When I play this game, I try to rely on as little prediction and luck as possible. I never willingly take any serious risks, and try to play very defensively. My playstyle is largely based upon countering instead of prediction because I prefer to have a surefire way to deal with each threat instead of relying on judgment and chance. In other words, my playstyle is as conservative as it gets, and I play it as safe as can be.
Although I have never personally played competitive RBY, from what I can gather, most pokemon back then were fairly simple to counter, and so much of the game consisted of switching and wearing down the opponent. It was also a chief goal to paralyze as many pokemon as possible. At the end, it would eventually be possible to sweep the weakened team with a Tauros or what not.
Is this more or less how it worked?
While I did not realize it before, my team essentially aims to use this same strategy. My first priority is always to paralyze an opponent’s pokemon, and instead of a Tauros I use a Lucario. In fact, Lucario is the only true sweeper on my team, while everyone else's purpose is to keep offensive threats from becoming a problem. My team is occasionally swept at the very beginning when the opponent executes a surprise tactic, CM subbing, for instance, but if the opponent does not manage to defeat me within the first few turns, the battle is usually assured to be much longer.
Perhaps I should start by actually explaining the team. I am fairly new to this game, but this team has done fairly on Shoddy, losing mostly because of my inexperience, (leaving Lucario in on a scarfed Rotom H, for instance) and I hope to see if by posting it here, if I can recieve any tips toward improving it, particularly with Latias:
Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP/216 Def/52 SpA
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
-Earthquake
-Ice Beam
-Stealth Rock
-Surf
Some may think Swampert plays right into the hands of many other leads, being defenseless to stop taunt leads, never avoiding scarf tricking and in general, almost never stopping the opposing lead from doing whatever it wants. However, unlike all those fast and frail leads, Swampert is more reliable in general, because it is hard to completely shut down at the beginning, unless I am up against a possible grass move. In other words, it relies less on chance, which is mathematically more effective than acting on a high risk/reward basis, as far as I know. The opponent is almost never better off attacking it without a grass move, and unless the opposing lead is specifically designed to stop other leads, or has a grass move, Swampert will usually set up stealth rock. After the rocks have been placed, unless I am easily able to defeat the opposing lead while recieving little damage to myself, I make it a priority to switch Swampert out, because it is an extremely useful defensive pokemon, and takes the burden away from my other pokemon. For instance, while my other pokemon can often handle it more effectively, Swampert is able to defeat an outraging Salamence if he needs to.
The EV spread is straight from the analysis, so it is probably the best one for this set. I chose the mixed set, because it is almost always better to be mixed, if possible.
Swampert's nickname is Ormagon. Does anyone know the incredibly awesome but largely unknown game where that name is from?
How do I act specifically against each lead? I will make a list:
Azelf: To be honest, I have not seen that many Azelf leads for some reason, even though it is supposedly the most common one. However, because they can severly hurt me with psychic or grass knot, when I see an Azelf lead, I just switch to Latias after I Swampert is taunted, and try to paralyze it (My Latias is specially defensive and knows thunder wave.). Generally, I shouldn’t switch to Latias immediately, because taunt stops thunder wave, and Azelf sometimes does not use taunt more than once, instead opting for stealth rock or screens on the other turns. Unfortuantely, Azelf likes to blow up, but I would rather see Latias die so early in the match than Swampert.
Metagross: Because Metagross cannot hurt me without exploding, I generally consider it safe to just set up rocks first, and then usually switch to Weezing. Metagross, like Azelf, is extremely explosion-happy, so if I switch to Weezing, I am sure to use Will-o-Wisp as soon as I can. Weezing can survive explosion if it burns Metagross. In general, I dislike facing leads that can blow up, because I prefer to have more pokemon to switch to.
Jirachi: First of all, I cannot stand Iron Head, because I was once swept by it, unable to attack a single time because of the flinches. Most Jirachi leads just trick scarfs onto Swampert though, so it does not prevent me from setting up stealth rock. The scarf is not as crippling as you would think, because when Swampert switches into something, it generally hits the opponent with the same attack, over and over again anyway. I have to be careful about Earthquake though. But anyway, after being trickscarfed, Latias is once again the better switch in. Thunder wave is essential against Jirachi in order to prevent it from flinching you, and trick Jirachi usually do not have substitute to block status... or at least I have not come across any that have. My Latias, however, cannot actually damage Jirachi, so I have to stay around a while, recovering when necessary in order to determine Jirachi's moveset and to make a judgement on who to switch to. Much of the time, I just switch back to Swampert.
Swampert: The only sensible thing for both trainers to do is to set up rocks on the first turn. After that, I have sometimes switched to Weezing, but now I realize that Latias, once again actually works much better, and can use Toxic instead of Thunder Wave. Yeah, Latias usually recieves most of the punishment at the beginning of the game for me.
Aerodactyl: I cannot say who is at an advantage here. While Aerodactyl indeed makes sure I never set up rocks, and sets up stealth rock itself, it always dies against Swampert without getting a chance to attack once. Gyarados is often switched in afterward, and considering how prepared my team is against Gyarados, I find it hard to see how the opponent has the upper hand.
Infernape: This is an unpredictable lead, but it is not as threatening as others. Fake out is negligible, and I usually proceed to use stealth rock, despite the threat of grass knot, mostly because I have been able to get away with it so many times in the past, and grass knot is a waste of a slot for a leadape. While Swampert can easily kill Infernape, I still prefer to switch to Latias, because she can paralyze it, and Infernape threatens all my other pokemon as long as it keeps its speed, except perhaps Lucario, who can use Extremespeed.
Hippowdon: Hippowdon is only a problem if it carries Toxic, and hits Swampert with it on the first turn. Weezing is a perfect counter for it, even it does have that move.
Ninjask: With a Ninjask, the trick is to Ice beam first, then stealth rock. The logic is, on the second turn, Ninjask has a chance of using Protect, and Weezing can generally deal with whatever recieves the Swords Dance anyway.
Bronzong: The only logical thing to do is to set up stealth rock on the first turn, and then try to somehow dodge the Explosion. Weezing is more or less the best thing to switch to after setting up stealth rock. Bronzong is very similar to Metagross.
