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OU DPP OU Teambuilding Competition
- Thread starter Oatmon
- Start date
Voting for Dridri457
Team 3
Congratulations to Jeong for winning the most recent teambuilding competition in a close run with 5 votes to Dridri's 4 out of the 12 cast!
https://pokepast.es/d9adbf8564386e46
Since it is an odd week, the next theme can be any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link), and will be chosen by Jeong as a reward for winning the last competition. If they don’t want to choose, or don’t choose by 23/12/24, then I’ll post a theme by 24/12/24 (GMT).
https://pokepast.es/d9adbf8564386e46
Since it is an odd week, the next theme can be any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link), and will be chosen by Jeong as a reward for winning the last competition. If they don’t want to choose, or don’t choose by 23/12/24, then I’ll post a theme by 24/12/24 (GMT).
Once it's announced you win the competition, comment your choice in a new post with the new theme at the top of the message.
There are some rules as to what you are able to pick.
- For every odd teambuilding competition, you can pick any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link).
- For every even teambuilding competition, you can pick anything you want with no restrictions.
These rules are in place to ensure that we don’t get too many difficult mons to build with in a row, which has caused inactivity in the past.
You can also choose a set or a theme to build with instead of a pokemon. E.g., Build with banded tyranitar, or build with water spam. You can choose more difficult themes if you wish, but please exercise discretion.
Once picked, your choice can't be changed, so bear that in mind.
There are some rules as to what you are able to pick.
- For every odd teambuilding competition, you can pick any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link).
- For every even teambuilding competition, you can pick anything you want with no restrictions.
These rules are in place to ensure that we don’t get too many difficult mons to build with in a row, which has caused inactivity in the past.
You can also choose a set or a theme to build with instead of a pokemon. E.g., Build with banded tyranitar, or build with water spam. You can choose more difficult themes if you wish, but please exercise discretion.
Once picked, your choice can't be changed, so bear that in mind.
Since it's an odd numbered competition, the next theme could be any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR. Jeong chose a scarf Scizor lead as the new theme!
As usual, the winner of this competition gets to choose the next theme.
Once it's announced you win the competition, comment your choice in a new post with the new theme at the top of the message.
There are some rules as to what you are able to pick.
- For every odd teambuilding competition, you can pick any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link).
- For every even teambuilding competition, you can pick anything you want with no restrictions.
These rules are in place to ensure that we don’t get too many difficult mons to build with in a row, which has caused inactivity in the past.
You can also choose a set or a theme to build with instead of a pokemon. E.g., Build with banded tyranitar, or build with water spam. You can choose more difficult themes if you wish, but please exercise discretion.
Once picked, your choice can't be changed, so bear that in mind.
There are some rules as to what you are able to pick.
- For every odd teambuilding competition, you can pick any pokemon from the top 30 of the VR (link).
- For every even teambuilding competition, you can pick anything you want with no restrictions.
These rules are in place to ensure that we don’t get too many difficult mons to build with in a row, which has caused inactivity in the past.
You can also choose a set or a theme to build with instead of a pokemon. E.g., Build with banded tyranitar, or build with water spam. You can choose more difficult themes if you wish, but please exercise discretion.
Once picked, your choice can't be changed, so bear that in mind.
Submissions are open now and will most likely close on December 28, at 11:00 pm GMT, this deadline may be extended if there are less teams due to Christmas. From there we'll move onto voting, which will most likely close on January 4 at 11:00 pm GMT.
Update: The deadline for submission remains the same since there have been 8 teams as of this edit.
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https://pokepast.es/bd322f6c07c7bc7f
I have never built a team with scarf scizor before, and I like building loom tran teams so I started with that.
I opted to use bulky Heatran with Custap Berry to handle special attackers more effectively since Scizor wont have EVs into its bulk. Against starmie you get rocks, tank the surf/hydro pump and then explode with the priority of custap to maintain your rocks, keeping in mind that you have to be careful with the timing of using explosion because heatran is the most reliable tool in this team against Jirachi. Speaking of Jirachi, if Jirachi is getting all the flinches on your heatran, custap also helps to get that fire blast you need to KO it. It also can handle a 1v1 agaisnt zapdos which is important for Petaya Empoleon to sweep
I always like to have 2 pokemons in my team that can handle gyara and since one of them is scarf Rotom, so I added Suicune which can have a solid 1v1 against gyara and also adds water resist to the team. Normally I use timid offensive Suicune if my team needs something to outspeed and almost OHKO max speed Hetran and SD Lucario effectively, but since I have scarf Scizor with Superpower I went for a modest nature on Suicune to OHKO opposing Breloom without CM, hitting gyara and heatran harder and that extra power in special attack can help in a 1v1 with opposing Suicune.
Since Breloom can manage dd ttar I only needed my scarfer to handle gyara and dnite, so I choose scarf rotom because it also function as my fighting resist, Explosion absorber and trick user.
Breloom have its standard set. It is the best tool in this team for handling Clefable, Swampert and Quagsire. Mach punch is an excelent priority, KOing DD Ttar and Agility Empoleon, and of course, sleep is broken lol.
