Introduction
Hey guys! I'm arjsh. I've been playing Pokemon for about ten years. I got into battling with Pokemon Showdown about two years ago, and I must say that I really enjoy it. This is my first Rate My Team.
This team is pretty offensively oriented and includes Mega Charizard Y, Garchomp, Gengar, Conkeldurr, Skarmory, and Wash Rotom. It's done very well in the competitive scene, taking me up the points ladder very fast. The sets that I have on the Pokemon aren't exactly uncommon - in fact, many of them are from Smogon's Strategy Dex, but they still work well.
Team Building Process
Step 1:
I always loved playing with Garchomp in Gen 4 - it seemed so cool to me. Today, I've realized what a great competitive Pokemon it is, with its high attack and good move pool. I decided to combine Garchomp with Mega Charizard Y because Charizard would be able to deal with the ice types that Garchomp is weak against while Garchomp works as a great revenge killer. I chose Charizard Y over Charizard X because Charizard Y is a better wall breaker, and unlike Charizard X, which often needs a Dragon Dance to set up, Charizard Y many times can start sweeping right out of the poke ball. Type and move pool synergies and Garchomp's high attack and Charizard's high special attack add up to what I think is a pretty good offensive core. This is what my start team looked like:
Step 2:
A Pokemon for removing and setting up hazards is an important part of any team. In my case, I sort of went back to basics with Skarmory, whose spikes and stealth rock were vital. Skarmory's defog was important as well to allow Charizard to sweep and wall-break to its full potential by removing stealth rock, which does massive damage to a Fire-Flying type like Charizard. At this point, my team looked like this:
Step 3:
I needed more Pokemon on my team, and the first one that came to mind was Conkeldurr. I had used him a lot in the past and really wanted to include him on this team. He's a great tank, being able to take substantial hits while dishing out damage with a great attack stat. Gengar, on of OU's best special sweepers, complimented Conkeldurr nicely by being able to take on some of Conkeldurr's weaknesses, namely psychic types and fairy types. These two additions left me with one open slot:
Step 4:
For my final slot I wanted a more defensively oriented Pokemon and one that could tie the team together by being able to counter the weaknesses of other Pokemon on the team. In my case, Wash Rotom fit this description. It can take on fire types like Talonflame that could otherwise threaten Skarmory. However, it's real strength is in its pivotability. Volt Switch is a great move for switching and Rotom gets STAB from it as well. Will-O-Wisp is equally important. This move helps set up for my sweepers by crippling the attack stats of physical sweepers that could otherwise pose threats. This was my final team:
Hey guys! I'm arjsh. I've been playing Pokemon for about ten years. I got into battling with Pokemon Showdown about two years ago, and I must say that I really enjoy it. This is my first Rate My Team.
This team is pretty offensively oriented and includes Mega Charizard Y, Garchomp, Gengar, Conkeldurr, Skarmory, and Wash Rotom. It's done very well in the competitive scene, taking me up the points ladder very fast. The sets that I have on the Pokemon aren't exactly uncommon - in fact, many of them are from Smogon's Strategy Dex, but they still work well.
Team Building Process
Step 1:
I always loved playing with Garchomp in Gen 4 - it seemed so cool to me. Today, I've realized what a great competitive Pokemon it is, with its high attack and good move pool. I decided to combine Garchomp with Mega Charizard Y because Charizard would be able to deal with the ice types that Garchomp is weak against while Garchomp works as a great revenge killer. I chose Charizard Y over Charizard X because Charizard Y is a better wall breaker, and unlike Charizard X, which often needs a Dragon Dance to set up, Charizard Y many times can start sweeping right out of the poke ball. Type and move pool synergies and Garchomp's high attack and Charizard's high special attack add up to what I think is a pretty good offensive core. This is what my start team looked like:
Step 2:
A Pokemon for removing and setting up hazards is an important part of any team. In my case, I sort of went back to basics with Skarmory, whose spikes and stealth rock were vital. Skarmory's defog was important as well to allow Charizard to sweep and wall-break to its full potential by removing stealth rock, which does massive damage to a Fire-Flying type like Charizard. At this point, my team looked like this:
Step 3:
I needed more Pokemon on my team, and the first one that came to mind was Conkeldurr. I had used him a lot in the past and really wanted to include him on this team. He's a great tank, being able to take substantial hits while dishing out damage with a great attack stat. Gengar, on of OU's best special sweepers, complimented Conkeldurr nicely by being able to take on some of Conkeldurr's weaknesses, namely psychic types and fairy types. These two additions left me with one open slot:
Step 4:
For my final slot I wanted a more defensively oriented Pokemon and one that could tie the team together by being able to counter the weaknesses of other Pokemon on the team. In my case, Wash Rotom fit this description. It can take on fire types like Talonflame that could otherwise threaten Skarmory. However, it's real strength is in its pivotability. Volt Switch is a great move for switching and Rotom gets STAB from it as well. Will-O-Wisp is equally important. This move helps set up for my sweepers by crippling the attack stats of physical sweepers that could otherwise pose threats. This was my final team:
Individual Analysis of the Pokemon
In this section, I'll go over individual properties, uses, strengths, weaknesses, etc.
