SM OU The Dusty Flames [Peak 2046]

QuickBH · Jul 16, 2017

The Dusty Flames
A SuMo OU RMT

I’ll be honest, I'm not a big fan of SuMo. There are way too many Pokemon that are quite frankly absolute bs and make SuMo unenjoyable. These Pokemon include, but are not limited to, Zygarde, Landorus-T, Zygarde, Greninja, Zygarde, Mega Mawile, Zygarde, Dugtrio, and Zygarde. The lack of risk and the amount of reward for these Pokemon are absolutely insane, and thanks to the fact that defensive options have been nerfed due to Z moves along with metagame changes, (i.e. Aegislash ban) I honestly haven’t been enjoying it, which is why I don’t play often. Recently I’ve been interested again, and of course, I had to build a team based off of Infernape.

TEAM BUILDING PROCESS:

This is the team I made pre-Aegislash ban. I put Infernape as your typical bulky offense breaker, Latios as a great answer to bulky waters and a Defogger. Aegislash as a pursuit trapper and an overall answer for many of the Pokemon in the meta which allowed me to open up my defensive options without being too clustered. Gliscor was an amazing stallbreaker at this point in the meta and thus went with him. Tangrowth is for bulky grounds, and finally, I ran Unaware Clefable as a Stealth Rocker that beat Charizard X.

I made this modern rendition to try to replace the defensive utility and momentum Aegislash provided. I put Sp.D Skarmory as a means to set up Spikes and gain momentum, being a pivot for Landorus-T, and being an overall solid glue. I ran Tyranitar as a Pursuit trapper who also filled Clefable’s role. Lastly, I decided to put Excadrill because of fairies and quite frankly it made 0 sense not to put him in. He also provided another form of speed control due to Sand Rush.

TEAM SHOWCASE:

Infernape (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 168 Atk / 132 SpA / 208 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Fire Blast
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge / Earthquake
- Mach Punch

Infernape is back in this gen, and overall he functions the same. He’s still an excellent wallbreaker, who typically gets free KOs against bulky offensive teams due to how strong Fire / Fighting coverage is. The EVs are designed to outspeed Garchomp while being able to break through bulkier mons like Clefable, Mew, and M-Sableye with sandstorm damage and hazards with Fire Blast. Mach Punch is great utility, beating common Pokemon like M-Lopunny, Greninja, and overall revenge kill. Stone Edge nukes Charizard Y and hits Pelipper and Mantine hard as well. However, Earthquake allows Infernape to beat Toxapex after Stealth Rocks and Spikes, making him even scarier against Stall. Naive can be used in terms of nature, but I prefer Hasty as Infernape often ends up switching in against Heatran and Charizard Y. Also, he can tank a Scald from Toxapex, getting Infernape into Blaze range. Speaking of Blaze, it is used over Iron Fist due to how hard it nukes any stall Pokemon, and with hazards support, the small boost Iron Fist provides is unnecessary.

Latios @ Soul Dew
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt
- Recover

A great Pokemon overall who helps out against any playstyle due to his solid defensive typing and the ability to drop some powerful Draco Meteors. Latios’ natural bulk allows it to function as a natural check to many bulky waters, as he's able to even take Ice Beams from Specs Greninja and Moonblasts from Tapu Fini and Clefable. Soul Dew and Recover are used to help maintain this great attribute, as the ability to restore HP and not get whittled down allow Latios to tank said hits and win 1v1 vs Pokemon like Tapu Koko and the aforementioned Greninja. Psyshock is a great overall STAB with no real downsides and is optimal against Pokemon like Zapdos, and others who can potentially stall you out of Draco Meteors. Thunderbolt is specifically for Celesteela, and lets you hit Tapu Fini slightly harder.

Skarmory (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 248 SpD / 8 Spe
Careful Nature
- Roost
- Spikes
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind

Despite Celesteela being an option, Skarmory is more preferable as my answer for psychics, fairies, and overall special defensive wall due to his ability to set up Spikes, as well as removing my opponents’ momentum via Whirlwind makes Skarmory a great shuffler, stopping set ups from the likes of Magearna and almost anything thanks to Sturdy. The shuffling also causes tons of hazards damage to further the chip. Skarmory does notoriously well against stall since it can absolutely PP stall Sableye out of Recovers and practically everything else used in that playstyle for that matter. Against more offensive teams, Skarmory is able to set up Spikes on the likes of Magearna, Landorus-T, (provided you scout out the Z move) Tangrowth, and is extremely useful for keeping alive because of this.

Tyranitar (M) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 80 Def / 180 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Pursuit
- Crunch
- Stone Edge

Two words. Insanely durable. Mega Tyranitar can tank 2 Hydro Pumps from Specs Greninja, and every other special attacker who lacks fighting coverage does jack. (Even Fightinium Z Tapu Lele can’t OHKO) Also, the defense EVs allowing you to tank Subzero Slammers from Kyurem-B as well as 2 Earthquakes from defensive Chomp. Due to this, he is easily able to provide sand as well as Stealth Rocks for the team. Thanks to the speed increase, he easily beats rain due to the fact that he outspeeds Pelipper while being slower than it turn 1. Pursuit allows you to trap Psychics like Hoopa-U, Tapu Lele, and Latios, but it also allows Tyranitar to heavily whittle down the aforementioned Greninja as well as Pokemon like Tapu Koko and Mega Manectric, allowing Tyranitar to chip out opponents for Infernape or Excadrill. Crunch gives you a consistent STAB, while Stone Edge lets you beat Charizard X, Volcarona, and anything else Stone Edge is super effective against.

