Triple Kartana HO (or TriKart for short)
Introduction
Welcome to my first RMT! Hyper Offense has always been my favourite playstyle. But lately I've been using balance because it's easier to use for laddering and I even reached #1 with Zenith Mode. So I wanted to make a HO team that doesn't struggle with cursed teams on the ladder, while still being good against viable teams. So here it is: Triple Kartana HO.
One night, I thought: "What if I use a Magic Guard Defog Kartana on a team with 5 other Pokémon, all of which had one job: do as much damage as humanly (or Pokémonly, I guess) possible, while always living a hit with their Focus Sashes?" So, the next morning, I got on Pokémon Showdown! and selected Kartana in the teambuilder. At this point, I had no idea this team would have 3 Kartana.
I added No Guard Kartana because I've had lots of success with it. It can put lots of pressure on balance teams that don't have Sturdy Doublade, Celesteela, or other counters, and I didn't need to worry about using one of those for improofing because I was planning on running sash on everything.
At this point, I wasn't sure what my third Pokémon should be, but then I remembered a different HO team by TheCreatorOfBullsht with a Huge Power Kartana often known as "Unwallable Kartana". It seemed like a perfect fit for this team, and I thought it would be cool if I used 3 Kartana. This was the beginning of TriKart.
My team was looking a little weak to Celesteela, so I added Shadow Tag Primal Groudon, but after thinking about it for a bit, I decided a Huge Power set would fit my team better. Since I later replaced it, here is the set.
I saw a cool Deoxys set made by lag=bad and decided to try it out. Originally I had Moonblast, but I later changed it to Spore. At first, I didn't want to use Spore on this team because I didn't want Imposter to be able to use it, especially since I'm really unlucky with sleep turns. But I later decided it was fine to use it since I had 3 Kartana, and if my opponent had Imposter I would make sure at least one Kartana was healthy if I set up with Deoxys.
I wanted another special attacker so my team wasn't as weak to physical walls, so I chose Mega Gengar. There are 2 abilities that Gengar normally runs: Parental Bond and Magic Guard. But running PBond meant I couldn't reliably improof it, and I didn't need Magic Guard if I already had a Magic Guard Defogger. So I went with Queenly Majesty to give my team a better matchup into Mega Diancite and Mega Rayquaza. I did experiment with No Guard for a bit, but I decided to stick with the former. I also originally had Secret Sword, but since it doesn't have Magic Guard, I felt OHKOing Innards Out Chansey/Blissey wasn't valuable, so I changed to Aura Sphere to deal more damage to Slaking.
So the team was finished. I used it on ladder for a bit, and reached my peak.
BUT...
The battle after I reached 1712 Elo, I was against a mid ladder player running No Guard Deoxys-Speed, and since my luck with sleep turns is horrible, I got 6-0d. I realised my team really needed an Innards Out chansey to deal with Sing No Guards, and I decided that Primal Groudon was the most replaceable.
So now the team was actually finished.
The Team
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
IVs: 0 SpD
- Sunsteel Strike
- Pursuit
- Spectral Thief
- Defog
Magic Guard Kartana is the backbone of the team. Without it, everything else's sashes would often be broken, giving the team a hard time vs offense and Imposter.
Even though Wood Hammer is stronger, I chose Sunsteel Strike as its main attack to deal good damage to Mega Audino and not get completely walled by anything. Pursuit is mainly for Innards Out Chansey/Blissey, as if your opponent notices that Kartana didn't take damage from Stealth Rock/Spikes, they will likely switch out. Spectral Thief is mainly to stop Extreme Evoboost users from sweeping, and it can sometimes let Kartana sweep if you steal an Extreme Evoboost or Shell Smash. Finally, Defog is to clear hazards to keep the sashes on the other Pokémon intact. I gave it 0 Special Defense IVs because almost every special move would bring it down to its sash, and so Deoxys and Gengar do more damage to Imposter transformed into it. The reason I didn't reduce the Defense and Special Defense IVs on everything else is so they are more likely to live attacks if hazards are somehow up and their sashes get broken.
