OU [Straight Offense]

[LuistheNinja]

Introduction: Offensive Play style is said to be quick and made for impacient people, whoever said that is probably right. I've tried all types of teams including Baton Pass and Stall but I couldnt handle it because I used BP before I should and Stall was too boring. Offensive Bulk was ok, but I setted up the sweeper before it was time to do so. So, here I am going back to Straight Offense, it works for me atleast.

Team at a Glance:

At a Glance: At a glance we can see we have 1 Stealth Rock weakness, 2 pokemon immune to the SS Damage, 1 Pokemon immune to the Hail Damage, 3 Pokemon immune to Spikes damage, 4 Pokemon immune to Toxic Spikes. We have 2 Fast Special Attackers (Azelf and Latias) 2 Slow but powerful Physical Attackers (Mamoswine and Heracross) and two verstaile Defensive pokemon (Rotom-W and Empoleon).

The Team:​

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• Nickname: BlooLink
• Item: Choice Specs
• Ability: Flash Fire
• EVs: 4 HP/252 Spd/252 SAtk
• Nature: Timid (+Spd, -Atk)
• Moveset:
  • Psychic
  • Grass Knot
  • Flamethrower
  • Trick

Opinion: Ah, Azelf. I've used it as a lead before and it worked, but as time passed it became really popular and along with popularity prediction came by, ruinning it. This Azelf is really powerful, taking down most of the common leads like: Swampert, Metagross and Infernape. It can be saved for lates to revenge kill or cripple walls.

Move Selection:

• Psychic: The power behind this move is not insane, but due to the STAB incresing the power, it becomes a great move. It can score some 2HKO's even when it doesnt hit for SE damage. It also deals fir Infernape.
• Grass Knot: Deals with thigs like Gyarados, Hipo and m,ost notably one of my most hated pokes: Swampert. Else than that it gives some coverage while hitting Tyranitar somehow hard.
• Flamethrower: Deals with other leads, and my only way to get around with the Steel pokemon including Bronzong and Metagross, the later a now common lead.
• Trick: We all know how it works, once you are done its used to cripple an opponent forcing it to only one attack, a perfect exmaple is loling at an SpecsBliss, Cresselia or Tyranitar.

• Nickname: OrangeLaundry
• Item: Leftovers
• Ability: Levitate
• EVs: 252 HP/ 204 Def/ 52 SpDef
• Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
• Moveset:
  • Rest
  • Sleep Talk
  • Discharge
  • Hydro Pump

Opinion: Dirty Laundry? Tired of all those Toasters? Need a Status Absorber? No walls in your team? Scizor is a problem? Here is the solution to all your problems! This rotom form works wonders Water + Electric gives a nice covergae all around, Grass types do wall it but they arent much of a problem for the team. As said at the begining the Rotom-Wash does alot for me while taking and spreading status it also deals some damage in the way.

Move Selection:

• Rest: Prevents status, this way I can absorb it. Not only that, but its Rotom's only way of recovering some HP. Since I was using Rotom as a wall I thought it was vital to have a recovery move.
• Sleep Talk: Basic stuff, along with rest there is always Sleep Talk or a Chesto Berry the later being not so common, with Sleep Talk and enough luck Rotom becomes a pain in the ass.
• Discharge: The move provies a reliable STAB, having some power and the 30% Para is really neat, as most of the team benefits from it, being the wall Rotom is it will be paralyzing alot of stuff.
• Hydro Pump: Back at my days with Rotom-H I kept being walled or atleast annoyed by Heatran, Hydro Pump not only covers that but with Discharge gives a nice coverage, and a high powered move.

• Nickname: BrownPiggy
• Item: Choice Band
• Ability: Snow Cloack
• EVs: 252 HP/ 252 Atk/ 4 Spd
• Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)
• Moveset:
  • Ice Shard
  • Earthquake
  • Ice Fang
  • Stone Edge

Opinion: Lol you cant deny it, Mamoswine has a piggy nose. Else than that he works as my revenge killer, with all that attack and the addition of the Choice Band, close to nothing stands in its way. As said before Grass types are not a problem due to this guy, Mamoswine kills most of them, but Celebi. Else than that he also deals a great deal of damage to all those DDcers.

Move Selection:

• Ise Shard: The move is a great assest because of Mamoswine's low speed but high attack, with Ice Shard Mamoswine can kill other sweeper who are already set up.
• Earthquake: One of the most powerful and used moves in the game, no doubt it should be in the moveset, backed up by STAB Earthquake deals alot of damage to anything that doesnt resist or is immune to it.
• Ice Fang: Somewhat of a filler, is an alternative to a physical Ice STAB, if I can count with Rotom's Para then using Ice Fang will be better.
• Stone Edge: My only and best way to get through Zapdos and Gyara, both being vital to be taken down, it also deals some damage to Scizor and Heracross.

• Nickname: Bugster
• Item: Choice Scarf
• Ability: Guts
• EVs: 4 HP/ 252 Atk/ 252 Spd
• Nature: Jolly (+Spd, -SpAtk)
• Moveset:
  • Megahorn
  • Close Combat
  • Stone Edge
  • Sleep Talk

Opinion: Standard ScarfHera, as said in the description the team is focused on the offense and Heracross continues to do the job that Mamoswine started, attacking with raw power to anything standing in its way. I noticed the team had a SS weakness, Heracross solves that while being a revenge killer on the way.

Move Selection:

• Megahorn: STAB move that gets in the way of some walls, specially Cresselia, deals damage even when hitting for Neutral.
• Close Combat: Second STAB move, which gives even more coverage hitting some revenges killes for nasrty damage things like: Weavile, Heatran, Lucario, and Tyranitar.
• Stone Edge: Only way to hit Flying pokemon, or else they would be huge trouble for Heracross, if Mamo didnt manage to kill them Heracross will atempt to do so.
• Sleep Talk: It does seem like an awkward move on a Choiced Pokemon, however with it Heracross can take a Sleep Inducing move and activate guts, and even with it attack.

• Nickname: DancingKing
• Item: Leftovers
• Ability: Torrent
• EVs: 252 HP/ 164 Def/ 92 SpDef
• Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
• Moveset:
  • Stealth Rock
  • Surf
  • Ice Beam
  • Knock Off

Opinion: Somewhat of a filler, I needed a Steel pokemon since I had voth a Dragon and an Ice weakness, Empoleon seemed to fit perfectly since its the only steel capable of walling Kingdra. I made it a more defensive type since I had only 1 defensive Pokemon.

Move Selection:

• Stealth Rock: I needed an enttry hazard since the team had the lack of it, Empoleon had access to it so I decid to go for it!
• Surf: Rather common, its the STAB move with enough power do hurt the opponent in the meantime.
• Ice Beam: Gives decent coverage along with Surf, most notably is would be the only way to get through Kingdra as long as its stuck into Outrage.
• Knock Off: Once the opponent notices Empoleon is Special oriented they will probably bring their special wall hopefully Blissey, loosing their Leftovers will really hurt giving and easier sweep for the rest of the team.

• Nickname: Red Jet
• Item: Life Orb
• Ability: Levitate
• EVs: 4 HP/ 252 SpAtk/ 252 Spd
• Nature: Timid (+Spd, -Atk)
• Moveset:
  • Calm Mind
  • Dragon Pulse
  • Hidden Power [Fire]
  • Surf

Opinion: I know it happened long ago but... Yay! for Latias becoming OU! ^^ I just love to use it, its power and speed make it a valuable sweeper, not to mention it can also become a wall, staller, etc is really versatile becoming unpredictable until you do the first move. After the team has weakned the opponent, paralyzed, or anything else Latias comes as a Late game sweeper to deal with everything standing in its way.

