So my buddies and I are having this big Pokemon competition, and this is the team I came up with for it. I've had more success with this team on the standard wifi OU ladders than I've ever had, though admittedly I've never had that much success. But I've been staying consistently around 1100 and that's pretty good for me. This is my first RMT, and any input would be hugely appreciated. A couple of things to keep in mind:
1. The nature of the competition includes a challenger (this team) defeating 8 "gym leader" or monotype teams in succession with a consistent lead, so if you notice that there could a monotype team I might have trouble with let me know please. This is mostly a side note, and not the priority of the team.
2. Preferably this team would transfer onto the actual game, so feel free to suggest legendary additions for my PO version, but know that they will be less useful to me on the whole.
Anyway, here it is.
Swampert@Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP/ 216 Def/ 52 SpDef
Nature: Relaxed
Moves:
-Stealth Rock
-Earthquake
-Ice Beam
-Scald
Swampert is my lead of choice for this team because he can set up Stealth Rock, but he's certainly not a suicide lead. He is great to switch in to a lot of situations. Ice beam is really what makes Swampert crucial to my team. That and a high defense and HP. Whenever Dragonite/Salamence/Garchomp comes out (which Dragonite tends to draw in) Swampert can usually come in and take at least one Outrage before hitting with Ice beam. Ice Beam is also good for dealing with Gliscor. I've even used him as a wallbreaker by using Scald until it burns and then waiting it out. Earthquake provides great coverage to hit steel types hard and to make Swampert even more of a perfect Fire type counter. Also, Swampert fares very well in situations where I face a sandstorm team. He matches up favorably against both Tyranitar and Hippodown, and does not take the damage from the Sandstorm itself.
Ability: Marvel Scale
EVs: 252 Attack/ 252 Speed/ 4 Defense
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Outrage
-Dragon Dance
-Fire Punch
-ExtremeSpeed
Dragonite is one of the sweepers I based this team around, because the typing allows it to switch into a lot of moves that the other Pokemon on my team draw towards them. I picked the Dragon Dance set for that reason. Because often times those switch ins allow a Dragon Dance (or if I'm lucky two) while the opponent switches out. Marvel Scale is great, because if there aren't any entry hazards, even an ice beam won't kill it, and that's basically a free Dragon Dance. The one issue with Dragonite, is that it's sweeps are usually short lived unless I'm fortunate enough to have two Dragon Dances. Life Orb, combined with any other problems (poison, burn, stealth rock, to name a few) makes it so that once something comes in that Dragonite doesn't OHKO, it'll be lucky to get that and maybe one other. That said, the amount of damage Dragonite has done by that time can be devastating to an opposing team, so that's a small complaint. Outrage can put a dent in almost anything, and after one Dragon Dance it can 2HKO even most steel types. ExtremeSpeed is a great priority move that makes up for the lack of speed overall on my team. I toyed with both Brick Break and Earthquake in the slot that Firepunch is in, but I've found Firepunch is the most effective. It allows me to hit certain steel types that are neutral to the other two moves for 1HKOs. Namely Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress. The only drawback is when its raining (which it is a reasonable amount of the time) the penalty on fire moves kills it, and it doesn't even get 2HKOs often times on steel types. That moveslot is one place I could really use some input. Even if it's to say you think Firepunch is the best option.
Eelektross@Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Evs: 252 HP/ 252 SpAtk/ 4 Def
Nature: Modest
Moves:
-Thunderbolt
-Flamethrower
-Grass Knot
-Acid Spray
Eelektross is kind of my "go to Pokemon" on this team. Whenever something comes out that I don't have a great switch in for, out comes Eelektross. His lack of any weakness makes him great for switching into low-medium powered attacks. He has reasonable bulk, but he won't be surviving anyththing too powerful. Acid Spray is really great on this, because it allows him to take down even the most solid walls. Usually at least one of the three other moves will hit for at least neutral damage, and after an acid spray it's almost always a 2 if not OHKO. With its good SpAtk, a Thunderbolt will do good damage on things that don't resist it even without help from Acid Spray. One drawback is that when Thunderbolt and Flamethrower are both resisted, and the Pokemon is too light to take any respectable damage from grass knot, Eelektross is effectively walled. Gliscor is an example of this. Also, it's funny when people try to use Earthquake on it. On occasion more than once.
