Other Rain In OU

[D-Ssain]

We all thought that after the BP nerf OU would finally be balanced.

The GF Sith Lords have brought down their power once again. Rain will dominate OU. Mega Swampert gives Rain teams the perfect electric resist and a possibly more threatining sweeper than kingdra/kabutops. Goddamit my body is ready

 

[ChildFucker]

We all thought that after the BP nerf OU would finally be balanced.

The GF Sith Lords have brought down their power once again. Rain will dominate OU. Mega Swampert gives Rain teams the perfect electric resist and a possibly more threatining sweeper than kingdra/kabutops. Goddamit my body is ready

Provided they don't give it Mega Abomasnow level speed drop. It could survive -10 speed like Garchomp and Ampharos get and still run Adamant and beat base 130s without even running max speed but if they drop it down to base 30 then they are basically fucking any and all viability on it since even Jolly 252 EVs would fail to outrun Latios / Gengar etc.

With luck it will get something like +50 Attack with the rest divided into sp attack / def / sp def. I'm not sure exactly how groundbreaking this will be on Rain but it should be better than POS Seismitoed.

 

[Red Cat]

We really don't know how good Mega Swampert will be until we see its Base Stat distribution. Under the rain, it will probably be similar to a +1 Mega Gyarados in terms of power and speed, but you never know what Game Freak will actually do with the Base Stats; for all we know, they could make it a Special attacker. It is really just speculation at this point.

 

[.TM87]

I'm confused... Why are we talking about Mega Swampert if this thread is talking about the current Metagame?

 

[ChildFucker]

I'm confused... Why are we talking about Mega Swampert if this thread is talking about the current Metagame?

Because we're excited.

 

[.TM87]

Because we're excited.

Then take it to a different Thread before this thread gets closed due to people going off topic and spazzing out about future Metagames. When the future comes in about 5 Months, we'll talk about Mega Swampert in this thread.

 

[.TM87]

You must be fun at parties.

nah, this just isn't the place to talk about Mega Swampert

yet

 

[NocturnalQuill]

It may not technically be out yet, but it isn't a stretch to say that Mega Swampert will be THE rain mega. I don't get why we can't speculate, the only details we don't have are the exact stat numbers. We have a pretty good feel for him overall.

 

[.TM87]

It may not technically be out yet, but it isn't a stretch to say that Mega Swampert will be THE rain mega. I don't get why we can't speculate, the only details we don't have are the exact stat numbers. We have a pretty good feel for him overall.

We don't have all the new Megas yet though.

 

[NocturnalQuill]

We don't have all the new Megas yet though.

True, but I'm having a hard time seeing what could top him as far as rain sweepers are concerned.

 

[Chou Toshio]

I'm willing to entertain a conservative level of speculation on what Mega Swampert would do to OU rain-- just don't try to get into too much details or stay on the subject too long.

 

[Toljik]

I've used Seismitoad on my rain team to moderate success, but it's held back by its average attacking stats, and to a much smaller extent, the lack of Waterfall. If Mega Swampert can outdamage LO Seismitoad, it will completely outclass the latter (unless you absolutely must have Knock Off).

 

[Sergeant Spooky]

One thing Swampert will have to over come is the fact that Mega Evolving can't change turn order, so it will have its lousy base speed for a turn and will get hit before Swift Swim activates. But I still think it's going to be great. Plus it has Stealth Rock :)

But as for the current meta, I'd like to say some stuff on Rain in XY, after having laddered with a number of rain teams, good and bad. Now I don't profess to be anything more than a not-totally-incompetent Rain user, so don't yell at me if I say something dumb.

