Odd that I'm ranked in the US, I didn't think the Global Link would change my original region just because I switched my 3DS region just for E-Store use.
Anyways. 1830 in the picture, but I hit a high of 1846. Languishing in the mid-1700s now however... Nevertheless, not too bad for a team with no Pokebank access, I suppose. I certainly would have appreciated Latios, though! (Among other things)
Latest team composition in no particular order, complete with nonsensical ramblings. Take my words with a pinch of salt: The last time I even battled remotely competitively was during the Shoddybattle era. Throwing my team repeatedly through Battle Spot has given me some experience, but hey.
Breloom@Focus Sash
Jolly, Technician
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
Rock Tomb/Mach Punch/Bullet Seed/Spore
Preferred lead of choice for teams with no clear leads, or those he can make short work of. He's also useful throughout the match for various reasons. Often kills off those darn Prankster Thundurus-I leads thanks to Rock Tomb and Focus Sash. I used to Spore off the bat, but there have been occassions where the Thundurus decides to Taunt or Thunder Wave instead, which earned me a free OHKO and an intact sash (Checking calcs, it's more of a 31% chance to OHKO, but Mach Punch will take care of any leftover HP if he stays in). He's also rather decent check against Gyarados, though it would seem switching in Gyarados into Breloom is a very bad idea in my experience. I've seen him do about 70% on a switch-in with a 5-hit Bullet Seed under Intimidate, and unboosted Ice Fangs don't do enough to OHKO it back even as a Mega (Although Focus Sash lets him live any hits regardless). Jolly helps clutch some Breloom mirrors as well, but sometimes you just miss the 2hko.
Charizard@Charizardite X
Adamant, Blaze
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
Outrage/Flare Blitz/Brick Break/Dragon Dance
Predicted Rotom-W leads give this a free setup, et al. Brick Break is handy for handling the occasional Tyranitar and a few other niche cases like Air Balloon Heatran. It's a slight nombo against King's Shield Aegislash, but I haven't run into that issue much, at least not that I can remember... Usually he just wrecks with Outrage, even steels stand the risk of being 2HKOed.
Kangaskhan@Kangakhanite
Adamant, Scrappy
252 Attack/152 HP/100 Speed
Power-Up Punch/Sucker Punch/Earthquake/Return
I had 252 HP previously, but eventually found that the lack of speed tended to cost me games, so I tried kd24's spread. It doesn't outspeed other Kanga as often now thanks to most of them running max speed, but it does some nice things like just barely tank a Charizard-Y's Fire Blast and OHKO with
Return in return, whilst X gets bowled by Return + Sucker Punch. I probably haven't been aggressively picking her as often as I should have, though. Her sub-breaking utility is very handy for things like Heatran.
Talonflame@Choice Band
Adamant, Gale Wings
80 HP/252 Attack/176 Speed
Brave Bird/Flare Blitz/U-Turn/Will-o-Wisp (Considering Sleep Talk)
Choice Band Brave Birds ad nauseum, lures in Rotom leads for Megazard X, takes out weakened setup sweepers, etc. U-turn is good for scouting if I decide to lead with it.
Garchomp@Lum Berry
Jolly, Rough Skin
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
Outrage/Earthquake/Stone Edge (Testing Rock Tomb at the moment)/Swords Dance
I... Haven't actually had a lot of use for this guy. He's fast and strong and all, but tends to be stopped by those Cresselia running rampant. He's seen use setting up on Rotom leads, but I find Megazard X tends to do that role better. Due to a Rock Tomb Garchomp stopping my Charizard X's Dragon Dance sweep, I'm testing that over Stone Edge, but I've not found the opportunity to actually use it. I'm thinking of replacing him with Latios when Pokebank opens. (It's open in PAL regions now, though...)
Aegislash@Life Orb
Quiet, Stance Change, 0 Speed IV
252 Attack/252 Special Attack/4 HP
Shadow Ball/Shadow Sneak/King's Shield/Sacred Sword
Almost in the team solely for those darned lunar ducks, but has its uses against Skarmory. Once in a blue moon, he might catch a Garchomp off guard with a successful Shadow Ball+Shadow Sneak routine. Useful in the right situations, but often overshadowed by the other setup sweepers. Considering replacing him for Mega Mawile if I bring in Latios, as I have always wanted to try the Latios/Mawile core.
Overall, it's been a rather topsy-turvy experience on the ladder. I can shoot straight into the 1700s, but fall into the 1500s with little notice. With this team at least, I can somewhat consistently stay in the 1700s, but the amount of unexpected things and bad luck you sometimes run into can just eat your rating for breakfast.
Miscellaneous things I've tried:
AVmarill has been great for checking things like Charizard Y and Goodra. Also serves as pretty much a hard counter to Hydreigon.
I've tried a Fire Fang Mawile with both Swords Dance and Substitute in the final slot. It's a matter of preference, but both have their merits. I think I prefer the Sub version overall however, as it eases prediction and protects against status that can stop your sweep cold.
I'd like to try Togekiss sometime, considering Calm versions. Although, in this metagame scarf air slash seems pretty dirty. I've had my entire team flinch-haxed to death by one, and it didn't help that my first Pokemon was Breloom who of course took the hit and flinched.