Hi, I'm still new to properly battling and would appreciate some help with my team. I'm sure there's room for improvement though I'm quite fond of where it is now as a starting point. I decided to make a rain team because I find weather to be an interesting archetype (and I'm quite fond of a lot of Pokemon that make use of it).
Politoed @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 176 Spe
Timid Nature
- Whirlpool
- Psychic
- Ice Beam
- Encore
Our rain setter and lead. Usually just sets rain and gets out, but it has a few options here. Whirlpool is useful for trapping opponents, of course, and Encore can potentially lock them into an undesirable move. Psychic and Ice Beam provide useful coverage for the team, though Ice coverage isn't exactly lacking - there aren't any other users of Psychic moves on the team.
Amoongus @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 188 Def / 68 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Stun Spore
- Sludge Bomb
- Foul Play
Primarily serves as a defensive teammate to absorb hits, while being able to heal itself while dealing out Grass damage in addition to its Regenerator ability. Sludge Bomb and Foul Play once again provide the team with useful coverage, especially Sludge Bomb. Stun Spore helps to cripple faster opponents for itself and its slower teammates Vaporeon and Politoed. Originally I gave Amoongus an Eject Button to act as a pivot, but I found that it didn't really offer much advantage and I had more issues with hazards rather than momentum.
Vaporeon @ Leftovers
Ability: Hydration
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Flip Turn
- Wish
- Protect
Bulky Water-type that appreciates the rain with use of Hydration, healing status off itself at the end of the turn. Usually Vaporeon runs Water Absorb, but since this is a team focused around rain, Hydration seemed like a solid option. It can heal itself using Wish and Protect, as well as pass on that Wish using Flip Turn to pivot out. Scald's chance to burn can also aid it in its defensive role by cutting the attack of opposing threats.
Floatzel @ Mystic Water
Ability: Swift Swim
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wave Crash
- Flip Turn
- Low Kick
- Ice Spinner
Fast physical attacker whose already high speed is doubled by the rain. Wave Crash and Flip Turn both find themselves boosted in power by Mystic Water in addition to STAB, and I've found that the pivot momentum has been one of the strengths when playing with this team, providing a much safer way to respond appropriately to threats. Low Kick has been helpful coverage against Steel types, though I'm not fond of the weight mechanic, but the only other Fighting coverage option is Brick Break which doesn't exactly have very good base power. Most Steel types are heavy anyways, at least.
Gastrodon @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Storm Drain
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Sludge Bomb
- Recover
Mostly a wall similarly to Amoongus, though provides different utility in the form of Spikes and can also deal out Rocky Helmet damage to those who attack it. Recover allows it to stave off most of the damage it takes. It also provides mixed coverage in the form of Earthquake and Sludge Bomb. The Poison Tera type is particularly appreciated against Grass types that may switch in to take advantage of its 4x weakness, allowing it to punish them with a boosted Sludge Bomb, and Earthquake helps to deal with Electric types that threaten its Water teammates (and Noivern).
Noivern @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Steel
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Defog
- Hurricane
- U-Turn
- Draco Meteor
I originally had Kilowattrel here for its ability to also fire off perfectly-accurate Thunders in addition to Hurricanes in the rain, but I found that I desperately needed a way to remove hazards, and Noivern conveniently can both abuse rain for STAB Hurricanes like Kilowattrel can, AND has access to Defog, so I ended up switching. Draco Meteor is obviously a very strong option and once again provides the team with coverage it wouldn't otherwise have. U-Turn provides even more pivoting in addition to Bug coverage.
Overall I like how the team is built, but I think it can probably be improved quite a bit, especially given my inexperience with the metagame. I also struggle with being a bit impulsive with my decision-making at times, so it can sometimes be difficult for me to discern when a match is going badly for me because I made dumb decisions (happens pretty often, and it's almost immediate that I go "oh that was dumb" in my head) or because I need to change something for my team. So I'd very much appreciate input from more experienced players! <3
Politoed @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 176 Spe
Timid Nature
- Whirlpool
- Psychic
- Ice Beam
- Encore
Our rain setter and lead. Usually just sets rain and gets out, but it has a few options here. Whirlpool is useful for trapping opponents, of course, and Encore can potentially lock them into an undesirable move. Psychic and Ice Beam provide useful coverage for the team, though Ice coverage isn't exactly lacking - there aren't any other users of Psychic moves on the team.
Amoongus @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 188 Def / 68 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Stun Spore
- Sludge Bomb
- Foul Play
Primarily serves as a defensive teammate to absorb hits, while being able to heal itself while dealing out Grass damage in addition to its Regenerator ability. Sludge Bomb and Foul Play once again provide the team with useful coverage, especially Sludge Bomb. Stun Spore helps to cripple faster opponents for itself and its slower teammates Vaporeon and Politoed. Originally I gave Amoongus an Eject Button to act as a pivot, but I found that it didn't really offer much advantage and I had more issues with hazards rather than momentum.
Vaporeon @ Leftovers
Ability: Hydration
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Flip Turn
- Wish
- Protect
Bulky Water-type that appreciates the rain with use of Hydration, healing status off itself at the end of the turn. Usually Vaporeon runs Water Absorb, but since this is a team focused around rain, Hydration seemed like a solid option. It can heal itself using Wish and Protect, as well as pass on that Wish using Flip Turn to pivot out. Scald's chance to burn can also aid it in its defensive role by cutting the attack of opposing threats.
Floatzel @ Mystic Water
Ability: Swift Swim
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wave Crash
- Flip Turn
- Low Kick
- Ice Spinner
Fast physical attacker whose already high speed is doubled by the rain. Wave Crash and Flip Turn both find themselves boosted in power by Mystic Water in addition to STAB, and I've found that the pivot momentum has been one of the strengths when playing with this team, providing a much safer way to respond appropriately to threats. Low Kick has been helpful coverage against Steel types, though I'm not fond of the weight mechanic, but the only other Fighting coverage option is Brick Break which doesn't exactly have very good base power. Most Steel types are heavy anyways, at least.
Gastrodon @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Storm Drain
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Sludge Bomb
- Recover
Mostly a wall similarly to Amoongus, though provides different utility in the form of Spikes and can also deal out Rocky Helmet damage to those who attack it. Recover allows it to stave off most of the damage it takes. It also provides mixed coverage in the form of Earthquake and Sludge Bomb. The Poison Tera type is particularly appreciated against Grass types that may switch in to take advantage of its 4x weakness, allowing it to punish them with a boosted Sludge Bomb, and Earthquake helps to deal with Electric types that threaten its Water teammates (and Noivern).
Noivern @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Steel
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Defog
- Hurricane
- U-Turn
- Draco Meteor
I originally had Kilowattrel here for its ability to also fire off perfectly-accurate Thunders in addition to Hurricanes in the rain, but I found that I desperately needed a way to remove hazards, and Noivern conveniently can both abuse rain for STAB Hurricanes like Kilowattrel can, AND has access to Defog, so I ended up switching. Draco Meteor is obviously a very strong option and once again provides the team with coverage it wouldn't otherwise have. U-Turn provides even more pivoting in addition to Bug coverage.
Overall I like how the team is built, but I think it can probably be improved quite a bit, especially given my inexperience with the metagame. I also struggle with being a bit impulsive with my decision-making at times, so it can sometimes be difficult for me to discern when a match is going badly for me because I made dumb decisions (happens pretty often, and it's almost immediate that I go "oh that was dumb" in my head) or because I need to change something for my team. So I'd very much appreciate input from more experienced players! <3
