Gen 4 DPP NU Team Dump

[Oglemi]

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Mods if you'd rather I post this in RoA das fine, but I'll treat each team like an RMT here.

Introduction

First of all, a bit of an introduction to the tier of DPP NU. NU was never "official" on Smogon, however there was a large subcommunity that played the tier throughout the time that DPP was the main generation. The main community discussion was held on Project NU, where they decided to conduct their own Suspect Tests and discuss the other NU tiers, particularly ADV NU.

Anyway, it was never really popular here on Smogon. However, it was and still is a very fun tier, and because it wasn't ever played very heavily at a very high level, new strategies and elements are still being found to this day. Particularly as people enter the tier coming from the mindset of 6th Gen metagames.

I've always liked the tier, it never held up to my favorite all-time tier DPP UU, but it was still a fun tier to play, particularly when Entei and Espeon were finally given the boot on Project NU. So, starting about two years ago, me and Honko started messing around with it a bit more, and the tier has been included in the NUPL the past couple times, meaning people have begun to play it again at a high level.

Some things about the tier: Charizard is absolute king, Medicham is awesome, every weather is highly viable, and the tier favors heavy offensive and bulky offensive playstyles more than stall on the whole due to the lack of viable defensive Pokemon with good recovery. You can catch up on the viability rankings here.

Teams:


Standard Charizard Offense with a Twist

The concept and idea of this team is pretty simple: lead your opponent into believing you're setting up for a Charizard sweep through breaking walls and keeping SR off the field (though to be completely fair, depending on the opponent going for a Charizard sweep is probably the best course of action regardless), only to turn around and reveal in the endgame that your true plan is to sweep with Sunny Day Vileplume, which is otherwise most commonly (like 80% of the time) defensive. As a bonus, the sun that Vileplume sets up not only administers its own sweep, but powers up Charizard as well should Vileplume bite the dust.

Teambuilding for this team was pretty simple as well. I wanted to do everything in my power to keep SR off the field to ensure a Charizard sweep was possible, if needed, which is why I chose Floatzel as an anti-lead (fastest Taunt in the tier), as well as defensive Sandslash with Shadow Claw to make spinning as easy as possible. From there I needed to pair Charizard with its best offensive partner, Skuntank, to eliminate its most common check, Slowking. As a bonus, Skuntank is also great at eliminating some obstacles for Vileplume, including Haunter, Hypno, and Lickilicky (the latter with Explosion).

Finally, I needed an emergency check to a ton of things in the tier, including most prominently Tauros and Dodrio, but also some other dangerous stuff like Medicham, Jynx, Manectric, and opposing weather sweepers like Victreebel and Swift Swimmers. Scarf Gardevoir fit the bill perfectly thanks to its high power and ability in Trace.

Floatzel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Waterfall
- Baton Pass
- Ice Punch

Floatzel is probably my favorite anti-lead in the tier as it outspeeds basically everything and Taunts it, preventing a large majority of things from either setting up SR or putting something to sleep. That and its typing is nice as a lead since most are weak or neutral to Water. Ice Punch rounds off the coverage to make sure Vileplume and other Grasses don't get a free switch into it (Cacturne in particular). Baton Pass is the ultimate scouting tool available to it, allowing it to capitalize on the switches its likely to cause with Taunt, and it's a great way to bait and switch to Skuntank.

Gardevoir @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Trace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Psychic
- Trick
- Thunderbolt
- Focus Blast

Gardevoir is an extremely flexible mon in the tier, and while it's not the best at anything it can do, it's extremely dangerous in a ton of them. Scarf is probably the "weakest" way to take Gard, but its utility as an emergency check is incredible, and it's something that only it can fill in the hole for this team. Psychic and Thunderbolt destroy most if not all opposing weather sweepers, and Focus Blast eliminates most of the things that would likely be switching into Gard, but really it's largely a filler move. The big attraction here is Trick. I used to have Shadow Ball to be able to catch opposing Jynx and Medicham, but the utility lost from not having Trick wasn't worth it, particularly when facing teams with a Hypno or Lickilicky.

