Super OU team!

[TransparentOpacity]

Ok I'm tired of always being the "I use a lot of UU's because it gives me an excuse when I lose and people will like me better" kind of guy, so I decided to just try to make the best team possible of pokemon that I like and not care about tiers. After all, this is a team ment for OU so I think I should use OU's so that I can compete.

My team at a glance:

Lead

Swampert@Leftovers
Torrent
Relaxed
240 Hp / 216 Def / 52 SpA
-Stealth Rock
-Earthquake
-Surf
-Ice Beam

Alright Swampert is my lead because I like to set up SR early so I can get the most out of it. The threat of a Swampert often causes switches so I can set up pretty easily most of the time. I wanted to max out his Hp stat but I'm not sure if he would survive explosions as easily. Lefties is his only form of recovery, but because of Smeagles and Crobats with Spore and Hypnosis, I kind of want a lum berry. Help me decide on that one? I don't really face the threat of belly drum Smeargles because I can bring in Skarm and just whirlwind away. Swamperts' typing goes really well with the rest of my team, so that's why I have him. He also is my only mixed attacker. I kind of want Hydro Pump over Surf so that I can kill Skarmory in 2 hits instead of 3, but I don't know if losing the accuracy is worth it.

Physical Sweeper

Gyarados@Life Orb
Intimidate
Adamant
252 Atk / 232 Spe / 24 Hp
-Dragon Dance
-Waterfall
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake

Gyarados can easily switch in to many things because of his typing. Then he Dragon Dances on the switch and them sweeps. I like to use him late game because when things are weak and Spikes and Rocks are set up, he can sweep so much easier. Gyara covers up a lot that my other physical sweeper Scizor can't get. Life orb in stead of lefties because it's a lot easier to stay alive if you're opponents' pokemon is already dead. His speed stat is 256, which gives him 384 after a dragon dance.

Special Sweeper

Alakazam@Life Orb
Synchronize
Timid
252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 Hp
-Substitute
-Psychic
-Focus Blast
-Signal Beam

Zam is awesome. Super high speed and super high special attack. I come in after one off my pokes is killed, set up sub on the switch, and then use the move of my choice knowing that I'm safe. Alakazam is really important to this team because it's the only special attacker besides swampert. Not much else to say here.

Special Wall

Snorlax@Leftovers
Thick Fat
Careful
252 Hp / 24 Def / 232 SpD
-Rest
-Sleep Talk
-Body Slam
-Crunch

Snorlax is the best special wall I have ever used. He can take in status for the team. He resists the common fire and ice. He has Body Slam which paralyzes 30% (i think) and makes up for him being slow. He can crunch Gengars and Alakazams, and pretty much get any special sweeper that body slam can't get. 24 Defense evs make sure he can survive explosions better with full health and allow him to not be completely useless on the physical side. I have actually swept teams with this guy. He's just a huge pain to take down.

Physical Wall

Skarmory@Leftovers
Keen Eye
Impish
252 Hp / 240 Def / 16 Atk
-Brave Bird
-Spikes
-Whirlwind
-Roost

Normal Skarmory. 16 Atk evs to ensure OHKO on Infernape with Brave Bird. Spikes because I already have a mudfish with Stealth Rock. Whirlwind to get rid of pokemon with upped stats and scout out teams and damage with SR and Spikes. Skarm does a pretty good job walling most physical threats. My team does have a Magnezone weakness but I still think lefties benefit me more than a shed shell ever would.

Choice Band Sweeper

Scizor@Choice Band
Technician
Adamant
252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Def
-Bullet Punch
-U-turn
-Superpower
-Pursuit

How can you resist using a Scizor when he has a STAB'd Bullet punch that gets boosted by Technician and Choice Band and always goes first? He has a monstous attack stat, only 1 weakness, and can switch in easily because of great defenses and typing. U-turn is great when you're expecting a switch, and so is Pursuit. Bullet Punch and Pursuit are great together if you have good predictability. Superpower OHKO's magnezone on the switch in. It's also good against and bulky pokemon that resist Bullet Punch. Heatran is a common switch in, and Superpower takes care of him too. If I'm already locked in on a move, I can switch to Gyara and get a free DD while Heatran switches out.

