Chase Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 No teambuilding process here. I just had a few of things I wanted to try out. Mega Altaria Sand Rush Excadrill a couple of beloved RU threats in OU Here we go. ---- Altaria @ AltarianiteAbility: Cloud NineEVs: 248 HP / 168 SpA / 92 SpeModest Nature- Hyper Voice- Fire Blast- Roost- EarthquakeSerperior @ Expert BeltAbility: ContraryEVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 SpeTimid Nature- Leaf Storm- Dragon Pulse- Hidden Power [Fire]- Giga DrainExcadrill @ Life OrbAbility: Sand RushEVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 SpeAdamant Nature- Earthquake- Iron Head- Rock Slide- Swords DanceTyranitar @ Smooth RockAbility: Sand StreamEVs: 248 HP / 80 Def / 180 SpDRelaxed Nature- Stealth Rock- Stone Edge- Pursuit- Ice BeamCofagrigus @ LeftoversAbility: MummyEVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpDBold Nature- Toxic Spikes- Pain Split- Hex- Will-O-WispTangrowth @ Assault VestAbility: RegeneratorEVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpDSassy Nature- Giga Drain- Knock Off- Earthquake- Hidden Power [ice] Mega Altaria in this team serves as a Special Attacker and is genuinely not very expected. With it's stats after mega-evolution, it's able to be run somewhat mixed, meaning I can use it to take out more than just physical walls if I need to with Earthquake - which threatens defensive Heatran without going to Excadrill earlier than preferred. Fire Blast takes out other steel types. It acts as a bit of a pivot and a lure - as Earthquake allows other trainers to think it's a physical variant if the move sees early use. Everyone knows what Tyranitar wants to do when paired with Excadrill. Tyranitar serves as a bulkier pokemon and most importantly the sand-setter for Sand Rush. It carries Pursuit to trap opposing Psychic and Ghost types not carrying Focus Blast - and is my stealth rock setter in this unit. Ice Beam provides pressure against Gliscor and Landorus-T it may be matched up against. Excadrill serves as my physical sweeper on this team. The sand set's 'em up, and Excadrill knocks 'em down. It also is in great synergy with Mega-Altaria as any poison type moves aimed at it will be made null by Excadrill's steel typing - and any Fighting type attacks will be cushioned by Altaria. Altaria's surprising Special Attacking ability and Serperior's Special prowess clear the way of any Physical walls the Drill may run into. On the other hand, Serperior is my team's special sweeper. Serperior can be employed at almost any time of the match thanks to it's ability Contrary - granted it's threats are out of the way. Because of this, Serperior sees a lot of time doing Mega Altaria's job - depending on the types of physical walls the opponent is bringing. Serperior packs an Expert Belt over Life Orb due to possibly having to perform in the sand and needing to work as a wallbreaker as opposed to a sweeper. Tangrowth is in the team to provide defensive presence to the team. There's not a really good reason why it's here, other than I wanted to use it. AV 'Growth means it can wall the field amply so long as it's still holding it's vest. This 'mon provides Knock Off support and further resistance against Flying/Ground duals and Dragons. and finally - Cofagrigus - the one-mon answer for several looming threats thanks to it's ability Mummy. Got a problem with Mega Lopunny? Scrappy gets negated upon contact and allows Cofagrigus to COMPLETELY wall it. Mega Metagross upon contact looses it's 30% boost to it's contact moves from Tough Claws. Huge Power Azumarill becomes the Azumarill that has absolutely NO business in OU after contact. Mummy is a FANTASTIC ability to use if you just need to shut down some of the more painstaking abilities physical attackers use. Very underrated Pokemon too - as Hex WoW can nearly KO MegaGross as well. ---- So there you have it. The goal is simply to try and build as balanced a team as possible based on using a 'Mon I was interested in and a concept I liked. I almost NEVER build for coverage - so I'll leave the team bashing to you guys. I promise you - the team is better than it looks like on paper. Have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odybld Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 Ummm... Sorry if what I say is stupid, Hilda-senpai... But isn't Cloud Nine a bit counterproductive for your sand offense? Other than that, I like this team more than the last one. I like Jolly Exca more, to beat