Resource USM Creative & Underrated Sets v2

HCJB

Banned deucer.
I think there is merit to this strategy (after all, Aurora Veil teams in lower tiers dedicate 2 mons to setting it up), but I don't think Mimiyku specifically is a good user of it. It already has two options for boosting moves (Swords Dance and Z-Splash), and the low Base Power of its moves combined with its mediocre Attack stat means that it's not hitting hard even at +6. Azumarill doesn't have Disguise, but it hits quite a bit harder, can more easily get a free turn as it forces out mons so easily, and doesn't need Snorlax's help Your opponents also made some bad plays, sometimes saccing mons for no reason even after you revealed Copycat.

There's several other candidates for this, both in OU and in other tiers. I'd recommend you try them too, and see which works best.
Agreed on Mimikyu. If someone where to try this strategy, Mega Lopunny would be the best candidate - Scrappy with Fighting/Normal is perfect neutral coverage, Drain Punch can be taken over HJK to still hit hard while recovering HP lost from Belly Drum, and it has priority with Quick Attack or further coverage. At the +6 you can pick off even bulky targets with neutral hits even with the 75 base power Drain Punch, and frail fast mons with the priority if you were worried about a scarf:

+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Drain Punch vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela: 408-480 (102.7 - 120.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Drain Punch vs. 188 HP / 0 Def Zygarde: 430-507 (106.4 - 125.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 310-366 (110.3 - 130.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Greninja-Ash: 373-439 (130.8 - 154%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Still a bit of a screwball and situational strategy that I don't think is really all that viable, and unless the opponent is asleep you're vulnerable on the BD or set-up turn, but M-Lop does have an insane combo of speed, power and neutral coverage if someone pulled it off.
 
Agreed on Mimikyu. If someone where to try this strategy, Mega Lopunny would be the best candidate - Scrappy with Fighting/Normal is perfect neutral coverage, Drain Punch can be taken over HJK to still hit hard while recovering HP lost from Belly Drum, and it has priority with Quick Attack or further coverage. At the +6 you can pick off even bulky targets with neutral hits even with the 75 base power Drain Punch, and frail fast mons with the priority if you were worried about a scarf:

+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Drain Punch vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela: 408-480 (102.7 - 120.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Drain Punch vs. 188 HP / 0 Def Zygarde: 430-507 (106.4 - 125.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 310-366 (110.3 - 130.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Quick Attack vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Greninja-Ash: 373-439 (130.8 - 154%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Still a bit of a screwball and situational strategy that I don't think is really all that viable, and unless the opponent is asleep you're vulnerable on the BD or set-up turn, but M-Lop does have an insane combo of speed, power and neutral coverage if someone pulled it off.
Yes! There is a lot you can do with a bunch of different mons. While Mimikyu has the advantage of being behind a disguise in case the opposing mon wakes up when you Belly Drum, when it works with Mega Loppuny it sure works!

Replays
This seems to be against a higher caliber player, despite still being low on the ladder
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774806236

Surviving by skin of my teeth
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774805372

Unfortunately Knocked, so I had to hard switch and hope for the best
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774804178

Since some people in chat were asking for the set



Lopunny-Mega @ Lopunnite
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Copycat
- Return
- Quick Attack
- Drain Punch

Also addressing some other criticism. When you are BLOCKED you are BLOCKED. It doesnt matter if you are the best or the worst player in the game, you can only click up to four buttons. And if those buttons aren't the few status moves (encore, taunt) that mess with the setup the best you can hope for is doing 84% in two turns. Or I block you on the switch you have to do 84% in 1 turn. Yeah I know in some replays my opponents didn't play the best after I got the belly drum off, but when they were blocked there wasn't anything else they could really do. They played the best they could, it just wasn't enough damage.

Anyways thanks for the discussion, I'm liking this Mega Loppuny set a lot. And @lordoftets I have been having fun with similar setups in other tiers as well :)
 

HCJB

Banned deucer.
Yes! There is a lot you can do with a bunch of different mons. While Mimikyu has the advantage of being behind a disguise in case the opposing mon wakes up when you Belly Drum, when it works with Mega Loppuny it sure works!

Replays
This seems to be against a higher caliber player, despite still being low on the ladder
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774806236

Surviving by skin of my teeth
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774805372

Unfortunately Knocked, so I had to hard switch and hope for the best
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774804178

Since some people in chat were asking for the set



Lopunny-Mega @ Lopunnite
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Copycat
- Return
- Quick Attack
- Drain Punch

Also addressing some other criticism. When you are BLOCKED you are BLOCKED. It doesnt matter if you are the best or the worst player in the game, you can only click up to four buttons. And if those buttons aren't the few status moves (encore, taunt) that mess with the setup the best you can hope for is doing 84% in two turns. Or I block you on the switch you have to do 84% in 1 turn. Yeah I know in some replays my opponents didn't play the best after I got the belly drum off, but when they were blocked there wasn't anything else they could really do. They played the best they could, it just wasn't enough damage.

Anyways thanks for the discussion, I'm liking this Mega Loppuny set a lot. And @lordoftets I have been having fun with similar setups in other tiers as well :)
Yeah that's the set I was thinking of (posting sets in this thread speculatively is a no-no, so I settled for heavily implying it), Frustration might be better over Return due to the increase in Ditto usage, but that's a minor quibble. You could maybe even argue to go for Adamant, as a +6 252+ Atk Quick Attack is pretty beastly, and the speed tier is still far from bad.

Watching your replays, I'm pretty sold on the Snorlax set. It's fat and huge problem early game when either people want to set rocks, or if they have a set-up sweeper as their wincon which could chunk Snorlax good players tend not to brazenly try that from the off, massively increasing the chances of Snorlax doing its job if you play it early. Block -> Yawn -> Protect ensures sleep, giving you just the right amount of turns to BD and switch with a somewhat guaranteed turn of sleep, as Snorlax is pretty likely to faint. Seems standardised and reproducible, which is what you want in these sort of plays - plus I can't even see any other users of Boosting Move/Block/Yawn/Protect, so I think Snorlax is pretty unique in that regard.

While Mimikyu may utilise this well late game when Ghost/Fairy resistance is low (and with Disguise guarantees you don't suffer from an early awakening) it's a contrived wincon IMO. Using it with Lopunny early seems to be better as an overall dick-move to catch the opponent off guard - and with some prediction (scarf/no scarf, using Quick Attack when in doubt or when fragile enough) can really cause problems.

+6 Mega-Lopunny, gloriously disgusting.
 
You can rest in peace



Zygarde @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Aura Break
EVs: 240 Atk / 88 SpD / 180 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Rest
- Thousand Arrows
- Extreme Speed

Spread outspeeds everything up to Mega Lopunny at +1. 88 Spd allows Zygarde to tank Specs HP Ice from Koko and Scarf Lele Moonblast. The rest was put into attack with Adamant nature.
Rest allows Zygarde to not only recover 100% health in one turn, it also removes annoying Status commonly used by Heatran, Pex, Rotom-W and Chansey as well as Toxic Spikes. There are two situations where Rest is especially useful:

1) You can switch into Scalds recklessly. If you get burned, your opponent will probably consider Zygarde to be useless and this will affect your opponents sackgame. They will be more likely to sack something like Clefable or Tangrowth to another threat of your team thinking that Zygarde is useless.
2) By Dragon Dancing and taking considerable damage in the process, your opponent might want to sack something and then revengekill you with priority because your opponent either fears Z-Move or wants to keep the mon in front of Zygarde healthy for other purposes. If you Rest on their sack you can expect a nomination in the OU Viability Rankings for Zygarde to go to S :D
Zygarde @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Aura Break
EVs: 196 HP / 52 Atk / 156 SpD / 104 Spe
Careful Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Rest
- Thousand Arrows
- Extreme Speed

Less threatening but you tank two Moonblasts from Clef and two Leaf Blades from Kartana, both after Stealth Rock.


