TLDR Import: https://pokepast.es/e3d6dadf566151f3
Introduction
Notable Threats
While there are ways to stop Nihilego on the team, it tends to get very free switch-in on Pidgeot unless you pivot with U-turn. The team doesn’t like to switch into Meteor Beam Nihilego so you have to play around it. If all else fails. Urshifu can be used as a revenge killer; however, Aqua Jet will only be a guaranteed OHKO after stealth rock chip.
Zarude is the other main threat to this team as the only dark resistance is Urshifu. Keeping Amoonguss healthy and keeping your rocky helmet is important for this matchup as Zarude doesn’t particularly like the chip damage and Amoonguss can deal sizable damage back to it. Another way to help this matchup is to try and toxic Zarude when it switches into Hippowdon as it forces Zarude to go for Jungle Healing allowing for a free switch to Amoonguss.
Team Replays
All of the following replays are against good competition and against good Pokemon in the metagame for the most part. The replays show the versatility of the team and are a good way to get familiarized with how to use it. Some of the matchups in the replays are particularly bad and show how the team can get around certain threats. They're all great watches especially if you're struggling to use or fully understand how the team works.
(vs MudkipBeans) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563672811
(vs TheShowdownHoedown) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1570630236
(vs Kantomola) (Stall) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1565047242
(vs Kidd_Bird) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563664393
(vs Curbs) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563650554
(vs 3MoreMinutes) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1577795918
(vs Kyerndo) (Trick Room) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1578420886
Importables
Import with nicknames: https://pokepast.es/e3d6dadf566151f3
Standard (boring) import: https://pokepast.es/e9bc84d53d102850
Final Thoughts and Thank-Yous
I hope you all enjoyed the rare Nat Dex UU RMT and as it's my first RMT I hope everything came out right and I did justice to the God squad known as The Power of Friendship. I want to give a big thank you to BugGoBrrrrrr who made the team with me and tested it to its completion. Also, I want to give a shoutout to Alexalan on DeviantArt as they were the ones that made the Mega-Pidgot art I integrated at the top of the post. Finally, I want to give a shoutout to all the wonderful people in the Agency, The Lab, and the National Dex discord. You all are so amazing and I don't think I would have the motivation or wherewithal to do something like this without all of you. In my opinion, Nat Dex UU is one of the best tiers and I hope anyone who doesn't play it will give it a chance and help grow our tier. Thank you to everyone who read my essay of an RMT and I look forward to hearing your thoughts and seeing you all on the ladder.
Introduction
Greetings and salutations people of Nat Dex UU, I’ve got a team to share with y’all. BugGoBrrrrrr and I built this team after realizing how well Rapid-Strike-Urshifu and Mega-Pidgeot paired with each other. We ended up high on the ladder with multiple accounts (Kyanno, BugGoBrrrrrr, and Teambuilders Inc.), held the #1 and #2 spots multiple times, and at one point had one account as the only account 1600+ on the Nat Dex UU ladder. I’m happy to finally present this to everyone and I hope you all can have some fun with the squad.
Proof of Peak
Team Breakdown
God (Pidgeot-Mega) @ Pidgeotite
Ability: Big Pecks
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn
- Roost
The first member of the team is Mega-Pidgeot. Pidgeot fills the crucial role of speed control for the team hitting a blazing 375 speed. Pidgeot's speed tier means only a few common Pokemon outspeed it, namely, Zeraora and Mega-Manectric. With its 135 base special attack and high-powered STAB move, it can be a capable wall breaker. Timid nature is preferred as it allows Mega-Pidgeot to outspeed many things below 121 base speed such as the swords of justice, Infernape, and Mega-Absol.
Hurricane is Pidgeot’s STAB move of choice and paired with Mega Pidgeot’s ability No Guard, it becomes very spammable. In addition to Hurricane's high power, its chance to confuse allows Pidgeot to sometimes break through some things that would try to shake off its attacks and heal such as SpDef Hippowdon. Heatwave is the other main attacking move Pidgeot runs as it provides coverage for the steel types that Hurricane can’t hit. With the flying and fire combination of offensive moves, few things can resist both but, Rotom-Wash and Rotom-Heat are very good at taking hits and Nihilego takes almost nothing due to its typing and special bulk. This is where U-Turn comes in handy as it eases predictions and allows Pidgeot to pivot out against the few things that can take hits from it and bring in other teammates to deal with them. The last move is roost as it gives Pidgeot more longevity in longer games and helps with Pidgeot’s weakness to stealth rocks.
