[BW2]Magical Rain

MAGICAL RAIN

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(Credit to Despoo from Deviantart)

So with Pokemon Black 2 and Pokemon White 2 having just released in Japan a few days ago, I decided to make myself a Rain team with all the new toys available for them, we don't even know how many of these toys will stay with us after the first round of banning so I wanted to take advantage and abuse them as much as I could.This team has been doing pretty well for me using the offensive core of Keldeo, Thundurus-T and Haxorus which can all be game changers on their day.I use Ferrothorn simply to take hits, set up hazards and slow stuff down which is nice for every team.Scizor is a scout and is needed early and mid game and if needed can sweep late game.This team has been fun to use but I see lots of problems such as the lack of a spinner and other rain teams seem to be annoying I hope you can help me out with those.
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TEAM BUILDING

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It's a rain team so I started off with Politoed, I decided to go for the 3 Attacks Bulky set.

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Keldeo was added to abuse rain.


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I added Thundurus because it paired well with Keldeo and kept the offensive theme up.


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Haxorus was added to complete the offensive core as it s a very deadly sweeper in the rain with its new move Aqua Tail.


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Scizor was added to help form a Volt Turn core with Thundurus and keep momentum, the added bonus of cutting fire type damage by 50% is a nice bonus.


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Ferrothorn was added to give the team hazards, thunder wave support and tank hits.

POKEMON INFORMATION

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Politoed @ Leftovers
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 232 HP / 252 SAtk / 24 Spd
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Focus Blast
- Ice Beam
- Perish Song

This set is pretty standard, Harsha suggested it ti me when he was tutoring me in round 62 of battling 101 for a different rain team and since them I have not looked back and have been using it on all my rain teams.Hydro Pump is the main move I use cause of its STAB+Rain Boost on a 120 power attack is deadly but the accuracy annoys me every alternate game.Ice Beam and Focus blast are for added coverage to Hit Pokemon like Tyranitar, Ferrothorn and dragons.The EVS are for good bulk but not cutting down on my special attacking power and leftovers help for recovery.

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Keldeo @ Life Orb
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ghost]

Keldeo is a pretty good set up Pokemon in the new metagame if you can get rid of Tornadus and Thundurus-T, those are the main checks flying around but scarf Pokemon with supper effective moves or +1 Dragons can annoy Keldeo so I usually dont bring Keldeo out until its completely safe for me.Calm Mind is staple of the set to set up , Hydro Pump(assuming it hits) dents pretty much everything in Rain, Secret Sword is used as great secondary STAB and hits stuff like Ferrothorn and Tyranitar, Hidden Power ghost is just so that I dont get walled by Jellicent and also helps me kill Latias, Latios and Starmie that are big threats to Keldeo.Life Orb and EVS are standard for an offensive sweeper, have been thinking of using Lum Berry to make set up more easy.Credit goes to Makaveli for this set.

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Thundurus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naive Nature
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Superpower
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Thundurus-T in the rain has got to be the best Choice Scarf user in the game in my opinion, its STAB Thunder alone helps to run through teams late game assuming opponents Thundurus T and Ground types are dead which is not hard with Hidden Power Ice and water attacks in my team.Thunder is to fry stuff, Volt Switch maintains momentum and scouts.Superpower gets a clean OHKO on Tyranitar and 2hkos incoming Blissey and finally Hidden Power Ice is for dragons, ground typs and mainly other birds.0 HP evs let me switch into Stealth Rock 5 times which is nice.

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Haxorus @ Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Aqua Tail

Rain Haxorus has proven to be one of my favorite set up sweepers in the current metagame because its very easy to set up on stuff like Ferrothorn, Blisseys, Chanseys and Lum Berry make sit even more easy.Its simple after the Dragon Dance, Outrage dents or KOs everything, Earthquake gives me added coverage while Aqua Tail is to nab clean OHKOs on Scizor and Gliscor under the rain.This guy has been the MVP in most of my games and if theres one Pokemon I dont plan to replace its Haxorus.

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Scizor @ Choice Band
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower

Do I really need to go through this.. OK click here for the description http://oi47.tinypic.com/54d4pd.jpg . Other than that it scouts with U-Turn, Traps with Pursuit, Kills with Super Power.Your typical Scizor.