 

Givrix

Mad Dog
is a Top Tiering Contributor
"Turbo" Lax ?

snorlax.gif


Snorlax @ Figy Berry
Ability: Gluttony
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
EVs: 188 HP / 84 Atk / 100 Def / 76 SpD / 60 Spe
Careful Nature
- Belly Drum
- Frustration
- Fire Punch
- Recycle

Adjustment of an old DOU set. Snorlax is not a common Pokémon in OU, but he has some arguments to shine. This set can fulfill 2 different roles in the same game. Firstly, the raw bulk of Snorlax allows him to switchs into several special threats like Tapu Koko, Ash Greninja, Latios-Mega etc. The combo Recycle + Super berry is well known to be a decent alternative to the average healing moves.

His second role is being a wallbreaker/late game sweeper. After a belly drum, there is almost no defensive answers to the Lax. If you succeed to take down the Snorlax counters (Medicham-Mega, Lopunny-Mega, Keldeo for example), Snorlax can easaly clean a game with Frustration and Fire Punch.

Ev Details: I don't think talking about the offensive and defensive investment is revelant, given that I've post some calcs to explain clearly what you can take and what you can kill. 60 EV in speed allows you to outspeed Reuniclus and especially Toxapex, preventing him to haze the Belly Drum boost.

Teammates: If you don't want to be afraid of burning secondary effect, you can pair him with a cleric. Don't forget to have a good answer to the OU fighting threats. Clefable can fulfill both roles and is great with Lax.

Other Options: Rock Slide can be a good alternative instead of Fire Punch. As you can see in the devensives calcs, Snorlax is a very good switch in to all Volcaronas variants, and rock slide garranted the kill without any boost.


+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 248 HP / 12+ Def Toxapex: 322-379 (106.2 - 125%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Fire Punch vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela: 406-478 (102.2 - 120.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 244-288 (63.2 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (garranted 2hko even with protect)
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 80 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 237-279 (65.6 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Fire Punch vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Sableye-Mega: 207-244 (68.3 - 80.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (one of the few defensive threats - will o wisp)

+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Reuniclus: 463-546 (109.1 - 128.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 240 HP / 72 Def Landorus-Therian: 453-534 (119.5 - 140.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 394-465 (100 - 118%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 213-252 (55.1 - 65.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 184 Def Amoonguss: 477-562 (110.4 - 130%) -- guaranteed OHKO

84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Medicham-Mega: 147-174 (56.3 - 66.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
84 Atk Snorlax Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Volcarona: 360-428 (115.7 - 137.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252+ Atk Landorus-Therian Supersonic Skystrike (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 420-495 (82.6 - 97.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 SpA Volcarona Savage Spin-Out (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 345-406 (67.9 - 79.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 SpA Volcarona Inferno Overdrive (185 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 364-429 (71.6 - 84.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Tapu Lele All-Out Pummeling (190 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 324-382 (63.7 - 75.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Tapu Lele Shattered Psyche (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax in Psychic Terrain: 336-396 (66.1 - 77.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Magearna Twinkle Tackle (195 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 273-322 (53.7 - 63.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Tornadus-Therian Supersonic Skystrike (185 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 211-249 (41.5 - 49%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax in Electric Terrain: 210-247 (41.3 - 48.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+1 0 SpA Reuniclus Psyshock vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 193-228 (37.9 - 44.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Greninja Hydro Pump vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 178-211 (35 - 41.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
4 Atk Life Orb Teravolt Kyurem-Black Fusion Bolt vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 183-217 (36 - 42.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Sheer Force Nidoking Sludge Wave vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 153-183 (30.1 - 36%) -- 44.1% chance to 3HKO
252 SpA Latios-Mega Psychic vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 135-159 (26.5 - 31.2%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
0 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 76-91 (14.9 - 17.9%) -- possible 6HKO (the unaware cannot win 1v1)

 
Last edited:
"Turbo" Lax ?

View attachment 128298

Snorlax @ Figy Berry
Ability: Gluttony
Shiny: Yes
Happiness: 0
EVs: 188 HP / 84 Atk / 100 Def / 76 SpD / 60 Spe
Careful Nature
- Belly Drum
- Frustration
- Fire Punch
- Recycle

Adjustment of an old DOU set. Snorlax is not a common Pokémon in OU, but he has some arguments to shine. This set can fulfill 2 different roles in the same game. Firstly, the raw bulk of Snorlax allows him to switchs into several special threats like Tapu Koko, Ash Greninja, Latios-Mega etc. The combo Recycle + Super berry is well known to be a decent alternative to the average healing moves.

His second role is being a wallbreaker/late game sweeper. After a belly drum, there is almost no defensive answers to the Lax. If you succeed to take down the Snorlax counters (Medicham-Mega, Lopunny-Mega, Keldeo for example), Snorlax can easaly clean a game with Frustration and Fire Punch.

Ev Details: I don't think talking about the offensive and defensive investment is revelant, given that I've post some calcs to explain clearly what you can take and what you can kill. 60 EV in speed allows you to outspeed Reuniclus and especially Toxapex, preventing him to haze the Belly Drum boost.

Teammates: If you don't want to be afraid of burning secondary effect, you can pair him with a cleric. Don't forget to have a good answer to the OU fighting threats. Clefable can fulfill both roles and is great with Lax.

Other Options: Rock Slide can be a good alternative instead of Fire Punch. As you can see in the devensives calcs, Snorlax is a very good switch in to all Volcaronas variants, and rock slide garranted the kill without any boost.


