ORAS LC Kids are Kids peaked 1540+

[inscribe]

Preface
Hey guys! I'm Inscribe, some of you may know me as kektus on main. The team I have here was made at the start of OR/AS LC, when I was in love with Skrelp. I decided to make a Skrelp team to see how it went; this is it.
Proof of Peak

Proof of Peak

I WAS at 1590, but then I lost a a few matches from tilt and I didn't screenshot. Oh well. :(

Team Building Process

Team Building Process

doublin' up dumb hide tags

Team Building Process

Skrelp is obviously what I built this team around, because it can punch big holes in teams and I love it because of the new toy OR/AS gave it: Adaptability.

I immediately thought of Pawniard to abuse Swords Dance and support Skrelp with Knock Off.

Looking at it, my team needed a way to pick up momentum and a Mon' with Fake Out to stop scary set up sweepers. Mienfoo fit this role well.

I wanted a way to get rid of hazards because Spike Offence would fuck me over hard, but I didn't want Drilbur because I preferred being able to get rid of hazards many times. Seeing as Vullaby packs recovery in Roost, takes on pretty much every Fighting type, and carries Knock Off, I chose her.

I don't really remember why I chose Snubbull, but it probably has to do with a powerful Play Rough and it supports my team with Heal Bell. Also baits Pawniard and damages it with Earthquake.

I chose Ferroseed to spread Thunder Waves, which support Skrelp's garbage speed stat, and to stack Hazards, which furthermore support Skrelp's attacking capabilities.

As you can see, my old team was notably weak to bulky Fire-types such as Larvesta and Ponyta, so I opted to run Chinchou over Ferroseed to check Larvesta and Ponyta, and put Thunder Wave on it to reincarnate one of Ferroseed's jobs, spreading paras. But what would happen to my hazards? I changed Pawniard's Swords Dance to Stealth Rock, which I didn't mind much because I never got to use Swords Dance much

​

Now, off to the team!

The Team
(pokemon format shamelessly stolen from ium )

skrelp @ eviolite
ability: adaptability | evs: 36 hp / 116 def / 200 spa / 116 spd / 30 spe | nature: modest
sludge wave / hydro pump / hidden power psychic / scald

Skrelp, again, is what I built this team around. Skrelp helps get rid of fairies like Spritzee and non-Earthquake Snubbull without sacrificing Pawniard's HP. Hydro Pump hits things that resist Sludge Wave or things that Sludge Wave doesn't hit hard enough, such as Porygon or Archen. Scald is a move that hits Fire-types just like Hydro Pump, but I don't have to risk a miss to use it, and last but not least, HP Psychic hits Croagunk, which is a pain to my team.​

vullaby @ eviolite
ability: overcoat | evs: 116 hp / 236 def / 76 spd / 36 spe | nature: impish
brave bird / roost / knock off / defog

Vullaby is my bulky defogger, which helps a lot because it takes on so much things and lets spikes not brutally murder my team, it also acts as a back up check to Croagunk if Skrelp is really damaged, a check to Fighting-types, Fletchling check, and a Knock Off spammer!​

mienfoo @ eviolite
ability: regenerator | evs: 196 def / 36 spd / 236 spe | nature: jolly
fake out / drain punch / knock off / u-turn

Mienfoo is the glue of this team. It helps soften walls like Foongus with Knock Off, and it can also get some damage on scary sweepers with Fake Out. U-Turn helps me pick up momentum, which helps this team a lot, while Drain Punch just acts as a STAB to rack up damage.

snubbull @ berry juice
ability: intimidate | evs: 116 hp / 196 def / 196 spd | nature: careful
play rough / thief / earthquake / heal bell

Snubbull is my main check to Mienfoo and other Fighting-types. Also acts as a lure for Pawniard, so I can go for an Earthquake and do a nice chunk. Heal Bell allows me to alleviate status from my team, which would otherwise pretty much cost me a match.

chinchou @ eviolite
ability: volt absorb | evs: 76 hp / 212 def / 160 spd / 60 spe | nature: bold
thunder wave / scald / rest / sleep talk

Chinchou is my main counter to Fletchling, and can spread paras for me, which greatly aid Skrelp, and the chance to fully paralyze helps out a lot. Rest allows me to recover HP so I can always take on the bulky Fire-types that plague this team so much.​

pawniard @ eviolite
ability: defiant | evs: 156 atk / 36 def / 116 spd / 196 spe | nature: jolly
knock off / stealth rock / sucker punch / iron head

Last but not least, Pawniard helps spread Knock Offs and sets Stealth Rock to put pressure on teams. Iron Head hits Fairies, and Sucker Punch acts as a priority to net a kill on things like a weakened Mienfoo or a Life Orb/weakened Abra.​

Threat List

VOLT TURN
VolTurn is something my team really struggles against. My Chinchou can't really keep up with all of the U-Turns from Larvesta and Drilbur can do a lot to my team on it's own because Earthquake pummels most of my 'Mons.

