Fleur's First Team: NU Rain.

FleurVonConspicua

Introduction
When I came into contact with the world of competitive Pokemon battling, I pretty much realized that OU wasn't cut for me. It was way too much established on using X Pokemon, with not much room for surprising your opponent. Also, most of the Pokemon I liked, either because of their design or their playstyle resided on lower tiers, which brought me to the world of NU battles. Analyzing what style of battling I wanted, I realized that a Rain team was just the one I liked the most.

The Team (in all its rainy glory)
Volbeat_BW.gif

313Volbeat_Dream.png
Mr. Pimp (Volbeat)@ Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Def, 4 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Rain Dance
- Encore
- Thunder Wave
- U-Turn

I chose Volbeat as the team's main Rain Dancer and lead for its versatility: once he has already set up rain, he can cripple the opposing lead with Encore or Thunder Wave, and then U-Turn into any of my Rain sweepers. EVs are pretty standard, intended to boost its physical bulk to the possible maximum.

Swanna_BW.gif

581Swanna_Dream.png
Odette (Swanna)@ Life Orb
Trait: Hydratation
EVs: 4HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hurricane
- Rest
- Rain Dance

Seriously, did anyone even think that an NU Rain team could be complete without the Swan Princess? We all know that, at first sight, Swanna doesn't seem anything special in stats or moveset. Then you realize that, under Rain, Swanna has practically perfect coverage and, more important, hits HARD. Not only that, the combination of Hydratation and Rest makes healing any damage from Life Orb an easy job. I chose Rain Dance for the last moveslot, plainly because this team NEEDS Rain Dance on the field, and Volbeat can't be there permanently. EVs are the standard for offensive Swanna.

Ludicolo_BW.gif

272Ludicolo_Dream.png
Samba de Amigo (Ludicolo)@ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 4HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Giga Drain
- Ice Beam
- Rain Dance

When I had to choose the Swift Swim sweeper that is a plain must in any Rain team, Ludicolo was the one that immediately caught my attention. Its versatily is plain dumb: it can heal itself with Giga Drain to nullify the Life Orb damage, Hydro Pump hits like a freaking truck loaded with dynamite and opposing Grass, Fliers and the occasional Dragon meet their doom via Ice Beam. The last moveslot is, once again, Rain Dance. It just has to be there. I've also just realized he has the exact same EV spread as Swanna.

Electabuzz_BW.gif

125Electabuzz_Dream.png
AngryGoran (Electabuzz)@ Choice Scarf
Trait: Vital Spirit
EVs: 4HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Thunder
- Focus Blast
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power Ice

HE'S ANGRY! He's also the Electric-type Thunder abuser of choice in this Rain team. I first went for a somewhat Bulkier approach with Eviolite, but, thanks to suggestions, I realized it needed more Speed and changed to Choice Scarf. With HP Ice to dispose of opposing Ground-types trying to kill him, annoying Plants and the ocassional Dragon, Thunder and Focus Blast are pretty much cookie cutter moves for Electrabuzz, and Volt Switch allows him to scout. Once again the same EV spread? Really, me?

Armaldo_BW.gif

Bernadette (Armaldo)@ Leftovers
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 128 HP, 252 Atk, 128 Spe
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Rapid Spin
- Swords Dance
- Rock Blast
- X-Scissor

WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING SUPPOSED TO BE?! Leaving aside extremely weird looks, when considering spinners for a Rain team, I only had two options: Wartortle, who doesn't even have access to Rain Dish, and this guy with Swift Swim. Also noticing my lack of physical attackers, Armaldo just fit in like a specially-made suit. X-Scissor provides the main counter against Ludicolo, who may attempt to take advantage of the Rain for its own use.

Seismitoad_BW.gif

Fat Bastard (Seismitoad)@ Damp Rock
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Stealth Rock
- Rain Dance
- Hydro Pump
- Sludge Wave

Thanks a bunch to WhiteDMist and ion for suggesting me to dump Cradily, which didn't really fit too much into an hyper offensive Rain team, and suggesting this Seismitoad. Sets up Stealth Rock, Rain Dance WITH Damp Rock in case Volbeat is gone, and can revenge kill Ludicolo with Sludge Wave. I like him :D

Conclusion
And thus here concludes my first RMT for NU Rain. I hope you guys like it, but if you find ANY (and I mean, any) complaints or suggestions, please don't hesitate to submit them. I'm not the most experienced of team builders, and I'm willing to listen to any suggestions, so, go ahead. Thanks a bunch.
 