The team of Deo-S+Politoed+Kingdra+Kabutops+2 filler that was initially very popular and of which a lot of rain offense teams are based off of, I don't think it's as effective as people think it is or is as effective as a rain-based team can be. Of course, there are different ways to build rain HO than the aforementioned team, but I also think that a more balanced/bulky approach is better. It may just be that I can't do HO well (I really hate it when I need to sac something,) but this is my reasoning:

• Kingdra and Kabutops share a lot of the same checks and counters. On paper, this seems fine, cause if Kingdra can beat down Ferrothorn or w/e counter they have a bit, now Kabutops can get past it and vice versa, but you're out of luck if your opponent has something like Chansey+Chesnaught/Ferrothorn, Counter Skarmory+Ferrothorn, etc. Of course you still have your two filler, and you can use something like Lando-I as a fuck you to stall, but this won't help against offensive teams that have multiple checks to your swimmers, or for stall teams that have prepared for Lando-I (e.g. SDef Dragonite) or whatever filler it is that you're using. While Kingdra+Kabutops, collectively, will often put a ton of pressure on your opponent to keep one or two mons alive, there's also a lot of pressure to keep Kingdra and Kabutops alive/not paralyzed, which can be very difficult if your opponent has things like Azumarill, Keldeo, offensive Mega Venusaur, strong priority users, Aegislash, Dragonite, Thundurus, etc. Basically, a lot of commonly used pkmn on offensive teams.
  • For example, this team, without even trying, contains a Kingdra counter (Chansey,) two Kingdra checks (Gyarados [if you're choice-locked into a water move,] Aegislash can take a specs hydro pump in rain and KO with Ball+Sneak, Breloom checks if sash is intact,) and three Kabutops checks (Breloom, Gyarados, Aegislash.) Worst of all, Gyarados can set-up on Kabutops and Kingdra (Mega Gyarados is the biggest reason you should use Scald on Specs Kingdra. No not Azumarill, Mega Dos.) I don't know Darumaraka but their team looks good, they probably never considered Rain in making this team, however it would be difficult for a Rain HO team to beat it.
  • And this team, made just for the Dark Horse thread, has Chansey, Keldeo, Mega Venusaur, Thundurus, and two strong priority users. All of these Pokemon are a problem for one or both of Kingdra and Kabutops. Again, I doubt they considered Rain at all when making this team.
• Unlike other HO archetypes, Rain is forced to use Politoed. Who sucks. But you have to use him. You also should use another rain setter, a suicide lead, like Deo-S, to ease the pressure on Politoed and to get a safe switch in for a Swift Swimmer. So unlike other HO archetypes, who can be boiled down to suicide lead+5 attackers, Rain HO is suicide lead+Politoed+4 attackers. A lot of times, you're really going to be wishing you had something other than Polioted in that slot :< Encore and Rain, that's really all it can do. And troll BP teams with Perish Song I guess.
• "If you lose momentum with a Rain team, you're probably going to lose" this is really true. Especially against teams with an opposing weather setter (sand offense is really common right now.) This not true for a balance/bulky rain team, where you'll have something that can take a hit.
• A third of your team is dedicated to making rain. Another third needs rain to function. So what happens when it's not raining?
  
• Swift Swimmers are not sweepers. Okay, they are, but a more descriptive name is a win condition imo. When your win condition is SPECS HYDRO PUMP IN RAIN LOL you can afford to use a defensive core.

Most of that only applies to Deo/Toad/2swim/2filler teams but I've not seen many HO rain teams that don't resemble it. So what could a balanced rain team look like? Well I don't know the exact definition of a balanced team (no seriously someone tell me,) but this is a team I made, that's pretty good imo. Its certainly been more successful than many of my other rain teams, which have usually been some derivative of Rain HO.

Hide

Start off with Politoed. Politoed is quite bulky, and Encore allows free switch ins and allows it to be a clutch answer to set-up sweepers. Also it has Drizzle.

