Burning Bright!
a 5th gen sun RMT by Lavos Spawn (with Princess Bri)
Hey there, Smogon. Thought I'd drop by with a special gift for all of you competitive battlers out there. I'm sad to say that the time has come for me to retire my beloved old Sun team, the team that carried me to #3 on the Beta ladder, under the alt "sit on the chair" (recently #14 here). Alas, the metagame has shifted too much in the past few months for this team to perform as effectively as it did before. With the rise of Rotom-W/Scizor cores, and the renewed prevalence of Hippowdon, my team isn't what it used to be. That said, this team was the picture of a well-rounded hyper-offensive Sun team, or at least that's what I'd like to think.
Before I begin, I'd like to give out a few thanks to people who helped make this team what it is (and was). First of all, I couldn't have done it without Dice, who suggested the idea of a Rotom-W/Scizor core in Sun. Back then, the core didn't see much use, and using it in Sun was pretty much unthinkable. However, it turned out quite well, as the VoltTurn combo was a fantastic check to Rain and Sand. Next, I would like to thank Tox/A Hero, who gave me the inspiration to make a Sun team in the first place after I saw how well it could be used. He also was the one to challenge me to make a successful Sun team without the use of Dugtrio. Here it is, pal. Finally, I'd like to thank all my haters. Seriously. Without you, this team would not be nearly as good as it is today. All the people who insulted me, in the end, you gave me the drive to succeed, the will to get better. I appreciate it.
Now I'll walk you through the teambuilding process. If you don't want to see it, just skip the spoiler and head straight to the team (below).
So first of all, I knew I was going Sun.
Next, I took Dice's suggestion, and added a Rotom-W/Scizor core. This core, though one would originally think it's bad in Sun (Rotom-W gets its Hydro Pump cut in half, and Scizor gets its Fire weakness magnified), performs exceptionally, particularly against other weathers.
I knew I needed something to beat hazards, because otherwise Tales would only be able to switch in a maximum of 4 times, which isn't good. I debated going with a Rapid Spinner for a while, particularly Donphan, for its ability to set up Stealth Rocks and spin. However, for some reason unknown to man, I chose Espeon. Maybe because it's cute, I dunno. Anyways, it worked. That's all that matters.
I wanted to abuse my Sun in some way other than Morning Sun on Espeon (which I originally didn't have anyways). At the same time, I was noticing my team was super weak to anything Dragon. For that reason, I added Victreebel. This thing is the ultimate Sun sweeper, miles ahead of Venusaur, for one simple reason: it has Weather Ball access, giving it both Fire and Ice-type coverage. I love it. So much.
Finally, I needed Stealth Rocks, or Victreebel was never going to sweep. I also began to notice a glaring Fire weakness on my team. For those reasons, I went with Heatran, which seemed to fit perfectly with the previous 5 members of my team, bringing both Stealth Rock and Flash Fire to the table.
And that's how it's made. Thanks for reading!
Next, I took Dice's suggestion, and added a Rotom-W/Scizor core. This core, though one would originally think it's bad in Sun (Rotom-W gets its Hydro Pump cut in half, and Scizor gets its Fire weakness magnified), performs exceptionally, particularly against other weathers.
I knew I needed something to beat hazards, because otherwise Tales would only be able to switch in a maximum of 4 times, which isn't good. I debated going with a Rapid Spinner for a while, particularly Donphan, for its ability to set up Stealth Rocks and spin. However, for some reason unknown to man, I chose Espeon. Maybe because it's cute, I dunno. Anyways, it worked. That's all that matters.
I wanted to abuse my Sun in some way other than Morning Sun on Espeon (which I originally didn't have anyways). At the same time, I was noticing my team was super weak to anything Dragon. For that reason, I added Victreebel. This thing is the ultimate Sun sweeper, miles ahead of Venusaur, for one simple reason: it has Weather Ball access, giving it both Fire and Ice-type coverage. I love it. So much.
Finally, I needed Stealth Rocks, or Victreebel was never going to sweep. I also began to notice a glaring Fire weakness on my team. For those reasons, I went with Heatran, which seemed to fit perfectly with the previous 5 members of my team, bringing both Stealth Rock and Flash Fire to the table.
And that's how it's made. Thanks for reading!
The Team!
Calm | Drought | Female
248 HP | 216 SDef | 44 Spd
Flamethrower | Toxic | Will-O-Wisp | Roar
This nine-tailed fox is more than it appears to be. At first glance, it's nothing more than a cute household pet. With the flames of the sun burning bright, however, it can turn into a defensive tank, absorbing special hits like none other. Ninetales is the bread and butter of this team. It's my lead about 30% of the time, usually when the opponent isn't carrying weather. If they are, what generally happens is, I'll have Ninetales in, then they'll switch to Tyranitar/Hippowdon/Politoed, and I'll Will-O-Wisp to start racking up burn damage. In the case of the first two, this cripples them severely, also preventing CB Ttar from doing serious damage to me with a Pursuit as I try to switch out. Flamethrower is just there for a reliable Sun-boosted STAB attack that can do a fair chunk to anything that doesn't resist it. Toxic, coupled with Flamethrower, can take out Gastrodon and Quagsire, and gives me some decent coverage on Politoed/Abomasnow switch-ins. Roar is purely for phazing, and it's saved my @$$ against CM Latias many a time. Leftovers is to keep me alive for the maximum amount of time, because this team, regrettably, lacks a Wish passer. The EV spread is to tank special hits, of course.
