Hi Smogon. It's been a really long time since I've posted a team, so forgive me if I'm a little rusty at this! Here is a team I helped a friend build a few weeks ago. I think it looks brilliant on paper, but it never seems to come out on top as often as I like. For one, it has a lot of problems with weather, and teams that have very powerful special attackers... but I'll get to that eventually. If you have a moment, please read over it and give me a suggestion or two. Thanks! 
Forretress (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Sassy Nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Volt Switch
- Spikes
- Stealth Rock
- Rapid Spin
This Forretress is the pokemon I try to lead with most often, for obvious reasons. He can set up some preliminary hazards and spin away the ones that are set up on me. More than one of Forry's teammates has a shuffling move, so having at least one level of spikes and stealth rock on the field early on is great for racking up passive damage. Volt Switch is my attacking move of choice, as it allows Forry to switch out to a teammate and keep the momentum up.
The nature and EVs provide maximum protection from attacks on both sides of the spectrum, but especially special ice and dragon. In addition to the fact that he provides Rapid Spin support, this makes Forry a great partner for my Salamence who I feel really steals the show here.
Salamence (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 18 SAtk
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Flamethrower
- Dragon Tail
- Wish
- Protect
I absolutely LOVE this set, and it is the main reason I've stuck with the team. Flamethrower and Dragon Tail provide great coverage, one move to kill pesky steels who give my poison types trouble, and one move to shuffle the opponents team and do a lot of damage in the process. It also has Wish and Protect, in order to heal itself and it teammates (mostly Forry and Drapion).
It is an absolute beast, you have to admit. With maxed out defense EVs and Intimidate, he synergizes really well with Forry and the rest of the team. Takes A TON of pressure off of my other pokemon when it comes to taking hits. He can easily switch into any physical attacker without STABed Ice or Rock attacks (and sometimes even then) to force them out.
Drapion (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Battle Armor
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SDef
Careful Nature (+SDef, -SAtk)
- Crunch
- Earthquake
- Toxic Spikes
- Whirlwind
Rounding out the defensive core, we have a bit of an oddball. Sometimes he goes down in flames, while other times he really shines. Special tank Drapion is my primary Toxic Spiker. I chose him because thanks to his Dark typing, he can absorb psychic attacks aimed at Tenta and Gengar. Crunch trolls the hell out of Magic Bounce Espion looking to reflect my entry hazards, and provides a decent STAB against other psychics like Reuniclus. Earthquake is mostly filler (trying to kill off those steels) and whirlwind is a secondary shuffling move ensuring he doesn't get set up on and to rack up passive damage. Like Forry he has no way to recover outside of his lefties, but it isn't a big deal thanks to Mence's wish. Salamence is also immune to his only weakness (ground).
Overall, he usually gets his job done, but he just can't take that many hits, even on the special side. Might be the shakiest member of the team, so I'm open to suggestions for replacements.
Gengar (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hex
- Disable
- Focus Blast
- Substitute
Next are the pokemon I have which abuse the Toxic Spikes, Gengar and Tentacruel. Substitute + Disable Gengar is standard, but mine has the added benefit of Hex and the fact that the opponent will (hopefully) be toxic'd. Stalling with substitute and disable shuts down a fair amount of pokemon that I wouldn't have an answer to otherwise. Hex it outrageously strong end game when everything is poisoned. Focus Blast provides good coverage alongside Hex and to hopefully wear down steels and bliss/chansey.
Gengar is also here because of his typing. Not only does he synergize well with drapion, he also blocks rapid spin ensuring that my hazards stay down. The Timid nature and offensive EVs are to ensure he is as fast as possible while still hitting nice and hard. Lefties over LO for longevity, especially in Sandstorm.
Tentacruel (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Clear Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Toxic Spikes
- Venoshock
The second member of my offensive duo, Tentacruel. There are a couple reasons I chose this guy. For starters, he's surprisingly fast! With max EVs and a Timid nature, this squid outspeeds every non-scarfed Glicor out there, making him a great lure and surprise killer for one of the biggest counters to this team and my end game sweeper Metagross. Secondly, he serves as a back-up Toxic Spiker. Even with Gengar on the field, my T-spikes are often absorbed by a random poison type. With T-spikes on both of these guys, I can ensure T-spikes are up MOST of the time. Finally, he an abuse the ridiculously powerful dual STABs of Hydro Pump and Venoshock.
Metagross @ Air Balloon
Trait: Clear Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Agility
- Meteor Mash
- Hammer Arm
- Zen Headbutt
Finally, my end game sweeper is an agili-gross. After the opponent's team is worn down by all my entry hazards, I should be able to come in and clean up with this guy. He synergizes really well with the rest of the team, especially Salamence. Meteor Mash and Zen Headbutt and my two STAB moves, and Hammer Arm is added for a sure-fire answer to Bliss/Chansey.
I have Air Balloon over Life Orb again, to ensure that he doesn't wear himself out too quickly and can switch into ground type attacks with a bit of temporary immunity. It's won me games a few times!
Anyway, that's the team. To summarize:
Specially defensive Forretress
Special Tank / T-spiker / Phazer Drapion
Offensive Tentacruel
Sub/Disable Gengar
Physical wish-passer Salamence
Agiligross with air balloon
The biggest problems with the team are:
- Trouble with Rain Dance teams, especially those with bulky waters that can't be poisoned, or very strong special attackers. Drapion can't handle 'em.
