Triple SD Sandstorm, Featuring Classics Like SD Chomper, Life Orb Excadrill & Washtom!!
The Team
1. Introduction + Peak
At the start of the Summer, I had decided to get back into Showdown after a 3+ month break. Over the course of those 3 months, something must've clicked that hadn't been before as I had improved drastically, both in my building and battling skills. Since then, I've continued to improve both my building and battling skills: and this is the fruitful reward of all of that!
To be more precise, one day (Sometime during the middle of OLT), I found myself wanting to build sand again. I had built it in the past, and it had worked fine, but with a much better grasp on the meta and understanding of what works and what doesn't work, I decided to give it another shot. The first result was... Fine. It had
and 
on it instead of 
and 
, and 
was soft sand instead of life orb. I needed something better though, so I decided to experiment a bit and try some more things. Fortunately for me, I seemingly nailed it on the second attempt and created the team you've all come here to see today, peaking at 1906 elo and #21 on ladder while consistently hovering around 1830-1860 elo (Though I personally believe with more time, I can go even higher. Will update the post if that occurs so stay tuned!)
(I don't have a screenshot of the 1906 elo peak. Just trust me bro. (Also I’m 54 Insane Rats))
Now, without further ado...
2. The Team
Tyranitar @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 HP / 16 Def / 240 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Knock Off
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave/Roar
The obviously required sand setter, also supports the team by being very specially defensive & provides rocks, knocks and t-waves (Or phasing if you prefer Roar). Ice beam nails ground types on the switch, most notably hitting Tusk coming in attempting to spin away rocks or eat a knock off. Switches into 
comfortably, and can eat hits from 
surprisingly well. Smooth rock helps keep sand up for as long as possible. Tera flying can, in a pinch, T-wave something like a Zama or roar it out depending on which one you chose. While keeping TTar alive for sand is nice, there's only one big abuser of it on the team so don't be too afraid to sack it if need be. Against sun teams, try to keep TTar around for as long as possible to get sand up, and get Exca in to click big EQ's!
Tusk Ice Beam Calcs:
0 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 206-244 (55.5 - 65.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 206-244 (47.4 - 56.2%) -- 83.2% chance to 2HKO
Excadrill @ Life Orb/Soft Sand
Ability: Sand Rush
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin
- Swords Dance/Substitue
The sand abuser himself, Mr.Drill here is running a slightly different set than what is normally run. Rock Slide > Iron Head lets Drill snipe
and 
while also giving it better odds at beating 
. Most Iron Head targets get slimed by Earthquake anyway. Speaking of that, Tera Ground + EQ nukes so much, especially when combined with life orb. Life orb Tera Ground provides a lot of cool calcs you can't get with your average everyday air ballon . Sub can be put over SD if you want to improve the Substitute if you want to improve the match up at the cost of potential power, and soft sand can be chosen over Life Orb if the recoil proves to not be worth it.
Cool Drill Calcs:
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 168-198 (42.1 - 49.6%) -- 85.9% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock,
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Tera Ground Excadrill Earthquake vs. +1 0 HP / 0 Def Zamazenta: 380-447 (116.9 - 137.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO,
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Tera Ground Excadrill Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu: 528-621 (102.7 - 120.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Iron Valiant: 263-309 (91 - 106.9%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 211-250 (53.5 - 63.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Ogerpon-Wellspring: 277-326 (92 - 108.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
The Team
1. Introduction + Peak
At the start of the Summer, I had decided to get back into Showdown after a 3+ month break. Over the course of those 3 months, something must've clicked that hadn't been before as I had improved drastically, both in my building and battling skills. Since then, I've continued to improve both my building and battling skills: and this is the fruitful reward of all of that!
To be more precise, one day (Sometime during the middle of OLT), I found myself wanting to build sand again. I had built it in the past, and it had worked fine, but with a much better grasp on the meta and understanding of what works and what doesn't work, I decided to give it another shot. The first result was... Fine. It had
and on it instead of and , and was soft sand instead of life orb. I needed something better though, so I decided to experiment a bit and try some more things. Fortunately for me, I seemingly nailed it on the second attempt and created the team you've all come here to see today, peaking at 1906 elo and #21 on ladder while consistently hovering around 1830-1860 elo (Though I personally believe with more time, I can go even higher. Will update the post if that occurs so stay tuned!) (I don't have a screenshot of the 1906 elo peak. Just trust me bro. (Also I’m 54 Insane Rats))
Now, without further ado...
