USUM Creative and Underrated Sets

[Adaam]

Slowbro @ Waterium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Block
- Toxic
- Scald
- Rest

So this is a set that's been picking up a lot of steam in UU open recently. I know aim, Soulwind, and Amane Mise have all used and won with it after Slowbro blocked some key players. I originally paired this with hazard stack semi-stall since Slowbro tends to bait hazard removers like Emp, Tenta, Starmie, Mantine etc, which all lose to this set (unless Tbolt Starmie). It also gives a phenomenal stall matchup since their team is often too passive to break Slowbro through Rest and clerics simply get PP stalled by Toxic. Waterium Z is to reduce Knock Off damage from the likes of Krookodile and Mamoswine.

 

[bsu]

Rotom-Mow @ Grassium Z
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 48 HP / 252 SpA / 208 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Leaf Storm
- Pain Split
- Thunder Wave

introducing the stall breaker rotom!!
grass is nice over fire bc
-no rocks weakness
-can be burned instead of toxiced
-grass is way more useful vs quagsire and alomoalalllalaoaamoaoma etc

speed is to outspeed mamo. this set is super helpful vs stall as u basically twave the blissey, pain split to force a softboiled, and then volt switch into a breaker.
Twave is also super good to punish dragons that think theyre switching into a volt switch ie hydreigon or latias. no wisp is kinda eh sometimes but thats what your other teammates are for.
Z move can be switched to leftovers if u need another Z move user, but immunity to trick can be nice.
You can also go max speed but like why lol.
Not completely useless outside of the stall matchup bc its naturally somewhat bulky and has t wave, bloom-doom, and volt switch

 

[Lemon Ginger]

Hi I am pretty new to recent UU meta, so forgive me if this is already a set, but I can't find any representation in usage stats and this has been really good, so here goes:

SD Babiri Terrakion

Terrakion @ Babiri Berry
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Stone Edge
- Stomping Tantrum / Earthquake
- Close Combat

Issue with terrak has been they send in Scizor to revenge or on the SD and you're forced out or sac. With berry you can tank banded bullet punch even at -1. You can also tank doublade gyro+sneak, so you can SD, CC and get a boosted stomping tantrum to KO. Makes stall matchup nice. You can also do stuff like SD in M-aggrons face, assuming not offensive. Only steel move you can't handle is Stakataka Gyro because that thing is insane. (Honestly, more people need to use CB Gyro).

Calcs:

252+ Atk Choice Band Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. -1 4 HP / 0 Def Babiri Berry Terrakion: 264-312 (81.4 - 96.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO​

252+ Atk Doublade Gyro Ball (91 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Babiri Berry Terrakion: 159-187 (49 - 57.7%) -- 96.9% chance to 2HKO + Sneak does another 25%​

+2 252 Atk Terrakion Stomping Tantrum (150 BP) vs. 240 HP / 0 Def Eviolite Doublade: 306-360 (95.9 - 112.8%) -- 75% chance to OHKO​

 

[Nightingales]

Swampert @ Rindo Berry
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Scald
- Mirror Coat

Old but gold. Rindo Swampert lures some fun stuff like Celebi, various Grass Knot users, and other neutral mons like Moltres, and just smacks them with a Mirror Coat, typically scoring a massive chunk if not outright eliminating them. It's also fun to have somebody get cocky and click a Draco and get blasted into next Tuesday.

 

[justdrew]

Adrenaline Orb Latias

Latias @ Adrenaline Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Draco Meteor
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Adrenaline Orb Latias is the ultimate way to counter sweep the over so common Mega Manectric and and Krookodile. Hidden Power Fire is used to lure in Scizor but if you have other ways to deal with Scizor you can run roost. Ice beam is to OHKO Krookodile without having to use Draco Meteor. WIth no Roost this Latias is used as a late game sweeper but is honestly very nice on offense because of how much of a threat Krookodile poses. Shoutout to La Sage who introduced me to this set.

