Competitive Team Questions (and Incomplete Team Help)

Hi,
I'm trying to build a decent team with my favorite pokemon in it (Milotic) but I have difficulties against OU metagame with it.

Milotic : Leftovers
Scald
Ice Beam
Dragon Tail
Restore

Roserade : Big root
Spikes
Leech Seed
HP Fire
Giga-drain

Heatran : Air balloon
Flamethrower
HP Grass
Earth Power
Steath Rock

Scizor : Choice Band
Bullet Punch
U-turn
Super Power
Pursuit

Starmie : Life Orb or Electric gem / Ice gem?
Rapid spin
Hydro pump
Ice Beam
Thunderbolt

Salamence : Life Orb
Outrage
Flamethrower
Earthquake
Roost

OR

Dragonite : Lum berry
Outrage
Fire Punch
Dragon Dance
Roost

I am willing to try some replacements but here is the order of me being willing to drop them

1 : Roserade
2 : Heatran
3 : Starmie
4 : Scizor
5 : Dragonite / Salamence (I like Salamence better)
6 : nope, Shiny Milotic with near flawless IV's is my Trophy poke. I love the little fella^^

So? is it terrible? Is it redeemable? what are your suggestions?
Thanks :)

bizebest said:

Hi,
I'm trying to build a decent team with my favorite pokemon in it (Milotic) but I have difficulties against OU metagame with it.

Milotic : Leftovers
Scald
Ice Beam
Dragon Tail
Restore

Roserade : Big root
Spikes
Leech Seed
HP Fire
Giga-drain

Heatran : Air balloon
Flamethrower
HP Grass
Earth Power
Steath Rock

Scizor : Choice Band
Bullet Punch
U-turn
Super Power
Pursuit

Starmie : Life Orb or Electric gem / Ice gem?
Rapid spin
Hydro pump
Ice Beam
Thunderbolt

Salamence : Life Orb
Outrage
Flamethrower
Earthquake
Roost

OR

Dragonite : Lum berry
Outrage
Fire Punch
Dragon Dance
Roost

I am willing to try some replacements but here is the order of me being willing to drop them

1 : Roserade
2 : Heatran
3 : Starmie
4 : Scizor
5 : Dragonite / Salamence (I like Salamence better)
6 : nope, Shiny Milotic with near flawless IV's is my Trophy poke. I love the little fella^^

So? is it terrible? Is it redeemable? what are your suggestions?
Thanks :)

Click to expand...

Might be a good idea to put in EVs for each of your 'mons, dude.

Anyway:

There's no "Restore" attack in Pokémon. I think you were referring to Recover.

Big Root isn't a good item to use competitively on Roserade, or any 'mon in general. Sure, the extra HP recovery is tempting, but that's what Lefties/Black Sludge is for. Ferrothorn is a better candidate over Roserade because of its good bulk and useful resists:
-Spikes/Stealth Rock
-Leech Seed
-Power Whip
-Gyro Ball/Thunder Wave/Protect
Nature: Relaxed
EVs: 252 HP/88 Def/168 SDef
Item: Leftovers/Shed Shell


While Flamethrower has always been regarded as a reliable Fire STAB, Heatran really likes the extra power of Fire Blast. 85% accuracy isn't that bad compared to Focus Blast's 70% accuracy (sure, Heatran can't learn it, but I'm drawing a comparison).

Gems aren't good items to use competitively outside of Flying Gem + Acrobatics. Starmie should use Leftovers or Life Orb.

