Resource SWSH CAP Good Cores

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snake

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SWSH CAP Good Cores

approved by CAP Metagame Mods
hosted by snake_rattler, Jho, SHSP, cbrevan
OP adapted/copied from Jordy, who copied from Bloo/adapted from sedertz/Eternam


A strong core is one of the single most valuable things to form when creating a new team. Cores are typically made up of a group of Pokémon that, when used together, work excellently toward accomplishing a specific goal, and any good player uses them, intentionally or not. The majority of cores have varying characteristics that allow them to triumph in different areas, and depending on your team, cores can be built to succeed offensively or defensively. An offensive core is a group of Pokémon that are both focused towards and designed to enable the team to break through most other team styles while being balanced for general play. A defensive core is a group of Pokémon chosen to give a team a solid set of resistances and the ability to switch into many of the common and threatening attacks in the metagame, allowing it to stick around long enough to win the match. Overall, cores function as a fantastic base or starting point for a wide range of teams and they are commonly used while teambuilding to achieve a specific goal.


Posting Guidelines
  • Any person can post a core in this thread. The cores are broken down into two categories: offensive cores and defensive cores. When posting your core, please make sure to state which one of these categories your core falls under.
  • Although the way your core works may be obvious to you, this may not be the case for others. As such, when posting a core, please make sure to explain how the core operates and any other details you think are important to include. The explanations don't have to be essays; as long as your post has some substance and conveys the main idea behind the core, it's all good. Here are some things you may like to include when explaining your core:
    • Offensive Core: Should your core be an offensive one, such as Jumbao + Rotom-H, you could explain how those two Pokemon work together to break down their similar checks and any other synergistic traits. You could also mention any weaknesses the core has and any partners you believe work well with the core.
      • Here is a good example of what we look for taken from the USM CAP iteration.
    • Defensive Core: Should your core be defensive, such as Tomohawk + Equilibra, you could explain their typing synergy allows them to cover problematic Pokemon for one another, or any other synergistic attributes you feel are relevant. You could also mention any weaknesses the core has and any partners you believe work well with the core.
      • Here is a good example of what we look for taken from the USM CAP iteration.
  • Make sure your post includes the sets your core is using. In addition, please try to include an explanation of any EV spreads deviating from the standard 252 / 252. Replays are also very helpful and highly encouraged when posting cores.
  • Please do not post a core that has more than 3 Pokemon. Cores bigger than this restrict building immensely.
  • Please be respectful of the cores people post in this thread. If someone posts a core that you think is ineffective or just plain bad, there is no need to jump at their throats. With that said, constructive criticism is welcome and encouraged - simply be nice!

Core Selection Process
  • This thread is being run by snake_rattler, Jho, SHSP, and cbrevan. We will carefully monitor the cores posted in this thread.
  • While the selection of good cores can often be subjective, we will take into consideration a variety of aspects before deciding which cores are featured in the archive. This includes quality of explanation, effectiveness of the core in the current metagame, etc. We will carefully discuss everything and seek feedback from others to ensure the selected cores are of high quality.
  • When we decide which cores will be featured in the archive, we will try to announce them and provide brief explanations behind why certain cores were selected and why certain cores weren't. This feedback can potentially help give submitters a clearer picture of what we are looking for.
  • If a core is originally rejected from the archive, we can definitely provide some tips on how a set or spread can be tweaked so the core meets the standards we look for.
  • As the metagame shifts, we will update older cores or move obsolete cores to the archive.
  • Just like with anyone else who posts a core, please feel free to bring up any concerns you might have with our posts and/or the cores we select! However, please be sure to be polite, and if it is a simple question/concern, we'd prefer it being directed to us in a PM.
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snake

is a Community Leaderis a Top CAP Contributoris a Contributor to Smogon
CAP Co-Leader
I'll kick this thread off with a fun offensive core I've used!

