I found the core of this team from a post by sealoo on the team bazaar. Their team suffered against HO, Scizor, and Hawlucha (not important for tourneys but I want to ladder), but I liked how the team did against other matchups so I tried to build around the Kyurem / Loppuny attacking core for a team that's more suited for ladder.
Original Team (sealoo): https://pokepast.es/9934b1d782c98698
Alomomola @ Assault Vest Ability: Regenerator Tera Type: Water
EVs: 8 HP / 248 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Knock Off
- Mirror Coat
- Flip Turn
- Scald
Vest Mola is (imo) the best Mola set because of how damn tanky it is, which is why I kept it from the original team. It's good at preventing revenge kills and switching in to massive special threats even on a prediction, which keeps Kyurem and Lop in the game. Mirror Coat is also valuable against almost every special attacker because almost nothing can take this mon out in one hit, even boosted. It's a hard counter to both a Gholdengo that would otherwise threaten a revenge kill or Thunder Wave onto Kyurem and +1 Spe Pagos that can 2HKO Lopunny. It also tanks the otherwise problematic Fairy STABs among others.
Kyurem @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Freeze-Dry
- Ice Beam
- Draco Meteor
- Earth Power
This is the set that I wanted to build the team around. 75% of Kyurem run SubRoost, and, at 10% usage, most players aren't weary of Choice Scarf. Regardless, Kyurem almost always find immense value in any matchup, as Freeze-Dry combined with Kyurem's heightened speed tier allows it to hard counter physical Mola, Lando-T, Gliscor, Tusk, Dnite, Zapdos, Waterpon, Urshifu, Pex, etc. Ice Beam also covers Zapdos and does considerable damage into any neutral switch-in. Draco is probably the weakest move in its set as there's rarely a time where the other moves don't cover your bases. The original team used rock slide to surprise counter Zard, which was rare but rewarding.
Lopunny-Mega @ Lopunnite
Ability: Limber
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Frustration
- Close Combat
- Fake Out
- U-turn
Lop is the perfect complement to Kyurem. It covers Kyu's main weaknesses, like SpDef Mola, Gholdengo, Gambit, Ferro, etc. while also generally being a valuable tool for late-game combacks. Its speed makes it an amazing revenge killer in the midgame and it can use accumulated damage to outspeed and OHKO almost every threat in lategame. It suffers slightly from being frail, which is why I elected to give it U-turn (instead of sealoo's quick attack) on top of the adamant nature so it can be used as a fast pivot. The original team used U-turn Torn which I felt was underperforming.
Iron Treads @ Icium Z
Ability: Quark Drive
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Ice Spinner
- Volt Switch
- Rapid Spin
Treads is the final mon that I kept from the original team, but with a somewhat different moveset. The main goal for Treads is to be a good-switchin for poison types and a backup hazard removal in case Zapdos goes down early. EQ is helpful at getting chip damage onto mons like Diance-M, Tusk, Ghold, Gambit, Pex, etc., enabling a lategame sweep. Z-Ice Spinner (rather than lefties) also guarantees massive damage on Venu and flying types that can take the opponent by surprise and enable an OHKO from Lop. I also put rocks on Clef in favor of Volt Switch for chip on water types and prediction pivots.
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 240 HP / 252 Def / 16 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Soft-Boiled
Clef is probably the mon I'm least sure about, but I do believe that Moonblast is pretty clutch vs. Sableye stall and Unaware is a solid answer to seed Hawlucha, uncommon as those teams are. Fire blast is tricky to get off but if played correctly it can OHKO Scizor, which would otherwise threaten the Kyu and Lop after a few SD's. The combined power of Moonblast and Fireblast into anything in combination with Soft-Boiled makes Clef a somewhat powerful threat, but I'm looking to replace it for something that is consistently valuable in every matchup.
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 248 HP / 188 Def / 72 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Hurricane
- Defog
- Roost
I believe Zapdos is somewhat underrated in the current meta because STAB volt switch + STAB hurricane in addition to Static pressure against physical attackers can threaten great damage onto some otherwise hard-to-crack mons like Waterpon and Urshifu without making Zapdos a sitting duck. I chose Defog to alleviate the pressure of hazard removal from Tusk and pressure dual screens, but If I choose to remove Clef in the future I might switch to Heat Wave.
