The Cast
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Opening Credits
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Casa Blanca - OU Balance is my take on a Balance Team in OU. It is by far my most successful team, reaching a height of 1512 CRE, and is a team I have come to love. Balance is a style that I had never understood or played before, and this team showed me that Balance was still a very viable choice for an OU team. The premise of Team Casa Blanca is two-fold; force switches by using powerful attackers and rack up entry hazard, and to have an effective switch in to the metagame's top threats by utilizing potent defensive combinations.
Opening Credits
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Casa Blanca - OU Balance is my take on a Balance Team in OU. It is by far my most successful team, reaching a height of 1512 CRE, and is a team I have come to love. Balance is a style that I had never understood or played before, and this team showed me that Balance was still a very viable choice for an OU team. The premise of Team Casa Blanca is two-fold; force switches by using powerful attackers and rack up entry hazard, and to have an effective switch in to the metagame's top threats by utilizing potent defensive combinations.
This was accomplished by using a Dual Core System. On the team, I have an Offensive Core that can switch into eachother's counters and beat them, and a Defensive Core that covers eachother's weaknesses beautifully as well as raise some hell. Within each core is a subdivision; Special & Physical. In my Offensive Core, I have Special & Physical attackers so that no one pokemon can wall the team. Likewise, defensively, I have a switch in for all dangerous attackers.
In Team Casa Blanca, I utilize tried and true defensive combos such as Celebi + Heatran + Vaporeon, synergy between Offensive and Defensive pokemon in Scizor + Vaporeon or Machamp + Vaporeon, and the surprise factor with certain pokemon. I put a lot of time and love into this team, and I hope you enjoy reading about it as much as I did making it.
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The Casting Process
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Here are the factors I considered important when building this team:
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The Casting Process
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Here are the factors I considered important when building this team:
- Dual Core: Offensive + Defensive Synergy.
- Paralysis Support: Many bulkier pokemon tend to be slower, and paralysis aids them in taking down the other team.
- Wish Support: The majority of pokemon don't have the luxury of an instant recovery move; wish revitalizes them.
- Lures: Pokemon that lure in and take out pokemon that otherwise prove troublesome to the team.
- Scout: Pokemon that can transition from one pokemon to another, force switches to rack up SR damage, and take little damage to show from it.
- Stealth Rock: Balance teams tend to force switches, and Stealth Rock takes advantage of that.
- No SR Weakness: Balance teams tend to switch out, and Stealth Rock would be a pain in the ass if there was a weakness.
- Priority Revenge Killer: Many stat-up pokemon depend on Speed boosts, and powerful priority puts an end to weakened ones.
Step 1 - The Director
I start the team off knowing that I want to try out the Balance playstyle. I had already established my goals, and knew what I was looking for. The lead metagame is a Physically leaning metagame, so a Physically bulky pokemon is appropriate. Breaking Stall & Baton Pass chains early is the best way to screw them over late game, so a quick Taunt lead is important. I have already established that I need Stealth Rock to rack up hazard damage. All these factors point straight to one pokemon: Gliscor.
Step 2 - Supporting Male Lead
Second on my list: the Lure. Gliscor does well against the majority of the leads, though it struggles against Swampert. I need to have an offensive lure that can persuade Swampert to stay in and be OHKOd. Heatran comes to mind; Swampert walls its STABs and both of Swampy's STABs are super effective on it. Swampert won't be using Earthquake on Gliscor due to its immunity, it will be using Ice Beam for a OHKO, which is where Heatran comes in. Also, despite sharing a Water weakness with Gliscor, it has quite complimentary typing; resisting Gliscor's Ice weakness while Gliscor takes care of Ground & Fighting attacks.