Although Galarian Darmanitan's time in the metagame is probably going to end soon, here's a fun core I've been using:



Galvantula is the best available Sticky Web setter, as it pressures Defog Corviknight and Mandibuzz with Compound Eyes Thunder and dissuades Seismitoad from setting up Stealth Rock on Turn 1. Sticky Web, of course, enables Choice Band Galarian Darmanitan to shred pretty much anything in its path since fewer Pokemon can outspeed it. Bisharp is the best Defiant user due to its access to Swords Dance and Sucker Punch, meaning it can act as a sweeper on its own as well as a Defog deterrent. Jolly means you outspeed -1 Dugtrio, but Adamant means Equilibra needs much less chip to KO...so there's a trade off.

Hydreigon isn't affected by Sticky Web, meaning it can outspeed Galarian Darmanitan, but Galvantula can OHKO it with Bug Buzz after a Substitute and Bisharp resists the Dark Pulse + Flash Cannon variants, meaning one of the main offensive stops to Galarian Darmanitan is somewhat taken care of just from the core alone!

Of course, you'll want to consider spinblockers and Pokemon that take advantage of bulky Water-types that Galarian Darmanitan lures in, but this core is a great start to a Sticky Web team. I'd love feedback on the core if anyone has suggestions!
 
I've played with a whole lot of balance so far this gen so here are some cool defensive cores I've found success with:

:ss/Seismitoad: + :ss/corviknight: + :sm/mollux:


This is a really strong defensive core for balance teams that gives a team multiple hazard control options as well as checks to most common threats in the meta. Seismitoad can check Rotom-H for Corviknight, whilst also providing hazard support whilst Mollux can check Jumbao, Clefable, and Hydreigon for Seismitoad. Corviknight acts as great glue here, giving the core a Hattarene check as well as hazard removal, and other utility options such as U-turn or Taunt. You can mix and match what has removal here, Mollux's 4th slot is really flexible.

:ss/seismitoad: + :ss/rotom-heat:

Same deal as above, Rotom-H provides a Jumbao/Clef check for Seismitoad but also threatens out Equilibra which can abuse Seismitoad since a lot don't run Scald, and even if they do it doesn't do a lot.

:ss/clefable: + :sm/equilibra:

Specially Defensive Clefable is really powerful glue for balanced teams, providing hazards and Wish support for Pokemon such as Equilibra, Seismitoad. and Rotom-H that don't have recovery of their own. These 2 paired together provide a nice hazard control core whilst also being able to shut down all the Fairy-types. Seismitoad is an excellent addition to this core but i feel like Ive seen it's sprite too much already in this post. God i use a lot of Seismitoad this gen. Sylveon can also be used if you dont need Clefables role compression, as it offers a better check to Hydreigon.

With darm gone now, a whole lot of stuff is opened up so we will likely see some significant changes in the metagame, but I believe these should still hold up.
 
:ss/kerfluffle::ss/dugtrio:
This thread wouldn't be complete without the most broken core in the current metagame. I don't think this core needs a lot of explaining; the basic premise is that Kerfluffle can bring Dugtrio in safely against most of its checks, like Mollux, Toxapex, Clefable, and Equilibra, and proceed to remove them from the game.
 
This is basically a copy and paste of my post in metagame discussion. But since we are talking about good cores.

"In my experience with CAP, the best core in CAP right now is :Mollux: + :Dugtrio: + :Jumbao:
Note: Jumbao can be replaced by other fairy types like Kerfluffle and Clefable

Mollux walls offensive fairy pressure while providing hazard support like Stealth Rocks or Toxic Spikes.
Due to the lack of Flame burst and HP Ground, Jumbao gets checked by Mollux, and steel types that are not weak to fighting. Jumbao also handles the rock and ground types Mollux is afraid of and even psychic types if it runs shadow ball.
But Dugtrio traps and removes Jumbao's defensive checks while helping mollux by hitting rock types with EQ or reversal and psychic types with sucker punch."

But here is another thing about this core other than the rock paper scissors aspect, they have potential options to threaten each other (kind of).

