ORAS Doubles OU Rain Team

[GofD]

PLEASE SEE POST #7 For updated Team.


This is only my second double's team, and my second team to use weather. I mainly plan on using this team on Cartridge, once I get everything down pat, and start breeding for the important stuff. I do not use legends, so please don't suggest them.

@ Leftovers
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Ice Beam
- Protect
- Scald
- Perish Song

My weather setter and General "Will be starting the battle with this guy". I went with a pretty basic Defensive set, since he needs to stay alive to set weather. Scald as stab and possible Burn, Ice beam for another decent offensive Move, Protect cause doubles and perish song to force switches. This set works very well, and in the odd instance, Perish Song won me the match. Though in General, I just keep switching this guy in and out to set up weather.

@ Swampertite
Ability: Damp
EVs: 200 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 52 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
- Waterfall
- Protect

Mega Swampert is my Main Physical Sweeper. Pretty much just copied this set from the Smogon Database. Though in trials, I found it to be...not as fast as I would like in the rain, so I moved some Hp Iv's to Speed. I figured 52 would be enough without taking away from its bulk. I've found it to be more to my liking speed wise.

@ Assault Vest
Ability: Sap Sipper
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpA
Mild Nature
- Ice Beam
- Dragon Pulse
- Power Whip
- Sludge Bomb

This spot was originally held by a Hariyama, but after the first couple of matches with it.....I realized I had to swap it out for something. Seeing as Swampert is weak to Grass, I decided on a Goodra with Sap Sipper. I've found this to be a good Choice. I went with Ice beam for Grass types, Dragon Pulse for a reliable Stab (Not a big fan of Draco Meteor, unless its on a Poke that switchs often, which this really isnt, I find), Power whip to cover other water types, and Sludge bomb for fairy types.

@ Life Orb
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Signal Beam
- Protect

One of the few of the evolutions of Eevee I enjoying using. Thunder for power, and the good accuracy in rain. Hp Ice and Signal Beam for coverage. In all honesty, Joteon doesn't see much action. Either I win before when he comes out, or he just gets taken down to easily. I'd like to keep him, but I fear in more testing of the team he may become a hinderence.

@ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Bulk Up
- Drain Punch
- Seed Bomb

Im not really sure WHY I put him on this team. But I find he works really well, taking out a few threats towards my team. Generally Protect turn one, Toxic orb activates, Bulk up, then choose the attack for the situation. I went with Drain Punch and Seed Bomb. Both for Stab, Power, and Drain Punch for more longevity.

@ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Huge Power
EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Belly Drum
- Aqua Jet
- Play Rough
- Protect

I cant remember if he was an orginal member, or an add on. Either way, Im glad I put him here. I NEVER realized how scary this guy can be with huge Power once he got a Belly Drum off. Generally speaking I put the hurt on everything with Aqua Jet. Though it does take a good prediction to get him set up. I think I pretty much just took this set off the database and through Protect on it.


==THREAT LIST==

Im not very good with threat lists, mainly cause, I dont do that many battles on Showdown to see 100% what causes me problems. Though for this team, I'm gonna have to say other Weather teams seem to give me trouble. Not a great deal, but I find my self struggling with them.

 

[Arcticblast]

so many people come to Smogon for cart teams even though Smogon culture is heavily based in sim play >:(

nah it's cool

Your team's primary problem is that it's highly dependent on Rain staying up to succeed. This is bad, especially considering the impermanence of weather. You also have no Ground immunities, which makes it difficult to use Swampert to its fullest potential. Another issue is a lack of Pokemon that can beat Grass-types.

Anyway, Swampert and Politoed's sets are pretty spot on. I'm going to be making several changes to other members though.

Goodra - Assault Vest is terrible. Goodra has the damage output of a mute toddler without some sort of damage augment, and when it can't hurt anything it's useless. I'd recommend changing that to a Life Orb and a more offensive set.

