"The Iron Giant" (peaked #1 on PS)

ws6mN6Q.png

bXqdZbG.png

ipbslzV.png


FItUQJ9.png
Hello everyone! MisterBobobo's there and it's been quite a long time since I posted my last OU team. Today, I'd like to present you my most successful team in the Neverused tier: "The Iron Giant". I'm not claiming the team to be the best offensive one by any means, but I think this could be the definition of Neverused Hyper Offense. Even if the tier is mainly filled with Stall and Balanced teams, Offensive ones are actually quite good, as there are quite good offensive Pokèmon, such as Golurk, Zangoose and Kangaskhan. Thanks to Scolipede and Entry Hazard support, they can easily take out weakened opponents and clean up the opposing team mid- to late-game. After that, a fast Cleaner / Offensive Pivot like Sap Sipper Zebstrika is needed to check lots of threats like Tangela, Serperior, Simipour and Samurott; moreover, CM Musharna is very useful because it can switch repeatedly over the course of a match to either take hard hits or to set up for a sweep. In short, the team is a high risk, high reward one, as it presents problems as well as many strengths. When using this team, just play the right cards and the Iron Giant won't let you down.

Cs4qWPM.png
In the NU environment, Entry Hazards are not only useful to stall teams, but also to offensive ones, as there aren't lots of good rapid spinners and they help many threatening sweepers like Zangoose, Samurott and Gorebyss 2HKO their most common checks. The potentially viable users of Entry Hazard setting-up moves are very limited in the Neverused tier, with the exception of Stealth Rock. Toxic Spikes users are not very good (Garbodor, Roselia, Scolipede, Ariados, Beedril) and the selection of Spikes ones is even more limitated than that of Toxic Spikes. On the other hand, there are some very good anti-spinners in the tier, so I decide that Dwebble + Golurk has to be my starting point, as they form a nice core: the former can lure Fighting- and Rock-type moves while setting up hazards that Golurk can protect; the latter deals with Armaldo, Torkoal and Golem, also putting huge pressure to the opponent and forcing a ton of switches.
Ani623MS.png
Ani557MS.png

Anyway, a strong offensive team needs strong offensive attackers and having good sweepers that can both be fast and take advantage of entry hazards is one of the most important things. Braviary, Gorebyss, Kangaskhan, Sawk, Swellow and Zangoose are one of the best ones. Even if Braviary, Swellow and Sawk have really good Speed and Gorebyss is one of the most threatening stat-up sweepers thanks to Shell Smash, Zangoose + Kangaskhan is my choice. They have great priority moves, that can be useful against opposing offensive teams; moreover, they can kill some Golurk's checks like Haunter, Misdreavus and Skuntank.

Golurk, Zangoose and Kangaskhan are very threatening sweepers; however, they share some counters like Alomomola. In fact, the main threats are Grass-type like Tangela, Torterra, Serperior and Water-type Pokémon like Simipour and Alomomola: Zebstrika is my obvious choice, as it can check Serperior thanks to Sap Sipper, also revenge-killing Alomomola.
Ani623MS.png
Ani557MS.png
Ani115MS.png
Ani335MS.png
Ani523MS.png

At this point, I have a quick look at the threat list and realise the team is quite frail: I need an "universal" tank. In particular, Sawk, Throh and Gurdurr are some really threatening physical attackers. Musharna takes up the last spot.
Ani623MS.png
Ani557MS.png
Ani115MS.png
Ani335MS.png
Ani523MS.png
Ani518MS.png

Playing the team on the ladder, I realize it's really weak to Toxic Spikes as the whole team is grounded and I have no Poison-type Pokémon. Moreover, Dwebble is not the best EH user and struggles against Golem and Golurk. After my post on Smogon, Ranger Dell and Moose V suggest me to try a bulky Spikes Scolipede, which can be definitely the right choice.
Ani623MS.png
Ani545MS.png
Ani115MS.png
Ani335MS.png
Ani523MS.png
Ani518MS.png

Yuppi yae!



9iHsCCk.png

Spr_b_5b_623.png
Spr_b_5b_545.png
Spr_b_5b_115.png
Spr_b_5b_335.png
Spr_b_5b_523.png
Spr_b_5b_518.png

ZC7GBt4.png
The Iron Giant is a really powerful engine of destruction. A good - one of a kind - typing that allows it to be a good anti-spinner but also a good physical tank, a beastly base 124 Attack stat that makes it hit deathly hard, a fantastic ability which is a huge plus for its arsenal: Golurk is probably one of the best physical sweepers in the Neverused tier.

Shadow Punch and Earthquake are the principal STAB moves: boosted by Iron Fist, the former can revenge-kill Misdreavus, Musharna and opposing Golurk, while the latter hits extremely hard, even 2HKOing Alomomola after Stealth Rock and Spikes damage; Ice Punch nails Altaria, Meganium and other Grass-type Pokèmon; last but not least, Stealth Rock is an obvious choice as it grants many 2HKOes, also because Golurk is the only user that can spinblock.


