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I've got a bit of an odd request: I'm entered in a tournament series of sorts with the following team. Its basically standard OU monotype, with two exceptions:
1. No Legendaries or UBs
2. Either a Mega or a Z-Move, not both
Based on those rules, I came up with this balanced build: 2 walls, a wallbreaker, a sweeper, a revenge killer, and a hazard setter. I'm definitely open to switching up the roles and going hyper-offense if need be (Dragons seem to be well-equipped for that). But for now, here's what I came up with:
The dedicated lead. No surprise here. Chomp is a monster no matter what role he's in, but he excels as a lead. I considered Sui Chomp with Focus Sash, but the Rough n' Rocky combo can rack up a lot of damage even if he's not attacking. If he's matched up against a wall a la Shuckle or Celesteela, he's ready to dance. Standard EdgeQuake coverage has worked nicely: I find there's enough STAB Dragon hits from this team already. Like everything else on this team, he struggles mightily with Ice Beam.
Water Barney (Dragalge) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Adaptability
EVs: 228 HP / 252 SpA / 28 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic Spikes
- Sludge Wave
- Draco Meteor
- Hidden Power [Fire]
The special wall, and the only thing capable of eating a Moonblast. Pretty standard build, though I wonder if more Fire coverage is necessary sometimes since the only thing its useful for is Ferrothorn. I considered Goodra in this slot, but valued the Fairy resistance more than the extra firepower. The main issue with this guy is against MonoPsychic teams. For those, I tend to go all in with Hydreigon. Speaking of which...
The revenge killer, though, as previously stated, sometimes I'll lead with him against Psychic or Ghost teams and nab an early lead. Again, this set is pretty standard I feel: good coverage and a pivot. I opted for Hydreigon more to shore up the lack of Lattys on this team, but he performs quite well. He does a good job baiting Fairy hits, making Dragalge all the more valuable. Ice Beam still hurts, though.
The late-game setup sweeper. I knew from the beginning I would have a D-Dancer so the question was which one: Kommo-o, Salamence, Flygon, M-Charizard X, or the OG Dragon himself. Multiscale was the deciding factor here, in addition to a lack of good priority moves. Though he's not without his drawbacks: exacerbating the team's weakness to Ice and Fairies. I'm convinced Fire Punch is unnecessary with the other Fire coverage present, but I'm not quite sure what I'd replace it with. Thunder Punch, maybe?
Nim (Altaria-Mega) (F) @ Altarianite
Ability: Pixilate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hyper Voice
- Roost
- Heal Bell
- Defog
The physical wall/cleric. I opted for M-Altaria for two reasons: Heal Bell and Defog. While sometimes I question the value of Heal Bell, Defog is an absolute must to preserve Multiscale, though the two together leave a lot to be desired from the rest of her moveset. I chose Hyper Voice over Return to maintain a 3-3 Attack-to-Special Attack balance, and so far that's been more of a help than a hindrance. Her main issue is switching in, as not only are her stats worse before she Mevolves, but Dragon-Flying is a worse type defensively (rhymes with Mice Peem). Still, once she's up she's hard to take down, and she's one of the only viable Defoggers without the Lattys.
(BAN ME PLEASE) (Tyrantrum) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Head Smash
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Crunch
The wallbreaker. Everyone and their mother runs Kyurem-B on MonoDragon teams (and after witnessing the horrors of Ice Beam I now know why), and this was the best I could come up with for an offensive replacement. Pros: 500+ unboosted Attack and a 150 BP spammable move. Cons: poor defensive typing, low speed tier, especially bad Special Def. The non-150 BP moves are there for coverage, though Outrage feels painfully redundant. She's the hardest to switch in, but when she's out (and there's no Ice Beam), she gets the job done.
Conclusion
This team has been remarkably tough to workshop, since Showdown Monotype is the only place I can test it despite the extra restrictions. So even if you've no advice on the particular meta this team is competing in, I'd greatly appreciate any feedback on this team's functionality in general. I feel its got a long way to go, and you're the best people on the internet to take it there. Thanks for the read.
Hi! This team seems solid enough, but there are a couple of issues that I’ve found. While your Dragalge’s spread and item look good, the move set conflicts with your Assault Vest, as TSpikes does not fall under a move that can be used with AV. The only other thing I see is Tyrantrum, who you might want to be running a Scarf on over Band for that extra chance to outspeed threats.
Hi! This team seems solid enough, but there are a couple of issues that I’ve found. While your Dragalge’s spread and item look good, the move set conflicts with your Assault Vest, as TSpikes does not fall under a move that can be used with AV. The only other thing I see is Tyrantrum, who you might want to be running a Scarf on over Band for that extra chance to outspeed threats.