I decided to use Petaya Empoleon as the late game sweeper because I think that if I play well, the rest of the team does a good work handling electrics (rotom and zapdos) and mach punch uses (Infernape and Breloom). Modest nature because I have scarf Scizor to pursuit scarf Rotom so I dont need to outspeed it. This might sound crazy, but against stall it can be a good mon to handle wish protect Jirachi, if you manage to get a substitute jirachi cannot break it inmediately and you can use surf to get it to low health or KOit depending on the spdef bulk of the Jirachi.
Simple and funny team imo.
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I think it’s time to make this team public, hope you like it!
https://pokepast.es/8f37b29af8b4a621
I started playing again in June after 10+ years of inactivity, and this was one of the first teams I built with the intention of using it in SSNL (with pretty good results). The main idea is to utilize the combo of Scarf Scizor + Scarf Magneton to trap Steel- and Ghost-types, paving the way for a Swords Dance Venusaur sweep. The defensive core consists of Milotic and RestTalk Rotom, while Heatran provides support by setting Stealth Rocks, checking certain Pokémon, and using Explosion to remove threats that could block Venusaur’s sweep.
If you’ve encountered this team in the past months, you’ve probably played against my friend hellpowna. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank him for using the team and for helping me adjust some sets and spreads.
Possible changes:
EDIT:
Wanted to share the game i played in ssnl with this team
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2181355476-38y8wr54uj5q92gdc61x21di52nyeu9pw
https://pokepast.es/8f37b29af8b4a621
I started playing again in June after 10+ years of inactivity, and this was one of the first teams I built with the intention of using it in SSNL (with pretty good results). The main idea is to utilize the combo of Scarf Scizor + Scarf Magneton to trap Steel- and Ghost-types, paving the way for a Swords Dance Venusaur sweep. The defensive core consists of Milotic and RestTalk Rotom, while Heatran provides support by setting Stealth Rocks, checking certain Pokémon, and using Explosion to remove threats that could block Venusaur’s sweep.
If you’ve encountered this team in the past months, you’ve probably played against my friend hellpowna. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank him for using the team and for helping me adjust some sets and spreads.
Possible changes:
- Iron Head over Bullet Punch on Scizor: I prefer the priority move, but the higher damage and 30% flinch chance from Iron Head can be useful.
- Will-o-Wisp over Shadow Ball on Rotom: Shadow Ball helps a lot in the Breloom matchup, which can be tough, but Will-o-Wisp has its own merits (and you have to be very careful against ttar without wisp).
- Magneton’s set is almost random: Hidden Power Ground works well to trap other Magneton/Magnezones and some Heatrans, but there’s no real need to trap Heatran. Hidden Power Ice could be considered for revenge killing MixGon or Dragonite with Dragon Dance, while Explosion is another solid option for added utility.
EDIT:
Wanted to share the game i played in ssnl with this team
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2181355476-38y8wr54uj5q92gdc61x21di52nyeu9pw
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Ok, so back again for Round 2 on Teambuilder:
Funnily enough, I didn't have Lead Scarf Scizor in mind. Rather I was trying to build a Choice Band Ape, a set that I think Jim Cool mentioned he used way back, in modern times given my research.
The idea here is an offensive team built around Spikes + Rocks support, FWG, U-Turn team. There might be flaws that I may have overlooked, so if there's issues in my team, feel free to criticize!
Starting off, we have Scarf Scizor lead theme! Admittedly, I was inspired by Lady Bug's Heracross team convincing me enough to try out Scarf Scizor. Scizor provides this team a Pursuit user & U-Turn, it's also useful in taking out DD Tyranitar & Swords Dance Lucario from rampaging my team. Scizor does provide this team a Steel defense albeit you need to be careful that Scarf Scizor should only take resisted hits that it can take, as a Draco from Specs Latias can easily annihilate Scizor.
Since this team could struggle towards strong Fighting types, specifically Breloom, I figured Spikes Roserade is overall the better choice over Skarmory! Roserade offers grass coverage against Bulky Waters who'll try to stifle this team, while not perfect, does offer this team a solid Swiss Army Knife that can establish Spikes to wear down fatter walls such as Hippowdon that also laughs at U-Turn attempts.
Through my time teambuilding to perfect my aim on DPP OU, I was researching Infernape set ideas & building teams based on Ape's modern usage (The Lati Ban times were WAY different & Ape was an A+ according to old viability lists), & I've realized that for Ape to work, Spikes is needed to chip down fattier walls.
Choice Band Ape here does offer more U-Turn for Scizor, Flare Blitz is needed to compensate Ape's power as even though Blaze Kick offers more longevity, Ape is an all in or nothing Pokemon that needs to emphasize the Cannon as opposed to the Glass. Stone Edge is pretty good at catching a Gyara attempting to switch in.
With those 3 Pokemon listed above, this team would struggle against Bulky Zap & Skarm (Specifically Physical), so I draft Specially Defensive Heatran into Scarf Scizor's team!
Scizor & Heatran is the bread & butter on any team involving Scizor, as Scizor's crippling 4x Fire weakness is damning & Latias's Draco can easily puncture holes in this team easily, so Heatran is needed to provide a solid Steel defense & Rocks to stack hazards.
