SS OU Icy Hot: A Blaziken Hail RMT

[Clone]

(Origin of the team name)

Icy Hot: A Blaziken Hail RMT



Introduction
​

A while back during WCoP, TPP And I had talked about making a Blaziken team. We both agreed that it's a cool mon (the coolest by far) and metagame trends favored it. Unfortunately, that idea never came to fruition and South had to win the trophy without the Blaze Chicken. However, I never gave up, and after toying around quite a bit, I found something that worked. Sometimes I get bored, and when I do, I do something dumb like write an essay on why Fire-types are good in OU. In that post I mentioned a trend I noticed, which is that they synergize well on Hail. Hail took the tier by storm at the end of WCoP, but it rose to prominence during OLT especially. There's a lot of Hail teams out there, such as Dragon Claw's and Ox the Box's, and while they are very good, I wanted to make my own. Specifically, I wanted to use Blaziken for reasons mentioned above, and found that it fits quite well. Is it the most optimal mon to use? Probably not. Did that stop me from trying anyways? Hell no. I built a team that was able to work. I've shared it around here and there and used it during OU Seasonal and Smogon Tour with some success. As the metagame progressed, I felt it was time to retire the team and explore other teambuilding ideas that I have and share this team with the community at large. Is it the greatest team in the world? Absolutely not. But it's fun and that's what matters.

It's also like 10-2 vs bb skarm so clearly it's working! Onto the team-building process.

Teambuilding Process

da monz

As I alluded to above, the whole idea started with me wanting to build around Blaziken. I've stated in other posts that I feel recent metagame trends favor it, and unprepared teams just get swept if you play it right.


Hail has taken the tier by storm, and for good reason. Arctozolt murks some team structures and Ninetales provides great team support with Aurora Veil and Encore. I wrote a novel about Fire-types in the OU Metagame discussion thread, and I mentioned there that Fire-types have great synergy with Hail, given how they cover Arctozolt's checks, while Zolt handles bulky Water and Ground-types.


I wanted to go with a more bulky offense route with this team rather than HO, as I had tried that in previous iterations without liking the way the team felt. Tornadus-T is the epitome of a pivot: good bulk, Regenerator, and decent offensive presence. It was exactly what I wanted and it comes with the added benefit of keeping Kartana, Urshifu, and Rillaboom in line.


Ferrothorn gives me a water resist, sets spikes, and does Ferrothorn things. It was the Steel that best fit the role I was looking for.


Originally I had Lando-T in this slot, but Heatran was a huge problem. I decided to go with an actual Fire resist in Garchomp (Lando-T is not a resist!!). Better yet, I decided to take a page out of Lando's book and use a rather unique spread that I'll explain in the set explanation

Set Explanations​

Fabio (Ninetales-Alola) @ Icy Rock
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aurora Veil
- Freeze-Dry
- Moonblast
- Encore

The only Hail setter worth a damn in OU, Ninetales was the obvious choice here. It sets the tone for the team, and is often the lead if I don't see a Heatran or Melmetal on the opposing side. Tales has quite a few options for its sets. It has a wide movepool full of support options that can aid the team. I've even seen Nasty Plot sets here and there, the most famous being on the infamous Ox Hail that's infested the ladder and early rounds of Smogon Tour. I chose to go with a support set because of its defensive utility and ability to give setup opportunities to Blaziken and Arctozolt. I also chose dual STABs to threaten Weavile and Urshifu more with Moonblast, while letting me win the weather war against Rain, as once the opposing Ferrothorn is dead, they usually lack a Freeze-Dry switch in. Given how often Rain pops up, I felt it was absolutely essential to ensure I win the weather war. Aurora veil is usually the suicide move when I'm ready to go for the Zolt sweep, but it also gives Blaziken set up opportunities and improves torn's disruption abilities. Lastly, Encore enables free switches by locking opponents into a move. I chose bulky EVs to tank hits better and give Tails more switch-in opportunities. His name is Fabio because Alolan Nintetales is gorgeous.



Cold Take (Arctozolt) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Slush Rush
EVs: 200 Atk / 76 SpA / 232 Spe
Naive Nature
- Substitute
- Bolt Beak
- Blizzard
- Low Kick

Part 2 of the Icy Duo. A breaker and sweeper all in one freezing package, Arctozolt serves as the team's way of breaking bulky waters, outspeeding foes, and being a general bitch to switch into. Oftentimes teams can only pivot around it to try and stall out Hail turns, but that can only go so far. It's the reason why I elected for Spikes on the team, as forcing damage on mons can be the difference between a win and a loss. The STABs are pretty standard, though I opted for the Ice move that hits Buzzwole the hardest, while also OHKOing non-SpDef Kartana (yes I've run into it lol). Low Kick gives damage on Ferrothorn, while also hitting the less common Tyranitar and being a decent midground against Melmetal and Heatran. Sub is great on the forced switches, and once Lando is gone it means everything outside of Scarf Urshifu should tremble in fear. EVs outspeed Scarf Fini, OHKO Kart with Blizzard, and rest are dumped in attack. I've run with a Naughty Nature before, and the power is insane, but not outspeeding +1 Dnite makes me sad. I named him Cold Take because 4 months ago trying to say Hail was viable was a very cold take.

