Another team featuring Ninjask

[Bidoofmydoof]

While this is my first serious team, I've always been very interested in the metagame, loving the feeling of experimenting and finding out cool ways to use uncommon Pokemon. I've made several less serious teams and one mostly serious team before making this one and spent quite some time using and making this one, while the others were mostly on a whim.

Making this team, I decided to consider practicality over creativity and using one of my favorite Pokemon of all: Ninjask. I was pleased to hear Ninjask's reputation as a Baton Passer and always wanted a team with my favorite Bug-type Pokemon in my favorite tier. For this team, I used what Ninjask is best known for and four Pokemon capable of physically sweeping to let myself decide the flow of the battle, Baton Passing to whatever would be most useful in accordance with the opponent's team. I also gave most of the Pokemon moves to buff by themselves and a momentum-boosting Pokemon like Rotom-S to keep the team fast even after Ninjask and what it Baton Passed to have perished.

Ninjask @ Focus Sash
Trait: Speed Boost
EV: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly Nature

-Swords Dance
-Baton Pass
-X-Scissor
-Aerial Ace

Ninjask is here as a lead most of the time unless I see a Cinccino, Rhydon or anything else with Rock Blast. Ninjask usually starts with a Swords Dance or two. Focus Sash is here so that setting up as a lead is much less likely to fail. *It has 252 attack EVs to take advantage of the Swords Dance and try to inflict a bit of damage with Aerial Ace's extended coverage and STAB before Baton Passing. Although I'm considering an Adamant nature to further increase its attack, as Speed Boost can make those point in speed redundant after one turn, where it pretty much outspeeds almost anything, anyway.
One of the main qualities I love about the assurance of Focus Sash if the opponent doesn't pack a multi-hitting move or Fake Out is that I can then have the battle branch as I please after choosing who receives the +2/4 attack and +1/2 speed boost.

Dragonair @ Focus Sash
Trait: Marvel Scale
EV:*4 HP/252 Atk/252 Def
Adamant Nature

-Extremespeed
-Dragon Dance
-Outrage
-Waterfall

After Ninjask Baton Passes, I usually go to Dragonair. With a minimum of +2 to attack and +1 to speed, Dragonair can use DD and attempt a sweep using the increased attack for Extremespeed and, if the opponent resists Extremespeed, STAB Outrage or Waterfall are always options. Even if Dragonair doesn't have Ninjask leading and Baton Passing to it, it can set up by itself with Focus Sash, unafraid of standard priority due to Extremespeed. Whether or not setting up is available, STAB Outrage often lets it injure what it might fall to. Dragonair also has Focus Sash so it wouldn't die after being Baton Passed, if it would.

Rotom-S @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Levitate
EV: 4 HP/252 Sp.A/252 Spd
Timid Nature

-Volt Switch
-Air Slash
-HP Ice
-Trick

Rotom-S will either start off with Trick or Volt Switch. Trick is there with Choice Scarf to stop an enemy from setting up, following with whatever will inflict the most damage next. HP Ice is there so that, in the case the opponent has a ground-type, it can save Rotom from being frozen with Volt Switch. With Choice Scarf, Rotom is also fantastic for switching in to an obvious EQ and using Volt Switch for free damage. Air Slash actually inflicts impressive damage with STAB and 252 Sp. Atk. Choice Scarf also lets it use Trick before the opponent has a chance of anticipating it.

Gurdurr @ Eviolite
Trait: Guts
EV: 252 HP/252 Atk/4 Sp.D
Adamant Nature

-Mach Punch
-Drain Punch
-Ice Punch
-Fire Punch

Gurdurr with Eviolite is fantastic as it can be a physical wall while sweeping well. Fire Punch is precisely for the situations where fire is necessary for the bug types that would otherwise be completely fine against this fellow. Another use for Gurdurr is rock resistance and a resistance to Stealth Rock, making it a very safe route to take after setting up with Ninjask. Mach Punch lets it take care of that Rock-type/Cinccino/Rock Blast user that may be threatening the rest of the team. Drain Punch lets Gurdurr sweep and recover whatever priority move or anything nonlethal.*

Samurott @ Focus Sash
Trait: Torrent
EV: 112 HP/76 Atk/176 Sp.A/144 Spd
Adamant Nature

