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Bronzong seems kinda hard to research imo considering that it's not exactly the type of thing that you build around and it isn't exactly splashable like Latios and Bulu are, so props to anyone who can get a good post about it out.
I might do Latios depending on if I have the time, although it may end up being Bulu instead to give me an excuse to use SD Bulu hahaha
the people i tagged and anyone else who wants to post have until sunday (2/5) night to write up a post about whichever pokemon you took (tapu bulu / latios / bronzong). as a reminder to those unsure of what to post:
When posting, you can include (but are not limited to):
strategies used
sets used
how you went about building with the Pokemon
general strengths / weaknesses you noticed about the Pokemon
if the meta is in favor of the Pokemon or not
how the Pokemon fares in high level / tournament play (examples are nice here)
remember: you aren't limited to these guidelines; they're just here to help in case you aren't sure what to post. if you'd prefer to focus on 1 specific aspect of the pokemon you selected rather than a broad overview, that's okay! if you're still lost, try checking out this postby Infernal (rip).
if you signed up, but you cannot find the time to post, don't worry about it! just please don't do it regularly.
Sorry, haven't done Tapu Bulu, will post Latios instead.
Latios
Strategies Used
Latios has good offensive and defensive abilities which can be used in many playstyles. I used Latios as a strong wallbreaker capable of firing holes in the opponents team, a check to water, ground, grass and some electric types, and an effective entry hazard remover.
Sets Used
Latios @ Life Orb
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock/Psychic
- Recover
- Defog/Hidden Power Fire
This is Latios's flagship set. Draco Meteor is Latios's mandatory stab attack as it strikes everything that doesn't resist or immune to it hard. Psyshock is the secondary STAB attack that nails incoming Fairy-types or specially defensive tanks such as Assault Vest Tornadus-T and Chansey. Psychic can also be used for its higher base power. Recover gives Latios reliable recovery. HP Fire lures common Steel types which would otherwise wall it. Defog is an alternative if you need a hazard remover. Soul Dew can be used as the item if not running coverage moves.
The goal of this set is to punch holes in the opponents team so that another teammate can come and clean it up. Draco Meteor is a strong attack that also strikes resistant Pokemon. Psychic is capable of OHKOing Tapu Koko, Mega Venusaur, and offensive variants of Tapu Bulu after some prior damage. Psyshock can also be used to turn it into mixed wallbreaker. Hidden Power Fire enables Latios to lure in and remove Steel-types such as Mega Scizor and Ferrothorn that would otherwise be a nuisance when you're using Latios's strong STAB attacks. Trick can be used to punish opposing setup sweepers. Sleep Talk gives the team a sleep absorber.
Latios @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Psychic
- Trick
- Recover/Hidden Power Fire
Choice Scarf Latios functions mainly as a revenge killer for faster Pokemon, sweepers, and opposing Choice Scarf users. Draco Meteor and Psychic are already explained. Trick is key for crippling bulkier Pokemon like Celesteela and Tapu Fini if Latios's Choice Scarf is no longer needed in a match, or even to lock sweepers into a certain move to make them more manageable. As Choice Scarf Latios will not be utilized as a wallbreaker, it appreciates reliable recovery to consistently revenge kill or switch into threats, even if its item has not been Tricked away. Hidden Power Fire Fire enables Choice Scarf Latios to take a large chunk of health off of Ferrothorn and Mega Scizor.
How I went teambuilding with Latios
I chose the Soul Dew Defog set because it gives me hazard remover to start with. Needed a steel type to combat Dragon and Fairy types, thus added Mega Metagross. Latios also check water and ground types for it and has offensive synergy. Tapu Bulu was added to combat Pursuit users while also a strong wallbreaker. Volcarona appreciates Latios's hazard removal and also gives me a wincon and Z-move user. Physically defensive Landorus-T provides Stealth Rock, a momentum generator via U-urn, and a check to important threats such as opposing Choice Scarf Landorus-T and Mega Metagross. Specially defensive Rotom-W acts as a secondary Water and Ground switch-in, provides initiative through Volt Switch, and acts as a blanket check to a variety of threats such as Ash-Greninja and Tapu Fini.
Possess a stellar Special Attack stat, but it also has access to STAB Draco Meteor and a myriad of coverage options that potentially allow it to bypass would-be checks and counters; all of these factors give Latios considerable offensive presence;
Good Dragon and Psychic typing and decent 80/80/110 bulk enables it to check threats of Water-, Ground-, Electric-, Fighting-, and Grass-types, such as- Rotom-W, Keldeo, Landorus, Toxapex, and Mega Venusaur. Latios can constantly check this threats by using Recover;
Defog makes it a great hazard remover.
Weaknesses
It is plagued by the increased number of Fairy-types, the continued reign of Steel-types, and the presence of Pursuit users;
Its base 110 Speed stat, while incredibly useful for gaining the upper hand versus a sizable portion of the metagame, leaves it outpaced by threats like Tapu Koko, Pheromosa, and Weavile.
Conclusion
The reign of Tapus and Ultra Beasts may have somewhat reduced its viability, however it is still an influential Pokemon easy to fit in teams that every team should be prepared to deal with.
