Hello. I want to climb the showdown ladder and I made a team that so far has had overall good success. However, because I am me, I know I am bound to have flaws in my team that I probably haven't noticed yet or just don't know how to solve. For example, the team I made has no way of getting rid of entry hazards. Anyways, I need feedback from pros because I am sure others have an eye for glaring flaws which I don't. So, here's my team:
(Disclaimer: The thread won't have pictures because I don't know how to add those, I'd appreciate it if someone told me how)
The first pokemon I added was Mega Charizard-X. It has dragon claw for STAB Tough Claws (not Outrage so it doesn't get locked), Dragon Dance for sweeping potential, Earthquake for coverage and Flare Blitz for STAB. It is also Jolly to outspeed as much as possible on the crucial 1st turn before it sets up. The 1 thing I could change is replace Earthquake or Dragon Dance with Roost for longevity, but I feel like if I replace Equake it gets walled by Heatran, Toxapex and other walls Equake can handle, but not the other 2 moves (not to mention Tapu Fini would probably beat it without serious setup). Replacing Dragon Dance though reduces Charizard's sweeping potential by a lot, so I don't know. I could use roost to negate stealth rock, but I am not sure. Overall, Charizard is my Mega that is meant find the perfect opportunity to get 1-2 DD off and sweep.
Charizard-Mega-X @ Charizardite X
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Dance
- Earthquake
- Flare Blitz
Next up is Magnezone which, honestly, I mostly added because I really like Magnezone and its steel trapping shenanigans. It carries volt switch for some momentum, Thunderbolt so I am not forced to switch out in order to use an Electric attack, Flash cannon for STAB and HP Fire for coverage against mega scizor, kartana, opposing Magnezone (if it ever comes down to that) and Ferrothorn. I think that's the best HP I could give to my Magnezone, I was considering HP Ground for heatran, but it outspeeds and OHKOes my Magnezone anyways, so no reason for that. As for the item, I have no idea what to give it. Originally it carried Assault Vest for more bulk, but the OU chat told me to add Specs instead. However, I don't think Magnezone could properly do specs, since it is so slow. I'm thinking of adding AV back for the bulk, or putting on it Air Balloon, because it is really hard to trap Excadrill when it can OHKO with Equake. Basically, Magnezone is my steel trapper (surprise surprise), just in case Charizard dies first or there are rocks up.
Magnezone @ Choice Specs
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Third on the list is Tangrowth, which is a very solid overall wall for me, thus the reason I use it. So far, it's been serving as a good answer to water, ground and steel types, which is always nice. Knock off really helps cripple walls and sludge bomb is an answer to fairy types since Magnezone is mostly for trapping steel types and I don't want to lose it to a fairy. Assault vest is pretty much a standard for Tangrowth and Giga Drain is for some form of recovery, though I might change it to some other grass move because of Regenerator. Also, as you noticed, it has mixed attacking moves, so it has some form of unpredictability and some attacking presence. So far it has actually Nabbed important KOs, most notable being a KO on a setting up Magearna, which would've rampaged through my team with its stat increases. Overall, I am very satisfied with my Tangrowth's perfomance as a wall that can disrupt other walls and Regenerate its HP with every switch out.
Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 40 Atk / 216 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
Oh boy, here comes Greninja, my go to revenge killer in pretty much every team. I almost always run it with Choice Scarf to outspeed and, well, revenge kill. I don't really want to change much on my greninja aside from its movepool, potentially. It has Hydro Pump as my only water coverage, Ice beam for dragon slaying, since charizard will just die to them before it sets up and it is a great answer to many things, U-turn for momentum and Grass Knot. Now, for the last move, I was between Grass Knot, for coverage against heavy pokemon/Pokemon weak to grass, Spikes for obvious reasons and Gunk shot for fairy types. Please tell me what your opinion on the moveset is and if I should change anything. I haven't really had much trouble with this moveset so far.