Metagross@Air Balloon
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Attack/ 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Meteor Mash
-Bullet Punch
-Hammer Arm
-Pursuit
When I was first coming up with where I should start with my team, the first thing that came to mind was Dragonite. Then I thought "what sweeper would compliment Dragonite the best" and the answer was without a doubt Metagross. They resist all of each others weaknesses, and I've switched one in for the other countless times. I like to think that I thought of Air Balloon on Metagross on my own, but I'm sure somebody has done it before. At least I can say I came up with the idea without any help. It really is nice, because a lot of Pokemon have Earthquake as their only way to deal with steel types. And by the time they pop the balloon I can hit them hard with Meteor Mash or Hammer Arm. Pursuit makes Metagross the best Latios counter I've ever used. Whenever Latios comes out, I switch in Metagross which takes the Draco Meteor with about 50% HP left. I use Pursuit and if they switch out (which in my experience is about 75% percent of the time) the Latios won't be surviving as long as it has taken Stealth Rock damage. The only problem with Metagross is that most every team has at least one Pokemon that walls it completely, because bulky water types are kind of a thing in this metagame. Bullet Punch is another priority move to make up for the slowness of this team in general. This Metagross-Dragonite combo is really the muscle of my team.
Bouffalant@Choice Band
Ability: Sap Sipper
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Atk/ 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Head Charge
-Wild Charge
-Earthquake
-Megahorn
I used to run a different Bouffalant set. I used Reckless instead of Sap Sipper, and Payback instead of Megahorn. It hit much harder yes, but during that prototype of the team I had a huge problem with Breloom. Because my team is so slow, nothing could outspeed Breloom before they got hit with Spore. After one day when I got swept three times in a row by Breloom, I realized I had to find something that could beat it. That's when I realized that I could just change Bouffalant's nature to Sap Sipper, get the Spore to raise my attack, and then hit it with Head Charge for the OHKO. Now I see that Sap Sipper was the right ability for this team all along because Swampert screams "HIT ME WITH A GRASS MOVE" and Bouffalant can switch in and save the day. Megahorn is there for when Bouffalant comes in on a grass type, and it doesn't use a grass move. Then Megahorn is required for the OHKO. When I run into problems is when that happens with something like Virizion comes in, doesn't use a grass move, and then hits with a fighting move. This can also be an issue with Breloom if something other than the standard Focus Punch set is being used. Also, even unboosted, Head Charge is a helluva hard hitting move.
Dusclops@Eviolite
Ability:Pressure
EVs: 252 HP/ 80 Def/ 176 SpDef
Nature: Careful
Moves:
-Night Shade
-Shadow Sneak
-Will-O-Wisp
-Pain Split
So Dusclops is my team's Tank, and its pretty standard. I picked it because it is a great compliment to the fighting moves Bouffalant draws (as well as Bouffalant being a good compliment to the ghost moves Dusclops draws). It can survive just about anything as long as its not stat boosted. Night shade can put decent damage on just about anything. Shadow Sneak is another one of those priority moves I rely on. Will-O-Wisp is essential if I'm gonna wall anything worth crap with this, because the burn damage is what usually gets it down to where I can Shadow Sneak for the kill. Pain Split heals it, and depending on how low on health I am, can do a lot of damage too. Dusclops is one hard SOB to take down.
Threat List
Gliscor - Swampert is my only true counter with ice beam, can wall a lot of my team
Jellicent -Completely walls Metagross, Elekross is only one that can really hit it hard
Suicune - Again, Eletross only thing that hits it hard.
Vaporeon -How about just bulky water types in general?
