SS NU Singles NU with Trick Room option

[brosephalon]

Hello, I'm a beginner for Showdown/smogon and this is my first ever NU team, so it could use a little work.

Copperajah @ Leftovers
Ability: Heavy Metal
EVs: 156 HP / 100 Atk / 252 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
Brave Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Heavy Slam
- Heat Crash
- Power Whip

I put Copperajah on the team initially because of a good defensive typing core with Flygon and Ninjask. Copperajah is pretty bulky with the leftovers and is a solid rocks setter, but also provides a lot of offensive pressure if Trick Room is up. However, the drawback if I go for that play is I usually need to lead with Dusclops, which is fine but not very threatening.

Flygon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-Turn
- Fire Blast
- Draco Meteor
- Earth Power

This "surprise factor" Flygon is built to essentially nuke something if it gets the chance. It also has Levitate to avoid the ground moves that are strong against Copperajah and Diancie. If I can switch Flygon in safely, it can OHKO some big NU threats, namely Aerodactyl, while surviving most hits if it doesn't outspeed. That being said, I find it hard to switch Flygon in safely, unless I can bait a ground move or Curse sacrifice with Dusclops after Trick Room.

Ninjask @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 100 Def / 156 Speed
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Swords Dance
- Leech Life
- Dual Wingbeat

Ninjask is one of the main carries of the team, as it outspeeds basically anything in the tier. It's my main revenge killer and it works best when I save it until I've chipped away at my opponent's team. At 156 speed, it outspeeds Aerodactyl, and can use Protect-Speed Boost combo in case the opponent might be scarfed. That being said, it's offensive coverage is somewhat lacking, and can struggle against a pokemon like Braviary since it can't OHKO it withou setting up.

Dusclops @ Eviolite
Ability: Frisk
EVs: 252 HP / 128 Def / 128 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
Sassy Nature
- Trick Room
- Will-O-Wisp
- Curse
- Poltergeist

This Dusclops is incredibly bulky, and is a very reliable Trick Room lead. If the opponent goes for tempo by leading an offensive pokemon, Dusclops can typically live a hit and burn them instead. This is a pretty straightforward strategy though, so I typically run into a wall-vs-wall situation (frequently vs Starmie) and it can take 10+ turns of switch-predicting before I can gain (or lose) positioning. I wish for these situations that I had something more threatening - Poltergeist does good chunks of damage, but typically not enough to beat out a wall with Recover. Maybe it's worth sacrificing some defensive EVs for some offense? The typical move I use is to Curse-sacrifice for a free switch into Copperajah or Diancie (sometimes Flygon if against a very speedy pokemon).

Blastoise @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Flip Turn
-Toxic

So yet another bulky leftover pokemon on my team, although this Blastoise has different utility. It's the only pokemon on my team that resists water moves well, which leads to more wall-vs-wall situations against Starmie. However, Blastoise fares better than Dusclops because it's carrying Toxic. The other functionality is just to Rapid-Spin - only Ninjask really cares about hazards though, and usually I only bring him out late-game so his heavy-duty boots won't get knocked off.

Diancie @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Diamond Storm
- Moonblast

Diancie is yet another defensive Leftovers user, but in this case is actually one of the biggest offensive threats on my team next to Ninjask. The reason for this is the offensive coverage is really good against pokemon that the rest of my team struggle against (i.e. Braviary), and covers rock-type threats to Ninjask with Body Press. It can also set up rocks instead of Copperajah, but I only go for this option against teams that Diancie is really bad against, so I am considering replacing that.

Overall weaknesses of my team:
The team struggles against very common NU picks like Starmie and Braviary. I have checks for them (Blastoise/Ninjask for Starmie, Diancie for Braviary), but if I don't have the positioning it can go bad very quickly. I feel as though I need another fast offensive threat with some other coverage moves (electric or ice moves are seriously lacking on my team). I could very easily replace Blastoise, but then my team would be super weak to water. I could replace Dusclops, but then I would be lacking my main Trick Room setup. The other option is to replace Flygon, but the Flygon is a really good check for Fire types, which my team is weak to, as well as Aerodactyl as discussed earlier.
Rotom-Mow is also a huge threat, as I don't really have good defense vs grass except Ninjask, and then I can get hit pretty hard by a volt-switch and lose positioning on top of that.

Overall strengths of my team:
Most teams I face can't deal with the Trick Room very well. Lots of tanky mons also means I can switch a lot to get good positioning. I also have Ninjask and Diancie that both have serious set-up threat, which is difficult to play against.

