TSSS

[akarias]

Hi everyone, I've been playing smogon for about a month or so and I was hoping for some help with my team. It's been doing pretty well for a while, but I was wondering what the expert teammakers think of it, and how it could be made better. TSSS is for tyranitar spikes sandstorm stealth rock. Yup, that's the theme. It's stall with tyranitar as the primary win condition, and 3 other lesser ones. Sorry I don't know how to use pictures, and it's slightly unusual so I spend of a lot of text explaining it. Here goes:

Lead:
TYRANITAR - jolly
babiri berry
252 attack/252 speed/4 hp
crunch
stone edge
dragon dance
earthquake

I know, I know, I know what you're all thinking. WTF A TYRANITAR LEAD?? YOU FOOL TTAR CAN"T BEAT SHIT AS A LEAD, AND DDANCE IS JUST BLASPHEMY. And the truth is...you're absolutely correct. Ttar can't touch infernape or azelf and gets beaten by metagross and heatran if they predict correctly. He loses against all sorts of gimick leads too and gets fucked by trick. Plus he's my win condition, so I absolutely can't afford him taking damage.

BUT...think of it this way. Rain dance/sunny day teams require a turn to setup their weather, right? And lots of other leads carry fake out/weak priority to break sash right? Well just by being there, ttar does BOTH. He, of course, makes my first turn 80% of the time a switch (I beat azelf, which is actually pretty huge for me. However, he scouts out all sorts of unusual leads, and 95% of the time doesn't really lose me anything as a lead, because my secondary lead is.....


SHUCKLE - impish
leftovers
252 hp/208 def/ 48 spD
encore
rest
stealth rock
knock off

Yes bitches, it's shuckle. Shuckle is....godsend in this team. He literally wins me games SINGLEHANDEDLY 20% of the time, even without toxic. He is the ULTIMATE counter to salamence, beating all versions without breaking a sweat, even without toxic (I know, sad right?). Every time i make a new team mixmence is a huge issue, but not ever for this team. Shuckle eats him up and spits him out. This includes all mix sweepers including the deadly infernape, some types of ttars, etc..
Now, how does he function as a secondary lead? Against heatran, he's my main switch in. He goes in, and either eats an earthpower (for ttar) or the heatran gets up rocks. At that point 90% of heatrans I face attack with fireblast for a piddly 30-35% dmg, while I rock. This goes for any other special/mixed lead as well (actually less dmg from anyone else). When people realize they can't kill shuckle, they'll typically send in either scizor, a setup sweeper, or rarely a suicune (anything else and they probably can't win anyways). Shuckle knocks off the switch, which has won me games against scizor (without it the dmg he does to ttar with babiri is funny), hurts suicune a ton in SS (plus I encore calm mind anyways) and encore beats out any set up sweeper, giving me even more time to set up. Because shuckle is for my early/mid game, he doesn't carry toxic, which is useless against most things that switch in. Knock off is priceless. However, he does have a glaring weakness to steel, which metagross uses against ttar, giving my primary secondary lead....

SKARMORY - impish
shed shell
252 hp/ 64 att/176 def/ 16 spe
brave bird
spikes
roost
whirlwind

Standard skarmory, though still amazing paired with ttar. Absorbs steel, earthquakes which goes for ttar, while ttar can take fire/electric no problem. Now let me explain skarm as a secondary lead. swampert and metagross (prob make up 30-40% of leads I face) attack probably half the time. Those times skarm gets a free switch in. This is AWESOME. I don't need it, since I"ll still get a spikes on the switch. But getting two rounds while they stealth rock, especially since I have a spinner, is awesome.

Now the counters to skarm are fire and electric users. Waters TYPICALLY won't move into my skarm, but if they do then I know skarm walls the rest of their team so I'll spend a lot of effort to kill the suicune etc.. But what comes in on skarm 90% of the time? Heatran, infernape, rotom, gengar...all of which and more get absolutely fucked by shuckle, giving me a turn to set up sr. In the first 3-4 turns it's very possible that I have set up SR and 2 layers of spikes while only taking limited dmg from spikes.

Now I have my core, ttar, sandstorm, spikes, and stealth rock. Time for support.