Life Orb + 3 attacks seems tempting on Salamence, but it tends to get revenge killed if it gets stuck on Outrage. Whether you choose Dragonite or Salamence depends on if you want more survivability (Dragonite's Multiscale and good defenses) or more power (Salamence's Moxie ability and superior Speed compared to Dragonite):
-Dragon Dance
-Outrage
-Earthquake
-Fire Blast/Hydro Pump
Nature: Naive
EVs: 252 Atk/4 SAtk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Lum Berry

or
-Outrage
-Dragon Claw
-Earthquake
-Fire Blast/Aqua Tail
Nature: Naive/Jolly
EVs: 252 Atk/4 SAtk/252 Spe
Item: Choice Scarf
Ability: Moxie

or
-Outrage
-Draco Meteor
-Fire Blast
-Earthquake
Nature: Naive
EVs: 64 Atk/192 SAtk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb

Ok so I'm trying to make a team, which I'm hoping will include 4 sweepers, 2 special 2 physical; and 1 Blissey with 1 Mienshao (for baton pass). My problem is, I have FIVE sweepers, and I don't know if I should get rid of one, or replace my Blissey with Mienshao, or vice versa. Here's my options of pokemon, and please give me tips on improvement and possible pokemon items as well.

Samurott:

Megahorn
Ice Beam
Hydro Cannon
Hydro Pump

Lucario:

Dragon Pulse
Earthquake
Close Combat
Ice Punch

Garchomp:

Earthquake
Draco Meteor
Stone Edge
Flamethrower

Chandelure:

Heat Wave
Shadow Ball
Psychic
Energy Ball

Pichu:

Volt Tackle
Double Team
Iron Tail
Grass Knot

Blissey:

Softboiled
Hyper Beam
Heal Bell
Toxic

Mienshao:

Baton Pass
Calm Mind
Bulk Up
Hi Jump Kick

PlatinumDude said:

Might be a good idea to put in EVs for each of your 'mons, dude.

There's no "Restore" attack in Pokémon. I think you were referring to Recover.

Ferrothorn is a better candidate over Roserade because of its good bulk and useful resists:
-Spikes/Stealth Rock
-Leech Seed
-Power Whip
-Gyro Ball/Thunder Wave/Protect
Nature: Relaxed
EVs: 252 HP/88 Def/168 SDef
Item: Leftovers/Shed Shell

Life Orb + 3 attacks seems tempting on Salamence, but it tends to get revenge killed if it gets stuck on Outrage. Whether you choose Dragonite or Salamence depends on if you want more survivability (Dragonite's Multiscale and good defenses) or more power (Salamence's Moxie ability and superior Speed compared to Dragonite):

Click to expand...

Thanks for your insight :)

Sorry, They're not all on my pokecheck so I didn't know the EVs I'd used.

About Ferrothorn: I think I'll give him a try. He not the cutest thing but he's a tough guy.

About Starmie: Can you use the same Item on several Pokes in competitive battling?

About the Dragons : for my style of play (and for looks) , I like Salamence better but I find the OU metagame is SOOOOO bulky that I'm reluctantly using DD Dragonite w/ Roost because he's easier to set up.
Is Moxie the Overruling ability for DD Salamence or does Intimidate still have it's merits?

Any Idea how this team could deal with Sub/Drain Punch? A Gallade wiped the floor with me, the other day T_T

ClumzyTrainR13 said:

Ok so I'm trying to make a team, which I'm hoping will include 4 sweepers, 2 special 2 physical; and 1 Blissey with 1 Mienshao (for baton pass). My problem is, I have FIVE sweepers, and I don't know if I should get rid of one, or replace my Blissey with Mienshao, or vice versa. Here's my options of pokemon, and please give me tips on improvement and possible pokemon items as well.

Samurott:

Megahorn
Ice Beam
Hydro Cannon
Hydro Pump

Lucario:

Dragon Pulse
Earthquake
Close Combat
Ice Punch

Garchomp:

Earthquake
Draco Meteor
Stone Edge
Flamethrower

Chandelure:

Heat Wave
Shadow Ball
Psychic
Energy Ball

Pichu:

Volt Tackle
Double Team
Iron Tail
Grass Knot

Blissey:

Softboiled
Hyper Beam
Heal Bell
Toxic

Mienshao:

Baton Pass
Calm Mind
Bulk Up
Hi Jump Kick

Click to expand...

EVs would totally be useful here. You overlooked the fact that some of your 'mons have setup moves on their own.