 

[avarice]

Willo Doom

Houndoom @ Houndoominite
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Dark Pulse
- Will-O-Wisp

With bisharp about houndoom is pretty cool right now and when paired w a mon like nihi it can safely forgo sludge bomb. Doom does live the 2+ suckerpunch from bisharp but if doom is chipped or w/e being able to burn before fire blasting is great. It can obviously cripple maeros and sharks trying to switch in too.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-872872193

 

[VernonN]

straight from fuego ironworks

Bisharp (M) @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Aerial Ace

Snipe Chesnaught, Kommo-o, Infernape etc.

its epic

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-827338018
best replay I have atm havent been able to lure anything other than that Kommo-o after a couple games

edit: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-827460879 this one switched out on the Z but I still killed the Ches with AA

edit2: only just realized that this was just posted in the Lure That Threat woops credit to BackAtYouBro


edit3: and its in Next Best Thing so credit to SmallSmallRose too o o p s

 

[avarice]

Krookodile @ Firium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Fang

Scizor is an absolute MENACE to where magneton is in the tier (i understand magneton traps more than scizor, but scizor is the main target). This krookodile set is a reliable lure as many scizor will eat anything that comes from krook and blow krook back with u-turn, bug bite, or superpower. It can be used to evade the shuca berry on cobalion and hit magnet rise klefki too. But this set should likely be reserved for teams weaker to scizor or looking for a better voltturn matchup. Personally I have liked it with Rocky Helmet Amoongus.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-837739155
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-837728536
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-837991342

Calcs

252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 184 Def Amoonguss: 260-306 (60.1 - 70.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery (meaning it dies if it switches in on EQ or Knock Off)
252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 248 HP / 124+ Def Scizor: 392-464 (114.2 - 135.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Leftovers recovery 252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Cobalion: 196-232 (60.6 - 71.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Chesnaught: 154-182 (40.6 - 48%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery (not hard to get it into range since they'll normally take another hit or two)
252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Rotom-Mow: 230-272 (95.4 - 112.8%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Krookodile Inferno Overdrive (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Togekiss: 127-150 (33.9 - 40.1%) -- 37.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
(same idea as chesnaught)

 

[dingbat]

It would be a shame if I didn’t post the cb stak set here

stakataka @ choice band
ability: beast boost
evs: 252 hp / 252 atk / 4 spd
brave nature
ivs: 0 spe
-gyro ball
-stone edge
-superpower
-earthquake

First question most people will probably ask: why brave > lonely? First off, this set plays as a wallbreaker that you can send in with a bit more leverage as opposed to an endgame threat that you’re more likely than not unwilling to send in early-game. Second, some people don’t quite understand how fucking sturdy base 211 defense is. Running lonely nature with 15 ivs is a fairly significant sacrifice to Stak’s physical bulk; taking 15% to 20% more damage can mean the difference between living certain EQ + other 4x physical attacks and not living them, which I can easily show calcs for. Third, the defense boosts actually help way more than you’d expect; if you saw me laddering with this shit, you would have seen something like my +1 Stak swallowing Haxorus’s EQ like it was a yummy, nutricious breakfast; I’ll also post some +1/+2 defense calcs to show how absurdedly sturdy it can become. Finally, CB Gyro Ball is already disgustingly strong enough on its own (which I’ll post a third set of calcs for) that it doesn’t even need the attack boosts anyways.

Anyways, as for this set itself, I opted to run the typical 4 attack set; EQ is probably the most expendable move here as opposed to Superpower since Superpower nabs the important OHKO against Cobalion, which EQ does not guarantee, and most of the time, you’re clicking Gyro Ball anyways. Iron Head can be run over EQ if you want another solid STAB option that can hit targets like Kommo-o or Chesnaught that Gyro Ball otherwise cannot hit. As for team support, I’d highly recommend Sandstorm support from Hippo if you wanna try out this set; this allows you to hard switch Stak into threats like Hydra and Latias more fearlessly, opening more windows to threaten, possibly guarantee kills with Gyro if your opponent lacks a really strong resist. In particular, I ran Hippo + CB Stak + CB Terrakion on one of my teams as dual CB wallbreakers has always been something I’ve enjoyed utilizing since the XY meta and both breakers benefit from the Sandstorm support from Hippo. Lastly, TR support is unnecessary as this set (as previously mentioned) is intended to endure more attacks anyways.

edit: here's the excessive amounts of calcs haha

lonely 15 IV vs brave

252 Atk Mold Breaker Haxorus Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 288-340 (88.3 - 104.2%)
252 Atk Mold Breaker Haxorus Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 248-296 (76 - 90.7%)

252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 364-432 (111.6 - 132.5%)
252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 316-376 (96.9 - 115.3%)

252+ Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 344-408 (105.5 - 125.1%)
252+ Atk Scizor Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 296-352 (90.7 - 107.9%)

0 Atk Hippowdon Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 288-340 (88.3 - 104.2%)
0 Atk Hippowdon Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 244-292 (74.8 - 89.5%)

252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Crawdaunt Crabhammer vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 322-380 (98.7 - 116.5%)
252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Crawdaunt Crabhammer vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 281-333 (86.1 - 102.1%)

252 Atk Zeraora Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 284-336 (87.1 - 103%)
252 Atk Zeraora Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 248-292 (76 - 89.5%)

252+ Atk Strong Jaw Sharpedo-Mega Crunch vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 135-160 (41.4 - 49%)
252+ Atk Strong Jaw Sharpedo-Mega Crunch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 118-139 (36.1 - 42.6%)

252+ Atk Stakataka Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0- Def Stakataka: 292-344 (89.5 - 105.5%)
252+ Atk Stakataka Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 248-296 (76 - 90.7%)

examples of shit this mothafucka eats like hearty meals

252 Atk Cobalion Close Combat vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 208-252 (63.8 - 77.3%)
252 Atk Life Orb Mold Breaker Haxorus Earthquake vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 218-260 (66.8 - 79.7%)
252 Atk Infernape Close Combat vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 232-280 (71.1 - 85.8%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Adaptability Crawdaunt Crabhammer vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 236-280 (72.3 - 85.8%)
252 Atk Adaptability Crawdaunt Hydro Vortex (180 BP) vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 256-304 (78.5 - 93.2%)
252 Atk Terrakion Close Combat vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 268-324 (82.2 - 99.3%)
252 Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. +1 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 296-348 (90.7 - 106.7%)

252 Atk Cobalion All-Out Pummeling (190 BP) vs. +2 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 252-300 (77.3 - 92%)
252 Atk Guts Heracross Close Combat vs. +2 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 300-352 (92 - 107.9%)
252 Atk Choice Band Terrakion Close Combat vs. +2 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 304-360 (93.2 - 110.4%)

resists you say???

252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Magneton: 106-124 (43.8 - 51.2%) 4x resist rly??
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 248 HP / 124+ Def Scizor: 163-192 (47.5 - 55.9%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Cobalion: 163-192 (50.4 - 59.4%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Gligar: 189-223 (56.5 - 66.7%) Not a resist, but this is max defense gligar, mind you
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 80+ Def Hippowdon: 238-282 (56.6 - 67.1%) Not a resist, but it hard counters otr so it may as well be here
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Manectric-Mega: 162-191 (57.6 - 67.9%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 248 HP / 156 Def Tentacruel: 233-275 (64.1 - 75.7%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Moltres: 220-260 (68.5 - 80.9%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Scizor: 203-239 (71.9 - 84.7%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Bisharp: 203-239 (74.9 - 88.1%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Houndoom-Mega: 222-261 (76.2 - 89.6%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Rotom-Mow: 191-225 (79.2 - 93.3%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Zeraora: 258-303 (81.3 - 95.5%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Chandelure: 222-261 (85 - 100%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Crawdaunt: 232-273 (86.5 - 101.8%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Starmie: 232-273 (88.8 - 104.5%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Infernape: 267-315 (91.1 - 107.5%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Sharpedo-Mega: 270-318 (96 - 113.1%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Lucario: 271-320 (96.4 - 113.8%)

just for luls

252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Haxorus: 444-523 (151.5 - 178.4%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Latias: 444-523 (147 - 173.1%)
252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 444-523 (136.6 - 160.9%)
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Krookodile: 324-382 (97.8 - 115.4%)

sandstorm support is rly nice i promise

252 SpA Hydreigon Dark Pulse vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 84-100 (25.7 - 30.6%)
252 SpA Hydreigon Devastating Drake (195 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 102-120 (31.2 - 36.8%)
252 SpA Latias Devastating Drake (195 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 93-110 (28.5 - 33.7%)
+1 252 SpA Latias Devastating Drake (195 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 140-165 (42.9 - 50.6%)
252 SpA Latias Gigavolt Havoc (185 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 119-140 (36.5 - 42.9%)
+1 252 SpA Latias Gigavolt Havoc (185 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 177-209 (54.2 - 64.1%)
252 SpA Manectric-Mega Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 100-118 (30.6 - 36.1%)
252 SpA Moltres Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 117-138 (35.8 - 42.3%)
252 SpA Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 129-153 (39.5 - 46.9%)
252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 141-166 (43.2 - 50.9%)
252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 193-228 (59.2 - 69.9%)
252 SpA Rotom-Heat Inferno Overdrive (195 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 181-214 (55.5 - 65.6%) Same with bloom doom rotom-c
252 SpA Celebi Bloom Doom (195 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 175-207 (53.6 - 63.4%)
252 SpA Celebi Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Stakataka in Sand: 220-260 (67.4 - 79.7%)

 

[Darksafadao]

Cotton Guard Mega-Altaria

Altaria-Mega @ Altarianite
Ability: Natural Cure
Happiness: 0
EVs: 248 HP / 76 SpD / 184 Spe
Careful / Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Frustration / Facade
- Cotton Guard
- Roost

Cotton Guard Mega Altaria is mostly seen as a meme, but I believe it has a cool spot at the meta. Some teams rely on physical revenge killers to deal with it, such as Cobalion, Band Scizor, and Klefki (to an extent) and it gets pretty tough for some more offensive teams to deal with it after a boost. I like to see it as the Refresh Mega Altaria set counterpart, as in while the Refresh set seeks to abuse bulkier teams this one seeks to abuse the more offensive ones, also having a strong surprise factor attached to it.
It can also use Facade and abuse Natural Cure to avoid being Toxic'd while fishing for Scald burns on bulky mons, and once it becomes burnt it's pretty hard to deal with.

replay of it working out

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-816824677

(kinda old replay but the concept still applies as in abusing what would check it)

 

[nikitas]

Assault Vest Goodra

Goodra @ Assault Vest
Ability: Gooey
EVs: 252 Atk / 80 SpA / 176 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Iron Tail
- Power Whip
- Fire Blast

I've been trying this thing for a few games and it looks good. It takes very little damage from neutral Special Attacks and has decent coverage.
EVs are my preference; I run max Atk to hit bulky Ground, Water and Fairy types harder, use 176 Spe with a Hasty Nature to outspeed Jolly Bisharp, and not miss out on Special bulk and dumped the rest into SpA for a stronger DMeteor and Fire Blast versus neutral opponents and potentially Klefki.
Draco Meteor is preferred over Outrage in order for you to lure in Scizor and Bisharp, they still take tons of damage at-2 and become easy to finish off with priority of your own or with prior damage. If your team handles MAggron and MSteelix well, you can consider running Fire Punch to guarantee the OHKOs on the former pokemons even after Dmeteor on another mon. Iron Tail 2HKOs all Fairy types after SR and a bit of chip damage and Power Whip can really hurt bulky Water and Ground types that switch in, similar to Iron Tail for Fairies.
You can change both EVs and Moves depending on your needs.
Gooey is very good late game against fast cleaners like MSharpedo, MAerodactyl, MBeedrill and I found it more useful than Sap Sipper, as there is a lack of Grass-type moves in UU and they are mostly coverage moves, too. if you do pick Sap Sipper, you safely 2HKO all bulky Ground, Water, Fairy types except for MSlowbro at +1 Atk.

P.S.: Got no replays sry((

 

[InvejaMata]

Nihilego @ Life Orb
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 80 HP / 176 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Knock Off
- Sludge Wave
- Thunderbolt
- Grass Knot

First things first, this is a Nihi that Shiba showed off in Snake Discussion thread, i literally loved this and he gave me the permission for that.
Now, let's go to the point. With Gligar rising and having no fear to switch into Nihilego, Knock Off does a nice job getting rid Eviolite and weakening Gligar for some partner. Furthermore, Knocking stuff like Empoleon or Krookodile on the switch allows it to beat them 1v1, the first one loses your only way of recovery, while the second loses the precious scarf what makes it almost useless.

 

[pokemonisfun]

In this post, I introduce four sets that are essentially never used in UU but have a high degree of viability. I'll post more in depth on the P2 set and the Meloetta set later somewhere else in the forums. As a disclaimer, I didn't think of any of these sets myself (all are adapted from the glorious ladder).

Primarina @ Metronome
Ability: Liquid Voice
EVs: 156 HP / 252 SpA / 100 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Echoed Voice
- Moonblast
- Sparkling Aria
- Psychic

The main purpose of this set is to lure Blissey and other special walls with Echoed Voice and Metronome. The 3rd hit of Echoed Voice does about 33.5% on average to Blissey while the 4th hit does about 52% on average. If you come in for free on say a Gligar or Aggron, they are almost sure to switch to Blissey and then you can easily get to 4 hits to kill Blissey. The 5th hit does 74% and the 6th hit does 82% on average, but you will hardly ever reach there. Metronome also benefits the other moves which are very easily spammable, against Suicune for example. EVs are to outspeed Mantine.