Mollux can run away from Dug with shed shell and if it has fire blast, 0 SpA Mollux has a 68.8% chance to OHKO 0/4 Dugtrio (guaranteed after SR) on the switch in, and if sun is out, lava plume is a guaranteed OHKO.
If sun is out, life orb Jumbao with 0 atk EV and a timid nature, has a 85.5% chance to 2HKO 252 HP/0 Def Mollux with Bulldoze after dry skin dmg. Running a hasty nature makes the 2HKO guaranteed.
Normally trace Jumbao is the bane of Dugtrio's existence. But if Dug runs a hasty nature +LO, its sludge wave deals 62.4-73.5% to 0 HP/ 4 SpD Jumbao if your one of those madlads (looking at you JayHeaven).
 
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This is basically a copy and paste of my post in metagame discussion. But since we are talking about good cores.

"In my experience with CAP, the best core in CAP right now is :Mollux: + :Dugtrio: + :Jumbao:
Note: Jumbao can be replaced by other fairy types like Kerfluffle and Clefable

Mollux walls offensive fairy pressure while providing hazard support like Stealth Rocks or Toxic Spikes.
Due to the lack of Flame burst and HP Ground, Jumbao gets checked by Mollux, and steel types that are not weak to fighting. Jumbao also handles the rock and ground types Mollux is afraid of and even psychic types if it runs shadow ball.
But Dugtrio traps and removes Jumbao's defensive checks while helping mollux by hitting rock types with EQ or reversal and psychic types with sucker punch."

But here is another thing about this core other than the rock paper scissors aspect, they have potential options to threaten each other (kind of).

Mollux can run away from Dug with shed shell and if it has fire blast, 0 SpA Mollux has a 68.8% chance to OHKO 0/4 Dugtrio (guaranteed after SR) on the switch in, and if sun is out, lava plume is a guaranteed OHKO.
If sun is out, life orb Jumbao with 0 atk EV and a timid nature, has a 85.5% chance to 2HKO 252 HP/0 Def Mollux with Bulldoze after dry skin dmg. Running a hasty nature makes the 2HKO guaranteed.
Normally trace Jumbao is the bane of Dugtrio's existence. But if Dug runs a hasty nature +LO, its sludge wave deals 62.4-73.5% to 0 HP/ 4 SpD Jumbao if your one of those madlads (looking at you JayHeaven).
technically atha came up with the sludge wave dug first
 
Arena Trap is banned, so my old core is dead.
But after some play testing, here is my new one thats been generally successful.

:Mollux: + :Equilibra: + :Clefable:

Kind of my riff on Jho's post of Clef and Equil.
:Mollux: and Levitate :Equilibra: is a match made in heaven. :Mollux: only weaknesses are Rock, Psychic, and Ground which levitate Equil is x4 resist (to rock), resists psychic and is immune to ground. :Equilibra: is weak to fire, water and fighting. :Mollux: has a 5/8 resist fire, resist fighting, and immune to water. :Mollux: lays SR, Equil can spin hazards is also a nice pair.

But, Equil lacks recovery outside of a held item and with Knock Off more popular, that can be an issue which is why I rounded out this paring with a wish passer. My old Wish Passer was :Jumbao: (because of a certain 3 headed mole), and with the release of Pokemon Home, I considered :Jirachi: due to having a higher base HP stat and because I wanted to experiment with new Pokemon. Jirachi's issue is that it suffers from 4MSS and it overlaps a steel typing with Equil. As for :Jumbao: , the lack of Arena Trap and Trace being a situational ability caused me to drop it. Since Clef got Soft-boiled back, decided to try that out and I like it a lot. Clef is like sticky putty. If you have a hole on your team, mold it to fill in that hole.

Also, Clef can run SR so :Mollux: can run something else like Rapid Spin or Calm Mind.
 
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snake

is a Community Leaderis a Top CAP Contributoris a Contributor to Smogon
CAP Co-Leader
Arena Trap is banned, so my old core is dead.
But after some play testing, here is my new one thats been generally successful.

