Other Metagames [SS AG] The Time Thieves

Suzuya

Undertaker
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UPL Champion
RMT AG « The Time Thieves »

:SS/Marshadow: :SS/Yveltal: :SS/Groudon: :SS/Ferrothorn: :SS/Necrozma-Dusk-Mane: :SS/Blissey:


Hello everyone! My name is Indercover and this is my first RMT. I started this team a few days ago with the help of the PS AG room chat, someone had asked in the chat if the Marshadow + yveltal koff core could work in AG. I built a team with the help of Frito135 Geysers , lotiasite and Rotten (thanks to them). I find the team very solid that's why I want to present it today as my first RMT.
The introductions done, let's go to the team !

Team building process

I wanted to build a team which could fully exploit all the offensive strengths of Marshadow to have the possibility to change the use of the pokemon in game and to have an optimal coverage on a maximum of match up.
Then yveltal, I don't think I need to introduce him anymore, almost mandatory in all bulky offense, he's our main check calyrex-S, he feat perfectly with Marshadow because he can koff rocky helmet or lefties/blacks sludge of defensive pokemon very hard to handle, and he can pivot to always have the pressure.
Groudon came naturally because it can directly threaten pokemons like zacian, zygarde and eternatus which can threaten Marshadow.
Then I thought of ferrothorn because he pairs perfectly with groudon defensively but especially because he can put down the spikes that help Marshadow get ohko/2hko.
I found that the team lacked a speed control obviously and that I still needed a check zacian and kyogre that's why I opted for a defensive necrozma dusk mane dragon Dance, which is the cleaner of this team, it takes advantage by that of the previous breaks of Marshadow to clean the opposite team well started.
And finally, we find blissey, tbh I don't like playing this Pokémon much but it had a perfect role here, take slow momentum, check kyogre, aromatherapy... In short it does everything we need to finish this team.


:Marshadow:

Set

Marshadow @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Poltergeist
- Spectral Thief
- Close Combat
- Shadow Sneak​

First of all we have a Marshadow choice band rigid (not needing the jolly nature for this set, I have favoured the damage here). For this set I discussed a lot with Frito and we came to the conclusion that Poltergeist / spectral thief / Close Combat / Shadow Sneak is the best Marshadow set right now so we went for it. Marshadow doesn't really need coverage because with his Stab duo he already covers a huge part of the meta, Spectral thief is needed to steal boosts from slow sweepers like kyogre cm, cosmic power eternatus and poltergeist is just better for hitting pokemons like necrozma dusk mane to not take the Rocky Helmet and to hit harder overall and get the 2hko needed in a game. Close combat assured crazy break damage, he can OHKO blissey, yveltal a little weakened and just hit the neutral really hard. Sneak makes Marshadow an excellent rk to my very threatening how calyrex, a weakened zygarde place, a weakened zacian, a weakened Xerneas as well and the list goes on.

Some interesting calcs:

252+ Atk Choice Band Marshadow Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Prism Armor Necrozma-Dusk-Mane: 262-310 (65.8 - 77.8%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock and 2 layers of Spikes

252+ Atk Choice Band Technician Marshadow Shadow Sneak vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Dynamax Calyrex-Shadow: 748-888 (109.6 - 130.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252+ Atk Choice Band Marshadow Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Yveltal: 324-382 (71.2 - 83.9%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Marshadow Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 240 HP / 0 Def Eternatus: 300-354 (62.3 - 73.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after 1 layer of Spikes and Black Sludge recovery


:Yveltal:

Set

Yveltal @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Dark Aura
EVs: 16 HP / 240 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog​

Let's go to the second pokemon of the core: Yveltal.
Yveltal is an extremely interesting pokemon with Marshadow, apart from the fact that it checks calyrex shadow perfectly which is a direct threat to Marshadow, it can especially benefit from a fast koff on the other Yveltal, lunala, zygarde, eternatus and to be able to pivot perfectly on the perfect answer and to support the pressure it brings. Fast Yveltal is also a way to improve the match up sticky which can be problematic in the long run. The spread is a perfect compromise between bulk and speed offering a perfect coverage both defensively and utility wise.

