Hello everyone, I'm trying to get back into playing more VGC, but I'm having trouble building my team.
Currently the team is as follows: https://pokepast.es/fc584f041a98a9d7
The core of Lunala and Ursaluna are intended to function as strong, bulky attackers on both the physical and special sides of the offensive spectrum. Lunala can stay on the field after setting up trick room, boost itself with meteor beam, and do great damage with moongeist beam, all while tanking opposing attacks. Once it receives it's guts boost, very few pokemon can survive Ursaluna's facades and earthquakes. It can set up a swords dance while Lunala sets up trick room, enabling the conditions for their sweep.
Some current questions I am considering:
They have their own concerns however:
I've tried my best to make this all comprehensive, and I've discussed every concern or question I've encountered through my time playing around with this team.
I would love to hear as much in depth feedback as possible! Thank you :)
Currently the team is as follows: https://pokepast.es/fc584f041a98a9d7
The core of Lunala and Ursaluna are intended to function as strong, bulky attackers on both the physical and special sides of the offensive spectrum. Lunala can stay on the field after setting up trick room, boost itself with meteor beam, and do great damage with moongeist beam, all while tanking opposing attacks. Once it receives it's guts boost, very few pokemon can survive Ursaluna's facades and earthquakes. It can set up a swords dance while Lunala sets up trick room, enabling the conditions for their sweep.
Some current questions I am considering:
- Is it worth it to switch out protect on Lunala for wide guard? That's what I see in most sample sets/teams, but I chose protect so Ursaluna could use earthquake.
- Should Ursaluna's ground stab be headlong rush rather than earthquake? I've found it leads to some scenarios where my own team member could get hurt, but hitting both targets is also more than often more beneficial from the games I've played to try out the team. Earthquake is the reason Incineroar has a flying tera, which even I rarely end up using. But I also worry headlong rush might make Ursa too vulnerable.
- Should I change my EV spreads? Lunala's feels ok; it has enough spA EV to 2HKO tera fairy Calyrex Shadow with either of it's attacks, and through the games I've played it seems to take most attacks well. Ursaluna I might want to invest more in bulk, since with sword's dance, guts, and a naturally high attack stat, I'm unsure if it needs a full 252 EV in attack. It's very vulnerable outside of trick room.
- Should Lunala have minus speed nature and 0 speed IV? I'm just on the fence for this one. I don't want to put it in an awkward speed tier where it's too fast for it's own trick room, but at the same time, if it ever get's taunted, it's very difficult to use. It can be nice to get the jump on marginally slower pokemon outside of trick room though.
They have their own concerns however:
- Should I change Incineroar's tera type? It was originally water (refer to number 2 in the above questions)
- Should Incineroar have a minus speed nature and 0 speed IVs? Or on the contrary should I invest in some speed? I personally don't think I should invest anything in speed, but it can get frustrating to try and fake something out outside of trick room.
- Flutter Mane's speed tier seems pretty awkward. I've noticed there have been times where it's too fast under trick room. This might be a consequence of me improperly using it. As a fast trick room setting alternative to Lunala, should I invest more into it's speed so it can function outside of trick room along Urshifu? Or is it not worth it, since most pokemon, like opposing flutter or calyrex shadow, will be faster than it regardless, so I'd only be making it frailer for no reason. Is it worth it to invest more in special attack so I can guarantee more OHKOs? I do think it could be worth it to increase Flutter's speed, considering how turn order adapts during the turn. Flutter's EVs are something I very much need some help with.
- Should flutter be replaced? It's type overlaps with Lunala and Ursaluna's tera lead to many common weaknesses. Perhaps I should just change lunala's or flutter's tera, since ursa's ghost tera is much too useful to prevent fake out or fighting attacks to change. I don't know which pokemon I would switch it out for though. It's strong spread dazzling gleams are such an important asset, as mentioned in the blurb above.
- I'm considering replacing Rillaboom with Amoongus. Amoongus works better under trick room, being it's slower than everything else on my team. Spore and pollen puff would also be indispensable. Originally, Rillaboom's slot was occupied by Clefairy, but Amoongus is probably a better choice than clef. It's just that this team is mostly focused on bulky offense, so something besides it felt off to me while teambuilding. But hey, variaty is the spice of life.
- Rillaboom is similar to flutter currently where it feels awkward to use in trick room and outside due to it's speed tier, despite max speed investment. I have its EVs as such to ensure fake outs outside of trick room, unlike Incineroar. Because of that, I tend to lead it with Urshifu. I would like to hear about if any changes to it's speed or any other EV could be made.
I've tried my best to make this all comprehensive, and I've discussed every concern or question I've encountered through my time playing around with this team.
I would love to hear as much in depth feedback as possible! Thank you :)
Last edited: