Hi, I’m shinyskarmory. I’ve been a member of Smogon for around 3 years, but this is only the second time I’ve dabbled with serious competitive battling. I played Generation 4 for a bit but was never very good, and in Generation 5 I outright ragequit after I played against the same damn rain team 3 times in a row. Exactly the same team; every mon was even running the same set.
This team is a reflection of my philosophy in battling, which is all about flexibility and mind games. I don’t like to build my teams around one sweeper with the sole goal of setting up that pokemon to sweep; it’s boring and in order to make sure that that pokemon is healthy enough to sweep, I have to keep it out of the battle all game, effectively putting me a pokemon down.
Instead, I design my teams to be as flexible as possible, with the option of setting up a sweep for multiple members or even play a slow, attrition-based style. To maintain this flexibility, I only bring one setup sweeper in this team, Pinsir; the rest of the team is set up to hit hard right off the bat with no setup. This allows me to be much more flexible with strategical decisions, because instead of saying “well, I have to switch out, but I don’t want to lose my boosts” I simply switch out to a different mon and hit the enemy hard.
It’s been long enough that I can’t remember my exact thought process when choosing the sets for this team, so please bear with me. On to the sets!
The Defensive Core
Metagross @ Assault Vest
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP/4 SpD
Brave Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Bullet Punch
- Earthquake
- Hidden Power [Fire]
I’ve always liked Metagross because of its ability to be fairly tanky while still hitting like a truck. In this case, I’m running a bulky Assault Vest Metagross variant as an essential pivot for my team. Metagross’s 80/130/90 defenses combined with full HP investment and the Assault Vest allow Metagross to switch into just about everything imaginable and hit hard in return with a Meteor Mash or Earthquake.
On the set, Meteor Mash is there for a hard hitting STAB attack which absolutely chunks anything that doesn’t resist steel. I don’t often get the Attack boosts, but when I do Metagross can sometimes get two or three KOs. I tend not to rely on that, though; this team has better sweeping options. Bullet Punch allows me to bring Metagross in on weakened sweepers and score an easy revenge kill when I don’t want to lock Salamence into a move which isn’t great against the rest of my opponent’s team. Earthquake is another high BP move that I have on the set because it doesn’t have Meteor Mash’s 90% accuracy and it’s a great coverage move for Metagross in that it discourages opposing Aegislash, Tyranitar, and Volcarona from coming in on me.
While this isn’t technically a Mixed Metagross set, I do take Hidden Power Fire because the most common opposing switch ins to Metagross are Ferrothorn, Forretress, and Skarmory, all of whom are powerful physical walls which can lay hazards, spread status, or otherwise disrupt my team. I would much rather take Fire Punch, of course, but as it is yet unreleased I bring along Hidden Power Fire to score some surprisingly hard hits on the above walls.
Quagsire @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature
- Recover
- Scald
- Yawn
- Ice Beam
An essential member of my team who checks a lot of threats that I wouldn’t have any answer to otherwise. Quagsire brings a lot of utility to my team because it has excellent defensive capabilities, spreads status very well, and is a flat out full stop to setup sweepers who can’t break through his defenses with only their unboosted stats.
I chose the specific physically defensive IV spread I did because early iterations of this team really struggled with setup sweepers like DD Dragonite, Mega Kanghaskhan in general, and SD Aegislash. Quagsire shuts down every physical sweeper who can’t 2HKO it with just Recover spam, and against pokemon who 4HKO or worse he can Yawn to force a switch or Scald to go for burns.
The last moveslot is used for Ice Beam instead of a move like Stockpile because I feel that Stockpile is too passive. You set up bonus defenses, sure, but then you pretty much sit in there getting pounded on by enemy wallbreakers until they land a crit and finish the job. That’s assuming they don’t just bring in someone like Vaporeon to Scald or Toxic you, crippling your long-term walling capability. For these kinds of situations, Ice Beam is superior because of its surprise value; many players will keep in their Dragonites against a Quagsire and attempt to break through the wall, and Ice Beam punishes them for it. Ice Beam also presents the possibility of freeze hax, which is similar to Meteor Mash’s Attack boost in that I never rely on it but love when it happens.
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
I use Ferrothorn because it is quite frankly the best wall in Overused right now. It has an incredible movepool with many strong options available, and it packs a surprising punch even when uninvested, which is certainly useful for my purposes.
Stealth Rock gives my team much needed hazard support, which is my team’s main counterplay against major threats like Volcarona, Charizard, and Talonflame. By including reliable Stealth Rock in my team in conjunction with Quagsire’s walling, Metagross’s pivots, and Starmie’s speed, I don’t have to have a single “counter” per se to the above pokemon on my team. Instead, the different pieces are distributed throughout my team, making my team much better able to deal with them then if I had one counter whose elimination would cause me to lose. Iron Barbs is essential to punish Mega Kanghaskan for attacking twice; it still 2HKOs specially defensive Ferrothorn, but that’s enough for me to get a Thunder Wave on it so I can revenge it later.
