SV OU ALOMOMOLA VOLT-TURN BALANCE - PEAKED #1, 2038 ft. Thundurus-Therian

[Pinkacross]

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. Introduction
2. Proof of Peak
3. Team + Description
4. Team Building Process
5. Team usage tips
6. Threat List
7. Replays
8. Shoutouts
9. Importable
10. Other Teams
11. Outro

1. INTRODUCTION

Hello everyone! It’s Pinkacross, and I’ve finally got another team. When I saw that Alomomola got Flip Turn, I was immediately excited. Wish support has always allowed for lower-tier pokemon to function when they normally wouldn’t-- but it needs a pivoting move. I loved using Wish + Teleport Clefable back in gen 8, and I thought this would give me a chance to use that again! Sadly, Ogerpon-Wellspring exists. Due to the insane usage of this pokemon, using Flip Turn wasn’t going to be as free as I’d hoped. Still, with a little creative Tera usage, Alomomola can certainly function and be an OU threat. This team often creates what is referred to as “the vortex,” an inescapable cycle of spamming switching moves that only ends when the opponent sacks a pokemon. It’s a blast to be on the side generating the vortex. This team was extremely fun to use, and it was awesome taking free points from Stall teams. I know this team has three of the same pokemon as my last RMT, but it plays very differently and is certainly a unique team. I proudly present, Slimy Surfers!

2. PROOF OF PEAK

PROOF OF PEAK

This peak was achieved solo without any ghosting. The team performed very consistently on ladder, losing few times in my climb to #1, which spanned about 200 ELO. My middling GXE is due to other questionable choices, such as testing Sandaconda in OU.

3. TEAM + DESCRIPTION

Alomomola (F) @ Red Card
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Wish
- Flip Turn
- Scald
- Acrobatics

Role / General Tips: Alomomola acts as a Defensive wall, Wish passer, and pivot. Its Red Card can also be used at crucial moments to prevent the opponent from sweeping. Alomomola can be brought in against Physical attackers to safely pivot out using Flip Turn.
Item: Red Card is great for forcing out threatening setup sweepers such as Iron Moth, Roaring Moon, Sneasler, and Dragonite.
Tera Type: Tera Flying alongside Acrobatics threatens Ogerpon-Water and allows Alomomola to more reliably answer Great Tusk.
Moves: Wish is an essential part of what makes Alomomola what it is-- with 165 HP, Wish can restore about 70% health or more to anything on the team from a single Wish. Flip Turn is a fantastic pivot move, blocked only by Water Absorb (and similar abilities). Scald, with a 30% burn chance, is an amazing STAB move to throw out, and it can also deal significant damage to Great Tusk. Acrobatics provides Alomomola with a way to break past Ogerpon-Wellspring, which otherwise completely invalidates it.
EVs & Nature: Relaxed Nature with maximum Defense and Special defense maximizes Alomomola’s capabilities as a wall. Note that bulk in pokemon is essentially calculated by multiplying the HP and Defense / Special Defense stats, so due to the significant difference between Alomomola’s HP and Defenses, it is significantly more beneficial to exclude HP investment in favor of the Defenses.
Other Options: You can run Protect over Scald, or if you feel very confident in predicting Ogerpon-Wellspring doubles, you can even run Protect over Acrobatics.
Notable Calcs:

+1 132 SpA Iron Moth Energy Ball vs. 0 HP / 252 SpD Alomomola: 358-422 (76 - 89.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

+2 252+ Atk Sneasler Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 252+ Def Alomomola: 357-421 (75.7 - 89.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

+1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Tera Flying Roaring Moon Acrobatics (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 252+ Def Alomomola: 306-361 (64.9 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Slowking-Galar (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Future Sight
- Chilly Reception
- Ice Beam
- Sludge Bomb