Replays:
Loss vs Rotom-Mow, Braviary, Starmie
Win vs Braviary, Starmie - Copperajah + Ninask come in clutch
Win - Great setup with Diancie

 

[roxie]

Introduction
Hey! I really do feel like what's throwing this team off is actually the Dusclops. I think Trick Room is a surprise but because Dusclops is more of a support Pokemon (not saying it's good in NU), it really doesn't fit the role of a "Curse + Poltergeist Trick Room Sweeper". This set is going to struggle a tad bit with Dark-, Normal-, and Itemless Pokemon and yeah some stuff can get burned but you also have the possibility of users like Zoroark or Guzzlord running SpA over Phy sometimes. You also have the broken move Substitute where many users/foes use to avoid Will-O-Wisp and one misplay against an itemless Pokemon, its kinda in the drain. Just more of general, there are better Poltergeist users and better overall Ghost-types in general like Decidueye, Golurk, Dhelmise, and Silvally-Ghost. Dropping Dusclops does change the archetype of this team (it just looks like Balance + One trick room Pokemon that doesn't do much to me) so yeah. Took me a bit to think on this one but here is the rate and suggestions below:

Changes
Dusclops -> Roserade

Roserade
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 40 SpA / 56 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leaf Storm
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder / Spikes
- Synthesis / Rest

I am changing Dusclops to Roserade to absorb Toxic Spikes from Pokemon like Dragalge and Drapion and serve as a defensive switch-in to Fighting-types like Sirfetch'd and Machamp. Dusclops's only reliable recovery is Rest and once it's hit by a Knock Off, Close Combat is pretty open which causes it to be 2HKO'd by Sirfetch'd's Close Combat. I also gave Roserade no item so it can also come in on Poltergeist users like Dhelmise, Decidueye, and Golurk and recover with Synthesis or Rest. I personally would go with Sleep Powder as it gives Flygon and Ninjask more openings to come in and it puts Steel-types like Copperajah and Bronzong to sleep that it can't touch.

Blastoise -> Vaporeon

Vaporeon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Wish
- Protect
- Flip Turn

Hail teams are common and it's literally brainless. I feel as if having a Water immunity is really nice for the team as it absorbs Arctovish's Fishious Rend and it can heal the team with Wish. Flip Turn serves a similar role to Blastoise and I decided to change Copperajah to Silvally-Steel to compress the role of hazard removal on the team. The SpD betters its matchup against Life Orb + Freeze Dry Arctovish.

Copperajah -> Silvally-Steel

Silvally-Steel @ Steel Memory
Ability: RKS System
EVs: 252 HP / 192 SpD / 64 Spe
Careful Nature
- Defog
- U-turn
- Toxic
- Multi-Attack

I chose to run a Defog Silvally-Steel over Copperajah because I needed hazard removal since I dropped Blastoise. U-turn keeps the momentum up for the team with Toxic hits Pokemon like Gastrodon and Arcanine. Running two Stealth Rock setters isn't necessary so I decided to keep it on Diancie since you wanted it for your Braviary check.

Diancie

Diancie @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 160 HP / 252 Def / 96 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Diamond Storm
- Heal Bell

I added some speed on Diancie to ensure it outpaces neutral nature max Speed Copperajah aka Choice Band which isn't very common but I think running speed supports your Special Flying set better in beating Steel Pokemon. I kept the Def EVs to make sure Body Press has the most output. I don't feel like Moonblast is a 100% staple and I went with Heal Bell instead just in case Vaporeon gets Toxic'd or Silvally-S gets burned and so on.

Ninjask

Ninjask @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 100 Def / 156 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Swords Dance
- U-turn
- Dual Wingbeat

Ninjask should pressure Starmie and Rotom-C quite well if you play right and if anything, U-turn is better in case they may try switching into a Rock- or Steel-type like Diancie or Copperajah.

Conclusion/Paste
I feel if you really really wanted to go with Trick Room, you'd need something like Aromatisse, Band Escavalier/Golurk, and etc and I am only limited to change the team by 3 members or it would be considered an unratable team. I do feel like going more towards the balanced approach is a lot safer and better since Trick Room really isn't a good or common archetype in NU. Here is your team good luck: Specs Flygon + Itemless Rose Balance (pokepast.es)

 

[merchantmahogany]

Introduction
Hey! I really do feel like what's throwing this team off is actually the Dusclops. I think Trick Room is a surprise but because Dusclops is more of a support Pokemon (not saying it's good in NU), it really doesn't fit the role of a "Curse + Poltergeist Trick Room Sweeper". This set is going to struggle a tad bit with Dark-, Normal-, and Itemless Pokemon and yeah some stuff can get burned but you also have the possibility of users like Zoroark or Guzzlord running SpA over Phy sometimes. You also have the broken move Substitute where many users/foes use to avoid Will-O-Wisp and one misplay against an itemless Pokemon, its kinda in the drain. Just more of general, there are better Poltergeist users and better overall Ghost-types in general like Decidueye, Golurk, Dhelmise, and Silvally-Ghost. Dropping Dusclops does change the archetype of this team (it just looks like Balance + One trick room Pokemon that doesn't do much to me) so yeah. Took me a bit to think on this one but here is the rate and suggestions below:

Changes
Dusclops -> Roserade

Roserade
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 40 SpA / 56 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leaf Storm
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder / Spikes
- Synthesis / Rest

I am changing Dusclops to Roserade to absorb Toxic Spikes from Pokemon like Dragalge and Drapion and serve as a defensive switch-in to Fighting-types like Sirfetch'd and Machamp. Dusclops's only reliable recovery is Rest and once it's hit by a Knock Off, Close Combat is pretty open which causes it to be 2HKO'd by Sirfetch'd's Close Combat. I also gave Roserade no item so it can also come in on Poltergeist users like Dhelmise, Decidueye, and Golurk and recover with Synthesis or Rest. I personally would go with Sleep Powder as it gives Flygon and Ninjask more openings to come in and it puts Steel-types like Copperajah and Bronzong to sleep that it can't touch.

Blastoise -> Vaporeon

Vaporeon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Wish
- Protect
- Flip Turn

Hail teams are common and it's literally brainless. I feel as if having a Water immunity is really nice for the team as it absorbs Arctovish's Fishious Rend and it can heal the team with Wish. Flip Turn serves a similar role to Blastoise and I decided to change Copperajah to Silvally-Steel to compress the role of hazard removal on the team. The SpD betters its matchup against Life Orb + Freeze Dry Arctovish.

Copperajah -> Silvally-Steel

Silvally-Steel @ Steel Memory
Ability: RKS System
EVs: 252 HP / 192 SpD / 64 Spe
Careful Nature
- Defog
- U-turn
- Toxic
- Multi-Attack

I chose to run a Defog Silvally-Steel over Copperajah because I needed hazard removal since I dropped Blastoise. U-turn keeps the momentum up for the team with Toxic hits Pokemon like Gastrodon and Arcanine. Running two Stealth Rock setters isn't necessary so I decided to keep it on Diancie since you wanted it for your Braviary check.

Diancie

Diancie @ Leftovers
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 160 HP / 252 Def / 96 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Body Press
- Diamond Storm
- Heal Bell

I added some speed on Diancie to ensure it outpaces neutral nature max Speed Copperajah aka Choice Band which isn't very common but I think running speed supports your Special Flying set better in beating Steel Pokemon. I kept the Def EVs to make sure Body Press has the most output. I don't feel like Moonblast is a 100% staple and I went with Heal Bell instead just in case Vaporeon gets Toxic'd or Silvally-S gets burned and so on.

Ninjask

Ninjask @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 100 Def / 156 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Protect
- Swords Dance
- U-turn
- Dual Wingbeat

Ninjask should pressure Starmie and Rotom-C quite well if you play right and if anything, U-turn is better in case they may try switching into a Rock- or Steel-type like Diancie or Copperajah.

Conclusion/Paste
I feel if you really really wanted to go with Trick Room, you'd need something like Aromatisse, Band Escavalier/Golurk, and etc and I am only limited to change the team by 3 members or it would be considered an unratable team. I do feel like going more towards the balanced approach is a lot safer and better since Trick Room really isn't a good or common archetype in NU. Here is your team good luck: Specs Flygon + Itemless Rose Balance (pokepast.es)

First of all, fantastic rate. From my own experience, Trick Room really isn't something you can do halfway like this, especially not with a Ninjask of all mons.

Secondly, I really don't think Trick Room is that good in any Singles metas. You have to spend turns not doing any damage just to set it up and have to waste turns getting in a Trick Room setter, if they're offensive and not super bulky (like Chandelure or Gallade), they could be KO'd before even being able to set up (1 hit on switch in, 1 more hit before Trick Room). If they're defensive (like Jellicent or Slowbro) they're setup fodder or Taunt bait and you have to spend one of your four turns switching in a mon that can actually do damage. The doubles format allows you to set up and do damage on the same turn, and that puts so much more offensive pressure on your opponent. I may just be biased towards Doubles because of how fun I personally find them, but yeah.

tl;dr four turns of TR goes by way too quickly in singles