The rest is pretty standard Ferrothorn-Thunder Wave is great status that is more universally crippling then Quagsire’s burns. Leech Seed is a great way to punish enemy paralyzed Pokemon for staying in, and Power Whip is taken over Gyro Ball to improve my options against Rotom-W.
The Offensive Core
Starmie @ Life Orb
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Recover
- Surf
- Psychic
Starmie’s job on this team is somewhat strange and inconsistent; some matches I’ll lean on it as a pivot or hard special sweeper for an entire match so it’s constantly coming in and out, other matches I’ll barely use it at all. In both cases, I’m glad to have it on my team. Starmie’s main role is to be a quick Rapid Spinner that can also punish enemy spin blockers given that I predict the switch. Both Aegislash and Gengar would really prefer not to take a Surf as they’re coming in, and since Starmie’s role is most commonly a Choice or Life Orb special cleaner role, this allows me to get many switches and spins off that I normally wouldn’t be able to do with another spinner.
Rapid Spin gives my team much needed hazard clearing, since neither Salamence nor Pinsir really appreciate taking SR damage every switch in. Recover is mostly there to cancel out Life Orb recoil and give Starmie some sustainability. I chose Surf and Psychic over the traditional “choose 2 out of Surf/Thunderbolt/Ice Beam” combo because Psychic gives me a good way to hit Rotom-W (which is a common switch in to Starmie) while Surf is solid, reliable STAB with better neutral coverage then Psychic.
Pinsir @ Pinsirite
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- X-Scissor
- Return
I chose to use my Mega slot for Pinsir, a underrated physical sweeper with an awful lot of punch. Pinsir is usually pretty hard for me to get in because of its poor defensive typing and Stealth Rock weakness, but once I do get it in I am rarely disappointed by the results.
Obviously, Mega Pinsir carries Aerilate; pre-Mega evolution I prefer to carry Moxie over Mold Breaker or Hyper Cutter because sometimes I will straight up attack without Mega evolving if Mega Evolving would put me at a disadvantage. The best example I have is in a Pinsir vs. Starmie situation; if I Mega Evolve immediately gain the Flying type, allowing Starmie to outspeed and OHKO with Thunderbolt or Ice Beam, but if I save my Mega Evolution for later I can absorb the Thunderbolt and OHKO in return with X-Scissor. There are other situations in which being pure Bug type compared to Bug/Flying benefits me, most notably when I switch in with hazards still on the field.
Other then that, I play Pinsir fairly simply. Bring him in after one of my pokemon is KOed or as a switch in to Pokemon who Pinsir can threaten, then attack, Swords Dance, or Mega Evolve as the situation dictates. I run Return instead of Quick Attack because it has 150 base power with no drawbacks once Aerilate is active, and I need the raw power to break through any resisting pokemon the opponent may have left.
Salamence @ Choice Specs
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Dragon Pulse
- Flamethrower
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Draco Meteor
This team’s X factor. Salamence has a simply incredible movepool and a wide array of options which often fluster opponents. I chose a Choice Specs set which, similar to the rest of my team, causes Salamence to hit hard without much setup. This specific set is outclassed by Noivern, who probably runs it better, but such a simple statement overlooks why I chose Salamence over Noivern.
Salamence’s main attribute (and why it was banned in Gen 4) is its sheer unpredictability. It can run Dragon Dance, Mixed, Specs, or even a Defensive set. For that reason, sending in Salamence will often cause opponents to switch in the wrong counter, where with Noivern they would switch in a Blissey immediately. I can’t count the number of times somebody has switched in a Aegislash on Salamence predicting a physical set that they can easily punish, only to take a Flamethrower to the face. Even once the set is revealed, opponents still have trouble dealing with Salamence. If the enemy team is not packing a Klefki (which loses to Flamethrower) or Azumarill (which loses to Hidden Power Electric), it’s very unlikely that they’ll have a pokemon which enjoys switching into a +1 Draco Meteor.
I have no problem running Draco Meteor on this set, even though it grants my opponents “free” switches, because there is very little that can survive a +1 Draco Meteor without being crippled. Sure, if I use Draco Meteor on one of your pokemon and OHKO it, I have an effective -1 SpA and you brought a mon in without it taking a hit. But I did completely eliminate or cripple one of your pokemon, which to me is worth giving you the momentum in the short term. The layout of my team also ensures that there’s nothing really to bring in; Quagsire is my go to for any setup sweeper, Metagross for a special sweeper, Pinsir for a special wall, etc. The other moves in Salamence’s moveset are aimed at giving maximum coverage and breaking through key fairies who are likely to be present on enemy teams.