Appraisal
Hailing as one of the guardian deities, Tapu Bulu has proven that it indeed deserves the title. With solid 70 / 115 / 95 bulk backed up by a monstrous base 130 Attack and powerful Grass STAB in Wood Hammer and Horn Leech, which are further bolstered by Grassy Terrain, Tapu Bulu is nothing less than a deity. Speaking of Grassy Terrain, Bulu conjures it upon entry each time with it's special ability Grassy Surge, which brings fabulous support in healing and the weakening of Ground-type attacks for it's team. It's movepool, while shallow, has virtually everything it could want; Zen Headbutt, Superpower, Megahorn, Stone Edge, and excellent support options such as Leech Seed and Taunt. While it may not seem like much, this makes Tapu Bulu very versatile, which means it can run a multitude of successful sets, thus making it a rather unpredictable 'mon.
Despite its advantages, the deity has it's fair share of issues, albeit rather negligible compared to the mileage gained from using it. The most prominent is it's rather lacking base 75 Speed which puts it far behind the usual mainstays of the tier, making it a liability at times when facing faster teams (but faster teams usually lack ways to effortlessly come in on Bulu) and threats such as Gengar, Nihilego, and Mega Pinsir. Bulu also lacks a solid way besides Fightinium-Z + Superpower to break through Steel-types that are not hit super effectively by Superpower. Finally, Grassy Surge is a double-edged sword; Grassy Terrain also heals the enemy.
This set is used as a powerful breaker. SD + Superpower + Fightinium-Z gives Tapu Bulu the necessary power to muscle past it's checks such as Celesteela, Mega Scizor, and Skarmory. Horn Leech is reliable STAB that is stupidly powerful after SD. Zen Headbutt is coverage to break through Mega Venusaur, while Stone Edge (I found this less useful) hits Torn-T, Volcarona, and Zard-Y on the switch-in but they take a ton from it's attacks anyway.
In terms of offensive sets in general, it can easily run a Choice Band, Choice Scarf, even a Bulk Up set for increased defensive utility. It all depends on your team composition
This is a set that I use sometimes. It focuses utilizing Tapu Bulu as a bulky, powerful attacker with Miracle Seed + Wood Hammer with Horn Leech as a backup STAB so it can come in on resisted attacks with much more ease and still hit wonderfully hard. The obvious weakness of this set is you're hopelessly walled by bulky Steels, Grasses, Fires, etc. That's where Nature's Madness comes in. It's such a great move for chipping Celesteela, Mega Metagross, Magearna, Zard-Y/X, Ferro, Heatran, it's extremely useful. It's also good for a way to mitigate burn's crippling effects since it's a 50% guarantee (based on HP) every time. The beauty of it is that after a NM and chip damage sustained throughout the match, most of these checks are effectively at ~40% making them much easier to deal with, especially threats that lack recovery. Taunt is great for preventing recovery, entry hazards, etc while Leech Seed is another form of recovery that also furthers passive damage and negates Terrain recovery. The EV spread is ripped directly from the SubSeed set, which reaches some important Speed benchmark (i can't recall) and a decent amount of bulk.
You may recognize this team from last week, but it's a nice representation of NM Bulu's role on a team such as this. This team is based around either a Scolipede or Charizard X sweep. The two support each other very well as Zard literally sets up on everything that trouble Scolipede, which helps lead up to a clean by it. Tapu Fini is a necessity to remove Stealth Rock, Defensive Landorus-T sets them, and AV Magearna checks threats such as Tapu Lele while also completing the VolTurn core with Lando and finished the incredible backbone it makes with the two mentioned mons. Tapu Bulu was added last due to the virtue of being another Water and actual Ground resist, while also functioning as a good lure to Skarm, Steela, Magearna, etc. to assist with Scolipede's impending sweep. It also decimates bulkier squads alongside Fini with Taunt + NM.
All in all, Tapu Bulu is an extraordinary Pokemon that should often find it's way onto your teams. It's very versatile and can do quite a bit at one time making it a great pick with role compression in mind. Go out and give it a try if you haven't!
Since Bronzong looks like it's missing a synopsis I'll give it a shot. I have an okay balanced team with it so far.
Overview
Since its inception in Generation 4 Bronzong was well know for being a defensive Steel-type with key resistances and access to Levitate to remove one of its critical weaknesses. Generation 7 may not have brought much for our levitating Steel-type bell; however, many powerul threats such as Offensive Landorus-T, Supersonic Skystrike Salamence, and the majority of Mega Metagrossm are prevalent and can be tackled by Bronzong effectively. Though it is a Pokemon that lacks access to recovery and carries nasty weaknesses to Pursuit and Ghost-type attacks they are rather uncommon in the current metagame. Bronzong's niche is preventing devastating threats.
Bronzong, sadly, isn't without flaws. Its lack of recovery outside of Leftovers makes it susceptible to being worn down. Threats such as Tapu Lele are opting away from using Choice items and maximizing their movepool potential by using Shadow Ball and Hidden Power Fire. Bronzong also is extremely passive as a Stealth Rock user - leaving it vulnerable to having its hazards removed by Tapu Fini without much difficulty while being re-directed back at Bronzong's team with Mega Sableye.
