I like to assemble teams of every generation whenever I play the respective games of the generation. I'm having trouble with my Emerald team.
Skarmory @ Lum Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Agility
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
- Rest
Truthfully, I've had a bit of trouble choosing this one. At first, I chose Agron because of the absurd defense, the somewhat varied move set, and the immunity to "Poison" type moves like Toxic. Unfortunately, it was too slow to actually do anything before falling, so I've picked Skarmory. Speed is really important in all battles, so I've picked Agility to spiKe things up a bit... The speed boost allows it to use Spikes fast and then Whirlwind to deal damage to the opponent. Problem with this is, many damage dealers in Gen 3 are "Flying" types like Zapdos, Dragonite, Salamence, Moltres, and Aerodactyl, so it ends up being useless against them when forcing a switch. Rest is there mostly because of the fact that I wasn't able to think of anything else. Besides, it can be useful in some occasions, you never know... The Lum Berry is a complement to Rest so that I can get right back into action afterward... Any suggestions?
Salamence @ Lum Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Dance
- Rock Slide
- Rest
I didn't have much trouble of thinking who to pick as a physical attacker, therefore, Salamence. I mean, a pseudo-legendary that has high Physical Attack? Awesome! Earthquake to deal with occasional Tyranitar and other Rock types. Dragon Dance was kind of mandatory for me since I like boosting moves and it lets me outspeed pokemon that are just faster than Salamence. Rock Slide to deal with the "Flying" types mentioned in the Skarmory description and Rest as filler but mostly because Salamence isn't really too resistant to last some attacks even if they aren't super effective. The Lum Berry is also there to complement Rest. This is a pokemon I was hoping to replace. Why? Scroll down a bit and I'll explain after I'm done with the others.
Milotic @ Leftovers
Ability: Marvel Scale
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Light Screen
- Recover
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
Boy, do I love me some Milotic. Great Special Defense along with a nice enough Physical Defense for stalling with Toxic, countering annoying little Celebi. Ice Beam for some damage, especially against "Flying" types in Gen 3. Light Screen is unnecessary, you say? Well, I think it's great in case Milotic faces a pokemon with Thunderbolt or Thunder. Recover, need I say more? A move that heals half your maximum HP is always welcome in my opinion. I've also picked Milotic because the team was missing a Special Tank, so here it is.
Miltank @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Heal Bell
- Milk Drink
- Counter
- Thunder Wave
I needed a support with Heal Bell and I could use a stalling buddy for Milotic in case it ever got outsped or affected by status-inflicting moves. Thick Fat was a nice ability to have whenever I had to switch into Miltank and was facing an "Ice" or "Fire" type. Heal Bell to make sure all of my pokemon can keep fighting when dealing with stallers that have status-inflicting moves. Milk Drink? Basically, a Recover clone and just as appreciated. Counter is a move that's kind of situational... It works best when facing a Physical Sweeper like Tyranitar, especially the Dragon Dance variant. Thunder Wave because some of my pokemon are a bit on the slower side so the status effect is greatly appreciated. The Defense stats on Miltank are great, so it can take quite some hits, leading to an even bigger effect with Counter. Overall, a versatile and nice addition to the team.
Gardevoir @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Modest Nature
- Calm Mind
- Psychic
- Mean Look
- Hypnosis
I'll be honest here. I've regretted giving this move set to Gardevoir in the beginning, even more, because I've just finished breeding a Gardevoir with that move set in Emerald. Also, in Gen 3, Gardevoir is not a Fairy Type, so no immunity to "Dragon" types. As I played more matches though, I grew into it. Mean Look is a nice move to have when facing any Special Attacker so that I can spam the crap out of Calm Mind to increase my power and defense to sweep right through the opponent's team. Hypnosis to annoy anyone who dares to boost stats when under the effects of Mean Look. Calm Mind, did I ever mention that it boosts really nice stats to have? Psychic, an overall nice move, but really shitty to only have it as an attack if the opponent sends out a Tyranitar or any other dark type that might be viable in Competitive Gen 3. Great pokemon in the newer generations, alright in Gen 3, situational move set and outright shitty at taking hits.
Gengar @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Giga Drain
- Thunderbolt
- Destiny Bond
This would be my complement to Gardevoir and my true Special Sweeper, but then I remember that it has really bad stats in both defenses. It also has immunity to "Poison" and that along with the nice Special Attack and Speed settled it for me. Gengar is kind of predictable considering that everyone and their moms have Gengar with Will-O-Wisp, Giga Drain, Thunderbolt, and Destiny Bond, but I'll move on. Will-O-Wisp to burn my enemies(Duh) and lessen the damage my pokemon take from physical attacks, not great but also not bad. Haven't found many situations when I've truly used the move but it's always nice to have it. Giga Drain, a nice response to staller Celebi once Milotic uses Toxic. With it, I can pretty much outlast any stallers that dare not switch out when facing Gengar. Thunderbolt to get extra firepower against "Flying" types and "Water" types like Milotic.
As you can notice, I've got Salamence(Flying), Milotic(Water), and Skarmory(Flying). I'm worried that my team is too vulnerable to pokemon that can use Thunderbolt or Ice Beam. Anyone I could replace for these 3 specific pokemon that can do their jobs just as good? For now, I'm using Blaziken instead of Salamence as a filler for a better pokemon. Can anyone give me a hand?
