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Nidoqueen - Poison Point
Leftovers
Ice Beam
Toxic Spikes
Stealth Rock
Earth Power
Modest (+Sp. Atk -Attack)
40 HP/218 Defense/252 Sp. Atk
Commentary: Nidoqueen's role is to set up for the rest of the team. I made her a special attacker since Earth Power's targets, Steelix and company, take way more damage from EP rather than EQ. I'm quite happy with her, all in all. She can counter leads such as Swellow, Scyther etc. and is great for taking out Rival Nidoking. Ice Beam will OHKO Altaria and not get OHKO'ed in return, which is very helpful.
Bastiodon - Sturdy
Leftovers
Curse
Earthquake
Stone Edge
Metal Burst
Sassy (-Speed +Sp. Def)
252 HP/6 Attack/252 Sp. Def
Commentary: Bastiodon's role is to be a huge twig in the wheel for my opponent. Switched in on for example Swellow, it can use Curse once and then proceed to use Metal Burst on its unsuspecting counter - after that, if it survives with enough HP, I'll Curse more, otherwise I'll just attack. Bastiodon stops things without Fighting/Ground moves dead in their tracks, and can even survive non-boosted Close Combats (with a Curse or two) and Vacuum Waves, only to OHKO with Metal Burst. This Poke is rather hard to tackle, since anything that doesn't OHKO it will generally get OHKO'ed itself in return, because of Metal Burst. The key to defeating it is using boosted special moves that are 4x against it, such as Calm Mind-Earth power, Nasty Plot-Vacuum Wave (which will OHKO it) etc., but so far, Bastiodon has proven itself to be a reliable and solid team member.
Sableye - Keen Eye
Leftovers
Recover
Payback
Will-o-Wisp
Night Shade
Impish (+Def -Special Attack)
252 HP/176 Attack/76 Defense
Commentary: Sableye is here to counter physical sweepers. I don't always set up Toxic Spikes and when I don't, I use Will-o-Wisp which cripples many things. Will-o-Wisp + Recover allows him to outstall almost every Physical Sweeper. Because Sableye is so slow, Payback almost always becomes 150 Power, meaning that even Sableye can do some really good damage with it. Night Shade is for things such as Steelix and Pokes that resist Payback. This Poke is one of those brick walls which simply refuse to die, though people won't expect it out of a Sableye. They might keep their Hitmontop in and use Stone Edge or something and get burned in return. Then, I'll use Will-o-Wisp again just to get it on a potential switch in. If it's a switch, great! if it's not, I'll switch to Recover and start using Night Shade/Payback.
Mr. Mime - Soundproof
Choice Specs
Psychic
Hidden Power (Fighting)
Shadow Ball
Trick
Timid (+Speed -Attack)
6 HP/252 Speed/252 Sp. Atk
Commentary: Mr. Mime is my direct-action offensive punch. It's always useful, and can turn the tide of a match. It's best used against enemies that aren't full HP, since that won't generally OHKO them and Mr. Mime faints if it gets poked on in someone's imagination. Thus Toxic Spikes and Will-o-Wisp again come into use. This one always has its place in any match, and is the cornerstone of my team, since I can't really do that much direct, non-setup damage without it. It comes with the added benefit of being able to 2KO Steelix. It outruns and 2KO's Clefable as well. Switching in with something that isn't immune or resistant to Mr. Mime is difficult, and 0.5x resistances that don't have a Sp. Def to write home about will have a large chunk ripped out of them anyway, thanks to STAB Psychic.
Leafeon - Leaf Guard
Salac Berry
Leaf Blade
Baton Pass
Swords Dance
Substitute
Impish (+Def -Sp. Atk)
196 HP/252 Defense/62 Speed
Commentary: Leafon is my Baton Passer of choice. With the large amount of physical attacks around, Leafon offers a good barrier to that, as well as being able to Baton Pass. I rely on Substitute to get down to Salac Berry range, and then I'll BP to Absol, who proceeds to sweep. It can also pull off some surprise sweeping itself thanks to Salac Berry, which can certainly help out sometimes. In the case it starts sweeping, then as soon as it's faced with something it can't OHKO and won't Phaze it away, it'll BP to Absol. SubSalac is more reliable than you might think, and Leafon nicely complements this team's anti-physical oriented playstyle. It falls very quickly to special attacks, but it should get off at least 1 and maybe 2 Swords Dances, and can then proceed to SubSalac-BP. Needless to say, getting off 3 largely spells doom for the enemy. It also handles Quagsire and Gastrodon nicely.