This is the basic set for Bronzong - simple yet effective. Stealth Rock is one of the biggest reasons to use Bronzong as it isn't a Pokemon that is easily trapped by Pokemon such as Dugtrio and has a fighting chance against the majority of Magnezone sets with Earthquake. Gyro Ball is the next move on this set as it does hefty amounts of damage to Tapu Lele and Mega Pinsir. Earthquake helps Bronzong tackle Mega Metagross and potential Heatran switch-ins. Hidden Power Ice rounds the set off to keep Bronzong safe from being complete setup bait against threats such as Zygarde while being more reliable to tackle against Defensive Landorus-T and Garchomp.
Leftovers is the preferred item to help Bronzong passively recover health - which otherwise makes it even more susceptible to being worn down. The EVs are catered to maximizing physical damage take from the threats it is designed to tackle; however, one could deviate some physical durability in favor of Special Defense EVs to help tackle threats such as Tapu Lele easier.
Though there are other move options it is difficult to using them over Bronzong's primary moves. One option is Toxic - which helps Bronzong catch Fire-types that might attempt to set up on Bronzong or switch into it such as Volcarona or Charizard. This isn't the most reliable option, though as Volcarona teams often consider Tapu Fini as their partner.
Composition
Bronzong belongs best within teams that are either more balanced or towards bulkier offense. Bronzong's critical resistances and immunities with access to Stealth Rock make it a perfect fit for a lot of different teams that focus around a Fire-, Water-, and Grass-type core structure. It pairs well with Pokemon such as Gastrodon who can handle almost anything that's thrown at Bronzong with its immaculate typing and access to Storm Drain. Bronzong is not recommended for hyper offense or stall builds as hyper offense prefers Pokemon that can set up Stealth Rock quickly and either remove itself or immediately threaten Pokemon. Bronzong is a very passive Stealth Rock user and lacks coveted attacks such as Rapid Spin, Taunt, and Magic Coat. Bronzong also isn't a great fit for stall - in spite of its great resistances and immunity to Toxic it lacks recovery outside of Leftovers.
Garchomp @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Outrage
- Rock Slide
- Fire Blast
Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 232 HP / 180 Def / 80 SpD / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
- Knock Off
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Synthesis
The team has a structure of using Bronzong as a defensive anchor against Flying-type threats that otherwise harass Volcarona and Mega Venusaur. It also provides a safe switch-in from Psyshock and Psychic. The team is more structured as a balance with having Specs Pheromosa dealing hefty dents against the opponent, Scarf Garchomp cleaning up lategame and revenge killing otherwise problematic threats such as Mega Charizard X, and Volcarona to clean up lategame or place massive dents on the opponent's team.
Overall, there are various ways to use Bronzong and there are other Pokemon and sets that can be used over this. After all, the team does have some flaws and sometimes struggles against more aggressive offensive teams and very heavy defensive teams. I personally feel other teams that have been presented within SPL are great examples on what kind of teams Bronzong fits on and also displays what it does effectively in battle.
Bronzong @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Protect
- Gyro Ball
- Earthquake
Outside of the tournament community, Bronzong doesn't get the respect that it deserves, mostly because its slightly more boring than watching paint dry. Bronzong's role basically boils down to this: set Rocks, stop threats, keep your health up. Thanks to its solid bulk, a fantastic Steel / Psychic typing, and Levitate, Bronzong is a solid anti-meta pick. It is able to check several of the best offensive mons in the tier, including offensive Landorus-T, Mega Metagross, Garchomp, Tapu Lele, and Magearna, among others. From there, it can... force them out and set up Rocks, or chip them down with Gyro Ball and Earthquake. That's really about it, really. Bronzong does have a few flaws. Like in every gen before this one, it has no form of recovery apart from Leftovers, and can be pressured and worn down if a match drags on for too long. The other issue is how passive it is. While it can deal with offensive Pokemon fairly well, it struggles to deal with slower, bulkier Pokemon like Ferrothorn, and is completely incapable of setting rocks against Mega Sableye.
Bronzong should mostly be found on balance or bulky offence builds, as a part of a defensive core. Tapu Fini is nearly the perfect partner to Bronzong, since the two of them are able to check huge portions of the meta while also controlling the hazard game effectively. Other defoggers, such as Zapdos and Latios, should be considered as well. Bronzong can't fit onto stall or semi-stall teams, due to the lack of recovery, so it needs to support an offensive win condition in order to end the game before the repeated attacks take its toll. Alternatively, a Wish passer can be used, such as Clefable.
Rather than post a mediocre team I've built personally, I'd rather finish up by linking a few SPL matches that show Bronzong in "action". Spoilers: it gets whacked around a bit and sets up Rocks.
Leftiez vs Mencemeat
Leftiez's team features Bronzong as part of its defensive core, alongside Tapu Fini and Mega Venusaur. In this match, Bronzong is able to take advantage of Dugtrio and maintain hazard control throughout the game, preventing Jamvad from freely going into Charizard-Y and forcing him to Defog twice in an attempt to keep the field clear. Thanks to the pressure applied onto Zard-Y, it is eventually worn down and taken out, allowing Landorus-T to set up and win the game without fear of being revenge killed.
