Other (Monotype) Poison Core Ladder Challenge top finisher [peaked 1574]

Proof of peak:

Hey everybody, ReuzeSmurf here with the team I used made it to top finisher on Core Ladder Challenge #31. For those who don't know, the Core Ladder Challenge is an initiative in Monotype to create more diversity in teams by challenging players to build a team around 2 often more uncommon pokemon on a type and ladder as high as possible with said team. More information on this premise can be found here.
I had participated in Core Ladder Challenges before, but this one in particular sparked my interest as it was a core for Monotype Poison, which is my favorite type to play as, so I was definitely gonna give it a try.

Shoutout to Omniax for submitting this particular core, Mt. Pyre for getting very high Elo with the core (we were tied at 1550 at one point) and everybody else who participated.

Team-Building process

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This Core Ladder Challenge consisted of Weezing + Golbat. Weezing had worked well for me before as a physical wall so Assigned him that role. I didn't really like the idea of Golbat as a special wall (I turned out to be wrong, more on that later), but with no other I could think of he could fill, I decided to do just go with it.
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I added Nidoking solely for the fact that I've never made a Mono Poison team without it and never felt it wasn't pulling it's weight, so the addition was rather brainless honestly. The simple Life Orb attacker set didn't disappoint this time either.
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At this point I noticed I was rather weak to Water and Ice Type attacks while having little to hit threatening Ground types. Mega-Venusaur therefore seemed like a solid addition to this team.
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Pretty much every Poison team has to run Drapion or Skuntank to function as a pivot into Psychic attacks. I am normally more a Skuntank fan, but I wanted to try Scarf Drapion for once so I went with That.
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At last I wanted something that could function as a win condition, while putting more pressure on the Psychic teams in high Ladder so I made Scolipede the final member of the team.
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Around 1400 Elo, I began to dislike Drapion more and more as it wasn't really pulling it's weight as the sole revenge killer as it was a little too slow and weak, so I swapped it out for Gengar who is much faster and stronger. This did mean I had to add Skuntank to get steamrolled by anything with Psychic so I had to squeeze Skuntank somewhere in there. With Gengar being already pretty good against Psychic I decided Scolipede was the most replacable.

The team
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Drum (Weezing) @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Clear Smog
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest
The dedicated physical wall on this team. This thing helps a ton versus Ground and Dragon Types such as Dragonite, Garchomp and Excadrill. Flamethrower is used as the main attacking move, dealing good damage to otherwise problematic pokemon such as Mega-Scizor and Bisharp. Clear Smog is mainly used to counter setup sweepers while dealing some damage along the way. Will-O-Wisp is a very useful tool to cripple physical attackers and generally helps with wearing things down. I don't really like Pain Split as a means for recovery as it's fairly unreliable and doesn't really give that much health back, unless you're fighting like a Chansey or something. Instead I tried out Chesto Resto which honestly proved much more helpful than I initially thought. Esentially having 2 Weezings against types such as Fighting, Ground and Dragon is very nice to have. Ev's are just HP and Defense maxed out.
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Bacardi (Golbat) @ Eviolite
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpD / 8 Spe
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Poison Fang
- Defog
- Roost
My god, this thing is specially bulky. Earlier I thought Golbat could really only work as a Physical wall, but I saw it's ability to avoid the 2HKO from Mega Charizard Y's Flamethrower, I realized I underestimated this thing's Special bulk. Brave Bird hits surprisingly hard for a defensive pokemon and helped a lot versus otherwise annoying pokemon such as Mega-Venusaur and Volcarona. Poison Fang is here solely because it has the ability to badly Poison Mega-Sableye as I have really no other way to deal with it. It also bypasses Taunt from things like Mew, which is nice. Defog is there to get rid of hazards. Roost is for longevity. Ev's are max Hp and max Special Defense with 4 Ev's taken out of attack to take less damage from Stealth Rock. 8 speed Ev's is for things trying to speed creep uninvested base 90's. Eviolite boosts Golbat's defenses by 50%, making them fairly high. I use Infiltrator to avoid getting haxed by moves such as Air Slash (eat your heart out Scarf Togekiss) and to possibly get a surprise kill on Mega Medicham/Lopunny as they use Fake Out thinking it will flinch me.
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Arthur (Nidoking) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Earth Power
- Flamethrower
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
Pretty standard wallbreaker set. Earth Power is it's main STAB move and is often the go-to move. Flamethrower is for Bug and Grass types that resist Earth Power. When combined with Ground STAB it can give threatening mono Steel teams a run for their money. Ice Beam has very good neutral coverage with Earth Power and is particularly useful for Flying and Dragon types. Stealth is slapped on here because Nidoking can force many switches, giving me time to set them up. Life Orb with a Modest nature is to hit as hard as possible. Focus Sash is a viable alternative to make setting rocks easier, but I value power more.
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C6H12O6 (Venusaur) @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 192 HP / 252 SpA / 64 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Synthesis
While usually used as a defensive pokemon on mono Poison, I liked the idea of going more offensive for once so I made it a tanky Special Attacker. Giga Drain is the main STAB move as it does good damage while healing back for more sustain. Sludge Bomb is a nice secondary STAB to hit Dragon-, Bug-, Flying-, Grass- and Fire- types who resist Giga Drain for good damage. Hidden Power [Fire] allows me to get past Steel types, specifically Mega-Scizor and Ferrothorn as they are hit extra hard by it. Synthesis is used for more sustain. Earthquake is an option for things like Heatran, but I kinda lack the space for it. 64 speed Ev's are to speed creep Rotom-Wash speed creeping Adamant Crawdaunt, as this things Ohko's my entire team after Swords Dance. It also outspeeds Suicune which is nice. Max Special Attack is to hit as hard as possible. The rest is put in Hp for some more bulk. Chlorophyll is used pre-Mega for a small speed advantage versus sun teams.
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Odor (Skuntank) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 112 Def / 144 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
- Foul Play
- Poison Jab
Basically the glue of team with all it can do. Essentially functions as a pivot, revenge killer, emergency stop for sweepers, trapper and Bisharp/Scizor check all at once. Sucker Punch is imo Skuntank's best move. It's the most powerful priority move Poison type has access to and is super effective against Psychic types it's supposed to check. It's also one it's main niches over Drapion who outclasses it in most ways. Pursuit is very useful for trapping annoying threats I need to wear down, specifically Meloetta as it's often the only thing preventing Gengar from spamming Shadow Ball against Psychic mono's. It also works well against opponents trying to play around Sucker Punch by switching. Foul Play allows me to check Bisharp and Scizor, as a +2 Bisharp takes around 75% from it meaning aftermath damage finishes it off. Scizor just gets Ohko'd at +2. It's also really nice against pokemon thinking they can setup as you use Sucker Punch like Gyarados. Poison Jab is honestly just filler. Defog, Taunt and Fire Blast could replace it. Max attack Ev's with and Adamant nature is used to make Sucker Punch hit decently hard. 144 Speed Ev's allow me to outspeed Adamant Bisharp and smack it with Foul Play before it can Iron Head me. The rest is put in defense to be able to survive a +2 Bullet Punch from Mega Scizor and hit it back with Foul Play. Air Balloon is used to ease prediction around Landorus-I and Mold Breaker Excadrill, but Blackglasses to make your Dark type moves hit harder or Black Sludge for some more sustain is also viable. Aftermath is nice to finish of threatening sweepers as it synergizes well with Sucker Punch.

