The drops have certainly been unkind to my last team, which was on the verge of breaking top 20 (seriously offensive Jellicent was a monster). However, almost none of the mons survived my rebuilding to adjust for the new tier so we won't be getting into that jellicent team. Instead, here we have a different breed of hyper offense that features no choice users and three NU tier mons in the RU tier.
The team:
Scolipede @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Att / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 0 HP
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Poison Jab
- Endeavor
Suicide lead. Spikes allow the team to whittle down threats better and toxic spikes pay dividends vs offence. Poison Jab so I'm not taunt/magic bounce bait and Endeavor means that Scolipede will almost always carry its weight and do a 1 for 1 trade. Megahorn could be an option since it hits magic bouncers and lycanroc-D better while having no immunities. But I prefer poison jab's accuracy, chance for poison chip, and fairy killing ability. 0 HP IVs to maximize Endeavor's power and Adamant to maximize Poison Jab's power. Jolly can be used if you want spikes up vs Archeops.
How to use: Lead with it and pick a spike. If there are dangerous sweepers that will likely need priority to be beaten, then tspikes is the way to go. If there are poison types, maybe spikes is better. Be wary of magic bouncers, prankster taunts, and magic coat users that may come out, so poison jab in that case. Once you've taken damage, endeavor to equalize the pain. If you endeavor+jab for the KO, sac Scolipede by using endeavor again. If they try to revenge with priority, you may want to consider switching to preserve Scolipede's power, or to save it as a sac if there are hazards on your side.
Gengar @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Nasty Plot
- Taunt
Spinblocker and defog blocker with Taunt. Extra utility comes with its ability to absorb tspikes and immunity to common priority such as Espeed and Mach Punch. This would be where Jellicent goes, but Gengar still does an amazing job at pressuring teams lacking a ghost resist. dazzling gleam hits Conk, Dragons, and dark types, and Nasty Plot to turn him into a nuke vs passive mons. Taunt stops any funny stuff from happening like Twave, Trick Room, and Wish. I didn't know what item to give him. I went with boots at first to deal with webs, but the benefit was too specific. I went with Colbur in order to live most knock offs, and for a sizeable chance to avoid the 2hko from Umbreon's Foul Play.
How to use: 90% of the time switch in on something that threatens a rapid spin. The only other 10% is if you no longer need assistance from spikes or if you could outright KO the spinner or turn it into a setup opportunity. Preserve Gengar as a wincon vs Trick Room (but you need to severely weaken P2). Taunt on passive mons to stop them from doing their job. You'll mostly be spamming shadow ball, so sometimes you can use this to trick people into thinking you are choiced.
Malamar @ Lax Incense
Ability: Contrary
EVs: 252 HP / 224 SpD / 32 Spe
Careful Nature
- Superpower
- Knock Off
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
So much trials of finding the perfect defog punisher and this is what I came up with. Every defog punisher is just too slow or lacks powerful stab (the genies). Articuno-G gets walled infinitely by steels and slowking, and Braviary gets outsped and faces too much 50/50s. While this is far from a perfect mon, I have finally decided to pick a defog punisher that doesn't rely on a scarf. Malamar becomes bootleg powderchomp with the combination of defog and lax incense. Knock off allows me to remove boots, eviolite, and lefties, and superpower turns it into my dedicated setup sweeper. It doesn't nearly provide the immediate power as all the other options, but its longevity allowed it to take advantage of boosts much longer than any other candidate. Speed EVs allow me to creep max base 80s if I step on webs. Gardevoir and Togekiss are commonly found on such teams.
How to use: Superpower is setup and Knock off is your actual power move. Malamar doubles as a support due to its special bulk, utility in knock off, and ability to absorb status. Don't forget contrary can be used to take advantage of strength sap and intimidate. Malamar can also be a wincon in trick room provided Dragalge is dealt with. Malamar is the only mon that has trouble picking off where Scolipede left, but a weakened slow mon is an amazing opportunity to setup. Just make sure no fairy types are around.