Excadrill (M) @ Steelium Z
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rapid Spin
- Swords Dance

Amazing offensive STABs among with natural bulk makes Excadrill an excellent revenge killer and cleaner. A vast majority of the meta doesn’t appreciate taking Earthquake and Iron Head, and even the ones that do (i.e. Landorus-T, Skarmory, Celesteela, Zapdos) does not enjoy a boosted Corkscrew Crush. Adamant ensures this, allowing Excadrill to beat through Pokemon like Landorus-T significantly earlier than with a Jolly nature, with the speed investment to ensure that you outspeed Scarf Latios after Sand Rush. The remaining bulk allows you to live a +6 Shadow Sneak from Mimikyu, and gives Excadrill a bit more leniency to go for Rapid Spin to remove hazards, and with sand, Excadrill can safely remove hazards to help out whenever your win condition really can’t afford to be taking hazards damage.

Tangrowth (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SpD / 8 Spe
Relaxed Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Tangrowth is amazing. It’s no wonder why this Pokemon is one of the most common when he can handle so much of the metagame. Bulky waters, Zygarde, Landorus-T, (if Flynium Z has been used up) Ferrothorn, and the vast majority of physical attackers genuinely fear this Pokemon. The EVs allow Tangrowth to take some insane stuff, such as a +2 U-Turn from Mega Scizor and a Return from Mega Pinsir. Tangrowth has many utility options, with Knock Off typically removing defensive items from the likes of Magearna, Mew, and Clefable, allowing Infernape and Latios to have an easier time cleaning through. Most importantly, however, Sleep Powder allows Tangrowth to not be set up bait by any means, as any Pokemon that can handle Tangrowth will fall victim to a Sleep Powder, allowing this team to get much safer switch-ins and provide this team plenty of momentum. Thanks to Regenerator, Tangrowth is a durable tank who can afford to easily abuse Rocky Helmet damage to take U-turns, hits from the likes of Mega Lopunny, becoming very effective at creating chip damage that pressures the opponent very hard.

REPLAYS:

I saved some of the plenty solid matches I had with this team. There is no better way to know how the team works other than to see it yourself!

CONCLUSION:

This team has been very successful and I’m very glad to have made it. It’s a fun team that has answers to all the insanity without being too crazy itself; requiring you to have solid knowledge and even make some risky plays. Thank you for reading. I wish you all a nice day!

Proof

SHOUT-OUTS:

Thanks for my friends at the Neforox League and Pokemon Central for making a metagame I honestly find painful to play entertaining.

Reymedy : Couldn’t have done this without having an effective tutor who helped with many of my confidence issues. Also, unintentionally got me interested in Guilty Gear.

BReady : Really chill dude I met while laddering. A fun dude who’s given me helpful advice on the team as well!

IMPORT:

Olympus (Infernape) (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 168 Atk / 132 SpA / 208 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Fire Blast
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Mach Punch

Jordan (Latios) @ Soul Dew
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt
- Recover

White Falcon (Skarmory) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 248 SpD / 8 Spe
Careful Nature
- Roost
- Spikes
- Brave Bird
- Whirlwind

Brutalitar (Tyranitar) (M) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 80 Def / 180 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
- Crunch

Doryuuzu (Excadrill) (M) @ Steelium Z
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rapid Spin
- Swords Dance

De Counter (Tangrowth) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 40 SpD / 8 Spe
Relaxed Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder
- Hidden Power [Ice]

QuickBH · Jul 16, 2017

THREAT LIST:
(also mini rant)

- Having to risk sacking something on a Pokemon who can do so many things and provide so much momentum is fun. It's nice when you have 2 Pokemon that should be hard counters to it but you still risk losing because Z moves. Shuffle between Skarmory and Tangrowth to force off Z moves, or try to spam roost with Skarm and showcase Whirlwind to force potential Rockium Z. Any other set is fair and fine.

- I miss Aegislash. Chip it away, Skarmory can tank a Thunderbolt and Roost away. Excadrill and Infernape do wonders against this if there's no Shift Gear boost. Tangrowth can barely take a Fleur Cannon if you absolutely need to Sleep Powder.

- Sacking something just so you don't get 6-0d by a ridiculously brainless Pokemon is always fun. Get Tangrowth out and try to Sleep Powder or spam Giga Drain and get it into Mach Punch range. Whirlwind with Skarm if Tangrowth is too low. Getting hazards damage on this thing is amazing as it avoids Tyranitar or Latios from being setup fodder.

