SM OU Salamence's Slaughterhouse

[DatFreshBoi]

Introduction​

Hey there, I'd like to give my welcome to you all here, my first RMT ever. After spending a good two months out of OU I finally decided to come back thanks to a friend, and this is a balance team I decided to build around Flyinium Z Salamence as I found it could do heavy damage to quite a lot of teams, especially those with easily weakened walls.

Teambuilding Process​

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I started my build with none other than Salamence himself, with so many fairies added dragons should seem less powerful, but I've found Salamence to be a fun and effective Pokémon to use.

Next I added Tapu Lele as it helps me to begin to form a Dragon Fairy Steel core, and it's ability Psychic Terrain helps remove the threat of ice shard, among other priority moves against a potentially weakened Salamence.

After sampling many steel types, I chose to add Mega Metagross, it's heavy offensive power and ability to abuse the added Fairy types makes it very dangerous, especially paired with Tapu Lele, giving them the power to break down defensive cores.

I found I was lacking a Stealth Rocker, and struggled against the likes of Landorus-Therian, Heatran and Magearna. This was before I changed a move of my Salamence, which I'll get into later.

At this point in the build, I had no reliable answer to Tapu Lele, so this is where I brought in Alolan Muk, I find Alolan Muk very underrated for what it can do, being able to reliably swap into Tapu Lele, and take it out of the game with pursuit, as well as abuse its ability Poison Touch to poison walls or switching out Pokémon, after using the team for a while I also found it great for removing both the Lati twins, Mega Alakazam, Gengar and other frail sweepers suprisingly early in games, putting me at a huge advantage.

At the end of my build, I lacked a reliable answer to many physical hits, including fighting types that could easily swap out once Tapu Lele or Salamence came in, so this is where I added Tapu Fini, which using Misty Terrain also benefits my team, protecting all but Salamence and Tapu Lele from Status, and being able to defog away any hazards people set up against me. This is rather benefiting for my team, and reliably bulks hits throughout games.

The Team​

Salamence @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Lonely Adamant Nature
- Fly
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Dance
- Fire Blast Earthquake

I started with Salamence as a Flyinium Z set, which provides offensive support, with a setup sweeper for late game cleaning. Fly is used as a form to be able to use the Z move, but it also provides nice flying stab which allows me to hit Pheromosa, Tapu Bulu, Buzzwole, Tangrowth, Decidueye among other Pokémon for super effective damage, while still hitting a lot of other Pokémon for neutral damage that take less from Earthquake or Dragon Claw, while also recieving a STAB bonus. Dragon Claw gives me a great STAB move which is benefitted well from Dragon Dance boosts, it allows me to hit Hydreigon, Kyurem(-B) and other Salamence, to list a few, as well as most Pokémon for neutral damage. Dragon Dance is my form of Setup on Salamence, which helps cause its Fly, Dragon Claw and Earthquake do damage, and helps to make my Z move KO key walls, and do heavy damage to those using Protect. Finally Earthquake allows me to hit many Steel, Fire and Electric types which could be threatening. Either by having super effective moves, resisting both stabs or adding the risk of a burn, Earthquake allows me to hit Magearna, Heatran and Mega Metagross for super effective damage. Originally I was running Fire Blast as it made my matchup against Ferrothorn and Scizor much easier, but I haven't seen a Scizor as of yet, and Ferrothorn's are rare. I chose moxie as when using intimidate, I found I was picking up several kills that would allow me to boost myself up further, leading to this change.​

Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Shadow Ball
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt
​

My next addition was Tapu Lele, I chose Lele because it's insanely strong in OU right now, sweeping almost every weakened team I've fought, and provides huge help to Salamence via Psychic Terrain, which stops Ice Shard from doing anything to Salamence, this usually works early in the match, and not once I've set up Salamence. It provides a Fairy type towards a Fairy Dragon Steel core and overall provides some specially offensive pressure I much need. I first chose to run choice scarf over choice specs to have a fast attacker on my team, and a way to outspeed everything in the meta that isn't Scarfed. I run Moonblast for good Fairy STAB, and the ability to hit dragons, fighting types and dark types such as Salamence, Pheromosa and Mega Sableye. I chose to use Shadow Ball as a way to hit other Tapu Lele, Mega Alakazam, Gengar and other threats I'm available to outspeed thanks to my Choice Scarf. I chose Psyshock over Psychic to be able to hit Chansey, and similar Special walls which helps me with stall or bulky matchups which I desperately need. Finally I chose Thunderbolt to hit Mandibuzz, Tapu Fini, Rain teams to list a few of the common Pokémon I use it to hit, it gives me good coverage to hit some Pokémon that can wall my team rather easily.

Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Thunder Punch
- Ice Punch
- Zen Headbutt
​

Next I added Mega Metagross, it works amazing for my team, completing a dealt Fairy Dragon Steel core and paired with Tapu Lele creates a unparalleled offensive core, capable of utterly destroying any team that doesn't have checks or isn't played well. Meteor Mash provides dedicated STAB doing heavy damage to anything that doesn't resist, and provides a chance for an attack raise which allows for a potential sweeps when gained at the right time, I'm running Thunder Punch to be able to beat Tapu Fini, Mandibuzz, Pelipper, Mantine and other common walls easier while running Ice Punch for Mandibuzz, Landorus-Therian, Garchomp, among other Ground types on switch in, and also dragon types such as Salamence or Zygarde. Finally I added Zen Headbutt for fighting types such as Pheromosa or Buzzwole, as well as poison types like Toxapex or Nihelego.

Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Freeze-Dry
- Icicle Crash
​

Next I was in dire need of a Stealth Rocker and a more reliable way to deal with Heatran, Fire types, Landorus-Therian and Garchomp, I decided Mamoswine was the only way to go, and originally chose a Suicide Lead Mamoswine, but ended up using it more offensively, so changed it to life orb attack with stealth rocks. Stealth rocks is there to add needed rocks and gives the ability for chip damage on those that try swap in, and makes focus sash Pokémon unable to abuse their sash. Earthquake is common STAB on Mamoswine, but is especially crucial for beating Heatran, Magearna, Charizard X and other potentially Devastating threats, this is why I chose to use thick fat too over oblivious with my Suicide lead set. I added Freeze Dry so that I could deal with many water types such as Rotom-Wash or Tapu Fini that try to swap in and abuse the ground typing while Icicle Crash gives a physical ice stab for removing Landorus-T, Garchomp, Zygarde and Salamence easily, as well as other ground, flying and dragon Pokemon.

Muk-Alola @ Assault Vest
Ability: Poison Touch
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Pursuit
- Poison Jab
- Flamethrower
​

Muk forms a nice Glue for the first 4 members of my team, it's assault vest helps it to tank special hits, and it's amazing typing leaves it only weak to ground. Knock off is an amazing move that removes the item upon a hit, as well as doing heavy damage to any psychic or ghosts types trying to stay in, and any that aren't able to resist it very well, in addition Poison Touch allows for a chance to poison the target, which can break down many walls, further helping stall matchup. Pursuit is an incredible move that makes or breaks games, removing a list of Pokemon from play, including but not limited to the lati twins, Gengar, Alakazam, Tapu Lele and Jirachi. This makes an amazing chance for creating holes in a team or at least it's offensive Power. Poison Jab is a poison STAB move that ohko's the tapus, and does a ton of damage with a huge chance to poison for any none steel types. The final move has changed a lot for me, I started with Shadow Sneak, but found it was too situational thanks to Tapu Lele, and I do have some problems with Ferrothorn and Scizor, so I've been running flamethrower rather recently.

Tapu Fini @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 192 Def / 16 SpD / 52 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Moonblast
- Taunt
- Defog

Finally I came to Tapu Fini, which does form a great glue for my team, which helps 3/6 of my team with Misty Terrain, as Mamoswine, Metagross and Alolan Muk can't be burned while it's terrain is up, and it can't be toxiced with it's terrain for itself. I chose to run leftovers for a Recovery method over time, and then chose Scald over Surf for a chance to burn other tapus if they try to swap into Fini, and a chance to burn if the terrain runs out. Moonblast provides alternate stab for taking on dragon, fighting and dark types which get too cocky when in on Tapu Fini. Taunt is good for helping my stall matchup by stopping many threats from being able to do anything but attack. And defog can remove hazards which may be a pain if led

Conclusion

To conclude, I've created this team that's been working pretty well for me, but I'm stuck as to whether I could make any improvements, or whether it's as good as it will be, thanks for reading and fee free to give your opinion.

