Project heat

Ruft

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On the topic of Raikou, I figured I'd share this set I've experimented with recently:

:ss/raikou:
Raikou @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Discharge
- Scald
- Aura Sphere
- Volt Switch

This set makes for a cool pivot and status spreader, it's like a cross between Zeraora and Rotom-Wash. Of course, pivot Raikou faces fierce competition from these as well as Tapu Koko, mostly due to its comparatively useless ability, but it has a couple of things going for it. Scald makes it incredibly risky for Ground-types (and Zeraora) to switch into it and so it has one of the most free Volt Switches in the game, similarly to Rotom-Wash. Raikou is also the only one among these that's able to outspeed and OHKO a healthy Kartana thanks to Aura Sphere, which also hits Ferrothorn and Hydreigon. Discharge is used over Thunderbolt because spreading paralysis to switch-ins like Dragapult is very valuable. Don't be fooled, it's obviously far from as consistent as the other Electric pivots, but its wide coverage and ability to spread paralysis and burn make it very tricky to switch into.
 
just for grins and giggles, i present to you protective pads scizor:

:ss/scizor:
Scizor @ Protective Pads
Ability: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Roost
- Defog

If the main reason scizor is a thing is because of the move u-turn, obviously you dont want to be chipped or statused as a pivot. Now instead of getting punished for clicking u-turn. The main thing this scizor does is come in and be annoying with u-turn. Roost is their to keep it healthy from attacks so it can preform the whole game. And defog is there for some heat. It is funny to think about someone switching a ferrothorn in to punish a u-turn and have it get defogged in its face.

thank you for reading.
 
dhelmise.gif
@ Choice Band
Ability: Steelworker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Poltergeist
- Heavy Slam / Anchor Shot
- Grassy Glide
- Rapid Spin / Switcheroo

So I've been messing around with this totally unviable trash. It's paired with either Bulu or Rillaboom for Grassy terrain and usually pivots in via U-turn or Teleport. 252 speed outruns most Skarmory, Tyranitar, and almost everything else slower. Despite having 40 base speed the investment lets you outrun quite a lot of common OU tanks like Pex, Clef, Hippo, Corviknight etc. The key to this garbage is between Poltergeist and Heavy Slam it 1-2HKOs almost every single Pokemon in OU. When I say 1-2HKO I don't mean hitting most things for 60% if you predict right, I mean Banded Poltergeist is one of the strongest moves in the entire tier and is going to drop almost anything it hits.

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Zeraora: 376-444 (118.6 - 140%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Not very impressive right? It gets better.

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kartana: 237-279 (91.5 - 107.7%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Garchomp: 310-366 (86.8 - 102.5%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 283-334 (87.6 - 103.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 324-382 (95 - 112%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Urshifu-Rapid-Strike: 297-349 (87 - 102.3%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

Since these are pretty much the most physically bulky offensive Pokemon in the tier it's pretty safe to say Banded Poltergeist is going to pop anything that doesn't invest in defense or resist it. But what about those that do invest in defense?

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Skarmory: 169-201 (50.5 - 60.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Landorus-Therian: 175-207 (45.8 - 54.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Ferrothorn: 195-231 (55.3 - 65.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 248+ Def Hippowdon: 192-226 (45.7 - 53.8%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 262-309 (66.4 - 78.4%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Toxapex: 160-189 (52.6 - 62.1%)

I don't want to clog this thread up with damage calcs so tl;dr almost every Pokemon that doesn't invest in bulk is OHKOed while even the bulkiest physical tanks and walls are broken in two hits. But what about Pokemon that resist Poltergeist? That's where Heavy Slam comes in.

252+ Atk Choice Band Steelworker Dhelmise Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 248 HP / 60+ Def Mandibuzz: 267-315 (63.1 - 74.4%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Steelworker Dhelmise Heavy Slam (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blissey: 492-579 (68.9 - 81%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Steelworker Dhelmise Heavy Slam (40 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 202-238 (50 - 58.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

*Anchor Shot is more reliable and prevents double switches but does much less to Mandibuzz.

Also there's Grassy Glide. Assuming it's paired with Bulu or Rillaboom it's strongest priority move legal in OU, and tied with Yveltal Sucker Punch for the strongest priority move period.

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult in Grassy Terrain: 156-184 (49.2 - 58%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Nidoking in Grassy Terrain: 306-361 (100.9 - 119.1%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian in Grassy Terrain: 147-174 (49.1 - 58.1%)

252+ Atk Choice Band Dhelmise Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Excadrill in Grassy Terrain: 370-436 (102.4 - 120.7%)

Finally we have Rapid Spin in the last slot. Very much a "last ditch effort" move if you absolutely need hazards removed. Dragapult doesn't have the balls to try and spin block you so it's usually pretty easy to use. Alternatively Switcheroo can be in the last slot to help deal with Buzzwole who is one of the only Pokémon that can sponge hits from this.

Early game Poltergeist completely shatters almost anything in the tier. Late game Grassy Glide can clean up. I've been running it on this team, however the team is pretty much a modified version of the Dhelmise team PokeaimMD used prior to the Spectrier ban. It certainly can use tweaking. But Dhelmise? Dhelmise has been fantastic as an early breaker. Is it even worth C- on the viability rankings? Fuck no. But it's cool as shit, fun to use, and 12 feet tall for some reason. Give it a shot if you want to click 1 move without thinking.
 
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:sm/scizor:

Scizor @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Superpower
- Iron Head

It's time to bump this thread with a very nostalgic set for every DPP OU players out there in its SS OU version. Scarf Scizor is an interesting choice to say the least: looking at the threats it is said to check, I've found that slapping a Scarf on Scizor could still do the job (albeit much less reliably) while being completely unexpected. Unfortunately, Scizor can't outspeed Weavile even with Choice Scarf, which is why we still have Bullet Punch on this set. The other moves are there to hit the target Scizor is supposed to hit, while also outspeeding and denting/KOing other relevant Pokémon in the process.