Never use Hyper Beam-style moves ever. They leave the user as a sitting duck the next turn. Samurott has a decent movepool to take advantage of:
-Swords Dance
-Waterfall
-Aqua Jet
-Megahorn
Nature: Adamant/Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Lum Berry/Mystic Water

or
-Hydro Pump/Surf
-Ice Beam
-Grass Knot/Hidden Power (Grass)
-Taunt/Megahorn/Superpower
Nature: Modest/Timid/Rash/Naive
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb

EQ and Close Combat have redundant coverage together on Lucario:
-Swords Dance
-Close Combat
-ExtremeSpeed
-Crunch/Shadow Claw/Ice Punch/Bullet Punch
Nature: Adamant/Jolly
EVs: 252 Atk/4 Def/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb

or
-Nasty Plot
-Aura Sphere
-Dark Pulse/Shadow Ball
-Vacuum Wave/Hidden Power (Ice)/Dragon Pulse
Nature: Modest/Timid
EVs: 252 Atk/4 Def/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb

While Garchomp can go mixed, it's better off using physical moves to cause more damage:
-Outrage
-Earthquake
-Fire Fang/Aqua Tail
-Dragon Claw/Dual Chop
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Choice Band/Choice Scarf

or
-Swords Dance
-Outrage/Dragon Claw
-Earthquake
-Fire Fang
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Yache Berry/Haban Berry/Lum Berry

or
-Substitute
-Swords Dance
-Outrage/Dragon Claw
-Earthquake
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Leftovers/Salac Berry

or
-Stealth Rock
-Outrage/Dragon Claw
-Earthquake
-Fire Blast/Swords Dance
Nature: Naive/Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Focus Sash

or
-Stealth Rock
-Dragon Claw/Dragon Tail
-Earthquake
-Fire Blast/Aqua Tail/Protect
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 252 HP/196 Def/60 Spe
Item: Leftovers

Despite Chandelure's high Special Attack, its 80 Speed and Stealth Rock/Pursuit weaknesses hold it back. You need another wall here, like Gliscor. It can act as a potential Baton Passer:
-Substitute
-Baton Pass
-Earthquake
-Toxic/Taunt/Rock Polish/Swords Dance
Nature: Impish
EVs: 248 HP/24 Def/236 Spe
Item: Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal

You do realize that Blissey gained Hyper Voice as a B2/W2 move tutor, right? But then again, having a Normal STAB move as a sole attack leaves you walled by Ghosts, Rocks and Steels:
-Aromatherapy/Stealth Rock
-Seismic Toss/Flamethrower
-Softboiled
-Toxic/Thunder Wave
Nature: Calm
EVs: 4 HP/252 Def/252 SDef
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure

or
-Wish
-Protect/Softboiled
-Seismic Toss/Flamethrower
-Toxic/Thunder Wave
Nature: Calm
EVs: 4 HP/252 Def/252 SDef
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure

BP'ing 2 different stat boosts at once is too much for something as frail as Mienshao. Smeargle gets the job done easily thanks to its ad infinitum move pool:
-Spore
-Shell Smash
-Baton Pass
-Taunt/Ingrain
Nature: Jolly/Timid
EVs: 80 HP/96 Def/80 SDef/252 Spe
Item: Focus Sash
Ability: Own Tempo

bizebest said:

Thanks for your insight :)

Sorry, They're not all on my pokecheck so I didn't know the EVs I'd used.

About Ferrothorn: I think I'll give him a try. He not the cutest thing but he's a tough guy.

About Starmie: Can you use the same Item on several Pokes in competitive battling?

About the Dragons : for my style of play (and for looks) , I like Salamence better but I find the OU metagame is SOOOOO bulky that I'm reluctantly using DD Dragonite w/ Roost because he's easier to set up.
Is Moxie the Overruling ability for DD Salamence or does Intimidate still have it's merits?

Any Idea how this team could deal with Sub/Drain Punch? A Gallade wiped the floor with me, the other day T_T

Click to expand...