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shell Smash
- Power Whip
- Sunsteel Strike
- Fissure
No Guard Kartana is one of my favourite Pokémon to use in this meta, since its STAB combination hits a lot of common Wonder Guards, like Mega Audino, Mega Slowbro, Mega Gyarados, and more. Shell Smash boosts its speed while letting it hit harder with Power Whip and Sunsteel Strike. Power Whip is the 2nd strongest physical Grass-type move (for those wondering, 1st is Solar Blade) and it has no drawbacks thanks to No Guard. Sunsteel Strike is to hit Wonder Guards that aren't weak to Grass or Ground and Flying-types. I chose Fissure over Sheer Cold to OHKO non-Air Balloon Wonder Guards weak to Ground, but since the most common one is Alolan Muk, which gets OHKOd by +2 Sunsteel Strike, Sheer Cold can probably work too.
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: Huge Power
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shell Smash
- Sunsteel Strike
- Searing Sunraze Smash
- Ice Shard
This is what is known as Unwallable Kartana. After a Shell Smash, Searing Sunraze Smash OHKOs nearly everything (Only 4x Steel resists like Heatran and Eviolite Magneton can live; even +Def Mega Steelix always gets OHKOd). Sunsteel Strike always OHKOs everything that doesn't resist it (except Zygarde, which has a 50% chance to live) and even some Pokémon that resist it faint, like Ash Greninja. Lastly, Ice Shard has an 87.5% chance to OHKO Zygarde, the most common Prankster Haze Pokémon.
Chansey (F) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Innards Out
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Gentle Nature
IVs: 0 Def
- Magic Coat
- Knock Off
- Recover
- Whirlwind
Innards Out Chansey is, in my opinion, the single best Pokémon in this meta. 0 Defense IVs mean it gets OHKOd by almost every physical move, and since its Special Defense is too high to often get OHKOd by special moves other than Secret Sword (+2 MMY Photon Geyser does 99.4% maximum if it runs 0 SpDef EVs and IVs with a - nature), its SpDef is maximised, which lets it wall special attackers by spamming Recover. Magic Coat lets it reflect Sing and Gastro Acid from No Guard Pokémon as well as other status moves. Knock Off is a good utility move that also allows it to break sashes, sometimes 1v1 special attackers weak to Dark, and chip opposing Innards Out Chansey/Blissey. Recover is so it can heal itself if it gets chipped and to force out (or sometimes 1v1) special attackers. Whirlwind is so it can phase out Pokémon trying to take advantage of its passivity.
Deoxys-Attack @ Focus Sash
Ability: Protean
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Spore
- Shell Smash
- Sunsteel Strike
- Moongeist Beam
This is a fun set I was experimenting with, and it worked surprisingly well. Deoxys's main niche over MMX and MMY is being able to run mixed sets better, and with Protean, Sunsteel Strike and Moongeist Beam both get STAB, letting Deoxys hit harder. I thought about using Mega Rayquaza instead, but since this is a Hyper Offense team, speed is more valuable than bulk. I originally had Moonblast over Spore to hit Pokémon like Mega Gyarados, but I decided Spore was better so I had a chance to beat other Focus Sash Pokémon if its sash was broken. Lonely Nature lets it always OHKO Alolan Muk and Meloetta with +2 Sunsteel Strike.
Gengar-Mega @ Focus Sash
Ability: Queenly Majesty
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shell Smash
- Moongeist Beam
- Sludge Wave
- Aura Sphere
Mega Gengar is the last member of the team. I gave it Queenly Majesty so I have something to block priority moves (mainly FakeSpeed from Mega Diancie, Mega Rayquaza, and Black Kyurem) if Chansey is down. Just like on 2 of the Kartana and Deoxys, Shell Smash is its setup move. Moongeist Beam is a great STAB option. Sludge Wave is another good STAB move, mainly to hit Mega Audino, which often walls other Mega Gengar variants. Finally, Aura Sphere is to hit Normal-types, and I chose it over Secret Sword because Slaking has much more Defense than Special Defense, so the former can OHKO it while the latter can't.
Checks and Counters
Parental Bond Pokémon: Since this team relies on Pokémon living a hit with their Focus Sashes, Parental Bond Pokémon like Mega Gengar and Mega Mewtwo Y are a bad matchup for this team. The team's main way of beating them is forcing them out with Chansey so something can set up and outspeed them.
Prankster Celesteela: Nothing on this team can OHKO Celesteela unboosted, and Gengar's Moongeist Beam only has a 5.1% chance to 2HKO unboosted. I haven't encountered it at all while using this team though, so this is just an assumption.
Other Focus Sash spam teams: Since this team has no entry hazards and only one Spore user, other teams similar to TriKart can be a problem.