Now a Swift Swimmer, cause they're just so strongkth. Only one is used, or else your team is going to be too restricted and you honestly don't need more than one. Specs Kingdra is chosen over Kabutops, Omastar, Seismitoad, etc. for various reasons. Scald is used because even with low BP, it still hits hard as shit, and the burns allow other things to more safely switch in and deters D-Nite and Gyarados from setting up on it. It's a very scary pokemon and a very reliable win condition, which also provides some defensive synergy and it can wear down its counters because it does so much damage to everything.

Immediately I want to add a Fairy to cover Kingdra's dragon weakness and protect from Latis and D-Nite when locked into a water move. One that can really punish a free switch in. Azumarill is chosen. Its rain-boosted waterfalls hit hard as hell, especially at +6 (though I personally prefer CB set. With Super Power. Because Ferrothorn must die.)

Kingdra only has two weaknesses so I might as well cover the second one. This is one reason why Kingdra is chosen; really simple to build around, Dragon+Fairy+Grass/Poison. Amoonguss is SO GOOD. It takes care of a lot of opposing water types, i.e. Azumarill, Keldeo, Rotom-W, etc. and some misc. stuff like Breloom, Mega Manectric and some Aegislash. Spore is also really annoying and can give a free switch in. To top it off, it's really hard to wear down because of Regenerator, so it can switch in to that stuff multiple times. It is, however, 2HKOed by CB Rain-boosted Azu's Waterfall, and Specs Rain-boosted Keldeo's Hydro Pump. This is another reason why Kingdra is used: it quad resists water, and can take those moves with relative ease.

Mega Ampharos is now added. It counters Talonflame, it provides another electric resist, and it can painlessly switch into Keldeo's Specs HP Flying. It benefits from hazing Azumarill+Amoonguss on the team in the same way Kingdra does. And in Rain, it can use Thunder, and STAB Thunder off of 165 base SpA really stings+it causes Paralysis. I use an agility set, as it is a capable sweeper and it also eases prediction (as both of its STABs have a type immunity.) It really sucks when you have to use Thunder outside of rain. Imagine having Focus Shit as your main STAB move. Also sheep has to use Focus Shit because it gives perfect coverage with its STABS. Sheep doesn't like taking offensive Venu's Sludge Bomb though. It 2HKOs after SR, while Sheep can't even 2HKO (I couldn't fit in Hazards on this team.) This is another reason Kingdra is used: Specs Draco Meteor does a buttload to Mega Venusaur, and Dragon Pulse really stings, too.

Now Assault Vest Tornadus-T. It punishes/deters Scarfed Erfquakes against Sheep, it checks Pinsir, it counters Mega Venusaur, it trolls Chansey with Knock Off (Chansey can't take Kingdra's Specs+Rain Water attacks, nor can it take Sheep's Focus Blast, without its Eviolite,) it checks T-Tar with Focus Blast, Keldeo hates it (but Specs+Rain Hydro Pump OHKOs you so stick with Amoonguss to switch in,) and like Amoognuss it's hard to wear down because of Regenerator. It also handles Lando-I, which is downright incredible. It can also depend on Amoonguss and Sheep to take electric attacks. It's really good on many kinds of teams and people need to use it more. It, too, depends on a 70% accurate move as its STAB when outside of Rain. And Focus Blast. Or you can drop Focus Blast, have other teammates handle T-Tar, and run Heat Wave.

Unlike offensive teams, Politoed is the only source of rain, so I may want to stick Rest on it (I can drop Perish Song when BP teams are nerfed, though it is useful in some occasions.) This is because I didn't want to use a suicide lead on a balanced team, and because I only had one mon (Kingdra) who was very dependent on Rain. Thunder and Hurricane are annoying outside of Rain but Tornadus has better things to be doing than spamming Hurricane, and Sheep has Dragon Pulse. Tornadus was going to be a Rain Dancer but then I learned its AV set is so fucking good, and it really is fucking good.

So yeah. That's my take on a balanced rain team. There's probably a massive flaw I'm missing but w/e this isn't a RMT.