Jolteon - a bad Pokemon. It's just too frail. Maybe if you weren't one of those "oh I don't use legendary Pokemon" people (seriously what the fuck) we could make this team a whole lot better, but for now we'll have to settle with Rotom-Fan. Yes, you can breed that. Rotom-Fan provides some solid bulk and a cool typing that's really useful for Rain teams, who often have trouble with the things Electric/Flying hits for super effective damage. A Fighting resist never hurts either, and it's immune to Ground for bad boy Swampert.

Breloom - I don't personally like Breloom (and it SHOULD BE USING SPORE), but if you really want to use it I won't stop you. Ferrothorn and Amoonguss are both better choices for a Rain Grass-type, however. The former provides a solid answer to Dragons (particularly under Rain) and the latter provides the ability to redirect attacks from non-Grass-type opponents. Also Spore. Both are also ridiculously slow, helping against Trick Room, and provide a Fairy resist.

Azumarill - Azumarill is absolutely an amazing Pokemon in its own right. However, it and Swampert have somewhat overlapping roles. Here, I'd actually suggest adding a Talonflame. Talonflame has the same problem as Jolteon in its frailty, but it's capable of doing a couple really useful things for the team. Most importantly, it obliterates Amoonguss and Ferrothorn - two Pokemon that are already major threats to the team. Secondly, it provides Quick Guard - due to its blinding Speed, it'll be able to shelter you from almost any Fake Out and also save a low health Swampert from Sucker Punches. Thirdly, it provides a very powerful priority move, which is really never a bad thing. Finally, it gives your team a Fairy resist. A flimsy Fairy resist, sure, but it'll do in a pinch.

sets (in PS! importable format)

Goodra @ Life Orb
Ability: Sap Sipper
EVs: 80 Def / 252 SpA / 176 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Protect
- Draco Meteor / Dragon Pulse
- Sludge Bomb
- Thunder

Rotom-Fan @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 212 SpD / 44 Spe
Calm Nature
- Protect
- Will-O-Wisp
- Thunderbolt
- Air Slash

Amoonguss @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Protect
- Spore
- Rage Powder
- Giga Drain

Talonflame @ Sharp Beak
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 48 HP / 252 Atk / 208 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Quick Guard
- Brave Bird
- Flare Blitz

hope I helped, sorry I'm rude as fuck

 

[shaian]

Heylo, nice to see more doubles RMTs, and it's nice to see more that are cartridge play inclined (I personally prefer that over simulator play). So anyway, looking over your team, you have no surefire responses to fairies (notably against Sylveon, who could easily tear through your team), and only 1 check (and not a particularly strong one) for bulky grasses. I would suggest that you consider opting to run Escavalier over Goodra to help address these two issues, and as well, it gives you at least some alleviation against Trick Room teams, and Amoonguss Spore + RP spam. Rain also helps address Escavaliers primary weakness, fire, which means that it has great synergy with rain cores in general. Swampert can dispose of Escavs checks under rain, and in the meanwhile, Escav can take down grass types and fairies with ease. Sample Escavalier set:

Escavalier @ Assault Vest / Life Orb
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Megahorn
- Iron Head
- Drill Run
- Knock Off / Protect

Simple but effective. The item choice is up to you, though I set Assault Vest as the primary set, since you said this is mainly for cart play, and that has an item clause. However, freeing up the Life Orb could prove to be beneficial (though AV Escav is highly effective anyway), as the gained power can turn some 2HKO's into OHKO's, such as most support Cresselia sets. Next area I would like to address is the Jolteon (I love this mon, not gonna lie). If you want to keep him, I would say that it would be pretty cool to swap out Signal Beam for Rain Dance, since the speed allows him to outrun almost everything, and it would be a pretty sweet tech against sun teams. Other options are Volt Switch to juke around and gain momentum, Shadow Ball to hit ghosts, or Thunderbolt for reliable damage outside of the rain, but yeah, Signal Beam just kinda sucks. If you do want to swap him out, I would consider other fast Electric types such as Raichu, to exploit the fast Fake Out + Encore, or maybe a Mega Manectric set (since cart play is 4 on 4, you could swap between Mega Swampert or Manectric), though normal Manectric w/ a Focus Sash could also work, but you don't really have a weakness to Electric or Paralysis anyway. Other cool ideas might be a Rotom form, maybe Rotom-H for its ability to resist Charizard Y, and take on Ferrothorn, Aegislash, and Amoonguss. Though Rotom-F, or Mowtom (Rotom-M) could be quite cool as well! The cool thing about Rotom however is that they provide room for Swampert to blast off Earthquakes, which your current team lacks, thanks to Levitate. Sample Rotom-H:

