The Dark Horse Project (HUGE Update Post #121)

Status
Not open for further replies.
Pokemon Online Username: All Hail Da King2
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: 5/6 of my team members are Dark Horses so I'd like some help as to whether this is allowed.(Froslass, Abomasnow, Poliwrath, Jynx, Mamoswine).
Current Ladder Standing: 1000

I'll edit this when I get an answer on if I'm allowed to use 5 DH Pokes. Reason being is the team really blends(I tested it on All Hail Da King first forgot to register :( ). Any help on this is appreciated.
 

a fairy

is a Tournament Directoris a Site Content Manageris a Community Leaderis a Community Contributoris a Smogon Discord Contributoris a Contributor to Smogonis a Top Smogon Media Contributoris a Dedicated Tournament Hostis a Social Media Contributor Alumnus
Community Leader
Pokemon Online Username: White Horse
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Deoxys-D
Current Ladder Standing: 1000
 

alexwolf

lurks in the shadows
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
Pokemon Online Username: Grassy Solitude
Hall of Fame Standing: none
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Tangrowth, Deoxys-D, Cobalion
Current Ladder Standing: 1000
 

Pokemon Online Username:
TehEpicTurtle
Hall of Fame Standing:
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Hippodown!
Current Ladder Standing:
1000 - > 1105 - > 1205 -> 1380

Hippodown Set:

@ Leftovers
Nature: Impish
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs:248 HP/252 Def/8 Sp. Def
-Stealth Rocks
-Earthquake
-Slack Off
-Roar

Going at a slow pace, but I'm having fun!

Who needs Tyranitar when you got Hippodown!

How did you choose your Dark Horse Pokemon for this project? Honesting, I was team building one day, and I wanted to include Terrakion on my team (before everyone used it, I was hipster mang!). Tyranitar and Terrakion just was too prone to getting defeated by Scizor and Conkeldurr,
so I considered Hippodown. After using Hippodown, I simply loved him/her so much and it's one of my main weather abusers now! When this project opened, I wanted to try Hippodown as it was a Pokemon which I felt comfortable with.

How did you go about building a team for your Dark Horse Pokemon? Which kinds of teammates did you consider? What factors contributed to the team you created?


Do you think it is more difficult or less difficult to ladder with a Dark Horse Pokemon? Why? Does the element of surprise play a factor in your battles? Is it easier to fight with a "highly used"" team or with Pokemon that are less common?

I feel my Dark Horse Pokemon made games more interesting and more difficult. The thing is, people remember Hippodown from 4th gen, so their really isn't a surprise factor, but it feels good hitting a Dragonite with Ice Fang when they don't expect it. Tyranitar would make it easier to laddering for it ends matches quicker, but Hippodown would make the game based more on MY skill and not just using a SE move to kill something. But that doesn't change anything, for using a "highly used" team doesn't necessarily mean its easier to fight, a lot of the highly used teams are heavily based around prediction (explaining why they go so high in the ladder) because if one just makes a team that relies little on prediction, it can go high, but it will be extremely hard to peak when you get into the high tier section of the ladder.


(For Hall of Fame members only) How did you reach the Hall of Fame? Was it easy or difficult? Did having a Dark Horse Pokemon on your team benefit you? What advice would you give to those laddering with Dark Horse Pokemon?

I just laddered causally, I watched Youtube videos while laddering to pass time and overall just had a fun time. It was neither easy or difficult, it felt it was the perfect difficulty for me. My Dark Horse Pokemon benefited me and basically held my team together (it's a sand team the focuses on Rotom-W spreading T-Wave so Hippodown can actually outspeed stuff and Substitute Terrakion w/ Rock Gem can hit 110 speeds and + without losing its sub). My advice would be 1. don't continue laddering when your going in a downward spiral. You often lose your spot when you lose one game and it makes you mad, dis-focusing you in the next game, causing you to lose that one and ect. 2. Switch your teammates up, for example, when I was at the 1000-1200 range, I used Jirachi and Latias, but once I got to 1200+, I switched them for Scizor and Celebi. Early in the ladder, I feel as though people don't focus on momentum and more on sweeps/stall. Once you go on in the later, a lot more people use Volt-Turn, so using your own Volt-Turn will make matches 75% less annoying. Really, this challenge is just for fun and don't make a real big deal of it!


I stopped at 1380, I simply stopped, for I couldn't find any matches =(. I think I mean go higher, or I might just stop here, chillax and go higher another day.
 

Molk

Godlike Usmash
is a Top Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
ill try this again!

Pokemon Online Username: Molk
Hall of Fame Standing: none
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Quagsire
Current Ladder Standing: 1000

decided to change my forum name, and will probably try and see how well i can do in OU!
 

