SM OU Sandstorm Balanced Team (The Golisopod MadMan)

Intro.

Hello I'm Jorz. I would say im still learning about comp but im not new. I know some of my moves and pokemon say otherwise *cough* Golisopod *cough* but I just wanted to make a meme sandstorm team so i tried it out in pokemon showdown before i made it in Ultra SM. Also i made it Balanced and not an Offensive team cuz' I like to have more wiggle room when it comes to making up a strat mid game cuz' setting up then sweeping wont work.


Tyranitar-Mega (F) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Stone Edge
- Crunch
- Dragon Dance
- Fire Blast

Mega-T-Tar is my Sand Setter/Physical Sweeper#1. Standard set went for Naughty over Adamant to be able to run Fire Blast since Skarmory tanked my team with ease that is also why i put 4 EVs on SpA and not a Defense stat. I dont run superpower since i prefer DD and I feel that superpower does less in my team. I am thinking of switching Crunch for Pursuit and split the EVs between Atk and SpA.

Excadrill (F) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rapid Spin

Excadrill is a must have on sandstorm teams since alolan dugtrio didnt live up to my expectations
VERY standard set Offensive Rapid Spinner. I prefer Air Ballon over other items since ground is a big no no for him and T-Tar.

Golisopod (M) @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Emergency Exit
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- First Impression
- Liquidation
- Sucker Punch
- Pain Split

Here i need some explaining to do. I want a pokemon that could clean up then switch out using a move to T-Tar to set up sand again. I ended up using Golisopod. His ability actually helps the team since it lacks momentum its like having a slow baton passer with 4 moves. Even tho Pain Split doesn't help at all most games i have won 1 or 2 thanks to it Fist Imp. is a VERY strong priority bug type move so he can revenge kill most types even with x1 damage if it doesn't an unexpected suckerpunch will Liquidation is a strong physical water type move and takes advantage if my opponent is a rain team.
EVs and Nature are for physical bulk and yes Sitrus Berry prevents Emergency Exit so does sandstorm if that is what drops it below half.

Clefable (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Protect
- Aromatherapy
- Moonblast

Normal Clefable set just a healer and to toxic stall if needed with help of Ferrothorn. Moonblast so not to get shut down by taunt. Aromatherapy is run cuz' thunderwave rekts my team since i rely on speed with my sweepers even tho T-Tar can take a hit or two(unless its a superpower from another T-Tar)
Since i needed something to tank focus sash Alakasam i went for a SpD EV spread and HP EV for Wish.

Garchomp @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Sand Veil
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Poison Jab
- Brick Break

My counter to most pokemon is Garchomp his role is to revenge kill or late game sweep i use him mostly for coverage. Garchomp brings out alot of fairy types so i started running Poison Jab and it 2HKOS most fairy types (except Defensive Clefables and the Tapus) other than that normal Choice Garchomp

Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Leech Seed
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic/Sandstorm
- Power Whip

Must use Ferrothorn! I use Rocky Helmet for 2 reasons #1 Clefable has leftovers #2 Rocky Helmet has saved me countless times since X and Y. Most of the time Ferrothorn dies from me switching him to kill the opponent with Iron Barbs & RH. Leech Seed is a must use on F-thorn. Stealth Rock over Spikes since i dont have a spin blocker so to see 3 turns wasted made me start using SR. Toxic over Thunder Wave since I can stall with clefable and sometimes i run sandstorm when i switch Clefable to another tank to try it out.

Conclusion
I like this team alot but i still feel it can do alot of stuff. Since i almost never played SM comp i forget Z-Moves but i think none of my pokemon need one I THINK. To the readers and raters that have taken their time to read this thanks you and please keep in mind Golisopod H A S to stay in the team since is one of my favorites. I will keep an open mind about every switch no matter how big or small
And once again thanks!
 

temp

legacy
is a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
Hi Jorz! I like Sand in the current meta, especially with Tyranitar, preferably Assault Vest sets, spiking in popularity. Unfortunately, since this team lacks any Pokemon to take on a +2 Naganadel among many other threats right now, it falls short for sure. It seems Golisopod is what makes your team unique in a sense, but I'd like to remove it from the team. I'll have another variant with Golisopod so the team stays as "yours."