Move Selection:

• Calm Mind: Even with Latias' splendid SpAtk, a boost is always welcomed, the SpDef boost is not bad either in the end it might be helpful.
• Dragon Pulse: Ah, Dragon Pulse. My STAB move resisted by nothing but Steel type, with it I can hurt all of the pokes.
• Hidden Power [Fire]: Along with Dragon Pulse is a perfect combination resisted by no pokemon on the game but Heatran. It also pack a 1HKO on Scizor even with no CM boost.
• Surf: The final hit, not only gives coverage all around but its a base 95 attack move that hits Heatran (who walls the set) and other threats like Tyranitar or Gliscor for SE damage.

Final Backbew: First of all, thanks for reading so far. The team has some weakness hoepfully covered by each other probably I skipped some that I havent noticed so if you are able to find them please let me know. Else than that I think everything else is covered within the Thread.

 

[nick12]

I find that purely offensive teams with a lot of Choiced pokemon will suffer greatly when something like a CBTar comes in on a resisted attack, and gets a free turn to nail something hard. All of your pokemon get 1HKO'd or 2HKO'd by this pokemon as well. Maybe a bulky hard hitter like RestTalk Machamp would help? Sorry if its not much of a rate, but I have to go somewhere in like 5 minutes.

p.s. Where did you find those sprites? they're awesome.

 

[wildfire393]

This team suffers from the same problem that a lot of "full offense" teams suffer from: You have a lot of Pokemon who can get locked into an move at an inopportune time, allowing the opponent the ability to come in, set up, and proceed to sweep through your team. Particularly, you appear to be weak to Swords Dance Lucario that packs Crunch as its coverage move. Close Combat punches holes through Mamoswine and Empoleon, and he will always outspeed Mamo since you're Adamant (most Lucario are Adamant themselves, so a Jolly Mamo has a good chance of outspeeding). +2 Extremspeed does a real number on Heracross, Azelf, and Latias, and +2 Crunch rips Rotom a new one. He also has many chances to come in: Azelf's Grass Knot, Mamo or Hera's Stone Edge, resting Rotom. DD Gyarados poses a similar problem.

To help remedy this problem (and patch your team up a little), I'd suggest the following changes:

1) Replace Azelf. That or change him. TrickScarf is much better on a lead, with Stealth Rock somewhere on him as well. If you don't need Rocks on a lead, at least pick a lead that can punish opponents who try to Rock. I'd really suggest replacing him however. Lead Metagross is a common choice for offensive teams.
2) Mamoswine should be Jolly. Additionally, you should run Superpower over Ice Fang. Ice Fang isn't that much more powerful than Ice Shard, and Superpower gives you an option against Skarmory and Bronzong.
3) Rotom should be ScarfRotom-H. This covers your Lucario weakness and makes you less vulnerable to Gyarados as well, as he is a fairly hard counter to Gyara. Also helps against Scizor. This thing is too good. My only regret upon using one in a team is that I can't use two.
4) Empoleon should be changed or replaced. You are supposed to be pure offense here, and Empoleon is definitely running a supporting set. I'd suggest something Mixed so that SkarmBliss doesn't just wall you indefinitely. NP Mixape is a common suggestion, as is MixMence. I personally like Mixed Hustle Togekiss, but it's up to you really.
5) Latias needs Recover somewhere, especially with Life Orb. I suggest dropping either HP Fire or Surf. Yes, it reduces your coverage a little, but remember that HP Fire gives you an imperfect Speed IV, meaning you lose the tie to other Latias and Gengar. Otherwise, Life Orb + Sandstorm + Stealth Rock kills you pretty quickly.
6) Scarf Heracross seems underwhelming. You really need to bring him in on a Toxic or Will-o-wisp to get his damage output decent, and he is continually walled by good prediction. I suggest replacing him with a more utility Choice user, such as Flygon (U-Turn), Tyranitar (Pursuit), Metagross (Bullet Punch), or Scizor (all three).

 

[Scofield]

hmm, I like this team but as previously stated, there are way too many choiced items. I'd replace empoleon with swampert, as that generally fills many holes/weaknesses, like on most offensive teams. I'd also like to drop azelf altogether, and move mamo or pert to the starting spot (change mamo to the LO or focus sash version). Then we can replace Azelf with something that can actually stat up and sweep (how do you not have that on an offensive team!) like Kingdra. And now you have a nice type chart, can easily sweep, and only 1 choice item. You might even want to try out a screen on rotom to aid your goals.

 

[Peachfuzz]

Tyranitar seems to do quite a number on this team without any reliable switch-ins to any of it's moves. Tyranitar can come in on a lot of things and bash something hard. The Swampert scofield suggested seems good over Empoleon with Stealth Rock/Surf/Earthquake/Ice Beam.

I also noticed that this team, being an offensive team, cannot really break walls. The lack of a stat up sweeper, strong mixed attacker, or a powerhouse like Choice Band Salamence worries me. All your pokes are very easily walled. I strongly suggest a MixMence with Draco Meteor/Fire Blast/Earthquake/Outrage with an EV spread from the Smogon analysis to help remedy this problem. Using Salamence over Rotom-w will still help with the Lucario/Gyarados problem that Rotom sort of covers with Intimidate. Salamence can also help remove counters and weaken the steel pokemon that stop Latias.

Speaking of Latias, go with Recover over Hidden Power (Fire). Latias needs the ability to last throughout the entire match.

The loss of Rotom as a sleep absorber is helped by Sleep Talk on Heracross (though sleep seems pretty uncommon in this metagame). Actually, I don't think Sleep Talk is necessary at all. Try Pursuit to help remove Blissey from the game that would otherwise stop the Latias sweep.

And as much as I'd love it to have it, Azelf has Flash Fire as an ability...

 

[Bakachild]

It's a decent team but I could already tell you have problems with pokemon who set up due the number of choice users you have. Two problematic pokemon I see that could do a number to this team would Tyranitar, CB or DD, it will be problematic but I see CB being a problem as a whole. The other problem would be Adamant DD Gyarados. The standard versions would really give it a problem because like I mentioned, there are too many attacks it could come in too and set up. You will end up switching in and out a number of times and with entry hazard on the field it will be a problem. Also one major problem that you will face on the ladder would be Stall Teams. You don't have enough "Wall Breaking" or "Stall breaking" to penetrate through Stall teams, which good players usually play with. Now that I stated your glaring weaknesses, I will give out a few pointers to handle these guys.

I really think a standard Azelf would be appropriate in place of Specs because CB Tyranitar easily destroys you and a number of bulky leads can pretty much handle it. I suggest using the standard Azelf or use a different trick Azelf. Placing SR on the lead will make life easier for Empoleon because outside Empoleon's set, it is easily set up by a number of threats. If you really want to utilize trick Azelf try Trick / Stealth Rock / U-Turn / Psychic, although it is less effective and someone like Jirachi could perform it better. U-turn is a must to get out of Tyranitar's pursuit. I find Sleep Talk Rotom to be a decent move set. You could try Scarfing it 44 HP / 212 SpA / 252 Speed at a Modest nature. With the moveset Thunderbolt / Shadow Ball / Trick / Overheat. You will handle Lucario and Scizor which could be problematic, Swords Dance version. It will also handle Gyarados that try to DD in-front of your pokemon. You outspeed it at Modest nature and if you want to outspeed it you could try Timid. Overheat could be used in place of Will-O-Wisp to cripple Tyranitars. Trick gives you a beaming hope to destroy Stall Teams and "cripple them" especially Blissey's who generally switch in to Rotom. On Mamoswine you could change the EV spread to this:

