New And Improved Successful OU Team

[GotengoXGodzilla]

Team Godzilla Ass Kicker​

Introduction: That's right. This team is so powerful, it could kick Godzilla's ass, lol. Anyway, I’ve now been involved in two Smogon Apprentice Programs and have met some incredible players, especially Imperfectluck and SoT. During those programs, both helped me develop this team which has got me quite far. As I recall, it once got me all a rating of 1650 once. I’ve been working on this team for a while, long before I even knew about Smogon and the people here. Now I feel it is nearly complete and is a very well balanced offensive team. I wanted a team that could deal out lots of damage, as well as take it and I think I got that worked out nicely. Like I said, Imperfectluck and SoT helped me achieve this balance by being great people with lots of valuable information on pokemon, which is exactly what I needed to finish this team. They not only helped me achieve that, but they also made me a better battler in general, as well as a better person. Helping with prediction, team effectiveness and good sportsmanship. Thanks guys. In a way, this is like one of their teams too. Imperfectluck helped with the basics and SoT retuned it and made it work like it should. Hopefully I’ve gained some respect from other members too so I could grow more into this community and become an even better person.

And so, here's the team...

Team at a Glance:

In-Depth Analysis:

Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP/216 Def/54 SpA
Relaxed nature (+ Def, - Spe)
-Stealth Rock
-Surf
-Ice Beam
-Earthquake


A pretty good starter for me. With the EV spread I’ve given it, it is normally 2HKO’ed or 3HKO’ed by anything that isn’t a grass move, which normally isn’t seen in a starter other than in some Infernape starters, which I can take care of. It gets a SR up and can deal damage to several other starters such as Hippowdon, Azelf, Aerodactyl and others. Swampert can also be a late game sweeper, taking out non-Grass Knot Infernape, Scizor, Salamence and Jolteon. It usually forces out Celebi quickly, which allows me to counter very well.

Metagross @ Life Orb
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 58 HP/252 Atk/200 Spe
Jolly nature (+ Spe, -SpA)
-Earthquake
-Meteor Mash
-Rock Polish
-Thunder Punch


I can’t tell you how often this Metagross has saved my butt. Wether through team support or through his surprising speed, Metagross is my main late game sweeper, as this moveset hits almost everything for at least neutral damage. If Metagross comes in a pokemon that it’ll switch out, I can Rock Polish can then it will most likely be faster than was is about to come in. And even without the Rock Polish, it still has incredibly speed and can outspeed such things as Scizor, Magnezone, most Tyranitar’s and non-Scarfed Heatran’s. People have been surprised so many times when they see my Metagross going first. Combine that speed with his attack and resistances and you’ve got something I can’t resist using.

Snorlax @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Immunity
EVs: 170 HP/120 Def/220 SpD
Careful nature (+ SpD, -SpA)
-Curse
-Return
-Rest
-Crunch


The surprise pokemon of my team. Just like Metagross, Snorlax has saved me more times than I can count. After a couple curses, Snorlax can come in late game and sweep entire teams. I can spend his entire first life setting up curse, then use Rest and send him back to full health, then it comes nearly impossible to severally injure him. I use Chesto Berry over Leftovers because then I could fully recover myself and then go right back to sweeping. With the two attack moves I have, I can hit everything. Sure I can’t hit rock or steel types for neutral damage, but after a couple curses, it won’t matter. It’s been proven several times, after two or three curses, my Snorlax’s return 2HKO’s most steel types, such as Heatran, Jirachi and Metagross. I went with Immunity on Snorlax because a reoccurring problem with Snorlax was it being poisoned and it would eventually die from it. So I went with being immune to poison over fire and ice moves not doing as much damage. Overall, this Snorlax is the supporting pokemon of my team and has come in handy several times.

