Tournament OU Team Rating Competition V5 - Round 3

Status
Not open for further replies.

Gross Sweep

Plan Ahead
is a CAP Contributoris a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus




Approved by esteemed RMT Leader IronBullet
Hosts: Gross Sweep | TPP | Anish | Simia

Welcome to the latest edition of the Team Rater Competition! The tier this time around will be SM OU. For each round we'll post a team, and participants will have one week to complete a rate of said team. When the round is over, the participants who submitted the best rates will move onto the next round. If you are eliminated and want to receive feedback on your rate, the hosts will be more than happy to provide that upon request. Each round will last one week. Failure to rate the team within the one week time period will result in disqualification unless you're able to give us a valid reason. Please only sign up if you can commit to rating one team every week for the next month. If you're currently involved in or are looking to start rating OU teams, I highly encourage you to participate as this promises to be a great learning experience. Here's to a fun and competitive tournament!

Important notes:
  • Shoutouts in the room intro of the RMT room and in RMT news
  • The rates in the final two rounds will count towards the Team Rater
  • The winner will be awarded voice status in the RMT room on PS if they have shown an interest in getting involved.
  • Each round will last one week. Failure to rate the team within the one week time period will result in disqualification unless you're able to give us a valid reason. Please only sign up if you can commit to rating one team every week for the next month.
  • If you are eliminated and would like some feedback on your rate and how you can improve going forward, feel free to ask us.
  • At the end of each round, we will announce the best rate from that round and a quick overview of what we liked in the rates submitted.
Deadline will be June 16th 11:59 PM EST.

PM your rate to Gross Sweep TPP Anish Simia

Participants:
Jordy
DragonKnightmaster
Felixx
Ske Mask The Slump God
vso
Indigo Plateau
Baloor
mellowyellowhd
A
 

Gross Sweep

Plan Ahead
is a CAP Contributoris a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus

So I started this build around Hawlucha. It is one of the strongest late game sweepers in the meta, so I really wanted to focus a team around it. Strong stabs, Roost for recovery, and Swords Dance to boost power summarize the move set.


I went with Tapu Koko as my second pokemon since I need the electric terrain to give Hawlucha an easy access to Unburden. I went with a specs set since it makes Koko hit as hard as possible. Thunderbolt and Dazzling Gleam are strong stabs, HP Ice is for coverage, and Volt Switch is a great momentum grab.


The next Pokemon I went with was Heatran. Heatran is amazing in the current meta, and it provides me with a solid fire resist, and Tapu Lele switch in. Magma Storm, Taunt, and Earth Power let Heatran help vs fatter teams. The final move I added was Stealth Rock since I need them for chip to help put things in range for Hawlucha.


The next mon I added was Landorus-t. I went with a scarf set since I needed the speed control. Landorus-T also gives me a solid defogger since opposing hazards can get annoying. Earthquake is strong stab, U-turn is a great momentum grab, HP Ice helps with opposing Landorus-T and the always annoying Zygarde.


I decided upon Tangrowth since I really needed an electric resist, and was missing a water resist at this point. Went with an AV set to boost SpDef. Knock Off helps by removing items. Earthquake helps lure things like Heatran. Giga Drain is good stab with extra recovery to go with Regenerator. HP Ice helps sure up the match up vs Zygarde.


My last Pokemon was M-Latios. M-Latios gives me a good Heatran answer. HP Fire is to stomp on Kartana. Psychic is a cool stab. Finally Roost is good Recovery to keep Latios healthy throughout the game.
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

Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Taunt
- Earth Power
- Stealth Rock

Hawlucha @ Electric Seed
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 96 HP / 252 Atk / 36 SpD / 124 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Acrobatics
- Swords Dance
- High Jump Kick
- Roost

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 80 HP / 148 Atk / 84 Def / 196 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Defog

Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 28 Def / 228 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake

Latios-Mega (M) @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
IVs: 30 Atk
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Earthquake
- Roost
 

Gross Sweep

Plan Ahead
is a CAP Contributoris a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
As we approach the halfway point of round 3, it's time to highlight some of the best rates from r2. Two rates that really stuck out were done by Baloor and Indigo Plateau (in no particular order).

