ORAS OU Sledgehammer Shenanigans Rework

[Onderhond]

Hey guys,

So this is my second RMT and it's basically a rework of my first one, which you can find on this forum somewhere
I always went back to that team because it was so much fun to play. I changed it for the better a few days ago. It's awesome.

Teambuilding process

So I wanted to make a team that resembled the way I played in other (mostly RTS/TBS) games; straightforward hitting with some tricks to keep my opponent in down between raids.
I really wanted to fit in both Victini and Kyurem-Black in my team, since they both have the ability to hit incredibly hard.

Next I thought of ways to determine the pace of the game. I really liked the idea of having trappers. Since I was leaning towards a Choice Band Victini set, I thought it would be wise to have something to catch Heatran with, Flash Fire being a potential nuisance. To support Kyurem-Black, I thought Magnezone was a good addition since it can both trap Ferrothorn and Scizor, which are both viable switch ins to Kyurem.

I chose a Memento set on Dugtrio, which could have great potential with a set up sweeper. Feraligatr came to mind, mainly because it's an underrated threat and I thought it would be funny to cut through teams with it (which it did really well). Ferrothorn also being a switch in to Feraligatr was already dealt with by Magnezone.

Next I tried a lot of Megas but they all didn't really make the team work. I had a Stealth Rocker with Dugtrio but no way to keep hazards off the field. Both Victini and Kyurem-Black always take 25% on switch in, Dugtrio would loose his Focus Sash, which is a huge pain with such a frail mon. Keeping hazards off the field is a key element to making this team work. As I said I had a few games at this stage and I also noticed that the Substitute move was a pain in the ass, especially on Keldeo and Gengar, so my last addition to the team was Crobat.

This team worked really well. It had a few threats. A Sand team would be a minor threat if played well, but if I could catch Excadrill with Dugtrio that would be that. The biggest problems would be defensive Rotom-Wash and also Unaware Quagsire. At this stage I posted my last threat and based on your recommendations I switched Crobat for Mega-Latios, which would deal with the Rotom-Wash problem almost entirely. I also changed Victini's set around so it had Energy Ball.

This was also a decent team. Not a big fan of Mega-Latios though. Probably because of how it looks. I also noticed that Feraligatr was still too slow after one Dragon Dance to outspeed things like Mega-Manectric and Mega-Lopunny. Playing with Crobat was also more fun than playing with Mega-Latios. Infiltrator, people overestimating their Mega-Venusaur to catch a Brave Bird, U-turn keeping momentum... So I decided to switch Crobat back in for Mega-Latios and to switch Feraligatr for Mega-Gyarados. Mega-Gyarados is the best thing that ever happened to this team. Memento + Intimidate set a pokemon at -3 Attack and -2 Special Attack in 1 turn. Mold Breaker makes Earthquakes hit Rotom-Wash ànd negates Unaware, which is awesome. One Dragon Dance makes it outspeed Mega-Manactric and Mega-Lopunny.

Final Team:

The sets

Aaaand it's gone (Victini) @ Choice Band
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- Zen Headbutt
- U-turn​

You haven't seen a hard hit out of the blue until you've seen a Choice Banded max-attack Adamant Victini hit a V-Create. I can't count the amount of Mega-Sableye's it OHKO'd turn 1 since it exceeds my digit limit... U-turn (+Dugtrio) is for Heatrans. Doesn't matter if they're on a balloon or not. No cheap Flash Fire shenanigans here... Also a great Fairy-killer. I never really use Zen Headbutt, might change it to Energy Ball or Glaciate or something...

Actually Jesus (Kyurem-Black) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SpA / 224 Spe
Naive Nature
- Iron Head
- Outrage
- Fusion Bolt
- Ice Beam​

Kyurem-Black is a savage. Choice Scarf Kyurem-Black is a savage gone berserk. What can I say more? It's fast and hits hard. EV spread let's it outspeed Choice Scarfed Landorus. Iron Head is for Fairies but I hardly ever use it. Switch it if you must. If all goes wrong, this is the guy to take a Belly Drum Aqua Jet from you-know-what. It outspeed a Dragonite with 1 Dragon Dance too, and Teravolt negates Multiscale.