This is my first time really teambuilding, so I'm excited to hear feedback. My goal is to reach rank 1 and I kind of built this team by accident after finding that I struggled to play with most public teams.
Original Team (sealoo): https://pokepast.es/9934b1d782c98698
Alomomola @ Assault Vest Ability: Regenerator Tera Type: Water
EVs: 8 HP / 248 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Knock Off
- Mirror Coat
- Flip Turn
- Scald
Vest Mola is (imo) the best Mola set because of how damn tanky it is, which is why I kept it from the original team. It's good at preventing revenge kills and switching in to massive special threats even on a prediction, which keeps Kyurem and Lop in the game. Mirror Coat is also valuable against almost every special attacker because almost nothing can take this mon out in one hit, even boosted. It's a hard counter to both a Gholdengo that would otherwise threaten a revenge kill or Thunder Wave onto Kyurem and +1 Spe Pagos that can 2HKO Lopunny. It also tanks the otherwise problematic Fairy STABs among others.
Kyurem @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Freeze-Dry
- Ice Beam
- Draco Meteor
- Earth Power
This is the set that I wanted to build the team around. 75% of Kyurem run SubRoost, and, at 10% usage, most players aren't weary of Choice Scarf. Regardless, Kyurem almost always find immense value in any matchup, as Freeze-Dry combined with Kyurem's heightened speed tier allows it to hard counter physical Mola, Lando-T, Gliscor, Tusk, Dnite, Zapdos, Waterpon, Urshifu, Pex, etc. Ice Beam also covers Zapdos and does considerable damage into any neutral switch-in. Draco is probably the weakest move in its set as there's rarely a time where the other moves don't cover your bases. The original team used rock slide to surprise counter Zard, which was rare but rewarding.
Lopunny-Mega @ Lopunnite
Ability: Limber
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Frustration
- Close Combat
- Fake Out
- U-turn
Lop is the perfect complement to Kyurem. It covers Kyu's main weaknesses, like SpDef Mola, Gholdengo, Gambit, Ferro, etc. while also generally being a valuable tool for late-game combacks. Its speed makes it an amazing revenge killer in the midgame and it can use accumulated damage to outspeed and OHKO almost every threat in lategame. It suffers slightly from being frail, which is why I elected to give it U-turn (instead of sealoo's quick attack) on top of the adamant nature so it can be used as a fast pivot. The original team used U-turn Torn which I felt was underperforming.
Iron Treads @ Icium Z
Ability: Quark Drive
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Ice Spinner
- Volt Switch
- Rapid Spin
Treads is the final mon that I kept from the original team, but with a somewhat different moveset. The main goal for Treads is to be a good-switchin for poison types and a backup hazard removal in case Zapdos goes down early. EQ is helpful at getting chip damage onto mons like Diance-M, Tusk, Ghold, Gambit, Pex, etc., enabling a lategame sweep. Z-Ice Spinner (rather than lefties) also guarantees massive damage on Venu and flying types that can take the opponent by surprise and enable an OHKO from Lop. I also put rocks on Clef in favor of Volt Switch for chip on water types and prediction pivots.
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 240 HP / 252 Def / 16 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Soft-Boiled
Clef is probably the mon I'm least sure about, but I do believe that Moonblast is pretty clutch vs. Sableye stall and Unaware is a solid answer to seed Hawlucha, uncommon as those teams are. Fire blast is tricky to get off but if played correctly it can OHKO Scizor, which would otherwise threaten the Kyu and Lop after a few SD's. The combined power of Moonblast and Fireblast into anything in combination with Soft-Boiled makes Clef a somewhat powerful threat, but I'm looking to replace it for something that is consistently valuable in every matchup.
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 248 HP / 188 Def / 72 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Hurricane
- Defog
- Roost
I believe Zapdos is somewhat underrated in the current meta because STAB volt switch + STAB hurricane in addition to Static pressure against physical attackers can threaten great damage onto some otherwise hard-to-crack mons like Waterpon and Urshifu without making Zapdos a sitting duck. I chose Defog to alleviate the pressure of hazard removal from Tusk and pressure dual screens, but If I choose to remove Clef in the future I might switch to Heat Wave.
This is my first time really teambuilding, so I'm excited to hear feedback. My goal is to reach rank 1 and I kind of built this team by accident after finding that I struggled to play with most public teams.
