I've really been wanting to use a Trick Room team this gen for Doubles on Cartridge (and on OU to some extent). I've been toying with ideas and so far, this team has done me well at a 70% win ratio. I can work around most teams, barring one major threat: G-Max Snorlax. Other than that, it's pretty solid, although my last 2 mons are perhaps a little lacklustre (I'll get to them below). Anyway, I'm wondering what holes I have that could be plugged with a better mon/strategy, so please, help me out!
Whimsicott @ Wiki Berry
Ability: Prankster
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Encore
- Substitute
- Trick Room
- Dazzling Gleam
Classic Trick Room setter. So far I'm having a blast with Whimsi, and I end up subbing most of the time, much to the frustration of the opponent. Encore helps avoid setups and dazzling gleam is nice cover, particularly for chipping down Dracovish. But Indeedee and Grimmsnarl can mess this up, especially if it's a G-Max Snorlax and Indeedee combo, then I avoid using Whimsi entirely just because of Psychic Terrain and Follow Me.
Coalossal @ Choice Band
Ability: Flash Fire
Level: 50
EVs: 108 HP / 252 Atk / 148 Def
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Body Press
- Rock Slide
- High Horsepower
I really, really wanted to make Coalossal work this gen, and he was the main reason behind me starting a Trick Room team. So here he acts partially as a bait for fire attacks aiming for Whimsi or Steelix, and also as a great hard-hitting cleaning machine. Especially when Trick Room is up, Coalossal is a beast, and has cleared his fair share of Excadrills, Charizards, Arcanines, even Corviknights. His main weakness is that without Trick Room, he's pretty vulnerable, despite having great defences. Still, I don't see him going anywhere as he's giving my some lovely coverage and with the EVs in HP and Defence, he can outlive some hefty attacks.
Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Scald
- Protect
- Yawn
Another excellent bit of bait for water attacks (mainly Dracovish) aiming for Coalossal or Steelix. Yawn is working like a charm on most things, especially dynamaxed mons who think they he's not a threat. Scald fits nicely, though it does wall me against other Gastro's. I've been considering replacing Recover for Earth Power or Sludge Bomb, as I don't think I've actually used Recover once yet in 30+ games. Protect is great when there's an obvious grass attack coming, and overall, he can take a blow from most things at least once or twice.
Steelix @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Sturdy
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Drill Run
- Heavy Slam
- Crunch
- Rock Slide
A bit of a secret weapon in some ways; some people seriously underestimate Steelix's defence. A lot of ground, fighting or fire physical users will try to OHKO this thing, then get blasted back after Weakness Policy activates. So far, Steelix has proved surprisingly useful, despite already covering some of what Coalossal can do. Fairies in particular fear this thing, and it's great against other Trick Room users like Hatterene. I just wish there was a better move vs Dracovish and Snorlax. For a while I did use Taunt instead of Rock Slide, but it barely saw usage.
Hatterene (F) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Magic Bounce
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Trick Room
- Mystical Fire
- Psyshock
- Dazzling Gleam
Here's where things get iffy. On paper, Hatterene should be great, but I'm finding it hard to keep it alive. I've got it setup so that it can either use Trick Room, or blast away with some beastly special attack stats. Focus Sash keeps it in when max steelspike comes out, but oftentimes I find it sucks as a TR setter because too many people anticipate it and simply go for 2 attacks to finish it before it can do anything. I've considered replacing it with Bronzong or Gothitelle, but both lack the offence presence I need, so I'm a little stuck here.
Cursola @ Choice Specs
Ability: Perish Body
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Ice Beam
- Shadow Ball
- Giga Drain
- Scald
Cursola acts as a special sweeper under Trick Room, but if TR ain't up, any physical attacker can eat this up for breakfast. Even worse, I've given it moves to fill the holes in my team, and they often don't OHKO simply because of low power. I also find that I frequently get locked into a bad move, and have no option but to dynamax or switch, which is less than idea. On paper, Cursola should be great, but I just can't seem to make it work, and it's not gelling with the rest of my team. I don't want to get rid of it because I love the design, but I'm not sure if it's viable with the rest of my team.
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So there you have it. I don't want really to replace anyone here, but I think it has to be done, and there must be some options I'm not seeing. In particular, I'm having no luck against G-Max Snorlax. I've given Corviknight a go, but having him purely for the counter is a bit lame in my opinion, and other than a little bit of physical stall, he doesn't seem to work well with the rest of my team outside of wrecking up G-Snorlax's strat.
