Sadly, I am unable to test this team, since Kitsunoh's playtest is way over. I've been fiddling around with an all-steel team for a while, and it seems the natural strategy for an all-steel team is stall. Sadly, there are no steel spinblockers. I decided I'd make a team with Kitsunoh, the ghost/steel CAP from a while ago. This is my first real stall team, and it's largely untested, so expect it to be pretty rough. When you make suggestions, though, I would like it if you kept in mind the two themes of the team: all-steel and stall.
Bronzong @ Lum Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/84 Atk/80 Def/92 SDef
Sassy nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
- Payback
- Stealth Rock
My lead can usually set up a stealth rock or explode to start the game 5-5. Bronzong was partially chosen for Levitate, since over half my team is weak to ground. He can also use Payback to take out Rotom-A, which I have trouble with.
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 240 HP/160 Def/32 Spd/76 SDef
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Wish
- Thunder Wave
Healing is important on a stall team, and since only one of my pokemon has a reliable recovery move, Wish support really helps me out. Jirachi also scouts for me after an Explosion, uses Thunder Wave to keep sweepers under control, and Thunder Wave/Iron Head hax to kill a couple of pokemon I have trouble with, the most important being Infernape.
Kitsunoh (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Limber
EVs: 16 HP/240 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- ShadowStrike
- Substitute
- Superpower
- Will-o-wisp
Kitsunoh is the only pokemon I've never even played with. Ideally, I'd bring it in on a Spinner and force them out. So... Starmie dies to ShadowStrike, Forretress is crippled by Will-o-Wisp. Don't know what I'd do against the rare Tentacruel or Donphan, though. Kitsunoh can also absorb Fighting attacks, which I had serious problems with before Kitsunoh appeared. And burning enemies is great when you're trying to whittle the enemy down slowly while reducing the damage you take. One last thing: ShadowStrike off of that great speed stat should let me kill slower ghost-types like Dusknoir and non-scarfed Rotom-A.
Forretress (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP/112 Atk/144 Def
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Rapid Spin
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
- Toxic Spikes
Emergency demolitionist, Dragonite counter (by way of Explosion), Toxic Spiker, and great Spinner. She often comes in on Scizors or after my Bronzong Explodes. Usually if the enemy has SR but no spikes and Forretress forces somebody out, I'll use Toxic Spikes instead of Rapid Spin, since most of my team resists SR and I don't want to waste a turn if they send in a spinblocker. I have thought about giving Forretress Spikes in addition to or replacing Toxic Spikes, allowing me to drop Skarmory.
Heatran (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP/4 SAtk/252 SDef
Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Lava Plume
- Protect
- Roar
- Earth Power
Heatran is pretty much a necessity on an all-steel team. Fire absorption is very important. This build allows me to counter enemy Heatrans pretty well, which is important because enemy Heatrans are especially good against steel-types. I was running a TormenTran with my non-stall All Steel team, but the Specially Defensive type can cause more switches, and force them with Roar.
Skarmory (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP/64 Atk/192 Def
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Brave Bird
- Spikes
- Roost
- Whirlwind
Skarmory is not a pokemon I have good experiences with, but I haven't found another reliable way to set up Spikes yet. Brave Bird gives me some neutral coverage that most of my other pokemon lack, Whirlwind helps to stack residual damage and eliminate boosters, and from what I've heard, Spikes are pretty much essential for a stall team. He's also immune to Earthquake - a big bonus. Before this team became stall, I had a SubPetaya Empoleon in this slot that performed quite nicely as a sweeper and could take fire attacks better than most my other guys.
So to recap:
My Shoddy Battle teams usually have multiple steels on them, and all of my favorite pokemon are steel-type. When there was a DPPt DS tournament in my town this summer, my team had three steels. I also won that tournament without losing a match. So yeah, I see the steel type as pretty much superior to all others. I know no type can stand on its own, though. This team is just an experiment in how well steel can do on its own. Thanks in advance for making it better.
Bronzong @ Lum Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/84 Atk/80 Def/92 SDef
Sassy nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
- Payback
- Stealth Rock
My lead can usually set up a stealth rock or explode to start the game 5-5. Bronzong was partially chosen for Levitate, since over half my team is weak to ground. He can also use Payback to take out Rotom-A, which I have trouble with.
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 240 HP/160 Def/32 Spd/76 SDef
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Wish
- Thunder Wave
Healing is important on a stall team, and since only one of my pokemon has a reliable recovery move, Wish support really helps me out. Jirachi also scouts for me after an Explosion, uses Thunder Wave to keep sweepers under control, and Thunder Wave/Iron Head hax to kill a couple of pokemon I have trouble with, the most important being Infernape.
Kitsunoh (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Limber
EVs: 16 HP/240 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- ShadowStrike
- Substitute
- Superpower
- Will-o-wisp
Kitsunoh is the only pokemon I've never even played with. Ideally, I'd bring it in on a Spinner and force them out. So... Starmie dies to ShadowStrike, Forretress is crippled by Will-o-Wisp. Don't know what I'd do against the rare Tentacruel or Donphan, though. Kitsunoh can also absorb Fighting attacks, which I had serious problems with before Kitsunoh appeared. And burning enemies is great when you're trying to whittle the enemy down slowly while reducing the damage you take. One last thing: ShadowStrike off of that great speed stat should let me kill slower ghost-types like Dusknoir and non-scarfed Rotom-A.
Forretress (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP/112 Atk/144 Def
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Rapid Spin
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
- Toxic Spikes
Emergency demolitionist, Dragonite counter (by way of Explosion), Toxic Spiker, and great Spinner. She often comes in on Scizors or after my Bronzong Explodes. Usually if the enemy has SR but no spikes and Forretress forces somebody out, I'll use Toxic Spikes instead of Rapid Spin, since most of my team resists SR and I don't want to waste a turn if they send in a spinblocker. I have thought about giving Forretress Spikes in addition to or replacing Toxic Spikes, allowing me to drop Skarmory.
Heatran (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP/4 SAtk/252 SDef
Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Lava Plume
- Protect
- Roar
- Earth Power
Heatran is pretty much a necessity on an all-steel team. Fire absorption is very important. This build allows me to counter enemy Heatrans pretty well, which is important because enemy Heatrans are especially good against steel-types. I was running a TormenTran with my non-stall All Steel team, but the Specially Defensive type can cause more switches, and force them with Roar.
Skarmory (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP/64 Atk/192 Def
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Brave Bird
- Spikes
- Roost
- Whirlwind
Skarmory is not a pokemon I have good experiences with, but I haven't found another reliable way to set up Spikes yet. Brave Bird gives me some neutral coverage that most of my other pokemon lack, Whirlwind helps to stack residual damage and eliminate boosters, and from what I've heard, Spikes are pretty much essential for a stall team. He's also immune to Earthquake - a big bonus. Before this team became stall, I had a SubPetaya Empoleon in this slot that performed quite nicely as a sweeper and could take fire attacks better than most my other guys.
So to recap:
My Shoddy Battle teams usually have multiple steels on them, and all of my favorite pokemon are steel-type. When there was a DPPt DS tournament in my town this summer, my team had three steels. I also won that tournament without losing a match. So yeah, I see the steel type as pretty much superior to all others. I know no type can stand on its own, though. This team is just an experiment in how well steel can do on its own. Thanks in advance for making it better.