Step 3 - The Faithful Companion
Step 3 - The Faithful Companion
Now begins the first link in the Defensive Core. With Gliscor and Heatran already on the table, one pokemon comes to mind...Celebi! Celebi completes the tried and true defensive combination Celetran, covering every type except Rock, and all of eachother's weaknesses. The combination of Gliscor + Heatran + Celebi also leaves no gaping weakness except Ice. Celebi can provide healing support with Leech Seed & Paralysis support with Thunder Wave, and is one extremely bulky little pixie.
Step 4A - The Leading Lady [Auditions]
Step 4A - The Leading Lady [Auditions]
Looking at the list, I realize I still need Wish support. Considering the team I have so far, I have 3 main options: Wish Blissey, Vaporeon, and CMWish Jirachi. Blissey is the unchallenged Special Wall in OU, and so far I have two primarily physical walls in Gliscor and Celebi. Jirachi has similar typing to Heatran, and shares weaknesses with Celebi and Heatran, and covers the Ice weakness, though doesn't alleviate the Water weakness. It does have an attractive rock resistance, however. Vaporeon is my final choice. Vaporeon alleviates the dual weakness to Water and Ice, and counters threats like Gyarados and Infernape well, and both threaten my team. I'm going to need to test each of them with a seperate team, as the Wisher I include here changes the rest of my team's dynamic.
/
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Step 4B - The Leading Lady [Callbacks]
Step 4B - The Leading Lady [Callbacks]
After reviewing the options for Wish support and testing them each with a team tailored for their success, I found Vaporeon to be the best Wish-Passer for a team already involving Gliscor, Heatran, and Celebi. Vaporeon had the best typing for the job, and countered threats that the other two only further opened. Jirachi shared very common weaknesses with Celebi and Heatran, and was often forced out without even getting a Wish off. Blissey consistently got a Wish off, but was easy set up fodder for Lucario & the like who could then go on to sweep the team. Vaporeon can take a hit then dish one out and be healed to Wish and Wash & Repeat, or pass to another team mate.
Step 5 - The Military Strategist
Step 5 - The Military Strategist
So far, I have fulfilled all the goals except the Priority Revenge Killer and the Scout. Obviously, when those two things are put on the table, you instantly think: Choice Band Scizor! And why not? With brilliant typing (1 weakness, 10 resistances), Technician, and the abilities to abuse, he is perfect for Balance. Scizor can take out Offensive Salamences around at 65% health (Stealth Rock + LO Recoil), Latias with Bullet Punch, U-Turn, or Pursuit, and Blissey, who otherwise is kind of bitchy to the team thus far. Scizor also has both offensive and defensive synergy with the team. Offensively, it takes out pokemon that prevent Heatran from reaching its full potential, and deals with pokemon that are troublesome to kill. Defensively, it has 10 incredibly useful resistances to abuse and come in on, and many of them are quite important types such as Ghost, Ice, Dark, and Dragon.
Step 6 - The Leading Man
At last it is time to cast the leading man! All the roles I considered important to Balance have been filled, and now it is time to reveal who it has all been for...Machamp! Machamp loves coming in late game when everything is nicely paralyzed by Celebi, or everything that counters him is gone. SubChamp is especially deadly with such support, as Paralysis + Dynamic Punch's confusion means that the foe will rarely get to attack while you fire attacks off of a ridiculous attack stat behind a substitute. The team is not only built for SubChamp, he adds to it. He gives the team a much needed Rock resistance, while both of his other weaknesses have already been covered.
Team Casa Blanca [OU Balance]
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Team Casablanca
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Without further ado, I present to you Team Casablanca!
Michael Curtiz
Gliscor (M) @ Leftovers *** Michael Curtiz
Ability: Sand Veil
EVs: 196 HP / 88 Atk / 224 Spe
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
~ Earthquake
~ Roost
~ Taunt
~ Stealth Rock
~ Roost
~ Taunt
~ Stealth Rock
As the movie begins, we see that Gliscor is the lead of choice. His strength as a Balance lead is two-fold: he shuts down Stall & Baton Pass chains with Taunt while still able to set up Stealth Rock and come away with a good deal of his health left. The combination of high speed, great bulk, and perfect abilities means that he is a lead to be reckoned with.
