ORAS OU Lemme Break it DOWN for Ya (An OU Gravity Team)

[Dr. Medicine]

INTRO
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Gravity is a move that is rarely seen in competitive play, but I thought it could be a useful strategy in the current ou metagame. Using gravity made ou a much more enjoyable tier for me, as it was fun to abuse its effects. I was able to break 1400 elo on the ou ladder using this team. (granted, I haven't played ou since ORAS was introduced prior to making this team) While solid overall, I think it could use some improvement.

Effects of Gravity

• All flying type pokemon become grounded (They're Flying Type still remains, however)
• The effects of air balloon and levitate nullified
• The moves, Bounce, Fly, Splash (lol), Jump Kick, High Jump Kick, Sky Drop, and Magnet Rise will fail. If the opponent is in the semi-invulnerable state of Bounce, Fly, or Sky Drop, the move is cancelled. Foes affected by Magnet Rise will be grounded.
• Evasion of all pokemon is lowered by 2 stages, meaning any move with 60 accuracy or above will always hit under gravity.
• These effects last for 4 turns after the move is used.

THE TEAM

Landorus-Therian @ Earth Plate / Lum Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Gravity
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge / Knock Off
- U-turn
​

Since I decided I wanted to make a gravity team, I needed, well, a gravity user! Landorus-I was banned unfortunately, :( (much to my surprise) so I went with Landorus-T. Landorus-T is a good user of gravity, because of STAB Earthquake. Stone Edge has has perfect accuracy under gravity. Knock Off can replace stone edge for utility. Landorus can effectively lure in Skarmory and Rotom, use Gravity on the switch, and KO them the following turn.

Calcs

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Skarmory: 254-302 (76 - 90.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Skarmory: 254-302 (76 - 90.4%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 216+ Def Rotom-W: 302-356 (99.6 - 117.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios: 256-303 (85.6 - 101.3%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Bronzong: 374-444 (110.6 - 131.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 Atk Earth Plate Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Bronzong: 276-326 (81.6 - 96.4%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Analytic
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Gravity
- Hydro Pump
- Psyshock / Thunder
- Blizzard / Rapid Spin
​

Starmie had good synergy with Landorus-Therian, so I decided to add him to the team. He resists water and ice, both of which landorus is weak to, and guess what: IT LEARNS GRAVITY! Starmie can also abuse gravity with a perfectly accurate STAB Hydro Pump and moves like Thunder and Blizzard. Rapid Spin is an option , but I found the lack of coverage dissapointing.

Blizzard Calcs

252 SpA Life Orb Starmie Blizzard vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Zapdos: 283-335 (73.6 - 87.2%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Starmie Blizzard vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Latios: 239-283 (79.9 - 94.6%) -- 50% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Starmie Blizzard vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Serperior: 270-320 (92.7 - 109.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Starmie Blizzard vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Multiscale Dragonite: 263-309 (81.4 - 95.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock (Ice Beam can't guarantee OHKO after Stealth Rock)

Infernape @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Vacuum Wave
- Grass Knot / Nasty Plot / Hidden Power [Ice]
​

I chose Infernape because he had good synergy with starmie, resisting dark, bug, and grass types. I chose to make him special because I thought Gravity would compliment this set better. (not to mention I don't have to worry about Flare Blitz recoil and Close Combat defense drops) Life Orb helps activate Blaze, powering up a perfectly accurate Fire Blast. Vacuum Wave helps Infernape clean late game. I considered Nasty Plot, but I preferred the coverage of Grass Knot, as well as Hidden Power Ice, which I found inferior to Grass Knot. Grass Knot also provides a reliable way to hit Tyranitar, should Gravity not be in effect, however Focus Blast hits Rotom-W harder. U-turn was something else I considered, but again, I liked the coverage I already had, and I didn't want to sacrifice bulk.

