Welcome to my third AG RMT, or if you hate stall, your personal version of hell! Today the team I'm sharing is not one I'd note for achievements on the ladder (stall is hard to ladder with), but is more impressive in terms of its uniqueness and how effective it can be despite its gimmicky nature. For those of you who watched the AG Tournament finals, you'll recognize that thelinearcurve used a stall team revolving around a similar core, I actually did have a version of this team built before then but seeing how effective his build was inspired me to finally finish it.
The Team:
Teambuilding Process:
I wanted to build a stall team around Shedinja so there wasn't really anywhere else to start. Shedinja's niche lies in being able to hard counter Pokemon such as Ingrain/Aromatherapy Xerneas, Calm Mind Primal Kyogre and Calm Mind Steelceus that are normally hugely problematic for stall.
Shedinja teams in other metagames typically revolve around Shedinja and a Magic Bounce Pokemon, and that seemed like a reasonable choice in Anything Goes due to the large amounts of status spam and prevalence of entry hazards. While the other teams I've seen used either Mega Sableye or Espeon, I felt Mega Diancie was the best choice in this spot because it doesn't share nearly as many weaknesses with Shedinja. Mega Sableye notably is unable to beat Substitute Darkrai, a huge threat in AG.
Shared weaknesses between Diancie and Shedinja included Primal Groudon and Mega Rayquaza, two prominent wallbreakers in AG. Naturally I had to find a somewhat effective answer to the two, I initially considered Arceus-Water but I didn't think it would be a great check to Mega Rayquaza. After scrolling around the Strategy Dex for a bit, I saw that Arceus-Dragon would be a decent answer to the two and provide Defog support to Shedinja.
While Shedinja does hard counter things like Primal Kyogre and Xerneas most of the time, it seemed silly to have my only answer to those threats be something that dies upon taking any damage whatsoever, so I added Blissey to have a second check to those Pokemon and also a Pokemon that provides Heal Bell and Wish support.
I noticed that I didn't really have a check to EKiller Arceus, and I went through a lot of options in the teambuilder. Skarmory was very appealing because it was able to give Stealth Rock support, but Skarmory tends to be very predictable and most EKiller spam teams carry an answer for it. I decided to stick with what I know and run Bulkceus with Rocky Helmet, who also gave me a Stealth Rock setter.
The last spot on teams always tends to be the hardest for me, it always feels like there are too many threats to check in one slot, and I had this problem again. I was very worried about Mewtwo, and I had no answer to Mega Diancie and was still slightly EKiller weak. Eventually I settled on Ghostceus, who checks all the above threats well enough and also provides a second Defog user to ensure Shedinja stays alive.
In-Depth Analysis:
U Can't Touch This (Shedinja) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Wonder Guard
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Will-O-Wisp
- Baton Pass
- Protect
Shedinja is a very interesting Pokemon on any team, in the AG metagame specifically it checks Xerneas, Primal Kyogre and Calm Mind Steelceus (note that any of these can carry some random coverage move/Toxic but most of the time they don't), and is immune to any attacks from most Baton Pass teams. Focus Sash is my preferred item on Shedinja because it decreases the effectiveness of random coverage moves and usually allows me to play at least slightly riskier with the knowledge that a supereffective attack will not knock me out.
- Shadow Sneak: Shedinja's "powerful" STAB attack. I chose it for two reasons mainly, firstly the priority allows Shednija to bypass its terrible speed and attack first most of the time given Shedinja's immunity to Extreme Speed. Secondly, it has much more PP than other attacks, allowing Shedinja be more effective in situations where outstalling an opponent is required.
- Will-O-Wisp: Provides Shedinja with a more reliable source of damage than Shadow Sneak and supports the rest of the team by crippling threatening physical attackers if they try to switch in. Because Shedinja carries a Focus Sash, it can stay in once on a threatening Pokemon like Choice Band Rayquaza and burn it, though this is far from the ideal scenario it will work in a pinch.
- Baton Pass: Needed for pivoting out of incoming threats that would threaten Shedinja. Shedinja makes for a particularly good user of the move thanks to its low Speed and many immunities, if the opposing Pokemon cannot harm Shedinja, I can use Baton Pass after absorbing a hit, send out another teammate then hard switch back to Shedinja. Though this is predictable, it is very effective at stalling out opposing Pokemon.
- Protect: Similarly to Diancie, Shedinja needs Protect to help stall for status damage on opponents, but also is needed to scout for random status or coverage moves that could catch Shedinja off guard.
Fairy Nice (Diancie-Mega) @ Diancite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 88 HP / 4 Atk / 200 SpA / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
- Moonblast
- Earth Power
- Diamond Storm
- Protect
Tasked with countering Darkrai, bouncing back hazards, beating Klefki and soft checking Rayquaza, Diancie usually has its hands full in any given match. In addition to the previously mentioned roles, Diancie also finds a use as the team's only Pokemon with a decent amount of power, which in addition to Magic Bounce makes it very strong against opposing stall.
- Moonblast: The first of Diancie's STABs and the most spammed, Moonblast is essential for Diancie to fulfill its role as a check to Darkrai and soft check to Mega Rayquaza.
- Earth Power: Has good coverage with Moonblast, Earth Power combined with Magic Bounce makes Diancie an excellent check to Klefki and prevents Primal Groudon from walling it.
- Diamond Storm: Diancie's second STAB, it is mostly used to hit Ho-Oh and Lugia, who both are annoying to this team. Diamond Storm must be used conservatively thanks to its low PP.
- Protect: Ensures a safe Mega evolution, which is critical given the importance of Diancie's role on the team. It can also be used for scouting and Toxic stalling at various points in a match.