Roserade: I fear this pokemon. It isn't even a reliable lead because of the accuracy of sleep powder, and is therefore something I would not use myself, and yet, I am forced to switch to Latias and hope to wake up and hit it with Psychic, as it proceeds to lay down Toxic Spikes, something two of my team members also absolutely hate. Fortunately, other leads discourage the use of Roserade. If Roserade uses Leaf Storm on the first turn, it becomes much easier for my other pokemon to handle as long as I let it sleep Latias first. My team, by the way, dislikes sleep as well as Explosion… and Toxic Spikes. Toxic Spikes are terrible, because they usually mean I can only use Porygon 2 to full effect one time.
Breloom: If this pokemon comes out in the middle of the game, it is hardly a threat. However, as a lead, it is guaranteed to sleep a pokemon, and worst of all, I cannot paralyze it. This pokemon can do all sorts of miserable things to me if I encounter it as a lead. It likely won't sweep me, but it can weaken me immensely from the very beginning.
Latias @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/116 Def/28 Spe/112 SpD
Calm nature (+SpD, -Atk)
-Toxic
-Recover
-Thunder Wave
- Psychic (?)
This set looks ineffective, but it works more or less the same way as Blissey does, with a few shortcomings and advantages. This Latias is basically supposed to take the place of Blissey on my team. There are some ups and downs, the biggest advantage being that I can reliably switch into Infernape and am not totally vulnerable to all physical pokemon. Why do I use Psychic? The only reason I use psychic is it's the most powerful reliable offensive move Latias can use, and anything else is unbelievably weak without SpA EVs. Latias cannot even learn Seismic Toss, although in retrospect, having Seismic Toss would give me no chance at all against CM Sub Mismagius. I may consider using Thunderbolt because of the existence of Empoleon who can block my paralysis with Substitute. Empoleon is rather slow to begin with though, unlike Mismagius, so it is harder for it to avoid being Thunder Waved. If you have a better solution than Psychic, please tell me.
On the subject of Latias’s attack move, I can’t believe Latias doesn’t learn U-Turn. It would be so useful if she did.
I actually used a Support Dragonite before this, but it wasn't a solid enough wall. The one advantage it had, though, was that Dragon Claw is superior to all of Latias's offensive options, as far as being a special wall goes. Heal Bell was nice, but Psycho Shift has just about the same effectiveness. I could also use Wish, but that move is actually fairly hard to pull off, and I cannot think of a move I could replace with it.
This Latias is generally switched in early. You can get a general idea of how effective it is by reading my entries about how I counter leads.
Ironically, Blissey, the pokemon Latias is meant to replace, totally prevents her from doing anything useful. However, when Blissey switches in early on, I keep Latias in, and try to determine what moveset Blissey is using to see if it is safe to bring in Lucario or maybe Scizor. If the Blissey does not have Thunder Wave or Flamethrower, it is extremely easy for those pokemon to come in, and even if it does, the longer I stall, the easier it is to judge what its next move will be. Thunder Wave Blissey is obviously much easier to deal with than Flamethower Blissey. I have to be extremely careful with Lucario, of course, because if I lose him, Blissey will become much more of a threat, since most of my pokemon just have weak special attacks. If both Lucario and Scizor are dead, my only other semi-viable option is to blow up Weezing, which usually means I am going to lose anyway.
If the enemy has a choice band Tyranitar, Latias will inevitably die as the opponent switches it in as soon as possible. That is a fact, and it is not worth playing dice by trying to switch out. However, before it kills me, Latias can still Thunder Wave it, meaning that Scizor can reliably U-Turn it, and it becomes much less threatening against Swampert. If Tyrannitar is paralyzed on the switch, however, I might as well try to switch out, because there is nothing to be gained by staying in, and I might get lucky. Latias, after all, if very good at using paralysis to its advantage. It can repeatedly recover against a paralyzed Gengar, for instance in order to maximize its health.
Scizor is not as threatening as you would think, because Weezing resists U-turn. Although Choice Band Pursuit is probably threatening, I have not encountered it yet, and U-Turn is in general, a safer move to use early in the game, so the opponent is more likely to use it. If I get hit with Pursuit, oh well, and I can still switch to Weezing anyway.
Anyway, Toxic was chosen, because pokemon with high special defense could before easily keep me from doing anything useful, particularly bulky waters. When I first used Latias, I used Psycho Shift in its place, which was great, since I usually allow Latias to become statused, but eventually, it became necessary to be able to at least threaten these pokemon, especially to avoid being set-up bait. I miss Psycho Shift though. Against the right teams, it was a great weapon to have.
For a time, I also used a Defensive CM Latias, since there was no Special Wall Latias on the analysis page. Obviously, without a team specially designed to support this, it totally failed at every single battle, so I settled with the set you see now.
Latias is a nice initial switch into Heatran, since hidden power ice isn't strong enough to threaten it, Latias’s EVs are designed to survive Dragon Pulse effectively and Latias can use Thunder Wave. Heatran usually blows up, but I have been able to survive its less powerful explosion before, although it leaves me with a sliver of health. In general, I deem Porygon 2 to be more valuable than Latias, so I only switch Porygon 2 into Heatran when it grabs a Flash Fire boost from Weezing. I seem to recall that Porygon 2 can also survive Heatran's Explosion, but I need it to keep it healthy so it can effectively defeat other threats.
My main strategy with Latias, anyway, is to paralyze as many opponents as possible. I often end up disabling an offensive team over time by using Latias and Porygon 2.
The fact about Latias is that if the opponent has a counter to it such as a Choice Band Tyranitar, he will send it in at the beginning, so games I play are either played with or without this pokemon. Despite this strange set, this Latias works well, despite the flaw of its weak offense. Latias is very useful for determining the movesets of other defensive pokemon, allowing me to better judge whether to switch in Scizor, or perhaps Lucario. It has proven to be much more useful than an offensive set, anyway. It is hard to think of someone to replace Latias and work exactly the way she does. The closest I can think of is maybe Zapdos, who isn't as strong as a special wall and is weak to stealth rock. Cresselia may work, but Latias has more reliable recovery with more PP, which she abuses constantly when the enemy is paralyzed, and her dragon type resistances help somewhat to duplicate the effect of using Blissey.
