XY NU Weird Hyper Offensive 1300+ Team

[bogoljubow]

Welcome to my first NU RMT. I am rather new to this tier, I started to play a bit a few months ago and tried to get into NU a few times when I was fed up with OU. Of course, I also watched a lot of videos on Youtube and stuff, but unfortunately I can't really concentrate enough to learn something from them. Anyway, this is my first real NU Team with at least a bit of a thought process behind it, although it looks pretty shit and probably needs much more than small changes.

I started trying the Normal-Spam core of Zangoose and Pyroar, although I couldn't understand that Normal-Spam would do well in a Tier with a bunch of Normal resists. I went on with (nearly randomly) picking the Team members: LO Healing Wish Mesprit, Sash Lead Qwilfish, Taunt Nasty Plot Mismagius and Belly Drum Slurpuff (which has been the most valuable member so far). Of course it is somehow easy to set up with Slurpuff in the lower ladder which is probably the reason I got to 1350. Besides that, the team has multiple flaws:
I had literally no switch-in for Feraligatr, Kangaskhan, Rotom and others while not even having a way to OHKO them. Altogether, the Pokémon were not doing what they were supposed to do.
Recently, I switched Qwilfish to Archeops, Pyroar to Typhlosion and special LO Mesprit to Physical Scarf, but I am not sure whether it has helped the team. I am still pretty weak to Water Types, Knock Off amd whatever, but I like how the team can heavily pressure opposing teams.


The team In-Depth

Archeops @ Focus Sash
Ability: Defeatist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
- Head Smash
- Endeavor

I originally had Qwilfish here but it didn't have the opportunity to set-up more of one layer of spikes most of the time and I felt Stealth Rock were more imoprtant in this tier. The fast is pretty useful for Hyper Offense, and the last too moves ensure that Archeops will do some good damage.

Slurpuff @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Belly Drum
- Return
- Play Rough
- Substitute

I really liked BD Slurpuff after testing it. The set itself is quite standard, but Substitue is even more nice to block a Will-o-Wisp or Toxic from Weezing or Seismitoad and perhaps beat them 1v1. Slurpuff is really hard to deal with if it gets to +1, but normally the opponent will keep his scarf user to revenge it.

Zangoose @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Toxic Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Facade
- Knock Off
- Quick Attack
- Swords Dance

Zangoose is the second hard hitter, usually acting as a wallbreaker in midgame. He shares the most checks or counters with Slurpuff, being able to weaken them for Slurpuff to pull through late game. Unfortunately, Zangoose is not that fast, so he is often crippled by Thunderwave or Will-o-Wisp. I do have Healing Wish Mesprit, but the problem with the team is, that I do not have any sort of pivot, so I often have to sacrifice more than one Pokémon for that.
I am also thinking about replacing SD for Superpower, as I didn't see many possibilities to set-up.

Mismagius @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 160 HP / 136 SpA / 212 Spe
Timid Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Taunt

Mismagius is an obvious choice for every Offense team, being part of the Hazard control that a hazard stacking team is usually looking for. Unfortunately it increases the general Knock Off weakness and cannot always prevent Spinning (f.e. against Sandslash and Cryogonal). The Nasty Plot set really struggled against Kangaskhan and other fat stuff, so I replaced NP with Will-o-Wisp and give it a bulkier spread. The Evs are for outspeeding Base 100 mons with a positive nature like timid Typhlosion, but there is a better spread for sure (please help!).
I would also like to hear opinions on replacing Dazzling Gleam with HP [Fighting] for Pawniard.

Typhlosion @ Choice Specs
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Extrasensory / Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Fire is quite a good typ in NU, and I needed a revenger as well as a special wallbreaker. At first there was Scarf Pyroar and Scarf Typhlosion, but since I am using Scarf Mesprit at the moment, I think the Specs set is a better way to go, especially since it can do damage to AV Hariyama. I was stupidly thinking that Extrasensory could deal with that, but Focus Blast may be a an option as Eruption does more damage to Hariyama.

