Competitive Single Rates - READ FIRST POST

[Arkygi]

I see.
Do you think it's still necessary for Zoroark to have Focus Blast if another pokemon in my team already has it?

The addition of Dragonite wouldn't add any double weaknesses on my team, but it would add a weakness to rock type, and I would loose the immunity to electric type, that I used to prevent Vaporeon being hit by a electric move and to get a safe switch in.

So what do you think is better: replace Heal Bell for Roar on Vaporeon or replace Garchomp for Dragonite?
Or just stick with Taunt on Zoroark?

[Yellow de Viridian Grove]

Scizor @ Occa Berry
Trait: Technician
EVs: 148 HP / 252 Atk / 108 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Superpower
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite

This is a mixture of bulky SD Scizor and Offensive SD Scizor. It needs rain to work reliably, but but being hit my Fire type attacks neutrally with the Occa Berry, can set up Swords Dance a little more easily It easily turns things such as Heatran and Mangezone into set-up bait instead of counters and quickly eliminates them. In rain, it can take anything Heatran can throw at it, bar Specs boosted Fire Blast, and hit back with a +2 Superpower, or Superpower on the switch with SR down. This set trades the bulk that the bulky version has for the ability to reliably beat Heatran and Magnezone in the rain. While less bulky than the CB version, it still has some nice bulk with its resistances. It has enough speed to outspeed SDefTran and OHKO with a +2 Superpower, so Heatran isn't a safe switch (It can survive a Fire Blast in the rain from offensive Heatran if SR is not down and even then, it has a chance). While it does lack a Life Orb to boost its power, it still hits pretty hard with Bullet Punch at +2 and being able to handle most steels already make it pretty awesome. At +2, it still has enough power to OHKO SDef Jirachi with a little prior damage to it (or SR+1 layer of Spikes). This set mainly aims to get past Heatran and Magnezone, but can get past somethings that rely on HP[Fire] to KO Scizor, such as Alakazam. While it can't switch into as much as the Band or SDef set, it can set-up on a lot of things that rely on Fire moves to KO Scizor. Brick Break could be ran, but it a HUGE drop in power and does not OHKO SDefHeatran without SR.

[ZacT94]

Flygon @ Dragon Fang
Ability: Levitate
EV's: 4 HP / 252 Atk/ 252 Speed
Jolly Nature

- Dragon Claw
- Sandstorm
- Superpower
- Earthquake

My Flygon is meant to set up sandstorm and then act as a fast physical sweeper. Dragon Claw and Earthquake are there as stab moves, while Superpower is used to counter Ice type pokemon. The Dragon fang is meant to boost dragon claw's power as it has a lower power compared to earthquake and superpower. Flygon is not my lead, it is more of a revenge killer, which I then try to keep in. It doesn't perform too well in random matchups though, but that maybe because I'm new to competitive battling. What can I do to improve this flygon?

[cheeselord]

Dragon fang is not recommended, life orb is much better as it gives a greater boost and affects all moves instead of just one (plus dragon claw isn't even his weakest move when you take into account STAB). Sandstorm is questionable as well, though it might be cool to send him in for a revenge kill then predict a switch and set up sandstorm on your free turn, the sandstorm will only last 5 turns without smooth rock, and if you give him smooth rock over life orb his attack power will be lackluster. Obviously the best way of setting up sandstorm is by using a hippowdon or tyranitar, but since I guess this is for lower tiers you will have to manually set it up, though it's probably best to have a dedicated support pokemon to do it. On this set though I'd just replace it with fire punch or fire blast (in which case change the nature to naive, of course).

Obviously if you intend to use this in OU then your best bet is to completely ditch flygon and use Garchomp who outclasses Flygon in every conceivable way.

[hellothisismuffin]

Just caught Regice and it turned out to be really good with a Sp DEF of 308 at Lv 65.

So here's what i want to see:

Regice @ Leftovers/Shell Bell
Clear Body
Not sure what EVs
Careful
-Amnesia
-Ice Beam
-Hammer Arm
-? (probably Curse)

A definite wall. The Careful Nature boosts its already beefy Sp DEF and Amnesia only boosts it further. Ice Beam for STAB and for the effect chance. Hammer Arm for Rock and Steel Types.

