Project [Old] OU Matchmaking

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Approved and taken over from Leo || hosted by curiosity || fantastic banner by T-Lukke

What is Matchmaking?

Similarly to matchmaking in the real world, OU matchmaking is a project designed to find the best partner for a certain pokemon.

How does it work?

Every week, I will post a pokemon for you to find the ideal partner for. The partner that you nominate should be limited to pokemon listed on the OU Viability Rankings, but exceptions can be made by simply asking me - either by PM'ing me or simply leaving a message on my wall. Your submission must include a description as to why your nomination is the best option for a partner. At the end of each cycle, I will give some feedback on the submissions and will be added to the archive.


Rules

  • Your submission must be listed on the OU Viability rankings unless permission is given by myself. Your submission must include a description as to why your nomination is the best partner for the listed Pokemon.
  • Your description must be more than one sentence long. Please elaborate on why it does well with the chosen pokemon. Please also include the set in question!
  • You may only enter one submission per week unless given permission by myself.
  • Do not post submissions that have either been reserved or have been posted. However, you may take or reserve a set of a post if the reservation has not been altered for over 24 hours.
  • Finally, please do not post one-liners. It honestly looks bad and it's also against the forum rules. Try to avoid double-posting if possible, because that's also against the forum rules.
    • Also, you shouldn't take this too seriously. It's a forum project, designed to give you something to do if you're bored, so have fun while posting!
 
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Submission Archives

Week 1
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note: duplicate mons rule was not explicitly mentioned, hence two Bulu's



Week 2
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Week 3
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Week 4:
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Week 5:
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Week 6:
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Week 7:
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Week 7:
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Week 8:
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Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Toxic


Our first cycle begins with Heatran, is undeniably one of OU's most dominant threats! From its incredible defensive typing, unparalleled stallbreaking and trapping capabilities and possesses limited flaws. However, these flaws - including it's glaring ground weakness and lack of recovery - can be easily exploited. Can you find a partner that can take advantage of its various advantages and niches or will you find a partner that fixes its minimal flaws? Deadline is Saturday 5th of May. Happy Posting!
 

Tapu Bulu @ Life Orb
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Substitute
- Horn Leech
- Superpower

SubSD Bulu is a fantastic partner for Heatran for a number of reasons. Firstly it appreciates the removal of bulky Grass and Steel-types this set struggles to break, such as Scizor, Tangrowth and Celesteela, Heatran also resists Ice, Flying and Steel, as well as possessing an immunity to Bulu's other weaknesses in Fire and Poison. In return Bulu resists Ground, Fighting and Water-types, so they perfectly cover each others weaknesses. Grassy Terrain also gives Heatran passive recovery and makes Earthquake much more manageable. These two break down pretty much all defensive cores and teams, but needed to be paired with something more anti-offense to beat things like Pinsir and Flyinium Z Landorus-T.
 
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Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Water Shuriken
- Spikes

If you toss 2 of the better pokemon in OU together chances are it will work, and heatran + ashgren is no exception. Heatran comes in on a lot of the bulky grasses that threaten ashgren while the frog can easily revenge kill a number of the ground type threats that might cause tran grief. Additionally, they can work together to pressure bulky waters (except fini zzz) through a combination of toxic + spikes to facilitate easier wallbreaking for tran or a sweep for ashgren. Overall a fantastic pairing that can pressure most playstyles quite easily
Bonus points for the fact that half the (lower) ladder players instinctively go pex on tran, get trapped by magma and taunted and proceed to die to a couple of earth powers.
 
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Koko
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Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Dazzling Gleam
- Hidden Power Ice / Grass Knot
Tapu Koko and Heatran work well with each other for a lot of reasons. Heatran obliterates all of Kokos checks except for Gastrodon and Swampert. Heatran can also wear down Ground-types for Koko, allowing it to spam Volt Switch safley.
Koko, on the other hand, gives Heatran opportunities to come in with Volt Switch luring in Grass-types. Koko also has a great matchup against Offense, a team archetype where Heatran can struggle.
 
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Felixx

I'm back.

Keldeo-Resolute @ Waterium Z
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Taunt

Taunt CM Keldeo + Heatran forms a double Toxapex harasser core, with Keldeo threatening bulky grounds like Lando and Zygarde with a strong Hydro Pump/Vortex, and also dealing with Ash-Gren, while Tran can threaten Bulu, which unlike Tang and Amoonguss, Keldeo can't overpower with CM.
 
