Competitive Team Help?

[.~.Nellie.~.]

I think I'd try out the Choice Band set that Richard posted up, so:

Garchomp@ Choice Band
Rough Skin
Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack)
EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Outrage
Earthquake
Dragon Claw / Dual Chop
Fire Fang / Aqua Tail / Stone Edge

[SirBlaziken]

Well, if that doesn't work, I run:

Jolly @Leftovers

Dragon Claw
EQ
Substitute
SD

252 Attack
252 Speed
4 HP

It works surprisingly good.

[.~.Nellie.~.]

I see, well since it's pretty similar I might test them both out Thanks for the advice!

[Richard and Blaziken]

As your team appears to be taking on a hyper offensive shape, here are some things to consider:

Bisharp deters opponents from laying Sticky Web. If it doesn't, your opponent is giving Bisharp a free doubled Attack boost every time it enters the battle. With Sucker Punch, the Speed drop is insignificant. Pursuit allows you to trap Latios as well. I've been running a Latios counter set:

Bisharp@ Assault Vest
{Defiant}
Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Attack / 4 Sp. Defense
Sucker Punch
Pursuit
Knock Off
Iron Head

Sucker Punch bypasses Bisharp's low Speed, while Pursuit traps things like Latios that have already used Draco Meteor. Knock Off is your safest STAB, not relying on the opponent to attack or switch to be used properly, and it's also your strongest STAB attack, jumping to 97.5 base power when the opponent is holding an item, while also removing that item. Iron Head covers most things that resist Dark.

If you're not worried about Latios, change Assault Vest to Life Orb and max the Speed.

Aegislash@ Weakness Policy
{Stance Change}
Brave nature (+Attack, -Speed)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Attack / 4 Defense
Swords Dance
Shadow Sneak
Iron Head
Sacred Sword

SD on an opponent with a Super Effective attack, and sweep with Shadow Sneak. Iron Head and Sacred Sword are mostly for coverage. Iron Head can be removed for King's Shield if you're so inclined.

Keldeo@ Choice Specs
{Justified}
Timid nature (+Speed, -Attack)
EVs: 252 Sp. Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Hydro Pump
Secret Sword
Icy Wind
Scald

While this can be hard to obtain in-game, Specs Keldeo is a powerful threat in OU. Hydro Pump is your strongest STAB attack, and punched holes into even resistant Pokemon. Secret Sword is awesome, dealing physical damage off Keldeo's Sp. Attack stat, making Blissey and other special walls a non-option in terms of countering Keldeo. Icy Wind hits thinks like Dragonite, Latios, Garchomp, etc. Finally, Scald is your best option for dealing with Mega Venusaur switch-ins. If M-Venu is burnt, it loses its status as a Keldeo counter. If not, M-Venusaur hard counters Keldeo, though it still takes a lot from Hydro Pump.

Those are just a few things to consider.

[.~.Nellie.~.]

Hello again

I actually ran into an Aegislash like that today and it was a demon!

I've been practicing using the following team on Pokemon Showdown today (I don't want to waste time breeding and training a team that might not work when I come down to using it so this is my first step!).

Greninja
Nature: Timid
Ability: Protean
Item: Life Orb
Moves: Spikes, U-Turn, Hydro Pump, Ice Beam.
EV Spread: Sp.Atk, Speed (4 in Defense)

Talonflame
Nature: Adamant
Ability: Gale Wings
Item: Choice Band
Moves: U-Turn, Brave Bird, Flare Blitz, Will-O-Whisp
EV Spread: Attack, Speed (4 in Defense)

Garchomp
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Rough Skin
Item: Choice Scarf
Moves: Outrage, Earthquake, Dual Chop, Stone Edge
EV Spread: Speed, Attack (4 in HP)

Azumarill
Nature: Adamant
Ability: Huge Power
Item: Leftovers
Moves: Substitute, Aqua Jet, Focus Punch, Play Rough
EV Spread: HP, Defense (4 in Attack)

Dragonite
Nature: Careful
Ability: Multiscale
Item: (Leftovers is ideal but I only have one on my game, any other suggestions?)
Moves: Wrap, Toxic, Roost, Earthquake
EV Spread: HP, Sp.Def (4 in Defense).

Gengar
Nature: Timid
Ability: Shadow Tag
Item: Gengarite
Moves: Thunderbolt, Sludge Wave, Shadow Ball, Destiny Bond
EV Spread: Sp. Atk, Speed. (4 in HP)


So far it's working quite nicely, although Talonflame and Garchomp have yet to have had their moments to shine in my opinion ^^ I need to work out what item to give Dragonite though, so help would be appreciated there along with any other comments about my revised competitive team As always, thanks for all the help so far!

[Richard and Blaziken]

Swap to Naive nature on Greninja with the 4 in Attack. It'll make U-Turn more powerful and Greninja's defenses are too horrible to take a hit anyway.

