NeverUsed RMT: First Forays

[LittleCupFailure]

So, I realize I'm late to the party here, but I decided to make an NU RMT. After much arduous teambuilding that discarded Pokemon as various as Liepard, Grumpig, Jynx, and Vileplume, I reached the NU team that I could battle with indefinitely. I really like using it, and I think it works rather well. Descriptions below!

Musharna (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Heal Bell
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
- Moonlight

In NU, Psychic-types are kings. It doesn't matter if they're offensive powerhouses like Jynx and Kadabra, defensive bastions like Musharna, and Pokemon that are somewhere in the middle, such as Exeggutor and Gardevoir. Of all of the Psychic-types that I used, Musharna is the most reliable. Grumpig is the Psychic-type most similar to Musharna, and his moveset (Whirlwind, Psyshock, Heal Bell, Thunder Wave) is likewise very close. Eventually, I chose Musharna over Grumpig because of Moonlight, a reliable recovery move that sets this fluffy pink elephant apart from the pig. Musharna struggles against Skuntank, but apart from that dedicated trapper it doesn't encounter many problems when it comes to walling NU's popular sweepers, such as Sawk.

Skuntank (M) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Naughty Nature
- Taunt
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
- Fire Blast

As far as I'm concerned, Skuntank is the only really stand-out Dark-type in NU. His moveset is impeccable, and he's very helpful when it ccomes to screwing with people. Thanks to the prevalence of Psychic-types, Skuntank is very valuable, and his main role involves crushing things like Gardevoir without ever missing a beat. I originally used Electrode as my Taunt-user and Aftermath-haver, but that Pokemon, despite its unique ability to check Ninjask, came up short against every Stealth Rock lead in the tier because of its typing and poor STAB coverage. Skuntank it was, and Skuntank it shall be until further notice.

Rotom-Fan @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Trick
- Volt Switch
- Air Slash

Even after the removal of Electrode from this team, I recognized the need for fast Electric-types in a tier where rain teams abound. Rotom-Fan, despite having weird typing and a redundant ability, is a very good scarfer. Because of his great STAB combination, Rotom-Fan can revenge kill a multitude of Pokemon, even the problematic Sawk. Trick stops walls in their tracks, ruining Musharna, and crippling Ninjask as a Speed Booster. Overall, this Pokemon is a great one to bring in on a weakened opponent that can't fight back against it, but can fight back against other things.

Sawk @ Choice Band
Ability: Mold Breaker
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Stone Edge

Three rings for the Combusken under the sky, seven for the Gurdurr in their halls of stone, nine for mortal Primeape doomed to die, and one for Sawk upon his dark throne. Yes, Sawk is probably the best Fighting-type in all of NU, and there's no doubt about it. His solid stats and great ability allow him to OHKO (or at the very least, 2HKO) a number of Pokemon. Mold Breaker bypasses Sturdy as well, allowing Sawk to smash common leads like Bastiodon, Golem, and Probopass. Ice Punch nails Altaria, Torterra, and especially Golurk, which would otherwise wall Sawk entirely. Stone Edge hits a select few Flying-types, namely Charizard. Earthquake is the move that sees the least use of any of the ones on this set, but is still integral because, in conjunction with Mold Breaker, it allows Sawk to murder Weezing and Eelektross, Pokemon that Sawk would otherwise come up short against.

Samurott (F) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Megahorn
- Swords Dance
- Razor Shell

It was clear from the beginning that this team needed a Water-type. In the past, I had experimented with the likes of Alomomola, but eventually decided that it would be cooler to have an offensive Water-type instead. Thus was born my quest to find an offensively inclined Water-type that didn't need rain support. This ruled out Ludicolo, Seismitoad, and less-seen stuff like Pelipper and Mantine, and I was left with Samurott, which doesn't need the rain to sweep. The raw power of Swords Dance Samurott is a power only soured by Samurott's low speed, which is mitigated easily by Aqua Jet, which transforms Samurott into a fantastic late-game cleaner after one single boost. Just as Sawk often opens the game, so does Samurott close it with this set. Megahorn puts a stop to Psychic-types effortlessly, and also patches up Samurott's weakness to Grass-types. Samurott need not worry about Sleep Powder either, because he's got a Lum Berry handy in case of that. The best part about Samurott is that, once Torrent kicks in, Aqua Jet reaches awesome heights of power, making Samurott more dangerous when weakened.

