Competitive Single Rates - READ FIRST POST

[Blue Harvest]

WTF it does. That's pretty cool. Too bad it doesn't get Seismic Toss / Night Shade.

[Divine Retribution]

WTF it does. That's pretty cool. Too bad it doesn't get Seismic Toss / Night Shade.

It gets Power Trick, but that's really gimmicky and situational. Maybe in a Trick Room team, Power Trick Shuckle might be okay.

[Ilan]

It gets Power Trick, but that's really gimmicky and situational. Maybe in a Trick Room team, Power Trick Shuckle might be okay.

Fun Fact: a CB scizor have more power than power trick shuckle.
Or just anything hitting twice why risk it?
About your set taunt says hi but otherwise it is nice (but beware of seismic toss and night shade users.

[Divine Retribution]

Fun Fact: a CB scizor have more power than power trick shuckle.
Or just anything hitting twice why risk it?
About your set taunt says hi but otherwise it is nice (but beware of seismic toss and night shade users.

Shuckle gains up to about 300 Defence from a single Contrary Shell Smash. That's more than Scizor gains from a Sword's Dance, and Scizor isn't nearly as durable as Shuckle (at least until he uses Power Trick).

+6 Shuckle has over 2.2K Defence.

Power Trick makes that over 2.2k Attack. That'll put a dent in anything.

[Blue Harvest]

What I'm about to show you will blow your mind.

Gigalith @ Choice Band
Trait: Sand Force
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Superpower
- Explosion

Honestly, the only reason I'm using this is because I wanted to find a niche for Gigalith. In NU, RU, and UU, it's pretty much outclassed by another Rock tank (namely Golem in NU, Rhydon in RU, and Rhyperior in UU). But in OU, Gigalith can abuse something that it never was able to abuse in any other tier: Sand Force. Gigalith is currently the most powerful Sand Force user in the game, which is really going to make its Stone Edge and Earthquake hurt. Honestly, the only common OU Pokemon that don't take at least 50% damage from one of Gigalith's main attacks are some variants of Hippowdon and Donphan, which is kinda cool. Gigalith also has some impressive bulk in the Sand, the SDef boost giving him the equivalent of 85/130/114 defenses. This actually lets him survive some dangerous attacks like Scarf Terrakion's Close Combat and Specs Latios's Draco Meteor (guaranteed even after SR). The pure Rock typing is another bonus, eliminating the Ice weakness that Rock/Ground types have, as well has having half the weakness to Water and Grass moves.

Not a Pokemon to just toss on a team and call it a day, but if you really want to hit junk insanely hard in the Sand, Gigalith is your man.

Gigalith is really cool. So much cooler than Golem. But why use this when Tyranitar, Terrakion, and even Aggron exist? Tyranitar and Terrakion go without saying as their secondary typing and vastly superior movepools are self explanatory. Aggron gets recoil-less Head Smash which hits with about 3% less power than Gigalith's Stone Edge, but without being reliant on specific weather. Aggron also has a much better movepool including Aqua Tail to 2HKO Hippowdon and Donphan with.

Outclassed somewhat in OU maybe, but you're right that Gigalith is still horribly overlooked. Too bad it has such low 25 base speed that it can't outrun defensive base 70s and lower, which is really nice so it could have beat Politoed, Skarmory, and Jellicent. It has trouble setting itself apart from the other offensive rocks but it seems sort of usable to some extent.

Also Shiny Gigalith is beautiful.

[Ilan]

Shuckle gains up to about 300 Defence from a single Contrary Shell Smash. That's more than Scizor gains from a Sword's Dance, and Scizor isn't nearly as durable as Shuckle (at least until he uses Power Trick).

+6 Shuckle has over 2.2K Defence.

Power Trick makes that over 2.2k Attack. That'll put a dent in anything.

But pathetic defense that every physical hit will screw you and it needs 6 shell smashs to reach +6 while a steel type (like kilnk) can set up on you freely.. also where would you fit an attack on such a set SS,rest,power trick and gyro ball? how will you apply trick room?

[Divine Retribution]

But pathetic defense that every physical hit will screw you and it needs 6 shell smashs to reach +6 while a steel type (like kilnk) can set up on you freely.. also where would you fit an attack on such a set SS,rest,power trick and gyro ball? how will you apply trick room?

Which is why he's NU. Almost impossible to set up. Even when he does manage set up, all physical Priority moves kill him.

Just heresay. There's plenty of better options out there.

