Other Metagames Bh Hoover Dam, peak 1613, Bulky Offense rain team

SuperSkylake

is a Tiering Contributor Alumnus

Welcome to my latest successful team for the USUM BH metagame! It's a fairly simple team to use and play but it achieves very strong results on the ladder, easily breaking the 1600 barrier. The premise of the team is to break through the opponent's defensive core by inundating it with rain-boosted moves, which it does with aplomb. The team may at first glance look like a balance team, but I would classify it as bulky offense because it is imperative to apply pressure all the time to retain your momentum and drown all!

I've made quite a few revisions to this team's members, all of which I can't quite remember, so I just won't write about that here. View the replays to watch the team evolution if you like.

The team in depth
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Heavy Metal Man (Ferrothorn) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Soft-Boiled
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Rain Dance

Ferrothorn is an extremely bulky and slow Pokemon and a fairly reliable check to MMY, Mega Diancie, and electric-types like Mega Ampharos and Zekrom. All of these pokemon can otherwise cause my team problems if I need to switch into them directly. For example MMY's Magic Guard set can Ko every member of my team after a single Tail Glow, forcing me to sac something, if not for this Ferrothorn. Originally, I was running Drizzle, but after realizing that MMY's Mind Blown and Mega Rayquaza's Contrary V-Create killed it even in the rain, it had to change. I don't regret losing the auto-rain though, as it is almost as good to surprise my opponent by setting up rain after Giratina is down. Stealth Rock is great for chipping down offensive teams and pressuring Shedinja teams to bring in their Defogger or spinner. If there's anything my team loves, it's pressure! Originally I was running Sunsteel Strike > Rain Dance in order to hit Shedinja, but it's just not worth it when Ferrothorn is forced down to 1 hp by Endeavor; I don't miss it.
Imposterproofed by: itself (you may have to deal with the slight momentum loss when winning the U-turn speed tie). Giratina can Defog away Stealth Rock though it's not a huge problem for this team.

SingingInTheRain (Palkia) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Clanging Scales
- Steam Eruption
- Water Spout
- Weather Ball

This is my anti-offense Rain sweeper. With Swift Swim and a Modest nature, Palkia reaches 598 speed. That's enough to outspeed every single +0 or +1 threat in BH including scarf Gengar-mega (591 speed) which is the fastest scarfer you'll see. Clanging scales is a spammable dragon move, able to take out things like Rayquaza-Mega (126% max) and Giratina (81% minimum, or 55% with Assault Vest equipped), and predicted Imposter switchins (43-51%),. Water Spout and Steam Eruption are the typical Rain-boosted moves, ripping through neutral targets such as mewtwo-Mega-Y (112% minimum water spout or 83% minimum steam eruption), Mewtwo-mega-X (119% Water Spout or 132% Steam Eruption), etc. A few defensive walls can switch in however, such as Regen-vest Dialga (takes 39-46% from Clanging Scales), Regen-vest Gyarados-Mega (takes 40% max from Water Spout, and can U-turn to weaken it), and Fur Coat Chansey (pink blob, what more do I need to say). There are also a lot of walls that can come in on a free turn and take advantage of the choice lock to gain some momentum, so predicting around them is important. The final obstacle to worry about is Prankster Destiny Bond users; try not to lose Palkia early if you are fighting against a frail team that it can outspeed in the rain, or you'll be in for a hard time. The real surprise of the set is Weather Ball, which becomes a 100 bp Water-type move in the rain. This allows me to switch into any normalize mega Gengar set and surprise it with a Weather Ball which retains the Water typing. Revelation Dance is a bit more reliable and still KOs Mega Gengar (101% minimum), and is useful if you can't get your rain set back up, but it's less powerful and loses momentum if you KO Mega Gengar with it and a Fairy-type comes in, because you must switch out. Weather Ball, being normal-type under no weather, doesn't cause that situation much, because the only other common Ghost-type is Giratina, which is quite easy to gain momentum from anyway by switching to Ferrothorn. Really, just keep your Rain setters alive until mega Gengar is gone, which isn't all that hard.
Imposterproofed by: Ferrothorn and Chansey, though you may have to do some fancy switching. If you don't think you need it, tricking Chansey's Choice Scarf onto an imposter is really useful as if it locks itself into a Water move, Groudon wil force it out guaranteed. If you aren't sure if you need the scarf, Toxic it so it has to switch out eventually. In short, apply offensive pressure. If you are willing to sac something, Groudon can PP stall it out of Clanging Scales. If it's just been normalized, Giratina or Ferrothorn, of course as the Imposter also has Normalize.

