Intro:
Hello everyone!
I have for you today a very balanced team without any weather. The team focuses around a Heatran/Gliscor/Celebi/(kinda)Rotom-W core which is very easy to manuver with. Rock Polish Landorus-T and Scarf Rachi round everything off. Four out of six of the team are VoltTurn'ers to give me some nice initiative. I love using this team because even though it puts a lot of pressure with VoltTurn'ing, it still functions as a very solid balanced team unlike the standard hyper offensive VoltTurn teams. If you're curious the team name is a reference to the song Oblivion by Mastodon. Anyways, that's my short intro and let's take a look at the team:
At A Glance:
Team Building:
My team building style starts with the core. I really value a good defensive core of 3-4 guys so that I'm never shortsided. The first poke I chose was SpDef Heatran. Physically Defensive Celebi was my next pick and SpDef Rotom-W came soon after.
Next I picked my more offensive guys. The first one was Hydreigon just because I really haven't used him that much in 5th Gen. To balance Hydreigon out I picked out Scarf Rachi. Scarf Rachi does a great job at tieing together a balanced team with Serene Grace and a very versitile movepool. This is when I noticed the possibility of making a VoltTurn team, but at the time Rotom-W still used T-Bolt over Volt Switch and Celebi had T-Wave over U-turn.
Noticing that I only had one physical attacker I added Terrakion to the team. I use Terrakion on a lot of my teams and it's no secret why. He is just so. damn. good.
Rotom-W wasn't really living up to expectations as a wall. I switched him to be more offensive and tried out a handful of spreads before settling. Fighting types were getting to be a bit of a problem so I dropped Hydreigon for Gliscor and it was one of the best switches to a team I've made. Toxic Gliscor was just fantastic.
Spikes were beginning to piss me off as they would just continue to destroy my only two physical threats. I played around with some flying guys like Mence and Dragonite but they were just being crippled without a spinner. For a little bit I tried dropping Terrakion for an offensive Donphan with Rapid Spin and keeping Scarf Mence over Jirachi but after testing that for a while I determined that it wasn't as solid. That's when I added Landorus-T over Terrakion and keep Jirachi. I then added U-turn to Celebi to complete the chain. Landorus-T was really nice to have for a late game sweeper with Rock Polish, which really helped me get out a hole on countless occasions even if I just had to Rock Polish to pull off a faster U-turn.
After posting this team, the suggestions I found to be most helpful were replacing Landorus-T with Keldeo and keeping Gliscor. Keldeo helps cover my defensive treatlist. Rotom-W was changed to a very bulky spread with Thunder Wave over Thunderbolt. Trick replaced ThunderPunch on Jirachi. Finally, U-turn was changed to Baton Pass on Celebi.
The Team:
Old Team Member:
Landorus-T (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naughty Nature (+Atk, -SDef)
- Rock Polish
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake
- U-turn
Keldeo @ Expert Belt
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump / Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Icy Wind
I took Sayonara's advice and swapped Landorus-T with Keldeo. Keldeo gave a good balance offensively to the team in order to help handle the defensive threats to this team. I tried using Leftovers for a little bit to bluff something like SubCM and help heal from the entry hazards I can't spin away. I'm still switching between Expert Belt and Lefties though just because of the ability to get a surprise KO on something that might want to set up on my "locked-in" move. One thing I changed from Sayonara's suggested set was that I put HP Electric over HP Bug. The main reason for HP Bug was for Celebi (plus Lati@s and Starmie) but I never really had problems with Celebi and I was facing more things like Politoed/Starmie/Gyarados/Vaporeon/other Keldeo that wanted to come in and wall me. Thanks again to Sayonara for this set as it's a great pick up to the team.
Gliscor (M) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spd
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Protect
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Probably my favorite poke on this team. Gliscor is just so good at what he does and plays a very key role. Even though it may seem a little weird to have a Toxic stalling wall on a VoltTurn team, his job is to whittle down the opposing team so that the offensive guys can clean up. For things that he can't stall out he can use Protect and Substitute to scout what the other poke wants to do and I can make the appropriate switch, further putting on the pressure that this team loves. I really feel like he's the glue to the team as he can just take hits that everyone else can't. Gliscor really shines when it or Heatran scores a Toxic on something slow he can just work his magic. If I could chose a 5th move on this guy it would definitely be Taunt. I had Taunt over Protect for a while to combat Ferrothorns and other Gliscors but it really didn't solve the Spikes problem as well as I planned.