QE1FR12.png
Fantastic speed and good offensive movepool make Scolipede one of the most threatening sweepers since its arrival in the NU tier. Anyway, good typing and access to Spikes make it a decent Entry Hazards user also. Thanks to Toxic Spikes, Kangaskhan and Zangoose can kill Alomomola and Tangela, one of the bulkiest walls in the tier.

Spikes and Toxic Spikes can be helpful in different situations, also because there are not lots of good spinners in the tier and Golurk is a quite good anti-spinner; Megahorn is the main STAB move, hitting hard lots of Psychic- and Dark-type threats like Musharna and Tentacruel; finally, Aqua Tail is a decent coverage move, hitting Golurk, Charizard, Golem and Armaldo.


fYEAN6W.png
Kangaskhan is the "ghost buster" of the NU tier - which definitely makes it a good teammate for Zangoose -, but there's more. 105 HP and decent defenses make it quite bulky and good priority moves allow it to be one of the most threatening physical sweepers in the tier. Moreover, Scrappy allows Normal and Fighting moves hit Ghost-type Pokèmon, making Kangaskhan a good revenge-killer of threats like Misdreavus and Haunter.

Fake Out and Double Edge are the most common move, also being boosted by Silk Scarf; Sucker Punch is the second priority move, revenge-killing Haunter, Gardevoir and Kadabra; finally, Earthquake hits Bastiodon, Garbodor and Skuntank.


F4Ebx52.png
Zangoose is known for being the most fearsome NU wallbreaker. Thanks to wonderful coverage moves and a troublesome STAB priority move, it's able to nearly OHKO / 2HKO the entire tier after that Toxic Orb is activated. Even if poison damage and Defense drops make it quite frail, Zangoose is one of the most obvious choices for an offensive team, especially if paired with a Ghost killer like Kangaskhan.

Facade is the main STAB and even OHKOes bulky threats such as Samurott and Eelektross; Close Combat and Night Slash are essential coverage moves, hitting Misdreavus, Golurk, Cradily, Bastiodon; Quick Attack makes Zangoose a good finisher and priority user, revenge-killing fast threats like Swellow and Zebstrika.


9fklfMI.png
The speedy zebra has a wide movepool and can easily build momentum, so it's just very suitable for this kind of offensive team. In fact, entry hazards from Dwebble work well alongside Zebstrika's scouting ability, while Golurk can lure and revenge-kill some of its counters like Lickilicky and Altaria.

Thunderbolt and Volt Switch are the main STAB moves, respectively being the most reliable Electric move and building momentum; Overheat and Hidden Power [Grass] are really good coverage moves, hitting Serperior, Tangela, Metang and Golem, Seismitoad.


DlIze7Y.png
Musharna has high HP, quite good defensive stats and a wide supportive movepool including Heal Bell; however, it's not limited to only being defensive, as it has also a decent offensive one, including Calm Mind. In short, Musharna is the physical wall / setup sweeper / pivot every offensive team could wish for, as it can counter many top threats like Gurdurr, Sawk and Throh.


Psychic is the main STAB, as it kills Gurdurr and Sawk; Calm Mind makes Musharna a good boosting sweeper, boosting its already good Special Attack and Special Defense by one stage; Moonlight allows it to heal off wounds from any attacks that hit it; finally, Heal Bell rounds the set, being useful to heal Kangaskhan and Zebstrika from Burn and Poison.


9RAV06J.png
This has been one of the most successful teams I've created and I'm really proud of it. Feel free to use it yourselves and post any feedback and suggestions to further improve it. Thanks for reading!


TOVfXL8.png
Golurk @ Leftovers
Trait: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Shadow Punch
- Stealth Rock

Scolipede @ Black Sludge
Trait: Swarm
EVs: 248 HP / 36 Atk / 56 Def / 168 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Aqua Tail
- Megahorn
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes

Kangaskhan @ Silk Scarf
Trait: Scrappy
EVs: 32 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 220 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Double Edge
- Earthquake
- Fake Out
- Sucker Punch

Zangoose @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Toxic Boost
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Facade
- Night Slash
- Quick Attack

Zebstrika @ Life Orb
Trait: Sap Sipper
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Overheat
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch

Musharna @ Leftovers
Trait: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SAtk
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Heal Bell
- Moonlight
- Psychic
- Calm Mind
 
Last edited:
your musharna isn't really good for this team since it can lose precious momentum against teams packing a psychic-type counter which is basically every team and gets rid of zangoose's toxic. you should probably change it to a pivot set with the same ev's and the moves thunder wave / baton pass / moonlight / psychic. you can check a lot of physical attackers with this set and use a slow baton pass to get your attackers in safely which is especially important for zangoose. thunder wave also helps compensate somewhat for this team's lack of a scarfer.

dwebble needs jolly instead of adamant since you need to ba as fast as possible. i would also drop earthquake for toxic since it's pitifully weak and toxic stops more things from setting up on you.

no big changes since you can probably check everything if you play perfectly, but there are a bunch of things that can give you a hard time, particularly sweepers that can avoid being revenge killed by kangaskhan, such as carracosta.
 
