So this is my first offensive team that I've posted here. I'm generally very bad at making them, so I've stuck with standards for this team. I think it's pretty solid, but it could use work. I haven't put an extreme amount of effort into this team like I have with my last one, but I definently tested it and can't think of anything to improve it further. *And I know that this team is amazingly similar to another team that's being posted on at the moment, but I created this entirely independantly and would still like it rated. I posted it on Serebii earlier today, as proof....*
So the strategy for this team is to eliminate the opponent's pokemon one by one rather than go for a clean sweep. I only have one set-up sweeper, and he really isn't what you would call a 'sweeper'. Instead, I have a bunch of hard hitters that are hard to counter and have ways of beating their own counters. There isn't an overarching 'strategy', but there often isn't for offenisve teams. I focused a lot on type resists, so you'll see that every major weakness is quad resisted or immuned by someone else on my team. So... here we go!
Lead Gyarados
Gyarados @Leftovers
Jolly
88 HP/252 Atk/168 Spe
~Waterfall
~Earthquake
~Dragon Dance
~Taunt
This Lead Gyarados, that pre-plat wonder, reborn. He works incredibly nowadays, given all the steel leads and the fire moves people use to beat them. Taunt keeps slower leads from setting up SR, while Dragon Dance lets me beat sash leads like this: Azelf uses SR! I use DD! I use Waterfall! Azelf uses Psychic! I finish them off next turn! And then they face the proposition of a DD'd Gyarados. The EV's give me enough Spe to beat max Spe base 130's (Aerodactyl, Jolteon), 252 Atk to maximize power, with the rest in HP. That also happens to be a Lefties number! I would use LO, to bump up my power, but I really hate LO + SR weakness, as I often kill myself after a few turns.
Mixed Tank Swampert
Swampert @Leftovers
Relaxed
236 HP/216 Def/52 SpA/4 Spe
~Earthquake
~Ice Beam
~Hydro Pump
~Stealth Rock
Swampert is an extremely useful pokemon in this metagame, due to his balanced stats, good typing, and ability to hit a bunch of powerful enemies super effective. He can serve as a reliable switch-in to so many things, and can be a threat to all of them. The moveset is standard, but I opted for Hydro Pump to 2HKO Skarmory and to serve as a counter to myself. That's also why I have the 4 Spe, to beat out other Swamperts. The EV's get a lefties number, a jump point in Def, and the rest in SpA. Swampert is really useful, and helps me sponge the Electric hits often aimed at Gyarados. Overall, he has just the right stats to be a great addition to offense.
Late Game Cleaner/Revenge Killer/Sweeper Buffer
Salamence @Choice Scarf
Naive
252 Atk/184 Spe/72 SpA
~Outrage
~Earthquake
~Stone Edge
~Fire Blast
Salamence is a threat unlike any other. It can hit so hard from both sides of the spectrum, has a whole bunch of Spe, and it has a great movepool. I used a ScarfMence to have a great revenge killer, late game sweeper, and switch in to a whole bunch of Physical threats. Outrage + Choice Scarf is premium late game sweeping. Earthquake lets me be an Infernape counter, and a revenge killer to a bunch of stuff. Stone Edge lets me counter Gyarados and Zapdos, as long as I don't switch in on Ice Fang or Thunderbolt, respetively. Fire Blast is to be able to get past Steels, and to piss off Celebi. Due to intimidate, Salamence can switch in on all sorts of physical sweepers, especially sinc Salamence resits so many types and has so much Spe. The 184 Spe EV's let me outspeed all non +nature base 100's after a +1 boost (Rash DD Mence) and 176 Spe +Nature base 100's (Naive 176 DD Mence). I would go max Spe, but I really don't see the point in a Spe tie, because I don't like to play with chance.
Speedy Tank
Rotom-H @Leftovers
Timid
252 HP/200 Spe/56 Def
~Thunderbolt
~HP: Grass
~Overheat
~Will-o-Wisp
Rotom-H serves a purpose similar to Swampert, while Rotom deals with all the sweepers Swampert can't, and vice-versa. Originally, I had Gengar in this spot, but then the team was very Scizor weak. Rotom-H fills the spot of Fighting/Normal absorber nicely, while countering an ungodly amount of threats along the way. The Spe EV's let me outspeed Adamant Lucario's by two points, to beat all the other things trying to outspeed him as well. 252 HP maximizes defense, while netting me a lefties number. The rest went in Defense, for some extra padding. Thunderbolt is basic STAB, Overheat is what makes him an amazing Lucario and Scizor counter, and will-o-wisp lets me fight off pursuiting switch-ins. HP: Grass lets me blast Swampert, as well as making me a great Bulky Ground switch in. A very solid pokemon, with just enough power and speed to make the cut for offense. This is also my go-to person for receiving tricked Scarfs or Specs, as he isn't really crippled by either of them.
