At a glance
Introduction
I am a huge fan of balanced out games. I like a team with both offense and defense. A team that contains different roles, and do pretty much everything, like the kids in the show Saved by the Bell. It seems like the gang does EVERYTHING, like singing in a band, start business, being part of every cliche, like Football, Cheerleading, or simply getting good grades and being a leader.
I've been reading a lot about the UU metagame, and there's this Grass/Fire/Water combo of Pokemon that appears to be very effective. I wanted to bring that to Standard play and think of it as a team of Pokemon that Gary Oak would use. If you guys remember from RBY and GSC, his team usually consisted of Gyarados, Arcanine, Exeggutor, Rhydon, Alakazam, and Pidgeot. It's like a team of the most common types of Pokemon you'd see, and it's pretty cool. I'm a fan of RBY Pokemon since that was a big part of my childhood, the show, Pokemon cards, Pokemon Snap, Blue and Stadium, and even action figures lol, while all I did for other generations was just play their games.
Team Building
So I wanted to start looking at that Water/Grass/Fire type combo, and I looked for Water Pokemon. When I see RBY Pokemon, the first Pokemon that came to mind was Starmie. Starmie is very versatile. Amazing type coverage, very fast, and it's powerful when it holds a Life Orb, and it can heal off the recoil with Recover. It's a good revenge killer for Pokemon with base 110 speed with a positive nature, and it scares away Salamence, Gyarados, Infernape, and some other top tier threats off the field. What really makes Starmie so cool is that it's Misty's second most valued Pokemon after Staryu, so it's like the second most notable fully evolved Water type after Blastoise (in my childhood...).
Now I wanted a Fire type. I am not interested in any of the Fire types in OU. In UU, Arcanine seems to be a top tier threat with his ridiculous versatility and decent bulk. It attacks well at both sides of the spectrum, it gets Flare Blitz as STAB, and Morning Sun to heal off any recoil. Extremespeed helps it from fast and frail Pokemon. It's a really good counter to Scizor, as long as it does not switch in to Superpower (but Intimidate helps take the hit), or U-Turn. Arcanine has been one of Gary's most valued Pokemon, so it's like the second most notable Fire type after Charizard.
Now I wanted a Grass type. There are not many great Grass types out there. None of the Grass types in UU are very formidable. When I think of Grass types, I think of something that resists anything Fire is weak to. Fire is weak to Water, Rock, and Ground. Most Grass types cover Water and Ground, but stay Neutral to Rock. There is one Pokemon that resists all types that a pure Fire type is weak to, and that is Breloom. Although Breloom is frail, it can switch in on a Swampert's Earthquake, which seems to be Arcanine's biggest nightmare, and then either Spore it, or kill it with Seed Bomb. I remember having a ton of fun using Breloom in Ruby version, owning everything with Mach Punch.
Now I need a defensive core. My favorite physically defensive Pokemon is Skarmory. I see myself as a very defensive player, and I've played against other Stall teams with mine, and it's a mess. I'd rather play against offensive teams with my defensive ones. Since this is a balanced out team, I can have trouble with stall, since none of the offensive Pokemon here are too powerful, and don't set up to become more powerful, with the exception of Breloom, but he has weak type coverage. So I decided to use Skarmory as a wall that stops stall. This is done so with the move Taunt, and Special Defense EVs. Things like Vaporeon and Blissey can't hurt it hard with their attacks, and Skarmory sets up Spikes while healing off damage.
Special defensive Skarmory isn't fat enough to absorb special attacks, so I needed something more dedicated. Without a doubt, Blissey is the most reliable special wall, and has many, many options to choose. This team is not made to be a 'suck a dick' stall team, so using things like Toxic and Protect will not help the other members of the team. The team dislikes status, A LOT, so I decided to use a Cleric. It uses Aromatherapy to rid paralysis off of Arcanine, Breloom, and even Skarmory, as its Speed is necessary to outspeed stalling walls and Taunt them. It absorb attacks from fast and powerful special attackers, and then cripple them with Thunder Wave so the team can deal with finishing them off.
So now the team needs a lead. Stealth Rock is appreciated to help Starmie OHKO some threats. I've read about Choice Scarf Azelf, and I think it's marvelous.
After the Trial
I've done some testing, and there has been some flaws. The most notable is that since Heatran is allowed in Standard, Arcanine is worthless. I hate that walking volcano. It makes all fire types except for Infernape and possibly Moltres nonviable for standard play. I can't even go Flash Fire back at it since that thing can still annihilate it with Earth Power. I can't go on with Arcanine any longer.