- Having to risk sacking something just to figure out its set is always fun. Tyranitar can tank 2 Hydro Pumps if not Ash, so chip it out. Skarm can tank anything minus Specs Hydro's as well, making it a decent way to figure out what it's carrying. If Ash Gren, keep Latios, Skarmory, or Tangrowth around late game so it's pressured against Water Shuriken.

- Having an insane amount of pressure and allowing it to force kills without any sort of mind games is always fun. Tyranitar can live a Reversal and a Z-Earthquake. Infernape doesn't care about this thing if it's at 65%. Most of the time don't have Infernape, Excadrill, or Tyranitar out if you need one of them as your win condition and they aren't able to beat it. (For reference, Tyranitar beats it at full, Infernape beats it at around 66%, and Excadrill wins if Sand is up.)

- Don't you love when you only have 6 Pokemon to handle so many Pokemon in the metagame and you have to deal with a Pokemon that forces you to have a bulky grass or you auto lose because it has one of the most busted moves in the game? Not only that, but that Pokemon STILL has options on how to deal with said answers thanks to how insanely strong its bulk is, and its ability to say screw counters and run a Z move? This Pokemon is without a doubt the most cancerous thing I've ever seen in OU, the only way to beat this thing is to keep Tangrowth alive 24/7. Skarmory can tank one Thousand Arrow if you absolutely need hazards or to get this thing out of there, and can also be used to stomach a Z-Outrage.

NinNoah · Jul 18, 2017

So, I've been using this team recently, and it's really enjoyable. Your bulky Tyranitar set is great. But I have one suggestion, I've been testing your team with Life Orb All-Out Attacker Greninja (with Low Kick), and it's just a lot better than Infernape, being able to outspeed and OHKO Dugtrio, and hit Zygarde with Ice Beam. This takes care of multiple of your teams' threats, and doesn't lose out on anything. Other than that, I really really like this team.

QuickBH · Jul 18, 2017

NinNoah said:
So, I've been using this team recently, and it's really enjoyable. Your bulky Tyranitar set is great. But I have one suggestion, I've been testing your team with Life Orb All-Out Attacker Greninja (with Low Kick), and it's just a lot better than Infernape, being able to outspeed and OHKO Dugtrio, and hit Zygarde with Ice Beam. This takes care of multiple of your teams' threats, and doesn't lose out on anything. Other than that, I really really like this team.

Thank you for the suggestion! However, I notice that my team struggles more vs the likes of Magearna, opposing Greninja, M-Lop, and other Pokemon which priority is extremely useful. Without Infernape, Excadrill is put way too much pressure on being speed control and can be abused. Greninja actually doesn't help me too much besides the fact that being faster than Dug means I have to ignore its craziness, and there's just the fact that I find Greninja is one of the braindead mons that is absolutely killing my fun for this game.

Glad you're enjoying the team! I can totally see where you're coming from, Greninja is a generally safe pick who forces so much out of doing so little. However, in my playstyle he doesn't exactly fulfill the niches I need personally.

King Sceptile · Jul 18, 2017

This build seems alright, but you almost have to run Assault Vest Tangrowth to prevent the team from getting overwhelmed by offensive waters like Keldeo and Ash Greninja.

Tinberz · Jul 19, 2017

Hi. Nice team.

Here are a few changes I can think of:

Scarf > Soul Dew; HP Fire > Thunderbolt
Your only speed control is Driller, and it needs sand. This means if they have a fast mon up that you need to outspeed you either sack TTar or click x. Scarf allows you to revenge kill threats or scare them out, while pretty much still doing what it needs to do. Soul Dew is kinda shit anyway. HP Fire is nice to hit things like Ferrothorn, MZor, SG Mage, and still hits Celesteela decently. I'll keep Recover cus you don't need extra coverage nor Defog and Recover could potentially help you bluff your set. It also keeps you durable, allowing you to switch into shit more consistently.

AV > PhysDef
You need AV really badly to actually have a chance against AGren and Koko. Honestly, it still checks pretty much the same physical threats as PhysDef Tang, since with z-stones, physical attackers that couldn't get past it have a chance now.

PhysDef > SpDef; Shed Shell > Lefties
With the previous change, you don't need SpDef Skarm as much now. It's worth noting that Mawile's the best Fairy type besides Clef, and you're still gonna be in a long battle with Clef, so PhysDef is probably the way to go. It helps against shit like MLop, MPinsir, and MHera too. Shed Shell > Lefties too cus Skarm's a big part of your defensive core and you don't want it ruined by a magnet.

Ice Beam > Crunch
I feel like Ice Beam is better, even with a Careful nature, so that Zygardes don't randomly DD and Landos don't come in for free. Helps with Nape's breaking and a potential Driller sweep too.

Here are the sets:

Latios @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Recover
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake

Skarmory @ Shed Shell
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Roost
- Whirlwind
- Spikes
- Brave Bird

Tyranitar @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 248 HP / 80 Def / 180 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Pursuit
- Ice Beam
- Stone Edge

Hope I helped, thanks for reading, and have a nice day! n_n

SM OU The Dusty Flames [Peak 2046]

QuickBH

QuickBH

NinNoah

QuickBH

King Sceptile

Banned deucer.

Tinberz

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