Before I start, I just want to warn you that this RMT is a bit lengthy, however, I've provided you with a "tl;dr" option so all of you lazy readers out there don't have any reason to not rate my team ^_^
Anyways, my friend sent me a message last night asking for help with a Rain Dance team and this is our brainchild. Rain Dance teams are alot of fun and this one is no exception. It hits hard and fast, often winning matches in under 5 minutes.
At glance, this team doesn't really look like much of anything, however, it works very well. The general strategy is to set up Rain Dance and then Explode. This allows me to take down or severely damage one of my opponents Pokemon and it lets me bring in one of my sweepers for free. Let's take a closer look.
Azelf @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
252 Atk | 4 SpA | 252 Spe
Naive nature (+Spe, -SpD)
- Rain Dance
- Explosion
- Thunder
- Stealth Rock
Role: Azelf's role is to start my team off with an immediate advantage. Azelf sets up Rain Dance and then Explodes which allows me to bring in one of my sweepers unscathed on the third turn of the game.
Moveset: My moveset is a bit strange, but it is effective. Rain Dance is obvious as it allows me to set up my team. Like mentioned earlier, Explosion lets me bring in one of my sweepers unscathed, while also letting me damage my opponent in the process. Thunder lets me abuse the rain to no end - well it ends when the rain stops lol. It also helps me take down Taunt leads like Aerodactyl. Stealth Rock is generally just filler on this moveset. I usually opt for Rain Dance and Explosion in favor of Stealth Rock. I just want to get the ball rolling right away and Stealth Rock only hinders that. While my opponent is setting up Stealth Rock early on, I'm busy setting up to sweep. It's worked well for me so far.
EVs: Again, my EVs may seem a bit strange, just like everything else with this Azelf. Max Attack powers up Explosion greatly. I wanted to be able to take down almost anything with my Explosions so that I can bring in my sweeper on a fresh opponent and not have to waste a turn of my precious rain. Max Speed is obvious as well so I can outpace as many threats as possible. The final 4 EVs were dumped into Special Attack to power up Thunder a bit. Here are some damage calcs:
Bulky Leads
Explosion vs. Hippowdon 252 HP / 252 Def: (40.48% - 47.86%)
Explosion vs. Hippowdon 252 HP / 188 Def: (42.62% - 50.24%)
Explosion vs. Swampert 240 HP / 216 Def: (52.37% - 61.85%)
Explosion vs. Metagross 252 HP / 4 Def: (26.37% - 31.04%)
Taunt Leads
Thunder vs. Aerodactyl 4 HP / 0 SpD: (88.08% - 103.97%)
Thunder vs. Gyarados 156 HP / 0 SpD: (113.51% - 134.05%)
I'm pretty sure that the damage calculator I'm using is messed up. On Shoddy, Thunder deals a max of 50% to Aerodactyl and I OHKO Swampert with Explosion, deal around 85% to Hippowdon and 60% to Metagross.
tl;dr: Sets up Rain and Explodes.
Qwilfish @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
4 HP | 252 Atk | 252 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Waterfall
- Poison Jab
- Explosion
- Rain Dance
Role: Qwilfish is often looked at as a lesser Kabutops, however, Qwilfish is a great asset to my team (and he's pretty =D). Qwilfish's role is to scout my opponents team. I always bring in Qwilfish after I Explode with Azelf because my opponents knee jerk reaction is to bring in their counter to Rain Dance teams. This works out very well for me because if their "counter" is something that can really hurt my team, I just explode on it right away and bring in another sweeper.
Moveset: This is the standard moveset from the analysis. Waterfall is my primary attack. It does incredible damage in the rain. Rain + STAB + Life Orb = Profit??? Poison Jab is my secondary stab move. It provides excellent coverage, allowing me to hit grass types that can take Waterfalls all day. Explosion rounds off my coverage by allowing me to hit anything hard and supports my team by removing a potential counter. Rain Dance is mainly filler. If Qwilfish survives long enough for the rain to end, I can set it back up.
EVs: The EV spread is for a standard physical attacker. Max Attack and Speed allow me to perform my sweeping duties easier and the rest of the EVs were dumped into speed.
tl;dr: Explodes on a counter.
Final Words: Shiny Qwilfish is wicked sexy ^_^
Bronzong @ Damp Rock
Ability: Levitate
252 HP | 152 Atk | 8 Def | 96 SpD
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
- Rain Dance
- Explosion
- Gyro Ball
- Earthquake
Role: Bronzong's role is to keep the ball rolling by setting up an 8 turn rain and then Exploding to bring in another sweeper. With an 8 turn rain, I can proceed to wreak havoc with one of my sweepers. If I play my cards right, I can Explode with Qwilfish just as the rain ends so I can bring in Bronzong without taking a hit to set up the rain again. I like to wait until midgame to bring Bronzong in because it lets me eliminate any potential counters to my rain because once Bronzong Explodes, I don't really have any way of setting rain up again.