Modest | Levitate | Genderless
252 HP | 120 Def | 136 SAtk
Volt Switch | Hydro Pump | Will-O-Wisp | Sunny Day
I consider this set to be one of my master strokes, as far as this team goes. As I was making this team, I began randomly scrolling down Rotom-W's move list, seeing what it could utilize that would be effective in Sun. Well, I realized, not only could it play well in Sun, it could create some Sun of its own. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Sunny Day Rotom-W. Possibly the best weather counter for a Sun team I've ever seen, because this guy can not only hit hard against Rain and Sand teams with Hydro Pump, and spread status with Will-O-Wisp, but in a pinch, he can use Sunny Day to bring about a late-game Victreebel sweep! The EV spread is fairly simple, built around countering the all-too-common Ferrothorn and such other physical threats to my team's health. The maximized HP and a fair bit in Defense let me tank some shots, but the SAtk investment also lets me pack a punch with Volt Switch and Hydro Pump. It's the best of both worlds. Will-O-Wisp, as I mentioned earlier, is primarily for Ferrothorn and Terrakion and things of that nature. With Ferro, I can burn it, then go into Espeon to block the incoming hazards without having to fear a STAB Gyro Ball that would undoubtedly hit me harder than I'd like. Anyways, I disgress. Volt Switch just helps me maintain the momentum, as in tandem with U-Turn it can beat a whole plethora of stuff. Hydro Pump is a fall-back move, and I use it most when other weather is up. Leftovers helps me retain the all-important HP. In summary, this guy is the ultimate utility weather counter.
Adamant | Technician | Female
248 HP | 252 Atk | 8 Spd
U-Turn | Bullet Punch | Pursuit | Superpower
Scizor is Part Deux of the VoltTurn combo, and he plays his part well. Once again, you may find yourself going "lolwut? Scizor in Sun?", but seriously, it works. Scizor is a great Tyranitar check. Not only that, she puts great offensive pressure on teams with the ability to U-Turn and then switch into a counter for whatever the opponent sent in to tank the U-Turn. Call it a cheap strategy, but hey, I roll with what works. Anyways, pretty standard CB Sciz right here. I run max Atk for the power, which is sometimes needed to shut down a sweeper. The rest I dump into hP for bulk, save 8 EVs for Spd, to beat other Scizor to the punch (haha, get it?) and deal a severe amount with Superpower. I'm still slow enough to hit Skarm on the Roost, too. I chose Pursuit over the up-and-coming Quick Attack variant because I feel that, if left unchecked, Latios could cause some trouble for my team with Specs Draco Meteor. Once Scizor comes in, it doesn't usually get a chance to do that twice. You may have noticed Scizor is the only physical presence on my team. Well, maybe you haven't, but now you're seeing it, and you're wondering what I'm smoking, and probably also wondering how I counter Chansey/Blissey. To that I say, patience, young grasshopper. I'm getting to it.
Timid | Chlorophyll | Female
4 Def | 252 SAtk | 252 Spd
Growth | Giga Drain | Weather Ball | Hidden Power Ice
Victreebel is the best Sun abuser in all existence. Don't argue with me, Venusaur. Quiet down, Volcarona. This babe is the real deal. She gets Fire, Grass, AND Ice coverage, all at the same time. This allows her, coupled with a Life Orb and respectable base 100 SAtk, to wreak freakin' havoc. One Growth, and it's over. Her only real counter is Heatran, which gets wrecked by the next two 'mons. Anyways, let's walk you through it. Max SAtk, max Spd, for obvious reasons. The moveset also basically speaks for itself. Growth boosts Victreebel to almost 600 Special Attack. Give that a Life Orb, and she's styling at about 800 - enough to OHKO pretty much the entirety of the metagame. The coverage is golden. Giga Drain lets me use Life Orb with impunity, as I can invariably get most of my HP back with one of these. Hidden Power Ice lets Victreebel kill off Dragons, with extra coverage in Weather Ball, destroying most Steel-types in her path, like the pesky Jirachi. Some might question my use of the Timid nature over Modest, which would give me more power. However, I run Timid for two reasons: Landorus and Terrakion. I can OHKO both of them in Sun, but the Scarf versions of both outspeed me when I'm Modest, as opposed to Timid, with which I outspeed and kill. Oh, also, another benefit of this thing is that it beats Chansey/Blissey. All they can really do is Seismic Toss, while I get up to +6 and restore almost all of my health with one Giga Drain. Oh, and also, Giga Drain's HP restoration comes into effect BEFORE Life Orb damage. Victreebel, with this set, has exactly 301 HP. This means that I can get to +6 without Blissey or Chansey killing me off before I can Giga Drain. It works out so well, it's like it was meant to be.
