With many of the lower tiers yet to stabilize, SM Ubers has proven the perfect environment for me to improve my skills, as it is well-developed enough as a metagame that it does not feel like a hyper offense crapshoot.
I've been slowly modifying this team, which I believe has a solid basis, but my ladder rating has stalled in the 1400's (which seems to be the dividing line where shitty teams stop appearing) due to some problems with the team that I've been unable to resolve on my own.
Ho-Oh @ Choice Band
Ability: Regenerator
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire
- Earthquake
- Sleep Talk
Ho-oh is without doubt the MVP of this team and my favorite Ubers pokemon to use. Although I'm sure you can imagine it, replays such as this demonstrate that matchups vs stall are mostly decided by a long process of Ho-oh trying to slowly beat down all opposing pokemon.
Also notable is that this is my only real check to Mega Lucario, which is a major vulnerability of this team.
Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Sassy Nature
- Precipice Blades
- Lava Plume
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
There is nothing to say here. Maybe in the future Pdon will not be a requirement for every team, but for now there is no way to avoid using him on bulky offense teams.
Arceus-Water @ Splash Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
- Defog
- Recover
Also known as the "everything check". Waterceus is my primary switchin against Mega Salamence, Rayquaza, defensive Pdon, Ho-oh, and a wide variety of weakened pokemon. Its vulnerability comes from trying to do these things while also Defogging, staying above ~60% health, and staying out of the way of pokemon that can set up on it.
In my experiments with replacing him (Dragonceus, Fairyceus, Giratina-O) it seems that despite the shortcomings of having so many roles to fulfill Waterceus is still the best option.
Dialga @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flash Cannon
- Thunder
- Toxic
- Roar
Dialga's purpose is as a pivot and secondary check against POgre and weakened Scarf Lunaala on offensive teams and as a crucial Toxic resist, allowing it to completely wall several stall pokemon such as Lugia or Waterceus and to frustrate attempts at Wish healing with Chansey through Roar.
Unfortunately the ground moves being thrown around everywhere and the rise of Groundceus are weighing against Dialga's ability to do his job correctly in many cases.
Xerneas @ Power Herb
Ability: Fairy Aura
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 248 SpA / 12 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Thunder
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Geomancy
Despite most of the team leaning heavily toward defense, Xerneas is still a great win condition and I honestly have no complaints.
Yveltal @ Leftovers
Ability: Dark Aura
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Toxic
- Taunt
- Roost
This monstrosity exists as a bandage check to a variety of pokemon that were giving me trouble - CM Darkceus, Lunala, and offensive Pdon. Unfortunately, its results in matchups with these threats are mixed to say the least. Magearna and Mega Lucario also gain free switchins here, which can be annoying in the case of the former and devastating in the case of the latter.
Often I feel as if this Yveltal is dead weight and I only really have 5 pokemon in comparison to my opponent's 6 pokemon (or even 4 vs 6 in a situation where Xerneas must be held back), though he does occasionally come through for me, mostly against Pdon.
MAJOR THREATS:
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In order to address these threats, I'm open to replacing any pokemon on the team. I suspect changing Yveltal and Dialga offer the most opportunity for improvement...
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