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Monotype Dark Team Building

Brane

Brane

-
    • 372
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Age 31
    • Seen May 10, 2016
    Hey everybody. The title says it all, I want to build myself a kind of monotype Dark team. Due to the fact that Dark types are actually pretty mono dimensional and have a lot of Pokemon with the same roles, I've extended this to Pokemon that kind of fit within the Dark type environment. I'll be using these Pokemon for Doubles and Singles, but movesets shouldn't be too hard to swap around, so just treat it as singles for the time being. It's probably be a great time to have some fun with in Gym Leader tournaments etc.

    I want to break this down into various sections because I'll be swapping a lot of the Pokemon out. At the moment I just want to build a solid amount of interchangeable Pokemon.

    Physically Offensive
    Spoiler:


    Specially Offensive
    Spoiler:


    Defensive & Support
    Spoiler:


    So there you have it. A long and probably tldr post. I need some more dark types in my team, but I don't see too many that have much over the ones I've already added. I'm planning on adding Cacturne if I can get my hands onto one. But I'm looking for any suggestions! Any Pokemon that seem like they could be part Dark should they have been treated differently by Nintendo, or any that can function well in the team.

    I'm also wondering about Pangoro, has anyone used it effectively?

    Any discussion would be great!

    Pokemon I'm thinking of including: Pangoro, Cacturne, Krookodile, Trevenant, Tentacruel, Ariados, Houndoom, Luxray, Hydreigon, Typhlosion and Cradily.
     
    Last edited:
    Mega Absol doesn't need to worry about status in the first place because of Magic Bounce, so it has no need for Substitute. Mixed sets are also preferred because your current build is walled by physical walls:
    -Sucker Punch
    -Pursuit/Night Slash/Knock Off
    -Play Rough
    -Fire Blast
    Nature: Naive
    EVs: 252 Atk/4 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Absolite
    Ability: Super Luck/Justified

    or
    -Swords Dance
    -Sucker Punch/Knock Off
    -Play Rough/Iron Tail
    -Knock Off/Night Slash/Fire Blast
    Nature: Naive
    EVs: 252 Atk/4 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Absolite
    Ability: Super Luck/Justified

    Crawdaunt is still slow even after a Dragon Dance:
    -Crab Hammer
    -Knock Off
    -Aqua Jet
    -Crunch
    Nature: Adamant
    EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
    Item: Choice Band
    Ability: Adaptability

    or
    -Swords Dance
    -Crab Hammer
    -Knock Off
    -Aqua Jet
    Nature: Adamant
    EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
    Item: Life Orb/Mystic Water/Splash Plate
    Ability: Adaptability

    Why aren't you using Shadow Ball on Gengar? Ghost is the best offensive type at the moment. Use Shadow Ball over Giga Drain or use one of the below sets:
    -Shadow Ball
    -Sludge Bomb/Focus Blast
    -Taunt
    -Destiny Bond
    Nature: Timid
    EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Focus Sash

    Consider using Greninja on the team because it can change its type thanks to Protean:
    -Hydro Pump/Surf
    -Ice Beam/Dark Pulse
    -U-turn/Dark Pulse
    -Hidden Power (Fire)/Grass Knot/Extrasensory
    Nature: Hasty/Timid
    EVs: 4 Atk/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Life Orb/Expert Belt
    Ability: Protean

    or
    -Spikes
    -Hydro Pump/Surf
    -Ice Beam/Extrasensory/Dark Pulse
    -Hidden Power (Fire)/U-turn/Taunt
    Nature: Timid
    EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Life Orb/Focus Sash

    Mismagius isn't a good user of Weakness Policy because of its so-so defenses. Aegislash is a better Weakness Policy user because it can actually take a hit unlike Mismagius:
    -Autotomize
    -Shadow Ball
    -Hidden Power (Ice)
    -Sacred Sword/Iron Head/Flash Cannon
    Nature: Rash/Modest
    EVs: 88 Atk/252 SAtk/168 Spe
    Item: Life Orb/Weakness Policy

