Introduction|Building a Offense Team

[Shurtugal]

A Guide To Offense
By: Shurtugal

Introduction:

Hello guys! I have been carefully studying/analyzing the battle style of offense and I came up with a few tricks to make a successfully offensive team with a little time. I will get to that part later though, for now, let me stick to the basics. Offensive teams need something called offensive synergy, which is how they keep their “offensive momentum”. Offensive momentum is that offensive presence your team should carry, as you want to force your opponent out, and “break” through their team. The object of the team is to dent everything to a point where you can “break” in and sweep. This sounds a lot like Hyper Offense, as it should, because they are very similar. Prediction is not usually required, as if you have enough offensive synergy, you can make safe plays and slowly dent your opponents team. Offensive teams love hazards, and spinners. We both love them and hate them. Love them on the field of our opponent, sweeping is so much easier when your team forces switches; thus the hazards. However, offensive teams that are not heavy offense usually have to switch; especially people running choice sweepers, and this will slowly dent your team. Anyways, let us move on to the types of offense.

Types of Offense:

Weather Offense: When running weather offense, you tend to abuse teammates that can abuse the surrounding weather. However, you should note that offensive synergy is rather hard to accomplish in weather as rain drenches fire, and if you lose rain to sun, it is hard to provide coverage for it since you hinder yourself if you use it in rain; same goes for the sun. Usually sand teams and hail team use teammates that aren’t hurt by the weather, with the exception of a few teammates, which is why sand in peticular is considered the best weather. These teams are very effective however, because they can abuse weather and gain a big advantage of opponents who do not have anything to abuse. This gives weather teams the upper-hand, however, there is a draw back. If the opponent carries weather, you have to enter weather war. Losing the weather war means it is so much harder to take out your opponent, as your team loses that required weather and has to deal with the opponents. However, winning a weather war means you have the bigger advantage. These teams are sort of a gamble, but work very nicely.

Standard Offense: Teammates do not have a specific weather they can abuse, but teammates can be picked with better offensive synergy. These teams are much like weather teams, except they can pick members freely without having to ask if it has benefits with the weather. They might not have a weather advantage, but usually they have more room for hazards [only one weather has hazard lead; sand, which is why ppl find it the best weather], spinners, and some additional support. For example, you can run a very offensive team, but with like one or two pokes setting up some hazards that actually help you sweep, so in the end, it all evens out with advantage. However, offensive teams love power, which is why weather is the most common, adding bonus power, but hazards are also plenty good, but just not like weather. Standard Offensive is my favorite though, as it isn’t hindered against another weather. This is the big bonus for not running weather. When not running weather, you aren’t hindered against the opposite weather, or engage a weather war [which puts stress on user; causing misplays].

Heavy Offense: These types of teams abuse 6 sweepers that generally stay on one side of the spectrum, as they only hit either physical or specially. Offensive synergy is recommended, as it is what the entire team is based around. Without it, the team will fail. These teams tend to stay away from choice users, and they stay away from walls. They never want to switch, just keep fighting until they “break” through. However, if one of your pokes can take any attack from the opponent, by all means save your valuable teammate if you can. You usually have to know which sweeper can break through, and every single one of your Pokemon should be able to sweep on these teams. With that said, once you know which one needs to sweep, you need to take down their counters and proceed to sweep. Takes lots of practice, but prediction is very minimal, something that a lot of new trainers like and should try.











Building an Offensive Team:

There are all kinds of ways to build teams. When playing offense, you can use this simple format I have created to create any offensive team:

Lead [provides: weather, hazards, spinning, status, walling, sweeping, any one of these you need]

“Glue” [Tends to work with lead in walling. Provides hazards, walling, offense, status, or cleric, anything you need to patch up your weaknesses]

“Mega”core, or 2 Offensive Cores: [Will explain:]

“Mega”Core|2 Offensive Cores:

An offensive team needs a minimum of 4 sweepers. When creating a “mega” core, you basically create one big core of 4 teammates that have super synergy. 2 offensive cores can be used if you’re a bit new and take 2 cores, but you have to make sure they work; then combine the 2 cores to make one, thus creating the “mega” core without too much thinking, but might not be as effective. To create a core, you must first pick a teammate you wish to center the team around. Then build off its weaknesses and strengths, and build the core + core or mega core, but either way centering the team is important.

“Glue”

If you see any flaws in your offensive core, take this slot to deal with any threats, if you have no concern of threats, add support [such as hazards, cleric, status, weather, spinning, ect.] Usually you want support [which means walling, or bulky offensive teammates] but if you want to, you can put another sweeper here if you wish.

Lead:

Lead provides weather [if you desire], hazards, support, spinning, anything the glue does. The difference you ask? Weather for starters. But its more than that; this teammate should be able to fair well against other common leads in the metagame. Such leads like mienshao your lead should be able to deal with, and ect. If there are any problem leads, and their usually are, you glue can help you patch it up.