It's worth mentioning that toxic can be run over roost if you want to try to cripple its answers such as the Rotom forms. However, there is another toxic user on the team in Hippowdon, and Pidgeot’s longevity can be more useful in certain bulkier matchups.
Friends (Urshifu-Rapid-Strike) @ Choice Band
Ability: Unseen Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Surging Strikes
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Aqua Jet
The second member of the team is one of the strongest Pokemon in the current Nat Dex UU meta being Rapid-Strike-Urshifu. There isn’t much to talk about with this Pokemon that isn’t already known. It’s an incredible wallbreaker, it has an amazing attack stat, it has insanely strong STAB moves, it has good speed, and its typing gives it great offensive coverage and some key resistances for the team. Lastly, Urshifu forms a great pivot core with Pidgeot against cores such as Amoonguss and Slowking which would normally be problematic due to their regenerator ability.
Putting the obvious reasons for the dual STAB choice aside, in Nat Dex UU surging strikes has an extra niche in helping the team against Iron Defense users such as Mega-Aggron. U-Turn is great for the same reasons stated with Pidgeot but against Pokemon like Amoonguss, Salamence, and Mega Altaria. The last move being Aqua Jet seems like a small detail that doesn’t need to be looked into much further however, it is extremely important on this team. With Urshifu and Pidgeot being the fastest members on the team, there are a few things that outspeed them. Aqua Jet provides a very strong priority with the choice band which is often used to pick off weakened Pokemon that are faster than both Urshifu and Pidgeot.
Due to this particular team being supernaturally good at chipping down opposing teams, Urshifu constantly finds opportunities to clean during the late game with Aqua Jet. This was one of the surprises that came when testing the team but it's something you have to keep open as an option. Opponents typically won’t expect an Aqua Jet late game clean and will let their team get chipped as a result. Aqua Jet is particularly useful in matchups against Mega-Beedrill as it's OHKOed after a round of stealth rock chip.
Big Mama (Hippowdon) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
The third team member is Big Mama, the specially defensive Hippowdon. Hippowdon is such a great defensive answer to so many things in the tier such as Moltres, Salamence, and the other flying types in the tier. However, the main support that Hippowdon brings to the team is fully countering many of the electric types in the tier.
Going back to the speed tier of Pidgeot, most of the Pokemon that outspeed it are electric-type Pokemon. However, not even a Mega-Manectric can manage to 2HKO Hippowdon. Due to Hippowdon taking very little damage from the common electric types, it gets many opportunities to set up stealth rocks and spread toxic which is crucial to turning a bad matchup into a more manageable one.
Elon Musk (Celesteela) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Flamethrower
- Heavy Slam
- Protect
- Leech Seed
The fourth member of the team is Celesteela. Celesteela provides an answer for grass types and other attackers that Hippowdon can’t handle as well. Most importantly, it gives the team a good dragon and flying resistance so Dragon Dance Pokemon can be taken out with a combination of toxic and sandstorm from Hippowdon and Celesteela stomaching their boosted attacks and finishing them off with protects and heavy slams. Also, Celesteela is an integral check to Nihilego as a boosted Nihilego can start wreaking havoc on this team. Celesteela is capable of taking boosted hits and KOing back, effectively stopping its attempt at a sweep. Additionally, Celesteela is one in the line of defense against another Pokemon detrimental to the team in the form of Zarude. Once again, the moveset is the standard defensive set so there isn't much to discuss.
Trap (Amoonguss) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Spore
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Entering the homestretch, our fifth member is the indefinitely bulky Amoonguss. Amoonguss is a very important member of the team as it does so much for the team. Primarily, Amoonguss provides much-needed help against opposing Rapid-Strike-Urshifu. Also, Amoonguss adds rocky helmet chip damage, a spore immunity, and a spore of its own. Not only that but, Amoonguss can lure in flying types for Hippowdon to get an opportunity to switch in and set up stealth rocks. Spore is particularly useful for this team as the team was lacking maneuverability on the defensive side. Spore fixes that problem allowing our offensive Pokemon to get free switch-ins on sleep turns.