CHLORODROUGHT
Chlorodrought is another archetype that just out-attacks me. I don't really have a safe switch into Bellsprout, since Solar Beam and Sludge Bomb hit all of my 'Mons for a 2HKO, barring probably Vullaby. Pawniard and his Stealth Rocks help me out a lot in this match-up, so I wouldn't say that it's unbeatable with this team.

Importable
here u go kid​

All Falls Down is bad and is a kid

 

[Eren Yeagar]

Hi Inscribe, this looks like a really well built Skrelp team!

First off, Chinchou should have Volt Switch over Thunder Wave. Paralyzing is sometimes useful, but Volt Switch is practically an obligatory STAB on Chinchou. Volt Switch provides offensive momentum, giving Chinchou the ability to pivot around and switch into a team member that can reliably KO your opponent. This will also let you not be completely vulnerable to Croagunk.

Fake Out on Mienfoo is not good considering it loses momentum and there are many greater moves that can take its slot. With that, I would like to suggest Taunt over Fake Out. Since your team relies on pivoting with Chinchou and Mienfoo,a lot to get Skrelp in multiple times in the field, you don't have to rely only on Vullaby to get rid of hazards. Taunt on Mienfoo will shut down common leads such as Drilbur, Onix, and Dwebble from setting up hazards and since Mienfoo will most of the time be your lead, this works out perfectly. You do have to be wary of speed tying with Onix and Drilbur though. The benefits of Taunt will help you pivot a lot more with Mienfoo and Chinchou and let your other team members apply more offensive pressure.

I think Snubbull's EVs should be changed to 36 HP / 36 Atk / 196 Def / 196 SpD / 36 Spe with a Careful Nature. The added 36 EVs in speed will let Snubbull speed tie with Timburr and outspeed the standard mixed Croagunk. This will definitely benefit you since you have more options to deal with Croagunk, a big threat to your team considering you have to run HP Psychic Skrelp.

That's all the suggestions I have for now. Great job on the team! Good luck in your future battles!

 

[Corporal Levi]

Hello Inscribe
This is a very sturdily built team, and it does a very nice job supporting Skrelp. Just a few quick suggestions -
I certainly agree with Eren's suggestion for Chinchou for the reasons he stated. However, paralysis support would still benefit Skrelp. Your team has plenty of item removal support already, so I don't think Pawniard is necessary. Porygon can use Thunder Wave, and more importantly, checks a number of huge threats to your team, including Omanyte, Fletchdig and Bellsprout. (I know I've been suggesting Porygon a lot recently, but Porygon is really, really great for beating a bunch of stuff that could otherwise be tough to cover.)
Porygon @ Eviolite
Ability: Trace
Level: 5
EVs: 236 HP / 116 Def / 156 SpD
Bold Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Ice Beam
- Tri Attack
- Recover

Of course, Porygon alone wouldn't be enough to beat Sun teams; a more specially defensive Vullaby spread will help to deal with this, so I think that a spread of 116 HP / 76 Def / 236 SpD / 36 Spe maintaining the current nature would be a better fit, considering how you can already handle Fighting-types quite well. I'm also agreeing with Eren's Snubbull suggestion for the reasons he stated.

Fake Out does not seem very useful on Mienfoo, given how your team has numerous ways to deal with Sturdysmash Tirtouga. You did point out a weakness to Croagunk, so I think that replacing Fake Out with Acrobatics will help to deal with this; it will also allow Mienfoo to act as a general Knock Off absorber. This would let you replace Hidden Power Psychic with Hidden Power Fire on Skrelp (like you have in your importable), as Ferroseed would otherwise be quite a nuisance. Eren's suggestion for Taunt over Fake Out would be fine as well to help relieve pressure for Vullaby since Taunt would hinder Ferroseed, although you would of course want to keep HP Psychic on Skrelp in that case. Your importable is fine, but in the post itself, you have 30 Spe EVs on Skrelp, which should probably be 40.

That's all I have to say. Great work!

 

[Goddess Briyella]

Hi there, Inscribe!

This is a cool team you have here, and I have a few suggestions that I think will improve its performance. The main issue that sticks out to me is a glaring Ground weakness, which can be capitalized on if Stealth Rock is down and Drilbur finds itself against your Vullaby. Additionally, Vullaby's susceptibility to VoltTurn is an issue when combined with Drilbur, especially if you want to conserve your Chinchou to be able to consistently check Fletchling. The fact that your team does not rely on hazards does make Drilbur a bit less of a pain, but it can be still be an issue on the offensive front. After Vullaby is weakened, the team has almost no safe switch-ins to Drilbur.

