So I don't usually post a lot in here, especially for teams but I just had to post this one because of the amount of success the team has brought me. Just now getting back into playing SS OU again after playing a lot of Ubers/NU/RU/LC and the older generations. I started to build again for SS OU and my first thought was building a sand offense team that had more to offer besides the Excadrill sweeper. I have two versions of this sand offense team so I'll go into as much detail as I can.
Version 1 with SD Lum Scizor
https://pokepast.es/dd87c7370eee9e8d
Deni (Scizor) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Technician
EVs: 200 HP / 240 Atk / 12 Def / 8 SpD / 48 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Roost
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
So for this version of the team, Scizor is one of the Pokemon on this team I wanted to focus on. Scizor's main purpose on this team is to either be an early breaker or a late game sweeper depending on the match up. I settled with running the Lum Berry on Scizor over Leftovers because I felt comfortable with the amount of bulk that Scizor has. This variant of Scizor was similar to the DPP set. With the rise of the Slowtwins, I wanted to use Scizor as a way of pressuring all variants. Because of the Lum Berry, using Swords Dance is relatively free on Scald users that Scizor can damage such as the Slowtwins, non-Haze Toxapex etc. Roosts gives Scizor recovery and another chance to set up Swords Dance for later depending on the match up. Swords Dance Boosted Knock Off can do a ton of damage and can force my opponent to switch which results in my opponent losing an item. For the late game, when everything is worn down already by Scizor's teammates, Bullet Punch is relatively safe to clean up games with it. If you are fighting a more defensive team like Stall, it's best to lead Scizor early because you want to remove items as fast as possible. When fighting a balanced team, its usually pretty good for Scizor to be in the back to sweep in the late game after the walls have been weakened. With offense, because most offensive teams do not have walls, it is safe to start breaking down everything with Swords Dance boosted Knock Off/Bullet Punch early depending on the match up. Scizor has been kind of hit or miss for the team, but when it gets the job done, it comes in clutch.
Calcs:
+2 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 312-368 (79.1 - 93.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+4 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 144+ Def Toxapex: 198-233 (65.1 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Slowking-Galar: 278-328 (70.5 - 83.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 171-202 (48.5 - 57.3%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO
240+ Atk Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 117-138 (34.3 - 40.4%) -- 42.4% chance to 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Filler (Hippowdon) @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 112 Def / 148 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
- Toxic
- Earthquake
I really like specially defensive Hippowdon a lot. The fact it can take specially offensive attacks as well as some physical attacks has always been surprising to me. Hippowdon's main job is to set the sand up and hazards for Excadrill. Hippowdon is usually the lead for this team since it is sand offense. As I said, this Pokemon is incredibly bulky so it is free to throw down Toxic on some special set up users such as Hydriegon. Earthquake allows for Hippowdon to damage all grounded Pokemon. Since I have Grassy Surge on this team, you could argue for running HighHorsePower over Earthquake and that is completely fine. I run Earthquake because of the amount of terrain exchanges during games where the opponent has the opposite terrain, so I just take advantage of that. Slack Off keeps Hippowdon healthy and can be used to wall whatever my opponent is going to do. Also running the Smooth Rock to take full advantage of all my sand turns. Feel free to change this set to Leftovers to guarantee a bit of recovery. One thing to note is that if you can avoid it, do not let Hippowdon get hurt by Toxic. If possibly, switch into one of the Steel types on this team.