Nice team you got here! It's a pretty standard rain dance team (I used 4 of the pokes myself on my old rain team) so there's only minor nitpicks. I can see opposing Ludicolo giving this team trouble. You say Armaldo and Electabuzz can counter it but both are outspeed and OHKO'ed in the rain (and your Electabuzz set doesn't have signal beam on it). Beating it would usually mean toxic-ing & "stalling" until it dies (and it's very hard to stall with mainly offensive pokemon). At the very least, a standoff between Ludicolos happens where you might win. Some optional solutions are running protect on Cradily over stealth rock while running a standard defensive set on Armaldo, or maybe changing tail glow and baton pass with thunder wave and U turn. This may seem like a huge change, but It's extremely rare for Volbeat to accomplish the TailPass against serious competitive opponents. The sweepers will do just fine without them.
If you fail to get rain up, certain fast sweepers will decimate this team. I suggest running choice scarf on Electabuzz over eviolite to help negate this problem.
Lastly, special walls suck as lickilicky and regice can cause problems. Relying on focus blast on Buzzy does not cut it. An option would be to replace swanna with a physical sweeper such as sawk or floatzel (if you want to abuse the rain even more).
Overall this team does great and all of my options are just suggestions so take them or leave them as you please :)
 
Lolkomori said:
Nice team you got here! It's a pretty standard rain dance team (I used 4 of the pokes myself on my old rain team) so there's only minor nitpicks. I can see opposing Ludicolo giving this team trouble. You say Armaldo and Electabuzz can counter it but both are outspeed and OHKO'ed in the rain (and your Electabuzz set doesn't have signal beam on it). Beating it would usually mean toxic-ing & "stalling" until it dies (and it's very hard to stall with mainly offensive pokemon). At the very least, a standoff between Ludicolos happens where you might win. Some optional solutions are running protect on Cradily over stealth rock while running a standard defensive set on Armaldo, or maybe changing tail glow and baton pass with thunder wave and U turn. This may seem like a huge change, but It's extremely rare for Volbeat to accomplish the TailPass against serious competitive opponents. The sweepers will do just fine without them.
If you fail to get rain up, certain fast sweepers will decimate this team. I suggest running choice scarf on Electabuzz over eviolite to help negate this problem.
Lastly, special walls suck as lickilicky and regice can cause problems. Relying on focus blast on Buzzy does not cut it. An option would be to replace swanna with a physical sweeper such as sawk or floatzel (if you want to abuse the rain even more).
Overall this team does great and all of my options are just suggestions so take them or leave them as you please :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestions! As I said, I don't really think I'm too good as of yet at team-building, so any kind of suggestions are more than welcome! I'll be listing the changes you suggested and my opinion on them:

-I agree that opposing Ludicolo can be a problem. I'll try the ThunderWave/U-Turn set for Volbeat.

-What's a standard Armaldo defensive set?

-I don't really want to take out Swanna, she's the main reason for me to make a Rain team. Aren't there any other options to counter Special Walls?

-I'll try the Choice Scarf on Electabuzz :)

hathater said:
Cradily wont ko anything, so put those 4 evs in defence
Click to expand...

Oh, well, it's not like 4 is a big difference, and she has OHKOed several boosted Water sweepers with energy ball and a storm drain boost.
 
Armaldo @ Leftovers
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Att
Nature: + Def / - Sp. Att (On the tip of my tongue....)
-Rapid Spin
-Stealth Rock
-Stone Edge
-X Scissor/ Earthquake

This is the standard defensive set. But if you don't want to lose Swanna and Have a weakness to Special Walls a More Funky-Hybrid Set Could WorK:

Armaldo @ Lum Berry/Leftovers/Life Orb (Whatevs)
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Att / 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
-stealth rock
-rapid spin
-stone edge
-X Scissor/ earthquake/ super power

A blend between offensive and defensive, it would have to do many jobs and you will have to be carefull playing it. Super Power would be specifically for Lickilicky, if it gives you trouble.
 
Actually what you have right now is the true standard Armaldo EV spread and set, since the defensive set is mediocre and pointless on your team regardless. Volbeat would do well to replace Tail Glow and Baton Pass with Thunder Wave and U-turn so that you can let Volbeat die immediately after setting up Rain/or have a slow U-turn so that your sweepers get in for free.

