hi. after about 2-3 years of not playing competitive mons and only sporadically playing randbats on showdown, i’ve decided to start playing ou again. here’s a team i came up with after about ten or fifteen minutes of uninformed theorycrafting. i’ve tested it out and it’s done okay but it feels like there are some very obvious, very serious flaws i’m not seeing.
the team's current record on showdown is 1605, or something like 38-12, and i think it has the potential to do a little better, but it has some issues that need addressing. i'll update with a screenshot later if necessary, but the tag i've been using is 'reckonerer'. i’m aware that the team is bad; teambuilding's always been a weakness of mine and i'm rusty and not well-versed in the meta, so the team obviously will have some serious structural issues. no excuses though. i’ve tried to think about how to fix the team's problems, but i'm not really sure how to go about doing that, so here i am. forgive the bad names. all constructive criticism welcome
preview:
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Tapu Fini @ Leftovers ** swimmerer
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 36 Def / 224 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Defog
- Nature's Madness
- Taunt
Fast Fini’s actually really fun; I saw this on a CTC team thread and decided to try it. While I miss the bulk I’m pretty sure this thing is supposed to have, being able to get a super quick Taunt off is much appreciated and I’m pretty sure it’s won me more games than the lack of bulk has lost me. It means I either keep up my Rocks, keep something scary from setting up, or can get off a Defog before an opposing Tapu Fini Taunts me.
Tapu Fini’s role on the team is hard to describe. I think the best way to talk about it is to say that it’s a general utility mon; it’s almost anti-everything. Since I find myself throwing it out a lot and hence have Misty Terrain up all the time, the team rarely ever ends up getting statused, so having Fini as a pseudo-‘hax buffer’ is awesome. It’s a “sort-of” check to a lot of things, keeps hazards off the field, and softens bulkier Pokemon and keeps them weakened so that my stronger mons can wreak havoc mid-game or clean up late-game. Nature’s Madness + Taunt + Hoopa can put a lot of pressure on walls, which is much appreciated.
The last three moves are self-explanatory, but I guess Scald is a weird choice. It hits like a pool noodle, especially if Sun’s up, but it’s something to KO really weak Pokemon, and if Misty Terrain wears out the occasional lucky Burn is super welcome. I’ve been thinking about Moonblast because Zygarde stresses me out, but I don’t really know.
Charizard-Mega-Y @ Charizardite Y ** ultralight bimmer
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Solar Beam
- Fire Blast
- Roost
- Focus Blast
Zard-Y was admittedly slapped onto the team as an afterthought. It’s a last-ditch Ground immunity and a buffer against a couple of Pokemon (namely Pheromosa and Magearna, but also Volcarona to an extent), but in spite of it being the last member of the team I put on, it’s probably the MVP. It’s the team’s “glue” and its preliminary breaker. Charizard is really hard for teams to switch into and actually finds more opportunities to get in than I expect. Sometimes it feels like very little can actually switch into Charizard comfortably, so I can just spam Fire Blast and Solar Beam, and a good prediction or two with Charizard is often enough to win me games.
That being said, for all of the good that it brings about, there are some issues. The obvious one is that Sun’s a double-edged sword for my team. It feels like things work worse with Sun up. Fini’s only attacking move is a Water STAB, and Ferro dies to basically any Fire move under Sun. As a result, I have to play my Charizard really carefully or just hope it goes apeshit and kills everything. I’m not sure what the best choice of action is.
There’s not really a lot to talk about in terms of the set. I wanted to use Flame Charge for a bit since I think it’d be pretty funny and it seems threatening, but for this team, I really, really need the recovery and without both Solarbeam and Focus Blast, it seems kind of pointless. I’ve thought about running more bulk at the cost of SAtk investment, but I’m not sure if that’s the right way to go about things. On another note, I didn’t realize how annoying Zygarde was until recently. Could HP Ice > Focus Blast be a viable way of dealing with it?
Hoopa-Unbound @ Choice Band ** suffererer
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
Since I played minimal Gen VI, this is actually my first time using Hoopa-U. It feels almost criminal. It's a remarkable wallbreaker and nothing really enjoys switching into it because it's so strong. It's one of my first lines of defense against stall, and it + fast Taunt Fini + Zard-Y can sorta put pressure on more defensive teams if they show up. My only complaints are that it's a little slow and can't take physical hits well, but those are pretty minor grievances.