Absol - Super Luck
Scope Lens
Me First
Assurance
Psycho Cut
Sucker Punch
Jolly (+Speed -Sp. Atk)
6 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Commentary: Absol is my favorite Poke, and if boosted, it can only be shut down by Status moves or Phaze from Pokes that resist its attacks - if Status moves are used, the opposing Poke needs to be faster or get OHKO'ed. Thanks to Stealth Rock, Assurance is 150 Power on the turn an enemy switches in. Combined with Super Luck and Scope Lens, it's safe to say that not much can survive. Me First handles nuisances such as Drapion, Steelix etc. which tend to use moves that are super-effective or hit for neutral damage on themselves when my moves have none or very little effect. Me First and Sucker Punch combined give some exciting possibilities, and if I'd have the move slot I'd add in Magic Coat, but I sadly don't. However, Absol doesn't have the Attack nor Speed to be much of a threat without boosts as it is pretty much OHKO'ed or 2KO'ed by anything except the likes of jokes like Luvdisc etc. This is its main weakness, along with its weakness to Steelix which cannot completely go away no matter what you do.
Threat List:
1. Toxicroak - This Poke has been ripping through my team, and I could really use a reliable counter for it. My problems are with the Vacuum Wave version, since the physical one is OHKO'ed by Absol as few people run Jolly with their physical versions in my experience. Sableye works sometimes but it's not a very reliable counter. Any tips?
I've not really encountered many threats except Toxicroak, but Toxicroak is really painful, so it's pretty much the only thing I need advice against (aside from general advice of course), for the moment...
Nidoqueen - Poison Point
Leftovers
Ice Beam
Toxic Spikes
Stealth Rock
Earth Power
Modest (+Sp. Atk -Attack)
40 HP/218 Defense/252 Sp. Atk
Commentary: Nidoqueen's role is to set up for the rest of the team. I made her a special attacker since Earth Power's targets, Steelix and company, take way more damage from EP rather than EQ. I'm quite happy with her, all in all. She can counter leads such as Swellow, Scyther etc. and is great for taking out Rival Nidoking. Ice Beam will OHKO Altaria and not get OHKO'ed in return, which is very helpful.
Bastiodon - Sturdy
Leftovers
Curse
Earthquake
Stone Edge
Metal Burst
Sassy (-Speed +Sp. Def)
252 HP/6 Attack/252 Sp. Def
Commentary: Bastiodon's role is to be a huge twig in the wheel for my opponent. Switched in on for example Swellow, it can use Curse once and then proceed to use Metal Burst on its unsuspecting counter - after that, if it survives with enough HP, I'll Curse more, otherwise I'll just attack. Bastiodon stops things without Fighting/Ground moves dead in their tracks, and can even survive non-boosted Close Combats (with a Curse or two) and Vacuum Waves, only to OHKO with Metal Burst. This Poke is rather hard to tackle, since anything that doesn't OHKO it will generally get OHKO'ed itself in return, because of Metal Burst. The key to defeating it is using boosted special moves that are 4x against it, such as Calm Mind-Earth power, Nasty Plot-Vacuum Wave (which will OHKO it) etc., but so far, Bastiodon has proven itself to be a reliable and solid team member.
