Priority Based RMT

[RaidRover]

This team sprung from my need to get the first attack. I am tired of being knocked out before I can get the job done because I'm not the type of person to use damage calculators to ensure that I will get the kill or that I will live a particular attack, I just kinda go with my feelings and notions and experience to try and figure it out. I personally haven't tried to ladder with this team (I made the team, started playing with it and then got distracted by some other teams and tiers) but I did keep a battle record. I have posted a record of 19-6 along with 9 forfeits so I believe the team is viable to to do some work but I am open to suggestions in the form of movesets, items and pokemon replacements if you want to go that far (provided there is sound reasoning) so without further ado, here is the team:

Overgrowth (Venusaur-Mega) (F) @ Venusaurite
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Leech Seed
- Toxic
- Synthesis
Overgrowth is my Special wall. 0 atk IV's to reduce any foul play or confusion damage. I like having MegaSaur to switch in on any incoming toxic's, spores or leech seeds and just soak em up. I also appreciate the thick fat ability which lets me take one or two SE fire or ice attacks. Being a max SpD wall means I can take a hp flying if I absolutely must but I usually switch into Zapdos to take one if I can. Leech Seed and Giga Drain are there for recovery and wittling down my opponents. Toxic is nice to cripple some walls and sweepers and venoshock is for damage on those pokemon. Changed to Synthesis to increase longevity and help ministall wars. Lati@s and Alakazam (mega or LO) wreck this saur with psyshock which forces me to switch into Scizor or Crawdaunt if I need to preserve my MegaSaur longer.

Afterburn (Arcanine) (M) @ Leftovers/Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 Def / 252 HP / 8 Atk
Impish Nature
- Extreme Speed
- Will-O-Wisp
- Flare Blitz/Fire Fang/ Flame Charge
- Morning Sun
I was trying to find a suitable defensive partner to my MegaSaur and I decided on Arcanine. At first I attempted the Flash Fire ability but MegaSaur has thick fat to help with fire damage so that means only Scizor would benefit from being able to soak up fire damage so I settled on intimidate because I figured being able to switch in to lower attack was a bigger benefit to my team since it is not entirely bulky. This is the Pokemon whose set I have changed the most. I enjoy the passive recovery Lefties but being able to switch in when I KNOW a physical attack is coming and make them take Rocky Helmet damage is nice (especially when I switch in on incoming Brave Birds) Espeed is for priority (the theme of my team) Will-O is to further lower attack and get some residual damage going, Morning Sun is for recovery since he is a defensive poke and then his fire attack I have played around with. I like the damage of Flare Blitz but dislike the recoil. I like the speed boost of Flame Charge and Fire Fang gives me an attack right in the middle of the two. Settled on Fire Fang to still do decent damage and reduce the damage this guy is taking since I want him as a tank. Suggestions would be appreciated. This poke counters Talonflame pretty well (especially when I switch in and get the intimidate off) and physical Aegislash.

Chainsaw (Scizor) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 248 HP / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite/Pursuit
- U-turn
- Superpower/pursuit
I started off with this guy as my Mega but then I wanted MegaSaur over regular Saur so I used LO to give myself the ability to switch up moves and carry SD but I didnt like the recoil and I found myself being taken advantage of by fire pokes when trying to setup anyways so I went to Choice Band since I didn't plan on Scizor being my main sweeper. He's around to put a dent in all of my opponents Pokemon and generally annoy them with a powerful priority Bullet Punch. U-Turn is to keep momentum on my side when I need to change out. Bug Bite was around for the Technician boost plus STAB but it didn't give me much momentum and he isn't all that quick so I changed up to Pursuit to trap pokes. I also tried replacing Superpower with Pursuit since I get an attack drop that I don't like but I like the coverage it provides, so after looking at the rest of my team I would like to hear your opinion.

Masto (Mamoswine) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 248 HP / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Ice Shard
- Icicle Crash/Avalanche
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
Mamoswine gives me a very dependable Dragon Killer and takes care of Landorous-T who would otherwise give my team problems with its intimidate and strong attacks. I originally had Talonflame here but I found that Talon invites my opponent to get up rocks more often and it seemed like a Kamikaze so I changed for Mamo, plus I felt like Mamo gave me better Coverage. EV spread is to make him a bulky turret that can take a few hits while it dishes out some pain. Ice Shard is the obvious priority stab here. Earthquake and Stone Edge give me the ever deadly EdgeQuake combo and rounds out my coverage pretty nicely. I see Icicle Crash most often on Mamos but I've been playing with Avalanche since Mamo isn't a very fast poke I could go for an Avalanche when I know I can survive the incoming attack and get the doubled power. Your thoughts would be nice. I ran lefties over LO because I wanted the little bit extra bulk.