Heatran in any meta where it was OU is integral towards any FWG cores as Heatran's bulk, myriad resistances, & utility is exceptional. I've invested in 12 EVs & a Sassy nature to increase Explosion's power, however Explosion should only be used sparingly. Don't be afraid to spam Roar so long as you have the hazards provided given Heatran's polarizing type.
For the Water Pokemon needed for the FWG, I nominate Gyarados to fulfill this new team, possibly the most discussed Pokemon when it comes to DPP as a whole.
I figured Gyara provides this team with a 3rd layer of defense, with Gyara's stats & ability adequate enough to support this team's defensive core, Heatran desperately needs Levitators to function well to compensate its 4x Ground weakness, Gyara has solid core with Heatran in exchange for providing defense against Zap.
Double Edge + Waterfall provides solid coverage (aside from Emp), Dragon Dance is needed in order to threaten opposing teams & nabbing a wincon. Substitute is pretty useful for Gyara in case if any Choice users try to assassinate Gyara's DD attempts. Good for scouting too.
For the final member of this team, I present Scarf Latias!
Latias is good at what she does, eliminating both Scarf Dragonite & Gyarados, the Evs are specified in defense as Latias needs to live on a few hits while eliminating specific Pokemon given hazard support. Since Scarf Scizor is included, Tricking a Scarf is required to harass slower teams locking them into a specific move.
Latias on her own provides Heatran with a double levitator, her Dragon & Psychic typing has plenty of resistances that'll be useful against Fires & Fighting types roaming around OU. In a nutshell, avoid hastily using Latias as she is prey to Tyranitars, use Latias decisively so long as you're able to get away with it.
Link: https://pokepast.es/8d83a1550e81da5e
Edit: I swap Gyara for Bronzong (Tank) with HP Ice, change Heatran to UtilityRan with Shuca, & replace Latias with Supercune (Modest with a bit of bulk). Just tested this team out on ladder, think those changes can add more consistency!
Funnily enough, I didn't have Lead Scarf Scizor in mind. Rather I was trying to build a Choice Band Ape, a set that I think Jim Cool mentioned he used way back, in modern times given my research.
The idea here is an offensive team built around Spikes + Rocks support, FWG, U-Turn team. There might be flaws that I may have overlooked, so if there's issues in my team, feel free to criticize!
Starting off, we have Scarf Scizor lead theme! Admittedly, I was inspired by Lady Bug's Heracross team convincing me enough to try out Scarf Scizor. Scizor provides this team a Pursuit user & U-Turn, it's also useful in taking out DD Tyranitar & Swords Dance Lucario from rampaging my team. Scizor does provide this team a Steel defense albeit you need to be careful that Scarf Scizor should only take resisted hits that it can take, as a Draco from Specs Latias can easily annihilate Scizor.
Since this team could struggle towards strong Fighting types, specifically Breloom, I figured Spikes Roserade is overall the better choice over Skarmory! Roserade offers grass coverage against Bulky Waters who'll try to stifle this team, while not perfect, does offer this team a solid Swiss Army Knife that can establish Spikes to wear down fatter walls such as Hippowdon that also laughs at U-Turn attempts.
Through my time teambuilding to perfect my aim on DPP OU, I was researching Infernape set ideas & building teams based on Ape's modern usage (The Lati Ban times were WAY different & Ape was an A+ according to old viability lists), & I've realized that for Ape to work, Spikes is needed to chip down fattier walls.
Choice Band Ape here does offer more U-Turn for Scizor, Flare Blitz is needed to compensate Ape's power as even though Blaze Kick offers more longevity, Ape is an all in or nothing Pokemon that needs to emphasize the Cannon as opposed to the Glass. Stone Edge is pretty good at catching a Gyara attempting to switch in.
With those 3 Pokemon listed above, this team would struggle against Bulky Zap & Skarm (Specifically Physical), so I draft Specially Defensive Heatran into Scarf Scizor's team!
Scizor & Heatran is the bread & butter on any team involving Scizor, as Scizor's crippling 4x Fire weakness is damning & Latias's Draco can easily puncture holes in this team easily, so Heatran is needed to provide a solid Steel defense & Rocks to stack hazards.
Heatran in any meta where it was OU is integral towards any FWG cores as Heatran's bulk, myriad resistances, & utility is exceptional. I've invested in 12 EVs & a Sassy nature to increase Explosion's power, however Explosion should only be used sparingly. Don't be afraid to spam Roar so long as you have the hazards provided given Heatran's polarizing type.
For the Water Pokemon needed for the FWG, I nominate Gyarados to fulfill this new team, possibly the most discussed Pokemon when it comes to DPP as a whole.
I figured Gyara provides this team with a 3rd layer of defense, with Gyara's stats & ability adequate enough to support this team's defensive core, Heatran desperately needs Levitators to function well to compensate its 4x Ground weakness, Gyara has solid core with Heatran in exchange for providing defense against Zap.
Double Edge + Waterfall provides solid coverage (aside from Emp), Dragon Dance is needed in order to threaten opposing teams & nabbing a wincon. Substitute is pretty useful for Gyara in case if any Choice users try to assassinate Gyara's DD attempts. Good for scouting too.
For the final member of this team, I present Scarf Latias!