STARMIE - timid
leftovers
136 hp/156 def/ 216 spe
hydro pump
grass knot/tbolt (depends what I feel like)
recover
rapid spin

My oh so deadly rapid spinner...I can't tell you how many scizors I have killed with her, seriously. Anyways, I sometimes move her midgame on heatran after I've taken off its item. I generally don't rapid spin much, since this isn't a pure stall team and as long as I have 2 layers of spikes+sr ttar can 1 turn setup sweep a good chunk of the time. Tbolt is ofc for gyara, though my rotom also carries it, so sometimes I take grass knot for swampert, who is somewhat annoying for my team without it (not terribly so though, I'll go into it in the threats list). Starmie is also part of my two-part bulky water counter, my other being...

rotom-a - timid
choice scarf
252 sp att/252 spe/ 4 hp
overheat
shadow ball
thunderbolt
trick

Trick scarf rotom, how I love thee. The amount of things that rotom-a counters is obscene. lucario, gyarados, suicune, machamp, EMPOLEON, explosions, and of course rapid spin. However, as much as he counters, rotom-a is just as counterable. Thus I VERY rarely bring him out early and use starmie instead to see if the opponent has a pursuit user. As a choice scarf revenge killer rotom-a is also exceptional because unlike other ones he carries trick and thus can counter stall without double switching business or a weak u-turn.

SCIZOR - adamant
choice band
252 hp/ 252 att/ 4 spe
bullet punch
u-turn
superpower
pursuit

Man, I've tried so many things here (ddance kingdra, blissey, vaporeon) and nothing comes close to the raw power scizor carries. With all the residual damage, if scizor can get a free turn in, the u-turn that follows hurts that much more, since midgame spikes+sr will do 32% avg (2 spikes) + u-turn (~35% dmg usually), already bringing whatever poke they have out low health for shuckle/skarm/ttar. bullet punch is an important check in case something goes horribly wrong and pursuit is really important to beat out ghosts (especially rotom) that beat starmie. Scizor's synergy is kind of hard to immediately see, but the truth is he is wicked deadly.

HOW THIS TEAM WORKS:
Okay, so you probably have a good idea. I lead off with ttar. If it's azelf I usually crunch (sometimes switch though), and kill off azelf before it can get any sort of advantage. If it's heatran, infernape, salamence, mamoswine, gengar, then I move in shuckle and get a free round of rocks and start knocking off. If I get scizor's choice band (which happens a LOT) then sweet. If they have someone that can beat shuckle (rare), then they'll either move scizor or metagross in (basically, some physical attacker), then I move in skarm and start spiking. If the lead is metagross, jirachi, or they move in scizor after I kill azelf, then I get in skarm and do the same thing.

That's the opening. The midgame is essentially either me stalling with shuckle/skarm, or if they bring out something serious (lucario, gyara, both very common) I bring out starmie early. I never touch rotom/ttar unless it's a stall team, where I bring out rotom on the rapid spinner and trick. Sometimes, to promote more switching, I'll sacrifice all 5 other pokes and leave them with 6 crippled members, all for ttar to sweep (has happened more than once). The team works well because shuckle and skarm cover each other so well and ttar can kill 80%+ of pokemon after sr+2-3 spikes in one shot after a ddance. Most teams ONLY have scizor to counter a ddar after spikes/sr (there's actually not much else which does...swampert gliscor and hippo?) and thus with the babiri berry ttar sweeps really really easily. His defenses are just way too good to pass up, and he doesn't take ridiculous sr dmg either. Plus he beats the shit out of latias, which is always a huge plus.

Now a couple key points which I'm sure some are wondering. Why no toxic spikes, or even toxic??? I of course wanted to have one or the other, but the truth is there's no way in hell I"m getting all three, and spikes/sr are much more important to me. The metagame is way too fast for me to depend on toxic dmg to kill in 5 turns when it only takes 1 turn to set up salamence/gyara/luc, etc.. Plus a huge portion of the game is steals, and the rest are almost all levitators/flyers, making toxic spikes just next to useless.

Another is why scizor? As said before this isn't pure stall, which to me is a little too boring to play, and not that effective against some teams (and salamence). The pursuit is almost a necessity on stall teams to beat ghosts, priority is important to beat a ddancers, and u-turn fits perfectly with stall.

The reason I like this team the most is because it's consistent, has multiple dependable answers to most pokes, and synergizes to form a cohesive strategy.

Weaknesses: Ooo boy here's where it gets a little sour. My team is somewhat dependent on rotom as my revenge killer/blocker/big electric dude, as well as a latias counter. If he gets taken out early I can still win by banking everything on ttar in the end, but it gets a lot harder.

Bulky waters, as it is for many teams, can be annoying. Fortunately there aren't many used, and the main ones I can beat (gone into more detail in the threat list). Starmie, empoleon, and suicune can both be beaten by rotom+starmie. Thus why I have two users of tbolt.