Statix (Zapdos) @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Heat Wave
- Defog
This pokemon is absolutely paramount to my success. Volt Switch is to give me momentum during the battle and Tbolt is there for damage over thunder because I don't like the low accuracy. I ran hp Ice until I added Mamo, so I changed to Heat Wave which would help some against MegaSaur but give great coverage versus Scizor, Breloom, Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Bisharp which I thought would help my team since they either Wall my physical attacks or carry priority moves of there own which would lower the effectiveness of this team. Defog is on this poke to clear away any traps so I can bring in my Crawdaunt without losing its sash. Most people don' expect the defog on my zapdos, especially not after seeing its high damage and LO recoil. I chose LO because I wanted Zapdos to be able to do damage and help weaken various members of my opponents team rather than just have a dead weight defogger in this slot.

Poseidon (Crawdaunt) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 HP
Adamant Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Knock Off
- Crabhammer
- Dragon Dance
This pokemon is on of my favorites and when I started seeing it used effectively against me I decided I wanted to build a team around it which led to this whole priority idea. The idea is to take out any walls or serious counters my opponent has to this pokemon including Ferrothorn, Skarmory and the extremely rare (actually seen twice though since I built this team) Mega Aggron. As well as fast Mach Punchers priory to me getting off a D-Dance or two. The thought is the bring out this poke mid to late game when I get any hazards down there may be and get off a D-dance. I try to switch in if I know there is a switch coming, if my opponent must protect stall or get off a healing move. Otherwise I will switch in when one of my poke dies and get off a D-Dance while my opponent breaks my sash. If I know switching in will force my opponent to switch then even better, I can get off two Dragon Dances. After that I can knock off and Crabhammer my way through anything that doesn't carry priority and for those things that do, I have Aqua Jet.

The lack of special attackers on my team worries me a little bit but I think I have the power to burst through most defensive walls and the run shop. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

This is my first RMT so any comments or advice on the simple posting of the RMT would also being appreciated along with any commentary on the team. Thanks for reading!
-RaidRover

Changes in Bold

 

[Rafael J. Feliciano]

Hey Raid Rover, very nice team you have here. Some things I noted while looking at your team:

1. Though this may seem like a small nitpick, I would suggest reworking the HP EVs on most of your mons as they lead to even numbered HP values which is not good when factoring in Stealth Rock Damage. Always try to net an odd HP number. I.E. 252 HP EVs = 63 additional HP... Venu has Base 301, giving it 364. Just move 4 EVs to SAtk and that's settled. Arcanine = 4 EVs into Attack, Crawdaunt = 4 EV into Def, Zapdos and Scizor = 4 EV into SDef.

2. I left Mamo out because I would like to make another suggestion about him. Even though the lack of a dedicated Special Attacker can pose problems, but you DO have Mega Venusaur and Zapdos on that side of the attack. What really gives me pause is the lack of ANY Entry Hazards at all. Even though you might be thinking that Defog makes Entry Hazards counter-productive, it is still a quintessential part of battling and strategy. Thus why I suggest converting Mamo to the following:

Masto (Mamoswine) (M) @ Focus Sash
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Ability: Thick Fat
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

This gives you a mon that unless you go up against a Prankster Taunt or a Fake Out User, virtually guarantees a first turn SR Set-Up, putting immediate pressure on you opponent to rid them, especially with all the Talonflames, Thundurus and Chari-Twins roaming the Meta. Even Mega Venusaur doesn't appreciate switching in on a SR infested battlefield.

If you really feel the need to incorporate another Special Attacker then Arcanine has to go in favor of:

Heatran @ Air Balloon/Choice Specs
EV: 252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 SpD
Ability: Flash Fire
Modest Nature
- Fire Blast / Overheat
- Hidden Power Ice
- Earth Power
- Will-O-Wisp / Flamethrower

Though this set is not as common nowadays, it provides you with AMAZING FIRE POWER!!! (all puns intended) The choice is up to you if you wish to use Air Balloon to give it another Psuedo Immunity OR if you just want to go in, then Specs Boosted OH is basically a the Nuke of this set.

