I created this new team recently and I wanted to get some feedback on it. A little background first though.
I've been on Shoddy for about 3 weeks. Created my first team which was a basic attack team, 2 Special Sweepers, 2 Physical Sweepers, a Physical Tank, and a Special Tank, and I’ve been doing well, only problem is it feels like it doesn’t require as much strategy as I had hoped for. So I got to thinking why not go for a team that is not overly common and that requires a good amount of thinking. After thinking about it I created a sandstorm team. Sandstorm is nice because there are 2 pokemon that can create permanent sandstorms so I’ll go for that. Below are the members of my team and their functions.
HIPPOWDON @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EV’s: 252 HP
168 Def
88 SpD
Nature: Impish
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
- Slack Off
- Earthquake
ROLE: Sand Stream starter/physical wall
SUMMARY: Lead that gets the sandstorm going and starts stealth rock. Nice physical defense and HP along with the Special defense increase with sandstorm makes this a great dual role pokemon. Roar is used if the battle is unfavorable or for Substitute/Swords Dancers. Slack Off to recover health when I’m not in too much danger or to stall for SS damage. Earthquake works for physically weak pokemon or Fire/Rock/Steel types and is GREAT for Heatran.
PROBLEMS: One major problem I have found with Hippowdon is that I have no way of countering Flying/levitate threats. Not sure what I could do as switching out a move could potentially ruin the hippo’s synergy with the rest of the team.
TYRANITAR @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Stream
EV’s: 4 HP
252 Attack
252 Speed
Nature: Adamant
- Dragon Dance
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
ROLE: Backup Sand Stream/Physical assult
SUMMARY: Dragon Dancer with a STAB Crunch is nasty for Ghost/Psychic, Ice Punch for Dragons, and Earthquake for pretty much anything else bar Flying/Levitate pokemon. Anything fighting really wreaks this big boy bad but his attack coupled with Dragon Dance and the fact he can start another sandstorm makes him a very good candidate for my team.
PROBLEMS: Did I mention fighting hurts BAD? Forretress/Bronzong/Skarmory walls him quite well. Thinking of trading EQ for Stone Edge but the drop in accuracy might end up being bad should I miss and the opponent has a fighting type. Definitely need help on this one.
TOGEKISS @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EV’s: 252 HP
20 Def
236 Speed
Nature: Timid
- Thunder Wave
- Wish
- Encore
- Air Slash
ROLE: ParaFlinch Hax/Wish Passer/Encorer
SUMMARY: What can I say about this one? Serene Grace for 60% flinch, Thunder Wave for paralysis, Encore to allow my physical sweepers to possibly set up, and Wish for recovery for both this pokemon and the others who have none and could really use it. Special Defense is already quite high and Sandstorm helps it more. Leftovers are to counteract the sandstorm damage. Good to switch in to a grass type and start setting up. This set takes a little more prediction but so far I’ve made good use out of it.
PROBLEMS: Sometimes Wish comes one turn too late to help her out. Thunder Wave paralysis and Air Slash flinch can rack up damage but a good steel type or something with high special defense laugh at Togekiss. If I’m going to trade a pokemon out this would, begrudgingly, be my first choice.
BRONZONG @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EV’s: 252 HP
152 Att
8 Def
96 SpD
Nature: Relaxed
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
ROLE: Tank/Screen Setup and exploder
SUMMARY: Very sturdy pokemon right here. Allows me to set up my screens to help the rest of the team (which Light Clay prolongs), can take a chunk of HP away from fast pokemon who are not of the steel type with Gyro Ball, and Explosion when it has outlived it usefulness or I need a heavy hit against a threatening pokemon (DD gyarados). Light Screen and Reflect have save my hide more times than I care to count with my other team members
PROBLEM: Forretress seems to be a recurring problem to my team and he is no different here, although to be honest this guy is more of a tank so I don’t think he is in too much of a position to destroy much that isn’t faster and weak to steel attacks.
STARMIE @ Life Orb
Ability: Natural Cure
EV’s: 252 Speed
252 SpA
4 HP
Nature: Timid
- Surf
- Thunderbolt
- Rapid Spin
- Recover
ROLE: Special Attacker/Rapid Spinner
SUMMARY: Good for Fire/Ground/Rock types and Gyarados. STAB Surf and Thunderbolt for other Water types. Rapid spin to get rid of Spikes/Toxic Spikes/Stealth Rock and Recover to help with Sandstorm and Life Orb damage.
PROBLEMS: Really don’t have too much of a problem with this one. At one point was thinking of taking out Rapid Spin for Ice Beam for more coverage and taking off Ice Punch from Tyranitar for Fire Punch but I need a rapid spinner and this one fills dual roles quite nicely.
CACTURNE @ Brightpowder
Ability: Sand Veil
EV’s: 252 Att
252 Speed
4 HP
Nature: Adamant
- Substitue
- Seed Bomb
- Sucker Punch
- Focus Punch
ROLE: SubPunch/Physical Attacker.
