I’ve looked through Finch’s recent posts and he hasn’t posted any teams. I never ran into him while laddering either. As I mentioned, I saw several people using a team very similar to this, and with some of the same sets, but I built this on my own. Perhaps they copied his team but I wouldn’t know. Any similarity is due to the sets being standard; there are no niche moves or specialized EVs on any of the mons.
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Project SS OU Teambuilding Competition - Not hosted anymore
- Thread starter SLDR
- Start date
- Status
◄ Importable ►
A basic Corv + Clef + Pex + The uncommon Roserade. Roserade serves as a check to a wide array of physical threats and serves as a prick in the side of the classic corv clef pex core. It also can pain toad with T-spikes. Aside from that, Its a pretty standard team, but it works.
not much room for hazards, maybe a Ferro could be substituted for Rose, but that's boring.
have fun :)
It's time to vote! Dracovish was banned, but we'll still vote to decide which of these teams was the best. (For what it's worth it, I'll be leaving out JTD783's team as it's nigh identical to a team that has been running on the ladder for some time now)
Reminder: the voting system used is the Ranked Pairs format (the same as CAP uses). To vote you basically order your options like this: C>B>A>D, like this A>B=C>D, or like this D>C, assuming there are 4 team options (A, B, C, and D). If you choose not to vote for all teams, the last team(s) will be assumed to be last and valued equally if more than one got left out. If you have any questions about this system, by all means, contact me.
And remember, you may vote for as many or as little teams as you want!
Team A by Acey - Danse Macabre
Voting will end around 3 days from now.
Reminder: the voting system used is the Ranked Pairs format (the same as CAP uses). To vote you basically order your options like this: C>B>A>D, like this A>B=C>D, or like this D>C, assuming there are 4 team options (A, B, C, and D). If you choose not to vote for all teams, the last team(s) will be assumed to be last and valued equally if more than one got left out. If you have any questions about this system, by all means, contact me.
And remember, you may vote for as many or as little teams as you want!
Team A by Acey - Danse Macabre
Team B by Tapeworm
What perfect timing, I just made a super epic vish rain rmt. Quick sum: Stack spikes/rocks/tspikes to wear mons down, twave and burn/poison as much as possible to cripple mons for specs hex pult, and then you have your rain powerhouse core of specs peli/scarf vish. Ferro has tect to scout Kyu and beat Zeraora a bit easier.
Import:
https://pokepast.es/412f93794d87eacf
Team C by 49 DaysFishious Sand:
What perfect timing, I just made a super epic Fish Sand team. Fish. Status spreading Rotom to bait and catch Toad, it can also directly break Pex and Ferro; Toxic was originally run but was changed to Wisp to better threaten offensive mons, the main one being Bish, the team can thoroughly beat down Toad and co long-term and Wisp is still helpful for that if not quite as much as Toxic. Ferro to stack Spikes to grind Toad and co down even more considering how often it would/should like to switch in against most of these guys, Knock Off Boots Rotom to limit that thing pivoting around and grinding it down for Drill, and complete a pretty looking F/W/G core. Sand Rush core for more chip, speed control, and hazard removal; T-Tar over Hippo for more offensive presence and as a direct answer to Rotom-H and Ghost-spam. Lastly, WishPort Clef because this is Gen 8 OU.
Dracovish @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Strong Jaw
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Outrage
- Fishious Rend
- Crunch
- Psychic Fangs
Rotom-Heat @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Discharge
- Overheat
- Will-O-Wisp
- Nasty Plot
Ferrothorn (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Spikes
- Body Press
- Knock Off
Tyranitar (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 100 HP / 252 Atk / 156 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Fire Punch
Excadrill (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin
Clefable (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 7 Spe
- Moonblast
- Teleport
- Wish
- Protect
Team D by UHX
Indeedee @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Mystical Fire
- Trick
Kommo-o @ Leftovers
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Iron Head
- Defog
- Roost
- Body Press
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Teleport
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect
Dracovish @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Strong Jaw
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Fishious Rend
- Crunch
- Psychic Fangs
- Outrage
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Body Press
- Knock Off
- Leech Seed
By design, it leaves a lot to be desired, but this monster is broken. Vish can go a long way when it comes to putting together a team, as he fits into various styles. My idea was something consistent or balanced that leveraged SR + Spikes and added pressure from both Scarf Vish and Specs Indeedee. This combination is pure fire. The trick seems useful to me for things like Clefable and therefore being able to disable something so present. DTail in Kommoo in Iron Def or Taunt to make the opponent feel more uncomfortable, also managing to damage with danger.
