Featured OU RMT
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Celebi @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
EVs: 200 HP / 92 SpA / 216 Spe
- Thunder Wave
- Leaf Storm
- Stealth Rock
- U-Turn
To lead off the team Celebi was choosen, even though it was not an orginal member. Orginally Swampert was in the lead, but after a few issues with it we dumped it and put our heads together and had the idea to use Celebi. It keeps the resist to Electric that we wanted and more. It's quick, it's bulky, has U-turn, has Stealth Rock... Anything not to love? Well, a few things, actually. Heatran and Infernape are instant switches. And we can't touch Metagross, but we do get Stealth Rock up, so it's not a major issue. While those suck. we do have the appropriate members to handle the different situations.
EVs and Nature:
216 Speed and Timid is to outspeed that douche Gliscor. The Special Attack was to guarantee the OHKO against Manaphy and 2HKO on Tyranitar, with Sand Storm. The rest is put in HP to give Celebi great bulk.
Moveset:
As we dive into the RMT, you'll notice that our team was almost built on using Thunder Wave, and the lead is no different. Thunder Wave is excellent for slowing down some of the threats to our team... A noticable one is Tyranitar. Latias LOVES being faster then that damned Scarftar. If scarftar is crippled early on, then Latias has fun all game. Leaf Storm helps against Aerodactyl and Azelf as they take less damage from Stealth Rock, but the main benefit is hitting Manaphy for massive damage, unlike Grass Knot (which is the better move in general in OU). A base 140 attack is nothing to scoff at, even more so on a Pokémon that doesn't allow much set up due to Thunder Wave! Stealth Rock is the most defining move in the metagame: very few teams are seen without and even less teams are successful without it. Everyone knows what this is for and we, like everyone else, like to see Salamence and Gyarados lose 1/4 of its health on the switch. U-turn is the final move, which is great for breaking the Sash on Azelf or for simply gaining momentum early to mid game. I've also experimented with several other moves in this slot, most notably HP Fire, since it completely stops Scizor's ability to switch into Latias. With HP Fire, Celebi almost acts as a lure for Latias, injuring Tyranitar with Thunder Wave and Leaf Storm, and hitting Scizor with HP Fire.
Gyarados @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
EVs: 156 HP / 88 Atk / 96 Def / 168 Spe
- Waterfall
- Thunder Wave
- Dragon Dance
- Bounce
EVs and Nature:
Gyarados suffers from odd EVs from a glance. They are just the bulkydos EVs in HP and Defense, and enough Speed EVs to outspeed Jolteon after a DD. The rest or put into Attack. With the spread and EVs, Gyarados is a nice blend of support, bulk, and power which is extremely helpful on the team.
Moveset:
Probably the oddest member on the team with the most unusual move set, but, damn, does it work well. Like Celebi, Gyarados uses Thunder Wave to give our team more support, and even helps itself if it can hit ScarfRotom on the switch and then have to not worry about it for the rest of the game. Dragon Dance seems odd on a set that runs Thunder Wave, but really there is no better option for our team. I suppose we could run Roar but we have nothing to abuse the switch (aka Spikes) so it seems like a waste, nor does it fit with the team. And after opponents sees Thunder Wave, even less expect Gyarados to be Jolly, so another potent threat in Jolteon can get wasted easily. The final thing to nail down was what move to pair with Waterfall, as Gyarados has many options: Stone Edge, Earthquake, Return, and Bounce. All of them give Gyarados nice neutral coverage and all have their perks. Stone Edge hits other Gyarados, Salamence, and other Flying-types for SE damage. Earthquake is great for grounded Steels, such as Metagross and Jirachi, but leaves us open to Gyarados, Salamence, and Latias. Return has great neutral coverage and is naturally strong, but doesn't hit anything SE and doesn't gain STAB. And Bounce has solid power backed by STAB, hits almost everything neutrally, and even has a 30% chance to paralyze the opponent! But it has the side effect of being a 2 turn attack, so the opponent always has a chance to switch. After some talking, we went with Bounce and it's so excellent that I haven't even tried any of the other options.
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
EVs: 164 HP / 168 Atk / 176 Spe
- Thunder Wave
- Iron Head
- Fire Punch
- Substitute
While the team was not originally built around Jirachi, it seems that the team was built to support this Jirachi, and it really is the most key member to the team. Bringing out this bad boy is almost just a rage quit from the opponent. Deadly effective, and one of the best anti-metagame Pokémon at the moment.
