Well...this is like my first RMT and whatever. This is a team that i've been working with for a few months now, and its brought me some reasonable success. I haven't done any serious laddering with this as of yet since i wanted 2nd opinions as to what I can do to improve the team and make it more ladder-worthy or something.
How did I get this idea?
I was playing around with an experimental sun team that i made(Which was complete rubbish, mind you) and i kept on getting frustrated with the sheer amount of Politoed running around halting whatever progress i made during the match. So i completely scrapped the team and started back at square one. I was still hooked on the concept of running a successful Drought team, but i wanted a solution to the Drizzle problem that haunted my nightmares. I did find some better solutions, but i wasn't really feeling them and it became rather difficult. So then it dawned on me: If you can't beat them, why not join them?
I started dabbling with the idea of running both Politoed and Ninetales on the same team soon after. I wasnt ready to give up the idea of using Droughtales, and about a good 2 hours later, team version 1.0 was made. The team i will be showing you today is version 1.3, but I'll be sure to cover the evolution of my team later on.
Politoed (M) @ Choice Specs Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
Why am I running this?
Drizzletoed is the obvious choice for setting up rain. I decided Specstoed would be the best fit for the team because it did lack offensive pressure at some points. Surf was chosen over Hydro Pump because i didn't want to have too many inaccurate moves. Hp Grass lets me hit water, ground and rock type pokemon that would hinder the drought side of my team. Ice Beam lets me do considerable damage to pokemon like Dragonite, and if it goes down in the progress i have pokemon who are able to stand up to a +2 nite. Focus Blast is invaluable for letting me hit Ferrothorn, Tyranitar and a few other pokemon.
Weakness?
Misprediction can end up being costly at times. Focus Blast misses often and if it does Ferrothorn has a chance to set up hazards or thunder wave. Blissey and Chansey take nil from all of my attacks.
Ludicolo (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Toxic
- Scald
Why am I running this?
Ludicolo is the pokemon that I chose to SubSeed because it has a very unique set of weaknesses that are not used very often as attacking moves. Rain Dish is a must as other options are either illegal or do not benefit Ludi at all. Substitute lets me dodge status from various pokemon, and Toxic helps me hit Grass type pokemon who are always immune to Leech Seed. Scald is a great choice for the single attacking move for its reasonable burn rate. STAB and power-up from rain. Max HP and Defense lets me take the least damage possible from physical sweepers.
Weaknesses?
If someone were able to Toxic Ludicolo, it will be severely crippled. Luckily, when badly poisoned i do have a 3 turn window before things start taking a turn for the worse and i have to switch to an appropriate pokemon. Scizor is only a problem when running a bit of Speed EVs, which will obviously do a ton of damage with just about any bug move. Tornadus Ohko's with Acrobatics or Hurricane and does decent damage with u-turn.
How does it work outside of rain?
While Rain Dish is taken away, Scald being less powerful and fire attacks doing more damage, Ludicolo still manages to do its job because when the rain is gone pokemon that are weak to fire will be wary to switch i n immediately.
Tentacruel (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Protect
- Scald
Why am I running this?
Toxic spikes makes my whole team keel over and die, so it's good to have something take it out immediately. This is pretty self explanatory, so i'm gonna keep this short. Toxic spikes also helps my team deal with bulkier pokemon.
Weaknesses?
Psychic type pokemon for sure, but Specstoed and friends deal enough damage to them anyways. Magic Bounce is taken care of because none of my Pokemon really mind being slightly poisoned.
Ninetales (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 120 SDef / 136 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
Why am I running this?
Bulky Droughtales is in my opinion the best one because without the extra bulk it can't come in multiple times. Energy ball does good enough damage to opposing water types, but not enough to ohko the bulkiest water/ground types which is still ok because it outspeeds then anyways. will-o-Wisp helps against Gyarados and various Dragon pokemon than can run through this team with a few turns of set up.
Weaknesses?
Heatran is the big one because Ninetales does absolutely nothing to it. Specstoed and Ludicolo help take it down. As i said before, Dragon pokemon are a pain because despite the bulk Ninetales is still decidedly physically weak. If W-o-w misses, the only options i have are to switch into Ludicolo or Specstoed and hope for the best, usually ending in one of them dying in the process.
Volcarona (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Flame Body
EVs: 216 Def / 252 SAtk / 40 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Quiver Dance
- Roost
- Fiery Dance
- Bug Buzz
Why am I running this?
I'm actually not sure what i should run here. This set has been working charms for me, but I'm undecided whether i should go to the fully bulky set or not. I ran the Rain set with Hurricane in place of Roost in the Previous version with max special attack and speed, but i felt that it was often too frail. With the fully bulky set, I'm afraid im I'm not gonna have enough attacking power to actually start sweeping, So i decided to run Life Orb.
Weaknesses?
Jellicent resists both attacks, but with enough boosts it cannot do enough back with Scald in sun or rain. Stealth Rocks are obvious, but Tentacruel can spin them away easily enough. Terrakion and Gliscor in the rain are troublesome without enough boosts, however. BlissChan can T-wave Volcarona, making it pretty much useless. Heatran usually don't switch in due to fear of Hp ground, but if they do other pokemon can handle it.
