SM OU OU Team! Building a Balanced Team

[vignesha18]

Hi People,
Currently new to the entire smogon scene, I have been trying to build a solid OU Team. All suggestions are welcome!!
I have kept a fairly offensive team only because I am still not used to the situational set up plays!

1. First of all the Mega! It is amazing how diverse Mega - Venusaur is majorly thanks to its ability Thick Fat!
I have Earthquake to hit an unsuspecting Heatran and HP Fire to hit Mega Scizor and Kartana. Have been able to anticipate and hit a lot of them.
Also Sludge Bomb is super useful and is 2HKO against Mega Charizard Y and Pelipper whose flying moves are scary

Truly weak only against Psychics like Tapu Lele (Sludge Bomb knocks it out if no scarf) and Alakazam!

Venusaur-Mega @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll / Thick Fat
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Rash Nature
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]

2. The Pivot! I almost always start with Incineroar and use Fake Out to take a grip on the opposition's team.
Generally Switch Out to Landorus-Therian to further cut out the opponent's attack stat.

Drain Punch is useful to hit pesky Tyranitar and Terrakion.

Incineroar (M) @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Darkest Lariat
- Drain Punch
- Flare Blitz
- Fake Out

3. The Double Pivot!
Landorus is extremely useful in clearing entry hazards and Yache Berry is not usually used on a Landorus and helps take a Ice Type Hit which is its only weakness.
I keep switching between Stealth Rock / Toxic and have had similar success with both. Knock Off and Earthquake hit hard and can sweep late game.

Landorus-Therian @ Yache Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Defog
- Knock Off
- Stealth Rock

4. Magaerna is bulky as hell. A calculated switch can help you set up and continue sweeping until the end of the game.
Aura Sphere helps chip away at Blissey and Ferrothorn and can surprise Kartana.

Magearna @ Leftovers
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aura Sphere
- Dazzling Gleam
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

5. I love Primarina's typing and its exceptionally high SpA! Hyper Voice bypasses substitutes and Ice Beam handles pesky Dragons.
Leftover + Aqua Ring ends up recovering a lot of HP which is needed to compensate for its low Speed Stat.

Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Liquid Voice
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hyper Voice
- Ice Beam
- Moonblast
- Aqua Ring

6. The Damager!
Tapu Koko hits hard especially with Thunderbolt. I do not want Electrium Z because of the tendency to bring in Ground Type in Pokemon against Tapu Koko.
I rarely use the fourth attack (Iron Head) and have been trying to come up with the most useful one. Suggestions?

Tapu Koko @ Fairium Z
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Iron Head
- Dazzling Gleam
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch

 

[DrPumpkinz]

Incineroar (M) @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Darkest Lariat
- Drain Punch
- Flare Blitz
- Fake Out

First, I would replace Darkest Lariat with Knock Off. Knock Off has more power the first time it's used on a given Pokemon, as well as more utility by removing held items (the utility is the big selling point here). Darkest Lariat ignoring the opponent's defense boosts isn't particularly useful, as the only Pokemon that commonly does that is Reuniclus, and Reuniclus isn't particularly common itself.

Second, Drain Punch. You say it's for "pesky Tyranitar", but literally your entire team has some way of threatening T-tar, so I question how useful it really is. I would replace is with Earthquake to threaten Toxapex. Darkest Lariat could also work if you really hate Reuniclus.

Finally, Fake Out. Fake Out isn't nearly as useful in Singles as it is in Doubles. Thus, I would replace it with U-turn to aid in pivoting.

Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Liquid Voice
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hyper Voice
- Ice Beam
- Moonblast
- Aqua Ring

Right off the bat, you should definitely change Liquid Voice to Torrent, and replace Hyper Voice with either Sparkling Aria (for consistency and going through subs), Scald (for burns), or Hydro Pump (for extra power). Liquid Hyper Voice has almost no place in Singles, as Sparkling Aria already does what Hyper Voice does, but with the occasional Torrent boost (you don't really have to worry about Sparkling Aria curing burns if your only method of inflicting them is Flare Blitz's 10% chance).

You say Ice Beam is for Dragons, but Moonblast takes care of those already, so consider changing this to either Hidden Power Fire for Ferrothorn or Psychic for Toxapex. Ice Beam is still nice for some Grass types like Tapu Bulu and Tangrowth, however, so it's fine if you keep it.

Aqua Ring, on the other hand, has to go. The health gain is just too minuscule, and it wastes a turn setting up that could have been used blasting something. Definitely replace this with either Hidden Power Fire or Psychic.

apu Koko @ Fairium Z
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Iron Head
- Dazzling Gleam
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch

You have several options for use over Iron Head. The most obvious is U-turn, for a pivoting move that isn't blocked by Ground types. You also have Hidden Power, either Ice for Landorus, or Fire for Ferrothorn. You could also go with Taunt for some utility.