Baloor starts off his rate by breaking down threats to the team, specifically the lack of Ground type that was a huge issue. He starts his changes off by replacing Kartana with Choice Scarf Landorus. This is a solid change as it keeps up speed control, while providing the team with the pivotal electric immunity it needed. His next change was adding M-Latios over Tornadus-Therian. This change gave the team a much more solid check vs common threats, while also getting an increase in breaking power vs threats like Zapdos and Toxapex helping clear the way for a Gyarados sweep. The rate was finished off with small set changes to Tapu Bulu and Heatran helping improve a few match ups.

Round 2 Original Team:

----------------------------------------------------------------------
RED = Threat
BLUE
= Suggestion

Sup bro, quite a nice team you got. Gyarados is a very underrated mon in the current meta, and is personally one of my favorites to use (I have written a write up on him before). It follows the basic team building checklist quite nicely, however there is some issues I noticed. First off, your team lacks a ground type, this allows electric types such as Tapu Koko and Zapdos to run through your team. This is definitely the biggest problem as of this moment. The team itself has a hard team beating fat teams as it does not have a dedicated wallbreaker. The team also struggles vs sweepers such as Mega Pinsir and Volcarona. Some Kartana sets can also pose as a threat to the team. A mon that has seen a rise in usage and can be a pain for the team is Mega Latios, the mon really puts some strain on the defensive backbone. However I have some suggestions that can help the team in these matchups.

Major Changes:

->


The first change I am suggesting is Scarf Lando > Scarf Kartana. Scarf Lando provides the team with a electric immunity which was pressuring the team beforehand. Lando also puts pressure on mons such as Mega Latios because you outrun it with a scarf and can pivot out. Lastly, Lando can revenge kill Mega Pinsir with stone edge which annoyed the team. With stone edge on our Lando, he can revenge kill Volcarona in some cases. This also supplies us with a form of hazard removal, as the next change is removing the current hazard remover. I would suggest Earthquake / U - Turn / Stone Edge / Defog, however, you can play around with the set a bit. The suggested EV spread is 80 HP / 148 Atk / 84 Def / 196 Spe with a Naive Nature.

->

This is the last of the big changes. I am suggesting Mega Latios > Tornadus-Therian. This change gives the team a wallbreaker, which it was lacking. Mega Latios helps Mega Gyarados break through some of its more common checks such as grasses and Zapdos. Mega Latios also helps the team break Toxapex. I have HP Fire on Mega Latios to help in the matchup vs Kartana. A moveset of Earthquake / Psychic / HP Fire / Recover is what I would recommend as well as the EVs being 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe with a Naive Nature.

Options / Minor Changes:


Stone Edge > Natures Madness on Tapu Bulu can catch a Volcarona off guard, especially as this is the only mon on the team it can freely set up on.


Toxic > Will-O-Wisp on Heatran can help the team beat fatter mons with putting them on a timer. Toxic can also catch a Volcarona, and if they're not carrying HP Ground then it can be quite difficult for the Volcarona user to come back.

Hope you enjoy your new team :D

----------------------------------------------------------------------


Indigo Plateau similarly provided a solid rate. He starts off by breaking down threats to the team in detail. His first change is Zapdos over Tornadus. This change helps the team check the likes of M-Scizor, opposing flying types like Hawlucha, and Kartana more reliably. The next change was Zygarde over Clefable. This change provided the team with the needed electric immunity, while also helping the team pressure steels aiding Bulu, Kart, and Gyara. Next the Heatran set is adjusted allowing Heatran to better deal with strong psychics + set rocks for the team now that Clefable was removed. Finally a new EV spread was given to Tapu Bulu to help it better take on threats, easing the pressure on Bulu.

Gyarados is a potent sweeper thanks to its unique offensive Water and Flying typing. However, it still needs the proper support to succeed in the current metagame. Your team does a decent job at supporting it, but I believe it can be tweaked to be more effective.



The primary weakness that I see with your team is no Ground-type. Due to Gyarados's 4x Electric weakness, it is crucial that you have a Ground- type on your team, otherwise Pokemon like Tapu Koko will easily pressure your entire team and prevent Gyarados from accomplishing its job.

======================

Next, let's analyze some specific threats:


Electric-types such as Tapu Koko and Zapdos can be really annoying due to your team containing no Ground-type. Tapu Koko gets to fire off free Thunderbolts and pivot out against Bulu, your only 'switch-in'. Zapdos also gets to just sit there and fire off Discharges and hope to para your entire team.


Again, because of no Ground-types, Tyranitar gets to fire off a powerful Stone Edge every single time and your team's best resist is Kartana - everything else either gets OHKOd or 2HKOd.


Flying-types can get a bit annoying since your only resist is Heatran, which isn't hard to wear down. Hawlucha in particular can set up against the likes of Tapu Bulu and proceed to sweep your team with prior damage on Clefable.


Psychic-types such as Mega Alakazam and Tapu Lele can cause problems due to Heatran being worn down very easily. Tapu Bulu's current spread doesn't let it reliably beat Lele atm, and Mega Zam can even abuse Heatran by tracing its Flash Fire and outspeeding everything bar Kartana.


With Heatran gone, Mega Scizor proceeds to very easily set up against Clefable and wall the rest of your team.

======================

These are the changes that I believe will make your team better:

>

Your main reasoning for having Torn-T on the team was to deal with Kartana, Lando-T, and pressure grasses, all of which Zapdos can do. Zapdos also has the additional benefit of helping your team with Flying-types such as Hawlucha and Torn-T, as well as some other annoying Pokemon like Mega Scizor and Kartana more reliably than Torn-T. You miss out on Hurricane, but the chance of spreading paralysis due to Discharge can help Gyarados later on in the game.

>

This was a hard change to make, but I think that your team gains more than it loses from making it. Zygarde provides your team with a valuable Ground resist that it currently lacks while maintaining offensive presence. Thanks to its good bulk, it can always beat Tapu Koko 1v1 (especially because Specs isn't common anymore). You do lose out on passing healing to Tapu Bulu and Heatran, but you gain the ability to pressure Steel-types that would annoy Kartana, Tapu Bulu, and most importantly, Gyarados. On top of this, Zygarde brings priority through espeed to help pick off weaken foes. Adding Zygarde allows you to exert even more offensive pressure on your opponent, as Grass spam + CB Zyg + Z-Gyara makes your team very scary, and leaves it better off vs Electric- and Rock- types.

SpD, Rocks > WoW, Toxic > Taunt (optional)
Because Heatran is the only bulky Steel-type that your team contains, I think it'd be better to give it some SpD investment. This allows it to take on the likes of Mega Alakazam and Tapu Lele a bit easier since it's the primary switch-in against those. After that, I would run Stealth Rock > WoW because I replaced Clefable. An alternative that you could also try is Toxic > Taunt; it makes you weaker against CM users like Clefable and Reuniclus, but it lets you wear down any Pokemon without Magic Guard (Mega Zam, Ash-Gren, etc) to facilitate Gyarados' shot at sweeping.

--> new EV spread
Minor change, but I would personally alter Bulu's spread to handle PsySpam and Ash-Greninja better. This also means that you can have another soft check for Lele instead of bringing in Heatran every time.

======================



In conclusion, I think that this final team does a more consistent job at wearing down the opponent and ultimately allowing one of your sweepers to clean. Replacing Clefable means that your team becomes a bit weaker to
, but Tapu Bulu + Kartana can usually handle it.
is a threat because you utilize Tapu Bulu to handle it, but luckily it only really comes in freely against Heatran.
can be annoying if you let your offensive Pokemon get weakened. Lastly, losing Clefable also means that
becomes scarier, but like Ash-Greninja, it doesn't get to come in often (not like Clefable always beats it, either). Enjoy!


Congrats to these two for having the top rates of the round! As the end of round 3 approaches we look forward to reading more great rates! Do your best, and have fun with the upcoming rounds!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 0)

Top