:rillaboom: takes no damage from boosted Grassy Glide and deals a lot of damage with U-turn as they probably click Knock Off.
252 Atk Scizor U-turn vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 252-296 (73.9 - 86.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
:tapu lele: lives one Psychic decently and then can grab a surprise KO with Iron Head. Being able to outspeed and OHKO is relevant because BP doesn't work in Psychic Terrain and it takes one SpDef drop from Psychic to ruin SpDef Scizor.
252 Atk Scizor Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Lele: 332-392 (118.1 - 139.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
:kyurem: always takes one ice STAB, lives modest draco 93% of the time after SR, while almost always KOing after rocks
252 Atk Scizor Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kyurem: 288-338 (73.6 - 86.4%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock (Superpower does almost identical damage as STAB Iron Head has the same base power)
:weavile: Takes the knock off not as well as the bulky variant, but BP deals more damage, almost always OHKOing
252 Atk Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Weavile: 278-330 (98.9 - 117.4%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

Plus, with Choice Scarf it becomes more capable of checking other threats...
:latios: lives any hit that's not Mystical Fire once and smacks hard with an unexpected U-turn
252 Atk Scizor U-turn vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios: 276-326 (91.6 - 108.3%) -- 50% chance to OHKO
:kartana: just grabs a completely unexpected Superpower on the face against CB or SD variants.
252 Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kartana: 208-246 (80.3 - 94.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
:hydreigon: superpower straight up OHKOs after rocks, uturn is not that far behind
252 Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 286-338 (88 - 104%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Scizor U-turn vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 252-296 (77.5 - 91%) -- 25% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock


...and blowing surprise holes on unsuspecting Pokémon like
:heatran: Superpower does a decent chunk to SpDef variants and has low chance of straight up KOing offensive variants after rocks.
252 Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 248-294 (64.2 - 76.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 248-294 (76.7 - 91%) -- 25% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

:tornadus-therian: if you need, you can go for a flinch or a decent chunk as you conveniently outspeed it by one point. also, you live any attack that isnt heat wave
252 Atk Scizor Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tornadus: 177-208 (59.1 - 69.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
 


Grimmsnarl (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Spirit Break
- Thunder Wave

spdef grimmsnarl is a nice hard dragapult switch-in, and can be a good switch-in to other special attackers such as lele, kyurem and the like. prankster twave and rest come in clutch for tons of situations. this can do a good job of allowing slower setup sweepers or wallbreakers to pave the way and clean up, or be a good switch in to above mentioned mons. paralysis is one of its best forms of punishment available and can leave tons of wallbreakers it cleaves through crippled during the course of the game. i felt like elon musk during classes, enjoy

here's a squad showcasing how you could potentially build around spdef grimmsnarl:


boots allows it to take no damage from hazards making it harder to wear down with priority rest, but this can be traded for other options such as lefties.

alternative spreads:

EVs: 36 HP / 252 SpD / 220 Spe
Careful Nature


loss in hp but it isnt an issue, speed is for paralyzed pult. much less compact and simpler spread.

EVs: 56 Atk / 236 SpD / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature


another loss in bulk doesnt sound great, but you have the ability to speed tie paralyzed pult after twave, and outspeed ada crawdaunt. would advise it if you have a worse MU vs both.

EVs: 96 Atk / 60 Def / 136 SpD / 216 Spe
Impish Nature


primarily for crawdaunt and pult, lives +2 aqua jet from full after rocks being fogged, and can kill with spirit break after rocks as well as beating pult after rocks with the attack EVs.

edit: kinda just slapped a ground in the sample squad because i built that in like 2 minutes, hope you enjoy it!
 
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:sm/landorus-therian: (+:ninetales:/:torkoal: + :venusaur:)
Landorus-Therian (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 108 Atk / 148 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature

- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Weather Ball
- Stealth Rock
(last slot is filler really)

Coming back with a WILD set for our tier king Landorus-T. This set is meant to be used on offensively oriented Sun teams, so that Weather Ball becomes a nuclear base 100 Fire type attack. The main appeal of this set is this specific calc:
:corviknight:
148 SpA Life Orb Landorus-Therian Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 88 SpD Corviknight in Sun: 351-413 (87.7 - 103.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
Remember, Landorus-T has base 105 SpAtk, beating common special attackers like Dragapult and Tapu Koko. Weather Ball still 2HKOs 252/0 Landorus-T with SR.
This set seems wildly useless, but it's a great teammate for Venusaur. We all know how infuriating it is for Venusaur to choose between Growth and full coverage. Weather Ball is a powerful attack, but Earth Power + Growth is valuable in this Heatran infested metagame, especially for Sun teams, and dual STAB is needed for power and recovery. This is why I came up with this Landorus-T set: to bait an OHKO on those Steel types that force WB on Venusaur, allowing our grassy dinosaur to forgo it entirely and run a Growth + GD-SB-EP set and mop the floor with Heatran teams. Life Orb makes it that Earthquake still does a dumb amount of damage to Ferrothorn anyway, making this set quite nightmarish for Rain teams to switch into.

You could go fully special, as Lando-T's special movepool is actually quite solid, but I think this is a bit more consistent.
 
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In theme with the above post, here's some more heat for sun:

:sm/torkoal: + (:tapu koko:)
Torkoal @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Nature Power
- Lava Plume
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock/ Scorching Sands / Whatever

This Torkoal set can immediately end the weather war against opposing rain teams. One of the biggest problems for sun against rain is that Pelipper freely resets the weather on Torkoal. The tortoise usually can't threaten Pelipper beyond setting rocks or inflicting Toxic. Toxic is good chip but usually takes more turns to wear down Peli than sun teams have to give.