Blazer (Blaziken) (M) @ Protective Pads
Ability: Speed Boost
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- Knock Off

The whole reason I made the team in the first place. The Blaze Chicken is in a weird spot. It's days of 6-0ing teams on preview are over. It's still strong, but the power creep has definitely caught up to it. Despite this, I do feel it's a sleeper pick at the moment and would love to see more people build with it, especially in tournaments. Blaziken is one of the main wallbreakers of this team. Notably, it OHKOes SpDef Lando-T after rocks at +1, which opens up Arctozolt considerably. In addition, it keeps Ferrothorn in line and has a favorable matchup against the other Steel-types, which Arctozolt greatly appreciates. Blaziken is also surprisingly bulky under veil, as it can set up on basically any non SE attack comfortably. It can even take a Scald from weaker mons and not fear a burn due to its typing. Granted, this requires the Fini/Pex/Bro be weakened, as even at +2 it struggles to break past them. The first three moveslots are pretty straight forward. Flare Blitz is the Fire STAB of choice as the power is needed for Lando and other targets, and CC doesn't miss. Knock Off was chosen to remove pesky Leftovers and hit things like Pult, Slowtwins, and whatever else for a decent neutral hit. T Punch is super weak even boosted, and I felt that between Ferrothorn, Arctozolt, and Torn, they're adequately handled by the rest of the team. I chose Adamant in order to reach the Lando OHKO threshold, and I don't feel I need the speed. Despite the fact that Jolly outspeeds Zeraora at +1, oftentimes Blaziken finds itself at +2, as it's at +1 after the SD/initial KO, and +2 the turn after. And nothing outspeeds it at +2 aside from Regieleki or Barraskewda in rain. The namesake comes from my original starter in Emerald all those years ago.


Derpus (Tornadus-Therian) (M) @ Assault Vest / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 72 Def / 20 SpD / 168 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- Knock Off
- U-turn

Torn is probably my favorite mon to use right now. Regenerator is broken and Torn takes full advantage of it. It gives my team speed outside of Hail and amazing pivoting ability. On top of this, it takes on mons such as Urshifu, Dragapult, Kartana, and others that would otherwise threaten the team. I've used both boots and AV. AV is a recent development in SS and it does what it did back in ORAS: not die. Boots is still good because I elected to forgo hazard control in favor of Heat Wave to prevent Scarf Kartana from ruining my day. The other moves on the set are pretty standard, although I have played around with Taunt over Knock Off to help my matchup vs fat teams. The EV spread avoids the OHKO from Specs Lele without AV, outspeeds Adamant Weavile, and has the rest in HP and Defense to take on Grass Spam and have a very good chance to avoid the OHKO from Urshifu's SS if Rocks aren't up. He is ugly tho so Derpus it is ​

Hangin Out (Ferrothorn) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 180 Def / 76 SpD
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Leech Seed

The Durian is back as the mon that never dies. A Steel and Water resist in one slot is impossible to pass up, especially when it provides Spikes support for the team. Above, I mentioned I elected to not have hazard control. The first reason is that Arctozolt (and Torn when I'm not running AV) have Boots. Another is that it removes Veil if it's up. Additionally, with Spikes, I decided it was best to put the honus on the opponent to remove hazards, as Spikes + Rocks can get overwhelming pretty quickly. Knock Off removing Leftovers is huge to limit Heatran's ability to come into the field, and it's good in general to remove annoying items. Leech Seed is Leech Seed. Iron Head was the attacking move of choice to hit Lele, Weavile, Fini, and Clef in one slot. Clefable in particular is important because it puts it in range of Blaziken and Arctozolt it it's running SpDef. The EVs live 2 Zeraora CCs and avoid the 2HKO from Pult's Shadow Ball, if I remember correctly. Whatever they do, I prefer more physically defensive variants these days because of Arctozolt and Weavile. I named Ferro Hangin Out in reference to his BW Sprite.


Falcon (Garchomp) @ Leftovers
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 160 SpD / 96 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Protect

One of my favorite mons, Garchomp has a very specific role on the team. One of the biggest threats to Hail is Heatran, as it comes in for free on Ninetales and matches up well against everything else. Garchomp's main role is to eat Magma Storms and set rocks. You may notice that I'm using a SpDef spread over the typical physically defensive one. This is for the aforementioned reason, but it also allows Garchomp to be a situational switch in to Koko and Dragapult. Notably, Garchomp eats 2 Dazzling Gleams if Hail isn't up, which is huge. The speed tier outspeeds Modest Kyurem/Lele. Toxic let's me wear down things like Lando and Volcarona, while also catching cheeky Torn-Ts who may try to switch in. Protect is used in the last slot to scout moves. This is great for choice locked attackers like Dragapult, Kartana, and Tapu Lele. Garchomp's design is partly based off of a fighter jet, and my favorite one is the F-16 Falcon.
​