The obvious downside is you have 50% less initial power compared to Choice Specs, but that does not matter as often as you think and being ablse to switch moves to smack Amoonguss and Tentacruel with Psychic comes in handy a lot.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836166411 It kills a Blissey starting on turn 19.

Volcanion @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Steam Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Defog
- Sludge Bomb

The main purpose of this set is to clear hazards on bulky offense teams while also countering a lot of Steel and Fairy types (Scizor, Doublade, Klefki, Sylveon, Florges, checking Primarina).

Unfortunately Volcanion is susceptible to hazards itself which is why I say it's main purpose is on some type of offensive teams that don't care too much about hazards anyways. Of course you lose the power from Choice Specs or utility from Protect/Toxic most Volcanion sets run but overall it's a great trade for most offensive teams that lack Defog.

lucky ducky (Porygon2) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Download
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam
- Conversion
- Recover

A great late game sweeper that abuses many Steel types currently, particularly Scizor, which it can get a Download Special Attack boost on and sweep. It's pretty fast after a boost, just under Starmie, while many of the faster threats in the metagame can't KO it back, like Choice Scarf Hydreigon,

However you do lack defensive utility and it is kind of hit or miss, defensively it frequently feels like you're building with 5 Pokemon if you're using Porygon2.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836037559 Clean sweep as my opponent was (understandably) highly unprepared for this threat
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836600044 Another nice sweep after Primarina breaks through Blissey

singy thingy (Meloetta) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Celebrate
- Hyper Voice
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Dazzling Gleam

Similar concept to Porygon2 except you're even faster (outspeeding up to +1 Kommo-o and Jolly Mega Aerodactyl) and can set up on different things. Plus you have way different coverage, other viable moves include Focus Blast, Shadow Ball, Psychic/Psyshock, and Thunderbolt. I do think Hyper Voice and Celebrate are necessary to abuse the most out of Normalium Z, but otherwise, it can be tailored to specific teams.

It has similar downsides to Porygon2, for the most part it is one time use and it has only limited defensive utility (much more than P2 though). Also, it suffers from 4MSS, it always gets walled by something in addition to Blissey. For example, this set is walled by Chandelure and Jellicent (which is another underrated Pokemon).

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-835762637 It needed a lucky miss to sweep but having a 20% chance to win the game when it looked very bleak is nice anyways.

Normally I would put more replays and analysis for all the Pokemon, but I'll be doing that for P2 and Meloetta in another post within the next 24 hours. For what it's worth, I am extremely confident in all of these sets, and believe they are 100% viable in the metagame plus they have the surprise value. If you use them, let me and others know what you think!

Best wishes to you all,
pokemonisfun

 

[Notily]

Muk-Alola @ Assault Vest
Ability: Poison Touch
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Pursuit
- Gunk Shot / Poison Jab
- Knock Off
- Focus Punch

standard muk but with focus punch > fire punch to lure shit on the switch. muk has been pretty ass for a while now due to how it lets in strong wallbreakers for free and realistically only traps lati / celebi before dying. focus punch kind of addresses the former, hitting common switchins for decent damage (most importantly terrak). damage output vs fat steels still isnt great but its better damage than fire punch

this tech works best on fatter teams that appreciate having terrak lured. basically the only mons muk is forcing out that it doesnt want to trap are fairies so its best to pair it with something that can bring it in vs them (ie scarf hydrei) in order to lure things effectively while avoiding chip from hard switching into them.

calcs

252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Terrakion: 338-398 (104.3 - 122.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Cobalion: 248-294 (76.7 - 91%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Stakataka: 332-392 (101.8 - 120.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Steelix-Mega: 148-176 (41.8 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Filter Aggron-Mega: 109-130 (31.7 - 37.9%) -- 93.7% chance to 3HKO (lol)
-1 252+ Atk Muk-Alola Focus Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Krookodile: 248-292 (74.9 - 88.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

 

[tmacbalanced]

Hydreigon @ Steelium Z / Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 48 Atk / 252 SpA / 208 Spe
Naive Nature
- Superpower
- Dark Pulse
- Flash Cannon
- Work Up / HP Electric