Latias is good at what she does, eliminating both Scarf Dragonite & Gyarados, the Evs are specified in defense as Latias needs to live on a few hits while eliminating specific Pokemon given hazard support. Since Scarf Scizor is included, Tricking a Scarf is required to harass slower teams locking them into a specific move.
Latias on her own provides Heatran with a double levitator, her Dragon & Psychic typing has plenty of resistances that'll be useful against Fires & Fighting types roaming around OU. In a nutshell, avoid hastily using Latias as she is prey to Tyranitars, use Latias decisively so long as you're able to get away with it.
Link: https://pokepast.es/8d83a1550e81da5e
Edit: I swap Gyara for Bronzong (Tank) with HP Ice, change Heatran to UtilityRan with Shuca, & replace Latias with Supercune (Modest with a bit of bulk). Just tested this team out on ladder, think those changes can add more consistency!
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Scarf Scizor? Sure lemme just resubmit my SD Heracross team...
Jokes aside, Scizor is probably one of the best Pokemon to keep up momentum. Scarf just makes it better at that imo, so I decided to build a momentum-based team that keeps on dishing out strong hits.
Scizor @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower
- Bullet Punch
There aren't too many options to go for on a Scarf Scizor set besides like Iron Head over BP and Night Slash over Pursuit for a slight power boost, though you miss out on trapping. I went with BP over Iron Head because it's still a great priority move for revenging things that are faster than you, such as Scarfers/Dragon Dance users.
The man of the hour.
To ride on the momentum of Scarf Scizor's U-Turns I decided to use mixed Dragonite, which is one of the most difficult Pokemon to switch into. The idea is they switch into their Scizor counter on U-Turn and then Dragonite comes in and starts blasting. Starmie is another good switch into Scizor's counters that provides Rapid Spin support and offensive power since I'm using an offensive set.
https://pokepast.es/a4b9e0b0e2cbd9f5
I decided to add Bronzong for rocks and it gives me some kind of wall to switch into things. I decided to make it more offensive-oriented to keep up the momentum of the team. Celebi and Tyranitar help with synergy for the team while being big threats at the same time with the offensive sets I decided to give them. Celebi might benefit more from a Timid nature to outspeed non-max speed Jirachis but I haven't really tested it enough so I decided to keep it as is for the extra power.
Highlights:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2269496484?p2
This game shows how good Scarf Scizor can be. Came in multiple of times to U-Turn out and give me momentum, and ended up winning the game at the end with BP against a DD Gyarados.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2269857326?p2
Again, Scizor comes in multiple times and U-Turns out to give me momentum. Scarf Scizor is really good into Specs Latias because it lives a hit and lets you either Pursuit it or U-Turn out to keep the momentum going.
Bonus:
https://pokepast.es/83c967b72e7976d1
Another good thing Scarf Scizor is good for is trapping things and allowing other team members to trap something after a U-Turn. That was the case for my previous team with SD Heracross so I decided to make something similar and I ended up making a REALLY bad but fun team. Copycat on Lucario to copy your own U-Turn from Scizor. Facade Spiritomb is just short of 2HKOing Spdef Clefable after being paralyzed by TWave. Calc for the memes: 252+ Atk Spiritomb Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Clefable: 170-201 (43.1 - 51%) -- guaranteed OHKO
Jokes aside, Scizor is probably one of the best Pokemon to keep up momentum. Scarf just makes it better at that imo, so I decided to build a momentum-based team that keeps on dishing out strong hits.
Scizor @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower
- Bullet Punch
There aren't too many options to go for on a Scarf Scizor set besides like Iron Head over BP and Night Slash over Pursuit for a slight power boost, though you miss out on trapping. I went with BP over Iron Head because it's still a great priority move for revenging things that are faster than you, such as Scarfers/Dragon Dance users.
The man of the hour.
To ride on the momentum of Scarf Scizor's U-Turns I decided to use mixed Dragonite, which is one of the most difficult Pokemon to switch into. The idea is they switch into their Scizor counter on U-Turn and then Dragonite comes in and starts blasting. Starmie is another good switch into Scizor's counters that provides Rapid Spin support and offensive power since I'm using an offensive set.
https://pokepast.es/a4b9e0b0e2cbd9f5
I decided to add Bronzong for rocks and it gives me some kind of wall to switch into things. I decided to make it more offensive-oriented to keep up the momentum of the team. Celebi and Tyranitar help with synergy for the team while being big threats at the same time with the offensive sets I decided to give them. Celebi might benefit more from a Timid nature to outspeed non-max speed Jirachis but I haven't really tested it enough so I decided to keep it as is for the extra power.
Highlights:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2269496484?p2
This game shows how good Scarf Scizor can be. Came in multiple of times to U-Turn out and give me momentum, and ended up winning the game at the end with BP against a DD Gyarados.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2269857326?p2
Again, Scizor comes in multiple times and U-Turns out to give me momentum. Scarf Scizor is really good into Specs Latias because it lives a hit and lets you either Pursuit it or U-Turn out to keep the momentum going.