opponent Excas in the sand, and perhaps with a Lum Berry. It cuts significantly into the damage output but it spares the displeasure of getting burned. Your heavyhitter is more than fine though. Also I'm not sure about Stone Edge on Ttar. I'd try Fire Blast to hit Skarmory a little harder. The only Pokemon that is worthwhile to Pursuittrap is Mega Zam, who beats Exca by Tracing Sand Rush. So check the damage calc to see how well you tank his Focus Blasts and how well does Pursuit do when it stays in. Gengar, Starmie and LO Zam don't want any part of Excadrill anyway, since the first two usually lose some chunks to LO damage. Sash Zam is a thing though, when you see Sabrina's finest let it hit something and use the damage calc to see if that damage was only possible with a LO. I'm on my phone with bad mobile internet, so please write down Altaria's speed tier. Consider changing EVs a bit to net the KOs you want with Flamethrower to avoid any misses, and replacing Roost with DD or Agility to have one more speedmon. DD helps EQ a lot, and so does changing nature to -Def +SpA and using Cotton Guard to patch it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noir Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 Ummm... Sorry if what I say is stupid, Hilda-senpai... But isn't Cloud Nine a bit counterproductive for your sand offense? This is a Mega Altaria, so the ability of choice doesn't really matter; that aside, Cloud Nine means it won't take Sand damage or something when Altaria wants to come in, so that's one pro over Natural Cure. That aside, Expert Belt doesn't really help Serperior to fulfill the desired wallbreaking ability at all, and even if Life Orb compounds on longevity with Sand, Giga Drain makes up for it somewhat. People will tend to switch into resists when it comes to Serperior, and the 20% damage boost only works on super effective damage, meaning that you won't get a consistent boost and more often than not act as if you have no item at all. Miracle Seed/Meadow Plate can bolster Leaf Storm more consistently if you want to switch moves while simultaneously don't like Life Orb recoil. That aside, don't you think your team is a bit more vulnerable than it needs to against Mega Venusaur? It absorbs Cofagrigus' Toxic Spikes and walls pretty much everything on your team apart from a boosted Excadrill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chase Posted August 29, 2015 Author Share Posted August 29, 2015 I've seen Mega Alakazam run Focus Blast. If that's the case - Ttar outright loses and Sand Rush Excadrill has to outspeed it. I've liked Stone Edge on Ttar because I have two grass type Pokemon and flying types are a concern. If you read my RMT completely through, you would see that I have Serperior in this team to act as a special sweeper and not an outright wallbreaker. I was only noting that it can used as such when in need. I want ALL of Serperior's moves to score KOs and after a Leaf Storm boost (which is generally what Serperior will go for when it forces a switch) - as I'll often see something like Ferrothorn or Scizor come in to check it and I want my HP Fire to get the job done. Same thing with slower Dragon types. I get my boost from Leaf Storm - and then get another boost from Dragon Pulse. I like to play aggressively with Serperior, meaning Giga Drain is only on my move-set if I absolutely know I need to get HP back. The great thing about this team is I can dance around walls like Mega Venusaur. Residual damage and burns will open the way for Excadrill to finish the job - possibly without having to SD. On top of that, SD once and Venusaur isn't much of a threat in return. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odybld Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 Then check if you can pour enough juice on Ttar to tank that Focus Blast without going Vest. A well-played Mega Zam will take Ttar down, switch out from Exca and let something get sacked or pivot to bring Zam back in. Trace will copy Sand Rush and Zam will go for the kill. Or Exca will have to switch out and lose some sand turns while its teammates try to deal with Mega Stache. You have to lure and kill it somehow before it deals with your only fast threat and main win condition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomas Elliot Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 I know by direct experience that 252 8 AV Ttar still goes down to a Focus Blast from Mega Zam, so yeah... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reignited'Light Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 Hi Hilda. The suggestions Run Miracle Seed/Meadow Plate or Wise Glasses on Serperior like suggested. Dragon+Fire is good coverage, but doesn't allow you to hit anything in the tier for supereffective damage that the other coverage move can not, if that makes sense. Having a item that will always take effect is better then having a item that can sometimes work. On Excadrill, I would use Air Balloon and Jolly like @Odybld said. You don't have any Hazard Control whatsoever, so having one of your win conditions isn't really the best interest for anyone. With Air Balloon, you avoid entry hazards, which will keep Excadrill healthy until it needs to sweep. You could run Rapid Spin>Swords Dance, but that's optional if you think you can play around the hazards.A optional change can be having Fire Blast>Pursuit. You say you trap Ghosts that don't carry Focus Blast, but the only relevant ghost types are sableye and Gengar, in OU. Gengar will outspeed and OHKO Tyranitar with Focus Blast, after Rocks. If Gengar doesn't run Focus Blast, it will have Will-O-Wisp, completely rendering Tyranitar useless. It can be stalled much easier if burned, wasting sand turns. Also Latios/Latias aren't even a problem, since you have Altaria, Serperior can revenge, and Excadrill, to take them on. With Fire Blast, you can have a easier time against things like Ferrothorn (they won't be able to set up spikes all over your face) and Bulky set up Scizor. Tangrowth doesn't seem like it's doing too much work. Mega Alakazam and Mega Venusaur are a problem, regardless how well one thinks they can simply "dance around" them. SO to fix this problem, replacing Tangrowth with a choice scarf jirachi is probably one of the best changes that you can possibly make on this team. You will always outspeed Mega Zam/Venu/Gardevoir (which hasn't been mentioned, but is a threat), and can deal massive damage with Iron Head/Zen Headbutt. Also having U-Turn to help gain momentum for Tyranitar/Altaria to dish out a hit or something. After my changes, this is the team Altaria-Mega @ Altarianite Ability: Cloud Nine EVs: 248 HP / 168 SpA / 92 Spe Modest Nature - Hyper Voice - Fire Blast - Roost - Earthquake Serperior @ Miracle Seed Ability: Contrary EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe Timid Nature IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe - Leaf Storm - Dragon Pulse - Hidden Power [Fire] - Giga Drain Excadrill @ Air Balloon Ability: Sand Rush EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe Jolly Nature - Earthquake - Iron Head - Rock Slide - Swords Dance Tyranitar @ Smooth Rock Ability: Sand Stream EVs: 248 HP / 80 Def / 180 SpD Relaxed Nature - Stealth Rock - Stone Edge - Fire Blast - Ice Beam Cofagrigus @ Leftovers Ability: Mummy EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe Bold Nature IVs: 0 Atk - Toxic Spikes - Pain Split - Hex - Will-O-Wisp Jirachi @ Choice Scarf Ability: Serene Grace EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe Jolly Nature - Iron Head - Zen Headbutt - U-turn - Healing Wish good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chase Posted August 30, 2015 Author Share Posted August 30, 2015 Wow! Thanks Skitty, Ody, and Yagomi! I'll experiement with those changes. The only thing I'm really not fond of is getting rid of a beloved Pokemon in Tangrowth for easily one of the most despised Pokemon in Jirachi - so I may have to get over my pride to make that change - but I didn't actually even know...the Wise Glasses even existed. Seems like what Id like to go with. My mental block there is 'If Leaf Storm is going to boost my special attack anyway, why would I need something that only works for grass type moves? - the Glasses will make a great replacement for the Expert Belt for my intents and purposes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odybld Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 If you don't want to use Jirachi, how about making Cofagrigus specially defensive and giving it Trick Room, Psychic, and either NP+SB or keeping Hex and WoW? It can do better than your current Cod against all these megas, if it can live long enough, and also help Tangrowth and Tyranitar be more active offensively as long as TR is on. It's not nearly as reliable as Jirachi, but, well, you may want to use it more that Jirachi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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