First RMT

[TheWorm55]

So yeah I'm new to these forums but I've been playing on Showdown for quite a while though I'm still fairly new to competitive Pokemon. I've tried a few OU teams but this has been the best one after testing.

Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 SDef / 156 Atk / 100 HP
Careful Nature
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Superpower
- Stealth Rock

Tyranitar is here for a few reasons. One is to set up rocks and also to oppose weather teams. Using an EV spread very focused on Special Defence means that I can switch into all Special Attacks apart from some Focus Blasts, which is very useful against opposing weather inducers. The Special Defence boost from sand makes Tyranitar an amazing tank in general and he also has amazing offensive stats, making him capable of getting one or two useful KO's. The attacks I use are basically to break walls like Blissey so Gengar can set up a sweep. And speaking of Gengar...

Gengar @ Black Sludge
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Timid Nature
- Focus Blast
- Shadow Ball
- Disable
- Substitute

I LOVE GENGAR. Seriously, this Gengar set is amazing on any team and I particularly like him on this team due to his great defensive and offensive synergy with Tyranitar and his awesome sweeping potential. The perfect neutral coverage from 2 attacks is amazing. He is an out to many of Tyranitar's counters such as Breloom and some Conkeldurr and Keldeo sets. He has netted me a few 6-0 wins as well.

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Bold Nature
- Leech Seed
- Protect
- Spikes
- Thunder Wave

Ferrothorn is my out to dragons and is just a general wall kind of thing. Setting up spikes is always very useful, as is paralysing opposing sweepers to make it easier for me to get a sweep in. I can also set up leech seed which helps with switching into Gengar to heal stealth rock damage and substitute damage, among other things. So Ferrothorn is basically a really awesome support for this team.
Considering this team lacks a Rapid Spinner, I have considered Forretress over Ferrothorn, because it is pretty similar except that it can Spin. I really don't like Forretress though, as it lacks a lot of useful resistances that Ferrothorn has, namely Water- and Electric-Types. Ferrothorn can actually take special attacks, too...

Garchomp @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 SAtk
Naive Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Outrage
- Fire Blast

I originally had Scarf Salamence but replaced it with Garchomp because it resists Stealth Rock, is not damaged by sand and is naturally bulkier, meaning it won't die before it can get some KOs. He is a really good revenge killer and can sweep once its threats have been removed.

Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 SDef / 228 HP / 28 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Rest
- Will-O-Wisp

I originally used a Choice Scarf Rotom-W but replaced it with this to have an out to Keldeo and things. So far I've not played against teams with Keldeo so it needs to be tested more, but in general it has proved to be really a really great answer to both physical and special attackers. Chesto Rest is great for keeping Rotom alive longer and getting rid of nasty status ailments. Volt Switch is also great for keeping up the momentum and such.

Scizor @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Roost

So I replaced Darmanitan with Scizor and made Salamence my revenge killer, which has proven to be a good move. Scizor has great synergy with my team and the SD set has great sweeping potential late game. I used Roost over Superpower to increase longevity and I felt that Superpower wasn't necessary as I had Tyranitar with it to kill the pink blobs. The EV spread could be altered slightly more towards bulk but I'm not sure yet.



Issues this team has are things like Tentacruel and other hazard inducers, but I think I have enough to deal with most hazards, as I have 5 Toxic Spikes immunities and 3 Spikes immunities. Stealth Rock is another issue, but I can't find room for a spinner on this team.

Heatran also becomes a problem if Rotom dies and it still has its Air Balloon, but Tyranitar can tank its attacks fairly well and get a 2 or 3HKO on it while setting up rocks.

Opposing Choice Scarf users such as Terrakion also prove to be an issue against this team, but if it is Choiced into Close Combat, Gengar can come in and set up and everything.

 

[ShootingStarmie]

Hi there, so I'm here to rate your team!

So just quickly looking over the team, I see that Keldeo could cause this team a lot of problems, as it has the coverage and power to hit everything hard. I'm also not a huge fan of Darmanitan as your revenge killer, mainly because it's really easily worn down via Stealth Rock, Sandstorm, and Flare Blitz recoil. So, my first suggestion would be to change Rotom-W to a Specially Defensive set. This really eases the pressure that Keldeo can potentially put onto your team, as it switches in pretty nicely, while I also think that it's previous item (Choice Scarf) was pretty redundant as you already had a revenge killer. Here's the set.

