Other Metagames [Gen8 BH] 31st Century Stall

[fwqef]

31st Century Stall

Introduction​

Hello guys, I am fwqef and some of you may know me for playing Gen7 BH or spamming shitty copypasta. Anyways I've been playing Gen 8 BH recently and I honestly didn't find much fun out of it so I just decided to dump my main team for others to use. To make this RMT, I used the last bit of my motivation to push myself to ladder to at least top 10 and the team has been working pretty well so far. I achieved a 35W/3L ratio while tweaking the team and beating most of the top ladder, so while I can't say for sure that the team is optimal, I think it definitely has potential. I based the team's nicknames from my friend From31st_Century's semistall team in Gen7.

proof of peak

Teambuilding Process​

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With the introduction of Heavy-Duty Boots, I thought Shedinja would be a very good unit so I wanted to build around it.

Obviously Imposter goes very well with Shedinja because it can scout potentially harmful moves for Shedinja.

DarkRay told me that Fur coat+Ice scales stall is strong so I made a team with Poison Heal Vaporeon, Fur coat Reshiram, Ice scales Snorlax, and Prankster Zacian-C.

I replaced Vaporeon with Jellicent to have a better check to opponent Shedinja and Fur Coat Cotton Guard Zamazenta-Crowned. I realized that although Shedinja doesn't need magic bounce support as much anymore, magic bounce is still a fantastic option in stall to counter many status moves, and it was necessary in order to check normalize Dragapult. I replaced Reshiram with Torkoal to do better against Dragon STAB physical attackers. Finally, I scrapped ice scales and made my Snorlax into prankster.

The Team

Hologram (Shedinja) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP
Quiet Nature
IVs: 69 HP / 0 Atk / 0 Def / 0 SpA / 0 SpD / 0 Spe
- Pain Split
- Baton Pass
- Stealth Rock
- Defog
​

Shedinja counters a lot of offensive and defensive sets and has become an excellent hazard remover in this generation (props to superSkylake for the idea). Shedinja can burn opponent's recovers very quickly thanks to pain split and can last very long because it does not need to recover itself. An alternative is Endeavor to become immediately threatening although you need to watch out for Rocky Helmet. Baton pass is for free momentum and I chose this over teleport because it has twice more pp which allows you to waste turns like switch in->slow baton pass->switch in again->repeat. An alternative pivot move is volt switch if you want that juicy 30 base Spa chip. Stealth Rock helps you beat sash spam and can be useful in chipping down the opponent although I think hazards have become weaker this generation because of Heavy-Duty boots and court change. Defog is for hazard removal which Shed is actually really good at. Imposterproof is Melmetal.

5D Printer (Wobbuffet) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Whirlwind
- Recover
- Trick
- Heal Bell
​

Imposter makes scouting moves for the team much much easier and it can also emergency check threats in a pinch. It can be pivoted in to force out offensive threats and it can be a good countermeasure to shell smash setup sweepers. It can also take advantage of the opponent's team if their team is not imposterproofed well enough or if the imposterproofs are dead in the late-game. You won't be using Wobuffet's moves often but I took Whirlwind is to force out substitute users in a pinch, Trick to give its choice scarf to the opponent to make them easier to deal with, and Heal Bell in case Shedinja gets statused. You can use things like Final Gambit, Wish, or Toxic Spikes I guess.

Sea Purifier (Jellicent) @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Scald
- Leech Seed
- Baneful Bunker
- Defog
​

One of the most exciting things about playing this team was guessing which color the Jellicent will be on Team Preview. Seriously though, this is a really cool set made by SL42 and has carried me through a lot of tough games. Poison Heal is good for absorbing harmful statuses for the team and helps Jellicent last long. Scald is the STAB move and allows Jellicent to spread burns to cripple physical attackers and whittle down at the opponent's HP. Leech Seed helps keep Jellicent healthy alongside Baneful Bunker while chipping down at the opponent. Baneful Bunker can punish U-turns and provide passive recovery to Jellicent while helping the team deal with choiced threats. For example, if the opponent's choice specs Kyurem-white has Moongeist Beam which threatens Jellicent/Shedinja and Boomburst which threatens Snorlax, you can use Baneful Bunker to lock the Kyurem into one move and switch to the appropriate check. Defog removes hazards and helps a lot against Lava Plume + Hazards Reshiram. This guy is self improof so stay in and burn+leech seed the imposter and you win.