How does this work in the rain?
As mentioned, Volcarona used to run Hurricane but was replaced with Roost due to its often quick death, and the fact that hurricane does not work in the sun at all. Still, it manages to do enough damage to a lot of pokemon even without boosts in the rain.
Tornadus-T (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature (+Spd, -Def)
- U-turn
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- Filler
Why do i run this?
Decent bulk, great speed and good attacking power makes Tornerian a great sweeper. U-turn takes advantage of Regenerator, Hurricane is obvious STAB and takes care of various threats to my other pokemon and Heat wave lets me damage Ferrothorn without having to touch it. I have a Hasty nature because in the filler spot i had Acrobatics since this used to have a Flying Gem. I'm considering putting HP ice there, but im not sure of this is actually the best choice.
Weaknesses?
Vaporeon with Hydration is able to take 3 Hurricanes i believe...though this pokemon actually hasn't ran into one at all. Heatran gets the flash fire boost from Heat Wave but is otherwise unable to do major damage when rain is up. Scizor is able to do deathly damage with Pursuit or Bullet Punch.
How does this work in the sun?
Without STAB, it still does a decent enough job as a pokemon that can take out Amoonguss and friends, though it really does work much better in rain.
Team History:
Version 1.0
-Scarf Rotom-h in place of Tornerian
-Volcarona used the full Rain set
-Politoed had a scarf and hp electric. full speed evs instead of hp
-Ninetales had the NP set, solarbeam
Version 1.1
-Politoed switches over to specs set
-Volcarona loses hurricane for roost
Version 1.2
-Rotom-h replaced with Tornadus-t
-Volcarona gets evs rearranged
Version 1.3
Ninetales switches over to bulky set
Team weaknesses?
Dragons. Minus Lati@s, dragons run through my team like a bullet through limp paper. BlissChan stops my team if they manage to Toxic Ludicolo or paralyze my main sweepers. MoxieKrow would also desolate my team in theory, but I've never ran into one in OU. Another problem i seem to have is strong electric type attacks from the likes of Thundurus t and friends, this is partially remedied if they are only carrying Thunder, which has reduced accuracy in rain.
What I'm Looking for:
A steel type to replace one of my pokemon with hopefully, or at least someway to deal with dragons and electric moves.
Conclusion:
This is by far the team I've worked with the longest and it brings me a degree of success as it is, but I hope for others to inquire ways on how to improve my team. Thanks for reading, criticism appreciated.
How did I get this idea?
I was playing around with an experimental sun team that i made(Which was complete rubbish, mind you) and i kept on getting frustrated with the sheer amount of Politoed running around halting whatever progress i made during the match. So i completely scrapped the team and started back at square one. I was still hooked on the concept of running a successful Drought team, but i wanted a solution to the Drizzle problem that haunted my nightmares. I did find some better solutions, but i wasn't really feeling them and it became rather difficult. So then it dawned on me: If you can't beat them, why not join them?
I started dabbling with the idea of running both Politoed and Ninetales on the same team soon after. I wasnt ready to give up the idea of using Droughtales, and about a good 2 hours later, team version 1.0 was made. The team i will be showing you today is version 1.3, but I'll be sure to cover the evolution of my team later on.
Politoed (M) @ Choice Specs Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
Why am I running this?
Drizzletoed is the obvious choice for setting up rain. I decided Specstoed would be the best fit for the team because it did lack offensive pressure at some points. Surf was chosen over Hydro Pump because i didn't want to have too many inaccurate moves. Hp Grass lets me hit water, ground and rock type pokemon that would hinder the drought side of my team. Ice Beam lets me do considerable damage to pokemon like Dragonite, and if it goes down in the progress i have pokemon who are able to stand up to a +2 nite. Focus Blast is invaluable for letting me hit Ferrothorn, Tyranitar and a few other pokemon.
Weakness?
Misprediction can end up being costly at times. Focus Blast misses often and if it does Ferrothorn has a chance to set up hazards or thunder wave. Blissey and Chansey take nil from all of my attacks.
Ludicolo (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Toxic
- Scald
Why am I running this?
Ludicolo is the pokemon that I chose to SubSeed because it has a very unique set of weaknesses that are not used very often as attacking moves. Rain Dish is a must as other options are either illegal or do not benefit Ludi at all. Substitute lets me dodge status from various pokemon, and Toxic helps me hit Grass type pokemon who are always immune to Leech Seed. Scald is a great choice for the single attacking move for its reasonable burn rate. STAB and power-up from rain. Max HP and Defense lets me take the least damage possible from physical sweepers.
Weaknesses?
If someone were able to Toxic Ludicolo, it will be severely crippled. Luckily, when badly poisoned i do have a 3 turn window before things start taking a turn for the worse and i have to switch to an appropriate pokemon. Scizor is only a problem when running a bit of Speed EVs, which will obviously do a ton of damage with just about any bug move. Tornadus Ohko's with Acrobatics or Hurricane and does decent damage with u-turn.