In simulators, yes. In cartridge battles, no. Starmie's type coverage is good enough to warrant an Expert Belt on it.

Either ability is viable on Salamence.

A (p)hazer might seem ideal on the team, though I'm not sure who I can replace:

Skarmory:
-Spikes/Stealth Rock
-Whirlwind
-Roost
-Brave Bird/Taunt
Nature: Impish/Careful
EVs: 252 HP/232 Def/24 Spe
Item: Leftovers/Shed Shell
Ability: Sturdy

Celebi (though those things are very hard to find):
-Giga Drain/Psychic
-U-turn
-Recover
-Perish Song/Thunder Wave/Stealth Rock
Nature: Calm
EVs: 252 HP/232 SDef/24 Spe
Item: Leftovers

PlatinumDude said:

In simulators, yes. In cartridge battles, no. Starmie's type coverage is good enough to warrant an Expert Belt on it.

Either ability is viable on Salamence.

A (p)hazer might seem ideal on the team, though I'm not sure who I can replace:

Skarmory:
-Spikes/Stealth Rock
-Whirlwind
-Roost
-Brave Bird/Taunt
Nature: Impish/Careful
EVs: 252 HP/232 Def/24 Spe
Item: Leftovers/Shed Shell
Ability: Sturdy

Celebi (though those things are very hard to find):
-Giga Drain/Psychic
-U-turn
-Recover
-Perish Song/Thunder Wave/Stealth Rock
Nature: Calm
EVs: 252 HP/232 SDef/24 Spe
Item: Leftovers

Click to expand...

I guess Milotic's dragon tail is the closest thing I have to (p)hazing. Maybe DD Salamence can counter Gallade at +1 Speed by OHKOing it before it can use Substitute (unless substitute has priority?!!)

Anyway I'm breeding a Salamence and got one with good IVs except for 8 in HP. Is that horrendous? Should I raise it? How important is HP for DD Salamence?

bizebest said:

I guess Milotic's dragon tail is the closest thing I have to (p)hazing. Maybe DD Salamence can counter Gallade at +1 Speed by OHKOing it before it can use Substitute (unless substitute has priority?!!)

Anyway I'm breeding a Salamence and got one with good IVs except for 8 in HP. Is that horrendous? Should I raise it? How important is HP for DD Salamence?

Click to expand...

Sub doesn't have priority, unless a Prankster 'mon uses that move. I'm assuming that Gallade got the Sub up first because either it invested in Speed or Salamence didn't invest in Speed at all.

Also, HP IVs don't really matter on sweepers like Salamence IMO.

What would be the best move set for a Timid Jolteon. I know Thunderbolt will be involved but what would best compliment it. Was also thinking of using Air Balloon on it.

Also should I raise Eevee a little bit or just evolve into Jolteon?

AdrianD said:

What would be the best move set for a Timid Jolteon. I know Thunderbolt will be involved but what would best compliment it. Was also thinking of using Air Balloon on it.

Also should I raise Eevee a little bit or just evolve into Jolteon?

Click to expand...

Here's the most-used Jolteon set:
-Thunderbolt
-Volt Switch
-Hidden Power (Ice/Fire)
-Shadow Ball/Signal Beam
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SAtk/4 SDef/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb

PlatinumDude said:

Here's the most-used Jolteon set:
-Thunderbolt
-Volt Switch
-Hidden Power (Ice/Fire)
-Shadow Ball/Signal Beam
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SAtk/4 SDef/252 Spe
Item: Life Orb/Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb

Click to expand...

What about Light Screen or Substitute? Also would Air Balloon be good to use to at least slow down its ground weakness?

AdrianD said:

What about Light Screen or Substitute? Also would Air Balloon be good to use to at least slow down its ground weakness?

Click to expand...