Bonus:
https://pokepast.es/83c967b72e7976d1
Another good thing Scarf Scizor is good for is trapping things and allowing other team members to trap something after a U-Turn. That was the case for my previous team with SD Heracross so I decided to make something similar and I ended up making a REALLY bad but fun team. Copycat on Lucario to copy your own U-Turn from Scizor. Facade Spiritomb is just short of 2HKOing Spdef Clefable after being paralyzed by TWave. Calc for the memes: 252+ Atk Spiritomb Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Clefable: 170-201 (43.1 - 51%) -- guaranteed OHKO
https://pokepast.es/25b7ee85d0599235
"how to always win the lead mu"
not going to go into the usual spiel about the wacky shit i considered when building (this round had mespirit nidoking and poliwrath), i lacked motivation for a good while before realising that a fast uturn into a good mu kind of means you "win" every single lead match up? just uturn to something super advantageous (you click uturn 95% of the time) the one exception to the rule is vs empoleon where you just click super power. at worst you lose your scizor and take like 28% on the mag from crit aqua jet, at best they just didnt run focus sash/hydro goes left. bullet punch over iron head because while yeah youre scarf its still nice for like, multiple ddboost tar, finishing off dnite considering magneton doesnt have hp ice. while uturning to good mus is strong, uturning to a trap is diabolical. opted for hp ground on magneton for this reason, because it demolishes magnezone, enemy magneton and heatran after a uturn. the flyon set is *really* good if they arent shed shell skarmory (shed shell skarm is a major issue for the team, you need to get jiggy with your play to win that. specifically, try to bait in with scizor and use knock off, get a twave with celebi or get to a last mon gastro scenario where it cant be whirlwinded and make sure the other stuff that can deal with gastro is out. ). fire blast would be great, but sub capitalises on uturns so well into so much. celebi is defensive latias but it has stealth rocks. i usually opt for eq over superpower on scarftar, but jesus christ twave celebi shuts down suparachi so hard that its not really necessary. bi is your only fighting resist, so you will need some smart play into breloom (try to sleep sack something else, or get scizor/flygon in on breloom). gastrodon was originally swampert, i was mulling around for a while trying to figure out what water types beat clefable when it hit me. curse is to mirror the dders, stone edge hits both dders.
this team took a good long while to actually be any good but im happy about where it is. tips for play is to try to stay ahead in momentum to the point that breloom cant get in when material is equal or losing for you (breloom getting in in a 6v5 scenario after you pursuit trap something is fine, spore is more deadly when its making a 2v2 a 1v2 rather than making a 6v5 a 5v5, or heaven forbid when the breloom player is up a mon.)
possible team adjustments:
lati/breloom over celebi/gastro: probably better but i hate running rocks on a scarfer due to the momentum loss, and this team needs its momentum. edit: https://pokepast.es/c4fc5aa73fbab60b yeah it is better, leech seed+sub flygon is ugh to deal with but i wrote all this stuff. vote for the team you prefer
doublegrass celebi/breloom: im down for it but considering grass has 5 weaknesses stacking them is a frightening concept, id rather play it safe.
sleep talk scizor: probably fine but i like insurance against sweepers
hp ice magneton: could be better (i dont think it is) but hp ground goes in a more unique direction thats more fun on ladder and more digestible for teambuilding comps
"how to always win the lead mu"
not going to go into the usual spiel about the wacky shit i considered when building (this round had mespirit nidoking and poliwrath), i lacked motivation for a good while before realising that a fast uturn into a good mu kind of means you "win" every single lead match up? just uturn to something super advantageous (you click uturn 95% of the time) the one exception to the rule is vs empoleon where you just click super power. at worst you lose your scizor and take like 28% on the mag from crit aqua jet, at best they just didnt run focus sash/hydro goes left. bullet punch over iron head because while yeah youre scarf its still nice for like, multiple ddboost tar, finishing off dnite considering magneton doesnt have hp ice. while uturning to good mus is strong, uturning to a trap is diabolical. opted for hp ground on magneton for this reason, because it demolishes magnezone, enemy magneton and heatran after a uturn. the flyon set is *really* good if they arent shed shell skarmory (shed shell skarm is a major issue for the team, you need to get jiggy with your play to win that. specifically, try to bait in with scizor and use knock off, get a twave with celebi or get to a last mon gastro scenario where it cant be whirlwinded and make sure the other stuff that can deal with gastro is out. ). fire blast would be great, but sub capitalises on uturns so well into so much. celebi is defensive latias but it has stealth rocks. i usually opt for eq over superpower on scarftar, but jesus christ twave celebi shuts down suparachi so hard that its not really necessary. bi is your only fighting resist, so you will need some smart play into breloom (try to sleep sack something else, or get scizor/flygon in on breloom). gastrodon was originally swampert, i was mulling around for a while trying to figure out what water types beat clefable when it hit me. curse is to mirror the dders, stone edge hits both dders.
this team took a good long while to actually be any good but im happy about where it is. tips for play is to try to stay ahead in momentum to the point that breloom cant get in when material is equal or losing for you (breloom getting in in a 6v5 scenario after you pursuit trap something is fine, spore is more deadly when its making a 2v2 a 1v2 rather than making a 6v5 a 5v5, or heaven forbid when the breloom player is up a mon.)
possible team adjustments:
lati/breloom over celebi/gastro: probably better but i hate running rocks on a scarfer due to the momentum loss, and this team needs its momentum. edit: https://pokepast.es/c4fc5aa73fbab60b yeah it is better, leech seed+sub flygon is ugh to deal with but i wrote all this stuff. vote for the team you prefer
doublegrass celebi/breloom: im down for it but considering grass has 5 weaknesses stacking them is a frightening concept, id rather play it safe.