Enter Nature Power, which turns into Thunderbolt under Electric Terrain and easily reaches the OHKO:
0 SpA Torkoal Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper in Electric Terrain: 388-460 (120.1 - 142.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The terrain combo is not as hard to set up as it would seem. Tapu Koko draws in the obligatory Ferrothorn on rain, which allows Torkoal an easy entrance.

Here are two replays of this lure:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1320454940-iyzmd6ww1tzem68w27qwf0oc5t8vzrypw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1317749690 It's a 1400s replay, but the relevant sequence would play out similarly anywhere on the ladder.

Enjoy!
 
Zamazenta-C giving you trouble? Turn it into an opportunity with this Hawlucha set!

:hawlucha:
Hawlucha @ Weakness Policy
Adamant Nature
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Atk / 24 Def
- Endure
- Acrobatics
- Drain Punch/ Close Combat
- Roost/ Poison Jab/ Encore

This spread always survives Wild Charge after rocks from Adamant ZamC.

Either go DP and Roost for Bulk but you lose to Koko, or CC (or HJK if you're bonkers) and Poison Jab.

Switch into Wild Charge, activating Weakness Policy and now you both outspeed and can OHKO with CC.

If it Howls on the switch click Endure to survive activating WP and Unburden.

252+ Atk Zamazenta-Crowned Wild Charge vs. 252 HP / 24 Def Hawlucha: 266-314 (73.8 - 87.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 232+ Atk Hawlucha Close Combat vs. +1 4 HP / 0 Def Zamazenta-Crowned: 320-380 (98.1 - 116.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

Alternatively click Roost, rack up a little extra recoil and finish with Drain Punch to end healthy. This version can run into problems with Ice Fang sets though so watch out for that.

+2 232+ Atk Hawlucha Drain Punch vs. +1 4 HP / 0 Def Zamazenta-Crowned: 204-240 (62.5 - 73.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

Encore is also an option in the last slot of you're worried about bulkier sets getting up too many Howls, best paired with CC.
 
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Are you tired of using the same old Pokemon to check Zamazenta-Crowned? Do you have that weird feeling of wanting a ghost type but somehow hating Dragapult, Aegislash, and Gengar? Well, my answer is here.
:ss/marowak-alola:
Marowak-Alola @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Fire Punch
- Poltergeist/Stone Edge
- Pain Split

This thing doesn't just check Zamazenta-Crowned, it also checks other big metagame threats such as Tapu Koko, and Volcarona. Heavy-Duty Boots over Thick Club for more longevity, Fire Punch and Poltergeist for STABs, Will-o-Wisp to cripple Zamazenta-Crowned, and Pain Split for some amount of recovery. Marowak-Alola's movepool is very large so it has other options such as Iron Defense to have an even better Zamazenta-Crowned matchup, Perish Song to force out setup sweepers, Stealth Rock, and Knock Off for general utility.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1321550544-cx9wtsk4yrt12a93pb60rn291t1ljncpw Marowak-Alola scares out a Specs Toxtricity, if I wouldn't have forgotten Lighting Rod that match, I would've switched Marowak-Alola in again.
 
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TailGlowVM

Now 100% more demonic
:ss/kommo-o:
Kommo-o @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Clanging Scales
- Focus Blast
- Flamethrower
- Flash Cannon

I was bored of using Blissey+Pult or Scizor to reliably deal with both Specs and SubRoost Kyurem together so looked for something else to handle it. Do you remember the person that ages ago suggested Clanging Scales Kommo-o to check Zygarde? I did and realised the same principle should theoretically apply to Kyurem. With a Choice Scarf, it outspeeds any non-Scarf Kyurem. Against SubRoost, you hit through the substitute and OHKO after the recoil of one substitute with Clanging Scales (or in an emergency you tank one Freeze-Dry). Specs is OHKOed after Stealth Rock damage.
 
Are you tired of using the same old Pokemon to check Zamazenta-Crowned? Do you have that weird feeling of wanting a ghost type but somehow hating Dragapult, Aegislash, and Gengar? Well, my answer is here.
:ss/marowak-alola:
Marowak-Alola @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Fire Punch
- Poltergeist/Stone Edge
- Pain Split

This thing doesn't just check Zamazenta-Crowned, it also checks other big metagame threats such as Tapu Koko, and Volcarona. Heavy-Duty Boots over Thick Club for more longevity, Fire Punch and Poltergeist for STABs, Will-o-Wisp to cripple Zamazenta-Crowned, and Pain Split for some amount of recovery. Marowak-Alola's movepool is very large so it has other options such as Iron Defense to have an even better Zamazenta-Crowned matchup, Perish Song to force out setup sweepers, Stealth Rock, and Knock Off for general utility.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1321550544-cx9wtsk4yrt12a93pb60rn291t1ljncpw Marowak-Alola scares out a Specs Toxtricity, if I wouldn't have forgotten Lighting Rod that match, I would've switched Marowak-Alola in again.
Maybe you could fit Stealth Rock on this set, so it's not just a wasted slot in certain matchups.
 
In theme with the above post, here's some more heat for sun:

:sm/torkoal: + (:tapu koko:)
Torkoal @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Nature Power
- Lava Plume
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock/ Scorching Sands / Whatever

This Torkoal set can immediately end the weather war against opposing rain teams. One of the biggest problems for sun against rain is that Pelipper freely resets the weather on Torkoal. The tortoise usually can't threaten Pelipper beyond setting rocks or inflicting Toxic. Toxic is good chip but usually takes more turns to wear down Peli than sun teams have to give.

Enter Nature Power, which turns into Thunderbolt under Electric Terrain and easily reaches the OHKO:
0 SpA Torkoal Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper in Electric Terrain: 388-460 (120.1 - 142.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The terrain combo is not as hard to set up as it would seem. Tapu Koko draws in the obligatory Ferrothorn on rain, which allows Torkoal an easy entrance.

