP it will proc Sitrus Berry after two Subs, powering up Acrobatics as a reliable STAB and giving it 732 speed (the fastest relevant threat in the tier). Sneak in a SD somewhere and it's time to sweep, but an attack boost isn't absolutely necessary. The reason I chose Hawlucha over other birds like SD Talonflame (besides the fact that I really like Hawlucha):
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Memento
- Encore / Moonblast / Giga Drain
Built on a whim... sicott. Geddit? XD Bad puns aside, Whimsicott does an excellent job of patching two of Hawlucha's worst flaws: 1) lack of power and difficulty in breaking defensive Pokemon; 2) frail and difficulty in finding set up opportunities. Whimsicott helps Hawlucha sweep by softening things up with chip damage: Prankster SubSeed is a huge pain in the you-know-where to deal with, and then add in Encore... you might as well call this the Rage Inducing Machine. Encore just has so much utility, from wrecking set up, to locking on a resisted move, or even locking on an SE move (like Fire, Flying and Poison) to give a free switch in. Prankster Memento, a utility unique to Whimsicott, is the final piece of the puzzle: it is the surest way of letting Hawlucha come in for free while creating a free turn for to set up (without having to worry about outspeeding, for the most part), since opponents caught with Memento will have to switch out, fail to do meaningful damage to prevent set up (sometimes even failing to break the Sub), or use status (which is blocked by Sub).
Moonblast and Giga Drain is slashed with Encore. Encore helps against defensive teams greatly, while running an attacking move makes it not complete Taunt bait (altho its attacks are so weak by OU standards, that it will have to switch out most of the times when Taunted anyway).
Skarmory @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
IVs: 0 HP / 0 Def / 0 SpD
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Iron Head / Brave Bird
- Whirlwind / Taunt
Recognizing that Whimsicott forces a lot of switches and that Hawlucha really appreciates entry hazard support since it isn't very powerful and its Flying type checks (Talonflame, Mega Pinsir and Dragonite) all struggle with SR, I pulled out a set that I enjoyed a lot, the Custap Skarmory lead. It combines the ability to use both SR and Spikes, to beat one of the two common Magic Bouncers, and to stop set-up sweepers. SR and Spikes are no brainers -- it's what Skarmory is designed to do, lay Rocks and as many layer of Spikes as possible. Iron Head OHKOs Mega Diancie, while Custap + Brave Bird allows Skarm to move first and suicide itself at 1 HP, preventing the opponent from using Spin and Defog to the desired effect. Whirlwind is the safer option against set up, while Taunt can also stop opponents from laying their own hazards. However, Skarmory isn't always fast enough to use Taunt. Currently I'm using Iron Head and Whirlwind.
Bisharp @ Dread Plate
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 SpD / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
Bisharp is a natural partner to a suicide lead, as it punishes Defog and efficiently eliminates the most common Defog users, the Eon twins. If my opponent Defogs for free, I'm sudden one mon short for free. Bisharp takes advantage of that and makes up for some of that loss by presenting a boosted threat from that Defog (and in the case of the Latis, eliminate them altogether). It also serves as a way to deter Intimidate users, since this team employs two physical attackers as main threats. On this team, Bisharp is sort of a glue mon, softening physical walls for our other two physical attackers, while synergizing with Gengar (resisting Dark, Ghost and Psychic), Whimsicott (resisting Steel, Poison and Flying) and Hawlucha (resisting Psychic, Flying) defensively, while all three can take a Ground and Fighting hit for Bisharp.
One thing I'm considering for Bisharp: Pursuit trapping the Latis is great, but it's not absolutely necessary for any member on this team. Perhaps running SD would be better?
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Sludge Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
Gengar and Bisharp form a little core that's really splashable IMO on a lot of offensive teams, as they are both potent attackers, offer defensive synergy and protect hazards by punishing Defog and blocking Rapid Spin. This is a fairly standard offensive Gengar, with only one unusual choice: Dazzling Gleam. This is the hate move for Mega Sableye, since it is a very substantial threat to this team. Altho Shadow Ball can 2HKO, Dazzling Gleam does a little bit more damage to it, so that our follow up (Mega TTar) can KO it without boost (something Shadow Ball cannot do).
Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Ice Punch / Fire Punch
Now I look at the team, and I see three things still missing: 1) something to beat Talonflame, one of the biggest threats to offense; 2) a secondary sweeper; 3) a Mega evolution. This is where Mega Tyranitar fits perfectly. It checks Talonflame very nicely, but it's also a very potent and underestimated sweeper. TTar's pretty slow, but Mega TTar is possibly the bulkiest set up sweeper in this tier (100/150/120 with Sand boosting its Sp. Def). So unlike Hawlucha, TTar can find set up opportunities on its own very well. However, it's also perfectly capable of utilizing a Whimsicott Memento to set up, and when it does, it become very hard to revenge kill without a Fighting type (e.g. CB Azumarill and Scizor cannot OHKO with Aqua Jet or Bullet Punch). Crunch is picked over Superpower because Crunch hits as hard as Superpower when both are neutral but Superpower shortens our sweep. Ice Punch is the one I'm using right now, because Garchomp and Landorus-T are more common. Baiting and removing them makes Hawlucha's and Bisharp's lives a lot easier. These three together offers some good redundancy to pressure and break physically defensive backbones, like Hippowdon, Rotom-W, Garchomp, Gliscor, Lando-T, Clefable, Slowbro, Quagsire and Skarmory.
Threats to the Team
This team follows a pretty strict and consistent game plan: 1) set up hazards; 2) protect hazards, pressure opponent and force switches; 3) set up and sweep (can be very reliably done thanks to Prankster Memento); 4) set up and sweep again if the first sweeper didn't finish the job.
As such, Mega Sableye is the single biggest threat to this team. It can be beat, but the fact that it disrupts our game plan from the get go just by its sheer presence instantly puts us at a disadvantage, since Skarmory has very little use if not led with.
WoW Talonflame is another huge pain. Mega Tyranitar can still beat Talonflame when burned, but that's one of the team's win conditions nullified right there. If he manages to Defog/Spin it becomes even worse, as Talonflame can now outlast Tyranitar too.
Mega Pinsir, and DD Dragonite can potentially get out of hand when they manage to set up, since their powerful priorities outspeed Prankster Memento, but they shouldn't find any room to set up unless we really mess up.
Team at a Glance
Team Details
Hawlucha @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
- High Jump Kick
- Acrobatics
After discovering it on the strategy dex and putting it on a team, I've had so much fun with this little sweeper/cleaner. How it works is simple: set up Substitute when the chance arises. With the EVs in HP it will proc Sitrus Berry after two Subs, powering up Acrobatics as a reliable STAB and giving it 732 speed (the fastest relevant threat in the tier). Sneak in a SD somewhere and it's time to sweep, but an attack boost isn't absolutely necessary. The reason I chose Hawlucha over other birds like SD Talonflame (besides the fact that I really like Hawlucha):
- It does not require hazard removal. In fact, it is the only offensive Flying type (that actually uses a Flying STAB) in the tier that is neutral to SR. I've played with offensive bird teams before, and SR was a huge pain, since RP/Defog is a big loss in momentum, and an HO team can't always afford this loss.
- Unique Fighting/Flying STABs, both fantastic offensive types.
- Ridiculously fast. It is faster than a Jolly Sand Rush Excadrill in Sand, to put it in perspective.
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Memento
- Encore / Moonblast / Giga Drain
Built on a whim... sicott. Geddit? XD Bad puns aside, Whimsicott does an excellent job of patching two of Hawlucha's worst flaws: 1) lack of power and difficulty in breaking defensive Pokemon; 2) frail and difficulty in finding set up opportunities. Whimsicott helps Hawlucha sweep by softening things up with chip damage: Prankster SubSeed is a huge pain in the you-know-where to deal with, and then add in Encore... you might as well call this the Rage Inducing Machine. Encore just has so much utility, from wrecking set up, to locking on a resisted move, or even locking on an SE move (like Fire, Flying and Poison) to give a free switch in. Prankster Memento, a utility unique to Whimsicott, is the final piece of the puzzle: it is the surest way of letting Hawlucha come in for free while creating a free turn for to set up (without having to worry about outspeeding, for the most part), since opponents caught with Memento will have to switch out, fail to do meaningful damage to prevent set up (sometimes even failing to break the Sub), or use status (which is blocked by Sub).
Moonblast and Giga Drain is slashed with Encore. Encore helps against defensive teams greatly, while running an attacking move makes it not complete Taunt bait (altho its attacks are so weak by OU standards, that it will have to switch out most of the times when Taunted anyway).
Skarmory @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
IVs: 0 HP / 0 Def / 0 SpD
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Iron Head / Brave Bird
- Whirlwind / Taunt
Recognizing that Whimsicott forces a lot of switches and that Hawlucha really appreciates entry hazard support since it isn't very powerful and its Flying type checks (Talonflame, Mega Pinsir and Dragonite) all struggle with SR, I pulled out a set that I enjoyed a lot, the Custap Skarmory lead. It combines the ability to use both SR and Spikes, to beat one of the two common Magic Bouncers, and to stop set-up sweepers. SR and Spikes are no brainers -- it's what Skarmory is designed to do, lay Rocks and as many layer of Spikes as possible. Iron Head OHKOs Mega Diancie, while Custap + Brave Bird allows Skarm to move first and suicide itself at 1 HP, preventing the opponent from using Spin and Defog to the desired effect. Whirlwind is the safer option against set up, while Taunt can also stop opponents from laying their own hazards. However, Skarmory isn't always fast enough to use Taunt. Currently I'm using Iron Head and Whirlwind.
