LET'S GET THE KROOK ROLLIN'
Introduction
Sup guys, my name is ScraftyIsTheBest, here with another RMT. Yeah, I know it seems I've been into posting a number of these RMT's at this rate. Well, I can't help it. As both a UU and an RU player, I'll just say that both tiers have achieved such as balance that it's very enjoyable to play the metagame, let alone make teams. Lesser used Pokemon are very viable in the tier, and overall it's just a blast making teams. I always build my teams with at least one underrated Pokemon, because that's what I love doing. Anyways, as you can probably tell by the name of the team, this team is built around Krookodile, a Pokemon who's been sitting in the lower rungs of UU ever since Moxie Heracross came into existence, but is still a really good Pokemon.
This team, like my previous ones, is a mostly offensive team, aiming to get hazards up and building the whole team to be able to get Krookodile into a sweeping condition. This team is built to cover any weaknesses Krookodile has and remove his counters so he can destroy the whole team late game. I also have another underrated threat, Lilligant, which wasn't the centerpiece of the team but I slapped in later, but anyways. This team is one of my favorites, and it is climbing up the ladder quite easily at this rate. Before you get bored, let me get onto the team.
The Team
Froslass @ Leftovers
Trait: Cursed Body
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Ice Beam
- Destiny Bond
Froslass is basically the best spiker in the tier and the epitome of offensive teams in UU. Her speed and the ability to spinblock (and take something down with D-Bond) allow her to quickly get up hazards while preventing setup with Taunt. When played right, she can get up at least two, if not three hazards in the match. She can come in on something like Hitmontop and set up Spikes early on in the match, and can spinblock Blastoise, Claydol, and Hitmontop quite handily while stopping SR from Claydol as well as Foresight from Blastoise. Ice Beam is there for a decently powerful STAB move so that Froslass isn't complete Taunt bait, and also to catch incoming Xatu on the switch-in to make sure they are at risk. Destiny Bond is the icing on the cake, so that when Froslass is about to get KO'd (and finished her job), she can handily take down an opponent, giving me the advantage with a Pokemon down, but hazards on the field. If she does get banned from the upcoming suspect test, then Scolipede should be able to replace her.
Cofagrigus @ Leftovers
Trait: Mummy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpA
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 SpD / 2 Spe
Quiet Nature
- Trick Room
- Nasty Plot
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Fighting]
As always, a secondary spinblocker is needed since Froslass is never enough. I gotta give credit to Cofagrigus here, I'd call him the best spinblocker in the tier by far. He serves as the spinblocker of course, making sure alongside Froslass that the Spikes that Krookodile loves to pull of those KO's (and Moxie boosts) more easily. He also serves as a great special sweeper, using Trick Room and Nasty Plot to become one hell of a threat, followed by powerful Shadow Balls and HP Fightings that attain perfect coverage in the tier, and the Spikes make opponents go down much more quickly. He gets the opportunities to do this too, since he can come in on the Mienshaos that Krookodile (and Snorlax, of which I will get to later) attracts, then set up Trick Room. He can check a number of threats with his nice physical bulk and typing, which is of great benefit to my team. Overall Cofagrigus serves a really useful role on this team, which is what makes him quite good.
Krookodile @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
I've always liked Krookodile as a Pokemon since his debut in early BW. He looks pretty damn cool, and he's really useful in-game. He's also pretty good on the competitive scene, being a pretty awesome cleaner with Moxie and good Speed. He's been low in usage since Heracross got Moxie, but he's still really good. While some may call him outclassed, I'd say Krookodile is underrated. His STABs provide him excellent coverage, and with good Speed, Attack, and Moxie, he can just blow down weakened teams. He's also a pretty good revenge killer, as alongside Pursuit he can revenge kill some threats such as Chandelure, Azelf, etc. Once certain Pokemon are removed, I basically can toss Krookodile in and get the sweeping on the road. Earthquake and Crunch are obvious STABs, and Stone Edge allows Krookodile to reasonably handle Togekiss and Crobat, which is quite nice. Pursuit is well, to trap. Overall I really like using Krookodile, despite it facing some competition from other Pokemon such as Heracross (although I wouldn't compare them too much imo).