Moveset: Rain Dance is obvious here. I can set up 8 turns of lovely rain with the help of my Damp Rock. Explosion keeps with the theme of this team, allowing me to dent an opponent and bring in another sweeper for free. Gyro Ball and Earthquake are mainly filler moves. I hardly ever use them. Gyro Ball lets me hit any Tyranitar that try to switch in on me to end my rain and Earthquake is just kinda there. I don't think I've ever used it in a battle.
EVs: The EVs are nicked from the Dual Screen set on the analysis. They maximize both of my defenses and provide me with a substantial Attack boost for Explosion.
tl;dr: Sets up 8 turn rain and then Explodes.
Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
62 Atk | 252 SpA | 196 Spe
Modest nature (+SpA, -Atk)
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Grass Knot
- Focus Punch
Role: Ludicolo is my primary sweeper. Ludicolo is normally seen as a defensive Pokemon which lets me catch my opponents off guard. I bring Ludicolo in to enjoy 6 turns of gorgeous rain after Bronzong Explodes.
Moveset: Surf is the move I use the most. Just like with Qwilfish, Rain + STAB + Life Orb is amazing. Ice Beam lets me hit Dragons and any Grass types that might try to switch in. Grass Knots is a lesser stab move, but it lets me hit things like Swampert for an ohko. Focus Punch is for any Blissey switch ins.
EVs: Maxing out Special Attack is obvious. The Speed EVs allow me to hit 450 Speed in the rain which lets me outpace Scarf Flygon. The rest were dumped into Attack to help Ludicolo's Focus Punch.
tl;dr: Sweep, sweep, sweep!
Final Words: I <3 Mexicans.
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
246 HP | 252 Atk | 12 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Superpower
- U-turn
Role: Up until now, my team has seemed to be almost surgical in nature, but what happens if something comes in that disrupts my rhythm? Scizor to the rescue! Scizor is really the glue that holds my team together. He takes down Tyranitar and Abomasnow, both of which give my team problems, with ease. He also makes an excellent switch in to Celebi who is infamous for being able to defeat entire Rain Dance teams. Scizor has also been able to sweep weakened teams with Bullet Punch alone if I mess something up.
Moveset: Do I really have to explain this? It's the gold standard Choice Band set. Bullet Punch gives my team some priority and is a great stab move. Pursuit lets me hit Pokemon trying to escape Bullet Punch's wrath. Superpower lets me hit Magnezone and Heatran switch ins as well as opposing Scizor. U-turn lets me scout. Simple, but simplicity is often the key to victory.
EVs: Max Attack is obvious. 12 Speed allows me to outpace Vaporeon and Blissey and the rest are dumped into HP to help with survivability.
tl;dr: Insurance policy.
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
252 Atk | 240 SpA | 16 Spe
Naughty nature (+Atk, -SpD)
- Rain Dance
- Waterfall
- Hydro Pump
- Draco Meteor
Role: Kingdra's role is to clean up my mess. I usually don't have to use Kingdra at all, but if I do, Kingdra serves his role well. Kingdra, along with Scizor, is another insurance policy of sorts.
Moveset: Rain Dance is on this set because, often times, my rain is gone late in the game so Kingdra needs to set up his own. Waterfall is my physical sweeping move and is the one that I use the most. Hydro Pump lets me hit any physical walls that come in and try to wall me. Draco Meteor is my last resort move which lets me hit anything that might resist a Water attack.
EVs: Again, the EVs are taken from the analysis. The Speed EVs give me enough Speed to outpace +Speed Scarftran in the rain. Max attack boosts Waterfall and the rest are dumped into Special Attack to boost Hydro Pump and Draco Meteor. Here are some calcs:
Waterfall vs. Max HP Bronzong: 54-64%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP / 98 SpD: Bronzong 72-85%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Celebi: 38-45%
Draco Meteor vs. Max HP Celebi: 59-69%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP / Max SpD + Forretress: 85-100%
Draco Meteor vs. 216 HP Gyarados: 62-73%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Jirachi: 76-89%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Metagross: 91-100%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Skarmory: 100%
Waterfall vs. 160 HP / 136 Def Snorlax: 60-71%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Suicune: 34-39%
Draco Meteor vs. Max HP Suicune: 52-62%
Hydro Pump vs. 240 HP Swampert: 82-98%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Scizor: 100%
tl;dr: Insurance policy times two.
Well, there's the team. All rates are greatly appreciated.