sleep talk scizor: probably fine but i like insurance against sweepers
hp ice magneton: could be better (i dont think it is) but hp ground goes in a more unique direction thats more fun on ladder and more digestible for teambuilding comps
Hi, this is my first post. I used to play gen 4 when it was current and have recently gotten back into it. I want to improve my team building so I decided to challenge myself to submit a team to the competition each week.
https://pokepast.es/68b51d2284b8e792
I started with mixape because I thought he would work well with scizor to lure in latias and starmie to pursuit, and scizor can help get infernape in safely with u-turn. I wanted spikes to help infernape get kills on bulkier targets so I added skarmory and then mixgon for more spikes abuse. Scarf rotom is to be better against offense as mixape and mixgon are good into defense. I needed stealth rocks and choose special swampert to be good against jirachi. It ended up being a pretty standard spikes offense but I'm happy with it.
Team can be weak against machamp but if skarm and rotom are alive I can play around it. Team is also weak against water types. Rotom and grass knot on infernape are my main answers, draco from flygon can be help too if I predict well. Any feedback would be appreciated too!
I like the look of the other teams already especially the one with SD venusaur, and I like how gastrodon has been getting some love lately. I think gastro can be really good into clef and rachi teams
Edit: I changed swampert sp def emp to help with latias
https://pokepast.es/68b51d2284b8e792
I started with mixape because I thought he would work well with scizor to lure in latias and starmie to pursuit, and scizor can help get infernape in safely with u-turn. I wanted spikes to help infernape get kills on bulkier targets so I added skarmory and then mixgon for more spikes abuse. Scarf rotom is to be better against offense as mixape and mixgon are good into defense. I needed stealth rocks and choose special swampert to be good against jirachi. It ended up being a pretty standard spikes offense but I'm happy with it.
Team can be weak against machamp but if skarm and rotom are alive I can play around it. Team is also weak against water types. Rotom and grass knot on infernape are my main answers, draco from flygon can be help too if I predict well. Any feedback would be appreciated too!
I like the look of the other teams already especially the one with SD venusaur, and I like how gastrodon has been getting some love lately. I think gastro can be really good into clef and rachi teams
Edit: I changed swampert sp def emp to help with latias
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Voting has begun, and we have a whopping 10 teams this round! The teams submitted were:
1. From Dest24: https://pokepast.es/bd322f6c07c7bc7f
2. From Dastardlydwarf: https://pokepast.es/bca23ee55b3fff25
3. From Tizio Potente Ao: https://pokepast.es/8f37b29af8b4a621
4. From Ran$om_II_Regal: https://pokepast.es/9d2077bfe83422e9
5. From Jhall99: https://pokepast.es/8d83a1550e81da5e
6. From Lady Bug: https://pokepast.es/a4b9e0b0e2cbd9f5
7. From Sevenor3: https://pokepast.es/25b7ee85d0599235
8. From AiningMD: https://pokepast.es/68b51d2284b8e792
9. From Mjfblaze: https://pokepast.es/a24a6ebc85300567
10. From Shadowys: https://pokepast.es/b38b022ffb49efde
The deadline for voting is next Saturday (04/01/2025), 11:00 pm GMT.
Once voting concludes and the winner is announced, they will choose the theme for the next competition.
1. From Dest24: https://pokepast.es/bd322f6c07c7bc7f
2. From Dastardlydwarf: https://pokepast.es/bca23ee55b3fff25
3. From Tizio Potente Ao: https://pokepast.es/8f37b29af8b4a621
4. From Ran$om_II_Regal: https://pokepast.es/9d2077bfe83422e9
5. From Jhall99: https://pokepast.es/8d83a1550e81da5e
6. From Lady Bug: https://pokepast.es/a4b9e0b0e2cbd9f5
7. From Sevenor3: https://pokepast.es/25b7ee85d0599235
8. From AiningMD: https://pokepast.es/68b51d2284b8e792
9. From Mjfblaze: https://pokepast.es/a24a6ebc85300567
10. From Shadowys: https://pokepast.es/b38b022ffb49efde
The deadline for voting is next Saturday (04/01/2025), 11:00 pm GMT.
Once voting concludes and the winner is announced, they will choose the theme for the next competition.
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Decided to give this a try. I think Scarf Scizor is an interesting concept and can give a lot of surprises since no one expects it to move first (except with Bullet Punch), but the lead role can give the opponent knowledge that it is scarf and ruin the surprise. So here's my team concept:
https://pokepast.es/a24a6ebc85300567
Scizor's EVs into 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe is the best one in this current metagame. The Speed EVs allows Scizor to outspeed 115 base speed Pokemon with beneficial natures like Starmie, Latias, Azelf and Gengar while the remaining HP EVs allows Scizor to survive an HP Fire from a Utility Celebi. U-turn is great for scouting, especially on the first turn, while Superpower gives great coverage. While many people are opting for Iron Head or Bullet Punch for Scizor's last slot, I chose Bug Bite for multiple reasons: A) it gives a similar situation to a Scarf Tyranitar Crunch & Pursuit since Technician Bug Bite deals massive damage to Psychics, B) it allows Scizor to consume a Custap Berry for certain leads and switch-ins, and C) if Scizor is low HP, sometimes it is better for Scizor to stay in and use Bug Bite rather than depart with U-turn take entry damage when it comes back in.