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Moonblast
- Substitute
- Encore
The only mon that survived the rebuilding process, but its moveset is completely changed. This is a strange addition to a hyper offense playstyle but you can't go far without adding a little personal flavor. Originally, 'Scott was Encore + 3 Attacks with Life Orb. It made a great poison lure with psychic, but ultimately had too little sustainability and had no purpose vs steels. I was pondering on a subseed set to whittle down said steels, and holy shoot this set is aggravating. Moonblast is the move I used the most in the last set and it still hits hard with max investment. Leech seed whittles down walls and can lead to serious chip with tspikes. Sub stalls for more chip. 'Scott's low health and lefties means that he usually has access to infinite subs on a seeded target. Encore still needs to be kept to stop sweepers, reverse trick room, and buy a free turn to sub. You would think that this set gives the opponent ample time to spin/defog but so far the pressure of 252 SpA behind a sub with spikes is too much to ignore.
How to use: Whimsicott has a bunch of resistances to switch into. You should also consider switching into him on a setup sweeper to deny the sweep with encore. Subseed sets are typically beaten through careful switches/doubles so look out for positions where the opponent can stare down a subless 'Scott without being seeded beforehand. Prankster Sub is also amazing at stalling out trick room, screens, or weather turns.
Terrakion @ Lum Berry
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Quick Attack
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
Setup sweeper with priority and also a fire resist. Terrakion provides the instant power that this team is currently lacking. Close Combat deals with steels and Stone Edge hits the fires. Quick attack finishes off speedy targets weakened by hazards, seed, or endeavor. Lum berry to stop twave and burns. Nowadays, Terrak's stabs are very easy to wall, but he still gets the job done. Another high speed tier reduces my need for scarf too.
How to use: You can punch holes with it right away. Setting up isn't ideal if there are Tangrowth, Nidoqueen, Golurk, and Doublade. Terrakion actually has decent bulk, so you could go for SD on passive scalds thanks to lum berry negating the burn chance. Other opportunities for setup include locking mons into the wrong move (choice item or encore) or gengar's cursed body disabling an important move.
Piloswine @ Eviolite
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Icicle Crash
- Stealth Rock
The antihero. After months of this mon giving my NU team trouble way back in the day, Piloswine joins the fight. He's the defensive backbone for the team, and possesses boltbeam resistance. After bodying teams with Stunfisk-G, I learned that a ground type is almost always necessary to prevent Xurkitree from doing its thing. While energy ball still eats Piloswine, it poses a major threat with a devastating earthquake and powerful priority. Stealth rock is filler, but it completes the hazard lineup and gives me a reason to knock off flying type boots.
How to use: He can be used to challenge Zydog, Doublade, Lycanroc-D, and Registeel. If Xurkitree is alive and very healthy, you'd also want to keep Piloswine healthy as to make sure he can't go on a dazzling gleam/thunderbolt sweep. I would much rather fire off a powerful stab but if there are mons that are hard to scratch with it such as Weezing-G, Araquanid, Golisopod, and Bronzong, you can consider looking for a chance to getup rocks.
Threatlist:
Togekiss - Public enemy number one. Scarf sets are very devastating to the team and often force me to rely on Malamar and his dodging shenanigans.
Flying, Ghost, and Steel Stab - I have 0 resistances to that. That's also another reason Togekiss is a problem. Gengar usually stops ghost spam, Piloswine keeps physical flying mons at bay, Malamar keeps hurricanes at bay, but not much going for steels.
Copperajah - Impossible to switch into.
Doublade - It's a multistep process in defeating it. If it isn't weakened enough, I need hazards and Eviolite gone before Piloswine can defeat it. All while trying to dance around SD with prankster encore.
Crobat - It bodied my team before it still bodies it now. I'll need Terrak and Piloswine healthy. Otherwise I'll need to find a way to get to +2 on Malamar.
Sun teams - Without rocks being a priority, scarf zard can do a number on my team. Terrak will need to be preserved specifically for that and not for other fire types such as Darm. What's worse, Torkoal's lava plume may burn through Scolipede's sash, keeping his spinner and sun setter healthy.
Endeavor Workarounds - Dual Wingbeat Archeops, Multihits, smartly played Suicune are all mons that can turn Scolipede into a liability.
Conclusion:
That's all there is. Set hazards, then nonstop pressure. Feel free to use this team, but I'm looking for suggestions to deal with the threatlist. Thank you for reading and cya!
