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Is this a decent competitive team?

1
Posts
12
Years
I'm a beginer, but I did my research ;P
I'm not really sure about the way I've done my team though, whether it'd work.
(Most of the time, my Pokemon's nature is whatever I could get XD)

Magnezone @ Light Clay
Ability: Magnet Pull
Nature: Modest
EV's: 252 HP/ 104 Atk / 46 Def / 126 Sp.D
Moves:
Hidden Power (Fire)
Light Screen
Explosion
Reflect

Scizor @ Leftovers
Ability: Technician
Nature: Bashful
EV's: 248 HP/ 172 Spe/ 88 Atk
Moves:
Baton Pass
Agility
Bullet Punch
Swords Dance

Rhyperior @ Leftovers
Ability: Solid Rock
Nature: Bold
EV's 238 HP/ 189 Def/ 81 Sp.D
Moves:
Earthquake
Stone Edge
Megahorn
Stealth Rock

Infernape @ Focus Sash
Ability: Blaze
Nature: Quiet
EV's 253 Sp.A/ 252 Spe/ 4 Def
Moves:
Nasty Plot
Fire Blast
Grass Knot
Flamethrower

Empoleon
Ability: Torrent
Nature: Jolly
EV's 252 HP/ 252 Sp.D/ 4 Spe
Moves:
Surf
Metal Claw
Stealth Rock
Roar

Vaporeon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Water Absorb
Nature: Modest
EV's 225 Sp.A/ 203 Def/ 82 HP
Moves:
Ice Beam
Hydro Pump
Hidden Power (Fire)
Surf

It would be great if anybody could offer any advice

Thanks in advance :)
 

Ho-Oh

used Sacred Fire!
35,992
Posts
18
Years
  • Age 31
  • Seen Jul 1, 2023
Firstly you don't really need two SR users, since unless the opponent has a Rapid Spinner, usually it isn't that much of an issue, plus it wastes a spot on the other Pokemon. I'd probably keep SR on Empoleon to set it up initially and use that as a lead to set up SR, then switch to Zone to make use of screens, then switch to Scizor to do the baton passing, then go to Rhyperior to have no issues and for it to have no earlier damage from setting up SR.

On Infernape you don't need both Flamethrower/Fire Blast and it really needs a secondary STAB, so you could go with Close Combat over one of the others, so you have good coverage with fire/fighting.

Scizor can work as a baton passer, I just don't really think it fits into your team, considering you only have one physical Pokemon to baton pass to (with Swords Dance) - are you using it entirely for Rhypherior? It also needs an Adamant nature, btw @ Scizor, so Bullet Punch can actually do some damage, but since it's in-game, you can't change it etc :(

On Empoleon you could consider Grass Knot or Ice Beam for extra coverage > Metal Claw, plus the fact that steel attacks like Metal Claw don't really do much in OU.

tbh it seems like you're going all out: with a baton passer/screens and the rest of your team probably doesn't necessarily benefit from it, since for baton passing, people usually use powerful Pokemon, like Dragonite for example & a few other Pokemon, that could really make use of the extra boosts, making them even deadlier to face (also having half a team dedicated to one Pokemon isn't the best idea in case that sweep fails). But yeah good try/start anyways! Just might want to reconsider some of your team members though and whether they're suited to the roles they have. I'd have added more but it's early and I figure PlatDude has the rest covered. XD;
 

PlatinumDude

Nyeh?
12,964
Posts
13
Years
Your team is pretty much tailored to Baton Passing, no? Baton Passing is an okay strategy, but Pokemon like Smeargle, Ninjask and Gorebyss can do it better due to better passing options, typing, set-up, Speed and defenses.

On Magnezone, Explosion got nerfed last generation, plus it runs off of its weaker offensive stat. Use Volt Switch in its place to scout for attacks, or to get out of the battle once your screens are set up. Use a Calm nature and the EV spread 252 HP/96 Def/160 SDef.

As Forever pointed out, you only have 1 Pokemon that benefits from Scizor's Baton Pass, and that's Rhyperior, who doesn't do well in OU because of its common weaknesses. Use Dragonite instead of Rhyperior. I'd also suggest Gorebyss or Smeargle instead of Scizor because both can Baton Pass Shell Smash, which boost Speed and both offenses, at the cost of defenses:

Dragonite:
-Dragon Dance
-Dragon Claw/Outrage
-Fire Punch
-Roost/Earthquake/ExtremeSpeed
Nature: Adamant/Jolly
EVs: 252 Atk/4 SDef/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Lum Berry
Ability: Multiscale

Gorebyss:
-Shell Smash
-Baton Pass
-Surf
-Ice Beam/Substitute
Nature: Calm
EVs: 252 HP/24 SDef/232 Spe
Item:White Herb

Smeargle:
-Spore
-Shell Smash
-Baton Pass
-Magic Coat/Substitute
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Def/252 Spe
Item: Focus Sash/White Herb
Ability: Own Tempo

While Empoleon does make a decent Stealth Rock user, Ferrothorn can do a pretty good job at it too because of its excellent defensive typing and ability to take care of bulky Waters, particularly Gastrodon:
-Spikes/Stealth Rock
-Leech Seed
-Power Whip/Protect
-Gyro Ball/Thunder Wave/Protect
Nature: Relaxed
EVs: 252 HP/88 Def/168 SDef
Item: Leftovers

Since I already gave you another Water Pokemon in the form of Gorebyss, I'll suggest Espeon in place of Vaporeon to give more Baton Passing options:
-Calm Mind
-Baton Pass
-Stored Power
-Hidden Power (Fighting)
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 HP/4 SAtk/252 Spe
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce

As Forever said, Infernape needs some tweaking. It has 2 STAB moves of the same type, and that's not a good idea in most cases. Try out a mixed set, perhaps?:
-Fire Blast/Overheat
-Close Combat
-Grass Knot/U-turn
-Mach Punch/Stone Edge
Nature: Hasty/Naive
EVs: 252 Atk/4 SAtk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb
 
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