If you don't replace Iron Head with U-turn, also consider replacing Volt Switch with U-turn. It's not nearly as strong, but not being blocked by Ground types can be very important in some situations. If you want your Koko to be a sweeping Koko, you could also go with Calm Mind in this slot, trading pivoting utility for more power.

Here's the importable:

Hide

Venusaur-Mega @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Rash Nature
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Incineroar @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Earthquake / Darkest Lariat
- Flare Blitz
- U-turn

Landorus-Therian @ Yache Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Defog
- Knock Off
- Stealth Rock

Magearna @ Leftovers
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aura Sphere
- Dazzling Gleam
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sparkling Aria / Scald / Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam / Hidden Power [Fire] / Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire] / Psychic

Tapu Koko @ Fairium Z
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn / Hidden Power [Ice] / Hidden Power [Fire] / Taunt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch / U-turn / Calm Mind

 

[vignesha18]

First, I would replace Darkest Lariat with Knock Off. Knock Off has more power the first time it's used on a given Pokemon, as well as more utility by removing held items (the utility is the big selling point here). Darkest Lariat ignoring the opponent's defense boosts isn't particularly useful, as the only Pokemon that commonly does that is Reuniclus, and Reuniclus isn't particularly common itself.

Second, Drain Punch. You say it's for "pesky Tyranitar", but literally your entire team has some way of threatening T-tar, so I question how useful it really is. I would replace is with Earthquake to threaten Toxapex. Darkest Lariat could also work if you really hate Reuniclus.

Finally, Fake Out. Fake Out isn't nearly as useful in Singles as it is in Doubles. Thus, I would replace it with U-turn to aid in pivoting.


Right off the bat, you should definitely change Liquid Voice to Torrent, and replace Hyper Voice with either Sparkling Aria (for consistency and going through subs), Scald (for burns), or Hydro Pump (for extra power). Liquid Hyper Voice has almost no place in Singles, as Sparkling Aria already does what Hyper Voice does, but with the occasional Torrent boost (you don't really have to worry about Sparkling Aria curing burns if your only method of inflicting them is Flare Blitz's 10% chance).

You say Ice Beam is for Dragons, but Moonblast takes care of those already, so consider changing this to either Hidden Power Fire for Ferrothorn or Psychic for Toxapex. Ice Beam is still nice for some Grass types like Tapu Bulu and Tangrowth, however, so it's fine if you keep it.

Aqua Ring, on the other hand, has to go. The health gain is just too minuscule, and it wastes a turn setting up that could have been used blasting something. Definitely replace this with either Hidden Power Fire or Psychic.


You have several options for use over Iron Head. The most obvious is U-turn, for a pivoting move that isn't blocked by Ground types. You also have Hidden Power, either Ice for Landorus, or Fire for Ferrothorn. You could also go with Taunt for some utility.

If you don't replace Iron Head with U-turn, also consider replacing Volt Switch with U-turn. It's not nearly as strong, but not being blocked by Ground types can be very important in some situations. If you want your Koko to be a sweeping Koko, you could also go with Calm Mind in this slot, trading pivoting utility for more power.

Here's the importable:

Hide

Venusaur-Mega @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Rash Nature
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Incineroar @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Earthquake / Darkest Lariat
- Flare Blitz
- U-turn

Landorus-Therian @ Yache Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Defog
- Knock Off
- Stealth Rock

Magearna @ Leftovers
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Aura Sphere
- Dazzling Gleam
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sparkling Aria / Scald / Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam / Hidden Power [Fire] / Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire] / Psychic

Tapu Koko @ Fairium Z
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn / Hidden Power [Ice] / Hidden Power [Fire] / Taunt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch / U-turn / Calm Mind

Thanks a Ton! Will play with these changes for a couple of days!

Cheers!!

 

[TheTapDancer]

This honestly reads like you've come from a doubles background, and this has given you a skewed perspective on a few things.

1. Mega-Venusaur is great, but fast offensive isn't going to work out. You're going to take too much damage from your switchins, and it's not difficult to switch in on Venusaur. Tornadus is everywhere, and although it doesn't appreciate a sludge bomb it's going to outspeed and kill you every time. I'd run either a defensive set like on the Smogon page, or a 248 HP / 252 SpA Modest set if you want surprise damage. Either way, it really needs either Synthesis or Leech Seed or it's going to go down in no time at all, as there's a lot of Giga Drain checks in the meta.

Your pivots aren't really pivots. With no reliable recovery or pivoting moves, they're just slow intimidators, which aren't going to pivot on any special or setup threat.

2. Incineroar just isn't very good. Intimidate doesn't make up for its rock weakness, lack of power, and lack of speed. It's also going to take extreme damage from any Z-move user or any specs user, and dies in one hit to most of the metagames stronger threats like Greninja. That, and Fake Out just isn't a very good move - it's coming off of a low attack, it's predictable, and allows for easy pivoting into hazard setters or rocky helmet users like Tornadus who can threaten you back.

3. Yache Landorus is a good set, but with these EVs you're not going to survive Ice attacks anyway. A little more bulk would be better, especially on your rocker. I also wouldn't advise both Defog and Stealth Rock on the same set, and would almost always advise using U-turn on Landorus.

