And so begins my second, moderately-well-thought team.
I started out with CM/DP/Recover/Refresh Latias due to my success with her on previous teams. Extremely difficult to take down without a revenge killer or a Trick user. Also does a number to stall teams. However, due to Lati being Pursuit-bait, I needed something that not only didn't mind being Pursuited, but something that threatened Pursuit users.
I've never used Lucario before so I was a little apprehensive at first. His base speed was something I've never liked. A Jolly Luke, however, serves me quite well. Gliscor doesn't stand a chance and neither does Tyranitar (except maybe DD versions). This Lucario doesn't like Gyarados or bulky Ghost/Psychics however, so I added another member.
Every time I've used a Rotom forme, he's always proved useful. Although he shares some of the weaknesses with Latias, his ability to put up a Reflect and burn physical opponents is invaluable. His STAB attacks serve as, at the very least, deterrents against Gyarados and bulky Ghosts/Psychics. Spin blocking is always useful, although not a huge necessity on this team. However, even with the threat of Burn, Tyranitar is still a threat as is Scizor. And so, more members that dealt with these threats were included.
A ResTalkin' Gyara and a Scarftran. Gyarados helps ease pain Scizor deals out constantly throwing around U-Turns and Bullet Punches, while Heatran, although not a safe switch-in, can come in with little prediction and either Flamethrower for the kill or scare it away. A DD coming from a Tyranitar, however, still has the capacity to run through my team. So, my final member and my lead.
A fine check to Tyranitar, but unfortunately, not foolproof. Even with max Attack EVs and a Attack boosting nature, the chance to OHKO is quite low, and so I went with the Standard MixPert (with lowered SpA EVs due to the departure of Garchomp). Even a +1 Stone Edge does a mere 24% on average against the current set-up; a Crunch does 39% on average, however, so I must still be careful.
So there it is. My thought process when I was building this team. Hope it was coherent. There are still many problems to be hammered out (hopefully) which will be addressed through out the post.
Julie (♀) @ Leftovers
Relaxed / Torrent
252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
~ Earthquake
~ Ice Beam
~ Stealth Rock
~ Roar
I didn't want a suicide lead. It just isn't my style (read: I suck at all-out offense). Besides, it made sense considering it ties with the most common leads, in terms of doing its job. Earthquake is to hit Metagross, Tyranitar, Electivire, etc that decide to set up or are looking to destroy a fellow member. Ice Beam is for Salamence, almost exclusively. It does mediocre damage against Celebi, Latias, etc and has little usage outside of making sure Salamence doesn't run rampant. Stealth Rock is ... Stealth Rock, it's obvious why it's here. Allows me to check Salamence again along with really hampering any walling/sweeping done by Fliers. Roar is to make sure Baton Pass teams lose. Against common leads ...
Isaac (♂) @ Leftovers
Impish / Intimidate
252 HP / 224 Def / 32 Spe
~ Waterfall
~ Dragon Dance
~ Rest
~ Sleep Talk
Saw that Latias had problems with priority, so this guy was ushered in. Although he won't be causing their (by 'their', I mean Mamo and Scizor) demise, he'll get a free DD, which is always cool. Status absorber as well, although if I predict well, then status shouldn't be too big of a problem (especially considering only one girl is affected by Toxic Spikes). Although many Pokes can put a stop to this guy's shenanigans, he still serves as a valuable member, with the ability to cause havoc in the right conditions, along with providing useful resists.
Alex (?) @ Leftovers
Calm / Levitate
252 HP / 56 Def / 200 SDef
~ Thunderbolt
~ Shadow Ball
~ Reflect
~ Will-o-Wisp
My best answer to Machamp, but many are catching on and replying with Payback. Regardless, a fine team member, especially considering Latias' weakness to Pursuit, Crunch, etc and physical moves in general. STABs are there to hit Waters, Ghosts/Psychics and Rapid Spinners hard. Reflect, while useful, has problems not lasting long enough; still is very useful sponging hits while waiting for WoW to hit. And then there's WoW. I don't use this first, just in case they send in Heracross or GutsChamp or something, but still useful for making sure it scares Tyranitars and Scizors. Specially defensive EVs to sponge hits from Gengar easier, but he's still hits like a truckload of bricks.
Dave (♂) @ Choice Scarf
Timid / Flash Fire
4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
~ Flamethrower
~ Earth Power
~ Hidden Power Ice
~ Explosion
A revenge killer and a checker against threats that would otherwise be difficult in taking down or would destroy my team. As mentioned, helps put away would-be Latias killers, while causing switches, racking up SR damage. Flamethrower to kill Steels and a generic move to scout, Earth Power for coverage, HP Ice to revenge Salamence after a DD and Explosion in case I absolutely cannot get by a certain Poke. Pretty obvious what this set does, considering how long its been in use.
John (♂) @ Life Orb
Jolly / Inner Focus
4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
~ Swords Dance
~ Close Combat
~ Extremespeed
~ Ice Punch
A fantastic Poke to juxtapose Latias. I usually only send this guy in when Latias can't finish the job, allowing for a late game sweep. Also deals helps against Stall. I chose IP and Jolly over Adamant and anything else due to me not having any TWave support nor did I want to be stopped by something like Gliscor. Helps against my Tyranitar weakness a bit too, but certainly nothing reliable. The other members help either soften up or outright counter those that Lucario cannot get by.
Sam (♀) @ Leftovers
Timid / Levitate
204 HP / 128 Def / 176 Spe
~ Calm Mind
~ Dragon Pulse
~ Recover
~ Refresh
The star of the show. I've pulled off 4-0's with this dude before. Can best a lot of Stall players too, Pokes that play defensively (Crocune, Cursepert, etc.) and bulky Waters in general. The entire team is based around this sweeping, so only late game will I bring this out, or just quick switch-in early game to scout. Dragon Pulse, while having good overall coverage, still gets walled by Steels which is unfortunate. However, the other moves are necessary in order to make sure this thing gets in as much CMs as it can. Not much to say, otherwise.
I've been thinking about switching Gyara's moveset to the BulkyDos, as Taunt would really help. Other than that, DDGyara, DDTar, and Rain Dance giive me trouble. Any opinions?