Hey. I think this Dragon team could use a few adjustments. No legendaries seems like a pretty huge restriction, especially considering that some of the best Pokemon on Dragon teams such as Latios and Kyurem-B are legendaries. Since you already have a great Mega Evolution in Mega Altaria, a Z-move wouldn't really be worth replacing it. I'll try to give the best suggestions I can:
Choice Specs/Life Orb>Choice Scarf on Hydreigon: Outside of Dragalge, you don't have much of anything else to hit things super hard on the special side. Giving Hydreigon more of a wallbreaking role can fix this problem, and allow it to beat bulkier Pokemon like Toxapex and Porygon2. A Choice Scarf Pokemon will be included in the next suggestion. For now, here are the wallbreaking Hydreigon sets:
Hydreigon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Pulse
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power / Focus Blast
Hydreigon @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Pulse
- Fire Blast
- Taunt / Roost
- Focus Blast / Earth Power
Salamence>Tyrantrum: Since Hydreigon is filling the role as a wallbreaker instead of a revenge killer, that role can instead go to Salamence. Unlike Hydreigon, Salamence has the benefit of speed tying with +1 Volcarona and Mega Charizard X, as well as +1 Mega Altaria, and can outspeed Choice Scarf Hydreigon 100% of the time. It can also beat threats such as Mega Aerodactyl and Adamant Slurpuff after a Belly Drum, since it hits 486 Speed compared to Choice Scarf Salamence's 492. Additionally, it has Moxie to allow it to sweep late-game more effectively, and can Defog to remove hazards in certain situations. Here's the set along with some calcs:
Salamence @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang / Defog
- Iron Tail
252 Atk Salamence Iron Tail vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Slurpuff: 256-302 (83.6 - 98.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Salamence Outrage vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Aerodactyl-Mega: 231-273 (76.7 - 90.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Salamence Iron Tail vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Altaria-Mega: 206-244 (70.7 - 83.8%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO(regular Altaria will be at 76% after Stealth Rock before Mega Evolving)
Choice Band Dragonite>Dragon Dance Dragonite: With Tyrantrum gone, Dragonite can instead fill the role as your Choice Banded physical wallbreaker. Being able to revenge kill Weavile with a Choice Banded Extreme Speed will definitely improve the Ice matchup, and boosted Fire Punches and Superpowers are incredibly difficult for Steel teams to switch into. The reason Dragonite is lacking as a setup sweeper is because of how slow it is, and without Mega Altaria's great defensive typing and ability to fit Roost into its moveset, Dragonite finds itself really easily revenge killed, even after +1. Here's the new Dragonite set:
Dragonite @ Choice Band
Ability: Multiscale
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Outrage
- Fire Punch
- Extreme Speed
- Superpower
Dragon Dance Mega Altaria>Utility Mega Altaria: Mega Altaria is effective as a setup sweeper with Dragon Dance thanks to its solid bulk and great defensive typing of Dragon/Fairy, allowing it to set up safely against and outright sweep opposing Dragon teams once the revenge killers are removed. It can also be very helpful against Normal teams if opting for Refresh, allowing it to outlast Chansey and Porygon2. But you can also opt to run Earthquake if you want to hit Poison-types like Nidoking. This would require giving up Defog, which is why I gave it as an option for Salamence. As for the new set, here it is:
Change Garchomp's moves: A Swords Dance Garchomp is typically a set that would require maximum investment in Attack and Speed. But since this team is generally more bulky compared to offensive, the defensive Garchomp set is probably best. Some suggestions for move changes would be Dragon Tail over Stone Edge and Fire Blast over Swords Dance. Dragon Tail allows Garchomp to phase out any setup sweepers or bulky Pokemon to rack up chip damage against them with Stealth Rock. Fire Blast will allow the set to effectively handle bulky Steel-types that don't care much about Earthquake, such as Ferrothorn, Mega Scizor, and Skarmory, as well as putting the 92 Speed to good use to hit Breloom for good damage. Here's the new set:
Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 240 HP / 176 Def / 92 Spe
Impish Nature
- Dragon Tail
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Fire Blast
Here's the team after the suggested changes. Good luck in your tournament, I hope this helped:
The extra PP is definitely more worth it. In most situations, you would rather be switching into Altaria against a status move, since even before Mega Evolving, it has Natural Cure to easily get rid of the status condition. Refresh gives it a better chance of outlasting Chansey and Porygon2.
