Tempered Steel- OU RMT

TPO3

Never practice; Always perform.
Hey smogonites. I've been playing pokemon competitively since DPP, but I've only recently become more active in this forum (mostly over in the UU area.) Just thought I'd throw a team out here for everybody to rate. ATM, it's doing OK on the PS ladder, it's peaked somewhere around 1750, although the ladder's always broken and my net sucks so I don't really know how accurate of a testament that is. The team might be a lot better or a lot worse than that ranking, I'll let you decide that for yourselves. Just in case you can't tell, the team is just a random standard sun offensive team. I decided to use Sun because I like how anything with Chlorophyl has the ability to outspeed and demolish other hyper offensive teams, but also because I am not talented to really build anything else. Anyways, the team:

The Team at a Glance


Team Building Process


I knew I wanted a sun team. So obviously I started with Ninetales. I wanted to try Sunny Day Ninetales out, because Tyranitar and Politoed will often switch in so recklessly, and I just thought the set looked cool.



I knew I would need a spinner because Ninetales is weak to Stealth Rock. I figured Donphan and Forretress are the best two options for Sun teams, I ended up choosing Forretress because it can also set up spikes, and use Volt Switch.




I threw Hydreigon on next because of how well it works in Sun. It gets a boost to Fire Blast, and always keeps my opponents guessing.



I wanted my sweeper(s) next. I knew I wanted them to be physical, since I thought if I added any more special attackers, Blissey was just going to wall my entire team. I threw Dragonite and Tangrowth in no particular order, but Dragonite appreciates not having Sand or Hail in play, and Tangrowth nabs a huge speed boost with Chlorophyl. The two of them together can often punch through my opponent's team quite well together.



Heatran became the last member of the team. I didn't want to put Stealth Rock on Forretress, and who better to use Stealth Rock on a Sun team than a monster with base 130 Special Attack, that can have is firepower boosted even further by weather and by Flash Fire?



I swapped Hydreigon out for Mamoswine as suggested by Asek. Mamoswine offensively checked Dragons as well as giving an Electric-type immunity to this team.


In-Depth Look

Chris Young (Ninetales) @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 136 HP / 252 SAtk / 120 Spd
Modest Nature
- Sunny Day
- SolarBeam
- Fire Blast
- Toxic

Chris Young is the composer of the song "Tempered Steel", hence the nickname on Ninetales. Ninetales pretty much runs the show for the team, as he needs to keep the sun in play throughout the match. I chose the Sunny Day variant of Ninetales because while it seems extremely redundant, Tyranitar and Politoed will often switch into Ninetales without thinking twice, thinking they're going to absorb a Fire Blast, or at worst a very weak Energy Ball. Sunny Day keeps my weather in play, and keeps momentum going in my favor. SolarBeam is going to hit either of these pokemon for massive damage if they're stupid enough to stay in. Fire Blast is just the obligatory STAB attack that also happens to get boosted by sun. I prefer Fire Blast because I find the extra power more useful than the accuracy of Flamethrower. I chose Toxic over Will-o-Wisp mostly because Latias and Latios have been problematic for the team. I can't OHKO either of them without residual damage, and if I Will-o-Wisp either of them, I run the risk of letting them just set up and use Recover. Despite the fact that it allows Tyranitar to possibly hurt a lot, Toxic is a necessity unless I can find something better to do against the Lati twins.



Vulcan (Heatran) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Stealth Rock
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Heatran is the mon on the team that dedicates itself to getting Stealth Rock up. I didn't want to throw it onto Forretress because I feel it's much too easy to keep Forretress pressured and out of the match. Air Balloon Heatran can come in on one of it's two (ground counts for a bit) immunities, or many resistances, and get Stealth Rock up almost every match. This is extremely important with Volcarona, Salamence, and Dragonite running around on almost every team in OU. Heatran is also a great asset to the team for sheer power. Base 130 Special Attack Fire Blast hits hard enough. Add the sun behind it, and it hits even harder. If I nab a Flash Fire boost, Fire Blast is powerful enough to 2HKO Blissey and Chansey. Earth Power is the obligatory coverage move to hit opposing Heatran as well as Infernape if I can predict them switching in. Hidden Power Ice is great on Heatran as Air Balloon makes it temporarily immune to Earthquake. This makes Heatran a great (temporary) check to Dragonite, Salamence, and both Landorus formes.