-Ice Beam
-Mehagorn
-Aqua Jet
-Swords Dance

This Samurott is absolutely amazing, as people tend not to expect a mixed hybrid of Samurott's moveset. There are EVs in Special Attack to let it use a strong enough Ice Beam to take down what the standard Waterfall and Megahorn would never be able to touch, such as Dragon-types, Flying-types and TANGELA, which would otherwise completely crush anything in the team that isn't Rotom-S. Focus Sash was chosen just for it to use its ability, Torrent, together with Aqua Jet. Swords Dance is absolutely wonderful for strengthening Megahorn and Aqua Jet as it'll almost always be impossible to inflict damage beforehand. Torrent compounded with a Swords Dance lets Aqua Jet almost always inflict a good dent on anything that doesn't resist it. Ninjask would often Baton Pass to my Samurott as it is bulky enough to not need the Focus Sash as often as Dragonair while being able to spam +2 or even +4/6 Aqua Jets if given the chance to set up.

Armaldo @ Lum Berry
Trait: Battle Armor
EV: 128 HP/252 Atk/124 Spd
Adamant Nature

-Rapid Spin
-Swords Dance
-Stone Edge
-X-Scissor

Armaldo is here to get rid of Stealth Rock particularly because of the amount of my team that has a weakness to it. Even without a boost from Swords Dance, Armaldo inflicts impressive enough damage to warrant a spot here. The Lum Berry is particularly useful for an opponent trying to stop Armaldo from using Rapid Spin or negating Toxic Spikes, letting it come out of the job it was meant to do with less injuries. Stone Edge off of STAB is mostly there for the pure power after it is done with Rapid Spin. Swords Dance lets it break through walls surprisingly easily if they try taking advantage of its abysmal speed.

 

[jake]

hey there,

there are quite a few small and easy fixes you can make to your sets for better overall performance. firstly, there's really no reason at all for ninjask to be running maximum speed when all that you're really trying to do is get off speed and attack boosts. you should be using a spread of 248 hp / 224 def / 36 spe, which allows you to outspeed timid zebstrika at +1, which is the fastest scarf user you will see. 248 hp also hits an sr number so you take minimum damage from rocks while switiching in. ninjask's set is also not very effective; focus sash is generally an unreliable way to try to get a pass off. golem / piloswine / cinccino / other multi-hit move users will have no trouble just breezing through ninjask's sash and essentially rendering one of your pokemon entirely useless. instead of aerial ace (which provides fairly limited coverage and isn't very strong), you should use protect, which at the very worst guarantees a single +1 speed to BP away against stuff like golem and piloswine.

fire punch actually gives you no additional, useful coverage on gurdurr except against the rare bug-types who don't want to bother with gurdurr anyway (steel-types are covered with drain punch / mach punch and grass-types are handled via ice punch anyway). instead of wasting a moveslot, you should look into using either toxic to catch incoming tangela / alomomola / misdreavus or bulk up to give it a chance at setting up and cleaning up a team late-game. i would go for the former, as it actually lets you have a chance at sweeping with dragonair (who, without rest or the like, should actually be running shed skin). dragonair also really really wants eviolite because it's rather frail without it and focus sash is simply not a reliable option.

i don't understand the purpose of having a mixed samurott when a fully physical one does extraordinarily well. this is what you listed for your purpose: dragon-types (only altaria can live a +2 megahorn / waterfall, actually; the others are all outsped and OHKOed by megahorn), flying-types (many can be smacked on the switch-in with waterfall, which is what you should be using in lieu of ice beam), and tangela (who is OHKOed by a +2 megahorn after a bit of prior damage). water + bug coverage is extraordinary in nu and forgoing samurott's strongest stab move for a non-stab and non-boosted move is a mistake imo. you should also not be using focus sash on samurott, who has fairly decent bulk and would rather be using a plethora of other items.

summary

ninjask's spread to 248 hp / 224 def / 36 spe @ impish
leftovers > focus sash on ninjask
protect > aerial ace on ninjask

consider substitute > swords dance

toxic or bulk up > fire punch on gurdurr

shed skin and eviolite > ability / item respectively on dragonair

samurott's spread to 4 hp / 252 atk / 252 spe @ timid
life orb > focus sash on samurott
waterfall > ice beam on samurott

hope i helped a bit and gl with your team