In most situations I won't reveal Gard until later in the match and typically as a revenge killer. I think most commonly I use her to remove Tauros from the equation, but also stuff like Haunter and other Charizard that can be dangerous for my team to handle otherwise.

Sandslash @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Veil
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Shadow Claw
- Earthquake

Probably the best spinner in the tier unless you're a fan of Hitmonchan. As a bonus it also gets Stealth Rock, letting fill two holes in this team and doing it well enough I don't feel bad for using it. Sandslash has the advantage of being able to take on Regirock for the team and spinning on it until I can get something else in to get rid of it for good. Shadow Claw is a great tool for Haunter and Drifblim, but typically spinning isn't hard to do in NU unless your opponent is packing the rare Dusclops. And Sandslash is basically impossible to OHKO outside of getting hit by a STAB Surf or Explosion from Regi.

Outside of spinning and SR though Sandslash doesn't do a LOT for the team, so if I need to sac something it's usually Sandslash that bites the dust. Fortunately, most of the things that I would sac it against, like Politoed for example, make a good setup opportunity for Vileplume.

Skuntank @ Black Glasses
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Sucker Punch
- Explosion

Probably the best offensive partner available for Charizard, triple Dark attack is no joke. Lum Berry is definitely an option so that Skuntank can switch into Slowking with impunity; however, Black Glasses gives Skuntank that extra oomph on Pursuit and Sucker Punch that can save the battle, without the cost of losing extra HP from LO. Skuntank also serves as my best way to remove Haunter, Hypno, and Gardevoir, as well as luring out walls like Gligar and Lickilicky to Boom on.

Unfortunately, this Skuntank is a free switch for Regirock, which is bad news for Charizard. However, Regirock is typically a nice set up opportunity for Vileplume, so unless I feel like duking it out with Sandslash, I'll sac Skuntank and then get Vileplume in for free to finish the job and sweep the opp.

Charizard @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Air Slash
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Roost

The "star" of the show, but not really. It's an incredible Pokemon and it will alone win battles for you if you played Skuntank correctly, but it's main purpose here is to lure out the opponent's special walls that Skuntank likely won't and maim them with Fire Blast enough for Vileplume to sweep when it goes down.

The moveset is extremely standard. HP Grass is the best tool for the third slot to give Charizard a fighting chance against late-game bulky Waters as well as an OK way to fend off Regirock. There's a not a lot that would go there regardless, as Air Slash + Fire Blast covers most of the tier. Focus Blast is an option, but fuck that accuracy. Roost is there to allow Charizard to throw out as many Fire Blasts as possible.

Vileplume @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sunny Day
- Solar Beam
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder

The real star of the show. Once sun is up nothing in the tier except Electrode, other sun sweepers, and a select few Scarfers (unfortunately that includes Manectric, but that's what Gard is for) are going to be able to outspeed you. LO Vileplume hits like a fucking truck, so a sweep should be pretty simple in the endgame if you've removed its major counters, Hypno and Slowking. Otherwise, apart from Hypno cuz of Insomnia, Sleep Powder is a good tool for ensuring the sweep is ensured. Sunny Day Vileplume is also a good countermeasure for Stallrein hail, particularly since most hail teams are willing to sac Snover earlier in the game once they assume that you're not using a weather team.

