Gen 6 NIGHT PARADE [SPL Metagross Weavile Bulky Offense]

[erz]

Introduction and general description​

Hey, I'm here to share the best team I was able to build in a lot of years of playing. To advance the metagame? Not really. To get the team rated? Absolutely not, there's no option left whatsoever that ABR and I didn't consider when building and optimizing this team for Week 6 of SPL. It's the very simple reason that I'd like others to enjoy OR/AS OU the same way I do. It took a lot of trial and error to arrive where I am today in regards of teambuilding, part of it is recorded in a thread I made 9 months ago linked here. After posting all my teams that time I cleared my builder and started from zero, playing and testing every single pokemon the generation has to offer. Every single one? No, not all the LCs (I did test aron and taillow lol) but basically yeah, every single one. Lots of hours went into practice, laddering, obvserving and at some point I was able to tear down the ceiling. BKC used two of my teams in his Smogon Tour Playoffs Run end of last year, one of those was built together w ABR. Everything else went into preparation for SPL. Some ideas were used, a lot weren't partially due to the unforeseen change of what our opponents started to bring but 9 weeks + playoffs of bo1s isn't nearly enough to cover everything I/we built anyway. Now why do I state that this team is the best out of the thousands I built? The interpretation of what "the best" is differs but to me and my friends and generally most of the best players it means "most consistent winning results". We all know there's no single best team that can beat anything else but by having tested everything and anything I can tell you that this team has an incredibly low percentage of "unwinnable" matchups. Unwinnable matchups mean there's a 0% Chance to beat the opposing player when both players play optimally. You generally don't need to concern yourself too much about this fact, considering the vast majority of players misplay but as soon as you enter SPL or an official playoffs setting it's different. You're playing the best of the best, you'll still be able to find misplays in a lot of battles but you can't bank on them anymore. If you want to win and cut out the chances of you having a 0% chance of winning you simply need to improve your teambuilding so you're able to give it your best shot once you've logged onto smogtours to chall your opponent. Ended up bringing this team in Week 6 when we were down 0-2 and kicked off a winning streak that didn't end until we won the week.

in-depth analysis:​

Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Bullet Punch
- Hammer Arm
- Stealth Rock

Mega Metagross is great to have on any team due to it's ridiculous power, bulk and more than decent speed tier. On this team it's not actually using it's offensive capabilties to try to break as many teams as possible but to cover certain threats and provide sr for the team. The most important move here is Hammer Arm. The team doesn't appreciate ferrothorn getting free turns and with hammer arm you're not only denying free turns but you're also actively threatening the 2HKO which forces it out. Hammer Arm is also important to fight other Metagross which are mildly annoying to face depending on their set. Most times it's immensely favorable if you're trading your meta vs theirs, which wouldn't be possible without Hammer Arm. Furthermore you can put it to good use vs Excadrill, Heatran, Bisharp, Tyranitar, Magnezone, Crawdaunt, Hydreigon, the Kyurems and it's pretty good as a midground play in a decent amount of scenarios. Next up is Stealth Rock. SR's mandatory to have on any team and Metagross is a surprisingly good setter. This team appreciates Clefable and Gliscor being able to run CM and SD respectively a lot more than having an additional coverage move on Metagross, so it's a natural fit. Metagross' natural bulk allows it to set up rocks vs the majority of the metagame. You're also forcing out a lot of opposing mons in the process just by appearing threatening with your potential coverage which nets you a lot of free rocks. Zen Headbutt is the main STAB of choice because of it's good matchup vs Rotom-W, it's ability to OHKO Keldeo, it's huge damage output vs the majority of the tier and it's good coverage synergy with Hammer Arm. You're not oneshotting Clefable with this but you're dealing enough damage to beat it anyway while not having to run Meteor Mash which frees up the next slot. Clefables usually don't stay in anyway. Bullet Punch is a huge asset to have in ORAS. You're able to kill Weavile without having to tank a banded Knock Off head-on, you're able to revenge plenty of things on your own and the paired priority of Metagross and Weavile can even finish off pokemon that would normally resist both of BP and Ice Shard such as Volcarona just because both users pack a punch. You don't have to risk speedties vs other 350 speed pokemon either as you're simply free to Bullet Punch them. Important in the matchup vs Mega-Alakazam too. Great move all around and very valuable in the tier as a whole. The spread is straight forward, by maximizing your offensive stats you're able to force progress against a bunch of teams. You'll also be able to generate free turns which allow for more defensive stability than adding evs into defensive stats would. Don't be afraid to throw your Metagross into attacks or to simply get rocks up in front of a ground type (usually you'd like to abuse ground types with Gliscor though but we're getting there later) or to set up rocks while facing a non-stab Heat Wave user. I feel like posting a calc just so you guys truly understand how bulky Metagross is and what it's actually capable of: 252 Atk Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Metagross-Mega: 252-296 (83.4 - 98%) -- guaranteed 2HKO.

Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 224 Def / 32 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Flamethrower
- Soft-Boiled
- Calm Mind​

Clef's the best mon in ORAS. In short: passive damage immunity, status absorb, fairy typing, coverage, just enough bulk to not get 2hkoed by the majority of mons. Setting up Calm Minds is a very easy thing to do but a very hard thing to counter. Moonblast serves as the stab attack, providing strong neutral damage against a lot of mons while also being a pretty good move in general because of it's added 30% chance to drop SpA as well as it's 24pp in contrast to Ice Beams or Psychics 16. Flamethrower hits the majority of steel types super effectively which makes Clefable super hard to switch into and it's useful in a bunch of other scenarios as well (fishing for burns in defensive matchups while saving moonblast pp or hitting the grass poison types for good damage). Soft-Boiled and Calm Mind are self-explanatory. The ev-spread adds as much physical defense as possible while allowing Clef to switch into timid mega-alakazam's psychic by pairing 32 spd evs with a calm nature. Generally don't be afraid to use clef as a sponge to certain threats and pivots. Clef's the prefered way to deal with RotomW as Latios is prone to getting pursuit-trapped. Other than that be wary of in which matchups it's okay to catch a twave, sometimes it's really not a big deal but sometimes the speed drop will allow your opponent to deal with you by using slower clear smog users paired with twave. If you're not familar with clef's bulk then I suggest you play some lowladder and test it's limits so you fully understand of what it's capable of tanking.

Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 244 HP / 12 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 11 Spe
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Roost
- Swords Dance​

Clawscor. Gliscor serves as the elec and ground immunity, as a sponge, longterm wincon and pivot for this team. SD is not only the move that turns Gliscor into a longterm wincon but it's actually a defensive tool to fend off CM Clefable variants that run twave, Flamethrower or anything else not named Ice Beam. SD EQ Gliscor beats about every viable grounded pokemon long term on it's own. It doesn't matter if it's Keldeo having to eat an EQ to then force glisc out or if it's Quagsire which slowly gets stalled out of recover pps. However this is not your standard SD Gliscor, it's a version of it that only really works when paired with another pokemon: Weavile. The pokemon that perform the best against Gliscor are hovering above the ground. Quick examples are Ice Beam Mega Latias, Gengar, other Gliscors that run Ice Fang to specifically ruin other Gliscors, Zapdos, Rotom-Wash, Togekiss, hp ice Tornadus-T with spa investment and a few more things. Facade is usually prefered but this team runs U-Turn coupled with 0 speed and decreased speed IVs. Why? Because Weavile. Banded Weavile threatens every single pokemon that either flies or levitates. It doesn't matter whether it's one of the Latis which flat out get trapped, if it's RotomW that takes a ton from banded knock off or if it's Skarmory that not only hates to lose it's item but also can easily get flinched to death considering there's only 1 flinch needed if skarm switches in. The speed drop allows Gliscor to be slower than opposing 0 speed Landorus to get the slowturn off. For those not familiar with the strategy, you're deliberately lowering your pokemon's speed to have your u-turn go off after your opponent's. Thus you're gaining the advantage of seeing what your opponent switches into which is incredibly huge when paired with a pokemon that is as unforgiving as Weavile as soon as it actually gets to enter the field safely. U-turn on it's own isn't bad coverage either. A +2 U-Turn on Slowbro coupled with 80bp Pursuit would kill it which means Slowbro can't just mindlessly click Ice Beam to force Gliscor out because it needs to be wary of Weavile simply harding into it. It also hits Tangrowth for real damage and brings the latis into suit range real easily. Slowturn not only means you have an easy way of preserving or regaining momentum but it also means you're free to invest all evs into bulk as much as you want. Max SpD Gliscor achieves calcs such as 0 SpA Latias-Mega Ice Beam vs. 244 HP / 252+ SpD Gliscor: 300-356 (85.2 - 101.1%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO. What your Gliscor needs to do changes depending on matchup so if you're not sure how to actually play it check out the replays at the end of the thread.



Weavile @ Choice Band
Ability: Pickpocket
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Icicle Crash
- Pursuit
- Ice Shard

CB Weavile breaks, traps, trades and revenges. Very limited longterm switchins make Weavile one of the most threatening pokemon in the tier. Usually the issue is that it's pretty hard to get weav in without taking attacks head on but clawscor solves the issue perfectly. Weav's stabs are inherently strong with Knock removing crucial items and Crash creating opportunities where nothing else works. However trapping counterplay to it's teammates is what actually makes weav what it is. Being able to switch your playstyle by either forcing progress on your own or using it to further enable a teampartner is super unique and valuable. The combo of clawscor and bandweav is now tried and proven (4-0 spl), I'll be refering to it as the claw core from here on out. Once you know the joy of clicking stabs freely with bandweav you'll never want to not use it again, it's absolutely incredible.