Tangela (M) @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Leech Seed
- Synthesis
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Finally, a Grass-type needed to be on this team. I used to use Vileplume, but found it redundant in conjunction with Musharna, which filled a similar role to it. Tangela was chosen over said rafflesia because of its ability to use Evolite and because of its actual ability, the fantastic Regenerator, which makes it a better bulky 'mon than ever. Leech Seed lets Tangela continually steal health from the sweepers that it can wall, allowing it to maintain the upper hand even when its opponent uses a powerful move on it. Hidden Power Ice removes threats like Altaria and Torterra from the equation when it's not safe for Sawk to use Ice Punch on them, as well as better helping Tangela to retaliate against fellow Grass-types, which it couldn't stall out otherwise.

So there you have it. Rate this team, please!

 

[Brawlfest]

Not a bad team, although there are a few things that trouble me. First of all, Baton Pass over Heal Bell on Musharna. The reason for this is, it is a key component to your defensive core with Tangela, and without Baton Pass, Skuntank and Liepard destroy it far too easily with Pursuit, crippling Musharna for the rest of the battle. Baton Pass also will grab you some good momentum, allowing you to always see what the opponent switches into Musharna, thus allowing you to bring in the proper check or counter. It is clear that Skuntank is your primary win condition against strong psychic types, which is why Fire blast really worries me. It really has no reason to be on the set, as Fire Blast on skuntank is primarily to destroy Tangela and some leads, which in all honesty your team has no problems with. This is why my suggestion is for you to carry Poison Jab or Crunch, as this gives you a reliable STAB to hit with even when the opponent does not plan on attacking you. This is extremely important in beating out pokemon who plan on stalling you with non-attacking moves such as Misdreavus. Speaking of Misdreavus, I suggest you run 80 speed EVs in order to outspeed standard misdreavus and other quick utility pokemon in order to get off your Taunt to avoid being burnt. This also allows you to outspeed Timid Gorebyss before shell smash, which means you can get off your taunt, thus preventing your team from being swept. I would also suggest a Lum Berry on Skuntank, as it helps you avoid crippling status, but that really is optional. On Samurott, you really should have 56 speed EVs+. 56 is the baseline, as it allows Samurott to outspeed Fully Invested base 45 common Rock and Ground type pokemon which it loves to hit. However, if you decide to run more Speed, you lose significant bulk, but gain much more sweeping potential on your samurott. Finally I suggest Sleep Powder over synthesis on Tangela. This is because of Tangela's already amazing ability to recover it's health in Regenerator + Giga Drain + Leech Seed. Synthesis really doesn't see much use in it's arsenal. Sleep Powder however, is deadly and scary, being able to put certain pokemon our of commission for the rest of the match, giving you the upper hand in many situations.

Outside of those changes, this team is very solid, and I commend you on the well built team.

 

[atomicllamas]

Hi, this is a pretty cool team, that has all of the right pieces, it just needs a little bit of tweaking.

First off, choice band Sawk has to run speed EVs, as you want to outspeed the offensive custap leads, it also allows it to perform well against slower offensive mons. Move the 252 HP EVs to speed, and you should have a more successful wall breaker (especially for like mandibuzz). I agree with the above advice on Skuntank, it needs to run more speed, and fire blast isn't optimum, also since you are using it to trap psychic types, who are primarily special attackers, I would but the extra bulk EVs in special defense. This is the skuntank set I've had most success with:

Skuntank @ Lum Berry/black sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 176 SDef / 80 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Poison Jab
- Sucker Punch
- Taunt
- Pursuit

You may not out speed stuff like misdreavus all of the time, but the lum berry gives you a one time chance to trap it. It also allows Skuntank to trap and beat jynx, something that it looks like your team really struggles with.

I also agree that sleep powder should be used over synthesis, as Tangela already has quite a few ways to regain health, and speed EVs are a necessity on Samurott, I would actually recommend 72 speed EVs to gain the jump on 16 speed garbador which is the recommended smogon spread. Overall this looks like a pretty solid team, you don't necesarilly need to drop heal bell for baton pass on mushy, as taunt Skuntank and pivot Liepard can prevent the use of baton pass and trap it regardless. If you keep heal bell on mushy you can definitely use black sludge on skuntank, as status can just be healed later.