2. The Team
Tyranitar @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 HP / 16 Def / 240 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Knock Off
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave/Roar
The obviously required sand setter,
also supports the team by being very specially defensive & provides rocks, knocks and t-waves (Or phasing if you prefer Roar). Ice beam nails ground types on the switch, most notably hitting Tusk coming in attempting to spin away rocks or eat a knock off. Switches into comfortably, and can eat hits from surprisingly well. Smooth rock helps keep sand up for as long as possible. Tera flying can, in a pinch, T-wave something like a Zama or roar it out depending on which one you chose. While keeping TTar alive for sand is nice, there's only one big abuser of it on the team so don't be too afraid to sack it if need be. Against sun teams, try to keep TTar around for as long as possible to get sand up, and get Exca in to click big EQ's!Tusk Ice Beam Calcs:
0 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 206-244 (55.5 - 65.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 206-244 (47.4 - 56.2%) -- 83.2% chance to 2HKO
Excadrill @ Life Orb/Soft Sand
Ability: Sand Rush
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin
- Swords Dance/Substitue
The sand abuser himself, Mr.Drill here is running a slightly different set than what is normally run. Rock Slide > Iron Head lets Drill snipe
and while also giving it better odds at beating . Most Iron Head targets get slimed by Earthquake anyway. Speaking of that, Tera Ground + EQ nukes so much, especially when combined with life orb. Life orb Tera Ground provides a lot of cool calcs you can't get with your average everyday air ballon . Sub can be put over SD if you want to improve the Substitute if you want to improve the match up at the cost of potential power, and soft sand can be chosen over Life Orb if the recoil proves to not be worth it.Cool Drill Calcs:
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 168-198 (42.1 - 49.6%) -- 85.9% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock,
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Tera Ground Excadrill Earthquake vs. +1 0 HP / 0 Def Zamazenta: 380-447 (116.9 - 137.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO,
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Tera Ground Excadrill Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu: 528-621 (102.7 - 120.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Iron Valiant: 263-309 (91 - 106.9%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 211-250 (53.5 - 63.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Excadrill Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Ogerpon-Wellspring: 277-326 (92 - 108.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
Kingambit @ Black Glasses/Leftovers
Ability: Supreme Overlord
Tera Type: Dark/Ghost
EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Kowtow Cleave
- Sucker Punch
- Iron Head/Low Kick
- Swords Dance
It's a
What do you want me to say? You know what this guy does. Ghost resist, strong priority, endgame win condition. I've chosen Tera Dark & Black glasses over something more standard primarily to help out VS stall teams, but also to get out of potentially sticky situations with Tera Dark Sucker Punch. You can chose Tera Ghost with leftovers if that floats your boat better. The speed investment lets hit 177 Speed, which outpaces AV 
and everything below.Tera Dark Calcs:
+2 252+ Atk Black Glasses Supreme Overlord 5 allies fainted Tera Dark Kingambit Sucker Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Multiscale Dragonite: 322-379 (99.6 - 117.3%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Black Glasses Supreme Overlord 5 allies fainted Tera Dark Kingambit Sucker Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Darkrai: 338-398 (120.2 - 141.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Black Glasses Supreme Overlord 5 allies fainted Tera Dark Kingambit Sucker Punch vs. +1 0 HP / 0 Def Zamazenta: 183-216 (56.3 - 66.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Garchomp @ Loaded Dice
Ability: Rough Skin
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Scale Shot
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang
- Swords Dance
The ol' chomper might've seen better days but... well, that's what they WANT you to think! A great natural typing, both offensively and defensively, gives it a plenty of opportunities to set up and wreck havoc against many common defensive mons that are often relied upon to stop physical attackers, like
, certain 
and 
lacking Ice Beam. Scale shot boosts its speed, making it a lot tougher to revenge kill with mons like , while fire fang lets it chew its way through 
and , paving the way for victory with & . Tera fire lets you become immune to burn and resist fairy, giving you even more opportunities. also works as a shockingly great lead, sniping potential looking to counterlead 