OVERVIEW



As I mentioned, this team needs a solid re-work. It has the basic fundamentals of a sand team—a sand setter, abuser, status absorber, water resists—but falls short when it comes to supporting your Drill. Naganadel, after setting up a Nasty Plot on a more passive Pokemon such as Clefable or a (forced out) Ferrothorn, has absolutely no trouble cleaning this team up especially with webs. To play around it using this original team, I'd go Mega TTar, pivot in to Clefable on the Devastating Drake, followed by Excadrill on the likely Sludge Wave. However, Fire Blast is the most safe play in that scenario since Clef does about 46 with Moonblast, while Naga deals about 70 at +2. This If they do end up catching Excadrill, your Mega Tyranitar can revenge kill with a Stone Edge, but you risk missing. If Naga is ever at +2 with a Beast Boost (+1 Speed), the game is basically over unless you dodge a Draco Meteor with ScarfChomp / TTar. In short, Naganadel is a huge threat.
Ash-Greninja is also a huge pain for you, as it can muscle through your Water resists. Golisopod can check it with a First Impression, yes, but any smart player would switch out if you directly bring in Goli in fear of it. This means it spams Hydro Pump and can click Dark Pulse in anticipation of your Water resists, 2HKO'ing them both. Specs Water Shuriken also OHKOs Excadrill, so it revenge kills your win condition nicely. Hawlucha, after Unburden, has almost no trouble sweeping you either. Your Clefable is SpDef, which is unfortunately OHKO'd at +2 with an Acrobatics. Golisopod's priority options are useless, Exca is slower than the standard Hawlucha (ironically, it runs just enough for Sand Rush Excadrill) and Scarf Garchomp is OHKO'd by a High Jump Kick. Next, your team is extremely prone to Ground-type attacks, as you have no immunity and one resist which is easily worn down. This means that Offensive Landorus-Therian sets can give you massive trouble, as they can freely spam Earthquake. Flyinium Z sets are even more troublesome, targeting Golisopod, but Ferrothorn can act as a solid blanket check to most physical Ground-types. I'm going to address these problems and more in my rate!

TEAM CHANGES

>
- While a loss in a mega may seem less desirable, this is no downgrade. Assault Vest Tyranitar helps this team in your match-up vs. Naganadel, as it eats a +2 Z-Draco Meteor easily, allowing you to clap back with an Earthquake. I'm going to suggest an EV spread of 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 SpD and a Sassy Nature alongside it. This ensures that, while at full HP, your Tyranitar avoids the OHKO from a +2 critical hit Devastating Drake. Given how weak you are to it, I'd like to take extreme precautions against such a monster of a Pokemon while also dumping some bulk into Defense. I'm suggesting Sassy to compliment Ice Beam, which targets 4x weak Pokemon (i.e Landorus, Gliscor or SD Chomp) that may want to abuse a Tyranitar. A Careful Nature is fine, but the chance of OHKO'ing Offense Landorus is severely lowered to 6.3% from 68.8% (in turn meaning the damage is dropped in general). Speaking of Lando-T, their Adamant EQ doesn't even OHKO thanks to the physical defense investment, while having a 31.3% chance to do so after rocks. You can remix the EVs as you'd like, adding more attack, adding more SpDef or even more physical defense, but I like the current spread and it's the one I'll be using for a while until I see one that's better / safer.