[Divine Retribution]

Gigalith is really cool. So much cooler than Golem. But why use this when Tyranitar, Terrakion, and even Aggron exist? Tyranitar and Terrakion go without saying as their secondary typing and vastly superior movepools are self explanatory. Aggron gets recoil-less Head Smash which hits with about 3% less power than Gigalith's Stone Edge, but without being reliant on specific weather. Aggron also has a much better movepool including Aqua Tail to 2HKO Hippowdon and Donphan with.

Outclassed somewhat in OU maybe, but you're right that Gigalith is still horribly overlooked. Too bad it has such low 25 base speed that it can't outrun defensive base 70s and lower, which is really nice so it could have beat Politoed, Skarmory, and Jellicent. It has trouble setting itself apart from the other offensive rocks but it seems sort of usable to some extent.

Also Shiny Gigalith is beautiful.

Aggron isn't OU, he's not even UU. He's LU.

That 4x weakness to Ground and Fighting really cripples him though.

Speaking of Aggron, try this set.

Aggron @ Life Orb
Jolly - Rock Head
244 Attack, 82 HP, 184 Speed
-Rock Polish / Autotomize
-Head Smash
-Earthquake
-Superpower / Brick Break/ Aqua Tail

Rock Polish lets him hit 400 Speed at +2, where he can then begin to sweep. Head Smash is a devastating STAB attack, with Earthquake to round off the coverage. Superpower gives more coverage, but lowers his stats, so Brick Break can be used as a weaker option that also smashes Screens. Aqua Tail is a third option for Hippowdon and Donphan and the like. HP EVs give him 301 HP, enough to survive a lot. The rest go into Attack.

[That Crazy Russian™]

so, i love meloetta. it has unique typing, great stats, and can even change at will. unfortunately, in its aria forme, it has mediocre speed that lets it down. so, i made a set that focuses on its good points and can fix the speed issues.


Item: Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Modest (+ SpA/- atk)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Def
Moveset:
-Substitute
-Psyshock/Psychic
-HP Ice/HP Fire
-Thunderbolt/Thunder/Energy Ball/Filler

This is a Bulkier Meloetta set, which capitalizes on her Special bulk. Her SpA isn't too shabby either, but unfortunately, she has speed issues. therefore, no speed investment. instead, 252 hp and max SpA are all it needs. the last 4 evs go into def, so an opposing genesect will gain a SpA boost instead, i do not believe genesect ohkoes with u-turn, unless banded or belted. you still shouldn't stay in on it though. leftovers+sub, plus a lot of bulk allows it to outstall/ gain safe turns a lot of the time. For some reason, people don't expect hp ice on it, so it gets a lot of opportunity to eliminate dragon switchins, who expect a hp fighting. HP fire is an alternative choice to hp ice, to nail scizor and genesect on the switchin when you don't want to sub. they are just 2 pokes who can wall this set. Psyshock is preferred over Psychic, to hit Blissey, Chansey, etc. as well as other special walls. In the last slot, a variety of moves can fill it, for coverage reasons. thunderbolt is preferred, but thunder can be used if you happen to be on a rain team(its a decent idea). energy ball can also be used, but it doesn't really hit anything significant.

Checks and Counters and Threats

Blissey and Chansey come to mind as those who wall this set, but they only do it if Meloetta does not have Psyshock. Tyranitar is a major threat, as nothing can really touch it, and tyranitar can pursuit trap it to death. scizor is a major threat as well, along with its "special" counterpart(i guess, lol. close enough) genesect. nothing really touches them(thunderbolt might 2hko) and they can either ohko, set up, or just dent it really badly. Ferrothorn completely walls it, as does Forretress. Volcarona can check it if rocks arent up, as it can switch in safely. let's see, umm...well, Wobbuffet can trap and ko it(and its been on the rise lately). Magnezone can take anything she throws, unless you have hp fire. these are just a few, im sure you guys can think of more, but its all situational. Powerhouses can deal major damage to it, if you don't predict correctly, so that's why substitute is always a good idea. its a great failsafe. be wary of pretty much anything that can outspeed, for fear of revenge-killing.

basically, use it for late game sweeping.

[Blue Harvest]

Aggron isn't OU, he's not even UU. He's LU.

Who cares, the point is that he can be used in OU effectively.

That 4x weakness to Ground and Fighting really cripples him though.

Yeah, so don't let it get hit by those moves. It has three weaknesses (and absolutely enough defenses in Sandstorm to tank the Water one) but also 10 resistances and in sand the equivalent of 70/180/99 defenses.

[Divine Retribution]

Who cares, the point is that he can be used in OU effectively.