Mesprit @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Healing Wish
- Zen Headbutt
- U-turn
- Thunder Punch

Ok, Mesprit has good typing and good stats, but it was always the most expendable member of the team. It was able to OHKO Seismitoad (LO Energy Ball), but I really could not use Healing Wish (the reason I used Mesprit at all) properly. That has not changed by making a physical scarf set out of it. U-turn is useful to get momentum against more bulky teams because I cannot afford to make risky double switches. Thunder Punch was supposed to be an option to revenge threatening water types, but I does only ~40% to Feraligatr anyway, so suggestions for other moves are appreciated.

Importable

Slurpuff @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Belly Drum
- Return
- Play Rough
- Substitute

Zangoose @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Toxic Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Facade
- Knock Off
- Quick Attack
- Swords Dance

Mismagius @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 160 HP / 136 SpA / 212 Spe
Timid Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Taunt

Typhlosion @ Choice Specs
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Extrasensory
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Mesprit @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Healing Wish
- Zen Headbutt
- U-turn
- Thunder Punch

Archeops @ Focus Sash
Ability: Defeatist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt
- Head Smash
- Endeavor

I really need some help with this as I truly want to gain knowledge about the very interesting NU Tier, so every suggestion is greatly appreciated.

 

[soulgazer]

hey Betapf, cool team!

Like you explained, your team doesn't have lots of answers for Water-types, which can be a problem since you also are using a Specs Typhlosion, which can potentially give them a turn to set up. I also see that you would like a better Kangaskhan switch-in, but if you want that you will probably need to change ~3 Pokemon.

So here's two ideas I have to fix your team:

1- Go back to Qwilfish over Archeops, Rhydon > Typhlosion, and a offensive Grass-type of your choice (Lilligant or Sceptile) over Mesprit. You will also probably want to change your Mismagius set to something more offensive or even change it to a Choice Scarf Rotom. (this would fix everything)

2- Make Slurpuff Play Rough / Return / Belly Drum / Protect, a offensive Grass-type over Mesprit, and change Mismagius to Taunt / Shadow Ball / Dazzling Gleam / Destiny Bond with a Colbur Berry. (this would fix as much stuff as possible without changing the team too much)

Now to give you some reasoning behind those suggestions:

Option #1: The main idea behind the first option is to change Typhlosion to a Rhydon. This gives you a solid Fire- , Normal-, and Flying-type resist, and a good Electric-type immunity. Fantastic switch-in to Kangaskhan (unless it's like the rare Aqua Tail variant). Since Rhydon will carry Stealth Rock on its own, Lead Archeops would no longer be needed, letting you use a different lead; which is where Qwilfish comes in as it is a good Spikes lead and has Taunt + Explosion to help you prevent the opponent from Rapid Spinning or using Defog. So with the Kangaskhan and Rotom problem fixed, all is left to fix is the Water-type issue. With this team, I think that Swords Dance Sceptile (to lure and beat Poison-types to support Slurpuff, which Lilligant can't do) over Mesprit is the best option in my opinion, but feel free to keep it and change Slurpuff instead. This will let you have a solid check to Water-types and a Ground-type resist. Finally, since you would now have a solid Kangaskhan switch in, going with a more offensive set on Mismagius is something you should do (with a Colbur Berry to help with Sandslash and Seismitoad), but if you think your team is too slow, Choice Scarf Rotom is a good option as it will give you a revenge killer, a Volt Switch user to grab momentum (works very well with Spikes support from Qwilfish), and ofcourse a spinblocker. Oh and I would go with Flamethower over Substitute on Slurpuff to lure and 2HKO Ferroseed, which your team doesn't really like playing against.