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Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 244 HP / 44 Def / 68 SpD / 152 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
- Roost
- Swords Dance / Taunt

Heatran's lack of investment in SpA means that it can be stalled by Mega Sableye, who will also Knock Off its Leftovers while wasting Magma Storm's PP with Protect and Recover. Gliscor is added to remedy this problem as Gliscor doesn't care about anything Mega Sableye does while it can boost up to threaten the opposing fat team who struggles to damage it. Taunt is also a viable alternative to shut down fatter teams at the cost of being locked into a PP war with Sableye.
 
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Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock / Calm Mind
- Soft-Boiled
- Moonblast
- Wish

Clefable is a great partner for Heatran as it can check many Fighting-types in the tier such as M-Loppuny and M-Medicham, as well as Zygarde, which is a massive pain for Heatran. Clefable also packs Wish support for Heatran to make up for the lack of recovery outside of lefties. In the other hand, Heatran can check the likes of Ferrothorn, M-Scizor and Celesteela for Clefable, while trapping and dealing with Chansey and Toxapex, which can stop a CM sweep.
 
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Tapu Bulu @ Assault Vest
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 60 Atk / 56 SpD / 144 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Horn Leech
- Wood Hammer
- Nature's Madness
- Superpower
Bulu synergies really well with heatran for the same reason of sd but it trades its wallbreaking power for the ability to check ashninja, psyspam, koko better
 

Latias @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Healing Wish
- Defog

Heatran appreciates Latias support in a number of ways. For one, it has a complimentary typing alongside as it resists or is immune to literally every typing Heatran is weak to - it resists Water (it can reliably switch into Keldeo and Rotom Wash) and Fighting (its a softcheck to Mega Medicham, Hawlucha and Mega Lopunny) and it's immune to Ground (can switch into Zygarde lacking Outrage and generally just creates 50/50s for Ground types that wanna click Earthquake). Secondly, Heatran absolutely loves Healing Wish support as Heatran is pretty easy to wear down as it relies on Leftovers for recovery, meaning it can only switch in to the mons its supposed to check like Lele and Offensive Magearna a few times. With Healing Wish, you get it all the way back to full minus hazards so it can continue to do its job for longer. Finally, it has Defog to remove annoying hazards that really reduce Heatran's longevity if they're up.
 
First and foremost, i'd like to apologise for the confusing rules, as I forgot to change them after copy-pasting them from the Next Best Thing. My Bad. I've updated the rules, so if have any questions, feel free to PM me or leave a message on my wall and I will be happy to ask you.

so basically these are just going to be a mini-weekly metagame discussion posts based around the case study of the week.

(both
and
)

Bulu is undebatably that's right I can create words one of Heatran's partner's, and this week, we've been showcased how diverse bulu can be as a partner for heatran. Offenively, both complement each other's checks, with Bulu being able to remove Waters and Grounds for Heatran while Heatran traps and removes steels with ease, while slowly chipping away at shared checks, including the ever present mega Lati@s, opposing Heatran and Zygarde. The AV is almost the perfect defensive partner for Heatran - being able to invalidate a large majority in the tier, with the only downside being the notable weakness to fightinium Lele and Mamoswine. Overall it's pretty cool.


Greninja is subjectively the best partner for Heatran. Objectively, it is one of the best offensive partners for Heatran, as they share similar checks - notably bulky waters. While I believe Z Heatran is the better offensive partner for Greninja, utility tran is still an excellent partner. Trading the ability to put immediate offensive pressure on balance for the ability to act as a more consistent stallbreaker, as well as recovery and higher bulk. This is especially important against the stall matchup, as the semi-reliable recovery and bulk allows it to take on Chansey and Toxapex with much more ease, especially considering that Scald and Seismic Toss does considerably less to the utility variants.


Will complete later, but for now here's Zygarde. Go ham, due in on Tuesday.
 
Mega Pinsir.
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Pinsir-Mega @ Pinsirite
Ability: Hyper Cutter
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Return
- Swords Dance
- Quick Attack
- Earthquake
Mega Pinsir + Zygarde is an amazing offensive core. Pinsir destroys anything that can switch in on Zygarde including, but not limited to: Tapu Bulu, Clefable, Lando, and Mega Scizor.
For Zygarde, there’s are two routes you can take. If you are using Choice Band, Zygarde can destroy the only switchins to Pinsir: Rotom-W, Skarmory, Celesteela, and Zapdos. If you are running a sweeping set, Zygarde can use these mons with the exception of Rotom-W as setup fodder.
 