Greninja @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Protean
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Ice Beam
- Scald
- U-turn
- Grass Knot
Landorus-T is my lead pokemon. It has Stealth Rocks, Equake for STAB, U-turn for momentum and, lastly, Explosion. Explosion is a really fun one in my opinion. Since I carry focus sash, I simply go in, set rocks and explode if Lando is low, otherwise I usually U-turn. Celesteela and Skarmory are hard counters to this Lando, which is why I want Magnezone on my team, the last thing I want is a 1v1 against these as Lando. This Lando is also good mid-game for its Intimidate to stop physical attackers, namely Mega Charizard-X, Mega Mawile, Mega Medicham are all vulnerable to either Equake or Explosion after the drop, to which I can bring Greninja and finish them off.
Landorus-Therian @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Explosion
Last but, hopefully, not least, I got a Tapu Lele. I like it's typing and I think it really brings some variety to my team. It has the potential of setting up if it finds the chance with Calm Mind, but I haven't had much success with setting up, so it may change to a move that brings more coverage. Other than that, it carries Psychic as a very strong STAB in psychic terrain, moonblast for stab and tbolt for coverage. Going back to Calm Mind, I am thinking about changing its item from life orb to psychium-Z and also replace Calm Mind with Focus Blast or Shadow Ball for coverage, or even Toxic just as a surprise to potential non steel Walls.
Tapu Lele @ Life Orb
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Thunderbolt
And this is my team. So far it has had success I did not expect from a team that I made (loads of self-confidence right there :D) and by that I mean it beats 1/10 teams if the enemy forfeits. Nah just kidding, it actually has had success, but it has some flaws. The biggest flaw is no Defog/Rapid Spin for hazards. Stealth Rocks isn't much of an issue to anyone except for Charizard, who doesn't appreciate losing half his HP before Mega evolving and Sticky Web, which makes Greninja vulnerable to Scarf and Hyper Offense Koko. I could replace U-Turn on Lando with Defog, but I really like the momentum. I guess I'll just decide based on your opinions. Also, this team has no way of stopping a Pokemon once it has setup. Sure, most of the time I take care of a pokemon before it becomes disgustingly strong, but if it manages to get +3 to speed and power, it's unstoppable. Basically I mean I have no Clear Smog or Roar. I don't know how I could add one of those to my team, but I don't think I really need too since not much has actually swept my team. Thank you for taking time out of your life to read this and I'll thank you even more if you give me advice.
Here is the pokepaste:
https://pokepast.es/a8fccc5fca7492dd
(Disclaimer: The thread won't have pictures because I don't know how to add those, I'd appreciate it if someone told me how)
The first pokemon I added was Mega Charizard-X. It has dragon claw for STAB Tough Claws (not Outrage so it doesn't get locked), Dragon Dance for sweeping potential, Earthquake for coverage and Flare Blitz for STAB. It is also Jolly to outspeed as much as possible on the crucial 1st turn before it sets up. The 1 thing I could change is replace Earthquake or Dragon Dance with Roost for longevity, but I feel like if I replace Equake it gets walled by Heatran, Toxapex and other walls Equake can handle, but not the other 2 moves (not to mention Tapu Fini would probably beat it without serious setup). Replacing Dragon Dance though reduces Charizard's sweeping potential by a lot, so I don't know. I could use roost to negate stealth rock, but I am not sure. Overall, Charizard is my Mega that is meant find the perfect opportunity to get 1-2 DD off and sweep.
Charizard-Mega-X @ Charizardite X
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Dance
- Earthquake
- Flare Blitz
Next up is Magnezone which, honestly, I mostly added because I really like Magnezone and its steel trapping shenanigans. It carries volt switch for some momentum, Thunderbolt so I am not forced to switch out in order to use an Electric attack, Flash cannon for STAB and HP Fire for coverage against mega scizor, kartana, opposing Magnezone (if it ever comes down to that) and Ferrothorn. I think that's the best HP I could give to my Magnezone, I was considering HP Ground for heatran, but it outspeeds and OHKOes my Magnezone anyways, so no reason for that. As for the item, I have no idea what to give it. Originally it carried Assault Vest for more bulk, but the OU chat told me to add Specs instead. However, I don't think Magnezone could properly do specs, since it is so slow. I'm thinking of adding AV back for the bulk, or putting on it Air Balloon, because it is really hard to trap Excadrill when it can OHKO with Equake. Basically, Magnezone is my steel trapper (surprise surprise), just in case Charizard dies first or there are rocks up.
