adjustments for the new meta

[Nah]

Once upon a time I made a team for Rated Battle Spot Doubles with the help from a few people from PC, which you can see here: https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=349550

This was done in the early ORAS metagame. Now that it's a new generation, some changes are probably going to be needed to be made in order to make this team work in the new meta (though I cannot remember if it even worked well in the previous meta or not lol). Especially given I am not familiar with the Sun/Moon doubles metagame.

So have at it. Any suggestions at all.

 

[skyburial]

I've been hitting the Doubles ladder pretty hard this season, peaking at 1,865 on the ladder and bobbing in the 1800's currently, with a 50+ battle sample. Here's what I've observed:

- Trick Room is underpowered right now, lacking a good option for a mega (this will change with the Mawilite distribution). This makes Gastrodon a bit of a lackluster choice.
- Tapu Fini and Tapu Koko are the biggest shakeup as far as new Pokemon introduced to the national Pokedex are concerned in terms of meta viability. Kartana is not far behind. Celesteela appears to struggle against other legends. Pheromosa is a dark horse in Doubles because of her frailty, but outspeeding Adamant Scarf Landorus with a speed-positive nature can make it an interesting pick and an asset on Sun teams and possibly even sand teams.
- The Kangaskhan nerf is real. Charizard-Y is now the most successful mega on the ladder, and that means that teams that can respond to sun will perform above average - hence Tyranitar's meteoric rise in popularity (usually running a scarf set).
- Much like in VGC 2017, there is opportunity to take turns to set up with bulkier Pokemon, particularly with Calm Mind on Tapu Fini.
- Z Moves aren't entirely necessary, but can guarantee win conditions and otherwise unfavorable matchups.

So without further adieu, some things to consider for your team. Upon review, it looks like there might be a major overhaul in order, and that might mean butchering the original intention of the team.

I'm on record for saying Tapu Koko is the best Electric type ever, possibly even better than Arceus-Electric. Metagames that feature it render even Thundurus useless. That being said Togekiss's matchup against it is downright dreadful, which might explain why I haven't seen a single one this year yet.

252 SpA Life Orb Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 236 HP / 12 SpD Togekiss in Electric Terrain: 218-257 (114.7 - 135.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Togekiss in Electric Terrain: 159-190 (82.8 - 98.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

It takes full investment, clever switching, or terrain control to live Thunderbolt. This is distinct from previous years where even the bigger Electric-type threats couldn't body Togekiss through its impressive mixed bulk. That danger can be mitigated with a Terrain Seed (Misty or Psychic specifically).

252 SpA Life Orb Tapu Koko Thunderbolt vs. +1 236 HP / 12+ SpD Togekiss in Electric Terrain: 133-156 (70 - 82.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

However, I think that Togekiss doesn't want to fight that battle next to another fairy, as it wouldn't be able to redirect much of what threatens Fairy-types, serving as a one-and-done Tailwind setter.

I realize that this post is going to get really long so here's what my 2017 version of the team would look like and you can let me know what you think of it.

Scarf Tyranitar
Mega Chomp (Probably with Poison Jab over Draco Meteor because of Misty Terrain)
Life Orb Tapu Lele
Psychic Seed Zapdos
Nature Power Heatran with Firium Z
Gastrodon or Wide Guard Swampert

 

[Nah]

I kinda got the feeling too that Togekiss might be kinda meh this gen, and that this may need a huge change to it. Is Aegis still usable though given the ubiquitous Tapus, or no?

Also, explain the Nature Power Heatran set to me.

 

[skyburial]

Aegislash is absolutely still meta, and in fact is on the ladder-topping iteration of Sand, which almost exactly like it did in 201, but with a Z Crystal on the Excadrill:

https://3ds.pokemon-gl.com/rentalteam/BT-4E31-92CD

We can stick with it if you'd like. And, Wide Guard is super valuable. It would probably be best to swap out the water/ground option for Milotic if you decide to do this, as pretty snake responds to Landorus-T more definitively. I like to run mine with Adrenaline Orb these days.

Alright so here's the short and skinny on Nature Power Heatran. It takes those slightly disadvantaged turns during weather wars and turns them in your favor. Volt Switch Tapu Koko is really popular on weather teams, and it will turn your Nature Power into an Electric Terrain-boosted Thunderbolt that can KO Politoed and deal huge damage to Mega Charizard Y. Or, if you're in a prime position with your own Tapu Lele, it can give you an extra Psychic in her Terrain, which is almost always valuable as she nukes most things already.

 

[Nah]

Aegislash is absolutely still meta, and in fact is on the ladder-topping iteration of Sand, which almost exactly like it did in 201, but with a Z Crystal on the Excadrill:

https://3ds.pokemon-gl.com/rentalteam/BT-4E31-92CD

We can stick with it if you'd like. And, Wide Guard is super valuable. It would probably be best to swap out the water/ground option for Milotic if you decide to do this, as pretty snake responds to Landorus-T more definitively. I like to run mine with Adrenaline Orb these days.

Alright so here's the short and skinny on Nature Power Heatran. It takes those slightly disadvantaged turns during weather wars and turns them in your favor. Volt Switch Tapu Koko is really popular on weather teams, and it will turn your Nature Power into an Electric Terrain-boosted Thunderbolt that can KO Politoed and deal huge damage to Mega Charizard Y. Or, if you're in a prime position with your own Tapu Lele, it can give you an extra Psychic in her Terrain, which is almost always valuable as she nukes most things already.

Ah, gotcha. I didn't really know how Nature Power worked, but that sounds useful.

About Zapdos though, what's the set look like exactly? And what alternatives would you recommend to it if I can't really get a suitable one on cartridge?

 

[skyburial]

Zapdos @ Psychic Seed
Ability: Pressure (some people like Static but I use Pressure to check speeds)
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Tailwind
- Hidden Power Ice
- Roar/Roost/Heat Wave

Some people prefer more bulk but I have always appreciated the speed tie with Kangaskhan and Charizard Y, and found the damage to leave little to be desired. I might reinvest a bit more into Special Attack to guarantee KO's on Landorus-T in the future.

Suitable alternatives, eh? Well, it's hard to find a combination quite like Zapdos's, but people use Mandibuzz and Drifblim to the same effect in VGC 2017. You could try a Psychic Seed Suicune actually, come to think of it. Something like

Suicune @ Psychic Seed
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 100 Def / 100 SpA / 52 SpD / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Roar/Snarl/Rest/Hidden Power Grass
- Tailwind

The coverage is a bit different but this would leave you room to run Tapu Koko in your Electric-Type slot. You'd probably be side-quaking your Suicune more often than not, though.