How I play this team:
Phase 1: Team Preview
Ever since Generation 5, when Team Preview was introduced, it’s become an important part of my strategy. Being able to see my opponents team allows me to both recognize and prepare for the threats on the enemy team, and it allows me to plan a strategy for the first two turns in order to gain momentum and get a quick advantage for my team.
The first thing I do in Team Preview is check for enemy Volcarona, Talonflame, and Charizard. All of these pokemon can give me trouble when Stealth Rock is not on the field, so seeing one of them tells me that I should make it a top priority in the early turns of the game to set up Stealth Rocks, even if it means sacrificing Ferrothorn to get the rocks laid. The exception to this is when the enemy leads with Talonflame/Volcarona in an effort to prevent me from laying rocks; if that happens, I will simply switch out to Quagsire and use a turn later in the battle when Ferrothorn is on the field to lay hazards.
After checking to see how high I should prioritize getting Stealth Rocks up, I search the team for enemy leads or anti leads. I have specific planned responses for most common enemy anti leads or leads:
Aerodactyl: I lead Starmie and Surf on turn 1, forcing my opponent to choose between sacrificing Aerodactyl to get rocks up or bailing out and allowing me to score free damage with a Surf. I’m not worried about Crunch because Aerodactyl carries some combination of Taunt, EQ, Stone Miss, Stealth Rock, and Brave Bird, so it doesn’t have the moveslot to carry Crunch, which neither improves his coverage nor is really useful outside of beating my Starmie.
Espeon: I lead with Ferrothorn, then switch on turn 1 to Metagross rather than laying Stealth Rock so that I will not have rocks reflected onto my side of the field when Espeon switches in. After the double switch, the battle is essentially restarted, except that in this case I am starting in a favorable position where I am free to attack but the enemy Espeon must waste time switching out or be killed, leaving me a pokemon up.
Ferrothorn: Against enemy Ferrothorn, I lead with my own Ferrothorn and use Stealth Rocks turn 1. I follow that with Thunder Wave before switching out. Switching out immediately instead of waiting for an opposing switch avoids Prisoner’s Dilemma scenarios where we both have paralyzed each others’ Ferrothorns and used Stealth Rock, but now it is disadvantageous for both sides to switch out for fear of taking a Leech Seed or Power Whip.
Forretress: Against Forretress, I lead with Salamence if there’s no particular need for me to get Stealth Rocks up. This immediately forces the opposing player to either switch out and give me a free chunk of damage on his special wall of choice, or let me 2HKO Forretress, limiting it to one layer of hazards and preventing the enemy from clearing my Stealth Rock in the future. Normally, they choose to set their Stealth Rock, after which I 2HKO and prepare to bring in either Ferrothorn to set my own Stealth Rock or Starmie to clear their rocks.
Klefki: I don’t like to give Klefki the chance to cripple any of my sweepers with Twave, so I usually start Ferrothorn against Klefki and set up Stealth Rock, Twave, and Leech Seed before switching out to either Starmie if Klefki spent the entire time setting up hazards or Metagross if it was setting screens. If it Taunts Ferrothorn on turn one, I switch out to Metagross and allow it to paralyze Metagross (who isn’t known for his speed anyways) in exchange for Earthquaking Klefki into oblivion.
Ninetails: Ninetails tells me the team is a sun team, and so I like to start Salamence to force my opponent to choose which member of its team will take a Draco Meteor to the face. After that, setting Stealth Rocks is a high priority so that I can get damage on Charizard, Volcarona, or Talonflame to prevent them from sweeping.
Politoed: If I see Politoed, I assume that the enemy team is a Rain team and lead Ferrothorn. This allows me to get up a free Stealth Rock with minimal risk, and usually just seeing Ferrothorn in play is enough to force a switch from the enemy Politoed.
Smeargle: I lead with Starmie, using Surf on turn 1 to blow Smeargle’s Sash before it uses Spore. Then I switch out to Metagross as it lays Sticky Web (what else is it going to lay?), which prevents Smeargle from laying more than one hazard because of Bullet Punch which is sure to finish the job. This has the additional benefit of not wasting one of my pokemon with sleep, because Starmie has Natural Cure to clear its status upon switching out.
Tyranitar: I only assume Tyranitar is the enemy lead if I see no other strong leads on their team. I have numerous options to handle Ttar, like Starmie, Metagross, or even Ferrothorn, so this one isn’t a problem.
Tyrantrum: Basically, Tyranitar with a different typing. Same procedure.
Xatu: See Espeon, above
Espeon: I lead with Ferrothorn, then switch on turn 1 to Metagross rather than laying Stealth Rock so that I will not have rocks reflected onto my side of the field when Espeon switches in. After the double switch, the battle is essentially restarted, except that in this case I am starting in a favorable position where I am free to attack but the enemy Espeon must waste time switching out or be killed, leaving me a pokemon up.