I've always enjoyed using Tank Swampert. It's a good choice for Scizor to U-turn to as it can soak the Fire damage and helps deal with things Scizor does not want to, such as Hippowdon, Jirachi and Metagross. Swampert also allows the team to set-up Stealth Rocks and can have Starmie or Celebi switch in, which Scizor can easily trap with the Pursuit and Bug Bite situation. Roar is to rack up Stealth Rock damage and can force Gyarados out if it uses a Dragon Dance.
Superachi is the best set for the team since it's leaning on the physical side of attacks. Superachi is always best used late game when its checks are either gone or weakened, but it's also not a bad option if Scizor U-turns on a Suicune, Zapdos or Rotom (just watch out for trick).
So since Scizor has Choice Scarf, it frees up Tyranitar a little bit on what it can do. I was juggling around Dragon Dance or Choice Band, but ultimately chose Band because it can still deal great damage and give the Pursuit pressure.
Rapid Spin support is crucial, but since the team lacks Infernape checks, Starmie does a good job on outspeeding it
Standard Gyarados set but I was debating on a Substitute + Thunder Wave set. That way it could support Tyranitar since it's slow, but Gyarados does a great job on bringing out Scarf Latias or Rotom for Scizor and Tyranitar to trap.
https://pokepast.es/a24a6ebc85300567
Scizor's EVs into 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe is the best one in this current metagame. The Speed EVs allows Scizor to outspeed 115 base speed Pokemon with beneficial natures like Starmie, Latias, Azelf and Gengar while the remaining HP EVs allows Scizor to survive an HP Fire from a Utility Celebi. U-turn is great for scouting, especially on the first turn, while Superpower gives great coverage. While many people are opting for Iron Head or Bullet Punch for Scizor's last slot, I chose Bug Bite for multiple reasons: A) it gives a similar situation to a Scarf Tyranitar Crunch & Pursuit since Technician Bug Bite deals massive damage to Psychics, B) it allows Scizor to consume a Custap Berry for certain leads and switch-ins, and C) if Scizor is low HP, sometimes it is better for Scizor to stay in and use Bug Bite rather than depart with U-turn take entry damage when it comes back in.
I've always enjoyed using Tank Swampert. It's a good choice for Scizor to U-turn to as it can soak the Fire damage and helps deal with things Scizor does not want to, such as Hippowdon, Jirachi and Metagross. Swampert also allows the team to set-up Stealth Rocks and can have Starmie or Celebi switch in, which Scizor can easily trap with the Pursuit and Bug Bite situation. Roar is to rack up Stealth Rock damage and can force Gyarados out if it uses a Dragon Dance.
Superachi is the best set for the team since it's leaning on the physical side of attacks. Superachi is always best used late game when its checks are either gone or weakened, but it's also not a bad option if Scizor U-turns on a Suicune, Zapdos or Rotom (just watch out for trick).
So since Scizor has Choice Scarf, it frees up Tyranitar a little bit on what it can do. I was juggling around Dragon Dance or Choice Band, but ultimately chose Band because it can still deal great damage and give the Pursuit pressure.
Rapid Spin support is crucial, but since the team lacks Infernape checks, Starmie does a good job on outspeeding it
Standard Gyarados set but I was debating on a Substitute + Thunder Wave set. That way it could support Tyranitar since it's slow, but Gyarados does a great job on bringing out Scarf Latias or Rotom for Scizor and Tyranitar to trap.
Decided to give this a try. I think Scarf Scizor is an interesting concept and can give a lot of surprises since no one expects it to move first (except with Bullet Punch), but the lead role can give the opponent knowledge that it is scarf and ruin the surprise. So here's my team concept:
https://pokepast.es/a24a6ebc85300567
Scizor's EVs into 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe is the best one in this current metagame. The Speed EVs allows Scizor to outspeed 115 base speed Pokemon with beneficial natures like Starmie, Latias, Azelf and Gengar while the remaining HP EVs allows Scizor to survive an HP Fire from a Utility Celebi. U-turn is great for scouting, especially on the first turn, while Superpower gives great coverage. While many people are opting for Iron Head or Bullet Punch for Scizor's last slot, I chose Bug Bite for multiple reasons: A) it gives a similar situation to a Scarf Tyranitar Crunch & Pursuit since Technician Bug Bite deals massive damage to Psychics, B) it allows Scizor to consume a Custap Berry for certain leads and switch-ins, and C) if Scizor is low HP, sometimes it is better for Scizor to stay in and use Bug Bite rather than depart with U-turn take entry damage when it comes back in.
I've always enjoyed using Tank Swampert. It's a good choice for Scizor to U-turn to as it can soak the Fire damage and helps deal with things Scizor does not want to, such as Hippowdon, Jirachi and Metagross. Swampert also allows the team to set-up Stealth Rocks and can have Starmie or Celebi switch in, which Scizor can easily trap with the Pursuit and Bug Bite situation. Roar is to rack up Stealth Rock damage and can force Gyarados out if it uses a Dragon Dance.