Snowy vs GeeMick
Bronzong is again paired up with Tapu Fini to control the hazard game on Snowy's team, accompanied this time by Zygarde. Despite Snowy opting for a set with Psywave and Toxic in order to deal more consistent chip damage to everything, Bronzong's role remains the same: maintain hazard control while checking Magearna. Between Tapu Fini and Bronzong, Snowy is able to chip away at GeeMick's team and prepare it for Volcarona to clean.
Ultimately, Bronzong isn't a glamorous Pokemon, but it is an extremely solid foundation to build a team with. The meta is definitely looking good for it right now, so if you happen to be missing a Mega Metagross check again, Bronzong might be your mon.
hey i wanna apologize for being late again: i was waiting for a bronzong post since colonelm said he was working on one, and then i got really sick this week. i've been busy making up missed schoolwork, so i've sorta neglected this project. sorry!
edit: also, i'll be posting the archive tomorrow night unless something comes up (:
week 4
mamoswine | volcarona
only two this week since things have been slow, and i can't think of a third: mamoswine has gained a bit of popularity lately, and it's giving weavile a lot more competition than it did last gen. volcarona has been a pretty strong pokemon throughout this gen with excellent z move sets. additionally, it handles a lot of annoying pokemon like pheromosa and kartana.
i'm gonna go back to the hybrid system, i think, so those of you interested in posting can either post between now and 2/23, or you can reserve to post between now and 2/19 night.
edit2: i'd also like to thank dk for the excellent new banner he made the other day :D.
the people i tagged and anyone else who wants to post have until friday (2/24) night to write up a post about whichever pokemon you took (volcarona / mamoswine). as a reminder to those unsure of what to post:
When posting, you can include (but are not limited to):
strategies used
sets used
how you went about building with the Pokemon
general strengths / weaknesses you noticed about the Pokemon
if the meta is in favor of the Pokemon or not
how the Pokemon fares in high level / tournament play (examples are nice here)
remember: you aren't limited to these guidelines; they're just here to help in case you aren't sure what to post. if you'd prefer to focus on 1 specific aspect of the pokemon you selected rather than a broad overview, that's okay! if you're still lost, try checking out this postby Infernal (rip).
if you signed up, but you cannot find the time to post, don't worry about it! just please don't do it regularly.
Introduction
With a unique Bug+Fire typing, one of the best setup moves in Quiver Dance, and solid stats make Volcarona a potent setup sweeper. At +1, it can destroy unprepared teams with ease. It also has good coverage in form of Giga Drain and Psychic, thus it allows it deal with would be checks. With Generation 7 giving it new toys in form of Z-move, it can easily remove checks of previous Gen with Inferno Overdrive. Also, the nerf of Gale Wings makes Volcarona be free in Talonflame's presence, something it feared in the previous Generation.
Sets
Volcarona @ Firium Z/Lum Berry/Passho Berry
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Quiver Dance
- Fire Blast/Fire Dance
- Giga Drain/ Bug Buzz
- Hidden Power Ground/Hidden Power Electric/ Psychic
This is Volcarona's only viable set, but is enough to make it a force to be reckoned. Quiver Dance is what makes it so strong, capable of boosting SpA, SpD and Spe at the same time. Fire Blast is Volcarona's strongest stab. Inferno Overdrive is a 185-Base Power nuke that can net surprise OHKOs on many targets when Volcarona is unboosted, such as Landorus-T and Hoopa-U after Stealth Rock damage, and allows Volcarona to blow past many Fire-resistant Pokemon that could otherwise check it such as Zygarde, Gyarados, and Garchomp after they have taken some chip damage. It is also unable to miss, which can be helpful even when the extra power isn't needed. Fiery Dance is 100% accurate, has more PP, and can boost Volcarona's Special Attack, but is significantly less powerful. It also makes Inferno Overdrive weak. Giga Drain is preferred on the third slot as it hits many water types that resist Fire Blast and allows it to recover some HP. Bug Buzz can be used as a stab that hits many fire resistant Pokemon neutrally and hits Tyranitar, Latios and Latias super effectively. Hidden Power Ground hits Heatran, Mega Charizard X, Alolan Marowak, and Nihilego. Hidden Power Electric can be used to 2HKO Mantine, but has no other use. Psychic allows Volcarona to deal with Toxapex and Nihilego. The EVs are standard, max SpA and max Spe with a timid nature to hit as hard as possible while outspeeding Choice Scarf Landorus-T and Tapu Lele at +1. It also allows Volcarona to outspeed Jolly Excadrill and other fully invested Pokemon above base 87 Speed as well as Speed tie with other base 100 Speed Pokemon. Firium Z is necessary to use Inferno Overdrive while also reducing the damage from Knock Off and preventing opponent from using Trick on it. Lum Berry allows it to shrug off a paralysis and Toxic. Passho Berry allows it to set up on water types such as Rotom-W and take a Aqua Jet from Azumarill.