So that's my team. I have a bit of a Magnezone weakness, and I'd like to fit in a Dugtrio somewhere, but there's not much room. I don't have as many special attacks as I'd like either. A ghost pokemon would be nice to block the spin, since I have SR and Spikes, but the only thing I could see doing is replacing my Zammy with Gengar, which I don't want to do. A rapid spinner is always nice to have on your team, but unfortunately I don't have one so I just have to deal without. Please RMT and help me with the questions I asked! Thanks in advance.

 

[Iconic]

Hey! Your team has a good solid base, but I have a few ideas that might help you improve its overall quality. I'll just start off by addressing some of your concerns. You mentioned many times your weakness to Magnezone, and there are lots of ways to solve this. The best of which would be to give Skarmory Shed Shell, as it is really the preferred option over Leftovers, due to Magnezone's frequency in the current metagame. To answer your question about Swampert, I would stick with Leftovers. You already have Snorlax to take Sleep Powder and Spore, so there should be no reason to use Lum Berry. In terms of my own suggestions, I feel a way to help improve your team would be to replace Alakazam with Rotom-H:

Rotom-H @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
252 HP / 168 Def / 88 Spd
Bold nature (+ Def, - Atk)
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Will-o-wisp

This set has lots of functions that I feel will help your team a lot. Firstly, it pairs very nicely with your Skarmory, blocking all Rapid Spin attempts. It also serves as an excellent counter to opposing Skarmory, who your team cannot touch in the slightest. Something else to note, which will really help the synergy of your team, is that Rotom-H is very useful for eliminating common Gyarados counters, effectively allowing it to sweep with greater ease. Skarmory, Celebi, Forretress, Dusknoir and Cresselia all fear Rotom-H, so slapping our little toaster friend on your team could really help Gyarados!

Good luck with your team!

 

[CreepacisT]

Don't I recognize you from somewhere? lol...Anyways, I still say making swampert your tank and replacing skarmory for foretress would work well for your team. Go ahead and keep the special moves on your swampert if you want, I didn't know the benefits of them. Alakazam is a big baiter, so putting HP fire on instead of psychic for scizor is a good idea, since you don't need psychic, really. it has poor type coverage.

 

[TransparentOpacity]

Thanks so much! You're a huge help. It's just that I'm still kind of new to platinum and I've never used a Rotom before, and alakazam has been one of my favorite pokes for a long time. I guess I could try it out for a while and see how it goes. This is my shoddy team, so I could start using it right away. Thanks!

Oh and about Snorlax switching in to absorb sleep, I'm normally not that good at predicting when sleep comes, so that's the only reason i would ever have a lum berry i guess.

Edit: ROFL your that guy who told me to make my Swampert all physical on serebii. Haha and this is you're first post also?? Almost like you're stalking me. Creepy...

Anyways, putting Hp fire on Zam makes his speed iv and special attack iv both 1 lower, which is actually a big difference when on shoddy everyone has perfect ivs. Psychic is needed because of STAB.

 

[Ffancrzy]

I actually think you should switch Zam for Nasty plot Azelf, if you don't decide to try the Toaster, people often times forget Azelf can do more than just lead

Azelf @Life Orb
Timid
EVs 4HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
-Nasty Plot
-Fire Blast
-Grass Knot
-Psychic
EDIT: As far as sleep prediction, any lead such as Smeargle or Roserade, will often sleep first, also Breloom almost ALWAYS spores first.

 

[TransparentOpacity]

Hmm I'm actually begining to like the toaster idea. He really does help the synergy a lot.

Mister Militia I'm sorry but I sort of hate Azelf. I don't know why. It just never really apealed to me. But your sleep advice was helpful!

 

[e697]

Totally agree with switching Azelf for Zam, he is just much better due to Nasty plot and much better type coverage. The only thing is have flamethrower over fireblast because flamethrower is only used on pokes that are weak to it and usually is good enough without the extra power from fire blast. Once you have nasty plot, there is not question that flamethrow is better. One miss from Life Orb Azelf and it is over. Also, I prefer energy ball over grass knot because once again, reliability over extra power.