:Mollux: + :Equilibra: + :Clefable:

Kind of my riff on Jho's post of Clef and Equil.
:Mollux: and Levitate :Equilibra: is a match made in heaven. :Mollux: only weaknesses are Rock, Psychic, and Ground which levitate Equil is x4 resist (to rock), resists psychic and is immune to ground. :Equilibra: is weak to fire, water and fighting. :Mollux: has a 5/8 resist fire, resist fighting, and immune to water. :Mollux: lays SR, Equil can spin hazards is also a nice pair.

But, Equil lacks recovery outside of a held item and with Knock Off more popular, that can be an issue which is why I rounded out this paring with a wish passer. My old Wish Passer was :Jumbao: (because of a certain 3 headed mole), and with the release of Pokemon Home, I considered :Jirachi: due to having a higher base HP stat and because I wanted to experiment with new Pokemon. Jirachi's issue is that it suffers from 4MSS and it overlaps a steel typing with Equil. As for :Jumbao: , the lack of Arena Trap and Trace being a situational ability caused me to drop it. Since Clef got Soft-boiled back, decided to try that out and I like it a lot. Clef is like sticky putty. If you have a hole on your team, mold it to fill in that hole.

Also, Clef can run SR so :Mollux: can run something else like Rapid Spin or Calm Mind.
what are your sets :(
 
what are your sets :(
Got you covered. Keep in mind, these are the sets to fit my team and I haven't messed around with EV spreads to much.

Staring off with mah boi:
Best Boi (Mollux) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Dry Skin
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Lava Plume
- Sludge Bomb
- Stealth Rock
- Recover

With Arena Trap being dead, :Mollux: is even better than it was before. It can run Heavy-Duty Boots without fear which is awesome. Seriously helps Mollux's longevity. STABs and EV spread are pretty simple. Max Special bulk and I like the 30% chance of status. Recover is for longevity, and SR was there because I wanted a SR setter. Mollux comes in a lot more than Clef and Clef has more options to consider. Though you could drop 4 def EV for 4 speed EV to outspeed things that are EV to outspeed uninvested Mollux.

Equality (Equilibra) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Doom Desire
- Earth Power
- Aura Sphere
- Flash Cannon

Idk why but I love AV on Equal. With Clef being more popular, Equal is so suited for taking it on. AV lets me even tank a Flamethrower or Fire Blast and fire back with Flash Cannon. Or tank a lava plume from Mollux and kill it with EP. 4 speed is to ensure I outspeed 0 speed Clef. Levitate over Bulletproof because the lack of leftovers makes the spikes immunity even more valuable. + the def type synergy with :Mollux:

Chizuru Kagura (Clefable) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Soft-Boiled
- Wish
- Thunder Wave

Std wish pass Clef. Soft-Boiled back is godly and T Wave is there because I wanted to spread status. Bait and para Mollux is a nice quality.
Physical spread is to better help deal with Pajantom (who can trap and wreck Mollux and Equal). Also, both Mollux and Equal can handle special attackers. Magic Guard over Unaware because of a move pool issue with Soft-Boiled.
 
:jumbao: :chandelure:

Jumbao @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 204 SpA / 52 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Solar Beam
- Wish
- Protect

Chandelure @ Choice Specs
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 64 HP / 252 SpA / 192 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Overheat
- Shadow Ball
- Trick

Sun has been used a bit in OU recently (3 uses in SPL iirc, and some uses in Smogon Tour), but it wasn't that successful essentially because of the fact that there is no good sun setter in SS OU. Torkoal is very underwhelming. In CAP, we have a TOP TIER sun setter, which is absolutely incredible for the archetype.

I chose to use a more offensive Jumbao set. The reason is that its lack of utility forces it to be somewhat of an offensive threat. You have to play very carefully against this set, which allows for a more agressive playstyle (double switches basically), which is definetly how you want to be playing a sun team. Even with little investment Jumbao checks a handful of threats (no Colossoil to an extent, Dracovish, Zeraora, etc.). Also it invalidates rain.