or counterlead a perceived TankChomp. It can also deal fat damage to the likes of . Overall, a mon that has surprised me greatly and I HIGHLY recommend you try out more often! It may be the next big thing.Calcs:
+2 252 Atk Garchomp Fire Fang vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 198-234 (49.6 - 58.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Garchomp Fire Fang vs. 252 HP / 160+ Def Skarmory: 172-204 (51.4 - 61%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Tera Fire Garchomp Fire Fang vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Enamorus: 285-336 (98.6 - 116.2%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Garchomp Scale Shot (4 hits) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kyurem: 360-432 (92 - 110.4%) -- approx. 53.9% chance to OHKO
Pecharunt @ Air Balloon/Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Poison Puppeteer
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 HP / 224 Def / 32 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Malignant Chain
- Shadow Ball
- Parting Shot
- Recover
In my opinion,
may be one of the greatest mons to come out of this gen. An outstanding blanket check to the vast majority of physical attackers in the tier, it gives the team a defensive mon to fall back on against guys like , 
& 
. Air balloon is chosen over HDB, as it lets it more comfortably come in on 
and while also reducing knock damage if it's popped. HDB can be chosen if you value it more, however. 32 Speed is there to outspeed mons that creep 219 speed, with the rest in defense to take hits from and better. Tera grass lets it stand up to +2 wellspring comfortably, and helps out VS with EQ and vs rain too. Overall, helps keep the team from folding if they're in a situation where they may be revenge killed or can't break this instant.
Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 212 Def / 44 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Pain Split
- Will-O-Wisp
has been on a bit of a rise recently, and it's for the same reasons it's always had: Fat pivot that doesn't fear ground types blocking its volt switch, and spreads wisps without issue due to it's Water typing & Hydro Pumps. Here, it switches into 
, 
and and threatens burns on opposing . Like , this guy gives the three breakers the ability to reposition and get out of sticky situations if it's the optimal choice (Don't be afraid to let one of the breakers go down if it ultimately puts another one of the breakers in a favourable position!). at this moment specifically enjoys the fact that have been dropping Power Whip & Horn Leech in favour of other moves, that Tblast flying is more common and that 
is on the rise.3. Additional Information + Replays
- Tough matchups include strong specially offensive water and grass types, such as
, 
, and 
, as they're hard to switch into. and especially considering they give some trouble. Try to get set up quickly VS these teams. is usually your best chance at winning these match ups. 
can also be scary if it's running a fighting move. +1 speed outspeeds non-speed boosting nature which is nice to keep in mind. 
can be scary too if you predict wrong, but you can either pressure it hard, snipe it with Tera Fire Fire Fang from or just predict right lmeow. 
with its Grassy Terrain can be annoying as two of the three breakers run EQ
REPLAYS
Win VS MRH Trick Room despite missing Hydro Pump on Ursaluna (The Ice Punch not killing Excadrill most likely didn't affect the outcome of the match)
I genuinely don't remember ever doing this battle lmao. It's here as it shows off the team well though
Win VS Grassy Terrain Using Tera Fire Chomper
Victory VS a cool Grasspon + Mag team, using rock slide to take out Corv with a flinch
Chomper pops off
Win VS Another High-Ranking player (Crit on Garg probably didn't matter, KO % was in my favour)
The Best 3 Turn Match Of All Time (Bonus Replay)
And a special thanks to the kind words of the OU room regarding this team!
If you're reading this, thanks for checking this out! If you decide to take the team for a spin, I wish you the best of luck :)
Win VS MRH Trick Room despite missing Hydro Pump on Ursaluna (The Ice Punch not killing Excadrill most likely didn't affect the outcome of the match)
I genuinely don't remember ever doing this battle lmao. It's here as it shows off the team well though
Win VS Grassy Terrain Using Tera Fire Chomper
Victory VS a cool Grasspon + Mag team, using rock slide to take out Corv with a flinch
Chomper pops off
Win VS Another High-Ranking player (Crit on Garg probably didn't matter, KO % was in my favour)
The Best 3 Turn Match Of All Time (Bonus Replay)
And a special thanks to the kind words of the OU room regarding this team!
If you're reading this, thanks for checking this out! If you decide to take the team for a spin, I wish you the best of luck :)
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