Lockeness

(e^(i╥))+1=0
Pokemon Online Username: 2400
Dark Horse Pokemon: Latias
Screenshot of Top 80 Ladder Ranking:




Dark Horse Pokemon Complete Set:

Latias
4 HP/252 Spec. Att./252 Speed
Timid @Leftovers
-Dragon Pulse
-Hidden Power Fire
-Surf
-Calm Mind

This set has served me very well. Most of the time people forget that Latias can run an offensive calm mind set with an emphasis in flat out attacking. On the ladder this set can both absorb hits and fire back with some very powerful Super Effective and Neutral attacks. Latias is excellent in Sun or Rain, and its Special Defense has been a great help in balancing my teams more physical core. In some respects Latias is a whole lot better than its counterpart- Latios. The drop in Special Attack is off putting, but Latias still boasts base 110 Spec. Att. and great speed. One of the most important lessons I have learned on my way up the ladder is to think before I act.

Off the cuff battling seldomly works well because of the emotional and psychological battling. The key to laddering effectively with any team especially one with a Dark Horse Pokemon is to stay focused on the game. Also- never, ever ladder while in Tilt. If you find yourself frustrated or angry and ragequitting you need to stop before you seriously damage your momentum on the ladder.
 

Stratos

Banned deucer.
I threw in a Zapdos and a Roserade on my Slowbro team...

do i have to restart with a new alt or can i keep powering on?
 

alexwolf

lurks in the shadows
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
Pokemon Online Username: Grassy Solitude
Hall of Fame Standing: none
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Tangrowth, Deoxys-D
Current Ladder Standing: 1000 ---> 1289 ---> 1329

I also dropped Cobalion.
 
This is my new post for my old Dark Horse from last month/thread.

Pokemon Online Username: Nick Gastly
Dark Horse Pokemon: Chandelure
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Current Ladder Standing: 1028
Current set in use:

Chandelure (F) @ Leftovers Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 20 Def / 252 SAtk / 236 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Fire Blast
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Fighting]

Scizor (M) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- U-turn
- Iron Head
- Superpower
- Aerial Ace


Rotom-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 112 HP / 252 SAtk / 144 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Pain Split


Landorus (M) @ Expert Belt
Trait: Sand Force
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naive Nature (+Spd, -SDef)
- Earthquake
- Smack Down
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- U-turn


Terrakion @ Life Orb
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Rock Polish
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge


Forretress (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SDef
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Rapid Spin
- Spikes
- Stealth Rock
- Volt Switch


Same name, same Dark Horse, brand new Volt-Switch team. I foresee issues with Deo-D, but we'll see.
 
Alright I'm ditching Hippowdon, curse you 102 ranking to never rise again!

My new Dark horse is a personal favorite of mine, hopefully he will see the light of day again: Swampert

[pimg]260[/pimg]
Swampert @ Leftovers
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 216 Def / 52 SDef
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Rest

Pokemon Online Username: PillsburyDoughBoy A3
Hall of Fame Standing: None
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Swampert
Current Ladder Standing: None
 

Lady Alex

Mew is blue
is a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
yay, made it to top 80 again. Updated my post with the screenshot. I'll post my team after I finish laddering with it.
 

Lady Alex

Mew is blue
is a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
yay, made it to top 80 again. Updated my post with the screenshot. I'll post my team after I finish laddering with it.
bleh, didn't mean to double post.

EDIT: Ladder update



EDIT EDIT: Final ladder update (started dropping after this lol)

 
Pokemon Online Username: Ranger Cyan
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Hitmontop, Steelix, Empoleon
Current Ladder Standing: 1118
 

alphatron

Volt turn in every tier! I'm in despair!
You're joining? Who's your dark horse going to be? All the volt turn pokes have above five percent usage. =P
 

Stratos

Banned deucer.
hi there!



Mienshao @ Life Orb
Jolly
Regenerator
252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 HP
-Fake Out
-Hi Jump Kick
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-U-turn

Slowbro @ Leftovers
Bold
Regenerator
252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
-Slack Off
-Scald
-Ice Beam
-Thunder Wave

Heatran @ Leftovers
Calm
Flash Fire
248 HP / 100 Spe / 160 SpD
-Lava Plume
-Will-O-Wisp
-Roar
-Protect

Zapdos @ Leftovers
Timid
Pressure
252 Spe / 64 SpD / 192 HP
-Thunderbolt
-Hidden Power [Ice]
-Roost
-Substitute

Donphan @ Leftovers
Adamant
Sturdy
252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
-Stealth Rock
-Rapid Spin
-Earthquake
-Fire Fang

Roserade @ Black Sludge
Bold
Natural Cure
252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
-Sleep Powder
-Giga Drain
-Toxic Spikes
-Rest


How did you choose your Dark Horse Pokemon for this project? What lead you to choose the Pokemon you did? Did you have regrets or were you happy with your selection?

Well, I've got this really simple two-part philosophy when it comes to Pokemon: A) always use the best mons and cores on your teams, and B) usage stats mean jack shit.

People seem to think the Dark Horse Project is about finding a way to break 1350 with gimmicks, and frankly I just didn't approach it that way. I figured I would make a good solid team that happened to have underappreciated Pokemon, and to me Slowbro has always been such a gem. If I had it my way, I wouldn't be posting here now, because he shouldn't be a Dark Horse.

