Usually I'm not one to play a ton of SV OU, but I figured that I may as well share a team that I found a lot of fun building and playing with. I'm currently 1534 on my main, mostly playing this team and its variations, but I feel that it's a rewarding balance team with both the ability to contain offensive teams with its bulky Pokemon and wear down defensive teams with hazards and item removal.
Meet the Team:
- (Pokepaste)
Skarmory's ability to check a wide variety of physical attackers while also supporting its team with Spikes made it quite intriguing to me in the famously hazard-dominated SV OU metagame. Spikes and Rocky Helmet put opposing Pokemon on a timer if they want to bash through Skarmory. This includes the likes of Kingambit, Great Tusk, Roaring Moon, Weavile, and Meowscarada. Iron Defense + Body Press lets you handle setup sweepers like SD Gambit and DD Moon, while Tera Dragon is used so that you can safely Iron Defense in front of Gouging Fire without becoming weak to Electric and Grass moves. However, Tera Water is also probably fine in this role.
I keep going back and forth on Leftovers vs Heavy-Duty Boots Clodsire. On the one hand, I appreciate the passive recovery that Leftovers provides, but I also sometimes would like to have Boots when facing down Gliscor balance or stall teams, since I'd like for Clodsire to stick around in those games. With max Special Defense and Water Absorb, Clodsire can blanket check a variety of dangerous special attackers, including Iron Valiant, Enamorus, and Walking Wake. It's also my primary thing to throw into Volcarona.
When I was initially conceiving the idea to build with Skarmory + a SpDef Ground-type, I was hearing a lot of talk about Skarmory + Ting-Lu balance teams, but I didn't like Ting-Lu's inability to handle Fairy and Fighting types that Skarmory also couldn't deal with. I also preferred Clodsire's Water immunity, access to Toxic and Recover, and the ability to absorb Toxic Spikes over Ting-Lu. I have built SkarmLu teams, but I think that the ones I have built are inferior to this team.
It is no secret that SV OU has Pokemon that are simply unwallable. Roaring Moon is the first one that comes to my mind, followed by Kingambit and Tera Volcarona. Well, if you can't wall them, then you should out-offense them, and that's where Weavile comes in. Its priority Ice Shard bypasses all of the speed boosts that the foe has accrued, and it is naturally fast, letting it outrun many opposing offensive Pokemon, including Meowscarada, Serperior, and Raging Bolt. It also fulfills the tried-and-true combination of Spikes + a STAB move that no Flying-type wants to switch into. In this case, Triple Axel + Spikes will threaten big damage into whichever Pokemon tries to switch into it. It also gives this team a meaningful way to threaten Gliscor. Knock Off is a great move for it to have, as it removes Heavy-Duty Boots and Leftovers that gives foes some recourse from the hazards. Swords Dance is the last move, and it punishes opposing Protects like little else, forcing in Dondozo for me to Knock Off. Weavile is incredibly fun to play with, since it scares out so much and, with good double switching, finds entry on other forced switches. It is my favorite progressmaker on this team.
I also considered Meowscarada for this spot, as it has very similar traits in Knock Off and (functionally) STAB Triple Axel. However, Weavile is too important to this team as a revenge killer to Roaring Moon, so it is comfortably the better option here.
Needing a secondary Fairy- and Fighting-resist, as well as a sweeper, I went with Volcarona here. It is my main weapon against offensive teams, as it can accrue multiple boosts and start cleaning through their offensive Pokemon like very few Pokemon can. It also helps that it directly threatens Steel-types that so far aren't particularly scared of this team. Volcarona's Tera type is basically an unknowable quantity in team preview; Tera Dragon Tera Blast lets it beat opposing Dragons like Dragapult and Gouging Fire, but I've also ran Tera Grass Giga Drain in the past to give me recovery to heal this bulky Volcarona. Either Tera type lets me bypass Ogerpon-W's STAB combination, and Fire/Dragon is good enough neutral coverage against most things that it works out.
I'd like another fast Pokemon to check opposing fast threats, as well as additional insurance into Kingambit (particularly Jolly Kingambit that randomly appear to outspeed my Skarmory). Zamazenta was a very good choice that met both of these criteria. Since I didn't really need another setup sweeper, I forwent Iron Defense + Body Press for an all-out-attacker set that maximizes its coverage to hit as much as possible. Tera Steel Heavy Slam is very important to this team, as it doesn't have reliable methods to remove Calm Mind Hatterene otherwise. The rest of the moves maximize Zamazenta's coverage, though there's probably some merit to Play Rough or something like that.
Trick + Sticky Barb removes Heavy-Duty Boots on Pokemon that think that they're safe from the hazards I'm throwing around, and starts to chip them for their hubris. It also has other applications, such as stealing Gliscor's Toxic Orb to poison the rest of its team and taking Leftovers from Pokemon that rely on them for recovery. Clefable is probably not the most optimal choice here, but I found this set quite cool and was one of my favorite parts of the team (s/o Tysonslayer for giving me the set). I think after a bunch of games played with this team, I would probably give Clefable Tera Water over Tera Dark, as I can't really see much that Tera Dark helps me against in particular (maybe Dragapult?), but Tera Water helps me into opposing Fire-types like Gouging Fire and Heatran, as well as Dragon Dance Kyurem. This thing is also really effective into defensive teams, as though it doesn't have a lot of PP, it can sit in front of many walls that can't really hurt it and move their items around.
Meet the (other) Team:
- (Pokepaste)
This is a variant of the team with RestTalk Dondozo over Clefable. As I've said a couple of times before, Gouging Fire is a pain to deal with for this team, and Dondozo is the best counter to it in the tier. I dislike its slow pace that doesn't really fit the rest of the team; while Skarmory and Clodsire are not passive because they threaten passive damage, Dondozo really is just throwing around attacks that are not the most difficult to pivot into. Still, I'd imagine it can be annoying to switch into when Spikes are on the field.
Threatlist:
- Its STAB combination is very irritating for this team, especially since nothing on this team naturally resists Fire. Your primary way of getting around this thing is with Terastallization and/or a high-health Zamazenta. However, if you are running the Dondozo team, it becomes significantly less of a problem to deal with.
- While Dragon Dance variants are manageable, Choice Specs variants are very hard to switch into, as it threatens everything really bad. Volcarona, my interim pivot into it, gets destroyed by Specs Meteor, while Freeze-Dry threatens my Ground/Water types.
- The one Calm Mind user that does not care for status or Volcarona. The best play against this is to just Tera Steel Heavy Slam it, which is a kill half of the time (252 Atk Tera Steel Zamazenta Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Hatterene: 288-342 (90.5 - 107.5%) -- 50% chance to OHKO), while Draining Kiss against Tera Steel Zamazenta does almost nothing. However, you're gonna have to pivot into Hatterene, as you don't want to switch an unTera'd Zamazenta into anything but Calm Mind or Mystical Fire.
- Get as much out of Skarmory as you can against this, then Ice Shard with Weavile.
- Pray that it isn't Jolly, then either wall it with Skarmory or use Zamazenta if that fails.
- It is affected by entry hazards, so wear it down until Zama or Vile can deal with it. Pivoting between Clod and Skarm to get Rocky Helmet damage onto it can also be useful.
Replays:
Replays against 1500 players aren't that impressive, but here you go anyway.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2054413386
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2039416721
Closing Thoughts:
Meet the Team:
- (Pokepaste)
Code:
Skarmory @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Sturdy
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Iron Defense
- Roost
- Spikes
Code:
Clodsire @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Recover
- EarthquakeWhen I was initially conceiving the idea to build with Skarmory + a SpDef Ground-type, I was hearing a lot of talk about Skarmory + Ting-Lu balance teams, but I didn't like Ting-Lu's inability to handle Fairy and Fighting types that Skarmory also couldn't deal with. I also preferred Clodsire's Water immunity, access to Toxic and Recover, and the ability to absorb Toxic Spikes over Ting-Lu. I have built SkarmLu teams, but I think that the ones I have built are inferior to this team.
Code:
Weavile @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Pressure
Tera Type: Ice
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Triple Axel
- Ice Shard
- Knock OffI also considered Meowscarada for this spot, as it has very similar traits in Knock Off and (functionally) STAB Triple Axel. However, Weavile is too important to this team as a revenge killer to Roaring Moon, so it is comfortably the better option here.
Code:
Volcarona @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 104 Def / 152 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Fiery Dance
- Tera Blast
- Morning Sun
Code:
Zamazenta @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Dauntless Shield
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Heavy Slam
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
Code:
Clefable @ Sticky Barb
Ability: Magic Guard
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 248 HP / 236 Def / 16 SpD / 8 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Trick
- Moonlight
- EncoreMeet the (other) Team:
- (Pokepaste)This is a variant of the team with RestTalk Dondozo over Clefable. As I've said a couple of times before, Gouging Fire is a pain to deal with for this team, and Dondozo is the best counter to it in the tier. I dislike its slow pace that doesn't really fit the rest of the team; while Skarmory and Clodsire are not passive because they threaten passive damage, Dondozo really is just throwing around attacks that are not the most difficult to pivot into. Still, I'd imagine it can be annoying to switch into when Spikes are on the field.
Threatlist:
- Its STAB combination is very irritating for this team, especially since nothing on this team naturally resists Fire. Your primary way of getting around this thing is with Terastallization and/or a high-health Zamazenta. However, if you are running the Dondozo team, it becomes significantly less of a problem to deal with. - While Dragon Dance variants are manageable, Choice Specs variants are very hard to switch into, as it threatens everything really bad. Volcarona, my interim pivot into it, gets destroyed by Specs Meteor, while Freeze-Dry threatens my Ground/Water types. - The one Calm Mind user that does not care for status or Volcarona. The best play against this is to just Tera Steel Heavy Slam it, which is a kill half of the time (252 Atk Tera Steel Zamazenta Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Hatterene: 288-342 (90.5 - 107.5%) -- 50% chance to OHKO), while Draining Kiss against Tera Steel Zamazenta does almost nothing. However, you're gonna have to pivot into Hatterene, as you don't want to switch an unTera'd Zamazenta into anything but Calm Mind or Mystical Fire. - Get as much out of Skarmory as you can against this, then Ice Shard with Weavile. - Pray that it isn't Jolly, then either wall it with Skarmory or use Zamazenta if that fails. - It is affected by entry hazards, so wear it down until Zama or Vile can deal with it. Pivoting between Clod and Skarm to get Rocky Helmet damage onto it can also be useful.Replays:
Replays against 1500 players aren't that impressive, but here you go anyway.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2054413386
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2039416721
Closing Thoughts:
- Spikes are cool in SV OU, I generally like using hazard stacking teams, especially in the few times that I play SV OU.
- Roaring Moon is insane, as is Kingambit.
- While I don't dislike the influx of stall RMTs in this subforum (on the contrary, I like seeing people push the metagame forward with their own words), I dislike the practice of replacing each Pokemon's name with their minisprite, as it turns each RMT from a thoughtful, holistic overview of their team, how they tune it for specific matchups, and what direction the team was geared towards into a bowl of Lucky Charms. It may look appetizing to do, but it isn't healthy for you, and after a while, you get tired of eating bowl after bowl of just sugar sludge.
- S/o Tysonslayer for initial improvements to the team on the Smogon Discord.