 

[Ffancrzy]

Transparent, its fine if you don;t want to use Azelf over Rotom, because its a better fit, but Azelf is a much better Sweeper than Zam is any day of the week, don't use a set on a pokemon that you like when another one can do it better... there is a reason Zam fell out of OU

 

[TransparentOpacity]

Is it just me, or is Alakazam's base special attack 10 points higher and base speed stat 5 points higher? Alakazam is a sweeper, and IMO, he sweeps a lot better.

And I tried Rotom-h on shoddy, and lost my first 6 games with it. With Alakazam I won about 80% of the time. Mabye I'm just not good with Rotom. :(. I'm sorry that I seem to be blocking all your advice when I'm asking you to rate my team.

 

[Bad Ass]

Okay, what I want to talk to you about is Alakazam. Alakazam is actually not horrible, if it has Substitute and the ability to beat Scizor. Unfortunately, it doesn't. If you replace Alakazam, you need a strong special attacker along with a spin block. That leaves two options; Rotom and Gengar. You already said you didn't like Rotom, and you couldn't work with it, and that's fine. Some people just can't effectively use some pokemon. So the next logical option is to replace Alakazam for a Gengar, preferably a Mystic Gengar since you may need it to take a few weak attacks in performing it's spin blocking duties, and Substitute really doesn't help survivability at all. Mystic Gengar is a Gengar with Hidden Power Fire / Protect / Shadow Ball / Focus Blast, and its sole purpose in life is to lure out its top counter and outright beat it. Basically, bring it in and fire off a Shadow Ball, then if they bring a Scizor, you Protect. If they BP, you go to Skarmory for free spikes. If they Pursuit, OHKO them. He's not quite as powerful as Alakazam, but he looks like a better fit. You should also use Leftovers over Life Orb, because you pretty much OHKO everything you need to with Leftovers, and you are a better spin blocker with Leftovers since you don't die as easily. I know you said you didn't want to, but try it.

That's all I have to say, sorry if the rate was a little basic! Good luck with the team, and please try out Gengar.

 

[peng]

Alakazam has paper defenses of 55/45/85, meaning that it is pretty much OHKOd by all priority moves.

Azelf on the other hand has much sturdier defenses of 75/70/70, which although still isn't very impressive, it will save your butt when you need it. Azelf also has access to nasty plot, which gives it an immediate advantage over Alakazam, as well as access to Explosion so that isn't completely walled by Blissey. Levitate is also brilliant team support.

Azelf > Alakazam.

However, this does not make Azelf a brilliant Special Sweeper. I would recommend a scarf Heatran, which gives you 2 brilliant switch-ins to opposing Heatran, the other being Gyarados.

I would also agree that Rotom could fill that spot, but I'm not sure which one would be best. Rotom-h gets Overheat, which isn't really needed as you already have 2 brilliant counters to Scizor in Gyarados and Skarmory. Also, you're team isn't very weak to Tyranitar, nor is it completely walled by Swampert, so there is no reason to use Rotom-C.

 

[yond]

Hi.

In general this team isn't bad. The only problem is alakzam. Just because he has good speed and special attack does not make him a good sweeper. in todays metagame bulk is needed on sweepers so they can survive priority and attacks from pokes faster than them. his subs dont last long either. I suggest you use Offensive CM latias, it will improve your team greatly.
Latias @ Life orb
Timid / Levitate
252 spA / 252 spe / 4 hp
-Calm Mnd
-Dragon Pulse
-Surf / Grass Knot
-Thunder bolt / hp fire

Calm mind + three attacks is a great sweeping set for latias. Latias has great bulk without having to invest EVs.
80 base hp
90 base def
130 base special defense
I mean to say, it can take a hit or two.

Latias also outspeeds most unscarfed pokes in this metagame.
synergy is not ruined when adding latias to this team since it also carries pyschic type. It enhances your team on the other hand, because it provides you with better type coverages, a good fire resist, ground resist, dragon stab, and a sweeper who can take a hit without a sub.