Rate/hate/steal!
Anyways, my friend sent me a message last night asking for help with a Rain Dance team and this is our brainchild. Rain Dance teams are alot of fun and this one is no exception. It hits hard and fast, often winning matches in under 5 minutes.
At glance, this team doesn't really look like much of anything, however, it works very well. The general strategy is to set up Rain Dance and then Explode. This allows me to take down or severely damage one of my opponents Pokemon and it lets me bring in one of my sweepers for free. Let's take a closer look.
Azelf @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
252 Atk | 4 SpA | 252 Spe
Naive nature (+Spe, -SpD)
- Rain Dance
- Explosion
- Thunder
- Stealth Rock
Role: Azelf's role is to start my team off with an immediate advantage. Azelf sets up Rain Dance and then Explodes which allows me to bring in one of my sweepers unscathed on the third turn of the game.
Moveset: My moveset is a bit strange, but it is effective. Rain Dance is obvious as it allows me to set up my team. Like mentioned earlier, Explosion lets me bring in one of my sweepers unscathed, while also letting me damage my opponent in the process. Thunder lets me abuse the rain to no end - well it ends when the rain stops lol. It also helps me take down Taunt leads like Aerodactyl. Stealth Rock is generally just filler on this moveset. I usually opt for Rain Dance and Explosion in favor of Stealth Rock. I just want to get the ball rolling right away and Stealth Rock only hinders that. While my opponent is setting up Stealth Rock early on, I'm busy setting up to sweep. It's worked well for me so far.
EVs: Again, my EVs may seem a bit strange, just like everything else with this Azelf. Max Attack powers up Explosion greatly. I wanted to be able to take down almost anything with my Explosions so that I can bring in my sweeper on a fresh opponent and not have to waste a turn of my precious rain. Max Speed is obvious as well so I can outpace as many threats as possible. The final 4 EVs were dumped into Special Attack to power up Thunder a bit. Here are some damage calcs:
Bulky Leads
Explosion vs. Hippowdon 252 HP / 252 Def: (40.48% - 47.86%)
Explosion vs. Hippowdon 252 HP / 188 Def: (42.62% - 50.24%)
Explosion vs. Swampert 240 HP / 216 Def: (52.37% - 61.85%)
Explosion vs. Metagross 252 HP / 4 Def: (26.37% - 31.04%)
Taunt Leads
Thunder vs. Aerodactyl 4 HP / 0 SpD: (88.08% - 103.97%)
Thunder vs. Gyarados 156 HP / 0 SpD: (113.51% - 134.05%)
I'm pretty sure that the damage calculator I'm using is messed up. On Shoddy, Thunder deals a max of 50% to Aerodactyl and I OHKO Swampert with Explosion, deal around 85% to Hippowdon and 60% to Metagross.
tl;dr: Sets up Rain and Explodes.
Qwilfish @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
4 HP | 252 Atk | 252 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Waterfall
- Poison Jab
- Explosion
- Rain Dance
Role: Qwilfish is often looked at as a lesser Kabutops, however, Qwilfish is a great asset to my team (and he's pretty =D). Qwilfish's role is to scout my opponents team. I always bring in Qwilfish after I Explode with Azelf because my opponents knee jerk reaction is to bring in their counter to Rain Dance teams. This works out very well for me because if their "counter" is something that can really hurt my team, I just explode on it right away and bring in another sweeper.
Moveset: This is the standard moveset from the analysis. Waterfall is my primary attack. It does incredible damage in the rain. Rain + STAB + Life Orb = Profit??? Poison Jab is my secondary stab move. It provides excellent coverage, allowing me to hit grass types that can take Waterfalls all day. Explosion rounds off my coverage by allowing me to hit anything hard and supports my team by removing a potential counter. Rain Dance is mainly filler. If Qwilfish survives long enough for the rain to end, I can set it back up.
EVs: The EV spread is for a standard physical attacker. Max Attack and Speed allow me to perform my sweeping duties easier and the rest of the EVs were dumped into speed.
tl;dr: Explodes on a counter.
Final Words: Shiny Qwilfish is wicked sexy ^_^
Bronzong @ Damp Rock
Ability: Levitate
252 HP | 152 Atk | 8 Def | 96 SpD
Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spe)
- Rain Dance
- Explosion
- Gyro Ball
- Earthquake
Role: Bronzong's role is to keep the ball rolling by setting up an 8 turn rain and then Exploding to bring in another sweeper. With an 8 turn rain, I can proceed to wreak havoc with one of my sweepers. If I play my cards right, I can Explode with Qwilfish just as the rain ends so I can bring in Bronzong without taking a hit to set up the rain again. I like to wait until midgame to bring Bronzong in because it lets me eliminate any potential counters to my rain because once Bronzong Explodes, I don't really have any way of setting rain up again.