 

[akarias]

THREAT LIST

Ok here's the threat list for OU.

aerodactyl - starmie/skarm/rotom/scizor all beat it. Is somewhat annoying though and I was hoping for suggestions.

alakazam - can't touch shuckle. ttar sets up easy easy. scizor kills it, rotom kills it, skarm can beat it if it's encored into psychic.

azelf - as a lead, ttar. mid/late, scizor, shuckle, ttar, rotom.

blissey - scizor, starmie rapids spin on it without worry (actually crippling for stall teams), trick from rotom. Seriously, everyone on the team can do something against blissey.

breloom - irritating, but very manageable. I let shuckle eat the spore, since nothing can 2hko and very few can 3hko. I go to scizor, u-turn while it focuses, and get to rotom, who proceeds to overheat it to death or switches to something else.

bronzong - meh, starmie can rapid spin it away. Ttar can beat it if it's got a ddance (crunch is a 2hko), shuckle laughs at gyro ball (haha even slower), skarm sets up on it, rotom can trick it, and scizor's u-turn hurts it a lot without recovery.

celebi - scizor. If it carries hp fire, ttar beats it, shuckle walls it and takes out leftovers (absorbs twave too), and rotom beats it handily.

cresselia - I don't care about reflect and lightscreen earlygame what bit. Just gives me more time to set up spikes/sr, actually (LOL). Lategame ttar wrecks cresselia, moonlight sucks in ss, and scizor beats it too. Oh, so does rotom.

donphan - set up for skarm/shuckle, then rotom beats it out (of rapid spin too), as does starmie easily. can't switch in at all after a couple spikes have been placed.

dragonite - sr owns it. Shuckle owns dragonite even more than he does salamence, since dragonite is rarely not mixed, and simply can't break through that little rock.

dugtrio - can trap scizor...and that's about it. Usually scizor comes in only for the revenge kill or to u-turn so it doesn't matter. I've literally had someone try to beat shuckle with dugtrio. I killed it with knock off. no joke.

dusknoir - shuckle and skarm set up, scizor beats it. As does starmie usually.

electivire - shuckle laughs at electivire very heartily. Most things i have outspeed it.

Empoleon - starmie wins, though ends up with low hp. Rotom absolutely wrecks empoleon.

flygon - irritating, but very very easily walled by shuckle/skarm. Beaten handily by scizor too.

forretress - rotom-a, nuff said. Actually, starmie can beat it too, and without recovery, when it switches on spikes it hurts.

gengar - shuckle laughs at anything gengar dares to do besides the rare trick. rotom beats it, scizor beats it, as does ttar.

gliscor - a legitimate problem, if it carries taunt. However, starmie beats it handily, and rotom can trickscarf it. shuckle can still knock out its leftovers. Sometimes I carry aquatail on ttar for this guy and hippowdon (more for gliscor though)

gyarados - rotom and starmie both own it, though skarm/shuckle can be back up as can scizor.

heatran - starmie and shuckle both own it, even with such few spdef (shuckle is awesome).

heracross - never really face them, but they're always choiced. So have shuckle/skarm take a hit, and if it's the wrong one switch. Choiced pokes who aren't levitating get wrecked badly by switching in and out of spikes though.

hippowdon - meh, gets hurt badly by spikes. Skarmory walls/outphazes it. Starmie beats hippowdon badly, rotom tricks it, scizor hurts a lot and shuckle sets up. Annoying for ttar, but that's about it.

infernape - hi shuckle. starmie if it doesn't carry grass knot and rotom revenge kills if it gets lucky.

jirachi - as a lead I think only 1 has not gone for the iron head on ttar. Skarm is the easy switch, and future tricks are easily predicted (and go to rotom for that) Not that big of a deal as long as I play smart.

jolteon - ugh, specsjolt are irritating. Other jolts are walled/encored (if it passes) easily by shuckle. Specs is still a 3hko, but it can get risky. ttar beats it soundly though, lategame (which is usually when they come out anyways)

kingdra - annoying as it is for anyone. That being said, skarmory can beat ddancers, ttar beats it if it ddances first, shuckle encores followed by starmie. Another threat without an immediate 1 poke counter, but workable.

Latias - lol latias gets demolished by this team. Sandstream hurts it, shuckles walls it, even skarm can wall those without tbolt, rotom beats it without given a calm mind first. Ttar set up on latias even with +1 calm mind surf (how funny is that).