◄ Importable ►
A basic Corv + Clef + Pex + The uncommon Roserade. Roserade serves as a check to a wide array of physical threats and serves as a prick in the side of the classic corv clef pex core. It also can pain toad with T-spikes. Aside from that, Its a pretty standard team, but it works.
not much room for hazards, maybe a Ferro could be substituted for Rose, but that's boring.
have fun :)
Voting will end around 3 days from now.
A>B>D>C
A>B>D>C
A. Nothing else
Alright, the voting phase is over! These are the votes:
If we input this here, the resulting winner is... team A by Acey - Danse Macabre! Congratulations! Your submission will be added to the archive soon.
Week 8: Cinderace
With its newly gained ability in Libero, Cinderace has taken the meta by storm recently. That's why we'd like you to build with it this week.
You have until next Friday to post your teams. Good luck!
A>B>C=D
A>B>D>C
A>B>D>C
D>C>A>B
A>B>D>C
A>B=C=D
A>B>D>C
A>B>D>C
D>C>A>B
A>B>D>C
A>B=C=D
Week 8: Cinderace
With its newly gained ability in Libero, Cinderace has taken the meta by storm recently. That's why we'd like you to build with it this week.
You have until next Friday to post your teams. Good luck!
Katy
Banned deucer.
Hyper Offense with a Libero
pokepaste: https://pokepast.es/a58588579a0bb4c8
explanation: standard hypr offense with the newest addition cinderace but with its new ability in libero. grimmsnarl sets up screens and acts as a taunt-user to prevent other pokémon like corviknight and rotom-forms from defogging the screens away. bisharp is one of the most dangerous physical breakers in the tier especially after a +2 due to swords dance and with the mind games which sucker punchs brings. cinderace isnt the bulkiest pokémon so it likes the support due to the screens thus it is able to bulk up easier, it has zen headbutt to hit kommo-o and toxapex for super effective damage.
hawlucha is another dangerous late-game-sweeper with its amazing ability in unburden and the immediate activation due to a sky attack, after it got consumed it just can use acrobatics, whereas gengar is a good and fast addition to this team with an amazing offensive typing and after a nasty plot it hits really hard, the first 2 slots are for its stab-moves, the third for thunderbolt as its coverage-option as mandibuzz has more usage again and it can also hit corviknight for super effective damage. last but not least excadrill, which supports the team in an all around fashion due to stealth rock and rapid spin combination.
pokepaste: https://pokepast.es/a58588579a0bb4c8
explanation: standard hypr offense with the newest addition cinderace but with its new ability in libero. grimmsnarl sets up screens and acts as a taunt-user to prevent other pokémon like corviknight and rotom-forms from defogging the screens away. bisharp is one of the most dangerous physical breakers in the tier especially after a +2 due to swords dance and with the mind games which sucker punchs brings. cinderace isnt the bulkiest pokémon so it likes the support due to the screens thus it is able to bulk up easier, it has zen headbutt to hit kommo-o and toxapex for super effective damage.
hawlucha is another dangerous late-game-sweeper with its amazing ability in unburden and the immediate activation due to a sky attack, after it got consumed it just can use acrobatics, whereas gengar is a good and fast addition to this team with an amazing offensive typing and after a nasty plot it hits really hard, the first 2 slots are for its stab-moves, the third for thunderbolt as its coverage-option as mandibuzz has more usage again and it can also hit corviknight for super effective damage. last but not least excadrill, which supports the team in an all around fashion due to stealth rock and rapid spin combination.
