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Most common UU leads?

I don't know if other people are actually bold enough to do this, but I like to lead with my Pikachu at the moment.

Pikachu's a beast with a Light Ball! It's just too bad it runs a huge risk being so fragile... but then again, he's not fully evolved yet!
 
Pikachu is a tremendous lead in UU. I used one once with Protect/Encore/Grass Knot/Thunderbolt, it was so cool...Protect to see what their lead is doing, then Encore if you're faster and if it's a support move, or switch to a counter if it was a bad matchup.

Seriously, Pikachu has a really fast Encore and that is always something that can make an amazing lead.
 
The NP version is scary.

Substitute
Nasty Plot
Grass Knot
Thunderbolt

Just the speed makes me reconsider it. =\
 
I wouldn't ever run Pikachu without Encore. It's damn near his strongest asset, not even Nasty Plot is worth giving up for it, at least to me. It turns his bad matchups into tolerable ones and shuts-down people who try to stat-up on him.
 
I'm thinking about trying Torkoal, sets up Stealth Rocks, Will-o-Wisps those damn Fighting-types, can Pseudo-Phaze with Yawn, etc. Really powerful Earthquakes or Stone Edges hurt, but not much can OHKO on the physical side without STAB. Also can Overheat those Swellow leads for quite a bit of damage.
 
I run Trick Furret/Linoone on Shoddy, seriously, so many Gyaras have taunted me and then get trick on to a Scarf it's not even funny.
 
BLAZIKEN_57 said:
I'm thinking about trying Torkoal, sets up Stealth Rocks, Will-o-Wisps those damn Fighting-types, can Pseudo-Phaze with Yawn, etc. Really powerful Earthquakes or Stone Edges hurt, but not much can OHKO on the physical side without STAB. Also can Overheat those Swellow leads for quite a bit of damage.
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Well,even Garchomp Earthquake can't OHKO it,so Torkoal could be a good leader in UU.You can Explode too or give your team some support(Sunny Day,Light Screen...)
 
I've seen Primeape several times, Vital Spirit blocks sleeping moves that several of the mentioned leads carry. I've actually never seen Swellow (or maybe because I play BL, where Staraptor is far more common).
 
Here are a couple of leads that I want to try:

Dodrio @ Focus Sash
Trait: Early Bird
252 Att / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Drill Peck
- Pursuit
- Steel Wing / Return

The main reason you'd use this is because of Taunt. Ruins Shuckle, slow sleepers like Butterfree and Noctowl, my own Torkoal, etc. Drill Peck is used over Brave Bird so you don't kill yourself once you hang on with Sash, and the rest is filler. Early Bird may be helpful against Persian or Scarf sleepers.

Dodrio @ Lum Berry
Trait: Early Bird
252 Att / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Mirror Move
- Uproar
- Pursuit
- Brave Bird

I don't know, I just thought of this set, perfect anti-sleep. Uproar stops slower sleepers, and fast sleepers like Persian get their own moves used against them when you wake up immediately. Call me crazy, call this impractical, whatever.
 
The problem with having Nidoking as a lead is that it's very fragile. I use Granbull as a lead as it has decent coverage for my team, though most people playing with start with something fast and sleep inducing. Hypno would be your best bet for an anti-lead.
 
memorexia said:
The problem with having Nidoking as a lead is that it's very fragile. I use Granbull as a lead as it has decent coverage for my team, though most people playing with start with something fast and sleep inducing. Hypno would be your best bet for an anti-lead.
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Hypno is a good anti-sleep-lead, but I think it's way to specific to consider it, and you let yourself open to U-Turn users such as Swellow or even Primeape. Heavy physical hitters have fun with Hypno, too.

I like starting with U-Turn Swellow or CS Typhlosion, they are both fast and hit quite hard.
 
memorexia said:
The problem with having Nidoking as a lead is that it's very fragile. I use Granbull as a lead as it has decent coverage for my team, though most people playing with start with something fast and sleep inducing. Hypno would be your best bet for an anti-lead.
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It's not that fragile. 81/77/75 isn't terrible, especially not in UU terms, when comparing it to the likes of Swellow, Primeape, Hitmonlee, etc. It also has no glaring 4x weaks, and has useful Rock, Bug, and Fighting resists.
 
-FL- said:
Hypno is a good anti-sleep-lead, but I think it's way to specific to consider it, and you let yourself open to U-Turn users such as Swellow or even Primeape. Heavy physical hitters have fun with Hypno, too.
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Hypno is a special wall, not a starter. Every lead mentioned crushes it. o-o Hence why Primeape was mentioned!
I've never seen Banette, except on OU TR teams, but it also is a good user of Insomnia.
 
BLAZIKEN_57 said:
It's not that fragile. 81/77/75 isn't terrible, especially not in UU terms, when comparing it to the likes of Swellow, Primeape, Hitmonlee, etc. It also has no glaring 4x weaks, and has useful Rock, Bug, and Fighting resists.
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It isn't fragile but it isn't bulky enough to take many hits. I don't think it should be a lead.
 
Skiddle
Swellow is a common and deadly UU lead
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QFT. It is possibly the most common lead at the moment (at least on Shoddy), anyone not packing something that can wall deserves to be swept by it ....

memorexia
The problem with having Nidoking as a lead is that it's very fragile.
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Well it's certainly sturdier than both Persian and Swellow, both of whom are common leads.

Age of Kings
I've never seen Banette, except on OU TR teams, but it also is a good user of Insomnia.
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Then we've obviously never battled ;), but if you are going to lead with Banette, Frisk is actually the more useful ability.
 
Frisk is great for the Choice Scarf/Specs dilemma as well as Focus Sash.

And Banette is great in UU being one of very few ghosts and where powerhitting normals put on the hurt.

Her support set can include such family favorites as WoW, Trick, Knock Off, Thunder Wave, Screech (though too fragile to use it), and Destiny Bond (though too slow to abuse it).

Her attacking set has always been pretty poor but got a huge boon in Shadow Sneak / Sucker Punch. Priority always gets a high-five, especially STABbed priority off base 115 attack.
 
Nothing to be sorry about AoK ... if you haven't come across him, you haven't come across him. It just depends whose online at the same time as you ...

From a personal perspective I have to admit to finding this talk of Persian leads rather mystifying as in my last fifty or so battles I can count the number of Persian's I've seen on one hand, and only about two of those were leads. Still doesn't mean they're not out there ... just that I've not come across that many. : )
 
I have one answer to people complaining about Nidoking's fragility. Use Nidoqueen, even though she doesn't hit as hard.
 
i dont know if other people lead with this,but i lead with a lopunny, not very bulky but decent defences and great speed for uu.

and magic coat is just banging to have especially with all the leading hypno persians,double powder butterfree's and so on.

also works good with t-wave, paralyze the switch in after bouncing there leader's sleep back at it.

or switcheroo a burn orb on there physical sweeper,she can also encore.

she can do alot of thing's but attack,but she's tricky.
 
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