Let me just say it now. WHAT?! NO WATER TYPES OTHER THEN POLITOED ON A RAIN TEAM?! THIS IS MONOTONY! Well, that is the point of this team, I want to prove that not all rain teams need water type abusers to be efficient, in fact, with the ban of Swift Swimmers, Starmie is the only water type I consider viable rain abuse material. Instead, this team focuses on the resistances that rain gives, a 100% accurate Thunder, and Toxicroak's Dry Skin. It's been a solid three months since my last RMT, and I have been fairly active lately and decided to post my team. It's been fairly successful, nabbing at least five wins per every loss. enough with the backstory, on with the team!
Politoed (Shadow) @ Leftovers
Ability: Drizzle
Nature: Bold (+ Def, -Atk)
Ev's: 252 Hp / 252 Def / 4 SpD
-Surf
-Ice Beam
-Toxic
-Perish Song
Of all the sets I tried while forming my rain team, I find this one most effective. Surf deals with offensively oriented Ninetales easily while Toxic handles bulkier variants. Ice Beam makes sure I'm not a sitting duck when it comes to Grass types and Ground types, usually KOing Gliscor and 2HKOing Venusaur and Liligant. Perish Song is for anyone who wants to SmashPass, as that really kills my team. I also can't name how many times it was 3 of my special attackers vs a Chansey/Blissey and how this gave me the win. I am aware that I don't run a recovery move, Politoed isn't meant to wall, it is meant to take enough hits so it can stay around lategame or until my opponents weather spawner is gone. I wouldn't mind moving some EV's into Special Defense to take Ninetales Energy Ball, but those Defense EV's have proven to be very crucial to me.
Jolteon (Shine) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb
Nature: Timid (-Atk, +Spe)
Ev's: 252 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 4 SpD
-Thunder
-Hidden Power [Grass]
-Shadow Ball
-Volt Switch
I have always been a fan of Jolteon. I used a set very similar to this in generation four on my OU team, and it worked fantastically. But generation 5 was not kind to Jolteon, with new and improved faces like Rotom-W and Galvantula bringing talents that overshadowed Jolteons. However, he finds a nice niche in rain teams, having a fantastic base 130 speed and a very pleasing base 110 special attack makes him a very capable sweeper, and the main check for BoltBeam Starmie.Thunder does an immense amount of damage with Choice Specs, 2HKOing the average Latios. Hidden Power [Grass] is here because with Swampert and pals run around abusing rain without taking any damage from Electric attacks, there needs to be a way to nab a surprise KO. Shadow Ball is there mainly for the Lati twins and for anyone who resists Electric but is slammed by Ghosts (Claydol and Golurk), but hey, it's an eeveeloution, and has a shallow movepool like most of them. Volt Switch is useful for KOing a weakened opponent then switching into Politoed or Jirachi, who either summons the rain back into play or ParaFlinches the enemy to death.
Thundurus (Beam) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Timid (-Atk + Spe)
Ev's: 252 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 4 Def
-Thunder
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-Focus Blast
-Nasty Plot
Oh Thundurus, I hope that you stay OU, as you contribute so much to competitive battling it's a little scary. Most people tend to use Thundurus as a lead with Taunt or Thunder Wave, but instead of looking at that stuff, I see a pokemon that is a better rain sweeper the fallen star Zapdos. This is one of the stronger members of my team and one of the better early game sweepers. I know that Focus Sash is a little risky because I rely on my opponents not laying out Stealth Rock, but entry hazards have long fallen out of the average battlers routine, as I only encounter them on stall teams (who Virizon easily handles). After a Nasty Plot, Thundurus becomes virtually unstoppable. Hidden Power [Ice] will always OHKO Latios, Haxorus, and Hydreigon while Focus Blast will always KO Tyranitar and Ferrothorn, while Thunder KO's just about everything else. Thundurus also has remarkable defensive typing, allowing it to set up on a lot of Choiced pokemon and any Scizor that wants to come abuse my rain.
Jirachi (Starlight) @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Careful (+SpD, -Sp. Atk)
Ev's: 252 Hp / 224 SpD / 32 Spe
-Iron Head
-Thunder Wave
-Wish
-Stealth Rock
I remember it like it was yesterday, it was my Scarfed Chandelure vs 3 pokemon, a Jirachi, a Celebi, and a Scizor. The weather was sunny. In comes ScarfAchi, the only hope of my opponent, it uses Thunder Punch, it doesn't KO me but it paralyzes me. Goodbye win. That was my motivation for picking Jirachi, because my team is somewhat weak to spammed Draco Meteors, and Jirachi soaks them up like a sponge. This is your standard Specially Defensive ParaFlinch, but it sure does get the job done. I choose Thunder Wave over Body Slam because it is more reliable and my team doesn't have a lot of trouble with Ground types. With the ParaFlinch Combo, the opponent has a 3/20 (15%) chance to move. Some people troll me saying that I have no skill and use cheap tricks to win, but if that's the case, you should be able to beat me. Stealth Rock is just a helpful move in general that most teams don't seem to use. And Wish is like my teams bread and butter, because I can often recover a lot of damage off of Rotom-W and Thundurus, who have no problems switching into threats, along with healing myself during the ParaFlinch process.
Toxicroak (Midnight) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Dry Skin
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk)
Ev's: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 Def
-Drain Punch
-Sucker Punch
-Substitute
-Bulk Up
There was originally another Thunder user on this team, but I decided I had trouble with one thing, Blissey. This switches in all day on every Blissey under then sun and sets up like it's nobody's business. With Dry Skin and Black Sludge, it recovers the same amount that a SubSeeder does. I've been a little doubtful when considering this, but after trying it out, it works out fantastically. I normally come in on a Seismic Toss or Softboiled and set up a Substitute. If the brave Blissey tries to Thunder Wave me, that is only more time to set up a Bulk Up. Drain Punch is for STAB reasons and gives me a very large amount of health back along with Dry Skin and Black Sludge, and Sucker Punch gives it just about perfect coverage, I've yet to battle a pokemon who can resist both of these moves. For any brave Psychic types like Azelf, Alakazam, or Reuniclus that decide to come and KO me, I switch into Jirachi who is more then happy to ParaFlinch them back to their trainer. Black Sludge really trolls Rotom-W who like Tricking me a Choice Scarf, because it greatly reduces its durability.
Virizon @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 64 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 192 Atk
-Leaf Blade
-Close Combat
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-Work Up
Politoed (Shadow) @ Leftovers
Ability: Drizzle
Nature: Bold (+ Def, -Atk)
Ev's: 252 Hp / 252 Def / 4 SpD
-Surf
-Ice Beam
-Toxic
-Perish Song
Of all the sets I tried while forming my rain team, I find this one most effective. Surf deals with offensively oriented Ninetales easily while Toxic handles bulkier variants. Ice Beam makes sure I'm not a sitting duck when it comes to Grass types and Ground types, usually KOing Gliscor and 2HKOing Venusaur and Liligant. Perish Song is for anyone who wants to SmashPass, as that really kills my team. I also can't name how many times it was 3 of my special attackers vs a Chansey/Blissey and how this gave me the win. I am aware that I don't run a recovery move, Politoed isn't meant to wall, it is meant to take enough hits so it can stay around lategame or until my opponents weather spawner is gone. I wouldn't mind moving some EV's into Special Defense to take Ninetales Energy Ball, but those Defense EV's have proven to be very crucial to me.
Jolteon (Shine) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb
Nature: Timid (-Atk, +Spe)
Ev's: 252 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 4 SpD
-Thunder
-Hidden Power [Grass]
-Shadow Ball
-Volt Switch
I have always been a fan of Jolteon. I used a set very similar to this in generation four on my OU team, and it worked fantastically. But generation 5 was not kind to Jolteon, with new and improved faces like Rotom-W and Galvantula bringing talents that overshadowed Jolteons. However, he finds a nice niche in rain teams, having a fantastic base 130 speed and a very pleasing base 110 special attack makes him a very capable sweeper, and the main check for BoltBeam Starmie.Thunder does an immense amount of damage with Choice Specs, 2HKOing the average Latios. Hidden Power [Grass] is here because with Swampert and pals run around abusing rain without taking any damage from Electric attacks, there needs to be a way to nab a surprise KO. Shadow Ball is there mainly for the Lati twins and for anyone who resists Electric but is slammed by Ghosts (Claydol and Golurk), but hey, it's an eeveeloution, and has a shallow movepool like most of them. Volt Switch is useful for KOing a weakened opponent then switching into Politoed or Jirachi, who either summons the rain back into play or ParaFlinches the enemy to death.
Thundurus (Beam) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Timid (-Atk + Spe)
Ev's: 252 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 4 Def
-Thunder
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-Focus Blast
-Nasty Plot
Oh Thundurus, I hope that you stay OU, as you contribute so much to competitive battling it's a little scary. Most people tend to use Thundurus as a lead with Taunt or Thunder Wave, but instead of looking at that stuff, I see a pokemon that is a better rain sweeper the fallen star Zapdos. This is one of the stronger members of my team and one of the better early game sweepers. I know that Focus Sash is a little risky because I rely on my opponents not laying out Stealth Rock, but entry hazards have long fallen out of the average battlers routine, as I only encounter them on stall teams (who Virizon easily handles). After a Nasty Plot, Thundurus becomes virtually unstoppable. Hidden Power [Ice] will always OHKO Latios, Haxorus, and Hydreigon while Focus Blast will always KO Tyranitar and Ferrothorn, while Thunder KO's just about everything else. Thundurus also has remarkable defensive typing, allowing it to set up on a lot of Choiced pokemon and any Scizor that wants to come abuse my rain.
Jirachi (Starlight) @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Careful (+SpD, -Sp. Atk)
Ev's: 252 Hp / 224 SpD / 32 Spe
-Iron Head
-Thunder Wave
-Wish
-Stealth Rock
I remember it like it was yesterday, it was my Scarfed Chandelure vs 3 pokemon, a Jirachi, a Celebi, and a Scizor. The weather was sunny. In comes ScarfAchi, the only hope of my opponent, it uses Thunder Punch, it doesn't KO me but it paralyzes me. Goodbye win. That was my motivation for picking Jirachi, because my team is somewhat weak to spammed Draco Meteors, and Jirachi soaks them up like a sponge. This is your standard Specially Defensive ParaFlinch, but it sure does get the job done. I choose Thunder Wave over Body Slam because it is more reliable and my team doesn't have a lot of trouble with Ground types. With the ParaFlinch Combo, the opponent has a 3/20 (15%) chance to move. Some people troll me saying that I have no skill and use cheap tricks to win, but if that's the case, you should be able to beat me. Stealth Rock is just a helpful move in general that most teams don't seem to use. And Wish is like my teams bread and butter, because I can often recover a lot of damage off of Rotom-W and Thundurus, who have no problems switching into threats, along with healing myself during the ParaFlinch process.
Toxicroak (Midnight) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Dry Skin
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk)
Ev's: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 Def
-Drain Punch
-Sucker Punch
-Substitute
-Bulk Up
There was originally another Thunder user on this team, but I decided I had trouble with one thing, Blissey. This switches in all day on every Blissey under then sun and sets up like it's nobody's business. With Dry Skin and Black Sludge, it recovers the same amount that a SubSeeder does. I've been a little doubtful when considering this, but after trying it out, it works out fantastically. I normally come in on a Seismic Toss or Softboiled and set up a Substitute. If the brave Blissey tries to Thunder Wave me, that is only more time to set up a Bulk Up. Drain Punch is for STAB reasons and gives me a very large amount of health back along with Dry Skin and Black Sludge, and Sucker Punch gives it just about perfect coverage, I've yet to battle a pokemon who can resist both of these moves. For any brave Psychic types like Azelf, Alakazam, or Reuniclus that decide to come and KO me, I switch into Jirachi who is more then happy to ParaFlinch them back to their trainer. Black Sludge really trolls Rotom-W who like Tricking me a Choice Scarf, because it greatly reduces its durability.
Virizon @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
Nature: Jolly
Ev's: 64 Sp. Atk / 252 Spe / 192 Atk
-Leaf Blade
-Close Combat
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-Work Up
Lastly, there is Virizon. This pokemon is what I would call the unsung hero of my team. Although he doesn't benefit any pokemon and doesn't switch into any particularly dangerous attacks means nothing. Without Virizon, this team would be exposed to the wrath of Tyranitar and his sandstorm. Virizon is one of the best anti-metagame pokemon, countering the Ferrothorn / Jellicent core, along with Sandstorm oriented teams, and even other rain teams! This set has been my saving grace through all my battles, acting as a crucial staple. I know Work Up isn't Swords Dance and doesn't improve bulk like Calm Mind, but without it Hidden Power [Ice] wouldn't KO 252/0 Gliscor, the main check Sandstorm teams use to counter Fighting types. I usually get two Work Ups in with Leftovers, and use Jolly nature with 64 Sp. Atk because I didn't want lower Virizon's bulk and wanted to keep up its speed. Close Combat deals with Tyranitar while Leaf Blade deals with Hippodown.
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And that's my team. Feel free to test it before rating it, just please don't ladder with it.
And that's my team. Feel free to test it before rating it, just please don't ladder with it.
Code:
Shadow (Politoed) (M) @ Leftovers Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
- Perish Song
Shine (Jolteon) (M) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Shadow Ball
- Volt Switch
Starlight (Jirachi) @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 224 SDef / 32 Spd
Careful Nature (+SDef, -SAtk)
- Iron Head
- Thunder Wave
- Wish
- Stealth Rock
Beam (Thundurus) (M) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Nasty Plot
Midnight (Toxicroak) (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Dry Skin
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Sucker Punch
- Drain Punch
- Substitute
- Bulk Up
Shade (Virizion) @ Life Orb
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Leaf Blade
- Close Combat
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Work Up