EVs and Nature:
A running theme on the team is bulk, even on offensive Pokémon. As such, Jirachi is no exception. After playing with some numbers, I decided to reduce its Attack down to 168, since it gains almost all the same OHKOs and 2HKOs as the 252 Attack; also, because Jirachi's main job is to spread even more Thunder Wave, it was decided that Jirachi didn't need max Speed (even though tying Salamence at times would be nice) and reduced it down. The remaining EVs were placed into HP to give Jirachi some bulk for taking attacks if it needs to. The extra bulk is a god-send, and we wouldn't trade it for the world.
Moveset:
In all seriousness, this moveset is golden. Pure awesome. And the moveset really isn't flexible as all the moves really needed. Thunder Wave and Iron Head forms a deadly due where the opponent is much more likekly to not attack than actually attack. If scarf-flinching was bad, then this must be hell. Substitute is an excellent pivot move that allows for no predicting and gives Jirachi the chance to paralyze the opponent without taking damage. And even better is when Jirachi keeps its Substitute due to the opponent not moving. Fire Punch is the final move of the set, but most definitely is very useful. Fire Punch deals with all of the Steels that try to use Jirachi to set up on, Magnezone is a big one as without Fire Punch we would be trapped and have to rely on a ton of Iron Heads to break it. Scizor is another Pokémon that tries to use Jirachi for some reason that I cannot explain, but I will not complain.
Machamp @ Leftovers
Ability: No Guard
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 HP / 244 Atk / 12 Spe
- DynamicPunch
- Substitute
- Stone Edge
- Payback
EVs and Nature:
The EVs are pretty self-explanatory, we took a little from attack to outspeed other Machamp. No need worrying about some 4-8 Speed clone. Other then that, max HP and near max Attack.
Moveset:
Whenever Machamp hits the field, I almost expect something to die. Its coverage is awesome, very strong, and can ruin even solid switches like Gyarados due to DynamicPunch. Speaking of DynamicPunch, is there nothing not to be glad about? It's 100% accurate with 100 base power with a 100% chance of inflicting confusion. That confusion is even more annoying when some Pokémon start getting paralyzed and the opponent is put under pressure due to so many mons being paralyzed. Payback is the move that gives almost completely neutral coverage with just two moves. Payback is the perfect move for Rotom, with a solid chance to OHKO ScarfRotom on the switch if SR is up and about a 3HKO on SleepTalk Rotom. Stone Edge is another great move, allowing Machamp to beat almost everything, barring Gliscor maybe. Salamence, Gyarados, Zapdos, etc. all fear Machamp due to Stone Edge. And finally there is Substitute, which is perhaps the best move in the game. Because of Machamp's power and ability to 2HKO much of the game, it loves the chance to not predict the switch and hide safely behind a Substitute. I doesn't have to worry about being burned or taking a potentially-OHKOing Draco Meteor from Salamence or Latias; it just sits back and launches a brutal attack.
Heatran @ Passho Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
Nature: Mild (+SpA, -Def)
EVs: 36 HP / 252 SpA / 220 Spe
- Explosion
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power Grass
EVs and Nature:
Max Special Attack is a given on such a set; the Speed goes above Jolly Tyranitar and the rest is in HP. We could possibly max it out, since there are a lot of mons that run between 244-246 and we could get a jump on those slow Jirachi, Celebi, and Zapdos (although two of those have no business against Heatran). The remaining EVs go to HP to nigh-guarantee Heatran will survive +2 Manaphy Surf with Passho. Mild over Rash for that reason.
Moveset:
Heatran is the suicide bomber of the team, laying to waste any pesky bulky waters that get in the way, such as Suicune, Vaporeon, Gyarados, Swampert, and the 3-4 exclusive, Manaphy, with either Explosion or HP Grass (aka Swampert). Removing them makes Gyarados' and Jirachi's life much easier, giving them more turns to attack rather then fleeing on sight. Passho Berry also is a last ditch defense against Starmie, who is one of the biggest threats to our teams: as you can see, it 2HKOes the entire team without question, so Heatran is insurance as long as its health is high enough to take the Hydro Pump. Another thing about Explosion is that we can remove Blissey with it, although it's easier said then done as it's usually a chess match between the two. Fire Blast is the move of choice for power, and the STAB Fire attack is much needed on a team that has mild issues with Skarmory. And Earth Power is almost a useless attack, to be honest. Really can't tell you why we run it due to being outsped by most Heatran, but I guess i'ss nice to catch them on a switch or to hit Jirachi and Metagross with 100% acc instead of Fire Blast or to hit non-Scarf Tyranitar (although almost every ttar on suspect was Scarfed).