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Scizor @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 124 Def / 16 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Roost

or

Scizor @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Defog
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Roost

Set doesn't really matter, although I tend to opt for SD recently since it's really good in the meta. Common answers to Zygarde rn are Grasses (like AV Bulu and AV Tangrowth), Landorus and bulky Fairies (Clefable, Tapu Fini and Tapu Bulu again). Mega Scizor comes into the majority of these Pokemon and can gain momentum. U-turn is absolutely necessary since it means once you have come in on one of the aforementioned Pokemon, you can U-turn back out into Zygarde and continue to apply pressure to the opposing team. There are some things to watch out for though - Flamethrower Clefable, while rare, poses a threat to this core. HP Fire Tangrowth is also a problem, as is Fini and Shuca Koko. But, overall this is still a really solid pairing.
 
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Felixx

I'm back.

Tornadus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Defog

CB Zygarde's wallbreaking is hindered by Bulu, Tang, Clef, and Lando, but luckily for Zygarde, Torn is able to switch into all those threats, and is even able to Defog Clef and Lando's rocks away. Torn also provides momentum with U-turn, safely bringing in Zygarde against threats like Heatran and Zapdos and start spamming Thousand Arrows. Additionally, Torn can Knock Off an opposing Koko's Shuca/Specs on the switch, letting Zygarde beat it.
 
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another excellent cylce! i'm planning something really big so don't be alarmed if something comes out of the blue. anyways, I was wondering if I should change this into a weekly voting system, as it might be easier for everyone to post (and me not to forget about lmao). anyways, for the time being, i'll leave this here by saying that this cycle's case study is:


Mamoswine @ Metronome
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Icicle Crash
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Knock Off


happy posting!
 
<3
<3


Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power Fire
- Flash Cannon
- Volt Switch


(other sets work too, run electrium or w.e if that floats ur boat but scarf can trap kart)
Magnezone is a straightforward yet solid partner for mamoswine. Most of the mammoth's best checks are steel types (e.g. msciz, ferro, celesteela) and mag can trap and remove these. This allows swine to spam its powerful stab moves with ease. It also can remove kart which might be tempted to revenge kill mamo. In return, Mamoswine can punish some of the mons that enjoy switching in on magnezone, particularly electrics and bulky grounds. Overall quite a solid pairing
 
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Koko.
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Tapu Koko @ Choice Specs
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Dazzling Gleam
Tapu Koko is a great partner for Mamoswine. Pretty much anything that can check Tapu Koko except for Ferrothorn and Quagsire get stomped on by Mamoswine. Tapu Koko lures them, Volt Switches or double switches to Mamoswine for a free hit. Tapu Koko also helps Mamoswine with its poor offense matchup.
 
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Gyarados @ Waterium Z
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Bounce
- Aqua Tail
- Earthquake

When people see a Gyarados in Team Preview, they will normally assume it will be carrying Flyinium Z, which cause them to be more willing to sac their Grass-types to Mamoswine before Gyarados comes into play. Gyarados also loves to set up on things like Mega Scizor, Celesteela, and Choice-locked Pokemon (such as Keldeo and Greninja). A +1 Hydro Vortex allows Gyarados to plough through things like Celesteela, Skarmory (does 70% upwards) and Zapdos, especially late-game. Waterfall can be used over Aqua Tail but the drop in power in the Z-move is significant.
 

Martin

A monoid in the category of endofunctors
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Landorus-T @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 216 Def / 44 Spe
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Stealth Rock
- Hidden Power [Ice] / Toxic

OR: Scarf (bulky or otherwise)
OR: Offensive
OR: … actually probably not lead

You could replace this with basically any Lando-T set TBH, but the main things that Mamoswine offers are shared checks (alongside offensive Lando sets) and a neutrality to HP Ice, which is helpful vs Koko and means that there is less pressure put onto Lando to serve as the sole Volt Switch immunity. Good Core TBH
 
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Hello, before I begin, I'd like to apologise for the relative inactivity of this thread. I'll touch on this towards the bottom of this post.

To begin, I'd like to express my gratitude to T-Lukke who has made this incredible banner for this project (see below or the OP)! Please, do check out his / her stuff both here and on deviantart and don't forget to welcome him / her to our lovely community! On behalf of everyone here, we really hope you enjoy your stay in this community!

1526527414008.png

yeah i'm sorry this is too good to put in a hide.


Okay, now to the part you don't want to read, or as a certain few put it curi's absolute bs.
I'm sorry for keeping this thread relatively inactive. It is entirely my fault that this gets rarely gets updated. I'll be frank, i'm not too sure how to operate this one. Maybe it's the timeframe allocated, or maybe it's the formatting. I don't know. But whatever this ""problem"" may be, I promise I will keep this updated much more frequently (as long as you like all my posts) anyways, i'm still working on a few things so the giant comments posts will not be here anytime soon, but I hope to do that in the meantime.