I tend to play conservatively with Gliscor: I want him taking as little damage as possible. He is my main Lucario counter, so if I feel that I'm going to lose to a certain lead, I switch out to another pokemon that can get the kill, and then come in later to set up. Gliscor is also one of my best answers to stall at any point in the game, as he can Taunt any set up pokemon and switch out to something that can then take care of it easily. The EVs and abilities for Gliscor are tailored for the lead metagame. 88 Atk ensures a 2HKO with Earthquake on Metagross. 224 Spe + a Jolly nature outspeeds all the Base 90 leads, and opposing base 95 leads and things that try and outspeed base 95 leads by 1 point. The rest of the EVs are then poured into HP, allowing it to take most neutral Special hits and Physical hits well.
When it comes to his moveset, I had some trouble. I wish that Gliscor could run 5 moves versus 4, as no matter what, he loses out on a great ability. Earthquake is the obligatory STAB that allows it to 2HKO Metagross, ShucaTran, Tyranitar, and others, and OHKO Lucario, OffensiveTran, and Magnezone among others. Taunt stops other leads from setting up, breaks Stall and Baton Pass attempts early, and can stop set-up sweepers and heavy stall once again at any point the game thereafter. Roost allows it to beat Lucario and Tyranitar and other physical sweepers with greater ease, and aids in breaking stall. Finally, Gliscor is my user of Stealth Rock so that I can accumulate hazard damage as early as possible.
Gliscor vs. Top 15 OU Leads [October 2009]
Azelf - Stealth Rock as they do & switch to Heatran. If they Taunt & set up Stealth Rock, its not much of a loss; I'm still at 88% when I switch back in, and can then set up on something else.
Metagross - Earthquake 2HKOs, meaning they either won't get SR up, or they won't damage me at all.
Jirachi - Stealth Rock. If they Trick, its not too bad of a deal; I still counter Lucario, I can still break Stall with Taunt, and now I get the added bonus of taking out any EQ weak pokemon faster than base 95.
Aerodactyl - Switch on the Taunt to Vaporeon who 2HKOs Focus Sash variants with Ice Beam.
Swampert - Swamperts are the bitchiest of leads to face to be honest. With Ice Beam threatening Gliscor, I have to U-Turn to something else, or risk losing one of my key pokemon. I go to either Celebi or Heatran; Celebi doesn't take too much from Ice Beam, and can paralyze any switch in, and Heatran can encourage Swampert to stay in and get OHKOd.
Infernape - Fake Out doesn't hurt much, and then I can set up SR as he does and switch to Vaporeon who comes in near full health for the KO.
Roserade - Taunt, Stealth Rock, switch to Heatran for a OHKO.
Hippowdon - I <3 Hippowdon leads. Sand Veil takes advantage of Sandstream, Taunt stops them from setting SR up / Roaring, Stealth Rock for myself, and switch to Celebi for a OHKO on Grass Knot.
Ninjask - Stealth Rock on Turn 1 as they substitute, then Taunt them turn 2 while they Swords Dance. Switch to Heatran who breaks their sub and laughs while they attack themselves with no abilities (or laughs harder if they use a Bug or Flying attack), and forces them to sacrifice or switch.
Smeargle - Assuming Standard Lead: Taunt, SR, and switch to Celebi to paralyze the poor Smeargle or whatever comes in. Assuming Choice Scarf: Gliscor has to take the sleep, but then I can switch in Celebi (my main transition pokemon) to screw with any switch in.
Crobat - Switch to Scizor on the Taunt and U-Turn again as they switch, anticipating Bullet Punch, to scout for a counter and then bring in the appropriate pokemon.
Tyranitar - Earthquake for a 2HKO.