Any suggestions are warmly welcomed! As I say, this is my first TR team, and I've tried to go more in line with mons I generally like over mons that fit perfectly, but I'm willing to sacrifice a few in order to progress! Cheers. :)
Whimsicott @ Wiki Berry
Ability: Prankster
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Encore
- Substitute
- Trick Room
- Dazzling Gleam
Classic Trick Room setter. So far I'm having a blast with Whimsi, and I end up subbing most of the time, much to the frustration of the opponent. Encore helps avoid setups and dazzling gleam is nice cover, particularly for chipping down Dracovish. But Indeedee and Grimmsnarl can mess this up, especially if it's a G-Max Snorlax and Indeedee combo, then I avoid using Whimsi entirely just because of Psychic Terrain and Follow Me.
Coalossal @ Choice Band
Ability: Flash Fire
Level: 50
EVs: 108 HP / 252 Atk / 148 Def
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Body Press
- Rock Slide
- High Horsepower
I really, really wanted to make Coalossal work this gen, and he was the main reason behind me starting a Trick Room team. So here he acts partially as a bait for fire attacks aiming for Whimsi or Steelix, and also as a great hard-hitting cleaning machine. Especially when Trick Room is up, Coalossal is a beast, and has cleared his fair share of Excadrills, Charizards, Arcanines, even Corviknights. His main weakness is that without Trick Room, he's pretty vulnerable, despite having great defences. Still, I don't see him going anywhere as he's giving my some lovely coverage and with the EVs in HP and Defence, he can outlive some hefty attacks.
Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Scald
- Protect
- Yawn
Another excellent bit of bait for water attacks (mainly Dracovish) aiming for Coalossal or Steelix. Yawn is working like a charm on most things, especially dynamaxed mons who think they he's not a threat. Scald fits nicely, though it does wall me against other Gastro's. I've been considering replacing Recover for Earth Power or Sludge Bomb, as I don't think I've actually used Recover once yet in 30+ games. Protect is great when there's an obvious grass attack coming, and overall, he can take a blow from most things at least once or twice.
Steelix @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Sturdy
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Drill Run
- Heavy Slam
- Crunch
- Rock Slide
A bit of a secret weapon in some ways; some people seriously underestimate Steelix's defence. A lot of ground, fighting or fire physical users will try to OHKO this thing, then get blasted back after Weakness Policy activates. So far, Steelix has proved surprisingly useful, despite already covering some of what Coalossal can do. Fairies in particular fear this thing, and it's great against other Trick Room users like Hatterene. I just wish there was a better move vs Dracovish and Snorlax. For a while I did use Taunt instead of Rock Slide, but it barely saw usage.
Hatterene (F) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Magic Bounce
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Trick Room
- Mystical Fire
- Psyshock
- Dazzling Gleam
Here's where things get iffy. On paper, Hatterene should be great, but I'm finding it hard to keep it alive. I've got it setup so that it can either use Trick Room, or blast away with some beastly special attack stats. Focus Sash keeps it in when max steelspike comes out, but oftentimes I find it sucks as a TR setter because too many people anticipate it and simply go for 2 attacks to finish it before it can do anything. I've considered replacing it with Bronzong or Gothitelle, but both lack the offence presence I need, so I'm a little stuck here.
Cursola @ Choice Specs
Ability: Perish Body
Level: 50
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Ice Beam
- Shadow Ball
- Giga Drain
- Scald
Cursola acts as a special sweeper under Trick Room, but if TR ain't up, any physical attacker can eat this up for breakfast. Even worse, I've given it moves to fill the holes in my team, and they often don't OHKO simply because of low power. I also find that I frequently get locked into a bad move, and have no option but to dynamax or switch, which is less than idea. On paper, Cursola should be great, but I just can't seem to make it work, and it's not gelling with the rest of my team. I don't want to get rid of it because I love the design, but I'm not sure if it's viable with the rest of my team.
-----
So there you have it. I don't want really to replace anyone here, but I think it has to be done, and there must be some options I'm not seeing. In particular, I'm having no luck against G-Max Snorlax. I've given Corviknight a go, but having him purely for the counter is a bit lame in my opinion, and other than a little bit of physical stall, he doesn't seem to work well with the rest of my team outside of wrecking up G-Snorlax's strat.
Any suggestions are warmly welcomed! As I say, this is my first TR team, and I've tried to go more in line with mons I generally like over mons that fit perfectly, but I'm willing to sacrifice a few in order to progress! Cheers. :)
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