Sweet Dee and the Gang take OU
One of my favorite niche pokemon in past gens was Stored Power Sigilyph. There's just something about making a pokemon more tanky and just cascading over the enemy team that's so satisfying, and so when I encountered Espartha on the SV OU ladder, I just knew I had to build a team around it. Please enjoy this Sunny flavored RMT!
Sweet Dee (Espathra)
Espathra @ Starf Berry
Ability: Speed Boost
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 152 HP / 52 Def / 252 SpA / 52 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stored Power
- Protect
- Calm Mind
- Dazzling Gleam
The star of the show, and the main win condition of the team. This stupid bird can steamroll any team with the right setup, and very often does. My secret ingredient on this set is the Starf Berry, which gives a random stat +2 at 1/4th hp. Usually it's a dump stat, but everything save for attack either gives additional bulk or hitting power, and regardless of which stat is boosted, it gives an extra 40 BP to Stored Power. Given how you play with the Bird, it beats out leftovers and is a more offensive option than Heavy Duty Boots.
I have run Psyshock in the past to cover heavily specially defensive pokemon, but haven't encountered anything like Blissey on the ladder, so I swapped to Protect to get an extra speed boost when needed or desired. It also helps to scout Gholdengo- terrastalyzing to Fairy is a good move against Shadow Ball, but a terrible idea against Make It Rain.
Speaking of the string cheese man, the magic number against it is 3 calm minds- against 252 HP/128 Sp. Def Gholdengo, +3 to Speed, Sp. Def, and Sp. Atk is enough for a 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rocks. Which brings me to the next member of the gang...
Fat Mac (Garchomp)
Garchomp @ Leftovers
Ability: Rough Skin
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
- Spikes
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Tail
- Earthquake
He's added mass, and is now a monster dropping...insulin spikes? everywhere. Garchomp is the general lead on this team- the goal is to set up at least stealth rock, or ideally a layer of spikes against the enemy team. Dragon Tail gives useful phazing utility against a number of other leads, and Earthquake not only deals with Glimmora, but can be a potent offensive option itself in a pinch. Generally this bulky fella is gonna be a bit of a suicide lead, but he's checked by Meowscarada, and in that case the strategy is to send in our next member,
Dennis (Iron Valiant)
Iron Valiant @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Trick
- Ice Punch
- Thunder Punch
Dennis cares greatly about his appearance, but isn't above changing who he is to get what he wants. Iron Valiant plays a mixed cleaner/utility role on the team- it works as a more aggressive lead than Garchomp, and can also be used to cripple more defensive teams with Trick. The Choice Scarf allows the same speed boost as Booster Energy, but without the one time use limitation that would harm its ability to rotate in and out as needed. Additionally, this team is better served by the ability to cripple a tanky pokemon on the enemy team more than the flexibility of the speed boost with its moveset.
Close Combat/Ice Punch/Thunder Punch gives boltbeam coverage, plus a great STAB option. This also covers for the ample dark types in the tier, who generally present a threat to Espathra, and there have been multiple games where it's enough to clean a team that's hurting after removing key checks.
Frank (Dondozo)
Dondozo @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Body Press
- Wave Crash
The Warthog is the financier of the team- he helps to enable their various schemes, and sometimes he dresses up as a man cheetah. Dondozo is the defensive core of the team with Unaware and a rest/sleep talk set. He allows it to operate easily around hazards, manage sleep, stop sweepers, and generally gives the kind of longevity that allows one to look for opportunities or mismatches in the opponent's play to get in Espathra.
The main thing to look out for with the Don is strong special attackers. Chi-Yu in particular is a problem, because despite the type advantage, Beads of Ruin allow it to generally 2HKO Dondozo and it relies on its bulk to work for pivoting or momentum adjustment.
Charlie (Cyclizar)
Cyclizar @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Shed Tail
- Rapid Spin
- U-turn
- Body Slam
He's been generally in charge of his life for the last 30 years, he's quick and he isn't afraid to get the hell out of dodge and be a bit of a wildcard. Cyclizar plays the role that it was born to do- shed that damn tail and get rid of hazards. It's the general best way to get Espathra in, and in a pinch it can act as a backup cleaner. This pokemon is really a move wearing the skin of a pokemon, and as long as he's bashing rats, the Gang is operating on all cylinders.
Ben the Soldier (Scizor)
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Thief
He's a bit slow, and he's been wearing the same pair of jorts for the past decade, but goddamnit, he's good at what he does! Scizor really is the patriarch of OU, isn't it? I've been playing competitively off and on since Gen V, and I don't think Scizor has never not been relevant and a solid pick. Great typing, good bulk, and the killer combo of Technician plus Bullet Punch means that it will almost always have a useful niche as a great priority attacker. The rest of the moveset is for coverage, and offer solid coverage in the case that the plan A of Espathra and plan B of Iron Valiant fall apart.
The McPoyles (Threatlist)
Chi-Yu
Chi-Yu is a threat because there are no significantly strong Specially Defensive pokemon on the team (bar a set up Espathra, but Beads of Ruin still makes it much more of a threat than it might otherwise be). The best way to check it is to ensure hazards are up, and hope to either set up Espathra and just OHKO it with Dazzling Gleam, or Close Combat it with Valiant.
Garganacl
This one was a surprise, but Garganacl is a priority target on enemy teams. Since Espathra is the only special attacker, this monster walls out the normal cleaners in Scizor and Iron Valiant, and Dondozo can't do enough damage to beat out its healing. Plus Salt Cure hits two of those very hard. The best response is to either reserve Valiant's Choice Scarf to trick onto it, or play around it and ensure that Espathra is reserved to deal with it.
Gholdengo
The Cereal Mascot from hell presents a hellish challenge to this team if not addressed properly. Air Balloon sets mean that Garchomp has to take a Shadow Ball or Make It Rain to force it out, while general attacking sets present the same issue that Chi-Yu does, in that they can out-damage the team and specific checks have to be held for it.
Also Good as Gold prevents Valiant from tricking the Choice Scarf onto it, preventing the prediction assistance that would provide. Ask me how I know!
Closing
This team has had good results for me, and I haven't played in any games that I felt I had no chance to counter and outplay the enemy team; I was simply outplayed myself. With good prediction and smart play, I think that this team has the potential to beat anything thrown at it. I'd love to hear about any blind spots it has, or areas that could be improved! Please Smogon, rate my team.