This is a set I've had fun using on ladder and I figured I'd post it to see what other people think of it. This set is used to mess with stall and balance. 48 Atk EVs with Work Up allows Hydreigon to set up on Blissey and beat it once you get up to +2. Mantine is a problem for this set, so you can always run HP Electric over Work Up and Life Orb over Steelium Z to beat it. 208 speed EVs allows Hydreigon to outspeed Krookodile, Lucario, and Nidoking. It's important to outspeed Nidoking because it can OHKO you but you can always run a bit less speed and not care about Krookodile or Blissey (you could probably scare out Quagsire then set up) and put the Atk EVs, as well as take out 16 EVs in speed, to put into bulk. You could also go full speed to tie with specs Hydreigon. Hydreigon is also good at forcing out mons since it has so many sets which can aid it in being able to set up a work up.
+1 252 SpA Hydreigon Corkscrew Crash (160 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sylveon: 406-478 (103 - 121.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Hydreigon Corkscrew Crash (160 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Togekiss: 302-356 (80.7 - 95.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
+2 48 Atk Hydreigon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blissey: 682-804 (95.5 - 112.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-838123792 - Turn 12
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-837149835 - Turn 18 and 19
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-837010972 - Hydreigon puts in work throughout the game. Just as a warning, I did make a few misplays here haha

This set can fit on bulky offense, as well as hyper offensive teams, and balanced teams.

 

[Yifeng]

Primarina @ Metronome
Ability: Liquid Voice
EVs: 156 HP / 252 SpA / 100 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Echoed Voice
- Moonblast
- Sparkling Aria
- Psychic

Sylveon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Pixilate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Echoed Voice
- Hyper Voice
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psyshock

What I want to showcase here isn't an underrated set, but rather an underrated move - Echoed voice, and two mons that I think are the best at utilising it. pokeisfun recently gave me a team with this Primarina set (see his above post) and I've been loving it because it just rips holes in fat teams. It can almost always cripple/kill an unsuspecting Blissey, making the job of plowing through a stall team a lot easier. But I wanted to make it more potent, so this is where Sylveon comes in. For those unfamiliar, Echoed Voice starts off at 40BP, and increases by an additional 40BP with each consecutive use of it, capping at 200BP. Even if not used by the same mon, regardless of protect or sub, as long as the move is used.

The reason why I chose Primarina/Sylveon combo is because of their abilities, Liquid Voice and Pixelate makes Echoed Voice water and fairy type, respectively, to make it more spammable as these types have no immunities apart from Water Absorb and Soundproof. Stall has almost no counterplay when you spam Echoed Voice late game as it usually doesn't have anything to deal damage quickly enough to stop you chaining up Echoed Voices. Matchup outside of stall is not as great, but they still carry the utility of nuking unsuspecting switchins.

Calcs (Echoed Voice isn't in calculator):
(200BP) 252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey: 441-519 (61.7 - 72.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
(160BP) 252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey: 352-415 (49.2 - 58.1%) -- 63.7% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
(200BP) 252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Aggron-Mega: 237-280 (69 - 81.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
(200BP) 252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 252 HP / 200 SpD Steelix-Mega: 245-288 (69.2 - 81.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
(200BP) 252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 4 HP / 252 SpD Assault Vest Muk-Alola: 303-357 (86 - 101.4%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
(200BP + max metronome stack) 252+ SpA Primarina Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey: 540-636 (75.6 - 89%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
(200BP + max metronome stack) 252+ SpA Primarina Hydro Pump vs. 40 HP / 216 SpD Alomomola: 459-541 (95.4 - 112.4%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Leftovers recovery
(200BP + max metronome stack) 252+ SpA Primarina Hydro Pump vs. 4 HP / 252 SpD Assault Vest Muk-Alola: 370-436 (105.1 - 123.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Replays:
Primarina dismantling semi-stall - https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-839753510
Ironically, I beat pif 3 times with this strategy - https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-839843981
Cleaning trick room late game - https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-840101871
Sylveon taking on Vincune and Blissey - https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-840112853
Echoed Voice spam late game - https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-840137484

 

[Moutemoute]

Cobalion @ Rocky Helmet / Rockium Z
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Iron Head
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge

I've been using quite a lot Stealth Rock + Stone Edge Cobalion on the Ladder and it's a cool Pokemon to lure Moltres / Rotom-Heat / Mantine / Altaria. Stone Edge allows it to pressure those Defogger which means it's a pretty solid Stealth Rock setter. Its item really depend of what you need/want. Rocky Helmet is pretty cool to punish U-Turn users like Scizor, Choice Scarf Hydreigon or Beedrill-Mega. On the other hand, Rockium Z allows Cobalion to use Continental Crush which can obliterate Pokemon which have been mentionned previously.