Once again, the moves are pretty standard; Hidden Power Fire is used to hit Scizor and other steel types that would try and use Amoonguss for a free switch-in but for the most part, you’re clicking spore regardless. The EV spread is used to live a Mega-Manectric’s overheat after stealth rocks and the rest is put into physical defense. While Hippowdon is there to stop Mega-Manectric, it’s good to have a secondary fail-safe in case something happens to Hippowdon because if Mega-Manectric is allowed to run free, it becomes extremely problematic.
Easy Bake (Rotom-Heat) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Overheat
- Pain Split
- Defog
The final member of the team is our spunky Rotom-Heat. Rotom-Heat fit very well on the team as it patched up many holes such as its weakness to physical fighting types, its lack of hazard removal, the Mamoswine matchup, and lack of pivot support. As a result, this is the bulky pivot of the team, great for getting our offensive Pokemon in, keeping up or taking back momentum, and nicely tops off the fire, water, and grass core of the team. Fire and electric type coverage are always strong when paired together as they are two of the strongest offensive types. Ergo, Rotom-Heat gives the team some extra power in general and puts extra pressure against the extremely common grass and steel types that Pidgeot and Urshifu dislike.
Overheat is great to nuke and Volt Switch enables Rotom-Heat to pivot. Defog is self-explanatory as the team was in desperate need of hazard removal. Pain Split is the only move that requires a bit extra clarification. On the surface it's easy to see that Pain Split is used to keep Rotom-Heat healthy, however, you also need to use it to punish things that like to switch in on Rotom-Heat and keep them low. Even ten to twenty percent off an opposing wall can be a boon for Pidgeot or Urshifu. Notably, with a bit of chip, opposing Hippowdon can be reliably taken down by Pidgeot.
Things to Remember
Proof of Peak
Team Breakdown
God (Pidgeot-Mega) @ Pidgeotite
Ability: Big Pecks
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn
- Roost
The first member of the team is Mega-Pidgeot. Pidgeot fills the crucial role of speed control for the team hitting a blazing 375 speed. Pidgeot's speed tier means only a few common Pokemon outspeed it, namely, Zeraora and Mega-Manectric. With its 135 base special attack and high-powered STAB move, it can be a capable wall breaker. Timid nature is preferred as it allows Mega-Pidgeot to outspeed many things below 121 base speed such as the swords of justice, Infernape, and Mega-Absol.
Hurricane is Pidgeot’s STAB move of choice and paired with Mega Pidgeot’s ability No Guard, it becomes very spammable. In addition to Hurricane's high power, its chance to confuse allows Pidgeot to sometimes break through some things that would try to shake off its attacks and heal such as SpDef Hippowdon. Heatwave is the other main attacking move Pidgeot runs as it provides coverage for the steel types that Hurricane can’t hit. With the flying and fire combination of offensive moves, few things can resist both but, Rotom-Wash and Rotom-Heat are very good at taking hits and Nihilego takes almost nothing due to its typing and special bulk. This is where U-Turn comes in handy as it eases predictions and allows Pidgeot to pivot out against the few things that can take hits from it and bring in other teammates to deal with them. The last move is roost as it gives Pidgeot more longevity in longer games and helps with Pidgeot’s weakness to stealth rocks.
It's worth mentioning that toxic can be run over roost if you want to try to cripple its answers such as the Rotom forms. However, there is another toxic user on the team in Hippowdon, and Pidgeot’s longevity can be more useful in certain bulkier matchups.
Friends (Urshifu-Rapid-Strike) @ Choice Band
Ability: Unseen Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Surging Strikes
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Aqua Jet
The second member of the team is one of the strongest Pokemon in the current Nat Dex UU meta being Rapid-Strike-Urshifu. There isn’t much to talk about with this Pokemon that isn’t already known. It’s an incredible wallbreaker, it has an amazing attack stat, it has insanely strong STAB moves, it has good speed, and its typing gives it great offensive coverage and some key resistances for the team. Lastly, Urshifu forms a great pivot core with Pidgeot against cores such as Amoonguss and Slowking which would normally be problematic due to their regenerator ability.
