Alolan Ninetales and Mega Mawile are two of my favorite Pokemon, so I created a team starring the two of them. I’ve had a lot of success in the mid 1500s on Showdown, so I’m looking to see if I can make any improvements to make the team even better. The premise is pretty simple - set up Aurora Veil, boost with a Pokemon, and then the enemy is facing a tanky and dangerous Pokemon.
Here’s the team:
Mawile-Mega @ Mawilite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough
- Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance
- Fire Fang
The first star of the team. At least it’s supposed to be. As much as I love this Pokemon, it’s definitely hasn’t been the win condition for most of my battles. Not to say that it isn’t useful, however. I use it early game to put massive holes in the enemies team, with its ridiculous attack stat. The Speed EVs are there to outspeed Skamory, but I haven’t seen too many of those, so I’m not sure if it’s worth it to just make it a bulkier set. Most of the moves are standard, with Fire Fang there mainly for Ferrothorn, as well as hitting things like Jirachi and Magearna. I’m not sure if Knock Off or Thunder Punch would be better, though.
Ninetales-Alola @ Light Clay
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aurora Veil
- Freeze-Dry
- Hail
- Hypnosis
This one actually lives up to my dreams. It’s a pretty simple set. Hail is there mainly for Pelipper, but I guess it could be used against things like Charizard-Y and Tyranitar. I don’t know if Encore or Hypnosis is better. I love being able to sleep foes, but the fact that it only has 60% accuracy and it seems like Pokemon I sleep always wake up on the first turn of sleep, makes it less appealing. In addition, it is more useful overall than Encore, which is more situational.
Tornadus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn
- Defog
This Pokemon serves as a wonderful pivot, and can serve as a threat as well. It forces out pesky Grass types like Bulu, Kartana, and Tangrowth very well, and can pick up momentum off their switch with U-Turn. Z-Hurricane does a similar thing that Mega Mawile does, which is to put a big hole in the enemies team. Heat Wave is there for similar reasons that Fire Fang is. I’m not sure if Knock Off/Focus Blast/Superpower is better, though.
Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Icicle Crash
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Stealth Rock
Mamoswine is my main form of checking Tapu Koko, which the rest of my team can potentially get swept by. As long as it doesn’t carry Dazzling Gleam, which really isn’t all that common, Mamoswine can take anything that Koko throws at it. It also serves as my only rocker, but I generally prioritize keeping rocks off my side of the field over having them on the other side, but regardless, they’re always useful to have. It also does its fair share of damage.
Magearna @ Leftovers
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Shift Gear
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam
This is the Pokemon that takes advantage all the damage that the previous Pokemon has done. If the situation is right, you set up a Shift Gear and then the game is probably over. Very few Pokemon can outrun a +2 Magearna, and due to the enemy team being weakened, Magearna can get a bunch of Soul Heart boosts. Calm Mind is there to give an extra boost in damage at the start of the sweep if it needs it, since Magearna initially doesn’t do that much damage, and also increases its bulk alongside Aurora Veil, if I’m setting up a sweep earlier on in the game. BoltBeam coverage is too good, only things like Magnezone can really switch into it.
Suicune @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Scald
Suicune is my all-purpose tank. It eats hits from so many things and can heal it all up with Rest. Although it wasn’t the true purpose of putting Suicune on the team, it can pull of sweeps of it’s own. Under Aurora Veil and with Calm Mind boosts, Suicune becomes this juggernaut that is nearly unstoppable. Simply switching it in and getting a Calm Mind or two forces a switch, even if Scald isn’t effective against the opposing Pokemon. I decided to opt for maximizing both Defense stats over any speed, since the rest of my Pokemon aren’t very tanky.
There are some major threats to my time once certain checks go down. Tapu Koko can wipe my team once Mamoswine goes down, especially if Suicune isn’t able to set up multiple Calm Minds. Tapu Bulu, more specifically offensive sets, can run through my team. Magearna simply doesn’t have the initial firepower to take down Tapu Bulu, and neither it nor Mawile can take many hits from Tapu Bulu. Kartana is also a threat, moreso depending on its set. If it’s Choice Scarf, it’s not as bad, as I can switch Tornadus into most of its moves, except for Smart Strike. However, that can be circumvented once I see it’s locked into Smart Strike, as Suicune easily takes it and can throw out a Scald. SD Bloom Doom sets are much more threatening, as it’s not locked into a single move and is strong enough to OHKO Tornadus. Charizard is also a big threat. If it is Charizard Y, Suicune can’t come in without risking Solar Beam, and Tornadus, although faster, takes a huge chunk of damage from Fire Blast. If it is Charizard X, it has the bulk to withstand Tornadus and Suicune, and can do good damage to Suicune if it doesn’t get burned. Dealing with Bisharp is a pain as well. The Iron Head/Knock off coverage is just too hard to take, especially if it gets a Defiant or SD boost.
