Marnie's Morpeko!
️A National Dex OU Team by _Spooky
Introduction
Hi everyone! Welcome to my newest National Dex team. For those who don't know me, I try to bring low usage or underrated Pokemon in to mid or high ladder, this time centered around Morpeko. For anyone who may attempt to use this team, or Morpeko in general,
be warned... Morpeko has almost no competetive viability.
Team at a Glance
(Click any sprite to open the Poképaste!)
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Team Building Process
I wanted to build around Morpeko because… look at him. He’s adorable, and it would be hilarious to lose to him. Luckily Morpeko has a really great and unique mechanic between it's ability Hunger Switch and signature move Aura Wheel. If you don't know what that means, every turn Morpeko changes form between Full-Belly mode and Hangry mode. This on its own does nothing. But tied with the signature move, Aura Wheel changes types between electric and dark, as well as provides a +1 speed boost each time it successfully hits.
Scizor-Mega provides great support and utility to Morpeko as it can weaken and can safely pivot to Morpeko with it's stab U-Turn. It is also a source of Priority with it's stab + technician boosted Bullet Punch. I chose a specially defensive spread. Overall, Scizor-Mega is generally just a great Pokemon on most teams.
Zapdos was obviously the next pick as it has great physically defensive capabilities and pairs amazingly with Scizor-Mega, with a nice bulky Volt-Turn support to keep momentum as well being able to safely pivot to Morpeko
Next I added Slowking-Galar to aid Scizor-Mega on the specially defensive side of things, and to act as great coverage that can further weaken Pokemon over time. It is also by far the safest Pokemon to pivot in Morpeko with it's move Chilly Reception
Since this team has a lot of momentum and bulk, but lacks any fast and immediate threats, Iron Valiant is a great general Pokemon to fill this role. Booster Energy raising speed stat, and Swords dance to setup sweep mid to late game. It is there to take out other fast and immediate threats when needed.
I was kind of unsure about the last slot on the team. I wanted another fast Pokemon so I'm not solely relying on Iron Valiant, but I also wanted more variety in coverage. Ogerpon-Cornerstone is a great Pokemon with it's boosted Power Whip and rock-type Ivy Cudgel. Swords Dance to setup sweep and Encore to aid opportunities to swords dance safely, or U-turn to keep keep momentum and safely bring in another Pokemon.
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The Team
Morpeko @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Hunger Switch
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Aura Wheel
- Psychic Fangs
- Stomping Tantrum
- Endure
Morpeko @ Life Orb
Ability: Hunger Switch
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Aura Wheel
- Psychic Fangs
- Parting Shot
- Protect
Morpeko is the star of the show. With it's ability and signature move, it holds at least some competitive viability. Above there are two different Morpeko sets I used that I found success in, each one with it's pros and cons.
Weakness Policy Moveset
This moveset allows Morpeko to sweep matches, If you manage to activate Weakness Policy and have a speed boost from Aura Wheel, as long as there is no opposing Pokemon with higher speeds than 483, you can confidently sweep the opposing team with the +2 Attack boosts. Endure ensures you are able to proc Weakness Policy, as well lets you switch between Full-Belly and Hangry mode whenever needed. Psychic Fangs is also there for Fighting-Type coverage. The only downside with this moveset is that you have to commit to Morpeko when you bring him on field.Life Orb Moveset
This moveset is the opposite as the Weakness Policy moveset. This moveset lets you bring in and utilize Morpeko multiple times in a match. Protect replaces Endure, as we want to maintain what little bulk we have. Parting Shot replaces Stomping Tantrum, because it lets us safely pivot out while Morpeko at least brings meaningful usage towards the team. This does slightly limit the damage possibility you would get from Weakness Policy.Scizor-Mega @ Scizorite
Ability: Technician
EVs: 232 Atk / 252 SpD / 24 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Roost
Standard Scizor-Mega moveset that helps keep momentum and find opportunities to pivot into Morpeko. Bullet Punch has stab, Technician boost, and priority. U-Turn has stab and momentum. Close Combat provides great coverage. Roost heals +50% HP. I put (almost) full Attack EVs and Adamant nature to maximize immediate damage since most times on this team Scizor will just be U-Turning right away. I put max Special Defense EVs equalize it's Defense and Special Defense. I put 24 Speed EVs to just outspeed Heatran with 4 EVs in speed.