Lucario - Rotom-a beats it pretty bad. Shuckle/skarm can both take 1 +2 CC before going down, allowing scizor to revenge kill if things go wrong. Keep in mind lucarios almost always come in late, when I've fully setup up spikes. Second they come late after my ttar gets a ddance, when ttar wins.

machamp - irritating as he is for anyone, but definately workable. Shuckle encores dynamic punch for rotom. Or if he comes in on spikes, then rotom can just kill them then.

magnezone - my skarm carries shed shell for this reason. Shuckle then sets up, and rotom and ttar beat it (scizor if it moves in on superpower, and starmie if it's low and not scarfed)

mamoswine - shuckle/skarm both wall it pretty easily. Everyone on my team but ttar hits it for SE. Overheat, hydro pump/grass knot/bullet punch.

metagross - skarmory sets up all over metagross's face. Rotom to a lesser extent as well as starmie.

ninjask - skarm, shuckle, SS, SR, scizor, all own it.

porygon-z - shuckle says hi. Scizor beats it without hp fire. Ttar sets up unless it has twave.

rhyperior - never see them, but skarm wins, starmie wins, +1 ttar wins, scizor wins

rotom - scizor, ttar, shuckle

salamence - greatest mixed attacker, meet greatest mixed wall. Fortunately the greatest mixed wall wins easily, especially since 90% carry life orb and kill themselves.

scizor - lol I've very rarely had troubles with scizor, since all 6 of mine beat it (only ttar needs a turn to set up). Shuckle knocks off its band/orb, crippling it. Skarm set up easily. rotom wins. STARMIE wins, easily. Plus again, choice users which get hit by spikes can owned by this team.

smeargle - shuckle takes a nap, then skarm takes on whatever gimick it tries. Scizor for backup, as well as rotom.

snorlax - skarm/shuckle both set up on it (choice band fire does only 48%), and it eats spikes every time it comes in.

starmie - very few people use lifeorb starmies because of latias (thank god lol) but both defensive and offensive ones can be beaten by rotom and starmie (and scizor if need be)

suicune - rotom + starmie both whittle him away. Scizor's u-turn hurts too, and shuckle can encore.

swampert - irritating, but definately workable. Rotom tricks it, starmie can win, skarmory sets up on it, as does shuckle. It has no recovery and eats spikes...do the math.

tentacruel - rotom -a beats tentacruel in most ways. Shuckle takes laughable dmg, and ttar beats it too

togekiss - shuckle, rotom, scizor if things get hairy. Ttar wins easily too.

Ttar - skarmory beats it. Choice users eat spikes a lot. Scizor and starmie both can win. DDancers can only really set up on rotom.

vaporeon - never been a problem. Shuckle knocks off leftovers, which hurts bad. Starmie can pp stall and rotom wins outright. Scizor's u-turn hurts a lot as well (as does superpower).

weavile - hi shuckle. skarm too. Easy to set up on.

zapdos - Shuckle walls it completely. I just make it leave til lategame when my ttar sets up on it if it doesn't have twave and 1hko. Rotom-a in a bind.

My team does not care about porygon2, and clefable doesn't do enough to form a legitimate threat.

Strategies against types:
Rapid offense: pretty easily. If they use a lot of choice users, they'll get walled and spiked to hell by shuckle/skarm. If it's fragile sweepers, shuckle beats every single one besides (kinda) kingdra.

Bulky offense: really the same thing as fragile offense. Sooner or later something on their team is gonna fall (9/10 it's salamence, heatran, or infernape) and then it just opens up the ttar sweep. +1 ttar beats offense really really hard.

Stall: If played reasonably well, my stall outstalls other stall, or at least enough for ttar to sweep. Advantages my stall team has? Most stall don't carry trick, essentially giving me 6-5. Shuckle beats any sort of wallbreaker they have and my team cares little about status. Starmie beats out most stall and rapid spins off blissey, and knock off OWNS in sandstorm. The difference between getting +6% every turn is the key, from both trick and knock off.

rain dance: Well, you'd think since my team is somewhat water-weak I'd get run over by rain dance, right? Not really. I just switch in ttar after they set up rain dance, then switch to a set up sweeper, etc.. until I beat their raindancers one by one. Cress gets beaten in a variety of ways, bronzong can't heal, and crobat gets beaten by ttar. Once their raindancers are out of the way ttar can sweep their fragile team.

trick room: shuckle laughs at trick room, outspeeding and encoring their entire team, lol. Outlasting trickroom is easy, though a sword dance marowak is literally the scariest thing ever, and I have lost to a couple.