    Spiritomb is a better defensive Dark (or Ghost) than Cofagrigus, IMO. Honestly, Cofagrigus is best played as an offensive Trick Room setter:

    Cofagrigus:
    -Trick Room
    -Nasty Plot
    -Shadow Ball
    -Will-o-Wisp/Hidden Power (Fighting)
    Nature: Quiet
    EVs: 248 HP/252 SAtk/8 SDef
    Item: Leftovers

    I'll add more later.
     
    PlatinumDude said:
    Spoiler:
    Click to expand...

    @Absol - What's been working for me on Mega Absol is forcing a swap out and guaranteeing a free Swords Dance with no damage. But I'll try your set as it looks interesting.

    @Crawdaunt - Yeah I have no history using Crawdaunt so I didn't think it would be. Not to mention it's defenses are way too frail to even survive boosting enough. Is there an advantage to using Crunch as well as Knock Off? It only has 15 less base power, maybe Superpower could work there?

    @Gengar - I guess I just wanted it to feel more like a Dark type but you're right. I'd consider using Greninja but I get tired of seeing it all the time. Maybe in the future as I have one already set up.

    @Mismagius - yeah I didn't think so. Maybe I should stick to a Choice Scarf or Specs. In terms of Aegislash, I'd love to use one if I managed to get a hold of a shiny, personal preference :P

    @Cofragrigus - probably. It has the dark typing as well. Cofragrigus' defence just shot out to me but I know Spiritomb has a nicer balance. I'll consider changing both sets around and see how I go.

    Thanks for your suggestions! I reckon the go from here is to figure out a couple of teams for actual play which I'll start doing.

    Please change your name to PlatinumBro

    ---

    Edit: Alright, I've built a couple of teams, not too sure about the second one. I think I also need to look at some Pokemon not on the list because they feel like they're missing that tiny bit of synergy I had in my other teams.

    I'm going to test these teams a little but any suggestions/discussions would still be great!

    Team 1
    Spoiler:


    Team 2
    Spoiler:
     
    Last edited:
    Not good at offering advice but nice choice on type. Tis my favourite and I go for Dark-types every gen possible. Already created and trained my perfect Dark-mono team for online XY, they do pretty well.
     
    Brane said:
    @Absol - What's been working for me on Mega Absol is forcing a swap out and guaranteeing a free Swords Dance with no damage. But I'll try your set as it looks interesting.

    @Crawdaunt - Yeah I have no history using Crawdaunt so I didn't think it would be. Not to mention it's defenses are way too frail to even survive boosting enough. Is there an advantage to using Crunch as well as Knock Off? It only has 15 less base power, maybe Superpower could work there?

    @Gengar - I guess I just wanted it to feel more like a Dark type but you're right. I'd consider using Greninja but I get tired of seeing it all the time. Maybe in the future as I have one already set up.

    @Mismagius - yeah I didn't think so. Maybe I should stick to a Choice Scarf or Specs. In terms of Aegislash, I'd love to use one if I managed to get a hold of a shiny, personal preference :P

    @Cofragrigus - probably. It has the dark typing as well. Cofragrigus' defence just shot out to me but I know Spiritomb has a nicer balance. I'll consider changing both sets around and see how I go.

    Thanks for your suggestions! I reckon the go from here is to figure out a couple of teams for actual play which I'll start doing.

    Please change your name to PlatinumBro

    ---

    Edit: Alright, I've built a couple of teams, not too sure about the second one. I think I also need to look at some Pokemon not on the list because they feel like they're missing that tiny bit of synergy I had in my other teams.

    I'm going to test these teams a little but any suggestions/discussions would still be great!