+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 248 HP / 12+ Def Toxapex: 322-379 (106.2 - 125%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Fire Punch vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela: 406-478 (102.2 - 120.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 244-288 (63.2 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (garranted 2hko even with protect)
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 80 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 237-279 (65.6 - 77.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+6 84 Atk Snorlax Fire Punch vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Sableye-Mega: 207-244 (68.3 - 80.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (one of the few defensive threats - will o wisp)

+6 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Reuniclus: 463-546 (109.1 - 128.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 240 HP / 72 Def Landorus-Therian: 453-534 (119.5 - 140.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 394-465 (100 - 118%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 213-252 (55.1 - 65.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+5 84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 252 HP / 184 Def Amoonguss: 477-562 (110.4 - 130%) -- guaranteed OHKO

84 Atk Snorlax Frustration vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Medicham-Mega: 147-174 (56.3 - 66.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
84 Atk Snorlax Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Volcarona: 360-428 (115.7 - 137.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252+ Atk Landorus-Therian Supersonic Skystrike (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 420-495 (82.6 - 97.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 SpA Volcarona Savage Spin-Out (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 345-406 (67.9 - 79.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 SpA Volcarona Inferno Overdrive (185 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 364-429 (71.6 - 84.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Tapu Lele All-Out Pummeling (190 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 324-382 (63.7 - 75.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Tapu Lele Shattered Psyche (175 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax in Psychic Terrain: 336-396 (66.1 - 77.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Magearna Twinkle Tackle (195 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 273-322 (53.7 - 63.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Tornadus-Therian Supersonic Skystrike (185 BP) vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 211-249 (41.5 - 49%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax in Electric Terrain: 210-247 (41.3 - 48.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+1 0 SpA Reuniclus Psyshock vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 193-228 (37.9 - 44.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Greninja Hydro Pump vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 178-211 (35 - 41.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
4 Atk Life Orb Teravolt Kyurem-Black Fusion Bolt vs. 188 HP / 100 Def Snorlax: 183-217 (36 - 42.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Sheer Force Nidoking Sludge Wave vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 153-183 (30.1 - 36%) -- 44.1% chance to 3HKO
252 SpA Latios-Mega Psychic vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 135-159 (26.5 - 31.2%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
0 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 188 HP / 76+ SpD Snorlax: 76-91 (14.9 - 17.9%) -- possible 6HKO (the unaware cannot win 1v1)

i just wanna add that aim actually did a video with a team that i made showcasing this set. i use a slightly different ev spread thats more defensive, since stuff like landorus and heatran are walled by snorlax with iapapa + recycle anyway, while the extra attacks don't really make a difference at +6. also zomog used lax in spl and rmt'd the team which is here. i think lax has potential for sure, and im happy to see other people use it!

 
Sorry if I posted too many sets, just wanted to contribute some things that I found to work well for me.


Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonlight
- Moonblast
- Calm Mind
- Aromatherapy

Fits in extremely well on some semi stall and slower balanced builds. The set is made to act as a counter or secondary check to a large number of offensive threats, such as: Zygarde, Reuniclus, Blacephalon, Volcarona, Celebrate Victini, Flyinium Gyarados, Dragonite, Mega Alakazam .. I'm sure the list goes on. Aromatherapy is used to remove the occasional Burn or Poison status Clefable recieves, as well as the rest of the team. Unaware and Calm Mind is what allows it to check so many special sweeping threats. Sometimes, you will find Clefable will be able to sweep in the lategame, so it isn't just a fat, do-nothing wall.

Replay

I've used the rest of these sets on one team:


Sharpedo @ Sharpedonite
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Crunch
- Protect
- Destiny Bond

When properly used, and supported by Spikes, this set often manages to take down two mons. It can also function as a lure to its common counters and is a solid revenge killer as well. Protect guarantees you +1 speed and combos with Destiny Bond (you can't use Destiny Bond twice in a row) to ensure you get the kill or that they switch and eat hazards. Jolly may miss out on kills, without hazard damage, but is needed to guarantee you outspeed Choice Scarf Landorus-therian, Tapu Lele, Victini etc.



Klefki @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 100 Atk / 156 SpD
Careful Nature
- Defog
- Spikes
- Imprison
- Play Rough

I simply use this set to lay Spikes and keep them up as best I can to ensure that they put in work. Rocky Helmet prevents Rapid Spinners from spamming the move until you die. Instead, they are punished, usually guaranteeing you a layer. 100 Atk evs are used so that Play Rough 2HKOs standard Mega Sableye on switch in. Alternatively, you can hope to dodge Mega Sableye teams and drop Play Rough for a utility move, such as Toxic or Thunder Wave.

Replay

I've been using a Zapdos set similar to the one nofakethekairi78 posted.


Zapdos @ Electrium Z
Ability: Static
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Agility
- Heat Wave
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Zapdos's okay bulk, speed after Agility, resistance to most priority, and great coverage can make it function as a great endgame cleaner for hyper offense builds. PS. Don't waste Gigavolt Havoc, I've thrown too many games where they obviously switch out.

 

Givrix

Mad Dog
is a Top Tiering Contributor
I've been using a Zapdos set similar to the one nofakethekairi78 posted.


Zapdos @ Electrium Z
Ability: Static
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Agility
- Heat Wave
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Zapdos's okay bulk, speed after Agility, resistance to most priority, and great coverage can make it function as a great endgame cleaner for hyper offense builds. PS. Don't waste Gigavolt Havoc, I've thrown too many games where they obviously switch out.

Like BlueLobster used to recommand, you should add 28 EV in defense, to still tank a +2 High Jump Kick from Hawlucha, which can be a problem to many offensive teams.

+2 252+ Atk Hawlucha High Jump Kick vs. 0 HP / 28 Def Zapdos: 204-240 (63.5 - 74.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Zapdos @ Electrium Z
Ability: Static
EVs: 28 Def / 252 SpA / 224 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Agility
- Heat Wave
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ice]

It still outspeed Unburden Lucha and scarf Gren after an Agility, so I believe it's a worth invest.
 

Klefki @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 100 Atk / 156 SpD
Careful Nature
- Defog
- Spikes
- Imprison
- Play Rough

I simply use this set to lay Spikes and keep them up as best I can to ensure that they put in work. Rocky Helmet prevents Rapid Spinners from spamming the move until you die. Instead, they are punished, usually guaranteeing you a layer. 100 Atk evs are used so that Play Rough 2HKOs standard Mega Sableye on switch in. Alternatively, you can hope to dodge Mega Sableye teams and drop Play Rough for a utility move, such as Toxic or Thunder Wave.

Replay
I don't think Rocky Helmet is neccessary, as the only common spinner in OU (Excadrill) beats Klefki 1 on 1 anyways,
 
Anti-Anti-HO



Zygarde @ Soft Sand
Ability: Aura Break
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Tail
- Thousand Arrows
- Extreme Speed

Soft Sand is used because at +1 it 2HKOs Clefable and it does so much damage in general. It is almost as strong as +1 Dragon Claw from Zard X.

Dragon Tail is used because Curse Mega Scizor and Acid Armor Reuniclus were spammed in Cycle one of OLT. Dragon Dance on the switch, Dragon Dance as they Curse/Acid Armor and Dragon Tail 'em to win.
 

daydream (Snorlax) @ Normalium Z
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 192 HP / 252 Atk / 64 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Curse
- Earthquake
- Double-Edge
- Rest
There have been a lot of Snorlax sets posted here recently but this is my personal favorite by far. This set incorporates many things that the traditional curselax would have loved to have including raw power, the ability to beat common haze, taunt, and roar users, and not being forced to run mono attack normal. All of these are absolutely pivotal and the reason why curse lax is pretty much unviable right now. This set has benefits that extend well beyond that and it is one of the best checks to heatran, which is insane to handle. It comes in on some of the most spammed pokemon right now like Heatran, Clefable, Mega Latios, Mega Latias, Mega Alakazam, Greninja-Ash, and Toxapex. with magnezone support, WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, the only counter to it is shed shell skarm and therefore most teams completely rely on revenge killing Snorlax, which in itself is not an easy job. One might also at first think that this set needs to rest a lot, however, this is blatantly untrue against any team other than stall. While this is a great way to beat balance and a wallbreaker, it is also great against many offensive teams as it is able to hard counter pokemon such as blacephalon while being able to take a lot of its health, but still come out ahead if it switches into any of Magearna, Zygarde, or Mega Gyarados. These pokemon are all popular on HO builds. Against fat builds, it has a field day as it has the ability to kill hazers like Toxapex and Taunters like Tornadus-T and Heatran. Earthquake hits Toxapex and Jeatran, Curse is a great move in being able to being able to ohko mons at +1 with the z crystal like scarf landorus-t(+0 after intim), clefable, and rocky helmet tornadus-t and is extra nice because lax can lure in threats that threaten lax while its asleep.

