Overview:
This is a unique team that I created using mostly UU or lower mons. It is currently at 1400+ on the ladder and I have a feeling that a more capable trainer would be able to get it higher. It focuses on the core of the special wall Slowking and the physical wall Tangrowth. Both of these mons have the ability Regenerator which heals upon switching out. So, as you can imagine, you will be doing a lot of switching when playing this team. As you can also probably guess, rapid spinners are a must. The reason I went with Slowking/Tangrowth instead of Slowbro/Amoonguss is because of the mons popular in the OU tier. Earthquake is extremely common (Tyranitar, Landorus, Excadrill, etc.) and making Amoonguss the physical wall would expose it to that weakness while Tangrowth counters these common threats nicely. Specially defensive Amoonguss also has threats common in OU (Alakazam, Latios, Starmie, Volcarona, etc.) and with the prevalence of rain teams Slowking seems the better option in my opinion.
The Team:
Mienshao (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out
- U-turn
- High Jump Kick
- Stone Edge
First up we have Mienshao. This is generally the first pokemon I send out to scout and/or be an immediate threat. Life Orb boosted Fake Out is no joke and can easily chunk squishy leads for 20% of their health. I typically lead with that to try and get an idea of what kind of mon I am dealing with (attacker or tank). Then either attack for huge damage in High Jump Kick or Stone Edge, or U-turn out and heal up thanks to Regenerator. Choice Scarf is an option, but I have gotten so much more utility out of Life Orb/Fake Out. Mienshao's speed is top tier, out sped by only a handful of threats like Latios, Starmie, Keldeo, and Alakazam, which other mons in the team can deal with. My favorite thing to do with Mienshao is one-shot Volcarona leads because Stone Edge is just so unexpected. Fake Out can also be used to skip a turn on a mon that has been afflicted with Toxic and potentially KO it that way.
Tangrowth (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Toxic
Tangrowth is the definition of a physical wall. This mon can tank physical hits like nothing else I've ever seen. Slap a Rocky Helmet on there and you can wall just about any physical threat in the game and dish out enough return damage to KO it. Oh, and then switch out and heal 33% of its health back. I love this mon so much and it is so underused. Giga Drain is a classic STAB move that both does damage and heals. Knock Off is essential for the plethora of Leftovers and Choice Scarf users. HP Ice hits physical dragon types like Garchomp and Dragonite for 4x damage, as well as Gliscor which it walls perfectly. Toxic is for dealing with other walls or setup threats that think they can just Dragon Dance in your face and get away with it. Don't let it get hit by a special attack though because its special bulk is abysmal, that's Slowking's job.
Slowking (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Slack Off
- Scald
- Dragon Tail
- Psyshock
The mon the myth the legend, Slowking is the other side of the same coin as Tangrowth. Where it lacks physical bulk it makes up for in special bulk and its excellent Water/Psychic typing allows it to deal with pretty much every rain threat out there (looking at you Keldeo). It survives Latios Draco Meteors, Thundurus Thunders, and even +1 Volcarona Bug Bites. Slack Off lets you stall out anything that has been Toxic'd by your team. Scald is a great STAB and that burn damage is amazing. Dragon Tail is unfortunately, the only way this team is able to get rid of setup mons but it serves its purpose. Psyshock is used to put Keldeo, Tentacruel, and Amoonguss players in their place. All around, like Tangrowth, Slowking is the king of what it does. Switch between these two and Claydol for electric threats to get back HP on the fly for minimal loss.
Magnezone @ Air Balloon
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 36 HP / 252 SpA / 220 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Volt Switch
- Sunny Day
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Magic Coat
The only OU mon in the team. I wish it wasn't necessary but with threats like Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress on just about every OU team out there, I just can't be without it. Magnezone locks them down and takes them out thanks to HP Fire and their 4x weakness. With a little bit of my own flavor I added 220 speed EVs to allow it to outspeed Adamant Scizor and gave it Magic Coat to play mind games with Ferrothorn's spikes. It also functions as a pivot with Volt Switch and a weather changer with Sunny Day.