Heatran (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar
Been using this set since I started playing gen 5. It may be overused in today's metagame (which is why I love ScarfTran) but it's damn effective at what it does. What I absolutely love about Heatran is its ability stop sun teams in their tracks. Unfortunately all good sun teams will either have a Dugtrio or Venusaur with EQ. Dugtrio usually isn't a problem as he can only effectively kill Hetran and the only way I've even had Heatran trapped is on a excellent double-switch by the other guy. Venusaur with EQ can be troublesome but Heatran can usually tank one at full health and fire back a Lava Plume. Heatran is my Stealth Rock'r and most of the time can set them up very reliably early game. Toxic is wonderful for Jelicent, Volcarona, Gastrodon (w/e EQ), and Lati@s. Lava Plume is there for steels and the 30% burn chance. I like to run Roar over something like Earth Power or Protect simply because it's a nice fail-safe to have if things turn ugly. I can see an argument for Earth Power but I really can't afford to remove Roar or Stealth Rock. Overall this guy does his job very well and deserves a lot of credit.
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 20 SAtk / 236 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Pain Split
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
Bleh I've messed around with more sets and spreads with this guy than I can remember. Max speed/spatk just wasn't bulky enough for my taste especially for a key poke on a balanced team. I tried going super bulky but then he couldn't kill anything. I finally decided to go to smogon and use the bulky attacking set and I actually like it a lot. It has a good balance of bulk and attack power with just enough speed to hit specs Politoed with a Volt Switch. Speaking of Thunderbolt, I was thinking of changing it to Thunder just because of the high presence of rain teams and Volt Switch can still serve as some electric STAB. Thunderbolt has been replaced with Thunder Wave. (credit: Dead Whiz) I like using Thunderbolt because it's really nice to get a strong electric hit in there without being forced to switch out. HydroPump because Hydro Pump and finally Pain Split because I value staying at a reasonable amount of health throughout the match especially since it's my only poke that can switch in on Heatran. The only real reason I run Pain Split over WoW is because Heatran and Gliscor are busy Toxic'ing stuff and I don't really want to accidentally get a burn on something I'd rather have Toxic'd.
Celebi @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Recover
- Giga Drain
- Baton Pass
Never really used defensive Celebi all that much. I'm a big fan of the offensive set but this Celebi certainly has proven itself. This little fairy thing can take hits like a boss. I've even Recover stalled a Toxic'd enemy even if they keep wanting to pound me with super effective physical hits. Despite Celebi's good bulk and resistances, I decided to use Celebi more of a defensive pivot than a wall. Giga Drain and Recover ensure that I stay at a reasonable amount of health mid/late game because I'm busy Baton Pass'ing (credit: Dead Whiz. >>used to be U-turn) in the early game when they don't expect it. HP Fire is mandatory on this team for Ferrothorn and Scizor. Even though it doesn't kill Scizor, I'll get inititive from them U-turning or have them locked into Pursuit so that either Gliscor can get a free sub, Landorus-T can Rock Polish, or Rotom-W/Rachi can come in and VoltTurn.
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Trick
- Ice Punch
- Iron Head
- U-turn
It seems like Scarf Rachi is just nowhere to be seen anymore. I love Scarf Rachi for balanced teams because it just ties everything up so well. Iron Head and U-turn speaks for itself so I'll get straight into the elemental punches. Ice Punch is pretty standard to have for speed ties with +Nature Mence and outspeeding neutral natured Garchomp. The odd elemental punch here is Thunderpunch. Thunderpunch is there for only a few things, but they desperately needed to be taken care of. I'm talking about rain threats. +1 Gyarados, Scarf/Specs Politoed, and CM Keldeo can absolutely rip through this team with the right plays. Thunderpunch allows me to manage these threats. ThunderPunch has been replaced with Trick (credit: Sayonara and Dead Whiz) I did have Fire Punch on here to combat the Ferrothorn problem, but it still wouldn't OHKO making me take Iron Barbs damage twice. That, and the abundance of rain teams made Fire Punch almost a waste of a move.
That's it. If it was a good read leave some feedback, it's greatly appreciated.
Offensive Threatlist:
Spikes
Fire/Fighting coverage such as Infernape, Hydreigon, and Darmanitan.
Heatran: Walls Celebi, Jirachi, my own Heatran. Outspeeds Gliscor and HP Ices. Only thing that can take a hit is Rotom-W. With Keldeo on the team Heatran is a lot more manageable.
Defensive Threatlist:
Chansey/Blissey: Landorus-T's EQ does 50%-69% to Bliss depending on the EV spread, and only 36%-43% to Chansey. Keldeo has replaced Landorus-T to help with this problem.
Ferrothorn: Heatran, Celebi, and Landorus-T can beat it one-on-one but it can just keep switching out and coming back in later getting a free layer of Spikes. Keldeo has replaced Landorus-T and certainly helps keep Ferro at bay. Also Jirachi can quite easily Trick Ferro on the switch-in.
Exportable:
Hello everyone!
