This is the first RMT I've ever posted on Smogon, so pardon any potential formatting disasters--I'll have 'em fixed up quickly. I'd consider myself a very seasoned player with competitive Pokemon overall, but I know very little about the specific threats to watch out for in gen 7 OU because I haven't gotten to put much time into it. As such, I'm coming here to hopefully expedite the process without destroying my ladder score.
Rotom-W / Nihilego / Tapu Lele / Metagross-M / Garchomp / Chansey
Teambuilding process:
To start, I really wanted to make Nihilego work. It's one of my favorite Pokemon design-wise from gen 7 (it's...so...BEAUTIFUL!), but I think it needs a team built around it to function optimally because of its common weaknesses, physical frailty and mediocre type coverage.
Nihilego is weak to Psychic, Ground 4x, Water, and Steel. Rotom resists Steel 4x, Water 2x, and is immune to Ground. Right off the bat, these two synergize pretty well, and you can bait a free switch-in for Rotom.
I went with a bulky Light Screen support Rotom to kick things off strongly. Nihilego's good uninvested special bulk suddenly becomes sponge material, which nets it quite a few switch-ins. I'm running it Scarfed to revenge kill +1 Charizards/base 100ers, and to potentially clean up once anything that resists it is gone.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground, Steel, Psychic
This core is almost too good not to use. Lele and Metagross provide an insane mixed offensive presence that blasts through almost anything. Blocking priority really helps Nihilego, who's weak to Bullet Punch and Aqua Jet, and ensures that our Scarfers will always be moving first.
Running a standard Scarf Lele + 4 attack Metagross. While two special Scarfers might be risky, it compensates for the lack of speed on the rest of the team, and Psychic Terrain is solid insurance.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison
I needed a Stealth Rocker and something to discourage clicking away on physical attacks, and this guy just so happens to double as a pretty powerful attacker in his own right. He also shares no weaknesses with the rest of the team, and everything he's weak to, Metagross can take with impunity.
I went with a bulky Rocky Helmet set to provide much-needed bulk on that end. He also can function as sacrifice material to wear down or finish off a weakened physical threat.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison, Ice, Dragon, Fairy
Building a team without mindlessly slapping Chansey on it is pretty tough. It brings so much to the table--namely, never dying, Ghost immunity, being able to switch into any special Pokemon for free, para support, consistent (albeit incremental) damage, and curing the entire team of status. That said, it's kind of redundant on a team with Light Screen and no indestructible physical walls like Skarmory or Ferrothorn.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison, Ice, Dragon, Fairy, Fighting
---
Movesets:
Rotom-Wash @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 104 Def / 92 SpD / 60 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Light Screen
- Hydro Pump
304/303/273 defenses to distribute the bulk around, speed to beat most bulky Landorus spreads. Definitely open to suggestions on the spread here. 3/4 of the moves are standard fare, but Light Screen is less conventional for sure. Garchomp and Metagross really appreciate some help taking special hits, and as previously mentioned, Nihilego becomes a lot scarier with nearly 600 SpD without investment since it can actually switch into stuff.
Having no recovery is tough, but I don't mind letting Rotom die if it gets me a Screen and a burn early game. Getting Light Screen up twice means 16 turns (14, really) of my team not caring about anything special, which means Rotom has more than pulled its weight. I'm considering Pain Split and/or Leftovers, but I really like this set, and it's managed to win me a ton of games so far.
Nihilego @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psychic
- Sludge Wave
- Power Gem
Troll speed alien jellyfish god. At first I was expecting this guy to be kinda terrible because of his paper-thin defense, multiple weaknesses to priority, and wonky typing (and no Earth Power, damn it), but it's actually insanely clutch. Psychic Terrain and Rotom-W are amazing partners for it, and the lategame cleaning potential is undeniable with 500+ Speed and SpA after Scarf + Beast Boost. It also nearly touches 600 SpD with Light Screen up and no investment, which complements its surprisingly high 359 HP phenomenally.
Double STAB should be self-explanatory--I've considered Sludge Bomb for hax, but the 5 extra BP can mean a Beast Boost when I might otherwise not get one. HP Fire is a necessity for Scizor/Ferrothorn/any pesky Steels. I have Psychic to piggyback off of Psychic Terrain even further, but having two attacks that can hit 0x is dangerous. Coverage options are limited for this guy, but I'm thinking about replacing Psychic with Thunderbolt. Grass Knot and Dazzling Gleam are also considerations, but I feel like hitting Skarmory/Celesteela harder than I could with HP Fire is important.
Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Ground]
Pretty basic set, but not sure on the coverage moves. I like HP Ground over Fire because I can snipe an unsuspecting Heatran, who's arguably the best switch-in to Lele right now, and I don't want to be redundant with Nihilego's HP Fire. I could, however, switch Nihilego to HP Ice and make Lele Fire. Shadow Ball helps with Metagross and Lele mirrors, and just hits for nice neutral damage as a safe read when you're not sure if they'll bring in a Steel or stay in.
I'm not sure if I like having two Choiced sweepers--it can back me into corners, but I haven't seen an alternative set for either Lele or Nihilego that I like. The Shed Shell Lele for getting out of Arena Trap is pretty cool, but it's slow and frail. Beating face is much more appealing. Plus, the rest of my team isn't exactly fast, so I think there's a lot of merit in two Scarfers. Probably most willing to change out the coverage moves rather than the item, but I'm open to anything.
Metagross @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Thunder Punch
- Zen Headbutt
- Earthquake
Another standard. Tempted to switch Thunder Punch for Ice Punch and/or Earthquake for Hammer Arm. The Speed drop really hurts, but it's not that hard to switch Metagross back in, especially with Light Screen up. Earthquake helps me win the mirror, but Hammer Arm helps me destroy Ferrothorn and Chansey. Ice Punch would fill a much-needed coverage gap in the team, so I'm starting to lean toward it, but Mantine/Pelipper/other Waters will become more annoying. Basically, if I switch it, I'm gonna have to add Thunderbolt to Nihilego or Lele.
Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 116 HP / 252 Atk / 140 Def
Naughty Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Claw
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Very unsure on the EV spread here, but I like the mix of durability and power. Moveset is pretty standard for a bulky Chomp. Maybe Fire Fang instead of Fire Blast, but I value being able to toast Skarmory/anything that's normally only prepared to take physical hits.
As mentioned in the teambuilding process section, I needed something to set Stealth Rock and also discourage the liberal usage of physical moves that would destroy Lele, Chansey, and Nihilego. Burn support from Rotom is a start, but making them take 30% per contact move is wildly useful. As long as my rocks have gone up, I can save Garchomp for sacrifice fodder to take something down with it.
I'm also not 100% convinced I want to keep Garchomp on my team at all, as Landorus-T looks like a better fit for my team for lots of reasons. Intimidate helps with my lack of physical bulk, I get a solid Volt-Turn core with Rotom going, Knock Off provides amazing utility, and I trade a few of Dragon's resistances for an immunity to Ground and Spikes. Losing Fire Blast and Dragon Claw coverage would be painful, but I could make a few other moveset switches to patch up the hole left by their absence.
Chansey @ Eviolite
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Soft-Boiled
- Aromatherapy
- Thunder Wave
- Seismic Toss
No surprises here. Chansey eats special hits for breakfast and never dies. Para support lets me wreak havoc with a non-Agility Metagross, Aromatherapy is a backup plan in case I get burned, and Seismic Toss is the most consistent damage I can get with this thing. I've considered Wish, but I'm not sure what I'd replace with it (probably AT). Being able to heal Metagross and Rotom is invaluable, especially if I'm running Rotom without Pain Split or Leftovers.
I kind of just lazily threw this thing on the team for the sake of avoiding repeat weaknesses and getting a Ghost immunity to back up my Psychics, but it's ended up working well. I feel like Chansey never doesn't work well, but I'm open to completely switching it out. Since I don't have a Defogger/Spinner nor a dedicated physical wall, I've thought about Skarmory instead--it appreciates the Light Screen boost way more than Chansey does, but Chansey also doesn't need Light Screen to invalidate special attackers. I don't want to have a second Fire weakness, either.
---
Weaknesses I'm already aware of:
-Physical Sweepers
This team doesn't have anything dedicated to taking physical hits. Best I can do is hope for a burn, play around with resistances/immunities and hope my opponent doesn't make the right read on the switch, let them hurt themselves on Garchomp, or use one of my Scarfers to pick up a revenge kill/force a switch. I could also gear Rotom's EV spread more toward defense.
Switching Garchomp to Landorus gives me Intimidate, which will also help. If I switch Chansey to Skarmory, I might find myself with the opposite problem, but at least I have Light Screen support.
-Entry Hazards
I hate wasting turns and moveslots on hazard removal, but my team's limited recovery options definitely leave me with something to be desired on that front. Swapping Chansey for Defog Skarmory would solve this problem, but I'm not entirely sold on that switch yet.
-Dark and Steel types
As a team with a Psychic offensive engine, I'm definitely going to encounter some problems with these type matchups.
---
Major considerations I'm mulling over:
Swapping Garchomp for Landorus
Swapping Chansey for Skarmory or something else that learns Defog/has more physical bulk
Changing the coverage moves on Nihilego, Tapu Lele, and Metagross
Changing Rotom's moveset in case Light Screen doesn't do enough
---
Thanks to everyone who bothers to drop some critique for this team! I really like the general idea and think it's got a lot of potential, but I know there are some glaring flaws, including plenty that I probably haven't even considered.