- I've had particular trouble with defensive Zapdos, and other pokemon that won't get poisoned and can't be dealt with by my other pokemon...
Thank you for taking the time to help! :)
Forretress (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Sassy Nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Volt Switch
- Spikes
- Stealth Rock
- Rapid Spin
This Forretress is the pokemon I try to lead with most often, for obvious reasons. He can set up some preliminary hazards and spin away the ones that are set up on me. More than one of Forry's teammates has a shuffling move, so having at least one level of spikes and stealth rock on the field early on is great for racking up passive damage. Volt Switch is my attacking move of choice, as it allows Forry to switch out to a teammate and keep the momentum up.
The nature and EVs provide maximum protection from attacks on both sides of the spectrum, but especially special ice and dragon. In addition to the fact that he provides Rapid Spin support, this makes Forry a great partner for my Salamence who I feel really steals the show here.
Salamence (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 18 SAtk
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Flamethrower
- Dragon Tail
- Wish
- Protect
I absolutely LOVE this set, and it is the main reason I've stuck with the team. Flamethrower and Dragon Tail provide great coverage, one move to kill pesky steels who give my poison types trouble, and one move to shuffle the opponents team and do a lot of damage in the process. It also has Wish and Protect, in order to heal itself and it teammates (mostly Forry and Drapion).
It is an absolute beast, you have to admit. With maxed out defense EVs and Intimidate, he synergizes really well with Forry and the rest of the team. Takes A TON of pressure off of my other pokemon when it comes to taking hits. He can easily switch into any physical attacker without STABed Ice or Rock attacks (and sometimes even then) to force them out.
Drapion (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Battle Armor
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SDef
Careful Nature (+SDef, -SAtk)
- Crunch
- Earthquake
- Toxic Spikes
- Whirlwind
Rounding out the defensive core, we have a bit of an oddball. Sometimes he goes down in flames, while other times he really shines. Special tank Drapion is my primary Toxic Spiker. I chose him because thanks to his Dark typing, he can absorb psychic attacks aimed at Tenta and Gengar. Crunch trolls the hell out of Magic Bounce Espion looking to reflect my entry hazards, and provides a decent STAB against other psychics like Reuniclus. Earthquake is mostly filler (trying to kill off those steels) and whirlwind is a secondary shuffling move ensuring he doesn't get set up on and to rack up passive damage. Like Forry he has no way to recover outside of his lefties, but it isn't a big deal thanks to Mence's wish. Salamence is also immune to his only weakness (ground).
Overall, he usually gets his job done, but he just can't take that many hits, even on the special side. Might be the shakiest member of the team, so I'm open to suggestions for replacements.
Gengar (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hex
- Disable
- Focus Blast
- Substitute
Next are the pokemon I have which abuse the Toxic Spikes, Gengar and Tentacruel. Substitute + Disable Gengar is standard, but mine has the added benefit of Hex and the fact that the opponent will (hopefully) be toxic'd. Stalling with substitute and disable shuts down a fair amount of pokemon that I wouldn't have an answer to otherwise. Hex it outrageously strong end game when everything is poisoned. Focus Blast provides good coverage alongside Hex and to hopefully wear down steels and bliss/chansey.
Gengar is also here because of his typing. Not only does he synergize well with drapion, he also blocks rapid spin ensuring that my hazards stay down. The Timid nature and offensive EVs are to ensure he is as fast as possible while still hitting nice and hard. Lefties over LO for longevity, especially in Sandstorm.
Tentacruel (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Clear Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Toxic Spikes
- Venoshock
The second member of my offensive duo, Tentacruel. There are a couple reasons I chose this guy. For starters, he's surprisingly fast! With max EVs and a Timid nature, this squid outspeeds every non-scarfed Glicor out there, making him a great lure and surprise killer for one of the biggest counters to this team and my end game sweeper Metagross. Secondly, he serves as a back-up Toxic Spiker. Even with Gengar on the field, my T-spikes are often absorbed by a random poison type. With T-spikes on both of these guys, I can ensure T-spikes are up MOST of the time. Finally, he an abuse the ridiculously powerful dual STABs of Hydro Pump and Venoshock.
Metagross @ Air Balloon
Trait: Clear Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Agility
- Meteor Mash
- Hammer Arm
- Zen Headbutt
Finally, my end game sweeper is an agili-gross. After the opponent's team is worn down by all my entry hazards, I should be able to come in and clean up with this guy. He synergizes really well with the rest of the team, especially Salamence. Meteor Mash and Zen Headbutt and my two STAB moves, and Hammer Arm is added for a sure-fire answer to Bliss/Chansey.
I have Air Balloon over Life Orb again, to ensure that he doesn't wear himself out too quickly and can switch into ground type attacks with a bit of temporary immunity. It's won me games a few times!
Anyway, that's the team. To summarize:
The biggest problems with the team are:
- Trouble with Rain Dance teams, especially those with bulky waters that can't be poisoned, or very strong special attackers. Drapion can't handle 'em.
- I've had particular trouble with defensive Zapdos, and other pokemon that won't get poisoned and can't be dealt with by my other pokemon...
Thank you for taking the time to help! :)