Here are some calcs on this Hippowdon set:
252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 315-372 (75.1 - 88.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 205-243 (48.9 - 57.9%) -- 59% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Psychic vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon in Psychic Terrain: 285-336 (68 - 80.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Excadrill Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 112 Def Hippowdon: 106-126 (25.2 - 30%) -- 0.1% chance to 4HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Life Orb Garchomp Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 112 Def Hippowdon: 168-199 (40 - 47.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Tornadus-Therian Hurricane vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 127-151 (30.3 - 36%) -- 41.4% chance to 3HKO
176 SpA Slowking-Galar Future Sight vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 163-193 (38.9 - 46%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Heatran Magma Storm vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 162-192 (38.6 - 45.8%) -- 17.2% chance to 2HKO after trapping damage
Westbrook (Rillaboom) @ Choice Band
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Grassy Glide
- Knock Off
- Wood Hammer
- Superpower
This thing is a beast. Rillaboom has taken over Tapu Bulu's role of being the premier wallbreaker for Grassy Terrain. Sand and Grassy Surge is an interesting combination. It offers grounded Pokemon a resist to Ground type moves besides HighHorsePower and gives them passive recovery which works excellently for Hippowdon. On the offensive side, it gives Rillaboom the potential to hit harder and faster with its STAB priority move in Grassy Glide. Rillaboom's role on this team is to be the wallbreaker. It's only form of utility is in Knock Off so it offers Rillaboom a chance to remove items from walls such as Corviknight, Toxapex etc. Coming off of Rillaboom's base 125 Attack, Choice Band boosted Grassy Glide in Grassy Surge devastates neutral targets and even to some resists like Tornadus-Therian which can be 2HKOed depending on the spread. Superpower gives Rillaboom fighting coverage for the Steel types in the meta that naturally switch in to it. Wood Hammer allows for Rillaboom to get the most amount of damage off in terrain. Rillaboom can be used pretty early in a match depending on the match up. You can use it as an early wallbreaker by or a late game cleaner with Grassy Glide. Rillaboom is always my way to cover the rain match up as rain always pressures sand. If you fight rain, do not let Rillaboom go. In fact, if possibly keep Rillaboom in the back against rain. Defensively and offensively, this Pokemon is great in its roles. Use Rillaboom as a way to punish switch ins by using Knock Off. For example, if your opponent is leading with something weak to Rillaboom, its generally safe to Knock Off on the switch or to Superpower the resist which is usually a Steel type. Once this resist is gone, Rillaboom becomes a much bigger threat along with Excadrill.
Calcs on resists:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios in Grassy Terrain: 143-168 (47.5 - 55.8%) -- 81.6% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian in Grassy Terrain: 142-168 (47.4 - 56.1%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Cinderace in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (49.8 - 58.8%) -- 73.4% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Magearna in Grassy Terrain: 105-124 (34.8 - 41.1%) -- 74.7% chance to 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Hawlucha in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (50.5 - 59.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (You can play around the Hawlucha match up and force it to Close Combat on Moltres/Hippowdon, dropping its defense and putting it into 2HKO range.)
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (47.3 - 55.8%) -- 25.8% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Calcs on neutrals:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Garchomp in Grassy Terrain: 247-292 (69.1 - 81.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 12 Def Landorus-Therian in Grassy Terrain: 171-202 (53.6 - 63.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Nidoking in Grassy Terrain: 295-348 (97.3 - 114.8%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 144+ Def Toxapex in Grassy Terrain: 234-276 (76.9 - 90.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Bradley Beal (Excadrill) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- High Horsepower
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
Excadrill is the main sweeper for this team. With Spectrier being banned, you can change this to Adamant to guarantee to knock out Ferrothorn at +2 with HighHorsePower. Regardless, both variants are fine to run depending on your choice. Life Orb boosts Excadrill's offense by quite a lot and makes it one of the most dangerous sweepers in sand. When sand is up, its best to get Excadrill in as quickly as possible to start opening holes in teams. For me, I like to set up Excadrill on a double switch or prediction. So for example, I have Hippowdon in vs a special attacker like Hydriegon. My opponent uses Draco Meteor and does around 58%. My opponent is forced to switch out, therefore I can freely switch into Excadrill afterwards and put pressure on whatever my opponent's switch is. Swords Dance for Excadrill gives it a lot of momentum to start pressuring my opponent. Iron Head covers all ground type immunities and resists. Rock Slide gives me coverage for the Flying types like Moltres and Zapdos. HighHorsePower is my alternative for Earthquake cause of Grassy Surge. HighHorsePower can miss so be careful when using it. Generally this Pokemon is going to be your wincon, so try to keep this Pokemon as healthy as possible and bring it in when you think its necessary.