Swanna wants Speed more than power, so go with a Timid nature.Ludicolo needs a Timid nature. Additional power doesn't matter if you are outsped by opposing Ludicolo after all (not that that'll give it an easier time, but still).

I seriously do not see much value in Cradily on this team. Why waste precious Rain turns, especially if only Volbeat has the Damp Rock equipped? Wasting a turn out of 6-7 Rain turns is already bad enough, but wasting a turn out of a probable 3-4 turns is just poor strategy.

There are a few great options that I have available for this last team slot that fulfill vital roles for your team. Skuntank is a good option because your team has no real way around Psychic-types (especially Trace Gardevoir) except to hope that you can break through them in Rain. Trace Gardevoir can easily Destiny Bond, Trick, Psychic, or even Signal Beam a good portion of your team to death. Even Skuntank is not perfect due to DBond and Trick. But it does provide your team with valuable priority and Taunt for Stall teams that can possibly stall your Rain out.

Metang is another decent option for that slot. You still need a Stealth Rock setter to ensure many KOs in the Rain, and Metang is a very reliable one. It also gives you a buffer against Rock attacks (and works well with Armaldo having Rapid Spin) as well as Flying attacks. It can also be used as a pivot with its decent bulk and power.

Seismitoad is the last option I'll give you personally. Not only does it set up Stealth Rock, it can also set up and take advantage of Rain as well. While giving it Swift Swim would make it the fastest member of your team in the Rain, Water Absorb lets your team tank Rain boosted Water moves safely without relying solely on Ludicolo. It doesn't handle Flying-types very well, but it more than makes up for it with reliable Rocks and Rain.

Changes:

Volbeat: T-Wave + U-Turn>Tail Glow + BP
Ludicolo/Swanna: Timid
Skuntank/Seismitoad/Metang>Cradily

Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Trait: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 220 SDef / 36 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
- Taunt
- Poison Jab/Crunch

Metang @ Eviolite
Trait: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Meteor Mash
- Earthquake
- Toxic

Seismitoad @ Damp Rock
Trait: Water Absorb/Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Rain Dance
- Hydro Pump
- Earth Power

So many Rain teams!!!
 
when considering team members, you have to have some kind of focus. choosing a rain team means that you're trying to emphasize a type of heavy offense since rain turns are so short and limited. so saying that you need high special bulk on a pokemon in order to solve issues with opposing water-types is not the way to go. in fact, the team rather seems a bit confused if you try to make it lean towards rain balance. does rain balance actually make use of five to eight turns of rain dance to the fullest? you need a different alternative that will keep the goal of the team in mind and not ruin the momentum or pressure it's meant to achieve.

with that being said, cradily would be better off being replaced. the idea i'm getting here is that you need check other water-types, but that's not a big deal when you have ludicolo to take at least one hit from full health and respond back with an attack. if opposing gorebyss or huntail set up on you, you know you're not playing or teambuilding right, because rain dance teams are supposed to apply high offensive pressure to prevent that... i hope you see where i'm getting at here. you could be trying out seismitoad instead as a stealth rock setter that can still take advantage of rain to power off strong attacks. seismitoad will also offer an immunity to electric-type attacks, especially when you're using pokemon that are susceptible to the common choice scarf rotom-a.

if you dislike the lack of special bulk, then you can try out mantine over swanna. though you don't quite have the same sheer power that hurricane had, mantine offers slightly more bulk to be a more reliable answer to things like opposing ludicolo or gorebyss without hidden power electric. that will help make up for you losing cradily, but at the same time you won't be giving up any offensive pressure. mantine is still powerful with rain-boosted hydro pumps, and air slash is pretty handy for hitting ludicolo and just about any grass-type.

so i hope that just brings a bit more clarity to what rain dance teams in this metagame are supposed to focus on, but there's just some slight minor changes that you may want to consider too.

for one, rain offense pretty much 1-2HKOs the entire tier, so i really doubt that tail glow is necessary on volbeat. instead, you can have substitute which, if you think about it, is much more beneficial to pass out to your rain sweepers since they want to be preserved and not take hard hits from the opponent. substitute eases a lot of stuff for your rain sweepers so that you don't have to worry about sucker punch, fake out, and some other stuff.

next off, electabuzz needs hidden power ice for its coverage move. that's your only move to hit opposing grass-types (especially those with a poison typing). it still hits most things that you want it to hit.

finally, you may want to consider aqua tail over x-scissor on armaldo. while it may seem weird to give up on x-scissor since it hurts stuff like musharna more, aqua tail is of equal importance so that you don't actually lose so easily against stuff like regirock, golem, piloswine, and a bunch of other pokemon. rock blast and x-scissor is just pitiful against them.

