Battle Tree Discussion and Records

[Suspicious Derivative]

In the few days I have had between being done with S/M and waiting for the release of US/UM, I decided to go back to the Battle Tree and continue on my unfinished Super Double streaks. Now, the first of them has ended. My Super Double streak on Sun has ended at 274 wins in a row. Time for a proper team and streak writeup.

Picture proof

Team

Kangaskhan (F) @ Kangaskhanite ** Resilience
Ability: Scrappy -> Parental Bond
IVs: 31/31/31/x/31/31
EVs: 252 Att / 6 Sp.def / 252 Spd
Nature: Jolly
- Return
- Sucker Punch
- Power-Up Punch
- Fake Out

Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs ** Intensity
Ability: Electric Surge
IVs: 31/31/31/31/31/31 (Hyper Trained)
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Sp.att / 252 Spd
Nature: Timid
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Grass Knot
- Volt Switch

Latios (M) @ Dragonium Z ** Obstinance
Ability: Levitate
IVs: 31/31/31/31/31/31 (Hyper Trained)
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Sp.att / 252 Spd
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Psychic
- Surf
- Protect

Excadrill (M) @ Focus Sash ** Vivacity
Ability: Mold Breaker
IVs: 31/31/31/x/31/31
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Att / 252 Spd
Nature: Adamant
- Drill Run
- Iron Head
- Rock Tomb
- Protect

Team building

I posted a very short version of this in my previous post, but I want to expand upon it a little more now that I have the chance.

I initially settled for Tapu Koko since I had used Lele in Moon and after looking at the Double leaderboards here in this thread, Koko and Lele seemed to be the two most useful Tapu. They were on the most teams, as well as many of the most successful teams.

Originally, I wanted to have Alolan Raichu as a partner for Koko, but I was having a very hard time coming up with good backups for them. I considered a ton of Pokemon but I wasn't sure which one(s) to use. The ones I had in mind were the following:

Landorus
Thundurus
Mega Salamence
Hydreigon
Rotom
Latios
Celesteela
Hawlucha
Talonflame
Togekiss
Pelipper
(Mega) Gyarados

But neither of them felt like good alternatives, either because I wasn't sure how to use them or because I had used them recently and didn't feel like using them again. Though, Latios was on the list and still ended up on the team as a backup.

In the end, I scrapped Alolan Raichu and went with Mega Kangaskhan as the lead partner alongside Koko instead. I got the idea from some people on the leaderboards, probably MrMarc and lucariojr as they have both used Mega Kangaskhan and Tapu Koko as leads. Mega Kangaskhan might have been nerfed since last Gen but it is still powerful.

As for the backups, I had settled for Latios as one of the backups along the way before scrapping Raichu. I think I got the main idea from turskain and his team. In the last slot, I really wanted a Steel-type to cover some types I couldn't hit for super effective damage and that Latios was weak against. I considered the following:

Kartana
Aegislash
Excadrill
Magnezone
Scizor

I eventually settled on Excadrill since it is Steel and also Ground, giving me extra coverage against Poison-types as well as being immune to Electric. I had also seen this team by lolnub, which had gotten a high streak while featuring an Excadrill.

That was the team building in short. If anyone wants my full notes while I built the team, I have posted them in the spoiler below. Note that it is not very well written or serious (don't take everything in there too seriously!), I'm posting them here mostly just for fun.

Team building notes

[Note: I repeat myself a lot here so some things are said more than once.]

Tapu Koko + A-Raichu
or Koko + something else entirely? To decide...

Offensive coverage I have with these two:

Water, Flying

Dark, Fighting, Dragon

Ground Rock
Poison

Important to cover:

The Ground-weakness. Something that is immune to Ground is a must.

But what?

Preferably something that isn't weak to Electric.

Alternatives:

Landorus
Thundurus-T? LOL
Mega Salamence
Mega Gyarados
Latios

What does the team need help against?

Grass-types, primarily. Ghost to an extent.

Also Steel and opposing Electric-types.

Not to mention Ground, an immunity is a must.

What to do against them?

Flying+Ground covers three.

Koko+Rai+MegaScizor+Latios?

Could work. I guess...

Something that can switch in on Ground-moves is absolutely necessary.
Preferrably also a Pokemon that can hit Ground-types back for SE damage.


Okay. Let's do this.

Tapu Koko + Alolan Raichu

Needs a Ground immunity. Preferably one that isn't weak to Electric.

Alternatives:
Landorus
Thundurus
Mega Salamence
Hydreigon
Rotom
Latios

Extras:
Celesteela
Hawlucha
Talonflame
Togekiss
Pelipper
(Mega) Gyarados

Okay.
So...

Avoid the extras if possible:

Landorus - Immune to both Ground and Electric, also a Physical attacker. Can potentially hit both Electric- and Grass-types for SE damage.
Weaknesses to Water, Ice, Ghost, Water is offensively covered by the leads

Thundurus - Immune to Ground and possibly Electric too. Can also hit Grass-types super-effectively, potentially.
Weaknesses to Poison, Rock, Ice and Ghost, can only really handle Poison from those thanks to Raichu.

Mega Salamence- Immune to Ground, does not resist Electric. Can be either Special, Physical or Mixed. Can hit Grass and potentially Electric-types for SE damage too.
Poison, Rock, Ice, Fairy and Ghost, can handle Poison and Rock potentially.

Latios - Immune to Ground and resists Electric. A Special attacker though.
Weak to Poison, Ghost, Ice, Fairy. Out of these, it can adress Poison on its own so yay.

Hydreigon - too slow

Rotom - too many Electric-types so nah.

Real talk now.

What would be best?

Landorus - Immune to both Ground and Electric, also a Physical attacker. Could also be special. Can potentially hit both Electric- and Grass-types for SE damage.
Weaknesses to Water, Ice, Ghost, Water is offensively covered by the leads

Mega Salamence- Immune to Ground, does not resist Electric. Can be either Special, Phyiscal or Mixed. Can hit Grass and potentially Electric-types for SE damage too.
Poison, Rock, Ice, Fairy and Ghost, can handle Poison and Rock potentially.

Latios - Immune to Ground and resists Electric. A Special attacker though.
Weak to Poison, Ghost, Ice, Fairy. Out of these, it can adress Poison on its own so yay.

Scrapping Thundurus because three Electric-types feels so weird and wrong.

More in detail:

Landorus - Immune to both Ground and Electric, also a Physical attacker. Could also be special. Can potentially hit both Electric- and Grass-types for SE damage. No good Abilities for a pure Physical one though?
Weaknesses to Water, Ice, Ghost. Water is offensively covered by the leads

Mega Salamence- Immune to Ground, does not resist Electric. Has Intimidate which can be good. Can be either Special, Phyiscal or Mixed. Can hit Grass and potentially Electric-types for SE damage too.
Poison, Rock, Ice, Fairy and Ghost, can handle Poison and Rock potentially.

Latios - Immune to Ground and resists Electric. A Special attacker though. Levitate is never bad to have.
Weak to Poison, Ghost, Ice, Fairy. Out of these, it can address Poison on its own so yay.

Ok. Let's look at offensive coverage:

Landorus: Electric, Rock, Fire, Poison Rock, potentially Grass, Bug, Fighting

Salamence: Grass, Bug, Fighting

Latios: Dragon, Poison, Fighting, Rock, Ground, Fire

Hmm...

Scrapping Salamence because I have used it before and I want to try another Mega.

Okay then.