Calcs:
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill High Horsepower vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 308-364 (87.5 - 103.4%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
+1 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Landorus-Therian: 231-273 (60.4 - 71.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 248 HP / 220 Def Zapdos: 398-468 (103.9 - 122.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian: 525-619 (145 - 170.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+4 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 252 HP / 168+ Def Corviknight: 244-289 (61 - 72.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Lopez (Moltres) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 208 HP / 232 Def / 68 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Roost
- Scorching Sands
- Flamethrower
Apparently, Moltres usage is starting to drop with the fall of Urshifu-Akuma and Stick Bug, but I still think that Moltres is very capable of keeping its spot in OU. The fact it can reliably pressure the most offensive Grass types in the metagame seems pretty important to me. For this team, Moltres is my physically defensive wall. Originally, I had Toxic over Scorching Sands to pressure opposing Moltres and the doubles from Heatran into something else for the potential Scorching Sands, but this did not work out for me and made my match ups against Heatran/Toxapex a lot more difficult so I went back to using Scorching Sands. With Flame Body, Moltres has several opportunities to cripple most physical attackers and U-turn pivots. While my team isn't heavily weak by hazards, its still better for Moltres to have Defog for this reason. Scorching Sands allows for Moltres to pressure Heatran and also gives it another chance to burn something else like a Toxapex for example. Flamethrower gives me STAB to pressure the Grass and Steel types and just really solid damage even without investment. You can opt to run Mythical Fire as a way to weaken special attackers as well. The defensive EVs guarantee that Moltres can cover all variants of Rillaboom/Kartana. It can even take hits reliably well from Cinderace without a poison from Gunk Shot. The speed wasn't a huge factor for me so I just put enough to outspeed defensive variants of Heatran. Overall its a very solid defensive wall for my team paired with Hippowdon.
Calcs:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 133-157 (35.6 - 42%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Kartana Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 160-189 (42.8 - 50.6%) -- 2.3% chance to 2HKO
252 Atk Libero Cinderace Gunk Shot vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 142-168 (38 - 45%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252+ Atk Hawlucha Acrobatics (110 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 244-288 (65.4 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Hachimura (Zapdos-Galar) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Thunderous Kick
So in case you're a basketball fan, you could probably tell by the nicknames that I like the Washington Wizards lol. I know they're terrible but I like rooting for the underdog teams. I like to see them shock people's expectations. I do not know all the basketball lingo so please be humble with me lol. However, I think Bradley Beal needs to leave for the sake of his own career. Galarian Zapdos aka Gapdos is another wallbreaker and sweeper for the team. Gapdos is also my favorite of the Galarian bird trio just like everyone else. Gapdos has been pretty reliable in taking advantage Landorus's Intimidate drops and Defog users. With a Choice Scarf, Gapdos outspeeds the unboosted metagame and dishes out a ton of damage with Close Combat and Brave Bird. I have U-turn on here to gain some early momentum on my opponent and to get some early damage going. The last move has always been off for me but generally I click the first three moves. Thunderous Kick has its niche in lowering the defensive stat, but sometimes it doesn't work out when the opponent switches anyway into a Fighting resist. Facade is possibly a better option as it gives me a status absorber. Depending on the match up, I like to lead Gapdos early especially if Landorus is on a team. You want to take advantage of those stat drops from Defog/Intimidate and use them to hit hard with a +1 or +2 boost. If you want more power for this team, you can go with a Choice Band but overall I just prefer the speed with a Choice Scarf.
Calcs:
+1 252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Landorus-Therian: 252-297 (65.9 - 77.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 248 HP / 60+ Def Mandibuzz: 313-370 (73.9 - 87.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Lele: 243-286 (86.4 - 101.7%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 284-336 (80.6 - 95.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Issues with this version of the team:
The main issues is that this team has some trouble still breaking through defensive cores. The lack of special offense will effect some match ups pretty heavily. The Ferro/Pex core can be a little problematic especially if the Toxapex has Haze it can be difficult to play around. This is why removing items early is very important for this team.
Sometimes Scizor or Gapdos become a liability because of certain match ups. One offers less than the other and its usually the former. Since Scizor lost its Mega, the power behind this Pokemon is not that great so you have to push it more with Swords Dance. Usually one of these two will be the first to get knocked off by the opponent so pick which one you think will be the most likely to sack later.
The team is really fire weak so be careful around Pokemon like Blaziken on Hyper Offense teams. Sun teams could also be a problem but they aren't as widely seen as they were in the Home metagame and the Isle of Armor metagame.