Azumarill - While this set isn't really bad, it loses to the most common Azumarill counter: Mega Venusaur. I'd suggest Choice Band with Waterfall, Play Rough, Aqua Jet, Superpower / Ice Punch / Return. Belly Drum is an option, but requires enough Speed to outspeed Mega Venusaur for the OHKO, and you lose a lot of bulk that way, so I'd stick with Choice Band with max HP and Attack.

Dragonite's set here is honestly awful. Wrap is garbage. On your offensively oriented team, this sticks out as a huge sore thumb that could be doing so much more. I'd recommend this:

Dragonite@ Weakness Policy
{Multiscale}
Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack)
EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 Defense
Dragon Dance
Dragon Claw
Earthquake
Fire Punch / ExtremeSpeed / Roost

Standard DD set, with Weakness Policy. DD once and hopefully take a Super Effective attack to activate WP. Multiscale, if intact, makes this much easier. At +3, Dragon Claw is going to rip through most things that don't resist. Earthquake and Fire Punch deal with everything that resists Dragon. ExtremeSpeed is an option in the last slot to beat out opposing priority users or faster Scarfers. Roost is an option here to remove your Flying type for the turn if you move first, to restore 50% of your health, and to possible re-activate Multiscale.

Gengar - Gengarite is banned in OU, and therefore cannot be used. Life Orb on this.

[SirBlaziken]

I've been practicing using the following team on Pokemon Showdown today (I don't want to waste time breeding and training a team that might not work when I come down to using it so this is my first step!)

Really? Then we'll have to set up a battle sometime so I can see how it's coming.

[Aerodactylite]

Always run Weakness Policy on Dragonite and Tyranitar. Mainly because they have the bulk to withstand a super effective hit. Same with Aegislash if you decided to use one of those. Also, what I have found to help me the most if a few priority moves. Here is my current team..

Honchkrow
Nautre/Ability: Adamant ~ Moxie
Item: Lum Berry (for prankster or speedy will-o-wisps)
EVs: 252 HP/ATK 4 Speed

Sucker Punch (good priority against Aegislash, even with his bulk, it still does a lot of damage)
Brave Bird
Pursuit (for when you know the guys are going to withdraw, catch them before they swap)
Roost

Meganium
Nature/Ability: Bold ~ Overgrow
Item: Leftovers
EVs: 252 HP/DEF 4 SAtk

Leech Seed
Energy Ball
Synthesis
Reflect

The goal with him is to set up the reflect or leech seed first turn depending on the opponent. He does not have the most bulk, but he is so useful. He has single-handedly won me a lot of matches because he is so bulky with reflect up. The reason I don't run Giga Drain is because he cannot learn it in Gen 6. Which doesn't make any sense to me..

Banette
Nature/Ability: Adamant ~ Frisk/Prankster
Item: Banettite
EVs: 252 HP/ATK 4 DEF

Shadow Sneak
Destiny Bond (Breed with a Gengar)
Will-o-Wisp
Knock Off

The main point of Banette is to try and force someone out if you manage to catch a banded Normal/Fighting user, this is even better. Although he doesn't have much bulk, using him with Meganiums reflect helps a lot on swapping him in. Once he gets prankster, either Destiny Bond to get rid of a huge threat, or just burn them if you can manage to tank 2 of the hits. My Banette has taken down Garchomps that I have burnt + had reflect up. He is basically a suicide Poke though.

Rotom-W
Nature/Ability: Bold ~ Levitate
Item: Sitrus Berry
EVs: 252 HP/DEF

Hydro Pump
Thunderbolt
Volt Switch
Will-o-Wisp

For when you can't get Banette in safely, it is always nice to have a back up burner. Since he has such a solid typing, you can pretty much swap him into any hit and he will tank it well. Even if it hits a little more than half the first turn, once you eat the Sitrus you should be able to take 2 and at the very least get a Will-o-Wisp off to help out the rest of the team.

Meowstic-F
Nature/Ability: Timid ~ Competitive
Item: Choice Specs
EVs: 252 SAtk/Speed 4 HP

Thunderbolt
Energy Ball
Dark Pulse
Psyshock

Although I have covered a lot of those moves already with previous Pokemon, it is nice to have a speedy late game sweep with some neutral moves on the remaining Pokemon. I have had some good success with Meowstic-F. Especially if they have an Intimidator on their team.

Jolteon
Nature/Ability: Timid ~ Volt Absorb
Item: Air Balloon
EVs: 252 SAtk/Speed 4 HP

Hidden Power (Ice) This is tricky to get when breeding for Kalos. Gotta make sure you are lacking in ATK/DEF to get it.
Shadow Ball
Thunderbolt
Volt Switch

Jolteon is very very fast, with a Timid nature and the investment, he has around 200 base Speed. He is a solid lead if facing a Greninja lead because he outspeeds by 7 or so. If you are going to lead with it, you should Volt Switch out. So if the Greninja is sashed, you can swap into something that will tank the hit from the Greninja better than frail Jolteon would. Another good alternative to holding the Balloon would be a Life Orb.