Mamoswine @ Choice Band
EV: 64 HP / 252 Atk / 192 Spe
Adamant / Jolly

-Earthquake
-Ice Shard
-Ice Fang
-Stone Edge

You have a selection between Adamant or Jolly. If you choose Jolly you go with 252 Atk / 252 Speed to outspeed neutral Lucario and not allow it to set up on you. If you plan to use Adamant, this EV spread will outspeed Jolly Tyranitar while having the bulk with extra 64 HP Ev. You know how your movesets work. On Heracross, it is a decent pokemon. I still see it being overshadowed by Scizor. Scizor can do a number Heracross can't. It handles all Weavile versions possible which is another forgotten threat to this team. It also handles Mamoswine and a number of others because of great typing and offensive threat. I suggest trying the standard CB set with 252 HP / 252 Atk / 6 Speed and Bullet Punch / U-Turn / Super Power / Gengar. 252 HP is to cushion attacks and what seperates Heracross from Scizor is that it can handle and threaten Gengar which is also a problem (not too big). It also handles Tyranitar which is a huge problem I stated earlier. Another option in place of Empoleon if you plan to put Stealth Rock on Azelf (which would probably best) is adding Heatran.

Heatran @ Leftovers
Naive
EV: 6 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Speed

Substitute
Fire Blast
Earth Power
Toxic

I still see this fitting in because it had no ray of hope to penetrate through Stall Teams. Even at Subpetaya set it still gets walled by Blissey and has a hard time ripping apart stall teams. This is perfect because of Toxic. Scarf would be another option but it would be bad due to the number of choice users you have. This guy adds another fire switch in to utilize Scizors x4 weakness to fire and Mamoswine's fire weakness. Substitute is something you'll be using a lot to force steel types out and use Toxic Stall to take advantage of this. Standard Blissey will never beat you 1v1. With that being said, it is a great team. For more wall breaking oppurtunities, try a MixMence in place of Latias. It wouldn't be a good idea but its something you might slip in if you lack the ability to shed through Stall Teams.

 

[panamaxis]

Latias definitely wants recovery, so drop hp fire for recover (surf should do enough to scizor anyway). By the looks of your team, you're going to have a hard time breaking stall if you don't successfully trick the blissey. I'd personally go with Life Orb > choice band on mamo, otherwise you're just gonna let something dangerous set up like lucario, who can actually run through your team currently if it gets an SD (latias may survive an ES at full health, dunno, but odds are it won't be at full health).

I'd personally change to rotom-H and use scarf (with overheat) to cover lucario, while still covering gyarados, then you can can change empoleon into metagross or bronzong and lead with it (you definitely want SR up ASAP and empoleon is not the best SRer anyway).

Hope I helped

 

[Kefky]

I find Roar more useful than Knock Off on my defensive Empoleon. It could save you against a Baton Pass team, and it makes you immune to Ninjask leads, making one of your opponent's Pokémon completely useless and giving you the advantage.

It helps against DD Kingdra as well.

 

[LuistheNinja]

@Scofield: Thanks alot for your rating! Kingdra, was originally on the team but with 2 Dragons and only 1 Steel I had a harsh time dealing with Dragon types, hopefully I can make it fit on the team.

@Peachfuzz: Yeah, I did notice my HUGE Tyranitar weakness that is why Heracross is around, with Jolly and Choice Scarf even Max speed Tyranitar won't outrun me after a DD.
I will probably change Azelf for Swampert, I am realizing I do need it.
Flash Fire Azelf! Woops! I copied from a Heatran sorry for that...

@Grimmjow: Hum...Lead Azelf doesnt fit on the team as much as I would like, however the Heatran seems to be a good addition to deal with other stallers aswell as being rather unpredictable, I will try it out.

@Panamaxis: Thanks for rating! I really thought you had a team rating badge, sorry about that. Anyways, Latias doesnt need recover since latias is not oriented as a Defensive set but a more Offensive one, trying to hit everything ASAP.
Rotom-W is needed, Rotom-H forces me to switch after using Overheat once, and I want it to stay in battle as long as possible.
About the Lucario wekaness, I am probably adding Gliscor in Mamoswine's Spot.
@Kefka: I must say... you are obsolutelly right! Roar would've been a better obtion but I'm probably changing Empoleon for a Skarmory since I might benefit from the Spikes.

Thank you all!