Rotom-Heat @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 200 HP / 84 SpA / 224 Spe
Modest Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect

Next up is the Breloom set. At first glance, Poison Heal might seem like an attractive idea, however that set is more singles inclined, and the fast paced nature of doubles often means that Breloom will not be lasting more than 1 or 2 attacks, thus rendering the healing redundant. Switching to a more standard 252 Atk / 252 Spe set that uses Technician and Focus Sash is much more doubles oriented and could buy your team invaluable survivals against opponents. Typically Mach Punch is used, helpful for picking off damaged Kangas and what not, but Technician with Drain Punch could be a cool idea, so that's your pick. Bullet Seed when backed by Technician becomes a really strong move that can tear through water types like Blastoise, Suicune, and the like. Breloom will also definitely help versus sand teams, and even Trick Room if you play your cards right. Though, I would consider switching out Breloom for options like Ferrothorn or Amoonguss, since Breloom doesn't provide much defensive synergy, and doesn't really help your core fairy weakness at all. Ferrothorn can help you out against fairies by providing a resist and OHKOing them with Gyro Ball, and Amoonguss can RP + Spore and really tackles Trick Room teams for you! Sample sets:

Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Protect
- Spore
- Rage Powder
- Giga Drain

Ferrothorn @ Lum Berry
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 172 Atk / 84 Def
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball / Iron Head
- Leech Seed / Thunderwave
- Protect

Last up is Azumarill, which looks to be a cool option, but is pretty redundant with Swampert on the team. Here I think a cool option could be either Talonflame or Aerodactyl. Talonflame can get you strong priority attacking and constant offensive pressure, and thanks to Quick Guard and Tailwind, it can give you speed control or support at the drop of a hat! It also nukes grass types easily, and can combine with Swampert to take out key threats easily with a combination of Brave Bird and EQ / Waterfall! Aerodactyl can also provide Tailwind, as well as Wide Guard support, and can also take on Charizards and Talonflames head on with Rock Slide, though Talonflame is likely a better choice. I just like Aerodactyl a lot. Sample Talonflame:

Talonflame @ Sharp Beak
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 8 HP / 252 Atk / 248 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Flare Blitz
- Quick Guard / Tailwind
- Protect

Just one more thing, your Swampert spread is pretty good already, though I would consider bumping the speed up to 88 EV's to outrun max speed Mega Gengar, or 108 Spe to outrun max speed Mega Manectric under rain. That could prove to be useful later one.

Swampert @ Swampertite
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 168 HP / 252 Atk / 88 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Protect

That's all I got mate, good luck! : )

Edit: Oh god damnit Arctic beat me to it ;_;

 

[GofD]

I appreciate the advice!

@ArticBlast- Sorry about the whole "no legends" thing. I just dont enjoy using them against other people, that and the whole needing to reset to get the right nature.

Ill likely try out the Rotom's in place of Jolteon. I THINK I have a Rotom-M kicking around, But IM pretty sure I built him more as a lead.

I think I prefrer Amoongus over Ferrothorn, mainly cause I have Ferrothorn on my other rain team, and the fact that I had a ton of trouble when I took on a trick room team.

I think I will give Escavalier a try, just because Im not a big fan of Goodra.