Yeah, so don't let it get hit by those moves. It has three weaknesses (and absolutely enough defenses in Sandstorm to tank the Water one) but also 10 resistances and in sand the equivalent of 70/180/99 defenses.

Aggron's a great Pokemon, but when a random Earthquake comes along, he's OHKO'd, even with his 180 base Defense. I'd use an Autotomize set in OU, especially if it had Sand support. Problem is, Infernape, Breloom, and Conkeldurr are incredibly common in OU, and all OHKO with STAB Close Combat / 2HKO with either SubPunch or two Mach Punchs.

[Blue Harvest]

So is Gigalith. Also lol none of those Pokemon can switch in on a CB Head Smash (not even Breloom). There are a LOT of Pokemon Aggron can switch in on in a sandstorm.

Abomasnow, Blissey, Celebi, Chansey, Cloyster (barring water moves), Deoxys-D, Ferrothorn, Forretress, Genesect, Latias, Magnezone, and Skarmory. Not to mention the many Choiced Pokemon it can come in on, and things like Jellicent it can sort of take on even at some risk to itself. Obviously you switch out of things with fighting / ground moves

Also Automize is ok, but its way too slow. It hits what, ~400 Speed? most Choice Scarf Pokemon will still outrun it

[Divine Retribution]

I'll try him in a Sandstorm team. I've been meaning to make one for a while now anyways.

[jesusfreak94]

Honestly, I'd just go with a CB Aggron set in OU. Autotomize is cool, but you max out at just 436 speed. This leaves you beaten by Adamant Scarf Haxorus and everything faster, which kinda stinks. With a CB set, you can just spam Head Smash and beat a few other things that BH outlined with coverage moves. You're still hitting a bit weaker overall than Gigalith with non-STAB moves due to the Atk difference, but you do have a bit more physical bulk for taking random non-SE moves, as well as a bit more speed. With max speed an an Adamant nature, you can beat minimum speed Gyarados and everything slower, which is useful.

Still, Aggron is like Gigalith in that it has a small niche for just hitting stuff ridiculously hard, but it's not going to be a prime choice for a team more often that not.

[That Crazy Russian™]

so, i love meloetta. it has unique typing, great stats, and can even change at will. unfortunately, in its aria forme, it has mediocre speed that lets it down. so, i made a set that focuses on its good points and can fix the speed issues.


Item: Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Nature: Modest (+ SpA/- atk)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Def
Moveset:
-Substitute
-Psyshock/Psychic
-HP Ice/HP Fire
-Thunderbolt/Thunder/Energy Ball/Filler

This is a Bulkier Meloetta set, which capitalizes on her Special bulk. Her SpA isn't too shabby either, but unfortunately, she has speed issues. therefore, no speed investment. instead, 252 hp and max SpA are all it needs. the last 4 evs go into def, so an opposing genesect will gain a SpA boost instead, i do not believe genesect ohkoes with u-turn, unless banded or belted. you still shouldn't stay in on it though. leftovers+sub, plus a lot of bulk allows it to outstall/ gain safe turns a lot of the time. For some reason, people don't expect hp ice on it, so it gets a lot of opportunity to eliminate dragon switchins, who expect a hp fighting. HP fire is an alternative choice to hp ice, to nail scizor and genesect on the switchin when you don't want to sub. they are just 2 pokes who can wall this set. Psyshock is preferred over Psychic, to hit Blissey, Chansey, etc. as well as other special walls. In the last slot, a variety of moves can fill it, for coverage reasons. thunderbolt is preferred, but thunder can be used if you happen to be on a rain team(its a decent idea). energy ball can also be used, but it doesn't really hit anything significant.

Checks and Counters and Threats

Blissey and Chansey come to mind as those who wall this set, but they only do it if Meloetta does not have Psyshock. Tyranitar is a major threat, as nothing can really touch it, and tyranitar can pursuit trap it to death. scizor is a major threat as well, along with its "special" counterpart(i guess, lol. close enough) genesect. nothing really touches them(thunderbolt might 2hko) and they can either ohko, set up, or just dent it really badly. Ferrothorn completely walls it, as does Forretress. Volcarona can check it if rocks arent up, as it can switch in safely. let's see, umm...well, Wobbuffet can trap and ko it(and its been on the rise lately). Magnezone can take anything she throws, unless you have hp fire. these are just a few, im sure you guys can think of more, but its all situational. Powerhouses can deal major damage to it, if you don't predict correctly, so that's why substitute is always a good idea. its a great failsafe. be wary of pretty much anything that can outspeed, for fear of revenge-killing.

basically, use it for late game sweeping.

id like to get a little feedback for it...