How did you go about building a team for your Dark Horse Pokemon? Which kinds of teammates did you consider? What factors contributed to the team you created?

The first thing I started by doing when I made my current team was go "hey mienshao and Slowbro are two really underrated mons." I didn't care how much or little they worked together, I loved them, and by god they would both be on my team. Next, I began looking for Slowbro's perfect match. It basically had to be Steel or Fighting, because the Bro wanted Bug and Dark resists. It had to be specially defensive. That left Heatran. I never looked back.

After finding my first three, I went on Marriland Team Builder and fiddled around. I needed a Water resist for Rain Teams and I needed a Scarfer. Hydreigon covered both of these, and could counter ScRotom in a pinch. I needed a Spinner and an Electric resist, so Donphan was my man. I went offensive because I don't like a mon with base 120 Atk pussyfooting around, and besides, Slowbro could take anything. Donphan could also set Rocks, which let Heatran run Roar instead, which would prove so god damn helpful against set up sweepers. Last, I needed a Rotom counter that could get back HP and so I went to Celebi. The astute observer will notice that this is the team I used in my Warstory vs Taylor.

However, it was imperfect. Specifically, Gengar and VolTurn are assholes. So after some stimulating forum discussion I switched Celebi for my own homebrew VolTurn fucker and by God Roserade is good. This allowed me as well to switch toxic for WoW on Tran. Also, I took out Hydreigon for the more defense-oriented Zapdos, who still packs a punch, without being a wuss. Now this team has problems with fastmons, specifically Gengar and Tornadus. However, two days after these changes I went from sub-1200 to Hall of Famer, so read into that what you will. It's just a shame only Slowbro gets the glory. EXPECT AN RMT SHORTLY.

Also, after my achievement, to celebrate I cleverly snuck "bro" into each of my mons' names, so if you're laddering and you see that, look at the name.

Do you think it is more difficult or less difficult to ladder with a Dark Horse Pokemon? Why? Does the element of surprise play a factor in your battles? Is it easier to fight with a "highly used"" team or with Pokemon that are less common?

As I've said before, for me the challenge had nothing to do with usage. 1300 was something I'd never broken in my life, Dark Horse or no Dark Horse. This was just about making the best team possible, and anyway, Slowbro is hardly surprising.

That said, after adding in Zapdos and Roserade there was a definite element of "what are these mons" in some of my opponents, but out of kindness I'll attribute that to my unconventional set rather than incompetence.

How did you reach the Hall of Fame? Was it easy or difficult? Did having a Dark Horse Pokemon on your team benefit you? What advice would you give to those laddering with Dark Horse Pokemon?

Patience. This bears repeating so: patience patience patience. For one, the teambuilding / threat spotting / adjusting process cannot be rushed, or you will find yourself making a worse team sometimes rather than better. As is, I know my team is far from perfect - Donphan, for one, is terrible, and I play Zapdos like an imbecile. But I know that every change I've made (possibly excepting WoW on Tran) has made it stronger.

Reaching top 80 was quite possibly the toughest POKEMON RELATED thing I have honestly done in my life, and toward the end of my climb I can cite multiple times I almost shit myself. I kid you not when I say that every time I lost a battle, I would exit PO. I was that cautious of tilt. Eventually, though, I did make it. Nothing gives you quite as much pride as hitting that milestone with a team designed, engineered, and played solely by you.
 
Well, congrats to PWN, pretty similair team to mine, Rade's a nice touch though,

Pokemon Online Username: Plas-bad
Hall of Fame: YES!
Dark Horse Pokemon: Eelektross
Current Ladder Standing: 1352!

Updated!
 
I inadvertently have reached the top 65 with 7 alts, 5 of which utilized at least one Dark Horse mon in every battle. Am i still eligible as a hall of famer even though i did not indicate my project here?
 

Cicada

soul reaver
is a Tiering Contributoris a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Past WCoP Champion
Pokemon Online Username: The White Horse.
Dark Horse Pokemon: Feraligatr
Current Ladder Standing: (20:38:39) *** You are not ranked in Standard OU yet!
Dark Horse Pokemon Complete Set:

Feraligatr (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Aqua Jet
- Ice Punch
- Superpower
- Swords Dance
 

Lady Alex

Mew is blue
is a Tiering Contributor Alumnus
I inadvertently have reached the top 65 with 7 alts, 5 of which utilized at least one Dark Horse mon in every battle. Am i still eligible as a hall of famer even though i did not indicate my project here?
I don't think so, but you would have to ask birkal.
 
Pokemon Online Username: DBR
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Porygon2
Current Ladder Standing: 1114



Porygon2 @ Eviolite
Trait: Trace
EVs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Discharge
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
- Recover
 
Hello ladies and gentlemen, here am I again, and I am extremely proud to announce that:

Spinda made it to the top-80!


Proof:


This time, laddering was way harder that the first time, as people don't laugh when they see Spinda on the team preview. Thus, I have even sweeped all my opponent's six pokes with Spinda when laddering. Maybe I should make a RMT?

EDIT: Peaked #60 so far.




 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 0)

Top