It's one of those pokemon where it feels like there’s not a lot needs to be said, so it feels fruitless to really talk about it much more. I never use Drain Punch, really; in fifty battles, it’s only been useful once. Is there something else that could be more useful? I like the idea of Fire Punch—Magearna ruins my fun sometimes and I don’t think my team’s particularly good against the Trick Room variant, so having something to hit it hard would be nice.
Pheromosa @ Life Orb ** the hilde garde
Trait: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SpA
Naive Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Ice Beam
- Poison Jab
this thing is so good what the hell
I think everyone knows what Pheromosa does. It gives me momentum through U-turn, it revenge kills slower mons with HJK and Ice Beam, and it can even clean late-game pretty freely. Poison Jab is to pick off weakened Fairies, which the team can struggle with sometimes if Zard doesn’t get the chance to come in or if i predict poorly with Hoopa. It also provides the team with some much-needed initial speed (save Chomp + Phero, the team isn’t that fast), and with Beast Boost you’re just not moving first without a priority move, and that can often spell game for offensive teams. When it sweeps or punches huge holes into teams, it’s really something beautiful.
Pheromosa is surprisingly the member of the team I use least, but I don’t think I could properly say it’s the weakest link—just the threat of it is generally enough to make my opponent play differently. It doesn’t seem to have great synergy with the rest of the team, though. Originally I had Tapu Koko on the team in place of Chomp and the Voltturn synergy was really good, but since then Phero hasn’t done as much. It’s still great but sometimes I wonder if I could use the slot for something else. Thoughts?
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers ** pointilism
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Power Whip
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball
Ferrothorn is the obligatory Steel and general support for the team. This and Fini are probably the two slots I’m most unsure about, but particularly this. It + Fini provide a pretty solid defensive core that’s able to sponge hits and get me to a point where I can transition to my main hitters pretty easily. Setting up hazards with Ferrothorn can feel a little awkward sometimes, though, since it’s so damn slow and can mess up the team’s momentum, but it feels kind of needed for a ton of reasons: as a Rocker, as a Steel with strong resistances, and as an answer to M-Metagross, Tapu Koko, to an extent A-Gren, etc. which are things I don’t auto-lose to, necessarily, but are things to which I don’t have proper switch-ins, so if I guess wrong, I sort of lose.
It’s also pretty easy for opponents to set up hazards on it, which can put pressure on Fini. Naturally, that can be annoying. I tend to double a lot with Ferrothorn to conserve my momentum and keep my opponent on their toes. It’s kind of an awkward Pokemon to have on the team, but I haven’t found a better solution. If you have one, I’m all ears.
Garchomp @ Choice Scarf ** el desdichado
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Outrage
- Fire Blast
an best. Garchomp’s one of my favorite Pokemon overall and it fits in well here. It checks things like Volcarona, unboosted Phero, A-Gren, etc. it’s kind of a catch-all pokemon. I generally keep Garchomp in the wings until (a) my opponent threatens with a slower setup mon (eg., QD Volc) or (b) it’s late-game and everything is weakened. It’s mostly there in case of emergencies, but it can still do a bit of work in early/mid-games with its strong STABs, especially since it has decent bulk and an Electric immunity. I generally shy away from switching it into Tapu Koko and random Electrics for fear of stray HP Ices, but sometimes I’ll do it because it feels like you kind of have to keep them honest, and the team doesn’t really like eating too many Volt Switches.
weaknesses and other things to note:
– tapu koko + phero volt turn can be annoying? i don’t definitively lose to it, but it’s definitely not an enjoyable matchup
– i dislike running band on hoopa. i’ve been considering dread plate or expert belt but i don’t really know if those are good alternatives
– i hate running into zygarde. band in particular can be annoying since fini doesn’t run a lot of defense and can only really nature’s madness it. been considering moonblast > scald since scald outside of a few things doesn’t seem particularly helpful.
– not sure about my stall matchup. i think the team does fine against stall, but it feels like i have to play fini carefully to win. specifically, i can’t let it get knocked off or my chances of winning drop significantly. or maybe i’m just bad. who knows?