Rotom-Wash @ Chesto Berry
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest

So Chesto Resto Rotom-W allows you to check rain teams and Keldeo much more easily. EVs are used for maximum special bulk. Volt Sswitch is Rotom-W's STAB and provides momentum and switch advantage for your team. Hydro Pump is STAB and prevents most ground types from switching in easily. Will-O-Wisp in general offers a way to hit Jirachi, Tyranitar, and Scizor, while Rest is used to give Rotom-W a second life (with Chesto Berry)

So my next concern is Darmanitan. I just don't see what t does for your team that benefits you enough to use it. I think the amount of residual damage it potentially takes is far to high to justify it's use. I suggest making Salamence you're revenge killer (by giving it a Choice Scarf), and replace Darmanitan all together with Scizor. Salamence is more suited to the revenge killing role, and works nicely with Scizor to wear down each others counters, opening a sweep for the other. I'm mainly suggesting Scizor as it fits your team nicely, as it has great synergy with Rotom-W, Tyranitar, and Salamence. Here's the Scizor set (for Salamence just drop Dragon Dance for Dragon Claw).

Scizor @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Superpower

So, offensive SD Scizor really can sweep teams easily given the chance. EVs are used to max attack and speed, allowing you to out speed defensive Politoed and other bulky Pokemon. Swords Dance is used to boost Scizor's attack to very respectable levels, while Bug Bite is Scizor's main form of STAB, as at +2 it easily 2HKOs bulky Pokemon like Hippowdon and Donphan. Bullet Punch is Scizor's other form of STAB and allows you to beat faster threats like Gengar and Latios. Supoer Power offers decent coverage to hit Steel types that resist Scizor's STAB attacks.

Well, there's my rate. Good luck with your team, and I hope I helped in some way.

 

[TheWorm55]

Thank you very much for your advice and I will test the changes and see if they work :) I am pretty sure they actually solve a lot of the team's issues, including the short life span of my revenge killer and the redundancy of Salamence. I think Will-O-Wisp and Chesto Rest on Rotom would be a really interesting thing to use actually and the new EV spread would make him a good thing to switch in on Keldeo.

 

[ogasian]

Meh, your team generally has a lot of problems with Tentacruel and Jellicent, so keep SD Scizor but replace Bug Bite or Superpower with Acrobtics and changr Life Orb to Flying Gem. This allows you to OHKo Jellicent and tentecruel at +2.

 

[TheWorm55]

Well I've tested a bit and I really like the previous suggestions. While Tentacruel and Jellicent resist all of Scizor's attacks, I haven't found either to be much of a problem. Rotom-W is good against both of them and Tyranitar and Ferrothorn are good against Jellicent. I have decided to run Roost over Superpower on Scizor though as it is really useful to keep its life span and heal life orb damage. The Flying Gem Acrobatics thing doesn't seem great because I think the extra damage from Life Orb would be missed against things like Terrakion, but I might still test it so thank you for the suggestions.

I will update the OP with the changes I have made.

 

[ogasian]

Well I've tested a bit and I really like the previous suggestions. While Tentacruel and Jellicent resist all of Scizor's attacks, I haven't found either to be much of a problem. Rotom-W is good against both of them and Tyranitar and Ferrothorn are good against Jellicent. I have decided to run Roost over Superpower on Scizor though as it is really useful to keep its life span and heal life orb damage. The Flying Gem Acrobatics thing doesn't seem great because I think the extra damage from Life Orb would be missed against things like Terrakion, but I might still test it so thank you for the suggestions.

I will update the OP with the changes I have made.

Terrak is destroyed by Bullet Punch anyway, so power is definitely not lacking. But you are right, Rotom W does do pretty good against Tentacruel+Jellicent. Terrakion is a bitch, but then again you have Scizor. So yeah really solid team you have now, gl with it.

 

[TyranitarTerror]

Looking at the updated version of your team I still see a few outstanding things that would be good to change up to improve the effectiveness and overall performance of the team.


Firstly, when I look at your team I see that is has a vulnerability to hazards in general. There may be a few exceptions, but against Spike stacking, the damage would just build up amongst your team especially against more balance and stall-based teams. Even for offense-based teams, I could see a lead-off Skarmory being a pain for you, especially if you lead with Tyranitar as this would guarantee the opponent at least Stealth Rock and two layers of Spikes assuming Custap. Once these are laid, there is nothing you can do about them, and even just that is enough to eat away at your team and make it more vulnerable. This is a tough problem to fix, however, I would recommend that you switch Ferrothorn for Forretress. Doing this will provide you the needed Spin support that will enable you to remove the pesky hazards that eat away at your HP with every switch.

Switching out Ferrothorn while it would help with Spin Support, it would also weaken your bulwark against Rain teams that Rotom-W is not enough to maintain, even with the Chesto Berry set. To deal with this issue, I would suggest switching Salamence for SubCM Latias who is one of the best Rain checks available. Not only this, but Latias functions well against Sun too, giving you another option in the weather wars.

