My RU Team :)

Grimsly · Mar 5, 2013

This team has managed to perform rather well against many opponents, and has nearly succeeded in gaining me a position in the top100 for RU. With that said I know it is far from a solid team, hence why I am open to all forms of ideas regarding its improvement in any way :)

SETS:

Secksy Nips (Miltank) (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sap Sipper
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Body Slam
- Heal Bell
- Earthquake
- Milk Drink

There is absolutely no way I can lie, I love this Pokemon to death! One of the most underrated support yet surprisingly offensive Pokemon in the lower tiers; honestly I can’t believe it is NU. Miltank provides an excellent role on this team, the ability to shut down just about any grass type in the tier is a huge benefit, namely Tangrowth, however I have found Focus Blast Sceptile to be rather tricky to play around, that being said, Miltank still manages to surprise opponents in this aspect.
Even without a Sap Sipper ATK boost, Miltank’s STAB Body Slam is such a great asset, since its SPEED is usually undermined. This can lead to some surprise KO’s and even late game sweeps I have found. Also not to mention the possibility of passing around Paralysis is always a nice touch! Earthquake also manages to add to its coverage, and as many know, Earthquake itself has some of the best coverage in the game, so it's always a nice attack to have on any Pokemon.

Gastly JNR (Spiritomb) @ Choice Band
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Pursuit
- Shadow Sneak
- Sucker Punch
- Trick

Oh my god…it kills Slowking! This Spiritomb set, given to me by ‘The Unlucky One’ was the equivalent of gold, I absolutely love it. To me its role is reminiscent of Dugtrio in its ability to revenge kill most Pokemon and trap those that could wall or cause trouble (being most psychic or ghosts types).
I’ll have to admit deciding on which of its attacks to use is probably most difficult, I usually just opt for Pursuit, knowing Spiritomb can usually tank a few hits should it not KO and since he usually doesn't get first strike.

FleworHaed (Lilligant) (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Modest Nature
- Petal Dance
- Quiver Dance
- Sleep Powder
- Hidden Power [Rock]

This Pokemon has swept entire teams, and saved me in the tightest predicaments. Find the perfect opportunity to let off a Sleep Powder, then proceed to Quiver Dance, so long as you know you can KO the obvious switch in the opponent will make. Once their main counter/wall is down, Lilligant can proceed to take down the entire team no joke.
Lilligant comprises of the FWG core also given to me by ‘The Unlucky One’, it compliments each other to a great extent, while providing excellent offensive pressure with these hard hitters!

SausageLops (Qwilfish) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Pain Split
- Thunder Wave
- Waterfall

Little SausageLips, doesn’t in the slightest seem Intimidating, well that’s a dead wrong opinion, this little bugger acts as my main offensive wall, Pain Split of course improving its longevity. It of course, works to fulfil the three layers of Spikes with Stealth Rock pressure most offensive teams thoroughly enjoy. However I feel Qwilfish suffers from deciding on whether to use Taunt or Pain Split, I’ll admit half the time I wish I’d be running Taunt over Pain Split, and when I change it, vice versa. However Qwilfish fits very nicely on this team and comprises of a powerful FWG core and honestly can help stop most Fighting types, which are all just annoying Pokemon, not naming any names lol.

LusciousLops (Magmortar) @ Leftovers
Trait: Vital Spirit
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Modest Nature
- Substitute
- Thunderbolt
- Flamethrower
- Focus Blast

Big LusciousLops, arguably one of the most difficult Pokemon to handle when behind a Sub. The damage he can produce is just amazing and greatly appreciated. I opt for Flamethrower over Fire Blast since it always seems to miss and I don’t want to lose any games since an attack missed, however I’ll agree one might say they could lose due to lack of power, but I’ll just play it safe I suppose. Vital Spirit also comes in handy, should any Sleep inducing Pokemon be out, If it’s not Sleep Powder they are going to use, I will switch to Magmortar to either set a sub up or go to town on the opposing team. He does suffer from any residual damage, and more than often coupled with constant Substitutes, means a premature KO.

SlackJawYokel (Aerodactyl) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Rock Slide
- Crunch

Being the second fastest Pokemon in the tier, you just have to appreciate him for his speed. Usually I don’t lead off with him since it is so obvious. However a few turns in he does manage to come out and perform his super simple role, Stealth Rock or Taunt (then Stealth Rock), once said job is complete; he is free to abuse his speed to damage a few Pokemon not resisting Rock Slide or Crunch. Still I am unsure whether to chose Earthquake over Crunch or Rock Slide yet.

CONCLUSION:
So I'll just thank anyone who happens to spend the time reading through this, and especially to those willing to take the time and provide very important feedback in this case! All of it will be appreciated and taken into consideration (I'm not arrogant I won't disregard any lol). Otherwise if you do happen to use or test the team out, keep the nicknames! They rule.

TUO · Mar 5, 2013

I was given a shoutout -- I feel obliged to rate this team. First of all, I did not make that core, it was something that I got help in teambuilding from Molk. Having seen the team to be rather effective and a good way of using Miltank -- an criminally underused pokemon, I feel that the team needs to be pushed until it is to a completely competitive team.