Gliscor - This is the main reason I run the extra speed EVs. Most Gliscor run 220 Speed to outrun Gliscor that run 216. I run 224 to outspeed them as well, and still maintain bulk. Taunt, Stealth Rock, switch to Vaporeon for the OHKO. If I lose speed-wise, Vaporeon is still my main man.
Heatran - Earthquake is a 2HKO, they either don't get rocks or they don't attack.
Gliscor is named after the director, Michael Curtiz, who won the Oscar for Best Director with Casablanca. Gliscor earned this name because he sets the tone for the rest of the battle; he directs where it goes. With his myriad of support abilities he has a great many options to achieve what he needs to.
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Victor Laszlo
Heatran (M) @ Life Orb *** Victor Laszlo
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Nature: Naive (+Spe, -SpD)
~ Fire Blast
~ Earth Power
~ Hidden Power [Grass]
~ Explosion
~ Earth Power
~ Hidden Power [Grass]
~ Explosion
Next on the roster we have Heatran, one of my favorite pokemon for any team. With his excellent typing, broad movepool, and decent speed, he makes for the perfect lure, especially considering many of his counters are slower than him. When used with Gliscor, they cover all of eachother's weaknesses with the exception of Water, which is a weakness they share, however Water and Fighting / Ground / Ice are not commonly seen together, and so therefore, they still benefit from eachother's typing.
Heatran is one of the pokemon that uses the surprise factor on my team. Despite his strictly offensive movepool, EVs, and nature, I still play with him rather conseratively. He is important to me against Stall with his immunity to Toxic Spikes and his typing that can break down Skarmory & Explosion to take out Blissey. He also is my main counter to Mr.#1, Scizor, walling both his STABs. His EVs are simple: 252 SpA maximizes his Special Attack, 252 Spe lets him outspeed most things he lures in, and 4 HP is the filler. I chose a Naive nature so that I could get the jump on any neutral natured pokemon up to Base 90. Also, Naive vs. Timid allows for a OHKO with Explosion vs. a weakened Blissey, which is its main selling point.
The moveset for BaitTran is interesting. Fire Blast & Earth Power are on almost every Heatran set, as they are powerful options to take out pokemon that want to threaten Heatran. Hidden Power [Grass] + Life Orb is a OHKO on Swampert, and deals a lot of damage to the likes of Hippowdon. Explosion is the last resort move that I usually reserve for Blissey. If I know that my opponent doesn't use Blissey, then I will use it on the next most threatening thing.
These are things Heatran tends to lure in:
Swampert
- LO HP Grass vs 252 HP Swampert: 107.92% - 127.72%
- LO HP Grass vs 252 HP Swampert: 107.92% - 127.72%
OHKO.
Hippowdon
- LO HP Grass vs 252 HP/88 SDef Hippowdon: 55.24% - 65.24%
- LO HP Grass vs 252 HP/88 SDef Hippowdon: 55.24% - 65.24%
If they come in on any attack, they are KOd.
Blissey
- LO Explosion vs 0 HP/252 Def Blissey: 118.43% - 139.48%
- LO Fire Blast vs 0 HP/176 Calm Blissey: 24.12% - 28.57%
- LO Explosion vs 0 HP/252 Def Blissey: 118.43% - 139.48%
- LO Fire Blast vs 0 HP/176 Calm Blissey: 24.12% - 28.57%
A combination of Stealth Rock + Fire Blast + Explosion KOs Blissey.
Tyranitar
- LO Earth Power vs 4 HP/0 SDef Tyranitar: 49.71% - 59.06%
- LO Earth Power vs 4 HP/0 SDef Tyranitar: 49.71% - 59.06%
If they switch into Earth Power, its a 2HKO taking SR into account.
Heatran is named after Victor Laszlo because at the end of Casablanca, Rick uses Victor Laszlo as bait to allow Ilsa & Laszlo to escape to America. Without the bait, the Nazis would have killed Ilsa and Laszlo.
