Competitive team building help

Newcomer

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    • Seen Dec 23, 2014
    Ok, so as you can tell by my username, I'm new to the whole competitive battling thing and I would like to start. I bought Y a few days ago and have already beaten the elite four (not much of a challenge really). Anyways, I need a few tips on team building, for example: pokemon, and their natures, ev's and an explaination on IV's, and suggested held items while battling and training.
    I already have two pokemon in mind: Umbreon and Mega Charizard Y.

    I have already bred tons of eevee and found the careful natured one I wanted for Umbreon. Now he is maxed out on Sp. Def and I need to know what else to put the rest of the EV's in. His moveset is going to be: Payback, curse, moonlight, and toxic.

    I haven't started on breeding and stuff yet for Charizard, I wanted to get my Umbreon first, but I will need tips eventually.

    I will also need tips for the other 4 pokemon.

    P.S. Sorry if I did anything wrong by posting this and if anyone wants an eevee lemme know and if I have the nature you want I'll put it in the GTS for tips.
     
    Nah, you posted in the right place.

    Anyway, these are some good resources to look at since you're new to the competitive scene:
    https://www.smogon.com/forums/forums/competitive-discussion.249/ (Smogon's forums. Smogon is the premier resource for competitive battling info and discussion)

    https://www.smogon.com/dex/xy/pokemon/ (Lists some viable sets for most Pokemon)

    https://www.serebiiforums.com/showthread.php?499840-A-basic-guide-to-EVs-IVs-and-natures (Serebii's explanation of natures, EVs, and IVs)

    As for your Umbreon, you'll wanna put the rest of its EVs into HP, so it can tank better.

    And a set for Mega Zard Y:

    -Mega Charizard Y w/Charizardite Y
    Nature: Timid/Modest
    Ability: Drought
    EVs: 252 Sp.Attack, 252 Speed, 4 Defense
    Moves: Fire Blast/Flamethrower, Solarbeam, Focus Blast, Dragon Pulse/Roost

    As for other Pokemon on the team, you'll want a Rapid Spinner or Defogger in order to keep Stealth Rocks (one of the most common moves in the metagame) off the field; Charizard hates Stealth Rock. A couple of good ones:

    -Excadrill w/ Focus Sash or Life Orb
    Nature: Adamant
    Ability: Mold Breaker
    EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
    Moves: Earthquake, Rock Slide, Rapid Spin, Iron Head/Swords Dance

    or

    -Excadrill w/Assault Vest
    Nature: Adamant
    Ability: Mold Breaker
    EVs: 120 HP, 136 Attack, 252 Sp.Defense
    Moves: Earthquake, Rapid Spin, Iron Head, Rock Slide

    -Starmie w/Life Orb
    Nature: Timid
    Ability: Natural Cure
    EVs: 252 Sp.Attack, 252 Speed, 4 Sp.Defense
    Moves: Scald/Hydro Pump, Psyshock, Thunderbolt, Rapid Spin

    -Donphan w/Leftovers
    Nature: Adamant/Impish
    Ability: Sturdy
    EVs: 252 HP, 252 Defense, 4 Attack
    Moves: Earthquake, Ice Shard, Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin

    -Mandibuzz w/Leftovers
    Nature: Bold/Impish
    Ability: Overcoat
    EVs: 248 HP, 136 Defense, 108 Sp.Defense, 16 Speed
    Moves: Foul Play, Roost, Defog, Taunt/Whirlwind

    Throwing in a physical attacker would be a good idea too. If you got any more questions, feel free to ask in this thread, or in the Simple Q&A thread stickied to the top of the section, and/or make a Team Help thread in this section too.

    Hope this helps.
     
    You could try stuff like Azumarill, Garchomp, Scizor, Conkeldurr, Terrakion:

    -Azumarill @ Sitrus Berry
    Ability: Huge Power
    EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
    Adamant Nature
    - Belly Drum
    - Aqua Jet
    - Play Rough
    - Superpower

    -Garchomp w/Haban, Lum, or Yache Berry
    Nature: Jolly
    Ability: Rough Skin
    EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
    Moves: Dragon Claw, Earthquake, Swords Dance, Stone Edge/Fire Fang

    -Scizor w/Leftovers
    Nature: Adamant
    Ability: Technician
    EVs: 252 HP, 40 Attack, 216 Sp.Defense
    Moves: Bullet Punch, Roost, Swords Dance, Bug Bite/X-Scissor

    -Conkeldurr w/Assault Vest
    Nature Adamant
    Ability: Guts
    EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Sp.Defense, 4 HP
    Moves: Drain Punch, Ice Punch, Mach Punch, Knock Off

    -Terrakion w/Choice Scarf
    Nature: Jolly/Adamant
    Ability: Justified
    EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 Sp.Defense
    Moves: Stone Edge/Rock Slide, Earthquake, Close Combat, X-Scissor

    Also, these aren't the only sets that these Pokemon can use. Most Pokemon can use more than one set. I just posted one for each to give you ideas and because I don't wanna type out all the sets for each one.

    Another thing to keep in mind is that simply getting a lot of experience in battles and discussing battling with others is also important on improving yourself.
     
    Alright, yeah I know about the sets 'n stuff, I've been doing a little research, but this seems easier than youtube and google because I can actually ask a question and get a good answer.

