Deleted User 325563
Banned deucer.
Ladies and gentlemen! Today I’m bringing a new fun team for the Monotype community as my #100 Smogon post. I recently peaked 1818 on the ladder with it in the alt ''steeeelium'' so I’ve decided to share it with you all. The team will be usable until the next DLC is released, reason why I won’t go super deep in details as I used to in my past RMTs but I think it might give you good success until then.
I’ve never enjoyed Gen 8 as much as ORAS or USUM. My experience of it is reduced to ladder games and suspects. During Kyurem-Black’s suspect I was struggling to find a solid type to play on the ladder until esteemed user Floss told me to try Poison. I always liked Salazzle but I barely played it in Gen 7 so I decided to give it a try. I got reqs in 45 games (after a few tries, ngl), and while I have updated the team to the current metagame, during reqs it wasn’t much different from this version. So enough talking, let’s get into the team.
TEAMBUILDING PROCESS
So like I said, the first Pokémon that came to mind was Salazzle. Scarf punishes Steel so bad it’s unfair, and the ability to poison any mon that comes in also makes it super threatening specially in the mirror matchup. After that I had to cover Poison’s natural weaknesess: Psychic and Ground. For the Ground immunity Poison only has one usable mon which is Weezing in both forms. I chose the Galar form due to its secondary Fairy typing, which will help Poison a lot against Dragon, Fighting and Dark types. Sadly Mold Breaker Excadrill makes Weezing’s Levitate useless against it, so I had to find a mon that could take care of it. I had two neutral options which were Vileplume or Amoonguss. Amoonguss was my choice since it has access to Regenerator and Spore, making it a very annoying mon to deal with. For our Psychic immunity I also had two options: Drapion and Skuntank. I chose Skuntank because of its higher SpD, access to Sucker Punch and Defog, which means I freeing up one moveslot on Weezing for Toxic Spikes. To finish with the defensive core I chose Toxapex, which works great with Amoonguss as Regenerator core and gives me resistance against Steel, Water, Fire and Ice (bar Freezy Dry) moves. After adding Toxapex I took a look at the team and thought ‘’What now?’’. I saw good potential on Gengar being the last mon. It would give me a higher chance to beat Psychic and also give me a new immunity to Normal moves. It would also take huge advantage from the way Poison usually works, getting as many statuses as it can. That is when Hex came to mind. Let’s now take a look at the sets I chose:
THE TEAM
Salazzle (F) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Corrosion
EVs: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower/Fire Blast
- Sludge Wave
- Thunder Wave/Dragon Pulse/Knock Off
- Toxic
For Salazzle Choice Scarf was my item of choice. This gave me speed control, a better way to deal with the Steel matchup and also freeing Gengar to run a different set from the common scarved one. As for the Evs, enough Speed to outspeed Jolly Scolipede at +1 along with a Timid nature; max SpA to hit as hard as I can and the Evs left into HP.
Salazzle (F) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Corrosion
EVs: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower/Fire Blast
- Sludge Wave
- Thunder Wave/Dragon Pulse/Knock Off
- Toxic
As of the movepool, I need a fire STAB move for Salazzle’s main purpose of beating Steel. I chose Flamethrower over Fire Blast just because of its 100% accuracy and more PP, but Fire Blast is also usable if you want higher power. Then I chose Sludge Wave as main STAB power move, which will give me a way to deal with annoying Fairy mons like Togekiss, Grimmsnarl, Hatterene and Gardevoir. For my third moveslot I’m currently running Thunder Wave, which might be very helpful against fast Pokémon Gengar can’t outspeed such as Dragapult. Dragon Pulse is also a good option since Poison struggles a lot against Dragons such as Kyurem, Hydreigon, Dracovish… Knock Off would be the last option for our third moveslot as good utility, since Toxapex won’t be running it. For the last moveslot I chose Toxic which paired with Corrosion Ability makes Salazzle able to badly poison every Pokémon in the game.
Weezing-Galar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Toxic Spikes
- Pain Split
- Will-O-Wisp
For Galar Weezing I chose Black Sludge as item for longevity. Levitate Ability for Ground Immunity. As of the Nature and Evs I’m running a Bold Nature paired with max HP and 208 Defense Evs for physical Defense bulk. 48 SpD Evs turn Freezy Dry from max SpA Kyurem from a 2HKO into a 3HKO.
Moving into its moveslot, Strange Steam helps Poison to deal with Dragon, Fighting and Dark types. Since Poison doesn’t get Hazards right now outside of Spikes Roserade if I’m not wrong we need some sort of way to punish mons that want to get into the field, therefore I chose to run Toxic Spikes which can also be a way to pressure our opponent to clear their hazards away or get free switches, in front of statused mons that might want to Rapid Spin or Defog, into our Gengar. Pain Split for obvious longevity and Will-O-Wisp to burn or scare strong Physical mons away.
Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Spore
- Synthesis/Stun Spore
- Foul Play
Amoonguss will also have Black Sludge paired with Regenerator for longevity. As of Nature and Evs I’m running Bold with full Defense bulk so Amoonguss can become a strong Physical Defense wall, much needed for strong Phyiscal mons like Mold Breaker Excadrill which makes Weezing’s Levitate useless against it.
For the moves, Giga Drain as Amoon’s STAB move and much needed for Water types in general. Spore threatens dangerous threats for Poison such as Excadrill’s Ground versions. Synthesis for longevity and Foul Play for Attack boosted mons/opposing mons that might want to set up on Amoon, such as Dragon Dance Dragapult, Scizor or Scolipede while also helping chip Psychic types.
EDIT: Implemented Bold Nature; Added Stun Spore as an alternative to Synthesis so Salazzle can run Dragon Pulse over Thunder Wave.
Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Defog
- Poison Jab
- Play Rough/Memento
Skuntank running Black Sludge too, you didn’t see that coming right? But it’s also very necessary since it’s our only way to play around Psychic type mons or mons with Psychic type moves. Aftermath Ability, nothing surprising. As of Nature and Evs, I went with a Careful Nature paired with max HP and max SpD so Skuntank can deal with Draining Kiss Hatterene.
For my moves, I chose Sucker Punch as priority + Dark type STAB move; Defog for obvious purpose; Poison Jab as Poison type STAB, which will help us dealing mainly with Fairies while also getting some random Poison status. For its last move I’m currently running Play Rough because it works well against some threats such as Hydreigon, Kommo-o, Urshifu and Kyurem. Not like it will beat Kyurem 1v1, but it will break Substitute and give us a chance to beat it. Memento is the alternative to Play Rough, with its main purpose of stopping Scolipede from setting up.
Toxapex @ Black Sludge/Payapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 68 Def / 172 SpD / 16 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Toxic
- Recover
- Haze
‘’Oh what? An alternative to Black Sludge? Are you ok?’’ Yes… yes I am, I’m currently running Black Sludge over Payapa Berry because… LONGEVITYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!! But Payapa Berry is great to stop Psychic Volcarona which is one of the biggest threats to Poison. This is up to you. Regenerator Ability, no surprise here as well. As of the Nature and Evs I’m running a Calm Nature paired with max HP and 172 SpD Evs so our pex works as a wall for Special attacks. 68 Evs in Defense are so Pex can always live Earthquake from Choice Scarf Excadrill after Stealth Rock damage and 16 Evs on Speed to speedcreep Hatterene. Pex is running Scald as direct damage; Toxic to stop Volcarona and wearing walls down; Recover for longevity and Haze mainly to stop sweepers
Gengar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Nasty Plot/Will-O-Wisp/Toxic
- Hex
- Focus Blast/Dazzling Gleam/Disable/Pain Split/Taunt
Finally into our last mon. ‘’OH WAIT, IS THAT BLACK SLUDGE WHAT I’M SEEING?’’ Well yeah, if you aint blind… Black Sludge will give Gengar LONGEVITYYYYYYYY!!!!!! which is much needed for it to be able to use Substitute as many times as it can. As for the Nature and Evs I went max SpA max Speed along with a Timid nature, so Gengar can stall slower toxiced mons for example or hit them with Hex. Now talking about its moves, I wanted to try a Sub Plot Hex set. As you saw previously, almost every Pokémon in the team can inflict some sort of status and this is where Hex Gengar shines. So nothing to explain here, just find the right time to use Sub, then Nasty Plot if it’s worth it and start killing stuff. As of the filler move, I went with Focus Blast because I didn’t want to get walled by Normal typing mons plus FB also hits Tyranitar, Hydreigon, Kyurem… but you got some other options up there: DGleam is still good because it hits Dragon and Dark types; Disable, Taunt and Pain Split might work better with Wisp or Toxic over Nasty Plot, but first you will have to kill Normal’s TSpikes remover (usually Braviary) if you wanna have a chance in that matchup.
THREATLIST
Diggersby: The bunny forces 50/50s on this team and theres really no way to stop it when it comes in for free, usually you will be picking one of your mons to die.
Raichu-Alola: Rising Voltage + Psychic is a deadly combo against Poison. Keep your Skuntank alive so you can Sucker Punch it during Electric Terrain.