So, looking at the team we can see a few threats. The Pokemon you probably have the most glaring weakness to is Absol. Absol can come in on a locked CBTomb, set up an SD, and pretty much 6-0 your team unless you do smart Sub predictions with Magmortar. Also, Druddigon can come in on a lot of Pokemon on your team and 2HKO or OHKO your entire team (that's the case for many pokemon though, so you just limit it's switch-in chances) Another thing that does damage to your team would be Nidoqueen, forcing you to check it with Lilligant who is not the most reliable check. You also mentioned that Focus Blast Sceptile can be annoying to the team so we can try and fix that. Shell Smash Crustle can come in, set up a Shell Smash and kill your weakened team. Also, Galvantula is such a big threat in general, you can't wall it and it outspeeds your entire team. Braviary can also be a bother.

Alright, now we have the threats, how do we fix it? First off, we can fix a lot of these issues simply by slapping a Scarf on Magmortar. Magmortar can revenge Galvantula, Sceptile and Crustle. There still are a decent chunk of threats left, so what we can do is replace Spiritomb with Hone Claws Durant. Durant is really good in constantly keeping up the offensive pressure that Lilligant adds as well as checking Sceptiles variants without HP Fire as well as giving Druddigon a run for his money; as well as being able to muscle through Nidoqueen after a Hone Claws boost. speed creeping and doing damage to Galvantula in the process + can check Absol.

Sets:

Magmortar @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Vital Spirit
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Durant @ Life Orb
Trait: Hustle
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Hone Claws
- Rock Slide
- Iron Head
- X-Scissor

col49 · Mar 5, 2013

Hey, got the vm, let me see what I can do ^_^ Its definitely cool to see 'mons like Miltank getting some usage, especially offensive variants, really underrated imo.

Anywho, looking at threats to your team, bulkier speed-boosting Pokemon, mostly notably Rock Polish Rhydon, look very problematic to your team, finding opportunities to set up on Miltank, Spiritomb, and even Magmortar in the case of Eviolite variants, and can proceed to outpace and 0/2HKO the entirety of your team. Substitute Sceptile, as mentioned, also seems to give some trouble, since it can play around Miltank and Spiritomb thanks to Focus Blast and Substitute (respectively), and proceed to threaten the majority of your team. As The Unlucky one points out, Druddigon is a threat to your team, as is with most teams utilizing FWG cores, and can find a few opportunities to come in and net a KO or two with Outrage.

That in mind, I would definitely suggest Life Orb and either Return or Double-Edge instead of Body Slam and Leftovers. Miltank isn't hitting particularly hard unboosted, and really does appreciate the extra power for dishing out respectable damage. This change, while forcing it to Milk Drink a little more frequently, would offer Pokemon such as Druddigon and Rhydon a much less comfortable switch-in, being able to 2HKO Druddigon and even [Life Orb] Rhydon after Stealth Rock damage with the appropriate move.

I don't feel as though Magmortar is the best pick for your team. Its wall-breaking capabilities, while still there, is somewhat devalued by the offensive skew of the metagame, and its ability to "absorb sleep" is lessened due to the fact that you already carry Miltank to respond to the common Sleep inducers. Personally, I feel as though your team might benefit by replacing it with Choice Scarf Emboar. Emboar offers a more solid answer to Sceptile, as well as Pokemon such as Durant, Escavalier, Absol, and more, and offers a generally more resilient late-game cleaner thanks to its better Speed, bulk, and neutrality to Stealth Rock. While it is somewhat more susceptible to Slowking and Qwilfish switch-ins than Magmortar and no longer offers a "perfect" response to sleep, these issues are greatly mitigated by Spiritomb's ability to trap the former (and Lilli can still set up on both moderately well) and it can still utilize Sleep Talk to offer a moderately effective secondary answer to sleep. Here would be the set for reference:

Lastly, I would actually recommend Stealth Rock Druddigon over Aerodactyl. Aerodactyl's biggest draw as a suicide lead is its ability to prevent early-game set-up, but thanks to your team's multiple answers to Smeargle and other common leads, as well as the reduced hazard weakness, I feel this is largely undermined. Moreover, by utilizing such as suicide lead it puts much more pressure on Spiritomb to block Rapid Spin, which puts you in a bad spot against Kabutops+Moltres offensive cores and similar match-ups. Druddigon's good bulk and useful resistances allow it to set up SR more than once in a match if need be and maintains a solid offensive presence throughout. Rough Skin is really useful since it helps rack up residual damage on Pokemon such as Entei that keep Lilligant in check, and in a pinch it can be used to threaten opposing Druddigon (though obviously that's more of a last-ditch effort x_x). Here is the set for reference:

Leftovers ---> Life Orb
Body Slam ---> Return / Double-Edge

--->

I hope that some of my comments were of some help to you, good luck in the future n_n

My RU Team :)

Grimsly

TUO

col49