Landorus VS Latios:

Landorus - Immune to both Ground and Electric, also a Physical attacker. Could also be special. Can potentially hit both Electric- and Grass-types for SE damage. No good Abilities for a pure Physical one though?
Weaknesses to Water, Ice, Ghost. Water is offensively covered by the leads. Ice and Ghost though... again, "4" might have to do. ["4" here refers to the at this point undecided 4th member of the team]

Can hit for SE damage: Electric, Steel, Fire, Poison, Rock
Maybe also Grass, Bug, Fighting

Latios - Immune to Ground and resists Electric. A Special attacker though. Levitate is never bad to have.
Weak to Poison, Ghost, Ice, Fairy. Out of these, it can address Poison on its own so yay. The others are a problem though, none of the leads can adress them so "4" needs to cover a lot.
Can hit for SE damage: Dragon, Poison, Fighting, Rock, Ground, Fire

I can live without hitting Grass-types as "4" might be able to handle them... Scizor maybe? xD

Okay. More tomorrow.

Standing right here:
Landorus: 4
Latios: 2

Stats:
Landorus has higher Attack, HP and Def
Latios has higher SA, SD and Spd

Latios has higher Attacking stat and Speed, so 1 point for it.
Latios also doesn't have a 4x weak, 1 point for that

Landorus on the other hand only has 2 weaknesses, Latios has 6. point for Landorus
Landorus also is Physical while Latios is special. 1 point for that.

Latios is immune to Ground and resists Electric
Landorus is immune to both. 1 point for it.

With Landorus, team is weak to 3 types, one which is 4x
With Latios, team is weak to 4 types, one which has 2 weak members.

Point for Landorus.

Okay, nevermind.

New idea. Mega Kanga instead of Raichu. Yes, good.

What in the last slot, though?

Offensive coverage I have:

T-bolt, Grass Knot, Dazzle, Surf, Draco Meteor, Psychic, Sucker Punch

Water, Flying, Ground, Rock, Fighting, Poison, Dragon, Dark, Fire, Psychic, Ghost

What types might give me trouble?

Poison - one weakness I have covered
Ice
Fairy

A steel-type... le sigh. Oh well.

Covers Ice, Fairy

Alternatives:

Kartana - can't switch in at all but is ridiculously fast and strong, unresisted against Ice
Aegislash - could work, also as glue against Trick Room I guess.
Excadrill - Ground helps, also good STABs. Unresisted against Ice again though.
Magnezone - is special though, and probably wants HP whatever. so bleh
Scizor - Maybe... a bit slow, and no Mega, but otherwise perhaps?

Scizor too weak, scrapping.

Magnezone too complicated, scrapping.

The others though.

Aegislash is kinda boring, no matter how well it works.

Kartana with Sash, Exca with either Sash or maybe Scarf?

One of them. With Sash.

What do they help with, coverage-wise?

Already have these covered:

Water, Flying, Ground, Rock, Fighting, Poison, Dragon, Dark, (Fire), Psychic, Ghost

Kartana: Ice, Fairy, Normal, Grass, Steel

Exca: Ice, Fairy, Electric, Steel, Fire

Points once more:
Ex: 3
Ka: 1

Let's go with Excadrill.

More planning tomorrow.

Damage calcs with Drill Run Vs EQ

Drill Run does more damage at the cost of only hitting one enemy in Double.

So yay.

Latios:

Works as well. So yeah, let's go.

Okay. Final thing. Type coverage:

Kanga: Perfect
SE against: Ghost, Psychic (Dark, Ice, Normal, Rock, Steel)

Koko: Misses out on Grass/Poison, Grass/Steel, Electric/Steel and Rotom-Heat
SE against: Flying, Water, Rock, Ground, Dark, Dragon, Fighting

Latios:
SE against: Dragon, Fighting, Poison

Exca: Perfect
SE against: Electric, Fire, Rock, Poison, Steel, Fairy, Ice, Bug, Flying

Types I am missing coverage against: Grass
(Normal)

Last move for Latios?

Alternatives: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt (no Terrain boost!), Energy Ball, Shadow Ball, Psyshock, Dragon Pulse

A support move? Since I have to send it over from Gen 6 anyway.
Alternatives: Tailwind, Icy Wind

Team discussion

The general strategy with the team was to start by using Fake Out on one opponent while dealing damage and often also defeating the other. From then on, I went on and attacked, sometimes setting up Kangaskhan, also using Protect with Latios and Excadrill if that was needed.

As everyone knows, Mega Kangaskhan is incredibly powerful. High Attack, good enough Speed and decent bulk makes for a great Pokemon. Parental Bond gives every move a 25% power boost and lets it hit twice which can be useful to break Sturdy and Focus Sashes. Return is the main move, I didn't go with Double-Edge because I don't like the nasty recoil. Fake Out was the move I often used on the first turn to flinch one opponent and sometimes deal heavy damage too. Sucker Punch for priority and coverage against Ghost-types. Power-Up Punch was chosen because as we all know, both Parental Bond and Sucker Punch got nerfed this generation, so Kanga really appreciates having a bit more power which it can get from a +2 boost. I usually tried to set up whenever possible but it was not always without risk and attacking right away was often a better alternative.

I went with a Jolly Nature for Kangaskhan in order to get a bit more speed which I found more necessary than Attack, 100 Base speed is good but not quite enough for the Tree without a boosting Nature. Scrappy was the chosen Ability in order to use Fake Out against opposing Ghost-types on turn 1 if it should turn out to be necessary.

Tapu Koko is more or less standard. Thunderbolt is the main move that was used most of the time, it hits like a truck after being boosted by STAB, Choice Specs and Electric Terrain. Dazzling Gleam for coverage and secondary STAB with the ability to hit both opponents on the field which could be very useful at times. Grass Knot was mainly for Ground-types but I rarely used it as it felt more safe to simply switch out Koko most of the time.

Volt Switch was the last move. As for how to use it... I'll say like Elesa in Pokemon Adventures: "You can attack and switch out your Pokemon in a single move. That's one of my favorite strategies!" If you ever battled Elesa without a Ground-type on your team, you should know how annoying it can be. Anyway, with Koko I used the move if I wanted to switch to one of the backups but also deal damage at the same time, which could be useful. Choice Specs was the chosen hold item in order to raise it's Sp.att, base 95 is very low so it needs all the power it can get.

Latios is the third member of the team. Draco Meteor and Dragonium Z gives it a Devastating Drake with 195 base power which is extremely powerful. Psychic as a secondary STAB and extra coverage, it helps against Fighting- and Poison-types which Kanga and Koko doesn't like. I used Surf in the third slot but it is the only move on the team which I have considered changing because I rarely used it. The only times I could use it without problems was if I had Latios and Excadrill out, and let Excadrill use Protect while Latios surfed. I considered several other options instead of Surf but went with it in the end anyway since I couldn't think of anything better. Protect in the last slot because it is a very useful move in Doubles in order to scout or not take any damage while the partner can do something to the opponents. The Dragon/Psychic-typing and Levitate was very useful for Latios since it could switch in on Fighting-type moves for Kanga or Ground-type moves for Koko or Excadrill. It also appreciated Kangaskhan's immunity to Ghost and Koko's immunity to Dragon.