Threatlist

Tapu Koko / Tapu Lele
Tapu Koko and Tapu Lele can be a huge pain to deal with, especially if Muk goes down as my only way to deal with them can become sacks or speed ties depending on opposing sets.

Ferrothorn

Threatlist

Ferrothorn is a huge pain for me as my only consistent way to deal with it is Muk's Flamethrower, which can lead to a lot of pressure to keep Muk Healthy.

Scizor
For the same reason as Ferrothorn I have Scizor as a threat, as it's able to also set up it can lead to more easily lost games.

Weather Teams
Weather teams Are a huge problem for me as they can outspeed and nuke my whole team leading for uphill battles that end up very close.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7pokebankou-520972387
Vs Trick Room / U-Turn Spam

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7pokebankou-520992565
Vs Opposing Balance

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7pokebankou-521021001
Vs Trick Room

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7pokebankou-521025887
Vs Opposing Balance

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7pokebankou-521233000
Vs Hail

Importable

Salamence @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Fly
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Dance
- Fire Blast

Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Shadow Ball
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt

Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Thunder Punch
- Ice Punch
- Zen Headbutt

Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Freeze-Dry
- Icicle Crash

Muk-Alola @ Assault Vest
Ability: Poison Touch
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Pursuit
- Poison Jab
- Shadow Sneak

Tapu Fini @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 192 Def / 16 SpD / 52 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Moonblast
- Taunt
- Defog

​

 

[Terrakion.]

Figured I'd get into rating since I don't have much to do and figured this would a good place to start.

Jumping straight in, personally I would use Stealth Rock Landorus-T over Mamoswine and Magearna over Alolan Muk. Landorus-T is hands down the most reliable Stealth Rocker in the entire game. It makes a great pivot, giving Mega Metagross free switches to be able to hit something hard and put pressure on the opponents next turn and also gives Salamence set up opportunities with Intimidate to make up for Salamence's lack of defenses. Magearna is a more reliable Tapu Lele answer and can also pivot with Volt Switch. Its still able to pressure Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Scizor and also wares down bulky water-types that you used Freeze Dry Mamoswine for such as Rotom-Wash and Tapu Fini.

Changes with some of the Pokemon you already have, I recommend using a Jolly Nature on Salamence because without it, you cannot outspeed Choice Scarf Tapu Lele at +1 which is the big selling point of my Salamence is good. I also recommend using Nature's Madness over either of the STABs you have on Tapu Fini. It pressures a lot of Pokemon from switching in on it and helps you in the stall matchup. Lastly I would use Hidden Power Fire over Shadow Ball on Tapu Lele as the Pokemon you are looking to hit already takes a chunk from Psyshock. Lastly, I'd use Earthquake over Zen Headbutt on Mega Metagross to be able to hit other Metagross'. Opposing Metagross' could be troublesome at this point as you would have to play around it very cautiously and ware it down over turns.

tl:dr (not really long)
changes are in bold

• Adamant -> Jolly Salamence
• Zen Headbutt -> Earthquake Metagross
• Mamoswine -> Landorus-Therian
• Alolan-Muk -> Magearna

Sets for the new Pokemon can be found below;

Importable

Magearna @ Assault Vest
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fleur Cannon
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon
- Aura Sphere

Landorus-Therian (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 8 SpD / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- U-turn

 

[DatFreshBoi]

Figured I'd get into rating since I don't have much to do and figured this would a good place to start.

Jumping straight in, personally I would use Stealth Rock Landorus-T over Mamoswine and Magearna over Alolan Muk. Landorus-T is hands down the most reliable Stealth Rocker in the entire game. It makes a great pivot, giving Mega Metagross free switches to be able to hit something hard and put pressure on the opponents next turn and also gives Salamence set up opportunities with Intimidate to make up for Salamence's lack of defenses. Magearna is a more reliable Tapu Lele answer and can also pivot with Volt Switch. Its still able to pressure Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Scizor and also wares down bulky water-types that you used Freeze Dry Mamoswine for such as Rotom-Wash and Tapu Fini.