Please Stay (Dugtrio) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Arena Trap
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Earthquake
- Reversal
- Memento
- Stealth Rock​

These (/this) boy(s? I'm still confused) have so much use. U-turn on Victini and Crobat means it will catch Heatrans by the dozens. It's also my emergency break against sand (and maybe also against Bisharp). Memento let's Gyarados set up comfortably... Because of the way this team is built, a lot of games will be over in a short time, even against stall. People will want to Thunder Wave your Kyurem-Black or Mega-Gyarados to stand a chance. This guy can deal with Klefki too, which is incredibly useful and would be a pain otherwise (Magnet Rise can be a nuisance though).

Let's hang out (Magnezone) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon
​

This thing is mainly used for trapping Scizor and Ferrothorn; Scizor being a threat to Kyurem-Black, and Ferrothorn checking both Kyurem-Black as well as Mega-Gyarados. I also use it to catch a Draco Meteor now and then, or to make Clefable switch out (or just damage it). Or to catch a Thunder Wave. Or just to keep the Volt-Turning going. It also handles Choice Scarf Jirachi... sometimes... depending on your luck.

the Dark Lord (Crobat) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- U-turn
- Toxic
- Defog
​

Crobat is really important to this team; Infiltrator lets it deal with Substitutes (Keldeo can put in a lot of work against Magnezone and Victini and possibly burn the rest of my team, Sub Gengar can Will-O-Wisp something etc...), Defog gets rid of hazards (which are a pain to Victini, Kyurem-Black and make Dugtrio loose his Focus Sash). I chose Toxic over Cross Poison because it stalls out the occasional Garchomp or Hippowdon that really REALLY wants to keep its rocks up (this is common enough for me to have made this choice), occasionally I can predict a Sash/Destiny Bond user correctly... Brave Bird hits hard when it's super effective, even against Mega-Venusaur. U-turn comes in handy because people seem to switch in Heatrans on this thing. It's also 4 times resistant to fighting moves, which is nice. Also 4 times resistant to Grass: tanking Serperior Leaf Storms all day. No healing move though, but I don't find that this is troublesome since the point of this team is to keep up the pace and Roosting just gives your opponent time. It also completely walls the Sub/Protect/Earthquake/Toxic Gliscor set, which I hate with a passion, so yay!

the Metabaron (Gyarados) @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 56 Def / 200 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Earthquake
​

So, if you've read the teambuilding process, you know that physically defensive Rotom-Wash and Unaware Quagsire were huge problems before, as well as the fact that I had a mon on my team that couldn't outspeed some possible threats after one Dragon Dance... All these problems have vanished by bringing in this OU-demigod. In the early game Victini, Kyurem-Black and the trappers do most of the heavy lifting. I rarely use this one before I can reliably go for game. Memento on Dugtrio has synergies with this monster that I don't need to explain. Intimidate is just an extra. The EV's make it outspeed Mega-Manectric and Mega-Lopunny after one Dragon Dance. Mold Breaker when Mega makes it deal with Rotom-Wash and Unaware mons. This thing can even set up on Quagsire basically.

Threatlist

The thing that bugs me most in the early to mid-game is a well-played Landorus, could be a scarfed or defensive variant, this is also due to the fact that I have 3 Choiced mons. Intimidate is incredibly annoying. A Landorus alone will fall to Waterfalls in the end though, if you do enough damage in the early game and midgame you'll probably have a good shot at winning.
Bisharp is also a possible threat. I don't think an Earthquake from Dugtrio always kills... Can't set up a Memento on Bisharp either. Be wary with the defogs gents!

Importable

the Metabaron (Gyarados) @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 56 Def / 200 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Earthquake

Let's hang out (Magnezone) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Flash Cannon

Aaaaand it's gone (Victini) @ Choice Band
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- Zen Headbutt
- U-turn

Actually Jesus (Kyurem-Black) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SpA / 224 Spe
Naive Nature
- Iron Head
- Outrage
- Fusion Bolt
- Ice Beam

Please Stay (Dugtrio) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Arena Trap
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Earthquake
- Reversal
- Memento
- Stealth Rock

the Dark Lord (Crobat) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- U-turn
- Toxic
- Defog

 

[BreloomMyHomie]