Sets

Rhydon @ Eviolite
Ability: Lightningrod
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake
- Swords Dance
- Stealth Rock

or


Rhydon @ Eviolite
Ability: Lightningrod
EVs: 252 HP / 16 Atk / 240 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake
- Roar
- Stealth Rock

Qwilfish @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Explosion
- Toxic Spikes

Sceptile
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Leaf Blade
- Acrobatics
- Earthquake

Mismagius @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Taunt
- Nasty Plot

or

Rotom @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Trick

Slurpuff @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naughty Nature
IVs: 30 HP
- Play Rough
- Belly Drum
- Flamethrower
- Return

Option #2: More simple, but doesn't fix as much as #1. Protect over Substitute on Slurpuff would allow it to avoid Kangaskhan's Fake Out, which will make it easier for Slurpuff to clean up teams as you won't have to care about Kangaskhan as much now. Changing Mesprit for a offensive Grass-type like Substitute + 3 Attack Life Orb Sceptile or Lilligant will give you a check to Kangaskhan (Substitute to do 50/50s with Kangaskhan's Sucker Punch and Double-Edge and Timid Lilligant outspeed Adamant Kangaskhan and can put it to sleep) and a solid check to Feraligatr while also giving you an Electric-type resist, which along with Zangoose's Ghost-type immunity should help with the Rotom problem. Finally, changing Mismagius to a more offensive set with Colbur Berry and Destiny Bond will allow it to spinblock Sandslash more easily, not care too much about Knock Off Seismitoad, and allow you to Destiny Bond threats to KO them as Mismagius faints.

Sets

Slurpuff @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Unburden
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 30 HP
- Play Rough
- Belly Drum
- Return
- Protect

Mismagius @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Destiny Bond
- Taunt

Sceptile @ Life Orb
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Focus Blast
- Substitute

Lilligant (F) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Quiver Dance
- Sleep Powder

By the way, I think that you should use Close Combat somewhere on Zangoose. IMO use it over Swords Dance: Zangoose rarely has the time to set up, and you can't really afford using it over Quick Attack as you need some Priority and Zangoose really wants to be able to hit Ferroseed, Rhydon, and other Rock- or Steel-types.

Sorry for the big walls of text, hopefully I was helpful!

 

[bogoljubow]

Hey Soulgazer, thank you very much for all the suggestions, the have been very helpful.
I tried the first option, which looks good on paper, in a few battles. I have to admit that the new Pokemon didn't do as well as I expected (perhaps I am just bad in battling): Altogether I am pretty weak to Will-o-Wisp, as Mismagius is worn down pretty quickly and I often have to sack it. Things like Weezing or Mismagius are free to burn nearly all of my team members. Opposing Hazards are also annoying as I cannot always prevent them.

 

[ryan]

alright, so your major complaints after soulgazer's suggested changes are wisp users and hazards.

spikes fish / rhydon / scep or lilli / mismag / zangoose / slurp

with this build, I don't think hazards should be too big of an issue. you have taunt to prevent hazards at the beginning, and nothing on your team is sr weak. spikes are a bit annoying, but with your taunt lead and some major offensive pressure, the opponent shouldn't have too much of an opportunity to set them up anyways. toxic spikes are the only real problem I can see. they can help the opponent stall out your slurpuff, and half your team hates them. what's worse is that weezing walls most of your team, so tspikes weezing gets multiple chances to set up. to help with this, you could run LO Mesprit over zangoose. they do the same general thing, wallbreaking, and you have a good way to take out problem pokemon that could wall your sweepers. it also gives you another immediate switch into will-o-wisp, while healing wish can allow you to heal something that gets burned. as another side note, it gives you something that can take on xatu, which isn't an enormous threat but is annoying for your team. the set I'd recommend is:

@ life orb | levitate
4 def / 252 spa / 252 spe | modest
psychic / thunderbolt / hidden power fire / healing wish

the reason why I recommend thunderbolt over energy ball is that it still lets you hit water-types while also covering xatu. in general, it hits flying-types, which are a nuisance for your grass-type. energy ball could hit seismitoad, but tbh, your team really doesn't mind it much barring rhydon, and you have a grass-type to switch directly into it. psychic still does lots to rhydon, and the only thing on your team that rhydon walls is slurpuff, which just needs damage on it in order to win and doesn't need it totally dead.

finally, give yourself some more credit. your team isn't currently ideal, but it's really solid and should be able to hold its own against the average NU player. with the changes suggested in this thread, I think this team has loads of potential.