Retired Veteran getting back into action

[XxTKxX]

Well, its now been 2 years now since i've played pokemon, therefore I don't remember as much from my battling days. My university roommate suggested i get back into it, and well... I am. slowly, though. I thought i would build a team that can easily be transferred on to black/white later on (small edits though), and so I post my first RMT in a long time. please bare with me, as i possibly fail (Also, I do RNG breed, so assume that all IV's are 31 unless i state a certain IV change). The team I'll be making is a Bulky offense team

Team Layout

Analysis


Lead Lucario
@Focus sash
Ability: Inner focus
Nature: Lonely (+Atk,-Def)
Ev's: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
IV's: 0
Moves:
-Close Combat
-Crunch
-Extrememspeed
-Counter

Alright, so here we have a good ol' basic lead lucario (sorry, not very good at the whole "be creative with EV's" thing, so they'll be the sets posted on smogon). I always did have a liking for Lucario, what with his sandstorm/poison/flinch resistance, and weakened stealth rock. Close Combat for STAB against most pokemon, Crunch for hitting psychic/ghost leads, Extremespeed for priority against others, and Counter to OHKO pokemon who use physical super effective moves (Infernape, Metagross, Bronzong, swampert, Machamp, etc. the list is decently long). keep using him till he dies.



(Sorry,couldn't find the correct sprite)
Bulky Rotom-C
@Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Nature: Bold (+Def,-Atk)
Ev's: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 Spe
Moves:
-Thunderbolt/Discharge (yet to decide)
-Shadow Ball
-Will-o-wisp
-Leafstorm

Next, we have our Special bulky tank, Rotom-C. I thank gamefreak for levitate, as it can fight the common ground types and actually stand a decent chance. Thunderbolt for stronger STAB, or I could use Discharge to try spreading paralysis among the opponents team (may do that. My team isn't exactly the fastest). Shadow Ball for dual STAB, and killing off Psychic and ghosts, Will-o-wisp to cripple physical pokemon, in which it will make it even hard to kill my defensive team. Leafstorm is there for a trong grass move to kill off ground/rock/water pokemon that thunderbolt/discharge can't, such as quagsire and swampert. Leftovers to heal as much as i can.



Tank Swampert
@Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
Nature: Relaxed (+Def,-Spe)
Ev's: 252 HP / 216 Def / 40 SpD
Moves:
-Stealth Rock
-Earthquake
-Ice Beam
-Roar/Protect

Ah, Swampert. I've used you before, at least. great Defense pokemon indeed. Electric defense, SR support, able to kill multiple common pokemon such as tyranitar and heatran. Stealth rock for... well, rocks. Derp. Earthquake for a STAB move, and Ice beam to kill grass, and flying pokemon who are immune to earthquake. Again, I've reached a toss up between roar, where i can switch the opponents pokemon to rack up SR damage, or protect for scouting moves.



Choice scarf Heatran
@Choice Scarf
Ability: Flash Fire
Nature: Naive (+Spe,-SpD)
Ev's: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Moves:
-Fire Blast
-Earth Power
-Explosion
-Dragon Pulse/HP Electric

Originally, this was actually a Scarfed Gyarados, but I ran into troubles with dealing fire types, and gyarados was only able to revenge kill oh so often. So, based on a recommendation from smogon and a friend, I was suggested Jirachi or heatran as a replacement. in the end, i chose Heatran as it provides me a stronger, and faster scarf that has the ability to deal with dragon types, and a pokemon to take fire attacks. Fire blast for STAB, earth power to deal with other pokemon like rock, electrics, and other heatran. Explosion as a final retreat or to break walls such as suicune and blissey, and either dragon pulse to deal with dragons like dragonite, kingdra and flygon who could wreck my team, and HP electric to kill the unsuspecting gyarados, bulky water, and other pokemon.



Wish support Vaporeon
@Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
Nature: Bold (+Def,-Atk)
Ev's: 248 HP / 224 Def / 36 SpD
Moves:
-Surf
-Wish
-Toxic
-Protect

So, after much, MUCH testing, Umbreon had to be replaced. I still think i need something that can do some wish support, so i thought of its other evolution, Vaporeon. In the past, I've personally used this set, which not only allows me to heal, but i can actually successfully toxic stall with multiple pokemon. also, this provides another counter to fire pokemon who threaten my team, like infernape and other heatran that swampert can't deal with. Surf for STAB, Wish for healing support, protect for stalling and healing purposes, as well as scouting. Toxic for poisoning the foe, which takes its toll over each turn.