Role / General Tips: Slowking is the Specially Defensive pivot of the team. It also absorbs Toxic Spikes. It can also use Future Sight to help break Stall teams alongside Thundurus-Therian.
Item: Heavy Duty boots are vital for pivoting around in a hazard-based metagame.
Tera Type: Tera Water, in combination with Alomomola, completely shuts down Rain and Sun teams. It also provides a neutral-damage option against Gliscor Earthquake.
Moves: Future Sight is incredible when facing bulkier and balance teams, to apply pressure when used alongside Cinderace and Thundurus-Therian. Chilly Reception is an amazing pivot move that almost always moves last due to Slowking’s low Speed. Ice Beam is essential for scoring an OHKO on Gliscor. Lastly, Sludge Bomb is a nice STAB move with an incredible chance to Poison.
EVs & Nature: Sassy with maximum HP and Special Defense maximizes Slowking’s potency as a wall. Minimum Speed is run for a slower Chilly Reception, to move last and get in another team member for free.
Other Options: You can run Surf over Ice Beam or Sludge Bomb to help against Iron Moth.
Notable Calcs:

252 SpA Choice Specs Protosynthesis Walking Wake Hydro Steam vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Tera Water Slowking-Galar in Sun: 126-148 (32 - 37.6%) -- 93.5% chance to 3HKO

252 SpA Choice Specs Dragapult Shadow Ball vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Slowking-Galar: 222-264 (56.4 - 67.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Kingambit (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Supreme Overlord
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 240 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head
- Kowtow Cleave
- Sucker Punch

Role / General Tips: Kingambit is the primary Ghost resist, Gholdengo answer, and win condition.
Item: Leftovers gives Kingambit important longevity, since Alomomola Wish cannot be relied upon.
Tera Type: Tera Flying is a standard Kingambit Tera-Type which allows Kingambit to break past Great Tusk and Iron Valiant.
Moves: Swords Dance is an incredible boosting move that allows Kingambit to sweep and break through threats it otherwise wouldn’t be able to. Iron Head is a strong STAB move that pairs beautifully with Kingambit’s other strong STAB move, Kowtow Cleave. Between these two moves, almost nothing resists. Sucker Punch is an amazing Priority move that gives Kingambit the ability to sweep despite its low Speed.
EVs & Nature: Maximum Attack with an Adamant Nature makes Kingambit as powerful as possible. Most of the rest is in HP so Kingambit can beat Ogerpon-Wellspring from full when switching in. The 16 Speed is an effort to outspeed bulkier Kingambit sets, and pokemon attempting to creep minimum Speed Kingambit.
Other Options: Tera Grass can be used on Kingambit to counter Ogerpon-Water. Kingambit can run maximum Speed instead of maximum HP. Air Balloon can be run for a better matchup against Gliscor and Roaring Moon.
Notable Calcs:

+2 252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 3 allies fainted Kingambit Kowtow Cleave vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 285-336 (71.4 - 84.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

+2 252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 3 allies fainted Kingambit Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Great Tusk: 304-358 (81.9 - 96.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Great Tusk @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ice Spinner
- Rapid Spin
- Headlong Rush
- Stealth Rock

Role / General Tips: Great Tusk is the primary form of hazard control, as well as the contact-move punisher and Kingambit answer.
Item: Rocky Helmet is great for punishing contact moves, notably Population Bomb (since the team struggles against Maushold otherwise). It also allows Great Tusk to switch into Knock Off better. Alongside Wish Alomomola, Leftovers healing is less necessary.
Tera Type: Tera Dragon can turn this Great Tusk into an emergency Ogerpon-Wellspring answer.
Moves: Ice Spinner is mandatory for hitting Gliscor hard-- removing Spikes doesn’t mean much if they can be easily set back up on the spinner. Rapid Spin is needed for removal of hazards. Headlong Rush gives a strong STAB option that can pick off Gholdengo attempting to enter and block Rapid Spin. Lastly, Stealth Rock is an amazing move for long-term residual damage that is particularly important to use when facing bulkier teams.
EVs & Nature: Maximum Speed is necessary to outspeed Gholdengo and use Headlong Rush to KO before taking a devastating Make It Rain. Maximum Attack is needed to deal significant damage to Gliscor with Ice Spinner.
Other Options: Tera Grass can be used over Tera Dragon.
Notable Calcs:

252 Atk Great Tusk Ice Spinner vs. 244 HP / 252+ Def Gliscor: 220-260 (62.5 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal

252 Atk Great Tusk Headlong Rush vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 414-488 (109.5 - 129.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Cinderace (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Court Change
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- Will-O-Wisp

