Featured UU RMT: The Vacuum of Stall by Eo Ut Mortus
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At A Glance
Roserade (M) @ Leftovers Ability: Natural Cure EVs: 252 HP/120 Def/136 SDef Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk) - Spikes - Energy Ball - Synthesis - Extrasensory
When it came to choosing a Spiker, two options came to mind before anything else: Roserade and Omastar. Other Spikers were simply too fragile for my tastes or bore an annoying weakness to Stealth Rock. Ultimately, Roserade won me over for a variety of reasons. It has access to (somewhat) reliable recover, it can deal with specific threats, such as Charge Beam Rotom and opposing Roserade, and it easily beats Omastar leads one on one.
Spikes are the fuel of a stall team. They are extremely helpful in retaining the momentum of a battle, and if one chooses to forego them, it is much harder in wearing down the opponent's team. While Sludge Bomb has much better neutral coverage in UU, Energy Ball is necessary to avoid being trapped and killed by Dugtrio, and it also helps to deter Omastar and Donphan. Synthesis is Roserade's form of recovery, which I much prefer to Rest so it can set up more easily on Pokemon like Chansey. Extrasensory fills the last slot. It is an odd choice, but it is mostly for Nasty Plot Toxicroak, who is an extremely irritating Pokemon for my team to face. Extrasensory also hits most of the Poison-types that Energy Ball fails to cover, such as Venusaur, Roserade, and Muk. I admittedly have had not seen any Nasty Plot Toxicroak as of late, though.
The EVs, courtesy of august, allow me to survive anything Dugtrio throws at me at full health. As with Toxicroak, I have not been seeing many Dugtrio as of late, though.
I'm considering... running more Speed on Roserade and throwing Toxic on it somewhere. The main purpose is to get rid of Taunt Mismagius, who is one of the largest threats to this team.
Registeel @ Shed Shell Ability: Clear Body EVs: 252 HP/100 Atk/156 SDef Careful nature (+SDef, -SAtk) - Stealth Rock - Iron Head - Ice Punch - Shadow Claw
I heavily dislike using this Pokemon. Its lack of offense and reliable recovery is really frustrating. However, my desire for Stealth Rock, an additional check to Roserade, and a resistance to Flying-typed attacks ensure that Registeel is probably here to stay.
Stealth Rock is quite self-explanatory; the more entry hazards, the better. Registeel isn't as reliable at setting them up as, say, Chansey, but it is basically the only Pokemon that has enough available moveslots to accommodate it. Iron Head is for STAB. Ice Punch is mainly for assorted Flying- and Grass- types. Shadow Claw rounds off the set; it seems like an extremely odd choice, but it is Registeel's only "answer" to Substitute / Charge Beam Rotom. It also hits Mismagius, Claydol, Uxie, and Mespirit slightly harder than Iron Head. Shadow Claw isn't too applicable, though, as whenever I switch in Registeel, I never seem to be in good enough condition to take on SubCharge Rotom.
The EVs are your standard fare. Shed Shell is so Registeel can escape the clutches of Dugtrio and Magneton, the latter of which I am starting to see more often than the former.
I'm considering... Changing Iron Head. Its main purpose is to hit Ambipom...I think. In all honesty, I cannot remember what it is good for, and I should probably replace it. Earthquake to hit Drapion and Blaziken or Hammer Arm to still hit Ambipom, Kabutops, and Kangaskhan are worth considering.
Tangrowth (M) @ Leftovers Ability: Chlorophyll EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/6 SpA Relaxed nature (+Def, -Spd) - Leaf Storm - Earthquake - Hidden Power [Ice] - Synthesis
I love this Pokemon. One, because it's not bog standard. Two, because it walls about the whole physical side of UU. Name me another Pokemon that can wall Torterra, Kabutops under rain, Absol, Drapion, and Altaria. Mojonbo is an extremely cool UU Pokemon, and if you are in need of something to counter the mass of physically-based Grass-types that have suddenly been regurgitated all over UU, I urge you to try it.
Leaf Storm is the STAB move of choice here. The principle behind it is similar to that behind Draco Meteor on OU's Bulky Salamence; use a move with high base power to make up for the lack of attack investment. Leaf Storm OHKOes Absol with a bit of residual damage (which can be accrued from Life Orb recoil) which is something that Energy Ball cannot do. Earthquake covers Drapion and Toxicroak, along with unsuspecting Houndoom, Arcanine, and Typhlosion who switch in expecting to sponge a weak Grass attack. Hidden Power Ice hits Altaria and Grass-types such as Venusaur and Leafeon. It can also easily catch the ubiquitous Yanmega switch-in by surprise. Synthesis is Tangrowth's obligatory method of recovery.
