What's up guys, TCR here with a cool af team that isn't just another old voltturn team or an even more standard shellder offense team or something awful and boring like that. And it doesn't have Nosepass in it either, so that's a plus! This team was built around the concept of double switching, or x-swishing or whatever. It was meant to take advantage of common trapping methods in today's metagame, such as Gothita, Diglett, Stunky, other Pursuit-trappers like Honedge, as well as being fully functional as a stand-alone team. As such tho, this team needs to be played by a good player to be effective, so its not really new player friendly.
We originally started with this core. We wanted one mon that could set up on Gothita and one mon that could set up on some Pursuit-trappers, and Houndour / Drilbur seemed really threatening
From there we tried to add in some sort of Fighting-type, and neither of us wanted to use Mienfoo. Riolu is pretty cute so we thought it would work out. Lum Riolu was the set chosen as that allowed us to fuck with Larvesta and Ponyta
After that offensive core we wanted some sort of backbone. Abra could be fairly awful to fight against, so Honedge was added. Honedge let us just eliminate Abra which was nice, while also being a good Spritzee switchin.
We really wanted some sort of way to set up hazards, since double switching and forcing our opponent to switch would make hazards pressure the enemy really well. Offensive spiker Omanyte was something that seemed cool enough to add
After that I forget the last mon that took the spot, I think it was Gothita. We were super weak to Snivy and Corphish and tons of other mons. So we started switching out mons. Gothita and Riolu seemed to be the main weak points, so we replaced them with Cottonee and Foongus respectively, which let us check tons of things.
Final roster!
Don't forget the fallen mons that didn't make it to the final team!
Houndour @ Eviolite
Ability: Flash Fire
Level: 5
EVs: 36 Atk / 36 Def / 196 SpA / 236 Spe
Naive Nature
- Fire Blast
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot
- Sucker Punch
Houndour was chosen as one of the main two parts of the offensive core for its great speed and ability to pressure and set up on Gothita, as well as being able to tie and hopefully outspeed things like Mienfoo. Houndour is one of the best checks this team has to Pawniard, who can otherwise be troublesome. That is why an Eviolite is chosen as its item instead of something like a Life Orb. We figured that Houndour had enough offensive prowess with Nasty Plot that the extra power would not be needed and the bulk would be greatly appreciated. Houndour's main moves are Fire Blast and Dark Pulse, its two STABs that give it fairly good coverage. Sucker Punch was chosen in the last slot to be able to revenge things like Fletchling, while also being able to bait in Diglett and KO it. Houndour used to have Early Bird, which can be run on certain team arche-types that might not have a Foongus, as this allows Houndour to really mess with Foongus. However, on this specific team Flash Fire is better as it allows Houndour to switch in on Pumpkaboo-large and easily bop it. Pursuit might also be an option over Sucker Punch, but with Honedge trapping things it might not be the best idea. Pursuit would be cool to have against Pumpkaboo-large teams however, if Houndour might not be able to set up immediately. The main way to play to set up a Houndour sweep is try to bait in Gothita or at worst sac something so Gothita is out and you can switch in Houndour. Usually I'll switch in Foongus and then double switch into Houndour, and from there you can pressure with Fire Blasts or you can straight up win with Nasty Plot.