Moveset: Rain Dance is obvious here. I can set up 8 turns of lovely rain with the help of my Damp Rock. Explosion keeps with the theme of this team, allowing me to dent an opponent and bring in another sweeper for free. Gyro Ball and Earthquake are mainly filler moves. I hardly ever use them. Gyro Ball lets me hit any Tyranitar that try to switch in on me to end my rain and Earthquake is just kinda there. I don't think I've ever used it in a battle.
EVs: The EVs are nicked from the Dual Screen set on the analysis. They maximize both of my defenses and provide me with a substantial Attack boost for Explosion.
tl;dr: Sets up 8 turn rain and then Explodes.
Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
62 Atk | 252 SpA | 196 Spe
Modest nature (+SpA, -Atk)
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Grass Knot
- Focus Punch
Role: Ludicolo is my primary sweeper. Ludicolo is normally seen as a defensive Pokemon which lets me catch my opponents off guard. I bring Ludicolo in to enjoy 6 turns of gorgeous rain after Bronzong Explodes.
Moveset: Surf is the move I use the most. Just like with Qwilfish, Rain + STAB + Life Orb is amazing. Ice Beam lets me hit Dragons and any Grass types that might try to switch in. Grass Knots is a lesser stab move, but it lets me hit things like Swampert for an ohko. Focus Punch is for any Blissey switch ins.
EVs: Maxing out Special Attack is obvious. The Speed EVs allow me to hit 450 Speed in the rain which lets me outpace Scarf Flygon. The rest were dumped into Attack to help Ludicolo's Focus Punch.
tl;dr: Sweep, sweep, sweep!
Final Words: I <3 Mexicans.
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
246 HP | 252 Atk | 12 Spe
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SpA)
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
- Superpower
- U-turn
Role: Up until now, my team has seemed to be almost surgical in nature, but what happens if something comes in that disrupts my rhythm? Scizor to the rescue! Scizor is really the glue that holds my team together. He takes down Tyranitar and Abomasnow, both of which give my team problems, with ease. He also makes an excellent switch in to Celebi who is infamous for being able to defeat entire Rain Dance teams. Scizor has also been able to sweep weakened teams with Bullet Punch alone if I mess something up.
Moveset: Do I really have to explain this? It's the gold standard Choice Band set. Bullet Punch gives my team some priority and is a great stab move. Pursuit lets me hit Pokemon trying to escape Bullet Punch's wrath. Superpower lets me hit Magnezone and Heatran switch ins as well as opposing Scizor. U-turn lets me scout. Simple, but simplicity is often the key to victory.
EVs: Max Attack is obvious. 12 Speed allows me to outpace Vaporeon and Blissey and the rest are dumped into HP to help with survivability.
tl;dr: Insurance policy.
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
252 Atk | 240 SpA | 16 Spe
Naughty nature (+Atk, -SpD)
- Rain Dance
- Waterfall
- Hydro Pump
- Draco Meteor
Role: Kingdra's role is to clean up my mess. I usually don't have to use Kingdra at all, but if I do, Kingdra serves his role well. Kingdra, along with Scizor, is another insurance policy of sorts.
Moveset: Rain Dance is on this set because, often times, my rain is gone late in the game so Kingdra needs to set up his own. Waterfall is my physical sweeping move and is the one that I use the most. Hydro Pump lets me hit any physical walls that come in and try to wall me. Draco Meteor is my last resort move which lets me hit anything that might resist a Water attack.
EVs: Again, the EVs are taken from the analysis. The Speed EVs give me enough Speed to outpace +Speed Scarftran in the rain. Max attack boosts Waterfall and the rest are dumped into Special Attack to boost Hydro Pump and Draco Meteor. Here are some calcs:
Waterfall vs. Max HP Bronzong: 54-64%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP / 98 SpD: Bronzong 72-85%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Celebi: 38-45%
Draco Meteor vs. Max HP Celebi: 59-69%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP / Max SpD + Forretress: 85-100%
Draco Meteor vs. 216 HP Gyarados: 62-73%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Jirachi: 76-89%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Metagross: 91-100%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Skarmory: 100%
Waterfall vs. 160 HP / 136 Def Snorlax: 60-71%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Suicune: 34-39%
Draco Meteor vs. Max HP Suicune: 52-62%
Hydro Pump vs. 240 HP Swampert: 82-98%
Hydro Pump vs. Max HP Scizor: 100%
tl;dr: Insurance policy times two.
Well, there's the team. All rates are greatly appreciated.
Rate/hate/steal!