Changes with some of the Pokemon you already have, I recommend using a Jolly Nature on Salamence because without it, you cannot outspeed Choice Scarf Tapu Lele at +1 which is the big selling point of my Salamence is good. I also recommend using Nature's Madness over either of the STABs you have on Tapu Fini. It pressures a lot of Pokemon from switching in on it and helps you in the stall matchup. Lastly I would use Hidden Power Fire over Shadow Ball on Tapu Lele as the Pokemon you are looking to hit already takes a chunk from Psyshock. Lastly, I'd use Earthquake over Zen Headbutt on Mega Metagross to be able to hit other Metagross'. Opposing Metagross' could be troublesome at this point as you would have to play around it very cautiously and ware it down over turns.

tl:dr (not really long)
changes are in bold

• Adamant -> Jolly Salamence
• Zen Headbutt -> Earthquake Metagross
• Mamoswine -> Landorus-Therian
• Alolan-Muk -> Magearna

Sets for the new Pokemon can be found below;

Importable

Magearna @ Assault Vest
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fleur Cannon
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon
- Aura Sphere

Landorus-Therian (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 8 SpD / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- U-turn

Hello, thank you for the in depth response, I'll certainly have to try them out and see how well they work, but some reasoning on my behalf first, while I do agree Magearna is more reliable and sturdy as a Tapu Lele check, I do like the ability to remove Tapu Lele from the game rather early via pursuit, I'll definitely have to see how Magearna works though. On that point the reason I previously ran Adamant Salamence is to be able to do the most damage I can, and as far as it does to outspeeding Scarf Lele, I'm in support of having been able to trap, or trap the Lele in and then remove of them with Pursuit from Muk. When trying Magearna it does seem more solid to run Jolly however, and I'll check out both natures.For Tapu Fini, I run moonblast purely to beat mega Sableye 1v1, rather than having to risk a knock off to get Tapu Lele in. I use Shadow Ball on Lele to hit other Lele, Mega Alakazam, Gengar and Mimikyu, further using Muk as a glue with flamethrower. Finally for Earthquake on Metagross. I'm honestly tempted to go for it, while Zen does help in some late Game cleanups, it does save the hassle I previously had with Metagross, which relied on chip damage so Shadow Ball on Tapu Lele could KO.

I'll definitely have to test these out and thanks for the reply.

 

[Enki]

Hey DatFreshBoi, I got a few suggestions that can help you out with your team and can make you cover better that threat list. As someone else suggested above, Alolan Muk doesnt look like a great Pokemon that can deal with your threat list. So my first change is removing Alolan Muk for Assault Vest Magnezone, this Pokemon is incredibly strong in your team and pretty much covers many Pokemon in your threat list, first of all Ferrothorn that can be really annoying since two of your sweepers can be checked by him, Mega Metagross and Z Salamence, which is now getting trapped and opens the field for your sweepers, another threat that is removed by Magnezone is indeed Scizor, another annoying Pokemon that in some cases can counter your Mega Metagross and be really annoying.

I went for the Assault Vest item since it can take better another offensive threat that can annoy your team, which is Tapu Koko, having a pretty nice and solid check for this huge threat can really make the difference. A smaller change is Earthquake over Thunder Punch, with the presence of Magnezone in your team you dont really need to hit things like Skarmory and Celesteela (same to Tapu lele, you can run Focus Blast over Thunderbolt), and Earthquake can be really good against other Mega Metagross and not getting walled by Magnezone, and also with Magnezone and Zen Headbutt Mega Metagross you are pressuring and annoying stall alot, watchout on not getting trapped by Dugtrio with your Magnezone which can make the difference.

My last change on this team, as someone else suggested is Landorus-T over Mamoswine, which is a much better and more efficient Stealth Rocker, giving you a check for Sand teams, since as you mentioned weathers can be annoying and a great ground immunity which can make the difference. Against other weathers you can pressure them a little bit; against Mega Charizard Y you cannot let him switch in, and your only Pokemon that allows that is Landorus-T, while you are setting up Stealth Rock, and pretty sure you can play around that, against Sand teams you have such a strong defensive check in Landorus-T and against Rain teams, you dont really have an answer, not that there is an answer that is not a Ferrothorn / Chansey, because you cannot take them otherwise; you still have better answers than before, which Tapu Fini + AV Magnezone, which makes the matchup better (you can try a more SDef spread on Tapu Fini which takes better water types Greninja mainly).

Sets

Magnezone @ Assault Vest
Ability: Magnet Pull
128 HP / 252 SpA / 128 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Fire]

This is pretty much it, I hope this helps.