Hope this helps

 

[Snorlaxe]

Hello there

This is a nice team, but there are a few things I want to point out. First off, I think that you should consider using a SubCharge Rotom-A in place of Alakazam. Substitute and Charge Beam are deadly, and can sweep teams with a Pokemon incapable of outspeeding it. Try a set of Charge Beam, Substitute, Shadow Ball, and Hidden Power Fighting / Thunderbolt, then a Timid nature, and an EV spread of 128 Hp / 168 SpA / 212 Spe (item Leftovers). Charge Beam is very good, as it boosts Rotom-A's already nice special attack, as well as dealing some damage. This makes it an ideal move for finishing off weakened foes, as it will not only KO them, but also give Rotom-A a possible special attack boost. Substitute is nice as it blocks status as well as prevents critical hits; with Rotom-A's great ability to cause switches because of its many weaknesses and immunities, you should have a real easy time getting up a Sub. 128 Hp EVs allow Rotom to set up five substitutes in normal weather. 212 Speed EVs and a Timid nature allow Rotom-A to outspeed Adamant 252 Spe Lucario.

Next off, I really think you should consider using CurseLax instead of your current set. You can still use Rest, but CurseLax is really a wonderful Pokemon on a team with this many entry hazards. Use a set of Curse, Body Slam, Rest, and Earthquake, then a Careful nature, and a spread of 168 Hp / 120 Def / 220 SpD (item Chesto Berry, ability Thick Fat). Curse Snorlax is very hard to stop once it sets up, and after two Curses it is neigh unstoppable. The only problem is that it is walled by Levitating ghosts such as Gengar, Rotom-A, and Mismagius. This isn't much of a problem though, because Scizor is easily capbable of trapping and KOing all of the above Pokemon with Pursuit. Body Slam is an awesome move on Snorlax, as well as a great move for your team in general; this isn't exactly an extremely fast team (barring Zam and Gyarados), and the 30% paralysis rate could really help out. Chesto Berry is nice because it allows you to immeadiately wake up from sleep, but Leftovers could be used in its place if you happen to prefer small, consistant recovery.

Just a small nitpick here; use Roar over Surf on Swampert, as you already have a great STAB Water move on Gyarados, and Surf doesnt really hit much that Earthquake and Ice Beam already don't; plus, Roar on Swampert is a great move. It gives you a second phazer for your team, which is great for phazing out a threat with a lot of stat boosts, as well as racking up general entry hazard damage. Other than that, great team. Hope I helped, and good luck! ;)

 

[TransparentOpacity]

Lol every single person wants me to switch out my Alakazam. It doesn't matter if Azelf > Alakazam in general, because I still think Zam > Azelf on my team. Try to name one thing that Azelf can do better than Zam that the rest of my team can't cover up for. Blissey is no problem, because of Scizor, Gyara, Snorlax, and Skarmory. Other Scizors aren't a problem because of Skarmory, Gyara, and Swampert. If it's really a problem I could put HP fire on Zam or switch Zam for Gengar, but switching Alakazam for Azelf seems useless.

@Snorlaxe
I used to have roar on Swampert, but I took it off because my Skarm had Whirlwhind. Mabye it is a good idea to put it back on Swampert just so I can have 2 phazers on my team and I can inflict more damage by entry hazards and scout out teams better.

I just want Lax to have a special wall role, but I could try a Curselax set. I already have body slam on my lax and I know how great it can be :).

Also I have never even heard of a Rotom-A.

 

[Andy Snype]

So that's my team. I have a bit of a Magnezone weakness, and I'd like to fit in a Dugtrio somewhere, but there's not much room. I don't have as many special attacks as I'd like either. A ghost pokemon would be nice to block the spin, since I have SR and Spikes, but the only thing I could see doing is replacing my Zammy with Gengar, which I don't want to do. A rapid spinner is always nice to have on your team, but unfortunately I don't have one so I just have to deal without. Please RMT and help me with the questions I asked! Thanks in advance.

