Hi Smogon!
So, this is one of my first posts, outside of maybe the introduction and I think one more, but I'm in a bit of a bind here.
I mean, my team doesn't feel all too bad, and I've won quite a lot with it. But I lose just as much, and when I lose, I get mauled. That's why I came here. Just to see if someone else could notice what I'm not seeming to get.
So without further ado, my rain team.
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Maple (Goodra) (F) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Hydration
Level: 50
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 76 Atk / 20 Def / 156 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
O Rain Dance
O Protect
O Sludge Wave
O Power Whip
Try not to get distracted by the crazy EVs, because outside of that, Maple is pretty one-directional. Her purpose is to just set up the rain (de-investment in speed so that it can turn the tides on other weather-setters). I know that a lot of people use Politoed and it's Drizzle, but that's really a brand on rain teams now, which would make my team way more approachable. If the team doesn't look all too much like a rain team, at least the enemy won't be able to plan around it. I tried to make it a mixed attacker, and it looks like that went decently. Not only will it be able to take hits, set up weather best, and attack from both defenses, but it's now a great trick room counter, especially with power whip eliminating pokémon like Mega Slowbro, and Sludge Wave dealing with Mega Abomasnow/Sylveon/Other Fairies.
Kipster (Swampert-Mega) (M) @ Swampertite
Ability: Swift Swim
Level: 50
EVs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 156 SpD / 76 Spe
Adamant Nature
O Waterfall
O Earthquake
O Protect
O Ice Punch
Although this can definitely give away the rain agenda, I think that Mega Swampert is an insane pokémon, especially when it's one that people have to work entire teams around (lol, bullet seed on a Cinccino. Is that common?). With the 76 EVs in Speed, Mega Swampert just barely hits a maximum 200 Speed in the rain, which outspeeds tons of pokémon. This tied in with the maximum investment in Attack gives Mega Swampert a 222 Attack stat to add to that insane speed and bulk. As of the defensive investments, I gave Kipster the 156 just so that it could maybe take an EnergyBall or GigaDrain from Mega Venusaur (I didn't do the calcs :I), more as reinforcement than anything else. The 20 HP because that was the best I could do with the final investments of 4 in Defense. Pretty spread out, but at least it works.
Philly CS (Heliolisk) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Dry Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
O Thunder
O Volt Switch
O Hyper Voice
O Dark Pulse
If you get the reference in the name, good for you. Most people don't. Anyway, I like this Heliolisk. 109 in Special Attack and Speed is way better than some other pokémon in RU (I still don't get what Braviary is doing down there), but whatever. This pokemon's Electric Typing gives it only one weakness, but EQ is really common in doubles. Plus, the Normal Typing that somebody stapled onto it is just as useful as Mega Ampharos's Dragon Typing -- it just nerfs the pokémon (even though this guy didn't really need that nerfing). I give it the Focus Sash because of it's frail essence and weakness to Vacuum Wave/EQ/Mach Punch/etc. This essentially gives him a good extra turn to either Volt Switch out of or play his final gambit with Thunder or the other two attacks. But, yeah. It's purpose is just as 1D as it's EV spreads. I don't know how else to elaborate, so, next.
Tinka (Tentacruel) (F) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Rain Dish
Level: 50
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
O Toxic Spikes
O Protect
O Giga Drain
O Rain Dance
God, Tentacruel. It might just be me, but I've never really seen Tentacruel in Battle Spot -- singles OR doubles. What an underrated pokémon. Anyway, enough of me moping. Tinka has the Black Sludge because I don't like it when people use Trick, and I want to be able to give Leftovers to someone else. :) This tied in with Rain Dish and GigaDrain makes for one long lasting pokémon. Once again, I didn't do the calcs for this, but in a recent battle, Tinka took three Thunderbolts from a Rotom-Wash before being stalled out (with the help of an upcoming ally) and eventually drained to death. I give it Rain Dance because Ice Punch from Mega Swampert and Aqua Jet from a few Crawdaunts is a death sentence in the rain, even with the few investments in Defense. Obviously, Tinka might not be as defensive either, but at least it takes those Ice Punches/Aqua Jets as a decent switch-in, and replacement if Maple has to bite the dust. Toxic Spikes just because Tinka can afford to do so with her high speed and decent bulk, and protect to take in that Rain Dish + Black Sludge on pretty much every other turn unless the situation demands for otherwise.
Cold Rod (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
Level: 50
EVs: 4 HP / 36 Atk / 252 Def / 216 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
O Gyro Ball
O Leech Seed
O Toxic
O Stealth Rock
Already a threat in OU, but take a closer look at this dude.