Ferrothorn: Against enemy Ferrothorn, I lead with my own Ferrothorn and use Stealth Rocks turn 1. I follow that with Thunder Wave before switching out. Switching out immediately instead of waiting for an opposing switch avoids Prisoner’s Dilemma scenarios where we both have paralyzed each others’ Ferrothorns and used Stealth Rock, but now it is disadvantageous for both sides to switch out for fear of taking a Leech Seed or Power Whip.
Forretress: Against Forretress, I lead with Salamence if there’s no particular need for me to get Stealth Rocks up. This immediately forces the opposing player to either switch out and give me a free chunk of damage on his special wall of choice, or let me 2HKO Forretress, limiting it to one layer of hazards and preventing the enemy from clearing my Stealth Rock in the future. Normally, they choose to set their Stealth Rock, after which I 2HKO and prepare to bring in either Ferrothorn to set my own Stealth Rock or Starmie to clear their rocks.
Klefki: I don’t like to give Klefki the chance to cripple any of my sweepers with Twave, so I usually start Ferrothorn against Klefki and set up Stealth Rock, Twave, and Leech Seed before switching out to either Starmie if Klefki spent the entire time setting up hazards or Metagross if it was setting screens. If it Taunts Ferrothorn on turn one, I switch out to Metagross and allow it to paralyze Metagross (who isn’t known for his speed anyways) in exchange for Earthquaking Klefki into oblivion.
Ninetails: Ninetails tells me the team is a sun team, and so I like to start Salamence to force my opponent to choose which member of its team will take a Draco Meteor to the face. After that, setting Stealth Rocks is a high priority so that I can get damage on Charizard, Volcarona, or Talonflame to prevent them from sweeping.
Politoed: If I see Politoed, I assume that the enemy team is a Rain team and lead Ferrothorn. This allows me to get up a free Stealth Rock with minimal risk, and usually just seeing Ferrothorn in play is enough to force a switch from the enemy Politoed.
Smeargle: I lead with Starmie, using Surf on turn 1 to blow Smeargle’s Sash before it uses Spore. Then I switch out to Metagross as it lays Sticky Web (what else is it going to lay?), which prevents Smeargle from laying more than one hazard because of Bullet Punch which is sure to finish the job. This has the additional benefit of not wasting one of my pokemon with sleep, because Starmie has Natural Cure to clear its status upon switching out.
Tyranitar: I only assume Tyranitar is the enemy lead if I see no other strong leads on their team. I have numerous options to handle Ttar, like Starmie, Metagross, or even Ferrothorn, so this one isn’t a problem.
Tyrantrum: Basically, Tyranitar with a different typing. Same procedure.
Xatu: See Espeon, above
Phase 2: Maneuvering
If I come out of the first few turns with an advantage (which I define as having dealt significant damage to an enemy pokemon without taking much in return OR having laid Stealth Rocks without the opponent laying significant hazards of their own), I immediately go on offense. I switch in my answer to the pokemon they have on the field and use the most powerful attack I have to force them to take significant damage just coming in. Sure, the pokemon they bring in will force me to switch out in the short term, but in the long term they will run low on options because they will not be able to switch in their counter without it being KOed.
My team has two dedicated sweepers, Salamence and Pinsir, as well as Metagross and Starmie, both of whom have the capability to sweep but are only last resort options that I don’t plan to sweep with. This gives me extreme flexibility in my battle planning. Unlike teams designed to set up a single sweeper, I am not playing a mon down for the majority of the game while I try to set up a sweep, and I am not one dimensional and vulnerable to being screwed over by a random crit or speed tie.
My strategy is simple: I switch to whatever mon counters the one they have on the field, and throw out either a status move or the highest powered attacking move I have, depending on the predicted switch in. Eventually, their defensive pokemon will have taken so many hard hits that they will no longer be able to switch in safely. Once this happens, I can bring in the appropriate sweeper and knock out or cripple enemy Pokemon one by one until victory arrives. As a result, this team is not so much worried about defensive threats; if I hit it hard enough over and over again it will eventually go down, no matter how tanky it is.
What I’m mostly worried by are offensive threats like Talonflame, Protean Greninja, and Mega-Kanghaskhan. These threats can punch major holes in my team, disrupting my defensive synergy and my battle plan by forcing me onto the defensive. I have specific answers to these threats defensively, but the nature of today’s offensive threats is such that there are often very limited options for dealing with them defensively; I therefore always keep the option of switching in Salamence or Pinsir and firing off a powerful, last-ditch attempt to knock the pokemon out. My main counter to powerful offensive threats is simply to force them to take a high-powered attack as they switch in.