Jolteon is too frail for supporting. The only viable Sub set Jolteon can use is this:
-Substitute
-Baton Pass
-Thunderbolt
-Hidden Power (Ice)
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 SAtk/4 SDef/252 Spe
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Volt Absorb

Air Balloon should only be used if you intend to use Jolteon late-game, as it misses out the power that Specs or Life Orb provide if it does opt for Air Balloon.

all right heres what im thinking for a sand storm double team, im still deciding movesets.
the pokes r:
1) tyranitar
ability sand stream
2) garchomp
ability sand veil
3) gastrodon
ability strom drain

i thought gastrodon would be a good choice cause its ability strom drain can take care of any water threats

WolfMirage said:

all right heres what im thinking for a sand storm double team, im still deciding movesets.
the pokes r:
1) tyranitar
ability sand stream
2) garchomp
ability sand veil
3) gastrodon
ability strom drain

i thought gastrodon would be a good choice cause its ability strom drain can take care of any water threats

Click to expand...

Mmm, it looks so far so good~ I guess if you haven't decided the movesets yet, you can try using a pokemon that can cover grass attacks like Skarmory, that it's electric and fire weakness is covered by your other pokemon already.

i was thinking of adding a nother poke with sand veil, u know a poke that hit hard and still as sand veil to make good use of sand storm

WolfMirage said:

i was thinking of adding a nother poke with sand veil, u know a poke that hit hard and still as sand veil to make good use of sand storm

Click to expand...

Are you entering the Wi-Fi challenge?

Anyway, Gliscor is another good Sand Veil abuser:
-Earthquake
-Acrobatics
-Tailwind
-Protect
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/4 Spe or 124 HP/252 Atk/132 Spe or 12 HP/252 Atk/244 Spe
Item: Flying Gem
Ability: Sand Veil

yes i would like to in the future and PlatinumDude what natures would best suit the other 3 pokes i chosse

WolfMirage said:

yes i would like to in the future and PlatinumDude what natures would best suit the other 3 pokes i chosse

Click to expand...

I'll probably go the extra mile and suggest some sets for your Pokémon from the get-go. You can adjust the moves to your preference:

Tyranitar:
-Crunch
-Rock Slide
-Low Kick
-Protect
Nature: Brave/Adamant
EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/4 SDef
Item: Chople Berry/Focus Sash

Garchomp:
-Earthquake
-Dragon Claw
-Rock Slide/Substitute
-Protect
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
Item: Yache Berry/Dragon Gem

Gastrodon:
-Surf/Muddy Water
-Icy Wind/Ice Beam
-Earth Power/Toxic
-Recover/Protect
Nature: Bold
EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SDef
Item: Rindo Berry/Sitrus Berry
Ability: Storm Drain

thank u PlatinumDude for the advice

i would like to create a team for each of the weather effects users. im stuck on a rainy day team, for a rainy day team should i add Politoed for its drizzy ability or just teach one the pokes a rain making move

and so far for the ice team i have chossen abomasnow, vanillish and i was thinking maybe metagross

y do all my post keep on getting merged, the post above was made at different times, well what ever the problem is, i hope for great advice as always.

please read my post above for my qustion

WolfMirage said:

thank u PlatinumDude for the advice

i would like to create a team for each of the weather effects users. im stuck on a rainy day team, for a rainy day team should i add Politoed for its drizzy ability or just teach one the pokes a rain making move

and so far for the ice team i have chossen abomasnow, vanillish and i was thinking maybe metagross

Click to expand...

In the future, just edit your post. The reason why your posts got merged was because of the double-posting rule (I guess).

Politoed is pretty much essential for a Rain team, due to its Drizzle ability. However, in simulators, Swift Swim + Drizzle is banned because of how overpowered that combo was back in the day. There's nothing wrong with that combo over at Wi-Fi, though.

Vanilluxe isn't good in standard play because of its extremely shallow offensive movepool. Walrein is better suited on a hail team for its ability to stall things out:
-Substitute
-Protect
-Blizzard
-Roar/Toxic
Nature: Bold
EVs: 232 HP/108 Def/168 Spe
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Ice Body