SS OU Feedback on Lower Ladder Team (Bulky offense)

[WhenTheyCry34]

I'm kinda new to the SS OU Metagame. I didnt care for it much until I found a team I liked, and now I want to hear Smogon's thoughts on it.
Biggest checks I've run into are slowbro and togekiss. Not sure how that'll overlap with outside perceptions of the team.

Toby (Amoonguss) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 172 Def / 88 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb

The tried and true counter to physical mons that lack crazy power. I can always switch this guy into Zeraora or Surging Strikes, then surprise people with sludge bomb and foul play on switches.

aquafina (Barraskewda) @ Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flip Turn
- Waterfall
- Psychic Fangs
- Close Combat

Barraskewda is my attempt at a counter to Cinderace and Excadrill leads. Some teams are super weak to fast Flip Turn spam, so I'm always trying to seize on those opportunities. He can be a reliable breaker with liquidation and CC too.

bunbun (Diggersby) @ Iapapa Berry
Ability: Huge Power
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Body Slam
- Fire Punch
- Earthquake
- Agility

I like Diggersby both as a ghost immunty for Alolan Wak and Aegislash as well as a 50/50 where I either murk the opponent's mon or go for agility. Fire punch is wonderful for Ferrothorn and Amoonguss, and Earthquake is a nice way to break strong defensive mons weak to it like Toxapex.

bonehead (Mandibuzz) (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 160 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Defog
- Roost
- U-turn

I initially had Corviknight here until I realized Mandibuzz did it better. The biggest plus over Corv imo was not dealing with a fire weakness, as Cinderace is a huge ass threat. I feel like it's still missing something

moo (Mew) @ Red Card
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Will-O-Wisp
- Taunt
- Knock Off

Red Card is such a cool tech to stop momentum. I like leading with Mew when no one lead seems to fit, as I can taunt Kommo O or Ferrothorn trying to set up. I feel like this set is also missing something.

Melinda (Clefable) (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Calm Mind
- Flamethrower
- Soft-Boiled

My pride and joy. Clef is a beautiful status absorber that can calm mind in the face of most special mons and seize on many openings. I've been hearing that Calm Mind Clef isnt as useful on higher ladder but I wouldnt know why. The combo of calm mind and flamethrower to hit steel mons can actually 6-0 teams

Lmk what yall think

 

[CrimsonBlade7]

Before anything else, I take into account that you are very new to the OU metagame and I welcome you to the community. At first glance, this team obviously looks like it was made by a first-timer. It's all over the place, and most of the Pokemon you chose don't even compliment each other very well. For example, you're using a suicide lead Mew on a team that isn't even close to being Hyper Offensive. Not to mention that the set is actually built the wrong way. Barraskewda is a very frail Pokemon that only really works well in rain teams. This team is obviously not a rain team due to the lack of Pelipper and other rain abusers. I also don't like Diggersby in this team, as it doesn't really help you with much. It destroys common threats, but it's easily outclassed by Urshifu and Cinderace as a physical wallbreaker. I would personally keep Amoonguss, Mandibuzz, and Clefable as the defensive backbone of the team.

I would like to change your Mandibuzz set first, as it is outdated. Your Mandibuzz EV spread is meant to outspeed and beat Choice Specs Aegislash, and that isn't even common anymore due to its recent drop to UU, and then being banned to UUBL. Kindly look at the set below.

Mandibuzz (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 Spe
Impish Nature
- Foul Play
- Roost
- Defog
- U-turn

This set allows you to stomach hits from Choice Band Urshifu and Cinderace quite nicely assuming you predicted correctly. The 20 Speed EVs allow you to outspeed 252 Speed Adamant Azumarill. After Stealth Rock damage, Belly Drum, and Sitrus Berry restore, Foul Play KOs it on a damage roll. I've also seen a Choice Specs Magearna EV spread that hits exactly 200 Speed to outpace Azumarill. In this case, I made the Speed EVs hit 201 to outspeed that spread by 1 point, letting you U-Turn away to Amoonguss to stomach the Specs-powered Fleur Cannon.

Another change I would like to implement here is your Amoonguss set. Looking at it, the mushroom has nothing to cripple the likes of Mandibuzz. My only real suggestion here is to replace Foul Play with Toxic on your Amoonguss set and you will be able to punish multiple switches.

Your Clefable isn't looking very good from first glance either. What I suggest here is the set posted below:

Clefable (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 156 Def / 100 SpD
Calm Nature
- Knock Off
- Moonblast
- Thunder Wave
- Soft-Boiled

This set allows you to cripple opposing sweepers, especially fast threats like Cinderace and Dragapult for the other members of your team to take advantage of. Knock Off also weakens most threats, helping you break into the opposing team much easier. The 156 Defense EVs help against the likes of Urshifu.

Moving on, the team needs something to counter Cinderace. That thing is one of the top threats in the current metagame, and can shut down a number of teams really quickly. The best solution to this is to add the only thing that walls Cinderace - Hippowdon.

Hippowdon (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Toxic

Hippowdon solidifies your defensive backbone, and now you have a really bulky core. Toxic is used over Whirlwind to catch Mandibuzz and other threats off guard, especially on the switch. Hippowdon is your main Stealth Rock user for this team, and it is crucial to have one in every team to help break the enemy's defenses. Being a Ground type also gives you immunity to Volt Switch.

Now what this team needs is offensive pressure. A really good physical wallbreaker in the current metagame would be Cinderace.

Cinderace (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn

Cinderace is one of, if not the best wallbreaker in the current metagame having access to a lot of coverage moves in Zen Headbutt, Gunk Shot, even a side option in Sucker Punch, High Jump Kick, and many more moves to hit different Pokemon. As for this team however, I personally chose Zen Headbutt to help deal with opposing Toxapex and Gunk Shot to threaten a poison on the switch, as well as for its raw power. U-Turn helps you maintain momentum throughout the battle.

Every team needs a very fast Pokemon to help keep the battle under control. This is called speed control, if you haven't heard of that term beforehand. As for this team, we will be using an old friend who used to be a top threat before the DLC drop - Zeraora.

Zeraora @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Volt Switch
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Knock Off

Considering the fact that Hippowdon and Excadrill are everywhere, Zeraora no longer serves the sweeper role it always used to hold in teams before the DLC drop, as those two weren't as common before. The addition of Amoonguss and the recent rise of Rillaboom have also prevented Zeraora from serving a sweeping role. In this case, we will be using Zeraora mainly for speed control and pivoting. Volt Switch is very helpful in maintaining momentum, and it synergizes well with the U-Turn users in your team those being Mandibuzz and Cinderace.

As much as I want to make more changes to this team, I really respect what you started with and I don't wish to ruin the essence of your team. This is the most I can do to help you get started with this format. Once again, welcome to OU and have a great day!

Updated team: https://pokepast.es/78bf7bcda0c72c2d

 

[WhenTheyCry34]

This is insanely helpful! Thank you. I’m excited to try out that Clef set