Winsir - First OU Team (Sticky Web)

[Sesquipedalian]

Firstly, bear with me on the name. It's a combination of Pinsir, which usually ends up doing 80% of the damage, and win, because that's what I plan to do. However, when pronounced, it sounds like "wincer," since when my opponents see this coming, they have no choice but to wince...

Overall, my strategy is to set up Sticky Web as quickly as possible, then sweep with whatever I have access to without much regard for speed. Without further ado:

Galvantula @ Focus Sash
Ability: Compound Eyes
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Sticky Web
- Volt Switch
- Bug Buzz
- Thunder

I use this mainly as a suicide lead; its only purpose is really to set up Sticky Web, then maybe do some small damage to the opponent. The only real ways I won't set up Sticky Web are with status or with multi-hit moves, so it generally does its job. Volt Switch is nice to maintain momentum before the opponent switches out and has their speed lower and I can Thunder the occasional Flying Pokemon immune to Sticky Web if Galvantula is still in play.

Pinsir-Mega @ Pinsirite
Ability: Aerilate (Moxie)
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Quick Attack
- Earthquake
- Return

This is absolutely amazing with Sticky Web set up. Ground and Flying provide great coverage, and speed is rarely an issue. With a Swords Dance, there are few things it can't KO. The Stealth Rocks weakness is a nuisance, so I'm considering adding a spinner. I try to switch it in against Pokemon really low on health to get a Moxie boost before Mega Evolving whenever it's possible.

Breloom (F) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Technician
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Spore
- Rock Tomb
- Bullet Seed
- Force Palm

Breloom pairs fairly nicely with Sticky Web, since it is no longer quite as bogged down by its miserable speed. I've replaced the more popular Mach Punch with Force Palm with the idea that I'll be out-speeding most things with a combination of Sticky Web and Rock Tomb, anyway. Focus Sash is used to maximize the probability of a Spore hitting, since once that occurs I can always KO the opposing Pokemon (or switch to something that can) unless it switches out, in which case is fate is but delayed.

Crawdaunt @ Choice Band
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Crunch
- Aqua Jet
- Crabhammer

Bisharp gets rid of some otherwise very annoying Pokemon, such as Aegislash, with ease, while also flaunting what is quickly becoming my favorite move: Knock-Off. The other attacks are mostly coverage and priority. I have yet to use X-Scissor, but I guess it's there if I need it; if there's a better move to put here I'm open to suggestions. Iron Head is my best shot against Fairies; no other Pokemon on my team has a super-effective hit against them. I went with the HP EV's instead of Spd because Sticky Web will be there to give me the speed I need.

Porygon-Z @ Choice Specs
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Modest Nature
- Tri Attack
- Dark Pulse
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam

These moves provide great coverage, and I can usually send this in when i don't know what to use or don't have a great counter. I use the wonderful Tri-Attack; which with Adaptability, Choice Specs, 252 SAtk, and 80 Base Power hits really hard without any set-up. Dark Pulse hits the Ghosts that Tri Attack does not, and BoltBeam simply optimizes coverage. Again, I relied on Sticky Web to lower the opponent's speed and forewent Spd EV's. Additionally, the surprise factor is not negligible.

Heatran? @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Magma Storm
- Protect
- Toxic
- Taunt

I am still trying to figure out what my sixth Pokemon should be. I've fooled around with the Heatran shown above due to my massive Fire weakness, but wasn't very happy with the results; I'm considering Blastoise for the Rapid Spin (Excadrill doesn't bring much new to the table), but it's much worse with the Mega Evolution slot already taken. I'm more than open to suggestions on what to add.

This is the first legitimately competitive team I've made, so I would greatly appreciate advice on how to improve it and mitigate my n00b-like errors. Thank you in advance.

 

[Kangaaroo]

Hey there!

First of all, your team suffers very heavily from hazards. In particular, Stealth Rock and Spikes. Because of this, I suggest getting a bulky Defogger (such as Skarmory or Mandibuzz).

Also, you have a massive weakness to fire. Your only counter to this is Heatran, but once that's down your team really has no hope against a fire type. You really need to compensate for this, as some big threats like Charizard-mega-Y and Heatran are very prominent in OU.

Scratch Porygon-Z. Yes, it's very powerful with Adaptability+Choice Specs, but it is very frail and you'll find that it won't be surviving too long in an OU battle. You could try switching this with a Choice Specs Latios. This thing is just as powerful as Porygon-Z, but it's faster, has better coverage, and compensates a little for your fire weakness.