Threatlist:
- DD Zard: Rare but can just blow through the team if it gets set up, which is easy enough for it to do on Sandslash. Skuntank can Sucker Punch and Gard and Floatzel will likely not be KOed immediately, but it's still dangerous.
- Scarf Medicham: Most are Adamant so Gard will typically outspeed and Plume will in the sun, but if they're Jolly or I don't have the sun up it can be tough to play around this thing, since Sandslash and Skuntank are only an OK check at best.
- Manectric: Really kind of a Catch 22 with this one. If the opponent plays well they can pick off my team one by one, but they can screw themselves by allowing a free switch for any of Gard, Sandslash or Skuntank if they choose wrong. Still threatening though if they bring it out lategame since Scarf outspeeds and KOes both Zard and Plume (though not both at once).
- Regirock: Complete wall to Charizard, but more dangerous than anything is its Boom, but I also don't have a real way to remove Rest versions apart from waiting for it to go to sleep and then getting Plume in, but that can be risky.
- SpD Lickilicky: I really don't have a solid answer to remove it apart from Trick on Gard and Explosion on Skuntank, so if the opponent can manage to keep it around my one chance of getting past it is with Vileplume's Sleep Powder.

importable

Floatzel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Waterfall
- Baton Pass
- Ice Punch

Gardevoir @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Trace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Psychic
- Trick
- Thunderbolt
- Focus Blast

Sandslash @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Veil
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Shadow Claw
- Earthquake

Skuntank @ Black Glasses
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Sucker Punch
- Explosion

Charizard @ Life Orb
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Air Slash
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Roost

Vileplume @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sunny Day
- Solar Beam
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder

Standard Hail Stall

Hail in DPP NU is actually extremely similar, if not almost exact to, how hail performs in DPP UU. The three main components to hail in UU are available in NU (Snover, Walrein, Nidoqueen), and the last three slots have direct, only slightly less viable, counterparts in NU. This makes hail an extremely powerful playstyle in the tier, and if the opponent lacks a very solid answer or gameplan for dealing with Stallrein, it can lead to a very, well, slow but guaranteed demise.

The overall idea of this team is rather simple: ensure Stallrein can stall out the opponent. Every member of the team has a specific role to play to allow Stallrein the best opportunity to get in and stall the opponent without fear. Every major defensive team role niche in the tier is found here on this team: Foresight spinner, Toxic Spikes absorber, Wish passer, and Heal Beller are all present. The only major niche missing is a spinblocker, though those in NU are mostly worthless on a heavy stall team like this, and this team doesn't rely on hazard phazing to rack up damage anyway, instead relying on Toxic + hail. Each member is here to protect Stallrein from the most common ways of breaking its stall.

Snover @ Focus Sash
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Rash Nature
- Protect
- Blizzard
- Energy Ball
- Ice Shard

How I play with Snover depends entirely on the opposing lead. If I suspect that the opponent may have weather present on the team I'll try to keep Snover alive as long as possible. However, Snover is the most expendable member of the team, so if something needs to die it's going to be it.

On a heavy stall team such as this you'd probably expect Snover's set to be something like SubSeed. However, I find that no matter how I EV Snover or what moveset I use, it ends up doing about the same damage and holds the same utility. At least with an offensive moveset I can hope to blow apart the opponent's Stealth Rock lead to make Hitmonchan's job easier.

Walrein @ Leftovers
Ability: Ice Body
EVs: 232 HP / 220 Def / 56 Spe
Bold Nature
- Protect
- Substitute
- Surf / Blizzard
- Toxic

Standard Stallrein EV spread, though I typically will run way more Speed if I'm using this team in a tourney match. Surf/Toxic is the best possible combination for the last two slots and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Some people will tell you Roar is more valuable than one move or the other, but Surf/Toxic gives you the most useful PP and it's the best possible way to fend off other Walrein should it come down to it (hence why I'll also run more Speed usually). Surf also nails Magmortar and Charizard which can otherwise be dangerous for Walrein, and will be the most useful should a Gardevoir switch into you. Vileplume will be a pain when using this set as Surf does negligible damage to it and you can't Toxic it, so Blizzard is an option over Surf and I will run it sometimes too. Blizzard is also Walrein's best tool when fighting sun teams, despite the accuracy, as it KOes the Grasses and also hits Charizard neutrally.