[Astrint]

Shuckle @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: hp 252 / Defense 128 / Sp Defence 128
Nature: Bold/Calm
- Toxic
- rest
- Double Team
- Flash


I am not that good of a move set creator but i saw this, I thought it would be a pain in the butt to beat in a competitive battle but I'm also inexperienced in that as well so i wanted an opinion on this set before i pursued it.

[ChaosBlizzard]

Shuckle @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: hp 252 / Defense 128 / Sp Defence 128
Nature: Bold/Calm
- Toxic
- rest
- Double Team
- Flash

I am not that good of a move set creator but i saw this, I thought it would be a pain in the butt to beat in a competitive battle but I'm also inexperienced in that as well so i wanted an opinion on this set before i pursued it.

Well, first and foremost, if you plan on using this for standard competitive usage, you'd have to drop Double Team and Flash. Moves that mess with accuracy or evasion are banned in standard play.

You're going down the right path with this in terms of how you use Shuckle, but it has some pretty fundamental flaws that you kind of can't get around. While Shuckle's defenses are impressive, it kind of can't really do anything with them. It can lay Stealth Rock, which is useful, but that only takes one turn and you're done. Its only means of inflicting any damage is through Toxic, which you rightfully have on the set, but that leaves it 100% walled by Steel-types, Poison-types, and anything with Substitute that is faster than it. That's a pretty big range of Pokemon that it can do literally nothing against. Furthermore, while it can restore HP through Rest, a weakness to Stealth Rock isn't helping it as a defensive Pokemon.

Like I said, you're heading in the right direction with this set, but you (no one, really) can't overcome the kind of intrinsic flaws Shuckle has that have relegated it to the NU tier. Setup sweepers, Steel or Poison-types, and basically anything with Substitute render it completely useless. It has awesome defenses, but... what do you do with them?

[Astrint]

Well, first and foremost, if you plan on using this for standard competitive usage, you'd have to drop Double Team and Flash. Moves that mess with accuracy or evasion are banned in standard play.

You're going down the right path with this in terms of how you use Shuckle, but it has some pretty fundamental flaws that you kind of can't get around. While Shuckle's defenses are impressive, it kind of can't really do anything with them. It can lay Stealth Rock, which is useful, but that only takes one turn and you're done. Its only means of inflicting any damage is through Toxic, which you rightfully have on the set, but that leaves it 100% walled by Steel-types, Poison-types, and anything with Substitute that is faster than it. That's a pretty big range of Pokemon that it can do literally nothing against. Furthermore, while it can restore HP through Rest, a weakness to Stealth Rock isn't helping it as a defensive Pokemon.

Like I said, you're heading in the right direction with this set, but you (no one, really) can't overcome the kind of intrinsic flaws Shuckle has that have relegated it to the NU tier. Setup sweepers, Steel or Poison-types, and basically anything with Substitute render it completely useless. It has awesome defenses, but... what do you do with them?

thank you for the help. I guess I need to adjust my team for a better defensive pokemon.

[jesusfreak94]

Just a nitpick, but Flash isn't banned in competitive play. Only Double Team.

As for the set, run something like Encore or Power Split over Double Team. Encore is cool if you catch an opponent trying to set up on you, essentially giving you a free switch to whatever. Power Split, due to Shuckle's pitiful offenses, effectively halves the opponent's offensive stats. This is useful since even with Shuckle's high defenses, its low HP and lack of recovery mean that it's not that hard to 3HKO it. You should also completely minimize your offenses to have a better effect with Power Split.

[D-World]

Swoobat @ Life Orb/Leftovers
Ability: Simple
EVs: 100 HP/ 156 Sp.Atk/252 Spe
Nature: Timid
-Calm Mind
-Stored Power
-Heat Wave
-Energy Ball/Giga Drain/HP Dragon

-Simple is such a brilliant ability, it just has to be abused. One CM puts Swoobat on a very nice on 458 Special Attack and a respectable 292 Special Defence, put also puts Stored Power's BP to 100 BP, which is a little higher than Psychic, something Swoobat can abuse to destroy the large amounts of Fighting types. 458 Sp.Atk and 359 Speed makes it a really powerful sweeper, and BW2 has blessed it with Heat Wave to deal with Steel and Ice types that want to wall or kill it.
The last move is a choice. Energy Ball and Giga Drain can help deal with all the bulky Ground, Rock and Water types (the only difference between the two is merely power/sustainability) Whilst HP Dragon is merely for Coverage.