Hey everyone. I recently decided to back away from Competitive Battling a little, and get back into the handheld game. I wanted to do something new, so I decided to take on the Battle Tower. With some help, I put this together and I wanted you all to take a look.
Here it is;
• Latias @ Choice Scarf
• Bold Nature ( + Def, - Atk)
• 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 SpDef
~ Trick
~ Thunder Wave
~ Flash
~ Recover
And so it begins. I chose Latias to be my Lead because of not only her great Defences, but also because of her ideal movepool for a situation like this.
With a TrickScarf lead, it is important to be able to take multiple hits from a range of opponents, and Latias is certainly capable of doing so. The given EVs allow for well-rounded defences and great Bulk, giving her 187 HP , 154 Def, and 153 SpDef.
There is no Pokémon in the Battle Tower that Latias will fail to pass her Scarf to. Not even Scarfed opponents that land a Super Effective Critical Hit can OHKO, and in most cases she will also be able to hit the opponent with a Thunder Wave to cripple them and negate the Speed boost from that Scarf. After this, she will still be alive to Recover damage and proceed to spam Flash until it is a perfect time to bring in another team member.
• Lucario @ Leftovers
• Modest Nature
• 252 HP / 252 SpAtk / 4 SpDef
~ Flash Cannon
~ Substitute
~ Calm Mind
~ Iron Defence
In many other circumstances, this Lucario would be destroyed before it could have the chance to set up. But thanks to Latias, it is far easier for Lucario to switch in and set up once the opponent has been completely crippled.
The EV Spread makes Lucario bulky enough to take a fair beating after a setup and still survive, but it also gives it a great amount of firepower behind Flash Cannon. Max SpAtk is used because Lucario will need all the power it can get to deal with heavy resistors and bulky waters, as Flash Cannon is its only attacking move.
Having only one attacking move does not worry me, however, as with a good setup from Calm Mind, it will be hitting at insane levels that would rip through even the bulkiest Empoleon within a few hits. As soon as Lucario comes in, it will get a Substitute up and use either Calm Mind or Iron Defence first, depending on the attacker. Once the setup is done, it will proceed to Sweep, and hiding behind a Substitute, it does not fear Critical Hits or OHKO moves.
• Swampert @ Chesto Berry
• Careful Nature
• 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpDef
~ Curse
~ Rest
~ Waterfall
~ Return
Last, but not least, Swampert. I chose to have Swampert on my team because of its great bulk and brilliant typing; Water and Ground has only one weakness, Grass, which Lucario or Latias, if she is still alive, can take hits from. With its bulk, Swampert can come in on a variety of opponents that might otherwise cause Lucario trouble and set up.
Swampert's EVs allow it to take hits better from the Special side of the attacking Spectrum, as that is where it cannot boost its own defences. The Chesto berry allows Swampert to get an immediate heal when it needs one, and also to cure itself of Burn or Poison that it may have picked up.
Together, Return and Waterfall provide at least standard coverage on almost all opponents, only hitting for "Not Very Effective" damage on Empoleon. Curse is in there for the obvious reason; to allow Swampert to tank effectively and take out anything in its way.
So, that's the team. Here are some possible issues that I have noticed...
• Shedinja. There is no Pokémon in my team that can actually hit through its Wonder Guard ability. However, I can make it Struggle or it will make me Struggle because of my team's great durability. In either case, Shedinja will take damage and lose.
•
Choice Items. Ironic, isn't it? Unfortunately, if Latias Tricks and finds herself holding one of these, then she could be in trouble because it prevents her from weakening the opponent correctly. I will have to play carefully in this situation, because it becomes a lot harder to bring my other team members in, although they should be able to come in on a resisted move (Between them, the only unresisted types are Water, Flying, and Psychic) and setup as normal.
• CritHax / OHKOHax. Two of the AI's favourite weapons. Lucario has an answer to both of these in Substitute, but neither Swampert or Latias are protected against Hax and I wouldn't put it past the AI to land three OHKO's in a row from a Scarfed Pokémon.
• Taunt. This ruins me epically. it forces Latias out, otherwise she will get stuck into Struggle, and it makes Lucario's life hell. Fortunately, there are very few Taunters in the Battle Tower that Swampert cannot deal with.