:groudon:

Set

Groudon @ Leftovers
Ability: Drought
EVs: 248 HP / 224 Def / 36 Spe
Impish Nature
- Precipice Blades
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
- Stone Edge/Roar​

As I said in the team building process, groudon came naturally to mind because it combined perfectly with Marshadow.
The spread is just a fairly standard groudon defensive although I added a bit of speed to get past all the yveltal spD 0 speed, cm kyogre and ho oh/other groudon defensives. Concerning the moove set, the first 3 mooves seem necessary for this team: Precipice Blades for the ground stab and touch the eternatus, ndm, zacian, the SR's as I think he is the best SR setter of the team as I don't have the space on blissey, nor on ndm so groudon is perfect for this role Then I put him toxic to get the ho oh, yveltal, lunala and zygarde which makes Marshadow's job easier. For the last moove, I think it is very debatable, Roar can be a solution that can save you from very hard match ups like bulk up Marshadow lo, groudon double dance, bounce an eternatus place with cosmic power, but to be honest I have a real preference for stone Edge as in testing e moove proved to be more used especially for weaken yveltal and to provide one shot sec ho oh, even though Roar can save you from extremely complicated situation so, it's up to you here !!!

:ferrothorn:

Set

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Body Press
- Iron Defense
- Spikes
- Leech Seed​

This is one of the pokemon I would detail the least I think despite the fact that it is necessary here, phys def ferrothorn is one of the reasons why I'm not for roar on groudon (see groudon analysis just above), it poses spikes by having an offensive presence with Iron defense + body press, leech seed is there to increase its staying power and to compensate for the fact that ferro is going to be koffed very often in a game. In short, an excellent support pokemon for Marshadow that completes defensively with groudon and the next pokemon that we will analyse together.

:necrozma-dusk-mane:

Set

Necrozma-Dusk-Mane @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Prism Armor
EVs: 248 HP / 136 Def / 120 Spe
Impish Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Sunsteel Strike
- Earthquake
- Morning Sun​

The set of the second last Pokemon in this RMT got me thinking tbh and I think I came up with the best solution for this team with Necrozma-Dusk-Mane. Indeed, in this team I have opted for a set that is becoming more and more forgotten and yet remains no less strong: the defensive Dragon Dance. This team was cruelly lacking in set up, speed control but above all more offensive presence next to Marshadow, but I also had to have a Zacian check that couldn't just rely on Groudon and Ferrothorn, so the idea of this set came to me like an illumination. The spread is bulky enough to tank zacian crowned but fast enough to exceed 100 bases is - a +1 as well as tie/exceed some of the full SpD eternatus. For the moove set, there is really no question to ask, sunsteel and earthquake for a cover of all the pokemon you need to touch, dragon Dance for the set up and Morning Sun to recover HP. The rocky helmet is there to punish the physicals Pokemons like zacian, yveltal and Marshadow.

:blissey:

Set

Blissey (F) @ Utility Umbrella
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Seismic Toss
- Aromatherapy
- Soft-Boiled
- Teleport​

The last Pokemon is an extremely common balance mon in balance, blissey comes to find its place in this team because it can regain momentum thanks to your teleport, it can also perfectly come on various special threats like yveltal, kyogre (hence my choice of the utility umbrella in item) and even has the luxury of spell checking calyrex. To speak more in detail about the set, really almost no hesitation and I left on Seismic Toss not to remain passive against pokemon like Xerneas and kyogre in particular, aromatherapy to look after the statuses of my team and take again the advantage in balance against balance Soft Boiled ensures the health of the pokemon throughout the game and its staying power as the match progresses and finally teleport for the reasons I mentioned earlier, to regain momentum.

Some replays and tips!

This team archetype, balanced spikes + tox groudon + cleric has a huge advantage against the balance because you are so versatile that you can win almost any match up!