you can look at my vr post and my rmt for further description.

replays(copied from my vr post more in my rmt)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774383430
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-775043331- lax would have killed more mons if it didn’t get crit
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-779082429 - I should have Earthquaked the Weavile but couldn’t be bothered to calc because this was for a tour I didn’t care much about and if he hit icicle crash and I earthquaked, the same thing would have happened.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774377297
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-774445263
probs missed something and this also got 12-1 in high ladder(from 1785 to 1941) which got me the elo that I lost from using memes (for those who want additional info thats where I first used my lax set and a few other sets that I like now). Anyway, thats about it and it means something to me if you try it out as well so please do.
 
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HCJB

Banned deucer.
Secondary Rain-Setter Tailwind Tornadus


Tornadus @ Damp Rock
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Rain Dance
- Tailwind
- Defog / U-turn / Focus Blast / Whatever

While rain remains a great competitive playstyle, personally I find making a rain team pretty tricky in the current meta. Between Zard-Y low ladder stopping your rain, and Scarf Kartana, Seed Lucha plus Mega Alakazam mid-to-upper ladder there's a truck load of threats that need accounting for and not a lot of team slots to do it in. This Torn set is the answer I came up with for many of these problems.

Tornadus has the hardest hitting Hurricane outside of Mega Pigeot in the meta, OHKOing troublesome mons for rain like Bulu and Kartana and being highly spammable in a single move. Priority Rain Dance gives you a sure-fire secondary rain setter to Pelipper, allowing you to play more recklessly with Pelipper and potentially run a more aggressive spread with both Hurricane and Hydro Pump (plus maybe its own Tailwind - Pelipper can outspeed Mega Alakazam at the +2 with speed investment). Priority Tailwind overcomes common speed issues for rain teams, enabling Swift Swim users to outspeed Zard-Y and Mega Alakazam outside of rain, plus allowing faster non-Swift Swim mons (Ash Greninja, Koko) to outspeed things like Lucha in addition to the previously mentioned threats and increasing their presence when rain is down.

Defog does what Defog does, giving you an option to get rid of Toxic Spikes or SR if you're desperate for it. Tornadus alone helps a great deal with Scarf Kartana who will outspeed your +2 neutral natured base 80s and lower (Mega Swampert, Kabutops etc.), as it encourages Kartana to lock itself into something that isn't Leaf Blade or risk the Hurricane OHKO.

I'm currently using this with two other Tailwind users (Pelipper, and Z-Tailwind Kartana I posted earlier in the thread) on hazard-less Rain and I'm finding it a lot of fun, as you can do things like have Torn set Tailwind as your rain is running out then have Pelipper come in and be absurdly threatening for a few turns with Hurricane/Hydro Pump.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-783834112 - Tailwind helping against a Scarf Lele/Zam team, with a Prankster Tailwind clean by Ash-Greninja.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-783819718 - Lower ladder, but if you've ever wanted to see Pelipper outspeed and OHKO a Mega Beedrill, now you can!
 
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MikeDawg

Banned deucer.
Secondary Rain-Setter Tailwind Tornadus


Tornadus @ Damp Rock
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Rain Dance
- Tailwind
- Defog / U-turn / Focus Blast / Whatever

While rain remains a great competitive playstyle, personally I find making a rain team pretty tricky in the current meta. Between Zard-Y low ladder stopping your rain, and Scarf Kartana, Seed Lucha plus Mega Alakazam mid-to-upper ladder there's a truck load of threats that need accounting for and not a lot of team slots to do it in. This Torn set is the answer I came up with for many of these problems.

Tornadus has the hardest hitting Hurricane outside of Mega Pigeot in the meta, OHKOing troublesome mons for rain like Bulu and Kartana and being highly spammable in a single move. Priority Rain Dance gives you a sure-fire secondary rain setter to Pelipper, allowing you to play more recklessly with Pelipper and potentially run a more aggressive spread with both Hurricane and Hydro Pump (plus maybe its own Tailwind - Pelipper can outspeed Mega Alakazam at the +2 with speed investment). Priority Tailwind overcomes common speed issues for rain teams, enabling Swift Swim users to outspeed Zard-Y and Mega Alakazam outside of rain, plus allowing faster non-Swift Swim mons (Ash Greninja, Koko) to outspeed things like Lucha in addition to the previously mentioned threats and increasing their presence when rain is down.

Defog does what Defog does, giving you an option to get rid of Toxic Spikes or SR if you're desperate for it. Tornadus alone helps a great deal with Scarf Kartana who will outspeed your +2 neutral natured base 80s and lower (Mega Swampert, Kabutops etc.), as it encourages Kartana to lock itself into something that isn't Leaf Blade or risk the Hurricane OHKO.

I'm currently using this with two other Tailwind users (Pelipper, and Z-Tailwind Kartana I posted earlier in the thread) on hazard-less Rain and I'm finding it a lot of fun, as you can do things like have Torn set Tailwind as your rain is running out then have Pelipper come in and be absurdly threatening for a few turns with Hurricane/Hydro Pump.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-783834112 - Tailwind helping against a Scarf Lele/Zam team, with a Prankster Tailwind clean by Ash-Greninja.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-783819718 - Lower ladder, but if you've ever wanted to see Pelipper outspeed and OHKO a Mega Beedrill, now you can!
I feel like tailwind and rain dance is redundant. I think having just tailwind as a backup is a more interesting idea. This gives you be opportunity for torn to run a z crystal or other offensive item, as well as extra room for taunt, knock off, or another offensive move. If you're worried about hawlucha, zam, and ninetails, rain isn't going to help anyway. Not to mention that if you still need rain, then pelipper shouldn't be dead in the first place.
 

cromagnet

I pledge allegiance to the grind
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
I've been sitting on this set for so long and I'm sure other people have thought of it but

Nature Power Heatran

Heatran (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Nature Power

So basically this set takes advantage of a Tapu on your team or the opponent's to turn nature power into a move such as energy ball, t bolt, moonblast, or psychic. This helps tran beat Greninja, Rotom, Gastro, Keldeo (grassy terrain), gyarados, mantine, torn t (electric terrain), zygarde (misty terrain), to name a few. Nature power turns into tri attack which can be used to spread status 20% of the time split between freeze, para, and burn, which can hinder mons like mega latios which can switch into tran. This set is nice because it lures in the above threats which usually think nothing of switching into tran and removes them immediately, unlike toxic which takes a while to remove the threat. Also unlike grassium z you get multiple tries, keep lefties, take advantage of other tapus, and can use tri attack to spread status so you dont have a useless move. It is for sure a niche choice but if you have a team with rocks on another mon, nature power is definitely an option. You can also run more Special attack if needed but I like my trans to be defensive. Also, this heatran obviously operates better using the tapu's terrain on your team more than your opponent's but the opponent's can still be used.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-779830772 kind of an interesting opponent in a room tour using stone edge zyg but it illustrates the point well enough. I haven't used the team a lot but when I do and the opponent has a mon which gets bopped by energy ball, it usually gets bopped a good amount of the time. So i hope this replay is sufficient.


