SS OU The Widening Gyre

Ithilanor

W.B. Yeats said:
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.
Click to expand...

Named because two-thirds of the team has U-turn or Flip Turn.

I recently got back into battling after a long hiatus; I last played in Gen 5. This team reflects my thinking from that era, with a heavy emphasis on hazards and maintaining momentum with U-turn/Flip Turn.

swampert.png


Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Flip Turn
- Earthquake
- Toxic

Swampert serves as my lead most of the time, with the initial goal of setting up Stealth Rock, then Flip Turn'ing out to maintain momentum. Earthquake provides generic STAB, especially against Steel-types, while Toxic can prevent a sweeper from completely wrecking my team. Swampert's resilient enough to also serve as a check for Fire-types that Ferrothorn can't deal with, and it's not unusual for it to come back in mid-match to set Stealth Rock back up after a Defog.

ferrothorn.png


Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 176 SpD
Careful Nature
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
- Spikes
- Knock Off

Ferrothorn serves as my secondary hazard setter and the bulkiest member of my team. Leech Seed is pretty much necessary for recovery, Knock Off can take out opposing mons' Heavy-Duty boots. Power Whip keeps Ferrothorn from being completely vulnerable to Taunt and lets Ferrothorn serve as a counter to Water-types such as Tapu Fini. Laying Spikes is the biggest reason to use Ferrothorn, though; with SR and Spikes both up, it's very tempting for an opponent to go for a Defog...

zapdos-galarian.png


Zapdos-Galar @ Life Orb
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Stomping Tantrum

...which is when Galarian Zapdos comes in and picks up a free +2 Attack from Defiant. I like maintaining momentum with hazards out, but having a strong attacker with good coverage is also quite nice. I most often see Defog from Corviknight and Mandibuzz, both of whom are destroyed by +2 Close Combat. I went with Life Orb to avoid being choice-locked; Zapdos serves more as a sweeper that can also maintain momentum with a strong U-turn than a wallbreaker. The Life Orb damage definitely adds up, though, especially combined with Brave Bird recoil.


landorus-therian.png
dragapult.png


Landorus-Therian (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- U-turn
- Knock Off

Dragapult @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Shadow Ball
- Flamethrower
- U-turn

Landorus-T and Dragapult are my revenge killers. Landorus-T generally works as an offensive pivot throughout the match, threatening large swaths of the meta with its strong Ground/Rock coverage, while being able to maintain momentum with a U-turn if I predict a switch. Landorus-T also has Knock Off as a utility move, mainly against teams that rely heavily on Heavy-Duty Boots. Dragapult is more of a dedicated revenge killer, able to stop sweepers in their tracks (or at least force them out), then switching out. Dragapult also serves as a useful switch-in due to its Ghost type, able to block a predicted Rapid Spin.

volcarona.png


Volcarona @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Flamethrower
- Bug Buzz
- Psychic

Finally, Volcarona serves as my clean-up sweeper, with strong type coverage that can wreck a team already suffering from hazards, with Zapdos having punched through special walls such as Blissey. Volcarona can threaten out Grass-types such as Kartana or Rillaboom, Quiver Dance up on the switch, then sweep. I opted for the offensive moveset with better type coverage over the bulky set with Roost, since Volcarona usually doesn't come in until later.


Potential Improvements

All criticism and feedback is appreciated, but there are definitely a few decisions I would like to consider and hear people's thoughts on.
  • Spectrier instead of Dragapult. Spectrier's currently being suspected for good reason; it's an incredibly powerful pokemon, and a Scarf'd Spectrier would serve a similar niche as Dragapult, with the ability to threaten a sweep with Grim Neigh. I'm worried about the lack of type coverage, though.
  • Galarian Zapdos's item. As mentioned, Life Orb significantly cuts into Zapdos's longevity. I'm not sure what item would be most useful instead, though, without opting for a Choice item.
  • Thunder Wave on Ferrothorn. While Leech Seed serves to curtail sweepers to some extent, it's not as effective as having Thunder Wave to slow down a sweeper. I'd probably opt to take out Knock Off for it, though I'm not sure. Having Thunder Wave on Ferrothorn might also lessen the need for a Scarf revenge killer; Dragapult could potentially come out for Specs'd Spectrier or something else that fits well with the team.
 
dragapult really needs specs instead of scarf, scarf was useful before pheromosa left the tier, and specs is an OHKO on spectrier with shadow ball while scarf isn't. Keep in mind that dragapult is the second fastest mon in OU anyways so there is not much point to a scarf, while its 100 base special attack means it needs more oomph

Maybe consider cinderace instead of volcarona, as it really thrives in these kinds of teams

another worrying thing is that this team does seem very easy to wear down, since you have no reliable recovery or regenerators in it.

I don't really think you need 2 revenge killers, and lando already shares a ground type with swampert and is a big source of wear down problems, so maybe consider swapping it out for something more resilient that can still further your turn strategy, like blissey(also blissey+dragapult means you never ever lose to spectrier)

as for your questions:
1. dragapult is totally ok for this team, it's fast and can keep momentum
2. life orb is actually pretty good on gzapdos, but you need to use it then, so if you dont find yourself using 2 different moves when you bring it out(I would actually write this down every time zapdos comes out and compare how many times you did and didnt use 2 different moves) switch to a choice item.
3. thunder wave can work, but i've seen leech seed do some really disgusting things so i am in favor of leech seed
 
Thanks for the review!
  • Scarf vs. Specs on Dragapult - I was worried about sweepers like Dragonite or Volcarona after they get 1 Dragon/Quiver Dance off, but getting the OHKO on Spectrier is probably more important, yeah.
  • Cinderace instead of Volcarona - interesting thought, I've definitely been impressed with Cinderace when I've played against it. Will think about it.
  • Blissey instead of Landorus - seems like Blissey would slow down my momentum, though tossing Wishes around does seem appealing.
  • Life Orb on G-Zapdos - I've definitely been using a mix of moves on it; really the only one I don't use much is U-turn. Not sure if there's anything better for coverage that it could use, though.
 
Ithilanor said:
Thanks for the review!
  • Scarf vs. Specs on Dragapult - I was worried about sweepers like Dragonite or Volcarona after they get 1 Dragon/Quiver Dance off, but getting the OHKO on Spectrier is probably more important, yeah.
  • Cinderace instead of Volcarona - interesting thought, I've definitely been impressed with Cinderace when I've played against it. Will think about it.
  • Blissey instead of Landorus - seems like Blissey would slow down my momentum, though tossing Wishes around does seem appealing.
  • Life Orb on G-Zapdos - I've definitely been using a mix of moves on it; really the only one I don't use much is U-turn. Not sure if there's anything better for coverage that it could use, though.
Click to expand...
Although it may seem like Blissey slows down momentum, its bulk, utility, recovery, and access to Teleport means it is a direct opposite to a loss of momentum.
 
just a quick note tho, blissey cant get both teleport and wish on the same set(its an illegal combination) if you want that
 
Hmm, interesting. If I can't have Teleport on Blissey, I probably could use the fourth spot for Stealth Rock or Aromatherapy; putting SR on Blissey would let me free up a slot on Swampert, though I'm not sure what I would use it for.

EDIT: A threat that's come up a few times now is Hawlucha; I don't have a good way to even check it once it gets Unburden + Swords Dance off. Suggestions on something that would fit into the team?
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top