Latias @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
- Draco Meteor
- Dragon Pulse
- Surf
- Trick
Specs Latias was the star of the suspect in my opinion, on both our team and everyone else's team. A phenomenal threat to our opposition and to ourselves when we had to play against it. Truly a devastating set that requires little prediction to plow through even well-prepared teams. So much so that all three of us believe to be Uber under the Support Category, but that's a discussion for another time.
EVs and Nature:
Even my disdain for 252/252 spreads couldn't deny that there is very little way to EV this. So max Special Attack, max Speed, and then dump the rest into HP.
Moveset:
With Choice Specs, Latias is a terror. Draco Meteor is one of the best attacks in the game, just because it has the lone resist, and those Steel-types that do not have recovery usually can only switch in once. Draco Meteor has its downside, but it's well worth it to get off one incredible attack. Dragon Pulse is the end-game move, and due to its solid power and Latias's good Speed, it's very easy to finish off a team that's been battered and paralyzed through out the course of the match. After playing this set for so long, Surf is probably the best lead off move for Latias. Besides Blissey and Snorlax, it generally 2HKOes all of its usual switches like Jirachi, Scizor, Skarmory, Metagross, and the famous Scarftar. Between Surf and Dragon Pulse, Latias hits everything neutrally expect for Empoleon. Trick is the final move of the set and probably the move I used least on the set. Its uses are great, such as crippling Blissey into using a single move, or helping against some of the CM machines like Jirachi, Suicune, and Manaphy, but in almost all situations I'd rather keep my Specs, just because it loses so much power. Thunderbolt could go here but, in suspect, Manaphy was always OHKOed by Draco Meteor. Both Trick and Thunderbolt have their uses, with Trick having more, so it's stayed on the set.
With the recent surge of semi-stall teams, both on the ladder and in the OU Rate My Team forum, you would imagine that teams of the balanced genre would have a hard time competing. But this is not the case with Team "X: A 3-4" by Pride and DJXO9, which promotes the use of balanced offense (with intelligent support from Thunder Wave) to show-off the underrated excellence of Machamp and his team mates, in an attempt to overwhelm the opponent with status ailments and hard-hitting attacks.
What makes this team stand out from the crowd is Pride and DJXO9's individual and interesting selection of movesets, and how they not only benefit the user, but all other members of the team. For example, the use of Thunder Wave on an offensively-oriented Gyarados catches out a lot of common Choice Scarfed threats (such as Latias) and minimizes their revenge killing effectiveness. Similarly, Substitute Jirachi can bluff the common Calm Mind set, which usually draws out the likes of Choice Scarf Heatran, and cripple most switch-ins with Thunder Wave to, again, minimize their general effectiveness and purpose.
Leading the team into battle is Celebi, a solid user of Stealth Rock and Thunder Wave to cripple faster leads like Aerodactyl and Azelf. Celebi's bulk is key to its success, as it isn't taken down by any notable leads without a STAB super effective attack or Metagross's Explosion; this means that not only can Celebi set up Stealth Rock the majority of the time, but it can also prove useful for later spreading paralysis—and countering—against opponents throughout the game. STAB Leaf Storm allows Celebi to check bulky Water-types (such as Suicune and Vaporeon) which could hinder Jirachi and Gyarados' effectiveness. Being able to strike down opposing Gyarados with Celebi is a grateful asset to Machamp whom hates constant Intimidates. The fluidity of switching that U-Turn provides is invaluable to this team, especially as it provides set-up windows of opportunity, and constantly allows the users of this team to maintain the control and flow of the game in their favor.
Pride and DJXO9 opted for using Celebi over the original lead, Swampert, because of: a) the fact that it blended well into the offensive-orientation of the team, and b) it did more in terms of defeating Manaphy (one of the suspects at the time) and other bulky Water-types which Swampert could hardly touch. This change of lead was a good choice, as it broadened the team's reach against most common threats (like Gyarados and Suicune), at little cost.