SUMMARY: The powerhouse on my team. I know what everyone is thinking, but seriously, this guy is awesome in this kind of team. With Sand Veil and Brightpowder 100% Accuracy attacks go down to 72%. My goal is simply to set up Encore on Togekiss then bring this guy in, Sub up, then go to work. This guy has, at times, single-handedly brought down 4 pokemon in one battle and has at some points won me the game. If they attack then Sucker Punch hits hard, If they don’t then Focus Punch. Seed Bomb for Water/Ground/Rock. 115 Physical Attack is nothing to take lightly. There are some pokemon who cause me problems but it really is few and far between.
PROBLEMS: He’s slow and defensively weak. He either comes in and does a number to my opponents team or gets taken out in one shot. I REALLY like him but every now and then he can be a liability.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I like this team so far. If I can remain one step ahead of my opponent then I can wreak their team. If they get one step ahead of me then I’m pretty much screwed, because one misstep or mistake is all it takes to take down a team this fragile.
I have a fair few of weaknesses:
- Forretress can counteract a few of the members of my team and just shut them down.
- No Rapid Spin Blocker but the question is do I really need one. Stealth Rock is a nice added bonus but my Stealth Rocker is a beast of a tank so I can reapply after I take the Rapid Spinner out.
- I lack a fire type move with would make short work of Forretress and (possibly) Scizor, which seem to be more and more common anymore.
- Only one special attacker. Starmie does it’s job well but if it goes down my chances of a win are reduced.
- Trick; Although that seems to be a problem for a lot of people no matter what kind of team you have.
- Vaporeon; I HATE VAPOREON because it is difficult for my team to take out
I’d like to keep the members of my team if I could, and really DO NOT want to get rid of Cacturne simply because I feel he makes my Sandstorm team unique from other sandstorm teams. If I have to I will but I really need help on this one as I love this team but.
Some other Pokemon I was thinking of using:
Gliscor: Has Sand Veil, High Defense, and Knock Off…win/win/win in my eyes.
Skarmory: Tried him as I attempted to set up an entry hazard team but felt my team was to distracted on it’s focus and changed him out for Togekiss for more utility.
Forretress: Has Spikes, Can use both screens and rapid spin. No attacks would be a major problem though.
Swampert: Another tankish type and not too bad of a mixed sweeper.
Oh and this is my first team rate so please go gentle and try not to destroy my team too much.
I've been on Shoddy for about 3 weeks. Created my first team which was a basic attack team, 2 Special Sweepers, 2 Physical Sweepers, a Physical Tank, and a Special Tank, and I’ve been doing well, only problem is it feels like it doesn’t require as much strategy as I had hoped for. So I got to thinking why not go for a team that is not overly common and that requires a good amount of thinking. After thinking about it I created a sandstorm team. Sandstorm is nice because there are 2 pokemon that can create permanent sandstorms so I’ll go for that. Below are the members of my team and their functions.
HIPPOWDON @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EV’s: 252 HP
168 Def
88 SpD
Nature: Impish
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
- Slack Off
- Earthquake
ROLE: Sand Stream starter/physical wall
SUMMARY: Lead that gets the sandstorm going and starts stealth rock. Nice physical defense and HP along with the Special defense increase with sandstorm makes this a great dual role pokemon. Roar is used if the battle is unfavorable or for Substitute/Swords Dancers. Slack Off to recover health when I’m not in too much danger or to stall for SS damage. Earthquake works for physically weak pokemon or Fire/Rock/Steel types and is GREAT for Heatran.
PROBLEMS: One major problem I have found with Hippowdon is that I have no way of countering Flying/levitate threats. Not sure what I could do as switching out a move could potentially ruin the hippo’s synergy with the rest of the team.
TYRANITAR @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Stream
EV’s: 4 HP
252 Attack
252 Speed
Nature: Adamant
- Dragon Dance
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
ROLE: Backup Sand Stream/Physical assult
SUMMARY: Dragon Dancer with a STAB Crunch is nasty for Ghost/Psychic, Ice Punch for Dragons, and Earthquake for pretty much anything else bar Flying/Levitate pokemon. Anything fighting really wreaks this big boy bad but his attack coupled with Dragon Dance and the fact he can start another sandstorm makes him a very good candidate for my team.
PROBLEMS: Did I mention fighting hurts BAD? Forretress/Bronzong/Skarmory walls him quite well. Thinking of trading EQ for Stone Edge but the drop in accuracy might end up being bad should I miss and the opponent has a fighting type. Definitely need help on this one.