Superachi is the best set for the team since it's leaning on the physical side of attacks. Superachi is always best used late game when its checks are either gone or weakened, but it's also not a bad option if Scizor U-turns on a Suicune, Zapdos or Rotom (just watch out for trick).
So since Scizor has Choice Scarf, it frees up Tyranitar a little bit on what it can do. I was juggling around Dragon Dance or Choice Band, but ultimately chose Band because it can still deal great damage and give the Pursuit pressure.
Rapid Spin support is crucial, but since the team lacks Infernape checks, Starmie does a good job on outspeeding it
Standard Gyarados set but I was debating on a Substitute + Thunder Wave set. That way it could support Tyranitar since it's slow, but Gyarados does a great job on bringing out Scarf Latias or Rotom for Scizor and Tyranitar to trap.
Just to clarify for everyone: In the past, I’ve allowed submissions that are within a few hours past the deadline. So, it’s perfectly fine to submit a little late if needed.
I vote mjfblaze
Hyper Offense Scarf Spam with Lead Scizor
This follows the similar team structure of ADV baton pass zapdos: lead pass to a trapper. General game plan is to scout out the opponent team structure as soon as possible, scizor leads well against azelf, ttar, latios. Otherwise magnezone will take care of steel leads, and ttar for ghost/follow ups. This team has no hazards beyond sandstorm to wear down defensive cores barring clefable, instead relying on U turn and Pursuit to chip.
Notable mentions
Preferring iron head over bullet punch for higher base power, since we already have choice scarf to make up for speed and the 30% flinch chance is much more preferable for HO. Night slash is honestly replaceable for bullet punch if needed.
HP ground covers specs heatran, metagross and jirachi in exchange for bronzong coverage. Against scarf tran, smart use of superpower with the surprise scarf ttar should be enough with some chip. It is important to remove skarmory as soon as possible, since this is a physical offense team.
A standard U turn physical set wears down a lot of teams, Jirachi would also serve as the main rock/steel resist and to lure in heatran/magnezone.
Debating over whether to include eq, but superpower covers a lot of ground for incoming clefable, heatran, magnezone and other weird switch ins for jirachi.
Scarf physical offense azelf serves as the disruptor of the team, tricking kills setup sweepers, and explosion denies a turn for stuff that you otherwise cannot deal with, otherwise just u turn instead. This is usually also the status tank of choice.
Rotom will serve as a the main gyarados counter, along with trick to disrupt any setup sweepers, importantly this allows a free switch in to normal/fighting/ground moves that azelf cannot handle on its own like a end game lucario or scizor.
This follows the similar team structure of ADV baton pass zapdos: lead pass to a trapper. General game plan is to scout out the opponent team structure as soon as possible, scizor leads well against azelf, ttar, latios. Otherwise magnezone will take care of steel leads, and ttar for ghost/follow ups. This team has no hazards beyond sandstorm to wear down defensive cores barring clefable, instead relying on U turn and Pursuit to chip.
Notable mentions
Preferring iron head over bullet punch for higher base power, since we already have choice scarf to make up for speed and the 30% flinch chance is much more preferable for HO. Night slash is honestly replaceable for bullet punch if needed.
HP ground covers specs heatran, metagross and jirachi in exchange for bronzong coverage. Against scarf tran, smart use of superpower with the surprise scarf ttar should be enough with some chip. It is important to remove skarmory as soon as possible, since this is a physical offense team.
A standard U turn physical set wears down a lot of teams, Jirachi would also serve as the main rock/steel resist and to lure in heatran/magnezone.
Debating over whether to include eq, but superpower covers a lot of ground for incoming clefable, heatran, magnezone and other weird switch ins for jirachi.
Scarf physical offense azelf serves as the disruptor of the team, tricking kills setup sweepers, and explosion denies a turn for stuff that you otherwise cannot deal with, otherwise just u turn instead. This is usually also the status tank of choice.
Rotom will serve as a the main gyarados counter, along with trick to disrupt any setup sweepers, importantly this allows a free switch in to normal/fighting/ground moves that azelf cannot handle on its own like a end game lucario or scizor.
Voting for Jhall99
thought scarf scizor needed a mag, tested those ones from sevenor and tizio
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2271519648
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2271515987
the way i see it scarf scizor is a decent antioffense mon but doesn't work that well vs spikes stall, overall i prefer sevenor team cause u have some way to do progress, while sd venusaur is cool, in sand and without spin, it's really hard to do lot of progress, plus u're main stab being 85% accuracy makes me struggle a lot.
So sevenor it is
btw love that the TB competition gives a notification on discord we see a lot of actiivity right now, and it's pretty cool, thks Oatmon for this.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2271519648
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4ou-2271515987
the way i see it scarf scizor is a decent antioffense mon but doesn't work that well vs spikes stall, overall i prefer sevenor team cause u have some way to do progress, while sd venusaur is cool, in sand and without spin, it's really hard to do lot of progress, plus u're main stab being 85% accuracy makes me struggle a lot.
So sevenor it is
btw love that the TB competition gives a notification on discord we see a lot of actiivity right now, and it's pretty cool, thks Oatmon for this.