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Cinderace Sand Balance
The Team: https://pokepast.es/a592b6568a80a8ac
I was originally going to use this team, but I think this sand team fitted better as a whole so I decided to use it. Cinderace is of course the main choice of the team, using Bulk Up and Libero along with it's high attack and speed to smash many Pokemon, especially late game. While Cinderace is great, it is frail and therefore finds hard opportunities to set up, so of course it needs support from its teammates to be truly spectactular. Clefable is the special wall of the team and is just broken (Wish + Port is really hard to get around) and is especially important for keeping check in threats such as Hydreigon. I needed a hazard removal and a physical wall to complete the balance core, so I knew I had to add in Corviknight. Corviknight is one of the top tier walls but is also capable of checking Pokemon such as opposing Excadrill and unboosted Bisharp by using Roost/Body Press. Thanks to Iron Head, it also prevents Clefable and other Fairy-type switch-ins. I knew I had to add a good special attacker for the team, so I looked no further than Kyurem who can pretty much at least 2HKO almost anything in the meta, including threats like Rotom-H. Hippowdon is useful for keeping SD Terrakion in check, as well as other Pokemon that Corviknight has trouble walling, such as Zeraora. It also sets up Stealth Rock for the team, which is mandatory for racking up damage from opponents and overall having a higher chance of winning. The last slot was feeling pretty empty, so I just added on to Hippowdon by creating another core which is around sand. Excadrill is one of the biggest threats under sand, it's high attack and boosted Sand Rush speed with Swords Dance and good STAB moves pretty much just glue the team up as a reliable cleaner along with Cinderace. I originally used Rapid Spin as an emergency for removing hazards, but I just had to use Rock Slide, as it was a good coverage option.
Pretty long description but I hope you enjoyed the team overall. Here are a few replays:
The Team: https://pokepast.es/a592b6568a80a8ac
I was originally going to use this team, but I think this sand team fitted better as a whole so I decided to use it. Cinderace is of course the main choice of the team, using Bulk Up and Libero along with it's high attack and speed to smash many Pokemon, especially late game. While Cinderace is great, it is frail and therefore finds hard opportunities to set up, so of course it needs support from its teammates to be truly spectactular. Clefable is the special wall of the team and is just broken (Wish + Port is really hard to get around) and is especially important for keeping check in threats such as Hydreigon. I needed a hazard removal and a physical wall to complete the balance core, so I knew I had to add in Corviknight. Corviknight is one of the top tier walls but is also capable of checking Pokemon such as opposing Excadrill and unboosted Bisharp by using Roost/Body Press. Thanks to Iron Head, it also prevents Clefable and other Fairy-type switch-ins. I knew I had to add a good special attacker for the team, so I looked no further than Kyurem who can pretty much at least 2HKO almost anything in the meta, including threats like Rotom-H. Hippowdon is useful for keeping SD Terrakion in check, as well as other Pokemon that Corviknight has trouble walling, such as Zeraora. It also sets up Stealth Rock for the team, which is mandatory for racking up damage from opponents and overall having a higher chance of winning. The last slot was feeling pretty empty, so I just added on to Hippowdon by creating another core which is around sand. Excadrill is one of the biggest threats under sand, it's high attack and boosted Sand Rush speed with Swords Dance and good STAB moves pretty much just glue the team up as a reliable cleaner along with Cinderace. I originally used Rapid Spin as an emergency for removing hazards, but I just had to use Rock Slide, as it was a good coverage option.
Pretty long description but I hope you enjoyed the team overall. Here are a few replays:
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Since Hippo (and Peli) has come out as the go-to answer for Libero Bunny, I figured Grass Knot Zera would make a good pairing with it to lure Hippo in and catch it for hard damage; Grass Knot still exists but is starting to fall out of favour in place of Play Rough for the increasingly common Kommo-o in place of the declining Toad so it seems like a decently effective pairing. Everything else is self-explanatory, Kommo-o sets Rocks, Mandi removes hazards, Aegi is special power and Fairy check, Clef is Clef. Between Kommo-o, Aegi, and Mandi, the team can play around Banded Bunny depending on its lock, Aegi is also great at checking the rising Lucha
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 7 Spe
- Moonblast
- Teleport
- Wish
- Protect
Mandibuzz (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 80 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Roost
- Defog
- Toxic
Kommo-o @ Leftovers
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 248 HP / 120 Def / 140 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
Aegislash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Stance Change
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Shadow Ball
- Flash Cannon
- Toxic
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- Zen Headbutt
- Low Kick
- Bulk Up
Zeraora @ Magnet
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Grass Knot