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Sam
Celebi @ Leftovers *** Sam
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Spe
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
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Sam
Celebi @ Leftovers *** Sam
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Spe
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
~ Thunder Wave
~ Leech Seed
~ Recover
~ Grass Knot
~ Leech Seed
~ Recover
~ Grass Knot
The first link in the Defensive Core, this Celebi is an extremely important member of the team, and is one tough cookie to take down. Celebi has fantastic synergy with Heatran & Gliscor, covering every type except Rock. It covers all of Heatran's weaknesses, and Heatran does the same for it, and the only shared weakness it has is an Ice weakness with Gliscor. Celebi's incredible defensive stats (100/100/100) allow it to take all manners of attacks, and survive to paralyze, and then heal off damage.
Celebi is my best transition pokemon. Its natural bulk allows it to take neutral hits from both sides of the spectrum, and strong super effective hits physically. Celebi is my go to guy for pretty much everything: Paralysis, Leech Seed Recovery, Stall, Bulky Water killer, etc., and he is excellent at performing all these roles. Everything he provides is highly beneficial to the team. The EVs are Standard for Defensive Celebi. 252 HP allows it to take neutral attacks from both sides of the spectrum. 220 Defense EVs and a Bold nature makes it near impregnable to most Super Effective Physical attacks. In fact, Adamant 252 Atk Choice Band Tyranitar has only a 50% chance to OHKO Celebi after Stealth Rock, and can't otherwise. 36 Speed EVs allows it to outspeed Max Speed Jolly Tyranitar, Grass Knotting for a 2HKO.
Celebi's moveset is slightly off Standard. Thunder Wave provides the team with the all important Paralysis support. Leech Seed allows it to outstall anything that can't manage 62% damage to Celebi (a lot of things). Recover aids in the stalling, and when combined with paralysis and Leech Seed, Celebi can be getting ~68% of its health back in one turn. Grass Knot is the STAB move that keeps bulky Waters and Ground types on their toes. This Celebi moveset is one I have utilized on many different teams, and it finds its home on all of them.
Celebi is named after Sam because in Casablanca, Sam is the friend that sticks by Rick through everything. Sam and Rick are two totally different people but they have been through a lot and love each other (as friends). Celebi and Heatran have this kind of relationship, where they are completely different entities, but are one hell of a combo.
--- Ilsa Lund
Vaporeon (F) @ Leftovers *** Ilsa Lund
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 116 HP/252 Def/140 SpA
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
~ Wish
~ Hydro Pump
~ Ice Beam
~ Hidden Power [Electric]
~ Hydro Pump
~ Ice Beam
~ Hidden Power [Electric]
The second link in my core, Vaporeon is one of the pokemon I rely on most heavily. Vaporeon is my main counter to Gyarados, Infernape, Gliscor, Heatran, Tyranitar, Kingdra, Hippowdon, and pokemon along those lines. It is extremely bulky, provides Wish Support for the whole team, and covers up holes in my defensive line (the Water & Ice Weaknesses), adds Fire & Steel resistances. Her very bulky 130/60/95 Defenses are used to their fullest on this team, giving her the ability to survive for a very long time.
You have probably noticed that this Vaporeon is by no means Standard Wish Support. I wanted to take Vaporeon in a totally different direction then what had already been tested, as I felt it had so much more to offer. I came up with an Offensive Wish Pass set. 252 Def patches up her less than ideal 60 Defense, while 140 SpA and a Modest nature hits 319 Special Attack, enough to 2HKO all Scizor, Tyranitar, 252 HP/0 SDef Swampert, Metagross and many other pokemon with Hydro pump. The rest of the EVs were put into HP. This Vaporeon plays very differently from Wish Pass Vaporeon. It gains many notable 2HKOs over the Standard set, and is a much more effective check to threats such as Gyarados. It plays like a Wish Tank; use Wish on something you can force a switch on, and whatever they send in will have their damage reduced by 50%, while they take an extremely powerful hit from the 319 Special Attack. This set still gets a very high level of physical bulk, and maintains about the same special bulk as the Standard set.