That should be it! I’m having decent success with this team, being able to hit the 1600s with it, which I’ve never done before, but I’d love to hear any suggestions that could further improve this team. Thanks for reading!
Here’s the team:
Mawile-Mega @ Mawilite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough
- Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance
- Fire Fang
The first star of the team. At least it’s supposed to be. As much as I love this Pokemon, it’s definitely hasn’t been the win condition for most of my battles. Not to say that it isn’t useful, however. I use it early game to put massive holes in the enemies team, with its ridiculous attack stat. The Speed EVs are there to outspeed Skamory, but I haven’t seen too many of those, so I’m not sure if it’s worth it to just make it a bulkier set. Most of the moves are standard, with Fire Fang there mainly for Ferrothorn, as well as hitting things like Jirachi and Magearna. I’m not sure if Knock Off or Thunder Punch would be better, though.
Ninetales-Alola @ Light Clay
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aurora Veil
- Freeze-Dry
- Hail
- Hypnosis
This one actually lives up to my dreams. It’s a pretty simple set. Hail is there mainly for Pelipper, but I guess it could be used against things like Charizard-Y and Tyranitar. I don’t know if Encore or Hypnosis is better. I love being able to sleep foes, but the fact that it only has 60% accuracy and it seems like Pokemon I sleep always wake up on the first turn of sleep, makes it less appealing. In addition, it is more useful overall than Encore, which is more situational.
Tornadus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn
- Defog
This Pokemon serves as a wonderful pivot, and can serve as a threat as well. It forces out pesky Grass types like Bulu, Kartana, and Tangrowth very well, and can pick up momentum off their switch with U-Turn. Z-Hurricane does a similar thing that Mega Mawile does, which is to put a big hole in the enemies team. Heat Wave is there for similar reasons that Fire Fang is. I’m not sure if Knock Off/Focus Blast/Superpower is better, though.
Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Icicle Crash
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Stealth Rock
Mamoswine is my main form of checking Tapu Koko, which the rest of my team can potentially get swept by. As long as it doesn’t carry Dazzling Gleam, which really isn’t all that common, Mamoswine can take anything that Koko throws at it. It also serves as my only rocker, but I generally prioritize keeping rocks off my side of the field over having them on the other side, but regardless, they’re always useful to have. It also does its fair share of damage.
Magearna @ Leftovers
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Shift Gear
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam
This is the Pokemon that takes advantage all the damage that the previous Pokemon has done. If the situation is right, you set up a Shift Gear and then the game is probably over. Very few Pokemon can outrun a +2 Magearna, and due to the enemy team being weakened, Magearna can get a bunch of Soul Heart boosts. Calm Mind is there to give an extra boost in damage at the start of the sweep if it needs it, since Magearna initially doesn’t do that much damage, and also increases its bulk alongside Aurora Veil, if I’m setting up a sweep earlier on in the game. BoltBeam coverage is too good, only things like Magnezone can really switch into it.
Suicune @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Scald
Suicune is my all-purpose tank. It eats hits from so many things and can heal it all up with Rest. Although it wasn’t the true purpose of putting Suicune on the team, it can pull of sweeps of it’s own. Under Aurora Veil and with Calm Mind boosts, Suicune becomes this juggernaut that is nearly unstoppable. Simply switching it in and getting a Calm Mind or two forces a switch, even if Scald isn’t effective against the opposing Pokemon. I decided to opt for maximizing both Defense stats over any speed, since the rest of my Pokemon aren’t very tanky.
There are some major threats to my time once certain checks go down. Tapu Koko can wipe my team once Mamoswine goes down, especially if Suicune isn’t able to set up multiple Calm Minds. Tapu Bulu, more specifically offensive sets, can run through my team. Magearna simply doesn’t have the initial firepower to take down Tapu Bulu, and neither it nor Mawile can take many hits from Tapu Bulu. Kartana is also a threat, moreso depending on its set. If it’s Choice Scarf, it’s not as bad, as I can switch Tornadus into most of its moves, except for Smart Strike. However, that can be circumvented once I see it’s locked into Smart Strike, as Suicune easily takes it and can throw out a Scald. SD Bloom Doom sets are much more threatening, as it’s not locked into a single move and is strong enough to OHKO Tornadus. Charizard is also a big threat. If it is Charizard Y, Suicune can’t come in without risking Solar Beam, and Tornadus, although faster, takes a huge chunk of damage from Fire Blast. If it is Charizard X, it has the bulk to withstand Tornadus and Suicune, and can do good damage to Suicune if it doesn’t get burned. Dealing with Bisharp is a pain as well. The Iron Head/Knock off coverage is just too hard to take, especially if it gets a Defiant or SD boost.
That should be it! I’m having decent success with this team, being able to hit the 1600s with it, which I’ve never done before, but I’d love to hear any suggestions that could further improve this team. Thanks for reading!
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