537.png
seismitoad @ damp rock | swift swim
timid nature | 252 spa / 252 spe / 4 def
stealth rock / rain dance / hydro pump / earth power

226.png
mantine @ life orb | swift swim
modest nature | 252 spa / 252 spe / 4 def
rain dance / hydro pump / air slash / hidden power electric
 
Woah. So much feedback. Thanks a bunch guys. It seems I didn't really get the hyper offensive approach of NU Rain, and added an unnecessary wall in Cradily. It's a shame, I like her. But Seismitoad works nicely.

@WhiteDMist:

  • I've already implemented the U-Turn + Thunder Wave for Volbeat, I just haven't posted it here yet, I was testing it. It's working quite well.
  • I'll implement both Timid changes to Swanna and Ludicolo.
  • Of the three you suggested I like Seismitoad the most, so I'll test him out. It being able to set Rain Dance is nice too :D
@ium:

  • Yeah. I do get Cradily isn't the way to go. I'll change Electabuzz's Hidden Power to Ice and implement Seismitoad :). I'll think about Substitute for Volbeat, though. I like the Thunder Wave + Encore.
  • X-Scissor on Armaldo helps deal with afforementioned Psychic-types.
Thanks a lot to both of you ^^. Which do you think is better, Swift Swim or Water Absorb Seismitoad? Thoughts on Sludge Wave to deal with Ludicolo?
 
Why don't you use Giga Drain instead of Energy Ball on Cradily. It's not that much weaker, and its effect is much better? I think it was not leagal with Storm Drain, but now it is.
 
Hi, first post here :D

Very nice team you have there.

I have only one suggestion: since you gave Volbeat U-turn (which I like) it might good to consider setting his Speed IVs to 0. You don't need Speed for Rain Dance, Thunder Wave, Encore because you have Prankster; and if your is to use U-turn to bring in a sweeper safely, you should make sure that you are indeed moving last when using it.
 
I'm not sure what you are talking about. ium and I both say Swanna is the obvious one to replace. The core of Ludicolo, Seismitoad and Mantine is really hard to stop after all.
 
With Swanna being irreplacable, it makes things more difficult. I respect you like Swanna and want to keep it, but it makes things harder.

Expert Belt Gardevoir is a HUGE threat to this team as it can deal some big damage.

That being said, you need to cover threats, Gardevoir being the most important. You don't want a Swift Swim Gardevoir setting town on your team, as nothing can withstand the onslaught it brings. Powerful Bugs are also a threat, but Swanna covers them - though it cannot switch in. You also have problems getting past big special walls like Regice or Mantine. The latter can be passed through Electabuzz' Thunder, but not otherwise so it is still troublesome. Especially with Gardevoir being omnipresent in NU.

Something to stop them is hard to find and needs to be ridiculously fast if you want to outspeed Garde in the rain, so you need to live a hit from it, which is pretty hard if you are sandwiched in between Psychic, Thunderbolt, Signal Beam, Hidden Power, Energy Ball and Shadow Ball. Ludicolo lives Garde's first hit but certainly not the second and if it takes damage on the switch you have nothing to stop Garde.

The best way to stop Garde is to let it trace something useless. Gardy never runs Hidden Power Rock, so I suggest Pinsir. Pinsir can really nuke things and does not need rain to function and can come in to clean the scraps, or to revenge one of the slow walls (Defensive Mantine runs Water Absorb) and just get Moxie rolling. I suggest the Moxie sweeper set.
You still don't outspeed Swift Swim Gardevoir in the rain, but you outspeed everything else and don't need to worry about any of the threats I mentioned before.

Since two scarfers is a bit redundant, I suggest to replace Electabuzz.

If you want to keep STAB Thunder, you might try Zebstrika is also an option. You can even run Motor Drive/Lightningrod to absorb the electric attacks Swanna lures in, or Sap Sipper to absorb the grass attacks Seismitoad lures, which are both very useful to your team. Hidden Power type is a choice between Grass and Ice, depending on what you want to hit.

Pinsir @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- X-Scissor
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Close Combat

Zebstrika @ Life Orb
Trait: Lightningrod
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunder
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Rain Dance
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top