Excadrill was surprisingly useful in many ways. I only wish that it had a bit more Speed but I guess that it would be broken if it was much faster than it is. Excadrill did get banned to Ubers in Gen 5 IIRC thanks to Sand Rush and Tyranitar being very common. Anyway, it has a place on this team too. Drill Run might seem odd but I chose it over Earthquake because I couldn't find any good situations where Earthquake would be more useful. Kangaskhan doesn't resist Ground, Koko is weak to it and Latios will still take damage thanks to Excadrill's Mold Breaker. Drill Run also does more damage to one opponent in Doubles compared to Earthquake, the downside being that it only hits one opponent. Then it is also a contact move which could be annoying at times. But I had to go with it anyway.

Iron Head in the second slot for secondary STAB, also allowing me to hit Fairy-, Ice- and Rock-types for super effective damage. I went with Rock Tomb in the last slot, mostly because lolnub had used the same move on his Excadrill. It was mostly used for hitting Flying-types, which didn't happen often but once in a great while. Protect in the last slot, same reason as on Latios. Focus Sash felt like the most useful item in order to guarantee Excadrill would survive at least one hit, it was extremely helpful in many situations. Having a Ground-type was also very useful since it was immune to the Electric-moves from grounded opponents that also got a boost from Electric Terrain. Being immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic was also amazing, a Steel-type in general is a good thing because you can stall and auto-win against annoying foes like Cresselia-2. Mold Breaker is an amazing ability which allows me to override annoyances such as Sturdy and Levitate, being able to hit most Rotom forms with Drill Run is a lot of fun!

I really dislike having to use inaccurate moves but I had no choice here. Drill Run and Rock Tomb both have 95% accuracy which meant they at least hit most of the time when they needed to, but not always (such as in my losing battle... more about that later). The same goes for Draco Meteor but I mostly used Devastating Drake so it wasn't that bad.

The EVs for the entire team was as standard as it could be, I just maxed Speed and their attacking stat with the rest put either in HP, or Sp.def for Kanga in order to raise the Attack of opposing Download users. Didn't really feel like trying with any more specific EV spreads because I'm honestly not very good at them.

There was one main change I considered for the team. I wanted to change to a different Latios which would have Hidden Power Fire instead of Surf, but I never made the change. Mostly because I don't have such a Latios and I'm too lazy to try to trade for one or try to get one on my own, not to mention I don't want to restart any of my games to get a new Latios. It would have been helpful against Steel- and Ice-types which Latios doesn't like too much, as well as allowing me to hit Grass-types for super effective damage as it is was the only type I didn't hit super effectively with the team's moves. It would also give me an easier time against Ferrothorn. But in the end, I never made the change and it never ended up mattering either.

There's also one thing I should say about my playstyle. I don't look up opposing movesets and such while I'm playing, nor do I know every possible opposing set by heart. I do try to remember some of the more important/dangerous ones though. Just in case anyone was wondering about that.

---

I'm not done yet. For once, I'm going to write about my nicknames as well because I usually don't do that and because why not? For fun, anyway. If you don't care, you can skip this.

Resilience was named after a song by Princewhateverer. If you want to listen, here's a link:

(apparently it posts the video and not just the link, guess that's how it works when posting Youtube videos on this forum lol, never done it before)

Perhaps the word doesn't fit Mega Kangaskhan very well but I liked the song so much that I had to use it somewhere and it ended up being used at the first possible opportunity.

For Tapu Koko, I initially wanted to nickname it Lightning Fury (taken from a skill in Diablo 2, I game I used to play a lot when I was younger). But it was too long. Instead, I went with Intensity since that describes Tapu Koko quite well.

I wanted to continue with the pattern of having the team members named after describing nouns (if that even if the right word to use, I'm not really sure). I wanted something like "coolness" for Latios (because it is really cool) and I somehow arrived at Obstinance. It sounded cool and complicated so I went with it.

As for Vivacity, I looked at other video games to get inspiration. I eventually got it from one of Riki's skill trees in Xenoblade Chronicles. Maybe not the best word for Excadrill but whatever.

Threatlist

I don't have a real threatlist. Guess what? I'm terrible at identifying threats to my teams and I'm terrible at writing threatlists too. Though there are three major things that stand out which I touched on in my previous post, will repost them here with a bit more explanation.

The first and most obvious one is Trick Room. All four members of my team are quite fast and will get outrun by things during Trick Room. That said, Trick Room teams were usually not that problematic. If I could either defeat one of the opponents on the first turn (the most threatening opponent or the most threatening TR setter) or prevent the opponent from using Trick Room by using Fake Out, I could continue from there and win.

During the streak, I was afraid of running into a team where the leads would be two bulky Trick Room users where I would be unable to defeat either of them on the first turn. Fortunately, that never happened and I'm not even sure if such a duo even exists.

If the opponent managed to set up Trick Room, it was usually not that bad either since I could switch to stall and bait moves, use Protect or just attack them anyway if they weren't strong enough to defeat my Pokemon. Kangaskhan's Sucker Punch was very useful in such situations, both for priority and the typing.

Ice-types and Freeze were another big threat, at least it felt so early on. Latios has a weakness to Ice but I have no resistance on the team, and getting Frozen is never fun. But it felt like I never ran into that many Ice-types during the latter parts of the streak, which is a bit weird but I guess that's' how it is.

Ferrothorn. This is one Pokemon I cannot beat very reliably since it is very bulky and resists many of my moves. The only Super Effective move I can hit it with is Kanga's PuP which isn't completely reliable. If Ferrothorn has Iron Barbs, it gets even worse since that means Kanga will be taking damage as well when it attacks. From what I remember, I ran into Ferrothorn twice during the streak, managed to beat it without major problems both times.

Status can be annoying as well. Kangaskhan and Excadrill did not enjoy being burned as that lowered their offensive power quite a bit. Paralysis could be problematic for Kangaskhan and Latios, thankfully Excadrill and Koko were immune or semi-immune to it. Confusion was just generally annoying as always. The Electric Terrain meant that everything except Latios was immune to Sleep, which is never bad.

Other than that, there's not much I can think of. Each team member has weaknesses but the rest of the team could cover them. There aren't a whole lot of Pokemon that can handle Fake Out combined with the offensive pressure the team is capable of putting on most opponents. The only Pokemon I could expect to survive two hits apart from Ferrothorn would be Cresselia, most other things just aren't bulky enough to survive, or have the wrong typing which allows me to pick on their weaknesses. Bulky Pokemon can still be dealt with by leaving them until last, I can't think of any Pokemon that is both bulky enough to survive two hits multiple times as well as be strong enough offensively to deal serious damage to my team.

In the end, I guess the biggest threat for the team was not anything related to the team itself but rather mistakes and bad playing from my own side.

Battle Videos

I removed some of my old Battle Videos and uploaded some new ones from the battles past battle #200. Didn't save very many though, but a few at least. I don't have any descriptions for the videos this time because I simply didn't have time to write them.

Battle #213: EG5G-WWWW-WWW9-N439

Battle #263: QUNW-WWWW-WWW9-N43N

Battle #268: A9BW-WWWW-WWW9-N444

Those are all from battles that were tough to win in some way. Watch them if you want to see how the team handles tough situations and how badly I can play sometimes.

There are also a bunch of videos from my previous post, battles #50 - #200. Reposting them here as well if anyone wants to see more of the team in action:

Battle #50: 62EW-WWWW-WWW8-H6Z4

Battle #52: HNHG-WWWW-WWW8-H6ZY

Battle #130: XGJG-WWWW-WWW8-H6P5

Battle #144: F4MG-WWWW-WWW8-H6PG

Battle #171: TX8G-WWWW-WWW8-H6PQ

Battle #200: G6F6-WWWW-WWW8-H6Q6

The loss

Battle #275: 4TEW-WWWW-WWW9-NH44

I lost against a legendary team consisting of Heatran, Landorus, Articuno and Tornadus.