Overall, if you're looking for bulky pivots, Landorus is good, but Tornadus, Rotom-Wash, AV Tangrowth, Gliscor, AV Magerna, Shuca Berry Tapu Koko, AV Bulu and Jirachi can all outperform Incineroar.

4. I see no reason not to run Shift Gear or Trick Room on your Magearna. It just makes it so much harder to revenge kill. Additionally Fleur Cannon is a much better move than Dazzling Gleam, especially if the plan isn't really to sweep. It also makes Magearna a much better Fairium Z user than Tapu Koko.

5. Primarina is actually pretty interesting in the current meta as something that can lure Magearna's checks and damage them, but leftovers+aqua ring isn't nearly bulky enough to handle the Electric and Grass type threats of OU. Specs is probably the only remotely viable Primarina set in OU, and if you want a bulky water/fairy, you'd be doing better with Tapu Fini or Sap Sipper Azumarill.

6. Tapu Koko can use defog in its fourth slot, but as a rule:
U-turn is better than Volt Switch, as it allows you to pivot on ground type switchins.
Fairy STAB isn't very valuable - Hidden Power Ice lets you predict and hit Landorus and Garchomp on the switchin.

Overall though, I just don't see how this team plans to win. You don't have any speed control, you basically lose if volcarona clicks quiver dance, and you don't seem to have a proactive plan. To succeed in OU you either need a serious aggressive plan or a defensive core that can handle the key threats of the metagame, and this team doesn't really have either. I'm not convinced this can really be salvaged without going back to the drawing board.

 

[vignesha18]

Yes.... I am coming in from a Decent Run in the Doubles Format!
You are also spot on with me having problems with Tornadus specifically.

For now I will stick to this team as I am still figuring things out and thing things through.

And try to run in with your suggestions and see how things go! :)

 

[StepC]

Hello!

I state that it is very difficult to ratify your team, given that there are 3 mons who have difficulty in being played in the current metagame.

Plus I will focus on the core to make the team quite decent.

• Weaknesses:

Needless to indicate the substantial weaknesses that the team has, but know that to play you should rely on a few samples, to understand the mechanics and then maybe guess the building skills to fix something.
It's not a criticism, but everyone started like this :)

• Major Changes:

>>>
Venusaur leaves you too exposed to weaknesses like M-Zam and the usual special attackers.
In addition to having better reliability on special attackers and Rotom users as a pivot.
I prefer to play it with Giga Drain, the necessary stab against Gastrodon and Water Type to recover energy.
Knock Off is for 2HKO M-Zam and remove items from Heatran.
HP Ice is to avoid being sweepped by Gliscor or Garchomp.
Sludge Bomb is for check SD Bulu n Fairy Types in general, otherside u could poison Tornadus n M-Lati.

>>>

Unfortunately the 7th gen starter is not playable in OU, there are better checks for Scarftana and you get on the physical attackers, as well as on Heatran himself.
Garchomp as Setter is the one who would go to tup at random. The defensive set with the EQ stab allows you to kill Heatran, Magearna and steel in general.
Toxic is for its revenue such as Rotom, Tangrow, Zapdos and Tapu Bulu.
Finally I would use Fire Blast to get more coverage on M-Scizor and Kartana.

>>>

you need a better wallbreaker!
CharX is for you
The set with 3 Atks allows you to have a huge offensive power.
I prefer DClaw to Outrage to kill Kyurem and other possible walls for the team without getting stuck on the same move.
You have others measures for Quag and Pyuk.

• Minor Changes:

It is the best set that can be proposed in the synergy of the team.
Stone Edge prefer it to Explosion for Volcarona (if played bulky) and Tornadus.
HP Ice used exclusively for your opponent's Lando-T.

If you prefer that set for Magearna you have to play it with Fairium Z in a complementary way with CM and Pain Split.
In this way it turns out to be dangerous even against the most bulky threats (Chansey, Tang and Ferro).

In this way, Tapu Koko helps against hazard setters like Toxa and Ninja better supporting Defogger.
Roost is for recovering on the revenue avoiding to go down in range of M-Pinsir and Lucha.
U-Turn is increasingly implementing work as a pivot for CharX.

• Optional:

Since Tapu Koko turns out to be essential against Spikes setters and you have good measurements vs Scarf Lando, you could use Defog instead of the last HP Ice slot on lando to split the pressure.

• New Threats:

Lele is absolutely broken for your team, relying only on Magearna you wouldn't have much chance in the long run.

and

Can definitely hurt the team whenever they enter.
The fact of not having heavy checks that can recover exposes you to these types of wallbreakers.

The Team

https://pokepast.es/c9d0638381986f07

• Conclusion

The team is decidedly intuitive to use with an offensive core that does considerable damage, I suggest you evaluate the predict and use the pivot sparingly to be able to use CharX free hits.

I hope I have been helpful, good luck and have fun :)

Your Step​