(another jojo themed rmt)
Introduction
Been trying to get a bit more involved in OU as a tier, and taking a similar approach to how I learned RU and building some teams with (IMO) underused Pokemon. In this case that was Talonflame, and I feel like my team looks like a ported ORAS team. Since I'm not the best at OU currently, hoping I can get some input on whether I've been misplaying or my team could use some improvement . Think I peaked around 1630-1700 with this team, nothing eventful but lets me believe its not complete garbage.
Teambuilding Process
Starting with an ORAS-y core, the idea was Hippo stops Koko and friends while Talonflame checks Grass-types (Kartana) and Zard-y.
Running Talonflame means I *probably* want a Defog user, since at the moment it was my only current stop to Kartana. I was also very Ash-Gren weak w/ no real Ice-resist, so this helped with that a lot.
My team kinda had to do a *lot* of guessing with Lele, and potentially lost if I guessed wrong so I decided to try out Rachi and have been overall liking it. An additional Ice reists, plus additional Koko check has been great.
Being just generally good Pokemon and weakening each others checks for each, I added in Lando-T and Kartana to have a lot more offensive presence with this team.
At the suggestion of one of the great team raters on this site, I swapped out Kartana for M-Scizor as I had a free mega slot and it overall synergized well with my team.
Breakdown
『ＰＥＴ ＳＨＯＰ』 (Talonflame) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 248 HP / 140 SpD / 120 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
Talonflame is my check to one of the scarier Pokemon in the OU tier right now: Kartana. Pairs really nicely with Hippo as it counters all of the Grass-types regularly used in OU like Bulu/Venusaur/Ferro with the spread I've opted for. The set is basically a spin on the ORAS Bulk Up set with Taunt over Bulk Up for additional utility when against Heatran/Lando/Rockers + letting me run Flame Body. Taunt/Wisp/Roost has honestly let TFlame really annoying/whittle down balance builds, or its counters like Koko/Zapdos as they come in when paired with sand damage. Sharing a counter w/ Kartana in Zapdos adds another layer of synergy when I can choose to play aggressively and Taunt to keep it low. Even with leftovers, Sand and being used as a pivot means I'm likely to not be at 100% for Gale Wings to work so I'm running Flame Body to hopefully punish Lando's using U-turn/T-tars trying to Pursuit me or act as an emergency out to stuff like Medicham.
o_o (Hippowdon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 176 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Toxic
Honestly underrated defensive mon, with a mixed spread it acts as a really solid check to the Electric-types in the tier like Zapdos/Koko. Sand is really great for this team since it'll whittle down Kartana/Lando checks, and adds an additional layer of utility to Hippo beyond settings rocks. I'm not sure if its just been my luck, but Zard X has been everywhere on ladder so this has acted as a pretty darn good check to it when paired with Lando. Obvious synergy with Talonflame, Electric immunity plus Rock-resist. Not a whole lot to say about the mon, relatively simplistic tank set.
o^o (Tapu Fini) @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Nature's Madness
- Moonblast
- Defog
My team's Defog user and primary check to Ash Gren. Standard as heck set, nothing innovative here. Nature's madness lets me weaken Ferro and stuff on the switch, alternated between Moonblast/Surf but opted on Moonblast to actually kill Ash Gren. Having Moonblast additionally give me a nice way to annoy stall when paired with Taunt + Talonflame.
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Trick
- Healing Wish
With my team's only check to Ash Gren being Fini, I liked the idea of Healing Wish support to help make sure it was a bit more consistent at its job. Jirachi overall has been a nice addition, giving me an additional out to Scarf Kartana/Bulu/Venusaur. Jirachi gives my team an actual switch-in to Lati@s and Lele (and kind of Kyurem Black), which lets my team actually have a nice defensive backbone. Scarf lets it act as a form of speed control, and U-turn overall helps keep momentum.
Scizor-Mega @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 124 Def / 16 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Roost
Originally a Scarf Kartana, Mega Scizor gives me another Bulky Pivot, and helps with my stall matchup w/ Knock Off. Also helps with some other annoying mons like Heatran/Celesteela, gives me priority in Bullet Punch, and
>:c (Landorus-Therian) @ Rockium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Rock Polish
Don't really see this set too often, Dual Dance Lando has always been one of my favorites and is one of the better win cons I could've chosen for this team. Sand + Wisp/Toxic Spam usually means Lando checks will be weakened to the point of not needing an SD, but the option to SD also lets Lando break through fatter/slower teams well. Z-Fly would potentially fit here also, not too sure on what would be the better Z-Move since with Fly I'd be really pressed for coverage and not really be able to get past Skarmory.. Defensively Lando adds what he usually does to my team, Ground + Electric immunity, Intimdate, etc. With my team comp giving off the impression of Scarf Lando/Z Move Kart, being able to bluff scarf actually gives me some nice setup opportunities versus opposing Landos/Skarmory who think I'm locked into EQ.
Threatlist
Balance/Wall Breakers
Very annoying mons to deal with, my only real game plan versus them is hope they come in on Hippo and toxic it on the switch followed by some guessing/saccing. Nothing unique though, these mons by design fuck over fat teams lol.
Azumarill
Thankfully this mon is non-existant (outside of the trapper set), it would claim a kill anytime it came in otherwise.
Replays
Introduction
Been trying to get a bit more involved in OU as a tier, and taking a similar approach to how I learned RU and building some teams with (IMO) underused Pokemon. In this case that was Talonflame, and I feel like my team looks like a ported ORAS team. Since I'm not the best at OU currently, hoping I can get some input on whether I've been misplaying or my team could use some improvement . Think I peaked around 1630-1700 with this team, nothing eventful but lets me believe its not complete garbage.
Teambuilding Process
Starting with an ORAS-y core, the idea was Hippo stops Koko and friends while Talonflame checks Grass-types (Kartana) and Zard-y.
Running Talonflame means I *probably* want a Defog user, since at the moment it was my only current stop to Kartana. I was also very Ash-Gren weak w/ no real Ice-resist, so this helped with that a lot.
My team kinda had to do a *lot* of guessing with Lele, and potentially lost if I guessed wrong so I decided to try out Rachi and have been overall liking it. An additional Ice reists, plus additional Koko check has been great.
Being just generally good Pokemon and weakening each others checks for each, I added in Lando-T and Kartana to have a lot more offensive presence with this team.
At the suggestion of one of the great team raters on this site, I swapped out Kartana for M-Scizor as I had a free mega slot and it overall synergized well with my team.
Breakdown
『ＰＥＴ ＳＨＯＰ』 (Talonflame) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 248 HP / 140 SpD / 120 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
Talonflame is my check to one of the scarier Pokemon in the OU tier right now: Kartana. Pairs really nicely with Hippo as it counters all of the Grass-types regularly used in OU like Bulu/Venusaur/Ferro with the spread I've opted for. The set is basically a spin on the ORAS Bulk Up set with Taunt over Bulk Up for additional utility when against Heatran/Lando/Rockers + letting me run Flame Body. Taunt/Wisp/Roost has honestly let TFlame really annoying/whittle down balance builds, or its counters like Koko/Zapdos as they come in when paired with sand damage. Sharing a counter w/ Kartana in Zapdos adds another layer of synergy when I can choose to play aggressively and Taunt to keep it low. Even with leftovers, Sand and being used as a pivot means I'm likely to not be at 100% for Gale Wings to work so I'm running Flame Body to hopefully punish Lando's using U-turn/T-tars trying to Pursuit me or act as an emergency out to stuff like Medicham.
o_o (Hippowdon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 80 Def / 176 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Toxic
Honestly underrated defensive mon, with a mixed spread it acts as a really solid check to the Electric-types in the tier like Zapdos/Koko. Sand is really great for this team since it'll whittle down Kartana/Lando checks, and adds an additional layer of utility to Hippo beyond settings rocks. I'm not sure if its just been my luck, but Zard X has been everywhere on ladder so this has acted as a pretty darn good check to it when paired with Lando. Obvious synergy with Talonflame, Electric immunity plus Rock-resist. Not a whole lot to say about the mon, relatively simplistic tank set.
o^o (Tapu Fini) @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Nature's Madness
- Moonblast
- Defog
My team's Defog user and primary check to Ash Gren. Standard as heck set, nothing innovative here. Nature's madness lets me weaken Ferro and stuff on the switch, alternated between Moonblast/Surf but opted on Moonblast to actually kill Ash Gren. Having Moonblast additionally give me a nice way to annoy stall when paired with Taunt + Talonflame.
Jirachi @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Trick
- Healing Wish
With my team's only check to Ash Gren being Fini, I liked the idea of Healing Wish support to help make sure it was a bit more consistent at its job. Jirachi overall has been a nice addition, giving me an additional out to Scarf Kartana/Bulu/Venusaur. Jirachi gives my team an actual switch-in to Lati@s and Lele (and kind of Kyurem Black), which lets my team actually have a nice defensive backbone. Scarf lets it act as a form of speed control, and U-turn overall helps keep momentum.
Scizor-Mega @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 124 Def / 16 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Roost
Originally a Scarf Kartana, Mega Scizor gives me another Bulky Pivot, and helps with my stall matchup w/ Knock Off. Also helps with some other annoying mons like Heatran/Celesteela, gives me priority in Bullet Punch, and
>:c (Landorus-Therian) @ Rockium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Rock Polish
Don't really see this set too often, Dual Dance Lando has always been one of my favorites and is one of the better win cons I could've chosen for this team. Sand + Wisp/Toxic Spam usually means Lando checks will be weakened to the point of not needing an SD, but the option to SD also lets Lando break through fatter/slower teams well. Z-Fly would potentially fit here also, not too sure on what would be the better Z-Move since with Fly I'd be really pressed for coverage and not really be able to get past Skarmory.. Defensively Lando adds what he usually does to my team, Ground + Electric immunity, Intimdate, etc. With my team comp giving off the impression of Scarf Lando/Z Move Kart, being able to bluff scarf actually gives me some nice setup opportunities versus opposing Landos/Skarmory who think I'm locked into EQ.
Threatlist
Balance/Wall Breakers
Very annoying mons to deal with, my only real game plan versus them is hope they come in on Hippo and toxic it on the switch followed by some guessing/saccing. Nothing unique though, these mons by design fuck over fat teams lol.
Azumarill
Thankfully this mon is non-existant (outside of the trapper set), it would claim a kill anytime it came in otherwise.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-709751052 - Bluffing scarf on Lando lets me kill Zard-Y for free and wins me the game
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-708593582 - Stall match, when I originally had Ferro on the team, activity win but eventually won by just coming in with Kart and claiming a kill. Having Jirachi would've made this easier as a way to Healing Wish my Lando would've probably let me just 6-0 with that.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-709749658 - Ft. Volcanion + another bluffed Scarf Lando giving me time to get off a double dance.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-708593582 - Stall match, when I originally had Ferro on the team, activity win but eventually won by just coming in with Kart and claiming a kill. Having Jirachi would've made this easier as a way to Healing Wish my Lando would've probably let me just 6-0 with that.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-709749658 - Ft. Volcanion + another bluffed Scarf Lando giving me time to get off a double dance.
Import
o_o (Hippowdon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 240 HP / 148 Def / 120 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stone Edge
『ＰＥＴ ＳＨＯＰ』 (Talonflame) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 248 HP / 108 SpD / 152 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
o.o (Tapu Fini) @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 244 Def / 16 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Surf
- Nature's Madness
- Moonblast
- Defog
>:v (Scizor-Mega) @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 124 Def / 16 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Roost
^_^ (Jirachi) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Trick
- Healing Wish
>:c (Landorus-Therian) @ Rockium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Rock Polish
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 240 HP / 148 Def / 120 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stone Edge
『ＰＥＴ ＳＨＯＰ』 (Talonflame) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flame Body
EVs: 248 HP / 108 SpD / 152 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
o.o (Tapu Fini) @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 244 Def / 16 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Surf
- Nature's Madness
- Moonblast
- Defog
>:v (Scizor-Mega) @ Scizorite
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Atk / 124 Def / 16 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Knock Off
- Roost
^_^ (Jirachi) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Trick
- Healing Wish
>:c (Landorus-Therian) @ Rockium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Rock Polish
Usual shoutouts to EviGaro and the RU crew, <3 you all.
Srry for colors not matching up with T-Flame, couldn't think of anything that looked nice on this ugly white theme.
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