=====Introduction=====
I used to be a pretty good player back in the early days of BW. Back then, I liked using UU anti-meta pokes to handle Excadrill and friends and I was able to stay within the realm of rank 50-200 on PO (and it wasn't like Pokemon Showdown where you win 10 times and peak #1 either). I stopped playing and recently came back to see what I could do, but was horrified at the prevalence of rain teams and the same cores over and over. So I thought I ought to develop a team that can "break" through those cores (hence the name "Jawbreakers"). I came up with it when using Sub/Protect Gliscor on the same team as Sub-Punch Conkeldurr... and hatched an idea that would turn out more effective that I could have expected. I quickly built the team and went to work. I won 14 times before losing and then was able to win ~10 battles before losing on multiple alts (although my opponents were shockingly bad for some reason). I think that gives me a decent track record, but the team still needs work. So here it is:
=====THE DEFENSIVE CORE=====
Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 184 Def / 252 HP / 72 Spd
Bold Nature
- Substitute
- Protect
- Baton Pass
- Toxic / Earthquake
.At first glance, this is just a standard Sub-Protect annoyer Gliscor, but thats not exactly the case. I picked Gliscor because I needed someone to soak up physical hits and to use as a general pivot against a variety of threats like Landorus, Ferrothorn, Breloom, and many others. I don't think I need to explain his effectiveness, because he's just a solid Pokemon for many different situations. However, I changed the set slightly by removing Earthquake altogether and replacing it with Baton Pass. What that lets Gliscor do is Sub down on one of the many pokemon he is capable of setting up on, and pass it to the appropriate check so I can get a free hit off and hopefully do a lot of damage in the process. He can also stall out a lot of pokemon himself with Toxic, helping alleviate some of the burden of tougher pokemon who could sweep my team otherwise.
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Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 224 SDef / 252 HP / 32 Spd
Careful Nature
- Iron Head
- Body Slam
- Wish
- Stealth Rock
After Gliscor, I needed a poke to handle the special hits and work as a secondary pivot. I was most worried about handling Draco Meteors and Psychic/Ghost types, so putting in a Specially Defensive Jirachi was the obvious move. It can switch into pokemon like Latios, Gengar, and Reuniclus and is able to tank a hit and then proceed to paralyze something, set up rocks, or prepare a wish to heal something (or itself). Jirachi is also capable of taking hits from attacks he doesn't resist, like Rotom's Volt Switch. The only change from the standard Jirachi is that I decided to put give him rocks, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to. I lose the ability to protect to heal up after a wish, but in the long run having Stealth Rocks on my team is more important.
Amoonguss @ Leftovers
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Spore
- Clear Smog
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
.My final member of the defensive core, Amoonguss fills an important role in my team: handling rain threats and bulky water types. Without him, I would be far too weak to rain-boosted Hydro Pumps and Thunders, but with him on my team I can mostly feel safe to handle it. He can switch in somewhat freely on Politoed, Keldeo, Thundurus, and Jellicent without really having to worry about anything. From there, I have the luxury of getting a free Spore, crippling a member of his team. He also handles SD Breloom pretty well, taking a Bullet Seed just fine and getting a super-effective Clear Smog on him to eliminate his +2 attack. Overall, a great addition even if he'll never be OU.
=====THE JAWBREAKERS=====
Conkeldurr @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Focus Punch
- Mach Punch
- Ice Punch
This set simply screams POWER. Focus Punch is an incredibly powerful move on Conk, getting boosted by Iron Fist to a 180 Base Power STAB move coming out of a positive nature 140 base attack. Thats strong, REALLY strong, and can smash through almost anything that doesn't resist it. The general strategy is to pass Conk a sub (which actually is usually pretty easy, especially on things like Ferrothorn) and obliterate something with Focus Punch. If the recipient survives the blow, Mach Punch can finish it off (or just be used for a general priority move to revenge kill, being boosted to 48 Base Power by Iron Fist). Ice Punch is the more questionable move on this set, but it has a very unique role. It destroys a lot of the Pokemon who resist Focus Punch like Gliscor, Landorus, Dragonite, and Latios while also being boosted to 90BP by Iron Fist (see the pattern here?). A great hitter, once his counters are gone Conkeldurr is guaranteed 1 or 2 kills every time he is sent out.
Infernape @ Expert Belt
Trait: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 Spd / 180 Atk / 76 SAtk
Naive Nature
- Overheat
- Close Combat
- Thunderpunch
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Infernape is known for his wall-breaking skills, so he was another clear pick for the team. He's great because he doesn't necessarily rely on a Substitute to get a free hit off because of his Speed and can on occasion sweep from behind a sub as well. He can take on the cores that scare Conkeldurr away like Ferrocent quite easily. From behind a sub, Jellicent can't even switch in to threaten with Scald because Nape is protected for at least a turn. That turns him from what could be a mediocre wall-breaker to an unstoppable one under the right conditions. Overheat is the nuke he can use to clear out threats like Skarmory and Scizor, while HP Ice rounds out the coverage by taking on pokes like Gliscor. Its basically the standard MixApe, with the only minor facet to note being my preference for Expert Belt simply to keep him from killing himself residually.
Kyurem-Black @ Leftovers
Trait: Teravolt
EVs: 76 Spd / 252 SAtk / 180 HP
Mild Nature
- Substitute
- Fusion Bolt
- Draco Meteor
- Ice Beam
.My final jawbreaker, Kyurem is yet another pokemon who exudes power. 170 base attack and 120 base SpA is asking for a mixed set, so here it is. The EVs are unique, so let me explain them. I want Kyurem to be able to set up subs more easily, so HP investment was necessary. With 180 in HP, he is capable of taking a lot more electric and water attacks while only taking 20-24% damage (meaning his Sub is not broken). The 76 EVs in Speed lets him outspeed standard Gliscors as well as pokes like Adamant Breloom. The rest goes into Special Attack to boost his coverage moves. I changed the standard moveset too; I chose not to invest in Attack because Ice Beam was my most useful coverage move and replaced Dragon Claw with Draco Meteor to get a powerful Specially Based hit off so that a kill is insured. The tradeoff is no reliable Dragon move to spam and a weaker Fusion Bolt, but Kyurem is still very capable of destroying the last few threats that Ape and Conk can't always handle.
=====CONCLUSION=====
This team was a lot of fun to use, and while it doesn't have any glaring weaknesses, it does have many considerable ones that can pile up really dangerously. For one, I sometimes struggle against fast sweepers especially after they set up. Dragon Dancers scare me because I have no Choice Scarfers and Mach Punch is too weak to just kill them outright. Hazards really hurt me too, because the team is built around sending in my wallbreakers many times throughout the match. I don't have Rapid Spin, so that tends to be an issue as well. Certain pokemon can also give me trouble like Jellicent, Breloom, Cloyster, and Skarmory. Tips would be much appreciated. I hope you guys enjoyed my first RMT! Thanks for reading.