Here are two replays of this lure:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1320454940-iyzmd6ww1tzem68w27qwf0oc5t8vzrypw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1317749690 It's a 1400s replay, but the relevant sequence would play out similarly anywhere on the ladder.

Enjoy!
yooooooooooooooooooooooooo FIRE also i've never realised how tapu koko is very useful for sun teams to combat rain, that ferrothorn interaction is clean
 
In theme with the above post, here's some more heat for sun:

:sm/torkoal: + (:tapu koko:)
Torkoal @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Nature Power
- Lava Plume
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock/ Scorching Sands / Whatever

This Torkoal set can immediately end the weather war against opposing rain teams. One of the biggest problems for sun against rain is that Pelipper freely resets the weather on Torkoal. The tortoise usually can't threaten Pelipper beyond setting rocks or inflicting Toxic. Toxic is good chip but usually takes more turns to wear down Peli than sun teams have to give.

Enter Nature Power, which turns into Thunderbolt under Electric Terrain and easily reaches the OHKO:
0 SpA Torkoal Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper in Electric Terrain: 388-460 (120.1 - 142.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The terrain combo is not as hard to set up as it would seem. Tapu Koko draws in the obligatory Ferrothorn on rain, which allows Torkoal an easy entrance.

Here are two replays of this lure:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1320454940-iyzmd6ww1tzem68w27qwf0oc5t8vzrypw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1317749690 It's a 1400s replay, but the relevant sequence would play out similarly anywhere on the ladder.

Enjoy!
this is the heatest fajita shit posted all of gen 8. this needs to be archived in a museum or something, 10/10
 

shadowpea

everyone is lonely sometimes
is a Tiering Contributor
In theme with the above post, here's some more heat for sun:

:sm/torkoal: + (:tapu koko:)
Torkoal @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Nature Power
- Lava Plume
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock/ Scorching Sands / Whatever

This Torkoal set can immediately end the weather war against opposing rain teams. One of the biggest problems for sun against rain is that Pelipper freely resets the weather on Torkoal. The tortoise usually can't threaten Pelipper beyond setting rocks or inflicting Toxic. Toxic is good chip but usually takes more turns to wear down Peli than sun teams have to give.

Enter Nature Power, which turns into Thunderbolt under Electric Terrain and easily reaches the OHKO:
0 SpA Torkoal Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper in Electric Terrain: 388-460 (120.1 - 142.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The terrain combo is not as hard to set up as it would seem. Tapu Koko draws in the obligatory Ferrothorn on rain, which allows Torkoal an easy entrance.

Here are two replays of this lure:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1320454940-iyzmd6ww1tzem68w27qwf0oc5t8vzrypw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1317749690 It's a 1400s replay, but the relevant sequence would play out similarly anywhere on the ladder.

Enjoy!
Tbh, that just makes Jirachi crit/Taunt bait. It needs the SpA boosts to pose a threat. You can run Wish>Rest, at the cost of being status bait to an extent.

Keep the heat coming guys, I need it to cook my bacon.
its been what, like, almost 2 months, but i think i finally smell cooked bacon in theotherguytm's house.

seriously though, amazing fire set. bonus points for taking advantage of one of the most annoying pokemon in the tier on a type of team it is almost always on.
 

Abhi

Professional Zoomer
is an official Team Rateris a Community Contributoris a Contributor to Smogonis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnus
Hello there :afrostar:
Today I'll be talking about how to have fun with Swords Dance Landorus-T and I mean fun fun. It's in italics so you know its gonna be good.

:ss/Landorus-Therian:
Landorus-Therian (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

- Weather Ball

It all started a long time ago (yesterday) when I was doing my Biology homework and realized how incredibly hot it was (not the homework, the weather). Not long after my mind wandered to Sun teams because that's how distracted I am. I started thinking about new ways to abuse Sun to try and accomplish my goal of coming up with something original (that being said this has probably been done before I didnt care enough to check) and I came across Landorus-T. So you see, I remembered that it gets Weather Ball which in Sun can very easily break through it's most common checks being Corviknight, Skarmory and Tangrowth all with minimal SpA investment. Originally I was thinking of utilising a Scarfed set to offer more utility to a team but that is rather inefficient since with Weather Ball it becomes rather prediction reliant. Then I decided on a Swords Dance set instead since it's very hard to check defensively. The only pokemon that can reliably do so, is Ice Beam Slowbro. It can very easily smoke through it's most common answers, being able to OHKO both Skarmory and Tangrowth after rocks and 2HKOing Corviknight. The most effective way to deal with this set is to revenge kill which most often isnt that efficient since that requires you sack something leaving your team potentially unable to deal with Landorus-T later since its able to switch in a lot with access to Leftovers and its spikes immunity. Plus this is a Sun abuser that isnt completely useless outside of it, still being able to overwhelm teams. This pairs very well with Non-Weather Ball Venusaur since Landorus-T is able to take care of the only target for Weather Ball being Corviknight since Earth Power can cover most other Steel-types. This set is genuinely very good at poking holes in the opponents teams. Dealing with defensive Landorus-T can be a bit difficult since it doesnt get 2HKOd, although after switching into a Weather Ball/ Stone Edge it gets in the range of a 2HKO by Weather Ball so that's neat. I was originally also planning on abusing this with something with more shared checks like Kartana or Garchomp but that's for another time, plus it was awkward fitting them into Sun.​

:torkoal::Landorus-Therian::venusaur::blissey::Corviknight::slowbro:
Ok, so I started off with Torkoal and used a basic Stealth Rock set with Yawn to force switches allowing Venusaur and Landorus-T switch in much easier. I've already talked about Landorus-T, so I'm not going to repeat myself. On Venusaur I went with a set with no Weather Ball since I realised that was unnecessary seeing as it's only walled by Corviknight then which can be removed easily with Landorus-T. This does leave it vulnerable to Ferrothorn however it's a pokemon that can be dealt with otherwise. Next I went with Blissey to cover common special threats as well as offer Wish for Torkoal, since Torkoals lack of recovery is the only thing holding it back from being a good physical wall, since it can check Rillaboom, Kartana and Zeraora and blanket check a lot others like Weavile and Victini, however it doesnt appreciate getting its item removed but it's a small price to pay to have an additional check to these pokemon. Corviknight acts as a basic Defog user along with slow pivot to bring teammates in safely. And AV Slowbro is my Heatran check and my only good water-resist, making this team very weird to use against Rain, however there is a solution to this and that is simply not matching up against Rain.

