I don't know how many of you remember gen V. I don't know how many of you remember the joys of Rain Dish Tentacruel, of Bulky Dragonite, of rain-guarded Ferrothorn. And I'm sure you're all as sick as I am of Ferrothorn-Koko-Hawlucha-Swampert-Kingdra-Pelipper.
So it's time for a blast from the past, in the form of the most glorious archetype: Rain Stall.
If I'm honest, the team plays a little more like a very bulky balance. You stall out, get hazards, get chip, then clean up with Pert and Celesteela.
The SpDef core
Blob (Chansey) @ Eviolite
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Soft-Boiled
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
If there's no Chansey, it ain't stall. Handles every special attacker not named Keldeo, Tapu Lele or Latios. Even handles some fast attackers, and gets Toxic on greedy Hawluchas. The only hazard setter on the team, so don't let him die.
(Credit to https://vaporeon249.deviantart.com, this art is clean af)
Steel Beams (Celesteela) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Protect
- Leech Seed
- Heavy Slam
- Flamethrower
Handles Tapu Lele and Latios. Can also deal with pesky threats like Hawlucha and Lopunny, which otherwise can harass the core pretty effectively. Protect lets it scout Specs Koko and Greninja, Flamethrower is anti-synergistic with the team's strategy but without it Ferrothorn hard beats us. Leech Seed lets us stall out Chansey in the late game, and Slam gets very good chip off.
It's the standard Smogon set. Not sure why I'm explaining it so much. Still, watch out for Greninja, you struggle to wall it in the rain.
The Defensive Core
Crap Job (Pelipper) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog
- Hurricane
Scaldless Pelipper may seem really odd on a Stall team, but the first three moves weren't optional, and Hurricane lets us get huge chip on Ferrothorn, Tapu Bulu, Kartana, and other threats. If you want, you could replace U-turn with Scald. This guy clears the way for Swampert, and handles most physical attackers that don't set up, with the exception of T-Punch carriers. This is definitely the most expendable mon on the team, I very rarely win with this alive.
Big Gay Al (Clefable) @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Aromatherapy
- Moonlight
- Encore
Unaware helps so much. Hawlucha, PUP Lopunny, SD Garchomp, SD Landorus, Zard-X - this guy tanks them all, forcing them into setup moves on Encores if you can. It's also nice to have a cleric in case Swampert gets Scald burnt, although that's the only time I've ever clicked Aromatherapy, as the team is so status resistant as it is. Moonlight is a bit feelsbadman on a rain team, but Soft-Boiled is non-HA only.
(Again, credit to https://zacharybla.deviantart.com/ for clean shit)
Mini-Scizor (Kartana) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Defog
- Leaf Blade
- Synthesis
- Knock Off
... wait, what?
Anti-synergy McGee right here. Synthesis in the Rain, double Defog, extra fire weakness. It looks horrible, doesn't it?
Well, this guy has won me every game I've played with this team. It's just SO fat. It's a fucking physical chansey. It eats High Jump Kick from MegaLop. Sure, it dies to Fire Fangs, but not in the rain. It eats Swampert's Superpower and OHKOs it back. It beats SD Landorus 1v1. It beats every physical Scarfer imaginable. It eats Psyshocks for days. All while providing a Defog thats not weak to rocks, and Knock Off support. Oh, and it Beast Boosts in attack, in case you feel the need to clean up a stall team. (Literally 398 Atk to 397 Def. I didn't drop Atk IVs because this guy isn't taking switchins to special attackers, so it can be doing late game celesteela-style sweeps.)
Seriously though, I'm not changing this. This is the glue that makes the team work.
The Whole Game
Fishface (Swampert-Mega) @ Swampertite
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Rain Dance
The ultimate offensive answer to all our troubles. Mega-Mawile, TTar, Magearna, et cetera, et cetera. About to lose? Sac Pelipper and just win.
I've had a lot of opponents question Rain Dance over Superpower. The team is already optimised against Ferrothorn, and I've found that if I get down to 1v2 or 3, the ability to just click Rain Dance and sweep is incredible. There's an argument for Jolly nature, but we're outsped by Kingdra and 0 EV Hawlucha anyway.
Threatlist
You might think a Rain team might not be overly threatened by a ground type. This guy brings huge offensive utility against us, able to threaten our whole defensive core, while also providing Rapid Spin. Leftovers variants are pure hell. We can normally deal with SD variants by chip, or by the opponent not saving it vs Swampert, but if the opponent keeps it alive it's a massive pain in the ass.
We can deal with Kyub, but it applies some serious pressure that Swampert fails to properly threaten. My play against this is to generally counterlead Swampert and trade chip. It makes lategame sweeping much harder but it keeps us from just losing.