Infernape @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 Atk/234 Spe/24 SpA
Naive nature (+ Spe, -SpD)
-Close Combat
-Flamethrower
-Mach Punch
-Stone Edge


The straight up killer on my team. Fast, powerful and gets the job done. He usually ends up taking out two or three pokemon before being killed, or severally weakens them to the point where my other pokemon can handle it. This version is made to surprise people. From what I’ve gathered, most people expect Infernape’s to be mostly special attackers, but mine only has one special attack move. Combine Flamethrower and Close Combat and you’ve got an instant SkarmBliss counter. Infernape has also killed many of it’s own counters, such as Vaporeon, Swampert, Zapdos and Salamence. Vaporeon and Swampert are handled by Close Combat after SR damage and a little help from other pokemon. Zapdos and Salamence and surprised by Stone Edge and are usually OHKO’ed after SR damage. Mach Punch is there for quick damage if needed, or I’m facing something faster than Infernape. In all, my main wall breaker and a great asset to the team.

Starmie @ Expert Belt
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP/220 Spe/38 SpA
Timid nature (+ Spe, -Atk)
-Surf
-Ice Beam
-Thunderbolt
-Recover


Another surprise for the team. No Rapid Spin. Most people don’t expect that and then are usually hurt by one of my three attacks. Mainly used as a Gyarados/Salamence counter and can hold it’s own against many strong threats, such as a Pursuit CB Tyranitar and non-X-Scissor Scizor (lol). I like to use Starmie early in the game, as it draws out many threats to my later pokemon and can handle them by attacking them with one of its three attacks and then recovers any damage it may take. It’s also my status absorber thanks to Natural Cure, so Thunder Wave Togekiss doesn’t have anything on Starmie. Although it is walled by things like Blissey or Snorlax, that’s what other pokemon like Infernape are there for. I’ve had Starmie on my team for a long time now, and I’ve learned it’s always great to have around and works great in just about anything.

Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 80 Atk/178 Spe/252 SpA
Naive nature (+ Spe, -SpD)
-Draco Meteor
-Fire Blast
-Brick Break
-Roost


With the abundance of Salamence in the metagame these days and how many different kinds of Salamence’s there are, I think my Salamence works great against all of them and takes people by surprise. I can’t tell you how many times people switch in Tyranitar to my Salamence and never see Brick Break coming. Mainly used as an early game sweeper, Salamence helps clear the way for things like Metagross to come in late game and sweep with ease. Draco Meteor and Fire Blast are both incredible moves and powerful enough to bring down just about anything. Brick Break takes care of things like Blissey in the event I have no other choice. Although I don’t always use Roost, it has come in handy for out stalling opponents and can be a game breaker. By combining Salamence with several other pokemon on my team such as Metagross, Infernape and Starmie, just about everything is covered and it’s hard to go around all of it.​

Conclusion: The most well balanced team I’ve built to date and the most successful. It’s fun to use and it always is a close match with this team. If you’ve read this far, please feel free to post comments below on how you feel about the team and if improvements should be made. Thank you for your time.

 

[Orion]

So, Christmas is over, and I suppose I'd better get back into Team Rating again. So let's see:

I have to disagree with you on Swampert being a good lead. Out of the top 10 leads, only Tyranitar and Hippowdon is directly threatened by Swampert. And neither of them is OHKOd, meaning they too will be able to set up Stealth Rocks or something else. Then Azelf can Taunt you, Infernape OHKOs, Bronzong sleeps and sets up, Metagross Tricks Scarf/Band, Ninjask can BP away, Gengar can sleep and setup Sub, and you can't do squad to Zapdos while it might carry HP Grass. Then you have other common leads, like Roserade and Gyarados, against which you are screwed over by.
I'll come back to replacing the slot as a lead later on.

Apart from Infernape, every Pokémon is fairly standard, at least not much to comment on. Infernape seems interesting, and physically Infernape usually tends to surprise a lot of Pokémon, since it does a lot more damage than they originally anticipated. Just know that as soon as the opponent catches on, it's setup bait for Hippo and Swampert amongst others. While Grass Knot could've helped prevent that, Mach Punch is a great move for killing Lucario and weakened Scizors and Dugtrios.