CB Scizor
Scizor @Choice Band
Adamant
248 Atk/100 HP/156 SpD/4 Spe
~Bullet Punch
~U-turn
~Superpower
~Pursuit
SpD CB Scizor is one of my favorite pokemon in existence. It can abuse so many Special Sweepers, and it has extreme power in its own right. While it may seem like a second revenge killer/late game sweeper, it serves a different purpose. Salamence can switch in on many phsical threats with impunity, while Scizor does the same to special threats. They make a cool combo of forcing out sweepers while being extremely poweful, with one for each attacking type. The EV's are Rhys', so credit to him, while I added 4 Spe to beat no-spe Vaporeon. Bullet Punch can get me out of a bunch of bad situations, so it's very useful to have.
Tricky SubTran
Heatran @Leftovers
Naive
32 HP/224 Spe/252 SpA
~Fire Blast
~Earthpower
~Substitute
~Explosion
I used to have Blissey in this spot, but she was slow and vulnerable. This Heatran is desigend to draw out opposing walls (like Blissey, Suicune, Vaporeon, Porygon2...) and wear them down or eliminate them. The first time I switch in Heatran, I Sub immediately. This helps if they switch in their own Heatran, expecting a Fire attack, because I get to kill them with Earth Power. If they send in a wall, I attack it with whatever will hurt it most: Against waters, Earth Power. Againt Blissey, Explosion. After that, and once they've broken my Sub, I switch out, knowing that the opposing Heatran counter (Who shares common counters with both Gyarados and Salamence) is weakend. The Spe EV's let me beat max Spe neutral Suicune, which is important because otherwise, I may not be able to get a hit off on it. Heatran is a keen adition to the team because it shares so many counters with Gyarados and Salamence that once Heatran has done it's job of weakening its counters, my other sweepers have a much easier time sweeping. Explosion is also nice for blowing holes in the opposing team.
Cool Synergy Notes:
Weakneses:
Gyarados' Electric = Swampert
Salamence's Ice = Heatran
Heatran's Ground = Salamence, Gyarados, or Rotom-H
Swampert's Grass = Heatran or Scizor
Scizor's Fire = Heatran
More to come, along with a threat list/type chart!
I also haven't read over the whole thing at once (cuz it's a buttload of writing) so if there are any mistakes/discrepencies feel free to point them out.
So the strategy for this team is to eliminate the opponent's pokemon one by one rather than go for a clean sweep. I only have one set-up sweeper, and he really isn't what you would call a 'sweeper'. Instead, I have a bunch of hard hitters that are hard to counter and have ways of beating their own counters. There isn't an overarching 'strategy', but there often isn't for offenisve teams. I focused a lot on type resists, so you'll see that every major weakness is quad resisted or immuned by someone else on my team. So... here we go!
Lead Gyarados
Gyarados @Leftovers
Jolly
88 HP/252 Atk/168 Spe
~Waterfall
~Earthquake
~Dragon Dance
~Taunt
This Lead Gyarados, that pre-plat wonder, reborn. He works incredibly nowadays, given all the steel leads and the fire moves people use to beat them. Taunt keeps slower leads from setting up SR, while Dragon Dance lets me beat sash leads like this: Azelf uses SR! I use DD! I use Waterfall! Azelf uses Psychic! I finish them off next turn! And then they face the proposition of a DD'd Gyarados. The EV's give me enough Spe to beat max Spe base 130's (Aerodactyl, Jolteon), 252 Atk to maximize power, with the rest in HP. That also happens to be a Lefties number! I would use LO, to bump up my power, but I really hate LO + SR weakness, as I often kill myself after a few turns.
Mixed Tank Swampert
Swampert @Leftovers
Relaxed
236 HP/216 Def/52 SpA/4 Spe
~Earthquake
~Ice Beam
~Hydro Pump
~Stealth Rock
Swampert is an extremely useful pokemon in this metagame, due to his balanced stats, good typing, and ability to hit a bunch of powerful enemies super effective. He can serve as a reliable switch-in to so many things, and can be a threat to all of them. The moveset is standard, but I opted for Hydro Pump to 2HKO Skarmory and to serve as a counter to myself. That's also why I have the 4 Spe, to beat out other Swamperts. The EV's get a lefties number, a jump point in Def, and the rest in SpA. Swampert is really useful, and helps me sponge the Electric hits often aimed at Gyarados. Overall, he has just the right stats to be a great addition to offense.