Chandelure under sun has NO switchin. The usual problem with this kind of mons is that it struggles to come in and stays in the back of your team while the top tier mons put the work. Chandelure doesn't struggle to come in at all. It has a free switch against ALL OF THE 3 S rank mons as well as a triple immunity (fire immunity in sun is very useful). You just need to get the rocks out of the way. Mollux is not a switchin :
252+ SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Flamethrower vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Dry Skin Mollux in Sun: 170-201 (43.1 - 51%) -- 97.7% chance to 2HKO after Dry Skin damage
252+ SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Overheat vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Dry Skin Mollux in Sun: 246-290 (62.4 - 73.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Dry Skin damage
Trace Jumbao and Tyranitar are pretty much the only true checks to Chandelure. It is extremely rare to click trick (I only do it against Tyranitar). Jut have a look at viability rankings : everything else is ohkoed.

I put only those two because I think they're sun's best assets currently. Darmanitan is harder to make work. Venusaur has some checks, even if it's almost in every sun team (I can definetly see a sun team work without Venusaur, it's overrated imo). Tell me if I should put a third mon in this core (it would probably be Venusaur).

Don't sleep on sun in CAP right now, it's extremely hard to play against, and you will get absolutely steamrolled if you're not prepared.
 
After discussing some ideas concerning CAP 27, I looked into what I think is a great example of Offensive Team Support in :Incineroar: and thought about it why its better in doubles than singles. But after some inspiration from Atha pitching Incineroar for a B to B+ viability rankings, I finally decided to give it a shot in singles. Turns out, :Incineroar: is pretty good.

:Incineroar: @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 116 Def / 84 SpD / 60 Spe
Careful Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Knock Off
- Parting Shot
- Will-O-Wisp

Basically the Smogon Set but slightly dropped speed ev for a bit more physical bulk. 60 speed ensures it can out run 0 speed :Corviknight:. Roar has decent bulk and a nice def typing which includes a ghost resist and an immunity to burn. Intimidate+Will O Wisp lets it cripple most of the physical attackers in the CAP Meta. This ability to mitigate a pokemon's offensive capabilities is make even better by Parting Shot. Flare Blitz for dmg, and Knock Off for a mixture of Dmg and Item control. The problem with Roar is its lack of longevity due to having no reliable recovery and its limited effectiveness against special attackers. Kind of like :Equilibra: Roar needs Wish Support.

Small Disclaimer: This part of the core is still a work in progress. I think I have found a good pairing but not to sure if its optimal.

:Jumbao: @ Leftovers
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Energy Ball
- Wish
- Protect

Fairly std def wish pass Jumbo. Jumbo has solid 92/104 special bulk and resists water, ground, and fighting while its STABS threaten those types for super effective dmg. Drought also temporarily makes Roar natural to Water and powers up Flare Blitz. In return, Roar's ability to control physical attackers helps Jumbo's meh physical bulk and resists Fire, Ice, and Steel. Trace also a great ability to consider, but right now I find it a bit inconsistent.

Other Wish Passer ideas included :Slyveon: because it has better slightly more HP, better special bulk and can control special attackers offense with mystical fire. :Jirachi: was also on the table due to having even more HP than :Slyveon: and :Vaporean: was considered because it has the highest HP among wish passers, and like :Slyveon: loves Roar's ability to cripple physical attackers while supporting Roar further with Heal Bell.
 

BP

Beers and Steers
is a Contributor to Smogon
:colossoil: :ferrothorn:
Defensive Core
Colossoil @ Assault Vest
Ability: Guts
EVs: 164 HP / 124 Atk / 160 SpD / 60 Spe
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Rapid Spin

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Serious Nature
- Spikes
- Leech Seed
- Knock Off
- Body Press


I noticed a considerable lack of Colossoil in the meta despite Aegislash and Dragapult having a field day on almost every single team. These Pokemon are meant to cover each other's weaknesses and together they form a balanced core. Colossoil threatens the aforementioned Aegislash and Dragapult while also acting as a comfortable to Pokemon that threaten Ferrothron such as Mollux and Rotom-H. Addtionally, Colossoil also acts a semi-reliable status absorber thanks to Guts. Ferrothorn, on the other hand, alleviates the pressure that Grass and Water-types apply to Colossoil. While, yes, both Pokemon are threatened by Fighting-types, there are a number of pokemon that you can add in order to remedy this issue depending on what direction you want to take the team.
 