His 4x weakness to fire is definitive of him, making pokémon like ChariYard and pretty much every other fire type that isn't in LC a counter (special fire types especially, because of SpDef being weaker and not getting hit by those barbs). Put it in the rain, and the weakness becomes 2x, which definitely nerfs it's fire type counters to a massive extent. This means that it only has two weaknesses, but only one of them will really want to pick a fight with this guy (and fire types are definitely covered in this team). I was thinking about Ferroseed and Eviolite, but the recovery is way more important here. There's no protect, just because I think that Ferrothorn is bulky enough to keep momentum without it. The EVs are pretty basic, too. I mean, I just needed a physical tank since I already had two specials, and this one seemed great. Stealth Rocks to counter ChariYard and other frail ice/fire types, Leech Seed to add onto the recovery, and Toxic because it meshes with a lot of the other pokémon in this team, as well. With minimum speed, Ferrothorn also makes a great Trick Room counter as well as a GyroBaller (just don't use that in Trick Room), helping get rid of almost every single Fairy Type, as I believe there are currently no physical Fairy Type walls yet. So, Ferrothorn. Pretty darn good.
Aarney (Armaldo) (M) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Swift Swim
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 204 Spe
Jolly Nature
O Rock Slide
O X-Scissor
O Aqua Tail
O Cross Poison
Obviously, Protect is vital on pretty much all of the pokémon on my team since I really revolve around recovery/bulk over crazy-fast offensive instigators, but Assault Vest is even more important on this Armaldo. Without it, he's total HydroPump/MuddyWater bait. In a bit of a bind with this guy :I But outside of that, insane pokémon. The 204 investment in speed is unfortunately required for Armaldo to hit that 200 Speed with Swift Swim, along with the Jolly Nature. But max Attack EVs allow it to hit 177 attack in battle, and 52 Defense EVs to reach 127 Defense and make a fairly decent physical wall. RockSlide is there to counter Sun/Hail instigators (I hate you, ChariYard). X-Scissor for powerful stab and counter to potential users of Psyshock on Tinka. Aqua Tail because it gets artificial stab in the rain, and Cross Poison because I hate Assault Vest Sylveon. So, yeah.
That's about it. I had one more member of my team -- a Dry Skin Toxicroak with Focus Sash -- that I decided to scrap later on, but that's about it. I'll probably make a post later so that maybe you guys can decide whether or not Toxicroak should come back, but that's all up to you.
So, this is one of my first posts, outside of maybe the introduction and I think one more, but I'm in a bit of a bind here.
I mean, my team doesn't feel all too bad, and I've won quite a lot with it. But I lose just as much, and when I lose, I get mauled. That's why I came here. Just to see if someone else could notice what I'm not seeming to get.
So without further ado, my rain team.
---
Maple (Goodra) (F) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Hydration
Level: 50
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 76 Atk / 20 Def / 156 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
Try not to get distracted by the crazy EVs, because outside of that, Maple is pretty one-directional. Her purpose is to just set up the rain (de-investment in speed so that it can turn the tides on other weather-setters). I know that a lot of people use Politoed and it's Drizzle, but that's really a brand on rain teams now, which would make my team way more approachable. If the team doesn't look all too much like a rain team, at least the enemy won't be able to plan around it. I tried to make it a mixed attacker, and it looks like that went decently. Not only will it be able to take hits, set up weather best, and attack from both defenses, but it's now a great trick room counter, especially with power whip eliminating pokémon like Mega Slowbro, and Sludge Wave dealing with Mega Abomasnow/Sylveon/Other Fairies.
Kipster (Swampert-Mega) (M) @ Swampertite
Ability: Swift Swim
Level: 50
EVs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 156 SpD / 76 Spe
Adamant Nature
Although this can definitely give away the rain agenda, I think that Mega Swampert is an insane pokémon, especially when it's one that people have to work entire teams around (lol, bullet seed on a Cinccino. Is that common?). With the 76 EVs in Speed, Mega Swampert just barely hits a maximum 200 Speed in the rain, which outspeeds tons of pokémon. This tied in with the maximum investment in Attack gives Mega Swampert a 222 Attack stat to add to that insane speed and bulk. As of the defensive investments, I gave Kipster the 156 just so that it could maybe take an EnergyBall or GigaDrain from Mega Venusaur (I didn't do the calcs :I), more as reinforcement than anything else. The 20 HP because that was the best I could do with the final investments of 4 in Defense. Pretty spread out, but at least it works.