Charizard @ Charizardite Y
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Solar Beam
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Dragon Pulse
Mega Charizard Y is one of the biggest threats in the OU tier right now. With an EV spread maximized for Speed and Special Attack, this set fits my play style very well because of its high powered, offensive nature. Solar Beam is a great choice against water types and rock types and hits in one turn in sunlight, which is guaranteed because of Charizard's ability, Drought. Fire Blast in sunlight 2HKO or incinerates basically anything that doesn't resist or absorb it. In fact, a neutral fire blast can hit harder than Charizard's other moves super effectively. At first, I had Earthquake on Charizard rather than Focus Blast for extra damage against Heatran, but Focus Blast is really a better option because of the way it can hit Heatran AND Tyranitar. Dragon pulse covers Dragon-types such as Charizard X and Kingdra.
Garchomp @ Life OrbIn this section, I'll go over individual properties, uses, strengths, weaknesses, etc.
Charizard @ Charizardite Y
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Solar Beam
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Dragon Pulse
Mega Charizard Y is one of the biggest threats in the OU tier right now. With an EV spread maximized for Speed and Special Attack, this set fits my play style very well because of its high powered, offensive nature. Solar Beam is a great choice against water types and rock types and hits in one turn in sunlight, which is guaranteed because of Charizard's ability, Drought. Fire Blast in sunlight 2HKO or incinerates basically anything that doesn't resist or absorb it. In fact, a neutral fire blast can hit harder than Charizard's other moves super effectively. At first, I had Earthquake on Charizard rather than Focus Blast for extra damage against Heatran, but Focus Blast is really a better option because of the way it can hit Heatran AND Tyranitar. Dragon pulse covers Dragon-types such as Charizard X and Kingdra.
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
Outrage is a powerful STAB move that makes use of Garchomp's attack stat (EV's are maximized for speed and attack) to hit Pokemon for a ton of damage. Earthquake is also a STAB move with good coverage and hits rock types that can hit Charizard hard for super effective damage. I usually set up Stealth Rock with Garchomp before I begin attacking for an extra edge. Stone edge can be used for ice types which deal a dangerous 4x damage against Garchomp.
Conkeldurr @ Assault Vest
Ability: Guts
EVs: 252 Atk / 236 SpD / 20 Spe
- Drain Punch
- Mach Punch
- Ice Punch
- Poison Jab
Conkeldurr is a tank. With high attack and solid HP and Defense, it can take it almost as well as it can dish it out. Drain Punch is a recovery option and was used often. Mach Punch is good for revenge kills and for cleaning up the remains of a team. Ice Punch provides good coverage against Flying-Ground types such as Gliscor and Landorus-T while also keeping Dragon types in check. Poison Jab works well against fairy-types like Azumarill and Clefable.
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
- Sludge Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Psychic
- Thunderbolt
A dangerous sweeper that has remained in the OU tier across all generations, the only one to do so. Its resistance to fairy is very important, especially to my team - as important as it's ability to hit fairy-types hard with STAB Sludge Wave. Shadow Ball is a good move for neutral coverage and Thunderbolt hits water types that could hurt Charizard hard. Psychic is a great move that uses Gengar's Special Attack well.
Skarmory @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Roost
- Defog
- Brave Bird
A classic. Skarmory is the ultimate physical wall, with a stellar 140 base defense. Setting up stealth rock is generally a breeze. Roost is an important move for Skarmory, allowing it to be on its toes when a physical wall or defogger is needed at any point throughout the match. Brave Bird is Skarmory's best way to check Pokemon that are weak to Flying type moves.
Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpD / 10 Spe
Calm Nature
- Pain Split
- Will-O-Wisp
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
Volt Switch is a great move that Rotom has STAB on. Will-O-Wisp absolutely cripples Physical sweepers. Hydro Pump is also a great STAB move, and Pain Split is a great move that functions in absence of a recovery.
I love playing with this team. Criticism welcome!