Obviously some holes can be poked in this but it isn't completely finished

Also considering a shuffler Garchomp

[Victiniepicness]

Gengar @ black sludge
Nature: timid
Ability: levitate
EVs:110hp 230spd 230spatk
Moves: hypnosis
Stealth rock
Nightmare
Dark pulse

Turn.1 hypnosis the opponent can't move If the opponent wakes up redo turn 1 and 2
Turn.2 if hypnosis hits use nightmare
Turn.3-5 use stealth rock
Turn.6 use dark pulse

When the opponent faints use turns 1-2-6

He is also protected from trick unless it is part poison type and even if he does get tricked by a non poison type every turn they will get damaged if it is part poison type than I have a problem

(Footnote: I only use this strategy in competitive battles/hard battles :>

[KillerDraco]

Just caught Regice and it turned out to be really good with a Sp DEF of 308 at Lv 65.

So here's what i want to see:

Regice @ Leftovers/Shell Bell
Clear Body
Not sure what EVs
Careful
-Amnesia
-Ice Beam
-Hammer Arm
-? (probably Curse)

A definite wall. The Careful Nature boosts its already beefy Sp DEF and Amnesia only boosts it further. Ice Beam for STAB and for the effect chance. Hammer Arm for Rock and Steel Types.

Obviously some holes can be poked in this but it isn't completely finished

Also considering a shuffler Garchomp

Regice has a very usable Special Attack at Base 100; why would you use a nature that lowers it, when the obvious choice is going to be to lower its pitiful base 50 attack instead? Drop Hammer Arm, it's attack is too poor to use it. Regice will never be beating Rock/Steel/Fighting types anyway, because they prey on its lower physical defense and force it out. Use Calm if you want more SpD, or Modest if you'd rather run a bulky attacker (since its SpD is already pretty high to boot).

Amnesia is a waste as well; boosting your SpD gives them a free turn to switch in a physical attacker and ignore your Amnesia entirely.

Ice Beam is perhaps the only move you want to keep on Regice. Give it Thunderbolt as well, since it has phenomenal coverage alongside Ice Beam, and one of Regice's advantages over other ice types is that it learns said Thunderbolt. Rest/Sleep Talk also works well on him, since unlike Blissey, he doesn't have nature cure or any other reliable forms of recovery, so he can be easily worn down or crippled by status. Rest will prevent both, while Sleep Talk takes advantage of the would-be hindrance of being put to sleep to recover.

Don't focus on trying to counter Rock/Steel/Fighting; Regice is never going to beat them 1v1. This is why you have teammates.

Gengar @ black sludge
Nature: timid
Ability: levitate
EVs:110hp 230spd 230spatk
Moves: hypnosis
Stealth rock
Nightmare
Dark pulse

Turn.1 hypnosis the opponent can't move If the opponent wakes up redo turn 1 and 2
Turn.2 if hypnosis hits use nightmare
Turn.3-5 use stealth rock
Turn.6 use dark pulse

When the opponent faints use turns 1-2-6

He is also protected from trick unless it is part poison type and even if he does get tricked by a non poison type every turn they will get damaged if it is part poison type than I have a problem

(Footnote: I only use this strategy in competitive battles/hard battles :>

You do realize that's an illegal moveset, right? Gengar can't learn stealth rock. Not to mention your EV Spread doesn't work, since you can only have 510 total; you put down 570.

Hypnosis only has 60% accuracy. You can't rely too heavily on it, which makes Nightmare gimmicky. If you miss with Hypnosis, Gengar's frailty means it's going to die.

There's no reason to use Dark Pulse on Gengar, when Shadow Ball has almost identical coverage, but Gengar gets STAB on SB.

Black Sludge is also pointless given Gengar is incredibly frail, and likely won't survive more than two attacks total (With it being very likely he'll be 1HKO'ed). Gengar is also not protected from Trick; just because the opponent tricks a Black Sludge onto themselves, doesn't mean it protects Gengar, since the foe can still Trick a Choice Band or Flame Orb or something onto him. Not to mention that Black Sludge doesn't stop them from Tricking again, so they can actually Trick your own Black Sludge onto some other Pokemon of yours.

Using that in a competitive battle will give you problems because it's highly gimmicky.

[kzhu98]

Hi! I'm trying to build a team and would be open to any helpful advice. So far, I have:

Durant @ Focus Sash
Trait: Truant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Entrainment
- Iron Head
- Stone Edge
- X-Scissor
This is my opening pokemon. I open with entrainment to change the enemy's ability to truant, making them skip every other move.

Smeargle @ Leftovers
Trait: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Shell Smash
- Protect
- Baton Pass
- Mean Look
This is used to maximize the attack, special attack, and speed stats. Assuming the enemy does not switch out, Smeargle can use mean look to trap the pokemon, and then alternate between protect and shell smash until attack is maximized. Then, all those stats are baton passed to Cloyster.