    Team 1
    Spoiler:


    Team 2
    Spoiler:
    Click to expand...
    Knock Off is preferred because it removes opposing items. Early-game, Crawdaunt can spam it to cripple Pokemon that rely on their items to function (except for those holding Mega Stones). Knock Off also gets powered up when the opponent holds an item. Ferrothorn is already hit hard enough by Knock Off that Superpower isn't necessary.

    Cofagrigus is pure Ghost. As I mentioned, Spiritomb is the better defensive Dark/Ghost. Sableye, too.

    Spiritomb:
    -Will-o-Wisp
    -Foul Play
    -Rest/Pain Split
    -Sleep Talk/Sucker Punch/Taunt
    Nature: Calm/Careful
    EVs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SDef
    Item: Leftovers
    Ability: Pressure

    or
    -Calm Mind
    -Dark Pulse
    -Rest
    -Sleep Talk
    Nature: Bold
    EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SDef
    Item: Leftovers
    Ability: Pressure

    or
    -Sucker Punch
    -Shadow Sneak
    -Pursuit
    -Trick/Will-o-Wisp
    Nature: Adamant
    EVs: 248 HP/252 Atk/8 Def
    Item: Choice Band/Black Glasses/Dread Plate

    To build on to my last post:

    If Mandibuzz is using a Bold nature, use Foul Play because it doesn't use Mandibuzz's low Attack. If you're using Knock Off, use an Impish nature, as not to ruin its power.

    Dusclops isn't good in the standard environment because of its lack of offensive presence outside of Night Shade/Seismic Toss. Shadow Sneak is also laughably weak coming off of uninvested 70 Attack.

    On to your teams:

    Knock Off and Play Rough are illegal on Mega Absol because the former is a move tutor from Black 2/White 2, while the latter is an X/Y egg move. If you're using Play Rough, use Night Slash or Pursuit. If you're using Knock Off, use Superpower.

    I honestly feel that Mega Venusaur, Amoonguss or Trevenant are the better bulky Grass Pokemon to use over Vileplume. Vileplume doesn't have much to offer over either of them (Mega Venusaur has Thick Fat to turn its Fire and Ice weaknesses into immunities, Amoonguss has Regenerator to heal passively upon leaving battle and Trevenant has good longevity):

    Mega Venusaur:
    -Giga Drain/Power Whip
    -Sludge Bomb/Sleep Powder
    -Earthquake
    -Synthesis
    Nature: Relaxed
    EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SDef
    Item: Venusaurite
    Ability: Overgrow

    or
    -Giga Drain/Leech Seed
    -Sludge Bomb
    -Hidden Power (Fire)
    -Synthesis/Protect
    Nature: Modest
    EVs: 252 HP/252 SAtk/4 SDef
    Item: Venusaurite
    Ability: Overgrow

    Trevenant:
    -Wood Hammer/Horn Leech
    -Earthquake/Rock Slide
    -Will-o-Wisp
    -Rest
    Nature: Impish
    EVs: 252 HP/180 Def/76 Spe
    Item: Leftovers/Lum Berry
    Ability: Natural Cure/Harvest

    or
    -Horn Leech
    -Shadow Claw/Leech Seed
    -Will-o-Wisp
    -Protect
    Nature: Careful
    EVs: 244 HP/16 Def/248 SDef
    Item: Sitrus Berry
    Ability: Harvest

    or
    -Substitute
    -Leech Seed
    -Will-o-Wisp
    -Phantom Force
    Nature: Impish
    EVs: 252 HP/180 Def/76 Spe
    Item: Sitrus Berry
    Ability: Harvest

    Amoonguss:
    -Giga Drain
    -Sludge Bomb/Hidden Power (Fire)
    -Spore
    -Stun Spore/Clear Smog
    Nature: Bold
    EVs: 252 HP/252 Def/4 SDef
    Item: Black Sludge
    Ability: Regenerator