calcs

252 Atk Cobalion Stone Edge vs. 248 HP / 36 Def Moltres: 360-424 (93.9 - 110.7%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO

252 Atk Cobalion Continental Crush (180 BP) vs. 236 HP / 0 Def Rotom-Heat: 288-340 (96 - 113.3%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Cobalion Continental Crush (180 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Altaria: 334-394 (114.7 - 135.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Cobalion Continental Crush (180 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Altaria: 236-278 (66.8 - 78.7%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Cobalion Continental Crush (180 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Mantine: 276-326 (73.9 - 87.3%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

Example : https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-840349451

 

[pokemonisfun]

chuggy buggy (Scizor) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower
- Bullet Punch

I like this set a lot because it doesn't have to risk as much as CB Scizor frequently since it can outspeed and KO things that might run coverage specifically for Scizor. For example, if you switch in on Celebi as it NPs, they will most likely use Z Earth Power, Z Psychic (if you're in range), or Hidden Power Fire to kill you if you were slower. But you will surprise them with a fast and free U-Turn KO. It also works for Latias too if you slightly weaken it first (SR damage is enough). Besides Celebi and Latias, some notable Pokemon you can surprise (given they are weak enough) include: Infernape, Cobalion, Hydreigon, Gengar (easier to trap if it's weakened), Chandelure, Bisharp, Volcanion (it needs to be weakened a lot), Rotom (especially Cut but also Heat) and Sharpedo Mega (if they are at +0 speed).

Some other fringe benefits include luring Magneton and of course the surprise value, which is already embedded somewhat in the previous match ups.

Naturally there are some drawbacks, you're weaker than most offensive Scizor's and Bullet Punch won't get OHKOs on some important targets like Terrakion and Mega Aerodactyl. Also importantly, you're slow for a Scarfer (out speed up to Mega Pidgeot but nothing more). If you can work around these two weaknesses and abuse the surprise factor and super nice fast U-Turn, this set is great for many teams.

A free KO on Celebi: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-859506857

Probably got a surprise KO on Bisharp and managed to gain momentum on an Azelf: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-861064588

Not doing quite enough to Latias and not having enough bulk to check Krookodile: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-859789089

Able to abuse Scarf to have some prediction free U-Turns while still having a Bullet Punch later game: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-859637443

Disclaimer: I adapted this set from the glorious ladder

 

[dingbat]

Gligar @ Eviolite
Ability: Immunity
EVs: 252 HP / 156 Def / 100 SpD
Impish Nature
- Sand Tomb
- Toxic
- Taunt
- Roost

I ran this exact set on Gliscor back when it was here (with different EVs and shit ofc), but this is still a really cool set because trapping is stupid as fuck and Gligar definitely has the tools to utilize it effectively. While it doesn't pull this off nearly as effectively as Gliscor did due to its general need to run bulk instead of speed, it still annoys the everlasting crap out of most stall teams since your opponent is very likely to not expect this set, and as long as you can actually land your Sand Tombs, you're about guaranteed to get some free KOs.

Replay of me abusing this stall team with Gligar after eliminating Xatu

 

[Fusion Flare]

In this post, I introduce four sets that are essentially never used in UU but have a high degree of viability. I'll post more in depth on the P2 set and the Meloetta set later somewhere else in the forums. As a disclaimer, I didn't think of any of these sets myself (all are adapted from the glorious ladder).

View attachment 150279
Primarina @ Metronome
Ability: Liquid Voice
EVs: 156 HP / 252 SpA / 100 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Echoed Voice
- Moonblast
- Sparkling Aria
- Psychic

The main purpose of this set is to lure Blissey and other special walls with Echoed Voice and Metronome. The 3rd hit of Echoed Voice does about 33.5% on average to Blissey while the 4th hit does about 52% on average. If you come in for free on say a Gligar or Aggron, they are almost sure to switch to Blissey and then you can easily get to 4 hits to kill Blissey. The 5th hit does 74% and the 6th hit does 82% on average, but you will hardly ever reach there. Metronome also benefits the other moves which are very easily spammable, against Suicune for example. EVs are to outspeed Mantine.

The obvious downside is you have 50% less initial power compared to Choice Specs, but that does not matter as often as you think and being ablse to switch moves to smack Amoonguss and Tentacruel with Psychic comes in handy a lot.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836166411 It kills a Blissey starting on turn 19.