Threatlist
Mixed attacker (Mega Evo) - I bring in Metagross and force him out with the threat of Meteor Mash followed by Bullet Punch
All Out Attacker (Mega Evo) -Quagsire sets up a burn and then someone else on the team handles him when I feel like it
Swords Dance (Mega Evo) -Quagsire ignores SD and the rest of his movepool along with it
Mixed -Haven’t seen this at all
Swords Dance + King's Shield -Quagsire can switch in on any of its attacks and burn it
Offensive Swords Dance -See above
Full Out Attacker - Bring in Salamence as it switches to Attack form, blow it up
Autotomize -Easily handled by Quagsire or even Salamence
Lead - Follow my normal lead protocol, if another lead isn’t called for lead with Starmie and go for the OHKO
Full out attacker (Mega Evo) - Haven’t seen this, but Quagsire handles it and Metagross can revenge kill if something goes wrong
Rock Polish (Mega Evo) - This thing hits like a truck, but Quagsire absolutely walls it
Focus Sash - Metagross can Bullet Punch twice for the kill
Full out attacker (Mega Evo) - see above
Life Orb - Metagross can switch in on anything and OHKO with Bullet Punch
Belly Drum -Quagsire walls fairly easily in this case
Choice Band -Quagsire, Metagross, and Ferrothorn are all good choices here
Shell Smash -Gets wrecked by Ferrothorn or Metagross
Physical Attacker -Metagross or Salamence can both put heavy pressure on it to switch out
Lead - Starmie lead forces it out
Swords Dance- This could be a problem, because if I let it get a boost up I have to sac something to bring in Starmie
Dragon Dance (Mega Evo X) -Stealth Rock should be up, Salamence handles it pre boost, Quagsire walls it post boost
Life Orb Attacker -Not very worrying at all
Shell Smash - Very annoying because of Skill Link, gets absolutely nuked post SS by Metagross and is walled by Ferrothorn
Bulk Up -Starmie and Salamence both outspeed and OHKO, Quagsire ignores boosts
Sheer Force - I should have no problems with this one
Choice Scarf -Gets walled by Quagsire, and doesn’t appreciate a Scald either
Choice Band - Can break through Quagsire, but gets outsped and OHKOed by Salamence or Starmie
Swords Dance -Salamence or Starmie both outspeed and OHKO
Agility - terrible to begin with, my team dumps on it
Choice Scarf -Let it copy whoever it wants, switch to Quagsire and Scald.
Choice Specs -Too slow, gets OHKOd by Salamence or Starmie and is hard countered by my Metagross set.
Dragon Dance -Quagsire can switch in on any attack and 2HKO back with Ice Beam at worst.
Choice Band - Annoying, but Quagsire handles it when locked into Fire Punch and Ferrothorn handles it when locked into anything else
Mixed -never seen this, but in theory I should be able to take it down with Quagsire
Focus Sash -Doesn’t particularly like taking a hit from anyone on my team, and all my sweepers are immune to its STAB or outspeed it
Dual Screens -Doesn’t like taking hits from Metagross or Pinsir, and easy to bait in
Baton Pass - Quagsire ignores stat boosts, still doesn’t like Metagross or Pinsir
Rapid Spin - No way to keep it from spinning, just bring in Pinsir or Starmie on the Rapid Spin and chunk it. Also, Quagsire walls it
Swords Dance - Quagsire hard walls
Calm Mind -Doesn’t appreciate Yawn from Quagsire at all, and can’t take repeated super effective Bullet Punches from Metagross
Lead -Metagross forces the switch, Starmie can spin later, and rest of my team is either immune to Sticky Web or doesn’t care too much about it
Swords Dance -Quagsire walls its entire movepool
Choice Band -Quagsire can no longer wall, careful switching is required based on what it’s locked into
Choice Scarf - Walled by Quagsire
Full out attacker (Mega Evo) - Too slow, outsped and OHKOed by Salamence or Starmie
Offensive Calm Mind - Not a great set, and doesn’t like to run up against Metagross or Pinsir
Offensive Calm Mind (Mega Evo) - Pretty scary, but just like regular it can’t take a Metagross Bullet Punch
Substitute + Disable / Pain Split -Very, very annoying for any team. Generally I like to bait this set in with Starmie and then OHKO on the switch
Substitute + Pain Spilt -see above
All out attacker (Mega Evo) -banned
SmashPass - Bring in Quagsire or Ferrothorn on the Smash, then Yawn or Leech Seed to break the chain
Choice Specs - Somewhat unpleasant to deal with since Quagsire will do no damage in return to this thing, but Salamence can come in once it’s locked into a non-dragon type move and blast it apart
Assault Vest -Very tanky and difficult to break through, but not nearly as threatening as the defensive sets
Choice Scarf -Haven’t seen really any of these at all, but Ferrothorn should be able to tank this just fine. If I get locked in to something else, I’ll just spam my most powerful attacking move until I faint
Choice Specs -see above
All Out Attacker -One of this team’s most hated mons. Physically offensive variants are easy to deal with because Ferrothorn flat out walls it, but special attacking variants are a real problem for this team because everything gets 2HKOed. Sometimes I can hit it with an attack, then revenge with Metagross.