Nidoqueen (F) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Poison Point
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic Spikes
- Earthquake
- Protect

Nidoqueen serves three crucial roles on the team here: it provides Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes, absorbs enemy Toxic Spikes, and it has nearly perfect defensive synergy with Walrein, taking on Fighting-, Rock-, Electric-, and most Grass-type attacks easily should Walrein need to switch out.

Protect simply stalls for more hail damage and scouts what the opponent is up to. There are a lot of Choice users in NU, so Protect on defensive Pokemon like Queen is a great tool regardless. Earthquake is Queen's best available STAB and though mono-Ground leaves it exposed to Flying-types, aka Charizard, this team has a rather easy time with most Zard and other Flying-types on the whole.

I have used Roar in the last slot and found it a useful tool, especially when something like Zard switches in. However, the utility Protect has is just too hard to pass up, especially when dealing with shit like LO Medicham and Tauros, as well as Choice stuff like Manectric and Dodrio.

Hitmonchan (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Foresight
- Close Combat
- Thunder Punch

Probably the best possible spinner to use on this team as Foresight guarantees a spin against the Ghost-types, and Double Ghost is unheard of in NU, particularly when only 3 usable Ghosts exist in the tier. I use a fully physically defensive spread to give me a secondary check to Tauros and Regirock and a decent way to fend of Skuntank outside of Queen. That and most if not all of the SR/Tspikes setters in the tier are physical attackers. Close Combat + Thunder Punch gives Chan the best possible coverage, letting it nail Slowking and Charizard. I've considered going specially defensive rather than physical in order to better combat Haunter and Drifblim, but really with max HP Chan is specially defensive enough in most cases.

Hypno @ Leftovers
Ability: Insomnia
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Wish
- Protect
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss

Hypno serves as the team's counter, yes counter, to Medicham, as well as a Wish passer to keep the rest of the team healthy as none of them have a reliable healing move. Hypno is pretty useless when it comes to attacking, so instead it relies on Toxic and Seismic Toss to deal damage. Outside of countering Medicham, Hypno acts as an all-purpose check to a lot of things in the tier, particularly enemy weather sweepers thanks to its immunity to Sleep Powder. With max Defense, Hypno really isn't even afraid of Skuntank, and Protect is a nice way to scout for Pursuit and Explosion. Unfortunately, Haunter gets a completely free switch into this set, though most won't risk it due to STAB Psychic being prevalent on Hypno.

Lickilicky @ Leftovers
Ability: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Heal Bell
- Blizzard
- Fire Blast
- Toxic

Finally, Lickilicky serves as the team's cleric. Unfortunately, Wish and Heal Bell are illegal on the same set; however, it's not too big a deal as this team needed a SpD backbone, and Licki sure does provide. The attacking moves are really largely filler. Blizzard is fun to throw around since hail should be up most times, and Fire Blast is a nice deterrent to the Chlorophyll sweepers and a few special attackers it hits super effectively, particularly Jynx and Venomoth. Toxic is there just to keep the team theme of stalling out the opponent, though it can easily be replaced for a Normal move or Thunderbolt. Overall, I've found special attacking to be more useful, as the tier is overall far less specially defensive than physical, and Toxic typically cripples the more specially defensive mons.

Threatlist:
- Sunny Day and other weather: Removes my hail and completely neuters my team's strategy. Especially dangerous if the weather comes out late-game. While my team itself doesn't particularly fear any sun or rain sweepers thanks to my defensive core, it's the neutering of Walrein that's most troublesome.
- Medicham: If Hypno is gone, Medicham has a field day with this team. Stallrein can stall it out, but it can't come into it.
- CurseRest Regirock: Curse Regi can be really dangerous, particularly if I don't have Surf on Stallrein. However, it has a tough time finding an opportunity to really get set up.
- Charizard: Some versions of Charizard can get dangerous if I predict wrong or get screwed by Sub or something. Really it just comes down to smart playing to not let it get dangerous.