The main problem here was the Heatran. And the reason I lost was because I didn't get rid of it as fast as possible, and ultimately, I failed to get rid of it at all. The others weren't that problematic, though the Landorus and Tornadus each defeated a member of my team. Articuno did practically not exist since it did nothing but die.

I had many opportunities to get rid of the Heatran, but I failed at taking advantage of them. I should have known that Scarf Landorus would target Kangaskhan with Focus Blast, I was optimistic and tried a PuP against Heatran but I should have switched out for Koko to tank the hit instead. Using Sucker Punch could have been an alternative but in retrospect, it wouldn't have worked since the Heatran used WoW on that turn. Then I got rid of Articuno too quickly, I should have used Protect on Latios and targeted Heatran with Thunderbolt instead to get rid of it since I should have been able to beat Articuno with ease as long as I had both Koko and Excadrill left alive. I also used Draco Meteor too early, shouldn't have used it since not having Latios at -2 for the rest of the battle would have made it considerably stronger. The Heatran using Protect and then Drill Run missing against it at the worst possible moment didn't exactly help either. Guess I should have used Iron Head instead.

252+ Atk Excadrill Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 18-22 (9 - 11.1%)

Though I'm not sure if that would have been enough. I should also have attacked with Latios instead of using Protect, might also have been able to win if Psychic hadn't missed once against the Tornadus due to Double Team. Finally, I might have been able to win on the last turn if I had let Latios use Surf instead of Psychic.

-2 252 SpA Latios Surf vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Tornadus: 23-28 (12.3 - 15%)

-2 252 SpA Latios Surf vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Heatran: 36-44 (18.1 - 22.2%)

I'm quite sure it would have KO'd both of them if it had just hit. I just didn't think about it at that point, I blame it on being in such a tight spot that I couldn't think correctly.

Ultimately, there was a lot I could have done to win this battle but it is too late for that now.

I'm done with this team now, don't feel like trying again because I can't see any reason to, and I need to focus on other things right now. But I'm still happy about this streak and the team since this team got me much farther than I had ever expected. I did honestly not expect to be able to get past Blue after I initially lost three times before Battle #50 on my first attempts. But the team proved to be even better than that and I'm so happy about it. Now I'm in the process of planting a ton of Starf and Lansat Berries which will probably be the last serious thing I do on Sun.

I didn't have time to go into full details for everything here since this loss happened on Monday and I really wanted to get this post done before the release of US/UM. So yeah, sorry about that. But feel free to ask me if there are any questions or if anything is unclear.

Finally, I should give an update regarding other things too. I have continued on my Super Double streak on Moon as well, it is currently ongoing at 300 wins (Battle Video: G4JG-WWWW-WWW9-N3RC). And it will have to stay that way for a while, if not forever. I'm going to get Ultra Moon tomorrow and then I will be busy with that for a long while forward, probably a year if not more. So I'm not sure when I'll get back to this streak, if I ever do. Looking back, I have ongoing streaks at several previous generations as well, all but Gen 2 and 5. Guess I'm pretty good at leaving streaks unfinished, which isn't all too strange since I usually don't play in order to get high streaks in the battle facilities.

I also said earlier that I am going to write a post about my experiences and adventures in the Gen 2-5 Battle Facilities and post that here when I am done. Well, the good news is that I have at least started on writing that post. But it will take quite a while before it is done as I have a lot left to write, and I am quite busy with other things right now (and will probably be for a while forward... but we'll see). To anyone who is looking forward to that post, expect it at some point next year. That's all I can say about it right now.

See you in the "Ultra" Tree!

 

[paperquagsire]

Well, with USUM coming right up, I thought I might as well finish this writeup. Posting a completed streak of 392.

The Team:

Kangaskhan-Mega @ Kangaskhanite
Ability: Parental Bond
Level: 50
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Frustration
- Fake Out
- Sucker Punch
- Protect

Fake out is amazing support, and few mons use it better than Kangaskhan. Fake Out + Frustration takes out a good portion of the tree, and Sucker Punch takes care of ghost types such as Gengar34, although using Scrappy to fake out ghost types turn one is often necessary to be able to KO with Sucker Punch. Fake out also can stop TR from going up, which is crucial as this team does not appreciate being slow. Inner Focus pokemon such as Oranguru are obliterated by doubling into them. Frustration is there as the main hard hitting stab, and protect is just a great move in doubles.

Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs
Ability: Electric Surge
Level: 50
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Grass Knot
- Volt Switch

Tapu Koko hits like a truck (But then again, who doesn't with specs?) It can easily OHKO a large portion of the tree with Thunderbolt, pivot out of a messysituation with Volt Switch, mess with the rock and ground types that usually destroy it by tripping them up with Grass Knot, and deal absurd spread damage with Dazzling Gleam, which also decimates thefighting types that Kangaskhan despises. Unfortunately, Lightning Rod pokemon (Marowak, Rhyperior, etc) can force it to switch if it is already locked into Tbolt (Which it often is), and usually those pokemon can threaten heavy damage on the essential free turn they get where I'm forced to switch.

(Set shamelessly stolen from Turskain)

Garchomp (M) @ Groundium Z
Ability: Rough Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Claw
- Poison Jab
- Protect

Since it's debut in gen 4, Garchomp has made itself a reliable choice in battle facilities, online play, or anywhere else. Gen 7 is no exception, and now with Tectonic Rage it has an even greater way to smash past the opposition while not hurting it's partner. Earthquake for spread damage is the go-to STAB for Garchomp, Dragon Claw is for flying types, Poison Jab is for grass types such as Virizion, and fairies who threaten him. That slot used to be iron head, but after a close call with Veteran Xenophon, I switched to Poison Jab. Iron Head never outdamages Tectonic Rage anyway, and was used maybe once in the 300 battles I had it. Protect is an obvious move.

(Set shamelessly stolen from Josh C)

Celesteela @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Beast Boost
Level: 50
EVs: 164 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 84 Spe
Quiet Nature
- Heavy Slam
- Flamethrower
- Giga Drain
- Protect

First off, this is the only non 252/252 spread on the team, and is probably not the most efficient spread for bulk, speed, or anything else to be honest. Quiet nature was so I didn't weaken Heavy Slam, and I really wanted to be able to take hits, so speed got the drop as it was the least important stat. 84 speed goes against the Quiet nature, but allows me to outspeed Magnezone. Max SPa for the coverage moves because they are more used than heavy slam to be honest. Flamethrower is mandatory for Ferrothorn, which is a major roadblock otherwise, Scizor, Avalugg, and many others. Giga Drain could be replaced by Wide Guard, but it saved me from losing against sand teams so many times. Being able to hit Gastrodon, Rhyperior, and more is crucial to the team. Protect is great as always. Another perk of Celesteela is that it is immune to both of Koko's weaknesses, and Garchomp resists both of Celesteela's weaknesses (And Celesteela can deal with all of his), giving it great synergy with the team.