Also some calcs for the non believers
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Keldeo in Grassy Terrain: 266-314 (82.3 - 97.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Greninja-Ash in Grassy Terrain: 322-380 (112.9 - 133.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Gastrodon in Grassy Terrain: 400-472 (94.1 - 111%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Mantine in Electric Terrain: 276-328 (73.9 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (I havent used mantine so idk what they run so this is a worst case scenario.)
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Tornadus-Therian in Electric Terrain: 266-314 (88.9 - 105%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Zygarde: 180-212 (50.2 - 59.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (fun calc especially since most zygs dont run rest)
 

HCJB

Banned deucer.
I feel like tailwind and rain dance is redundant. I think having just tailwind as a backup is a more interesting idea. This gives you be opportunity for torn to run a z crystal or other offensive item, as well as extra room for taunt, knock off, or another offensive move. If you're worried about hawlucha, zam, and ninetails, rain isn't going to help anyway. Not to mention that if you still need rain, then pelipper shouldn't be dead in the first place.
I don't agree in that it's redundant, I would say that instead it allows you to play much more in HO style - which I would say should be the main idea behind most rain teams in the first place. It allows you to use Pelipper much more aggressively with both Water and Flying STABs, whereas normally it's quite passive, as you have a back-up Rain Dance but also Pelipper itself can be very potent at +2 Speed from Tailwind (with speed investment it can outspeed Zam itself as mentioned).

It also gives you a tonne of options when using the likes of Ash Greninja beyond the normal Swift Swimmers, given that rain will last 7 turns and Tailwind lasts 4. With Tailwind, Ash Gren will outspeed everything out there and gets three turns blasting away with specs Dark Pulse or Hydro Pump, with rain you can use Water Shuriken for more turns, etc.

It's a fail-safe, providing you plenty of options and role compression in its help with Scarf Kartana and so many other speedy threats which bother rain. If you're incorporating balance elements into rain, then naturally you don't need any sort of fail-safe, but if you want to go full HO even with Pelipper it comes in handy. It doesn't seem to be a popular set anyway, so I'd be inclined to say most people agree with you. Prankster Tailwind with or without Rain Dance is still very useful as you say, so hopefully someone will get something out of the set.
 
I've been sitting on this set for so long and I'm sure other people have thought of it but

Nature Power Heatran

Heatran (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Nature Power

So basically this set takes advantage of a Tapu on your team or the opponent's to turn nature power into a move such as energy ball, t bolt, moonblast, or psychic. This helps tran beat Greninja, Rotom, Gastro, Keldeo (grassy terrain), gyarados, mantine, torn t (electric terrain), zygarde (misty terrain), to name a few. Nature power turns into tri attack which can be used to spread status 20% of the time split between freeze, para, and burn, which can hinder mons like mega latios which can switch into tran. This set is nice because it lures in the above threats which usually think nothing of switching into tran and removes them immediately, unlike toxic which takes a while to remove the threat. Also unlike grassium z you get multiple tries, keep lefties, take advantage of other tapus, and can use tri attack to spread status so you dont have a useless move. It is for sure a niche choice but if you have a team with rocks on another mon, nature power is definitely an option. You can also run more Special attack if needed but I like my trans to be defensive. Also, this heatran obviously operates better using the tapu's terrain on your team more than your opponent's but the opponent's can still be used.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-779830772 kind of an interesting opponent in a room tour using stone edge zyg but it illustrates the point well enough. I haven't used the team a lot but when I do and the opponent has a mon which gets bopped by energy ball, it usually gets bopped a good amount of the time. So i hope this replay is sufficient.


Also some calcs for the non believers
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Keldeo in Grassy Terrain: 266-314 (82.3 - 97.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Greninja-Ash in Grassy Terrain: 322-380 (112.9 - 133.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Gastrodon in Grassy Terrain: 400-472 (94.1 - 111%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO after Leftovers recovery and Grassy Terrain recovery
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Mantine in Electric Terrain: 276-328 (73.9 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (I havent used mantine so idk what they run so this is a worst case scenario.)
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Tornadus-Therian in Electric Terrain: 266-314 (88.9 - 105%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Nature Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Zygarde: 180-212 (50.2 - 59.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (fun calc especially since most zygs dont run rest)
Just as a side note, Normalium Z would turn T-bolt, Energyball... into Gigavolt Havoc or Bloom Doom so that's fun
 

HCJB

Banned deucer.
The Floater


Stakataka @ Air Balloon
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Lonely Nature
IVs: 15 Def / 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Gyro Ball
- Superpower
- Earthquake

Air Balloon turns Stakataka x4 ground weakness into a one-off ground immunity, massively increasing its chances to switch in and set TR, providing huge momentum. With its fire neutrality, it also becomes a check to a few fire types that favour a ground attack as coverage (Heatran, +1 Zard-X and Volcarona after rocks, etc.) due to its sizeable bulk. EQ still allows you to handle things like Toxapex reasonably enough and frees up your Z-move compared to the standard Rockium-Z set, which comes at the expense of handling steel resisting flying types less well (Skarmory, Zapdos). EVs and IVs are the same as the standard set, making Atk and Def equivalent so attack boosts upon a KO due to Beast Boost. Gyro Ball still hits like a train, typically a 150 BP STAB move coming off 252+ 131 base attack, and Super Power gets through things like Chansey, Ferrothorn and Kartana decently once TR is set.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787269450 - A dedicated TR team, where I switch from A-Marowak to Stakataka in front of Garchomp, in the knowledge that there isn't any way my opponent can anticipate the balloon and so will either SD or EQ.

EDIT: Here's another one, and I'll add more as they come...

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787683711 - Mega Diancie having no moves that can do much to Stak with Air Balloon, allowing for a short sweep following TR to seal the match.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787686747 - Setting TR against Zard-X to secure 2KOs (the second is Lando being in range of Shadow Sneak by Mimikyu).
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787733497 - Setting TR on Zard-X again, now at 1600+
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787741466 - Switching into a Lando EQ and cleaning 4 mons 1600+
 
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1_TrickPhony

BSS Circuit Co-host
The Floater


Stakataka @ Air Balloon
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Lonely Nature
IVs: 15 Def / 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Gyro Ball
- Superpower
- Earthquake

Air Balloon turns Stakataka x4 ground weakness into a one-off ground immunity, massively increasing it's chances to switch in and set TR, providing huge momentum. With it's fire neutrality, it also becomes a check to a few fire types that favour a ground attack as coverage (Heatran, Volcarona after rocks, etc.) due to its sizeable bulk. EQ still allows you to handle things like Toxapex reasonably enough and frees up your Z-move compared to the standard Rockium-Z set, which comes at the expense of handling steel resisting flying types less well (Skarmory, Zapdos). EVs and IVs are the same as the standard set, making Atk and Def equivalent so attack boosts upon a KO due to Beast Boost. Gyro Ball still hits like a train, typically a 150 BP STAB move coming off 252+ 131 base attack, and Super Power gets through things like Chansey, Ferrothorn and Kartana decently once TR is set.