Arceus - Ghost (Arceus-Dragon) @ Draco Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 204 Def / 56 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Judgment
- Toxic
- Recover
- Defog
Dragonceus is something I'd heard theorymon about in the Ubers viability ranking thread but I never got around to trying it. Once I did, I was really impressed, it was able to effectively check Primal Groudon thanks to its typing, bulk and Toxic, while it could also take on Rayquaza with its STAB Judgment.
- Judgment: Arceus's only attack, it is able to hit a wide range of targets for neutral damage but is specifically useful for hitting both Groudon and Rayquaza for decent damage with only 1 move.
- Toxic: Arceus's main form of damage against many opponents, Toxic also punishes Pokemon that could easily take its Judgement, such as Ho-Oh and most Fairy types.
- Recover: Used to keep Arceus alive throughout the match and stall for Toxic damage. You know, stall team stuff.
- Defog: Did you know this removes Screens? I didn't. Defog is needed when running Shedinja, even though Diancie can bounce back some hazards, it cannot stay in against setters like Primal Groudon, so having a way to remove hazards is important.
Ignorance (Blissey) @ Shed Shell
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 8 HP / 252 Def / 248 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Heal Bell
- Wish
- Protect
Blissey is an incredible special wall, being able to take nearly any special hit with ease. Blissey provides Heal Bell support which is practically essential for any stall team unless you want to lose to anything with Toxic. Wish support helps keep Diancie alive and can also ease switching a bit. I decided to run Shed Shell because of Mega Gengar, having my primary special wall be trappable seemed like a bad idea.
- Toxic: Blissey's only source of damage. It is great at dealing with Calm Mind Pokemon in particular, which are very threatening but Blissey can usually tank their hits and slowly kill them with Toxic.
- Heal Bell: Makes status much less of an issue for most of the team members. Heal Bell suffers from low PP, so in longer battles it is best to use Blissey and Diancie as switchins to status moves whenever possible, as they can absorb them with Natural Cure and Magic Bounce respectively.
- Wish: Blissey's form of recovery. While waiting a turn is unfortunate, being able to pass Wishes to Diancie or using Wish to aid a switch makes it a worthwhile choice in my opinion. Despite those bonuses, sometimes I do wish (pun intended) that I had the instant recovery of Softboiled, which would also allow me to run Seismic Toss.
- Protect: Allows Blissey to use Wish to recover its own health more reliably, as with the other Pokemon that carry it, Protect is also useful for Toxic stall.
Llama (Arceus) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Reflect
- Recover
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
Bulkceus is something I end up running on every team for one reason or another, I find it to be an extremely effective EKiller check and it also is a solid Stealth Rock user. Rocky Helmet was the item of choice because when combined with Roar and Stealth Rock helps wear down opposing teams very quickly, and Leftovers recovery has never seemed that useful in comparison.
- Reflect: Usually I run Extreme Speed here, but I was in the mood for something different. Reflect makes damage from physical attackers absolutely laughable, even if they've boosted. Reflect also allows Blissey in particular to fair better against certain Pokemon, but most team members can take advantage of it in some way. I chose Reflect over Will-O-Wisp because it's unaffected by Lum Berry and Magic Coat, which are quite common on Pokemon that Arceus tends to face.
- Recover: Keeps Arceus healthy and lets it chip stuff down while they attack its Rocky Helmet and all that good stuff.
- Stealth Rock: Pretty much mandatory on any competitive team, Stealth Rock is particularly important on this team to keep pressure on Ho-Oh and Mega Rayquaza, both of which are tough to switch in to.
- Roar: Helps wear stuff down when Stealth Rocks are up, also important against EKiller Arceus, who often tries to Swords Dance against Bulkceus. One other notable thing it accomplishes is it can prevent Arceus from being trapped by Mega Gengar if it Roars it on the switch, though usually it's risky to even leave Arceus on the field.
Arceus-Ghost @ Spooky Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Judgment
- Will-O-Wisp
- Recover
- Defog
The final Pokemon on this team, Ghostceus effectively rounds the whole team off by checking Mewtwo, EKiller and Mega Diancie. Ghostceus also gives me another Defogger, so preserving Shedinja becomes a whole lot easier.
- Judgment: Arceus's STAB attack, it has good neutral coverage on many targets and does more damage to Skamory or Mega Diancie than anything else can.
- Will-O-Wisp: Helps keep physical attackers in check, also great for residual damage against Pokemon with no recovery. It is important not to be reckless when using it against EKiller, because a random Magic Coat really sucks for Ghostceus.
- Recover: This should be fairly apparent by now, but it keeps Ghostceus alive and lets it stall for Will-O-Wisp or Toxic damage.
- Defog: Again, important for keeping Shedinja alive as long as possible. Two Defog users might seem like overkill, but given how important Shedinja can be it's worthwhile, and its not like there's any move that would be hugely better in this spot.
I opted for max Speed on this Arceus because I wanted to at least tie with opposing EKiller and other Arceus to have the best chance to burn them. HP is maximized to check Mewtwo and EKiller as best as possible.
Threats:
Proof of Peak:
Replays:
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393569586
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393595553
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393603362
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393606979
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393296398
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393301670
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-392256952
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-391919606
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/anythinggoes-393663971
Conclusion:
I hope you enjoyed reading this! As I said, this team is pretty difficult to ladder with (matches can end up taking a while) so I haven't gotten it super high up, but it's certainly fun and interesting to use and could be a decent counterteam in tournaments. Shoutout to the AG room people for being awesome and tolerating this cancerous crap, I promise I'll stop using it for a bit :)