Bulky DD Dragonite
@Leftovers/Life Orb
Ability: Inner Focus
Nature: Adamant (+Atk,-SpA)
Ev's: 252 HP / 44 Atk / 212 Spe
Moves:
-Dragon Dance
-Dragon Claw/Outrage
-Roost
-Fire Punch

And so, we reach the last pokemon on the team. Dragon Dance to power-up Atk/Spe, followed by either Dragon claw/outrage for STAB. Roost for self healing damage recieved from either the opponent, life orb, or confusion damage from outrage. Fire punch on this moveset to deal with multiple steel pokemon that my team would noramlly have troubles with (skarmory, forretress.) only toss up is between a dragon attack and item. Leftovers to heal the bulky dragon, or life orb to do more damage but at a cost of HP. Dragon Claw For a decent STAB, or Outrage for much stronger STAB but then being locked into the move, followed by confusion. tough choice indeed.



Conclusion

So, I now come to my conclusion after typing this for nearly an hour and a half. This team is not meant to be the best, but to help my abilities for teambuilding, as well as a basic team for getting back into competitive play. As i mentioned before, if this team works out I will be trying to bring this into a 5th Gen. team with only slight conversions in the process. If you have any suggestions, tips, advice, threats, etc, please comment below. your thoughts are always welcome. However, please give a full explanation. do not just make a simple statement such as "Needs more scizor", or something along those lines.


~T.K.

[Derpinator]

Wow, didn't see this before. That is really nice how you have it formatted and I will rate it later because I already have one RMT I need to rate.

[XxTKxX]

Why thank you for the format rate. Its the form i've always used for my teams lol

[Derpinator]

Why thank you for the format rate. Its the form i've always used for my teams lol

It really helps make it easy to look at. I am working on the other RMT right now and then I will get to yours. Sorry for taking a while.

[XxTKxX]

No rush. This thread isn't going anywhere :P

[Derpinator]

No rush. This thread isn't going anywhere :P

Thanks, I will try and get to it as soon as possible!

[Derpinator]

Before I start with the rate, I need to bring to your attention that I started competitive battle in Gen V so, although I have some knowledge of Gen IV competitive Pokemon, it may and probably is lacking. So, anything you think doesn't make sense in this rate, just ignore it since you probably have more knowledge of this Gen than I do.



There is no true problem with this Lucario set because it functions just fine, using Counter to take advantage of the Focus Sash. However, it could be more useful to change Counter to Agility. If you made this switch, Lucario would no longer function too effectively as the lead you had in mind, but it could be more deadly in wall breaking or in switching in and predicting a switch out by your opponent, giving you free turns to use Agility. This is, however, completely personal preference because Counter works just fine while Agility allows you to put your first turn to better use, setting up for better use for the rest of the battle, until you run into a priority Pokemon, such as the ever so common Scizor. I posted the set below, just keep in mind that it is pure personal preference and the Counter set works just fine.

Lucario's Moveset

Spoiler

Lucario @ Focus Sash
Trait: Inner focus
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Lonely Nature
-Close Combat
-Crunch
-Extremespeed
-Agility

No real changes here, just telling you what I would chose out of the two moves. Also, just a suggestion, but you should consider using Hydro Pump over Leaf Storm since Leaf Storm is quite useless unless you happen to get paired up against Swampert or Gastrodon, while Hydro Pump hits many more things harder.

Rotom-C Moveset

Spoiler

Rotom-C @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 Spe
Bold Nature
-Thunderbolt / Discharge
-Shadow Ball
-Will-O-wisp
-Leaf Storm / Hydro Pump

The change I am recommending here is something that I found worked better, although that is with my playing style so you may think it worked better before the change. The first change I recommend is changing Stealth Rock to Toxic, which will make more sense once you see the other changes I recommend. Next, change Ice Beam to Waterfall because it gives you another STAB move and allows you to focus on one attack type, physical. Finally, I recommend changing your EV spread to 240 HP / 252 Atk /16 Def because you retain decent bulk while also being able to deal significant damage.