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 7 Spe
- Moonblast
- Teleport
- Wish
- Protect
Mandibuzz (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 80 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Roost
- Defog
- Toxic
Kommo-o @ Leftovers
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 248 HP / 120 Def / 140 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
Aegislash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Stance Change
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Shadow Ball
- Flash Cannon
- Toxic
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- Zen Headbutt
- Low Kick
- Bulk Up
Zeraora @ Magnet
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Grass Knot
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Just for Starters
So quiet the dramatic departure from the prievous stall orintated build i had before with cinderace. This team uses cinderace as a catch all coverage
monster to hit as many threats as possible which can be great for catching people off guard when you reveal one move that means you wouldn't likely be using the other. Rillaboom helps heal the team ingeneral and for cinderace he nerfs that natural ground weakness it has as a fire or posion type while the grass terrain makes up for life orb, but he's mainly here for hawlucha who goes back to his routes with a traditional grass seed unburden set with some bulk and adamant nature to help with his lack luster stats and thus damage and surviveability. excadrill gives the team a steel type that sets up rocks and gets rid of them too as cinderace is hurt by all hazards and makes a fairy/dragon/steel core withg primirina and hydreigon. Primina fits the offensive water type for the fire/grass/water core i aiming from the start as well as the prievously mentioned core it sets up and helps deal with fire types that hurt drill and rillaboom. hydregion is here as i wnated a dragon type and a scarfer to clean up so he fits that bill quiet nicely with opertunities to switch in on ground type moves aimed at cinderace and excadrill through the terrain eases this alot. Just a team of bulky offensive that relises ont he core synergy to help deal with threats with support and solid coverage.
So quiet the dramatic departure from the prievous stall orintated build i had before with cinderace. This team uses cinderace as a catch all coverage
monster to hit as many threats as possible which can be great for catching people off guard when you reveal one move that means you wouldn't likely be using the other. Rillaboom helps heal the team ingeneral and for cinderace he nerfs that natural ground weakness it has as a fire or posion type while the grass terrain makes up for life orb, but he's mainly here for hawlucha who goes back to his routes with a traditional grass seed unburden set with some bulk and adamant nature to help with his lack luster stats and thus damage and surviveability. excadrill gives the team a steel type that sets up rocks and gets rid of them too as cinderace is hurt by all hazards and makes a fairy/dragon/steel core withg primirina and hydreigon. Primina fits the offensive water type for the fire/grass/water core i aiming from the start as well as the prievously mentioned core it sets up and helps deal with fire types that hurt drill and rillaboom. hydregion is here as i wnated a dragon type and a scarfer to clean up so he fits that bill quiet nicely with opertunities to switch in on ground type moves aimed at cinderace and excadrill through the terrain eases this alot. Just a team of bulky offensive that relises ont he core synergy to help deal with threats with support and solid coverage.
Cinderace Webs HO
One thing I realised about Cinderace after playtesting a bunch is that he pairs really well with NP Hydreigon, and that both fit incredibly in Sticky Webs HO. Cinderace is really good at applying offensive pressure on some of the best hazard removers in the game, while denting stuff so that Hydreigon can just go for a sweep after a NP. Against bulkier teams, their roles reverse where Hydreigon breaks stuff for BU Cinderace to sweep. Bisharp and Dragapult exist mainly as reactive ways against hazard removal, and since they share common STABs with Hydreigon, they also help a lot in softening defensive checks to Hydreigon. Shuca Jirachi is just super good against Sand teams, which has traditionally had a really good matchup against Sticky Webs teams in general. People really like to switch Excadrill into Jirachi "locked into" Iron Head, and you just snipe it down with Fire Punch, while tanking the EQ. Also, Healing Wish steals wins. Oh and Shuckle because he's what makes Webs HO what it is.
Made a strange Tele-Turn team with banded Ace. I wanted to try out Tyranitar in a now dracovish AND duggy free meta, and he fits nicely as a rocker and our shadow ball switch in. Also helps beat rotom. Last few sets are just standard pult/clef/corvi. The reuni is just a fun way to abuse toxapex, while applying pressure as it switches out.
Import: https://pokepast.es/25ba0013843a45eb
Bulk up Cinderace + LO Calm Mind Clefable + Toxic Spikes Balance
Import: https://pokepast.es/0cd126832a2a1564
Toxic Spikes potentially beat all Cinderace checks.
Toxapex is the only defensive Toxic Spikes absorber your opponent can have, so it's good to have something that can benefit from its switches: I use LO + CM Clefable for that. Max defense is used to check Zeraora / Conkeldurr / Gyarados etc. + I have Snorlax to tank most special attackers.