Skarmory @ Lum Berry
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Agility
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
- Rest
Truthfully, I've had a bit of trouble choosing this one. At first, I chose Agron because of the absurd defense, the somewhat varied move set, and the immunity to "Poison" type moves like Toxic. Unfortunately, it was too slow to actually do anything before falling, so I've picked Skarmory. Speed is really important in all battles, so I've picked Agility to spiKe things up a bit... The speed boost allows it to use Spikes fast and then Whirlwind to deal damage to the opponent. Problem with this is, many damage dealers in Gen 3 are "Flying" types like Zapdos, Dragonite, Salamence, Moltres, and Aerodactyl, so it ends up being useless against them when forcing a switch. Rest is there mostly because of the fact that I wasn't able to think of anything else. Besides, it can be useful in some occasions, you never know... The Lum Berry is a complement to Rest so that I can get right back into action afterward... Any suggestions?
Salamence @ Lum Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Dance
- Rock Slide
- Rest
I didn't have much trouble of thinking who to pick as a physical attacker, therefore, Salamence. I mean, a pseudo-legendary that has high Physical Attack? Awesome! Earthquake to deal with occasional Tyranitar and other Rock types. Dragon Dance was kind of mandatory for me since I like boosting moves and it lets me outspeed pokemon that are just faster than Salamence. Rock Slide to deal with the "Flying" types mentioned in the Skarmory description and Rest as filler but mostly because Salamence isn't really too resistant to last some attacks even if they aren't super effective. The Lum Berry is also there to complement Rest. This is a pokemon I was hoping to replace. Why? Scroll down a bit and I'll explain after I'm done with the others.
Milotic @ Leftovers
Ability: Marvel Scale
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Light Screen
- Recover
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
Boy, do I love me some Milotic. Great Special Defense along with a nice enough Physical Defense for stalling with Toxic, countering annoying little Celebi. Ice Beam for some damage, especially against "Flying" types in Gen 3. Light Screen is unnecessary, you say? Well, I think it's great in case Milotic faces a pokemon with Thunderbolt or Thunder. Recover, need I say more? A move that heals half your maximum HP is always welcome in my opinion. I've also picked Milotic because the team was missing a Special Tank, so here it is.
Miltank @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Heal Bell
- Milk Drink
- Counter
- Thunder Wave
I needed a support with Heal Bell and I could use a stalling buddy for Milotic in case it ever got outsped or affected by status-inflicting moves. Thick Fat was a nice ability to have whenever I had to switch into Miltank and was facing an "Ice" or "Fire" type. Heal Bell to make sure all of my pokemon can keep fighting when dealing with stallers that have status-inflicting moves. Milk Drink? Basically, a Recover clone and just as appreciated. Counter is a move that's kind of situational... It works best when facing a Physical Sweeper like Tyranitar, especially the Dragon Dance variant. Thunder Wave because some of my pokemon are a bit on the slower side so the status effect is greatly appreciated. The Defense stats on Miltank are great, so it can take quite some hits, leading to an even bigger effect with Counter. Overall, a versatile and nice addition to the team.
Gardevoir @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Modest Nature
- Calm Mind
- Psychic
- Mean Look
- Hypnosis
I'll be honest here. I've regretted giving this move set to Gardevoir in the beginning, even more, because I've just finished breeding a Gardevoir with that move set in Emerald. Also, in Gen 3, Gardevoir is not a Fairy Type, so no immunity to "Dragon" types. As I played more matches though, I grew into it. Mean Look is a nice move to have when facing any Special Attacker so that I can spam the crap out of Calm Mind to increase my power and defense to sweep right through the opponent's team. Hypnosis to annoy anyone who dares to boost stats when under the effects of Mean Look. Calm Mind, did I ever mention that it boosts really nice stats to have? Psychic, an overall nice move, but really shitty to only have it as an attack if the opponent sends out a Tyranitar or any other dark type that might be viable in Competitive Gen 3. Great pokemon in the newer generations, alright in Gen 3, situational move set and outright shitty at taking hits.
Gengar @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Giga Drain
- Thunderbolt
- Destiny Bond
This would be my complement to Gardevoir and my true Special Sweeper, but then I remember that it has really bad stats in both defenses. It also has immunity to "Poison" and that along with the nice Special Attack and Speed settled it for me. Gengar is kind of predictable considering that everyone and their moms have Gengar with Will-O-Wisp, Giga Drain, Thunderbolt, and Destiny Bond, but I'll move on. Will-O-Wisp to burn my enemies(Duh) and lessen the damage my pokemon take from physical attacks, not great but also not bad. Haven't found many situations when I've truly used the move but it's always nice to have it. Giga Drain, a nice response to staller Celebi once Milotic uses Toxic. With it, I can pretty much outlast any stallers that dare not switch out when facing Gengar. Thunderbolt to get extra firepower against "Flying" types and "Water" types like Milotic.
As you can notice, I've got Salamence(Flying), Milotic(Water), and Skarmory(Flying). I'm worried that my team is too vulnerable to pokemon that can use Thunderbolt or Ice Beam. Anyone I could replace for these 3 specific pokemon that can do their jobs just as good? For now, I'm using Blaziken instead of Salamence as a filler for a better pokemon. Can anyone give me a hand?