Spikes - I sigh with relief whenever I see one of these things use Spikes instead of spamming Ice Beam or Dark Pulse
Substitute Dragon Dance - If it gets a sub up it’s dangerous, but I have tools to stop it even then. Quagsire can switch in and ignore its boosts, and force it out using Yawn (which bypasses substitutes)
Offensive Dragon Dance - Deals an awful lot of damage, but as long as I have Quagsire or Ferrothorn left I should be fine. Even Metagross will do in a pinch (though I’d really prefer to save him for other mons)
All out attacker (Mega Evo) - Have not seen any Mega Gyarados at all, but this could be dangerous simply because it bypasses Unaware on Quagsire. Ferrothorn will do fine against it, though.
Swords Dance - Never seen this, but it could be annoying. Probably my best option here is to bring in Salamence to lower its attack and force it out.
Choice Band -Too slow to be much of a threat to my team, I just let it lock into Outrage and then go to Ferrothorn or Metagross.
Double Dance - Have not seen many of these, but generally Quagsire or Ferrothorn can handle this
Swords Dance -See above
Choice Scarf -Very annoying revenge killer/pivot, because nothing I have will really wall it. My best option is probably Ferrothorn or Metagross here, but HP Fire variants can throw a wrench in the works
Choice Specs -see above
Swords Dance (Mega Evo) - Have not seen any of these, but it’s fairly slow so I can easily revenge it.
Nasty Plot (Mega Evo) - I’m glad I haven’t run into any Houndooms, because judging by the calcs I’ve done he could be a real problem for this team if anyone used him. I have to sac something and bring in Salamence on the switch
Mixed attacker (Mega Evo) - see above
Mixed Attacker - Outsped by Salamence and OHKOed,
Choice Specs / Scarf -Specs Hydreigon gets outsped and OHKOed by Salamence so long as I can get it in with good prediction, Scarf is more problematic. In both cases I will switch to someone who can tank their best option for the pokemon on the field
Substitute - Haven’t seen this but it could be difficult to deal with
Power-up Punch (Mega Evo) - Hopefully this will get banned soon, it wrecks this team. Simply deals too much damage to be walled by any of my pokemon, although Ferrothorn can switch in and lower its health enough for it to be revenge killed by Metagross or Salamence.
Choice Specs - Ferrothorn walls this set and can cripple it with Thunder Wave
Rain Dance - This is more iffy, but should still be handled well by Ferrothorn.
Dragon Dance -Handled by Quagsire, as Waterfall is only a 3HKO and Outrage has only a 5.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Mixed attacker -Ferrothorn handles this
Swords Dance -Difficult for my team to handle because Lucario 2HKOs Quagsire, but Salamence can come in on just about anything and OHKO in return
Agility - same
Swords Dance (Mega Evo) -
Agility (Mega Evo) -
Mixed attacker (Mega Evo) -
Nasty Plot (Mega Evo) -
Substitute - Quagsire walls his entire moveset, and can apply burns
Choice Specs - see above
Trick Room - Quagsire outspeeds in Trick Room and ignores all of Malamar’s Contrary boosts
Substitute -Quagsire is another good answer his, because Malamar only 4HKOs no matter how many boosts it stacks up
Physical Attacker -Against Choice Band variants, I can predict the move and switch in someone appropriate to tank. Quagsire just manages to wall non-choiced variants
Lead -Follow my normal Lead protocol
Swords Dance (Mega Evo) -Mawile really doesn’t like taking a Flamethrower to the face, and it’s so slow that taking it down isn’t difficult for Pinsir or Salamence or even Metagross.
Full Out Attacker (Mega Evo)-Problematic because its sheer attack power shatters Quagsire and Ferrothorn, but Salamence is an alright switch in to lower its attack so long as I can avoid taking an Ice Punch to the face.
All-Out Attacker - Doesn’t like a Salamence switchin, but generally I’d rather not use Salamence in that capacity so Quagsire works fine as well
Choice Scarf / Band - Same as before, except Quagsire isn’t an option if he’s banded
Swords Dance - Quagsire has to take this one
Choice Specs -Difficult to handle for this team, although I do alright if I bring Metagross or Ferrothorn in on a correctly predicted move
Choice Scarf - See above
Life Orb - My best bet is to pivot using Metagross or Ferrothorn to go to Starmie, who can put some good damage on it.
Choice Scarf - Walled by Quagsire
Swords Dance (Mega Evo) -This set is worrying since nothing really walls it, but I can do fine with Starmie so long as I get in while it’s SDing
Choice Specs -Ferrothorn walls it
Offensive Trick Room-Reuniclus is a pain, but Metagross handles it pretty well since Metagross is incredibly slow as well
Calm Mind -More dangerous for me, but Pinsir can come in while it’s setting Calm Minds and blow it up.