Replays:
Top 10 qualifying battle (Vs TR):
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225539655
Scott comeback even after a misplay
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225064790
Vs Stall
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225020804
A little of everything
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1224505489
Vs Hail
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1224547696
Proof: (Well now Everybo-D is #10 as I typed this)
The team:
Scolipede @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Att / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 0 HP
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Poison Jab
- Endeavor
Suicide lead. Spikes allow the team to whittle down threats better and toxic spikes pay dividends vs offence. Poison Jab so I'm not taunt/magic bounce bait and Endeavor means that Scolipede will almost always carry its weight and do a 1 for 1 trade. Megahorn could be an option since it hits magic bouncers and lycanroc-D better while having no immunities. But I prefer poison jab's accuracy, chance for poison chip, and fairy killing ability. 0 HP IVs to maximize Endeavor's power and Adamant to maximize Poison Jab's power. Jolly can be used if you want spikes up vs Archeops.
How to use: Lead with it and pick a spike. If there are dangerous sweepers that will likely need priority to be beaten, then tspikes is the way to go. If there are poison types, maybe spikes is better. Be wary of magic bouncers, prankster taunts, and magic coat users that may come out, so poison jab in that case. Once you've taken damage, endeavor to equalize the pain. If you endeavor+jab for the KO, sac Scolipede by using endeavor again. If they try to revenge with priority, you may want to consider switching to preserve Scolipede's power, or to save it as a sac if there are hazards on your side.
Gengar @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Nasty Plot
- Taunt
Spinblocker and defog blocker with Taunt. Extra utility comes with its ability to absorb tspikes and immunity to common priority such as Espeed and Mach Punch. This would be where Jellicent goes, but Gengar still does an amazing job at pressuring teams lacking a ghost resist. dazzling gleam hits Conk, Dragons, and dark types, and Nasty Plot to turn him into a nuke vs passive mons. Taunt stops any funny stuff from happening like Twave, Trick Room, and Wish. I didn't know what item to give him. I went with boots at first to deal with webs, but the benefit was too specific. I went with Colbur in order to live most knock offs, and for a sizeable chance to avoid the 2hko from Umbreon's Foul Play.
How to use: 90% of the time switch in on something that threatens a rapid spin. The only other 10% is if you no longer need assistance from spikes or if you could outright KO the spinner or turn it into a setup opportunity. Preserve Gengar as a wincon vs Trick Room (but you need to severely weaken P2). Taunt on passive mons to stop them from doing their job. You'll mostly be spamming shadow ball, so sometimes you can use this to trick people into thinking you are choiced.
Malamar @ Lax Incense
Ability: Contrary
EVs: 252 HP / 224 SpD / 32 Spe
Careful Nature
- Superpower
- Knock Off
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
So much trials of finding the perfect defog punisher and this is what I came up with. Every defog punisher is just too slow or lacks powerful stab (the genies). Articuno-G gets walled infinitely by steels and slowking, and Braviary gets outsped and faces too much 50/50s. While this is far from a perfect mon, I have finally decided to pick a defog punisher that doesn't rely on a scarf. Malamar becomes bootleg powderchomp with the combination of defog and lax incense. Knock off allows me to remove boots, eviolite, and lefties, and superpower turns it into my dedicated setup sweeper. It doesn't nearly provide the immediate power as all the other options, but its longevity allowed it to take advantage of boosts much longer than any other candidate. Speed EVs allow me to creep max base 80s if I step on webs. Gardevoir and Togekiss are commonly found on such teams.
How to use: Superpower is setup and Knock off is your actual power move. Malamar doubles as a support due to its special bulk, utility in knock off, and ability to absorb status. Don't forget contrary can be used to take advantage of strength sap and intimidate. Malamar can also be a wincon in trick room provided Dragalge is dealt with. Malamar is the only mon that has trouble picking off where Scolipede left, but a weakened slow mon is an amazing opportunity to setup. Just make sure no fairy types are around.