So, back to the lead; I think Infernape is a good candidate for that slot. With Mach Punch you can usually take out the Sashed leads, who's most likely to be setting up on you anyway. Then, you scare off Tyranitar and all the lead Steels. It's much more successful than Swampert anyway, and the best option in my opinion. Salamence is also an OK lead if you want to save Infernape for revengekilling later on, but Ape is the best lead in your team atm.

Other than that, cool team! ;D

 

[Venom]

Actually no, keep Swampert as the lead, by replacing Swampert with Infernape as a lead, you lose a viable physical sweeper like its show here, even with Metagross, you still lose more possiblities of sweeping. I think Swampert is good as it is, as a lead, if you are looking for an alternative, go with Metagross lead, TrickScarf can work, or go Lum berry with Earthquake and Bullet Punch, to destroy Focus Sashes.

 

[GotengoXGodzilla]

Out of the top 10 leads, only Tyranitar and Hippowdon is directly threatened by Swampert. And neither of them is OHKOd, meaning they too will be able to set up Stealth Rocks or something else.

Well Swampert isn't there to kill things necessarily, nor intimidate. I mostly use him to SR up and to survive, both of which is does quite well. Sure lots of pokemon do the same like Bronzong, but IMO he's crippled by Trick, while Swampert can still manage even after a Trick.

Then Azelf can Taunt you, Infernape OHKOs, Bronzong sleeps and sets up, Metagross Tricks Scarf/Band, Ninjask can BP away, Gengar can sleep and setup Sub, and you can't do squad to Zapdos while it might carry HP Grass.

Azelf: I could see that ahead of time and do Surf instead, then that Azelf can't explode.

Infernape: I can switch to Starmie or Salamence.

Bronzong: I don't mind if Swampert falls asleep, but I could set up SR first. And then there's only a 60% chance I'll fall asleep. I like those odds.

Metagross: Like I said, Swampert can handle being Trick'ed.

Ninjask: My team can handle a pokemon being too fast. Speed isn't everything.

Gengar: The 60% accuracy of Hypnosis is something I'm will to risk. Plus Gengar doesn't have much to hit Swampert with, it's Shadow Ball usually 4HKO's my Swampert.

Zapdos: Ice Beam. HP Grass is something I'm willing to risk. And if it does have HP Grass, I can switch to Snorlax or Salamence.

Then you have other common leads, like Roserade and Gyarados, against which you are screwed over by.

Roserade: It usually starts out with Sleep Powder. I'd let Swampert fall asleep, then switch in Infernape and use Flamethrower/Mach Punch to kill it.

Gyarados: Switch immediately to Starmie and OHKO it with Thunderbolt. With the given EV spread I have for Starmie, it's still normally faster after one DD from Gyarados, and even if it isn't, it'll survive anything it dishes out.

Just know that as soon as the opponent catches on, it's setup bait for Hippo and Swampert amongst others.

Infernape can deal with Swampert thanks to his powerful Close Combat. If Hippowdon comes in, I can usually take care of that with Starmie or Swampert.

So, back to the lead; I think Infernape is a good candidate for that slot. With Mach Punch you can usually take out the Sashed leads, who's most likely to be setting up on you anyway. Then, you scare off Tyranitar and all the lead Steels. It's much more successful than Swampert anyway, and the best option in my opinion. Salamence is also an OK lead if you want to save Infernape for revengekilling later on, but Ape is the best lead in your team atm.

As good as that sounds, I'd rather go with Swampert lead over Infernape lead. I like to have SR in my starter, and although Infernape learns SR, I'd be giving up a slot for that move. I like Infernape as a wall-breaker later in the game then just right at the start of a match. Plus Infernape can't take a hit, Swampert can. I'd prefer my starter to be able to survive.

I think Swampert is good as it is, as a lead, if you are looking for an alternative, go with Metagross lead, TrickScarf can work, or go Lum berry with Earthquake and Bullet Punch, to destroy Focus Sashes.

