Cya SD Luke:)

[Mustang21]

So, I'm just starting in competitive battling and really want to become good at it. Lucario is prob. my favorite competitive poke and i was searching for some new sets and found this endure/reversal set. I used it on one of my old standard teams (replaced the standard SD Lucario) and won several straight with it. It was then I decided to build a team around this reversal Luke and here it is..

Team Building Process

So I started with Lucario and found immediately that i had to get rid of gyrados, starmie and ghosts if my main attacking move was reversal. Rotom Cut has always been my favorite rotom form so I decided to use him.

Continuing on the path of using some of my favorite pokemon and sets, I remember the days of NBZ using his tyrana-boah on his sandstorm team and its ability to break stall. With stall usually being a main problem for sandstorm teams, I wanted to use a BOAH so i added that to the team.

Next I needed an entry hazard poke if i wanted to be successful, basically either forretress or skarm. Even though i think skarm is a whore, i never really cared much for forretress and never rly had trouble facing one, therefore i decided to put skarm on my team

I now noticed that a fire weakness was coming up and I was in desperate need of an electric resistance. I've loved dugtrio since pokemon red when i used to catch one in diglett cave so overleveled and destroy the electric type gym. So Dugtrio was my next team member, the best revenge killer in the game in my opinion. He just traps so many threats to my team and takes them out without them being able to do anything.

The last spot on my team was a tough one, and one that i'm still trying to choose, I originally put a bliss here, but she never contributed much. Starmie was my next experimental poke to put here and it worked quite well, Starmie is one of my favorite pokes and brought good synergy, another fire resist and and nice attacking coverage.

SO there it is my final product..

Well.. almost, i tested the team some and through suggestions made some changes to the team. It's current state is..

Red Font indicates change from my original team.

In Depth

Tyranitar@chesto berry
EVs: 252HP 40Atk 216SpDef
Ability: Sand Stream
Nature: Careful (+SpDef -SpAtk)
~Payback
~EQ
~Stealth Rock
~Taunt
As suggested by BKC, I have switched my original BOAH lead to a bulkier T-tar. Chesto Berry is for the sleep leads i had trouble with and Taunt has been very useful for slower leads such as Hippo trying to set up. The SpDef investment + the Sandstorm SpcDef boost allows me to take on lead Heatran nicely. Sandstorm + Payback defeats azelf leads with ease and they can't do much except set up rocks. This team has finally found a solid lead.

Skarmory@leftovers
EV's: 252HP 220Def 36Spd
Abliity: Keen Eye
Nature: Impish (+Def -SpAtk)
~Spikes
~Whirlwind
~Roost
~Brave Bird
Best physical wall in the game no doubt. This thing can roost, phaze, set up entry hazards all day. Really annoys everybody and just scouts my opponets team for suprises they would prefer to be left hidden. Leftovers over Shed Shell because if magnezone wants to come in, i just whirlwind on the first turn i'm trapped in case he wants to set up, if he just kills me, my own magnezone can trap him right back and HP ground him dead. The Spread has helped me tank the Metagross/Machamp i was having trouble with (Thanks to Zeph.) With reliable recovery in Roost, Skarm is usually around for a long time.

Rotom Cut Form @ choice specs
EV's 252SpAtk 252Spd 4SpDef
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Timid (+Speed -Atk)
~Thunderbolt
~Leaf Storm
~Trick
~Shadow Ball
My counter to bulky waters, specifically Swampert. Also really helps with ghosts that give Luke trouble late game. OHKOs Dusknoir and Rotom. Pure power and great coverage. Also can cripple many pokes with trick, rendering them essentially useless. Not much really wants to take specs boosted stab from rotom. Forces a lot of switches and blocks any attempts to spin away my hazards.

Magnezone@choice scarf
EVs: 252SpAtk 252Spd 4SpDef
Ability: Magnet Pull
Nature: Naive (+SpAtk -SpDef)
~Thunderbolt
~Flash Cannon
~HP Ground
~Explosion
Only complete switch of pokes I made on this team. Credit to 2sly4u. This thing has been absolute class. It just wrecks any steel if I can get it safely in. Rachi, Scizor, Metagross, Heatran the list goes on. Easy enough to use, come in on a steel, use great coverage to destroy it while taking pitiful damage. Handles Skarm better than anything I've ever seen. If something is really annoying me, I bring in this to explode on it. Works beautifully on this team.

Starmie@life orb
EVs: 252SpAtk 252 Speed 4SpDef
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Timid (+Speed -Atk)
~Hydro Pump
~T-Bolt
~Ice Beam
~Recover/Rapid Spin
Starmie..this thing is so reliable either as a lead or a late game menace I use recover over rapid spin because my team isnt really hurt by entry hazards. (4 neutral, 1 resistance, 1 4x resistance to SR) And with life orb and sandstorm, this thing needs recovery. this thing catches a TON of ghosts trying to switch in and block spin with a Hydro Pump to the face. Great coverage, and once my opponents special wall is gone, this thing wreaks havoc.