Curse Lax also pressures Hippowdon / Toxapex and paralyses, which can help Cinderace / Clefable.
The rest of the team is defensive backbone.
Import: https://pokepast.es/0cd126832a2a1564
Toxic Spikes potentially beat all Cinderace checks.
Toxapex is the only defensive Toxic Spikes absorber your opponent can have, so it's good to have something that can benefit from its switches: I use LO + CM Clefable for that. Max defense is used to check Zeraora / Conkeldurr / Gyarados etc. + I have Snorlax to tank most special attackers.
Curse Lax also pressures Hippowdon / Toxapex and paralyses, which can help Cinderace / Clefable.
The rest of the team is defensive backbone.
Import: https://pokepast.es/c9366884060b3e9c
My take on an offensively oriented team
My take on an offensively oriented team
- Cinderace has multiple roles from being an offensive pivot to being a late game cleaner
- Nasty Plot Hydreigon is a great partner to Cinderace (the offensive core of this team) and able to check a lot of pokemon that Cinderace cant deal with
- Clefable keeps the team healthy with Wish and able to pivot with Teleport
- Excadrill is my take on the suicide lead
- Grimmsnarl taunts defensive pokemon which gives it setup time
- Corviknight is to fog away hazards and to provide physical bulk
Ninetales @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Drought
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
- Hypnosis
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 29 HP / 0 Atk
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Weather Ball
Kommo-o @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- High Jump Kick
- Sucker Punch
Zeraora @ Expert Belt
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Play Rough
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Grass Knot
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Defog
- Roost
- Body Press
- Iron Defense
Ability: Drought
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
- Hypnosis
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 29 HP / 0 Atk
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Weather Ball
Kommo-o @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- High Jump Kick
- Sucker Punch
Zeraora @ Expert Belt
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Play Rough
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Grass Knot
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Defog
- Roost
- Body Press
- Iron Defense
Not a Cinderace showcase but I wanted to show off this team anyway + it happens to have Cinderace on it in its current form. Ninetales sun is pretty fun. One time Nintales singlehandedly brute-forced a Pex with NP+Fire Blast+Hypnosis and KO'd a 60% Kommo-o in the same game which was very very funny. I often don't end up using Venusaur extensively, tho it's nice to have that threat of speed when sun is up I guess, altho the team is in general very fast regardless—genuinely think Chloroless sun is probably viable if Ninetales is ur setter bc holy shit Ninetales is a monster and there are almost no scarfers to RK Ace anyway, but that's smth to piss around with on another day. The PR Zera matchup would probably be pretty horrid for this team without Venu tho lol.
Rest of the team is reasonably straightforward. Kommo-o is there to help with Rotom-H+opposing sun+non-PR Zera; Dragon Tail is used to try and force ppl into Lucha to bust the seed early+prevents it setting up in Kommo's face, but it also chips at stuff like Pult and lets u generally shuffle for a bit of SR damage—if the miss rate rlly bothers u Roar can be used instead but the extra chip is welcome to make Kommo-o a little less passive. Cinderace is Cinderace—Pyro Ball is nuclear under sun if u can get enough turns tho its just dangerous in general even without it. I don't actually like HDB+4 atks Ace much but I really wanted Sucker Punch in case Zeraora gets weakened too much/to pick off weakened Zera when sun isn't active+I think being locked into it is pretty horrible. You can get away with forgoing ZHB on this team if you'd like U-turn bc Pex/Kommo get pressured to all fuck by Ninetales if physdef, but really it's six and two threes so if u wanna run ZHB over Turn go for it.
Zeraora makes the Pult matchup vs slightly less horrible and runs PR+GK because Knock is sorta useless for this team+having those options to pressure Kommo-o and Hippo are very useful in the long run to relieve pressure on Ninetales to deal with them both. PR also gives me a roll to OHKO Fighting-type Cinderace if it hasn't used Bulk Up, which is v important in the long run esp if i can chip it with Kommo's Helmet. Running Expert Belt bc Life Orb is fucking bad in the Helmet Hippo+Ferro+Helmet Kommo meta, even when u have options to KO all of them, and because u rlly need the added damage to take out Kommo-o more reliably/leave Hippo slightly more pressured if it switches out of u again. This Corv set singlehandedly makes the Lucha machup playable—good matchup vs Rillaboom and forces Lucha to set up if it wants to break past only to be met with Iron Defense if it decides to try and set up in Corv's face. I had Brave Bird on it for a while but frankly it made the Lucha matchup fucking unwinnable because Bird doesn't OHKO and Lucha wins if there's any prior chip at all on Corv (spoiler alert: there usually is). Obviously still dependent on being out vs the Lucha but if u just go in on Boom every time u can generally avoid running the risk of having Lucha set up in something else's face+stuff like Rotom get overwhelmed anyway between Kommo, Ninetales, and Venu so it's not that bad if they Turn into it or whatever. Functions as a secondary wincon in case Ninetales/Venu aren't doing the trick.
