click for pokepaste
I've never been the best teambuilder OR player, and despite the advice of many to start practicing with a sample team to climb the ladder and learn the meta, when I dropped back into OU a month or two ago, the first thing I did was make a team. I went to the forums and found a couple cores that I liked, and wanted to build around:
The Defensive Core
Looking at the forums I thought this was a very funny core, as it had two mons that, to my previous OU knowledge, had been terrible. However, the addition of Flip Turn gave Swampert momentum while being a bulky rocks setter. Moltres was a solid counter to physical threats in the meta, such as Melmetal, Kartana, and Buzzwole, and provided Defog support with enough bulk to stay alive later into the game.
The Offensive Core
It had been a very long time since I had used a team build around sand, so I brought out these two. Sand Rush Drill with SD needs no introduction; a fantastic late game sweeper with good STAB coverage, a speed boost with Rapid Spin, and high enough unboosted stats to pose a thread on switch. In contrast, Banded Tyranitar was my wallbreaker at this point, busting fat mons like Clefable (comfortable Edge 2HKO on fully defensive), Blissey (same but with Crunch), and even Corviknight (guaranteed 2HKO on fully physical after rocks). I originally ran Superpower, but found it didn't give me much necessary coverage, so I replaced it with Fire Punch to OHKO Kartana and Ferrothorn on the switch.
The Filler
Lastly, I needed a special presence on my team. Magearna ran Specs to provide an instant Fairy-typed melt on demand, and a typing combination I thought would help my team. Shortly after making this team, Magearna was banned, and would soon be replaced. But for now, I wanted another bulky defensive presence on my team, and thought Amoonguss would fill out my F/W/G core, give me a status spreader, gives me Clear Smog to shut down scary sweepers. Regenerator also gave my bulky mons the sustaining pivot potential that I was lacking.
Moltres, as my physical wall, left a few holes in my defenses. Hawlucha was able to sweep my team with Acrobatics, I had no power over common water mons like Pelipper or Urshifu, and Zapdos-G completely swept my team. Replacing #3 with #2 didn't open any new holes in my team, while closing up some glaring ones.
This one wasn't as much of a choice as a necessity, but looking back, I think Lele fits the team better. Psychic Terrain providing a protection from priority for Excadrill means I have a stronger late game. My nuke potential is just as strong with specs Psychic, and I still have the Fairy presence that I was lacking. I also now have something to kill Toxapex with. Magearna was too slow and didn't cover the type chart like it should've.
As much as I enjoyed using Swampert, it was lackluster in the areas I needed it to be. I wanted a bulky ground type that provided momentum and rocks, and while Swampert fulfills that, its horrific speed and lack of recovery left me feeling like something was missing. Most importantly, I had absolutely nothing to beat Garchomp, specifically SD. Lando may not be the best counter for Chomp, but it performs significantly better in everything else I needed it to.
Now for the overview.
Landorus-Therian @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 112 Def / 144 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Toxic
The big man himself, Landorus provides many important roles on my team. A bulky ground type to take on foes with Electric coverage, Intimidate with good bulk lets me switch in on quite a few physical attackers, and Rocky Helmet chips out those who dare U-Turn on me. My own U-turn lets me keep momentum, as not a turn is wasted with this mon in. Toxic is there to catch switches into walls, or to catch a special set-up sweeper trying to force a switch. Of course, he's also my Rock setter for the team.
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
EVs: 248 HP / 220 Def / 40 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Discharge
- Roost
- Heat Wave
- Defog
The main physical wall of my team, a great typing and a wonderful ability in Static lets me stay in on almost any physical attacker. The Defogger of the team, it comes with Heavy-Duty Boots to ensure I don't get chipped out too badly, and Discharge provides the only electric coverage of my team, with a bonus 30% paralysis chance. Heat Wave lets me slaughter Kartana, 2HKO Ferrothorn and bulky Scizor, and pressure out many more. Roost gives me the sustainability every wall needs, and occasionally predicting an incoming Ice or Rock move.
Tyranitar @ Choice Band
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Fire Punch
- Earthquake
This man is my main offensive pressure throughout the early and mid-game. Very few things can switch in on a banded STAB Stone Edge coming from 134 base attack, max EV & Adamant. Pex? 2HKO. Corv? 2HKO. Anything that doesn't resist it will get absolutely chunked on switch. Crunch also provides similar pressure, forcing out any Psychic type in the tier, OHKOing Slowking and almost Slowbro. Fire Punch completely negates the Ferrothorn switch, and provides good chip for any other Steel type that uses the tyrant as a switch-in. Earthquake is there for obvious 100 BP coverage. A Rock type in the sand comes with respectable SpD, meaning it's bulkier than it seems, and once their primary walls have been killed, Tyranitar can continue applying pressure even while Band is knocked off. As the only Dark type on the team, it's my go-to for Future Sight switches.
Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
Drill is here for an obvious reason. So far, my team is lacking sweeping capabilities and speed control. Boasting over 600 speed under the sand, Excadrill makes for a premier late-game sweeper after the enemy's physical walls have been broken through. Rapid Spin ensures that Drill remains speedy after the sand ends, SD gives me nearly 740 attack after a single use, and incredibly strong STAB lets me use those premier stats to the fullest. Despite suggestions to run Lefties, I personally think Air Balloon is significantly better for the role Drill plays on this team. Giving me an extra turn against Garchomp, T-Tar, and other strong Ground-bringing friends, is extremely vital in a late game situation where Excadrill is your only wincon. Lefties may help with some mid-game chip, but I find that I'm rarely bringing in Excadrill in a situation that it would take chip. Also, Air Balloon lets me switch into a Heatran Earth Power, which is common.
Tapu Lele @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Focus Blast
- Psyshock
The immobile-sprite powerhouse, Specs Lele is just absolutely ridiculous. I don't have much more to say. It's the only offensive special attacker on the team, but it does its job so well that you don't need more. Specs STAB Psychic under terrain is even better than Tyranitar's Edge, and it's harder for most teams to switch into. Moonblast is similarly threatening, making most teams 50/50 the Dark type switch-in. Focus Blast gives an option to break through Steels like Heatran, Ferro, and Melmetal. Psyshock is literally just Psychic but you click it sometimes when you know they're gonna go into a Blissey. I originally ran Modest on this lad, but the extra power isn't worth it. You still 1 or 2HKO everything important with Timid, but outspeed a few important mons in the meta.
Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 168 Def / 92 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Clear Smog
- Toxic
The funny name fellow still serves the same purpose it did at this team's conception, giving me a good 50/50 switch in for just about any move, with Regenerator meaning mispredicts aren't punished too badly. Spore guarantees a free switch for me, Toxic lets me chip down important walls, Clear Smog shuts down quite a few set-up mons, and Giga Drain gives me the only Grass damage on the team. While I already have two other physically bulky Pokemon on the team, I'm not sure if changing the EVs will provide enough special bulk to matter. It already holds up well enough, so I'm fine with it as-is. It also completely shuts down Rillaboom, Buzzwole, and Urshifu which covers a few of my remaining weaknesses.
WEAKNESSES
There's the team. Again, this is my first real team after a year or two of rusting, and I'm sure it can be improved quite a bit. But, I got to my peak of 1550 with it, and I like the playstyle a lot. Thanks for reading :]