Politoed - Hydro pump can OHKO half my team, that in mind, hard to take down
Rotom-W -Good switch in on Swampert, again bulky water types, neutral to thunderbolt
Breloom -Even with sap sipper, issue if not running Focus Punch
Gyarados - Walls Metagross, gives it opportunity to set up
Haxorus -Hits whole team hard with Outrage, Swampert's Ice beam doesn't hit x4 like most OU dragons
Hydreigon -same thing with the Ice beam issue, special attacker, swampert not as good a switch in
Scizor -Mostly an issue in the rain, once it gets a swords dance, It's hard for me to get rid of
Virizion -same issue as Breloom, worse because when it doesn't use a grass move, uses Calm Mind
Jirachi - Have to predict whether it is using Body slam (Dusclops switch in) or Thunderwave (swampert switch in) if I'm wrong, it can get annoying.
Conkeldurr -If it has Payback Dusclops doesn't wall it, and it can be a nuisance to beat
Machamp - Same issue as Conkeldurr
So yeah, I guess you see why this team earned its title, not exactly a speedy bunch. But don't think I'm not willing to change that if you have any good suggestions. Truly any and all criticism is valued and appreciated.
1. The nature of the competition includes a challenger (this team) defeating 8 "gym leader" or monotype teams in succession with a consistent lead, so if you notice that there could a monotype team I might have trouble with let me know please. This is mostly a side note, and not the priority of the team.
2. Preferably this team would transfer onto the actual game, so feel free to suggest legendary additions for my PO version, but know that they will be less useful to me on the whole.
Anyway, here it is.
Swampert@Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP/ 216 Def/ 52 SpDef
Nature: Relaxed
Moves:
-Stealth Rock
-Earthquake
-Ice Beam
-Scald
Swampert is my lead of choice for this team because he can set up Stealth Rock, but he's certainly not a suicide lead. He is great to switch in to a lot of situations. Ice beam is really what makes Swampert crucial to my team. That and a high defense and HP. Whenever Dragonite/Salamence/Garchomp comes out (which Dragonite tends to draw in) Swampert can usually come in and take at least one Outrage before hitting with Ice beam. Ice Beam is also good for dealing with Gliscor. I've even used him as a wallbreaker by using Scald until it burns and then waiting it out. Earthquake provides great coverage to hit steel types hard and to make Swampert even more of a perfect Fire type counter. Also, Swampert fares very well in situations where I face a sandstorm team. He matches up favorably against both Tyranitar and Hippodown, and does not take the damage from the Sandstorm itself.
Ability: Marvel Scale
EVs: 252 Attack/ 252 Speed/ 4 Defense
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Outrage
-Dragon Dance
-Fire Punch
-ExtremeSpeed
Dragonite is one of the sweepers I based this team around, because the typing allows it to switch into a lot of moves that the other Pokemon on my team draw towards them. I picked the Dragon Dance set for that reason. Because often times those switch ins allow a Dragon Dance (or if I'm lucky two) while the opponent switches out. Marvel Scale is great, because if there aren't any entry hazards, even an ice beam won't kill it, and that's basically a free Dragon Dance. The one issue with Dragonite, is that it's sweeps are usually short lived unless I'm fortunate enough to have two Dragon Dances. Life Orb, combined with any other problems (poison, burn, stealth rock, to name a few) makes it so that once something comes in that Dragonite doesn't OHKO, it'll be lucky to get that and maybe one other. That said, the amount of damage Dragonite has done by that time can be devastating to an opposing team, so that's a small complaint. Outrage can put a dent in almost anything, and after one Dragon Dance it can 2HKO even most steel types. ExtremeSpeed is a great priority move that makes up for the lack of speed overall on my team. I toyed with both Brick Break and Earthquake in the slot that Firepunch is in, but I've found Firepunch is the most effective. It allows me to hit certain steel types that are neutral to the other two moves for 1HKOs. Namely Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress. The only drawback is when its raining (which it is a reasonable amount of the time) the penalty on fire moves kills it, and it doesn't even get 2HKOs often times on steel types. That moveslot is one place I could really use some input. Even if it's to say you think Firepunch is the best option.