Conclusion
This was a very fun team to play with in roomtours, but the same can't really be said for the ladder. I probably could get #1 with it if I really tried to, but I don't find laddering very enjoyable, because I often don't get very much Elo per game, and losing to a bad matchup on low ladder is very demotivating, especially if it makes you lose lots of Elo. I'm sure someone else who enjoys playing on ladder could get #1 with it though.
Importable
https://pokepast.es/45698e275b608945
Have fun!
Introduction
Welcome to my first RMT! Hyper Offense has always been my favourite playstyle. But lately I've been using balance because it's easier to use for laddering and I even reached #1 with Zenith Mode. So I wanted to make a HO team that doesn't struggle with cursed teams on the ladder, while still being good against viable teams. So here it is: Triple Kartana HO.
One night, I thought: "What if I use a Magic Guard Defog Kartana on a team with 5 other Pokémon, all of which had one job: do as much damage as humanly (or Pokémonly, I guess) possible, while always living a hit with their Focus Sashes?" So, the next morning, I got on Pokémon Showdown! and selected Kartana in the teambuilder. At this point, I had no idea this team would have 3 Kartana. I added No Guard Kartana because I've had lots of success with it. It can put lots of pressure on balance teams that don't have Sturdy Doublade, Celesteela, or other counters, and I didn't need to worry about using one of those for improofing because I was planning on running sash on everything. At this point, I wasn't sure what my third Pokémon should be, but then I remembered a different HO team by TheCreatorOfBullsht with a Huge Power Kartana often known as "Unwallable Kartana". It seemed like a perfect fit for this team, and I thought it would be cool if I used 3 Kartana. This was the beginning of TriKart. My team was looking a little weak to Celesteela, so I added Shadow Tag Primal Groudon, but after thinking about it for a bit, I decided a Huge Power set would fit my team better. Since I later replaced it, here is the set. I saw a cool Deoxys set made by lag=bad and decided to try it out. Originally I had Moonblast, but I later changed it to Spore. At first, I didn't want to use Spore on this team because I didn't want Imposter to be able to use it, especially since I'm really unlucky with sleep turns. But I later decided it was fine to use it since I had 3 Kartana, and if my opponent had Imposter I would make sure at least one Kartana was healthy if I set up with Deoxys. I wanted another special attacker so my team wasn't as weak to physical walls, so I chose Mega Gengar. There are 2 abilities that Gengar normally runs: Parental Bond and Magic Guard. But running PBond meant I couldn't reliably improof it, and I didn't need Magic Guard if I already had a Magic Guard Defogger. So I went with Queenly Majesty to give my team a better matchup into Mega Diancite and Mega Rayquaza. I did experiment with No Guard for a bit, but I decided to stick with the former. I also originally had Secret Sword, but since it doesn't have Magic Guard, I felt OHKOing Innards Out Chansey/Blissey wasn't valuable, so I changed to Aura Sphere to deal more damage to Slaking.So the team was finished. I used it on ladder for a bit, and reached my peak.
BUT...
The battle after I reached 1712 Elo, I was against a mid ladder player running No Guard Deoxys-Speed, and since my luck with sleep turns is horrible, I got 6-0d. I realised my team really needed an Innards Out chansey to deal with Sing No Guards, and I decided that Primal Groudon was the most replaceable.So now the team was actually finished.
The Team
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
IVs: 0 SpD
- Sunsteel Strike
- Pursuit
- Spectral Thief
- Defog
Magic Guard Kartana is the backbone of the team. Without it, everything else's sashes would often be broken, giving the team a hard time vs offense and Imposter.
Even though Wood Hammer is stronger, I chose Sunsteel Strike as its main attack to deal good damage to Mega Audino and not get completely walled by anything. Pursuit is mainly for Innards Out Chansey/Blissey, as if your opponent notices that Kartana didn't take damage from Stealth Rock/Spikes, they will likely switch out. Spectral Thief is mainly to stop Extreme Evoboost users from sweeping, and it can sometimes let Kartana sweep if you steal an Extreme Evoboost or Shell Smash. Finally, Defog is to clear hazards to keep the sashes on the other Pokémon intact. I gave it 0 Special Defense IVs because almost every special move would bring it down to its sash, and so Deoxys and Gengar do more damage to Imposter transformed into it. The reason I didn't reduce the Defense and Special Defense IVs on everything else is so they are more likely to live attacks if hazards are somehow up and their sashes get broken.
