[Rain Team] Rain Terror

[HoHoKing]

Hello all! Thank all of you for visiting my thread. This is the second time i made such thread and i welcome any constructive suggestion and criticism. You can visit my previous Rain team RMT here: http://www.smogon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3479596
If you want to find me in showdown, my name will be same as forum name: HoHoKing

Politoed @ Choice Specs
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Focus Blast
- Perish Song

The main infinite rain inducer ( and i wish there more option but there isn't any -.-). By choice specs it will become a fearsome water pokemon in rain, capable to hit down a offensive water pokemon (on average) in 2 -3 hits.
Personally I prefer using surf compare to Scald due to greater attack power and it work relatively well with choice spec, Scald on other hand will be used on my Vaporeon which i will explain later. Hidden Power Grass is used here, in order to rid the irritating Gastrodon and Quagsire who are immune to water moves. Focus Blast is placed for better coverage however i rarely use it, and if u have suggestion do give me some new move to replace this. Perish Song is used to stop Baton Passer and it ability to penetrate Protects and Sub. It can also be used to rid the last stalling pokemon in my opponent team.
Politoad is mostly used second on my team after Breloom which i will discuss later.

Vaporeon @ Leftovers
Trait: Hydration
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 Spd
Calm Nature
- Ice Beam
- Scald
- Acid Armor
- Rest

My main tank for my team. In rain it is practically invincible to status. It work as early Special Attack Tank and in later game it work as Attack Tank after a few Acid Armor. Scald is used in this pokemon as the main Burn inducer as this pokemon is mainly for stalling hence I have a good chance to cause a massive damage to opponent and having a chance to Burn them. Ice beam is used to extent coverage to rid Dragon types and possible Grass types. Acid Armor is used in this Vaporeon in order to tank physical attack in the case when my Skamory is fainted. Acid armor have a high PP of 64 allowing me to drain all my opponent PP out in the case of Tank VS Tank battle. Rest is the only recovery move that work extremely well with Hydration - Rest combo in Rain for it 100% heal rate.

Thundurus-Therian (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Focus Blast
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ice]

How can i make a rain team without this? The amazing speed of Thunderus-Therian and it immunity to electricity is surely a must in Rain team. Focus Blast is used to remove any irritating Dark and steel type pokemon... Volt Switch give me a chance to Hit-and-Run upon facing fearsome pokemon. And using the advantage of Rain, Thunder will be 100% accuracy and used to remove most pokemon not immune or resist to it. Hidden Power Ice is used on this pokemon to outspeed Choice Scarfed Dragon type and other flying type and remove them.
It is mostly used as revenge killer or as late game sweeper.

Gyarados @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Ice Fang
- Waterfall

My main Physical sweeper in team. In rain it will bring terror to opponent who have no pokemon who can outspeed it. Waterfall is very much boosted in Rain and it is practically unstoppable once it is moxie boosted twice or more. Stone Edge, Earthquake and Ice Fang bring better coverage to various type of pokemon and is mostly left unused unless in desperation.

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind

My main physical tank in my whole team. Due to it typing it can tank attack from dragon and psychic. And it is not afraid of physical fighting type due to it flying typing. Fire type damage got reduced due to rain. It typing give me a huge coverage of moves i can tank, and i must say i am pretty impress by it and the moves it have. I will not talk much about Stealth Rock as it is quite self explanatory. Roost help to extent the time skarmory can tank. Brave Bird is a great skill to remove fighting type and neutral coverage to most others, it also prevent from being a taunt bait. Whirlwind work well with sturdy ability for it ability to blow away stat boosted pokemon and surviving at least a turn.

Breloom @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Low Sweep
- Bullet Seed
- Mach Punch
- Spore

Normally the first pokemon i thrown in, which hence why explain it's speed. It is normally thrown in to spore opponent and follow by a low sweep which will reduce the opponent speed (this work extremely well when your opponent switch to a faster pokemon). Bullet seed allow me to break through substitute pokemon and mach punch allow me to hit quickly which is extremely important when my opponent HP is low. This pokemon is mainly to die young unfortunately but also cause a severe chaos to my opponent team.

Import

Politoed @ Choice Specs
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Focus Blast
- Perish Song

Vaporeon @ Leftovers
Trait: Hydration
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 Spd
Calm Nature
- Ice Beam
- Scald
- Acid Armor
- Rest

Thundurus-Therian (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Volt Absorb
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Focus Blast
- Volt Switch
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Gyarados @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Ice Fang
- Waterfall

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind

Breloom @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Low Sweep
- Bullet Seed
- Mach Punch
- Spore

Replay: http://pokemonshowdown.com/replay/ou-34311476

 

[Halcyon.]

Hey HoHoKing, pretty cool rain team. Gyarados and Thundurus-T make for excellent rain sweepers, and both are known for ripping through the opponent's team with relative ease.