Good Partners
Entry Hazard removal is absolutely necessary due to Volcarona's 4X weakness to Stealth Rock. Tapu Fini is arguably the best defogger in the tier, it can also check water and dragon types. Moreover, Misty Terrain prevents opponent from crippling Volcarona. Lati@s are also great offensive Defoggers who don't destroy momentum like Tapu Fini while also checking water types.
Tapu Lele is a great teammate as it can provide Psychic terrain for Volcarona, rendering it immune to Azumarill's Aqua Jet and Mega Pinsir's quick attack. It can also check Dragon types for it.
VoltTurn users are useful to bring Volcarona in safely.
Stealth Rock is necessary for Volcarona to nab some KOes. Garchomp and Excadrill are both good hazard setters, and both can switch in rock type attacks aimed at Volcarona.
Sample Team
Volcarona @ Firium Z
Ability: Flame Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Fire Blast
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ground]
Tapu Fini @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Surf
- Moonblast
- Taunt
This is a meme team built featuring all Guardian Deities as Volcarona has good synergy with them and the Terrains. Tapu Fini provides Misty terrain which makes it immune to status. Tapu Lele provides Psychic terrain which makes it immune to priority. Tapu Koko is mainly for VoltTurn support and gives Electric Terrain which will wake Volcarona, which is useful in front of Breloom and setting up before Amoonguss. Excadrill gives hazard support and hazard removal in one slot. Tapu Bulu provides Grassy Terrain which gives Volcarona passive recovery and reduces the damage taken from Earthquake. This is not supposed to be the best team with Volcarona, but it is sure a fun one.
Strengths
The best setup move in the tier in Quiver Dance, letting it boost it's SpA, SpD and Spe in the same turn.
Great base 100 Spe allows it to outspeed many Pokemons after a boost.
Great base 135 SpA with strong stab in Fire Blast.
Weakness
Poor physical bulk with few resistances.
Crippling 4X weakness to Stealth Rock.
Checked by many fire resistant Pokemons due to bad coverage.
Fairs poorly vs. some archetypes such as rain.
Conclusion
Overall, Volcarona is a unique Pokemon with strong stats and Quiver Dance. It can destroy unprepared teams single handedly. Although there are some flaws in it such as one dimensionality, its Pros easily outweighs its Cons. Thus, Volcarona is a great addition to offensive teams with decent Hazard control and team synergy, and you will rarely regret using it.
Volcarona has always been one of those Pokemon that’s been so close to competitive relevance, but it’s always been missing something. Something to let it burst through would-be checks, when all it needs is one extraordinarily powerful move to secure a sweep. If only Game Freak would create some mechanic that allowed for that kind of powerful, one-use move….
Whaaat? They did? And Volcarona is one of the best users of them? Who knew?
All kidding aside, Gen 7 has been very kind to Volcarona. Z-moves are a godsend for it, with Inferno Overdrive rapidly becoming Volcarona’s best set. With Talonflame nerfed, Volcarona lost one of its sturdiest counters, and it benefits from 3 of the 4 terrains (all but Electric).
Volcarona’s claim to fame is the combination of one of the best setup moves in the game in Quiver Dance, an already high Special Attack and Speed, and high-powered moves like Fire Blast and Bug Buzz. The fire moth is one of the most threatening sweepers in gen 7.
Sets
Volcarona @ Firium Z
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Fire Blast
- Giga Drain
This is Volcarona's bread and butter set. Quiver Dance is obviously its setup move of choice. Fire Blast provides the most power, netting a 180 BP Inferno Overdrive. Giga Drain lets Volc handle bulky waters like Tapu Fini that would resist its Fire Blast, and Hidden Power Ground handles pesky Marowak and Heatran.
Volcarona @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
-Quiver Dance
-Hurricane
-Fire Blast / Fiery Dance
- Hidden Power [Ice] / Hidden Power [Ground]
This set is, as best as I can tell, the one used by Snowy against Geemick in SPL Week 3 and by Zamrock against Nedor in SPL Week 5. I'm not sure of exact sets, but the replays are there. This set uses Supersonic Skystrike to lure in Volcarona's typical counters, mainly fire resists such as Marowak and Zygarde (in the replays given). Fiery Dance can be used for more consistency on this set, since Volcarona no longer needs the power for Inferno Overdrive.
Building With Volcarona
Volcarona @ Firium Z
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Fire Blast
- Giga Drain
Tapu Fini @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Moonblast
- Taunt
- Defog
Landorus-Therian @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Hidden Power [Ice]
Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Bullet Punch
- Ice Punch
Serperior @ Leftovers
Ability: Contrary
EVs: 200 HP / 56 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Leech Seed
- Leaf Storm
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Focus Blast
This team isn't the most recent team, but it was one of those teams that pretty much everyone used for a couple days until everyone realized everyone was using it. It was the first Inferno Overdrive Volcarona team I've seen, and it supports Volcarona very well. Tapu Fini is arguably the best partner Volcarona can have, providing Defog support, and giving a switch-in to water types like Ash-Gren, and checks Dragon types. In addition, it baits in grass-types like Tangrowth that Volcarona can set up on. Metagross gives a Lele switch-in, which was especially essential since this was built a few months ago when Lele was queen of OU. It specifically doesn't run Hammer Arm, though, because that way Magnezone and Ferrothorn stay around as setup fodder for Volcarona. Lando-T provides chip damage and a bulky core with Fini. SubSeed Serp whittles opposing Heatran and Magearna for Lele, which serves as the team's secondary wincon. The team is built around a Volcarona sweep, however.