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Hurricane
- Defog
- Roost
Standard Zapdos moveset that help keeps momentum and find opportunities to pivot into Morpeko. Volt Switch has stab and momentum. Hurricane has stab and can confuse. Defog is vital to removing hazards since this is a volt-turn/momentum based team. Roost heals +50% HP. I put full defensive EVs to act as a physical wall against strong physically attacking Pokemon.
Slowking-Galar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Flamethrower
- Sludge Wave
- Future Sight
- Chilly Reception
Standard Slowking-Galar moveset that help keeps momentum and find opportunities to pivot into Morpeko. Flamethrower as coverage, specifically against Ferrothorn. Sludge Wave has stab and a chance to poison. Future Sight has stab and pairs amazingly with volt-turn/momentum based teams. Chilly Reception to change weathers and momentum. I put full specially defensive EVs to act as a special wall against strong specially attacking Pokemon. I also put minimum IVs in Speed and Sassy nature to ensure that this Pokemon is the last to move, especially when using Chilly Reception.
Iron Valiant @ Booster Energy
Ability: Quark Drive
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Spirit Break
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Swords Dance
Standard Iron Valiant moveset that has great speed and offensive capabilities. Spirit Break has stab and lowers opposing Pokemon's Special Attack by +1 stage. Close Combat has stab and great power. Knock Off has great coverage and will remove the opposing Pokemon's held Item with a boosted 97.5 base power. Swords Dance for setup sweeping with +2 stages of Attack. I put full Speed and Attack EVs with Jolly nature to ensure the Booster Energy procs +1 stages to Speed instead of * 1.3 to Attack.
:sv/Ogerpon-Cornerstone]
Ogerpon-Cornerstone (F) @ Cornerstone Mask
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ivy Cudgel
- Power Whip
- U-turn / Encore
- Swords Dance
Standard Ogerpon-Cornerstone moveset that has good speed and offensive capabilities. Ivy Cudgel has rock-type stab. Power Whip has stab and is boosted by Cornerstone Mask. U-turn to keep momentum. Encore to aid the use of Swords Dance safely. Swords dance for setup sweeping with +2 stages of Attack. I put full Speed and Attack EVs with Jolly Nature. Sturdy also allows this Pokemon to survive at least 1 attack at full HP, which can be very useful in some situations.
Ogerpon-Cornerstone (F) @ Cornerstone Mask
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ivy Cudgel
- Power Whip
- U-turn / Encore
- Swords Dance
Standard Ogerpon-Cornerstone moveset that has good speed and offensive capabilities. Ivy Cudgel has rock-type stab. Power Whip has stab and is boosted by Cornerstone Mask. U-turn to keep momentum. Encore to aid the use of Swords Dance safely. Swords dance for setup sweeping with +2 stages of Attack. I put full Speed and Attack EVs with Jolly Nature. Sturdy also allows this Pokemon to survive at least 1 attack at full HP, which can be very useful in some situations.
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Threatlist
- Some of the more difficult matchups for this team are Great Tusk as it fully resists Morpeko and has enough HP and Defense to shrug off Psychic Fangs. It also makes it hard for Zapdos to reliably Defog since a great majority run Ice Spinner or Stone Edge.
- Loaded Dice Garchomp is hard to stop once Iron Valiant has fainted.
- Ting-Lu is just difficult in general because there aren't any immediate threats that can 2-HITKO, allowing it to stealth rocks + Whirlwind, or Ruintation + Whirlwind. It pretty much also walls Zapdos and Slowking-Galar.
- Scarf/Loaded Dice + Dragon Dance Kyurem is also a great threat. Although less common, it can easily bait out Iron Valiant to get rid of it's Booster energy and can weaken and KO a lot of Pokemon to the point where the team fails. Loaded Dice + Dragon Dance Kyurem is very similar to Garchomp where once Iron Valiant has fainted, it is very hard to stop.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading! This team has been very fun to create and play with. Morpeko may not be the greatest, but he's incredibly fun and adorable. There is definitely room for improvement, maybe a more fitting Pokemon than Ogerpon-Cornerstone. Feel free to leave any feedback or optimization suggestions, I'm very curious on any modifications or whether this team has brought you success.
Thanks for reading!
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