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It's time to vote on the final pre-DLC teams!
Reminder: the voting system used is the Ranked Pairs format (the same as CAP uses). To vote you basically order your options like this: C>B>A>D, like this A>B=C>D, or like this D>C, assuming there are 4 team options (A, B, C, and D). If you choose not to vote for all teams, the last team(s) will be assumed to be last and valued equally if more than one got left out. If you have any questions about this system, by all means, contact me or lyd.
And remember, you may vote for as many or as little teams as you want!
Team A by Katy
Reminder: the voting system used is the Ranked Pairs format (the same as CAP uses). To vote you basically order your options like this: C>B>A>D, like this A>B=C>D, or like this D>C, assuming there are 4 team options (A, B, C, and D). If you choose not to vote for all teams, the last team(s) will be assumed to be last and valued equally if more than one got left out. If you have any questions about this system, by all means, contact me or lyd.
And remember, you may vote for as many or as little teams as you want!
Team A by Katy
Team B by RottenInfernapeHyper Offense with a Libero
pokepaste: https://pokepast.es/a58588579a0bb4c8
explanation: standard hypr offense with the newest addition cinderace but with its new ability in libero. grimmsnarl sets up screens and acts as a taunt-user to prevent other pokémon like corviknight and rotom-forms from defogging the screens away. bisharp is one of the most dangerous physical breakers in the tier especially after a +2 due to swords dance and with the mind games which sucker punchs brings. cinderace isnt the bulkiest pokémon so it likes the support due to the screens thus it is able to bulk up easier, it has zen headbutt to hit kommo-o and toxapex for super effective damage.
hawlucha is another dangerous late-game-sweeper with its amazing ability in unburden and the immediate activation due to a sky attack, after it got consumed it just can use acrobatics, whereas gengar is a good and fast addition to this team with an amazing offensive typing and after a nasty plot it hits really hard, the first 2 slots are for its stab-moves, the third for thunderbolt as its coverage-option as mandibuzz has more usage again and it can also hit corviknight for super effective damage. last but not least excadrill, which supports the team in an all around fashion due to stealth rock and rapid spin combination.
Team C by TapewormCinderace Sand Balance
The Team: https://pokepast.es/a592b6568a80a8ac
I was originally going to use this team, but I think this sand team fitted better as a whole so I decided to use it. Cinderace is of course the main choice of the team, using Bulk Up and Libero along with it's high attack and speed to smash many Pokemon, especially late game. While Cinderace is great, it is frail and therefore finds hard opportunities to set up, so of course it needs support from its teammates to be truly spectactular. Clefable is the special wall of the team and is just broken (Wish + Port is really hard to get around) and is especially important for keeping check in threats such as Hydreigon. I needed a hazard removal and a physical wall to complete the balance core, so I knew I had to add in Corviknight. Corviknight is one of the top tier walls but is also capable of checking Pokemon such as opposing Excadrill and unboosted Bisharp by using Roost/Body Press. Thanks to Iron Head, it also prevents Clefable and other Fairy-type switch-ins. I knew I had to add a good special attacker for the team, so I looked no further than Kyurem who can pretty much at least 2HKO almost anything in the meta, including threats like Rotom-H. Hippowdon is useful for keeping SD Terrakion in check, as well as other Pokemon that Corviknight has trouble walling, such as Zeraora. It also sets up Stealth Rock for the team, which is mandatory for racking up damage from opponents and overall having a higher chance of winning. The last slot was feeling pretty empty, so I just added on to Hippowdon by creating another core which is around sand. Excadrill is one of the biggest threats under sand, it's high attack and boosted Sand Rush speed with Swords Dance and good STAB moves pretty much just glue the team up as a reliable cleaner along with Cinderace. I originally used Rapid Spin as an emergency for removing hazards, but I just had to use Rock Slide, as it was a good coverage option.
