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So...yeah, anyone that kinda sorta follows me around here (3 people) knows that my last RMT was my going-away party. Obviously, since you are reading this in a RMT forum, that isn't quite the case. I wouldn't exactly say this is a comeback. XY just has me intrigued for the moment, though I'm not exactly looking forward to the Pokebank meta. With Pokebank releasing in just a few weeks, I figured I'd post this team now in it's current iteration, since if I keep running this in 2014, it's going to need an overhaul. That, and it's my birthday today :D .
Looking at the pre-Bank metagame (or WiFi metagame, whatever you wanna call it), it looks pretty balanced. I knew that I was going to try out stall as information on X and Y rolled out, since stall was barely viable in gen 5 and extremely limiting as far as options and overall creativity IMO. But, I didn't want to just run your typical ho-hum stall team. So, I decided to try a style that I always wanted to, but never got the chance - quickstall. Why? Well, when the Defog buff was revealed, almost everyone that was excited to try stall out abandoned the idea, jumping to the conclusion that you could no longer run multiple hazards effectively. Some have tried trapping moves like Infestation, etc., but I have never found those moves to be very effective, since they never were in previous generations. I took the Defog buff as a challenge and wanted to find a way around common abusers while still staying true to the form of stall we all know and love - abusing hazards through phazing and sometimes through pressure.
And maybe moreso through offensive pressure in this case. Quickstall, for those that don't know, is a more aggressive form of stall. It wins by getting hazards down as quickly as possible, but it abuses those hazards not just through phazing with defensive Pokemon, but stalling with offensive Pokemon that use more defensive sets. Sounds a bit confusing, but it's not as difficult to grasp as you think. The goal is to drain the opposing team's health as quickly as possible. This is where moves such as Leech Seed come into play, in addition to your usual suspects in sand/hail, Toxic and burn damage. Some of the Pokemon on quickstall are "annoyers" (fast SubSeeders, Pranksters such as Klefki, etc). Others are Pokemon normally seen on offensive teams, but because they have natural bulk, more defensive sets are used. Still others are your typical defensive machines like Forretress, Ferrothorn and Skarmory. Even offensive sets can be used. Quickstall intrigued me because I can use offensive pressure to take out common Defoggers (which you will see below) and I have the ability to mask my team as an offensive one in Team Preview, when it's actually not.
This team still needs help though. I built it with pre-Pokebank OU in mind, but I tested it out on Pokebank OU just for the giggles and managed to get to 1810, going 14-2. My biggest concerns are the EV spreads. I think I've rambled on enough, though. Onto the team:
Naturally, I wanted residual damage through weather and sand is the best candidate, especially given the rest of my team. I looked at the common Defog users in OU and because they are all pretty much Flying-type, none of them really deal with Tyranitar very well. I also wanted a set that could easily dispose of common Spikers to always keep the advantage in the hazard war. This is why I went with a more aggressive build. Tyranitar was put in after Forretress and Gyarados because the idea with this set is to trap Defoggers via a Volt Switch pivot from Forretress. Stealth Rock is obvious since Ttar is one of the best users right now. It's one of the main reasons why Ttar is my Mega evo because I wanted to keep SR, but have bulk comparable to Assault Vest variants. Mega Ttar also gives me additional power and Defense as a bonus, giving me a stronger Pursuit and Stone Edge.
With Hasty, all you need is 8 HP EVs to survive Choice Band Scizor's Bullet Punch after SR, while 92 SpA EVs allow Flamethrower to reliably OHKO it along with Forretress. Flamethrower also reliably 2HKOs Ferrothorn and Skarmory. Emphasis on "reliably". Since I'm running a variant of stall, I feel I can't afford the possible miss with Fire Blast. Stall tends to run 100% accurate moves anyway. Stone Edge contradicts this though and that's because I need to hit Defog users and other things neutral/weak to Rock as hard as possible. Pursuit? Well, it's used to trap said Defog users and puts them in a catch 22 since they are also typically weak to Stone Edge. With 156 Atk EVs, it does about 50% to the standard gen 6 Stallbreaker Crobat if it decides to flee. Only Mandibuzz has a chance to get away. I am considering Ice Beam over Stone Edge to more reliably hit Flying-types, particularly Gliscor. Max Speed might not be needed either, but it just feels nice to beat everything up to positive base 70s not named Breloom (Chesnaught comes to mind). I'm open to suggestions though.