I suggest not giving Bisharp Choice Band. It'll benefit more from a Life Orb + Swords Dance combo. With that, it can quite easily sweep with Sucker Punch. In addition, Banded Sucker Punch is very unreliable, and it's very easy for the opponent to get around it. i.e. they can switch, set up etc.

http://play.pokemonshowdown.com/sprites/xyani/ <-- Here's where you can get the sprites from. You can use Ctrl + F (or Command + F) to find the desired Pokemon. Then, simply Copy and Paste the sprite link, and insert it into the Image URL option. (It looks like a mountain around the left of the control pad).

Good luck with the team~

 

[Sesquipedalian]

Hey there!

First of all, your team suffers very heavily from hazards. In particular, Stealth Rock and Spikes. Because of this, I suggest getting a bulky Defogger (such as Skarmory or Mandibuzz).

Also, you have a massive weakness to fire. Your only counter to this is Heatran, but once that's down your team really has no hope against a fire type. You really need to compensate for this, as some big threats like Charizard-mega-Y and Heatran are very prominent in OU.

Scratch Porygon-Z. Yes, it's very powerful with Adaptability+Choice Specs, but it is very frail and you'll find that it won't be surviving too long in an OU battle. You could try switching this with a Choice Specs Latios. This thing is just as powerful as Porygon-Z, but it's faster, has better coverage, and compensates a little for your fire weakness.

I suggest not giving Bisharp Choice Band. It'll benefit more from a Life Orb + Swords Dance combo. With that, it can quite easily sweep with Sucker Punch. In addition, Banded Sucker Punch is very unreliable, and it's very easy for the opponent to get around it. i.e. they can switch, set up etc.

http://play.pokemonshowdown.com/sprites/xyani/ <-- Here's where you can get the sprites from. You can use Ctrl + F (or Command + F) to find the desired Pokemon. Then, simply Copy and Paste the sprite link, and insert it into the Image URL option. (It looks like a mountain around the left of the control pad).

Good luck with the team~

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but Defog gets rid of my hazards as well, which will severely hamper my team since it relies on Sticky Web but can't set it up late in the game. I'm considering adding Starmie instead. It can Rapid Spin quite well, handles most of the Fighting types that give me trouble, and improves my chances against Fire. I'd like to replace Heatran with it, but then my Fire weakness is as bad as before. Which Pokemon do you suggest I replace?

You make a good point about Bisharp, so I'll definitely change that, but I'm reluctant to switch out Porygon-Z. I'll test it both ways before making any decisions there. Thanks for the help!

 

[Stardust Dragon]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but Defog gets rid of my hazards as well, which will severely hamper my team since it relies on Sticky Web but can't set it up late in the game. I'm considering adding Starmie instead. It can Rapid Spin quite well, handles most of the Fighting types that give me trouble, and improves my chances against Fire. I'd like to replace Heatran with it, but then my Fire weakness is as bad as before. Which Pokemon do you suggest I replace?

You make a good point about Bisharp, so I'll definitely change that, but I'm reluctant to switch out Porygon-Z. I'll test it both ways before making any decisions there. Thanks for the help!

Latios would make a great add-on. I use it a lot and can usually set up CM at least twice. He also covers your Heatrans Ground weakness. Here's a set.

Latios @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SpA / 240 Def / 16 Spe
- Calm Mind
- Roost
- Psyshock / Psychic
- Dragon Pulse

Oh this set works wonders. I use it so much and sweep teams with it. One last thing, I prefer Psyshock over Psychic.

 

[Sesquipedalian]

Latios would make a great add-on. I use it a lot and can usually set up CM at least twice. He also covers your Heatrans Ground weakness. Here's a set.

Latios @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SpA / 240 Def / 16 Spe
- Calm Mind
- Roost
- Psyshock / Psychic
- Dragon Pulse

Oh this set works wonders. I use it so much and sweep teams with it. One last thing, I prefer Psyshock over Psychic.

One of the main reasons I want to avoid Latios (and am trying to get rid of Heatran) is because of the difficulty of obtaining them in-game. I want to eventually make this team in-game, but legionaries are an absolute pain to EV train. If there's an alternative option that (ideally) doesn't use a legendary, I'd be thrilled to hear it.

I've been trying out replacing Bisharp with Crawdaunt with some fairly nice success, so I'll switch that out in the OP. This also makes Fire way less dangerous as well. What do you think about Starmie, though? Is there a better Rapid Spinner (or Defogger if I shouldn't be so worried about my Sticky Web getting taken away) that works well with my team. The set I'm considering is:

Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Analytic
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Modest Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam