Can I make My Team Better?

[bubbles3163]

Hey guys!
I was wondering if you could help me make my team better.
I have 6 level 100 pokemon with their PP and HP as high as it can go. Here are their names and moves.

Palkia- Spacial rend, Earth Power, Aqua Tail, Aura Sphere
Infernape- Fire Blast, Flamethrower, Grass Knot, Overheat
Luxray- Giga impact, Thunder, Discharge, Thunder Fang
Steelix- Earthquake, Dig, Crunch, Double-edge
Alakazam- Psychic, Future Sight, Focus Blast, Shadow Ball
Gastrodon- Brine, Muddy water, Blizzard, Sludge bomb.


I have an action replay so I won't have a problem getting any pokemon or TM's. Is there any way I could improve on my team? I have a tournement coming up and I want to be best prepeared. BTW I have Pearl.

 

[Drakio]

It's an ok team, it really depends on who is controlling it to determine it's power. But maybe you could replace steelix with an aggron that has rock head ability, this makes your pokemon not suffer from recoil on moves like double edge.

 

[bubbles3163]

OK thanks! I'll consider it. I had one once but traded him over.

What do you think of a lucario? I could take out the steelix and teach gastrodon some ground moves.

 

[Fairy]

Hi there! :D

Well, there's a few things we need to know about this team before the raters can rate it. First, is this officially a 4th Gen team? And second, is this a team you plan on using competitively? If so, there's a few things you need to work out before getting to battling.

Palkia- Spacial rend, Earth Power, Aqua Tail, Aura Sphere
Infernape- Fire Blast, Flamethrower, Grass Knot, Overheat
Luxray- Giga impact, Thunder, Discharge, Thunder Fang
Steelix- Earthquake, Dig, Crunch, Double-edge
Alakazam- Psychic, Future Sight, Focus Blast, Shadow Ball
Gastrodon- Brine, Muddy water, Blizzard, Sludge bomb.

First of all, your team does not adhere to tiers. If you do not know what tiers are and which Pokemon belongs in what tier, please refer to this site for details. **The site describes Pokemon based on their placement in the 5th Gen. Ultimately, Palkia is Uber and therefore cannot be used in OU (standard play) whereas Steelix is RU and is outclassed by other Pokemon in the OU tier. The same thing applies for Luxray (NU) and Alakazam (BL2 -- iirc). In fact, the only Pokemon on this team that do fall into OU are Infernape and Gastrodon. So, although we encourage you to use your favorite Pokemon, there are still things you can do to make this team better. Also, don't feel like you have to play in OU. As you can see, there are many tiers out there. So, just assuming you're going to play in OU, Steelix could be replaced by Heatran (or Lucario, as you mentioned before), Alakazam could be replaced by Reuniclus, and Luxray could be replaced by Magnezone. Mind you, I'm just shooting in the dark here and recommending Pokemon that adhere to the same general typing but thrive in standard play. You don't have to make any of these changes if you don't want to. However, if you are interested in replacing some of your lower tier Pokemon (depending on convenience and ease), the raters here will be more than happy to recommend sets (or alternative replacements) for the aforementioned Pokemon.

Second, we require a certain level of detail in RMTs to make sure you get the best advice possible from the raters. Please reformat your RMT so it gives us the following information:

Pokemon @ Item
Ability
EV Spread
Nature
- Move 1
- Move 2
- Move 3
- Move 4
Description of the Pokemon (why you chose the attacks, what role it plays, etc).

This way, the raters can fully comprehend exactly what you wish to do with your Pokemon individually, and better understand how you want to play them as a team.

The last thing I'm going to do here is rate Infernape. Infernape is one of the two OU Pokemon you currently have, the other being Gastrodon. Since the 4th Gen, Gastrodon has certainly come up in the world so I don't want to recommend a 5th Gen set if you're going to be playing in the 4th Gen game. Until we have a better understanding of what you want to do, the best I can do for you is rate the one Pokemon who would remain constant despite the generational bridge.

Infernape- Fire Blast, Flamethrower, Grass Knot, Overheat

In a competitive environment, it's generally understood that you shouldn't have three attacks of the same type. This is because you need to be able to counter common threats said Pokemon might face, (assuming you have dual typing like Infernape) get the most out of the STAB attacks available, and have as much coverage as you can to hit more Pokemon for super effective damage. So, with your Infernape, having Fire Blast, Flamethrower, and Overheat is reducing the quality of attacks you're able to deal. The best thing you can do, is alter these moves to really exploit Infernape's abilities. This is done many ways; via Nasty Plot, Swords Dance, Choice Items, or Mixed Attacking. What I'm going to recommend for you is Infernape's Mixed set (meaning it carries both Physical and Special Attacks).

Infernape @ Life Orb
Blaze
252 Attack / 4 Special Attack / 252 Speed
Naive [+Speed; -Special Defense] / Hasty [+Speed; -Defense]
- Overheat
- Close Combat
- U-Turn / Grass Knot
- Stone Edge / Mach Punch

This set has remained chiefly unchanged since the its creation. So, it will work in both 4th Gen and 5th Gen play. Because of Infernape's Speed and excellent offensive coverage, this set can be very destructive if used properly. You have two primary STAB attacks on this set, Overheat and Close Combat. Because of their sheer power plus the Life Orb and STAB boost and battle utility, Infernape can easily be the offensive pivot that sways the momentum of battle in your favor. Next, U-Turn assists in the aforementioned tactics and helps Infernape scout the opposing Pokemon's moveset or item. Grass Knot is an alternative that deals super effective damage to bulky Ground or Water types (like Gastrodon) that resist Fire type attacks and compliments Infernape's STABs very well. Finally, you have the choice of Stone Edge or Mach Punch. Both attacks have a host of competitive merits, but when it comes down to it, it's mostly a choice of preference and team weaknesses. Stone Edge provides extra coverage and takes care of things like Gyarados, while Mach Punch helps Infernape deal with faster or Choice Scarfed Pokemon like Tyranitar (or Terrakion). Also, Hidden Power [Ice] can be considered to hit Gliscor or Dragonite for super effective damage, being able to OHKO them after Stealth Rock damage. EVs are distributed between Attack and Speed, with the remainder in Special Attack to outspeed any base 107 Pokemon and attack them for respectable damage.

So, that's it. :3 Let us know if you'd like to replace any of your lower tier Pokemon and whether or not this is a 4th Gen team. Then edit your RMT to include all the information and we will be happy to help you however we can.

Good luck!

 

[wolf]

I suggest checking out this article for more information on EVs, natures, and so on. Like Alexial said, we prefer it if you include EVs and natures for each of your Pokémon as well (or at least, once you know what they are). They make a big difference on a Pokémon's stats, so it helps when rating a team.