Team StarSweeper! [OU RMT]

[Move_Zero]

Hey again, everyone! I've whipped up another team that's been doing fairly well so far, so I figured I'd upload it here for your viewing/flaming pleasure. I should also mention that this team won me second place at the TeamUber OU Tournament held on Saturday, Sept. 18th!



TEAM AT A GLANCE!

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The Run Down:

@ Colbur Berry
Levitate
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SpAtk)
8 HP, 140 Atk, 144 SpDef, 216 Spd
~Stealth Rock
~Taunt
~U-Turn
~Explosion

Taking the place of Suicide Aerodactyl, Azelf has come to be a far more reliable lead in that it can come back later in the battle and decimate anything with an Explosion coming off a base 125 Atk. Stealth Rock is self-explainatory, Taunt to prevent the opponent from setting up, U-Turn to get out of a bad situation, and Explosion to bitch-slap anyone stupid enough to stay in >:D

@ Choice Scarf
Levitate
Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)
252 Atk, 4 SpDef, 252 Spd
~Outrage
~Earthquake
~U-Turn
~ThunderPunch

My scout of the team. Lures out the physical walls while chasing away threats like Starmie and Tyranitar. Outrage and Earthquake for nearly unresisted coverage, U-Turn to hightail it out of a bad situation, and Fire Blast so the likes of Skarmory and Bronzong don't completely wall me. **EDIT**I've replaced Fire Blast with ThunderPunch to counter threats such as Gyarados and Starmie, while retaining the ability to hit Skarmory for SE damage.

@ Leftovers
Volt Absorb
Calm (+SpDef, -Atk)
40 HP, 216 Def, 252 SpDef
~Thunder Wave
~Confuse Ray
~Thunderbolt
~Ice Beam

Ah, the old ParaFusion set. With Staraptor drawing in Electric- and Ice-Type attacks like a magnet, I needed a specially defensive pokemon that could withstand such an assault. I was originally using Starmie in this spot, but it made my team Zapdos weak, so I switched it out for Lanturn and never looked back. Lanturn and Staraptor fit together like a glove, with Lanturn taking hits like a champ and slowing down switch-ins so Star could blow through them later. Confuse Ray for added haxiness, Thunderbolt for STAB, and Ice Beam to hit the likes of Gliscor and Zapdos harder.

@ Shed Shell
Sturdy
Relaxed (+Def, -Spd)
252 HP, 110 Atk, 146 Def
~Spikes
~Rapid Spin
~Payback/Gyro Ball
~Explosion/Gyro Ball

My second entry hazard layer and Rapid Spinner, Forretress ensures Staraptor's sweep isn't ended early by residual damage. Spikes are used in place of Toxic Spikes because they allow for more immediate damage, Rapid Spin is self-explainatory, Payback for damage (mostly for the Rotom-As and other Ghosts), and Explosion to give anything trying to set up a giant middle-finger. I'm cosidering replacing one of my attacks with Gyro Ball to hit Tyranitar harder, as the only other Poke on my team that can is Staraptor's Close Combat.

@ Choice Scarf
Magnet Pull
Naive (+Spd, -SpDef)
4 Atk, 252 SpAtk, 252 Spd
~Thunderbolt
~Hidden Power [Fire]
~Flash Cannon
~Explosion

Magneton has arguably the most important job of my team: making sure Steel-types don't ruin my day. As 1/2 of Staraptors moves are resisted by the likes of Skarmory, Bronzong, and Jirachi, I needed a Poke that could take them out as quickly as possible. Thunderbolt for STAB, HP [Fire] for Scizor and Forretress, Flash Cannon for filler, and Explosion to poo on my opponent's parade. **EDIT** I've replaced Magnezone with its preevolution, Magenton, so it could outspeed threats like LO Starmie.

@ Life Orb
Intimidate
Jolly (+Spd, -SpAtk)
252 Atk, 4 Def, 252 Spd
~Brave Bird
~Close Combat
~Return
~Roost/U-Turn

The 'Star' of my show, Staraptor's amazing attack and decent speed, coupled with its ability, make it a candidate for late-game sweeper. Brave Bird coming off a Base 120 Attack hurts everything, whether it resists it or not, Close Combat to hit Steel-types harder, Return for non-recoil STAB, and Roost to heal off any damage Star might've sustained in the course of sweeping. I'm thinking of switching out Roost with U-Turn, but without a wishpasser to aid my team, I'll probably leave the moveset just the way it is.


And so, this is my team. Any criticisms/flames/suggestions/etc. are welcome!

 

[Move_Zero]

Reserved for threat list!

 

[ginganinja]

Hey its a nice team however I don't like that you have no spin blocker and yet run spikes. Personally I woud just drop forretress for a Raopid Spinner LO Starmie since that way you can 2KO most spinblckers and spin more easily. You do lose out on spikrd. If this is distastful then I guess a Rotom can work over Lanturn but you get slightly more vulnerable to stuff liike SubTran then.

Have a Nice Day!

 

[Faladran]

Notable Problems

• Lead Machamp

More of an annoyance than a threat, but Machamp leads can prove a bit troublesome to this team, especially when used by a competent player. Aerodactyl will of course by 2HKO'd promptly by Dynamic/Ice Punch and Bullet Punch. Staraptor can check it, but opponents can always switch out Machamp and bring it back in at full health to start firing off more attacks later in the game.

• Gyarados

I'm going to admit that Earthquake is rare for most Gyarados to run in the current metagame, but those that do (offensive versions are more likely) will be rather difficult for you to play around. Magnezone won't outspeed a +1 Gyarados even with a Choice Scarf, and Lanturn isn't bulky enough to take a boosted Earthquake.

Suggestions

• Switch Aerodactyl

I'd recommend using a different lead in Aerodactyl's place. The problem with using Aerodactyl is that it basically only Taunts, sets up Stealth Rock, and then dies. This can be problematic in the current metagame, in which anti-leads have become more popular. Probably the best replacement would be a simple Colbur Azelf:

Azelf @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 8 HP / 140 Atk / 144 SpD / 216 Spe
Jolly nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Explosion
- U-Turn

The EVs and berry will allow you to survive any of Machamp's attacks in addition to a Bullet Punch, leaving you free to set up Stealth Rock and then use Explosion on it. Taunt still shuts down slower leads' attempts at setting up, and U-Turn allows you to escape from unfavorable match-ups.

• Use Thunderpunch on Flygon

Very minor change here, but I feel that you have opposing Skarmory and Forretress well-covered with Magnezone, and those two Pokemon are the only reason that Flygon uses Fire Blast. Thunderpunch will give you way to revenge kill any Gyarados that attempt to sweep you.


Good luck with your team!

 

[Move_Zero]

@ginganinja:Thx for the reply, but the reason I stopped using Starmie the first time was because my team was weak to Electric-types--most notably Zapdos and (still) the Rotom-As. Still, I could use another Special Attacker, considering my team's mostly physical.

@Faladran: Thank you for the advice; I'll try putting Azelf in the lead spot to see how it does. As for putting T-Punch on Flygon, should I go with Choice Band to do more damage since my entire moveset is physical, or should I keep the scarf to outspeed the likes of Starmie?

 

[Faladran]

I'd suggest keeping the Scarf. The extra speed is really useful for revenge killing and outspeeding threats like Starmie, as you mentioned.

 

[Move_Zero]

Do the bump!