Pretty long description but I hope you enjoyed the team overall. Here are a few replays:
Team D by malomyotismonThis Team Is Too Boring To Name:
Since Hippo (and Peli) has come out as the go-to answer for Libero Bunny, I figured Grass Knot Zera would make a good pairing with it to lure Hippo in and catch it for hard damage; Grass Knot still exists but is starting to fall out of favour in place of Play Rough for the increasingly common Kommo-o in place of the declining Toad so it seems like a decently effective pairing. Everything else is self-explanatory, Kommo-o sets Rocks, Mandi removes hazards, Aegi is special power and Fairy check, Clef is Clef. Between Kommo-o, Aegi, and Mandi, the team can play around Banded Bunny depending on its lock, Aegi is also great at checking the rising Luchaprovided it's not Throat Chop. Toxic on Mandi was added since it's my immediate switch-in to Hippo and getting a Toxic off also helps limit its activities and make it easier to break through long term. Played aggressively, it can also manage against Sub CM Primarina and T-Spikes Pex teams. It's painfully boring and not aesthetic at all, but it's functional. Big thanks to Finch for the optimisations.
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 7 Spe
- Moonblast
- Teleport
- Wish
- Protect
Mandibuzz (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 80 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Roost
- Defog
- Toxic
Kommo-o @ Leftovers
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 248 HP / 120 Def / 140 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
Aegislash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Stance Change
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Shadow Ball
- Flash Cannon
- Toxic
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- Zen Headbutt
- Low Kick
- Bulk Up
Zeraora @ Magnet
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Grass Knot
Team E by escarlataJust for Starters
So quiet the dramatic departure from the prievous stall orintated build i had before with cinderace. This team uses cinderace as a catch all coverage
monster to hit as many threats as possible which can be great for catching people off guard when you reveal one move that means you wouldn't likely be using the other. Rillaboom helps heal the team ingeneral and for cinderace he nerfs that natural ground weakness it has as a fire or posion type while the grass terrain makes up for life orb, but he's mainly here for hawlucha who goes back to his routes with a traditional grass seed unburden set with some bulk and adamant nature to help with his lack luster stats and thus damage and surviveability. excadrill gives the team a steel type that sets up rocks and gets rid of them too as cinderace is hurt by all hazards and makes a fairy/dragon/steel core withg primirina and hydreigon. Primina fits the offensive water type for the fire/grass/water core i aiming from the start as well as the prievously mentioned core it sets up and helps deal with fire types that hurt drill and rillaboom. hydregion is here as i wnated a dragon type and a scarfer to clean up so he fits that bill quiet nicely with opertunities to switch in on ground type moves aimed at cinderace and excadrill through the terrain eases this alot. Just a team of bulky offensive that relises ont he core synergy to help deal with threats with support and solid coverage.
Team F by Acey - Danse Macabre
Cinderace Webs HO
One thing I realised about Cinderace after playtesting a bunch is that he pairs really well with NP Hydreigon, and that both fit incredibly in Sticky Webs HO. Cinderace is really good at applying offensive pressure on some of the best hazard removers in the game, while denting stuff so that Hydreigon can just go for a sweep after a NP. Against bulkier teams, their roles reverse where Hydreigon breaks stuff for BU Cinderace to sweep. Bisharp and Dragapult exist mainly as reactive ways against hazard removal, and since they share common STABs with Hydreigon, they also help a lot in softening defensive checks to Hydreigon. Shuca Jirachi is just super good against Sand teams, which has traditionally had a really good matchup against Sticky Webs teams in general. People really like to switch Excadrill into Jirachi "locked into" Iron Head, and you just snipe it down with Fire Punch, while tanking the EQ. Also, Healing Wish steals wins. Oh and Shuckle because he's what makes Webs HO what it is.
Team G by I like pink mons
Made a strange Tele-Turn team with banded Ace. I wanted to try out Tyranitar in a now dracovish AND duggy free meta, and he fits nicely as a rocker and our shadow ball switch in. Also helps beat rotom. Last few sets are just standard pult/clef/corvi. The reuni is just a fun way to abuse toxapex, while applying pressure as it switches out.