– in theory i don't think this team matches up well against tangrowth. it's just not staying in against zard and regenerator makes everything a nuisance. regenerator mons in general just seem annoying for this team since i really like having fini nature's madness everything
as always, thanks for reading
the team's current record on showdown is 1605, or something like 38-12, and i think it has the potential to do a little better, but it has some issues that need addressing. i'll update with a screenshot later if necessary, but the tag i've been using is 'reckonerer'. i’m aware that the team is bad; teambuilding's always been a weakness of mine and i'm rusty and not well-versed in the meta, so the team obviously will have some serious structural issues. no excuses though. i’ve tried to think about how to fix the team's problems, but i'm not really sure how to go about doing that, so here i am. forgive the bad names. all constructive criticism welcome
preview:
---
Tapu Fini @ Leftovers ** swimmerer
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 36 Def / 224 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Defog
- Nature's Madness
- Taunt
Fast Fini’s actually really fun; I saw this on a CTC team thread and decided to try it. While I miss the bulk I’m pretty sure this thing is supposed to have, being able to get a super quick Taunt off is much appreciated and I’m pretty sure it’s won me more games than the lack of bulk has lost me. It means I either keep up my Rocks, keep something scary from setting up, or can get off a Defog before an opposing Tapu Fini Taunts me.
Tapu Fini’s role on the team is hard to describe. I think the best way to talk about it is to say that it’s a general utility mon; it’s almost anti-everything. Since I find myself throwing it out a lot and hence have Misty Terrain up all the time, the team rarely ever ends up getting statused, so having Fini as a pseudo-‘hax buffer’ is awesome. It’s a “sort-of” check to a lot of things, keeps hazards off the field, and softens bulkier Pokemon and keeps them weakened so that my stronger mons can wreak havoc mid-game or clean up late-game. Nature’s Madness + Taunt + Hoopa can put a lot of pressure on walls, which is much appreciated.
The last three moves are self-explanatory, but I guess Scald is a weird choice. It hits like a pool noodle, especially if Sun’s up, but it’s something to KO really weak Pokemon, and if Misty Terrain wears out the occasional lucky Burn is super welcome. I’ve been thinking about Moonblast because Zygarde stresses me out, but I don’t really know.
Charizard-Mega-Y @ Charizardite Y ** ultralight bimmer
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Solar Beam
- Fire Blast
- Roost
- Focus Blast
Zard-Y was admittedly slapped onto the team as an afterthought. It’s a last-ditch Ground immunity and a buffer against a couple of Pokemon (namely Pheromosa and Magearna, but also Volcarona to an extent), but in spite of it being the last member of the team I put on, it’s probably the MVP. It’s the team’s “glue” and its preliminary breaker. Charizard is really hard for teams to switch into and actually finds more opportunities to get in than I expect. Sometimes it feels like very little can actually switch into Charizard comfortably, so I can just spam Fire Blast and Solar Beam, and a good prediction or two with Charizard is often enough to win me games.
That being said, for all of the good that it brings about, there are some issues. The obvious one is that Sun’s a double-edged sword for my team. It feels like things work worse with Sun up. Fini’s only attacking move is a Water STAB, and Ferro dies to basically any Fire move under Sun. As a result, I have to play my Charizard really carefully or just hope it goes apeshit and kills everything. I’m not sure what the best choice of action is.
There’s not really a lot to talk about in terms of the set. I wanted to use Flame Charge for a bit since I think it’d be pretty funny and it seems threatening, but for this team, I really, really need the recovery and without both Solarbeam and Focus Blast, it seems kind of pointless. I’ve thought about running more bulk at the cost of SAtk investment, but I’m not sure if that’s the right way to go about things. On another note, I didn’t realize how annoying Zygarde was until recently. Could HP Ice > Focus Blast be a viable way of dealing with it?
Hoopa-Unbound @ Choice Band ** suffererer
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
Since I played minimal Gen VI, this is actually my first time using Hoopa-U. It feels almost criminal. It's a remarkable wallbreaker and nothing really enjoys switching into it because it's so strong. It's one of my first lines of defense against stall, and it + fast Taunt Fini + Zard-Y can sorta put pressure on more defensive teams if they show up. My only complaints are that it's a little slow and can't take physical hits well, but those are pretty minor grievances.