The Loss:

(I will put the actual video code in once PGL comes up and I can upload it)
Here's a Potato-Quality, vertically filmed, generally shitty YouTube video of the heartbreaking loss! (Battle 393 vs Sightseer Erza. Heatran2/Gengar3/Glaceon4/Latios3)

Hindsight is 20/20. Why I targeted Latios instead of Glaceon is beyond me. Besides that misplay, I would have won if Glaceon missed any of it's blizzards, Heatran didn't crit with overheat, Glaceon didn't crit Celesteela with Blizzard, or Dazzling Gleam didn't miss Glaceon. My goal was to pass Smuckem at 425 wins, but considering I got over 4 times my previous largest streak of 86, I'm happy with what I got.

Threatlist:

Most fire types can be real annoyances, but notably Infernape34 because of their fake out and killing prowess and possible sash, Salazzle34 because of their fake out, killing prowess, possible sash, and dragon coverage, Charizard34 because Thunderbolt is NOT a safe play (I generally volt switch or fake out or something, depends on the partners it gets, Arcanine4 because of the Z-fighting nuke and intimidate, and Marowak-A12 due to Lightning Rod, hitting like a goddamn truck, and somehow always coming out at the worst possible time.

Rhyperior34 also can mess me up. As a lead I can Grass Knot and Frustration, which covers the possible sash, but as a backup it forces a switch, hits like a truck, and can even shrug off a Tectonic Rage from Garchomp. It alone warrants Giga Drain on Celesteela.

Togedemaru34 is more of an annoyance than a threat. All three of it's abilities are annoying. Iron barbs makes me not want to Fake Out it, Lightning Rod makes me not want to use Tbolt or Volt Switch, and Sturdy can help it get off one last move before going to hell. Wild Charge in electric terrain hurts, and often it's other pokemon makes a switch to Garchomp unsafe. Nuzzle is annoying, fake out is annoying, spiky shield is annoying, this whole pokemon is annoying.

Drampa3 can and has torn my team apart. Dazzling Gleam does not OHKO, and it can fire off quick claw boosted Hyper Voices, Fire Blasts, and Dragon Pulses. The possibility of Focus Blast or Z-Draco Meteor makes it even more terrifying. Get this menace off the field as soon as possible.

Crobat34 can outspeed and KO Koko, and put Celesteela to sleep. Crobat4 seems to use taunt more than anything else though.

Electric Types can abuse the Terrain I put down and use it against Kangaskhan and Celesteela. The Rotoms can't use the terrain, but make up for it with spreading status and tanking Koko's moves.

Glaceon34 can freeze me, OHKO chomp, and chunk everything for heavy damage. Can also dodge at crucial moments with bright powder, use hail and snow cloak, and mirror coat makes it angerous to attack

Sina: I recommend playing Tree on Moon just to get away from this trainer. I'm just gonna go through the annoying things she has.

• Trick Room
• Tailwind
• Swagger
• Drampa
• A strong Electric Type nuke
• Teeter Dance
• Leech Seed
• Hail
• More Hail
• Aurora Veil
• Blizzard Spam boosted from the Hail
• Mirror Coat
• Snow Cloak
• Bright Powder

In conclusion: Fire types, Lightning Rod, Togedemaru, and Sina can fuck off and die.

I'm sorta glad I lost around this time. USUM are gonna be great and I can't wait to pass this score in the new games (Move Tutors! Finally!). Huge thanks to all the folks in the Discord for being there to bounce ideas off of, listen to me type to myself about what I should do, and generally just being awesome. See y'all in USUM!

 

[Magicxgame]

Since USUM have officially been released in Japan and Europe, here's a link to the changes to the Tree (spoilers!):

https://pastebin.com/jt9TQEdP

Fifteen movesets were tweaked, and three weak Pokemon were added.

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

Since USUM have officially been released in Japan and Europe, here's a link to the changes to the Tree (spoilers!):

https://pastebin.com/jt9TQEdP

Fifteen movesets were tweaked, and three weak Pokemon were added.

Those fucking punks! Those shameless punks ripped off my shitmon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was running HP/SpA Assault Vest Magnezone before they did, and obviously they remembered my battle where Maggie solo'd a rain team, and were like "surely this dude is onto something. We want other people to go through the depressing motions of slowly getting murdered by a suboptimal EV spread with only two attacks that really mean something."

I mean mine is also Quiet with 0 speed instead of 31, but the programmers probably didn't have the balls to go all the way. Still, I accept their sincerest form of flattery and will probably feel very smug every time Wally uses it.

And if you guys somehow find yourself getting punked by Magnezone4, blame GF for opening the gates of hell. I merely allowed the dark power to engulf me and made it my own. It is THEY who then trained under ME

i had my surgery today and am under heavy narcotics so i might have missed something in that file, but if you guys run into iron ball gardevoir, that was also my doing

 

[NoCheese]

I've updated things through here. Excited to see so many streaks get posted as we all get ready for the Ultra Sun / Moon Tree. I'm especially happy to see Gliscor doing so well. I've repeatedly pondered trying Gliscor with Chansey and Mega Slowbro, as Dragonite is not quite as good a lead in the Tree as it was in the Maison, and seeing Gliscor's continued success makes me think that Ultra Sun / Moon will be the place for me to give it a shot! Best of luck with your streaks, everyone!

 

[Smuckem]

Ladies and gentlemen, the next installment of the thread's QR database...

QR Ultra Noted Overview (QR-UNO)
cayZ5 -- Togedemaru/Ash-Greninja/Mimikyu/Kartana ('FEAR the Frog'); Murkrow/Landorus-Therian/Kommo-O/Celesteela/Rotom-Wash ('Murkrow and Friends')
JustinTR -- Hawlucha/Tapu Lele/Mega Metagross/Landorus-Incarnate ('Tapu Lucha'); Hawlucha/Tapu Lele/Mega Metagross/Hydreigon ('Tapu Here We Go Again')
Level 51 -- Pheromosa/Tapu Lele/Aegislash/Mega Salamence ('PheroLele V3: Click Buttons')
Josh C. -- Oranguru/Mega Camerupt/Tapu Bulu/Stakataka ('The Grassy Room'); Greninja/Mega Blaziken/Thudurus-Therian/Aegislash ('Greniken')
paperquagsire -- Alolan Ninetales/Mega Blastoise/Kommo-O/Nihilego ('All Hail Kommo-O'); Greninja/Kommo-O/Mega Scizor/Primarina ('Grenkommo')
Magicxgame -- Mega Kangaskhan/Kartana/Tapu Fini/Landorus-Therian ('White CHALK')
Eisenherz -- Pelipper/Tapu Koko/Mega Swampert/Celesteela ('Making It Rain!'); Tapu Fini/Incineroar/Zapdos/Mega Metagross ('ZapFini V6') Spritzee/Aron/Clamperl/Mudbray/Cubone/Cranidos ('Team LC'); Drifblim/Tapu Lele/Mega Blastoise/Kartana ('W A T E R S P O U T'); Musharna/Alolan Golem/Octillery/Mega Abomasnow ('B L I Z Z S P O U T'); Oricorio Pom-Pom/Ribombee/Tapu Fini/Mega Kangaskhan ('DanceDanceJejunum')
ReptoAbysmal -- Oranguru/Araquanid/Mega Mawile/Drampa ('Spidey Friends')
Frazone -- Azumarill/Mega Salamence/Tyranitar/Excadrill/Incineroar/Aegislash ('My variation of japan Sand')
turskain -- Kommo-o / Talonflame / Togedemaru / Mega Kangaskhan ('Mahler's Flight'); Togedemaru / Golisopod / Kommo-o / Mega Kangaskhan ('Mahler's Exit'); Sharpedo/Mega Kangaskhan/Scizor/Mimikyu ('Sharknado 2')
Scythes -- Tapu Lele/Kartana/Mega Salamence/Heatran ('LeleTran')
Coeur7 -- Kartana/Tapu Koko/Mega Kangaskhan/Kommo-O ('4K')
ANTS -- Mega Salamence/Incineroar/Tapu Fini/Ferrothorn/Rotom-Heat/Kartana ('Dual Core Processing')
HeadsILoseTailsYouWin -- Dragonite/Aegislash/Tapu Fini ('Draegislapu Fini')
LazyMatty -- Aromatisse/Incineroar/Golisopod/Vileplume ('Pests in the Garden')

 

[average fella]

Rest in Peace Aerodactyl1 using only Rock Slide: 2010-2017

Rest in Peace Choice Scarf Aero shenanigans: 2013-2017

Serperior-4 is the last holdout of "tree sets with less than 4 moves"

 

[Blitz]

Since USUM have officially been released in Japan and Europe, here's a link to the changes to the Tree (spoilers!):

https://pastebin.com/jt9TQEdP

Fifteen movesets were tweaked, and three weak Pokemon were added.