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Somehow levitating (Gengar) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Shadow Ball
- Sludge Bomb
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Ice]
The revenge killer of the team. Shadow Ball is the main STAB move, hitting Psychic and Ghost types for good damage, while having pretty good neutral coverage against most other types. Sludge Bomb is the most powerful STAB move on this set and can fish for Poisons. Focus Blast has great coverage with Shadow Ball and can hit some otherwise problematic pokes pretty hard such as Tyranitar and Heatran. Hidden Power Ice is mainly there to kill Landorus-I/T, while also revenging threats such as +1 Dragonite and Scarf Salamence. Choice Scarf makes Gengar crazy fast and allows me to outspeed other scarfers such as Victini and Chandelure, while speed tieing with Scarf Latios. Ev's are simply max speed and max special attack to hit fast and hard.

Note: everything without physical moves has been given 0 Attack Iv's to minimize confusion and Foul Play damage.
Dark teams: Dark teams just so happen to pack all of Mega-Sableye, Bisharp, Crawdaunt and Hoopa-U. I have to make sure my checks stay healthy in order to deal with these. Golbat beats Mega-Sableye if I can badly poison it, but if it has Heal Bell support it becomes really hard. Bisharp, Crawdaunt and Hoopa-U are checked by Mega-Venusaur and Skuntank, but all of them together on one team are nigh impossible to check. I have to make sure to give enough offensive pressure back with Nidoking if I want to win this.
Mega-Pinsir: If Rocks are up, this thing can brainlessly click Return and kill something as Weezing gets 2HKO'd. If its gets up a Swords Dance it's pretty much GG, so I have to stay in to prevent it boosting on the switch. Weezing and Gengar can check at +0 but Gengar still takes almost 70% from an unboosted Quick Attack.
Landorus-Incarnate: Not as bad as Mega Pinsir as it has to choose between Earth Power and Psychic, but still a huge threat. Skuntank can usually switch in safely with its balloon, but then it dies to Focus Blast. Venusaur can tank an attack and deal some damage back but not too much. I have to preserve Gengar in order to force it out.
Tornadus-Therian: Nothing can tank Hurricane except for Golbat, but it hates Knock Off. It's also annoyingly hard to wear down due to regenerator. I usually try to set rocks and pressure it with Nidoking/Gengar/Pursuit Skuntank and hope for the best.
Volcarona: If Golbat dies, GG. Bulkyrona can sometimes setup on it if i get unlucky with Flame Body.
Chansey: I don't have much this thing hard. Gengar walls it but it hates Thunder Wave. Golbat can Toxic it and force it out but Natural Cure will heal it so Golbat needs to stay alive basically.


Drum (Weezing) @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Clear Smog
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest

Bacardi (Golbat) @ Eviolite
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpD / 8 Spe
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Poison Fang
- Defog
- Roost

Arthur (Nidoking) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Earth Power
- Flamethrower
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock

C6H12O6 (Venusaur) @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 192 HP / 252 SpA / 64 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Synthesis

Odor (Skuntank) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 112 Def / 144 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
- Foul Play
- Poison Jab

Somehow levitating (Gengar) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Shadow Ball
- Sludge Bomb
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Ice]
 
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Good one dude... monotype poison is really rare actually, I am not that experienced in monotype but i can suggest a few changes -
1- make mega-venu little defensive, as your mega you would want it stay on the field..as you can see except gengar's focus blast you are badly walled by heatran, he can set a sub and your whole team is destroyed. so sleep powder and leech seed will help you more than sludge bomb and synthesis ..you can keep hidden fire if you want.
2- choice scarf on gengar is not good, he isnt bulky that means you can't lock him in one move ... instead regular focus sash version would be better o revenge kill, psychic types and if you value speed more, i think you should go back to speed boost scoliopede ...after one boost he do fair amount of damage to psychics as most are specially defensive.
3- you can also try nidoqueen for a little more bulk but nido king works too.Also try another supereffective steel move, in-case your nido gets koed by mega metagross.
otherwise good team man, enjoy your team.
 
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