Latias's EV Spread uses numbers listed in the 'Other Options' section of the analysis. So apparently, using Latias as a special wall is seen as a secondary option. I think the Speed assures that I can outrun all Tyranitar so I can at least paralyze it before it kills me.
Latias's nickname, Phobos, comes from the asteroid moon that orbits the red planet.
Weezing @ Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SpA
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
-Thunderbolt
-Will-o-wisp
-Flamethrower
-Explosion
First off, I use Explosion instead of Pain Split because Pain Split never works, and is unreliable, and I do not like to rely on moves that are unreliable except for Will-o-wisp. Perhaps it is just my inexperience that makes it impossible for me to find a use for Pain Split, but it seems that even against Blissey, I am better off Exploding if I am even staying in against it. Explosion works as an emergency against bulky water pokemon as well. Really though, Weezing's fourth move will always be hard to use no matter what, because it requires that Weezing be faster than the opponent to be effective. At least Explosion is somewhat useful, and is a better idea to use than Pain Split if Weezing is about to die.
Anyway, Weezing is a physical wall that can reliably block Gyarados and most fighting pokemon, plus Scizor to an extent. I imagine that Weezing is in UU because it is easily defeated by using special attacks. Using Weezing effectively, of course, means that you will try to reserve Weezing for the pokemon that it is actually meant to counter, and not haphazardly leaving it in against a special attacker. It can only counter Scizor for so long, after all. Without a recovery move, Weezing’s health is valuable.
Why did I choose Weezing as opposed to Gliscor or Skarmory who both have nice recovery moves? Skarmory, first of all, does not resist fighting attacks, and although it can stop Scizor more effectively, it cannot threaten to remove it in a single hit, like Weezing can, and it has little hope of defeating Gyarados, unlike Weezing, who can decimate it in a single hit. Weezing is a great pokemon to have, especially when you have stealth rock up, because the pokemon it walls will be forced to switch out over and over again or face instant death, while they're teammates are worn down by Weezing's moves or Will-o-wisp. Gliscor, on the other hand, is required to raise its speed in order to effectively counter Lucario, which Weezing also works similarly against. Weezing, however, does not need speed to beat Lucario, and can instead maximize its defenses, and become a stronger general wall. Gliscor is also unreliable at countering Gyarados. Even though I have Porygon 2, the metagame has so many powerful physical attackers, that having two pokemon who can reliably defeat Gyarados is much preferred than having one who does not threaten gyarados at all. Will-o-wisp also works against other powerful physical threats, and the effect is usually permanent, unless the opponent is using an Aromatherapy Blissey, or perhaps a Heal Bell Celebi, meaning that after Latias deems that their movsets are safe, Lucario or Scizor will have little qualms in switching into them. Another advantage to Weezing that adds to its reliability is that it is harder to throw surprise curve balls at it, while Gliscor can be killed instantly with ice attacks, and Skarmory has to watch out for Magnezone. Almost no one uses Psychic… except me.
Anyway, Weezing is usually switched in repeatedly against Scizor and fighting pokemon, and usually lasts for most of the game. The fact that its opponents tend to switch out instead of attack it, or attack it once and then die, somewhat alleviates the need for a recovery move. Overall, Weezing fits on my team better than any other physical wall, typewise. Weezing is a great pokemon as long as you do not force it to do something that it is not built to do, such as fight a special attacker. It pairs well with Porygon 2, since it resists Porygon 2's only weakness, and can switch in against the many Lucario who for some reason think it is viable to try to threaten Porygon 2, when my Porygon 2 loves to spam Thunder Wave. Porygon 2 can also defend Weezing against Heatran.
Giving a fully defensive EV spread to Weezing helps distinguish it from other defensive pokemon who have recovery moves, particularly Gliscor.
Weezing has always been one of my favorite pokemon to use in-game, especially in RBY, where its orignial sprite looks the most intimidating. Its nickname, Doldrum, is shared by the Weezing I have when I play pokemon on a cartridge.
Porygon 2 @ Leftovers
Ability: Trace
EVs: 252 HP/216 Def/40 SpA
Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
-Thunderbolt
-Recover
-Ice Beam
-Thunder Wave
I honestly did not expect Porygon 2 to be useful at all when I first put it on the team. I mean, it’s so small! Why does this generation make so many sprites so tiny and pathetic looking? I even nicknamed it Turkey, as a way of poking some fun at it. (Doesn't it look like a Turkey?) Soon after, however, Porygon 2 was single handedly defeating DD Salamence and Gyarados by conservatively using a combination of paralysis and recover, and finishing off those pokemon at 100% health. It then demonstrated its ability to completely stop Heatran, whose Explosion fell short of killing it, and Gengar, who was forced to rely on an extremely unreliable Focus Blast, or an Explosion that was even weaker than Heatran's. Porygon 2 can easily make many pokemon such as Jolteon completely useless, is very effective against Rotom formes and if the opponent switches around to try to beat Porygon 2, the majority of his team will end up being paralyzed, and no longer a theat to my Lucario or Scizor. Porygon 2 works surprisingly well against hyper-offensive teams who rely on luck and prediction to win.
To use Porygon 2 effectively, I try to limit the amount of times I use it, relying on another pokemon whenever possible. Immediately switching into Salamence, for example was a bad idea when I realized Salamence can use Draco Meteor. Porygon 2 prefers to be at as high health as possible when it kills something, which is why it is not my preference to use it to kill Gengar or Heatran. Porygon 2 can be defeated, of course, by critical hits or flinch hax, which is why Weezing is a nice backup if I try to use Porygon 2 to counter Gyarados at low health, where I have only one chance to survive a waterfall. This is also why I prefer to finish opponents while retaining full health. Like Latias, Porygon 2 is exceptional at utilizing full paralysis in order to fully heal itself.
Porygon 2 is used mainly to help Latias paralyze the opposing team. Blissey, of course, deems Porygon 2 ineffective, so if I do not know Blissey's moveset yet, I will have to go to Latias. Porygon 2 also hates being hit with Toxic, and Toxic Spikes, and does not like being paralyzed itself. Occasionally though, there are creative ways to avoid Toxic, such as switching into a Rotom forme to avoid Toxic Spikes.
