VGC Would like help with a Reg J team - relatively new to VGC

[Joshawott14]

Howdy-

A (Not) Brief Intro

I've been playing VGC for the last few months and have pretty exclusively been playing a Kyogre (and then Kyogre-Zam) Tailwind team (which is here, for reference).

With Reg J coming up, I wanted to try something different- however, there aren't really many teams for me to browse/samples to pull from, so I just gleaned as much as I could from teams on Munchteams and then put things together in a way that I thought made sense. However, it was extremely helpful for me to get advice last time on here for my Kyogre team, so I'd appreciate general tips, mon switches, or anything else that you all think would be helpful for me to add, remove or change. :)

Here's the Pokepaste- I'll do my best to explain how I've been using the team and how I'd like for it to function. Also, originally the team was hard TR (Caly-Ice, Indeedee, etc) but I really didn't like how it completely fell apart when TR was down. I ended up gradually copying the Pokemon of someone named Jwwt (saw his team on Munchteams) though I don't know any of his sets or EVs- I just don't want anyone to think I'm stealing his team/plagiarizing it.

At its core, my hope for this team is to be very flexible; I'd like to give myself ample time to reposition, set screens and set TR if it would work best against my opponent.

The Team

So, I think a fundamental piece of this team (and a personal favorite VGC mon of mine) is:

Grimm is here for screens support, and will usually be one of the support mons I lead. Spirit Break is there to blow up opposing Ursh dark or to massively hurt Ursh water; it helps force Tera or a switch out of the bikes (Miriaidon and Koraidon); and it helps it not be dead on the field if I can't switch. I'm not super certain about Taunt, though it feels like a very strong last move. I also don't want to run Thunder Wave, primarily to not help the opponent if I'm running Trick Room, but also because the 10% miss is not great if I'm relying on it to land. Also, I'm not super sure about his EVs; I copied them from from the Showdown calcs set, but I personally am not certain on what they do. Finally, his Tera type is Dark to help vs opposing mons with Taunt.

Incin is honestly a mon that I feel is not doing much for this team. I really don't find myself bringing it, even though I know Incin is (in general) an incredibly potent support mon, and one that's done really well on my Kyogre team. It's running a standard set for helping to ward off the Caly's, to deal with Zam, but I really haven't been bringing it much (or at all) due to Koraidon. Incin gets absolutely obliterated by the bike, and though the Intimdate support is nice, it doesn't matter if dies on switch in anyways.

So, Ursh-Dark is actually a mon I've been thinking of as an offensive support for the team. With Choice Band it hits like a train, though it really loses out with having no Tailwind on the team (Stellar Tera + CB blows up both bikes, and a lot of other scary mons- though I can outspeed with Scarf, it can't one shot anymore). EVs are from Showdown calcs, Stellar Tera is for nuking full health bikes/restricted mons, etc. It's felt good to lead with Ursh-Dark, and U-Turn helps with the team's desire to reposition and be behind screens with mons that are scary for my opponent.

The bike has a relatively standard set. It helps massively with repositioning, Electric Terrain is amazing for dealing with sleep moves (Spore, Chlorphyll sleep powder, and Darkrai Dark Void + Gravity), and Choice Specs absolutely delete anything. I'm aware that Dragon Pulse and Parabolic Charge aren't super common moves, but I feel like I'm comfortable with both of them, at least on this particular team. Dragon Pulse (again) helps deal with that ever-present "10% chance to miss" that Draco suffers from. Additionally, I'm not super fond of the idea of my bike being locked into a move that drops special attack by two stages when I expect it to be one of the last mons on the field. As for Parabolic Charge: presuming that we're in a TR endgame, I expect Miraidon to either be next to Magearna or Ursaluna. Urs is immune and Mag is resistant. So, PC gives Miraidon a much better chance to stay alive while still dealing huge damage in TR. Though I'm honestly not sure about Specs- I feel like Life Orb would be nice for not keeping the bike locked into a move via Specs, though I'm not super sure what I'd drop in exchange for Protect (as that could help in stalling out enemy moves/field conditions, or dodging Urs Earthquake).

Ursaluna, again, has a standard set. Flame Orb and Guts for nuclear damage, Protect to activate Orb/wait for TR to be set up. Facade is standard, Headlong Rush is great for exploding enemy targets, etc. Now, my issue is Earthquake: EQ could be insanely potent, but the two (or even three, somewhat) sweepers it would be next to would not appreciate being EQ'd. Neither Mag or Miraidon (and sorta Ursh, though I think it's more expendable in TR) can Protect against Urs' EQ, so I'm not sure if I should drop EQ or try to figure out what moves they can drop in exchange for Protect.

is a bit more tricky. It can pretty reliably one shot a lot of the scary mons with Fler cannon, and with Screens support and Leftovers, it can be quite hard to get off the field. However, again, I feel like it's suffering without having Protect. It feels necessary to have Mag as the TR setter (especially given its bulk and the lack of space on the team for another), and Calm Mind is a great tool for giving myself extra bulk and threat potential if left alone. Still, though, without Protect it feels way too difficult to get Ursaluna next to it and then to let Urs use EQ.

Conclusion

Overall, this team feels pretty nice to use. I like that I'm not dependent on Trick Room to function, but it also can be a bit difficult to get TR up/the team definitely feels harder when not in TR. Incin doesn't feel like it's working, and I'd like to find a way to let Urs spam EQ without worrying about knocking out my own restricted. I'd also appreciate any insight on changing Miraidon to Life Orb and if that's feasible/if it would be worth it.

Thank you to anyone who took the time to read this essay. :)

 

[Pengu]

Heyo Joshawott14 , this is a pretty nice team! Magearna is definitely one of the most potent Pokemon this format and really does like the support Miraidon gives it, especially that Spore denial. Urshifu-S is also pretty cool!


I do want to note that you have a rather crippling Koraidon weakness. Your whole team gets OHKO'd by it aside from Miraidon and aside from Trick Room, it will always have the speed advantage (unless I'm missing something because it's like midnight right now for me LOL). It forces your Pokemon, namely Magearna, to Tera, leaving it open to allies of Koraidon like Flutter Mane and Raging Bolt.


A bit less common, but still threatening. You have nearly nothing that beats it 1v1, aside from Urshifu-S which only beats slow Arceus-Ground, and maybe Ursaluna if they don't Tera Steel or smth.


This actually seems like an issue for you, applies a lot of pressure even past Miraidon, especially the semi-niche Choice Band sets that they can run.

Changes:

Grimmsnarl

Taunt --> Thunder Wave

I know this goes against your Trick Room mode, but there a few reasons why this doesn't really matter. Firstly, you said yourself that this team isn't a dedicated Trick Room team, but moreso a slower team with a Trick Room option. Secondly, with the speed investment you already have on Magearna, it will outspeed Koraidon when it is paralyzed. I do understand that you don't really like inaccurate moves, but sometimes they are just necessary.

EVs

I think keeping the EVs you have are fine for now since the format isn't super developed, though if you want I can probably cook up something for you.

Tera

In the paste it says Grimmsnarl is Tera Ghost but here it says Tera Dark? Just want that to be cleared up (the better option is certainly Tera Ghost btw).

Incineroar

You said it yourself; you don't really need Incineroar. Miraidon is already a Zamazenta-C answer. Urshifu-S and to an extent Magearna and Ursaluna check the horses. I think its fine to let it go here. But for what? Well, there are a few things that come to mind:


If you want to take a Trick Room route, run this. Blocking Fake Out is super nice for your time considering how few Protect Pokemon you have, and with Foul Play you consistently answer both of Calyrex-S and Calyrex-I. With Electric Seed, Farigiraf can eat a Flare Blitz from Tera Fire Koraidon, which is made even better with Tera Water. On top of this, you threaten it back with Psychic or Foul Play.

/
Good options, Iron Hands beats Calyrex-I and Zamazenta-C consistently and provides Fake Out support but does falter notably when facing down Calyrex-S. This is made up for by its nice across the board matchups into many restricted and non-restricteds alike. If you want to keep the Fire-type, Ogerpon-H is definitely the option, as it not only beats both Calyrex-I and Zamazenta-C, but it also provides Follow Me support.

I will be building variants with all 3 for you!

Urshifu-S

Honestly, this one can go too. It's kinda mid even though it is pretty cool, and I think something far more consistent (Urshifu-R) will work just as well. You don't really need a horse answer, and Tera Stellar Surging Strikes / Close Combat nukes everything anyways. Although I do recommend a Sash Set, U-turn can still be used on it!