Volcarona @ Firium Z
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fiery Dance
- Quiver Dance
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ground]
Gastrodon (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 244 HP / 192 Def / 72 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Scald
- Earth Power
- Recover
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Power Whip
- Knock Off
- Leech Seed
- Spikes
Latios @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Trick
- Psyshock
- Draco Meteor
Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Meteor Mash
- Bullet Punch
- Hammer Arm
Landorus-Therian @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- U-turn
This is my team, which isn't nearly as polished as Bludz's but it's done pretty well for me. Volcarona runs the same set, but with Fiery Dance over Fire Blast. This variant plays slightly differently, since it has a slightly weaker Inferno Overdrive. This variant needs the opposing team to be a little bit more whittled, but it snowballs a lot faster with Fiery Dance boosts. Thus, I put it on a bulkier offense team. I didn't use Fini because I wanted to be creative, and I also wanted to test a Ferrothorn + Gastrodon defensive core. Latios gives me speed control and a defogger in one slot that can also cripple opposing walls with Trick, which is really nice role compression. Megagross is always one of the best megas to pair with Volcarona, and it provides a secondary wincon that appreciates the opposing team being weakened by Gastro + Ferro. Landorus-T fills my last spot, since I was missing rocks and U-turn is always appreciated.
This team built around a Volcarona sweep by whittling the opposing team with a bulky core before letting Volcarona come in and clean up the remainders, as opposed to Bludz's team, which tries to bait in setup fodder so that Volc can sweep through the entire team at once. Either way, it's a threat, but it's a function of how the team is built around it.
Geemick's gameplan revolved around removing any threats to a Volcarona sweep- in this case, Greninja (and to a lesser extent Pheromosa). Greninja is a very common threat to Volcarona due to its high speed and access to Water Shuriken, but Snowy plays around it very well. He switches in Fini to scout for Ash-Gren, then traps it with Duggy once he knew that it was Protean. Thus, all Snowy had to do was bait Ferrothorn in with Fini and Defog. Geemick misplayed with Toxic, obviously, but this replay shows how Supersonic Skystrike can function as a lure to things that would otherwise stop a Volcarona sweep (in this case, Zygarde. +1 SSSS + Hurricane still has a chance to kill 252/252+ Zygarde).
Reyscarface uses Volcarona not as a cleaner, but as a midgame powerhouse mon to blow the game open, knowing that Ferrothorn alone dealt with a significant portion of Mael's team, and Dugtrio could trap problematic mons like Mimikyu or Magnezone. In this game, hazard control is vital, to the point where Reyscarface felt comfortable sacrificing his Latios to ensure a Defog and safe switch to Volc.
This game sees SuperSonic Skystrike Volcarona on a rain team, which makes a lot more sense the more you think about it. Rain, when played well, usually keeps up enough momentum to prevent the other team from getting up rocks, which is huge for Volcarona. In addition, Hurricane gains perfect accuracy in Rain and can give rain a check to troublesome mons like Mega Venusaur. Here, Zamrock recognizes that Nedor has no safe switch-in to Volcarona (since Chomp gets worn down quickly) and it can use its defensive typing to switch in on Magearna repeatedly.
Strengths / Weaknesses / Partners
Volcarona is a deadly pokemon on its own, but proper support really pushes it over the edge. It’s massive sweeping ability due to Quiver Dance and high-powered moves are offset by a similarly massive weakness to Stealth Rock and vulnerability to Spikes. Hazard control is absolutely vital to pair with Volcarona, limiting Volc builds slightly. Tapu Fini is arguably the best Defogger in the tier, but Latios works as well. Both resist Water, which lets them support Volcarona defensively. Volcarona loves chip damage on the opposing team, and needs something to handle opposing bulky waters, so Ferrothorn makes a nice partner. Volc pairs well with all of the Tapus, since Fini gives Defog, a Water resist, and status immunity, Lele gives another offensive threat and priority immunity, Bulu gives recovery and beats water types, and Koko gives VoltTurn to get Volc some free switches.
Conclusion
I really like where Volcarona is in the meta right now. It’s a really cool win condition that’s fairly easy to support with hazards, and it has high-BP moves to use Z-moves to the fullest. It checks the steel types that are near-omnipresent in this meta, and it pairs well with the Tapus that dislike them. It’s been so close before, but it’s finally become the threat it always wished it could be.
Mamoswine is a powerful hard-hitter with a great base 130 attack stat, and thus allows it to pressure any Pokemon not resistant to it's attacks. A powerful priority in Ice Shard enables it to mitigate its poor speed as a wallbreaker, thus it's capable of revenge killing and late game cleaning. With a good defensive ability in thick fat, it is not weak to fire type attacks and a ground type means that it can switch in on electric attacks which is great in this metagame filled with Tapu Koko.