Porygon 2 is very good at spreading paralysis, but its attacks can be ineffective against opponents it is not designed to fight, particularly against Blissey and most fighting pokemon. In a way, Porygon 2 is much like Weezing, in that it shouldn't be used in situations it is not meant to handle. This is, perhaps, why Porygon 2 is considered UU. Alongside my other pokmeon, however, Porygon 2 can close up some holes that would otherwise make my defensive team much less effective. All in all, this deceptively small Turkey carries out my strategy of slowly weakening the enemy very well. It pairs excellently with Weezing, because many of the Pokemon that threaten Porygon 2 are dealt with by Weezing, particularly fighting pokemon or to an extent, Scizor.
The EV spread is straight from the analysis. Porygon 2 is better at taking physical hits, but it can still somewhat counter weak special attackers such as Rotom and Jolteon who is forced to use Hidden Power. While I have never faced an opposing Porygon 2, I imagine Turkey must be extremely annoying to face sometimes, especially for offensive teams.
I can think of little options to replace Porygon 2, other than maybe Cresselia, but that would leave me with another pokemon who is very weak against and a magnet for Tyranitar, not to mention that Porygon 2 is immune instead of weak to Shadow Ball. Cresselia also cannot effectively counter Gyarados, although it is more reliable against Salamence, especially because so many use Draco Meteor. On the other hand, Cresselia has no reliable way to recover. Moonlight, even outside of sandstorm has very little PP, meaning it is harder for me to abuse parahax in order to heal myself.
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
EVs: 248 HP/252 Atk/8 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
-Bullet Punch
-Superpower
-Pursuit
-U-Turn
I find it hard to justify using a SD Scizor over a Choice Bander, due to the fact that my Scizor almost always is required to strike immediately, and U-Turn combos well with a Choice Band. Scizor usually does not stay in play for more than one turn, so that one turn might as well be to hit as hard as possible. The boosted Bullet Punch is a useful safeguard against fast pokemon that may be ready to sweep me, (that aren't behind a substitute). Like Latias, Scizor can be instantly made useless by a certain pokemon, this time by Magnezone, although the main move I try to use is U-Turn. Scizor is usually my general switch in after being killed because of this move. If the opponent has a Magnezone, similar to Latias, Scizor will most likely die, since there are situations, such as facing a Gengar, where I simply have to use Bullet Punch.
Scizor really appreciates the efforts of Latias to paralyze as many pokemon as possible, because I prefer to use U-Turn early game to Bullet Punch, and I prefer never to have to take any chances. Most importantly, I appreciate the useful switch. Choice Band U-Turn, as opposed to a regular U-Turn, furthers my goal of slowly weakening the opposition, and switching to one of the many members of my team who can handle the various pokemon with the potential to carry a surprise Hidden Power Fire, or fire moves, such as Latias.
I am very careful about switching in Scizor, because it is one of my only strong physical pokemon. In general, I switch in Scizor before I switch in Lucario, because Lucario is more valuable as the actual sweeper. I am actually surprised at how fast Choice Band U-Turn weakens enemies who continue to switch into Scizor. In general, I try my best not to let Scizor get hit, because being hit severely lowers the opportunities he has to switch in when there is stealth rock up. The extra HP is preferably reserved to help Scizor survive other priority moves.
That is all there is to say, really. Scizor helps to weaken my opponent, and covers some weaknesses to faster or scarfed pokemon. The Choice Band is certainly worth it, especially because I already have a more versatile Swords Dancer. Scizor has many great uses, as most people already know. It is one of those pokemon that forces the opponent to have an effective team, or else instantly lose.
Scizor's EVs are for the standard Choice Bander. The extra HP works fairly well with Latias attempting to paralyze everything.
Scizor's nickname is CATS. Lame, I know, but the Zero Wing catchphrase just sounds like something Scizor would say. Ah, whatever.
Lucario @ Life Orb
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 Atk/6 Def/252 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
-Swords Dance
-Close Combat
-Extremespeed
-Crunch
Here is my only sweeper, designed to be as effective and standard as possible, similar to Tauros in RBY. After the opponent's team (as well as mine) has been greatly worn down, Lucario is brought in to bring the late stalemate to an end, at which point he often doesn't have to use Swords Dance to sweep.
The Logic with Lucario is that most everything that stops it from sweeping is easily taken care of by the rest of my team, especially Gyarados. Gliscor can do little to Swampert or Weezing, and Salamence is slowly weakened over time by stealth rock and switching around, and if it is physical, it stands even less of a chance. Skarmory cannot hurt most of my pokemon, and often allows me to hit it for free by repeatedly whirlwinding. However, Skarmory’s Spikes are rather harmful for Lucario, since he needs to be as healthy as possible. After Skarmory has been paralyzed and hit a few times, Lucario can take out a weakened Skarmory with Close Combat even without Swords Dance. Because I do not have to worry much about being countered, Lucario can use Adamant to be as effective as possible, and use the more useful Crunch for Celebi (who Latias and Scizor can work together in order to weaken) and Rotom formes who have been paralyzed and are usually slower than Lucario anyway if they aren’t obviously scarfed. Lucario, like RBY Tauros, is a pokemon who benefits immensely, from the opposition being worn and paralyzed.
Because Lucario is my only sweeper, and because my team can be equalized against the opponent without it, I am extremely careful at bringing it in and must be exceptionally careful that it is not instantly killed by surprise. My lack of experience has often meant that I lose a battle because Lucario was out-sped by something. In general, I am reluctant to switch Lucario in, not because I do not want the enemy to know I have one, but because Lucario needs to always be as healthy as possible. He uses a Life Orb, after all.
Even though my other pokemon can sometimes do without Lucario against some of those rash hyper-offensive teams who switch around a lot, and therefore are quickly statused, like my other pokemon, Lucario is exactly what I prefer a pokemon to be, and that is reliable. As long as I am careful, having more than one sweeper on this team seems to me to be a waste.