 

[LittleCupFailure]

After considering you guys's advice, I changed my team a bit. I agreed with some changes and disagreed with others, but I overall appreciate your contributions to my humble team. Without further ado, here's the revised team with the changes explained.

Musharna (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SDef / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Heal Bell
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
- Moonlight

I got some suggestions to give Musharna Baton Pass instead of Heal Bell, which would ideally help Musharna navigate out of precarious situations involving Liepard and especially Skuntank, the latter of which loves to use Pursuit incessantly. I decided to pass on this one, concluding that Heal Bell was the only thing preventing Skuntank from being burned for the entire game. Heal Bell also prevents everything else from status, allowing Sawk and Samurott to pull through at times when they couldn't otherwise.

Skuntank (M) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 252 Atk / 176 HP / 4 SDef / 76 Spd
Serious Nature
- Taunt
- Sucker Punch
- Pursuit
- Crunch

I retooled Skuntank's EVs at the behest of the other forumgoers, bumping its speed up to keep up with fast threats like Misdreavus. In addition, I gave it a solid attacking move in Crunch, which makes Skuntank more reliable against Psychic-types if it's playing the long game. I didn't end up giving it a Lum Berry over Black Sludge because Musharna has Heal Bell anyway, so it doesn't matter all that much.

Rotom-Fan @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Trick
- Volt Switch
- Air Slash

Nobody ever has a bone to pick with me when it comes to Rotom, for some reason. When I made UU teams, everyone liked my handling of Rotom-Heat as well. Kinda bizarre. Anyway, this one stays as it always was.

Sawk @ Choice Band
Ability: Mold Breaker
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Stone Edge

Sawk got some EV tooling as well, losing the HP EVs which, in hindsight, were superfluous anyway, and replacing them with shiny new Speed EVs. This comes in handy when defeating faster stuff, so Sawk can kill more things now! Yeah!

Samurott (F) @ Lum Berry
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 Atk / 180 HP / 76 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Megahorn
- Swords Dance
- Razor Shell

For this guy, I took some EVs out of HP and invested them in Speed. This did make a difference against some faster opponents, though it wasn't as handy as I would've hoped against stuff like Charizard, which still outspeeds it and makes its life hell when Samurott is weak. Come to think of it, my team has no solid counter to Charizard. Thoughts, anyone?

Tangela (M) @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 SAtk
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Leech Seed
- Sleep Powder
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Because Tangela already gets a way to restore HP in the form of Regenerator, I was told that using Synthesis was rather ridiculous, so I used Sleep Powder instead. It works very well, hitting overconfident Charizard 75% of the time (because that's its accuracy, duh) and ensuring that my team has an easier time cleaning up.

So that's the improved team. Thanks for the help, guys!

 

[bobosqueeli333]

instead of tangela as your grass type you can put in life orb cacturne with sucker punch swords dance drain punch and seed bomb, seed bomb and sucker punch both have base 156 atk with STAB plus life orb making it very effective and you can use drain punch against fighting types and lastly swords dance when the opponent switches.

 

[Brawlfest]

instead of tangela as your grass type you can put in life orb cacturne with sucker punch swords dance drain punch and seed bomb, seed bomb and sucker punch both have base 156 atk with STAB plus life orb making it very effective and you can use drain punch against fighting types and lastly swords dance when the opponent switches.

Tangela is a wall. Cacturne takes a hit and dies. That isn't a solid replacement at all. They fill two completely separate roles. Thats like saying replace Carracosta for Alomomola because it can pass wishes. They fill two separate roles, and shouldn't be replaced like that.

 

[Valafar123]

This team is actually very similar to mine with 4 same species pokes.

If you're running Tangela, go for 248 HP to make the number odd (that's a rule of thumb that I swear by on most Pokemon). It'll reduce residual and hazard damage and you'll still get the same HP from Regenerator (111). Try to make the defences even too. (I can't see what Showdown did with your IV spread for Hidden Power right now)

IMO Hidden Power Ice is pretty poor on Tangela. Sludge Bomb hits harder on most Grass-types and Sap Sipper users and has the 30% Poison rate. Grass/Poison types, namely Roselia and Vileplume, won't be taking any damage from HP Ice anyway and they threaten you with their STAB Sludge Bombs meaning you can't stay in anyway.