Role / General Tips: Cinderace is the secondary hazard control and Speed control for the team. Court Change is particularly helpful against HO (Hyper Offense) teams.
Item: Heavy Duty Boots is mandatory on Cinderace, since it's extremely weak to hazards.
Tera Type: Tera Grass turns Cinderace into an emergency Ogerpon-Wellspring answer.
Moves: Court Change is one of the best moves in the game, and it can be very important against hazard stack, HO, and Aurora Veil teams. Pyro Ball is a fantastic and powerful STAB attack. U-turn is a great pivoting move that works well alongside the other pivoting moves on the team. It also deals massive damage to Ogerpon-Wellspring. Lastly, Will-O-Wisp allows Cinderace to cripple physical setup sweepers like Dragonite, Roaring Moon, and Kingambit.
EVs & Nature: Maximum Attack and Speed gives Cinderace as much power as possible while still hitting the crucial Speed tie with Roaring Moon.
Other Options: You can run a different Tera-type on Cinderace, it is rarely used. Ghost is a good option.
Notable Calcs:

252 Atk Libero Cinderace U-turn vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Ogerpon-Wellspring: 246-290 (81.7 - 96.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 378-446 (100 - 117.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Thundurus-Therian @ Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Tera Blast
- Volt Switch
- Grass Knot
- Knock Off

Role / General Tips: Thundurus-Therian is the breaker of the team. It is completely unwallable long-term by anything in the game.
Item: Choice Specs give Thundurus-Therian the power needed to break past any wall.
Tera Type: Tera Flying gives Thundurus-Therian a reliable STAB move with an incredibly spammable type.
Moves: Tera Blast (Flying) gives Thundurus-Therian an incredibly powerful STAB move that can destroy almost all walls, with the notable exception of Blissey. Volt Switch allows for pivoting if the opponent attempts to switch into a Steel or Electric type to resist Tera Blast. Grass Knot can punish Ground types such as Great Tusk and Ting-Lu that attempt to enter on Volt Switch. Lastly, Knock Off can remove the Heavy Duty Boots from Blissey. In combination with Stealth Rock and Volt Switch, Blissey will soon be in range of Tera Blast.
EVs & Nature: Maximum Speed and Special Attack makes Thundurus the most effective breaker possible. Timid Nature is used over Modest to outspeed Manaphy, which is otherwise a major threat to the team.
Other Options: You can run Focus Blast over Grass Knot.
Notable Calcs:

252 SpA Choice Specs Tera Flying Thundurus-Therian Tera Blast vs. 4 HP / 252+ SpD Blissey: 166-196 (25.4 - 30%) -- guaranteed 4HKO

252 SpA Choice Specs Tera Flying Thundurus-Therian Tera Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Slowking-Galar: 192-226 (48.7 - 57.3%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO

252 SpA Choice Specs Tera Flying Thundurus-Therian Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Vessel of Ruin Ting-Lu: 266-314 (51.7 - 61%) -- 94.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

4. TEAM BUILDING PROCESS

TEAMBUILDING PROCESS

I started off with Alomomola, chosen for its incredible Wishpassing support and Flip Turn.



I wanted to pair Alomomola with a Specially Defensive pivot, to annoy the opponent with safe Regenerator pivoting from both the physical and special side.



I knew that a team focused on pivoting would need exceptional hazard control, so I added Great Tusk and Cinderace. Cinderace also provided some Speed control and a U-turn user, adding to the switch-move theme of the team. Great Tusk also loves Wish support, making it a great choice.



I needed a Ghost resist and a Dragon resist, and Kingambit is the best there is. It also greatly appreciates Wish support, making it a perfect fit.



I needed a pokemon that checked a lot of boxes. What is immune to Ground attacks, has access to Knock Off, and breaks Balance and Stall teams almost single handedly? There’s only one guy for the job, Thundurus-Therian.