    Also, if I go Chomp, will i need anything to guard against fairies?
     
    Last edited by a moderator:
    Garchomp doesn't need any moves solely for Fairies. STAB Earthquake hits most Fairies pretty hard. It's only anti-Fairy moves, Iron Head and Poison Jab, don't really hit much harder than Earthquake:

    EQ- 100 BPx1.5 STAB=150
    IH- 80 BPx2 SE=160
    PJ- 80 BPx2 SE= 160

    It's a pretty much negligible difference. So Garchomp prefers to have Stone Edge or Fire Fang to wreck Togekiss, Scizor, and Ferrothorn.

    And you'll usually wanna bring something to deal with Fairies, since they're a somewhat major force in the meta.
     
    Ok, would Toxicroak be good against Fairies and such? Also, I've seen STAB on forums like this but what does it mean?
     
    Newcomer said:
    Ok, would Toxicroak be good against Fairies and such? Also, I've seen STAB on forums like this but what does it mean?
    Click to expand...

    STAB means "Same Type Attack Bonus". If a Pokemon uses a move with the same type as it is, that move's power is increased by 50%

    Ex: Garchomp uses Earthquake, which is normally 100 base power, but its base power increases to 150.

    Also, Toxicroak isn't that good right now because of the rain nerf (all weathers from Drizzle/Drought/Sand Stream/Snow Warning now last 5 turns, 8 with a corresponding weather rock). It relied on the Dry Skin ability for passive recovery in Gen V, but with that nerf, it's not that good now.

    Scizor handles Fairies just fine with Bullet Punch.
     
    STAB stands for "Same Type Attack Boost". If the Pokemon has the same type as the move its using, the move gets a 50% power boost.

    Toxicroak checks a lot of Fairies because of STAB Gunk Shot, especially since most Fairies tend to be specially oriented. Unfortunately, Toxicroak is also a little frail, and it being part Fighting is a mixed blessing. Not to mention Sylveon and Gardervoir tend to carry Psyshock.

    Steel types like Scizor, Heatran, Aegislash, etc. tend to be better Fairy counters because of their generally better bulk and resistances and the fact that Fairies tend to lack good Fire or Ground attacks. Steel's just a useful type to have in general, too.

    I would recommend Mega Venusaur as a good Poison type anti-Fairy, but your Mega slot is already taken up by Mega Zard Y.
     
    Zekrom said:
    STAB stands for "Same Type Attack Boost". If the Pokemon has the same type as the move its using, the move gets a 50% power boost.

    Toxicroak checks a lot of Fairies because of STAB Gunk Shot, especially since most Fairies tend to be specially oriented. Unfortunately, Toxicroak is also a little frail, and it being part Fighting is a mixed blessing. Not to mention Sylveon and Gardervoir tend to carry Psyshock.

    Steel types like Scizor, Heatran, Aegislash, etc. tend to be better Fairy counters because of their generally better bulk and resistances and the fact that Fairies tend to lack good Fire or Ground attacks. Steel's just a useful type to have in general, too.

    I would recommend Mega Venusaur as a good Poison type anti-Fairy, but your Mega slot is already taken up by Mega Zard Y.
    Click to expand...
    To add to this, Sun-boosted Fire Blasts from Charizard Y tend to do hefty amounts of damage to other Fairies like Sylveon and Togekiss; Azumarill is handled by Solar Beam.
     
    Alright, thanks both of you!

    At what level is competitive battling, 50? Or 100?
     
    Last edited by a moderator:
    Alright. I'm having trouble breeding the right natured Gible and haven't started on Charmander yet, do you want an eevee or a different natured Gible possibly?
     
    The best way to hone your skills in competitive battling is simply, by practice. Wether you're playing the simulators or the actual games, seeing things firsthand, and gaining that experience personally is unmatched by any tutorial you can read or suggestion you can receive. Yeah yeah, that probably sounds; overdramatic, or, ridiculous, but when you're playing against a serious opponent, you won't always have time to ask an acquaintance wether or not it's a good idea to switch at that time, or if this pokemon is a physical or special attacker the majority of the time. Or pull up a damage calculator, and find out wether or not you'll be able to take that next bullet punch, and in turn OHKO with your attack. And there's no tutorial you can read, that will teach you how to read an opponent based on what moves they make; allowing you to predict and react to what they're doing in battle. If you know you have the upper hand, and you have the chance to set up on that paralyzed Talonflame, will he risk doing nothing with that paralysis check to switch out and hopefully prevent your setup? Or will he stay in and try and attack through the paralysis that turn? Do you remember the physical vs special bulk of his remaining pokemon? If you've been around the block a few times, you'll probably be able to read the situation better, and play with more wit about your moves. Say you've got that Mega Venusaur out right now, and his paralyzed Talonflame looks at it greedily, while the rest of his team is Breloom, Gyarados, and Shuckle. Do you know if he'll stay in? Probably; because the rest of those pokemon would rather see Talonflame deal with Mega Venusaur then and there than have to deal with it themselves. (I swear to god if someone wants to point out something wrong with this hypothetical)

    Point is, you may, and probably will lose at first. But that's gonna help you out, assuming you learn from it. Learn from it. Find your game, and nail it.


    Whew most serious talk I've had all day; and I was at a soup kitchen earlier hahah.
     
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