Sun is such an under explored archetype and I feel that theres a lot of room for experimentation, and its really fun too!
That's all I have to say, hopefully you guys like this set, Bye! :blobwizard:
 
:sm/landorus-therian: (+:ninetales:/:torkoal: + :venusaur:)
Landorus-Therian (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 108 Atk / 148 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature

- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Weather Ball
- Stealth Rock
(last slot is filler really)

Coming back with a WILD set for our tier king Landorus-T. This set is meant to be used on offensively oriented Sun teams, so that Weather Ball becomes a nuclear base 100 Fire type attack. The main appeal of this set is this specific calc:
:corviknight:
148 SpA Life Orb Landorus-Therian Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 88 SpD Corviknight in Sun: 351-413 (87.7 - 103.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
Remember, Landorus-T has base 105 SpAtk, beating common special attackers like Dragapult and Tapu Koko. Weather Ball still 2HKOs 252/0 Landorus-T with SR.
This set seems wildly useless, but it's a great teammate for Venusaur. We all know how infuriating it is for Venusaur to choose between Growth and full coverage. Weather Ball is a powerful attack, but Earth Power + Growth is valuable in this Heatran infested metagame, especially for Sun teams, and dual STAB is needed for power and recovery. This is why I came up with this Landorus-T set: to bait an OHKO on those Steel types that force WB on Venusaur, allowing our grassy dinosaur to forgo it entirely and run a Growth + GD-SB-EP set and mop the floor with Heatran teams. Life Orb makes it that Earthquake still does a dumb amount of damage to Ferrothorn anyway, making this set quite nightmarish for Rain teams to switch into.

You could go fully special, as Lando-T's special movepool is actually quite solid, but I think this is a bit more consistent.
Hello there :afrostar:
Today I'll be talking about how to have fun with Swords Dance Landorus-T and I mean fun fun. It's in italics so you know its gonna be good.

:ss/Landorus-Therian:
Landorus-Therian (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

- Weather Ball

It all started a long time ago (yesterday) when I was doing my Biology homework and realized how incredibly hot it was (not the homework, the weather). Not long after my mind wandered to Sun teams because that's how distracted I am. I started thinking about new ways to abuse Sun to try and accomplish my goal of coming up with something original (that being said this has probably been done before I didnt care enough to check) and I came across Landorus-T. So you see, I remembered that it gets Weather Ball which in Sun can very easily break through it's most common checks being Corviknight, Skarmory and Tangrowth all with minimal SpA investment. Originally I was thinking of utilising a Scarfed set to offer more utility to a team but that is rather inefficient since with Weather Ball it becomes rather prediction reliant. Then I decided on a Swords Dance set instead since it's very hard to check defensively. The only pokemon that can reliably do so, is Ice Beam Slowbro. It can very easily smoke through it's most common answers, being able to OHKO both Skarmory and Tangrowth after rocks and 2HKOing Corviknight. The most effective way to deal with this set is to revenge kill which most often isnt that efficient since that requires you sack something leaving your team potentially unable to deal with Landorus-T later since its able to switch in a lot with access to Leftovers and its spikes immunity. Plus this is a Sun abuser that isnt completely useless outside of it, still being able to overwhelm teams. This pairs very well with Non-Weather Ball Venusaur since Landorus-T is able to take care of the only target for Weather Ball being Corviknight since Earth Power can cover most other Steel-types. This set is genuinely very good at poking holes in the opponents teams. Dealing with defensive Landorus-T can be a bit difficult since it doesnt get 2HKOd, although after switching into a Weather Ball/ Stone Edge it gets in the range of a 2HKO by Weather Ball so that's neat. I was originally also planning on abusing this with something with more shared checks like Kartana or Garchomp but that's for another time, plus it was awkward fitting them into Sun.​

:torkoal::Landorus-Therian::venusaur::blissey::Corviknight::slowbro:
Ok, so I started off with Torkoal and used a basic Stealth Rock set with Yawn to force switches allowing Venusaur and Landorus-T switch in much easier. I've already talked about Landorus-T, so I'm not going to repeat myself. On Venusaur I went with a set with no Weather Ball since I realised that was unnecessary seeing as it's only walled by Corviknight then which can be removed easily with Landorus-T. This does leave it vulnerable to Ferrothorn however it's a pokemon that can be dealt with otherwise. Next I went with Blissey to cover common special threats as well as offer Wish for Torkoal, since Torkoals lack of recovery is the only thing holding it back from being a good physical wall, since it can check Rillaboom, Kartana and Zeraora and blanket check a lot others like Weavile and Victini, however it doesnt appreciate getting its item removed but it's a small price to pay to have an additional check to these pokemon. Corviknight acts as a basic Defog user along with slow pivot to bring teammates in safely. And AV Slowbro is my Heatran check and my only good water-resist, making this team very weird to use against Rain, however there is a solution to this and that is simply not matching up against Rain.

Sun is such an under explored archetype and I feel that theres a lot of room for experimentation, and its really fun too!
That's all I have to say, hopefully you guys like this set, Bye! :blobwizard:
Yours is probably an upgraded version of what I posted earlier on this thread, so you did well to bring this up, with an entire eam to boot.

