Gen 3 Spikes + Kabutops + Aerodactyl



This is kind of a novelty concept mostly because I wanted to make a team that used Kabutops, but I figured that it could make for a competitive team as well. The main idea of this team is to lay down Spikes, pressure/shuffle the opponent's guys around, then batter them with Aerodactyl and Kabutops in the late game.

The Team:


Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- Crunch
- Taunt
- Toxic
Tyranitar is my lead, mostly to set up Sandstorm which is one-third of the T.S.S. approach I'm going with here. Although this Tyranitar isn't very threatening, it can use the sheer power of it's other sets (such as the choice band set) to it's advantage here. Fire Blast in mandatory in order for me to get past Steel-types. Crunch OHKOs offensive Starmie, while also being great against Celebi and a good attack in general thanks to the 20% chance of lower Special Defence. It's also good at wearing down Swampert, which is critical to the success of this team. Toxic lets me lure in and wear down bulky Water-types, while Taunt can prevent this Tyranitar from being Dragon Dance bait from other Tyranitar, and is a nice move in combination with Toxic.


Kabutops @ Salac Berry
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Rock Slide
- Endure
- Flail
One of the stars of the team, Kabutops is a nice late-game sweeper thanks to not only having the Flail + Endure combo, but also being immune to Sandstorm and packing Rock Slide. Swords Dance doesn't see as much use as I'd like, but with Kabutops's decent defence, he can sometimes take a hit to set it up.


Aerodactyl @ Choice Band
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Hidden Power [Bug]
- Double-Edge
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
Aerodactyl is pretty self-explanatory. I decided to opt with Hidden Power Bug for Starmie, but Hidden Power Flying allows me to check Heracross.


Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP / 48 SpD / 208 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Whirlwind
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Toxic
Skarmory is here for Spikes, which is required in order for the team to succeed. With the trend of so many Magneton using Magnet to counter the specially defensive Skarmory, I decided to ditch the special defence and focus on out-speeding all Magneton, even Salac variants. That way I can get 1 layer of Spikes on the switch in, and another as it Thunderbolts, granting me at least 2 layers and a free switch in. Because of the increase in speed, I opted for Taunt which lets me setup on other Skarmory and lets me Toxic stall deadly sweepers such as Gyarados and Suicune without getting set up on.


Gengar @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 68 HP / 152 Def / 104 SpA / 184 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Will-O-Wisp
- Ice Punch
- Hypnosis
Gengar is on the team to spin-block, which is emphasised even more than usual because my Skarmory will usually not survive as long as the standard set. The set can survive a +1 Hidden Power Flying from Salamence in a sandstorm and OHKO Salamence with 116 HP evs with Ice Punch 100% of the time, while also out-speeding most +1 speed Tyranitar. Hypnosis is required so that I can potentially escape a Pursuit-trap, while Will-O-Wisp lets me check physical attackers and is a great move to wear down foes with.


Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 216 Def / 40 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Protect
- Toxic
- Roar
- Surf
Swampert ties the team together, forming the infamous Skarmory/Gengar/Swampert core. This set is a bit interesting, and I wanted to give this set ago because I thought it suited my team very well; Toxic helps me wear down things, while Protect and Roar pile on the Spikes + Toxic damage. Protect is especially useful as it can allow Swampert to take more hits, which is essential as he'll be taking a lot of them.

Threats (so far):

Heracross is a notable threat. Without Hidden Power Flying, he is bound to severely damage my team in some way, despite being worn down easily.

Offensive Suicune sets pose a threat to this team as well, as I do not have a Water-type resist and I can't reliably OHKO it. I'd imagine a really fast Suicune with Substitute could absolutely devastate my team.

Raikou with Substitute, Calm Mind, and Hidden Power Grass is also incredibly dangerous. As Tyranitar is not physically offensive, Raikou can set up a Substitute and wall Tyranitar all day with multiple Calm Mind boosts. He can OHKO/2HKO every other guy on my team. Aerodactyl can OHKO him with Earthquake, but if Raikou can find a time to set up Substitute, things will get ugly real fast.

Jolteon also falls into a similar category as Raikou, being an Electric type with Hidden Power Grass and Substitute. Unlike Raikou however, can speed tie with Aerodactyl, meaning dealing with Jolteon is especially risky. Thankfully, without Calm Mind and weak defences, Tyranitar can usually deal with him, but not without taking a lot of damage.

Snorlax can also be a problem. With my physical attackers all being quite frail and very Body Slam weak as well as the rest of my team being special attackers, he can be very hard to deal with, especially if he has Rest. Thankfully, he does get worn down very quickly by residual damage, which puts him in range of a safe KO from Kabutops or Aerodactyl.

Importable Version:

Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- Crunch
- Taunt
- Toxic

Kabutops @ Salac Berry
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Rock Slide
- Endure
- Flail

Aerodactyl @ Choice Band
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Hidden Power [Bug]
- Double-Edge
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP / 48 SpD / 208 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Whirlwind
- Spikes
- Taunt
- Toxic

Gengar @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 68 HP / 152 Def / 104 SpA / 184 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Will-O-Wisp
- Ice Punch
- Hypnosis

Swampert @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 216 Def / 40 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Protect
- Toxic
- Roar
- Surf


Thanks for reading!!!
 
As I posted this I realised my Tyranitar's EVs are very bad because I am not fast enough to really abuse Taunt. Will fix or change the set completely depending on feedback.
 

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