Lucario is named Rover. I gave it such a generic name because it was originally thrown on as a random sweeper, but it has actually proven to be very useful. I cannot think of anyone else who complements my team more.
Although I have never personally played competitive RBY, from what I can gather, most pokemon back then were fairly simple to counter, and so much of the game consisted of switching and wearing down the opponent. It was also a chief goal to paralyze as many pokemon as possible. At the end, it would eventually be possible to sweep the weakened team with a Tauros or what not.
Is this more or less how it worked?
While I did not realize it before, my team essentially aims to use this same strategy. My first priority is always to paralyze an opponent’s pokemon, and instead of a Tauros I use a Lucario. In fact, Lucario is the only true sweeper on my team, while everyone else's purpose is to keep offensive threats from becoming a problem. My team is occasionally swept at the very beginning when the opponent executes a surprise tactic, CM subbing, for instance, but if the opponent does not manage to defeat me within the first few turns, the battle is usually assured to be much longer.
Perhaps I should start by actually explaining the team. I am fairly new to this game, but this team has done fairly on Shoddy, losing mostly because of my inexperience, (leaving Lucario in on a scarfed Rotom H, for instance) and I hope to see if by posting it here, if I can recieve any tips toward improving it, particularly with Latias:
Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP/216 Def/52 SpA
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
-Earthquake
-Ice Beam
-Stealth Rock
-Surf
Some may think Swampert plays right into the hands of many other leads, being defenseless to stop taunt leads, never avoiding scarf tricking and in general, almost never stopping the opposing lead from doing whatever it wants. However, unlike all those fast and frail leads, Swampert is more reliable in general, because it is hard to completely shut down at the beginning, unless I am up against a possible grass move. In other words, it relies less on chance, which is mathematically more effective than acting on a high risk/reward basis, as far as I know. The opponent is almost never better off attacking it without a grass move, and unless the opposing lead is specifically designed to stop other leads, or has a grass move, Swampert will usually set up stealth rock. After the rocks have been placed, unless I am easily able to defeat the opposing lead while recieving little damage to myself, I make it a priority to switch Swampert out, because it is an extremely useful defensive pokemon, and takes the burden away from my other pokemon. For instance, while my other pokemon can often handle it more effectively, Swampert is able to defeat an outraging Salamence if he needs to.
The EV spread is straight from the analysis, so it is probably the best one for this set. I chose the mixed set, because it is almost always better to be mixed, if possible.
Swampert's nickname is Ormagon. Does anyone know the incredibly awesome but largely unknown game where that name is from?
How do I act specifically against each lead? I will make a list:
Azelf: To be honest, I have not seen that many Azelf leads for some reason, even though it is supposedly the most common one. However, because they can severly hurt me with psychic or grass knot, when I see an Azelf lead, I just switch to Latias after I Swampert is taunted, and try to paralyze it (My Latias is specially defensive and knows thunder wave.). Generally, I shouldn’t switch to Latias immediately, because taunt stops thunder wave, and Azelf sometimes does not use taunt more than once, instead opting for stealth rock or screens on the other turns. Unfortuantely, Azelf likes to blow up, but I would rather see Latias die so early in the match than Swampert.
Metagross: Because Metagross cannot hurt me without exploding, I generally consider it safe to just set up rocks first, and then usually switch to Weezing. Metagross, like Azelf, is extremely explosion-happy, so if I switch to Weezing, I am sure to use Will-o-Wisp as soon as I can. Weezing can survive explosion if it burns Metagross. In general, I dislike facing leads that can blow up, because I prefer to have more pokemon to switch to.
Jirachi: First of all, I cannot stand Iron Head, because I was once swept by it, unable to attack a single time because of the flinches. Most Jirachi leads just trick scarfs onto Swampert though, so it does not prevent me from setting up stealth rock. The scarf is not as crippling as you would think, because when Swampert switches into something, it generally hits the opponent with the same attack, over and over again anyway. I have to be careful about Earthquake though. But anyway, after being trickscarfed, Latias is once again the better switch in. Thunder wave is essential against Jirachi in order to prevent it from flinching you, and trick Jirachi usually do not have substitute to block status... or at least I have not come across any that have. My Latias, however, cannot actually damage Jirachi, so I have to stay around a while, recovering when necessary in order to determine Jirachi's moveset and to make a judgement on who to switch to. Much of the time, I just switch back to Swampert.
Swampert: The only sensible thing for both trainers to do is to set up rocks on the first turn. After that, I have sometimes switched to Weezing, but now I realize that Latias, once again actually works much better, and can use Toxic instead of Thunder Wave. Yeah, Latias usually recieves most of the punishment at the beginning of the game for me.
Aerodactyl: I cannot say who is at an advantage here. While Aerodactyl indeed makes sure I never set up rocks, and sets up stealth rock itself, it always dies against Swampert without getting a chance to attack once. Gyarados is often switched in afterward, and considering how prepared my team is against Gyarados, I find it hard to see how the opponent has the upper hand.
Infernape: This is an unpredictable lead, but it is not as threatening as others. Fake out is negligible, and I usually proceed to use stealth rock, despite the threat of grass knot, mostly because I have been able to get away with it so many times in the past, and grass knot is a waste of a slot for a leadape. While Swampert can easily kill Infernape, I still prefer to switch to Latias, because she can paralyze it, and Infernape threatens all my other pokemon as long as it keeps its speed, except perhaps Lucario, who can use Extremespeed.
Hippowdon: Hippowdon is only a problem if it carries Toxic, and hits Swampert with it on the first turn. Weezing is a perfect counter for it, even it does have that move.
Ninjask: With a Ninjask, the trick is to Ice beam first, then stealth rock. The logic is, on the second turn, Ninjask has a chance of using Protect, and Weezing can generally deal with whatever recieves the Swords Dance anyway.
Bronzong: The only logical thing to do is to set up stealth rock on the first turn, and then try to somehow dodge the Explosion. Weezing is more or less the best thing to switch to after setting up stealth rock. Bronzong is very similar to Metagross.