I think, since you have Gyarados and Thundurus-T, that you should change Vaporeon to Tentacruel. Tentacruel has one major characteristic over Vaporeon: Rapid Spin. Since you have two Stealth Rock weak Pokémon (especially Choice Scarfed ones) you're going to want a Rapid Spinner to make it easier for them to switch out and back in without taking extra damage. Tentacruel is also a great counter to Keldeo, taking relatively little from Hydro Pump and Secret Sword, which nothing else on your team really likes taking.
Next, you really only need one Choice Scarf Pokémon. I would change Gyarados to a Sub DD set. Sub DD Gyarados is fantastic in this metagame. It's a semi reliable check to Landorus and Keldeo, which otherwise do a number to your team (especially Landorus), and it doubles as a terrifying sweeper. Rotom-W is easily handled by Jolly Breloom anyway, so once that's out of the way, it's a clean sweep for Gyarados. Thundurus-T also makes a great partner for Gyarados, since Thundurus-T can take out Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Porygon2, and hit Rotom-W very hard with Thunder. The DD set finds plenty of opportunities to set up, and works well with your team.

Good luck with the team! Hope I was able to help!

Sets

Gyarados @ Leftovers
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 88 HP / 248 Atk / 168 Spd / 4 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Bounce
- Waterfall
- Dragon Dance
- Substitute

Tentacruel @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 20 Spd / 236 SDef
Calm Nature
- Scald
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
- Protect

 

[dcae]

Hey there! This is a pretty cool Rain team you've constructed here! However, there are a few issues with this team. The first thing that comes out to me is the various Electric weaknesses, with only an immunity in Thundurus T and a resistance in Breloom, both smashed by Ice Beam. Thus you have a general weakness to BoltBeam. Another problem I see is a Stealth Rock weakness, as you have both your scarfers weak to it, which isn't good, considering they are meant to switch in and out a lot. Having assessed these, I see your team is more focused on the offensive, but I see a lack of set-up sweepers. Therefore I recommend switching Gyarados to a SubDD variant, one of the most effective sweepers in BW2. It patches several problems as well as being incredibly dangerous for the opponent. Here is the set

Gyarados @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 88 HP / 248 Atk / 168 Spd / 4 Def
Jolly Nature
- Bounce
- Waterfall
- Dragon Dance
- Substitute


Having added your first sweeper, and thus the focus of your team, I recommend eliminating Gyarados' counters with the rest of your mons. As bulky Rotom-W and Ferrothorn are handled by Breloom, Gyarados fits your team well. Moving on, the Rock weakness is still quite obvious. To fix this I suggest fitting a spinner in your team. There are a few spinners that can fit here, the best being a SubToxic Tentacruel. SubToxic Tentacruel can spin on Jellicent and Gengar in the Rain, making it the most reliable spinner out there. It adds another check to Keldeo, and also is able to provide set-up opportunities for your Gyarados. The set is the following:

Tentacruel @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 20 Spd / 236 Def
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
- Protect

Now my next issue is your general problem with BoltBeam, so I must suggest replacing Skarmory with another mon that does the same job effectively: Ferrothorn. The infamous FerroCruel core is one of the best in OU under Rain, and adding Ferrothorn over Skarmory gives you that core. It doesn't mind BoltBeam coverage, so something like Double Dance Thundurus-T doesnt outright sweep you after a couple boosts. The set is the following:

Ferrothorn @Leftovers
Trait: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD
Nature: Relaxed
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball/Protect
- Power Whip/Protect

An inherent weakness of all Rain teams is Agility Thundurus T, which currently can take out your entire team after a boost. I cannot see many fixes to this, as Agility Thundurus T threatens every offensive Rain team. One possible fix would be to try a Scarf Latios or Latias over Thundurus T as your revengekiller, as both can survive an LO Hidden Power Ice and then OHKO Thundurus T. They are both also good answers to Sun. The choice is yours, however.

Some minor changes I would implement: First, U-turn > Volt Switch on Thundurus-T, because then Ground types switch in expecting Volt Switch to neutralize you, but U-turn always maintains the momentum, even though you will not be able to damage stuff as much as Volt Switch. Next, I would fit Psychic somewhere on your Politoed set, because atm Toxicroak can really pull a number on your team, and baiting it with Politoed and then hitting it with Psychic is a strong option. Overall, this is a cool team, and I hope I helped.

Tl;dr

tl;dr

SubDD Gyarados > Scarf Gyarados
SubToxic Tentacruel > Vaporeon
Ferrothorn > Skarmory
U-turn > Volt Switch on Thundurus-T
Psychic > Perish Song on Politoed
Test out Scarf Latios/Latias over Thundurus-T, possible change

 

[SomeDrunkRockLee]

@Dcae: To combat VoltTurn, I'm more interested in Breloom; with a set switch, Breloom can take down many VoltTurn teams not involving Tornadus by itself.

Bulk Up Breloom is not only a near perfect counter for Rotom-W, it also provides valuable bulk and the ability to check Volt-Turn:

Breloom @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
252 HP / 252 SpDef / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Spore
- Bulk Up
- Drain Punch
- Stone Edge

Additionally, this Breloom can take a HP Ice from agility Thundurus-T at full health and spore/stone edge it, helping to alleviate that problem (although not the optimal solution). However, with the suggested switch to scarf Latios/Latias, you could alleviate that problem as well.

Erm... yeah.