One think I'll say is that sun lends itself to more offensive approach through hard hitting Pokémon and slow pivots. I'd use Victini for instance, which is getting a lot of traction due to Zamazenta-C and being good in general.

Tapu Koko + nature power torkoal has been brought up in this thread and it's a fun way to turn the tides on opposing rain matchup immediately, especially when gknot Koko beats every rain Mon outside of Ferrothorn, which it gains momentum on via volt switch/U-turn and is free entry for torkoal.

Tapu Koko + Victini in sun makes it so that Victini is a nightmare to switch into due to v-create and bolt strike, two already strong moves, find themselves even more boosted.

Rough Sun build that incorporates all of the above. You can remove either STAB from Koko and put Roost for longevity. Hydreigon is there mainly as a defogger for Victini that exerts offensive pressure, can take one strong water attack in the rain and, most importantly, 1v1s heatran. Flamethrower for certain steel types but again, you can go roost for longevity and change its item for maybe life orb. gk koko greatly improves the team's matchup against rain teams and is a decent lure for hippo sand. scarf victini for speed control and zama check, although you can swap it w hydreigon and run HDB v-create bolt strike u-turn scorching sands/glaciate (glaciate helps koko). Bolt strike in electric terrain is very powerful and deals similar damage to scorch against heatran. mixed victini without u-turn is also a decent attacker, but with sun and electric terrain you mainly want to click v-create and bolt strike anyway
 
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pult fuego 2021

:ss/dragapult:

Dragapult @ Dragon Fang
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 220 SpA / 16 Spe
Naive Nature
- Dragon Darts
- Will-O-Wisp
- Substitute
- Hex

this pult set can lure in blissey, and force your opponent into a funnel mentally in a battle. bliss is one of the main ghost resists on stall teams and click darts = bliss gone, and roll through the opposing team. this set is a slower version that hits 356 intsead of 421 (252+) making it inadequate speed control but it sacrifices that trait for mixed attacking EVs. specifically outspeeds base 110s and high roll 2hko's blissey with dragon fang, which is required though dragon fang is usually terrible ootl.

pressuring corvi / adding a special breaker that feeds off of fainted blissey would be musts to use the set
 

Magnezone @ Assault Vest
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 252 HP / 116 SpA / 140 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Mirror Coat
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Volt Switch / Steel Beam / Charge Beam

This is a pretty gimmicky Magnezone set designed to be able to reliably trap and kill both offensive and defensive variants of Heatran by making use of the highly uncommon move Mirror Coat. Basically, you just need to pivot this Magnezone into Heatran or predict a double switch to ensure it stays at near full HP, then thanks to the Assault Vest and Calm Nature, it will always survive an Earth Power or Magma Storm from full HP (barring a crit), and then OHKO the Heatran back with Mirror Coat. While this set loses the ability to effectively trap Ferrothorn due to no Iron Defense + Body Press, being able to remove Heatran from the game is a worthy tradeoff, especially given how threatening Volcarona becomes once Heatran is out of the game. The downside of running AV of course is that this Magnezone can't run a move like Iron Defense or Toxic, so your best bet is to run the standard Thunderbolt + Flash Cannon STAB combo, plus your choice of Volt Switch, Steel Beam or Charge Beam as a situational filler move.

252 SpA Heatran Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Assault Vest Magnezone: 264-312 (76.7 - 90.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Heatran Magma Storm vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Assault Vest Magnezone: 218-258 (63.3 - 75%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after trapping damage

0 SpA Heatran Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Assault Vest Magnezone: 220-260 (63.9 - 75.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 SpA Heatran Magma Storm vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Assault Vest Magnezone: 182-216 (52.9 - 62.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after trapping damage
 

Magnezone @ Assault Vest
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 252 HP / 116 SpA / 140 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Mirror Coat
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Volt Switch / Steel Beam / Charge Beam

This is a pretty gimmicky Magnezone set designed to be able to reliably trap and kill both offensive and defensive variants of Heatran by making use of the highly uncommon move Mirror Coat. Basically, you just need to pivot this Magnezone into Heatran or predict a double switch to ensure it stays at near full HP, then thanks to the Assault Vest and Calm Nature, it will always survive an Earth Power or Magma Storm from full HP (barring a crit), and then OHKO the Heatran back with Mirror Coat. While this set loses the ability to effectively trap Ferrothorn due to no Iron Defense + Body Press, being able to remove Heatran from the game is a worthy tradeoff, especially given how threatening Volcarona becomes once Heatran is out of the game. The downside of running AV of course is that this Magnezone can't run a move like Iron Defense or Toxic, so your best bet is to run the standard Thunderbolt + Flash Cannon STAB combo, plus your choice of Volt Switch, Steel Beam or Charge Beam as a situational filler move.
I suggest this spread here:

Magnezone @ Assault Vest
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 248 HP / 4 Def / 24 SpA / 148 SpD / 84 Spe
Modest Nature

IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Mirror Coat
- Body Press

With this admittedly heavy SpDef investment, you live even Modest Heatran's Earth Power after SR and obviously KO it back with Mirror Coat. 4 Def EVs ensures you 3HKO Blissey and comfortably 2HKO Tyranitar with Body Press (which are very interesting interactions for Volcarona). Speed is for univested Skarmory. 24 SpAtk with Modest looks pitiful but it's still slightly stronger than 116 neutral.
If you don't feel like Modest Heatran is something you want to account for, use this spread:
EVs: 248 HP / 4 Def / 116 SpA / 56 SpD / 84 Spe - Modest Nature (always lives Timid Heatran's Earth Power after SR)

Read here and here for more context on AV Zone
 
:ss/kartana:
Kartana @ Life Orb
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 19 Atk
- Sacred Sword
- Swords Dance
- Leaf Blade
- Knock Off
Thought your Dragapult could revenge kill SD Kart? Oh hell no!
This thing is so stupid it's funny. With this spread, Beast Boost will boost Speed instead of Attack, making this particular Kartana set an effective mid-game cleaner after setting up a Swords Dance. The rest of set is standard and self explanatory.
Its humongous base 181 gets reduced to max invested 108 base attack though, giving it less attack power.
 