Einstein (Forretress) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Volt Switch
- Gyro Ball

A Rapid Spinner is essential on almost any sun team. I considered using a Calm Mind Espeon with Morning Sun, Psyshoc, and Hidden Power Fighting (and of course Magic Bounce to keep away hazards), but after thinking about it, I'd much rather be able to spin hazards away as opposed to needing to switch Espeon into every single pokemon under the sun that has a minute possibility at using Stealth Rock. Spikes are cool when I can get them down, but I don't use it much since I need to keep momentum up. I opted for Volt Switch and Gyro Ball together over Toxic Spikes on this set. Ninetales is supposed to take care of the weather inducers by itself, so I didn't think it needed any more support. On top of this, I was unwilling to give up either of them. Volt Switch is important for keeping momentum up on my side. Forretress gets plenty of opportunities to use it, as Heatran and Politoed are two of the most common switch-ins to Forry, allowing me to just go straight back out to either one of my dragons, or Ninetales, depending on the situation. Gyro Ball is important because it's a move that takes out dragons and Terrakion, who would otherwise have an easy time running through this team. Sturdy's boost almost always allows me to get a shot in as well, whether it's Rapid Spin, Gyro Ball, or Volt Switch, so Forretress will always get a chance to support my team.



Manny (Mamoswine) @ Life Orb
Trait: Thick Fat
252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant nature
~ Ice Shard
~ Earthquake
~ Superpower
~ Icicle Spear

Mamoswine gives me a much-needed check to Dragon-types that run rampant in OU. Ice Shard has priority, so I can always take out Dragonite and Salamence no matter how much their speed gets boosted. It also hits Latios, Latias, and Haxorus, but they have to be weakened a bit before I can have a sure KO. Earthquake also has STAB here and takes care of anything Steel that thinks it has a free switch-in, save for Skarmory. Superpower is a great option to hit pkmn with Levitate like Hydreigon as they come in, and it's all I can do to hit Rotom-W. Icicle Spear is used over Icicle Crash to hit through substitutes. Mamoswine makes it way easier to take out dragons, and is way more useful than Hydreigon ever was.



Squishy (Tangrowth) @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 6 SAtk
Naive Nature
- Power Whip
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Earthquake
- Growth

I wanted a Chlorophyl sweeper for the team because of its ability to totally outspeed and demolish Hyper Offense teams without any turns of setup. I had trouble selecting which sweeper I wanted to use. I knew I wanted it to have the ability to go mixxed, so that knocked Chansawsbuck and Lilligant out of contension. I wanted it to be able to take some kind of hit (not neccessarily a big one, but just something), so I wrote out Victreebell. I was going back and forth between Tangrowth and Venusaur for a while. I decided on Tangrowth due to its superior attacking stats (100 and 115, respectively.) And it's great defense. Growth is the setup move, in the sun it will boost both of my attacking stats. Power Whip is a hard-hitting STAB move, it demolishes almost anything that isnt' named "Skarmory" and "Heatran". Earthquake removes Heatran, and Hidden Power Fire takes out Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Scizor, which is important for allowing Dragonite to sweep. Tangrowth is a huge help in removing obstacles in Dragonite's way for sweeping, although given the appropriate circumstances, it can also pull of a huge sweep itself.



Fírnen (Dragonite) (M) @ Lum Berry
Trait: Multiscale
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 6 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Fire Punch
- ExtremeSpeed

Dragonite is the last pokemon on the team, and it finds its home in the sun. Multiscale is just an awesome ability, as Dragonite is almost always guranteed a minimum of one turn of setup, even if the opponent has an ice attack somewhere on their team. Lum Berry is used over leftovers so I can set up on pokemon like Ferrothorn and Rotom-W, who would like to Thunder Wave or Will-o-Wisp me. Dragon Dance is the obvious move for setup, Outrage combos great with Lum Berry. It's much more powerful than Dragon Claw could ever dream to be, so I can run through a lot of teams late-game. Fire Punch is boosted by the sun, which makes it much much easier to hit through Ferrothorn and Skarmory. I debated between Earthquake and Extremespeed for the last slot. I went with Extremespeed because I had absolutely no priority on this team, and I hoped that between Tangrowth, Heatran, and Hydreigon that I would be able to hit through Heatran and Tyranitar anyways. Overall, Dragonite is supported very well by the team, with a weather to counteract Sand and Hail, hazard support, spin support, and other teammates who can get through pokemon like Skarmory.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading and rating, all that good stuff. I haven't made a sun team before, so I really just threw 6 mons together and hoped for the best. It actually has worked out fairly well so far. Some changes I'm considering:

Despite Chlorophyl, Tangrowth still gets outsped by other scarfers, like Latios, Terrakion, and Jolteon, Thundurus-T, and Tornadus-T, even if the sun is up. Tangrowth fails to reach 400 speed, which seems pitiful for something at double speed. I'm considering throwing Venusaur on, as Growth should boost it's attack enough, and it will be fast enough to outspeed scarfers. I'm also considering switching to other moves like Rock Slide to hit Dragons, Hidden Power Ice to hit Dragons and Gliscor, or Sleep Powder to take a foe out of commission, although I feel the set as it is supports dragonites the best.

Sometimes I find myself really wishing I had a real Scarf Hydreigon, just so I could outspeed things like +1 Dragonite, Latias, and Latios. On the other hand, U-turn might be able to keep momentum sufficiently in my favor, so I might not need it.

I don't have a phazer anywhere on this team. That might seem counterproductive for an offensive sun team, but Baton Pass runs through my team, as does Calm Mind Latias if it is played correctly. Sometimes I just feel that a phazer would be nice to have.

I haven't noticed too many pokemon that demolish my team singlehandedly, but a few have an easier job. Salamence comes to mind first as between Draco Meteor and Fire Blast, most of this team is not just hit neutral, but supereffectively. Heatran is the obvious exception. Most of the time, Mence is Scarfed, so I can predict it correctly, and then set up with Dragonite and KO it. My opponent's Hydreigon function in the same way, although it also has Focus Blast to hit Heatran super effectively. Opposing Latias and Latios can set up Calm Minds, although Toxic helps significantly against them. Latios is the more problamatic one, as I have nothing that outspeeds it save Tangrowth (if Latios isn't scarfed.) Mirror matches are also not fun, I don't have much to get rid of my opponent's sun sweepers if they carry Hidden Power Ice. Tangrowth is the slowest of Chlorophyl sweepers, so it gets outsped, and taken out with any Hidden Power thanks to its atrocious special defense.

All comments and help are appreciated! I'm open-minded to suggestions. If I really really hate it that much, I'll at least post back with a sufficient reasoning as to why I'm not making your changes. Otherwise I will generally at least give it a test.

I have the importable here for anybody who prefers to test the team out before giving me comments. Or if you really just think my team is that boss, feel free to steal it. Just keep the nicknames and stuff.
Chris Young (Ninetales) @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 136 HP / 252 SAtk / 120 Spd
Modest Nature
- Sunny Day
- SolarBeam
- Fire Blast
- Toxic

Vulcan (Heatran) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Stealth Rock
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Einstein (Forretress) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Volt Switch
- Gyro Ball

Manny (Mamoswine) @ Life Orb
Trait: Thick Fat
252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant nature
~ Ice Shard
~ Earthquake
~ Superpower
~ Icicle Spear

Squishy (Tangrowth) @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 6 SAtk / 252 Spd
Naughty Nature
- Power Whip
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Earthquake
- Growth

Fírnen (Dragonite) (M) @ Lum Berry
Trait: Multiscale
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 6 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Fire Punch
- ExtremeSpeed
 
Hey man nice looking sun team you have here!

Ok looking at your team it seem quite slow for a sun team seeing as your Chlorophlyl sweeper has base 50 speed. You mentioned Latios to be a bit problematic with a Scarf but i still think the Choice Specs varaint can also deal alot of damage to your team and just switch out when need be. Haxorus and Dragonite also become threats at +1 especially if they carry Brick Break or Earthqauke to deal with Heatran. So summing up what i was saying any Dragon-Type with better speed then your Tangrowth is game changing. Infact with Tangrowths attacking moves Power Whip, Hidden Power [Fire] and Earthqauke he will find himself as simply set up bait for Dragonite, Salamence, Latios and Latias due to these pokemon being immune to Earthqauke and resisting Tangrowths other moves.

Your team would also probally enjoy having a revenge killer because despite Tangrowth having Chlorophyl he still isn't to fast. I suggest Choice Scarf Genesect>Hydriegon Genesect provides your team with a reliable revenge killer and late game sweeper. While also giving your team a pokemon that can help with your problem with Dragon-Type because with a Choice Scarf Genesect outspeeds all unboosted Dragon-Types and can hit them hard with Ice beam or in the lati twins case U-Turn as well. Genesect also has a Steel-Typing which allows him to resist Dragon-Type moves while his Flamethrower is boosted in power in the sun. You don't lose to much without Hydriegon anyway tbh. Genesect still provides your team with a potent special attacker with Fire-Type coverage while Dragonite gives your team a powerful Dragon-Type anyway. The nature you go with on Genesect is really up to you because Hasty and Naive both get the job done.