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Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Protect
- Gyro Ball

Meet Ferrothorn.Oh wait I think you already have because pretty much every rain team in the new metagame has one to set up hazards and for a good reason this thing has some very good defenses to take advantage of with a good Steel and Grass typing which works even better in the rain with Fire weakness reduced.Stealth rock is essential, Protect helps me scout choiced pokemon.Thunder Wave helps slow stuff down and hax stuff which helps every team and Gyro Ball is for stuff like Terrakion etc that think they can set up on me.

IF YOU WANT TO STEAL IT

PHP:
Haxorus @ Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Aqua Tail

Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Protect
- Gyro Ball

Thundurus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naive Nature
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Superpower
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Politoed @ Leftovers
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 232 HP / 252 SAtk / 24 Spd
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Focus Blast
- Ice Beam
- Perish Song

Keldeo @ Life Orb
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ghost]

Scizor @ Choice Band
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower
 
Never rated a team before but I accept a request so here I go(I dont get paid enough to do this). I'm not too familiar with BW2 so I can't really give you optimal sets, but from what I can see your team doesn't handle Tornadus-T too well and you are pretty much banking that the scarf from Thunderus-T will get the "surprise" KO or you have to sac something to bring Thunderus-T safely. I also think you struggle against like Terrakion/Lucario/strong fighting moves in general. Plus the fact you don't have a spinner makes those weaknesses much more exploitable. Thunderus-T holds alot of responsibilities, yet there is no spinner for him to last long at all.

To handle part of this overall problem I reccommend replacing Keldeo with a bulky Starmie just because Keldeo is the most replacable at the moment so you don't become more electric weak. It allows you to Spin and take a lot of burden off Thunderus-T by dealing with Fighting moves/pokes as well.

Replace Keldeo with

Starmie:
Timid-252HP/24Def/8SpAtk/224Spe
Scald
Psychic/Psyshock
Recover
Rapid Spin


From what I can see hitting 354 speed might not be that important in BW2, so perhaps you can invest some of that speed into Def or Spatk. I suggest having enough speed to at least outrun Terrakion. Helps against tornadus-t a little because it can take a non specs hurricane at close to full health.

My last suggestion only if you are struggling with Tornadus-T, is to replace Ferrothorn with an Eviolite Chansey since you are pretty much using Ferrothorn just to SR and offer paralysis support. Eviolite Chansey can do the same and offers better protection versus Tornadus-T and it can offer Wish support to your team which would help your team alot, especially Thunderus-T. It might make you a little more weak to dragons but i think with scizor and scarf Thunderus-T it won't be that much of an issue.


Replace Ferro with
Chansey:
Bold-252HP/252Def/4Spdef
Thunder Wave/Toxic
Seismic Toss
Softboil/Wish
Stealth Rock/Protect


Im also not a fan of the politoad set, but that is just a preference thing. If it works for you keep it, but if politoad is kind of dead weight then I would try either a Bold defensive set with Ice beam or a Scarf set for an extra line of defense versus the threats I mentioned before.

I find this metagame to be total shit, so hopefully my opinions will be of some help. This is also the first time I gave a serious rate so I dont have a fancy format like the other raters(fuck those fancy formats). Good luck with your team

EDIT:
If you are worried about Outrage, Scarf Politoad can revenge kill if they dont have +1 boost in speed, or Bold Poli can tank one hit at +1atk and hit back. You can also make Scizor and SD uturn Roost Bullet punch to keep it around longer and make it bulkier. The evs would be something along the lines of 248HP with 172SpDef and rest in AtK. But seeing as you have Chansey to handle special attackers. You can shift the evs around to get an optimal attacking power while having enough DEF evs to tank two +1 outrages. I'm not sure what exact what spread scizor can use but just some ideas to patch that Dragon weakness up.
 
Never rated a team before but I accept a request so here I go(I dont get paid enough to do this). I'm not too familiar with BW2 so I can't really give you optimal sets, but from what I can see your team doesn't handle Tornadus-T too well and you are pretty much banking that the scarf from Thunderus-T will get the "surprise" KO or you have to sac something to bring Thunderus-T safely. I also think you struggle against like Terrakion/Lucario/strong fighting moves in general. Plus the fact you don't have a spinner makes those weaknesses much more exploitable. Thunderus-T holds alot of responsibilities, yet there is no spinner for him to last long at all.