Lucario@salac berry
EVs: 252Atk 252Speed 4HP
Ability: Steadfast
Nature: Adamant (+Atk -SpAtk)
~Endure
~Reversal
~Swords Dance
~Ice Punce
The most powerful Lucario set I've ever used. Late game, this thing cannot be handled. No priority users left on your team? Game over. I switch this thing into something that can't hurt it late game, set up a dance as they switch into a "counter" and endure on the hit. Get the salac berry and unleash a base 200 Stab move. This guy OHKOs Hippowdon thinking they can take the hit and eq. Absolute Class for my team. I never bring it out until deep in the match. Ice Punch is for gliscor and low hp ghosts. The only ones that can survive a max power reversal. Such a beast..

Thanks for reading my first RMT, i am very open to suggestions and constructive critism. Just makes sure it is CONSTRUCTIVE.. alright guys peace out.

 

[BKC]

Instead of your current Tyranitar, I'd try running a Careful natured Chesto Berry set with an EV spread of 252 HP / 40 Atk / 216 SpD and a moveset of Stealth Rock | Payback | Taunt | Earthquake. Your current set isn't very effective because of the presence of leads like Hippowdon and Roserade; Boah is more of a mid-game Pokemon. The set I recommended beats sleep leads with Chesto Berry+Payback+sandstorm negating Focus Sash, beats Heatran reliably thanks to its high special bulk, and prevents slow bulky leads like Hippo and Forretress from setting up hazards. If you want to extend its longevity, you can try Rest in place of Taunt.

Now that you're running Stealth Rock on Tyranitar, you can drop it on Skarmory's moveset for an all-out Spiker, which is more effective than running both hazards because it takes pressure off him to lay both up and gives him an opportunity to run a useful fourth move. I suggest trying a spread of 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD (keep the Impish nature) so you can spike on a wider variety of Pokemon, such as Vaporeon, Celebi, and Flamethrower Blissey. Skarm's base defense is so high that you won't miss too much physical bulk. Also, I'd run Taunt in the last slot; this works really well in conjunction with Whirlwind because you can force switches and prevent bulky Pokemon from healing off spikes damage.

With these changes I think your team will be extremely solid. I do think that you might want to try Agility Lucario, though; it works extremely well with spikes weakening its switchins, still defeats its #1 counter (Gliscor), and it has more coverage than your current set. Close Combat | Ice Punch | Crunch would be an ideal moveset. Just a few things to consider, good luck.

 

[2sly4u]

Hi Mustang21!

Let me start by saying that I really like your team. It's nice to see people who aren't using the bog standard sets. However, I have a few tweaks that could really help you out.

The biggest threat to your Lucario sweep is obviously priority. Two of the more common priority users are Scizor and Bullet Punch Metagross. Sure, you can burn them with Rotom, but that doesn't stop them from doing the 1 HP necessary to kill your late-game sweeper. For this reason, your team needs to find a way to take these pokemon out of the match. Hence, my first suggestion:

1) Replace Dugtrio with a Magnezone. Scarftran really isn't all that threatening to your Lucario's sweep. After Salac activates, you're always faster and can OHKO with Reversal. Magneton can take out three bigger threats: Scizor, Metagross, and Scarfrachi. I'd recommend the Choice Scarf set:

Magnezone@Choice Scarf
Naive nature, 252SpA, 4SpD, 252Spe
Thunderbolt
Flash Cannon
HP Ground/HP Fire
Explosion

Thunderbolt is your main attacking move, while Flash Cannon is secondary STAB. The hidden power is a matter of preference; HP Ground lets you revenge non-scarf Heatran, while HP Fire will net OHKOs against Scizor and Forretress. Explosion lets you take out other pokemon who threaten your sweep, such as Extremespeed Dragonite.

Your other problem is ghost-types, especially defensive Rotom and Dusknoir. Most Rotom can easily live a +2 Ice Punch and pick you off, while Dusknoir even has priority Shadow Sneak. For this reason, I'd change your Rotom to a Choice Specs variant:

Rotom-C@Choice Specs
Timid Nature, 4Def 252SpA, 252Spe
Trick
Shadow Ball
Leaf Storm
Thunderbolt/Discharge

The biggest advantage this Rotom has over the one you do now is its raw power; After Stealth Rocks, Shadow Ball has a 100% of KOing standard Dusknoir; most will stay in, trying to 2HKO with Shadow Sneak. Bulky Rotoms who think they can tank a hit will meet a similar fate. This set also still beats Bulky Waters, who won't appreciate a Specs boosted Leaf Storm or electric-move. If you can't get past something with your raw power, just trick it your Choice item and cripple it for the rest of the match. Discharge is an option over Thunderbolt if you still want to spread status, but you miss out on key OHKOs, such as RestTalk Suicune.

