SM OU RMT OU Rain dance

[Villainous Valkyrie]

Hello everyone,

I am reasonably new here and to pokemon showdown in general but wanted to take a crack at a rain dance team. I've played about... 15-20 matches with it now and it works reasonably well just looking for tweaks and advice.

Thundurus (M) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rain Dance
- Dark Pulse
- Sludge Bomb
- Thunder

Thundurus is my usual lead and rain dance setter. It uses Prankster to force rain dance as a priority move. It then wants to be reasonably bulky with HP and Speed EV's meaning it outspeeds a small portion of the meta while also tanking the enemy sweepers. Dark pulse and sludge bomb are mostly for the coverage while Thunder is there for the synergy with rain dance and to be a STAB on my lead. I am using this as my lead due to decent typing as most people will predict pellipper to be my lead.

Swampert-Mega @ Swampertite
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Aqua Tail
- Ice Punch
- Waterfall
- Sludge Wave

My physical attack sweeper and all around main source of damage in most matches. EV's should explain themselves but Attack and Speed for sweeping. Aquatail and waterfall to be my normal STABS and Ice punch to cover flying and dragon in the off chance they have them. Sludge wave is just for more coverage though I am a little on the fence about it.

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 60 HP / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Surf
- Energy Ball
- Ice Beam
- Rain Dance

My other rain dance sweeper and generally more late game. This will be my lead sweeper against more grass heavy teams due to typing, which mega swamp is useless against. EV's are again explained by it being a sweeper and the 60 HP EV's let it survive a little longer with the life orb. Surf is the main STAB but energy ball is a backup against ground and water types. Ice beam again is for coverage and he comes with rain dance. I didn't think a fourth coverage attack was needed and going into late game sometimes my main rain setters are dead so it can be game changing for me.

Tentacruel @ Leftovers
Ability: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Rain Dance
- Sludge Wave
- Hydro Pump

This is the pokemon I am the most on the fence about. It is my terrain clearer with Rapid spin, as this team has a distinct weakness to Ferrothorn. EV's are to be tanky and just tanky. Being my main wall. Rain dish and left overs meaning it gets 1/8th health back a turn. Rain dance lets it resetup as a late game rain dancer, Hydro pump and sludge being STABS.

Pelipper @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpA
Bold Nature
- Roost
- Hurricane
- Stockpile
- U-turn

Can you guess what this guy is for? That is right, switch in rain dance when the lead rain dance runs out. EV's designed to keep it on the map for longer and Roost gives it decent sustain. Hurricane is a good stab for clearing certain types and gives me a little extra coverage. Stockpile gives extra defense too. U-turn is for the slow scout and safe swap.

Scizor @ Occa Berry
Ability: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite
- Roost

My main grass check. Occa berry to stop OHKO from hidden power fire from things like volcarona and mega charizard. Sword dance because why not? I can set up in the grass pokemons face and sweep with it. Bullet punch and bug bite give it more coverage and decent STABS. Roost for the sustain.

 

[737373elj]

I’m just going to say there are better Rain teams out there. Tapu Koko and Ash-Gren are wicked in rain.

 

[Thunder]

Well why your swamp lacks a ground type and two water moves don't make sense.
Also run stone edge or superpower over sludge wave.

 

[ScalchopFren]

Setting aside the complete lack of a Dark resist, I think you're going in a good direction with some of the Pokémon on the team, just not at all with their sets. So I'm gonna list some ways to improve this squad, because there are plenty of those (changes are in bold).

1. Saying you're weak to Ferrothorn is a massive understatement; your current team (barring Scizor) is all but incapable of killing it. Fire coverage is out of the question since you'll basically be removing its Fire weakness with your own rain, so its only real weakness in this case is Fighting. Replacing Sludge Wave with Superpower on Swampert is a start, but I think you need a little more for Ferro than just that. So, I would change Tentacruel to a Fightinium Z Tornadus. It gives you a better option for dealing with Ferro (and also just a better Pokémon in general) while still preserving your hazard control with Defog.

2. Good rain teams don't frequently run more rain setters than Pelipper, because if you know what you're doing with it then you usually don't need more. As such, Thundurus is kind of in a weird spot for me. It doesn't really add anything to the team outside of setting up rain, because its spot as a potential Thunder spammer is much better filled by Tapu Koko. By using something like this, you give yourself a stronger and faster Electric-type that will help you in the long run against something like Greninja.

3. Speaking of Greninja, your current team has zero reliable switch-ins to Dark Pulse. The Koko I just recommended helps a bit with that, but if it's gone you basically auto-lose to Ash Gren. To offset that, I would suggest two changes:

a) Replace Scizor with Ferrothorn. You want a Grass check? HERE'S your Grass check. As I mentioned earlier, Ferrothorn is remarkably difficult with rain up, and Ash Gren's Dark Pulse is never any stronger than a 4HKO on this set before its transformation. It also still gives you a generally reliable Grass-type answer while providing you with entry hazards that your team was severely in need of.​

b) Replace Ludicolo with Assault Vest Magearna. This is one of the best Gren checks in existence, and by running it you also give yourself another defensive option against potential Grass moves that could eventually become an issue for you.​

4. That's all I have to say about changing specific Pokémon on your team, so I'm going to dedicate this last point to fixing up your PeliPert combination. The sets you've chosen for both of these are quite odd, with Swampert's in particular being very bad. So, let's address them.

a) Swampert: Sludge Wave is a waste of a moveslot. Pert already has Ice Punch for Grass-types, and every Fairy-type in the tier except for Tapu Bulu will get hit hard by Waterfall or EQ (Earthquake). And speaking of EQ, your lack of it on that set is very very bad. There is only one viable set for rain sweeper Pert, and that is Waterfall + EQ + Ice Punch + filler. The first three give you its best potential coverage for this tier, and the filler slot gives you the freedom to run things like Substitute, Stealth Rock, or Superpower. I mentioned earlier that Superpower is your best bet, so have a go at running this. Waterfall is preferred to Aqua Tail, because it already hits like a truck under rain and doesn't have a chance to miss.​

b) Pelipper: Stockpile is an odd choice to say the least, especially in tandem with U-turn. Setting up your defenses is unnecessary when you're probably going to be switching Peli out a lot anyway (it's not exactly the strongest Pokémon out there), so replace Stockpile with Scald. Scald is mandatory on Peli, since it gets boosted by the rain and has a chance to cripple your opponent with a burn.​

​

Finally, here is an importable version of the team I just went over. I realize that I changed your team quite a bit, but the result is much more viable in the current OU meta than what you had.