The entire moral to this team is to keep momentum with the volt switching and bulk. If you get caught by a Garchomp or something, a HP Ice will likely one shot it. You lack in some areas when it comes to facing a Ferrothorn or something, but when it comes to Battle Spot, it should be pretty helpful. The Pokemon that I would be most prone to switch would be Meowstic. If I do swap him out, I would choose Houndoom or something that could cover Fire/Dark. If you're planning on running a team for a 6v6, the main goal to it is to keep momentum the entire match. Even if you can't use Volt Switch, after 1 or 2 of the turns of them swapping on it, you should be able to predict it the next time you send him out and can catch them.

[SaRo|Rapidash]

^That team has quite a few major issues, if I'm honest.

Meganium, as much as I love it's design, is awful. It's outclassed by nearly every other grass type in the game, and in OU something like Ferrothorn, M-Venusaur or Whimsicott is more viable, particularly the latter for what your team was attempting.

Mega Banette is one of the poorest megas, too, unfortunately. Using a suicide mon as your mega is not the best idea when something like Gengar is going to do a similar job.

About Meowstic - why not Alkazam? It's stronger and faster. Doesn't have competitive, but that's useful very rarely and otherwise Alakazam is just... Better.

Basically... That team is better of dropping Rotom-W and just being an RU team

[Richard and Blaziken]

Going to have to agree with Dick here... posting your team here is very off-topic and counter-productive to what we've been building for Nellie's team, which has taken a focus to Hyper Offense. If you'd like to post your team, you'd be better off posting it in its own thread.

[Aerodactylite]

Although the team seems rough, I definitely do think that your suggestions are better. But you'd be shocked how hard it is to kill Meganium when he is played well. He has single handedly won me a lot of games because of the DEF investment and Reflect combo. I use the Rotom-W in combo with the Meganium because they counter each others weaknesses.

The Mega Banette isn't totally a suicide Poke though. With his pretty good ATK stat, fully invested, I definitely like using the Destiny Bond as a final resort. It's usually for Pokemon that I can't kill like Ferrothorn or Venusaur. So it is definitely useful when it needs to be. Since he does get Prankster, he also can Will-o which makes a lot of physical sweepers useless with the Reflect combo. The team has a lot of synergy.

But the Meowstic I made just for fun, and I was trying to incorporate it into a team, but it's just really not good. I am trying to find something for a solid 6th. But yeh, I just usually use lower tiered guys and they could work if you really want them to. It's a little more fun to me that way.

[Richard and Blaziken]

Post your team in its own thread in Team Building if you'd like us to talk further about it, as this topic is not about your team. I actually have a lot to say about your team, but this is not the appropriate topic to do so. I encourage you to do so, because I could help you out a lot.

About the topic at hand, her team isn't focused on momentum, it's a heavy offense style team that intends to break walls through sheer force and repeated heavy hits. It's a different playstyle, and not one I use that often, but it's a valid playstyle if the team is built around it and the player is aware of how to play it.

[.~.Nellie.~.]

I've been testing out the team with the changes you suggested and overall it's going pretty well. I have noticed that I've been struggling a little with Skarmory, Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur though. How do you suggest I tackle these demons? Once Stealth Rocks are up my Talonflame can't really take them :/

[SirBlaziken]

TBH, is SR is up, Talonflame had better be out when they're being set, you should have a defogger, or Talonflame should be fainted by now. Roost will help, but using it as soon as you come out will make you lose a turn and either let them switch into a counter or set up and scare you out, leading to more SR damage.

Here's a thought, why not switch U turn and spikes to HP fire and Extrasensory on greninja? That may leave you unable to switch, but that will let you remain in on those threats, although mega venusaur will require prior damage from other pokemon...... If you go with my suggestion, switch back to Timid and put that 4 in SpD or Def.

Rich, does this sound good to you?

[Richard and Blaziken]

Sounds like a good suggestion to me. Spikes on Greninja isn't something I'd recommend anyway, it's too frail to setup Spikes. If Talonflame's weakness to SR is too much to handle, you can switch to Staraptor:

Staraptor@ Life Orb
{Reckless}
Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack)
EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 Defense
Brave Bird
Double-Edge
Close Combat
U-Turn / Roost

Staraptor's a good replacement for Talonflame in OU that doesn't suffer as many of the problems as Talonflame does, and it's actually stronger, though not as fast. Brave Bird and Double-Edge are your STABs, and both are boosted by Reckless. Close Combat deals with things resistant to Flying and Normal, like Tyranitar and Heatran. U-Turn allows you to escape from any bad matchups while dealing damage (though also chipping 10% from yourself, so be sure it's worth it), while Roost can give you a chance to heal from the copious amount of damage you'll be dealing to yourself from your STABs and from Stealth Rock. Ideally, this is done on the switch, as Staraptor's defenses won't allow for it to take a hit.

Skarmory itself doesn't have an offensive presence outside of Brave Bird, so it's more a matter of the entry hazards it lays being annoying. Having a Rapid Spinner or Defogger makes Skarmory useless and non-threatening.