5. TEAM USAGE TIPS

TEAM USAGE TIPS

Vs HO:
- The biggest threat on HO is Roaring Moon. If you can trade to take this pokemon, it’s almost always worth it. If Roaring Moon uses Tera Flying, Kingambit can revenge kill fairly easily. If they do not Tera, Kingambit can avoid Earthquake and Brick Break with Tera Flying. Alomomola can be used to Red Card Roaring Moon, but you MUST NOT enter on Knock Off or the Red Card won’t activate.
- Against Ogerpon-Wellspring, do NOT use Tera Flying on Alomomola in most cases. This is better against Balance teams. Against HO, it may be better to sack something or make an aggressive double into Cinderace, which threatens to KO Ogerpon with U-turn after minimal chip.
- Against Glimmora leads, lead with Thundurus-Therian and Volt Switch into Galarian Slowking. Most HO teams will not have a Ground type, so this will be free. Chilly Reception into Cinderace, then KO with a Pyro Ball or U-turn depending on which sweepers the opponent has. There will now be Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes to Court Change later. If the opponent doesn’t have a Poison type other than Glimmora, they may try to preserve their Glimmora to prevent this devastating Court Change-- be aware of this.
- Be very careful with Alomomola’s Red Card usage. Often it is best used against Iron Moth or Roaring Moon. This forced switch can be particularly devastating if Cinderace has already Court Changed hazards.
Vs Offense:
- Use Future Sight to force switches. Most Offense teams can’t handle Cinderace + Future Sight.
- Try to preserve Kingambit’s Tera Flying for later in the game.
- If you encounter an Ogerpon-Wellspring, it is sometimes worth using Tera Flying on Alomomola.
- Spam switching moves. This will rapidly break down most Offense teams.
Vs Balance:
- It is often worth using an early Tera Flying on Thundurus-Therian to break down the opponent’s team quickly.
- Use Cinderace wisely against Gliscor hazard stack-- don’t Court Change too early, or Great Tusk will end up under a lot of pressure.
Vs Stall:
- Save Tera Flying for Thundurus-Therian, almost every single time.
- Before using Thundurus to break, set Stealth Rock and prevent Gliscor from setting hazards using Slowking Future Sight, Slowking Ice Beam, and Great Tusk Ice Spinner to ensure hazard control.
- Use Tera Blast Flying on Thundurus to force in Blissey, then once your opponent has been lulled into complacency, use Knock Off on the Blissey to remove Heavy Duty Boots.
- Chip Blissey with Volt Switch and Stealth Rock until Tera Blast flying eliminates your opponent’s team.
- Be careful with Thundurus Tera Blast PP-- there’s no need to rush breaking a stall team! A double Regenerator core and Wish support will give you all the time you need. Just be patient, use Volt Switch, and eventually you’ll break.
General Tips:
- Be careful with Alomomola Red Card usage.
- Don’t mindlessly use Tera on Thundurus every game, often Tera Blast Flying isn’t really needed to win.
- Use Wish BEFORE and not WHEN a pokemon is at critically low health. Even with Flip Turn, there are ways your opponent can block Wish passing.
- Play very carefully against Ogerpon-Wellspring-- don’t use Flip Turn mindlessly like you usually can.
- Wait until your opponent has set a decent amount of hazards before using Court Change. For example, Court Changing a single Spike is rarely worth it.

6. THREAT LIST

THREAT LIST

Since this pokemon blocks Alomomola Flip Turn, and nothing on the team easily switches in… issues arise. Tera Flying Acrobatics can be used on Alomomola, Tera Dragon can be used on Great Tusk, and Tera Grass can be used on Cinderace. Tera will make this pokemon pretty easy to deal with, but you don’t NEED to use Tera. If you desperately need your Tera for something else, you can always make predictions and keep up offensive pressure. Ogerpon-Wellspring can’t come in easily on anything except for Alomomola, and Kingambit can be a solid switch-in without Tera to deal significant damage at least once.

The power or speed offered by Booster Energy causes issues. If Iron Moth isn’t running Substitute, Future Sight can handle Iron Moth pretty easily. However, Substitute is increasingly common. Surf can be run on Slowking-Galar to minimize this threat. Using the original team though, a combination of Future Sight and Alomomola Red Card can usually handle Iron Moth. If Iron Moth gets really out of hand, it can always be revenge killed by Tera Flying Kingambit.

Very threatening, there is no immediate answer. Chancing a Cinderace Speed tie is often worthwhile. Roaring Moon can almost always be revenge killed by Kingambit using Tera Flying. If you choose to use Air Balloon on Kingambit, this also helps. Alomomola can also Red Card Roaring Moon off of the field, which can be a devastating loss of power that mitigates the threat of Roaring Moon. MAKE SURE that Alomomola doesn't enter on a Knock Off though-- this won't force Roaring Moon out, since the Red Card will be removed. If things get very desperate, Great Tusk can sacrifice itself for Rocky Helmet chip, and Alomomola can fish for a Scald burn.