This is the only set Mamoswine got, but it allows it to function as a good wallbreaker. Earthquake and Ice Shard are it's main Stab and it hits many Pokemons hard due to good coverage. Ice Shard is great for revenge killing Dragon, Ground and Flying types and helps it somewhat against offensive teams. Freeze-Dry is incredibly useful for a Pokemon as Mamoswine, as it allows it to hit water types such as Rotom-W, Quagsire, Gyarados, Tapu Fini supereffectively, while also enabling it to get past Intimidate. Superpower allows it to get past Ferrothorn, which would otherwise wall it. Knock Off is a great utility in general, especially against defensive Pokemons. Maximum Spe is necessary to make Mamoswine faster. 16 SpA makes sure that Freeze-Dry will be able to 2HKO Rotom-W after Stealth Rock damage. The rest of them is dumped in Attack to hit as hard as possible. A Naive Nature is used to not weaken Mamoswine's SpA, however, a jolly nature with full Attack investment has to be used if running Superpower or Knock Off.
Good Partners
Magnezone is a potential teammate as it can trap and KO the Steel types that gives Mamoswine trouble.
Both Charizard's are good teammates for Mamoswine as they are able to take advantage of common Mamoswine switch-ins such as Buzzwole, Celesteela, Mega Scizor, Skarmory, and Ferrothorn. Mega Charizard X can also use this Pokemons as setup fodders.
Pokemons that can deal with bulky Water types is useful if Mamoswine is not running Freeze Dry. All of these Pokemons can deal with them.
Sample Team
Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 240 HP / 16 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Icicle Crash
- Ice Shard
- Knock Off
This is a team built with the aim to help Mega Charizard X sweep. Mamoswine helps against opposing Heatran and softens up opposing team prior to a sweep in general. Magnezone is for trapping the steel types. Tapu Koko is here for pressuring Water types, and maintains a VoltTurn core with Magnezone. Excadrill is mandatory hazard removal and also the team's rocks setter. Alolan Ninetales is an underrated Pokemon, but it can support the team with Dual Screens. Overall, the team isn't that good as it lacks a water resist, but it worked for me.
Pros
Good offensive typing in Ground+Ice
Access to priority in Ice Shard
Ground typing is especially useful in a metagame with many Electric types
Thick Fat is a useful defensive ability
Cons
It is quite slow to be much useful against offensive teams even with Ice Shard
Is easily walled by certain defensive Pokemons like Celesteela and Scizor.
Conclusion
Mamoswine isn't helped that much in this current meta. Many Pokemons like Metagross and Pheromosa are immediate threats to it. It's typing is also quite poor defensively, further exacerbated by it's bad bulk and low speed. It is not the first pick as your teams wallbreaker. However, if your team needs the power of Mamoswine, be sure to welcome it. This is a great Pokemon to try out. So what are you waiting for!
both of these have gained a bit of traction in SPL, and they were thought to be worse than last gen at the beginning of the gen. they now both stand out to be really solid threats with a variety of sets that they couldn't run previously.
those of you interested in posting can either post between now and 3/5 (nighttime EST), or you can reserve to post between now and 3/3 (nighttime EST).
the people i tagged and anyone else who wants to post have until 3/5 (nighttime EST) to write up a post about whichever pokemon you took (keldeo / gengar). as a reminder to those unsure of what to post:
When posting, you can include (but are not limited to):
strategies used
sets used
how you went about building with the Pokemon
general strengths / weaknesses you noticed about the Pokemon
if the meta is in favor of the Pokemon or not
how the Pokemon fares in high level / tournament play (examples are nice here)
remember: you aren't limited to these guidelines; they're just here to help in case you aren't sure what to post. if you'd prefer to focus on 1 specific aspect of the pokemon you selected rather than a broad overview, that's okay! if you're still lost, try checking out this postby Infernal (rip).
if you signed up, but you cannot find the time to post, don't worry about it! just please don't do it regularly.
Ok, I think I've played enough with this. And the creepiest Pokemon ever has been pretty good. I mean, who won't be afraid of this thing;)
General Thoughts on Gengar
Gengar is a Pokemon which has been in OU since Gen 1, the only Pokemon to have done it. However, Gen 7 has hit it quite hard due to removing its ability in Levitate, which gave it a quite nifty Ground-type immunity. Thus, Gengar has dropped for the first time in UU. However, the recent spike in usage of Gengar in SPL has proved that it is not as useless as we all theorymonned it to be(it has 10.00% to be exact till now).
Gengar still has the great Special Attack and decent enough movepool with Shadow Ball, Sludge Wave, Focus Blast, Thunderbolt, Icy Wind, and Dazzling Gleam, thus allowing it to function as an effective wallbreaker. It has decent utility in Taunt, Substitute, Will-O-Wisp, Trick, Disable and Destiny Bond thus increasing its versatility. It can work as an effective wallbreaker with Life Orb, and it's Poison stab means that it can easily handle the ever present Guardian Deities. It can also work as an good offense cleaner with Choice Scarf, as it sits at a good speed tier and it's powerful attacks give offensive builds quite the trouble. Even Pheromosa isn't safe from it, as gengar can survive anything from Pheromosa and OHKO it. Unlike other Choice Scarf users, Gengar can also have usefulness against Stall teams as it can Trick foes like Chansey and Skarmory, which means one less thing to worry about. Gengar's new ability also lets it benefit from the Terrains, and absorb Toxic Spikes. But the most important thing is this tier's lack of Ghost resist, which makes it easy to spam Shadow Ball. All this makes Gengar have some usage in high-level plays.
