Featured LC RMT

Team by iss and Elevator Music, with commentary by Heysup.
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Welcome to Team STINKY MUSIC! This is my most successful Little Cup team to date and probably my most edited too (x_x). Anyways, this really is a gimmicky team, carrying five Life Orbs and one Choice Scarf. Most notably, it doesn't have a single Oran Berry. This is all-out offense, attempting to kill everything with a wide variety of sweepers. I can say personally that I have never used anything like this team, nor seen anything like it. While almost all of the sets are standard, I haven't ever used a team without a single Oran Berry. I used this team with a new alt and got to second (asdf still no LC #1 ranking for me ;_;). Anyways, here's Team STINKY MUSIC!

(By the way, this is a joint team with Elevator Music; he just was busy with school, so I used this team. The name is due to him and the team being based around Stunky.)

TEAM STINKY MUSIC

Omanyte Stunky Gligar Chinchou Porygon Staryu


Omanyte @ Life Orb
Swift Swim
Modest
236 HP / 36 SpA / 236 Spe
- Hydro Pump
- AncientPower
- Ice Beam / Spikes
- Stealth Rock

Omanyte is best described as an "accident". We originally had Omanyte to counter SubDour, which really threatened Stunky. However, EM felt we had a weakness to Scarf Machop, so we moved Omanyte to the lead slot and put a Ghost in the last slot. The Ghost has since been taken out and we are somewhat ScarfChop weak, but that's irrevelant. Well, we ran calcs and realized that Omanyte could OHKO Machop with LO Hydro Pump. Since there had been a absolute boom in Machop leads during that period, we decided to run Omanyte. I certainly haven't regretted it, as Omanyte is one of the best leads I've run. Here's how it fares against the top ten leads (from July x_x):

Hydro Pump is sheer power. Due to Omanyte usually killing leads, I ran Stealth Rock in case I had a chance to set it up (which I usually did). Ice Beam and AncientPower are coverage moves for hitting Dragons and Snover. I've considered running Spikes over Ice Beam, as Spikes would really help this team out and it really doesn't fear DDTini due to Scarf Gligar. From what I've seen though, there really isn't any time to set up Spikes and Ice Beam is generally the superior option.


Stunky @ Life Orb
Aftermath
Jolly
12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
- Crunch
- Sucker Punch
- Explosion
- Hidden Power Ground

Stunky was what EM wanted to base the team around. At the beginning I was skeptical, but Stunky is the team's MVP by far. Having a powerful Crunch and Sucker Punch is incredibly helpful, being able to take down threats like Staryu and Taillow. It also is the team's general revenge killer. I guess Hidden Power Ground is random, but I laugh so hard every time someone tries to switch in Aron on Stunky. I can't say anything about Explo- KABOOOOOOOM. Taking out Houndour, Carvanha, and opposing Stunky is amazing and a great momentum-swinger for this team, who greatly appreciates the free switch. Seriously, people need to use Stunky more. Even killing silly Scarf Gligar users with Crunch + Sucker Punch is fun. All in all, Stunky is really good post-Misdreavus, contrary to popular belief. I think it's because it doesn't have to run Oran and Pursuit anymore.


Gligar @ Choice Scarf
Sand Veil
Adamant
236 Atk / 236 Spe
- Earthquake
- Aqua Tail
- Stone Edge
- U-turn

Scarf Gligar is the glue of this team. Without it I'd be screwed over by a lot of things, Elekid, Diglett, and Taillow included. U-turn's free switch is also invaluable for this team, as there aren't that many immunites to switch in on. Being able to scout is also great. For some reason, people like bringing Gastly in on Gligar only to get U-turned. Stunky can then get the kill on Gastly or a free Crunch on the switch-in. Aqua Tail and Stone Edge handle stuff like opposing Gligar and Taillow, but I generally dislike locking myself into those moves earlygame due to a free set-up being possible. Normally, I identify myself as Scarf early. This usually causes my opponent to switch when I switch Gligar into their Elekid (for example) even though I usually will U-turn. Occasionally, I will go for the kill, but only after seeing that there are no more set-up Pokemon on the opponent's team that are immune to the attack of choice. Gligar is usually the Pokemon I save till the end because Scarf Gligar beats almost everything one on one.


Chinchou @ Life Orb
Volt Absorb
Modest
58 Def / 228 SpA / 220 Spe
- Agility
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam

This used to be Rain Dance Mantyke, but then I was disappointed at having a weak Hidden Power Grass to hit other Water-types. The loss of a Ground-immune Pokemon has kinda hurt this team, but the extra power is amazing. Life Orb Agility Chinchou is incredibly strong. Having a STAB Thunderbolt is very helpful to this team. While it certainly has a somewhat hard time setting up, it can still work its magic against non-HP Grass Staryu, non-HP Grass Chinchou, and even Elekid. I'm using Ice Beam over Hidden Power Fire/Grass because opposing Chinchou really can't do much to me and Snover is kinda rare, since it usually comes in on Gligar, which promptly takes a huge chunk out of it with U-turn before Stunky kills it.


