Hello! I hate to be a bother to anyone, but I recently picked up the idea of competitive Pokémon, and I thought that perhaps I’d give it a shot. Turns out, however, that building a team was extremely difficult. There were so many times where I had to stop and change the team over and over again simply because I’d run face first into a glaring flaw in my team’s overall design. It was rather frustrating, but at last I finally have a product that doesn’t look like it’s completely terrible on paper. Do I think it’s perfect? Far from it, I’m sure, but that’s why I’m here. Everyone here is far more experienced at competitive Pokémon than I am, so it would be a mistake to not ask for advice from the experts.
Operation: Desert Storm
As one should be able to tell from a quick glance from the team preview, this team is built around Sandstorm. I tried my best to have my team support and thrive while a sandstorm is active, allowing for some of my major threats to take advantage of teams. A simple game plan, really, simply set up Excadrill to clean through an enemy team. That’s the name of this team’s endgame.
Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 216 SpD / 40 Spe
Careful Nature
- Rock Blast
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Earthquake
As any sandstorm team requires, I needed to choose a Pokémon with Sand Stream as an ability to easily and freely set up Sandstorm for the rest of my team to thrive. Ultimately I chose Tyranitar to be the man for the job. The set is fairly self explanatory, Rock Blast is nice STAB, though it can be somewhat unreliable due to the random nature of the move, Earthquake offers nice coverage alongside the Rock-Type STAB, Stealth Rocks are a must for any team worth their salt, so this was an obvious addition to this more supportive, bulky Pokemon, and finally, I rounded out the set with Thunder Wave, thanks to paralysis crippling potential major threats.
Excadrill @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
Now, we have the star of the show. Our “win condition” is none other than Excadrill, who, with Sand Rush, hits a ridiculous speed tier that is practically unmatched, as well as some rather horrifying power to boot. Ultimately, the name of the game is to get Excadrill in safely, while under the effects of a sandstorm to pick off the remnants of a severely weakened team. Earthquake and Iron Headare the most obvious choices for STAB available to Excadrill, Swords Dance, if we can safely get it off, allows us to cleave through Pokémon, and finally, Rapid Spin is here for additional hazard control, though it is worth noting that Excadrill is not the main spinner or defogger, which leads me to consider if running something else, such as Rock Slide, in this slot would be a wise choice or not.
Dracozolt @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 120 Atk / 136 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Bolt Beak
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Dracozolt is an amazing wallbreaker for this team, thanks to its natural power boosted alongside the fact that this amalgamation somehow also has Sand Rush. The other massive upside to using Dracozolt is the fact that it’s a mixed wallbreaker, allowing for us to handle all sorts of threats with ease. On the physical side of the spectrum, Bolt Beak is actually nuts, allowing for double base power if we go first, which, given the fact that we have Sand Rush, is easy to do given we aren’t out prioritized, and Earthquake allows us to answer steels and rocks with ease. On the special side, we have Draco Meteor for special STAB, and Fire Blast to catch some possible answers off guard. Overall, Dracozolt is an absolute menace and nightmare to switch into.
Kommo-o @ Life Orb
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 96 Atk / 160 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Clanging Scales
- Close Combat
- Poison Jab
- Flamethrower
There’s nothing that I like more than to include at least one Pokémon on a team that isn’t the norm to see. Bringing a Pokémon like Kommo-o into OU was rather interesting, as ultimately I don’t believe that it is all that bad, from my own experience so far. Originally, I was using a mixed wallbreaker Garchomp in this spot, but I wasn’t finding much success with it, so I decided to try and think outside of the box a little. This was the result. Knowing that doing something like this as a beginner is likely a terrible idea, but I went through with it nevertheless. The set is rather self explanatory, break open a hole in the opponent’s team so that Excadrill can clean up later. Clangorous Scales is a fantastic STAB, especially because I don’t force myself to lock into Outrage for several turns, and pairing this with STAB Close Combat means that Kommo-o can easily cleave through teams. The remaining moves available to Kommo-o are for general coverage, those, of course, being Poison Jab and Flamethrower. The best part about Kommo-o, which was what pushed me to give it a try to begin with, was the fact that Kommo-o has Overcoat, meaning that any chip damage from sandstorm that would normally shorten the longevity even further of the powerhouse is negated.
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Defog
- Roost
- U-turn
- Brave Bird
Finally, I wanted to make sure that this team had some sort of defensive backbone to it. Enter the first half of that backbone, Corviknight. The set, again, is fairly self explanatory. Defog is fantastic for hazard control, meaning that Corviknight is not only our primary physical tank, but also our primary defogger. Roost is key for sustainability throughout a battle. U-Turn is amazing for this team, as having the ability to pivot between my defensive Pokémon easily is not only a wonderful trait, but this also allows me tk possibly send in a Pokémon safely, which is critical for this team to succeed. Finally, Brave Bird is STAB that prevents this Pokémon from being taunt fodder.
Slowking @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
Sassy Nature
- Scald
- Slack Off
- Future Sight
- Teleport
Behold the most innovative set come to mankind. It’s Slowbro, but with special defense instead of physical defense. Truly we have reached the pinnacle of modern genius. In all seriousness though, Slowking is a fantastic teammate to have. Having a special tank that’s not named Tyranitar is wonderful, as I don’t need to risk losing one of the most important parts of the team, and Slowking has done a good job so far. Scald is a fantastic STAB that can cripple physical attacking threats, Slack Off is wonderful to have in conjunction with Regenerator, allowing for Slowking to be very healthy throughout the fight, Future Sight is interesting, as not only is it very powerful, but it only makes switching into Dracozolt and Kommo-o even more difficult, and, of course, Teleport is there for slow, safe switch ins for our powerful threats.