Cloyster @ White Herb
Trait: Skill Link
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Icicle Spear
- Rock Blast
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

The White Herb removes the defense and special defense drops. With skill link, icicle spear and rock blast hit 5 times each. My cloyster is quite weak to steel, but I can't find physical moves that would work against steel.

[KillerDraco]

Hi! I'm trying to build a team and would be open to any helpful advice. So far, I have:

Durant @ Focus Sash
Trait: Truant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Entrainment
- Iron Head
- Stone Edge
- X-Scissor
This is my opening pokemon. I open with entrainment to change the enemy's ability to truant, making them skip every other move.

Truant Durant only works for in-game opponents (i.e., Battle Subway), as it's easily screwed by switching, and Durant itself is still crippled by Truant; just because it entrains it onto the enemy does not free it from the horrible side effect upon itself.

Smeargle @ Leftovers
Trait: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Shell Smash
- Protect
- Baton Pass
- Mean Look
This is used to maximize the attack, special attack, and speed stats. Assuming the enemy does not switch out, Smeargle can use mean look to trap the pokemon, and then alternate between protect and shell smash until attack is maximized. Then, all those stats are baton passed to Cloyster.

You can't Baton Pass Mean Look as of Gen V. Being trapped in on Smeargle doesn't accomplish much since Smeargle is so frail that it's likely to be 1HKO'ed, and you have nothing to prevent them from doing so. Smeargle has to use a Focus Sash if you want to use it at all (and even then it's not foolproof) because of its extreme frailty. Also, if you use Smeargle, you pretty much have to use Spore. It's pretty bad without it.

Cloyster @ White Herb
Trait: Skill Link
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Icicle Spear
- Rock Blast
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

The White Herb removes the defense and special defense drops. With skill link, icicle spear and rock blast hit 5 times each. My cloyster is quite weak to steel, but I can't find physical moves that would work against steel.

Just forget about Baton Passing Shell Smash and have Cloyster carry it itself. Drop RestTalk to fit it on, in which case you can also put Hydro Pump on Cloyster instead. Don't let the Adamant Nature deter you; after a Shell Smash it'll have a crap ton of power behind it regardless of the nature, which makes it good for cracking steel types and physical walls who might otherwise give you problems.

[kzhu98]

You can't Baton Pass Mean Look as of Gen V. Being trapped in on Smeargle doesn't accomplish much since Smeargle is so frail that it's likely to be 1HKO'ed, and you have nothing to prevent them from doing so. Smeargle has to use a Focus Sash if you want to use it at all (and even then it's not foolproof) because of its extreme frailty. Also, if you use Smeargle, you pretty much have to use Spore. It's pretty bad without it.

But if the enemy is truant, I can shell smash when it's goofing around and protect every other turn against their attacks.

[KillerDraco]

But if the enemy is truant, I can shell smash when it's goofing around and protect every other turn against their attacks.

Again, there's nothing to stop them from switching as soon as you use Entrainment. Especially since the turn after you use Entrainment, it's obvious that YOU will switch, since Durant would otherwise be stuck in a Truant downtime turn. In which case, Smeargle's a sitting duck. It's a gimmick and it won't work on actual players, only on in-game opponents who don't switch.

[Ghosts of the Forums]

How about this set?

Drifblim @Flying Gem
Adamant
Unburden
252atk 252spe
-Acrobatics
-Will o Wisp
-Baton Pass
-Destiny Bond

Oh btw is this the standard? I'm too lazy to check it myself.

[Eaglehawk]

Cresselia@Leftovers
Bold/Levitate
248 HP/196 Def/60 Sp.Att
-Ice Beam
-Lunar Dance/Thunder Wave
-Psyshock/Psychic
-Moonlight

I crafted this set a few weeks ago when I was having a discussion about Landorus-I. Lando is really dominant at every phase in the game and can rip apart Stall and Offense alike around mid- to late-game. Cresselia is probably the best counter to it because of her resistance/immunity to Ground and Fighting as well as her ability to take lol% damage from Hidden Power Ice. I then thought, "Hey, why not put her on a Offense team?" This is the result.