Importable

Snover @ Focus Sash
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Rash Nature
- Protect
- Blizzard
- Energy Ball
- Ice Shard

Walrein @ Leftovers
Ability: Ice Body
EVs: 232 HP / 220 Def / 56 Spe
Bold Nature
- Protect
- Substitute
- Surf
- Toxic

Nidoqueen (F) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Poison Point
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic Spikes
- Earthquake
- Protect

Hitmonchan (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Foresight
- Close Combat
- Thunder Punch

Hypno @ Leftovers
Ability: Insomnia
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Wish
- Protect
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss

Lickilicky @ Leftovers
Ability: Own Tempo
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Heal Bell
- Blizzard
- Fire Blast
- Toxic

Flipside Smashing

Yes this is a Trick Room team, and yes I've actually found Trick Room to be decent in NU. The main thing making Trick Room doable in NU is the relative power Marowak and Camerupt have, and the number of good Pokemon in the tier that can learn and reliably set up Trick Room.

This Trick Room team's main aim is to wallbreak/sweep with Marowak under Trick Room, and then clean up with Scarf Zard outside of TR. Overall this team works well in or out of Trick Room, which is highly desirable as you don't want to have to rely on Trick Room being up to work.

Teambuilding for this team was a bit tricky, because finding that balance to how much is too much to become dependent on Trick Room, and how much is too little to not make Trick Room worth it was really hard to find. But I feel I've found that balance with this build. The key was making sure that the Pokemon I have setting up Trick Room aren't deadweight outside of that role. Apart from that it was how make sure I'm not a sitting duck outside of TR, which is where dual screens Gard and Scarf Zard come into play.

Solrock @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Trick Room
- Explosion
- Stone Edge

Solrock possesses three traits that make it desirable as an offensive Trick Room lead: SR, TR, and Explosion. It's a unique set of moves that only it and Lunatone have, and it makes for a great way to lead off a team like this thanks to the immediate hole Explosion leaves in the opposition. Granted, most of the time Solrock is only going to get TR set up and then SR before dying. However, the threat of Explosion and other moves is usually enough to scare the opponent into switching, giving it time to both set up SR and then Boom. The last slot is like 99% filler, but I use Stone Edge to give Solrock a good tool to use against Taunt users. In fact, Solrock I think at worst 2HKOes every common Taunt lead, meaning if they go for the Taunt and I use Stone Edge, they either have to make the choice to set up SR and lose their Taunter, or switch out and have something eat Explosion or allow me to switch and get TR set up. The other option for the last slot is Protect to save its Sash from Fake Out leads.

Slowking @ Life Orb
Ability: Own Tempo
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Nasty Plot
- Surf
- Slack Off

Slowking is my second in command for setting up TR, but it's main role is as a TR sweeper. LO Surf hurts, and with a NP under its belt it's absolutely brutal. Normally, I would have Psychic in the last slot, particularly to make sure Slowking isn't stopped by Vileplume and other bulky Waters. However, Slack Off ensures that Slowking has a better chance of setting up TR again later in the match, and mono-Water really isn't that bad all things considered, especially when the threat of Psychic is enough to keep Vileplume from switching in, especially when they see LO damage. That and Psychic still wouldn't help Slowking get passed other Slowking, and the only true thing Slowking /needs/ Psychic for is Quagsire.

Porygon2 @ Leftovers
Ability: Trace
EVs: 252 HP / 40 SpA / 216 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Recover
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam

The third in command for setting up TR, and actually probably the most reliable at doing so. The main reason I chose P2 as my last TR setter is because it's the only TR setter not utterly weak to Skuntank and Haunter, and in fact beats them one-on-one (save for Explosion). The bulk on this guy is crazy, and there's been a few times I've won a match simply because P2 can tank an attack from something like Specs Zard, set up TR, and blast back with BoltBeam. P2 is also a great tool to have against hail teams in order to Trace Stallrein's Ice Body and threaten with Thunderbolt.