Claydol @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Whenever I think of rapid spinner I think of Claydol. Its typing resists Stealth Rock damage, it has levitate to avoid spikes, and it can set up Stealth Rock itself. Its Ground/Psychic typing also gives you immunity to electric type moves aimed at Slowking. Earthquake is a great STAB move that is somewhat unexpected. And Toxic gets use for walls and other set up sweepers. In a pinch, Claydol has decent physical bulk as well. Its secondary purpose is to be a backup special wall for Slowking if things get rough. The reason I chose Claydol over Excadrill is the team already has two mons weak to fire and adding a third would be risky imo.
Hitmontop @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 96 Atk / 160 Def
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Foresight
- Sucker Punch
- Close Combat
Pretty sure I saw this guy at the Olympics this year. Our second rapid spinner, Hitmontop, features Foresight which allows it to hit ghost types like Jellicent and Gengar. Intimidate and defensive EVs give it enough tankiness to function as a backup physical wall for Tangrowth. Close Combat is a solid STAB move that removes threats like Tyranitar and Terrakion. And my favorite move, Sucker Punch, will throw so many people for a loop. I went with an Adamant nature and 96 attack EVs because this is exactly the EV spread you need to 1HKO Alakazam with Sucker Punch. They never see it coming and it's so good. Just be careful it's not the Focus Sash variety or you'll need to get Mienshao's Fake Out to help finish it off.
Conclusion:
This is a fun team that makes use of underused mons for the tier and actually results in wins. It excels at dealing with weather teams as well as offensive teams while offering enough utility/damage to deal with most stall teams. However, its biggest weakness is the lack of access to Roar and Taunt. Substitute users can often set up in front of these mons and leave you with no way of winning. Reuniclus is this team's biggest threat. Other than Dragon Tailing it away there is quite literally nothing you can do against it since Magic Guard prevents Toxic from working. Other than that, the team works nicely together and covers each other's threats if played well. I believe this is a team that is more reliant on player skill than anything and I'd love it if you guys would give it a shot and see if you can make any adjustments I might have missed. Thanks for reading!
This is a unique team that I created using mostly UU or lower mons. It is currently at 1400+ on the ladder and I have a feeling that a more capable trainer would be able to get it higher. It focuses on the core of the special wall Slowking and the physical wall Tangrowth. Both of these mons have the ability Regenerator which heals upon switching out. So, as you can imagine, you will be doing a lot of switching when playing this team. As you can also probably guess, rapid spinners are a must. The reason I went with Slowking/Tangrowth instead of Slowbro/Amoonguss is because of the mons popular in the OU tier. Earthquake is extremely common (Tyranitar, Landorus, Excadrill, etc.) and making Amoonguss the physical wall would expose it to that weakness while Tangrowth counters these common threats nicely. Specially defensive Amoonguss also has threats common in OU (Alakazam, Latios, Starmie, Volcarona, etc.) and with the prevalence of rain teams Slowking seems the better option in my opinion.
The Team:
Mienshao (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out
- U-turn
- High Jump Kick
- Stone Edge
First up we have Mienshao. This is generally the first pokemon I send out to scout and/or be an immediate threat. Life Orb boosted Fake Out is no joke and can easily chunk squishy leads for 20% of their health. I typically lead with that to try and get an idea of what kind of mon I am dealing with (attacker or tank). Then either attack for huge damage in High Jump Kick or Stone Edge, or U-turn out and heal up thanks to Regenerator. Choice Scarf is an option, but I have gotten so much more utility out of Life Orb/Fake Out. Mienshao's speed is top tier, out sped by only a handful of threats like Latios, Starmie, Keldeo, and Alakazam, which other mons in the team can deal with. My favorite thing to do with Mienshao is one-shot Volcarona leads because Stone Edge is just so unexpected. Fake Out can also be used to skip a turn on a mon that has been afflicted with Toxic and potentially KO it that way.