Porygon @ Life Orb
Trace
Timid
76 HP / 236 SpA / 196 Spe
- Agility
- Tri Attack
- Ice Beam
- Shadow Ball / Thunderbolt

Porygon is just too freaking strong. Even with a Timid nature, it reaches 19 Special Attack and even higher with a Life Orb. While I have missed the bulk from Oran Berry at some times, the sheer power is enough to make me use it. It sets up on threats to this team like Scarf Gastly locked into Shadow Ball, Scarf Chinchou locked into Thunderbolt, and even Water Absorb Mantyke. People often think that the loss of Download makes Porygon a lot worse. However, Trace is still an amazing ability and actually gives Porygon a lot more situations to set up in. It also is my Agility Chinchou check if I know the Chinchou has HP Grass (which doesn't OHKO my Chinchou), as Porygon survives Hydro Pump and delivers a huge blow with Tri Attack. Shadow Ball and Ice Beam are coverage moves, the former hitting ghosts hard and the latter smashing Gligar. I'm considering Thunderbolt over Shadow Ball since Ice Beam OHKOs Gastly anyways and Aron has an easy set-up on Porygon. Other than that, I've loved the switch to Porygon. It's also the best bot (see #littlecup if you don't know!)


Staryu @ Life Orb
Trace
Timid
240 SpA / 240 Spe
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power Fire

When I was using this team, I found that the original lack of a 19 speeder was disturbing. I tried a Overheat/Flare Blitz/Return/Quick Attack Ponyta, as Snover was becoming a problem for this team. However, the weakness to Stealth Rock and the fact that Flare Blitz + Quick Attack was illegal caused me to change to HP Fire Staryu. Staryu gets great coverage with its four moves, basically only losing to Chinchou. Nothing except Munchlax and Chinchou can safely switch into Staryu. Some teams just aren't prepared for Staryu. They switch Wynaut into an Ice Beam only to be promptly KOed by Hydro Pump without activating Oran. Being able to kill SubGastly, tie with Taillow, Gligar, and opposing Staryu, and generally hit like a truck is invaluable for this team. I'm considering using HP Grass over HP Fire due to Snover not really facing Staryu most of the time and Chinchou being annoying.

With the recent banning of Misdreavus, many people assumed Stunky would fall off of the radar. Elevator Music and iss both decided that this would be a great chance to use Stunky for its other niches and to catch people off guard. This team is very unique—not only because of Stunky, but because it is a team of 6 sweepers that attempt to break down the opposing team's core and sweep. It doesn't even have a single Pokemon with an Oran Berry!

Life Orb Omanyte starts off the team with a splash. Omanyte is beaten by many leads, but the leads that it does beat are quite common. Additionally, with Omanyte, switching in is almost impossible without perfect prediction. Omanyte generally sets up Stealth Rock and weakens the foe's special wall before it bites the dust. While Omanyte doesn't always prevent Stealth Rock, it does get it up reliably. This is actually fine for this type of offensive team, because it won't be doing much switching, while the opponent will be switching constantly to answer Team STINKY's many threats.

Next up is this team's star, Stunky. Stunky brings a Gastly counter to the team as well as some invaluable priority. With Life Orb and a decent Attack stat, Stunky makes for one of the best late game cleaners and revenge killers. Hidden Power Ground allows Stunky to hit opposing Dark-type resists without having to use Explosion, which should be saved for Pokemon like Gligar. After Explosion opens up a hole for Team STINKY, its onslaught of special sweepers can come in and hopefully plow through the rest of the opponents team.

Choice Scarf Gligar plays the role of a lure for Stunky with U-turn as well as a revenge killer. It also gives Team STINKY a Ground-type immunity, which is very crucial for Little Cup. Gligar is also one of the best partners for Stunky because it beats Diglett and Elekid, two Pokemon that would otherwise run rampant against this slow team. He can also use his Gligar to check opposing Swords Dance Gligar, which also give this team trouble. Gligar also has an important task in checking Croagunk, who is a major nuisance to this team.

Chinchou is Elevator Music's and iss's first late-game sweeper. It can come in on many special attackers and set up Agility. If Omanyte did its job right, the opponent's special wall (likely Munchlax) should be in Hydro Pump's KO range. Thunderbolt, Hydro Pump, and Ice Beam make for an almost unresisted combination in Little Cup; in fact the only Pokemon that resists all three is Chinchou itself. After an Agility, Chinchou outpaces the whole metagame, including Choice Scarf Diglett. This makes Chinchou a very big threat to the opponent right off the bat.

Second is the best, and Porygon steps up to the plate as the second special sweeper on Team STINKY. Porygon has been a dangerous threat ever since the Pomeg glitch allowed the use of Tri Attack along with two coverage moves backed by a high SpA stat. With its excellent bulk, it finds the time to use Agility quite often. If the opponent's Munchlax has taken prior damage, Porygon can muscle through the big blob with Tri Attack. This helps out Team STINKY immensely, considering Munchlax beats four of this team's six members as long as it has full health.

Staryu is quite an underrated threat. With the opponent's team weakened, Staryu can clean up the foe's team with its 19 Speed and great coverage. With four attacking moves, the only Pokemon that can switch into Staryu at all are Chinchou and Munchlax. As Elevator Music and iss point out, not even Wynaut can safely switch into Life Orb Staryu. Having a 19 Speed Pokemon is quite important for offensive teams, because otherwise you run the risk of being swept by various Pokemon, such as Carvanha, SubGastly, and other 19 Speed Pokemon.

This team obviously has its strengths, but unfortunately it has trouble dealing with a number of threats. First and foremost, a conservatively played Croagunk dismantles this team. It picks off each of the sweepers one by one, and Gligar can't do much besides risking getting hit by Ice Punch. Chinchou also hurts this team pretty badly, since the only switch in that Team STINKY has is its own Chinchou, which risks being KOed by Hidden Power Grass. Due to the special nature of this team, Munchlax has a field day against it. It will almost assuredly net at least one kill, if not more. It has high Attack, HP, and Special Defense stats, meaning that it not only survives special attacks, but it OHKOes the sweepers back most of the time. However, Munchlax can be worn down and bypassed, meaning this team has very few weaknesses. It is one of the most unique and clever teams in the late Little Cup metagame.

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