Lilligant @ Life Orb
Trait: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Quiver Dance
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Rock]
Well, I always go for underrated stuff, and there's more. I'm not a complete fan of Lilligant, but I decided to try her in UU, since I've heard a couple of positive stuff about her in UU. I originally had Shaymin in this spot, but later I found myself surprisingly disappointed in Shaymin's performance. So I decided to try out Lilligant because I felt using lower UU/RU Pokemon would be cool, since that's what I like doing. I initially did expect some out of her actually, since Lilligant is a scary threat in RU. Simply put, Lilligant is a pretty scary threat, because she has one of the best boosting moves in the entire game, Quiver Dance, and after a few boosts she's pretty damn hard to stop. Sleep Powder only sweetens the deal, since she can basically incapacitate a check, such as Honchkrow or Bisharp, and grab free turns of setup. Giga Drain is pretty strong and also keeps her HP up high, and between the HP Choice, I chose HP Rock because I found Fire-types such as Chandelure and Darmanitan to be far more relevant than Steels (tbh Steel-types are actually pretty scarce in UU). Overall Lilligant is a really good Pokemon, and underrated.
Snorlax @ Choice Band
Trait: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 200 SpD / 4 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Return
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Fire Punch
*sigh* I swear making a team without Snorlax is flat-out impossible. Seriously, you have to use Snorlax in UU, because he's just that good. He's actually kind of manly, but the real deal is that he checks many special attackers in the tier, especially Chandelure. He also hits hard, and acts as a battering ram to just smash down things that it gets the chance to hit. Return is nice STAB to break down opponents, while Earthquake serves as coverage. Pursuit is really useful since Snorlax scares away Chandelure and Mismagius, so he can keep them well away (and double Pursuit trap between Krookodile and Snorlax makes Chandelure literally a non-threat to this team, lol). Fire Punch is to wear down Bronzong, which can be a little problematic otherwise. Overall, Snorlax is a staple of all teams, including this one, so I had to place it.
Heracross @ Leftovers
Trait: Guts
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Megahorn
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
As if Lilligant and Krookodile weren't enough underrated things to put on this team. Well, Heracross, or HeraBOSS, is here, with its extremely underrated Swords Dance set. Choice Scarf Heracross is at its worst atm, but Swords Dance Heracross is a true beast. He serves as my burn absorber against Sableye, as well as a battering ram to just break down bulky Pokemon with his insane power to make sweeping with others much easier. Heracross packs a lot of power and also stops Sableye. Cofagrigus and Gligar sure won't enjoy a Stone Edge after +4, and Heracross also breaks down Umbreon which is nice. It has great coverage to just be destructive, and thus finds itself on this team. Overall, Swords Dance Heracross is really good, and I love using it atm.
Conclusion
Overall I really like using this team, since it has won me quite a few battles on the ladder. This is easily one of my favorite teams atm, and is a blast to use. Although I'm mostly an RU player, UU is a lot of fun to play as well, as there's a lot that is viable, and there's some room to run underrated Pokemon. This is easily one of my better teams (alongside Giant Manly Centipede Attack and Papercraft Dragon), and yeah. I like how my team's performing, although any advice would be welcome.
Oh and here's an importable, for the record
Lilligant (F) @ Life OrbTrait: Own Tempo
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Sleep Powder
- Quiver Dance
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Rock]
Krookodile (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
Cofagrigus (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Mummy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SAtk
Quiet Nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
- Trick Room
- Nasty Plot
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Fighting]
Froslass (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Cursed Body
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Ice Beam
- Destiny Bond
Snorlax (M) @ Choice Band
Trait: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 200 SDef / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Return
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Fire Punch
Heracross (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Guts
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Megahorn
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Swords Dance