I genuinely haven't come across anything else that gives the team a hard time. Then again, I haven't had to fight an AV Bulu yet. I can see that being problematic when it happens.
So it's time for a blast from the past, in the form of the most glorious archetype: Rain Stall.
If I'm honest, the team plays a little more like a very bulky balance. You stall out, get hazards, get chip, then clean up with Pert and Celesteela.
The SpDef core
Blob (Chansey) @ Eviolite
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Soft-Boiled
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
If there's no Chansey, it ain't stall. Handles every special attacker not named Keldeo, Tapu Lele or Latios. Even handles some fast attackers, and gets Toxic on greedy Hawluchas. The only hazard setter on the team, so don't let him die.
(Credit to https://vaporeon249.deviantart.com, this art is clean af)
Steel Beams (Celesteela) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Protect
- Leech Seed
- Heavy Slam
- Flamethrower
Handles Tapu Lele and Latios. Can also deal with pesky threats like Hawlucha and Lopunny, which otherwise can harass the core pretty effectively. Protect lets it scout Specs Koko and Greninja, Flamethrower is anti-synergistic with the team's strategy but without it Ferrothorn hard beats us. Leech Seed lets us stall out Chansey in the late game, and Slam gets very good chip off.
It's the standard Smogon set. Not sure why I'm explaining it so much. Still, watch out for Greninja, you struggle to wall it in the rain.
The Defensive Core
Crap Job (Pelipper) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog
- Hurricane
Scaldless Pelipper may seem really odd on a Stall team, but the first three moves weren't optional, and Hurricane lets us get huge chip on Ferrothorn, Tapu Bulu, Kartana, and other threats. If you want, you could replace U-turn with Scald. This guy clears the way for Swampert, and handles most physical attackers that don't set up, with the exception of T-Punch carriers. This is definitely the most expendable mon on the team, I very rarely win with this alive.
Big Gay Al (Clefable) @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Aromatherapy
- Moonlight
- Encore
Unaware helps so much. Hawlucha, PUP Lopunny, SD Garchomp, SD Landorus, Zard-X - this guy tanks them all, forcing them into setup moves on Encores if you can. It's also nice to have a cleric in case Swampert gets Scald burnt, although that's the only time I've ever clicked Aromatherapy, as the team is so status resistant as it is. Moonlight is a bit feelsbadman on a rain team, but Soft-Boiled is non-HA only.
(Again, credit to https://zacharybla.deviantart.com/ for clean shit)
Mini-Scizor (Kartana) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Defog
- Leaf Blade
- Synthesis
- Knock Off
... wait, what?
Anti-synergy McGee right here. Synthesis in the Rain, double Defog, extra fire weakness. It looks horrible, doesn't it?
Well, this guy has won me every game I've played with this team. It's just SO fat. It's a fucking physical chansey. It eats High Jump Kick from MegaLop. Sure, it dies to Fire Fangs, but not in the rain. It eats Swampert's Superpower and OHKOs it back. It beats SD Landorus 1v1. It beats every physical Scarfer imaginable. It eats Psyshocks for days. All while providing a Defog thats not weak to rocks, and Knock Off support. Oh, and it Beast Boosts in attack, in case you feel the need to clean up a stall team. (Literally 398 Atk to 397 Def. I didn't drop Atk IVs because this guy isn't taking switchins to special attackers, so it can be doing late game celesteela-style sweeps.)
Seriously though, I'm not changing this. This is the glue that makes the team work.
The Whole Game
Fishface (Swampert-Mega) @ Swampertite
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Rain Dance
The ultimate offensive answer to all our troubles. Mega-Mawile, TTar, Magearna, et cetera, et cetera. About to lose? Sac Pelipper and just win.
I've had a lot of opponents question Rain Dance over Superpower. The team is already optimised against Ferrothorn, and I've found that if I get down to 1v2 or 3, the ability to just click Rain Dance and sweep is incredible. There's an argument for Jolly nature, but we're outsped by Kingdra and 0 EV Hawlucha anyway.
Threatlist
You might think a Rain team might not be overly threatened by a ground type. This guy brings huge offensive utility against us, able to threaten our whole defensive core, while also providing Rapid Spin. Leftovers variants are pure hell. We can normally deal with SD variants by chip, or by the opponent not saving it vs Swampert, but if the opponent keeps it alive it's a massive pain in the ass.
We can deal with Kyub, but it applies some serious pressure that Swampert fails to properly threaten. My play against this is to generally counterlead Swampert and trade chip. It makes lategame sweeping much harder but it keeps us from just losing.
I genuinely haven't come across anything else that gives the team a hard time. Then again, I haven't had to fight an AV Bulu yet. I can see that being problematic when it happens.