I'm considering... Special Attack investment. At the moment, I'm worried about the bulkier of Leafeon setting up multiple Swords Dances on me and effortlessly pulling off a Baton Pass. However, maximum HP and Defense is needed to contain Kabutops as much as possible.
Chansey (F) @ Shed Shell Ability: Natural Cure EVs: 252 Def/16 Spd/242 SDef Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk) - Seismic Toss - Toxic - Softboiled - Aromatherapy
The best special wall of UU. Chansey keeps the majority of specially based threats of UU in check, something that is essential to a stall team. Without it, this team would probably crumble in the face of Choice Specs Yanmega, who is arguably the biggest threat of the present metagame.
Seismic Toss, Toxic, and Softboiled are your standard fare on Chansey. The first two moves are Chansey's best ways of dealing damage, and Softboiled is, naturally, recovery. Aromatherapy rounds out Chansey's moveset. The freedom to let my other Pokemon take status is something I really enjoy. I can let Milotic be Toxic'd by Lead Arcanine. I can have Registeel set up Stealth Rock without being permanently bothered by Uxie's Thunder Wave. I can refrain from berating my opponent when his Azumarill freezes my Tangrowth with Ice Punch. For all these problems (and more) will be solved by Aromatherapy.
Milotic (F) @ Leftovers Ability: Marvel Scale EVs: 252 HP/242 Def/16 Spd Bold nature (+Def, -Atk) - Surf - Recover - Hidden Power [Grass] - Haze
Milotic picks up the remaining pieces; some would call it "the glue" of the team. Its main purpose is to cover Fire-types, Honchkrow, and bulky stat boosters such as Curse Registeel. Milotic is also a sort of "back-up check" for a variety of Pokemon. It can take on physical Water-types if Tangrowth is not healthy enough to do so, certain special threats like Yanmega if Chansey is in bad conditon, and even Swellow in dire cases, such as if Registeel is asleep.
Surf and Recover need no explanation, but the last two moves might. Hidden Power Grass is for Water-types since I don't care too much about hitting Grass-types. Haze is necessary in order to allow my team to deal with stat boosters like CM Spiritomb and Curse Registeel, whether through outstalling them or using Donphan to take them down.
Donphan (M) @ Leftovers Ability: Sturdy EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/6 Spd Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk) - Earthquake - Assurance - Rapid Spin - Rest
Rounding out the final spot in my team is Donphan, whose ability to Rapid Spin is a necessity lest I wish to get decimated by opposing stall teams. This is (unfortunately) probably my best answer to Taunt Mismagius and Charge Beam Rotom, which is why I am using it over Hitmontop. Rest is there so Donphan has a form a recovery, and it's not so bad without Sleep Talk since Chansey has Aromatherapy.
EVs are still undergoing testing. There is apparently a spread that is more efficient in terms of Defense; however, I want to first see if it outweighs the benefits of slightly more Special Defense.
While many people believe that Bulky Offense is the proper way to play Underused, it can not be denied that the most dominating play style, if done correctly, is stall. While The Smog has made mention of this before, we have never done an Underused Stall Featured RMT. This month we decided that it would be an excellent idea to do so, giving readers an idea of what Underused Stall is and the basis on which this type of team is constructed. At our disposal this issue we have a fine stall team, and without further adieu, here is one of UU's finest stall teams.
At a glance, this team does vary slightly from other stall teams within the tier. Two Pokémon who generally are not seen on stall, Tangrowth and Registeel, make an appearance into this team. While both may seem like strange choices on stall, they both provide excellent defenses and checks to Pokémon who generally trouble stall teams (for example, Tangrowth is an excellent Swords Dance Kabutops check). The second thing one will likely notice is the absence of a Rapid Spin-blocker. While it is very strange to forego the use of a Rapid Spin-blocker on a stall team, Eo claims that he does this because he wants to maximize his coverage against opposing threats and thus cannot fit in a Ghost-type. Without a Ghost-type, Eo's team has considerably more trouble against other stall teams, and as a result has to often pressure his opponent to keep Donphan or Hitmontop from easily coming in, but, because of Spikes, it is far more difficult to keep pressure applied.