The Dam (Groudon) @ Safety Goggles
Ability: Dry Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 188 Spe
Impish Nature
- Thousand Waves
- Recover
- Topsy-Turvy
- Worry Seed

Another cool surprise set! Why not Water Absorb Groudon you may be asking? Passive recovery. Getting that 12.5% back in the rain is often crucial, as now Groudon can recover stall attacks that deal 55 to 60% damage fairly comfortably, at least until the rain runs out. In adition, this Groudon set imposterproofs the most dangerous of my team members, Kyogre, as it only takes 15% from Sunsteel strike which is the only move Kyogre can possibly hit it with, forcing it out or depleting its PP with Thousand Waves. It's also my answer to Shift Gear Regigigas as long as its Safety Goggles are still on. If the opponent brings in Regigigas, Groudon can switch in next. If it Shift Gears, Groudon can survive a single Facade and Topsy Turvy, then recover off the damage and trap it as it shift gears back to where it was. Now it will click Facade again, Groudon recovers then removes the ability with Worry Seed, and Regigigas dies in a few turns. If regigigas decides to knock off and spore before Poison Heal is removed, you have to hope you don't sleep for 3 turns. If it's boosted, Topsy Turvy spam until you wake up, otherwise Recover Spam if it's at +0 and using Facade. Also, this set is totally Imposterproof as the Groudon can just trap the Imposter with a single thousand waves, then spam Topsy Turvy until the Imposter struggles.
Imposterproof: Self

JustSpamWaterSpout (Kyogre-Primal) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Tinted Lens
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Water Spout
- Steam Eruption
- Volt Switch
- Sunsteel Strike

It's all in the name, just spam Water Spout. Well, until your HP goes below 73% that is. Almost nothing can resist taking crippling damage from these powerful Water Spouts, besides immunities. If you don't believe me,
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Kyogre-Primal Water Spout (150 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Giratina in Rain: 538-634 (106.9 - 126%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Kyogre-Primal Water Spout (150 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Giratina in Rain: 328-386 (65.2 - 76.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Kyogre-Primal Water Spout (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Dialga in Rain: 372-438 (92 - 108.4%) -- 50% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Tinted Lens Kyogre-Primal Water Spout (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Gyarados-Mega in Rain: 310-366 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Kyogre-Primal Water Spout (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Eviolite Chansey in Rain: 394-465 (55.9 - 66%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Yes, you read those calculations right. It 2hKOs Chansey. It has a chance to OHKO Giratina and AV Dialga. It's that good. If If it has full health, it deals over 41% to an Imposter (a 77% chance to 2hKO after Stealth Rock), which is often the switch-in of choice for players who are unfamiliar with the set. Of course, it doesn't deal with faster threats very well, and as it can't even speed-tie with neutral base 95's, it will most likely have to resort to Steam Eruption. Still, that does plenty of damage as well, achieving 2hKOs on almost everything. Sunsteel Strike can hit Shedinja, though there is no other use for it, which is why I still opted for a Modest nature. Don't underestimate Kyogre's bulk however; it can take one or two hits from moderately strong special attacks, such as Mega Rayquaza's non Choice Specs boomburst, and KO it back with Steam Eruption. In short, every time you get a free switch into Kyogre, your opponent is almost guaranteed to lose something or switch in his Imposter, either of which gets you plenty of momentum, or a KO. Sometimes I'm not sure which is better!
Imposterproof: Groudon

Stormy (Giratina) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Defog
- U-turn
- Spectral Thief
- Shore Up

It's a standard Giratina set to set up the rain. I lead with it if there are no fakespeed users on the opposing team, as Giratina can take most other hits and U-Turn out to a rain sweeper to immediately start smashing things. Defog is important to get rid of Sticky Web and Toxic Spikes which are both especially hazardous (No pun intended) for this team. Spectral Thief is useful to dissuade setup, since Giratina is so passive, and the only real target of Core Enforcer (Regigigas) is already countered well. If Giratina is on its death bed, it's a good idea to preserve it, so it can switch in one final time to set up the rain (though if it dies to entry hazards, it doesn't set the rain up). In short, Giratina is a good pivot for this team. Giratina is also useful since it dissuades Mega Gengar from setting up due to the threat of Spectral Thief, allowing me to switch in Ferrothorn or Palkia more confidently against it. In addition, it switches into Primal Groudon a few times, which is annoying to the team because it overrides the rain with Desolate Land, and allows me to scout what it will do.
Imposterproofed by: Ferrothorn