You do have a zone weakness, but I notice a bigger weakness: mixed attackers, namely mixape. LO Grass Knot with the specially based set will OHKO Pert and deal 146-172 damage to your Gyarados (43.07% - 50.73%). After SR damage, Gyara only has 3-4 turns. Without Leftovers, Sandstorm/Hail will wear it down fast. Fire Blast OHKO's skarm and Scizor, and Close Combat will do a lot to lax. An unblazed LO'd Fire Blast will OHKO Alakazam (unless if it does the bare minimum, in which case, you will survive by 2 hp without SR).

Now, if you want to keep a ghost, I'd recommend using Scarfed Rotom-H rather than Alakazam with a simple 4 /252 Sp. Atk/ 252 Spe spread with Tbolt, Shadow Ball, Overheat, and Trick.

Rotom-H @ Choice Scarf
Timid
EVs 4HP, 252 SpA, 252 Spe
-Thunderbolt
-Shadow Ball
-Overheat
-Trick

Not only does it help finish off a weakened Ape, but it also counters other threats such as +1 Gyarados, non-scarfed Gengar, and Azelf. The choice between Timid and Modest is yours as Timid will guarantee an outspeed against all +1 gyarados (as HO is becoming more popular, the people i've faced against use Jolly to outspeed others).

However, if you do not like the concept of the scarfed rotom and wish to keep a sweeper, I recommend using Recover, LO Lati.

Latias @ Life Orb
Timid
4 HP/ 252 Sp. Atk/ 252 Speed
--Draco Meteor
--Surf
--Thunderbolt/HP fire
--Recover

Simply Draco anything that does not resist, surf Heatran and other fire types away. The choice between Tbolt and HP fire depends on whether you want to hit a scizor that would come in or to stop a gyarados from DD'ing up. You can drop recover, but it looks like your team has a defensive core that Ape can beat. Between longevity of Latias or the power it deals is your choice.

That's really all I have to comment. Otherwise, nice team.

 

[Snorlaxe]

Also I have never even heard of a Rotom-A.

Rotom-A is a way of saying Rotom (Another Forme). It basically means all five alternative Rotom formes. If you play on Wi-Fi, then you will have not seen them, but if this is a Shoddy team then it reffers to Rotom-H, Rotom-C, Rotom-W, and the others. I only said Rotom-A because it doesn't matter what Rotom forme you use, the choice is yours :). I highly recommend at least testing SubCharge Rotom however.

Also, Curse Snorlax is still quite a fearsome special tank, due to the 220 SpD EVs, a Careful nature, and Snorlax's naturally very high special defense stat.

 

[iliketurkeybacon]

Lol every single person wants me to switch out my Alakazam. It doesn't matter if Azelf > Alakazam in general, because I still think Zam > Azelf on my team. Try to name one thing that Azelf can do better than Zam that the rest of my team can't cover up for. Blissey is no problem, because of Scizor, Gyara, Snorlax, and Skarmory. Other Scizors aren't a problem because of Skarmory, Gyara, and Swampert. If it's really a problem I could put HP fire on Zam or switch Zam for Gengar, but switching Alakazam for Azelf seems useless.

Azelf can survive a Bullet Punch, has an excellent ability that actually allows it to switch in, and has Fire Blast/Flamethrower to hurt Scizor while also having good accuracy and base power against Steel-types. This also allows it to use Grass Knot for Tyranitar and not lose coverage on Steels. The 20 base power drop from Focus Blast is more than offset by its accuracy and Azelf's access to Nasty Plot. Even if you don't choose to use Explosion in your movest, Blissey will often be wary of switching into such a diverse opponent, but won't hesistate to come in on Alakazam, which can't even 2HKO with Life Orb Focus Blast. Like everyone has said, there are reasons why Alakazam went down to UU.

@Snorlaxe
I used to have roar on Swampert, but I took it off because my Skarm had Whirlwhind. Mabye it is a good idea to put it back on Swampert just so I can have 2 phazers on my team and I can inflict more damage by entry hazards and scout out teams better.