Timid | Magic Bounce | Female
252 HP | 4 SAtk | 252 Spd
Calm Mind | Baton Pass | Hidden Power Ground | Psyshock
Espeon's the dude that I just randomly threw into this team to give it hazards coverage. It ended up as one of my most useful Pokes. Blocking hazards from coming out onto the field is absolutely essential for the success of this team. Espy gets the job done, and I couldn't really ask more of her. Timid to speed-tie with all those base 110 folks out there. Magic Bounce is the best ability ever, bouncing back all those pesky status moves. EVs are rather standard, maximizing speed and bulk. The moveset it what I've really been struggling with, though. In the end, I went with this, because it seems to work the best. Calm Mind is actually meant to help me with Chansey and such. In tandem with Baton Pass, I can pass the boost(s) to Ninetales, Heatran, or Victreebel. It also helps me scout the opponent, because usually if I've just reflected back a hazard or something, they'll consider switching out to an Espeon counter. Baton Pass lets me see their switch, and match mine accordingly. Psyshock is standard STAB, helps with Chansey/Blissey, etc. This last moveslot, though, is where things get troublesome. I used to run Morning Sun to beat Chansey and Blissey, setting up a magnificent sweep. However, then I quickly realized something: Heatran was kicking my @$$. Hidden Power Ground solves that. At +1, I can OHKO basically any variant of Heatran, and tank a Modest Fire Blast in the Sun, too. Heatran apparently loves switching in on Espeon, because the generally accepted theory is that she's got nothing to hurt it. However, this has been a grave error for many Heatran in the past. I think I'm sticking with Hidden Power Ground in the future. It can help against Tyranitar as well, if it's at low HP. I can't recover anymore, though, which is a predicament. Ah well, sometimes sacrifices have to be made to achieve the desired result. Espeon does its job. I guess that's all I can ask of it.
Timid | Flash Fire | Female
4 HP | 252 SAtk | 252 Spd
Stealth Rock | Fire Blast | Earth Power | Hidden Power Ice
Heatran completes this team. It's basically the best thing to have on a Sun team riddled with Fire weaknesses. Heatran sucks up that Fire and spits it right back out, which makes her a great component of this team. She also sets up Stealth Rock with impunity, especially against foes locked into Fire-type moves. EV spread and Nature are pretty standard, and the Air Balloon beats Landorus one-on-one, in tandem with Hidden Power Ice. There's really not that much to say about Heatran. A Sun-boosted STAB Fire Blast is absolutely devastating to most Pokemon, doing over 60% to standard Choiced Rotom-W. Earth Power knocks off opposing Heatran while providing me with the coverage I need. Finally, Hidden Power Ice beats Dragonite, who can otherwise be quite the pest for this team. Heatran glues my team together. I can't even count how many matches I would've lost without her. With Heatran on the squad, it rounds off the team, bringing near-perfect synergy to the table.
There you have it, folks. That's my creation. Looking back on it, I see flaws, and I realize what I could have possibly done better, but all the changes my mind proposes bring up new weaknesses. Honestly, I think that with what I was given, I made the best team I could out of it. However, I'm entirely open to constructive criticism. Please, give me your suggestions. Maybe there's something that never even crossed my mind, that could have changed this from a #3 team to a #1 team! It's on your shoulders now, folks.
( One last rant before I go. I really hate it when people don't leave an importable at the end of their RMT. I understand that there are people out there who want to steal teams, but c'mon, guys. Other people just want to try it out and give you ideas on what to improve. For that reason, you'll find an importable below. Please, take it. Use it. Steal it, even. It makes me proud. If you DO steal it, though, leave me a Luvdisc or something, to show me how many people are going to be using it. Hopefully you'll come to love playing with this team as much as I did. Thank you for reading this RMT. Best of luck. <3 )
Ninetales (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 216 SDef / 44 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Flamethrower
- Toxic
- Roar
- Will-O-Wisp
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 120 Def / 136 SAtk
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Sunny Day
Scizor (F) @ Choice Band
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SDef
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Superpower
Victreebel (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Weather Ball
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Espeon (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Baton Pass
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Psyshock
Heatran (F) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Trait: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 216 SDef / 44 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Flamethrower
- Toxic
- Roar
- Will-O-Wisp
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 120 Def / 136 SAtk
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Sunny Day
Scizor (F) @ Choice Band
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SDef
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Superpower
Victreebel (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Weather Ball
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Espeon (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Baton Pass
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Psyshock
Heatran (F) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]