Her moves give her a lot of surprise factor. When people see Hidden Power [Electric] or Ice Beam, they tend to assume Vaporeon lacks the other. For example, if I OHKOd Gyarados with HP Electric, Salamence might come in and DD, thinking I had nothing threatening. However Salamence is swiftly OHKOd as well. It is unbelievable how often this happens. Her moves were selected like this. I knew I still needed Wish support for my team, and Vaporeon still needs Wish for herself, even if I don't plan on using Protect, so Wish was necessary. Her ability, Water Absorb, gives me the freedom to abuse the water weakness on my team for Vaporeon's healing. Hydro Pump vs. Surf gains some very important 2HKOs on things like Swampert, even though Hydro Pump's misses can be rather detrimental. Still, I figure that if Iron Head Jirachi can flinch hax somethings 8 times in a row with 60% Flinch chance, I think I can take the chance on Hydro Pump. Ice Beam covers Grass attackers who come in to attack her, 2HKOing the standard Defensive Celebi, while the same Celebi manages a 3-4HKO on her, meaning Wish kicks in before she is KOd, so she wins an unfavorable matchup. Hidden Power [Electric] is the last move on the set that allows her to OHKO Gyarados, deal 80% to Offensive Starmie, and deal with most bulky waters.
Vaporeon is named after Ilsa Lund, played by Ingrid Bergmen for several reasons. Ingrid Bergmen was stunning in that movie, and I find Vaporeon beautiful. Also, Ilsa is powerful and unbudging to get what she wants in the movie, and Vaporeon has the same role on my team.
---Captain Renault
Scizor (M) @ Choice Band *** Captain Renault
Ability: Technician
EVs: 240 HP / 248 Atk / 20 Spe
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
~ U-Turn
~ Bullet Punch
~ Super Power
~ Pursuit
~ Bullet Punch
~ Super Power
~ Pursuit
Scizor is a part of both cores on this team: he uses his great typing to an advantage, finding ways to come in and force switches on a lot of pokemon, and he is such an offensive threat, that he ends up taking out a lot of pokemon that would otherwise prove troublesome to the team. He fulfills the Revenge Killer & Scout roles on my team. He is able to KO almost anything that doesn't resist Steel under 50% health, and most things that resist Steel when they are under 25% health via Bullet Punch. U-Turn scouts for counters, and when up against an enemy weak to one of Scizor's moves, it racks up the damage.
I tend to play Scizor very conservatively: coming in and U-Turning until I'm sure they don't have Magnezone. Scizor is important to the teams success in the late game, taking out Lucarios & Infernapes with less than 40% health, as well as taking out Latias and Salamence who otherwise can be total assholes to this team. The exception to my conservative play is if Salamence is on the field with +1 Atk & Spd, because I don't have too many fantastic choices at that point except to KO with Scizor. Because of the roles I need Scizor to play on the team, it is important that he stay at near full health throughout the match. Vaporeon's Wish Support greatly helps out here, as it heals off 4 turns of SR damage (48% health) in one turn, while Scizor will take almost no damage if coming in on an enemy's Grass attack. Scizor's EVs are fairly Standard. 20 Spe beats the common 12 & 16 Spe CB Scizors, 248 Atk EVs provides near max attack, with the 4 EVs going to Speed, and the rest of the EVs are poured into HP for durability.
As far as his moves go, they are standard. U-Turn is STAB, and is great for scouting out counters. As I said, I tend to use U-Turn until very late in the game, when I'm sure my opponent doesn't have anything to trap Scizor. Bullet Punch is STAB boosted further by Technician so that hits a respectable 90 Base Power. This coming off a ridiculous Attack stat is destructive when everything has been weakened on my opponent's team. I use Superpower over Brick Break due to the much greater neutral power and the ability OHKO many switch ins that Brick Break would 2HKO. Pursuit is what makes it a deadly Gengar, Latias, and any other Ghost / Psychic counter, as it forces them to play mind games; to switch, or not to switch.