View attachment 150281

Volcanion @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Steam Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Defog
- Sludge Bomb

The main purpose of this set is to clear hazards on bulky offense teams while also countering a lot of Steel and Fairy types (Scizor, Doublade, Klefki, Sylveon, Florges, checking Primarina).

Unfortunately Volcanion is susceptible to hazards itself which is why I say it's main purpose is on some type of offensive teams that don't care too much about hazards anyways. Of course you lose the power from Choice Specs or utility from Protect/Toxic most Volcanion sets run but overall it's a great trade for most offensive teams that lack Defog.

View attachment 150285

lucky ducky (Porygon2) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Download
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam
- Conversion
- Recover

A great late game sweeper that abuses many Steel types currently, particularly Scizor, which it can get a Download Special Attack boost on and sweep. It's pretty fast after a boost, just under Starmie, while many of the faster threats in the metagame can't KO it back, like Choice Scarf Hydreigon,

However you do lack defensive utility and it is kind of hit or miss, defensively it frequently feels like you're building with 5 Pokemon if you're using Porygon2.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836037559 Clean sweep as my opponent was (understandably) highly unprepared for this threat
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-836600044 Another nice sweep after Primarina breaks through Blissey
View attachment 150286
singy thingy (Meloetta) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Celebrate
- Hyper Voice
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Dazzling Gleam

Similar concept to Porygon2 except you're even faster (outspeeding up to +1 Kommo-o and Jolly Mega Aerodactyl) and can set up on different things. Plus you have way different coverage, other viable moves include Focus Blast, Shadow Ball, Psychic/Psyshock, and Thunderbolt. I do think Hyper Voice and Celebrate are necessary to abuse the most out of Normalium Z, but otherwise, it can be tailored to specific teams.

It has similar downsides to Porygon2, for the most part it is one time use and it has only limited defensive utility (much more than P2 though). Also, it suffers from 4MSS, it always gets walled by something in addition to Blissey. For example, this set is walled by Chandelure and Jellicent (which is another underrated Pokemon).

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-835762637 It needed a lucky miss to sweep but having a 20% chance to win the game when it looked very bleak is nice anyways.

Normally I would put more replays and analysis for all the Pokemon, but I'll be doing that for P2 and Meloetta in another post within the next 24 hours. For what it's worth, I am extremely confident in all of these sets, and believe they are 100% viable in the metagame plus they have the surprise value. If you use them, let me and others know what you think!

Best wishes to you all,
pokemonisfun

Hey, instead of Lefties on Volcanion, try out a pinch berry! I feel that'd work better.

 

[Smallsmallrose]

Krookodile @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Beat Up
Since it's worming its way into other threads, I figured I'd put it here. Beat Up is a spicy tech on Krook in the current meta. It messes up the popular suicide leads in Azelf and Froslass, preventing their hazards by KOing them in one go through their sashes. It also gives Krook an actual form of counterplay against the horrifying sub Gengar who's been terrorizing any team relying on a scarfed dark as their sole ghost answer, as well as Sub Hoopa who's been similarly terrorizing ghost answers. Depending on the attack stat of your team, it can even act as a crunch alternative for Celebi and Lati, but that's just more a bonus if your team has enough attack, the main use is beating the sash and subs of frail dark-weak mons.

 

[decis]

one stroke cremation @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 29 HP / 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Psychic
- Psyshock
- Filler

+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psyshock vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blissey: 598-706 (83.7 - 98.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Aggron-Mega: 153-182 (44.4 - 52.9%) -- 25% chance to 2HKO.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Altaria-Mega: 352-417 (99.7 - 118.1%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psyshock vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Mantine: 298-352 (79.6 - 94.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Mantine: 277-328 (74 - 87.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 252 HP / 100 SpD Eviolite Gligar: 308-363 (92.2 - 108.6%) -- 50% chance to OHKO.
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 40 HP / 216 SpD Alomomola: 487-575 (101.2 - 119.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO.
ecc...

Sadly his defenses sucks but if you manage to plot this thing can beat or help you to beat stall(and non) teams in a good way. Not easy to build around but this thing is good.

 

[Moutemoute]

I think NP Z-Psyshock would be much much better since you can run an extra coverage. Dual Psychic STAB sounds bad.

 

[decis]

dual stab is good to break phis and special walls.
but is ok too z

 

[Moutemoute]

That's why Z-Psyshock is better.
Psyshock hits Blissey while the Z can nuke physical wall. Azelf really need as much coverage as possible. You can't just opt for one of them when you can take two.