Gyarados benefits directly from Celebi's typing and general role on the team, and so does Celebi from Gyarados. Being able to switch into a wide variety of Pokémon that Celebi cannot, Gyarados continues the trend of inducing paralysis widely throughout the opponent's team. It doesn't just stop there, though, as Gyarados later uses this to its advantage to get the heads-up on foes with Dragon Dance to boost its Speed and the power of its STAB Waterfall and Bounce—the latter with a 30% chance of causing paralysis, which is excellent against those Pokémon unaffected by Thunder Wave.
The next member of the team, Jirachi, utilizes the common aspects of the standard support Jirachi, but instead of using Wish, Substitute is used. Although this set was popularized by Picklesword on the ladder, Pride and DJXO9 have used it to greater success. Thunder Wave strikes those annoying Heatran and Roar Latias switches, but also (when paired with Iron Head) increases the likelihood of the opponent not striking a hit, giving them only a 30% chance of hitting Jirachi. But as it is under the comfort of Substitute, Jirachi can evade direct attacks and simply continue to annoy the foe with its omnipresent "ParaFlinch" strategy. Steel-types cannot evade this as Fire Punch hits most of them for super effective damage.
The centerpiece of the team, Machamp, is the best abuser of Pride and DJXO9's widespread paralysis strategy. Machamp is usually overlooked because of its poor Speed, but not here. Machamp's bulk provides the team with a check to Tyranitar, and means that it gains and opportunity to set up with Substitute. Alongside the already-existing paralysis of the opposing team, DynamicPunch's 100% chance of inducing confusion (to all who are susceptible to it) also adds to the opponent's strife, to the advantage of the team and Machamp. The minimized chances of striking a hit cleverly has a psychological effect on a lot of opponents because of the frustration it brings, and it is this what adds to the success of the team and eventual failure of the opponents. Payback and Stone Edge give Machamp excellent coverage against Ghost- and Flying-types, so not much evades the wrath of Machamp.
Heatran loves paralysis and no longer has to rely on having a Timid nature to compete with the speed demons of the OU metagame—and that's with a Choice Scarf. But now it doesn't rely on that, and the creators of this team have definitely used paralysis to its maximum as they exploit Heatran's huge Special Attack stat. What makes this set equally as good is the fact that it can feign Choice Specs Heatran, because of Passho Berry, lure in bulky Water-types like Swampert, and annihilate them with Hidden Power Grass. Heatran also plays an important role in removing Latias with Explosion after it survives any form of Surf from Latias; this goes for Choice Specs versions in particular, as they are most threatening.
The final party slot goes to Latias, and with good reason. Its excellent strength, conjured from Choice Specs, pierces deep holes into opponents that aren't using Blissey (who Machamp and others handle well) or several Steel-types on their team. Latias also fills the void where threats are not covered, and can act as an effective revenge killer taking into account all the paralysis its opponent has incurred. Once the whole of the opponent's team has been stricken by Thunder Wave and hard-hitting attacks from each team member, Latias almost requires no effort when cleaning up what's left of the opponent.
This team is certainly not without its faults, however. A lot of common threats such as three-attack Life Orb Starmie with Recover can puncture huge holes within the team, especially if Celebi, Latias, and even Heatran have taken hits beforehand. As both Pride and DJXO9 have both identified, it requires intense switching to get a clean shot at removing Starmie—and even that is not guaranteed. In a similar vain, Life Orbed Jolteon and Substitute + Life Orb Gengar are just as threatening, but slightly less so as it doesn't hit as many Pokémon for super effective damage.
Not only is the aforementioned Starmie threatening, but so is Dragon Dance + Life Orb Salamence; if it sets up on Latias' Surf, then both users of this team are guaranteed to lose at least one team member at least. Nothing on this team can switch into a +1 Life Orbed Outrage without incurring over 50% damage, meaning a sacrifice of some sort is obligatory when dealing with Salamence.
Furthermore, although Celebi is Pride and DJXO9's best check to the majority of Water-type Pokémon, it cannot save them from the havoc that the standard Substitute + Petaya Berry + Agility Empoleon will undoubtedly cause. With this said, however, Empoleon's best chance at setting up only comes from Latias stuck on any of its attacking moves, so all is not lost easily.
In conclusion, this team is an excellent (and definitely creative) innovation which has found itself being successful and well-praised by most people whose eyes have glanced upon it. The great synergy between members of the team definitely maximizes Machamp's chances of accomplishing a successful sweep, and also opens a window of opportunity for every member of the team to do so, too. There is no limitation to how the game is won based on this fact, therefore.
Even though it does have extremely common and dangerous threats, it still excels when used correctly—and I am certain that the creators of this team can do so.
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