How does it work outside of rain?
While Rain Dish is taken away, Scald being less powerful and fire attacks doing more damage, Ludicolo still manages to do its job because when the rain is gone pokemon that are weak to fire will be wary to switch i n immediately.
Tentacruel (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Protect
- Scald
Why am I running this?
Toxic spikes makes my whole team keel over and die, so it's good to have something take it out immediately. This is pretty self explanatory, so i'm gonna keep this short. Toxic spikes also helps my team deal with bulkier pokemon.
Weaknesses?
Psychic type pokemon for sure, but Specstoed and friends deal enough damage to them anyways. Magic Bounce is taken care of because none of my Pokemon really mind being slightly poisoned.
Ninetales (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 120 SDef / 136 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
Why am I running this?
Bulky Droughtales is in my opinion the best one because without the extra bulk it can't come in multiple times. Energy ball does good enough damage to opposing water types, but not enough to ohko the bulkiest water/ground types which is still ok because it outspeeds then anyways. will-o-Wisp helps against Gyarados and various Dragon pokemon than can run through this team with a few turns of set up.
Weaknesses?
Heatran is the big one because Ninetales does absolutely nothing to it. Specstoed and Ludicolo help take it down. As i said before, Dragon pokemon are a pain because despite the bulk Ninetales is still decidedly physically weak. If W-o-w misses, the only options i have are to switch into Ludicolo or Specstoed and hope for the best, usually ending in one of them dying in the process.
Volcarona (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Flame Body
EVs: 216 Def / 252 SAtk / 40 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Quiver Dance
- Roost
- Fiery Dance
- Bug Buzz
Why am I running this?
I'm actually not sure what i should run here. This set has been working charms for me, but I'm undecided whether i should go to the fully bulky set or not. I ran the Rain set with Hurricane in place of Roost in the Previous version with max special attack and speed, but i felt that it was often too frail. With the fully bulky set, I'm afraid im I'm not gonna have enough attacking power to actually start sweeping, So i decided to run Life Orb.
Weaknesses?
Jellicent resists both attacks, but with enough boosts it cannot do enough back with Scald in sun or rain. Stealth Rocks are obvious, but Tentacruel can spin them away easily enough. Terrakion and Gliscor in the rain are troublesome without enough boosts, however. BlissChan can T-wave Volcarona, making it pretty much useless. Heatran usually don't switch in due to fear of Hp ground, but if they do other pokemon can handle it.
How does this work in the rain?
As mentioned, Volcarona used to run Hurricane but was replaced with Roost due to its often quick death, and the fact that hurricane does not work in the sun at all. Still, it manages to do enough damage to a lot of pokemon even without boosts in the rain.
Tornadus-T (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Regenerator
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Hasty Nature (+Spd, -Def)
- U-turn
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- Filler
Why do i run this?
Decent bulk, great speed and good attacking power makes Tornerian a great sweeper. U-turn takes advantage of Regenerator, Hurricane is obvious STAB and takes care of various threats to my other pokemon and Heat wave lets me damage Ferrothorn without having to touch it. I have a Hasty nature because in the filler spot i had Acrobatics since this used to have a Flying Gem. I'm considering putting HP ice there, but im not sure of this is actually the best choice.
Weaknesses?
Vaporeon with Hydration is able to take 3 Hurricanes i believe...though this pokemon actually hasn't ran into one at all. Heatran gets the flash fire boost from Heat Wave but is otherwise unable to do major damage when rain is up. Scizor is able to do deathly damage with Pursuit or Bullet Punch.
How does this work in the sun?
Without STAB, it still does a decent enough job as a pokemon that can take out Amoonguss and friends, though it really does work much better in rain.
Team History:
Version 1.0
-Scarf Rotom-h in place of Tornerian
-Volcarona used the full Rain set
-Politoed had a scarf and hp electric. full speed evs instead of hp
-Ninetales had the NP set, solarbeam
Version 1.1
-Politoed switches over to specs set
-Volcarona loses hurricane for roost
Version 1.2
-Rotom-h replaced with Tornadus-t
-Volcarona gets evs rearranged
Version 1.3
Ninetales switches over to bulky set
Team weaknesses?
Dragons. Minus Lati@s, dragons run through my team like a bullet through limp paper. BlissChan stops my team if they manage to Toxic Ludicolo or paralyze my main sweepers. MoxieKrow would also desolate my team in theory, but I've never ran into one in OU. Another problem i seem to have is strong electric type attacks from the likes of Thundurus t and friends, this is partially remedied if they are only carrying Thunder, which has reduced accuracy in rain.
What I'm Looking for:
A steel type to replace one of my pokemon with hopefully, or at least someway to deal with dragons and electric moves.
Conclusion:
This is by far the team I've worked with the longest and it brings me a degree of success as it is, but I hope for others to inquire ways on how to improve my team. Thanks for reading, criticism appreciated.