Whatever you take from this post: Amoonguss is GOD. It's so good. Use it. It's good because it takes care of Azumarill, Keldeo, Breloom, some Aegislash, and probably some others. It's good because Spore is good. It's good because Regenerator is good. It's really good support and it's annoying as hell.

Sheep is also quite good. Try it at least. Doesn't even have to be on a Rain team, sheep is sort of good.

Same with bird. No seriously why do I not see it everywhere, it's really, really amazing.

 

[X5Dragon]

I think these teams should start using Magnezone, either scarfed to be sure to hit those Scizors safely or a sub bulky set that can set up on Ferrothorn with charge beam and proceed to mini sweep.

 

[imdgreatest]

I think these teams should start using Magnezone, either scarfed to be sure to hit those Scizors safely or a sub bulky set that can set up on Ferrothorn with charge beam and proceed to mini sweep.

this. magnezone is an underutilized part of any good rain team, and with the amount of bulky mega scizors with only bullet punch and knock off, magnezone can boss his way through and mini sweep.

 

[aVocado]

We really don't know how good Mega Swampert will be until we see its Base Stat distribution. Under the rain, it will probably be similar to a +1 Mega Gyarados in terms of power and speed, but you never know what Game Freak will actually do with the Base Stats; for all we know, they could make it a Special attacker. It is really just speculation at this point.

I'm just gonna say that it is possible to speculate/predict what GameFreak will do in terms of stat distribution for mega swampert. For one, we know that in all the megas yet, they always seem to keep the same stat distribution "pattern" as the base form- for example, Alakazam's highest stat is SpA, and the mega form's highest stat is SpA as well, same goes with Garchomp and attack, and Abomasnow with its mixed offensive stats.

They also never buff a stat without the otherr. For example, Gyarados' SpD is higher than its def, and it stayed that way with the mega evolution. The only example I could find that contradicts this is Mega Mawile, where the base's def and atk were equal, but the mega's attack is 105 while the def is 125, but it has Huge Power, so yeah.

I think it's pretty much confirmed that mega swampert will have good attack based on what GF did to all the megas before it, which is buff its strongest stat.

 

[NocturnalQuill]

I'm preemptively figuring out how to build a team around Mega Swampert. Has anyone thought of cores that could utilize him? For the sake of speculation, we'll assume that most of the BST increase will go into attack.

 

[Chou Toshio]

I'm just gonna say that it is possible to speculate/predict what GameFreak will do in terms of stat distribution for mega swampert. For one, we know that in all the megas yet, they always seem to keep the same stat distribution "pattern" as the base form- for example, Alakazam's highest stat is SpA, and the mega form's highest stat is SpA as well, same goes with Garchomp and attack, and Abomasnow with its mixed offensive stats.

They also never buff a stat without the otherr. For example, Gyarados' SpD is higher than its def, and it stayed that way with the mega evolution. The only example I could find that contradicts this is Mega Mawile, where the base's def and atk were equal, but the mega's attack is 105 while the def is 125, but it has Huge Power, so yeah.

I think it's pretty much confirmed that mega swampert will have good attack based on what GF did to all the megas before it, which is buff its strongest stat.

Heracross' defenses also switched (Hera is more Specially Bulky, while Mega Hera is more physically bulky-- nice, because Bug/Fight is much better as a physical wall/tank).

 

[Monte Cristo]

Unfixable just a quick nit pick to the OP- Msaur is actually so bulky it can survive rain pump w/ specs if running 44+ EVs
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 44+ SpD Mega Venusaur in Rain: 150-177 (41.2 - 48.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Amoonguss in Rain: 168-198 (38.8 - 45.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Black Sludge recovery
amoong takes about the same w/ max/max

 

[MilkyWay]