The second version fixes some these issues quite a bit.
https://pokepast.es/694f2493c43124ec
Deni (Magearna) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fleur Cannon
- Volt Switch
- Focus Blast
- Ice Beam
The new Deni fixes the issues this team had in breaking physically defensive cores. Choice Specs Magearna is the ultimate special wallbreaker. Fleur Cannon allows Magearna to throw a base 130 Fairy move on anything and everything relatively for free. Fleur Cannon dominates all neutral and super effective targets and can chip some resists too. Volt Switch gives Magearna some momentum but also does a ton of damage to Water/Flying types. It's also good just for hitting neutrally. Specifically this is very good against Toxapex because it keeps it low enough to be beat by Rillaboom/Excadrill later. Focus Blast covers the Steel types that this team can have issues with such as opposing Magearna, Ferrothorn and Melmetal. Ice Beam allows for Magearna to have a safe way of hitting the Dragon types hard and also gives me coverage for ground types like Hippowdon and Landorus. It also gives Magearna the BoltBeam coverage that this team needed to pressure everything the opponent could have. As stupid as Magearna is right now, it is very strong but it also coverages the issues that this team had with the Scizor version. Under Grassy Surge, this Pokemon is able to take tank Ground type attacks very well and still hit back even harder along with gaining recovery. For example, +2 Dragonite does up to 77% with Earthquake and Magearna can just oneshot it with Ice Beam afterwards. Magearna can still work very well without its Choice Specs as well.
Calcs:
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Fleur Cannon vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Tornadus-Therian: 348-409 (116.3 - 136.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Focus Blast vs. 252 HP / 176+ SpD Ferrothorn: 272-320 (77.2 - 90.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Multiscale Dragonite: 294-346 (91 - 107.1%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Volt Switch vs. 252 HP / 112 SpD Toxapex: 156-184 (51.3 - 60.5%) -- 88.3% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Focus Blast vs. 252 HP / 128+ SpD Heatran: 302-356 (78.2 - 92.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Volt Switch vs. 252 HP / 88 SpD Corviknight: 238-280 (59.5 - 70%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Anyways, I'm really tired but here's some replays with both variants of the team. I have a Youtube channel and I've used both teams there as well. I hope you like the teams and sorry for the lengthy explanation. Aight I'm gonna sleep.
Version 1 with SD Scizor:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277504501-7m68t542j7cjhx6mdb3x40vxy9ouib8pw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278012820
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277427117
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277499670-frutxm2anqjt0uznia3ow4ijduso2dkpw
Version 2 with Choice Specs Magearna:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278004120
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277917696
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278009347
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278041468-lr37pgccvg5pveneowpfjd3lsud22c6pw
Version 1 with SD Lum Scizor
https://pokepast.es/dd87c7370eee9e8d
Deni (Scizor) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Technician
EVs: 200 HP / 240 Atk / 12 Def / 8 SpD / 48 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Roost
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
So for this version of the team, Scizor is one of the Pokemon on this team I wanted to focus on. Scizor's main purpose on this team is to either be an early breaker or a late game sweeper depending on the match up. I settled with running the Lum Berry on Scizor over Leftovers because I felt comfortable with the amount of bulk that Scizor has. This variant of Scizor was similar to the DPP set. With the rise of the Slowtwins, I wanted to use Scizor as a way of pressuring all variants. Because of the Lum Berry, using Swords Dance is relatively free on Scald users that Scizor can damage such as the Slowtwins, non-Haze Toxapex etc. Roosts gives Scizor recovery and another chance to set up Swords Dance for later depending on the match up. Swords Dance Boosted Knock Off can do a ton of damage and can force my opponent to switch which results in my opponent losing an item. For the late game, when everything is worn down already by Scizor's teammates, Bullet Punch is relatively safe to clean up games with it. If you are fighting a more defensive team like Stall, it's best to lead Scizor early because you want to remove items as fast as possible. When fighting a balanced team, its usually pretty good for Scizor to be in the back to sweep in the late game after the walls have been weakened. With offense, because most offensive teams do not have walls, it is safe to start breaking down everything with Swords Dance boosted Knock Off/Bullet Punch early depending on the match up. Scizor has been kind of hit or miss for the team, but when it gets the job done, it comes in clutch.
Calcs:
+2 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 312-368 (79.1 - 93.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+4 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 144+ Def Toxapex: 198-233 (65.1 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Slowking-Galar: 278-328 (70.5 - 83.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 240+ Atk Scizor Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 171-202 (48.5 - 57.3%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO
240+ Atk Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 117-138 (34.3 - 40.4%) -- 42.4% chance to 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Filler (Hippowdon) @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 112 Def / 148 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
- Toxic
- Earthquake
I really like specially defensive Hippowdon a lot. The fact it can take specially offensive attacks as well as some physical attacks has always been surprising to me. Hippowdon's main job is to set the sand up and hazards for Excadrill. Hippowdon is usually the lead for this team since it is sand offense. As I said, this Pokemon is incredibly bulky so it is free to throw down Toxic on some special set up users such as Hydriegon. Earthquake allows for Hippowdon to damage all grounded Pokemon. Since I have Grassy Surge on this team, you could argue for running HighHorsePower over Earthquake and that is completely fine. I run Earthquake because of the amount of terrain exchanges during games where the opponent has the opposite terrain, so I just take advantage of that. Slack Off keeps Hippowdon healthy and can be used to wall whatever my opponent is going to do. Also running the Smooth Rock to take full advantage of all my sand turns. Feel free to change this set to Leftovers to guarantee a bit of recovery. One thing to note is that if you can avoid it, do not let Hippowdon get hurt by Toxic. If possibly, switch into one of the Steel types on this team.
Here are some calcs on this Hippowdon set:
252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 315-372 (75.1 - 88.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 205-243 (48.9 - 57.9%) -- 59% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Psychic vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon in Psychic Terrain: 285-336 (68 - 80.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Excadrill Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 112 Def Hippowdon: 106-126 (25.2 - 30%) -- 0.1% chance to 4HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Life Orb Garchomp Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 112 Def Hippowdon: 168-199 (40 - 47.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Tornadus-Therian Hurricane vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 127-151 (30.3 - 36%) -- 41.4% chance to 3HKO
176 SpA Slowking-Galar Future Sight vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 163-193 (38.9 - 46%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Heatran Magma Storm vs. 248 HP / 148+ SpD Hippowdon: 162-192 (38.6 - 45.8%) -- 17.2% chance to 2HKO after trapping damage
Westbrook (Rillaboom) @ Choice Band
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Grassy Glide
- Knock Off
- Wood Hammer
- Superpower
This thing is a beast. Rillaboom has taken over Tapu Bulu's role of being the premier wallbreaker for Grassy Terrain. Sand and Grassy Surge is an interesting combination. It offers grounded Pokemon a resist to Ground type moves besides HighHorsePower and gives them passive recovery which works excellently for Hippowdon. On the offensive side, it gives Rillaboom the potential to hit harder and faster with its STAB priority move in Grassy Glide. Rillaboom's role on this team is to be the wallbreaker. It's only form of utility is in Knock Off so it offers Rillaboom a chance to remove items from walls such as Corviknight, Toxapex etc. Coming off of Rillaboom's base 125 Attack, Choice Band boosted Grassy Glide in Grassy Surge devastates neutral targets and even to some resists like Tornadus-Therian which can be 2HKOed depending on the spread. Superpower gives Rillaboom fighting coverage for the Steel types in the meta that naturally switch in to it. Wood Hammer allows for Rillaboom to get the most amount of damage off in terrain. Rillaboom can be used pretty early in a match depending on the match up. You can use it as an early wallbreaker by or a late game cleaner with Grassy Glide. Rillaboom is always my way to cover the rain match up as rain always pressures sand. If you fight rain, do not let Rillaboom go. In fact, if possibly keep Rillaboom in the back against rain. Defensively and offensively, this Pokemon is great in its roles. Use Rillaboom as a way to punish switch ins by using Knock Off. For example, if your opponent is leading with something weak to Rillaboom, its generally safe to Knock Off on the switch or to Superpower the resist which is usually a Steel type. Once this resist is gone, Rillaboom becomes a much bigger threat along with Excadrill.
Calcs on resists:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios in Grassy Terrain: 143-168 (47.5 - 55.8%) -- 81.6% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian in Grassy Terrain: 142-168 (47.4 - 56.1%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Cinderace in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (49.8 - 58.8%) -- 73.4% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Magearna in Grassy Terrain: 105-124 (34.8 - 41.1%) -- 74.7% chance to 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Hawlucha in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (50.5 - 59.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (You can play around the Hawlucha match up and force it to Close Combat on Moltres/Hippowdon, dropping its defense and putting it into 2HKO range.)