Replay

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-787269450 - A dedicated TR team, where I switch from A-Marowak to Stakataka in front of Garchomp, in the knowledge that there isn't any way my opponent can anticipate the balloon and so will either SD or EQ.
While I do like the idea, the presence of Zygarde has made air balloon almost obsolete, and not having a Z move, life orb, or another power boosting item really neuters Stak's offensive abilities.
 

HCJB

Banned deucer.
While I do like the idea, the presence of Zygarde has made air balloon almost obsolete, and not having a Z move, life orb, or another power boosting item really neuters Stak's offensive abilities.
Well I guess the solution is don't try to set TR in front of Zygarde then? You know, just like you wouldn't against an Ash-Greninja or something you know will have fighting coverage. If you're incorporating this set onto balance or BO I'd imagine you already have something to threaten Zygarde, if it's against TR then most steel types (e.g. Magearna) can set TR against anything but a banded Zyg, and the nature of TR in general is that it doesn't give things like Zygarde opportunities to boost while TR is in play.

In terms of, "not having a Z move, life orb, or another power boosting item really neuters Stak's offensive abilities," this is a joke right? I don't think there's anything "neutered" about a +252 base 131 Atk mon with a 150 BP STAB and coverage that almost perfectly rounds it off. It can OHKO huge portions of the meta, and 2HKO nearly all of the rest. The fact that the standard set uses Rockium-Z is pretty much advertising that both Gyro Ball and Superpower already hit hard enough that they are not considered terribly in need of an Atk boost - otherwise the standard set would be different. Hyperbole really doesn't help anyone's case when trying to critique a set.

I'm not trying to be overly blunt but I don't think these criticisms are really all that valid. I didn't think to mention Zygarde in the first post as I thought it was a given that people wouldn't be setting TR on Stakataka in the first place. The point of this thread is the sets are supposed to be creative and underrated, I'd say this set has a clear niche compared to the usual set (switching into a lot of Lando's being a pretty sizeable advantage, as well as letting its natural defences do the heavy lifting so you can set TR if the opponent only has ground coverage). If you really want to discuss further we can by PM, but I think I established most of the pros and cons in the first post so there's not much of a need to go into more detail.
 
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cromagnet

I pledge allegiance to the grind
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
You know I was listening to this while typing this up. Yes, click the gastro.

Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Scald
- Recover
- Mirror Coat
- Earthquake


If you've ever talked to me, you'll know how much I love this set and how much I advocate for it . I originally "created" this set as a response to the incredible increase of both Alakazam and Latios, which normally immensely pressures Gastrodon to simply click recover and they eventually break past Gastrodon with a single special defence drop and since you can do nothing but Toxic in return to waste many turns and consequently PP on clicking recover so you can repeatedly check said mons throughout the game. Mirror Coat removes this aspect and allows you to simply remove said threat in a single turn. It also happens to have a much wider range of targets than Toxic, as you're primarily going to be clicking it versus the likes of Tangrowth and Mega Latias, which is the only thing you're usually clicking it versus, but realistically you're going to be spamming Scald like there's no tomorrow because that's what everyone subconsciously does. As I previously stated, Mirror Coat's applications are immense, as it now allows you to simply remove offensive Tornadus, Tapu Lele, Kyurem, the aforementioned Alakazam and Latios and a whole lot more miscellaneous 'mons.

On turn 19 of this replay, I am able to survive a lower roll from zammer and i'm simple to retaliate by outright ohkoing it, preventing from pressuring the team later in the game. Admittedly, it's incredibly prediction reliant, so it is a lot more punishing if you do indeed get the play wrong. In the given scenario from my replay, you can see that if my opponent, the incredibly nice King, had decided to calm mind again, the scenario would have been completely different. In addition to that, it also wears down Gastrodon much quicker, as you are forced to take one round of considerate damage from something, so it makes you slightly easier to break past.
this is a very underrated set indeed. ABR used a team with mega diancie with this gastro. Its also nice because you can surprise and remove tapu fini when it uses nature's madness which usually walls this set. The loss of toxic sucks sometimes but you nab some surprise KOs and remove mons immediately with mirror coat whereas toxic takes many turns. Unfortunately it doesnt affect ash gren and there have been times I clicked mirror coat out of impulse on it lol
 
You know I was listening to this while typing this up. Yes, click the gastro.

Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Scald
- Recover
- Mirror Coat
- Earthquake


If you've ever talked to me, you'll know how much I love this set and how much I advocate for it . I originally "created" this set as a response to the incredible increase of both Alakazam and Latios, which normally immensely pressures Gastrodon to simply click recover and they eventually break past Gastrodon with a single special defence drop and since you can do nothing but Toxic in return to waste many turns and consequently PP on clicking recover so you can repeatedly check said mons throughout the game. Mirror Coat removes this aspect and allows you to simply remove said threat in a single turn. It also happens to have a much wider range of targets than Toxic, as you're primarily going to be clicking it versus the likes of Tangrowth and Mega Latias, which is the only thing you're usually clicking it versus, but realistically you're going to be spamming Scald like there's no tomorrow because that's what everyone subconsciously does. As I previously stated, Mirror Coat's applications are immense, as it now allows you to simply remove offensive Tornadus, Tapu Lele, Kyurem, the aforementioned Alakazam and Latios and a whole lot more miscellaneous 'mons.

On turn 19 of this replay, I am able to survive a lower roll from zammer and i'm simple to retaliate by outright ohkoing it, preventing from pressuring the team later in the game. Admittedly, it's incredibly prediction reliant, so it is a lot more punishing if you do indeed get the play wrong. In the given scenario from my replay, you can see that if my opponent, the incredibly nice King, had decided to calm mind again, the scenario would have been completely different. In addition to that, it also wears down Gastrodon much quicker, as you are forced to take one round of considerate damage from something, so it makes you slightly easier to break past.

Why not use this with Iapapa or Rindo berry instead? With Iapappa you would rejuvenate from a heavy hit after mirror coating, and with Rindo you could knock back serp which currently is spammed everywhere. I think with e-power over quake you'll punish Heatran in Grassy Terrain or other ground-weak mons more effectively since they natively possess a physical defense bias.
 
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HCJB

Banned deucer.
Fightinium-Z Trick Room Magearna



Magearna @ Fightinium Z
Ability: Soul-Heart
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Trick Room
- Fleur Cannon
- Focus Blast
- Calm Mind

For Trick Room Magearna, I've always found Gigavolt Havoc a little lacklustre, as it only gets through Pex 31% of the time after rocks (the main reason to run Electrium on any set IMO) and it can also be played around by switching in a ground type or electric resist at the right moment. I was looking for a set that can both wall break and had pretty good neutral coverage, particularly against mons expecting Gigavolt.