And that about wraps it up. Comments and Suggestions are greatly appreciated. I extend my thanks to Eon Master (from Serebii), who played a key part in creating this team.
I really hope it was ok to post this here. I saw in the rules that Battle Tower teams are allowed to be posted, so I did.
Thanks!
Here it is;
• Latias @ Choice Scarf
• Bold Nature ( + Def, - Atk)
• 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 SpDef
~ Trick
~ Thunder Wave
~ Flash
~ Recover
And so it begins. I chose Latias to be my Lead because of not only her great Defences, but also because of her ideal movepool for a situation like this.
With a TrickScarf lead, it is important to be able to take multiple hits from a range of opponents, and Latias is certainly capable of doing so. The given EVs allow for well-rounded defences and great Bulk, giving her 187 HP , 154 Def, and 153 SpDef.
There is no Pokémon in the Battle Tower that Latias will fail to pass her Scarf to. Not even Scarfed opponents that land a Super Effective Critical Hit can OHKO, and in most cases she will also be able to hit the opponent with a Thunder Wave to cripple them and negate the Speed boost from that Scarf. After this, she will still be alive to Recover damage and proceed to spam Flash until it is a perfect time to bring in another team member.
• Lucario @ Leftovers
• Modest Nature
• 252 HP / 252 SpAtk / 4 SpDef
~ Flash Cannon
~ Substitute
~ Calm Mind
~ Iron Defence
In many other circumstances, this Lucario would be destroyed before it could have the chance to set up. But thanks to Latias, it is far easier for Lucario to switch in and set up once the opponent has been completely crippled.
The EV Spread makes Lucario bulky enough to take a fair beating after a setup and still survive, but it also gives it a great amount of firepower behind Flash Cannon. Max SpAtk is used because Lucario will need all the power it can get to deal with heavy resistors and bulky waters, as Flash Cannon is its only attacking move.
Having only one attacking move does not worry me, however, as with a good setup from Calm Mind, it will be hitting at insane levels that would rip through even the bulkiest Empoleon within a few hits. As soon as Lucario comes in, it will get a Substitute up and use either Calm Mind or Iron Defence first, depending on the attacker. Once the setup is done, it will proceed to Sweep, and hiding behind a Substitute, it does not fear Critical Hits or OHKO moves.
• Swampert @ Chesto Berry
• Careful Nature
• 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpDef
~ Curse
~ Rest
~ Waterfall
~ Return
Last, but not least, Swampert. I chose to have Swampert on my team because of its great bulk and brilliant typing; Water and Ground has only one weakness, Grass, which Lucario or Latias, if she is still alive, can take hits from. With its bulk, Swampert can come in on a variety of opponents that might otherwise cause Lucario trouble and set up.
Swampert's EVs allow it to take hits better from the Special side of the attacking Spectrum, as that is where it cannot boost its own defences. The Chesto berry allows Swampert to get an immediate heal when it needs one, and also to cure itself of Burn or Poison that it may have picked up.
Together, Return and Waterfall provide at least standard coverage on almost all opponents, only hitting for "Not Very Effective" damage on Empoleon. Curse is in there for the obvious reason; to allow Swampert to tank effectively and take out anything in its way.
So, that's the team. Here are some possible issues that I have noticed...
• Shedinja. There is no Pokémon in my team that can actually hit through its Wonder Guard ability. However, I can make it Struggle or it will make me Struggle because of my team's great durability. In either case, Shedinja will take damage and lose.
•
• CritHax / OHKOHax. Two of the AI's favourite weapons. Lucario has an answer to both of these in Substitute, but neither Swampert or Latias are protected against Hax and I wouldn't put it past the AI to land three OHKO's in a row from a Scarfed Pokémon.
• Taunt. This ruins me epically. it forces Latias out, otherwise she will get stuck into Struggle, and it makes Lucario's life hell. Fortunately, there are very few Taunters in the Battle Tower that Swampert cannot deal with.
And that about wraps it up. Comments and Suggestions are greatly appreciated. I extend my thanks to Eon Master (from Serebii), who played a key part in creating this team.
I really hope it was ok to post this here. I saw in the rules that Battle Tower teams are allowed to be posted, so I did.
Thanks!