At this point, I decided to ditch the whole Grass/Fire/Water combo idea, and just take what I got, and improve from there. Since Arcanine was out, I wanted to use up the space for a more dedicated physical tank. It needed a different typing. I also did not want it to become worthless to Tricked out Choice items, so it needed some power. Swampert can work, with his hard weakness to Grass can be laughable for Skarmory. It would have some issues though: if it gets Tricked a Scarf, it becomes severely neutered, and the added Speed won't help it at all since it's only base 60, and I'm not using any Speed EVs, and I'm holding a -Speed nature. I also loved holding Fire Type attacks. When I'm in to the nostalgia of RBY Pokemon, good defenses and offenses, and possesion of Fire type moves, I thought Zapdos will work. Zapdos also works as a Scizor counter as it resists everything it has bar Pursuit or Night Slash. Zapdos can Roost to stay alive, and it has Pressure to PP stall those that are not too powerful. I guess having an Electric type also reminds me alot of how I always used Electric Pokemon in RBY, as Thunder Wave was the best move in the game at that time. And I always thought Zapdos was really frikkin cool, as it beat the other two birds, and it got good STAB in Drill Peck. Zapdos was also my favorite Pokemon card. I looked at Zapdos instead of Rotom-H for the reason that Zapdos can heal itself, and it isn't Pursuit-owned like Starmie...although Rotom-A has Will-o-Wisp, but the weak accuracy there is really iffy. Using Heat Wave means Zapdos can stay in, tanking hits while delivering some back, while Overheat means that special attacks will do next to nothing after one use of the Fire move. Rotom-A's spinblocking abilities still leaves me looking back sometimes... I can also use Moltres to still have that Fire/Grass/Water combo, as it can also be very defensive, holds Will-o-Wisp and uses Fire type attacks very well, but the 4x Stealth Rock weakness is an off putting and Moltres does not have very good type coverage.
Breloom stays. Its usefulness to deal with any Tyranitar is welcome. Whether it is Choice Band, Breloom would have the Speed EVs to safely put Jolly Tyranitar to sleep and then set up a Swords Dance or two, or simply finish it off, and it has Mach Punch to eliminate the Dragon Dancer. The Dragon Dancers who are afraid of priority opt for a Babiri Berry. And when it uses Life Orb, I can laugh back at Toxic Spike users, since the team dislikes it.
I've been disappointed that Blissey can't learn both Wish and Aromatherapy. Recently I found out that Blissey was one of the hundreds of Pokemon that get Heal Bell, and I was glad to hear that it is legal with Wish. Wish became really useful to use when Blissey is near full health, and a physical attacker like Salamence arrives, only to damage 70% of HP off of Bold Blissey with Outrage, and it gets OHKO'd back with Ice Beam, and laugh as it recovers 50% right after. Now with Wish, the weakened sweepers can get right back on the fields and do some work, rather than serve as death/trick fodder. Starmie does not really need to Recover itself, and now it uses Rapid Spin to remove annoying entry hazards. Especially Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes.
Starmie still loves its amazing type coverage and its new utility in Rapid Spin, making it more useful.
So without further ado, here are the sets
Team Saved by the Bell
Lisa Turtle
Azelf@Choice Scarf
Levitate
Jolly
40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Trick
U-Turn
Explosion
Stealth Rock
Synergy
->
->
->
Lisa Turtle
Azelf@Choice Scarf
Levitate
Jolly
40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Trick
U-Turn
Explosion
Stealth Rock
Synergy
It sets up Stealth Rock and Explodes when it's done. It Tricks, then U-Turns away for scouting. It can also server as Trick fodder if someone wants to try to do that to one of the tanks. The 216 Speed EVs ensure I outpace all +Speed natured base 110s in a Choice Scarf.
Jesse Spano
Starmie@Life Orb
Natural Cure
Timid
40 Def / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
Hydro Pump
Thunderbolt
Ice Beam
Grass Knot
Synergy
AC Slater
Breloom@Life Orb
Poison Heal
Jolly
252 Atk / 72 Def / 184 Spe
Spore
Swords Dance
Mach Punch
Seed Bomb
Synergy
The muscle of the team. 184 Speed EVs will outspeed Jolly Tyranitar, who will meet a Spore. If Tyranitar scores a Dragon Dance, Mach Punch will put him away. Even then, all enemies slower than 244 speed will be put to Sleep with Spore, while Slater safely sets up a Swords Dance. If one is already put to sleep, opposing Swampert who think Slater is holding Stone Edge+Mach Punch will get beat by Seed Bomb. The team really dislikes Toxic Spikes, so Slater can get in and laugh back, as Life Orb recoil is nullified and he heals 2.5% of HP each turn.