Putting the obvious reasons for the dual STAB choice aside, in Nat Dex UU surging strikes has an extra niche in helping the team against Iron Defense users such as Mega-Aggron. U-Turn is great for the same reasons stated with Pidgeot but against Pokemon like Amoonguss, Salamence, and Mega Altaria. The last move being Aqua Jet seems like a small detail that doesn’t need to be looked into much further however, it is extremely important on this team. With Urshifu and Pidgeot being the fastest members on the team, there are a few things that outspeed them. Aqua Jet provides a very strong priority with the choice band which is often used to pick off weakened Pokemon that are faster than both Urshifu and Pidgeot.
Due to this particular team being supernaturally good at chipping down opposing teams, Urshifu constantly finds opportunities to clean during the late game with Aqua Jet. This was one of the surprises that came when testing the team but it's something you have to keep open as an option. Opponents typically won’t expect an Aqua Jet late game clean and will let their team get chipped as a result. Aqua Jet is particularly useful in matchups against Mega-Beedrill as it's OHKOed after a round of stealth rock chip.
Big Mama (Hippowdon) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
The third team member is Big Mama, the specially defensive Hippowdon. Hippowdon is such a great defensive answer to so many things in the tier such as Moltres, Salamence, and the other flying types in the tier. However, the main support that Hippowdon brings to the team is fully countering many of the electric types in the tier.
Going back to the speed tier of Pidgeot, most of the Pokemon that outspeed it are electric-type Pokemon. However, not even a Mega-Manectric can manage to 2HKO Hippowdon. Due to Hippowdon taking very little damage from the common electric types, it gets many opportunities to set up stealth rocks and spread toxic which is crucial to turning a bad matchup into a more manageable one.
Elon Musk (Celesteela) @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Flamethrower
- Heavy Slam
- Protect
- Leech Seed
The fourth member of the team is Celesteela. Celesteela provides an answer for grass types and other attackers that Hippowdon can’t handle as well. Most importantly, it gives the team a good dragon and flying resistance so Dragon Dance Pokemon can be taken out with a combination of toxic and sandstorm from Hippowdon and Celesteela stomaching their boosted attacks and finishing them off with protects and heavy slams. Also, Celesteela is an integral check to Nihilego as a boosted Nihilego can start wreaking havoc on this team. Celesteela is capable of taking boosted hits and KOing back, effectively stopping its attempt at a sweep. Additionally, Celesteela is one in the line of defense against another Pokemon detrimental to the team in the form of Zarude. Once again, the moveset is the standard defensive set so there isn't much to discuss.
Trap (Amoonguss) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Spore
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Entering the homestretch, our fifth member is the indefinitely bulky Amoonguss. Amoonguss is a very important member of the team as it does so much for the team. Primarily, Amoonguss provides much-needed help against opposing Rapid-Strike-Urshifu. Also, Amoonguss adds rocky helmet chip damage, a spore immunity, and a spore of its own. Not only that but, Amoonguss can lure in flying types for Hippowdon to get an opportunity to switch in and set up stealth rocks. Spore is particularly useful for this team as the team was lacking maneuverability on the defensive side. Spore fixes that problem allowing our offensive Pokemon to get free switch-ins on sleep turns.
Once again, the moves are pretty standard; Hidden Power Fire is used to hit Scizor and other steel types that would try and use Amoonguss for a free switch-in but for the most part, you’re clicking spore regardless. The EV spread is used to live a Mega-Manectric’s overheat after stealth rocks and the rest is put into physical defense. While Hippowdon is there to stop Mega-Manectric, it’s good to have a secondary fail-safe in case something happens to Hippowdon because if Mega-Manectric is allowed to run free, it becomes extremely problematic.
Easy Bake (Rotom-Heat) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Overheat
- Pain Split
- Defog
The final member of the team is our spunky Rotom-Heat. Rotom-Heat fit very well on the team as it patched up many holes such as its weakness to physical fighting types, its lack of hazard removal, the Mamoswine matchup, and lack of pivot support. As a result, this is the bulky pivot of the team, great for getting our offensive Pokemon in, keeping up or taking back momentum, and nicely tops off the fire, water, and grass core of the team. Fire and electric type coverage are always strong when paired together as they are two of the strongest offensive types. Ergo, Rotom-Heat gives the team some extra power in general and puts extra pressure against the extremely common grass and steel types that Pidgeot and Urshifu dislike.
