My mental block

skiznod

(NOTE: this is my first thread here, i dont know where to post it, so if its in the wrong spot, put it where it needs to go. )

lately i've been trying to make a team that fits my play style, but i've been having problems in making that team. i've been researching on multiple sites, but comming up with a good team is hard for me right now. i don't know why, but i always end up getting too many ideas for a certain team, then it makes me want to quit the team build. i've come up with too many ideas, and i need some help for a good, solid strategy.

any advice is appreciated.
 
This has happened to me, I call them "Team Building Blocks". What I usually do is just relax, take some time off pokemon, not quit it, just relax and just watch how the metagame rolls, watch battles, visit the RMT, when I do this, ideas pop to my head, watching other battle motivates me. There is no such thing as a "solid stradegy" there is many stradegys, such as Trick Room teams etc, maybe you've been laddering too much?
 
Laddering is when you play on a ShoddyBattle server that supports the Ladder function, which is basically an online leaderboard for competitive battling. ShoddyBattle's a pokemon battle simulator that's free to download and use, so check www.shoddybattle.com for more details.
 
This happened to me after building too many "themed teams".

Just put a team of 6 random pokemon together, battle, and make substitutions as needed.

Hint: dont use a team of Azelf, Salamence, Gengar, Blissey, etc. If you have one or two pokemon that ARE STILL GOOD but not everyone uses (eg Ludicolo), that adds a uniqueness factor.

Personally, I use CB Whiscash on my standard team.
With max defense
 
weatherelitefour said:
Hint: dont use a team of Azelf, Salamence, Gengar, Blissey, etc. If you have one or two pokemon that ARE STILL GOOD but not everyone uses (eg Ludicolo), that adds a uniqueness factor.
Click to expand...
Oh God...this again? Using Pokemon that's not in the OU tier will not add increase "uniqueness factor", everyone knows that most Ludicolo will pack Leech Seed and / or Rain Dance. Being unique is doing something fresh / new that's never been done before and after a while, it'll stop being original. I also hate how some people try to shove their opinion on how everyone should be unique, in competitive metagames efficiency comes first, not being unique so that you can make lame excuses of why you're losing.
 
Pick a big sweeper that requires a bit of set-up but is a monster when it is from your "many ideas". Now, build a team around it, making sure all of the defensive bases and support options are covered.

Short and unhelpful it may sem, that's how I build teams, resorting to some never seen, but interesting Pokemon to fill the gaps. Don't be afraid to experiment with something new if it works for your team.
 
Venom said:
This has happened to me, I call them "Team Building Blocks". What I usually do is just relax, take some time off pokemon, not quit it, just relax and just watch how the metagame rolls, watch battles, visit the RMT, when I do this, ideas pop to my head, watching other battle motivates me. There is no such thing as a "solid stradegy" there is many stradegys, such as Trick Room teams etc, maybe you've been laddering too much?
Click to expand...

this. another thing I find helpful is just making a team using your favorite pokemon. I'm not saying make a team built out of butterfree/torkoal/lumineon/dustox/vigoroth/taillow type team, but just a team that uses pokemon you like as opposed to all the standard ou stuff. take a break from the bog standard teams and use stuff that's viable, just not seen as much. also, signing up for the tutoring round gives you a fresh look at the metagame and often heps you (well, me anyways) out of slumps.
 
this all sounds really helpful, thanx. is there anything else...

although, i do like that "use your favorite pokemon" tidbit.
 
I'll agree with Venom that spending too much time on the ladder will make you bored fast of the team you're using within a few days or so. If you're sticking with only 1 metagame, try taking a break with it and switch to another. UU and Ubers are quite different than OU!

Also, try to invent your own sets. Experiment with certain EV spreads, or moves that most people forget about. That's what Stathakis's thread is all about; people experimenting with certain moves (like LS DD Dragonite sounds very appealing right now). It's also how things like the new standard starter Azelf and Infernape came up; people tried more supporitve roles on normally offensive pokemon and it worked really well.

Finally I'll agree with everyone else and say that watching over battles on Shoddy or Youtube can be pretty inspiring. See that CM Lucario sweep? Or maybe you witnessed a came turn around using Curse Lax? You'll want to think of strategies similar to those after witnessing intense games.
 