Roserade: I fear this pokemon. It isn't even a reliable lead because of the accuracy of sleep powder, and is therefore something I would not use myself, and yet, I am forced to switch to Latias and hope to wake up and hit it with Psychic, as it proceeds to lay down Toxic Spikes, something two of my team members also absolutely hate. Fortunately, other leads discourage the use of Roserade. If Roserade uses Leaf Storm on the first turn, it becomes much easier for my other pokemon to handle as long as I let it sleep Latias first. My team, by the way, dislikes sleep as well as Explosion… and Toxic Spikes. Toxic Spikes are terrible, because they usually mean I can only use Porygon 2 to full effect one time.
Breloom: If this pokemon comes out in the middle of the game, it is hardly a threat. However, as a lead, it is guaranteed to sleep a pokemon, and worst of all, I cannot paralyze it. This pokemon can do all sorts of miserable things to me if I encounter it as a lead. It likely won't sweep me, but it can weaken me immensely from the very beginning.
Latias @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/116 Def/28 Spe/112 SpD
Calm nature (+SpD, -Atk)
-Toxic
-Recover
-Thunder Wave
- Psychic (?)
This set looks ineffective, but it works more or less the same way as Blissey does, with a few shortcomings and advantages. This Latias is basically supposed to take the place of Blissey on my team. There are some ups and downs, the biggest advantage being that I can reliably switch into Infernape and am not totally vulnerable to all physical pokemon. Why do I use Psychic? The only reason I use psychic is it's the most powerful reliable offensive move Latias can use, and anything else is unbelievably weak without SpA EVs. Latias cannot even learn Seismic Toss, although in retrospect, having Seismic Toss would give me no chance at all against CM Sub Mismagius. I may consider using Thunderbolt because of the existence of Empoleon who can block my paralysis with Substitute. Empoleon is rather slow to begin with though, unlike Mismagius, so it is harder for it to avoid being Thunder Waved. If you have a better solution than Psychic, please tell me.
On the subject of Latias’s attack move, I can’t believe Latias doesn’t learn U-Turn. It would be so useful if she did.
I actually used a Support Dragonite before this, but it wasn't a solid enough wall. The one advantage it had, though, was that Dragon Claw is superior to all of Latias's offensive options, as far as being a special wall goes. Heal Bell was nice, but Psycho Shift has just about the same effectiveness. I could also use Wish, but that move is actually fairly hard to pull off, and I cannot think of a move I could replace with it.
This Latias is generally switched in early. You can get a general idea of how effective it is by reading my entries about how I counter leads.
Ironically, Blissey, the pokemon Latias is meant to replace, totally prevents her from doing anything useful. However, when Blissey switches in early on, I keep Latias in, and try to determine what moveset Blissey is using to see if it is safe to bring in Lucario or maybe Scizor. If the Blissey does not have Thunder Wave or Flamethrower, it is extremely easy for those pokemon to come in, and even if it does, the longer I stall, the easier it is to judge what its next move will be. Thunder Wave Blissey is obviously much easier to deal with than Flamethower Blissey. I have to be extremely careful with Lucario, of course, because if I lose him, Blissey will become much more of a threat, since most of my pokemon just have weak special attacks. If both Lucario and Scizor are dead, my only other semi-viable option is to blow up Weezing, which usually means I am going to lose anyway.
If the enemy has a choice band Tyranitar, Latias will inevitably die as the opponent switches it in as soon as possible. That is a fact, and it is not worth playing dice by trying to switch out. However, before it kills me, Latias can still Thunder Wave it, meaning that Scizor can reliably U-Turn it, and it becomes much less threatening against Swampert. If Tyrannitar is paralyzed on the switch, however, I might as well try to switch out, because there is nothing to be gained by staying in, and I might get lucky. Latias, after all, if very good at using paralysis to its advantage. It can repeatedly recover against a paralyzed Gengar, for instance in order to maximize its health.
Scizor is not as threatening as you would think, because Weezing resists U-turn. Although Choice Band Pursuit is probably threatening, I have not encountered it yet, and U-Turn is in general, a safer move to use early in the game, so the opponent is more likely to use it. If I get hit with Pursuit, oh well, and I can still switch to Weezing anyway.
Anyway, Toxic was chosen, because pokemon with high special defense could before easily keep me from doing anything useful, particularly bulky waters. When I first used Latias, I used Psycho Shift in its place, which was great, since I usually allow Latias to become statused, but eventually, it became necessary to be able to at least threaten these pokemon, especially to avoid being set-up bait. I miss Psycho Shift though. Against the right teams, it was a great weapon to have.
For a time, I also used a Defensive CM Latias, since there was no Special Wall Latias on the analysis page. Obviously, without a team specially designed to support this, it totally failed at every single battle, so I settled with the set you see now.
Latias is a nice initial switch into Heatran, since hidden power ice isn't strong enough to threaten it, Latias’s EVs are designed to survive Dragon Pulse effectively and Latias can use Thunder Wave. Heatran usually blows up, but I have been able to survive its less powerful explosion before, although it leaves me with a sliver of health. In general, I deem Porygon 2 to be more valuable than Latias, so I only switch Porygon 2 into Heatran when it grabs a Flash Fire boost from Weezing. I seem to recall that Porygon 2 can also survive Heatran's Explosion, but I need it to keep it healthy so it can effectively defeat other threats.
My main strategy with Latias, anyway, is to paralyze as many opponents as possible. I often end up disabling an offensive team over time by using Latias and Porygon 2.
The fact about Latias is that if the opponent has a counter to it such as a Choice Band Tyranitar, he will send it in at the beginning, so games I play are either played with or without this pokemon. Despite this strange set, this Latias works well, despite the flaw of its weak offense. Latias is very useful for determining the movesets of other defensive pokemon, allowing me to better judge whether to switch in Scizor, or perhaps Lucario. It has proven to be much more useful than an offensive set, anyway. It is hard to think of someone to replace Latias and work exactly the way she does. The closest I can think of is maybe Zapdos, who isn't as strong as a special wall and is weak to stealth rock. Cresselia may work, but Latias has more reliable recovery with more PP, which she abuses constantly when the enemy is paralyzed, and her dragon type resistances help somewhat to duplicate the effect of using Blissey.