It's one of those pokemon where it feels like there’s not a lot needs to be said, so it feels fruitless to really talk about it much more. I never use Drain Punch, really; in fifty battles, it’s only been useful once. Is there something else that could be more useful? I like the idea of Fire Punch—Magearna ruins my fun sometimes and I don’t think my team’s particularly good against the Trick Room variant, so having something to hit it hard would be nice.
Pheromosa @ Life Orb ** the hilde garde
Trait: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SpA
Naive Nature
- High Jump Kick
- U-turn
- Ice Beam
- Poison Jab
this thing is so good what the hell
I think everyone knows what Pheromosa does. It gives me momentum through U-turn, it revenge kills slower mons with HJK and Ice Beam, and it can even clean late-game pretty freely. Poison Jab is to pick off weakened Fairies, which the team can struggle with sometimes if Zard doesn’t get the chance to come in or if i predict poorly with Hoopa. It also provides the team with some much-needed initial speed (save Chomp + Phero, the team isn’t that fast), and with Beast Boost you’re just not moving first without a priority move, and that can often spell game for offensive teams. When it sweeps or punches huge holes into teams, it’s really something beautiful.
Pheromosa is surprisingly the member of the team I use least, but I don’t think I could properly say it’s the weakest link—just the threat of it is generally enough to make my opponent play differently. It doesn’t seem to have great synergy with the rest of the team, though. Originally I had Tapu Koko on the team in place of Chomp and the Voltturn synergy was really good, but since then Phero hasn’t done as much. It’s still great but sometimes I wonder if I could use the slot for something else. Thoughts?
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers ** pointilism
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Power Whip
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball
Ferrothorn is the obligatory Steel and general support for the team. This and Fini are probably the two slots I’m most unsure about, but particularly this. It + Fini provide a pretty solid defensive core that’s able to sponge hits and get me to a point where I can transition to my main hitters pretty easily. Setting up hazards with Ferrothorn can feel a little awkward sometimes, though, since it’s so damn slow and can mess up the team’s momentum, but it feels kind of needed for a ton of reasons: as a Rocker, as a Steel with strong resistances, and as an answer to M-Metagross, Tapu Koko, to an extent A-Gren, etc. which are things I don’t auto-lose to, necessarily, but are things to which I don’t have proper switch-ins, so if I guess wrong, I sort of lose.
It’s also pretty easy for opponents to set up hazards on it, which can put pressure on Fini. Naturally, that can be annoying. I tend to double a lot with Ferrothorn to conserve my momentum and keep my opponent on their toes. It’s kind of an awkward Pokemon to have on the team, but I haven’t found a better solution. If you have one, I’m all ears.
Garchomp @ Choice Scarf ** el desdichado
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Outrage
- Fire Blast
an best. Garchomp’s one of my favorite Pokemon overall and it fits in well here. It checks things like Volcarona, unboosted Phero, A-Gren, etc. it’s kind of a catch-all pokemon. I generally keep Garchomp in the wings until (a) my opponent threatens with a slower setup mon (eg., QD Volc) or (b) it’s late-game and everything is weakened. It’s mostly there in case of emergencies, but it can still do a bit of work in early/mid-games with its strong STABs, especially since it has decent bulk and an Electric immunity. I generally shy away from switching it into Tapu Koko and random Electrics for fear of stray HP Ices, but sometimes I’ll do it because it feels like you kind of have to keep them honest, and the team doesn’t really like eating too many Volt Switches.
weaknesses and other things to note:
– tapu koko + phero volt turn can be annoying? i don’t definitively lose to it, but it’s definitely not an enjoyable matchup
– i dislike running band on hoopa. i’ve been considering dread plate or expert belt but i don’t really know if those are good alternatives
– i hate running into zygarde. band in particular can be annoying since fini doesn’t run a lot of defense and can only really nature’s madness it. been considering moonblast > scald since scald outside of a few things doesn’t seem particularly helpful.
– not sure about my stall matchup. i think the team does fine against stall, but it feels like i have to play fini carefully to win. specifically, i can’t let it get knocked off or my chances of winning drop significantly. or maybe i’m just bad. who knows?
– in theory i don't think this team matches up well against tangrowth. it's just not staying in against zard and regenerator makes everything a nuisance. regenerator mons in general just seem annoying for this team since i really like having fini nature's madness everything
as always, thanks for reading
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