If you use either of these sets you would be down a Physically defensive wall, however, so I would then feel obligated to suggesting Zapdos getting a makeover as well:

Statix (Zapdos) @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Roost / Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Heat Wave
- Defog

With his Flying resist and weakenesses to Rock and Ice only, this set still affords you VoltTurn capabilities alongside Scizor, while also being able to tank ALOT of hits. HW is still needed for Deo-Sharp teams where Bisharp will try to switch in on the predicted Defog, while Roost gives Statix some more Viability while also hurting Talonflame who tries to BB him even more, but if wish to maintain Thunderbolt, then Leftovers will be needed for some sort of recovery.

These are my suggestions... Let me know what you think.

 

[RaidRover]

Hey Raid Rover, very nice team you have here. Some things I noted while looking at your team:

1. Though this may seem like a small nitpick, I would suggest reworking the HP EVs on most of your mons as they lead to even numbered HP values which is not good when factoring in Stealth Rock Damage. Always try to net an odd HP number. I.E. 252 HP EVs = 63 additional HP... Venu has Base 301, giving it 364. Just move 4 EVs to SAtk and that's settled. Arcanine = 4 EVs into Attack, Crawdaunt = 4 EV into Def, Zapdos and Scizor = 4 EV into SDef.

2. I left Mamo out because I would like to make another suggestion about him. Even though the lack of a dedicated Special Attacker can pose problems, but you DO have Mega Venusaur and Zapdos on that side of the attack. What really gives me pause is the lack of ANY Entry Hazards at all. Even though you might be thinking that Defog makes Entry Hazards counter-productive, it is still a quintessential part of battling and strategy. Thus why I suggest converting Mamo to the following:

Masto (Mamoswine) (M) @ Focus Sash
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Ability: Thick Fat
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

This gives you a mon that unless you go up against a Prankster Taunt or a Fake Out User, virtually guarantees a first turn SR Set-Up, putting immediate pressure on you opponent to rid them, especially with all the Talonflames, Thundurus and Chari-Twins roaming the Meta. Even Mega Venusaur doesn't appreciate switching in on a SR infested battlefield.

If you really feel the need to incorporate another Special Attacker then Arcanine has to go in favor of:

Heatran @ Air Balloon/Choice Specs
EV: 252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 SpD
Ability: Flash Fire
Modest Nature
- Fire Blast / Overheat
- Hidden Power Ice
- Earth Power
- Will-O-Wisp / Flamethrower

Though this set is not as common nowadays, it provides you with AMAZING FIRE POWER!!! (all puns intended) The choice is up to you if you wish to use Air Balloon to give it another Psuedo Immunity OR if you just want to go in, then Specs Boosted OH is basically a the Nuke of this set.

If you use either of these sets you would be down a Physically defensive wall, however, so I would then feel obligated to suggesting Zapdos getting a makeover as well:

Statix (Zapdos) @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Roost / Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Heat Wave
- Defog

With his Flying resist and weakenesses to Rock and Ice only, this set still affords you VoltTurn capabilities alongside Scizor, while also being able to tank ALOT of hits. HW is still needed for Deo-Sharp teams where Bisharp will try to switch in on the predicted Defog, while Roost gives Statix some more Viability while also hurting Talonflame who tries to BB him even more, but if wish to maintain Thunderbolt, then Leftovers will be needed for some sort of recovery.

These are my suggestions... Let me know what you think.

Hey, thanks for the feed back. I definitely went ahead and changed the EV spread to avoid that SR damage. Thanks for pointing that out. I originally had carried SR on Mamo but I found people trying to set-up on him while they expected me to set-up rocks. Especially Thundurus trying to get up its nasty plot which made me switch in the first place and I found myself OHKOing on the expected rocks and I quite enjoy that extra power.
For now I'm going to go ahead and keep Arcanine as my defensive wall, I like his intimidate, ability to eat-up burns (which is needed for all my physical attackers) and recovery. But I may try out that Zapdos on another team of mine that needs some help.
As far as a special attacker I would only add one with special priority but I don't know of any good special priority attackers. Powerful Heatran set though!