Marowak @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Brave Nature
- Substitute
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Double-Edge

Marowak's power is absolutely incredible, and that's about as lightly as I can put it. This guy is an absolute monster, cleanly 2HKOing even max Defense Slowking and having a chance to OHKO 252 HP Regirock after SR. Even Double-Edge 2HKOes max Defense Gligar after SR 50% of the time. Substitute is there to protect Marowak outside of TR and gives Marowak something to do if the opponent tries to stall for TR turns with Protect or something. What the opponent doesn't know is that Marowak is actually more of a wallbreaker than sweeper, paving the way to a clean sweep by Zard after TR has wore off and Marowak goes down. What makes Marowak especially good at this is the fact that it lures out the bulky Waters like Slowking as well as stuff like Floatzel and Hypno. The bad thing about Marowak is that it's kinda hard to get in, especially if I set up TR with P2. Typically, I'll try to get Marowak in as Slowking dies or after I Boom with Solrock.

Gardevoir @ Light Clay
Ability: Trace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Memento
- Psychic

A non-TR Gard on a TR team looks really weird, but Gard actually serves a critical role in making sure that this team can function outside of TR. Dual screens is the perfect way to make sure Marowak can take a hit or two outside of TR and complete a sweep, or protect Zard from the likes of Scarf Manectric as it attempts a late-game sweep. To give Marowak and Zard the best possible chance of winning, Memento is there to weaken the opponent even further. The last slot goes to Psychic, which if Gard gets Taunted most of the time Psychic isn't going to be doing anything cuz they're largely Dark-types, but if it was something like Floatzel it'll go down pretty easily. Gard is also a nice emergency check to most sun and rain sweepers thanks to Trace, hence the offensive EV spread as opposed to a more defensive one.

Charizard @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Fire Blast
- Air Slash
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]

9/10 times I wouldn't suggest a Scarf Zard for most teams, especially on a team without a spinner, but it serves an awesome on this role on this team as an unexpected late-game threat outside of TR. As far as Scarf users go, Zard has the best combination of high Speed and high power, outspeeding all other common Scarfers apart from Manectric, and being more powerful than most other Scarfers apart from Medicham. Actually every time I've used this team in a high profile match, Zard has been the winning ingredient each time. As for the moveset there really isn't anything I would change, none of the moves are really negotiable. Focus Blast sucks ass but it's needed for Regirock and Lickilicky, and HP Grass is the best thing to cover both Slowking and Quagsire/Whiscash.

Threatlist:
- Taunt Floatzel: Taunt in general, but Taunt Floatzel is particularly disruptive for this team, as it destroys my two main sweepers and resists Slowking's attacks. P2 doesn't fear much from Floatzel and Gard takes it out, but a good Taunt at the right time can really screw me over.
- Hazard Stacking: This team doesn't have a spinner, and P2, Slowking and Gard lose a lot of their effectiveness if there's SR and a couple layers of Spikes on the field.
- Shiftry: Shiftry is super dangerous for this team, as outside of P2 and Zard, it completely demolishes every member of the team. In the sun it's gonna outspeed Zard too.
- Magmortar: Maggy does a ton to each member of the team, and if it comes in late-game it can spell trouble for me if it's not in KO range of Zard.
- Skuntank: With 3 Psychics on the team, a well-played Skuntank is going to have a blast against this team. While it can't do much but Boom against Marowak, that's pretty much all it has to do if it took out Slowking or Gard. Sucker Punch can also be a threat for Zard.