    As I mentioned before, Dusclops isn't that good. Find something else, like, say, Sableye:
    -Taunt
    -Will-o-Wisp
    -Recover
    -Foul Play/Night Shade/Confide/Knock Off
    Nature: Calm/Careful
    EVs: 252 HP/4 Def/252 SDef
    Item: Leftovers
    Ability: Prankster

    Even though Fairies made Draco Meteor hard to use, it's still the preferred option on Hydreigon for the raw power it provides. Hydreigon also needs Flash Cannon to get past Fairies:
    -Draco Meteor
    -Dark Pulse
    -Flash Cannon
    -Fire Blast/Focus Blast/Roost
    Nature: Modest
    EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Life Orb

    I don't think Mismagius would be a good Scarfer, as it appreciates the freedom of switching moves. Pursiut weakness also bites:
    -Nasty Plot
    -Shadow Ball
    -Hidden Power (Fighting)/Dazzling Gleam
    -Thunderbolt/Taunt
    Nature: Timid
    EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Life Orb

    or
    -Substitute
    -Calm Mind
    -Shadow Ball
    -Hidden Power (Fighting)/Dazzling Gleam
    Nature: Timid
    EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spe
    Item: Leftovers

    or
    -Shadow Ball
    -Pain Split
    -Will-o-Wisp/Thunder Wave
    -Taunt/Perish Song/Heal Bell
    Nature: Bold
    EVs: 236 HP/176 Def/96 Spe
    Item: Leftovers

    (Team 2) You're doing Spiritomb wrong. Your current set leaves its uninvested Defense exposed to any decently strong physical move. Careful also lowers Special Attack, which weakens Dark Pulse. See above for sets.
     
    PlatinumDude said:
    Spoiler:
    Click to expand...

    @Crawdaunt I assumed so. That's virtually why I prefer running Knock Off. Maybe sticking to Dual stab is a bit better, considering virtually nothing resists Dark now.

    @Spiritomb yeah that's why I thought of using it over Cofragrigus. Sableye is another option but I think it's defenses aren't as great, though Prankster is very useful. I'll take that Spiritomb down, I'm trying to build a defensive core around the team because in my eyes the offensive part of Dark types are extremely frail.

    @Vileplume the only real reason I want to use Vileplume is it so heavily fit into the Dark type but never got it. It even looks right in the team. I do know it's not a very amazing Pokemon but I want to use it just out of pure preference. If I ever do ranked battles etc I'd most likely be using my standard teams. This is just for some fun on Showdown and on my livestream. Though I did notice that Vileplume only gets Leech Seed through an event a while ago so I need to mix it's moveset around. I also have Trevenant ready, and it fits nicely into this team as well so I can always interchange them.

    @Sableye I'll definitely take it into account. I've come across Dusclops before and they don't seem as threatening as Sableye.

    @Hydreigon the only thing I don't like about Draco Meteor is that -2 drop. It virtually locks you into your Draco Meteor again if you get the chance, but I guess the extra damage does seem nice.

    @Mismagius I think at this stage I'm going to put it aside for the moment and just use it whenever I use my usual teams. It's not really slotting in well into these teams at the moment.

    @Others yeah I made some random mistakes while fiddling with the team slots which is why some of them may be wrong.

    Okay, this team is starting to look really nice. I still have to fiddle around with Vileplume a lot and I'm not too content with Absol's set right now, but I think it's a great start.

    Spoiler:


    I'm also thinking Spiritomb is interchangeable with Mandibuzz or Murkrow, obviously Sharpedo can be swapped with Crawdaunt and Vileplume is easily swapped with Trevenant or whatever I see fit.

    I'm also wondering whether it's beneficial to put Thunder on Absol to catch flying types and water types off guard?
     
    Last edited:
    Okay, so I've got all my Pokemon and it's looking pretty good right now. I changed up the EV spread on my Vileplume to give it a bit of a boost in Special Attack because that stat got increased, meaning I should be able to deal a little bit more damage while still being slightly bulky.