Anyways, another fantastic cycle as always.

Tornadus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Defog

This week's bachelor is Tornadus! Tornadus has seen a surge in usage ever since the advent of usm, where it has become one of the most splashable and versatile mons in the tier. Can you findthe perfect partner for our feathered bachelor? Deadline is Saturday the 19th of May. Happy Posting!
 
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Gross Sweep

Plan Ahead
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Gastrodon-East @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Scald
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Recover

Tornadus-T is a Pokémon that demands a solid switch in to strong Electric Pokémon like Zapdos and Tapu Koko, as both come in pretty freely on Tornadus-T and apply pressure. Tornadus-T also finds itself struggling with Pokémon that manage to surpass its impressive speed tier (375); a prime example of this is Greninja. With this in mind it starts to become clear as to why Gastrodon is a great partner for Tornadus-T as the slug switches into all three fairly comfortably, only fearing the stray Grass Knot from Greninja or Tapu Koko. It is important to note that Gastrodon has great defensive typing only being weak to Grass, and Tornadus-T comes in on most Grass types safely threatening them with Hurricane (though it should be noted Stone Edge on Tapu bulu is rising in popularity just a bit to try and combat this core). Another helpful factor Gastrodon has going for it is that it spreads status through Toxic and Scald, which helps wear down teams for Tornadus-T. Gastrodon is also a decent Heatran Switch in, which non Superpower Tornadus-T invites in. I mention this because in the current USUM OU landscape Heatran is one of the most annoying mons to switch into, so Gastrodon helping with that switch in is a major help for team building in general. Gastrodon also really dislikes Toxic Spikes, and Tornadus-Therian is a solid form of Hazard Removal that is unaffected by Toxic Spikes allowing Tornadus-T to keep them off the field efficiently helping Gastrodon stay healthy throughout the entierty of the match. Overall Gastrodon + Tornadus-T is a solid pairing that cover each other’s weaknesses well.


Featured Replay: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen7ou-362100

I want to illustrate the effectiveness of this core by sharing a replay from SPL Finals. The game features Gondra vs Trosko, with Gondra using the featured core. Throughout the game Trosko tries to apply pressure with his Koko, but is shut down by Gastrodon every time. Gastrodon forces Trosko to either double out with his Koko or risk switching around with Gastrodon threatening whatever comes in with Status by way of Toxic or Scald. Trosko also has a Heatran that comes in on Tornadus-Therian several times, but thanks to Gastrodon (and the fact it’s Stealth Rock and not a Toxic variant) it is shut down for the most part helping out Gondra. Eventually the Gastrodon is sacked off in this game, but only after is shows why it is such a great partner for Tornadus-T by shutting down Koko and helping keep Heatran in check. I feel this game is a great example of how solid these two mons are paired together, showcasing their synergy about as well as any one game can.
 
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Amoonguss @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 96 Def / 160 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Stomping Tantrum

Amoonguss and Tornadus-T form a very potent defensive regen core (u'd most likely run Rocky Helmet Tornadus-T alongside AV Amoonguss.). They check a lot of the same Pokemon, making it very hard for Pokemon like Kartana and Tapu Bulu to overwhelm these sort of teams. However, they also provide counterplay to some of each other's checks. Amoonguss helps Tornadus-T by checking Pokemon such as Tapu Koko and Ash-Greninja, which are a major annoyance to Tornadus-T. It can also "lure" (it's not really a surprise factor anymore) Heatran with the combination of Sludge Bomb and Stomping Tantrum. Tornadus-T can help against Pokemon like Mega Venusaur and Mega Gallade, it also generally helps with bulky Pokemon as most of them don't want to get hit by a Knock Off. This core has a pretty obvious weakness to Ice-types, which makes Pokemon like Mega Slowbro or Gastrodon good partners.​
 
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Felixx

I'm back.

Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Dark Pulse
- Hydro Pump
- Water Shuriken
- Spikes

Ash-Gren is able to stack Spikes for Tornadus to weaken their shared checks in Mag, Ferro, and Pex, while Tornadus will Knock Off Mag's AV, and Ferro and Pex's Lefties. Torn is also be able to pivot in Ash-Gren with U-turn against Heatran and Ttar while also dealing with mons like Keld, and other grasses like Tapu Bulu, Tangrowth, and an offensive check to Scarf Kartana. These two do stack an electric weakness, however.
 
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