Sableye - Keen Eye
Leftovers
Recover
Payback
Will-o-Wisp
Night Shade
Impish (+Def -Special Attack)
252 HP/176 Attack/76 Defense
Commentary: Sableye is here to counter physical sweepers. I don't always set up Toxic Spikes and when I don't, I use Will-o-Wisp which cripples many things. Will-o-Wisp + Recover allows him to outstall almost every Physical Sweeper. Because Sableye is so slow, Payback almost always becomes 150 Power, meaning that even Sableye can do some really good damage with it. Night Shade is for things such as Steelix and Pokes that resist Payback. This Poke is one of those brick walls which simply refuse to die, though people won't expect it out of a Sableye. They might keep their Hitmontop in and use Stone Edge or something and get burned in return. Then, I'll use Will-o-Wisp again just to get it on a potential switch in. If it's a switch, great! if it's not, I'll switch to Recover and start using Night Shade/Payback.
Mr. Mime - Soundproof
Choice Specs
Psychic
Hidden Power (Fighting)
Shadow Ball
Trick
Timid (+Speed -Attack)
6 HP/252 Speed/252 Sp. Atk
Commentary: Mr. Mime is my direct-action offensive punch. It's always useful, and can turn the tide of a match. It's best used against enemies that aren't full HP, since that won't generally OHKO them and Mr. Mime faints if it gets poked on in someone's imagination. Thus Toxic Spikes and Will-o-Wisp again come into use. This one always has its place in any match, and is the cornerstone of my team, since I can't really do that much direct, non-setup damage without it. It comes with the added benefit of being able to 2KO Steelix. It outruns and 2KO's Clefable as well. Switching in with something that isn't immune or resistant to Mr. Mime is difficult, and 0.5x resistances that don't have a Sp. Def to write home about will have a large chunk ripped out of them anyway, thanks to STAB Psychic.
Leafeon - Leaf Guard
Salac Berry
Leaf Blade
Baton Pass
Swords Dance
Substitute
Impish (+Def -Sp. Atk)
196 HP/252 Defense/62 Speed
Commentary: Leafon is my Baton Passer of choice. With the large amount of physical attacks around, Leafon offers a good barrier to that, as well as being able to Baton Pass. I rely on Substitute to get down to Salac Berry range, and then I'll BP to Absol, who proceeds to sweep. It can also pull off some surprise sweeping itself thanks to Salac Berry, which can certainly help out sometimes. In the case it starts sweeping, then as soon as it's faced with something it can't OHKO and won't Phaze it away, it'll BP to Absol. SubSalac is more reliable than you might think, and Leafon nicely complements this team's anti-physical oriented playstyle. It falls very quickly to special attacks, but it should get off at least 1 and maybe 2 Swords Dances, and can then proceed to SubSalac-BP. Needless to say, getting off 3 largely spells doom for the enemy. It also handles Quagsire and Gastrodon nicely.
Absol - Super Luck
Scope Lens
Me First
Assurance
Psycho Cut
Sucker Punch
Jolly (+Speed -Sp. Atk)
6 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Commentary: Absol is my favorite Poke, and if boosted, it can only be shut down by Status moves or Phaze from Pokes that resist its attacks - if Status moves are used, the opposing Poke needs to be faster or get OHKO'ed. Thanks to Stealth Rock, Assurance is 150 Power on the turn an enemy switches in. Combined with Super Luck and Scope Lens, it's safe to say that not much can survive. Me First handles nuisances such as Drapion, Steelix etc. which tend to use moves that are super-effective or hit for neutral damage on themselves when my moves have none or very little effect. Me First and Sucker Punch combined give some exciting possibilities, and if I'd have the move slot I'd add in Magic Coat, but I sadly don't. However, Absol doesn't have the Attack nor Speed to be much of a threat without boosts as it is pretty much OHKO'ed or 2KO'ed by anything except the likes of jokes like Luvdisc etc. This is its main weakness, along with its weakness to Steelix which cannot completely go away no matter what you do.
Threat List:
1. Toxicroak - This Poke has been ripping through my team, and I could really use a reliable counter for it. My problems are with the Vacuum Wave version, since the physical one is OHKO'ed by Absol as few people run Jolly with their physical versions in my experience. Sableye works sometimes but it's not a very reliable counter. Any tips?
I've not really encountered many threats except Toxicroak, but Toxicroak is really painful, so it's pretty much the only thing I need advice against (aside from general advice of course), for the moment...