Volcanion @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 240 HP / 140 Def / 100 SpA / 24 SpD / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Steam Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Haze
- Toxic​

the chew machine. Famously getting a dedicated picture in the goat's final SPL shoutout or being the first message of the spl winning team's announcement channel, the chew machine chewed adamant Mega Scizor's Superpower for breakfast. Volcanion has always been a good mon to use in ORAS however standard sets always ran maxspa and a lot of speed to outspeed the likes of landorus or jolly crawdaunt. These evs change volcanion into something else entirely. A bold nature and 140 def evs truly make use of it's enormous natural Def BST (120) which lets it eat up earthquakes as if they're nothing. On this team it's truly helpful to fend off opposing Metagross but the main reason Volcanion fits so well is that it not only makes it much harder for Keldeo to break by playing a prediction game but it provides amazing counterplay against the most threatening mons of hyper offense. Subswarm volc and rain dance manaphy are flat out hard countered by volcanion since haze nullifies all progress made. It's bulky enough to live hpground/energy ball variants respectively from full as well which lets you get off the haze. 100 SpA maximizes your odds of 2HKO'ing Charizard-Mega-Y in Sun while tanking 2 Solar Beams from full at the same time. Volcanion as well as Weavile force you to play the hazard game perfectly which will require you to get some experience but it's nothing you won't be able to handle. You will need to play smartly and preserve volcanion's hp for the moment you need it the most which will allow you to turn the tides of the battle. Watch my SPL game (linked at the end of the thread) for a perfect example of how to use the chew machine.

Latios (M) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Defog​

Specs Latios is not only super hard to switch into but it's great utility in defog saves the team more often than it doesn't. It's a standard set and extremely self-explanatory but you'll have to watch out and think about when to actually get Latios in at all. Don't be tempted to click Defog when rocks are up just because you like them off on your side. If your opponent doesn't have great switchins left or to begin with then be free to drop them dracos all over your opponent. If you skip to the end of my spl battle you'll get me perfectly. In matchups that feature tyranitar latios will usually turn into a one-time defog user but there are times when tyranitar is weakened by having to switch into Weavile's attacks which will allow you to play with the idea of draco'ing it upon switchin. Generally Latios is a great pokemon that allows you to tie together a team by providing the much needed defog but also granting firepower and a third pretty fast pokemon next to Metagross and Weavile. Psyshock hits Tornadus-Therian much harderthan psychic does and it's needed to counter Vincune (subcmtect suicune). Surf is generally great coverage but the main reason is to hit all of Metagross, Heatran and Excadrill hard. Be mindful of what to click, locking into the wrong move might not only turn you into a set-up opportunity but might also outright lose you the game. Other than that Latios is as good as it's always been and you'll have good success and results by using it.

​

This team offers offensive prowess as well as defensive stability. This also stays true for every single mon on it's own with even Weavile providing enough defensive use to be a one-time switchin to a bulk of things while turning the momentum into your favor. Another reason why this team works so well is that the pieces work so well without each other to start with. Mega Metagross, Clefable and Gliscor make up the top 3 pokemon of the entire generation, Weavile is the most annoying non-mega breaker to deal with due to it being able to make progress vs anything not called Mega Scizor or Alomomola while Latios as well as Volcanion offer power, bulk and utility at the same time. As soon as you add the pieces together this team becomes a prime example of what ORAS OU bulky offense should be like with lots of power and bulk, ways to preserve momentum, tools to stop offensive sweepers and most importantly a whole lot of offensive and defensive synergy. Nothing greater than a team working as a team. Have fun, stay safe and have a great day :)

replays

spl, me
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-543393

smogon tour:
tace https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-559662
bkc https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-559907
bkc https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-559951
bkc https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-559982
bkc https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen6ou-560005

import

https://pokepast.es/b8a103a4847488d5
Metagross-Mega @ Metagrossite
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Bullet Punch
- Hammer Arm
- Stealth Rock

Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 224 Def / 32 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Flamethrower
- Soft-Boiled
- Calm Mind

Weavile @ Choice Band
Ability: Pickpocket
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- Icicle Crash
- Pursuit
- Ice Shard

Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 244 HP / 12 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 11 Spe
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Roost
- Swords Dance

Volcanion @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 240 HP / 140 Def / 100 SpA / 24 SpD / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Steam Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Haze
- Toxic

Latios (M) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Defog

the goatpack

BKC TonyFlygon ABR Star Relous talah Bloody alfa Tace Quaze Leru shawyu 1313 GaryTheGengar TPP mael SMB Mana col49 Bouff