I have for you today a very balanced team without any weather. The team focuses around a Heatran/Gliscor/Celebi/(kinda)Rotom-W core which is very easy to manuver with. Rock Polish Landorus-T and Scarf Rachi round everything off. Four out of six of the team are VoltTurn'ers to give me some nice initiative. I love using this team because even though it puts a lot of pressure with VoltTurn'ing, it still functions as a very solid balanced team unlike the standard hyper offensive VoltTurn teams. If you're curious the team name is a reference to the song Oblivion by Mastodon. Anyways, that's my short intro and let's take a look at the team:
At A Glance:
Team Building:
My team building style starts with the core. I really value a good defensive core of 3-4 guys so that I'm never shortsided. The first poke I chose was SpDef Heatran. Physically Defensive Celebi was my next pick and SpDef Rotom-W came soon after.
Next I picked my more offensive guys. The first one was Hydreigon just because I really haven't used him that much in 5th Gen. To balance Hydreigon out I picked out Scarf Rachi. Scarf Rachi does a great job at tieing together a balanced team with Serene Grace and a very versitile movepool. This is when I noticed the possibility of making a VoltTurn team, but at the time Rotom-W still used T-Bolt over Volt Switch and Celebi had T-Wave over U-turn.
Noticing that I only had one physical attacker I added Terrakion to the team. I use Terrakion on a lot of my teams and it's no secret why. He is just so. damn. good.
Rotom-W wasn't really living up to expectations as a wall. I switched him to be more offensive and tried out a handful of spreads before settling. Fighting types were getting to be a bit of a problem so I dropped Hydreigon for Gliscor and it was one of the best switches to a team I've made. Toxic Gliscor was just fantastic.
Spikes were beginning to piss me off as they would just continue to destroy my only two physical threats. I played around with some flying guys like Mence and Dragonite but they were just being crippled without a spinner. For a little bit I tried dropping Terrakion for an offensive Donphan with Rapid Spin and keeping Scarf Mence over Jirachi but after testing that for a while I determined that it wasn't as solid. That's when I added Landorus-T over Terrakion and keep Jirachi. I then added U-turn to Celebi to complete the chain. Landorus-T was really nice to have for a late game sweeper with Rock Polish, which really helped me get out a hole on countless occasions even if I just had to Rock Polish to pull off a faster U-turn.
After posting this team, the suggestions I found to be most helpful were replacing Landorus-T with Keldeo and keeping Gliscor. Keldeo helps cover my defensive treatlist. Rotom-W was changed to a very bulky spread with Thunder Wave over Thunderbolt. Trick replaced ThunderPunch on Jirachi. Finally, U-turn was changed to Baton Pass on Celebi.
The Team:
Old Team Member:
Landorus-T (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naughty Nature (+Atk, -SDef)
- Rock Polish
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake
- U-turn
Keldeo @ Expert Belt
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump / Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Icy Wind
I took Sayonara's advice and swapped Landorus-T with Keldeo. Keldeo gave a good balance offensively to the team in order to help handle the defensive threats to this team. I tried using Leftovers for a little bit to bluff something like SubCM and help heal from the entry hazards I can't spin away. I'm still switching between Expert Belt and Lefties though just because of the ability to get a surprise KO on something that might want to set up on my "locked-in" move. One thing I changed from Sayonara's suggested set was that I put HP Electric over HP Bug. The main reason for HP Bug was for Celebi (plus Lati@s and Starmie) but I never really had problems with Celebi and I was facing more things like Politoed/Starmie/Gyarados/Vaporeon/other Keldeo that wanted to come in and wall me. Thanks again to Sayonara for this set as it's a great pick up to the team.
Gliscor (M) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spd
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Protect
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Probably my favorite poke on this team. Gliscor is just so good at what he does and plays a very key role. Even though it may seem a little weird to have a Toxic stalling wall on a VoltTurn team, his job is to whittle down the opposing team so that the offensive guys can clean up. For things that he can't stall out he can use Protect and Substitute to scout what the other poke wants to do and I can make the appropriate switch, further putting on the pressure that this team loves. I really feel like he's the glue to the team as he can just take hits that everyone else can't. Gliscor really shines when it or Heatran scores a Toxic on something slow he can just work his magic. If I could chose a 5th move on this guy it would definitely be Taunt. I had Taunt over Protect for a while to combat Ferrothorns and other Gliscors but it really didn't solve the Spikes problem as well as I planned.