Roar on Swampert is normally a good idea, but since you have Skarmory, I guess it's redundant. The problem with both of those is that Taunt Gyarados should have no problem sweeping your whole team. You have nothing to revenge kill it except Alakazam, who can't do so if Gyarados is at good health or has gotten two Dragon Dances in. The only situation where I see Roar being helpful, besides against the uncommon Ninjask lead, is if Skarmory has fainted and you're facing a Gyarados without Taunt. It may still be worth using, as either Ice Beam or Earthquake will outdamage Surf against almost all OU opponents- Hippowdon and Forretress are the only Pokemon I can think of that take significantly more damage from Surf than another attack.

 

[Professor Dick Weed]

A combination of a magnezone (mainly scarfed, some spec'd) and the most popular sword dancers (mainly lucario, not so much scizzor) WILL rip you a new one. As much as I love zam, he's a major flaw in your team. If frail special attackers are your forte, then I'd recommend a substituting gengar.

Gengar @ lefties
Timid
4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Substitute
Shadow Ball
Focus Blast
Hidden Power Fire

Gengar has great immunities, great speed and special attack, and perfect type coverage. Like with Alakazam, Gengar can throw up a sub to scout and to give you two shots at hitting with focus blast. He can easily revenge (or even switch into) an sd lucario, and he can revenge any non-scarf magnezone.... that's the only problem. He doesn't outspeed timid scarfed magnezone. So long as swampert is alive you can take care of him, but for a true "cure" to these weaknesses I'd recommend a scarfed magnezone of your own.

Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Timid
4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Thunderbolt
Hidden Power Fire
Flash Cannon
Toxic/Asploshun

Hidden Power Fire will manhandle lucario and other scarfed magnezones (just make sure that mag ain't using it). I'd recommend toxic, because without it your team will have some trouble against Swampert, but Asploshun will put a dent in most special tanks/walls.

Hope this helps ಠ_ಠ

 

[iliketurkeybacon]

Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Timid
4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Thunderbolt
Hidden Power Fire
Flash Cannon
Toxic/Asploshun

Hidden Power Fire will manhandle lucario and other scarfed magnezones (just make sure that mag ain't using it). I'd recommend toxic, because without it your team will have some trouble against Swampert, but Asploshun will put a dent in most special tanks/walls.

STAB Thunderbolt does more damage to than a 2x effective HP Fire. So as long as the OP isn't concerned with non-choiced Scizors surviving a Thunderbolt if they had high health beforehand, HP Grass could be used to deal with Swampert. Of course, HP Grass means that Magnezone wouldn't be able to beat other Magnezone, or Heatran, so HP Ground could work to cover both those Pokemon and at least dent Swampert if you're locked into it. I don't think using Toxic on a Pokemon that can easily OHKO you is a good idea, and locking your Pokemon into Toxic is even worse if the opponent doesn't kill you right away, as things like Agiligross will appreciate the free turn you give them.

 

[l0ck4r]

About that Snorlax you should run 160 HP EVs
Because then it gets 501 HP, so Blissey have to make 6 Stosses to Break Lax
And put what's left to Def or SpD
And Replacing Sleep Talk or Crunch, with Curse to get more Defense and Attack Power

Hope this helped

 

[Senzairu]

Hey TO, nice team. I'm going to suggest changing your lead to Gliscor with Taunt. The reason being is that it gives you a way to help check SD Lucario (especially those that run Stone Edge as their 3rd attacking move.) and maybe just as important, it will help you fight against stall teams; which this team could have trouble with.

Gliscor @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Veil
Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
252 HP / 40 Def / 216 Spe
- Earthquake
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Roost

I hope that helps! Good luck with the team!

 

[TransparentOpacity]

Thanks Senzairu. I'm gonna try that. Someone on serebii mentioned that exact same set to me.

 

[Snorunt]

hey, i made this team and tested it out, and came up with two conclusions. like everyone else ive decided alakazam is too easily beaten with physical attaks like crunch and pursuit and traded it for a rotom. next, i switched stone edge on gyarados for return to take out those pesky thunderbolt starmies. but all in all, great team!