Import: https://pokepast.es/25ba0013843a45eb
Team H by robynxyamadaBulk up Cinderace + LO Calm Mind Clefable + Toxic Spikes Balance
Import: https://pokepast.es/0cd126832a2a1564
Toxic Spikes potentially beat all Cinderace checks.
Toxapex is the only defensive Toxic Spikes absorber your opponent can have, so it's good to have something that can benefit from its switches: I use LO + CM Clefable for that. Max defense is used to check Zeraora / Conkeldurr / Gyarados etc. + I have Snorlax to tank most special attackers.
Curse Lax also pressures Hippowdon / Toxapex and paralyses, which can help Cinderace / Clefable.
The rest of the team is defensive backbone.
Team I by Martin
Voting will end in around 3 days from now and then we'll go on a little break to wait for DLC to start and the earliest potential quickbans to happen.
Ninetales @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Drought
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
- Hypnosis
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 29 HP / 0 Atk
- Growth
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Weather Ball
Kommo-o @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Bulletproof
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- High Jump Kick
- Sucker Punch
Zeraora @ Expert Belt
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Play Rough
- Plasma Fists
- Close Combat
- Grass Knot
Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Defog
- Roost
- Body Press
- Iron Defense
Not a Cinderace showcase but I wanted to show off this team anyway + it happens to have Cinderace on it in its current form. Ninetales sun is pretty fun. One time Nintales singlehandedly brute-forced a Pex with NP+Fire Blast+Hypnosis and KO'd a 60% Kommo-o in the same game which was very very funny. I often don't end up using Venusaur extensively, tho it's nice to have that threat of speed when sun is up I guess, altho the team is in general very fast regardless—genuinely think Chloroless sun is probably viable if Ninetales is ur setter bc holy shit Ninetales is a monster and there are almost no scarfers to RK Ace anyway, but that's smth to piss around with on another day. The PR Zera matchup would probably be pretty horrid for this team without Venu tho lol.
Rest of the team is reasonably straightforward. Kommo-o is there to help with Rotom-H+opposing sun+non-PR Zera; Dragon Tail is used to try and force ppl into Lucha to bust the seed early+prevents it setting up in Kommo's face, but it also chips at stuff like Pult and lets u generally shuffle for a bit of SR damage—if the miss rate rlly bothers u Roar can be used instead but the extra chip is welcome to make Kommo-o a little less passive. Cinderace is Cinderace—Pyro Ball is nuclear under sun if u can get enough turns tho its just dangerous in general even without it. I don't actually like HDB+4 atks Ace much but I really wanted Sucker Punch in case Zeraora gets weakened too much/to pick off weakened Zera when sun isn't active+I think being locked into it is pretty horrible. You can get away with forgoing ZHB on this team if you'd like U-turn bc Pex/Kommo get pressured to all fuck by Ninetales if physdef, but really it's six and two threes so if u wanna run ZHB over Turn go for it.
Zeraora makes the Pult matchup vs slightly less horrible and runs PR+GK because Knock is sorta useless for this team+having those options to pressure Kommo-o and Hippo are very useful in the long run to relieve pressure on Ninetales to deal with them both. PR also gives me a roll to OHKO Fighting-type Cinderace if it hasn't used Bulk Up, which is v important in the long run esp if i can chip it with Kommo's Helmet. Running Expert Belt bc Life Orb is fucking bad in the Helmet Hippo+Ferro+Helmet Kommo meta, even when u have options to KO all of them, and because u rlly need the added damage to take out Kommo-o more reliably/leave Hippo slightly more pressured if it switches out of u again. This Corv set singlehandedly makes the Lucha machup playable—good matchup vs Rillaboom and forces Lucha to set up if it wants to break past only to be met with Iron Defense if it decides to try and set up in Corv's face. I had Brave Bird on it for a while but frankly it made the Lucha matchup fucking unwinnable because Bird doesn't OHKO and Lucha wins if there's any prior chip at all on Corv (spoiler alert: there usually is). Obviously still dependent on being out vs the Lucha but if u just go in on Boom every time u can generally avoid running the risk of having Lucha set up in something else's face+stuff like Rotom get overwhelmed anyway between Kommo, Ninetales, and Venu so it's not that bad if they Turn into it or whatever. Functions as a secondary wincon in case Ninetales/Venu aren't doing the trick.
B>C>A>G>F>I>H>E>D
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