Similarly to Roaring Moon, there is no immediate answer. Tera Flying Kingambit can revenge kill (if they don’t predict the Tera), but the best way to deal with this is use Alomomola to Red Card Sneasler out. They will then lose their Unburden boost, and the next time it enters, it can be outsped and Cinderace can Will-O-Wisp after safely pivoting in using Alomomola Flip Turn.

Zamazenta, with the right tera-type, can be very threatening. Substitute + Iron Defense sets are very difficult to deal with. Alomomola can fish for Scald burns against all other sets. If you do run into Substitute, try to force it out with Red Card and switch hard into Thundurus if possible-- this leads to a great opportunity to click Tera Blast Flying. It does take significant damage from Crunch and Body Press though, so try to use Wish to keep Thundurus healthy for when Zamazenta enters again.

7. REPLAYS

REPLAYS

Game that reached #1:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1951433943-mnqknksytu75isx6wc9i2l6j5lb0bgfpw
Vs Meowscarada Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1960811404-shibiaivbcgazi59m8nobtntb43rw1cpw
Vs Scovillain Sun:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1960807743-fr8x1m8fch7m65wwyotybojglfyy82npw
Vs Roaring Moon HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1960805555-df4lp1v6suby4so73tw9p1e0uou25q2pw
Vs Glimmora HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1960801337-4ep3jcy89rg9u9wns3mme2zfakh6bkkpw
Vs Gliscor Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1957000292-9nar3mmvgkb7dz2tvbuaqf60zd1nnxbpw
Vs Tinkaton Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1956997083-uawhmaoogigsnilpp4ga3d2e1klrmsdpw
Vs Spidops Webs:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1956995052-z5sl4a6zmqo82hnyjuibfzt6ecp1cjfpw
Vs Zamazenta Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1956994058-73vv9v71gkno6wk95m7wem2eov8rqtspw
Vs Ogerpon-Wellspring Water Spam:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1956658016-ucbj5rugcx75g2sloetk6u0drdiemhbpw
Vs Sneasler Hazard Stack:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954239773-2vad7t9ial2hcy0dvq3ktuoe0qtiyjqpw
Vs Arcanine-Hisui Sun:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954234302-zi920t1bponmo00ltnfz40kvlz0fb7qpw
Vs Clodsire Stall:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954228850-6nj0v5d3y9ngvc4wrs5nvpff11cawb4pw
Vs Ogerpon-Wellspring Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954225750-izde9t34epsuwk1bzi31oy285t2ajffpw
Vs Grimmsnarl HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954223683-uu6qzl5aadm0eh0c3hivrr94ebzuqsfpw
Vs Gliscor Stall (lol):
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954219255-pkfotkapskueb4laiqo7lhrykulahompw
Vs Heatran Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954214112-toln2irwkgc4nu3ji48yh09dr2538nfpw
Vs Ogerpon Offense:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954207978-x8z47kozivdq132ynk8fssun142e5nnpw
Vs Acid Armor Manaphy Webs:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954201697-poi829xbqphpjd275ety7y764a1o9ucpw
Vs Empoleon Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954197351-pw3xt14dlc3wxx8qrnisp4osarg71h2pw
Vs Zamazenta Bulky Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954186911-6ar2yidcgvst1g2clvmjsulxo23wjbopw
Vs Grassy Terrain HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954184626-uexfaxsm2uljdnn2e7ovtxhab5sekowpw
Vs Cresselia HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954182006-x9czlwlrrvahtrbpyszmantoaahuxbnpw
Vs Clefable Stall:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1954181135-93jwbqtjmkqrgykg4cb0q5qim0hu8swpw
Vs Ogerpon-Wellspring HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1952285891-i9rdiwxsp4onr7xdaqyjq3v8o0j8voipw
Vs Ogerpon HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950639152-dskpoae98nrler1jgnsx2h8kqscb45lpw
Vs Iron Moth Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950585367-xn3q674jfdf499x5n2lm5jx0rqxyxzrpw
Vs Ogerpon-Wellspring Webs:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950579711-h363qgg62xgnp4gv63yg3b80a65i83bpw
Vs Highv0ltag3 Stall round 2:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950572198-2l7zyx9e4h0lgkwwjvj7xpitcvdosqcpw
Vs Jirachi Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950568266-l9lo48oyumb079er0doet1da5zo68fopw
Vs Highv0ltage3 Stall round 1:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950560810-eawwf919fq47pzjg3nw237ftfuqbpsopw
Vs Ogerpon-Wellspring Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950201066-srd4eh716iltk7o62m1juc4mr4nb5lvpw
Vs Jirachi Stall:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950193022-cv58gh8kxg6690hfctvyry7ke5zbjj4pw
Vs Rain Webs:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1950188331-b070arvxvd64v08vggep0gnprfxoy8vpw