Click X now (Chansey) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Careful Nature
- Toxic
- Recover
- Trick
- U-turn

The final member of the team, and very essential. This team is very weak to offensive threats that can outspeed my rain sweepers, such as Triage Oblivion Wing mega Rayquaza, Simple Shell Smash Mega Ttar, random power herb Geomancy users, and V-create Contrary sweepers. Chansey serves as a check to all of these, and most people don't realize it's scarfed until it's too late for them. The moves on the set do have a purpose, especially Toxic, which puts a lot of pressure on Imposters copying my sweepers as they don't have reliable recovery. Trick allows me to cripple something and possibly gain the Eviolite from the enemy Chansey. U-Turn is rarely used to pivot out. Chansey has saved me from losing to those kind of sweepers countless times and there is no suitable replacement for it.

Threat list:​
  • Spooky Plate Mega Gengar: And other plate users in general, can cause this team problems without careful prediction. For example, if Gengar sets up a shell smash, only Kyogre can survive the +2 judgment hit (67-79%). However if it normalizes, then Palkia has to switch in and hope to survive (88-101%). This is the main reason why I added Weather ball to Palkia so it could deal with Normalize variants. I also debated Revelation dance > Volt Switch or Steam Eruption on Kyogre-p but rejectedit because sometimes you do want to Volt Switch out, for example if you want to check for Shedinja's Focus Sash.
  • Water immunities: I haven't really seen any of these on my ladder run except Groudon-P which can be handled by the combo of Giratina and Imposter Chansey. Though I could easily see something like Water Absorb Xerneas causing me a lot of trouble. Without a serious overhaul I don't really know what I would do in that situation.
  • Substitute: This can quickly get out of control, as Sub blocks Imposter, and my water moves have limited PP. Plus the duration of Rain is limited. The most common substitute set is the Spore/Substitute/Tail Glow/Oblivion Wing set on mega Rayquaza. If I can get Palkia in while it's raining, it can Clanging Scales through the Substitute and KO Mega Rayquaza, but it can't switch in because of Spore, and Oblivion Wing at +3 does a lot of damage. The less common Prankster variant of that Rayquaza set is impossible to deal with as well, because it can spore an Imposter before it can do anything and runs Safety Goggles to be immune to the opposing Spore. I have debated switching Ferrothorn to a different Steel-type, but I like the built-in Spore immunity. I'm not sure how much that matters though.
  • Unburden Sweepers: These aren't nearly as much of a problem as the previous three, as the opponent rarely gets the free turn needed to set up. However, if an Unburden sweeper sets up on Ferrothorn, it's game over for me.
  • Pikachu: Pikachu is a very risky prospect for me as if it wins any speed ties or has tailwind support, I am in for a world of hurt. Groudon also cannot PP stall it out without a lot of luck because Thousand Waves deals about 55% back to Groudon.
  • * 6x Shedinja Teams: More a gimmick than anything, but 6x Shedinja teams are very, very difficult to handle because my only real checks to Shedinja are Giratina (dies to -ate variants), Stealth Rock Ferrothorn (can be defogged by magic Guard), and Sunsteel Strike Kyogre-P (which is stopped by any Focus Sash user).
Replays
​
The first few times the team was successful. These replays feature Sheer Force MMY and Swift Swim Kyogre-P. The team is fairly weak to Imposter, having to resort to 50% Poison Fang chances to cripple Imposters. Notice how Dialga hard-walls the team.
The next replays use the current 6 mons, though I still have Drizzle on Ferrothorn.
The team, almost in its final form, is featured here:
Unfortunately I didn't save any replays with Weather Ball but trust me, it has come in useful more than once. So go try it out!

Heavy Metal Man (Ferrothorn) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Soft-Boiled
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Rain Dance

SingingInTheRain (Palkia) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Clanging Scales
- Steam Eruption
- Water Spout
- Weather Ball

The Dam (Groudon) @ Safety Goggles
Ability: Dry Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 188 Spe
Impish Nature
- Thousand Waves
- Recover
- Topsy-Turvy
- Worry Seed

JustSpamWaterSpout (Kyogre-Primal) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Tinted Lens
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Water Spout
- Steam Eruption
- Volt Switch
- Sunsteel Strike

Stormy (Giratina) @ Damp Rock
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Defog
- U-turn
- Spectral Thief
- Shore Up

Click X now (Chansey) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Careful Nature
- Toxic
- Recover
- Trick
- U-turn

Thanks for reading. TLDR: Rain is cool!
 
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