Whimsicott @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Moonblast
- Substitute
- Encore
The only mon that survived the rebuilding process, but its moveset is completely changed. This is a strange addition to a hyper offense playstyle but you can't go far without adding a little personal flavor. Originally, 'Scott was Encore + 3 Attacks with Life Orb. It made a great poison lure with psychic, but ultimately had too little sustainability and had no purpose vs steels. I was pondering on a subseed set to whittle down said steels, and holy shoot this set is aggravating. Moonblast is the move I used the most in the last set and it still hits hard with max investment. Leech seed whittles down walls and can lead to serious chip with tspikes. Sub stalls for more chip. 'Scott's low health and lefties means that he usually has access to infinite subs on a seeded target. Encore still needs to be kept to stop sweepers, reverse trick room, and buy a free turn to sub. You would think that this set gives the opponent ample time to spin/defog but so far the pressure of 252 SpA behind a sub with spikes is too much to ignore.
How to use: Whimsicott has a bunch of resistances to switch into. You should also consider switching into him on a setup sweeper to deny the sweep with encore. Subseed sets are typically beaten through careful switches/doubles so look out for positions where the opponent can stare down a subless 'Scott without being seeded beforehand. Prankster Sub is also amazing at stalling out trick room, screens, or weather turns.
Terrakion @ Lum Berry
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Quick Attack
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
Setup sweeper with priority and also a fire resist. Terrakion provides the instant power that this team is currently lacking. Close Combat deals with steels and Stone Edge hits the fires. Quick attack finishes off speedy targets weakened by hazards, seed, or endeavor. Lum berry to stop twave and burns. Nowadays, Terrak's stabs are very easy to wall, but he still gets the job done. Another high speed tier reduces my need for scarf too.
How to use: You can punch holes with it right away. Setting up isn't ideal if there are Tangrowth, Nidoqueen, Golurk, and Doublade. Terrakion actually has decent bulk, so you could go for SD on passive scalds thanks to lum berry negating the burn chance. Other opportunities for setup include locking mons into the wrong move (choice item or encore) or gengar's cursed body disabling an important move.
Piloswine @ Eviolite
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard
- Icicle Crash
- Stealth Rock
The antihero. After months of this mon giving my NU team trouble way back in the day, Piloswine joins the fight. He's the defensive backbone for the team, and possesses boltbeam resistance. After bodying teams with Stunfisk-G, I learned that a ground type is almost always necessary to prevent Xurkitree from doing its thing. While energy ball still eats Piloswine, it poses a major threat with a devastating earthquake and powerful priority. Stealth rock is filler, but it completes the hazard lineup and gives me a reason to knock off flying type boots.
How to use: He can be used to challenge Zydog, Doublade, Lycanroc-D, and Registeel. If Xurkitree is alive and very healthy, you'd also want to keep Piloswine healthy as to make sure he can't go on a dazzling gleam/thunderbolt sweep. I would much rather fire off a powerful stab but if there are mons that are hard to scratch with it such as Weezing-G, Araquanid, Golisopod, and Bronzong, you can consider looking for a chance to getup rocks.
Threatlist:
Togekiss - Public enemy number one. Scarf sets are very devastating to the team and often force me to rely on Malamar and his dodging shenanigans.
Flying, Ghost, and Steel Stab - I have 0 resistances to that. That's also another reason Togekiss is a problem. Gengar usually stops ghost spam, Piloswine keeps physical flying mons at bay, Malamar keeps hurricanes at bay, but not much going for steels.
Copperajah - Impossible to switch into.
Doublade - It's a multistep process in defeating it. If it isn't weakened enough, I need hazards and Eviolite gone before Piloswine can defeat it. All while trying to dance around SD with prankster encore.
Crobat - It bodied my team before it still bodies it now. I'll need Terrak and Piloswine healthy. Otherwise I'll need to find a way to get to +2 on Malamar.
Sun teams - Without rocks being a priority, scarf zard can do a number on my team. Terrak will need to be preserved specifically for that and not for other fire types such as Darm. What's worse, Torkoal's lava plume may burn through Scolipede's sash, keeping his spinner and sun setter healthy.
Endeavor Workarounds - Dual Wingbeat Archeops, Multihits, smartly played Suicune are all mons that can turn Scolipede into a liability.
Conclusion:
That's all there is. Set hazards, then nonstop pressure. Feel free to use this team, but I'm looking for suggestions to deal with the threatlist. Thank you for reading and cya!
Replays:
Top 10 qualifying battle (Vs TR):
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225539655
Scott comeback even after a misplay
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225064790
Vs Stall
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1225020804
A little of everything
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1224505489
Vs Hail
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1224547696
Proof: (Well now Everybo-D is #10 as I typed this)