To handle part of this overall problem I reccommend replacing Keldeo with a bulky Starmie just because Keldeo is the most replacable at the moment so you don't become more electric weak. It allows you to Spin and take a lot of burden off Thunderus-T by dealing with Fighting moves/pokes as well.

Replace Keldeo with

Starmie:
Timid-252HP/24Def/8SpAtk/224Spe
Scald
Psychic/Psyshock
Recover
Rapid Spin


From what I can see hitting 354 speed might not be that important in BW2, so perhaps you can invest some of that speed into Def or Spatk. I suggest having enough speed to at least outrun Terrakion. Helps against tornadus-t a little because it can take a non specs hurricane at close to full health.

My last suggestion only if you are struggling with Tornadus-T, is to replace Ferrothorn with an Eviolite Chansey since you are pretty much using Ferrothorn just to SR and offer paralysis support. Eviolite Chansey can do the same and offers better protection versus Tornadus-T and it can offer Wish support to your team which would help your team alot, especially Thunderus-T. It might make you a little more weak to dragons but i think with scizor and scarf Thunderus-T it won't be that much of an issue.


Replace Ferro with
Chansey:
Bold-252HP/252Def/4Spdef
Thunder Wave/Toxic
Seismic Toss
Softboil/Wish
Stealth Rock/Protect


Im also not a fan of the politoad set, but that is just a preference thing. If it works for you keep it, but if politoad is kind of dead weight then I would try either a Bold defensive set with Ice beam or a Scarf set for an extra line of defense versus the threats I mentioned before.

I find this metagame to be total shit, so hopefully my opinions will be of some help. This is also the first time I gave a serious rate so I dont have a fancy format like the other raters(fuck those fancy formats). Good luck with your team
Thanks for the rate peachy, many people have been suggesting Starmie over Keldeo so it will probably be taking its spot, rapid spin support will help this team so much I cant tell ya. Chansey seems better to play against the new birds but like you said it makes me Outrage prone and especially DDnite weak cause it can just Espeed Thundurus but Im still going to give it a shot and let you know how it goes.
 
Starmie has been amazing, I love that spread Peachy it still has enough RAW power for me but the bulk is a real nice touch.

Will update post soon
 
Your team sports several gaping weaknesses to common, and dangerous, threats in the new BW2 metagame. Rain Volc, SD Toxicroak, and CM Jirachi are some of the most devastating setup sweepers in rain at the moment and your team loses to all of them. At +1, LO Offensive Volc with a set of FB/Hurricane/Giga Drain 6-0s your team, setting up on choice locked moves, scizor's BP, etc. SD Croak sets up also on choice locked moves, Toed, and Ferrothorn, while Jirachi will run rampant after coming in on Ferro and proceed to create huge problems for the team. Since Toed, Ferro, Starmie, and Haxorus are probably mons that you want to stick with, the least obtrusive change I can think of here that can deal somewhat with all of the aforementioned threats is Bulldoze on Ferro. Bulldoze lets you drop your opponent's Speed, preventing Volc from sweeping you. It also hits Jirachi and Croak, while adding extra insurance against Magnezone. Often this change requires you to add Attack EVs, but I've found that too much investment is necessary to gurantee you break 252 HP Jirachi's Subs every time that it's not worth the loss in bulk.

Croak, and in particular fighting types like Breloom will still pose huge problems regardless. A change I would recommend is Jolly Mamoswine, which can outspeed Croak and Lucario (or take a Sucker Punch/Espeed), and KO with Earthquake while also finishing Breloom off with Ice Shard, in addition to also revenging Dragons & the new Therian forms. You'd still need to play around Spore, of course. Focus Sash is a possibility here if you want extra insurance to revenge Volcarona, in which case Stone Edge will be necessary.

Mamoswine @ Life Orb/Focus Sash
Trait: Thick Fat
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
-Ice Shard
-Earthquake
-Stealth Rock/Icicle Crash
-Stone Edge/Superpower

Stealth Rock is an option as well to free up a moveslot on Ferro to use Bulldoze. Also, I'd recommend using Superpower over Earthquake on Haxorus to get past opposing Ferros, and Power Whip over Protect on Ferro in order to take out Gastros, which can be huge pain in the ass for your team.

Summary of Changes:
Scizor -> Mamoswine
Thunder Wave on Ferro -> Bulldoze
Protect on Ferro -> Power Whip
Earthquake on Haxorus -> Superpower
 
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