Once again, this creates a dilemma, as you have removed the only Scarfer on your team. I would suggest giving Forretress Stealth Rock and and making Tyranitar your Scarfer. Scarftar is useful in many situations especially in the weather wars. He can even pre-empt the things like Starmie and Latis who have predicted Pursuit and outspeed them all and OHKO with Crunch. He can even switch in and outpace, then OHKO some of the prominent Rain abusers, like Thundurus and Tornadus. With Thundurus, you must make sure you are not switching into a Focus Blast though.

There are a few final things I think would be nice to alter a bit. I see you are running Roost on Scizor, on the Offensive SD spread. I could see why it may be useful when you do not have the Spinner and are taking Spikes and Stealth Rock damage on every switch. However, with Ferrothorn being replaced by Forretress and the hazard damage minimized, Roost seems a little unnecessary. In lieu of my other changes I would concur with Shooting Starmie and advise you to use Superpower > Roost on Scizor given your spread would make it useful for more than just the pink blobs of OU. With your 252 EV investment in Speed you are able to outspeed and OHKO Specially Defensive Heatran with an unboosted Superpower.

Another small thing would be the spread for Rotom-W. I would suggest having 28 EVs in SpA as opposed to 4. This is useful as it allows you to cleanly OHKO opposing Gliscor in the Sand. It is really a small investment and you will not loose too much bulk in the process.

Changes:

Hide

Forretress

Forretress @ Leftovers
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Trait: Sturdy
Nature: Relaxed
- Spikes
- Stealth Rock
- Rapid Spin
- Volt Switch
SubCM Latias

Latias @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SAtk / 252 Spd
Nature: Timid- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Roost
- Dragon Pulse

Scarftar

Tyranitar @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Nature: Jolly
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Superpower

Scizor
Superpower > Roost

Rotom-W
248 HP / 28 SpA / 232 SpD > 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD

 

[TheWorm55]

Thank you for your suggestions and I have tested the changes but I have to say I got hammered each time I used it and the team seemed to have lost all of its power and synergy and everything really. It looked good on paper but in practice it didn't work at all for me.
I can't stand Forretress and would never use it on any team and Latias only has 1 attacking move which means it gets completely walled by any Steel-type.
Tyranitar with the Choice Scarf was really no better than the set I am running at the moment and it just seemed to make its life span much shorter.
Taking Roost off Scizor meant its lifespan was much shorter and I never really needed Superpower anyway.

Instead, I have decided to take off Salamence for Garchomp, as the extra 2 Speed is actually very useful and it resists Stealth Rock rather than being weak to it, though it is susceptible to Spikes. The most important thing though is that it isn't damaged by sand.
There really is just no room for a Rapid Spinner on this team as no Spinners fit in at all. Entry hazards are just something I put up with and can usually deal with unless I let my opponent get 3 layers of spikes up, and even then I have 2 Spikes immunities. My answer to Skarmory is Rotom-W which will simply KO it with Volt Switch.

Speaking of Rotom-W, I have taken on board your changes to the EV spread as I felt it was slightly lacking in power, so thank you for that.

 

[ogasian]

Still extremey Keldeo weak, and SubCm isnt the best set in this meta. Imo, replace Chomp/Mence with Roost+3 attacks Latias.

Latias@Life Orb
Levitate
252 speed/74 hp/180 spattck
Timid

Psyshock
Draco Meteor
Hp Fire
Roost

Checks Keldeo hard, isnt 2HKO by ScarfKeldeo and outspeed all other variants. You lack a scarfer now so I would give maybe Rotom Washa scarf .

 

[TheWorm55]

Still extremey Keldeo weak, and SubCm isnt the best set in this meta. Imo, replace Chomp/Mence with Roost+3 attacks Latias.

Latias@Life Orb
Levitate
252 speed/74 hp/180 spattck
Timid

Psyshock
Draco Meteor
Hp Fire
Roost

Checks Keldeo hard, isnt 2HKO by ScarfKeldeo and outspeed all other variants. You lack a scarfer now so I would give maybe Rotom Washa scarf .

I tested this and found that I didn't like the added Ghost and Dark weaknesses, and also that I prefer the physical attacker over the special attacker. Latios is really good, but I don't think it fits here too well.
Keldeo hasn't caused me too many issues, anyway. Provided Sand is up, Gengar is an out to a Choice Specs Keldeo as well as a last resort against the Sub+CM one, whereas Rotom-W does well against the choice scarf version, and if it is locked into a Water-type move, Ferrothorn can come in and Thunder Wave it so it is then easy to KO.
There are situations where Keldeo can sweep me, but it doesn't happen often enough to be an issue.