Latias's EV Spread uses numbers listed in the 'Other Options' section of the analysis. So apparently, using Latias as a special wall is seen as a secondary option. I think the Speed assures that I can outrun all Tyranitar so I can at least paralyze it before it kills me.
Latias's nickname, Phobos, comes from the asteroid moon that orbits the red planet.
Weezing @ Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SpA
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
-Thunderbolt
-Will-o-wisp
-Flamethrower
-Explosion
First off, I use Explosion instead of Pain Split because Pain Split never works, and is unreliable, and I do not like to rely on moves that are unreliable except for Will-o-wisp. Perhaps it is just my inexperience that makes it impossible for me to find a use for Pain Split, but it seems that even against Blissey, I am better off Exploding if I am even staying in against it. Explosion works as an emergency against bulky water pokemon as well. Really though, Weezing's fourth move will always be hard to use no matter what, because it requires that Weezing be faster than the opponent to be effective. At least Explosion is somewhat useful, and is a better idea to use than Pain Split if Weezing is about to die.
Anyway, Weezing is a physical wall that can reliably block Gyarados and most fighting pokemon, plus Scizor to an extent. I imagine that Weezing is in UU because it is easily defeated by using special attacks. Using Weezing effectively, of course, means that you will try to reserve Weezing for the pokemon that it is actually meant to counter, and not haphazardly leaving it in against a special attacker. It can only counter Scizor for so long, after all. Without a recovery move, Weezing’s health is valuable.
Why did I choose Weezing as opposed to Gliscor or Skarmory who both have nice recovery moves? Skarmory, first of all, does not resist fighting attacks, and although it can stop Scizor more effectively, it cannot threaten to remove it in a single hit, like Weezing can, and it has little hope of defeating Gyarados, unlike Weezing, who can decimate it in a single hit. Weezing is a great pokemon to have, especially when you have stealth rock up, because the pokemon it walls will be forced to switch out over and over again or face instant death, while they're teammates are worn down by Weezing's moves or Will-o-wisp. Gliscor, on the other hand, is required to raise its speed in order to effectively counter Lucario, which Weezing also works similarly against. Weezing, however, does not need speed to beat Lucario, and can instead maximize its defenses, and become a stronger general wall. Gliscor is also unreliable at countering Gyarados. Even though I have Porygon 2, the metagame has so many powerful physical attackers, that having two pokemon who can reliably defeat Gyarados is much preferred than having one who does not threaten gyarados at all. Will-o-wisp also works against other powerful physical threats, and the effect is usually permanent, unless the opponent is using an Aromatherapy Blissey, or perhaps a Heal Bell Celebi, meaning that after Latias deems that their movsets are safe, Lucario or Scizor will have little qualms in switching into them. Another advantage to Weezing that adds to its reliability is that it is harder to throw surprise curve balls at it, while Gliscor can be killed instantly with ice attacks, and Skarmory has to watch out for Magnezone. Almost no one uses Psychic… except me.
Anyway, Weezing is usually switched in repeatedly against Scizor and fighting pokemon, and usually lasts for most of the game. The fact that its opponents tend to switch out instead of attack it, or attack it once and then die, somewhat alleviates the need for a recovery move. Overall, Weezing fits on my team better than any other physical wall, typewise. Weezing is a great pokemon as long as you do not force it to do something that it is not built to do, such as fight a special attacker. It pairs well with Porygon 2, since it resists Porygon 2's only weakness, and can switch in against the many Lucario who for some reason think it is viable to try to threaten Porygon 2, when my Porygon 2 loves to spam Thunder Wave. Porygon 2 can also defend Weezing against Heatran.
Giving a fully defensive EV spread to Weezing helps distinguish it from other defensive pokemon who have recovery moves, particularly Gliscor.
Weezing has always been one of my favorite pokemon to use in-game, especially in RBY, where its orignial sprite looks the most intimidating. Its nickname, Doldrum, is shared by the Weezing I have when I play pokemon on a cartridge.
Porygon 2 @ Leftovers
Ability: Trace
EVs: 252 HP/216 Def/40 SpA
Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
-Thunderbolt
-Recover
-Ice Beam
-Thunder Wave
I honestly did not expect Porygon 2 to be useful at all when I first put it on the team. I mean, it’s so small! Why does this generation make so many sprites so tiny and pathetic looking? I even nicknamed it Turkey, as a way of poking some fun at it. (Doesn't it look like a Turkey?) Soon after, however, Porygon 2 was single handedly defeating DD Salamence and Gyarados by conservatively using a combination of paralysis and recover, and finishing off those pokemon at 100% health. It then demonstrated its ability to completely stop Heatran, whose Explosion fell short of killing it, and Gengar, who was forced to rely on an extremely unreliable Focus Blast, or an Explosion that was even weaker than Heatran's. Porygon 2 can easily make many pokemon such as Jolteon completely useless, is very effective against Rotom formes and if the opponent switches around to try to beat Porygon 2, the majority of his team will end up being paralyzed, and no longer a theat to my Lucario or Scizor. Porygon 2 works surprisingly well against hyper-offensive teams who rely on luck and prediction to win.
To use Porygon 2 effectively, I try to limit the amount of times I use it, relying on another pokemon whenever possible. Immediately switching into Salamence, for example was a bad idea when I realized Salamence can use Draco Meteor. Porygon 2 prefers to be at as high health as possible when it kills something, which is why it is not my preference to use it to kill Gengar or Heatran. Porygon 2 can be defeated, of course, by critical hits or flinch hax, which is why Weezing is a nice backup if I try to use Porygon 2 to counter Gyarados at low health, where I have only one chance to survive a waterfall. This is also why I prefer to finish opponents while retaining full health. Like Latias, Porygon 2 is exceptional at utilizing full paralysis in order to fully heal itself.
Porygon 2 is used mainly to help Latias paralyze the opposing team. Blissey, of course, deems Porygon 2 ineffective, so if I do not know Blissey's moveset yet, I will have to go to Latias. Porygon 2 also hates being hit with Toxic, and Toxic Spikes, and does not like being paralyzed itself. Occasionally though, there are creative ways to avoid Toxic, such as switching into a Rotom forme to avoid Toxic Spikes.