Chesto Resto -With all Rotom sets, I’d prefer to just hit it with Ferrothorn and call it a day. That’s no different for this set then for the others
Choice Scarf -Switch to Ferrothorn initially, then switch to Starmie or Salamence as it Tricks. Starmie certainly doesn’t mind having a Choice Scarf (even though it does hurt some aspects of its moveset).
Assault Vest -Interesting set that Ferrothorn should have no problems with.
Dragon Dance -Quagsire can wall this set so long as it isn’t carrying Outrage (which it can’t in pre-Bank OU)
Mixed -Very dangerous set that is best countered by a initial switch to Metagross followed by a switch to my own Salamence when it attempts to blow up Metagross with a Fire Blast.
Choice Scarf - ScarfMence is a potential pain but once it’s locked in I have safe switchins
Swords Dance -Force him to pass a Yawn or Leech Seed to break the chain.
Choice Band -Ferrothorn walls its entire movepool
Swords Dance -See above, with Quagsire added in
Bulky Swords Dance (Mega Evo) - An annoying set which is still handled by Ferrothorn
Defog - Let him defog, then bring in Salamence and force whatever he switches to to take a Draco Meteor to the face.
Trapper -Not really worried about this TBH, all the pokemon he’d be trying to trap can hit him back pretty hard
Hazard Lead -See my usual Lead Protocol.
Baton Pass - Force it to pass a Yawn or Leech Seed or break the chain, easy enough
Life Orb - Metagross has Assault Vest, resists its entire movepool, and hits hard with Meteor Mash. Pinsir can also be a good failsafe so long as I haven’t mega evolved yet.
Choice Band -Easily walled by Ferrothorn or Metagross, both of whom can chunk it in return.
Calm Mind - Metagross comes in and puts a stop to the CM spam right away, Ferrothorn also works because it can paralyze and Leech Seed to force it to give up the boosts.
Swords Dance -Just doesn’t have the power to break through Quagsire, and SR gives it the kind of head start it would really rather avoid
Choice Band - meh, can break through Quaggy but ends up very low afterwards, allowing a easy Salamence switchin for the Intimidate and forced switch or KO.
Bulk Up - See Swords Dance
Nasty Plot - Annoying, but it has 4MSS with a NP setup and will be missing one of them moves it needs to beat me. It can’t bring NP, Roost, Aura Sphere, Moonblast, and Flamethrower, so my best bet is to bring in Metagross and go for the Meteor Mash, with Salamence’s HP Electric and Starmie’s Surf as backup options.
Defensive Nasty Plot- NP and Roost confirmed, and it’ll have no speed investment so Metagross is even stronger against it.
Choice Band - Quagsire just soaks all of this thing’s damage and deals serious damage back with Scald.
Choice Scarf - see above
MixTar -I don’t see why anyone would do this (other then Ttars special movepool lolz) but Quagsire does fine again here.
Dragon Dance (MEvo) -Quagsire does fine here, but Metagross is even better because I can bullet punch for massive damage and possibly even a kill.
Offensive Quiver Dance - Stealth Rock hopefully keeps this thing from coming in full HP, other than that my best option is going to Quagsire and Yawning.
Bulky Quiver Dance / Roost - More difficult to handle, but same method as before should apply. If it’s going bulky, I can safely bring in Metagross and attempt to Earthquake.
Chesto Rest - Using Yawn with Quagsire forces him to either Rest earlier than he’d like to or waste his Chesto Berry.
Substitute - My team doesn’t like substitutes in general but it shouldn’t be an issue since as long as my SR is up Substitute will take it to 25% HP.
Pursuit trapper - Annoying but Ferrothorn takes care of him. If he switches in on Starmie or Metagross I’ll just go for the kill with Surf/Bullet Punch.
Swords Dance - Send in Metagross, blow him up with Bullet Punch
Dragon Dance -Have not seen any Zygardes but my calcs indicate that Quagsire should handle him
Coil - see above
Substitute + Leech Seed - Metagross can punch through this thing fairly quickly even with Leech Seed+Lefties recovery
Sleep Talk (Mega Evo) - With Rest and Sleep Talk, it will be missing one crucial move like Dragon Pulse, Thunderbolt, or Focus Blast. Metagross is my best option here since it threatens a OHKO with Earthquake and can switch in on anything that isn’t Focus Blast. Salamence is also good if I can get a free switch somehow
Standard - Absolutely destroyed by Salamence Flamethrower
Rapid Spin - Doesn’t particularly like Metagross or Salamence, despite its massive physical defense
Substitute + Disable - This sounds obnoxious, but thankfully I’ve never run into it. Anything on my team should be able to do some serious damage to this thing, although Ferrothorn and Salamence should stay away.
Stall Breaker - Not too worried about this set because I’m not stalling and only Ferrothorn really loses anything by being Taunted.
Support - Switch to Metagross to force anything that comes in to take a Meteor Mash to the face.