Importable

Solrock @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Trick Room
- Explosion
- Stone Edge

Slowking @ Life Orb
Ability: Own Tempo
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Nasty Plot
- Surf
- Slack Off

Porygon2 @ Leftovers
Ability: Trace
EVs: 252 HP / 40 SpA / 216 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Recover
- Thunderbolt
- Ice Beam

Marowak @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Brave Nature
- Substitute
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Double-Edge

Gardevoir @ Light Clay
Ability: Trace
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Memento
- Psychic

Charizard @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Fire Blast
- Air Slash
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Slow Burn

I initially made this team as a joke to play against Honko. We were talking about how Zard can literally use any set and not be bad, and we started laughing at the idea of a SubRoost Zard. I ended up making a team with it, and it's actually a really fun team to play with (it also ended up beating him in NUPL). The main idea was to make sure SR stays off the field, and then support Zard with a bulky offense backbone in case it needed to switch out.

While the team is funny and fun to play with, I probably wouldn't recommend using it in a highprofile match unless you're confident your opponent is going to be bringing stall. For as funny as SubRoost Zard is, it destroys stall team archetypes, especially those that rely on a Hypno/Lickilicky/Slowking core, and Lapras and Vileplume on this team can run through bulkier teams in their own right.

Sneasel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out
- Taunt
- Ice Punch
- Counter

Sneasel ties with Floatzel for the fastest Taunt in the tier after Electrode, and it also has the bonus of being a Fake Out lead to break Focus Sashes. I wanted a fast Taunt to try and stop SR from going up, since it heavily cuts into Zard's effectiveness if it goes up. The last two moves are rarely used, but if Sneasel's Sash is still intact, Counter is a great way to catch a ton of things offguard, particularly stuff like Regirock that'll likely switch into Sneasel. Ice Punch is just a good STAB move to carry around.

Hitmonchan (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Mach Punch
- Close Combat
- Thunder Punch

LO Chan is no pushover, and it makes for a decent spinner for a bulkier offense team like this. LO Chan is also a good lure for Slowking, dealing a ton of damage with Thunder Punch, as well as obliterating Haunter and Drifblim. Mach Punch is a nice tool to have as this team is rather slow, and it helps pick off weakened Tauros and other threats like Shiftry. Overall, Chan's job is to make sure SR stays off the field, and if it accomplishes that it gets to cut loose and fire off as many Close Combats as possible.

Charizard @ Leftovers
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 248 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Toxic
- Flamethrower

The main attraction, and a rather dangerous threat if played well. The main idea is to get in on something like Vileplume that you'll scare out, set up a Sub as it switches, and proceed to alternate between Toxic and Roost as your opponent slowly crumbles in front of you. This is also one of the better ways to get Slowking out of the picture, as you can nail it with Toxic on the switch and then let Vileplume do the rest or just wait until you get in again and just stall it out. Flamethrower is needed as STAB, and even without any investment Zard is going to be hitting pretty hard. The EV spread ensures that Zard is as fast as possible to outpace the base 95 group, most prominently Haunter and Jynx, and the rest goes into HP to give Zard as much bulk as possible. I've considered just running a 252 SpA/252 Spe spread considering Zard isn't all that bulky even with max investment; however, it does give it a bit more protection from the likes of defensive Slowking's Surf and Scarf Manectric's Thunderbolt.

Regirock @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Explosion
- Rock Slide
- Protect

The first defensive backbone to ensuring Zard can switch out safely. Regirock provides the team with SR and protects it from countersweeps from other Zard and stuff like Tauros and Skuntank. Rock Slide is the best possible STAB on a defensive mon like this. Protect is there to build up Leftovers recovery, as stuff like DD Zard will then miss out on the 2HKO after a Protect. Explosion lets Regi go out with a boom and hopefully take out a dangerous mon with it. A fully SpD spread is most desirable as it can then switch into special Zards without fear and it can still check physical DD Zard without much trouble. It also lets it take on Manectric and Magneton much better.