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Dropping a buch of fun little sets here, I had some fun today in the team builder searching for whacky sets. this is the thread for this type of things, some may be good, other may be bad. feel free to judge these, this is literally just me having 30 minutes of fun in the builder and wanting to share it

:bisharp: - specially defensive stealth rock
Bisharp @ Leftovers
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 248 HP / 76 Atk / 184 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Knock Off
- Iron Head

nice little pult switchin (barring fire move - feel free to run occa berry if you want), supports the team with rocks, twave and knock. psychic immunity for sights and choice lele, takes two ice beams from modest specs kyu and with 76 atk ohkos with iron head after rocks. if you don't need twave, use sucker punch. helps pult itself quite a bit by crippling the opposition by removing items, setting up rocks and powering up hex, also checks stab-locked weavile and opposing pult.
:tapu bulu: - physically defensive leech seed
Tapu Bulu @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Def / 96 Spe
Impish Nature
- Leech Seed
- Toxic
- Horn Leech
- Nature's Madness

I want to try this out because it looks annoying af. 96 speed for adamant crawdaunt, rest in bulk to take hits from shifu (4hko from band), zera, rilla, kart without smart strike, sd chomp, lando-t. helmet to have them chipped, mitigating grassy terrain's generosity. very annoying set with seed to drain some health and grant good recovery alongside terrain for him and partners, toxic to cripple tang, rilla, electrics and grounds, horn leech for stab and nature's madness because it actually forces good damage on common switches like corvi, forcing them to roost
:magnezone: - AV heatran trap
Magnezone @ Assault Vest
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 248 HP / 4 Def / 20 SpA / 148 SpD / 88 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Mirror Coat
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Body Press

you've probably seen this, but av zone is potentially a great tool to dispose of heatran. still traps corvi-skarm (88 spe for 4 spe skarm). 20+ requires tbolt to always ohko 252/4 skarm. 4 evs makes it so that body press always 3hko blissey, if you don't want press put those in spatk and run volt switch, i think it helps in pressuring blissey for non-safeguard volc and pult
:amoonguss: - heatran lure (i do not own this, credits to Skypenguin, check it out here)
Amoonguss @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 140 Def / 120 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Stomping Tantrum
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb

this is not my set, but it's worth showcasing since i'm saving it. spread takes magma storm from timid tran. stomping tantrum ohkos tran after a failed spore/sludge bomb. pretty neat once again for heatran-weak threats like volc. also useful for shifu, zera, koko
:grimmsnarl: - twave taunt bulky support
Grimmsnarl (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 232 HP / 96 Atk / 180 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Play Rough
- Sucker Punch
- Taunt

another little pult switchin, probably the single best one in the tier. speed is for mandi and 96 atk adamant play rough always 2hko 248/92+ mandi which seems to be the new wave. twave and taunt to abuse prankster, sucker punch for priority. it's mostly filler but grimm is pretty powerful so it might be useful. you can use more atk less hp if you want more power. for example 140+ ensure sucker punch kos pult after rocks.
:rotom-heat: - specially defensive defog
Rotom-Heat @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 212 SpD / 48 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Defog
- Toxic
- Pain Split

nice role compressor, ground immune, switches into and grabs momentum on koko, tran, torn-t, zap. spreads toxic to ground types that try to absorb volt switch. it's sad that it can't touch drill, but if you have another defogger you can use overheat here. takes kyu's ice beam and lele's moonblast like a champ
:salamence: - bulky defog nite2.0
Salamence @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 224 Def / 36 Spe
Relaxed Nature
- Earthquake
- Flamethrower
- Roost
- Defog

if dnite can do it, surely salamence can? intimidate gives it immediate physical bulk even at 99%, also without ice beam it resorts to flamethrower to ohko kart, 2hko rilla and catch the two spikers ferro and skarmory (also corvi but corvi takes those easily)
:gastrodon: - spdef hdb sticky hold
Gastrodon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Earth Power
- Clear Smog
- Recover

roadblock for tricks and weak knock offs, takes special hits well from the likes of pult, torn-t and electrics (zeraora's cc only 3hkos even without investment), also scald cripples stuff as always and clear smog makes it somewhat check cm clef/block setup sweepers. Toxic is also a shout if you don't need clear smog. i don't really like storm drain, the only use it has is blanking shifu's surging strikes i guess so if you need it go ahead
:bronzong: - spdef rocks
Bronzong @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Gyro Ball
- Toxic
- Protect

takes on lele and kyurem like a boss, also handles torn-t. rocks to do rocks things, pro-tox to annoy and scout. gyroball for damage
:gyarados: - bulky twave tank
Gyarados @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 224 HP / 148 Atk / 32 Def / 104 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Waterfall
- Power Whip
- Earthquake

twave spread that can dish out good damage and deters ground and electric types from switching in, allowing for easy paralysis spread. useful typing and bulk to take on shifu, tran, volc and lando. speed is for spdef tran, hp and def to live two cb surging strikes, rest in atk to maximize damage

there is aso this bulkier spread, speed for daunt, hp and def for living 2 cb surging strikes after rocks if you lose the item, then rest in spd to bump a bit against tran and volc. whip>eq because you check a lot of water types so you want to hit them hard. rest for longevity, especially if you have a cleric.
Gyarados @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 184 Def / 28 SpD / 48 Spe
Impish Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Waterfall
- Power Whip
- Rest
:weezing-galar: - physical wall
Weezing-Galar @ Rocky Helmet/Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Flamethrower
- Pain Split
- Toxic Spikes/Defog/Filler

checks grass offense (barring smart strike on kart), blanks sd chomps, great physical bulk in general against neutral targets like zeraora, weavile, dd nite. Last slot is filler, tspikes puts pressure, defog is defog, you could run wisp, taunt, haze, whatever.
:Flygon: - bulky defog
Flygon @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 36 Def / 160 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Defog
- Roost
- Earthquake
- U-turn