Miraidon

Tera Electric + Parabolic Charge --> Tera Fairy + Dazzling Gleam

Pretty simple change. Parabolic Charge is insanely weak, would be better off with Discharge. Even then, it isn't really necessary for a hard hitter like Miraidon. On a bulky spread like this, Tera Fairy is really nice for its defensive properties, notably into Koraidon. Dazzling Gleam is just more consistent than Parabolic Charge, and hits Koraidon + way more.

I also noticed that you wanted to change Miraidon's item, and I would say if you were to do it, definitely go for Assault Vest. Don't do Life Orb, the power drop really just isn't worth it.

Ursaluna

This Ursaluna is pretty much good, although I have one proposal: Earthquake be swapped out for Substitute or Swords Dance. Sub is a good option if Trick Room is ending, and Swords Dance is a good option to read your opponent. As you said, you really have nothing that takes Earthquake comfortably either.

Magearna

Calm Mind sucks. I'm going to say it outright. Magearna doesn't really need the buffs, especially since you really want protect for that Leftovers recovery. I really only think Calm Mind Magearna will ever see success on a team with Rillaboom + Amoonguss + Grimmsnarl, which your team doesn't have. Just drop it for Protect.

Variant with Farigiraf: https://pokepast.es/f83ef16a768a988b
Variant with Iron Hands: https://pokepast.es/a83257f2495c7296
Variant with Ogerpon-Hearthflame: https://pokepast.es/b41c8f9f7da3f8c0

good luck and have fun, trainer!

 

[Joshawott14]

Hey Pengu! I appreciate you replying (and also for the fact that this is the second team you've helped me build ).

As a quick, general note: I appreciate the more macro look you took at the team. Reading your changes/ideas helped me realize that I'd really focused in on a few things (Urs getting to use EQ, for example) and that made me make a lot of weird choices LOL (Mag not running protect, Parabolic Charge Miraidon, etc).

And yeah, I made a typo with the Tera Dark Grimm. I think I was distracted when writing it and somehow thought that it could still get Prankster Taunted, for some reason. I also really appreciate the T-Wave idea, as that'll massively help with speed control, which is something this team really wants.

As much as I really like Farigaraf as a mon, I'm not super certain on how I feel about it vs something like Iron Hands. I don't want to too heavily rely on TR, but also another TR setter (as well as a better Caly-S answer) would be nice. I also feel like Urs doesn't need much help sweeping in TR (esp with SD/Sub), which would be a point against IH. On the other hand, Hands with speed support (either TR or T-Wave) would be pretty insane.

Also the reason I didn't opt for Ursh-R was because of the prevalence of Koraidon and sun teams. Is that just something I should accept will be in the game, or does that give a reason to consider running Ursh-S?

All the other changes make sense, thank you! I think Sub will be a more general/consistent choice, so I'll go with that for now. I'm still unsure on Fari vs IH, but this has all been insanely helpful. Thank you!!

Here's the updated team; I'd appreciate you letting me know if there's anything I should adjust/that I missed, and your thoughts on Fari vs Hands. https://pokepast.es/90149bb5ad7f2a7f

 

[Joshawott14]

Hi again!

Just got home so I haven't been able to sit with this for very long, but I made a few quick adjustments to the team. I meant to add more earlier, but I was rushing to not be late for something IRL.

As for the changes (aside from what I included in the other Pokepaste): I EV'd Magearna to outspeed Adamant Koraidon after Thunder Wave, and I tossed Fari onto the team. Mag (Tera Water) now also always survives Koraidon CC, and is a two-shot to Flare Blitz (barring crits and burn). I also switched Mag to a Bold nature to survive those hits, as Modest vs Bold doesn't effect any Mag KOs that I was worried about meeting.

I'll spend some more time tomorrow messing with Mag's EVs, but I think Koraidon is a good target to outspeed and survive, as it's still really scary for my team, and outspeeding Koraidon (after para) is an adjustment I want to make no matter what.

I also figured Fari would be better to add to the team rather than Iron Hands. Fari can help with Foul Play support, alleviates the pressure from Mag to be the sole TR setter, and also helps with priority-blocking. Another thing I consider was that it would likely be better to have another support mon vs a fifth sweeper.

Thank you :)

https://pokepast.es/d7419af91c5a3397