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned Crawdaunt yet. The sheer power of its adaptability Crabhammer under rain is great and combined with STAB Knock Off it shits on stall teams which often give rain trouble. Crawdaunt also has Aqua Jet for offensive teams meaning it can function as a revenge killer or win condition in addition to being a wall breaker. Finally, its access to Dragon Dance and Swords Dance is just the icing on the cake. Crawdaunts mediocre speed and the fact that it shares common weaknesses with other common rain members are the only things that are really holding it back. At first glance it seems a little outclassed by Kabutops, but the sheer power of adaptability moves in the rain is reason enough to use it. It can 2hko skarmory, mega Venusaur, ferrothorn, azumarill, keldeo, and destroys chansey and stall in general. I seriously recommend trying this crab out

 

[gnr61]

Rain is a fun style to teambuild with right now because you honestly only have a few slots to play with and optimization is mostly a fool's errand, requiring too delicate a balance between offense, defense and matchup consideration. It's like a big puzzle, which has the added difficulty of actually requiring really solid play to make effective in practice. It's a sometimes frustrating playstyle, but it's incredibly strong and when you play right you run into so many "Well, now I win!" situations it ends up really rewarding to use.

MilkyWay01 Crawdaunt has plenty of viability, but it's surprisingly difficult to fit into rain archetypes where slots are notoriously tight and defensive teams are usually best left handled by your secondary core after your abusers have opened a couple holes. It faces competition not only from Kabutops but from (M-)Gyarados, who boasts sweeping potential and defensive utility (let's not pretend Crawdaunt has any business using SD or Dragon Dance lol), and even Omastar, who in rain also 2HKOs venu, ferro, azumarill and keldeo and has the speed to actually get that second hit in. Crawdaunt is an absurdly powerful wallbreaker and terrifying to switch into, but it is too easily checked and requires a team built to need its strengths. I'd be very interested in seeing such a (successful) team, but it doesn't strike me as belonging on your typical HO or balanced offense builds.

Another intriguing use of rain I've been dabbling with to (so far) great success is a much-maligned core of LO/SD Kabutops + Specs Omastar for rain (hyper!) hyper offense. Obviously their defensive synergy is beyond nonexistent. But frankly these guys aren't supposed to take hits in the first place, and neither is Kingdra (who is most often used alongside Kabutops in lieu of Omastar for their ostensibly non-redundant defensive typing), and their offensive combination simply rips teams apart. Specs Omastar's increased power over Kingdra makes all the difference, since it has basically zero switch-ins (rain Hydro Pump literally 2HKOs the resistant metagame) and thus can be played practically suicidally. Against defensive stops to Kabutops (Azu, Ferro, Venu, Keld, Rotom-W) its Hydro Pump picks off more than 50%, putting them easily in range for a sweep, and against hyper offense and obviously BirdSpam you pretty much just win if you make correct sacs.

Of course the absurd lack of defensive synergy between Toed, Kabutops and Omastar causes problems, leaving you frequently checked (and deathly open to common Grass/Electric attacks), namely by Thundurus, Latias, CroCune if it ever gets in comfortably, Venusaur, and especially Ferrothorn (don't run Low Kick Kabutops imo, your matchup v offense becomes SO much worse without Aqua Jet).

I am currently using (INCOMING MINI RMT because I like to discuss possible rain variations \O/):

92Spe SpDef Toed with Hypnosis and Encore
LO SD Kabutops
Specs 3-STAB Omastar w/ Ice Beam, basically for +1 Dragonite or lastmon v Lati@s (you literally need nothing else)

***

LO 3-Attack Celebi w/ SR (or 2-STAB with Recover, haven't decided)
(SpD) Bulky SD MegaScizor (have used U-turn > SD but sucks against teams with Ferro/random Chansey you can't actually hurt without setting up on)
LO Mixed Taunt Tornadus-T w/ Superpower and U-turn (Knock Off is great over Taunt for lots of reasons, oddly most of all for pinging unsuspecting Aegislash into Omastar's KO range (Aegislash's ability to tank a rain specs hydro pump in rain is actually a major difficulty for this team) but the matchup v a smart stall player gets worse and Taunt fucks with so many things that could stop a Tops/Star clean I feel like it's the best choice)

I'm far from optimizing the other three slots, and I'm sure whatever I do I'll run into matchup problems. But my thesis here is that those problems are going to persist even with Kingdra > Omastar, and in fact 'star/tops' redundant typing even provides a couple advantages. For instance I'm comfortable running the ridiculously useful offensive SR Celebi in this Aegislash/Talonflame meta, since its counters are so easily switched into by my SSers and Scizor. The combo wants lots of other things like Healing Wish support, better ways to handle Aegislash/Thundurus etc, but I haven't found the right mix yet. This team is still in the rather 'thrown-together' stages of me mostly thinking 'I need a bajillion checks for thundy/venusaur/ferrothorn' and has lots of issues and it'd be cool to see some more thoughts on the viability of an Kabutops/Omastar pairing for rain HO.

 

[New Light]

Rain is a fun style to teambuild with right now because you honestly only have a few slots to play with and optimization is mostly a fool's errand, requiring too delicate a balance between offense, defense and matchup consideration. It's like a big puzzle, which has the added difficulty of actually requiring really solid play to make effective in practice. It's a sometimes frustrating playstyle, but it's incredibly strong and when you play right you run into so many "Well, now I win!" situations it ends up really rewarding to use.

MilkyWay01 Crawdaunt has plenty of viability, but it's surprisingly difficult to fit into rain archetypes where slots are notoriously tight and defensive teams are usually best left handled by your secondary core after your abusers have opened a couple holes. It faces competition not only from Kabutops but from (M-)Gyarados, who boasts sweeping potential and defensive utility (let's not pretend Crawdaunt has any business using SD or Dragon Dance lol), and even Omastar, who in rain also 2HKOs venu, ferro, azumarill and keldeo and has the speed to actually get that second hit in. Crawdaunt is an absurdly powerful wallbreaker and terrifying to switch into, but it is too easily checked and requires a team built to need its strengths. I'd be very interested in seeing such a (successful) team, but it doesn't strike me as belonging on your typical HO or balanced offense builds.

Another intriguing use of rain I've been dabbling with to (so far) great success is a much-maligned core of LO/SD Kabutops + Specs Omastar for rain (hyper!) hyper offense. Obviously their defensive synergy is beyond nonexistent. But frankly these guys aren't supposed to take hits in the first place, and neither is Kingdra (who is most often used alongside Kabutops in lieu of Omastar for their ostensibly non-redundant defensive typing), and their offensive combination simply rips teams apart. Specs Omastar's increased power over Kingdra makes all the difference, since it has basically zero switch-ins (rain Hydro Pump literally 2HKOs the resistant metagame) and thus can be played practically suicidally. Against defensive stops to Kabutops (Azu, Ferro, Venu, Keld, Rotom-W) its Hydro Pump picks off more than 50%, putting them easily in range for a sweep, and against hyper offense and obviously BirdSpam you pretty much just win if you make correct sacs.

Of course the absurd lack of defensive synergy between Toed, Kabutops and Omastar causes problems, leaving you frequently checked (and deathly open to common Grass/Electric attacks), namely by Thundurus, Latias, CroCune if it ever gets in comfortably, Venusaur, and especially Ferrothorn (don't run Low Kick Kabutops imo, your matchup v offense becomes SO much worse without Aqua Jet).