8. SHOUTOUTS

Thank you very much to Spiral (formerly known as shawk*+:)) for the amazing banner and name art! Also massive thank you to Voidkeeper for telling me that Alomomola gets Acrobatics... my entire climb to #1 I was using Tera Blast Flying lol...

9. IMPORTABLE

The Team: https://pokepast.es/925681e8b19c8773

Team with my Nicknames: https://pokepast.es/fb616de91b9cf054

10. OTHER TEAMS

Slowking Balance - Peaked #1: (updated version post chien-pao ban included!):
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threa...-cinderace-updated-post-pao-espathra.3714077/ (LIKELY OUTDATED)

CB Dragonite Balance - Peaked #1:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threa...ying-dragonite-balance-peaked-1-2110.3721274/ (LIKELY OUTDATED)

Hisuian Goodra Offense - Peaked #1:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threa...e-peaked-1-2094-ft-thundurus-therian.3725216/ (LIKELY OUTDATED)

11. OUTRO

Thank you to anyone who read this far! I hope you enjoy the team, and feel free to talk to me about Pokemon if on Smogon, if you see me online PS (I’m always on “Pinkacross” or “Pinkacross Alt”. You can email me at beigelordpkmn@gmail.com or contact me via Discord, where my tag is “pinkacross”.

P.S. you can check out my youtube channel here! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZgXNPjM7DxYBJZJDLFIGMg

 

[1LDK]

Man, I wish I had 0.000001% of your creativity right now, congrats man, love your work, can't wait to get swept by this team on ladder

 

[awyp]

Very cool team Pinka, I'm a fan of that Thundurus-Therian set, it can be a fantastic wall breaker. Grats on the peak.

 

[shawk*+:)]

 

[matte]

I was like "wow when will ppl use Alo its so underrated"

also like the use of , it fell off alot and am glad its getting some usage :)

edit: LMAO W NICKS

bro answered my thoughts, goat

 

[zReptar]

I coulda sworn you used this against me in its early stages and gosh was it a pain. W rmt brother keep it up

 

[Charles Darwin]

Goddamn this team is fun. One thing though- am I teraing Thundurus early? For maximum Tera Blast value? Because past experience tells me to preserve Tera for Kingambit, but the funny blue button... it does so much damage...

 

[Pinkacross]

Goddamn this team is fun. One thing though- am I teraing Thundurus early? For maximum Tera Blast value? Because past experience tells me to preserve Tera for Kingambit, but the funny blue button... it does so much damage...

It really depends on the game. Sometimes the opponent will have no answer for Thundurus, and other times you need Tera more on other things. Against HO teams, Sun teams, Rain teams, and Offense teams, I rarely use Tera on Thundurus. On bulkier teams, I almost always use Tera on Thundurus.

 

[Voidkeeper]

Why Tera Blast over Acrobatics on Alo? How common is it that Alo uses tera + attacks before triggering red card, and that the additional base 25bp for that one/two attack(s) was more important than every following attack being 30bp stronger? Not to mention that Acro is much better than TB if you end up using tera on anything else. TB is a special move until you Tera, as well, and Alo has much higher attack than SpA.

 

[Pinkacross]

Why Tera Blast over Acrobatics on Alo? How common is it that Alo uses tera + attacks before triggering red card, and that the additional base 25bp for that one/two attack(s) was more important than every following attack being 30bp stronger? Not to mention that Acro is much better than TB if you end up using tera on anything else. TB is a special move until you Tera, as well, and Alo has much higher attack than SpA.

The reason is that I did not know Alomomola got Acrobatics. I will now change my RMT to include that, this is much better. THANK YOU!