Magnezone @ Choice Specs
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Third on the list is Tangrowth, which is a very solid overall wall for me, thus the reason I use it. So far, it's been serving as a good answer to water, ground and steel types, which is always nice. Knock off really helps cripple walls and sludge bomb is an answer to fairy types since Magnezone is mostly for trapping steel types and I don't want to lose it to a fairy. Assault vest is pretty much a standard for Tangrowth and Giga Drain is for some form of recovery, though I might change it to some other grass move because of Regenerator. Also, as you noticed, it has mixed attacking moves, so it has some form of unpredictability and some attacking presence. So far it has actually Nabbed important KOs, most notable being a KO on a setting up Magearna, which would've rampaged through my team with its stat increases. Overall, I am very satisfied with my Tangrowth's perfomance as a wall that can disrupt other walls and Regenerate its HP with every switch out.
Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 40 Atk / 216 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
Oh boy, here comes Greninja, my go to revenge killer in pretty much every team. I almost always run it with Choice Scarf to outspeed and, well, revenge kill. I don't really want to change much on my greninja aside from its movepool, potentially. It has Hydro Pump as my only water coverage, Ice beam for dragon slaying, since charizard will just die to them before it sets up and it is a great answer to many things, U-turn for momentum and Grass Knot. Now, for the last move, I was between Grass Knot, for coverage against heavy pokemon/Pokemon weak to grass, Spikes for obvious reasons and Gunk shot for fairy types. Please tell me what your opinion on the moveset is and if I should change anything. I haven't really had much trouble with this moveset so far.
Greninja @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Protean
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Ice Beam
- Scald
- U-turn
- Grass Knot
Landorus-T is my lead pokemon. It has Stealth Rocks, Equake for STAB, U-turn for momentum and, lastly, Explosion. Explosion is a really fun one in my opinion. Since I carry focus sash, I simply go in, set rocks and explode if Lando is low, otherwise I usually U-turn. Celesteela and Skarmory are hard counters to this Lando, which is why I want Magnezone on my team, the last thing I want is a 1v1 against these as Lando. This Lando is also good mid-game for its Intimidate to stop physical attackers, namely Mega Charizard-X, Mega Mawile, Mega Medicham are all vulnerable to either Equake or Explosion after the drop, to which I can bring Greninja and finish them off.
Landorus-Therian @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Explosion
Last but, hopefully, not least, I got a Tapu Lele. I like it's typing and I think it really brings some variety to my team. It has the potential of setting up if it finds the chance with Calm Mind, but I haven't had much success with setting up, so it may change to a move that brings more coverage. Other than that, it carries Psychic as a very strong STAB in psychic terrain, moonblast for stab and tbolt for coverage. Going back to Calm Mind, I am thinking about changing its item from life orb to psychium-Z and also replace Calm Mind with Focus Blast or Shadow Ball for coverage, or even Toxic just as a surprise to potential non steel Walls.
Tapu Lele @ Life Orb
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Thunderbolt
And this is my team. So far it has had success I did not expect from a team that I made (loads of self-confidence right there :D) and by that I mean it beats 1/10 teams if the enemy forfeits. Nah just kidding, it actually has had success, but it has some flaws. The biggest flaw is no Defog/Rapid Spin for hazards. Stealth Rocks isn't much of an issue to anyone except for Charizard, who doesn't appreciate losing half his HP before Mega evolving and Sticky Web, which makes Greninja vulnerable to Scarf and Hyper Offense Koko. I could replace U-Turn on Lando with Defog, but I really like the momentum. I guess I'll just decide based on your opinions. Also, this team has no way of stopping a Pokemon once it has setup. Sure, most of the time I take care of a pokemon before it becomes disgustingly strong, but if it manages to get +3 to speed and power, it's unstoppable. Basically I mean I have no Clear Smog or Roar. I don't know how I could add one of those to my team, but I don't think I really need too since not much has actually swept my team. Thank you for taking time out of your life to read this and I'll thank you even more if you give me advice.
Here is the pokepaste:
https://pokepast.es/a8fccc5fca7492dd