Bisharp @ Dread Plate
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 SpD / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
Bisharp is a natural partner to a suicide lead, as it punishes Defog and efficiently eliminates the most common Defog users, the Eon twins. If my opponent Defogs for free, I'm sudden one mon short for free. Bisharp takes advantage of that and makes up for some of that loss by presenting a boosted threat from that Defog (and in the case of the Latis, eliminate them altogether). It also serves as a way to deter Intimidate users, since this team employs two physical attackers as main threats. On this team, Bisharp is sort of a glue mon, softening physical walls for our other two physical attackers, while synergizing with Gengar (resisting Dark, Ghost and Psychic), Whimsicott (resisting Steel, Poison and Flying) and Hawlucha (resisting Psychic, Flying) defensively, while all three can take a Ground and Fighting hit for Bisharp.
One thing I'm considering for Bisharp: Pursuit trapping the Latis is great, but it's not absolutely necessary for any member on this team. Perhaps running SD would be better?
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Sludge Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
Gengar and Bisharp form a little core that's really splashable IMO on a lot of offensive teams, as they are both potent attackers, offer defensive synergy and protect hazards by punishing Defog and blocking Rapid Spin. This is a fairly standard offensive Gengar, with only one unusual choice: Dazzling Gleam. This is the hate move for Mega Sableye, since it is a very substantial threat to this team. Altho Shadow Ball can 2HKO, Dazzling Gleam does a little bit more damage to it, so that our follow up (Mega TTar) can KO it without boost (something Shadow Ball cannot do).
Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Ice Punch / Fire Punch
Now I look at the team, and I see three things still missing: 1) something to beat Talonflame, one of the biggest threats to offense; 2) a secondary sweeper; 3) a Mega evolution. This is where Mega Tyranitar fits perfectly. It checks Talonflame very nicely, but it's also a very potent and underestimated sweeper. TTar's pretty slow, but Mega TTar is possibly the bulkiest set up sweeper in this tier (100/150/120 with Sand boosting its Sp. Def). So unlike Hawlucha, TTar can find set up opportunities on its own very well. However, it's also perfectly capable of utilizing a Whimsicott Memento to set up, and when it does, it become very hard to revenge kill without a Fighting type (e.g. CB Azumarill and Scizor cannot OHKO with Aqua Jet or Bullet Punch). Crunch is picked over Superpower because Crunch hits as hard as Superpower when both are neutral but Superpower shortens our sweep. Ice Punch is the one I'm using right now, because Garchomp and Landorus-T are more common. Baiting and removing them makes Hawlucha's and Bisharp's lives a lot easier. These three together offers some good redundancy to pressure and break physically defensive backbones, like Hippowdon, Rotom-W, Garchomp, Gliscor, Lando-T, Clefable, Slowbro, Quagsire and Skarmory.
Threats to the Team
This team follows a pretty strict and consistent game plan: 1) set up hazards; 2) protect hazards, pressure opponent and force switches; 3) set up and sweep (can be very reliably done thanks to Prankster Memento); 4) set up and sweep again if the first sweeper didn't finish the job.
As such, Mega Sableye is the single biggest threat to this team. It can be beat, but the fact that it disrupts our game plan from the get go just by its sheer presence instantly puts us at a disadvantage, since Skarmory has very little use if not led with.
WoW Talonflame is another huge pain. Mega Tyranitar can still beat Talonflame when burned, but that's one of the team's win conditions nullified right there. If he manages to Defog/Spin it becomes even worse, as Talonflame can now outlast Tyranitar too.
Mega Pinsir, and DD Dragonite can potentially get out of hand when they manage to set up, since their powerful priorities outspeed Prankster Memento, but they shouldn't find any room to set up unless we really mess up.
Hawlucha @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
- High Jump Kick
- Acrobatics
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Memento
- Encore
Skarmory @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
IVs: 0 HP / 0 Def / 0 SpD
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
- Iron Head
Bisharp @ Dread Plate
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 SpD / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Sludge Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
- High Jump Kick
- Acrobatics
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Memento
- Encore
Skarmory @ Custap Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
IVs: 0 HP / 0 Def / 0 SpD
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
- Iron Head
Bisharp @ Dread Plate
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 SpD / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Sludge Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
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