Fleur Cannon hits at 195 (130 plus STAB) while All-Out Pummeling hits at 190, which is an absurd amount of power to have up front, and it's a minimally resisted combo. From the viability rankings the key resists are Pex, Victini, Blacephalon, Mega Venusaur, Zard-Y and Volcarona - not exactly a big list, with only Pex and Blacephalon in the top 25 for this month's OU usage stats. The set also lures a fair few steel types after TR, typically Heatran who can take Gigavolt but not Pummeling.

Calm Mind allows you to wall-break as well as offset drops from Fleur Cannon, and increases your special bulk to more to more easily set Trick Room when it fades. To give a sense of this things power, if you achieve a +3 SpAtk boost Pummeling OHKOes Chansey - meaning that it's impossible for Chansey to check you from full health 1-on-1 so long as you TR or CM on the switch.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-791472691 - Against a 1750 opponent. Starting at turn 14 gets 4 KOes.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-791425704 - Against 1600+. The team is "OU with UU Semi-Stall" which peaked #6 in May. OHKOes a Blissey after 2 CM boosts, then two other mons.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-791388073 - Boosts to +2 SpAtk in case opposing Magearna is AV, then cleans the rest of the team. Takes an All-Out Pummeling from Kartana to set TR a second time.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-791046587 - Boosts to +2 SpAtk/SpDef to get a KO, then tanks a Magma Storm from Heatran to set TR again and clean the team.
 
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The God Breaker

Rhyperior @ Choice Band
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 224 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 28 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Fire Punch
- Ice Punch / Megahorn

Long story short, this thing just blows up fat teams and is pretty much impossible to switch into. EdgeQuake 2HKOs nearly the entire meta. Fire punch is needed for scizor and ferro, Ice punch blows up all Zygarde or Lando-T on the switch, while Megahorn is more of a meta call, doing way more to tangrowth and the super rare M-slowbro (which you can't 2hko w/ stone edge if max def). Evs creep AV tang. There's probably some better optimization for SpD, but I haven't dug into it.

Pair this with something that brings in Zapdos, or alternatively overload grass with a water type. I like using SD Kart. Really good at softening up for a sweep. Unlike, say, Banded Zygarde, this thing doesn't really have hard checks outside of max Def Celesteela.

honestly, just go look at the calcs for this thing vs OU and you'll see why opponent's will freak out.
https://pokemonshowdown.com/damagecalc/index.html
Just a few samples below:

Offensive Calcs
Scizor-Mega (OU Utility) 47.2 - 55.9% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Alomomola (OU WishPass)50.7 - 59.8% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
Chansey (OU Defensive)53.5 - 63.2% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Kartana (OU Paper Cut (Swords Dance) 86.5 - 101.9% 50% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
Clefable (OU Magic Guard) 63.1 - 74.6% guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Tapu Koko (OU Offensive Pivot) 231.3 - 273.3% guaranteed OHKO -- Shuca Koko can't take it
Tangrowth (OU Assault Vest) 56.6 - 66.8% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Gliscor (OU Stallbreaker 64.2 - 75.8% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Landorus-Therian (OU Choice Scarf) 64.2 - 76.1% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Rotom-Wash (OU Defensive) 67.3 - 79.2% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
Tapu Bulu (OU Assault Vest) 73.7 - 86.8% guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Choice Band Rhyperior Stone Edge vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela: 229-270 (57.6 - 68%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Scizor-Mega (OU Utility) Fire Punch 94.4 - 111.9% guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
Zygarde (OU Substitute + Dragon Dance) Ice Punch 119.8 - 141.5% guaranteed OHKO
Ferrothorn (OU Hazard Setter) Fire Punch 122.7 - 145.4% guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Rhyperior Megahorn vs. 248 HP / 212+ Def Tangrowth: 290-342 (71.9 - 84.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Defensive Calcs
252 Atk Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 224 HP / 0 Def Solid Rock Rhyperior: 213-252 (49.8 - 59%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Zygarde Thousand Arrows vs. 224 HP / 0 Def Solid Rock Rhyperior: 240-285 (56.2 - 66.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 SpA Zapdos Hidden Power Ice vs. 224 HP / 4 SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 127-150 (29.7 - 35.1%) -- 19.2% chance to 3HKO

Don't ask what these teams are:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-611801745
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-792146995 (s/o to my bad-posting friend out there)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-792200823
 
Last edited:
Paper Machete
I've recently been trying out z tailwind kartana,

kartana_by_alolan_sprites-davafkg.gif


Kartana @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Tailwind
- Leaf Blade
- Sacred Sword
- Swords Dance/ night slash/ smart strike

I know initially people thought it was a gimmicky set but after using it for a few days I can say it definitely puts in a lot of work against most architypes but really shines against balance and stall. Before I talk about the positives I want to address its weakness. The biggest issue with the set is its poor coverage if running swords dance and the time it takes to snowball if it's not.
You want swords dance because leaf blades damage output is ridiculous after a crit and at plus 2. Here are some calcs:

+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 340-401 (93.9 - 110.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Magearna on a critical hit: 336-396 (92.5 - 109%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Magearna on a critical hit: 252-297 (69.4 - 81.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Zapdos on a critical hit: 321-378 (83.8 - 98.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 152 HP / 0 Def Hawlucha on a critical hit: 359-423 (107.1 - 126.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios-Mega on a critical hit: 283-333 (94 - 110.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Scizor-Mega on a critical hit: 215-253 (62.6 - 73.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela on a critical hit: 304-358 (76.5 - 90.1%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

The downside to running swords dance alongside tailwind is the fact that it requires two turns to set up and has relatively poor coverage, but again to reiterate the poor coverage is offset by the damage output leaf blade puts out once it is set up.

On the other hand if you opt to run night slash or smart strike kartana operates similar to its choice scarf set with double the speed -enough to outrun hawlucha- and the ability to switch attacks, the crit multiplier provides an attack boost since leaf blade and night slash (if you opt to run it over smart strike) will always crit. When compared to its choice scarf set, the pros and cons of z tailwind kartana become more apparent, it functions akin to a sweeper with higher damage output allowing it to snowball easier, has more speed but it comes at the cost of loosing the ability to switch out for fear of relinquishing the crit multiplier. Further unlike choice scarf it does have less coverage as it cannot run both smart strike and night slash.

Here are some calcs for kartana without the sword dance boost but with the crit multiplier
-1 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 240+ Def Landorus-Therian on a critical hit: 222-262 (58.1 - 68.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Kartana Smart Strike vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 267-315 (89.2 - 105.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Smart Strike vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 267-315 (73.7 - 87%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Night Slash vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 178-210 (49.1 - 58%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Night Slash vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 176-208 (58.8 - 69.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable on a critical hit: 249-294 (63.1 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Zygarde on a critical hit: 241-285 (67.3 - 79.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

One thing I have not touched on, is the utility of z tailwind kartana. Tailwind has been a gimmicky move due to its short duration but when used late game Kartana is able to punch some final holes in a team and if it happens to faint it, you still have the speed boast for another teammate or if tailwind runs out you can just set it up again. One Pokémon who appreciates the utility of tailwind is mega alakazam. Mega alakazam is the flavour of the month at the moment and currently its most common set opts to use a modest nature over timid. This provides a notable increase in power but allows it to fall prey to being outsped and speed tying with ash-gren, other alakazams and is also outsped by mega lop. Z tailwind kartana supports alakazam by allowing it use a modest nature and allowing it to then outspeed choice scarfers and set up sweepers. Another mon that pair well with kartana is magnezone, as its ability to trap steels like celesteela, scizor and ferrothorn makes kartana time of sweeping that much easier. Compounding z tailwinds kartana’s utility, is its sheer unpredictability, already it is quite difficult to judge what set kartana’s running from team preview sure it’s not like Landorus-Therian where you just have no idea what its running but there is always that risk that you could misjudge it's set. This is favourable as I mentioned earlier running swords dance means it has to set up twice, but in practice this is not difficult as it easy lure and feint opponent with its set. for example if you can set up on mega alakazam by sacrificing a mon sending out kartana, opponent switches fearing choice scarf, set up tailwind for the speed and crit and proceed to ko or set up swords dance on their check.