Other the that nice team i hope i helped!

Sets

Genesect @ Choice Scarf | Download
Hasty | 252 SpA / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
U-Turn | Flamethrower | Ice Beam | Thunderbolt

Tl;dr

Genesect--->Hydriegon



~Superpowerdude
 

Asek

Banned deucer.
Hey,

Cool team, Tangrowth is indeed a very under appreciated chlorophyll sweeper. I did see that Air Balloon Heatran with his balloon intact could cause many problems for the team, as with balloon intact your only answer to him is really Hydreigon, who doesn't like switching into sun boosted Fire Blast's, or strong HP [ICE] attacks. Also, set up dragons such as Dragonite, Haxorus and Salamence can really run rampant through your team once they have picked up a Dragon Dance, which isn't too hard on Forretress or Tangrowth and can even be achieved on Ninetales if they carry lum berry. Once set up they can really go to town on your team with their coverage moves for Forretress and air balloon broken Heatran (not true for Superpower variants of Haxorus and Dragonite, and their ridiculously powerful outrages. Also, Sub Special Landorus can prove problematic, as behind a sub he can damage your team heavily, and in a sand team can probably cost you the weather war.

First off, as Superpowerdude mentioned, Your team lacks a revenge killer of any description. Once somethings boosted up it will more than likely be outspeeding your whole team, and running through it with powerful attacks. Your team could really use some form of powerful priority to help it beat all the set up dragons that can really hurt your team, and there is something that can do the job perfectly. Hydreigon is really replacable here, as he doesn't really do much for the team, considering you already have a powerful dragon in Dragonite, and a powerful special attacker in Heatran, and bluff isn't really going to help you lure in any special targets that go towards a Dragonite sweep. For these reasons I feel that Life Orb Mamoswine > Hydreigon would be a far better choice for your team. He manhandles all the set up dragons found in OU with his powerful ice shards, and Ice / Ground coverage is welcomed with open arms on sun teams to handle the dragons and standard sand threats such as as Tyranitar, Hippowdon and Landorus that are generally major threats to sun teams, yours being no exception. He handles a lot of your team threats really well, and also has the added bonus of smacking Venusaur and Air balloon tran, who also troubles your team and your main sweeper in Dragonite

And I assume this is a typo, but Timid > Naive on Heatran as it doesn't lower your defenses, which is nice.

GL with the team
Mamoswine @ Life Orb
Nature : Jolly (+Spe -SpA)
Trait: Thick Fat
EV's: 252Atk/ 4Def/ 252Spe
Ice Shard/ Earthquake/ Icicle Spear/ Superpower
 

TPO3

Never practice; Always perform.
^I'll definitely give both of those a shot. Mamoswine seems like a good idea. As I mentioned, in addition to the dragons I'm weak to mirror Chlorophyl sweepers, so a priority Ice attack will be good. Genesect has its perks too though, being able to swtich into Lati@s (somewhat) reliably, and being able to use U-turn effectively to keep pressure down on my opponents.

And yeah, Heatran is supposed to be Timid, I'm not exactly sure why I've got Naive on it. That just seems rather silly. If I might ask though, what are the advantages of Icicle Spear as opposed to Icicle Crash? I realize it breaks through Substitute, but I'm skeptical of using multiple hit moves on stuff without either Skill Link to hit all 5 times, or Technician to raise the power of the moves. However I haven't used Mamoswine very much before, so that could just be my general noobishness.
 
For Tangrowth, going Naive Nature over Naughty nature may be in your preference to get 10% more speed. Just a suggestion.
 

TPO3

Never practice; Always perform.
^Switched to Naive, I haven't missed the power at all. And I've also decided on Mamoswine over Hydreigon. I tested both Mamo and Genesect, but I feel Mamo serves the team better.
 
Very cool team! I also agree that tangrowth is so unappreciated. Although for your Dragonite, I would recommend Earthquake>Fire Punch so you can deal with opposing heatrans if you're already set up. And I would also recommend the Scarfed Genesect set over Hydreigon. Solid Team!!


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