Kelly Kapowski
Blissey@Leftovers
Natural Cure
Bold
252 Def / 40 SpA / 216 SpD
Heal Bell
Wish
Ice Beam
Thunder Wave
Synergy
All teammates dislike certain status, so if any teammates take an unfavorable status, they will be saved by the Heal Bell (pun). I've always wanted to use Aromatherapy+Wish to make the greatest cleric ever, but she gets Heal Bell so Kelly is very capable of completely cleaning up a friend. Thunder Wave is for crippling opponents so the rest of the gang can have an easier time doing their job. Ice Beam is for Salamence. If Kelly is Bold, she'll survive a Jolly Life Orb Outrage from Salamence, and she'll OHKO him with Ice Beam after Stealth Rock. Seismic Toss is not here since she will not be able to touch Levitating Ghosts behind a Sub, like Gengar. Ice Beam has a chance at breaking a Sub. Sometimes I wish I had more Special attack EVs though, but Blissey needs to take boosted special attacks at all costs.
Zack Morris
Skarmory@Shed Shell
Keen Eye
Careful
252 HP / 224 SpD / 32 Spe
Taunt
Spikes
Roost
Whirlwind
Synergy
Zack here likes to Taunt his opponents showing off how cool his metal jacket is, so all those nerds trying to stall would stop what they are doing and try to hit him. The Special Defense EVs will protect him from weaker Special attacks from Swampert, Blissey, or Vaporeon who would often like to waste time. 80 SpA Flamethrowers will only hurt 33.53% - 39.52% of his health. 0 SpA Surfs from Vaporeon only damages 30.84% - 36.83%, so Zack has free time to set up Spikes, and Roost in between. If I have problems with Dragon Dance Salamence, and he is Outraging, Skarmory can take hits, Roost, maybe a layer of Spikes, and watch Life Orb recoil build up, and Whirlwind his Dragon Dance away, forcing him to switch in on Stealth Rock again.
Screech Powers
Zapdos@Leftovers
Pressure
Bold
248 HP / 228 Def / 32 Spe
Thunderbolt
Heat Wave
Toxic
Roost
Synergy
Zack didn't do his Defensive homework, but Screech did. Thunderbolt hits Gyarados for a OHKO, and Heat Wave does that for Scizor. Roost keeps him alive and it sheds off his weaknesses. I can use Hidden Power Grass for Swampert, but then I have to deal with Blissey. I don't really wanna switch to Zack or Slater to deal with it and meet unfavorable status, so Toxic can work for both Blissey and Swampert. Blissey might Thunder Wave or Toxic him, but Kelly can heal that status off for him.
Comments
So there we have a Balanced team. I noticed a flaw after reading how I deal with threats, and that is that I am way too reliant on Hydro Pump. The power drop to Surf would not be worth it at all, since I won't be able to kill many frail things in one hit. Changing to Modest is no option because Starmie needs to outspeed Positive speed natured Pokemon with a higher base speed than 100. The main reason I chose Starmie over Gyarados as the RBY Water Pokemon, is that Gyarados is not very effective without a Dragon Dance, and I don't have much time to set up, while Starmie can hit right off the bat with excellent Speed and decent Special Attack, and a Life Orb, with attacks of high Base Power. Breloom has the time to set up because of Spore.
You may think that not having a spinblocker may be a big deal, but it really isn't, as this team doesn't rely on entry hazards all day. I am glad I am able to make a decent team with good synergy using my favorite Pokemon. It's a shame Arcanine can't be used, but at least now I'm able to use my favorite Pokemon Card and still have a Scizor counter. Even if Heatran didn't exist, Arcanine would still not be in the field much because of bulky waters still being able to survive a Natural Gift Grass (even Swampert wtf) or a Thunder Fang. I'm not very good at prediction... so I might not be the best at using this team. It was fun thinking of a balanced out team for Standard play.
So, any comments? Suggestions? Advice?
Changes in italics.