Tank -Once I figure out whether it’s Levitate or Heatproof, I can take it down with Metagross or Salamence as appropriate.
Support -See Blissey, above.
Utility -If it’s setting Spikes, I can just send in Starmie to Rapid Spin as needed and dish out damage on its weaker defense with Psychic.
Spikes - Not really very good. Starmie can easily come in while it sets Spikes, force it out, and Rapid Spin.
Defog -Bringing in Starmie or Metagross while it Defogs allows me to crush it or force it out afterwards, gaining momentum
Stall Breaker - Bring in Starmie to force it out
Calm Mind -Switch in Metagross, forcing it to decide whether to switch out or take a Meteor Mash to the face
Standard -Metagross functions as an effective lure for this thing with HP Fire, but Salamence is a much more efficient method for eliminating it.
Wish + Protect -Metagross makes its life unpleasant.
Physically Defensive - Metagross lures it in to be blown up by HP Fire, and Salamence is a good second way to break through
Specially Defensive -Not many good ways to break through this one, but if I hit it hard enough for long enough it will go down. I can also use this one to set up Swords Dances on Pinsir or something
Wish Support -There’s no effective way to stop it from passing wishes, so I’ll go to Pinsir and either X-Scissor if I think she’s Wishing for herself or Swords Dance if I think she’ll pass to another pokemon.
Tank - Annoying to deal with because it’s so bulky, but Ferrothorn forces it out and allows me to build momentum.
Substitute + Protect - Quagsire’s Ice Beam is good here
Stallbreaker - Once again, Quagsire is an ideal switchin, although Salamence and Starmie aren’t too shabby either.
Substitute + Leech Seed - Salamence breaks the sub with one flamethrower and KOs with the other, and if he switches out after I break his sub I can just switch as well.
Bulky Support -Annoying but Salamence’s HP Electric makes short work of it, assuming I don’t get Phazed.
Resttalk - see above
Spikes - See my Team Preview section above
Dual Screens - Generally I like to attempt to stall out the screens and then resume normal play, but against certain setup sweepers this isn’t workable.
Thunder Wave / Swagger - Parahax is super annoying, but I’ll gladly let it paralyze Starmie, switch to Metagross on the Swagger, and blow it up with Earthquake before sweeping with +2 Metagross.
Defensive -Not honestly that great a set, it can’t deal with Ferrothorn.
Physically Defensive - Since my team doesn’t have many setup sweepers (only Pinsir), there’s not much Unaware can do to me. As long as I have Salamence or Starmie left I should be able to break through
Support - I hate Rotom-W. Starmie can absorb Trick and Will-o-Wisp but hates getting hit with any of Rotom’s attacks, and Ferrothorn can tank it all day but can’t risk getting Tricked or Will-O-Wisped. :(
Prankster -Switch to Starmie, allow Starmie to be burned, then blow it up or force it out
Spikes Lead-Lead Starmie and force it to either switch out or take a Psychic to the face
Physically Defensive -Salamence can destroy it, but my other pokemon will have problems. Without Salamence, I should just wait till last Pokemon then stack up SD on Pinsir and attempt to break through.
Specially Defensive - see above
Tank -Very, very tanky, but there’s not much it can do to Quagsire and Pinsir can bust the wall with X-Scissor
Defensive Rapid Spin - Let it Rapid Spin and use the free turn to bring in Pinsir. Then force it to choose between going for the kill or allowing SD on the switch.
Wish + Protect - Bring in Metagross and force a switch
Substitute + Leech Seed -Salamence punches through with 2 Flamethrowers
Will-O-Wisp - Salamence punches through with one Flamethrower
Substitute + Toxic -Annoying set, Starmie is my best answer to this
Protect - Starmie, Metagross, and Salamence are all alright answers for this
Specially Defensive -Metagross can chunk Tyranitar, and Forretress isn’t bad either.
Wish Support - Harder for me to deal with than most Wish supports, but I should be able to deal good damage with Ferrothorn’s Power Whip.
SubSeed -Not a big deal, because it won’t have Thick Fat and I can melt it down with Flamethrower from Salamence.
Custap Berry -Unless he catches me with Salamence or Metagross out, I can just not attack on the Destiny Bond turn and then finish the thing off.
Bulky - I’ll take it out but probably lose a pokemon in the process.
Standard - I basically treat Xatu exactly like an Espeon, with a Metagross switchin to force it to switch out after I’ve baited it in with Ferrothorn.
Physically Defensive -Have not run into one of these before (most if not all Zapdos I see are special attacking variants) but it shouldn’t be too hard to deal with because Salamence can bust through it.
Specially Defensive - Metagross can hit this version hard
Substitute Roost -Anything with Substitute is hard to deal with this for this team. Quagsire can come in and use Ice Beam repeatedly to break the substitute and slowly work down Zapdos.
Rest + Sleep Talk - Once it rests I can bring in Starmie safely to go for the kill.