Hey man, nice team you have there, as I really like the the core of Gyarados+Kyurem-B+Magnezone. Magnezone traps Scizor and Ferrothorn and kills them with HP Fire so that Kyurem B can punch through your opponents team. Additionally, it also traps Skarmory, which allows Gyarados to run another move other than Taunt. However, one of the things that I'm worried about is that you are extremely susceptible to hazards, mainly Stealth Rock. Stealth Rock not only breaks Dugtrio's Sash, but 4 other Pokemon take about 25% from it. Furthermore, having Crobat as your hazard remover can be detrimental in the long run because it makes you weak to so many things. After Stealth Rocks, Mega Lopunny just spams both of its STABs in order to pick up KOes and you only have Kyurem-B to check it, which can be easily worn down by hazards, and with Crobat being your hazard remover, it's going to be very difficult since Lopunny outspeeds and kills it with Fake Out+Return. Sand Rush Excadrill is also a problem, specifically the SD Air Balloon set, because it outspeeds every single member on your team and kills the majority of your team at +2. You have Gyarados, but if you predict wrong, Mega Evolve, and your opponent Earthquakes, it's going to kill after Stealth Rocks. Scarf Keldeo can be troublesome since it atmost 2HKOes every Pokemon on your team with its STABs and HP Electric if it has it. SD Talonflame isn't too big of a threat, but it can take advantage of Scarf Kyurem B and set up when it's locked into Iron Head.

My first suggestion will be TankChomp>Dugtrio. TankChomp may not have the ability to trap grounded Pokemon like Dugtrio, but it gives you a Defensive Pivot that can rack up the damage on Mega Lopunny and Talonflame with RoughSkin+Rocky Helmet, as well as have access to Stealth Rocks.

Next suggestion will be Latias>Crobat. Latias is a much more reliable hazard remover than Crobat, simply because it can take on things like Scarf Keldeo and Mega Manectric. In addition, having Healing Wish on your team is really great to restore a potential win condition such as Kyurem B or Mega Gyarados.

Next suggestion will be to change Scarf Magnezone into an Air Balloon+Magnet Rise set. This set is specifically used to check Sand Rush Excadrill. First you trap it, take the non ground type attack, Magnet Rise, and then repeatedly go for Hidden Power Fire. This set should cover your slight weakness to Sand Offense, but still be able to take on multiple Steel Types to help your Mega Gyarados and Scarf Kyurem B.

Last suggestion will be to make Gyarados max speed to outspeed base 80s such as Gardevoir, Hoopa Unbound, and Mamoswine.

Hope I helped! :]

New Team

Importable

the Metabaron (Gyarados) @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Earthquake

Magnezone @ Air Balloon
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 128 HP / 252 SpA / 128 Spe
Modest Nature
- Magnet Rise
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

Aaaaand it's gone (Victini) @ Choice Band
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- Zen Headbutt
- U-turn

Actually Jesus (Kyurem-Black) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Teravolt
EVs: 252 Atk / 32 SpA / 224 Spe
Naive Nature
- Iron Head
- Outrage
- Fusion Bolt
- Ice Beam

Latias @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 72 HP / 184 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Defog
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Healing Wish

Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 164 Def / 92 Spe
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
- Fire Blast
- Stealth Rock

 

[Onderhond]

Hey man, thanks for checking out my team and your reply!

Sand definitely could be a problem, but right now I win most games against sand teams... I wouldn't say it's more troublesome than facing a Bisharp.

I actually tried Air Balloon on Magnezone in the past (I tried Choice Specs too). I chose Choice Scarf because otherwise it would mean Magnezone could get outsped by Scizor, if Scizor has Superpower that is troublesome...
Getting both Latias ànd Garchomp would mean 4 (/3) out of six would be weak to Fairy-type moves and 3 would be weak to Dragon-type moves. Right now, Crobat can take a Mega-Gardevoir / Sylveon Hyper Voice, not well, but it often gives me momentum back.

If I use all of your recommendationsy, Mega-Diancie would be a huge threat.
So I would definitely keep the Choice Scarf on Magnezone. I'm going to try out this team with either Latias or Garchomp though, see if that works better. Though I find Magnezone + Dugtrio being able to trap and kill very common hazard setters (Ferrothorn, Heatran, Skarmory,...) is really handy and actually means I mostly just have to Defog once (Hippowdon and Garchomp being the most common exceptions here).

But yeah, definitely going to try out the recommendations! Thank you!