Lapras @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 200 SpA / 56 SpD
Modest Nature
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
- Heal Bell
- Hydro Pump

The second defensive backbone for the team, providing a niche in being the ultimate bulky Water counter by completely absorbing Surf and other Water attacks, as well as eliminating status with Heal Bell. It's also the only bulky Water that isn't afraid of most of the Grasses in the tier, as it threatens an easy OHKO with STAB Ice Beam. The EV spread is designed to make sure Lapras can avoid the 2HKO from LO Gorebyss as well as avoid the OHKO from Timid LO Magmortar's Focus Blast, even after SR 50% of the time. I like Hydro Pump here to give Lapras as much oomph as possible, but Surf is definitely an option for the accuracy. Though most times I find myself using Ice Beam in most situations I'd use Surf anyway.

Vileplume @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 208 HP / 252 SpA / 48 Spe
Modest Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Energy Ball
- Sludge Bomb
- Synthesis

The third backbone to the team, and it hits quite a bit harder than the other two thanks to LO. The idea behind using LO was to really leave a dent in stuff like Hitmonchan and Slowking that would otherwise be able to tank an attack or two from it. The most dangerous aspect of Plume though is of course Sleep Powder, letting it completely remove a threat from the battle and allowing it to heal up with Synthesis and continue with barrage with Sludge Bomb or Energy Ball. Grass Knot is an option here for a Grass STAB as it deals a fuckton to the bulky Waters and Regirock, but Energy Ball is nice to have for Gligar and other shit like Magneton. The Speed EVs let it outpace other base 50s and 55s and blast them with its attacks.

Threatlist:
- Sun sweepers: A Victreebel + Shiftry offensive core just demolishes this team, and I don't really have a way to counteract it except hope I have Zard behind a Sub to take at least one of them out. Regirock can probably survive an attack from one or the other and Boom on them as well, but that's unreliable at best.
- Scarf Medicham: Scarf Medicham and Medicham in general is dangerous for this team as I have no real way of countering it. Zard can tank a HJK from full health, as can Plume, and Regirock only fears HJK, but if the Medi user plays well it can lead to an easy loss for me.
- Fast Heavy Offense: A really offensive playstyle is this team's true weakness, as it relies on the opponent using a slower, bulkier offensive build or stall build to be truly effective. An opposing team consisting of Tauros, Scarf Medicham, Dodrio, and Jynx for example is going to have a really fun time against this team.

Importable

Sneasel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out
- Taunt
- Ice Punch
- Counter

Hitmonchan (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Mach Punch
- Close Combat
- Thunder Punch

Charizard @ Leftovers
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 248 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Toxic
- Flamethrower

Regirock @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Explosion
- Rock Slide
- Protect

Lapras @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 200 SpA / 56 SpD
Modest Nature
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
- Heal Bell
- Hydro Pump

Vileplume @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 208 HP / 252 SpA / 48 Spe
Modest Nature
- Sleep Powder
- Energy Ball
- Sludge Bomb
- Synthesis

Replays:

Here are the 5 replays of the matches me and Honko had for the last round of NUPL this last year. It'll show off most of the teams I presented here as well as some more that I haven't wrote a description for yet. You'll also see a few unique teams from Honko, most prominently his sun team which is extremely dangerous and I would include an RMT for it here, but I'll leave that to him one day.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen4uu-18521 - ft. Slow Burn
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen4uu-18522 - ft. Honko's Sun team
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen4uu-18778 - ft. Flipside Smashing
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen4uu-18781 - ft. Cradily Sand (I will RMT this later)
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen4uu-18784 - ft. two standard offensive teams with mons I really haven't featured here.


Conclusion:

Hope you guys liked reading about one of my favorite tiers. It's really a great tier with a lot to offer, and I just concluded hosting a standard tournament of the tier in Tournaments a week or so ago. You can catch a few replays of the finals matches here: http://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/the-dpp-nu-tournament-finals-won-by-soulwind.3530170/ Most prominently you'll see Hail Stall in action in a couple battles, as it seemed to be pretty popular in this tournament.

Anyway, that's all I got for now. If you have any questions just ask away and I'll be seeing you all in the next NUPL!