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult in Grassy Terrain: 150-177 (47.3 - 55.8%) -- 25.8% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Calcs on neutrals:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Garchomp in Grassy Terrain: 247-292 (69.1 - 81.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 12 Def Landorus-Therian in Grassy Terrain: 171-202 (53.6 - 63.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Nidoking in Grassy Terrain: 295-348 (97.3 - 114.8%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 144+ Def Toxapex in Grassy Terrain: 234-276 (76.9 - 90.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
Bradley Beal (Excadrill) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- High Horsepower
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
Excadrill is the main sweeper for this team. With Spectrier being banned, you can change this to Adamant to guarantee to knock out Ferrothorn at +2 with HighHorsePower. Regardless, both variants are fine to run depending on your choice. Life Orb boosts Excadrill's offense by quite a lot and makes it one of the most dangerous sweepers in sand. When sand is up, its best to get Excadrill in as quickly as possible to start opening holes in teams. For me, I like to set up Excadrill on a double switch or prediction. So for example, I have Hippowdon in vs a special attacker like Hydriegon. My opponent uses Draco Meteor and does around 58%. My opponent is forced to switch out, therefore I can freely switch into Excadrill afterwards and put pressure on whatever my opponent's switch is. Swords Dance for Excadrill gives it a lot of momentum to start pressuring my opponent. Iron Head covers all ground type immunities and resists. Rock Slide gives me coverage for the Flying types like Moltres and Zapdos. HighHorsePower is my alternative for Earthquake cause of Grassy Surge. HighHorsePower can miss so be careful when using it. Generally this Pokemon is going to be your wincon, so try to keep this Pokemon as healthy as possible and bring it in when you think its necessary.
Calcs:
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill High Horsepower vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 308-364 (87.5 - 103.4%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
+1 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Landorus-Therian: 231-273 (60.4 - 71.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 248 HP / 220 Def Zapdos: 398-468 (103.9 - 122.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian: 525-619 (145 - 170.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+4 252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Rock Slide vs. 252 HP / 168+ Def Corviknight: 244-289 (61 - 72.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Lopez (Moltres) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 208 HP / 232 Def / 68 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Roost
- Scorching Sands
- Flamethrower
Apparently, Moltres usage is starting to drop with the fall of Urshifu-Akuma and Stick Bug, but I still think that Moltres is very capable of keeping its spot in OU. The fact it can reliably pressure the most offensive Grass types in the metagame seems pretty important to me. For this team, Moltres is my physically defensive wall. Originally, I had Toxic over Scorching Sands to pressure opposing Moltres and the doubles from Heatran into something else for the potential Scorching Sands, but this did not work out for me and made my match ups against Heatran/Toxapex a lot more difficult so I went back to using Scorching Sands. With Flame Body, Moltres has several opportunities to cripple most physical attackers and U-turn pivots. While my team isn't heavily weak by hazards, its still better for Moltres to have Defog for this reason. Scorching Sands allows for Moltres to pressure Heatran and also gives it another chance to burn something else like a Toxapex for example. Flamethrower gives me STAB to pressure the Grass and Steel types and just really solid damage even without investment. You can opt to run Mythical Fire as a way to weaken special attackers as well. The defensive EVs guarantee that Moltres can cover all variants of Rillaboom/Kartana. It can even take hits reliably well from Cinderace without a poison from Gunk Shot. The speed wasn't a huge factor for me so I just put enough to outspeed defensive variants of Heatran. Overall its a very solid defensive wall for my team paired with Hippowdon.
Calcs:
252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 133-157 (35.6 - 42%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Kartana Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 160-189 (42.8 - 50.6%) -- 2.3% chance to 2HKO
252 Atk Libero Cinderace Gunk Shot vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 142-168 (38 - 45%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252+ Atk Hawlucha Acrobatics (110 BP) vs. 208 HP / 232+ Def Moltres: 244-288 (65.4 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Hachimura (Zapdos-Galar) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Thunderous Kick
So in case you're a basketball fan, you could probably tell by the nicknames that I like the Washington Wizards lol. I know they're terrible but I like rooting for the underdog teams. I like to see them shock people's expectations. I do not know all the basketball lingo so please be humble with me lol. However, I think Bradley Beal needs to leave for the sake of his own career. Galarian Zapdos aka Gapdos is another wallbreaker and sweeper for the team. Gapdos is also my favorite of the Galarian bird trio just like everyone else. Gapdos has been pretty reliable in taking advantage Landorus's Intimidate drops and Defog users. With a Choice Scarf, Gapdos outspeeds the unboosted metagame and dishes out a ton of damage with Close Combat and Brave Bird. I have U-turn on here to gain some early momentum on my opponent and to get some early damage going. The last move has always been off for me but generally I click the first three moves. Thunderous Kick has its niche in lowering the defensive stat, but sometimes it doesn't work out when the opponent switches anyway into a Fighting resist. Facade is possibly a better option as it gives me a status absorber. Depending on the match up, I like to lead Gapdos early especially if Landorus is on a team. You want to take advantage of those stat drops from Defog/Intimidate and use them to hit hard with a +1 or +2 boost. If you want more power for this team, you can go with a Choice Band but overall I just prefer the speed with a Choice Scarf.