Hey there

To continue on to FLCL's rate, as far as your weaknesses go, I don't really like the niche that Dwebble provides for this team, as with its incredibly low offensive presence, it in a way compromises this team's vulnerability to Toxic Spikes as every common threat that packs it can easily use it as setup fodder (such as Scolipede, Garbodor, and Roselia) and Toxic doesn't help as they are all immune to it. It's also worth noting that while this team focuses a lot on providing steady momentum for offensive threats, this team isn't exactly hyper offensive despite this, and as such a hazard stacking strategy that focuses on getting them immediately off the back with one Pokemon isn't really necessary. To help switch things up a bit, I'd recommend that you try bulky Spikes Scolipede over Dwebble. The main focus that bulky Scolipede has for the team is that it's able to utilize its bulk and typing to provide a lot of qualities that will be helpful for such a team like this, such as providing a consistent way of setting up hazards and using a typing that allows you to deter Toxic Spikes all together. This allows you to match up a lot better against Stall teams, as otherwise you lack a lot of power and coverage to break through common cores. You can still work off with your Speed well enough, which can be useful for picking off Adamant Carracosta with a faster Megahorn after a Shell Smash before it becomes too much of a concern. In addition, you can make use of Aqua Tail to 2HKO Golurk, helping you fend it off a little better, or Toxic to cripple stuff like Mandibuzz (which is a pretty key Pokemon for this team to take down as you have very little to switch into a Foul Play or to beat it as is 1v1).

With that suggestion, Golurk's damage output with Choice Band will be made less necessary, and you can utilize Stealth Rock and Leftovers on that set instead. You still maintain good damage output and the ability to check what you need to check. As far as EVs go you don't have to hassle over deciding a good pick for them too much if you want to creep opposing Golurk as much as you can.

Hope I helped.

Choice Band Golurk > Stealth Rock Golurk
Bulky Scolipede (second set on the analysis) > Dwebble
 
When exactly did this peak take place? I looked at the NU ladder and didn't see you anywhere so out of curiosity I looked up your name on PS and it said the username in your picture hadn't played any games.

Regardless, I like your RMT a lot and I have a few suggestions:

1) I think the dual offensive normal types is a bit redundant. The team has no dark resists and your 2 most bulky pokes are weak to it so I'd consider replacing either Zangoose or Kangaskhan with Mandibuzz. This gives you a ground resist and prevents things like Cacturne and Skuntank from ruining your day.
2) If you want to keep Dwebble, it should run 0 HP, SpD and Def EVs to increase the chance of it being knocked down to custap range.
3) I agree with Dell that you need a poison type since everything right now is grounded and weak to toxic spikes. If you go with my mandibuzz suggestion it might be a little hard to fit one in unless you replace dwebble. I think replacing dwebble with either scolipede or roselia and giving golurk rocks could help you out a lot.
 
Thank you so much for the kind words about the team =)
I think Bulky Scolipede + Stealth Rock Golurk would be such a great idea since the team needs all kinds of EHs and is really weak to Toxic Spikes. As for Musharna, I'd like to keep the Calm Mind set with Heal Bell as it's so important healing the main sweepers from burn and it can be useful against stall teams with Alomomola / Tangela. Changes in red!

@ Moose V: I know that the peak is quite old, but it took me a long time to do this RMT; anyway, I'll try laddering again with the new changes.
 
Not much to say other then you are running sap sipper on a special Zebstrika. Use Lightningrod for more power, or Motor Drive for speed.
 
Sap sipper is useful even on a Special Zebstrika, to come easier on a huge threat of his team : Tangela. However, what just shocked me is the Musharna. And here, i 100% agree with FLCL.
Your team isn't really weak to status, as you have Golurk to absorb thunder wave and body slam, zebstrika for the sleep powder, and Zangoose/Scolipede for the poison (yeah burns are a little bit annoying, but musharna can take the scald/will o wisp and synchronize). So I recommand using Baton Pass instead of Heal Bell on your Musharna. It's so good to gain momentum against Sawk users, as 100% of the sawk will switch after you tanked his close combat. It also forms a "Volturn" with Zebstrika, and can allow you to activate Zangoose toxic orb easier. It can also goes well with Calm Mind, as you can baton pass a calm mind to zebstrika, during your opponent switch to a huge musharna counter : Mandibuzz.
Also, i recommand running this spread :

EVs : 240 HP / 252 Def / 16 spD
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
IVs : 30 Spd


I personally not really like using Calm Mind, as you're really weak to Critical hits, and i prefer Thunder Wave/Toxic/Magic Coat (nice surprise factor) instead. Thunder Wave helps a lot Golurk/Kangashkan, and against the beast Charizard (but for sure, you're not really weak, as you have Zebstrika and Scolipede who outspeed, be careful, good Charizard user beat Kangashkan) while Toxic cripple incoming Dark pokes, bar skuntank. 30 Ivs speed allow you to be lower than all these Duosion/other Musharna, but keeping a better speed than Torkoal, who can other way really give you trouble.

Oh and I recommand using a bulkier Golurk spread, for instance the 176 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Speed, but it's a personnal choice.

Other way, good team, and good luck for your next matchs :)
 
Back
Top