That's all I have. Good luck!

 

[Mustang21]

@BKC
i have changed my Boah lead to the Careful one and it has really remedied the common weaknesses my Boah had to other leads. Skarm is a bigger player on my team thanks to that change as well.

@2sly4u
I like your magnezone idea, i had the idea of a zone with sub | charge beam | hp ice | flash cannon to set up on steels i trap, but could you please give me some feedback on the advantages of scarf zone? and i really like my rotom set but i will definetly give yours a try and get back to you on how it works because as you said, a rotom has ruined my luke sweep before.

Thanks to both of you guys for your Rates, I was a casual player who had kinda outgrew pokemon and haven't bought a game since D/P. But i found some of xerxes'/nbzs battles on youtube, did some research and now I'm rly getting into competitive play. Thanks again for your input, i enjoy reading it :)

 

[2sly4u]

Great question. Scarfzone has four big advantages over SubCharge Magnezone:

1) Scarfzone can revenge non-scarfed Heatran. SubCharge, on the other hand is outsped and OHKO'd by Earth Power/any Fire move.

2) Scarfzone can explode on threatening sweepers, such as SD Gliscor or CM Suicune. Subcharge Magnezone either outsped, or cannot do sufficient damage before being KO'd. It can also Explode on and maim Physically Defensive Zapdos, who can tank a hit from a +2 Ice Punch or Reversal -with some luck- and KO Lucario (I just ran the calcs; Ice Punch does 67.9%-80.1%.)

3)SubCharge Magnezone has trouble against many Steel-types that every other Magnezone can beat. For example, Charge Beam is not a OHKO on specially defensive Skarmory, who can then Whirlwind you out and Roost off the damage later. SubCharge 'Zone is also beaten by Scizor with Superpower, unless it packs HP Fire. The SubCharge variant is meant more as a Tank than a Trapper, using its many resistances (the most in the game) to force switches as it sets up. The ability to trap Steels is generally more useful to you, so you should capitalize on that as opposed to his limited sweeping potential.

4) Even if you do manage to set up, SubCharge 'zone is pretty easy to revenge. It's really slow; even Tyranitar outspeeds it. In order to work well, a SubCharge set needs teammates to take out Fire, Ground, and Fighting-types before it sets up. This pushes it into a late-game role, which is of course already occupied by Lucario.

I hope that clarifies things. Good luck!

 

[Mustang21]

This team has done well since the changes, I think its record stands at 7-4 currently, (should have been 8-3 except for some sand veil hax on his gliscor from my lukes ice punch when it was 2-2 but whatever.) Its the way I lost the other 3 that really concerns me. I'm having a lot of trouble with hard hitting physical attackers like machamp and metagross, specifically agiligross. I used to be able to go to rotom and burn them so they'd be no trouble.. but now if the Metagross has Tpunch for skarm, its gonna do a ton of damage to my team. And in two of the matches these two did so much damage, i was forced to bring in luke when i was clueless about 1 or 2 of their guys.. I don't remember having this much difficulty with these pokes before, but specs rotom has helped with other rotoms, although i haven't yet seen a dusknoir. I was considering maybe a gengar for a way to deal with rotom and noir, prob scarf to outspeed other gengars and switching back to my old rotom set, but i don't want to upset the balance i've built.. Please, any suggestions?

 

[Zephyr]

Hey man, so I thought about your concerns with Machamp and Agiligross and what could be done to your team in the simplest way possible that will help make a big difference in being able to handle them and here is the solution I came up with; the Skarmory set following will allow you to be able to tank any of Agiligross's hits very well and then proceed to Whirlwind it out, along with being able to enhance how well you deal with Machamp (along with a lot of other physical sweepers in general). With a defensive minded set it can now do the aforementioned things. Brave Bird will also allow you to do heavy damage to Machamp while you take any of its attacks. If you still find that Machamp is just too troublesome for you due to confusion luck, I did leave Lum Berry as an option, which should let you beat Machamp in nearly any scenario, but I'd stick with Leftovers unless truly needed. here it is:

Skarmory@leftovers / Lum Berry
EV's: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Speed
Abliity: Keen Eye
Nature: Impish (+Def -SpAtk)
-Spikes
-Whirlwind
-Roost
-Brave Bird

Hope this helps, Good Luck!

 

[2sly4u]

If you still find that Machamp is just too troublesome for you due to confusion luck, I did leave Lum Berry as an option, which should let you beat Machamp in nearly any scenario, but I'd stick with Leftovers unless truly needed. here it is:

Skarmory@leftovers / Lum Berry
EV's: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Speed
Abliity: Keen Eye
Nature: Impish (+Def -SpAtk)
-Spikes
-Whirlwind
-Roost
-Brave Bird

Hope this helps, Good Luck!

Just to add onto what he's already said, I can personally vouch for the Lum Berry. It's a huge help with Machamp, and I usually don't miss the Leftovers recovery thanks to Roost.