Late Game Cleaner/Revenge Killer/Sweeper Buffer
Salamence @Choice Scarf
Naive
252 Atk/184 Spe/72 SpA
~Outrage
~Earthquake
~Stone Edge
~Fire Blast
Salamence is a threat unlike any other. It can hit so hard from both sides of the spectrum, has a whole bunch of Spe, and it has a great movepool. I used a ScarfMence to have a great revenge killer, late game sweeper, and switch in to a whole bunch of Physical threats. Outrage + Choice Scarf is premium late game sweeping. Earthquake lets me be an Infernape counter, and a revenge killer to a bunch of stuff. Stone Edge lets me counter Gyarados and Zapdos, as long as I don't switch in on Ice Fang or Thunderbolt, respetively. Fire Blast is to be able to get past Steels, and to piss off Celebi. Due to intimidate, Salamence can switch in on all sorts of physical sweepers, especially sinc Salamence resits so many types and has so much Spe. The 184 Spe EV's let me outspeed all non +nature base 100's after a +1 boost (Rash DD Mence) and 176 Spe +Nature base 100's (Naive 176 DD Mence). I would go max Spe, but I really don't see the point in a Spe tie, because I don't like to play with chance.
Speedy Tank
Rotom-H @Leftovers
Timid
252 HP/200 Spe/56 Def
~Thunderbolt
~HP: Grass
~Overheat
~Will-o-Wisp
Rotom-H serves a purpose similar to Swampert, while Rotom deals with all the sweepers Swampert can't, and vice-versa. Originally, I had Gengar in this spot, but then the team was very Scizor weak. Rotom-H fills the spot of Fighting/Normal absorber nicely, while countering an ungodly amount of threats along the way. The Spe EV's let me outspeed Adamant Lucario's by two points, to beat all the other things trying to outspeed him as well. 252 HP maximizes defense, while netting me a lefties number. The rest went in Defense, for some extra padding. Thunderbolt is basic STAB, Overheat is what makes him an amazing Lucario and Scizor counter, and will-o-wisp lets me fight off pursuiting switch-ins. HP: Grass lets me blast Swampert, as well as making me a great Bulky Ground switch in. A very solid pokemon, with just enough power and speed to make the cut for offense. This is also my go-to person for receiving tricked Scarfs or Specs, as he isn't really crippled by either of them.
CB Scizor
Scizor @Choice Band
Adamant
248 Atk/100 HP/156 SpD/4 Spe
~Bullet Punch
~U-turn
~Superpower
~Pursuit
SpD CB Scizor is one of my favorite pokemon in existence. It can abuse so many Special Sweepers, and it has extreme power in its own right. While it may seem like a second revenge killer/late game sweeper, it serves a different purpose. Salamence can switch in on many phsical threats with impunity, while Scizor does the same to special threats. They make a cool combo of forcing out sweepers while being extremely poweful, with one for each attacking type. The EV's are Rhys', so credit to him, while I added 4 Spe to beat no-spe Vaporeon. Bullet Punch can get me out of a bunch of bad situations, so it's very useful to have.
Tricky SubTran
Heatran @Leftovers
Naive
32 HP/224 Spe/252 SpA
~Fire Blast
~Earthpower
~Substitute
~Explosion
I used to have Blissey in this spot, but she was slow and vulnerable. This Heatran is desigend to draw out opposing walls (like Blissey, Suicune, Vaporeon, Porygon2...) and wear them down or eliminate them. The first time I switch in Heatran, I Sub immediately. This helps if they switch in their own Heatran, expecting a Fire attack, because I get to kill them with Earth Power. If they send in a wall, I attack it with whatever will hurt it most: Against waters, Earth Power. Againt Blissey, Explosion. After that, and once they've broken my Sub, I switch out, knowing that the opposing Heatran counter (Who shares common counters with both Gyarados and Salamence) is weakend. The Spe EV's let me beat max Spe neutral Suicune, which is important because otherwise, I may not be able to get a hit off on it. Heatran is a keen adition to the team because it shares so many counters with Gyarados and Salamence that once Heatran has done it's job of weakening its counters, my other sweepers have a much easier time sweeping. Explosion is also nice for blowing holes in the opposing team.
Cool Synergy Notes:
Weakneses:
Gyarados' Electric = Swampert
Salamence's Ice = Heatran
Heatran's Ground = Salamence, Gyarados, or Rotom-H
Swampert's Grass = Heatran or Scizor
Scizor's Fire = Heatran
More to come, along with a threat list/type chart!
I also haven't read over the whole thing at once (cuz it's a buttload of writing) so if there are any mistakes/discrepencies feel free to point them out.