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1394925078-4oafg75agf5zacu4w4jfs8mom5eqsdgpw against WSun1

Balances are very common archetypes in AG so having advantages against them allows you to better develop your game and to be able to take some pressure over the rounds.
In the match against WSun1, the team is literally piloting itself because by my defensive and offensive presence I force him to make plays that I can easily predict with the help of middle ground without any risk for me (despite that he gave me a hard time in the game, go see it I find it extremely interesting).

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1394918299-svxsps1a3giz1iem9utx98blvszb4m2pw against Frito

For the game against Frito, it is more special. During this match I made an extremely questionable play that made him win the game (Turn 24 iirc), first little advice here, don't redo the play I made and always try to find the most interesting middle ground for you, here I anticipated the withdrawal of the Xerneas from the Yveltal by anticipating a blissey/NDM, so he had free roost and defog so that's why I typed close combat When it comes to this kind of play I often rely on my instinct when I could just win the game in the long run, if I was a normal player I would have probably clicked an in dusk mane. But the game is still interesting because of the management of the Marshadow which was rather successful on my side.

To move on to the things that bother the team a bit, I'll start with the most common point, I want to talk about the Hyper Offense or Offense archetype.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1394833299-6he4vy058ohlba9qorvubl1wt182nvppw against Mbouchon

This match is quite special because he plays a fire spam, with a SD Groudon Lo and my fire resistance poses the sun LOL... I digress, this match is interesting because you notice very quickly that I lose my groudon extremely quickly in the party and I find myself completely naked in front of ho oh. Mbouchon played the game super well, so it's a big bravo. At the end of the match I tried to set up with necrozma and, if I had never had the rocks up and not the burn on the second sacred fire, I think I could have passed, very often against the matches up of very offensive teams, it will be necessary to try to play as much as possible around its necrozma because the effect of surprise of necrozma DD is favorable to you.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1395125987-v13we83f5q3t8lndqqgi7jg17faa7k1pw vs Bacon

This match is also very interesting because we notice that the team adapts better to the match up offense than initially expected, I understood very quickly what was at stake in this game and that if I let the Xerneas place themselves I was going to be in a terrible mess. I tried to set up my necrozma and it worked, I'm proud of this match because it proves that this team can still take the tempo on very offensive teams if it is well played.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1395200566-kkqhqixilsgypdpsid0wwjpyxtnf1lmpw against Trade

This last match illustrates perfectly what to do to counter the up sticky webs bpass matches, I would say the game plan is to weaken the opposing team as much as possible by preventing the bpass with Marshadow while trying to contain the opposing dynamax. The last tip I'm going to give you was passed on to me by WSun1 there is a calyrex offensive set in sticky web capable of holding yveltal uturns under substitute AND THEREFORE having a totally free bpass, so don't be fooled, prevent this as much as possible if you suspect you're going to face this set even if you're taking a huge risk.

0 Atk Yveltal U-turn vs. 0 HP / 112 Def Calyrex-Shadow: 68-80 (19.9 - 23.4%) -- possible 5HKO

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1395129959-sx0c17ps4t2goppylnemxxjyah5a4nrpw against Bacon (yes again)

He is juste better. TTTG I thought of your fans to make a structured video between 2 top players and a breathtaking match, with impressive plays from both sides... (nah xd just put in title " OML INDER PUBLICLY HUMILIATED BY CALYREX SASH, EPIC 1vs6 ")

The final word

With this last explanation, I conclude my RMT, it was important to me to present a balance because it is my favourite team archetype in addition to the fact that this team was partly created by people active on the AG chat and I would like to thank them again.
If I had to do shoutouts, I would mention first Fardin who gave me my change in AG and it's because I really felt good in the tier that I decided to do this RMT so thanks to him, obviously big big up to Geysers for helping me a lot to contribute or just to make games lol and finally a big s/o to Tic-Tac-Toe Guru playing games continuously with me :pain:
I look forward to your feedback because this is my first RMT, I hope you will be happy with my work or that you tell me how I could improve myself, in any case it was very fun and I tell you to next time for sure!

Import

https://pokepast.es/72879d8535b48cfa
hf guys
 

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