Leading off with entry hazards is a common strategy in stall, and that is exactly what Eo does here. Roserade allows Eo to get entry hazards up against opposing stall teams that carry Omastar, and also easily lay Spikes against a large amount of bulky Water-types, such as Milotic, Lanturn, Omastar, and several Grass-types as well. Thanks to the Defense investment, Eo can also use Spikes against Registeel, Defensive Drapion, Altaria, and other Pokémon who cannot hit hard enough to threaten Roserade. The Defense investment also helps Eo against things like Ice Shard from Donphan and also survives Choice Band Dugtrio's Earthquake after Stealth Rock damage. Extrasensory combined with Spikes damage makes it extremely hard for Rapid Spinning Hitmontop to switch in to spin away the very Spikes layed by Roserade. Extrasensory also hits Nasty Plot Toxicroak, who would otherwise be a huge problem for Eo.
A Special Defense-oriented core of Registeel and Chansey allows Eo to take on nearly every Underused special attacker, while still supporting and helping the team out. Chansey provides Eo with Aromatherapy support, which in turn allows him to throw Rest on Donphan. This prolongs it's longevity and keeps it around to counter dangerous threats and support the team with Rapid Spin support, Registeel allows Eo to beat Mismagius and Substitute Charge Beam Rotom, 2 Pokémon with whom Chansey has trouble. Shadow Claw allows Registeel to hit Ghost-types that switch in (barring Spiritomb). Since Chansey and Registeel are both extremely crucial parts of Eo's team, he chooses to run Shed Shell on both of them; this means that e is not defeated by Dugtrio combined with a slew of special attackers. Registeel lays down the ever so important Stealth Rock, which gives extra residual damage and also takes off large amounts of damage from Pokémon like Charizard and Yanmega, which is always an added bonus. Registeel is Eo's only Dragon-type resister, which always proves useful against the rare Dragon Dancing Altaria.
As Eo mentions in Tangrowth's description, it is not a Pokemon who you will see in Stall very often at all. However, no other Pokemon in UU can easily wall so many UU physical threats and still reliably heal itself. Tangrowth is an integral part of Eo's team, without it he would not have nearly as much success. By combining Tangrowth with Milotic, Eo has most physical attackers covered, much like his combination of Registeel and Chansey covers most special attackers. All of the physical attackers who are not covered by Tangrowth (Arcanine, physical Fire-types in general, Honchkrow, etc) are easily covered by Milotic, who also provides Haze support for Pokémon like Curse Registeel and Calm Mind Spiritomb. Having both Tangrowth and Milotic also provides 2 checks for Azumarill, meaning if one of them dies the game is not instantly over. This also goes for other physical Water-type Pokémon and several other physical Pokémon. Milotic helps to somewhat alleviate Eo's Nasty Plot Houndoom weakness (one of very few special attackers able to break through Eo's SpD core) thanks to Milotic's 125 base Special Defense stat and solid HP stat.
The last Pokémon of this team is Donphan, who also plays one of the most important roles. Donphan is Eo's Rapid Spinner, and a very good one at that. A respectable Attack stat of 372 and Assurance allows Donphan to hit Rapid Spin blockers like Mismagius and Rotom. Earthquake provides Donphan with a strong STAB attack to hit Registeel, Regirock, Chansey, and other Pokémon with a Ground-type weakness or low Defense stat. Rapid Spin is very crucial to a stall team because of how hard it is to handle opposing teams if Spikes or Stealth Rock (or Toxic Spikes in some cases) are present on the field. Donphan is the only answer for Taunt + Will-O-Wisp Mismagius on this team, which is a very difficult Pokémon to manuever around for Eo.
Although this an extremely well made and solid team, it goes without saying that it will have weaknesses. Since Eo chooses to forego the use of a Ghost-type, Choice Banded Fighting-type Pokémon, such as Primeape and Hitmonlee, can often have their way with this team, 1-2HKOing every single member. Nasty Plot Houndoom can be a huge problem since Milotic will not always be at full HP to counter Houndoom. Perhapys the biggest problem for Eo with this team is opposing stall teams, as, without a Rapid Spin-blocker, Eo cannot stop his opponent from Rapid Spinning away the entry hazards that his team relies on to win. Furthermore, his own Rapid Spin attempts are often futile, since most opposing stall teams will carry a Ghost-type. All in all, this is a very solid team, thanks for reading!
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