Calcs:
+1 252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Landorus-Therian: 252-297 (65.9 - 77.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 248 HP / 60+ Def Mandibuzz: 313-370 (73.9 - 87.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Brave Bird vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Lele: 243-286 (86.4 - 101.7%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Zapdos-Galar Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 80 Def Ferrothorn: 284-336 (80.6 - 95.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Issues with this version of the team:
The main issues is that this team has some trouble still breaking through defensive cores. The lack of special offense will effect some match ups pretty heavily. The Ferro/Pex core can be a little problematic especially if the Toxapex has Haze it can be difficult to play around. This is why removing items early is very important for this team.
Sometimes Scizor or Gapdos become a liability because of certain match ups. One offers less than the other and its usually the former. Since Scizor lost its Mega, the power behind this Pokemon is not that great so you have to push it more with Swords Dance. Usually one of these two will be the first to get knocked off by the opponent so pick which one you think will be the most likely to sack later.
The team is really fire weak so be careful around Pokemon like Blaziken on Hyper Offense teams. Sun teams could also be a problem but they aren't as widely seen as they were in the Home metagame and the Isle of Armor metagame.
The second version fixes some these issues quite a bit.
https://pokepast.es/694f2493c43124ec
Deni (Magearna) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fleur Cannon
- Volt Switch
- Focus Blast
- Ice Beam
The new Deni fixes the issues this team had in breaking physically defensive cores. Choice Specs Magearna is the ultimate special wallbreaker. Fleur Cannon allows Magearna to throw a base 130 Fairy move on anything and everything relatively for free. Fleur Cannon dominates all neutral and super effective targets and can chip some resists too. Volt Switch gives Magearna some momentum but also does a ton of damage to Water/Flying types. It's also good just for hitting neutrally. Specifically this is very good against Toxapex because it keeps it low enough to be beat by Rillaboom/Excadrill later. Focus Blast covers the Steel types that this team can have issues with such as opposing Magearna, Ferrothorn and Melmetal. Ice Beam allows for Magearna to have a safe way of hitting the Dragon types hard and also gives me coverage for ground types like Hippowdon and Landorus. It also gives Magearna the BoltBeam coverage that this team needed to pressure everything the opponent could have. As stupid as Magearna is right now, it is very strong but it also coverages the issues that this team had with the Scizor version. Under Grassy Surge, this Pokemon is able to take tank Ground type attacks very well and still hit back even harder along with gaining recovery. For example, +2 Dragonite does up to 77% with Earthquake and Magearna can just oneshot it with Ice Beam afterwards. Magearna can still work very well without its Choice Specs as well.
Calcs:
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Fleur Cannon vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Tornadus-Therian: 348-409 (116.3 - 136.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Focus Blast vs. 252 HP / 176+ SpD Ferrothorn: 272-320 (77.2 - 90.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Multiscale Dragonite: 294-346 (91 - 107.1%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Volt Switch vs. 252 HP / 112 SpD Toxapex: 156-184 (51.3 - 60.5%) -- 88.3% chance to 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Focus Blast vs. 252 HP / 128+ SpD Heatran: 302-356 (78.2 - 92.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Magearna Volt Switch vs. 252 HP / 88 SpD Corviknight: 238-280 (59.5 - 70%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Anyways, I'm really tired but here's some replays with both variants of the team. I have a Youtube channel and I've used both teams there as well. I hope you like the teams and sorry for the lengthy explanation. Aight I'm gonna sleep.
Version 1 with SD Scizor:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277504501-7m68t542j7cjhx6mdb3x40vxy9ouib8pw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278012820
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277427117
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277499670-frutxm2anqjt0uznia3ow4ijduso2dkpw
Version 2 with Choice Specs Magearna:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278004120
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1277917696
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278009347
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ou-1278041468-lr37pgccvg5pveneowpfjd3lsud22c6pw