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BP

Beers and Steers
is a Contributor to Smogon
Shameless Double post (mods feel free to merge this if its an issue)

:pajantom: :conkeldurr:

PJ Conk Balance
Conkeldurr @ Flame Orb
Ability: Guts
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Drain Punch
- Mach Punch
- Knock Off
- Facade

Pajantom @ Leftovers
Ability: Comatose
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Spirit Shackle
- Protect
- Earthquake
- Toxic


Conkeldurr is easily one of the best offensive pokemon we have right now. Not only does it have priority, which is seldom seen nowadays, but it also has Guts and an ungodly high attack stat that allows it to break walls and blow wide holes into a lot of teams. Its frankly underused right now imo as people would rather use Obstagoon or Colossoil for some reason. This core is a fairly one dimensional. Whatever can outspeed and threaten Conkeldurr, our boy Pajantom takes care of. Granted the main threat here is Tomohawk so Pajantom often times traps that and than sits back and uses protect as Tomo is whittled down by Toxic. Again, fairly simple core to understand. Pajantom and Conkeldurr also love a slow pivot like Teleport Clefable but than again what offensive Pokemon doesn't.


:hippowdon: / :tyranitar: :excadrill: :clefable:

Sand Balance
Hippowdon @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind

OR

Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 100 HP / 252 Atk / 156 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
- Fire Punch
- Crunch



Excadrill @ Leftovers / Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- Rapid Spin

Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Teleport
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect


Sand is really good right now, especially because it doesn't need to have a whole team dedicated toward it. All you need is a setter and an abuser and you have a functional Sand team. Hippodon can be used for more defensive builds which I tend to prefer. Alternatively, you can use Tyranitar to just the exact same thing but this core needs support in order to cover up its fighting weakness. Driller appreciates Clefable's ability to slow pivot into the sand setter or itself on a favorable matchup. Clefable also helps patch the overwhelming Fighting-type weakness if you choose to run TTar.
 
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Deck Knight

Blast Off At The Speed Of Light! That's Right!
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Top CAP Contributor Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
Here's a core I've been working with along with a few cleaners:

Weardown Defensive
:aegislash: :equilibra: :plasmanta:

Aegislash @ Leftovers
Ability: Stance Change
EVs: 240 HP / 220 SpA / 48 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Toxic
- King's Shield
- Shadow Ball

Equilibra @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 60 Def / 68 SpA / 84 SpD / 44 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Doom Desire
- Earth Power
- Rapid Spin
- Protect

Plasmanta @ Leftovers / Black Sludge
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 240 HP / 16 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Discharge
- Sludge Bomb
- Aura Sphere


I made a team I was actually happy with recently, and while I could argue the team works cohesively as a whole, the goal of these three Pokemon is to scout, wear down, and blunt the opponent's opposing Pokemon.

Something all 3 have in common is that although they have a protective move to scout, and one huge offensive stat to use with their attacks.
- SubToxic Aegislash is an excellent switchin to many attacks, and can slowly wear down opponents. Aegislash EVs are set to outrun Equilbra so Shadow Ball can strike twice [Assuming Levitate, otherwise switch to your own Equilibra].
- Equilibra provides Doom Desire cover and hazard control via Rapid Spin, and its Levitate ability makes it an excellent switchin to Ground attacks aimed at Aegislash and Plasmanta.
- Plasmanta uses Substitute to attempt multiple status inflictions, and its Base 100 Speed tier is much better in SS. Aura Sphere keeps Manta from being complete fodder for opposing Equilibra, and scouts their ability. If they are Bulletproof than your own Equilibra can handle them with Earth Power. Bulletproof Libra tends to lose to Levitate Libra.

This core functions best with Wish Support, as it otherwise relies heavily on Leftovers Recovery. It is not quite as susceptible to Knock Off as it initially appears, as Substitute prevents the item from being knocked off, and each of the Core members have offensive stats that can't be ignored, and also can't be worn down by Toxic themselves.