On another thread I was recommended Hidden Power Rock, which deals with Scolipede. Rotom does the job better, but it's an idea anyway. Haven't used it personally.

I personally run Tangela with 248 / - 0 (0 IV) / + 248 / 4 / 8 / 0 with Giga Drain, dual Powders and Knock Off, but my team is geared differently from yours. You won't appreciate the Knock Off support nearly as much, but Paralysis support will help your Samurott and Sawk since they're not too fast as far as offensive Pokemon go. If you have issues with being out-sped I would consider it.

What you do move pool wise is up to your needs, but definitely keep the HP odd for it.

Nitpicking on Tangela aside, your team lacks a dedicated special wall. Granted special attackers in NU are all around weaker than their physical counterparts, you still might have issues. I haven't used the team, so I'll leave it to you to decide if it's a problem and if you want to remedy it. The first thing that comes to mind is Grumpig over Musharna as a special wall instead of a physical wall. Its move pool is more or less identical, but it has better special bulk and two lovely resistances to Ice and Fire that your Tangela would love. It's also walls Jynx to oblivion, so there's that too.

I also like atomicllamas idea for Lum Berry Skuntank if Grumpig isn't your style (I may steal that idea :P). It'd be pretty interesting to see how your team does with two Lum Berry users.

I also noticed you don't have any form of hazard. Seems odd to me, but I can roll with it.

Good RMT overall. :)

 

[Pen Ink]

hey, this is a pretty solid team.

i feel like this team has some trouble with rain dance ludicolo and any form of charizard. musharna is really your only solid check to a ludicolo under rain (rotom-s can't outspeed) and musharna is still 2hko'd by hydro pump, meaning it can't even safely switch in and hopefully get off a thunder wave. charizard completely fucking destroys this team. choice specs is an absolute nightmare, in particular. it 2hko's or ohko's every member of your team, especially when rocks is up. what i'm going to suggest is replacing tangela with munchlax, who forms a very solid defensive core with musharna and keeps up nice synergy. munchlax walls ludicolo and charizard to oblivion, while it can absorb sleep, phaze pokemon and paralyze them.

i also think your team kind of has a tough time breaking down bulkier grass-types, simply because rotom-s is locked into electric attacks a lot and your only other good coverage move is sawk's ice punch. i think that changing rotom-s to a expert belt set would actually benefit you a lot; you can now lure out grass-types like roselia and tangela by bluffing a choice scarf and now nail them with air slash. tangela, in particular, is ohko'd by air slash. this is also a cool lure for seismitoad, which could pose problems if you decide to change tangela.

EDIT: i realized that with munchlax on your team, musharna will probably want to become defensive, since now munchlax can soak up any spdef hits.

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Munchlax @ Eviolite
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Body Slam
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Whirlwind / Rock Slide / Earthquake

basically a standard smogon set except for the last slot and i changed up the EV's a bit just because psyshock is unpopular. whirlwind is good because it allows munchlax to never really be set-up fodder, but rock slide might help your team specifically more to nail charizard, in which case you might want to run an ev spread of 252 HP / 232 SDef / 24 Atk, allowing munchlax to ohko charizard after two life orb damages. earthquake is a cool coverage move too to nail steel types.

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Rotom-Fan @ Expert Belt
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 HP / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Air Slash
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch / Substitute
- Hidden Power [Grass]

yeah, expert belt rotom-s is pretty self explanatory. substitute is a cool option though to set up on grass-types trying to sleep powder you.

• 252 SDef -> 252 Def
• 252 HP -> 240 HP (Leftovers number)

Musharna (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Def / 240 HP / 16 SDef
Calm Nature
- Heal Bell
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
- Moonlight

 

[LittleCupFailure]

Tangela is a wall. Cacturne takes a hit and dies. That isn't a solid replacement at all. They fill two completely separate roles. Thats like saying replace Carracosta for Alomomola because it can pass wishes. They fill two separate roles, and shouldn't be replaced like that.

I'm going to have to agree with Brawlfest here. Tangela fulfills a solid role on the team, and shouldn't be replaced with a hard-hitting Pokemon when my team has three already (Rotom-Fan, Sawk, Samurott).