[Life Orb > Air Balloon, Rock Slide > SD, Jolly Nature] - Life Orb grants Excadrill the ability to 2HKO Tapu Fini, Zygarde as well as Venusaur-Mega (after Sand damage). It just overall provides a ton of damage for Exca. Steelium Z could also be used, but without SD, it's not scoring that OHKO on Landorus as it's intended to. SD was also removed for better coverage in Rock Slide, which targets Flying-types like Zapdos or Mega Pinsir. Jolly means Excadrill outspeeds every Scarfer in the OU meta while in Sand, meaning it won't be revenge killed in most cases unless it fails to KO said Pokemon.

>
- Scarf Keldeo is a very solid Pokemon on Sand teams thanks to Excadrill breaking down a ton of Pokemon and even having the potential to clean alongside it. This leaves Keldeo available to pick them all off and clean lategame with Scalds, Secret Swords, etc. Stone Edge is also valuable for revenge killing Volcarona. Keldeo, while still taking a chunk of damage, resists both of Battle Bond Greninja's STABs, allowing you to counter Gren before it transforms to Ash, where you become a check afterwards. Keldeo generally forces Greninja out, as it fears a Secret Sword, allowing you to either safely secure damage on the switch in or Scald to potentially burn.

[Phys Def > SpDef, Soft-Boiled > Wish, Stealth Rock > Aromatherapy, Knock Off > Protect] - I'm going to convert this SpDef Clefable to the standard spread, 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD Bold. This lets you check Hawlucha more reliably, but still loses after some prior damage on it. Clef, thanks to its solid natural bulk, can still take some special hits, but it, obviously, becomes more of a physical wall. WishTect is unnecessary on Magic Guard, as Soft-Boiled is legal (unlike Unaware). Stealth Rock lets Clefable have the ability to get up rocks vs. stall, and Knock Off punishes Landorus, Celesteela, and other Pokemon who appreciate their items.

>
- To switch up the weather and continue to pressure rain builds, I'd like to suggest Char Y. It acts as a Ground immunity, too. Charizard, while weakening its Scald, still works excellently for Keldeo, as it wallbreaks threats for Keld to clean. TTar and Charizard form a good core, while not as good as CB Tar + Zard Y. Tyranitar Pursuit traps Lati@s which will usually check it, as well as preventing Naganadel from revenge killing with a Devastating Drake. Also, I added ScarfKeld, so ScarfChomp was soon to leave the team.

[252 HP / 48 Def / 208 SpD Careful Nature, Spikes > SR, Knock Off > Toxic, Leftovers > RH] - This EV spread lets Ferro avoid the 2HKO from Ash Greninja's Dark Pulse even after rocks, helping in that match-up even further. Spikes are great with wallbreakers, as they allow them to leave Pokemon at a pretty low amount of HP for your cleaners (primarily Keldeo and Excadrill). Clef already has rocks, so having them on Ferrothorn too is unnecessary. Knock Off, as aforementioned, punishes Pokemon who appreciate their items, such as Leftovers users, choiced mons, etc. Lefties on Ferro ensures that the above EV benchmark is true.



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- If you're going to keep Golisopod to maintain the unique quality of your team / you're convinced it's good, I'd suggest a set like this: First Impression, Leech Life, Aqua Jet/Toxic, Liquidation and a Choice Band or even a Waterium Z to fill the lack of a Z-move. I'd suggest 144 HP / 252 Atk / 112 Spe Adamant to outspeed Relaxed Celesteela with 4 Spe to speedcreep uninvested Celesteela. However, I don't personally suggest this Pokemon on a competitive OU team. Only use it if it personally works for you consistently or if you're meaning to keep the team as close to yours as possible. This is a team rate after all—not a complete rework of your team.

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original team:
rated team:

I hope my rate helped, feel free to keep Golisopod if you'd like. I tried to address all of the issues I listed in the overview and potentially some more that went unnoticed while staying true to the original team. Good luck!
 
Thanks alot for taking the time to write all this up. Since I am new to the SM metagame any advice at all was a huge help. I will let you know how the changes hold out :D
 

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