I've been thinking about a Trick starter on my team for some time now and I think Metagross would be great for that. Although before I do anything, I'd like to test it out and see if it works. Thanks for the advice. Hopefully I get more.

 

[ToF]

So I'm going to have to disagree on the Infernape as a lead argument for this particular team. Swords Dance Lucario threatens this team heavily, and Mach Punch is your ace in the hole against a boosted Lucario. For that reason, I'd save Infernape for late-game when it truly shines. Consider Fire Blast over Flamethrower for that raw power that Infernape needs (against stuff like Cresselia for example).

Swampert is a fine started for this team. In our current metagame, getting SR up as soon as possible is a necessity, and Swampert can accomplish this feat with ease. The fast SR will help Infernape surprise opposing Gyarados / Salamence / Zapdos with Stone Edge as well, and increase the probability of a KO. I'm sure you can play around the common Trick leads, and honestly Swampert isn't a horrible Scarf recipient.

I find your Snorlax a bit too situational, and I doubt you will have time to set-up with the abundance of heay-hitting physical sweepers such as Scizor. Examples like Scizor will boost faster than you, and proceed to give you major troubles. Instead of Curse, I suggest you run Sleep Talk. Snorlax makes a very reliable counter to a variety of special threats, and the combination of Rest + Sleep Talk provides a decent form of recovery and offense. Because you lose out on Curse, I suggest you run a spread more oriented toward Defense, something like 252 HP / 136 Def / 120 Sp.Def.

On Metagross, I'd say Rock Polish isn't really worth it. Although Metagross has that monstrous attack stat, without attack boosts it is still walled by the common Hippowdon and Skarmory. Consider Explosion in that last slot as a means of denting both walls heavily. I'd ditch the whole Life Orb prototype as well for a Choice Band Metagross, who could really clear the way for Infernape and Salamence to clean up late-game. Meteor Mash / ThunderPunch / Explosion / Bullet Punch seems effective in denting the majority of the metagame, allowing for clean-up with Infernape, Starmie, and Salamence.

Hope some of this is useful, good luck.

 

[GotengoXGodzilla]

I find your Snorlax a bit too situational, and I doubt you will have time to set-up with the abundance of heay-hitting physical sweepers such as Scizor. Examples like Scizor will boost faster than you, and proceed to give you major troubles. Instead of Curse, I suggest you run Sleep Talk. Snorlax makes a very reliable counter to a variety of special threats, and the combination of Rest + Sleep Talk provides a decent form of recovery and offense. Because you lose out on Curse, I suggest you run a spread more oriented toward Defense, something like 252 HP / 136 Def / 120 Sp.Def.

It is true that Snorlax won't survive a Superpower from Scizor even with help from Curse, but this Snorlax has come in handy several times and after two or three cruses, it can take just about anything. Heck, after two curses, Infernape's Close Combat 2HKO's it, which gives me the opportunity to OHKO it with Return. Curse is extremely helpful and can trick the opponents. Although I do think Snorlax needs a new EV spread to help take physical hits better without curse support. Thanks for the advice though.

On Metagross, I'd say Rock Polish isn't really worth it. Although Metagross has that monstrous attack stat, without attack boosts it is still walled by the common Hippowdon and Skarmory. Consider Explosion in that last slot as a means of denting both walls heavily. I'd ditch the whole Life Orb prototype as well for a Choice Band Metagross, who could really clear the way for Infernape and Salamence to clean up late-game. Meteor Mash / ThunderPunch / Explosion / Bullet Punch seems effective in denting the majority of the metagame, allowing for clean-up with Infernape, Starmie, and Salamence.

Yes, I do think Rock Polish needs to go and be replaced with a better attack move. Explosion would be a good option, but so would Bullet Punch. I'm not sure about the Choice Band idea. I've never been too fond of choice items, because I do not like to be restricted. I would have to test it out, so thanks for the help.