Rotom-W / Nihilego / Tapu Lele / Metagross-M / Garchomp / Chansey
Teambuilding process:
To start, I really wanted to make Nihilego work. It's one of my favorite Pokemon design-wise from gen 7 (it's...so...BEAUTIFUL!), but I think it needs a team built around it to function optimally because of its common weaknesses, physical frailty and mediocre type coverage.
Nihilego is weak to Psychic, Ground 4x, Water, and Steel. Rotom resists Steel 4x, Water 2x, and is immune to Ground. Right off the bat, these two synergize pretty well, and you can bait a free switch-in for Rotom.
I went with a bulky Light Screen support Rotom to kick things off strongly. Nihilego's good uninvested special bulk suddenly becomes sponge material, which nets it quite a few switch-ins. I'm running it Scarfed to revenge kill +1 Charizards/base 100ers, and to potentially clean up once anything that resists it is gone.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground, Steel, Psychic
This core is almost too good not to use. Lele and Metagross provide an insane mixed offensive presence that blasts through almost anything. Blocking priority really helps Nihilego, who's weak to Bullet Punch and Aqua Jet, and ensures that our Scarfers will always be moving first.
Running a standard Scarf Lele + 4 attack Metagross. While two special Scarfers might be risky, it compensates for the lack of speed on the rest of the team, and Psychic Terrain is solid insurance.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison
I needed a Stealth Rocker and something to discourage clicking away on physical attacks, and this guy just so happens to double as a pretty powerful attacker in his own right. He also shares no weaknesses with the rest of the team, and everything he's weak to, Metagross can take with impunity.
I went with a bulky Rocky Helmet set to provide much-needed bulk on that end. He also can function as sacrifice material to wear down or finish off a weakened physical threat.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison, Ice, Dragon, Fairy
Building a team without mindlessly slapping Chansey on it is pretty tough. It brings so much to the table--namely, never dying, Ghost immunity, being able to switch into any special Pokemon for free, para support, consistent (albeit incremental) damage, and curing the entire team of status. That said, it's kind of redundant on a team with Light Screen and no indestructible physical walls like Skarmory or Ferrothorn.
Total weaknesses:
Grass, Water, Ground x2, Steel x2, Psychic, Ghost x2, Dark, Fire, Poison, Ice, Dragon, Fairy, Fighting
---
Movesets:
Rotom-Wash @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 104 Def / 92 SpD / 60 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Light Screen
- Hydro Pump
304/303/273 defenses to distribute the bulk around, speed to beat most bulky Landorus spreads. Definitely open to suggestions on the spread here. 3/4 of the moves are standard fare, but Light Screen is less conventional for sure. Garchomp and Metagross really appreciate some help taking special hits, and as previously mentioned, Nihilego becomes a lot scarier with nearly 600 SpD without investment since it can actually switch into stuff.
Having no recovery is tough, but I don't mind letting Rotom die if it gets me a Screen and a burn early game. Getting Light Screen up twice means 16 turns (14, really) of my team not caring about anything special, which means Rotom has more than pulled its weight. I'm considering Pain Split and/or Leftovers, but I really like this set, and it's managed to win me a ton of games so far.
Nihilego @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psychic
- Sludge Wave
- Power Gem
Troll speed alien jellyfish god. At first I was expecting this guy to be kinda terrible because of his paper-thin defense, multiple weaknesses to priority, and wonky typing (and no Earth Power, damn it), but it's actually insanely clutch. Psychic Terrain and Rotom-W are amazing partners for it, and the lategame cleaning potential is undeniable with 500+ Speed and SpA after Scarf + Beast Boost. It also nearly touches 600 SpD with Light Screen up and no investment, which complements its surprisingly high 359 HP phenomenally.
Double STAB should be self-explanatory--I've considered Sludge Bomb for hax, but the 5 extra BP can mean a Beast Boost when I might otherwise not get one. HP Fire is a necessity for Scizor/Ferrothorn/any pesky Steels. I have Psychic to piggyback off of Psychic Terrain even further, but having two attacks that can hit 0x is dangerous. Coverage options are limited for this guy, but I'm thinking about replacing Psychic with Thunderbolt. Grass Knot and Dazzling Gleam are also considerations, but I feel like hitting Skarmory/Celesteela harder than I could with HP Fire is important.
Tapu Lele @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Shadow Ball
- Hidden Power [Ground]
Pretty basic set, but not sure on the coverage moves. I like HP Ground over Fire because I can snipe an unsuspecting Heatran, who's arguably the best switch-in to Lele right now, and I don't want to be redundant with Nihilego's HP Fire. I could, however, switch Nihilego to HP Ice and make Lele Fire. Shadow Ball helps with Metagross and Lele mirrors, and just hits for nice neutral damage as a safe read when you're not sure if they'll bring in a Steel or stay in.