Threatlist​

Aqua Jet is dumb and makes Blaziken sad

if Chomp dies good luck

no switch ins

need to win 50/50s otherwise you lose a mon

walls Blaziken if healthy, eats hits from everything else and tanks a Bolt Beak and burns with Scald

Replays​

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-579741 vs Ox Hail in Smogon Tour
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-577824 vs Rain in Ssnl
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1392456194 showcases the types of team structures that Hail murks
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1409947384-w2r2maykahdknripfvl5q4my57vufxspw lower ladder but Blaziken 6-0es

Shoutouts​

Not gonna mass tag because it's obnoxious, but I'd like to give a special thanks to a few people.

Hide

To start, TPP for giving me a chance at South. Had I not had that experience, I probably would've quit from boredom like I did years ago. And for carrying me in Unite.

And everyone else on the team for being a chill group of people.

bb skarm for being a crackhead whenever we play

curiosity for getting carried in Unite

Abhi 1 more badge til that sweet custom

And the qc team for being cool

And everyone else I've had positive interactions with on this site.

Conclusion​

I set out months ago to build an effective Blaziken team. I feel I accomplished that goal with this team. It hasn't taken the ladder by storm like a certain Hail team floating around, but I can say that it's mine. And that's what matters to me. I'll still use the team from time to time, but I felt now is a good time to retire it and explore other team building ideas I have as the metagame develops before the release of BDSP. Until next time, have a good one.

importable

Fabio (Ninetales-Alola) @ Icy Rock
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aurora Veil
- Freeze-Dry
- Moonblast
- Encore

Blazer (Blaziken) (M) @ Protective Pads
Ability: Speed Boost
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- Knock Off

Cold Take (Arctozolt) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Slush Rush
EVs: 200 Atk / 76 SpA / 232 Spe
Naive Nature
- Substitute
- Bolt Beak
- Blizzard
- Low Kick

Derpus (Tornadus-Therian) (M) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 72 Def / 20 SpD / 168 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- Knock Off
- U-turn

Hangin Out (Ferrothorn) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 180 Def / 76 SpD
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Leech Seed

Falcon (Garchomp) @ Leftovers
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 176 SpD / 80 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Protect

 

[RaikouLover]

This is a really cool team; thanks for sharing!

For those of us new to hail, can you explain strategies to get past not having hazard control?

 

[TailGlowVM]

Why Protective Pads on Blaziken? None of the most common Iron Barbs or Rocky Helmet users like Ferrothorn, Corviknight, or Buzzwole are ever going to be switching in. Even if you don't want to take Life Orb recoil, you could go for something like Passho Berry to lure Urshifu, or Leftovers to heal hail damage, or Charcoal to boost the move you click most of the time.

 

[AM]

Cool team Clone. Not sure if I agree with Tails assessment above, seeing as Chomp/Pex are also under the switch ins of Rough Skin/Helmet users when up against Blaziken. You could probably justify Leftovers for the sake of Hail but a Resist Berry when you have Aurora Veil and multiple paths to take to deter Urshifu doesnt seem very helpful, at least for this team.

 

[Clone]

This is a really cool team; thanks for sharing!

For those of us new to hail, can you explain strategies to get past not having hazard control?

Rocks are really only threatening to ninetales, as I have Boots on the other 2 rock weak mons. The two most common setters are Lando, which is hard punished by half the team, and heatran, which I just have to play aggressively with. Spikes are setup fodder for blaziken.

I also have my own Spikes, which often forces a defog on opponents

Why Protective Pads on Blaziken? None of the most common Iron Barbs or Rocky Helmet users like Ferrothorn, Corviknight, or Buzzwole are ever going to be switching in. Even if you don't want to take Life Orb recoil, you could go for something like Passho Berry to lure Urshifu, or Leftovers to heal hail damage, or Charcoal to boost the move you click most of the time.

I chose pads for Rocky Helmets, garchomp rough skin, and zapdos static. Also avoids losing 2/3 of its health to Flare Blitz on a corviknight/ferrothorn sack

I can punish urshifu with half my team if it clicks Aqua Jet, and passho is too situational for my taste given blaziken racks up CC drops and is pretty frail outside of veil. Leftovers is just bad

 

[BoomFantastic]

Really cool team! I was dabbling a bit in the builder and remembered that Alolatales has access to Pain Split, do you think it could fit anywhere here? Having a recovery option vs fatter teams is really nice especially since this team doesn't rely on immediate hazard control, but passing up Moonblast or Encore is pretty tough...

 

[HISELOISOVER9000]

Really cool team! I was dabbling a bit in the builder and remembered that Alolatales has access to Pain Split, do you think it could fit anywhere here? Having a recovery option vs fatter teams is really nice especially since this team doesn't rely on immediate hazard control, but passing up Moonblast or Encore is pretty tough...

Pain splits not too good on ninetales, not reliable recovery and the other moves are pretty important