Eelektross@Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Evs: 252 HP/ 252 SpAtk/ 4 Def
Nature: Modest
Moves:
-Thunderbolt
-Flamethrower
-Grass Knot
-Acid Spray
Eelektross is kind of my "go to Pokemon" on this team. Whenever something comes out that I don't have a great switch in for, out comes Eelektross. His lack of any weakness makes him great for switching into low-medium powered attacks. He has reasonable bulk, but he won't be surviving anyththing too powerful. Acid Spray is really great on this, because it allows him to take down even the most solid walls. Usually at least one of the three other moves will hit for at least neutral damage, and after an acid spray it's almost always a 2 if not OHKO. With its good SpAtk, a Thunderbolt will do good damage on things that don't resist it even without help from Acid Spray. One drawback is that when Thunderbolt and Flamethrower are both resisted, and the Pokemon is too light to take any respectable damage from grass knot, Eelektross is effectively walled. Gliscor is an example of this. Also, it's funny when people try to use Earthquake on it. On occasion more than once.
Metagross@Air Balloon
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Attack/ 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Meteor Mash
-Bullet Punch
-Hammer Arm
-Pursuit
When I was first coming up with where I should start with my team, the first thing that came to mind was Dragonite. Then I thought "what sweeper would compliment Dragonite the best" and the answer was without a doubt Metagross. They resist all of each others weaknesses, and I've switched one in for the other countless times. I like to think that I thought of Air Balloon on Metagross on my own, but I'm sure somebody has done it before. At least I can say I came up with the idea without any help. It really is nice, because a lot of Pokemon have Earthquake as their only way to deal with steel types. And by the time they pop the balloon I can hit them hard with Meteor Mash or Hammer Arm. Pursuit makes Metagross the best Latios counter I've ever used. Whenever Latios comes out, I switch in Metagross which takes the Draco Meteor with about 50% HP left. I use Pursuit and if they switch out (which in my experience is about 75% percent of the time) the Latios won't be surviving as long as it has taken Stealth Rock damage. The only problem with Metagross is that most every team has at least one Pokemon that walls it completely, because bulky water types are kind of a thing in this metagame. Bullet Punch is another priority move to make up for the slowness of this team in general. This Metagross-Dragonite combo is really the muscle of my team.
Bouffalant@Choice Band
Ability: Sap Sipper
EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Atk/ 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
Moves:
-Head Charge
-Wild Charge
-Earthquake
-Megahorn
I used to run a different Bouffalant set. I used Reckless instead of Sap Sipper, and Payback instead of Megahorn. It hit much harder yes, but during that prototype of the team I had a huge problem with Breloom. Because my team is so slow, nothing could outspeed Breloom before they got hit with Spore. After one day when I got swept three times in a row by Breloom, I realized I had to find something that could beat it. That's when I realized that I could just change Bouffalant's nature to Sap Sipper, get the Spore to raise my attack, and then hit it with Head Charge for the OHKO. Now I see that Sap Sipper was the right ability for this team all along because Swampert screams "HIT ME WITH A GRASS MOVE" and Bouffalant can switch in and save the day. Megahorn is there for when Bouffalant comes in on a grass type, and it doesn't use a grass move. Then Megahorn is required for the OHKO. When I run into problems is when that happens with something like Virizion comes in, doesn't use a grass move, and then hits with a fighting move. This can also be an issue with Breloom if something other than the standard Focus Punch set is being used. Also, even unboosted, Head Charge is a helluva hard hitting move.
Dusclops@Eviolite
Ability:Pressure
EVs: 252 HP/ 80 Def/ 176 SpDef
Nature: Careful
Moves:
-Night Shade
-Shadow Sneak
-Will-O-Wisp
-Pain Split
So Dusclops is my team's Tank, and its pretty standard. I picked it because it is a great compliment to the fighting moves Bouffalant draws (as well as Bouffalant being a good compliment to the ghost moves Dusclops draws). It can survive just about anything as long as its not stat boosted. Night shade can put decent damage on just about anything. Shadow Sneak is another one of those priority moves I rely on. Will-O-Wisp is essential if I'm gonna wall anything worth crap with this, because the burn damage is what usually gets it down to where I can Shadow Sneak for the kill. Pain Split heals it, and depending on how low on health I am, can do a lot of damage too. Dusclops is one hard SOB to take down.
Threat List
So yeah, I guess you see why this team earned its title, not exactly a speedy bunch. But don't think I'm not willing to change that if you have any good suggestions. Truly any and all criticism is valued and appreciated.