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shell Smash
- Power Whip
- Sunsteel Strike
- Fissure
No Guard Kartana is one of my favourite Pokémon to use in this meta, since its STAB combination hits a lot of common Wonder Guards, like Mega Audino, Mega Slowbro, Mega Gyarados, and more. Shell Smash boosts its speed while letting it hit harder with Power Whip and Sunsteel Strike. Power Whip is the 2nd strongest physical Grass-type move (for those wondering, 1st is Solar Blade) and it has no drawbacks thanks to No Guard. Sunsteel Strike is to hit Wonder Guards that aren't weak to Grass or Ground and Flying-types. I chose Fissure over Sheer Cold to OHKO non-Air Balloon Wonder Guards weak to Ground, but since the most common one is Alolan Muk, which gets OHKOd by +2 Sunsteel Strike, Sheer Cold can probably work too.
Kartana @ Focus Sash
Ability: Huge Power
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shell Smash
- Sunsteel Strike
- Searing Sunraze Smash
- Ice Shard
This is what is known as Unwallable Kartana. After a Shell Smash, Searing Sunraze Smash OHKOs nearly everything (Only 4x Steel resists like Heatran and Eviolite Magneton can live; even +Def Mega Steelix always gets OHKOd). Sunsteel Strike always OHKOs everything that doesn't resist it (except Zygarde, which has a 50% chance to live) and even some Pokémon that resist it faint, like Ash Greninja. Lastly, Ice Shard has an 87.5% chance to OHKO Zygarde, the most common Prankster Haze Pokémon.
Chansey (F) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Innards Out
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Gentle Nature
IVs: 0 Def
- Magic Coat
- Knock Off
- Recover
- Whirlwind
Innards Out Chansey is, in my opinion, the single best Pokémon in this meta. 0 Defense IVs mean it gets OHKOd by almost every physical move, and since its Special Defense is too high to often get OHKOd by special moves other than Secret Sword (+2 MMY Photon Geyser does 99.4% maximum if it runs 0 SpDef EVs and IVs with a - nature), its SpDef is maximised, which lets it wall special attackers by spamming Recover. Magic Coat lets it reflect Sing and Gastro Acid from No Guard Pokémon as well as other status moves. Knock Off is a good utility move that also allows it to break sashes, sometimes 1v1 special attackers weak to Dark, and chip opposing Innards Out Chansey/Blissey. Recover is so it can heal itself if it gets chipped and to force out (or sometimes 1v1) special attackers. Whirlwind is so it can phase out Pokémon trying to take advantage of its passivity.
Deoxys-Attack @ Focus Sash
Ability: Protean
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Spore
- Shell Smash
- Sunsteel Strike
- Moongeist Beam
This is a fun set I was experimenting with, and it worked surprisingly well. Deoxys's main niche over MMX and MMY is being able to run mixed sets better, and with Protean, Sunsteel Strike and Moongeist Beam both get STAB, letting Deoxys hit harder. I thought about using Mega Rayquaza instead, but since this is a Hyper Offense team, speed is more valuable than bulk. I originally had Moonblast over Spore to hit Pokémon like Mega Gyarados, but I decided Spore was better so I had a chance to beat other Focus Sash Pokémon if its sash was broken. Lonely Nature lets it always OHKO Alolan Muk and Meloetta with +2 Sunsteel Strike.
Gengar-Mega @ Focus Sash
Ability: Queenly Majesty
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shell Smash
- Moongeist Beam
- Sludge Wave
- Aura Sphere
Mega Gengar is the last member of the team. I gave it Queenly Majesty so I have something to block priority moves (mainly FakeSpeed from Mega Diancie, Mega Rayquaza, and Black Kyurem) if Chansey is down. Just like on 2 of the Kartana and Deoxys, Shell Smash is its setup move. Moongeist Beam is a great STAB option. Sludge Wave is another good STAB move, mainly to hit Mega Audino, which often walls other Mega Gengar variants. Finally, Aura Sphere is to hit Normal-types, and I chose it over Secret Sword because Slaking has much more Defense than Special Defense, so the former can OHKO it while the latter can't.