Philly CS (Heliolisk) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Dry Skin
Level: 50
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
If you get the reference in the name, good for you. Most people don't. Anyway, I like this Heliolisk. 109 in Special Attack and Speed is way better than some other pokémon in RU (I still don't get what Braviary is doing down there), but whatever. This pokemon's Electric Typing gives it only one weakness, but EQ is really common in doubles. Plus, the Normal Typing that somebody stapled onto it is just as useful as Mega Ampharos's Dragon Typing -- it just nerfs the pokémon (even though this guy didn't really need that nerfing). I give it the Focus Sash because of it's frail essence and weakness to Vacuum Wave/EQ/Mach Punch/etc. This essentially gives him a good extra turn to either Volt Switch out of or play his final gambit with Thunder or the other two attacks. But, yeah. It's purpose is just as 1D as it's EV spreads. I don't know how else to elaborate, so, next.
Tinka (Tentacruel) (F) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Rain Dish
Level: 50
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
God, Tentacruel. It might just be me, but I've never really seen Tentacruel in Battle Spot -- singles OR doubles. What an underrated pokémon. Anyway, enough of me moping. Tinka has the Black Sludge because I don't like it when people use Trick, and I want to be able to give Leftovers to someone else. :) This tied in with Rain Dish and GigaDrain makes for one long lasting pokémon. Once again, I didn't do the calcs for this, but in a recent battle, Tinka took three Thunderbolts from a Rotom-Wash before being stalled out (with the help of an upcoming ally) and eventually drained to death. I give it Rain Dance because Ice Punch from Mega Swampert and Aqua Jet from a few Crawdaunts is a death sentence in the rain, even with the few investments in Defense. Obviously, Tinka might not be as defensive either, but at least it takes those Ice Punches/Aqua Jets as a decent switch-in, and replacement if Maple has to bite the dust. Toxic Spikes just because Tinka can afford to do so with her high speed and decent bulk, and protect to take in that Rain Dish + Black Sludge on pretty much every other turn unless the situation demands for otherwise.
Cold Rod (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
Level: 50
EVs: 4 HP / 36 Atk / 252 Def / 216 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
Already a threat in OU, but take a closer look at this dude.
His 4x weakness to fire is definitive of him, making pokémon like ChariYard and pretty much every other fire type that isn't in LC a counter (special fire types especially, because of SpDef being weaker and not getting hit by those barbs). Put it in the rain, and the weakness becomes 2x, which definitely nerfs it's fire type counters to a massive extent. This means that it only has two weaknesses, but only one of them will really want to pick a fight with this guy (and fire types are definitely covered in this team). I was thinking about Ferroseed and Eviolite, but the recovery is way more important here. There's no protect, just because I think that Ferrothorn is bulky enough to keep momentum without it. The EVs are pretty basic, too. I mean, I just needed a physical tank since I already had two specials, and this one seemed great. Stealth Rocks to counter ChariYard and other frail ice/fire types, Leech Seed to add onto the recovery, and Toxic because it meshes with a lot of the other pokémon in this team, as well. With minimum speed, Ferrothorn also makes a great Trick Room counter as well as a GyroBaller (just don't use that in Trick Room), helping get rid of almost every single Fairy Type, as I believe there are currently no physical Fairy Type walls yet. So, Ferrothorn. Pretty darn good.
Aarney (Armaldo) (M) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Swift Swim
Level: 50
EVs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 204 Spe
Jolly Nature
Obviously, Protect is vital on pretty much all of the pokémon on my team since I really revolve around recovery/bulk over crazy-fast offensive instigators, but Assault Vest is even more important on this Armaldo. Without it, he's total HydroPump/MuddyWater bait. In a bit of a bind with this guy :I But outside of that, insane pokémon. The 204 investment in speed is unfortunately required for Armaldo to hit that 200 Speed with Swift Swim, along with the Jolly Nature. But max Attack EVs allow it to hit 177 attack in battle, and 52 Defense EVs to reach 127 Defense and make a fairly decent physical wall. RockSlide is there to counter Sun/Hail instigators (I hate you, ChariYard). X-Scissor for powerful stab and counter to potential users of Psyshock on Tinka. Aqua Tail because it gets artificial stab in the rain, and Cross Poison because I hate Assault Vest Sylveon. So, yeah.
That's about it. I had one more member of my team -- a Dry Skin Toxicroak with Focus Sash -- that I decided to scrap later on, but that's about it. I'll probably make a post later so that maybe you guys can decide whether or not Toxicroak should come back, but that's all up to you.