Tangrowth (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Toxic
Tangrowth is the definition of a physical wall. This mon can tank physical hits like nothing else I've ever seen. Slap a Rocky Helmet on there and you can wall just about any physical threat in the game and dish out enough return damage to KO it. Oh, and then switch out and heal 33% of its health back. I love this mon so much and it is so underused. Giga Drain is a classic STAB move that both does damage and heals. Knock Off is essential for the plethora of Leftovers and Choice Scarf users. HP Ice hits physical dragon types like Garchomp and Dragonite for 4x damage, as well as Gliscor which it walls perfectly. Toxic is for dealing with other walls or setup threats that think they can just Dragon Dance in your face and get away with it. Don't let it get hit by a special attack though because its special bulk is abysmal, that's Slowking's job.
Slowking (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Slack Off
- Scald
- Dragon Tail
- Psyshock
The mon the myth the legend, Slowking is the other side of the same coin as Tangrowth. Where it lacks physical bulk it makes up for in special bulk and its excellent Water/Psychic typing allows it to deal with pretty much every rain threat out there (looking at you Keldeo). It survives Latios Draco Meteors, Thundurus Thunders, and even +1 Volcarona Bug Bites. Slack Off lets you stall out anything that has been Toxic'd by your team. Scald is a great STAB and that burn damage is amazing. Dragon Tail is unfortunately, the only way this team is able to get rid of setup mons but it serves its purpose. Psyshock is used to put Keldeo, Tentacruel, and Amoonguss players in their place. All around, like Tangrowth, Slowking is the king of what it does. Switch between these two and Claydol for electric threats to get back HP on the fly for minimal loss.
Magnezone @ Air Balloon
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 36 HP / 252 SpA / 220 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Volt Switch
- Sunny Day
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Magic Coat
The only OU mon in the team. I wish it wasn't necessary but with threats like Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress on just about every OU team out there, I just can't be without it. Magnezone locks them down and takes them out thanks to HP Fire and their 4x weakness. With a little bit of my own flavor I added 220 speed EVs to allow it to outspeed Adamant Scizor and gave it Magic Coat to play mind games with Ferrothorn's spikes. It also functions as a pivot with Volt Switch and a weather changer with Sunny Day.
Claydol @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Whenever I think of rapid spinner I think of Claydol. Its typing resists Stealth Rock damage, it has levitate to avoid spikes, and it can set up Stealth Rock itself. Its Ground/Psychic typing also gives you immunity to electric type moves aimed at Slowking. Earthquake is a great STAB move that is somewhat unexpected. And Toxic gets use for walls and other set up sweepers. In a pinch, Claydol has decent physical bulk as well. Its secondary purpose is to be a backup special wall for Slowking if things get rough. The reason I chose Claydol over Excadrill is the team already has two mons weak to fire and adding a third would be risky imo.
Hitmontop @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 96 Atk / 160 Def
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Foresight
- Sucker Punch
- Close Combat
Pretty sure I saw this guy at the Olympics this year. Our second rapid spinner, Hitmontop, features Foresight which allows it to hit ghost types like Jellicent and Gengar. Intimidate and defensive EVs give it enough tankiness to function as a backup physical wall for Tangrowth. Close Combat is a solid STAB move that removes threats like Tyranitar and Terrakion. And my favorite move, Sucker Punch, will throw so many people for a loop. I went with an Adamant nature and 96 attack EVs because this is exactly the EV spread you need to 1HKO Alakazam with Sucker Punch. They never see it coming and it's so good. Just be careful it's not the Focus Sash variety or you'll need to get Mienshao's Fake Out to help finish it off.
Conclusion:
This is a fun team that makes use of underused mons for the tier and actually results in wins. It excels at dealing with weather teams as well as offensive teams while offering enough utility/damage to deal with most stall teams. However, its biggest weakness is the lack of access to Roar and Taunt. Substitute users can often set up in front of these mons and leave you with no way of winning. Reuniclus is this team's biggest threat. Other than Dragon Tailing it away there is quite literally nothing you can do against it since Magic Guard prevents Toxic from working. Other than that, the team works nicely together and covers each other's threats if played well. I believe this is a team that is more reliant on player skill than anything and I'd love it if you guys would give it a shot and see if you can make any adjustments I might have missed. Thanks for reading!
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