Gourgeist-Small (F) @ Leftovers Frisk | Calm Nature | EV’s: 252 HP / 208 SpD / 48 Spe Substitute | Leech Seed | Shadow Sneak | Fire Blast
I honestly think that Gourgeist is a better spinblocker than Trevenant from a defensive standpoint. At least the Small variant. That's debatable though. Gourgeist came in as the fourth team member. It pairs so well with Tyranitar, I honestly think it's one of the best new defensive cores we got in XY, regardless of EV spreads being used on either one. Anyway, this thing is kinda the brainchild of this team. Small Gourgeist defines what Quickstall should be: it's a fast SubSeeder that can drain the opponent's health quickly while being an annoying defensive menace behind a Substitute. Fire Blast gets the jump on Skarmory, 2HKOing on the switch. The EV spread is honestly pretty wacky though because it's more for Pokebank OU than anything. So it warrants for a change. But, Base 99 Speed with 48 Speed EVs do allow it to hit 246 Speed, beating anything that aims for 245 Speed and below (so stuff like 32 Spe Jirachi/Celebi). It also beats all the slower spinners to throw a Sub down or drop Leech Seed before they get to move. Obviously Excadrill and Starmie outrun this. Starmie also 2HKOs this set with Ice Beam and prediction, which is the reason for Shadow Sneak. Why am I running Calm on a Shadow Sneak Gourgeist? I don't want to take from either of the defenses and Small Gourgeist can't afford to be slower. Shadow Sneak still nabs the 2HKO on offensive Starmie, which is the main target (though Mega Gengar was nice too, before the ban). I am sure there is a better spread than this, though and I'm also convinced I can run a more effective set than just Ghost/Fire coverage. But, I really like the Special Defense since it takes advantage of the Water resistance and Gourgeist is already a physical tank. Decisions, decisions.
Welcome to part two of my anti-Defog strategy. Forretress was actually the 2nd member I chose for this team, with the first being Gyarados since they form a pretty good defensive core. Not only does Forry synergize well with Gyarados, but it also synergizes well with Tyranitar. Spikes are obvious since I'm stalling the "old school" way. Rapid Spin is also obvious, since I need to win the hazard war and spin away SR, making Gyarados' job easier. Volt Switch is key to my strategy and is also the reason I chose Forretress over Ferrothorn and Skarmory. Again, most Defog users are Flying-type so I will generally Volt Switch out, doing "OK" damage and pivot to Tyranitar, who is usually in Mega forme to trap said Defogger, or at the very least threaten them. Volt Switch allows me to maintain some form of momentum. It also keeps Forry from being setup bait for sweepers. Gyro Ball also does this, especially if I decide to be a little aggressive with Forretress. Sassy with 0 Spe IVs make Gyro Ball hit as hard as possible. It also hits unsuspecting Gengar and Trevenant that try to switch in to spinblock. The EV spread is...old. Like, Gen 4 old. I should probably switch it because of all the physical threats, but I've never found a need to since Specially Defensive Forretress gets more opportunities to come in and do whatever, especially with Gyarados in tow. Even though I have Gourgeist, I am thinking of switching Sturdy to Overcoat for more insurance against powder moves (Spore, Sleep Powder, etc). It would let me do better against Smeargle leads. Between Forretress and Tyranitar, there hasn't been a single Defog abuser that I flat-out couldn't beat. If nothing else, Defog can be PP stalled out since it has less PP than Stealth Rock and Spikes. Yeah, it really hasn't been a big deal lol.
Classic stall mon right here. Thanks to the Sleep mechanics being reverted back to how it was before, ResTalk Gyarados is back in all it's former glory...at least for now. This is pretty much my answer to all Fighting-types and is the go-to 'mon for a lot of other physical threats as well, mitigating their setup. This is my best answer for Lucario and my initial switch-in to Dragons like Garchomp and Dragonite. Choice Band Azumarill and Talonflame can also be neutered thanks to Intimidate and the rest of the team's resistances. The Forretress + Gyarados combination is good enough to ward off nearly every physical sweeper in pre-bank OU right now. It also trolls Gliscor. Rest + Sleep Talk is Gyarados' only form of reliable recovery. Waterfall is for STAB that still hits for decent damage and can provide some pressure even with 0 Atk investment since Gyarados is so strong. Roar over Dragon Tail for phazing and abusing hazards the old fashioned way. The extra attack provided by Dragon Tail is nice, especially given Sleep Talk, but I don't want to be caught getting swept by something behind a Sub. Roar also blows away Protect whores. Standard spread except I jumped up to 12 Speed EVs for the speed creep.
Excadrill (M) @ Air Balloon Sand Rush | Jolly Nature | EV’s: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe Rapid Spin | Shadow Claw | Rock Slide | Earthquake
Forretress isn't exactly the greatest spinner around. So, I decided to pair it with one of the best offensive spinners in the game. A dual spinner strategy if you will. Excadrill was the last member I put in, actually. I felt like I needed additional insurance against offensive threats that had gotten out of hand. Hence, why I run Air Balloon and Sand Rush. I don't even think Air Balloon is that great. But, it gives me a temporary Ground immunity, which also translates to Spikes immunity. I feel like I'm a little too weak to Ground without it. Sand Rush is the "if I mess up" button. It has saved my ass so many times, especially when Gothitelle isn't around anymore or there is a threat that Gothitelle can't outspeed and beat like Greninja, Aegislash or, at the time, Mega Gengar. Talonflame is also forced to Brave Bird, if Tyranitar and Gyarados are both somehow gone. Because of Sand Rush, I'm also taking the road less traveled and running Jolly nature over the many Adamant Excadrills you see running around. I just wanted to be as fast as possible in order to beat as many threats as possible. I honestly haven't actually had to spin much with Excadrill, but it is really nice to just have.