Porygon 2 is very good at spreading paralysis, but its attacks can be ineffective against opponents it is not designed to fight, particularly against Blissey and most fighting pokemon. In a way, Porygon 2 is much like Weezing, in that it shouldn't be used in situations it is not meant to handle. This is, perhaps, why Porygon 2 is considered UU. Alongside my other pokmeon, however, Porygon 2 can close up some holes that would otherwise make my defensive team much less effective. All in all, this deceptively small Turkey carries out my strategy of slowly weakening the enemy very well. It pairs excellently with Weezing, because many of the Pokemon that threaten Porygon 2 are dealt with by Weezing, particularly fighting pokemon or to an extent, Scizor.
The EV spread is straight from the analysis. Porygon 2 is better at taking physical hits, but it can still somewhat counter weak special attackers such as Rotom and Jolteon who is forced to use Hidden Power. While I have never faced an opposing Porygon 2, I imagine Turkey must be extremely annoying to face sometimes, especially for offensive teams.
I can think of little options to replace Porygon 2, other than maybe Cresselia, but that would leave me with another pokemon who is very weak against and a magnet for Tyranitar, not to mention that Porygon 2 is immune instead of weak to Shadow Ball. Cresselia also cannot effectively counter Gyarados, although it is more reliable against Salamence, especially because so many use Draco Meteor. On the other hand, Cresselia has no reliable way to recover. Moonlight, even outside of sandstorm has very little PP, meaning it is harder for me to abuse parahax in order to heal myself.
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
EVs: 248 HP/252 Atk/8 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
-Bullet Punch
-Superpower
-Pursuit
-U-Turn
I find it hard to justify using a SD Scizor over a Choice Bander, due to the fact that my Scizor almost always is required to strike immediately, and U-Turn combos well with a Choice Band. Scizor usually does not stay in play for more than one turn, so that one turn might as well be to hit as hard as possible. The boosted Bullet Punch is a useful safeguard against fast pokemon that may be ready to sweep me, (that aren't behind a substitute). Like Latias, Scizor can be instantly made useless by a certain pokemon, this time by Magnezone, although the main move I try to use is U-Turn. Scizor is usually my general switch in after being killed because of this move. If the opponent has a Magnezone, similar to Latias, Scizor will most likely die, since there are situations, such as facing a Gengar, where I simply have to use Bullet Punch.
Scizor really appreciates the efforts of Latias to paralyze as many pokemon as possible, because I prefer to use U-Turn early game to Bullet Punch, and I prefer never to have to take any chances. Most importantly, I appreciate the useful switch. Choice Band U-Turn, as opposed to a regular U-Turn, furthers my goal of slowly weakening the opposition, and switching to one of the many members of my team who can handle the various pokemon with the potential to carry a surprise Hidden Power Fire, or fire moves, such as Latias.
I am very careful about switching in Scizor, because it is one of my only strong physical pokemon. In general, I switch in Scizor before I switch in Lucario, because Lucario is more valuable as the actual sweeper. I am actually surprised at how fast Choice Band U-Turn weakens enemies who continue to switch into Scizor. In general, I try my best not to let Scizor get hit, because being hit severely lowers the opportunities he has to switch in when there is stealth rock up. The extra HP is preferably reserved to help Scizor survive other priority moves.
That is all there is to say, really. Scizor helps to weaken my opponent, and covers some weaknesses to faster or scarfed pokemon. The Choice Band is certainly worth it, especially because I already have a more versatile Swords Dancer. Scizor has many great uses, as most people already know. It is one of those pokemon that forces the opponent to have an effective team, or else instantly lose.
Scizor's EVs are for the standard Choice Bander. The extra HP works fairly well with Latias attempting to paralyze everything.
Scizor's nickname is CATS. Lame, I know, but the Zero Wing catchphrase just sounds like something Scizor would say. Ah, whatever.
Lucario @ Life Orb
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 Atk/6 Def/252 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
-Swords Dance
-Close Combat
-Extremespeed
-Crunch
Here is my only sweeper, designed to be as effective and standard as possible, similar to Tauros in RBY. After the opponent's team (as well as mine) has been greatly worn down, Lucario is brought in to bring the late stalemate to an end, at which point he often doesn't have to use Swords Dance to sweep.
The Logic with Lucario is that most everything that stops it from sweeping is easily taken care of by the rest of my team, especially Gyarados. Gliscor can do little to Swampert or Weezing, and Salamence is slowly weakened over time by stealth rock and switching around, and if it is physical, it stands even less of a chance. Skarmory cannot hurt most of my pokemon, and often allows me to hit it for free by repeatedly whirlwinding. However, Skarmory’s Spikes are rather harmful for Lucario, since he needs to be as healthy as possible. After Skarmory has been paralyzed and hit a few times, Lucario can take out a weakened Skarmory with Close Combat even without Swords Dance. Because I do not have to worry much about being countered, Lucario can use Adamant to be as effective as possible, and use the more useful Crunch for Celebi (who Latias and Scizor can work together in order to weaken) and Rotom formes who have been paralyzed and are usually slower than Lucario anyway if they aren’t obviously scarfed. Lucario, like RBY Tauros, is a pokemon who benefits immensely, from the opposition being worn and paralyzed.
Because Lucario is my only sweeper, and because my team can be equalized against the opponent without it, I am extremely careful at bringing it in and must be exceptionally careful that it is not instantly killed by surprise. My lack of experience has often meant that I lose a battle because Lucario was out-sped by something. In general, I am reluctant to switch Lucario in, not because I do not want the enemy to know I have one, but because Lucario needs to always be as healthy as possible. He uses a Life Orb, after all.
Even though my other pokemon can sometimes do without Lucario against some of those rash hyper-offensive teams who switch around a lot, and therefore are quickly statused, like my other pokemon, Lucario is exactly what I prefer a pokemon to be, and that is reliable. As long as I am careful, having more than one sweeper on this team seems to me to be a waste.
Lucario is named Rover. I gave it such a generic name because it was originally thrown on as a random sweeper, but it has actually proven to be very useful. I cannot think of anyone else who complements my team more.