    I didn't realise how bulky that Spiritomb would be either, it's pretty damn good.

    The real question I have is Absol, at the moment I'm not 100% happy with the set I'm running. I was thinking of maybe running a mixed set? I got my hands on a Naive Absol and a Rash one. I'm leaning slightly towards the Rash because it does have quite a large movepool.

    Essentially I'm wondering what sets to run with either one. A Naive at the moment would be something like Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 SAtk
    Naive Nature
    - Swords Dance
    - Sucker Punch
    - Play Rough
    - Thunder

    I changed Fire Blast to Thunder because I want to hit those Bulky water types that might want to come in. While it also gets coverage on Flying and hits a lot of stuff neutral. But I can always swap that.

    But what would a mixed set look like?

    Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 172 Atk / 84 SAtk??
    Rash
    - Fire Blast
    - Thunder
    - Play Rough/Megahorn
    - Sucker Punch/Dark Pulse/Night Slash

    Fire/Electric/Fairy/Dark gets a huge amount of coverage. The question I have is really Dark Pulse, is it worth having? It has the advantage of being able to hit all the time, but Sucker Punch will be stronger. Is Calm Mind worth having on the set? It might put people off in thinking that it's going to be primarily physical before it shoots off a Fire Blast or Thunder. But I think it's not that great of a boost.

    Ideas? I kind of want to try this out and see how it goes for myself instead of sticking to textbook sets.
     
    Brane said:
    Okay, so I've got all my Pokemon and it's looking pretty good right now. I changed up the EV spread on my Vileplume to give it a bit of a boost in Special Attack because that stat got increased, meaning I should be able to deal a little bit more damage while still being slightly bulky.

    I didn't realise how bulky that Spiritomb would be either, it's pretty damn good.

    The real question I have is Absol, at the moment I'm not 100% happy with the set I'm running. I was thinking of maybe running a mixed set? I got my hands on a Naive Absol and a Rash one. I'm leaning slightly towards the Rash because it does have quite a large movepool.

    Essentially I'm wondering what sets to run with either one. A Naive at the moment would be something like Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 SAtk
    Naive Nature
    - Swords Dance
    - Sucker Punch
    - Play Rough
    - Thunder

    I changed Fire Blast to Thunder because I want to hit those Bulky water types that might want to come in. While it also gets coverage on Flying and hits a lot of stuff neutral. But I can always swap that.

    But what would a mixed set look like?

    Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 172 Atk / 84 SAtk??
    Rash
    - Fire Blast
    - Thunder
    - Play Rough/Megahorn
    - Sucker Punch/Dark Pulse/Night Slash

    Fire/Electric/Fairy/Dark gets a huge amount of coverage. The question I have is really Dark Pulse, is it worth having? It has the advantage of being able to hit all the time, but Sucker Punch will be stronger. Is Calm Mind worth having on the set? It might put people off in thinking that it's going to be primarily physical before it shoots off a Fire Blast or Thunder. But I think it's not that great of a boost.

    Ideas? I kind of want to try this out and see how it goes for myself instead of sticking to textbook sets.
    Click to expand...

    Fire Blast is still preferred so that Mega Absol hits Steels Pokemon harder. Though Dark hits Steel neutrally now, the harder hit on Steels with Fire Blast is and always will be preferred; Thunder is also inaccurate outside of rain. Sucker Punch and Play Rough still hit Water Pokemon hard.

    Physically-based Absol is still preferred, no matter how tempting the Special Attack boost its Mega form has is. Dark STAB from 150 Attack hits harder than Dark STAB from 115 Special Attack, obviously.
     
    PlatinumDude said:
    Fire Blast is still preferred so that Mega Absol hits Steels Pokemon harder. Though Dark hits Steel neutrally now, the harder hit on Steels with Fire Blast is and always will be preferred; Thunder is also inaccurate outside of rain. Sucker Punch and Play Rough still hit Water Pokemon hard.