 

[Rafael J. Feliciano]

Hey, thanks for the feed back. I definitely went ahead and changed the EV spread to avoid that SR damage. Thanks for pointing that out. I originally had carried SR on Mamo but I found people trying to set-up on him while they expected me to set-up rocks. Especially Thundurus trying to get up its nasty plot which made me switch in the first place and I found myself OHKOing on the expected rocks and I quite enjoy that extra power.
For now I'm going to go ahead and keep Arcanine as my defensive wall, I like his intimidate, ability to eat-up burns (which is needed for all my physical attackers) and recovery. But I may try out that Zapdos on another team of mine that needs some help.
As far as a special attacker I would only add one with special priority but I don't know of any good special priority attackers. Powerful Heatran set though!

Sadly, the only priority move thats of the special variety is Vacuum Wave. So I guess you can explore NP Lucario with Life Orb:

Lucario @ Life Orb
EV: 252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 Def
Ability: Justified
Timid Nature
IV: 0 Atk
- Vacuum Wave / Aura Sphere
- Flash Cannon
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot

I'm not sure who you would drop, though the leader in the clubhouse seems to be Crawdaunt, but this would be totally up to you.

Let me kno what you think...

 

[RaidRover]

Sadly, the only priority move thats of the special variety is Vacuum Wave. So I guess you can explore NP Lucario with Life Orb:

Lucario @ Life Orb
EV: 252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 Def
Ability: Justified
Timid Nature
IV: 0 Atk
- Vacuum Wave / Aura Sphere
- Flash Cannon
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot

I'm not sure who you would drop, though the leader in the clubhouse seems to be Crawdaunt, but this would be totally up to you.

Let me kno what you think...

I don't think I want to replace Crawdaunt, he's my team MVP and one of my favorite pokes. I might try NP Lucario in place of Scizor though, it limits my fire weakness and keeps the same type coverage. I'll keep you posted, I plan on trying some laddering tomorrow!

 

[Rafael J. Feliciano]

I don't think I want to replace Crawdaunt, he's my team MVP and one of my favorite pokes. I might try NP Lucario in place of Scizor though, it limits my fire weakness and keeps the same type coverage. I'll keep you posted, I plan on trying some laddering tomorrow!

After updating your avatar to him I see that he is your favorite. ^_^

Question: Has the Focus Sash been beneficial for you? I ask only cause I believe that either Life Orb or the more unconvential Choice Band would be more benefical item so that you can change Dragon Dance < Superpower. With either of those items you can even give Crawdaunt a Jolly nature as then his speed reaches 229, which is still enough to outspeed and possibly 2HKO Rotom-W:

252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Crawdaunt Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 216+ Def Rotom-W: 185-218 (61 - 71.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Choice Band Adaptability Crawdaunt Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 216+ Def Rotom-W: 212-250 (69.9 - 82.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

Let me know what you think... Also I want to thank our lord and savior Arceus for endowing Crawdaunt with such an AWESOME HA ^_^

 

[LucianoBegot]

About the above guy, I think he should keep Focus Sash on Crawdaunt, if he manages to remove priority from the opponent's team, a boosted crawdaunt can sweep an entire team, and focus sash pretty much guarantees the boost, and also helps in emergency situations, keeping you from being swept. Just my opinion.

 

[RaidRover]

I'm bumping this because I would like some more advice on the team. I've peaked just shy of 1550 on Showdown. That's probably more due to my playing than the team but I have found two huge threats in MegaZardX (mostly the hyper offensive one, less so with the bulky ZardX) and Bisharb. Suggestion would be nice. I am open to changing a member or two if necessary but keep in mind that the team IS built around priority.

 

[RaidRover]

After updating your avatar to him I see that he is your favorite. ^_^

Question: Has the Focus Sash been beneficial for you? I ask only cause I believe that either Life Orb or the more unconvential Choice Band would be more benefical item so that you can change Dragon Dance < Superpower. With either of those items you can even give Crawdaunt a Jolly nature as then his speed reaches 229, which is still enough to outspeed and possibly 2HKO Rotom-W:

252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Crawdaunt Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 216+ Def Rotom-W: 185-218 (61 - 71.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Choice Band Adaptability Crawdaunt Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 216+ Def Rotom-W: 212-250 (69.9 - 82.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

Let me know what you think... Also I want to thank our lord and savior Arceus for endowing Crawdaunt with such an AWESOME HA ^_^

I wanted to get back to you, been busy but yes the sash has been a tremendous help. I ran LO for a while and found myself not always being able to get a boost and then often dying too quickly. With the sash I am able to switch in and guarantee a boost. And if I can scare off whatever I switch in against I can get two boosts and then GL to anything short of Quagsire or a fully boosted Clefable