I also second Stathakis's suggestion of signing up for tutoring. Having another person to listen to your thought process in making your team really helps, and the tutor can act as your own personal team-building coach =]. By having him or her looking at your battles, you will be more aware of what threats or shortcomings your team needs to address, and it is a great enlightening and learning experience overall.
 
Heh, I have the Team-Building Block a lot too. Tutering is a great way to get over it, too bad I'm a bit over the requirements for tutoring (i'm very knowledgeable about competitive, I just suck at team building). But yeah, go try tutoring, or just find someone to talk to while you're building.
 
laronde said:
Oh God...this again? Using Pokemon that's not in the OU tier will not add increase "uniqueness factor", everyone knows that most Ludicolo will pack Leech Seed and / or Rain Dance. Being unique is doing something fresh / new that's never been done before and after a while, it'll stop being original. I also hate how some people try to shove their opinion on how everyone should be unique, in competitive metagames efficiency comes first, not being unique so that you can make lame excuses of why you're losing.
Click to expand...

What ever happened to having fun while simultaneously doing good? That's not to say you can't have fun with a cookie cutter team, but I have managed to mix in some thing's to my team I like and they have worked very well. You can't deny it's more satisfying winning when you reach out a little, even if it's not much.
 
speedwobbles225 said:
What ever happened to having fun while simultaneously doing good? That's not to say you can't have fun with a cookie cutter team, but I have managed to mix in some thing's to my team I like and they have worked very well. You can't deny it's more satisfying winning when you reach out a little, even if it's not much.
Click to expand...

metagame doesn't matter to much to me. If i like it, i'll use it, if i don't, i'll use it against you. That's not to say that the whole meta is bad, just bits & pieces, like originality issues. but if you're into that kind of thing, far be it for me to stand in your way.
 
I had a similar time to you, and then decided to make a whole team based around 'perish-trapping'
It actually works quite well, one of my main techniques is to use a SLOW defensive set celebi who knows both perish song and u-turn, before u-turning into a dugtrio who knows both sub and protect.

catches many an opponent unawares
 
The_Duke said:
I had a similar time to you, and then decided to make a whole team based around 'perish-trapping'
It actually works quite well, one of my main techniques is to use a SLOW defensive set celebi who knows both perish song and u-turn, before u-turning into a dugtrio who knows both sub and protect.

catches many an opponent unawares
Click to expand...

thats a good strategy, I should look into it... so when you u-turn after the song, does it still stay in effect on your now Dugtrio?
 
When I get a block, the easiest thing for me to do is to stop thinking competitively for a minute, relax, and play favorites. I think of a single Pokemon that sounds fun to use, and put it on the team. After that, I find something that does the opposite of what it does. For example, if it's a physical attacker I choose a special attacker that covers different bases. Then I choose a wall that seems like it would cover one of both, then another, etc. Just building it one at a time makes the process seem less daunting. After you have a whole, you can look it over and shore up the areas that are lacking.
 
for a while, i've been thinking long and hard, and do like that perrish trap team. I thought of 4 pokemanz,
garchomp,
umbreon,
celebii,
dugtrio. do any changes need to make? and do you know 2 pokemon to put in?
 
A Flash Fire pokemon like Heatran would go well with Celebii; if you don't want to run Tran, consider Houndoom, who is imo underrated. You also want at least one levitating Pokemon; looking at the fighting weakness of Umbreon, I would consider Gengar.
 
Kittymew said:
A Flash Fire pokemon like Heatran would go well with Celebii; if you don't want to run Tran, consider Houndoom, who is imo underrated. You also want at least one levitating Pokemon; looking at the fighting weakness of Umbreon, I would consider Gengar.
Click to expand...

would Rotom be any good? and if so what moves should i consider?
 
1234gjy said:
try a whirlpool perish lapras.
Click to expand...
Say I have Rhyperior out.
You send in lapras.
I send in Electivire.
You use whirlpool.
I get a turn of thunderpunch.
You use perish song.
I get another hit... likely a KO.

This is just an example, but it is likely that something like this could happen.
 
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