Heatran (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar
Been using this set since I started playing gen 5. It may be overused in today's metagame (which is why I love ScarfTran) but it's damn effective at what it does. What I absolutely love about Heatran is its ability stop sun teams in their tracks. Unfortunately all good sun teams will either have a Dugtrio or Venusaur with EQ. Dugtrio usually isn't a problem as he can only effectively kill Hetran and the only way I've even had Heatran trapped is on a excellent double-switch by the other guy. Venusaur with EQ can be troublesome but Heatran can usually tank one at full health and fire back a Lava Plume. Heatran is my Stealth Rock'r and most of the time can set them up very reliably early game. Toxic is wonderful for Jelicent, Volcarona, Gastrodon (w/e EQ), and Lati@s. Lava Plume is there for steels and the 30% burn chance. I like to run Roar over something like Earth Power or Protect simply because it's a nice fail-safe to have if things turn ugly. I can see an argument for Earth Power but I really can't afford to remove Roar or Stealth Rock. Overall this guy does his job very well and deserves a lot of credit.
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 20 SAtk / 236 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Pain Split
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
Bleh I've messed around with more sets and spreads with this guy than I can remember. Max speed/spatk just wasn't bulky enough for my taste especially for a key poke on a balanced team. I tried going super bulky but then he couldn't kill anything. I finally decided to go to smogon and use the bulky attacking set and I actually like it a lot. It has a good balance of bulk and attack power with just enough speed to hit specs Politoed with a Volt Switch. Speaking of Thunderbolt, I was thinking of changing it to Thunder just because of the high presence of rain teams and Volt Switch can still serve as some electric STAB. Thunderbolt has been replaced with Thunder Wave. (credit: Dead Whiz) I like using Thunderbolt because it's really nice to get a strong electric hit in there without being forced to switch out. HydroPump because Hydro Pump and finally Pain Split because I value staying at a reasonable amount of health throughout the match especially since it's my only poke that can switch in on Heatran. The only real reason I run Pain Split over WoW is because Heatran and Gliscor are busy Toxic'ing stuff and I don't really want to accidentally get a burn on something I'd rather have Toxic'd.
Celebi @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Recover
- Giga Drain
- Baton Pass
Never really used defensive Celebi all that much. I'm a big fan of the offensive set but this Celebi certainly has proven itself. This little fairy thing can take hits like a boss. I've even Recover stalled a Toxic'd enemy even if they keep wanting to pound me with super effective physical hits. Despite Celebi's good bulk and resistances, I decided to use Celebi more of a defensive pivot than a wall. Giga Drain and Recover ensure that I stay at a reasonable amount of health mid/late game because I'm busy Baton Pass'ing (credit: Dead Whiz. >>used to be U-turn) in the early game when they don't expect it. HP Fire is mandatory on this team for Ferrothorn and Scizor. Even though it doesn't kill Scizor, I'll get inititive from them U-turning or have them locked into Pursuit so that either Gliscor can get a free sub, Landorus-T can Rock Polish, or Rotom-W/Rachi can come in and VoltTurn.
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Trick
- Ice Punch
- Iron Head
- U-turn
It seems like Scarf Rachi is just nowhere to be seen anymore. I love Scarf Rachi for balanced teams because it just ties everything up so well. Iron Head and U-turn speaks for itself so I'll get straight into the elemental punches. Ice Punch is pretty standard to have for speed ties with +Nature Mence and outspeeding neutral natured Garchomp. The odd elemental punch here is Thunderpunch. Thunderpunch is there for only a few things, but they desperately needed to be taken care of. I'm talking about rain threats. +1 Gyarados, Scarf/Specs Politoed, and CM Keldeo can absolutely rip through this team with the right plays. Thunderpunch allows me to manage these threats. ThunderPunch has been replaced with Trick (credit: Sayonara and Dead Whiz) I did have Fire Punch on here to combat the Ferrothorn problem, but it still wouldn't OHKO making me take Iron Barbs damage twice. That, and the abundance of rain teams made Fire Punch almost a waste of a move.
That's it. If it was a good read leave some feedback, it's greatly appreciated.
Offensive Threatlist:
Spikes
Defensive Threatlist:
Exportable:
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Trick
- Ice Punch
- Iron Head
- U-turn
Heatran (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar
Celebi @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Recover
- Giga Drain
- Baton Pass
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 20 SAtk / 236 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Pain Split
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
Keldeo (Keldeo-R) @ Expert Belt
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Icy Wind
- Secret Sword
- Hydro Pump
- Hidden Power [Electric]
Gliscor (F) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spd
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Protect
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Trick
- Ice Punch
- Iron Head
- U-turn
Heatran (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Lava Plume
- Roar
Celebi @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Recover
- Giga Drain
- Baton Pass
Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 20 SAtk / 236 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Pain Split
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
Keldeo (Keldeo-R) @ Expert Belt
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Icy Wind
- Secret Sword
- Hydro Pump
- Hidden Power [Electric]
Gliscor (F) @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spd
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Protect
- Earthquake
- Toxic