Automated Guard (Melmetal) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Anchor Shot
- Recover
- Knock Off
- Spectral Thief
​

Melmetal is a fat steel type that can take hits reasonably well and provide useful resistances for the team. Magic Bounce is fantastic for reflecting status moves like will-o-wisp, hazards, and leech seed. I put leftovers on Melmetal to help relieve pressure but Rocky Helmet is also a good option. Anchor Shot is for trapping the opponent's Imposter or trapping things it can beat. Recover is very self-explanatory. Knock Off is a very useful utility move for removing opponent's Leftovers, Rocky Helmet, Heavy-Duty Boots, Choice Items, or Ghost Memory which Dragapult holds. Spectral thief is in case the opponent sets up on you.

Artificial Sun (Torkoal) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Fur Coat
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Lava Plume
- Roost
- Topsy-Turvy
- U-turn
​

Torkoal tanks the physical attacks for this team. Fire typing is good because it resists Sunsteel Strike, V-create, and Ice moves from mons like Zacian-C, Darmanitan-Zen-Galar, and Kyurem-B. Rocky helmet lets you chip down at the opponent's physical attackers just by recovering and it can punish U-turns. Lava Plume helps it be less passive and spread burns. Topsy-Turvy lets Torkoal deal with setup, and U-turn provides momentum. Keep this mon healthy because it doesn't get many chances to recover if it is low HP. Honestly, I found Torkoal to be a bit shaky and I don't know how useful the typing is because Zacian-C is no longer a top-tier physical threat, so if I were to improve the team, I would probably consider changing this mon.

Future Human (Snorlax) @ Safety Goggles
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Haze
- Slack Off
- Encore
- Parting Shot
​

The prankster peeshot technique is a legendary fighting style that has been passed down Headninja Shedinja's family line for generations, and I am the next disciple of this master arts. I love this set because it allows you to play around the opponent flexibly. Haze is the safe and reliable way to remove the opponent's boosts. Encore is to lock the opponent into an unfavorable move like a boosting move and then you can parting shot out into Imposter or another check. Prankster Parting Shot is really annoying as it allows you to apply debuffs and fast pivot out on the opponent's face which helps make them easier to deal with. This set was much better back when you could take Z-crystals and use Z-parting shot to heal your teammate, but it's still pretty usable imo. This set is weak against Dazzling but I haven't seen it at all recently so that's a good thing. I chose to use Snorlax because it can tank special hits reasonably well, but maybe it is a good idea to choose another mon with useful resistances. I chose Safety Goggles because of Spore setup sweepers but leftovers is a good option as well.

Conclusion​

I'm not completely satisfied with how the team is built but I hope you guys enjoy it! Unfortunately I forgot to save replays, but I think the team is pretty straightforward to use. Sorry if the RMT was a little boring, I usually write wack ass stuff but I wanted to do something serious this time. In case you are bored, here's a funny meme I found. I might make a more entertaining RMT about a different topic soon (some of you will know what I am talking about) so watch out for that I guess. Thanks for reading!

Importable

Hologram (Shedinja) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Sturdy
Level: 1
EVs: 252 HP
Quiet Nature
IVs: 69 HP / 0 Atk / 0 Def / 0 SpA / 0 SpD / 0 Spe
- Pain Split
- Baton Pass
- Stealth Rock
- Defog

5D Printer (Wobbuffet) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Whirlwind
- Recover
- Trick
- Heal Bell

Sea Purifier (Jellicent) @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Scald
- Leech Seed
- Baneful Bunker
- Defog

Automated Guard (Melmetal) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Anchor Shot
- Recover
- Knock Off
- Spectral Thief

Artificial Sun (Torkoal) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Fur Coat
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Lava Plume
- Roost
- Topsy-Turvy
- U-turn

Future Human (Snorlax) @ Safety Goggles
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Haze
- Recover
- Encore
- Parting Shot

shoutouts

superSkylake and DarkRay for discussing the meta with me
SL42 for sharing copypasta
Ignite and Zyniti for stalking me
Pazza hyper offense master 69
Loser for popping up once in a while and making hilarious comments
The entirety of SR gang

 

[DarkBeserker]

an only actually good team in this godforsaken meta, nice job fwqef!