Overheat is great to nuke and Volt Switch enables Rotom-Heat to pivot. Defog is self-explanatory as the team was in desperate need of hazard removal. Pain Split is the only move that requires a bit extra clarification. On the surface it's easy to see that Pain Split is used to keep Rotom-Heat healthy, however, you also need to use it to punish things that like to switch in on Rotom-Heat and keep them low. Even ten to twenty percent off an opposing wall can be a boon for Pidgeot or Urshifu. Notably, with a bit of chip, opposing Hippowdon can be reliably taken down by Pidgeot.
Things to Remember
- Aqua Jet sweeps are something to look out for especially against offensive teams that don’t have many bulky Pokemon. Realizing you can sweep with Aqua Jet can easily be the difference between a win and a loss.
- Utilize all the chip damage you have with this team. You have sandstorm, toxic, rocky helmet, stealth rocks, leech seed, and more. Sometimes the key to getting past a wall you’re having trouble breaking is subtly chipping them down and patiently waiting for your opportunity to get in one of your wall breakers once they’re low enough.
- Don’t let the team get overwhelmed in the offense matchup. A lot of times, if you never branch out and make predictions, offensive teams can start to overwhelm you, especially if they’re running toxic.
- Keep Hippowdon healthy. Surprisingly Hippowdon can wall a ton of things like Chandelure, Special Salamence, Moltres, and more. However, be sure to keep Hippowdon healthy for electric types because if the electric types are allowed to run free the team struggles. Luckily, Hippowdon can wall all of them but it has to be kept healthy to do so.
- Stealth rocks are important. When you identify a potentially problematic matchup such as a regenerator core with Slowking, make sure to set yourself up for opportunities to get up stealth rocks. Your game state improves a lot against tough matchups when you prioritize stealth rocks. However, prioritizing stealth rocks is always good practice with this team.
- While not completely necessary, in the Rotom matchup it’s helpful to try and toxic it so it’s easier to break through.
Notable Threats
While there are ways to stop Nihilego on the team, it tends to get very free switch-in on Pidgeot unless you pivot with U-turn. The team doesn’t like to switch into Meteor Beam Nihilego so you have to play around it. If all else fails. Urshifu can be used as a revenge killer; however, Aqua Jet will only be a guaranteed OHKO after stealth rock chip.
Zarude is the other main threat to this team as the only dark resistance is Urshifu. Keeping Amoonguss healthy and keeping your rocky helmet is important for this matchup as Zarude doesn’t particularly like the chip damage and Amoonguss can deal sizable damage back to it. Another way to help this matchup is to try and toxic Zarude when it switches into Hippowdon as it forces Zarude to go for Jungle Healing allowing for a free switch to Amoonguss.
Team Replays
All of the following replays are against good competition and against good Pokemon in the metagame for the most part. The replays show the versatility of the team and are a good way to get familiarized with how to use it. Some of the matchups in the replays are particularly bad and show how the team can get around certain threats. They're all great watches especially if you're struggling to use or fully understand how the team works.
(vs MudkipBeans) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563672811
(vs TheShowdownHoedown) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1570630236
(vs Kantomola) (Stall) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1565047242
(vs Kidd_Bird) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563664393
(vs Curbs) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1563650554
(vs 3MoreMinutes) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1577795918
(vs Kyerndo) (Trick Room) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexuu-1578420886
Importables
Import with nicknames: https://pokepast.es/e3d6dadf566151f3
Standard (boring) import: https://pokepast.es/e9bc84d53d102850
Final Thoughts and Thank-Yous
I hope you all enjoyed the rare Nat Dex UU RMT and as it's my first RMT I hope everything came out right and I did justice to the God squad known as The Power of Friendship. I want to give a big thank you to BugGoBrrrrrr who made the team with me and tested it to its completion. Also, I want to give a shoutout to Alexalan on DeviantArt as they were the ones that made the Mega-Pidgot art I integrated at the top of the post. Finally, I want to give a shoutout to all the wonderful people in the Agency, The Lab, and the National Dex discord. You all are so amazing and I don't think I would have the motivation or wherewithal to do something like this without all of you. In my opinion, Nat Dex UU is one of the best tiers and I hope anyone who doesn't play it will give it a chance and help grow our tier. Thank you to everyone who read my essay of an RMT and I look forward to hearing your thoughts and seeing you all on the ladder.