Why use this over the otherwise vastly superior chomp? First of all, this gets defog and not rocks, so they do different stuff. Secondly, Roost and U-turn allows flygon to consistently stay healthy and provide momentum for its teammates. It also blanks two of the most prominent stealth rockers in the tier in heatran and sd edgequake chomp, while being generally useful against zeraora (spread takes 2 CC after rocks). It also outspeeds everything up to jolly drill, including Nidoking - which is notable since it counters any non-ice beam variant and with 64 atk always OHKOs it after rocks with eq - , modest Kyurem and ofc every Heatran.
SWORDS OF JUSTICE
:terrakion: - choice band
:cobalion: - bulky stealth rock pivot
:keldeo-resolute: - bulky status-spreading pivot
:virizion: - work up mixed attacker
Terrakion @ Choice Band
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Rock Blast

cb terrak is amazing with future sight support as it enhances its wallbreaking capabilities to bw levels of danger. first three slots are mandatory, eq is a very good midground move (pun intended) and the last lost goes to rock blast to deal with subkyub and random sashes (double kick is a shout for rare excadrill sash leads). you can use anything you need in the last slot, megahorn, quick attack, sacred sword for bulk up mons like corvi.

Cobalion @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
EVs: 216 HP / 116 Atk / 176 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Close Combat
- Toxic
- Volt Switch

Speed for hydreigon, atk for always ohkoing kyurem after rocks, rest in hp. it's basically bad zamazenta, although with rocks, vswitch and toxic it can help make progress while checking dark spam and some 90-98 speed tier attackers. Iron head can be fit somewhere to hit lele hard. toxic is necessary to make some progress against top tier threats in chomp and lando, who otherwise laugh at cobalion's pathetic offensive presence.

Virizion @ Life Orb
Ability: Justified
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Work Up
- Giga Drain
- Close Combat
- Nature Power

pair this with koko and/or lele and you've got yourself a nice lure. both ohko def pex, psychic terrain np hits amoonguss, electric terrain np hits metal birds. cc to hit spdef walls like bliss but if you don't care you can run focus blast and calm mind (although work up is a good bluff)

Keldeo-Resolute @ Leftovers
Ability: Justified
EVs: 248 HP / 32 SpA / 20 SpD / 208 Spe
Timid Nature
- Scald
- Secret Sword
- Toxic
- Flip Turn

worse shifu is here to leverage its surprisingly good defensive typing for the metagame. this set in particular is a great companion to lord dragapult, by virtue of its ability to check dark spam and spread status at the same time with the combination of scald and toxic. flip turn is there for momentum, but taunt is also a shout. speed for chomp, spatk for 2hko heatran and ohko crawdaunt, hp and spdef to live +1 psychic from 0 spatk volc after rocks and have a chance to live one from +1 252 spatk volc
 
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airfare

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OUPL Champion
:gastrodon: - spdef hdb sticky hold
Gastrodon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Earth Power
- Clear Smog
- Recover

roadblock for tricks and weak knock offs, takes special hits well from the likes of pult, torn-t and electrics (zeraora's cc only 3hkos even without investment), also scald cripples stuff as always and clear smog makes it somewhat check cm clef/block setup sweepers. Toxic is also a shout if you don't need clear smog. i don't really like storm drain, the only use it has is blanking shifu's surging strikes i guess so if you need it go ahead
:bronzong: - spdef rocks
Bronzong @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Gyro Ball
- Toxic
- Protect

takes on lele and kyurem like a boss, also handles torn-t. rocks to do rocks things, pro-tox to annoy and scout. gyroball for damage
:weezing-galar: - physical wall
Weezing-Galar @ Rocky Helmet/Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Flamethrower
- Pain Split
- Toxic Spikes/Defog/Filler

checks grass offense (barring smart strike on kart), blanks sd chomps, great physical bulk in general against neutral targets like zeraora, weavile, dd nite. Last slot is filler, tspikes puts pressure, defog is defog, you could run wisp, taunt, haze, whatever.
i have used these 3 mons quite a bit over the last few months and wanted to offer a few comments/suggestions

1. gastrodon (west form is unviable) - gastro usually runs earthquake over earth power to threaten heatran more, with a sassy nature, as most heatran run specially defensive sets. taunt + toxic heatran has more leeway to play riskily with taunt mindgames vs an earth power gastro because it can eat a single earth power when eq has the potential to KO outright. it also hits gking and spdef pex (which the majority of pex are), as well as normal slowking, harder

2. bronzong - more of a personal preference thing tbh but bronzong ideally should be either iron head + eq or body press + rocks as first two slots alongside protox imo. having more than 8 pp to hit sub kyurem with is nice, and letting heatran and other steels in for free sucks, especially when using this thing on fat (which is the only place it should be used bc its ASS and has no niche anywhere else). press and eq also let u act as better answers to opposing steels/grounds like exca, melm

3. weezing-g - this mon is criminally underrated. i think its main niche in this meta is as a defogger w levitate, bc it switches into and beats pretty much every rocker in the tier besides heatran. it's also a solid ground/grass check until u run into sub chomp or cb kart. flamethrower / wisp is prob a team dependent thing but i like wisp more to pressure pex and other fatter things like corv / slowking, and stop grounds from coming in for free. i think strange steam as primary move is pretty bad, especially when you have wisp alongside to hit most dragons / fighters that u want to switch into and beat (this thing gets demolished by kyurem, pult, and watershifu). i would much rather use sludge bomb to hit clef primarily as well as (and dump 8 evs into spe so u outspeed most of them) fish for poisons.

edit: reworded zong sets sentence
 
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