I am currently using (INCOMING MINI RMT because I like to discuss possible rain variations \O/):

92Spe SpDef Toed with Hypnosis and Encore
LO SD Kabutops
Specs 3-STAB Omastar w/ Ice Beam, basically for +1 Dragonite or lastmon v Lati@s (you literally need nothing else)

***

LO 3-Attack Celebi w/ SR (or 2-STAB with Recover, haven't decided)
(SpD) Bulky SD MegaScizor (have used U-turn > SD but sucks against teams with Ferro/random Chansey you can't actually hurt without setting up on)
LO Mixed Taunt Tornadus-T w/ Superpower and U-turn (Knock Off is great over Taunt for lots of reasons, oddly most of all for pinging unsuspecting Aegislash into Omastar's KO range (Aegislash's ability to tank a rain specs hydro pump in rain is actually a major difficulty for this team) but the matchup v a smart stall player gets worse and Taunt fucks with so many things that could stop a Tops/Star clean I feel like it's the best choice)

I'm far from optimizing the other three slots, and I'm sure whatever I do I'll run into matchup problems. But my thesis here is that those problems are going to persist even with Kingdra > Omastar, and in fact 'star/tops' redundant typing even provides a couple advantages. For instance I'm comfortable running the ridiculously useful offensive SR Celebi in this Aegislash/Talonflame meta, since its counters are so easily switched into by my SSers and Scizor. The combo wants lots of other things like Healing Wish support, better ways to handle Aegislash/Thundurus etc, but I haven't found the right mix yet. This team is still in the rather 'thrown-together' stages of me mostly thinking 'I need a bajillion checks for thundy/venusaur/ferrothorn' and has lots of issues and it'd be cool to see some more thoughts on the viability of an Kabutops/Omastar pairing for rain HO.

In gen 5 RU and UU I ran a Whimsicott/Omastar core with great success. The trick was to sub with Whim on a Fire, Poison or Ice attack and then Encore once it was in range of knock out. After Whimsicott fainted, Omastar could freely switch in on something locked into a resisted attack and get off a Shell Smash with no worries. You could use Memento for a similar effect.
I realize Whimsicott isn't nearly as good a Pokemon in XY OU as it is in BW RU/UU but it is somewhat underrated imo and it has great synergy with Omastar/Kabutops as they coverage each others' type weaknesses pretty nicely and Whimsicott is great at creating set up opportunities via Encore or Memento, and as I'm sure you've realized by now, it's often GG once Kabutops gets one SD off in the rain, especially against offensive teams.

Pretty much every rain team I see is HO, and while it is very effective, bulky offense/balanced rain is quite viable as well. Give some bulkier mons like Mega Venu, Amoonguss, Goodra and/or Manaphy a try some time. They might surprise you.

 

[SamuraiMifune]

I really think is is a viable set out there.

Sableye @ Damp Rock
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 164 HP / 116 Def / 228 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rain Dance
- Recover
- Will-O-Wisp
- Knock Off

If you can't get a Drizzletoad, use this set.
Rain Dance for obvious reasons, recover so this Pokemon gets recovery. Defensive + Prankster may be hard to wear down, so throw on Will-o-wisp to make him physically bulky and slap on a knock off so it doesn't get completely useless when taunted. Careful nature is for balancing the bulk, making is Pokemon a really bulky prankster once will-o-wisp is on a physical attacker

 

[pwnémon]

How about raikou as a rain abuser. Raikou has great speed, access to stab thunder, volt switch allowing it to gain momentum and form an effective voltturn core with tornadus-t. Raikou also learns weather ball, effectively a 100 base power water move allowing it to beat hippo and zard y 2 common weather changers. Raikou can either set up with calm minds, check special attackers with assault vest or fire off specs thunder.

 

[mcdanger]

With at most 8 turns of rain its best not to boost. Raikou also falls short because it runs into the same problem pokemon as Kingdra and Kabutops making it a bit harder to muscle through them to actually sweep. I feel Tornadus Therian may be a more reliable manual inducer with its high speed, decent bulk, quite good with an assault vest, and regenerator ability to heal off damage switching out. On top of that, prior to setting up rain it can destroy grass types, namely Ferrothorn with Heat Wave or Hurricane post rain, as well as use Knock Off and U turn to be offensive, or Taunt defensively.