I have some insight on those 3 Pokemon that were added:

Minor Spoiler

In short, you have to face a Team Rocket Grunt in the Battle Agency as part of the RR plot. This Grunt uses those 3 weak Gen 1 Pokemon you see on the list; I strongly doubt you will ever see them outside of this scripted encounter or even the Tree, so they can be discarded.

 

[PikaCuber]

Well, I just found out that Florges2 actually knows how to attack by it's own choice.

MUUG-WWWW-WWW9-T7SZ

Tried to use Nature Power in Misty Terrain onto Mega Absol, but that as the turn I switched Mega Absol out into Tapu Lele, making it into Psychic. Only happened once, but this is the only time I've seen it attack.

Also, silver_angel, your database is great, but I noticed that the Speed stat you have for Electrode34 is wrong, listed as 211, not 222. It's on the Colress page, maybe more, if that even matters.

 

[Level 51]

Hi friends what up

Here is a story told in two pictures:

​

Dammit lol

100 and counting in the USUM Battle Tree, maybe I'm the first to triple digits? I was excited to work with USUM, less so because of the new Pokemon and more because of the new move tutors. In particular I think there are a few Pokemon that benefited greatly from them, and I've showcased a collection of them in this team. The team may not be all that great for the Tree—in the time I've been on hiatus I appear to have forgotten how to hax-proof a team—but it seems to work somewhat. Not as good as PheroLele but honestly nothing is.

=====================

Speed Control: The Team

The team sprung from my intention to test out non-Missagross™, a set with three 100%-accurate moves: Iron Head, Thunder Punch, and a surprisingly effective new addition from USUM move tutors, Stomping Tantrum. I decided I wanted to pair this with Koko to boost Thunder Punch's damage output, effectively giving Metagross the equivalent of an Electric STAB, but this core left me with:

• two Ground-type weaknesses and thus a weakness to Garchomp-3;
• no Z-Move;
• a rather lackluster frontline, seeing as Thunder Punch was redundant on Metagross next to Tapu Koko.

I figured the Z-Move issue was easier to address and also that Garchomp-3 would eventually sort itself out, like it always does (the AI locking itself into one move makes it incredibly easy to play around as long as your team has good defensive synergy). The thing about a Z-Move is that ideally you want it to be a type with as many super-effective or even normal-effective hits as possible; there's no point in running, for example, Acid Downpour just to pick up a KO on Altaria-3, since most of the time you won't even see it. Tectonic Rage was the Z-Move that most readily came to mind, and with it, Garchomp; this set me up for a neat Koko / Garchomp lead. Still wanting a Ground resist and another way to chunk Steel-types, I looked for Fighting-types which resist Ground, and Buzzwole showed up. I figured it wouldn't hurt to try, and indeed it has not disappointed.

=====================

Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs
Ability: Electric Surge
Level: 50
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Electroweb
- Volt Switch

Choice Specs Koko is the same good ol' breaker it was back in SM. I found that I clicked Grass Knot basically not at all because even when I was in front of a Rhyperior or Golem I was still paranoid about Sturdy and wanted to switch out, and Grass Knot doesn't even pick up some of the KOs it really should be getting (Gastrodon-4, Swampert-4). Electroweb, on the other hand, gives Garchomp an easier time against some opponents it might be scared of, not only breaking their sashes but lowering their speed so Garchomp can get the jump on them: most Lati@s, for example, come to mind as prime targets. Electric-type spread damage is also always welcomed, for instance against the Sceptile-and-Electric-weak leads Youth Athletes tend to bring disproportionately often. Not much else to say, I haven't really clicked Electroweb much (just twice, I think) but it's probably better than most alternatives.

Garchomp @ Groundium Z
Ability: Rough Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Tomb
- Dragon Claw / Poison Jab
- Protect

Standard Garchomp set here. The only oddity on this team is Rock Tomb, which was chosen because I wanted a Rock-type move which didn't miss and wasn't as weak as Rock Slide. Well, Rock Tomb is a little stronger and a little more accurate, so I guess it fit the bill, kind of. In particular, Rock Tomb is neat against opposing Charizard before they reveal if they're X or Y, since you're doing something useful either way: lowering Charizard-X's speed to negate a Dragon Dance or straight up OHKOing Charizard-Y. With that on the set I had to make a decision between Poison Jab and Dragon Claw, and ultimately I figured I'd rather have a consistent single-target damage output over a way to consistently OHKO Whimsicott-4 and Shiinotic-4 (which lose to Metagross anyway).

Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- Thunder Punch
- Stomping Tantrum
- Protect

Non-Missagross™! Buy yours today, for only 28 BP! Not having to have a heart attack every time I click a move is really nice, and Stomping Tantrum is also a nice touch to bop many Steel-, Electric- and Fire-types that Metagross would otherwise be powerless against. Even without the boost from a failed move, it's basically a Ground-type elemental punch, and gains the Tough Claws boost:

252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Magmortar: 168-198 (92.3 - 108.7%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Arcanine: 146-172 (88.4 - 104.2%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bastiodon: 156-188 (93.4 - 112.5%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 154-182 (93.3 - 110.3%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO

...actually, I didn't realise these weren't guaranteed KOs until I checked the calc. Guess I should look into that.

Buzzwole @ Assault Vest
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 52 HP / 108 Atk / 4 Def / 180 SpD / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Drain Punch
- Leech Life
- Ice Punch
- Rock Tomb

SPEEDY Buzzwole is a really funky set. I know what you're thinking: "But Level 51! The tier at 119 only has set 1 and 2 Pokemon, and the tier at 118 is empty! Why not drop 16 EVs to go down to 118 speed?". Or, well, maybe you weren't thinking it, but you're thinking it now! Isn't psychosuggestion wonderful?

Anyway, at 120 speed stat Buzzwole outruns the entirety of the 179/178 speed tiers at -1, after Koko's Electroweb or Garchomp's / Buzzwole's Rock Tomb. That's no insignificant feat, since it encompasses the base 111s and 110s: Thundurus, Tornadus, Archeops, Raichu, Espeon, Lati@s, Mega Gallade, Mega Metagross, and a bunch more stuff. On the defensive side, it survives Volcarona-3's Overheat and Alakazam-1's Psychic, the same benchmarks as kneeshoeshoe's Buzzwole from his 572 streak.

=====================

I kinda just posted this because I wanted to be the first to hit some kinda milestone, so there we go! The team is probably pretty suboptimal and upon reviewing its calcs and everything I'm seriously not sure how it's made it to 100. I guess that shows that anything can hit 100, lol. I'll probably be back soon enough with a loss post, since I don't really expect much of the team.

Videos:
#052: HTFW-WWWW-WWW9-UFRR: Buzzwole is good (plus: me playing really badly)
#099: JDSG-WWWW-WWW9-VTBH: Registeel-4 is scary (plus: me playing really badly)
#100: HVUG-WWWW-WWW9-VTC8: 100. yay (plus: Wally having the easiest sets possible)

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

Hi friends what up

Here is a story told in two pictures:

​

Dammit lol

100 and counting in the USUM Battle Tree, maybe I'm the first to triple digits? I was excited to work with USUM, less so because of the new Pokemon and more because of the new move tutors. In particular I think there are a few Pokemon that benefited greatly from them, and I've showcased a collection of them in this team. The team may not be all that great for the Tree—in the time I've been on hiatus I appear to have forgotten how to hax-proof a team—but it seems to work somewhat. Not as good as PheroLele but honestly nothing is.

=====================

Speed Control: The Team

The team sprung from my intention to test out non-Missagross™, a set with three 100%-accurate moves: Iron Head, Thunder Punch, and a surprisingly effective new addition from USUM move tutors, Stomping Tantrum. I decided I wanted to pair this with Koko to boost Thunder Punch's damage output, effectively giving Metagross the equivalent of an Electric STAB, but this core left me with:

• two Ground-type weaknesses and thus a weakness to Garchomp-3;
• no Z-Move;
• a rather lackluster frontline, seeing as Thunder Punch was redundant on Metagross next to Tapu Koko.

I figured the Z-Move issue was easier to address and also that Garchomp-3 would eventually sort itself out, like it always does (the AI locking itself into one move makes it incredibly easy to play around as long as your team has good defensive synergy). The thing about a Z-Move is that ideally you want it to be a type with as many super-effective or even normal-effective hits as possible; there's no point in running, for example, Acid Downpour just to pick up a KO on Altaria-3, since most of the time you won't even see it. Tectonic Rage was the Z-Move that most readily came to mind, and with it, Garchomp; this set me up for a neat Koko / Garchomp lead. Still wanting a Ground resist and another way to chunk Steel-types, I looked for Fighting-types which resist Ground, and Buzzwole showed up. I figured it wouldn't hurt to try, and indeed it has not disappointed.

=====================

Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs
Ability: Electric Surge
Level: 50
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Electroweb
- Volt Switch

Choice Specs Koko is the same good ol' breaker it was back in SM. I found that I clicked Grass Knot basically not at all because even when I was in front of a Rhyperior or Golem I was still paranoid about Sturdy and wanted to switch out, and Grass Knot doesn't even pick up some of the KOs it really should be getting (Gastrodon-4, Swampert-4). Electroweb, on the other hand, gives Garchomp an easier time against some opponents it might be scared of, not only breaking their sashes but lowering their speed so Garchomp can get the jump on them: most Lati@s, for example, come to mind as prime targets. Electric-type spread damage is also always welcomed, for instance against the Sceptile-and-Electric-weak leads Youth Athletes tend to bring disproportionately often. Not much else to say, I haven't really clicked Electroweb much (just twice, I think) but it's probably better than most alternatives.

Garchomp @ Groundium Z
Ability: Rough Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Tomb
- Dragon Claw / Poison Jab
- Protect

Standard Garchomp set here. The only oddity on this team is Rock Tomb, which was chosen because I wanted a Rock-type move which didn't miss and wasn't as weak as Rock Slide. Well, Rock Tomb is a little stronger and a little more accurate, so I guess it fit the bill, kind of. In particular, Rock Tomb is neat against opposing Charizard before they reveal if they're X or Y, since you're doing something useful either way: lowering Charizard-X's speed to negate a Dragon Dance or straight up OHKOing Charizard-Y. With that on the set I had to make a decision between Poison Jab and Dragon Claw, and ultimately I figured I'd rather have a consistent single-target damage output over a way to consistently OHKO Whimsicott-4 and Shiinotic-4 (which lose to Metagross anyway).

Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- Thunder Punch
- Stomping Tantrum
- Protect

Non-Missagross™! Buy yours today, for only 28 BP! Not having to have a heart attack every time I click a move is really nice, and Stomping Tantrum is also a nice touch to bop many Steel-, Electric- and Fire-types that Metagross would otherwise be powerless against. Even without the boost from a failed move, it's basically a Ground-type elemental punch, and gains the Tough Claws boost:

252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Magmortar: 168-198 (92.3 - 108.7%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Arcanine: 146-172 (88.4 - 104.2%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bastiodon: 156-188 (93.4 - 112.5%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tough Claws Metagross-Mega Stomping Tantrum vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 154-182 (93.3 - 110.3%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO

...actually, I didn't realise these weren't guaranteed KOs until I checked the calc. Guess I should look into that.

Buzzwole @ Assault Vest
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 52 HP / 108 Atk / 4 Def / 180 SpD / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Drain Punch
- Leech Life
- Ice Punch
- Rock Tomb

SPEEDY Buzzwole is a really funky set. I know what you're thinking: "But Level 51! The tier at 119 only has set 1 and 2 Pokemon, and the tier at 118 is empty! Why not drop 16 EVs to go down to 118 speed?". Or, well, maybe you weren't thinking it, but you're thinking it now! Isn't psychosuggestion wonderful?

Anyway, at 120 speed stat Buzzwole outruns the entirety of the 179/178 speed tiers at -1, after Koko's Electroweb or Garchomp's / Buzzwole's Rock Tomb. That's no insignificant feat, since it encompasses the base 111s and 110s: Thundurus, Tornadus, Archeops, Raichu, Espeon, Lati@s, Mega Gallade, Mega Metagross, and a bunch more stuff. On the defensive side, it survives Volcarona-3's Overheat and Alakazam-1's Psychic, the same benchmarks as kneeshoeshoe's Buzzwole from his 572 streak.

=====================

I kinda just posted this because I wanted to be the first to hit some kinda milestone, so there we go! The team is probably pretty suboptimal and upon reviewing its calcs and everything I'm seriously not sure how it's made it to 100. I guess that shows that anything can hit 100, lol. I'll probably be back soon enough with a loss post, since I don't really expect much of the team.

Videos:
#052: HTFW-WWWW-WWW9-UFRR: Buzzwole is good (plus: me playing really badly)
#099: JDSG-WWWW-WWW9-VTBH: Registeel-4 is scary (plus: me playing really badly)
#100: HVUG-WWWW-WWW9-VTC8: 100. yay (plus: Wally having the easiest sets possible)

I’ve never used Stomping Tantrum even once, so you look to be a good means of understanding it better- evidently Protect blocking doesn’t give a boost, but what about missing? If not misses, what does that leave besides immunity? I figure absorption doesn’t count, either, since the move is technically still registering.

I’ve never been drawn to the move specifically because it looked too situational for its learnbase, but if it gets peoples’ approval...

 

[Worldie]

I’ve never used Stomping Tantrum even once, so you look to be a good means of understanding it better- evidently Protect blocking doesn’t give a boost, but what about missing? If not misses, what does that leave besides immunity? I figure absorption doesn’t count, either, since the move is technically still registering.

I’ve never been drawn to the move specifically because it looked too situational for its learnbase, but if it gets peoples’ approval...