Example|Analysis:

I have picked an “offensive” styled team in the featured slot to set as my example: Layla – Iconic

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Tyranitar (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 180 SAtk / 76 SDef
Sassy Nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Flamethrower
- Ice Beam
- Crunch
- Stealth Rock

Gliscor (M) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 Spd
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Taunt
- Facade
- Earthquake

Scizor (M) @ Lum Berry
Trait: Technician
EVs: 240 HP / 16 Atk / 252 SDef
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Roost

Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 164 HP / 252 SAtk / 92 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Pain Split

Shaymin-S @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Leech Seed
- Seed Flare
- Air Slash

Terrakion @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- X-Scissor

Let me break this down. This team actually uses the method I created, as I studied this team and a few
Other’s to formulate it! Let us see:

Lead:

Tyranitar sets up hazards [stealth rock], and can successfully take special hits for the team. It sets up sand and has lots of coverage for this team.

“Glue”:

Gliscor works wonders with T-Tar in sand, as T-Tar can take water hits in sand. Gliscor is a bulky sweeper, so it can take many hits with poison heal + protect, and still maintain offensive pressure. Which is perfect for this team as the trainer is using weather offense and created a rather bulky Pokemon to help take hits, as well as create a rather bulky core with T-Tar.

Center Piece:

This team is centered around the Pokemon Shaymin, as the owner of this team feels that this set is very deadly from previous expierences in DPP and wanted to try it out in Gen 5. Shaymin can pull of sweeps even with a bulky set with high SAtk with serene graced seed flares bring SDef to -2, leech seed to wear the opponent down, subbing up on thunder waves, as its speed is godly, and Air Slash provides flinch and STAB. The opponent wants to center the team around this Pokemon, so lets see what Layla does:

Teammate 1: Scizor

Scizor is an interesting member, and was a good choice. Its bug typing works well with Shaymin’s grass and flying type well, as well as providing priority for her team. Shaymin has trouble dealing with ScarfTerrakion is it doesn’t have a substitute up, along with Garchomp and Excadrill. Exca outspeeds it, Darkrai can ouspeed it, and Garchomp can set up on it. Anyways, please note that I am going over counter when for the metagame during Shaymin-S time, which is now banned, along with Garchomp and Excadrill. Deoxys-A was also around at this time, not to mention scarfers give it some trouble. Darkrai is a bit frail, and Scizor is a nice counter, at least for Layla because she is running Lum Berry. Along with that, it also hits Deoxys-A for the OHKO with BP after rock damage. Scizor, for the time, is a great partner with Shaymin. Although the typing they have is very good, grass + flying with steel + bug, its just good offensive synergy you want.

Teammate 2: Rotom-W

Rotom-W is Layla’s counter to rain, or at least, her best check to it. As rain is a problem for Scizor and, to an extent, Shaymin with SS’ers running out there with Ice Beam. Rotom-W helps take ice hits for Shaymin like a boss, along with working naturally well with Scizor. Rotom-W is also her way of dealing with Ferrothorn, which Gyro Ball|T-Wave Shaymin-S all day. Rotom-W is also a nice way to deal with Gyarados, because she chose the set with thunderbolt.

Teammate 3: Terrakion

Her team lacks a lot of speed. So, to finish her megacore, she added ScarfRakion. Terrakion is one of the best revenge killers in the game to this day, and it makes up for the lack of speed in her team as well as working so well in sand. You might think why she even runs sand with only one possible abuser, but she runs it so she can control weather, as she doesn’t want to be weak to sun|hail|rain and remember, SS’ers were very common at this time, so that’s why she chose sand. It also gave her the option of running this revenge killer and most of her team doesn’t mind the sand anyways, which beneits her.


This is her team. It became featured on Smogon because of how wonderfully this worked out. She runs a semi bulky offense, but it still works here. Most of the offensive teams here follow this, although some of them do not, but this is a helpful way for me to base my teambuilding. However, there are still the rules of teambuilding one must consider:

1: Center
2: Build
3: Test and Replace
4: Perfect

I hope this all helps you, please tell me if I should/shouldn’t add something, as I hope this is accurate enough. Feel free to criticize, but please be nice. Thanks!

~ Shurtugal

 

[Rakan]

I would pick a team that's relevant to the current metagame, and doesn't have any banned members...

 

[Shurtugal]

I wanted to show a classic example from the featured spot, and also, I didn't want people directly copying this team, mearly to show an example of how to use the format and how it is effective. I will make another example though, as it would seem fit to show case it in more than one sccenerio, so I will pick another example, but takes time to write. So I will come back here when i have time and include thta for you guys.

 

[Nexus]

Yeah, before posting articles please post in the Gen 5 Articles reservation sticky on top reserving it and await for approval by one of the mods. Locking and moving since it uses an outdated team and in general playstyle guides are written for an individual tier or on a specific subject like weather.