I figured I could get away with Jolly in terms of using Shadow Claw for Trevenant. If I get a layer of Spikes and SR down, I still 2HKO it. I also still OHKO the standard Mixed Aegislash as well as all Gengar. The sacrifice I make is that I obviously can't touch Rotom-W, and though it's annoying, I haven't actually been threatened by Rotom-W with this team. Tyranitar, Gourgeist and Gothitelle make Rotom-W little more than a minor inconvenience. I've even had Forry take burns if I know I won't be using Gyro Ball in the match. Outside of that, Excadrill tends to sweep towards the late game when everything is weakened from the hazards and "offensive" pressure. No SD required. I've thought about it, but SD honestly feels like overkill. I am considering a bulkier EV spread with Assault Vest and Mold Breaker, but like I said earlier, I feel kinda naked without Air Balloon and Sand Rush saves the day in games that I would've lost.
Gothitelle (F) @ Choice Scarf Shadow Tag | Timid Nature | EV’s: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe Grass Knot | Hidden Power Ice | Thunderbolt | Psychic
Gothitelle was the next to last member I chose. I figured I had Forretress with Volt Switch, so why not take the trapping strategy further by adding a Scarfer that traps most of the metagame via Shadow Tag. Yeah, Mega Gengar would've been infinitely better for this slot. But, I had faith in Smogon and knew it was gonna get banned :). Anyway, this is my "eliminate any threat up to base 120 Speed" button. The only ones I can't nail are threats with priority (Scizor, Azumarill, etc), Ghost-types (Gengar, Sableye, Aegislash etc), and bulky things that haven't been weakened enough. Gothitelle isn't that strong offensively so I figured it'd be a perfect fit on a defensive team that abused hazards to help get those KOs. Psychic is STAB of course. Classic "BoltBeam" coverage continues to be great this gen. Thunderbolt deals with Starmie and other Water types and even some Defoggers! Hidden Power Ice is for the Dragons and Gliscor (who is KO'd after using it as setup bait). I feel like Grass Knot is just filler. I can nail some bulkier Grounds with it, like Gastrodon or Hippowdon but I don't feel it's that useful overall. Rotom-W takes nothing from it and you are better off throwing Psychic at it. It's really only there because Gothitelle can't run Trick until Pokebank drops. I've considered Psyshock over Psychic, but I feel that the things I would use Psyshock for, the rest of the team can use those same things to set up or gain momentum (Blissey/Chansey, etc).
Conclusion
So that's my team. It's done pretty well for me. I don't know if this is the ideal way to run quickstall, but I think I did pretty good for a first attempt. This team isn't exactly "revolutionary", but I decided to post this team because I felt there aren't enough stall teams posted and I wanted to promote it as a viable playstyle, at least in the pre-Bank meta. Anyway, rate, hate, steal, and all that other mess and bull.
I like this team, and I think it should work pretty well (has it?). I do have some suggestions though.
MegaTar: I feel kinda indifferent towards this. While Ice Beam and Flamethrower may hit certain things hard, I feel like a StoneQuake combo hits most things harder/better. Especially with MegaTar's monstrous attack stat. I can't put down the facts though, he can do well with Special Moves. It is really a matter of opinion for what you run on him though.
Gourgeist: As a Spin-Blocker, yes. Gourgeist probably functions considerably better than Trevenant, but as a SubSeeder, she does not. You can't ignore the Harvest Sitrus Berry, coupled with Leech Seed. It is extremely annoying, and hard to deal with. If you are using her simply as a Spin Blocker, keep her. If her main goal is Sub-Seeding though, switch for Trevenant.
Forretress: No real reason to change anything here. I like it :3
Gyarados: I don't like the lack of Attack, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Excadrill: Meh
Gothitelle: I would switch Psychic to Psyshock just so you aren't walled by Assualt Vest users and Special Walls that can take the Grass Knot.
Notable Threats: Dragon Dance T-Tar. This thing can destroy you if it can pull off two DDs, you are done for. The whole team is Swept. Also, anything reliant on Baton Pass Scolipede is going to give you serious trouble. You need someone to phase on your team. I recommend Skarmory, possibly to take the place of Ferrothorn, so you can phase out something that is setting up, set up spikes, or Defog.