If you are bored enough the Mechanic Research topic on the USUM section has plenty of data on Stomping Tantrum specifically.

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

If you are bored enough the Mechanic Research topic on the USUM section has plenty of data on Stomping Tantrum specifically.

Was happy to see the snide remark with the bulbapedia article was basically ignored, because the article is too vague.

Even happier to note the fairly long list of procs. I’ll have to use it where it’ll fit!

 

[Meleeace1478]

I have been trying out Kommo-Z the last couple days.

My early thoughts are that it has potential in Singles, but you need to go mixed to get an acceptable fighting move, probably Close Combat to go with Clanging Scales, Flamethrower, and Flash Cannon. I have just been using the Modest one I had with Focus Blast until I feel like breeding a new Kommo-o. I seem to rarely need the Fighting move, so maybe Drain Punch would be a decent choice as well.

Not sure whether it is best to drop Def, Sp. Def, or Attack though.

 

[Worldie]

Considering Kommo actually has a solid bulk, I was wondering if going with neutral nature (yes, you heard it) in order to be running Drain Punch on top of the spatk coverage would be a good plan.

 

[Adamant Zoroark]

So after I got to the Battle Tree in Ultra Sun, I started putting a revised form of the Aron team I used a while back to work:

(M) @

, Relaxed, Pressure
EVs: 252|0|4|0|252|0 / IVs: 31/30/31/31/31/0
Night Shade | Brick Break | Pain Split | Trick Room

(F) @

, Bold, Sturdy
Lv.1 Stats: 12|5|7|5|5|5
Endeavor | Protect | Toxic | Iron Head

(M) @

, Quiet, Pixilate
EVs: 252|0|4|252|0|0 / IVs: 31|0|31|31|31|0
Hyper Voice | Psyshock | Shadow Ball | Swift

(M) @

, Brave, Intimidate
EVs: 252|252|0|0|4|0 / IVs: 31|31|31|xx|31|0
Fake Out | High Jump Kick | Crunch | Detect

The main edits I made were changing the Trick Room setter and Scrafty's held item. Hitmontop was used briefly on a separate run in Pokemon Sun, but wasn't as good as I had hoped; it did help with my old team's Fighting-type weakness, but introduced a new issue in the form of being just a bit too fast. Needless to say, it was out. I went ahead and started breeding for a Dusclops to use in place of Porygon2 to rectify the Fighting-type weakness, while putting Scrafty back on the team carrying Darkinium Z instead. Dusclops helped quite a bit, mainly in the form of being extremely slow and, much like P2, extremely bulky. Darkinium Z Scrafty is a major help for lots of Bullshit Powder Bright Powder carriers/Double Team users like Latias and Cresselia; those two used to be real pains given the resistance to All-Out Pummeling (and, in Cresselia's case, barely taking anything from Sylveon's Swift). Dusclops EVs are best explained by laziness.

Problems that definitely still exist: Z-moves and Scizor (also Skarmory to a lesser extent; mainly have a hard time handling Steels that don't have a Fighting weakness). Not a whole lot to do about Z-moves; those nerfed Aron hard and there's really not anything that Aron teams can do about that. I'm currently considering replacing either Sylveon or Scrafty with something with either Fire-type STAB or a decently powered Fire-type attack that would better equip the team against Pokemon like Scizor and Skarmory, as I currently depend a little too much on Endeavor to deal with those. Alternatively, breeding a Hidden Power Fire Sylveon would help, although HP Fire is a bit on the side of "really really weak." I might just do that, especially seeing as Shadow Ball hasn't seen any use as of yet.

I already got this team to 50 wins in Super Doubles and am now trying to bring it past my old record.

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

I'm pretty much sold on the concept of Lonely Stakataka instead of straight up Brave. Doesn't change its primary allure as Skill Swapper, but by using Lonely nature and intentionally soft resetting for ≤15 Defense and preferably 0 speed, it allows it to get attack boosts when actually killing things. I planned to get a Sassy one for an entirely support set, anyway.

Unfortunately from what I've read, it seems the game forces you to deal with the new UBs before even reaching the IV checker, but the numbers are easily tracked. 240 Def or lower and 20 speed for that lovely No Good IV. The difference between Brave and Lonely for speed is a measly 2 points at lv50, an acceptable trade.

Thoughts, Worldie? Would you rather use Staka exclusively for support and not a little more offensively?

 

[Potatauros]

Just an FYI, you can knock them out and come back to them later to catch them. Also, good luck to you with the IVs, it's the same odds as 5iv was in gen 6 :/

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

I've SR'd a pretty large number of legends over the past few games trying to get them with 0 IVs. It's not a big deal by this point. I have incredible patience when it comes to waiting for things I want. (or maybe just stubborn determination, but whatever.)

 

[Potatauros]

Well, 0ivs is fine, but it's the 14/15 ivs that really blows, that's like one in 1800, and each reset takes a tad longer than a shiny hunt due to having to wait out the animation to use the speed checker mon.

I've reset two 5ivs in oras, and it was one of the most monotonous things I have ever done. I am SO glad bottle caps exist.

I'm probabaly going to reset for a stakataka too, because at least GF won't make the resets redundant with a new feature.

If you do end up making a team with him on it, I'd love to see it :)

 

[Worldie]

Personally since I'm very likely going for Skill Swap either ways, the 15 lonely isn't a necessary idea.

I did obtain one from the GTS (no clue about the other stats, i know it's < 5 spd and 15 or so def) but I don't really plan in using it.

 

[Anna says hi]

Confirming that the Agency actually does have proper streaks and uses the same sets as Tree. (I did 2 battles with Gliscor4/Scrafty2/Magnezone3). Trainers have similar names to tree trainers in SuMo (Preschooler Rocky still has a sun-focused team of set 1s). Not sure if anything special happens at 50, but NoCheese you should probably add leaderboards for Agency, as it's fun as hell.

Everyone get hype for the factory we didn't need, but the one we deserved.

 

[Brucolac]

One question:
Are all of the new Pokemon Naganadel, Stakataka, Blacephalon and Zeraora available in the tree?

 

[paperquagsire]

One question:
Are all of the new Pokemon Naganadel, Stakataka, Blacephalon and Zeraora available in the tree?

Zeraora is not released yet and when it is you will not be able to use it in tree, the 3 new ultra beasts are usable though.

 

[ReptoAbysmal]

Confirming that the Agency actually does have proper streaks and uses the same sets as Tree. (I did 2 battles with Gliscor4/Scrafty2/Magnezone3). Trainers have similar names to tree trainers in SuMo (Preschooler Rocky still has a sun-focused team of set 1s). Not sure if anything special happens at 50, but NoCheese you should probably add leaderboards for Agency, as it's fun as hell.

Everyone get hype for the factory we didn't need, but the one we deserved.

Is that to say the grade resets or drops every time you lose? I’m only grade 2, but left when my options became too distasteful for that round.

Perhaps it’s because I haven’t gotten the mega ring/item yet, but I noticed both Mega Garchomp and Aerodactyl sets with the stones removed, and wasn’t sure if they ever get put back once evolution is available to me ingame.

Lastly, I’m amused to note the AI, at least for now, is dumber than a bag of rocks. I swept two teams with Tyrantrum3, first because three Horn Drills connected back to back against three slower mons, and second because they used almost nothing but fire moves on it save for a single Solarbeam.

It’s not only fun, the payout in FC and useful items is excellent. Everything gives more FC now, seemingly... the base pay for a Wondertrade is 6 instead of 2.