Problem Pokemon: :terrakion: :smokomodo: :seismitoad::krillowatt:
Terrakion is a definite problem for the core as it runs both Fighting and Ground attacks. Smokomodo can be troublesome even though its Flare Blitz tends to cause it a lot of collateral damage. Seismitoad hates being statused but can threaten with Water/Ground coverage. Krilowatt is a threat because it's immune to weardown and can also run Water + Ground coverage. Keep those four threats in mind as you choose partners. Toxic weardown plus smart switching can harm them a lot [Except Kril], but it still requires good play.
 
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:slowking: + :urshifu: (rip no sprite)
This core is the best in the game right now imo. Slowking with boots gets many many opportunities to come against Tomohawk, Equilibra, Astrolotl, etc., uses Future Sight and teleports to Urshifu, which basically safely guarantees a kill. The only thing that stops this is Mandibuzz, which is 2hkoed by Close Combat. Maybe Urshifu is banworthy, maybe not... We'll see how the OU council handles this ig.

:Fidgit: + :marowak-alola:+ :Slowking: ( + :magearna: / :crawdaunt: / imagination)
Trick Room is a pretty viable if not dominant archetype right now. It's already good in OU, and Fidgit is a tremendous asset. TR + teleport users like Slowking or Porygon 2 works out really well too. Marowak 2hkoes Tomohawk on the switch though ; it's pretty much a staple. Won the last official roomtour spamming this core, and it flawlessly destroyed everybody.

:magearna:
Don't even ask ; this is a good core. Use this core and you can pretty much win at any point without too much effort. Not listing all the sets lol.


Those are the cores that look dominant right now. I tried to find spammed defensive cores, but they're pretty diverse (except they usually have Tomohawk).
 

Deck Knight

Blast Off At The Speed Of Light! That's Right!
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Top CAP Contributor Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
Wanted to drop a classic FWG Defensive Core that I think helps against much of the metagame:



Rotom-Heat @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Overheat
- Pain Split
- Defog

Snaelstrom @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Bug Buzz
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Spiky Shield

Amoonguss @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 168 Def / 88 SpD / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Spore
- Clear Smog
- Giga Drain
- Toxic


This defensive core works well on balance teams that need a strong backbone to get their offensive threats in with minimal chip damage.
  • Fast Rotom-Heat provides Defog and pivoting with Volt Switch. Pain Split also gives it significantly more longevity. It's riskier to use than bulky variants, but the ability to get Pain Split in before an attack and then pivot out makes it very effective.
  • Snaelstrom's set was inspired somewhat by the current CAP Discussion (CAP 29). It threatens the Slowtwins with Bug Buzz, laughs at Scald once its Toxic Orb activates, and has its own Scald to cripple physical threats the Slowtwins might pivot to. Spiky Shield facilitates getting Toxic Orb active before being hit by another status, scouts Choice users, provides additional Poison Heal healing, and also stalls out Weather or Trick Room turns. Rapid Spin provides additional defense against hazards, and the Speed boost can even be helpful sometimes to catch otherwise faster Fire types like Rotom-Heat.
  • Amoonguss uses the combination of Spore and Toxic to either neutralize or put opposing threats on a timer, Clear Smog to counteract setup, and Giga Drain as a STAB that can threaten Slowtwins. 4 Spe EVs avoids the speed tie with Slowtwins. It allows Giga Drain to finish them off without allowing them another Future Sight on a speed tie.

Problem Pokemon:

Volcarona's Quiver Dance shuts down this core as it is all special attackers. Partners outside this core need to be able to respond to Volcarona. At best Rotom-Heat can Volt Switch, and Amoonguss can Spore or Toxic, but Snaelstrom's Scald does too little damage to catch Volcarona before it gets out of hand.
Krilowatt's immunity to passive damage makes it difficult for this core to wear it down, however it doesn't want to switch in on any of the neutral or super-effective hits much. Generally speaking as long as you can get it in neutral with either Snaelstrom or Amoonguss, you should be able to overcome it.
 
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