Scizor is named after Captain Renault because he is very strategically based. Using Scizor effectively requires prediction; he can be destructive when used well or fail when the user lacks foresight. The same is true of Captain Renault. He is a very intelligent man, yet Victor Laszlo escapes him because he wasn't able to see Rick's betrayal coming.
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Rick Blaine
Machamp (M) @ Leftovers *** Rick Blaine
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Atk / 12 Spe
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
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Rick Blaine
Machamp (M) @ Leftovers *** Rick Blaine
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Atk / 12 Spe
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
~ Substitute
~ Dynamic Punch
~ Stone Edge
~ Payback
~ Dynamic Punch
~ Stone Edge
~ Payback
It's time now to meet who the Balance has all been for! The constant weakening through U-Turn & Stealth rock, the Paralysis support, the pokemon that can remove his counters, has all been for Machamp. Machamp is one of the pokemon people don't see coming, and can get completely screwed over by. He abuses paralysis by setting up a sub and utilizing Dynamic Punch for the Parafusion combo. He gets brilliant coverage with his attacks that can never miss. He can take out pretty much any pokemon when they are paralyzed and weakened, and come out of it without a scratch. So lets meet SubChamp.
SubChamp is almost always the last pokemon I reveal. His destructiveness is in the late stages of the game where all of his counters have been taken care of. In a good game, I won't even need to get to the point where he comes out, but if it gets there, he is ready to kill. My first move is to bring him out on a paralyzed target and use Dynamic Punch, regardless of whether they are resistant to it or not (if they are immune to it, that strategy changes.), because with them confused and paralyzed, they only have slim odds to attack. After that, I get behind a substitute to ease prediction and fire off whatever attack will be most powerful. Usually, it will only take a hit or two to take out the opposing pokemon, especially if they attack themselves in confusion. His EVs are key to his success. 252 HP allows him to makes fairly bulky subs that can take a hit. 128 Atk and an Adamant nature provides Machamp with the ability to pack a huge punch, while the remaining EVs were given to speed so that he can outspeed all other Machamps (bar Choice Scarf), as well as some pokemon that aren't Paralyzed.
Machamp's moveset is all about abusing No Guard and making the best of his team support. He gets perfect coverage with his attacks, which is important because with his high damage output, not much could stop him except resisted hits. Substitute takes advantage of Paralysis / Confusion support, allowing him to safely get behind it. Substitute also makes it significantly easier to predict, as making a mistake doesn't cost much. Dynamic Punch completes the Parafusion combo, and is a brilliant STAB move that Machamp has unique competitive access to. Stone Edge + Dynamic Punch gets brilliant coverage, and Stone Edges accuracy, like Dynamic Punch's, is boosted to 100%. Stone Edge allows it to out a great many things that Payback and Dynamic Punch don't let it do. Speaking of which, Payback is the final move in his set. It is the moves that grants perfect coverage and hits all the pesky Ghost and Psychic types like a bitch, OHKOing Offensive Rotom-A, Latias, Azelf, and Gengar among others.
Machamp is named after the lead, Rick Blaine, because he is the star of the team. He also has good chemistry with the pokemon I cast as the leading lady, Vaporeon, as she takes out many of his counters, like Gyarados. Also, he is a brutally strong, like Rick is strong of will in the movie. A subtle thing is that Rick is neutral when it comes to World War II and was neutral in World War I, and Machamp gets perfect neutral coverage with his attacks.
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Closing Credits
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Thank you so much for taking the time to look through my team, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did making it. It has been extremely successful, and I would like it to be even more so, so please suggest whatever you can; I am open to whatever you have to offer =).
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Closing Credits
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Thank you so much for taking the time to look through my team, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did making it. It has been extremely successful, and I would like it to be even more so, so please suggest whatever you can; I am open to whatever you have to offer =).