Calcs

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 88 HP / 0 SpD Azumarill: 177-208 (48.7 - 57.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 92 HP / 0 SpD Azumarill: 177-208 (48.6 - 57.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 252 HP / 24 SpD Slowbro: 229-270 (58.1 - 68.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Slowbro: 159-187 (40.3 - 47.4%) -- 48% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Mega Slowbro: 294-346 (74.6 - 87.8%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (100 BP) vs. 100 HP / 0 SpD Mega Swampert: 447-530 (122.1 - 144.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 112 SpD Hippowdon: 330-390 (78.5 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Keldeo: 161-190 (49.8 - 58.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 248 HP / 16 SpD Starmie: 221-260 (68.4 - 80.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Starmie: 224-265 (85.4 - 101.1%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Life Orb Infernape Vacuum Wave vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Crawdaunt: 237-281 (88.4 - 104.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 60 Atk / 8 Def / 216 SpA / 224 SpD
Quiet Nature
- Giga Drain / Leaf Storm
- Hidden Power [Fire] / Rock Slide / Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake / Focus Blast
- Knock Off / Rock Slide
​

Tangrowth seemed like a good option for the team, as it resists Ground, which Infernape is weak to. It also can beat bulky water types, which posed as threat. I chose to make Tangrowth more of a tank, than a Special Defense sponge. An Assault Vest and SpD investment are used to boost Tangrowth's poor Special Defense to significant levels. Giga Drain helps with longevity and works well with Regenerator. Earthquake can hit Heatran and Talonflame on the switch. (provided gravity is in effect for Talonflame and Air Balloon Heatran). Knock off is used for utility reasons. A Quiet Nature is used, as not to put Tangrowth's incredible bulk to waste. I considered Sludge Bomb for Fairies and Rock Slide to hit Charizard Y and Talonflame harder, but couldn't find room for these moves. Tangrrowth can run a variety of moves, so feel free to pick and choose what you feel like.

Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Superpower / Ice Punch
​

I wanted a check for ghost and psychic types, because they threaten Starmie and Infernape. Tyranitar fit the bill. He also takes care of flying types that threaten Infernape and Tangrowth, as well as fire types, supporting Tangrowth further. Stone Edge is there as a secondary STAB that destroys flying types and has perfect accuracy under Gravity.

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 248 HP / 228 SpD / 32 Spe
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Gravity
- Iron Head
- U-turn / Body Slam / Healing Wish
​

Jirachi is my final Gravity setter and Stealth Rock pokemon. Jirachi provides a decent check to Clefable, a mon that troubles this team. It has great utility and won't go down that easily. Really the fourth moveslot can be whatever you want, even options not listed.

Decommissioned Comrades

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Ferrothorn was a great setter of Gravity, except he increased my weakness to clefable with fire coverage. Kinda sucks too because he stayed alive the longest out of all the gravity setters I've used.

Heatran worked great as a check to Clefable, but in the end it made me more weak to Earthquake spam. I also missed my third Gravity setter while using Heatran.

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Bronzong was pretty reliable, and I must say a perfectly accurate hypnosis provided great utility. Unfortunately, Bronzong was too passive, easily allowing the opponent to set up on him. I could have had Earthquake as a moveslot on him, but then he would be outclassed by Metagross as a gravity setter.

Metagross is a good pokemon overall with access to Gravity and Earthquake. The problem with Metagross was that his time was more limited on the field. He was also more prone to being beat by Clefable than any other steel Gravity setter I had. I needed a more defensive pokemon and Metagross just didn't cut it.

THREATS

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This guy can be a huge threat if not dealt with, especially if he gets a Dragon Dance set up and packs Earthquake. Tyranitar and Landorus-Therian are my only answers to Charizard X, but he outspeeds Landorus and beats Tyranitar if he gets to +1 and carries Earthquake.

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Ugh, Clefable. One of the most annoying mons to go up against. Clefable can do serious damage to this team with Moonblast and Fire Blast/Flamethrower and can heal off damage dealt to it with Softboiled. I need to preserve Ferrothorn to deal with Clefable, and pray it doesn't pack fire coverage. Landorus can sort of deal with it.

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Dear lord, this thing has the potential to trap everything on my team! Extreme caution must be taken to deal with him. Keep Tangrowth around.

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Mega Lopunny outspeeds everything on the team. It can OHKO half of my pokemon, and 2HKO the other half. Intimidate, priority, and Tangrowth help with this.