Drilbur @ Berry Juice
Ability: Mold Breaker
Level: 5
EVs: 36 HP / 76 Atk / 36 Def / 76 SpD /212 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Drilbur was chosen as the second part of the offensive core as something that can set up on Pursuit-trapper, and more specifically Stunky. Stunky can be annoying for Honedge, Cottonee, and Omanyte. It can Pursuit trap Honedge, switch in easily on Cottonee, and Defog all of the hazards that Omanyte sets up. Drilbur just shits on Stunky hard enough to always force it out and easily get up a Swords Dance. It then can easily pressure the enemy team, being able to tie with Mienfoo and OHKO with +2 Earthquake. Drilbur also pressures Vullaby, which is something that this team can struggle with. Lastly, it provides good hazard control in Rapid Spin. Drilbur happens to also pressure out Pawniard, being able to live Suckers and Knock Offs and OHKOing in return. This greatly relieves pressure for the team, as Pawniard is such a pain to take care of. Berry juice is the preferred item as it gives Drilbur some sort of recovery. The 116 HP EVs allow Drilbur to survive Gastly's LO Shadow Ball 90% of the time, which just has to do. Eviolite Drilbur is still 2hkoed by Shadow Ball, and doesn't really do much outside of live Mienfoo's High Jump Kick, which with Foongus, Cottonee, and Honedge shouldn't ever need to happen. Drilbur's main set up opportunities happen when this team can lure in Stunky, Ponyta, or Pawniard. It has excellent synergy as well with Houndour, as Houndour takes care of Cottonee and Foongus, among other Grass-types, while Drilbur can for the most part take care of any Rock-types that threaten Houndour.
Foongus @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
Level: 5
EVs: 124 HP / 160 Def / 160 SpD
Bold Nature
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Clear Smog
- Hidden Power [Fighting]
With the team as it is, Snivy was a super huge threat, as was Corphish. In the other iteration of the team, Gothita was chosen in this slot to try and bait out things like Pawniard, in a lure core of Pursuit trapper / Gothita / Fighting type lure. The team was super weak to random HO threats. We really needed some sort of defensive backbone, and Foongus is probably one of my favorite mons to use since its so solid. Spore completely neutralizes threats like Mienfoo or Pawniard, and can play big mind games with random things. Often times it forces players to switch around a ton getting the right mon to go to sleep, which can really help with the theme of luring in random things and gaining momentum. Giga Drain is the main STAB and is the most common Foongus move, it lets it check Chinchou among other Water-types, specifically shit like Tirtouga or Omanyte. Clear Smog is chosen over Giga Drain for the rare moment that mons get a boost, such as like Timburr, which can be kinda shitty for the team to face. It also happens to beat CM Spritzee which is pretty cool (normally Spritzee can just keep clicking Calm Mind and can win, especially if Foongus is -1 SpA). HP Fighting makes the team slightly less weak to Pawniard.
Cottonee (F) @ Iron Ball
Ability: Prankster
Level: 5
EVs: 116 HP / 196 Def / 196 SpD
Bold Nature
- Knock Off
- Switcheroo
- Dazzling Gleam
- Encore
Even with Foongus on our team, HP Flying Snivy still kinda shit on us. Cottonee had a normal less memey set before, but Iron Ball Cottonee is the best fit. Iron Ball Switcheroo is a cool af set that lets it check things like Archen or Snivy, it also greatly disrupts the enemy team. It's pretty easy to get the right item for Cottonee, since everyone is bad and just runs Eviolite or Berry Juice on everything. Knock Off is chosen as it lets it lure in things like Magnemite and fuck with them, and helps us at least have some sort of Knock Off user on the team. Dazzling is solo STAB, since we're running both Drilbur and Foongus we don't really need to check Chinchou. Dazzling means that Scraggy can't just set up randomly, and it also helps us check things like Mienfoo a little. We're absolutely boned if someone uses Poison Jab Fighting-types tho LOL. Cottonee can really help to set up Drilbur and Houndour by luring in things like Gothita or Stunky, as well as setting them up by using Switcheroo on random things and fucking with the enemy team. Encore is used in the last slot so Shell Smash teams can't just spam Shell Smash. Cottonee is a cool addition since it lets us check tons of things with its typing. Fairy/Grass typing is bomber af and lets us check tons of Fighting-types and Water-types, two things that are common in the metagame.