All in all I would rank z Kartana in either A or A- as its sheer versatility in its ability to support its teammates or just steam role by setting up cannot be understated. It functions as an amalgamation of its swords dance and choice scarf sets, and as such can be played how you want depending on the opposition. Against offence you have a mon that can set up tailwind for another mon to sweep and against balance and stall it can just straight out overpower most mons through the power of crit leaf blade and sword dance plus it does not have to worry about being outsped against balance or stall as it more often than not will be fast enough to hit the opposing mon first, meaning you only have to set up once.

Some replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794558655
In this replay Kartana is able to sweep using tailwind. The key thing here is that had it been the normal swords dance set it would have lost to zygarde and if it was the choice scarf set it would have lost to heatran because it wouldn’t have been able to switch attacks.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794620555
In this replay kartana was able to break most of the opponents team and then later sweep

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794738561
In this battle the utility of z tailwind kartana is shown. It put the opponent in a check mate postion, as it eventhough it didnt crit against magearna the tailwind provided alakazam the ability to outspeed choice scarf kartana

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794745389
In this battle kartana again provided utility to the team by allowing mega zam to outspeed choice scarf keldeo
 

HCJB

Banned deucer.
Paper Machete
I've recently been trying out z tailwind kartana,

View attachment 133434

Kartana @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Tailwind
- Leaf Blade
- Sacred Sword
- Swords Dance/ night slash/ smart strike

I know initially people thought it was a gimmicky set but after using it for a few days I can say it definitely puts in a lot of work against most architypes but really shines against balance and stall. Before I talk about the positives I want to address its weakness. The biggest issue with the set is its poor coverage if running swords dance and the time it takes to snowball if it's not.
You want swords dance because leaf blades damage output is ridiculous after a crit and at plus 2. Here are some calcs:

+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 340-401 (93.9 - 110.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Magearna on a critical hit: 336-396 (92.5 - 109%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Magearna on a critical hit: 252-297 (69.4 - 81.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Zapdos on a critical hit: 321-378 (83.8 - 98.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 152 HP / 0 Def Hawlucha on a critical hit: 359-423 (107.1 - 126.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Latios-Mega on a critical hit: 283-333 (94 - 110.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Scizor-Mega on a critical hit: 215-253 (62.6 - 73.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 104+ Def Celesteela on a critical hit: 304-358 (76.5 - 90.1%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

The downside to running swords dance alongside tailwind is the fact that it requires two turns to set up and has relatively poor coverage, but again to reiterate the poor coverage is offset by the damage output leaf blade puts out once it is set up.

On the other hand if you opt to run night slash or smart strike kartana operates similar to its choice scarf set with double the speed -enough to outrun hawlucha- and the ability to switch attacks, the crit multiplier provides an attack boost since leaf blade and night slash (if you opt to run it over smart strike) will always crit. When compared to its choice scarf set, the pros and cons of z tailwind kartana become more apparent, it functions akin to a sweeper with higher damage output allowing it to snowball easier, has more speed but it comes at the cost of loosing the ability to switch out for fear of relinquishing the crit multiplier. Further unlike choice scarf it does have less coverage as it cannot run both smart strike and night slash.

Here are some calcs for kartana without the sword dance boost but with the crit multiplier
-1 252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 240+ Def Landorus-Therian on a critical hit: 222-262 (58.1 - 68.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Kartana Smart Strike vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 267-315 (89.2 - 105.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Smart Strike vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 267-315 (73.7 - 87%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Night Slash vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 178-210 (49.1 - 58%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Night Slash vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Tornadus-Therian on a critical hit: 176-208 (58.8 - 69.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable on a critical hit: 249-294 (63.1 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Kartana Leaf Blade vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Zygarde on a critical hit: 241-285 (67.3 - 79.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

One thing I have not touched on, is the utility of z tailwind kartana. Tailwind has been a gimmicky move due to its short duration but when used late game Kartana is able to punch some final holes in a team and if it happens to faint it, you still have the speed boast for another teammate or if tailwind runs out you can just set it up again. One Pokémon who appreciates the utility of tailwind is mega alakazam. Mega alakazam is the flavour of the month at the moment and currently its most common set opts to use a modest nature over timid. This provides a notable increase in power but allows it to fall prey to being outsped and speed tying with ash-gren, other alakazams and is also outsped by mega lop. Z tailwind kartana supports alakazam by allowing it use a modest nature and allowing it to then outspeed choice scarfers and set up sweepers. Another mon that pair well with kartana is magnezone, as its ability to trap steels like celesteela, scizor and ferrothorn makes kartana time of sweeping that much easier. Compounding z tailwinds kartana’s utility, is its sheer unpredictability, already it is quite difficult to judge what set kartana’s running from team preview sure it’s not like Landorus-Therian where you just have no idea what its running but there is always that risk that you could misjudge it's set. This is favourable as I mentioned earlier running swords dance means it has to set up twice, but in practice this is not difficult as it easy lure and feint opponent with its set. for example if you can set up on mega alakazam by sacrificing a mon sending out kartana, opponent switches fearing choice scarf, set up tailwind for the speed and crit and proceed to ko or set up swords dance on their check.

All in all I would rank z Kartana in either A or A- as its sheer versatility in its ability to support its teammates or just steam role by setting up cannot be understated. It functions as an amalgamation of its swords dance and choice scarf sets, and as such can be played how you want depending on the opposition. Against offence you have a mon that can set up tailwind for another mon to sweep and against balance and stall it can just straight out overpower most mons through the power of crit leaf blade and sword dance plus it does not have to worry about being outsped against balance or stall as it more often than not will be fast enough to hit the opposing mon first, meaning you only have to set up once.

Some replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794558655
In this replay Kartana is able to sweep using tailwind. The key thing here is that had it been the normal swords dance set it would have lost to zygarde and if it was the choice scarf set it would have lost to heatran because it wouldn’t have been able to switch attacks.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794620555
In this replay kartana was able to break most of the opponents team and then later sweep

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794738561
In this battle the utility of z tailwind kartana is shown. It put the opponent in a check mate postion, as it eventhough it didnt crit against magearna the tailwind provided alakazam the ability to outspeed choice scarf kartana

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-794745389
In this battle kartana again provided utility to the team by allowing mega zam to outspeed choice scarf keldeo
I already covered Z-Tailwind earlier in the thread (here), sorry dude.
 

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