Jirachi: Sub Calm Mind versions might be very dangerous. If it gets a few boosts Salazzle won’t be able to revenge kill it after breaking Sub with something else, and it will Sub again for free on Skuntank if you try to Sucker Punch it if it has enough HP or just Calm Mind into Sub if it is at let’s say 20% HP so most of the times you might be trying to Poison it with Salazzle and then going Gengar to Hex it.
Rotom-Heat: Sub Nasty Plot is also dangerous because it breaks the Regenerator core with Electric + Fire STAB. Then again its all down on how you play around it and bring it to Sludge Wave or Hex range.
Lapras: Specs and Whirlpool Lapras are both a pain to deal with, since during Rain trying to status it is useless and all you can do is switch around until you finally lose a mon.
Sap Sipper Azumarill: Whirlpool is the issue here since we don’t have pivot moves. Again its super crucial getting a status on it so Gengar can finish it off. If its running rest that’s fine, we can always go Gengar on it and get a Sub up.
Nasty Plot Hydreigon: Just like Rotom-Heat, we don’t have many answers for it if its running Sub. Haze Pex can deal with it for a bit with Haze but you will eventually get flinched with Dark Pulse or killed with Earth Power. Depending on what it’s last move is (Earth Power. Flash Cannon, Flamethrower…) you have different tools for it like Play Rough Skuntank, Strange Steam Weezing or Focus Blast Gengar.
Volcarona: As stated in the Toxapex description, Volcarona is a huge threat for Poison due to its access to Quiver Dance and Psychic paired with its Fire STAB. You will have to Poison it at any cost and play around it with Skuntank and Toxapex, clicking Haze to remove its boosts when possible.
Kyurem: Either if it’s Specs or the Sub version you will have a bad day dealing with it. Most times you will be giving your Skuntank by using Play Rough to break Sub and eventually doubling on Gengar or Salazzle to get a Poison on it, Focus Blast it or if you are lucky killing it if its chipped enough.
Toxtricity: Toxtricity on Electric terrain is also super hard to deal with. You gotta keep your Amoonguss alive and play around it with Gengar, predicting when it will Boomburst. For the Specs version, you will have to keep your Amoon at full HP to scout what your opponent is clicking and then acting in consequence.
Hatterene: Getting Hatterene poisoned ASAP is crucial. You can do it in a few ways, either getting Toxic Spikes up or getting lucky with Skuntank. The problem here is that you can’t clear screens when Hat is on the field, so your tools here are Haze Pex and Poison Jab Skuntank.
Gallade: SD + Psychic STAB + Fighting STAB + Shadow Sneak ruins you completely. Your best bet is to get it Burned, put it asleep or Toxic it and play around it with Skuntank, Amoonguss and Pex.
PEAK PROOF
Steeeelium is an old alt of mine, I didn't play from 1000 elo to 1800 (prob from 1500 to 1800) and I also played other different types on it, but those only represent 1% of the total games I played.
IMPORTABLE
S/O
So I won't do a massive shoutout because I don't wanna be here for 5h but I'll name some of the people who helped me with the team and cheered for me while playing it:
Ticken for the amazing artwork! Good job bro!Steeeelium is an old alt of mine, I didn't play from 1000 elo to 1800 (prob from 1500 to 1800) and I also played other different types on it, but those only represent 1% of the total games I played.
IMPORTABLE
Salazzle (F) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Corrosion
EVs: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Sludge Wave
- Thunder Wave
- Toxic
Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Spore
- Synthesis
- Foul Play
Toxapex @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 68 Def / 172 SpD / 16 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Toxic
- Recover
- Haze
Gengar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Nasty Plot
- Hex
- Focus Blast
Weezing-Galar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Toxic Spikes
- Pain Split
- Will-O-Wisp
Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Defog
- Poison Jab
- Play Rough
Ability: Corrosion
EVs: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Sludge Wave
- Thunder Wave
- Toxic
Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Spore
- Synthesis
- Foul Play
Toxapex @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 68 Def / 172 SpD / 16 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Toxic
- Recover
- Haze
Gengar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Nasty Plot
- Hex
- Focus Blast
Weezing-Galar @ Black Sludge
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Toxic Spikes
- Pain Split
- Will-O-Wisp
Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Defog
- Poison Jab
- Play Rough
S/O
So I won't do a massive shoutout because I don't wanna be here for 5h but I'll name some of the people who helped me with the team and cheered for me while playing it:
Kev for helping me with the threatlist and grammar fixing
Floss because I wouldn't have tried Poison if he didn't tell me to do so
Attribute for the Payapa Toxapex idea
Roxiee adjustments Calem DPU for cheering me during my ladder sessions
I hope you enjoy the team and have good success with it! Have fun!