Ground Types in general: If my opponent has a ground type, I must be careful using Gravity, as they have the opportunity to spam Earthquake if Tangrowth has been eliminated. Against teams with ground types, I need to preserve Ferrothorn and Tangrowth.

Sticky Web: Starmie is left outsped with Sticky Web. Using Gravity will make Landorus-T affected by Sticky Web, so I have to be careful of that. Luckily, Infernape has priority and Tangrowth and Ferrothorn don't really mind it.

Spikes / Toxic Spikes: My team is pretty scared of these because under Gravity, they affect Landorus, shortening his longevity.

CONCLUSION
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Gravity is a unique strategy that can be a lot of fun and very effective if used correctly. It can be a double-edged sword at times, however because your opponents moves will most likely always hit. (unless they have inferno or zap cannon, or something, lol) They can also abuse this to spam Earthquake. I tried my best to keep my options open under Gravity and limit the opponent's.I kinda wish the team had a spiker/toxic spiker, as they would hurt Flying Types under gravity, (RIP Charizard) but with the abundance of Defog, I decided it wasn't worth it. This is my first RMT, though I am not new to competitive battling. Let me know what improvements I could make to the team to make it better, and thank you!

Importable (THIEVES!)

Landorus-Therian (M) @ Earth Plate
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Gravity
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- U-turn

Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Analytic
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Gravity
- Hydro Pump
- Psyshock
- Blizzard

Infernape @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Vacuum Wave
- Grass Knot

Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 32 Atk / 8 Def / 216 SpA / 224 SpD
Quiet Nature
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Earthquake
- Knock Off

Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Superpower

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 248 HP / 228 SpD / 32 Spe
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Gravity
- Iron Head
- Body Slam​

 

[NiiTro]

Yo, great team.

Though I would consider Mega Venusaur > Tangrowth. Tangrowth only adds a fire weakness.
Mega Venu takes much less from fire and ice attacks. The bulk is great (on both sides) and it can play a very similar role.

Moveset:
Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb / Leech Seed
- Synthesis
- Leech Seed / Hidden Power [Fire] / Sleep Powder

Choose anyone you want. HP Fire for Scizor and Ferothorn of course and Leech Seed for the HP. Synthesis is standard recovery and Sleep Powder is just to annoy opponents by putting them to sleep.

Also, put Superpower > Earthquake on Tyranitar. It allows you to hit other Tyranitar for great damage!

Calcs:

Hide

Vs. OU Support TTar

252 Atk Tyranitar Superpower vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Tyranitar: 360-428 (89.3 - 106.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Tyranitar: 152-180 (37.7 - 44.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Vs. Offensive TTar (Scarf / DDance)

252 Atk Tyranitar Superpower vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tyranitar: 492-580 (144.2 - 170%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tyranitar: 204-242 (59.8 - 70.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

And actually, you have nothing for Clefable. While unfortunately; this rids of a Gravity user, I would advise Heatran > Ferrothorn. Not only can this beast stop Clef, it can set up hazards and phase as well!
Moveset:
Heatran @ Leftovers / Air Balloon
EVs: 248 HP / 192 SpD / 68 Spe
Calm Nature
- Lava Plume
- Toxic
- Taunt / Protect / Roar
- Stealth Rock

Here is just a standard defensive Heatran set. It is able to Roar out Calm Mind or Cosmic Power Clefable, and Taunt them. Protect is just for Toxic Stall. The item is your choice, really.

Excellent team! I don't want to change much, because that would ruin the niche. Thanks for your time and good luck with your battling!

 

[Dr. Medicine]

I chose Tangrowth over Mega Venusaur because Tangrowth resists ground, which Infernape and Tyranitar are weak to. Ground resists are important for gravity teams. Also, I was worried the sand might interferre with synthesis. Though I will test defensive mega venusaur. I hadn't even considered Heatran, but now that you point it out, I will definitely give it a try. Heatran even has Earth Power to abuse Gravity with. Thanks for the tips!

 

[NiiTro]

I see, no prob! n_n