->

Pumpkaboo-Super @ Eviolite
Ability: Frisk
Level: 5
EVs: 204 HP / 116 Def / 156 SpD / 28 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bullet Seed
- Shadow Sneak
- Synthesis
- Will-O-Wisp

My first suggestion is replacing Snubbull with Pumpkaboo-Super. You lose out on offensive power in this slot, but your weakness to Ground would be completely accounted for. In addition, you gain constant healing in Synthesis whereas your Snubbull set only heals once with Berry Juice (if it hasn't been used as a Knock Off shield already) and doesn't have the added bulk benefit of Eviolite. Pumpkaboo-Super also provides additional security against opposing Chinchou and makes a decent check to Shell Smashers as well. Will-O-Wisp afflicts enemies with burn status, which lasts after switch-outs and counts for basically two Attack drops, unlike Intimidate. Heal Bell is lost in this change, but that is something I will add back later in my rate, so don't worry.

It should be noted that some players are running Shadow Claw on Drilbur now to deal with Pumpkaboo, but keep in mind that if they want Earthquake, Stealth Rock, and Rapid Spin, and also opt to leave Rock Slide off the set to make room for Shadow Claw, Drilbur becomes totally walled by Vullaby, so the team will overcome Drilbur in most cases regardless after this change.

Edit: Forgot to add this earlier, but Pumpkaboo also blocks Drilbur's Rapid Spin, which is very important for keeping Pawniard's Stealth Rock in play for its team. :)

Okay, now that the Ground weakness is covered, there's another suggestion I have that should help the team deal with stall more efficiently. Now that Ferroseed has Knock Off as of ORAS, it is more common on stall archetypes than ever in Little Cup, and as it stands now, it gets a free switch into Skrelp.

Skrelp @ Eviolite
Ability: Adaptability
Level: 5
EVs: 36 HP / 116 Def / 200 SpA / 116 SpD / 40 Spe
- Sludge Wave
- Hydro Pump
- Hidden Power Psychic -> Hidden Power Fire
- Scald

First, I'd like to point out that you actually have enough EVs remaining for another point in Speed, even factoring in the IV reduction due to Hidden Power, so you should add 40 Spe EVs to the spread. The main thing I want to suggest with Skrelp, though, is replacing its Hidden Power Psychic with Hidden Power Fire to hit Ferroseed and 2HKO it on the switch from full health. I understand that you want to be able to hit Croagunk, but that's something that other members of the team can already deal with, and my next suggestion will help out in dealing with it as well, so don't worry.

Mienfoo @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
Level: 5
EVs: 196 Def / 36 SpD / 236 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out -> Acrobatics
- Drain Punch
- Knock Off
- U-turn

Mienfoo's standard arsenal is commonly filled with Drain Punch, Knock Off, and U-turn, and it usually has a fourth move to spare that can be changed depending on the needs of its team. Since Mienfoo is often used as any balance team's Knock Off shield because it resists the attack and easily heals off the damage, I'd like to suggest swapping its Fake Out with Acrobatics in your set. This allows Mienfoo to handily deal with the aforementioned Croagunk as well as other opposing Fighting-types such as Mienfoo, Timburr, and Pancham after having lost its item, which is bound to happen with the way the current metagame works. It also gives Mienfoo a way to hit Larvesta for super effective damage, which helps alleviate the problem you noticed yourself that the team has against VoltTurn teams. Fake Out provides underwhelming utility here, at least when compared with the other moves Mienfoo can use instead. With that in consideration, a lot is gained with this change and nothing is lost.

Chinchou @ Eviolite -> Berry Juice
Level: 5
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 76 HP / 212 Def / 160 SpD -> 152 SpA / 60 Spe
Bold Nature
- Thunder Wave -> Volt Switch
- Scald
- Rest -> Heal Bell
- Sleep Talk -> Hidden Power Ground

I'd like to recommend the above changes to your Chinchou set. As you have it, it is dependent on a 66% chance that it will be able to move at all while sleeping and you may not always get the move you want, but more importantly, it is completely walled by opposing Chinchou, which can sometimes cost the match (Chinchou isn't called the best Chinchou switch-in for nothing, haha). Additionally, being able to pressure Fletchling in this metagame is paramount if you're going to use Chinchou, so the lack of an Electric-type STAB move here is also ill-advised, as Eren Yeagar pointed out. Volt Switch is good for momentum, threatening/beating Fletchling, and getting free chip damage when switching out against slower foes. Thunder Wave is fine for allowing Skrelp the Speed advantage it wants so that it can have a better offensive presence, but Skrelp's weaknesses are all covered now (mainly due to adding Pumpkaboo-Super to the team) and so the support is a lot less necessary. Heal Bell allows Chinchou to rid its team of troublesome status afflictions and also puts back into the team the cleric role that was removed with Snubbull earlier. Hidden Power Ground assures that you have a means of beating other Chinchou.

The replacement of Eviolite with Berry Juice ensures that Chinchou still has reliable healing while keeping Fletchling at bay, which is usually its main defensive role on a team in the current Little Cup metagame (just be sure not to play recklessly), and the EV shift from Special Defense to Special Attack lets Chinchou hit harder with its STABs while not losing much defensively, as most special attacks will activate Berry Juice and restore its health to full or almost full all the same.


This concludes my rate! I hope you found my suggestions helpful and I wish you continued success with your team!