    Physically-based Absol is still preferred, no matter how tempting the Special Attack boost its Mega form has is. Dark STAB from 150 Attack hits harder than Dark STAB from 115 Special Attack, obviously.
    Click to expand...

    Yeah obviously :P. Was more of a slight thought. Just realised how bad Thunders accuracy is. I don't really understand the logic in Fire Blast having more accuracy then the other 2 but I guess you have to work with what you have. I still want to try a mixed set even just to see whether it is that unreliable. So how about Fire Blast/Thunderbolt/Play Rough/Sucker Punch? Those four types have huge coverage hitting 512 Pokemon super effectively and 262 normally while having nothing that can resist all of the moves.

    Right now I'm just wondering what EV spread? I'm still thinking below because it maxes out Attack while boosting it's already big attack stat but also slightly boosting Sp. Attack which gets a % increase from Rash.

    Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 172 Atk / 84 SAtk
    Rash
    - Fire Blast
    - Thunderbolt
    - Play Rough
    - Sucker Punch
     
    Brane said:
    Yeah obviously :P. Was more of a slight thought. Just realised how bad Thunders accuracy is. I don't really understand the logic in Fire Blast having more accuracy then the other 2 but I guess you have to work with what you have. I still want to try a mixed set even just to see whether it is that unreliable. So how about Fire Blast/Thunderbolt/Play Rough/Sucker Punch? Those four types have huge coverage hitting 512 Pokemon super effectively and 262 normally while having nothing that can resist all of the moves.

    Right now I'm just wondering what EV spread? I'm still thinking below because it maxes out Attack while boosting it's already big attack stat but also slightly boosting Sp. Attack which gets a % increase from Rash.

    Absol @ Absolite
    Ability: Justified
    Shiny: Yes
    EVs: 252 Spd / 172 Atk / 84 SAtk
    Rash
    - Fire Blast
    - Thunderbolt
    - Play Rough
    - Sucker Punch
    Click to expand...
    As I mentioned before, physically-based Absol is preferred. You're giving up the utility of Pursuit (or the reliability of Night Slash), as well as the potential to make yourself stronger with Swords Dance by using Thunderbolt.
     
    PlatinumDude said:
    As I mentioned before, physically-based Absol is preferred. You're giving up the utility of Pursuit (or the reliability of Night Slash), as well as the potential to make yourself stronger with Swords Dance by using Thunderbolt.
    Click to expand...

    Yeah I guess you're right. Wanted to see how it would fend. I guess I'll stick with just the Fire Blast. In terms of the EV spread though, should I bother investing slightly in Sp Atk anyhow?
     
    Brane said:
    Yeah I guess you're right. Wanted to see how it would fend. I guess I'll stick with just the Fire Blast. In terms of the EV spread though, should I bother investing slightly in Sp Atk anyhow?
    Click to expand...

    Absol is meant to be a physical attacker, so 252 EVs should go into Attack and Speed, with the last 4 in Special Attack.

    Edit: in case you were wondering about Pangoro, it should be used only for Parting Shot:
    -Sky Uppercut/Storm Throw
    -Crunch
    -Poison Jab/Stone Edge
    -Parting Shot
    Nature: Jolly
    EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
    Item: Choice Scarf
    Ability: Iron Fist/Scrappy
     
    PlatinumDude said:
    Absol is meant to be a physical attacker, so 252 EVs should go into Attack and Speed, with the last 4 in Special Attack.

    Edit: in case you were wondering about Pangoro, it should be used only for Parting Shot:
    -Sky Uppercut/Storm Throw
    -Crunch
    -Poison Jab/Stone Edge
    -Parting Shot
    Nature: Jolly
    EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
    Item: Choice Scarf
    Ability: Iron Fist/Scrappy
    Click to expand...

    Awesome, it's definitely a Pokemon I want to rotate later so I'll get this set down, thanks!
     
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