TOGEKISS @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EV’s: 252 HP
20 Def
236 Speed
Nature: Timid
- Thunder Wave
- Wish
- Encore
- Air Slash
ROLE: ParaFlinch Hax/Wish Passer/Encorer
SUMMARY: What can I say about this one? Serene Grace for 60% flinch, Thunder Wave for paralysis, Encore to allow my physical sweepers to possibly set up, and Wish for recovery for both this pokemon and the others who have none and could really use it. Special Defense is already quite high and Sandstorm helps it more. Leftovers are to counteract the sandstorm damage. Good to switch in to a grass type and start setting up. This set takes a little more prediction but so far I’ve made good use out of it.
PROBLEMS: Sometimes Wish comes one turn too late to help her out. Thunder Wave paralysis and Air Slash flinch can rack up damage but a good steel type or something with high special defense laugh at Togekiss. If I’m going to trade a pokemon out this would, begrudgingly, be my first choice.
BRONZONG @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EV’s: 252 HP
152 Att
8 Def
96 SpD
Nature: Relaxed
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Gyro Ball
- Explosion
ROLE: Tank/Screen Setup and exploder
SUMMARY: Very sturdy pokemon right here. Allows me to set up my screens to help the rest of the team (which Light Clay prolongs), can take a chunk of HP away from fast pokemon who are not of the steel type with Gyro Ball, and Explosion when it has outlived it usefulness or I need a heavy hit against a threatening pokemon (DD gyarados). Light Screen and Reflect have save my hide more times than I care to count with my other team members
PROBLEM: Forretress seems to be a recurring problem to my team and he is no different here, although to be honest this guy is more of a tank so I don’t think he is in too much of a position to destroy much that isn’t faster and weak to steel attacks.
STARMIE @ Life Orb
Ability: Natural Cure
EV’s: 252 Speed
252 SpA
4 HP
Nature: Timid
- Surf
- Thunderbolt
- Rapid Spin
- Recover
ROLE: Special Attacker/Rapid Spinner
SUMMARY: Good for Fire/Ground/Rock types and Gyarados. STAB Surf and Thunderbolt for other Water types. Rapid spin to get rid of Spikes/Toxic Spikes/Stealth Rock and Recover to help with Sandstorm and Life Orb damage.
PROBLEMS: Really don’t have too much of a problem with this one. At one point was thinking of taking out Rapid Spin for Ice Beam for more coverage and taking off Ice Punch from Tyranitar for Fire Punch but I need a rapid spinner and this one fills dual roles quite nicely.
CACTURNE @ Brightpowder
Ability: Sand Veil
EV’s: 252 Att
252 Speed
4 HP
Nature: Adamant
- Substitue
- Seed Bomb
- Sucker Punch
- Focus Punch
ROLE: SubPunch/Physical Attacker.
SUMMARY: The powerhouse on my team. I know what everyone is thinking, but seriously, this guy is awesome in this kind of team. With Sand Veil and Brightpowder 100% Accuracy attacks go down to 72%. My goal is simply to set up Encore on Togekiss then bring this guy in, Sub up, then go to work. This guy has, at times, single-handedly brought down 4 pokemon in one battle and has at some points won me the game. If they attack then Sucker Punch hits hard, If they don’t then Focus Punch. Seed Bomb for Water/Ground/Rock. 115 Physical Attack is nothing to take lightly. There are some pokemon who cause me problems but it really is few and far between.
PROBLEMS: He’s slow and defensively weak. He either comes in and does a number to my opponents team or gets taken out in one shot. I REALLY like him but every now and then he can be a liability.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I like this team so far. If I can remain one step ahead of my opponent then I can wreak their team. If they get one step ahead of me then I’m pretty much screwed, because one misstep or mistake is all it takes to take down a team this fragile.
I have a fair few of weaknesses:
- Forretress can counteract a few of the members of my team and just shut them down.
- No Rapid Spin Blocker but the question is do I really need one. Stealth Rock is a nice added bonus but my Stealth Rocker is a beast of a tank so I can reapply after I take the Rapid Spinner out.
- I lack a fire type move with would make short work of Forretress and (possibly) Scizor, which seem to be more and more common anymore.
- Only one special attacker. Starmie does it’s job well but if it goes down my chances of a win are reduced.
- Trick; Although that seems to be a problem for a lot of people no matter what kind of team you have.
- Vaporeon; I HATE VAPOREON because it is difficult for my team to take out
I’d like to keep the members of my team if I could, and really DO NOT want to get rid of Cacturne simply because I feel he makes my Sandstorm team unique from other sandstorm teams. If I have to I will but I really need help on this one as I love this team but.
Some other Pokemon I was thinking of using:
Gliscor: Has Sand Veil, High Defense, and Knock Off…win/win/win in my eyes.
Skarmory: Tried him as I attempted to set up an entry hazard team but felt my team was to distracted on it’s focus and changed him out for Togekiss for more utility.
Forretress: Has Spikes, Can use both screens and rapid spin. No attacks would be a major problem though.
Swampert: Another tankish type and not too bad of a mixed sweeper.
Oh and this is my first team rate so please go gentle and try not to destroy my team too much.