This Cresselia is meant to be used on an Sun Offense team as a defensive pivot. Why a defensive pivot? It can pretty much switch into most attacks for a minimal amount of damage (An Outrage from a Haxorus does about 30% iirc). Furthermore, Moonlight under the sun heals for 2/3 of your total health, which allows it to sufficiently tank hits. The EVs guarantee an OHKO on Landorus-T (again IIRC. If you plug this into your calc and see that this is wrong, please point it out). The HP and Def EVs give it sufficient bulk to tank many Fighting and Dragon attacks. The two attacking moves gives me strong offensive choices over two of the most prominent offensive types in the metagame: Fighting and Dragon. Ice Beam murders most Dragons after 1-2 switch-ins with Stealth Rock as well as dumping on both Landos. Psychic and Psyshock are just purely QOL choices. Psychic hits stuff harder and allows you to potentially OHKO Conkeldurr (not that it matters but oh well). Psyshock gives you a slight edge over a sufficiently weakened Blissey while still allowing you to 2HKO most Fighting types in OU. Lunar Dance and Thunder Wave are really just based on your preference. Thunder Wave gives Cresselia a more active support role in battle by paralyzing your opponent's pokemon, giving yours a better advantage and higher chance of sweeping. Healing Wish forces her to just play as a pure pivot that can heal up a really weakened sweeper on your team (great for slightly reckless players).

[hellothisismuffin]

Volcarona @ Silver Powder/ Life orb
Modest Nature
252 Sp Atk/ 252 Sp Def/4 Spd
Flame body
- Will o wisp/ Toxic
- Whirlwind
- Fiery Dance
- Calm Mind/ Quiver Dance

Modest Nature compliments Special Attack giving Fiery Dance hella damage combined with STAB and Calm Mind/ Quiver Dance. Will o Wisp/ Toxic and Whirlwind to spread Poison/ Burn through out the enemy team

[ChaosBlizzard]

How about this set?

Drifblim @Flying Gem
Adamant
Unburden
252atk 252spe
-Acrobatics
-Will o Wisp
-Baton Pass
-Destiny Bond

Oh btw is this the standard? I'm too lazy to check it myself.

Yeah, that's about 90% the standard. The standard has less speed (200, putting the extra 56 in defense) and uses Substitute instead of Baton Pass to avoid getting Sucker Punched. What is your rationale for Baton Pass?

[Eaglehawk]

Volcarona @ Silver Powder/ Life orb
Modest Nature
252 Sp Atk/ 252 Sp Def/4 Spd
Flame body
- Will o wisp/ Toxic
- Whirlwind
- Fiery Dance
- Calm Mind/ Quiver Dance

Modest Nature compliments Special Attack giving Fiery Dance hella damage combined with STAB and Calm Mind/ Quiver Dance. Will o Wisp/ Toxic and Whirlwind to spread Poison/ Burn through out the enemy team

>Silverpowder
>No Bug-Type moves
>You for real?

Okay, to be completely honest, this set accomplishes absolutely nothing. You're throwing hybrid roles on Volca for no apparent reason.

#1: The status moves and Whirlwind are useless. No way in God's loving name is Volcarona supposed to be used like a Support pokemon. Furthermore, it sucks at this job. With an EV spread like the one you posted, Volcarona literally has the defense of a wet sack and can't spread status effectively. Furthermore, there are many other pokemon that are better at spreading status than Volcarona.

#2: Quiver Dance > Calm Mind. Quiver Dance is basically Calm Mind with a +1 Speed.

#3: Don't make him go hybrid roles because Volcarona sucks at that. He is a sweeper and only a sweeper.

[cheeselord]

^ To sum it up briefly, Volcarona does one job well, and that's to set up against special attackers then sweep. There is no point in making him bulkier or running willow wisp or whatever, because you will not be staying in against physical attackers. One stone edge from literally anything will kill you plus any strong stab move is likely to 2HKO you at least. You will stay in against things such as alakazam and gengar, who you can set up against and then OHKO after a few quiver dances. calm mind is 100% useless as quiver dance is literally the same thing with a speed boost., As boring as it sounds just run the standard set with max special attack and speed, quiver dance, flamethrower/fiery dance, bug buzz and psychic or HP ice or something and a life orb for the item. Nothing else is really viable.

Yeah, that's about 90% the standard. The standard has less speed (200, putting the extra 56 in defense) and uses Substitute instead of Baton Pass to avoid getting Sucker Punched. What is your rationale for Baton Pass?

I imagine baton pass is to pass on the speed boost from unburden, but I'm not sure if that actually works since unburden doesn't give a regular 1 or 2 stage buff.

[KillerDraco]

I imagine baton pass is to pass on the speed boost from unburden, but I'm not sure if that actually works since unburden doesn't give a regular 1 or 2 stage buff.

Your doubt is well founded, as it doesn't actually work. The speed boost from Unburden cannot be Baton Passed.