Talonflame is an awesome poke, and I have him as a revenge killer on one of my teams, Id rather use Aerodactyl, just to switch things up and so Im not using the same poke over and over again.

Ill try bumping swamperts Speed Ivs up to 88. That was kinda on of my main things with him was that I found him not to run as fast as I would have liked.

Ill try the changes out, and possibly post the changes if I remember, thanks again for the advice!

 

[DualMedusa12]

Can you do an inportable one

 

[GofD]

So after trying the suggestions, I found that me and the team just wasn't syncing. I took into consideration the advice given, and I pretty much Scrapped EVERYTHING on my team other than Politoed and Swampert to start from scratch. Ive added 3 Pokemon with Levitate so Mega Swampert can Spam EQ.


Politoed@ Leftovers
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Ice Beam
- Protect
- Scald
- Perish Song

No change, same as from before.

Swampert @ Swampertite
Ability: Damp
EVs: 100 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 154 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
- Waterfall
- Protect

Here Ive upped Swampert's Speed a bit lowering the Ev's In Hp. I find this makes him faster, while still keeping a little bulk. Other than that, no changes made.

Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Dazzling Gleam
- Drain Punch
- Energy Ball
- Shadow Ball

A pretty random selection in my opnion. I went with life orb and a Standard Special Sweeper spread. Shadow Ball for Stab, Dazzling Gleam to take care of Dragons (whilst also doing damage to the other one, literally just found out hits both targets). Energy Ball to take out other water types, and Drain Punch for a recovery move and an unexpceted move as well in my opnion.

Rotom-Mow @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 100 HP / 154 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Rain Dance
- Thunderbolt
- Will-O-Wisp

I went with Rotom M, mainly cause he resits Grass (which Swampert Cant do). I added Rain Dance on him so if need be I can use him to set rain up instead of Politoed, though the need has not arisen (its just nice to have ya know?) Will-O-Wisp to spread some status. And Leaf Storm and T-Bolt for Stab. I went with Max Speed, a little bulk and the rest in Sp.Att. Went with Sitrus berry, which seems to be rather standard on Rotom from what I've looked at.

Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 184 HP / 252 Atk / 72 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Aerial Ace
- Facade
- Thunder Fang

As told in earlier Posts, Poison Heal isnt that good in Doubles, But ive found it to be quite successful on Gliscor. Went a little bulky with this one, with 184 Evs, Hes still able to survive an Ice beam from some pokes. Facade cause, why not? Aerial Ace for Stab and T-Fang to deal with Water types. I am thinking about switching out T-Fang for Ice fang, since I only have two Pokes that can Deal with Grass types, all be it, the dont have the greatest typing to do so.

Breloom @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Spore
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
- Protect

I ended up re-adding Breloom at the end with Spore and Technician. This set actually does WONDERS for this team. I actually use this guy as a lead now, along with Politoed. I find that this works extremely well on this team, meaning Id don't have to send Swampert out right away (which is something I was doing wrong on my first team, I have come to conclude.


So there's the changes I made, again I thank those that take the time to look this over and offer suggestions.

 

[Arcticblast]

Drain Punch is absolutely useless on Gengar; any damage that could do would be outdone three times over by Swampert. Replace it with Protect (or really anything that isn't physical...).

Gliscor is also a pretty poor choice in Doubles; it has great physical bulk but its Attack is lacking and its special bulk is a disappointment. If you're using it for Grass-types, I'd like to once again bring up Talonflame.

 

[GofD]

I didn't really add drain punch on Gengar for the damage; it was more for the heal and the "out of the blue" factor. That said, Ill try some other stuff on it since I've found I haven't really used it, though im not 100% sure what....Poison Stab maybe?

As For Talon....Yeah he's awesome, and I like him. I have him as a revenge killer on one of my Single teams in Y. The thing is I dont really like using one poke over and over again. I like to switch things up when I make new teams. Gliscor may not seem like the best idea, but from the matches Ive played he syncs well with the team.