However, Gengar is not without flaws, and has some big ones. Due to it's new ability, it has the weakness of the common Ground-type attacks. Coupled with its paper thin bulk, and a weakness to Pursuit, it is quite easy to get past. Outside of Choice Scarf, Gengar is outsped by some common threats in Choice Scarf users like Landorus-T, Greninja, Tapu Koko, Weavile etc.
This is the set I've found to be the most effective. This set acts as a revenge killer to threatening Pokemon like Gyarados, non Bullet Punch Mega Metagross, Tapu Lele, Tapu Koko, and Pheromosa. Basically, this set acts as a soft check to most relevant sweepers due to Choice Scarf. Shadow Ball and Sludge Wave are the stabs here. Focus Blast useful for hitting Pokemon on the switch such as Tyranitar, Ferrothorn, Heatran and Excadrill. Trick is quite useful against defensive teams, as locking things like Chansey, Skarmory, Toxapex etc. is a big boon for everything and is certainly game changing. If the ability to weaken Stall is not wanted, Gengar has some other tricks up to its sleeves. Icy Wind is great versus Landorus-T, Garchomp, Zygarde, Salamence etc, and can lower the speed of Dragon Dance users like Mega Charizard X. Thunderbolt is another viable choice, as it KOes Gyarados, Toxapex, Celesteela, and Skarmory.
This set acts as a wallbreaker instead of a revenge killer, and is also viable. It can also revenge kill slower attackers. Shadow Ball and Sludge Wave are the mandatory and hits hard with Life Orb. Focus Blast is here to KO Tyranitar, Ferrothorn, Excadrill, Heatran etc. Taunt is useful against defensive Pokemon to prevent them from Healing. Thunderbolt is useful against bulky Pokemons like Toxapex, Celesteela, and Mantine. Will-O-Wisp can be used to cripple Physical attackers on the switch. Destiny Bond can be used to bring down a threat to your team and works well with Gengar's good speed tier.
There is also the Choice Specs set, but I didn't get the time to try it out.
Good Teammates
Teammates that can take care of Dark and Psychic types are appreciated. Tapu Bulu stands out as it can also take Ground types and setup Grassy Terrain as it makes neutral to Ground-type attacks, and gives it recovery.
Tapu Lele is a great partner as it resists Psychic-type moves and brings Psychic Terrain, which means Gengar is now immune to priority.
Dugtrio gets a special mention as it can trap and remove Tyranitar, Alolan Muk, Bisharp, Magearna etc, which helps Gengar a lot.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen7ou-252991 Here, Gengar absorbed the Toxic Spikes many times which otherwise would've changed the game, and it tricked Tangrowth the Choice Scarf which meant it wasn't a problem anymore.
Gengar is a Pokemon which is quite antimeta. It benefits from the current metagame trends. It has some big flaws, but its pros outweighs its cons. Gengar is a Pokemon whose niche is valued in most teams. So, give it a try!
I will do the gengar report in the next few days :p sets I will do will probably be specs, scarf, ghostium z and life orb. Haven't found a good time to do it, but I will do it soon.
Hi. Gengar has been rising a lot in the past few weeks. People have realized how great of an offensive threat. Gengar's usage is based off of it's incredible 130 base SpA and decent 110 speed. It also has incredible coverage options like Focus Blast, Thunderbolt, Icy Wind, and even some unexplored options such as Energy Ball or Hidden Power Fire. With the rise of grass types and decrease of pursuit trapping dark types, Gengar finds many more chances to fire off its hard hitting attacks. It also has ghostium z, wispsplit, life orb taunt, etc. that can do better vs different arch types.
With spikes support, Gengar can find it easy to sweep offensively inclined teams. Gengar is able to come in late game and sweep with the chip damage that spikes provides for it. Gengar appreciates teammates like Ferrothorn, Scolipede, and Greninja that can set up spikes. Gengar's speed tier allows it to cleanup vs. Metagross, Tapu Koko and Lele, Pheramosa, Keldeo, Alakazam, etc.
Choice specs 2HKO's anything not named chansey. It is so incredibly strong, and with Volt-Turn support is able to spam Shadow Ball (or another coverage move) and 2hko whatever comes in. Scizor's viability due to Metagross is also a plus for Gengar who appreciates coming in freely. Volt-Turn in gengaral is really common right now and really helps Gengar in its wallbreaking.
These are examples of good volt-turn mons that can bring Gengar in. Ash-Gren has the added bonus of weakening thing such as AV Magearna as does Gengar. Ferrothorn, Scolipede, and Greninja are capable of setting up spikes to help the Scarf gar sweep.