Checks and Counters
Parental Bond Pokémon: Since this team relies on Pokémon living a hit with their Focus Sashes, Parental Bond Pokémon like Mega Gengar and Mega Mewtwo Y are a bad matchup for this team. The team's main way of beating them is forcing them out with Chansey so something can set up and outspeed them. Prankster Celesteela: Nothing on this team can OHKO Celesteela unboosted, and Gengar's Moongeist Beam only has a 5.1% chance to 2HKO unboosted. I haven't encountered it at all while using this team though, so this is just an assumption. Other Focus Sash spam teams: Since this team has no entry hazards and only one Spore user, other teams similar to TriKart can be a problem.These are in no particular order other than the order I found them in.
Wins:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2280352578 vs Ransei - This is what I mean when I say No Guard Kartana can put a lot of pressure on balance teams
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279207378?p2 vs AssassinKoen - This is how Chansey can 1v1 special attackers
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279201525?p2 vs hendrit - I got a turn 1 sleep for once
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277385697 vs Afox4567 - This team is so fast paced it beat semistall in 22 turns
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277383665?p2 vs SS Slowbro - Not much to say about this battle
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2273144529?p2 Vs AssassinKoen - Very lucky ending
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2273140809?p2 vs ballfire - Another quick game vs semistall
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2268261077 vs Guysmash - This is how Pursuit helps vs Innards
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2270905233-qsyqkhx4zskyf38es7bt70moy4nuzicpw vs mrmediocreteams - Another battle showing how good No Guard Kartana is into balance
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2266582389-nq43ex4ctssu4212svldyq3rogssojipw?p2 vs aidan amoongus 2 - Triple Kartana vs Triple Mewtwo
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2265897069-rxalm18cu8hcl9qcuulqtdd1tcvjxvppw vs 10th bullsht - The battle that got me to my peak (this was back when I had PDon)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2265974432-n50owzpdir7ry7y14et7ocit8akqmgepw?p2 vs 8th bullsht - Sorry for crit
Losses:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2270451316-ghqmajbzbtpfkvvzov3wgdrnib0f3l6pw?p2 vs Eyeos - This battle kinda made me regret putting Spore on Deoxys
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279595124 vs Future king of ou - This battle shows how important it is to keep rocks off the field when the opponent has Imposter
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277387656?p2 vs gold0987 - This battle shows that opposing HO teams can be a problem
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2267735674 vs Jethin 10 - I didn't play very well this game
Wins:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2280352578 vs Ransei - This is what I mean when I say No Guard Kartana can put a lot of pressure on balance teams
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279207378?p2 vs AssassinKoen - This is how Chansey can 1v1 special attackers
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279201525?p2 vs hendrit - I got a turn 1 sleep for once
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277385697 vs Afox4567 - This team is so fast paced it beat semistall in 22 turns
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277383665?p2 vs SS Slowbro - Not much to say about this battle
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2273144529?p2 Vs AssassinKoen - Very lucky ending
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2273140809?p2 vs ballfire - Another quick game vs semistall
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2268261077 vs Guysmash - This is how Pursuit helps vs Innards
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2270905233-qsyqkhx4zskyf38es7bt70moy4nuzicpw vs mrmediocreteams - Another battle showing how good No Guard Kartana is into balance
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2266582389-nq43ex4ctssu4212svldyq3rogssojipw?p2 vs aidan amoongus 2 - Triple Kartana vs Triple Mewtwo
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2265897069-rxalm18cu8hcl9qcuulqtdd1tcvjxvppw vs 10th bullsht - The battle that got me to my peak (this was back when I had PDon)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2265974432-n50owzpdir7ry7y14et7ocit8akqmgepw?p2 vs 8th bullsht - Sorry for crit
Losses:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2270451316-ghqmajbzbtpfkvvzov3wgdrnib0f3l6pw?p2 vs Eyeos - This battle kinda made me regret putting Spore on Deoxys
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2279595124 vs Future king of ou - This battle shows how important it is to keep rocks off the field when the opponent has Imposter
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2277387656?p2 vs gold0987 - This battle shows that opposing HO teams can be a problem
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7purehackmons-2267735674 vs Jethin 10 - I didn't play very well this game
Conclusion
This was a very fun team to play with in roomtours, but the same can't really be said for the ladder. I probably could get #1 with it if I really tried to, but I don't find laddering very enjoyable, because I often don't get very much Elo per game, and losing to a bad matchup on low ladder is very demotivating, especially if it makes you lose lots of Elo. I'm sure someone else who enjoys playing on ladder could get #1 with it though.
Importable
https://pokepast.es/45698e275b608945
Have fun!