 

[ant4456]

the background behind the mons feels AI generated, is it

 

[Pinkacross]

the background behind the mons feels AI generated, is it

You'd have to ask shawk*+:) since he did the banner design, but as far as I know it is not AI generated.

 

[ant4456]

Interesting, thanks for the info

 

[Sagat92]

Isn’t hammer arm better for the blissey MU?

 

[Pinkacross]

Isn’t hammer arm better for the blissey MU?

Not really. Blissey these days run near max defense, so this is the calc:
0- Atk Thundurus-Therian Hammer Arm vs. 4 HP / 252 Def Blissey: 234-276 (35.8 - 42.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
Also, Knock Off is more helpful against other specially defensive walls, like Clodsire, Galarian Slowking, Toxapex, and more. No matter what Tera the opponent uses, Stealth Rock + Volt Switch WILL chip them down, even if Regenerator + Tera Steel. Knock Off is essential for making this happen.

 

[spin da bloc]

Considering your threat list, I'd highly recommend testing Tera Ghost on Cinderace. I'm about to post an RMT myself with it, it can be useful to get a clutch Will-o-Wisp off on Zamazenta, Sneasler, Dragonite, or Maushold. Also (obviously) can be used to spinblock if you're Court Changing a Sticky Web on Great Tusk. Still niche, of course, but I definitely clicked it more than Tera Flying.

 

[Pinkacross]

Considering your threat list, I'd highly recommend testing Tera Ghost on Cinderace. I'm about to post an RMT myself with it, it can be useful to get a clutch Will-o-Wisp off on Zamazenta, Sneasler, Dragonite, or Maushold. Also (obviously) can be used to spinblock if you're Court Changing a Sticky Web on Great Tusk. Still niche, of course, but I definitely clicked it more than Tera Flying.

I agree, Tera Ghost sounds pretty solid.

 

[shawk*+:)]

the background behind the mons feels AI generated, is it

Yes & No.

I say this as a graphic designer, AI is great tool that can easily be abused. With that being said, It is not being used here. Or at least, not in the way you think. The background itself is not generated with DALL-E 2, it’s an actual image I got off of Google Images. I used the content fill tool to expand some areas a bit just to make it fit the vision I had in my head (See below). I tend to not generate backgrounds often if at all because while it’s cool, It tends to take the soul & passion out of art if used regularly. Think about it this way: Imagine if you wanted to make a pizza, but instead of putting in the effort, you customize your order online and have someone else do it. Now given this scenario, ask yourself this: Did you really make a pizza? Sorry if I’m went on a small tangent there. But tl;dr yes, A.I. is used in very small moderation. I decided order my pizza this time.

- spiral ⁑)

Original Image.

“A.I.” Enhanced Image (if you wanna call it that)

 

[Delta 2777]

How often do you wish you had Protect on Alomamola?

 

[Pinkacross]

How often do you wish you had Protect on Alomamola?

Basically only when facing Close Combat Zamazenta-- it really doesn't stay in for very many turns, and Protect is a very passive play for a Balance / Offense team like this.

 

[Michael213]

the acro tera flying mola set for ogerpon is so sick wish i could be that creative, congrats on hitting number 1

 

[DartTamarin519]

I haven't played a lot with this, nor am I very good, but I'm running into issues with Greninja. Is there something I'm missing?

 

[Pinkacross]

I haven't played a lot with this, nor am I very good, but I'm running into issues with Greninja. Is there something I'm missing?

Greninja is certainly threatening, but we have some solid tools. Tera Water Slowking-Galar usually hardwalls, and Kingambit can revenge kill chipped Greninja with Sucker Punch. Alomomola can force out with Red Card as well, which can be especially nice if Greninja has already activated Battle Bond. Your main tools will be Alomomola, Galarian Slowking, and Kingambit.

 

[RaikouLover]

FYI I faced this team on the ladder in the hands of a lesser skilled player and I led Roaring Moon turn 1 (they did not lead Cinderace) and things escalated rather quickly. Glaring weakness. It’s a dope team though.

 

[Pinkacross]

FYI I faced this team on the ladder in the hands of a lesser skilled player and I led Roaring Moon turn 1 (they did not lead Cinderace) and things escalated rather quickly. Glaring weakness. It’s a dope team though.

There's a roaring moon set that can obliterate pretty much any team... we have tools but yea it's threatening for sure. Should be banned soon though, so that's good!