I'm not sure if I like having two Choiced sweepers--it can back me into corners, but I haven't seen an alternative set for either Lele or Nihilego that I like. The Shed Shell Lele for getting out of Arena Trap is pretty cool, but it's slow and frail. Beating face is much more appealing. Plus, the rest of my team isn't exactly fast, so I think there's a lot of merit in two Scarfers. Probably most willing to change out the coverage moves rather than the item, but I'm open to anything.
Metagross @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Thunder Punch
- Zen Headbutt
- Earthquake
Another standard. Tempted to switch Thunder Punch for Ice Punch and/or Earthquake for Hammer Arm. The Speed drop really hurts, but it's not that hard to switch Metagross back in, especially with Light Screen up. Earthquake helps me win the mirror, but Hammer Arm helps me destroy Ferrothorn and Chansey. Ice Punch would fill a much-needed coverage gap in the team, so I'm starting to lean toward it, but Mantine/Pelipper/other Waters will become more annoying. Basically, if I switch it, I'm gonna have to add Thunderbolt to Nihilego or Lele.
Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 116 HP / 252 Atk / 140 Def
Naughty Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Claw
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Very unsure on the EV spread here, but I like the mix of durability and power. Moveset is pretty standard for a bulky Chomp. Maybe Fire Fang instead of Fire Blast, but I value being able to toast Skarmory/anything that's normally only prepared to take physical hits.
As mentioned in the teambuilding process section, I needed something to set Stealth Rock and also discourage the liberal usage of physical moves that would destroy Lele, Chansey, and Nihilego. Burn support from Rotom is a start, but making them take 30% per contact move is wildly useful. As long as my rocks have gone up, I can save Garchomp for sacrifice fodder to take something down with it.
I'm also not 100% convinced I want to keep Garchomp on my team at all, as Landorus-T looks like a better fit for my team for lots of reasons. Intimidate helps with my lack of physical bulk, I get a solid Volt-Turn core with Rotom going, Knock Off provides amazing utility, and I trade a few of Dragon's resistances for an immunity to Ground and Spikes. Losing Fire Blast and Dragon Claw coverage would be painful, but I could make a few other moveset switches to patch up the hole left by their absence.
Chansey @ Eviolite
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Soft-Boiled
- Aromatherapy
- Thunder Wave
- Seismic Toss
No surprises here. Chansey eats special hits for breakfast and never dies. Para support lets me wreak havoc with a non-Agility Metagross, Aromatherapy is a backup plan in case I get burned, and Seismic Toss is the most consistent damage I can get with this thing. I've considered Wish, but I'm not sure what I'd replace with it (probably AT). Being able to heal Metagross and Rotom is invaluable, especially if I'm running Rotom without Pain Split or Leftovers.
I kind of just lazily threw this thing on the team for the sake of avoiding repeat weaknesses and getting a Ghost immunity to back up my Psychics, but it's ended up working well. I feel like Chansey never doesn't work well, but I'm open to completely switching it out. Since I don't have a Defogger/Spinner nor a dedicated physical wall, I've thought about Skarmory instead--it appreciates the Light Screen boost way more than Chansey does, but Chansey also doesn't need Light Screen to invalidate special attackers. I don't want to have a second Fire weakness, either.
---
Weaknesses I'm already aware of:
-Physical Sweepers
This team doesn't have anything dedicated to taking physical hits. Best I can do is hope for a burn, play around with resistances/immunities and hope my opponent doesn't make the right read on the switch, let them hurt themselves on Garchomp, or use one of my Scarfers to pick up a revenge kill/force a switch. I could also gear Rotom's EV spread more toward defense.
Switching Garchomp to Landorus gives me Intimidate, which will also help. If I switch Chansey to Skarmory, I might find myself with the opposite problem, but at least I have Light Screen support.
-Entry Hazards
I hate wasting turns and moveslots on hazard removal, but my team's limited recovery options definitely leave me with something to be desired on that front. Swapping Chansey for Defog Skarmory would solve this problem, but I'm not entirely sold on that switch yet.
-Dark and Steel types
As a team with a Psychic offensive engine, I'm definitely going to encounter some problems with these type matchups.
---
Major considerations I'm mulling over:
Swapping Garchomp for Landorus
Swapping Chansey for Skarmory or something else that learns Defog/has more physical bulk
Changing the coverage moves on Nihilego, Tapu Lele, and Metagross
Changing Rotom's moveset in case Light Screen doesn't do enough
---
Thanks to everyone who bothers to drop some critique for this team! I really like the general idea and think it's got a lot of potential, but I know there are some glaring flaws, including plenty that I probably haven't even considered.