Honedge @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
Level: 5
EVs: 196 Atk / 36 Def / 220 SpD / 52 Spe
Careful Nature
- Sacred Sword
- Iron Head
- Pursuit
- Shadow Sneak
Honedge is something that I've used tons of times on teams. Originally this team had Riolu in it (Lum SD Riolu lol) and Honedge is probably one of the better partners for it, since Abra is countered, and Spritzee is easily checked. In this team, we felt like Abra was something that neither me nor Quote wanted to deal with at all, so Honedge was a cool fit that just is guaranteed to get rid of Abra. It also checks Spritzee and provides something that can check Fletchling a little bit. Iron Head 2hkoes Fletchling and Sacred Sword can OHKO if they Roost, so you usually switch in on Fletchling, Iron Head, Sacred Sword, then Iron Head again. There really isn't too much to say about Honedge, it can check Snivy a bit too which is cool, and Sacred Sword can come in clutch against bad players that switch in their Pawniard in, which is pretty cool. Abra is a bit problematic since it outspeeds everything on our team and has the potential to OHKO / 2hko everything, so Honedge really really fits on the team. Shadow Sneak is kinda useless, it can be nice to break a sub or something in clutch but other than that isn't too useful. It can also be useful to OHKO Gastly which can fuck with this team as well, otherwise we have to make good plays with Drilbur and Sucker Punch Houndour.
Omanyte @ Eviolite
Ability: Weak Armor
Level: 5
EVs: 76 HP / 196 SpA / 236 Spe
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Hydro Pump
- Earth Power
- Ice Beam
Quote thought that this team really needed some sort of hazard layer, since this team really forces switches. We did want something that was offensive in nature, but I even suggested Chespin but quotecs really hates Chespin even tho Chespin is one of the best Spike setters ever and completely fucks over Gastly, but that's life. I even tried to suggest Cacnea and make it work, but in the end Omanyte was the best option. Omanyte can easily set up 1-2 layers of Spikes for games, and can set them up fairly well against like Fletchling or Archen. Weak Armor lets it easily set shit up against offensive teams, and we felt the team had enough pressure to make Defog users not as useful. Hydro Pump is ran over Scald so we can 2HKO Mienfoo and mess with it. We opted out of Stealth Rock on this team since we think that it isn't as relevant as Spikes is in the metagame, since 2 layers of Spikes is oftentimes better to have on the field with proponent threats like Mienfoo and Pawniard common in the metagame. Ice Beam was considered more important than Stealth Rock since Ice Beam lets us check Vullaby and Fletchling, two Pokemon that are kinda problematic for this team.
Code:
Houndour @ Eviolite
Ability: Flash Fire
Level: 5
EVs: 36 Atk / 36 Def / 196 SpA / 236 Spe
Naive Nature
- Fire Blast
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot
- Sucker Punch
Drilbur @ Berry Juice
Ability: Mold Breaker
Level: 5
EVs: 116 HP / 156 Atk / 212 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Foongus @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
Level: 5
EVs: 124 HP / 160 Def / 160 SpD
Bold Nature
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Clear Smog
- Hidden Power [Fighting]
Cottonee (F) @ Iron Ball
Ability: Prankster
Level: 5
EVs: 116 HP / 196 Def / 196 SpD
Bold Nature
- Knock Off
- Switcheroo
- Dazzling Gleam
- Encore
Honedge @ Eviolite
Ability: No Guard
Level: 5
EVs: 196 Atk / 36 Def / 220 SpD / 52 Spe
Careful Nature
- Sacred Sword
- Iron Head
- Pursuit
- Shadow Sneak
Omanyte @ Eviolite
Ability: Weak Armor
Level: 5
EVs: 76 HP / 196 SpA / 236 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Spikes
- Hydro Pump
- Earth Power
- Ice Beam
Lastly, super special shoutout to QuoteCS, who was originally supposed to co host this rmt with me but backed out bc hes too modest to deal with the unnecessary attention that this team will get. You're honestly such a chill and fun dude to talk to and just vent random things that bother me, and I like to think I reciprocate that. Really wish you would come under the spotlight sometimes tho, you really deserve it for all the behind the scenes work you put in.
Anyway this is the end of the RMT, flames clan fronting, nothing new here. This might actually be my last RMT for LC unless Gen 7 somehow gets better or something new and exciting happens in LC that I just have to be there for. When you next hear of me I'll be an NU main taking over NU. Stay gorgeous my friends!
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