Conclusion
So, that’s what I have to share with you today. I recognize the fact that this is likely a flawed team in one way or another, so I ask of those who take the time to read through this and get this far to give me a suggestion as to how to improve the team. Any and all advice will be acceptable, no matter how small or drastic the change may be. Thank you for your time, and I hope you all have a lovely rest of your day.
Operation: Desert Storm
As one should be able to tell from a quick glance from the team preview, this team is built around Sandstorm. I tried my best to have my team support and thrive while a sandstorm is active, allowing for some of my major threats to take advantage of teams. A simple game plan, really, simply set up Excadrill to clean through an enemy team. That’s the name of this team’s endgame.
Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 216 SpD / 40 Spe
Careful Nature
- Rock Blast
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Earthquake
As any sandstorm team requires, I needed to choose a Pokémon with Sand Stream as an ability to easily and freely set up Sandstorm for the rest of my team to thrive. Ultimately I chose Tyranitar to be the man for the job. The set is fairly self explanatory, Rock Blast is nice STAB, though it can be somewhat unreliable due to the random nature of the move, Earthquake offers nice coverage alongside the Rock-Type STAB, Stealth Rocks are a must for any team worth their salt, so this was an obvious addition to this more supportive, bulky Pokemon, and finally, I rounded out the set with Thunder Wave, thanks to paralysis crippling potential major threats.
Excadrill @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
Now, we have the star of the show. Our “win condition” is none other than Excadrill, who, with Sand Rush, hits a ridiculous speed tier that is practically unmatched, as well as some rather horrifying power to boot. Ultimately, the name of the game is to get Excadrill in safely, while under the effects of a sandstorm to pick off the remnants of a severely weakened team. Earthquake and Iron Headare the most obvious choices for STAB available to Excadrill, Swords Dance, if we can safely get it off, allows us to cleave through Pokémon, and finally, Rapid Spin is here for additional hazard control, though it is worth noting that Excadrill is not the main spinner or defogger, which leads me to consider if running something else, such as Rock Slide, in this slot would be a wise choice or not.
Dracozolt @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 120 Atk / 136 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Bolt Beak
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Dracozolt is an amazing wallbreaker for this team, thanks to its natural power boosted alongside the fact that this amalgamation somehow also has Sand Rush. The other massive upside to using Dracozolt is the fact that it’s a mixed wallbreaker, allowing for us to handle all sorts of threats with ease. On the physical side of the spectrum, Bolt Beak is actually nuts, allowing for double base power if we go first, which, given the fact that we have Sand Rush, is easy to do given we aren’t out prioritized, and Earthquake allows us to answer steels and rocks with ease. On the special side, we have Draco Meteor for special STAB, and Fire Blast to catch some possible answers off guard. Overall, Dracozolt is an absolute menace and nightmare to switch into.
Kommo-o @ Life Orb
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 96 Atk / 160 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Clanging Scales
- Close Combat
- Poison Jab
- Flamethrower
There’s nothing that I like more than to include at least one Pokémon on a team that isn’t the norm to see. Bringing a Pokémon like Kommo-o into OU was rather interesting, as ultimately I don’t believe that it is all that bad, from my own experience so far. Originally, I was using a mixed wallbreaker Garchomp in this spot, but I wasn’t finding much success with it, so I decided to try and think outside of the box a little. This was the result. Knowing that doing something like this as a beginner is likely a terrible idea, but I went through with it nevertheless. The set is rather self explanatory, break open a hole in the opponent’s team so that Excadrill can clean up later. Clangorous Scales is a fantastic STAB, especially because I don’t force myself to lock into Outrage for several turns, and pairing this with STAB Close Combat means that Kommo-o can easily cleave through teams. The remaining moves available to Kommo-o are for general coverage, those, of course, being Poison Jab and Flamethrower. The best part about Kommo-o, which was what pushed me to give it a try to begin with, was the fact that Kommo-o has Overcoat, meaning that any chip damage from sandstorm that would normally shorten the longevity even further of the powerhouse is negated.
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Defog
- Roost
- U-turn
- Brave Bird
Finally, I wanted to make sure that this team had some sort of defensive backbone to it. Enter the first half of that backbone, Corviknight. The set, again, is fairly self explanatory. Defog is fantastic for hazard control, meaning that Corviknight is not only our primary physical tank, but also our primary defogger. Roost is key for sustainability throughout a battle. U-Turn is amazing for this team, as having the ability to pivot between my defensive Pokémon easily is not only a wonderful trait, but this also allows me tk possibly send in a Pokémon safely, which is critical for this team to succeed. Finally, Brave Bird is STAB that prevents this Pokémon from being taunt fodder.
Slowking @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
Sassy Nature
- Scald
- Slack Off
- Future Sight
- Teleport
Behold the most innovative set come to mankind. It’s Slowbro, but with special defense instead of physical defense. Truly we have reached the pinnacle of modern genius. In all seriousness though, Slowking is a fantastic teammate to have. Having a special tank that’s not named Tyranitar is wonderful, as I don’t need to risk losing one of the most important parts of the team, and Slowking has done a good job so far. Scald is a fantastic STAB that can cripple physical attacking threats, Slack Off is wonderful to have in conjunction with Regenerator, allowing for Slowking to be very healthy throughout the fight, Future Sight is interesting, as not only is it very powerful, but it only makes switching into Dracozolt and Kommo-o even more difficult, and, of course, Teleport is there for slow, safe switch ins for our powerful threats.
Conclusion
So, that’s what I have to share with you today. I recognize the fact that this is likely a flawed team in one way or another, so I ask of those who take the time to read through this and get this far to give me a suggestion as to how to improve the team. Any and all advice will be acceptable, no matter how small or drastic the change may be. Thank you for your time, and I hope you all have a lovely rest of your day.