Swampert Moveset

Spoiler

Swampert @ Leftovers
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Def
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Earthquake
- Roar
- Toxic

I truly have nothing to say here as Gyarados has always troubled me when used correctly so I don't see any reason to change what already works great.




I never personally liked Umbreon because it had too many weaknesses and the Pokemon that commonly possess attacks that Umbreon is weak to can usually 2HKO it due to their high offensive stats. So, I'd recommend changing Umbreon to Skarmory as it can effectively wall defensively. Also, it can set up entry hazards and phaze, making the job of Pokemon like Gyarados and Lucario much easier. On top of that, it works well with Blissey, who I am recommending takes place of Dragonite.

Skarmory Moveset

Spoiler

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind

I never liked Dragonite until BW since it was just to easy to OHKO, even with its Special bulk. So, I am recommending that you change Dragonite to Blissey because it has much better bulk and works well with Skarmory. Also, it can set up entry hazards aiding both Swampert and Skarmory in phazing. On top of that, it can cure status on your team, which can be insanely useful. On top of that, it has Softboiled, making it an insanely difficult Pokemon to kill without a physical attacker.

Blissey Moveset

Spoiler

Blissey @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Softboiled
- Seismic Toss
- Aromatherapy / Wish
- Stealth Rock

[XxTKxX]

Thanks for the review, Derp! I'll try this out in PO. If it works out, i'll think about switching it. Also, would you think this team would work well in 5th Gen?

Actually, im looking over again on something on blissey. even with the defense boost, it still leaves it open to OHKO from attacks. wouldn't a better option to have 252 HP instead, making it a special wall that i can switch with skarmory? and on the topic of blissey, should i replace seismic toss with flamethrower? you have no idea how difficult it is to get seismic toss XD

[Derpinator]

Thanks for the review, Derp! I'll try this out in PO. If it works out, i'll think about switching it. Also, would you think this team would work well in 5th Gen?

Actually, im looking over again on something on blissey. even with the defense boost, it still leaves it open to OHKO from attacks. wouldn't a better option to have 252 HP instead, making it a special wall that i can switch with skarmory? and on the topic of blissey, should i replace seismic toss with flamethrower? you have no idea how difficult it is to get seismic toss XD

In regards to Blissey, Flamethrower could work but it would do barely any damage, even if super effective, since Blissey has horrible offensive stats. People usually go with Seismic Toss since it provides a steady 100 damage on everything except for Ghost-types. Also, it allows Blissey to come in and weaken Calm Mind users so that priority attackers or fast attackers can come in and clean them up without taking any damage.
On the topic of EV spread, 252 HP would be overkill in a sense because it already has enormous Special Defence so it can take boosted Special Attacks with ease. The problem is its Defence which you have to maximize to ensure you won't get OHKOed by a physical attack. I don't know the numbers, but it always seemed to me that Blissey took more physical attacks with maximum Defence as opposed to maximum HP. I could provide you with some numbers later, when I get on the computer since I am on a phone right now.
I can go back and review my rate to make it 5th Gen but I'll have to do that on the computer because, once again, I am on a phone and I am making enough typing errors right now so a rate will be difficult to read let alone type.

[Derpinator]

Here are some numbers for Blissey with 252 EVs in Def and 4 EVs in HP and vice versa:

The extreme example:
VS

If Terrakion, with maximum Attack, uses Close Combat and...

...Blissey has 252 HP EVs and 4 Def EVs:

Spoiler

It's super effective (2x)!
Damage: 1628 - 1916 of 714 HP
228% - 268%
Terrakion got STAB on Close Combat
252Atk Terrakion (+Atk) Close Combat vs 252HP/4Def Blissey (+Def): 228% - 268% (1628 - 1916 HP). Guaranteed OHKO.

...Blissey has 4 HP EVs and 252 Def EVs:

Spoiler

It's super effective (2x)!
Damage: 776 - 914 of 652 HP
119% - 140%
Terrakion got STAB on Close Combat
252Atk Terrakion (+Atk) Close Combat vs 4HP/252Def Blissey (+Def): 119% - 140% (776 - 914 HP). Guaranteed OHKO.

But that is an extreme example because Blissey would have been dead either way. Instead, lets look at a more meaningful example:
VS

If Conkeldurr, with maximum Attack, uses Mach Punch and...

...Blissey has 252 HP EVs and 4 Def EVs:

Spoiler

It's super effective (2x)!
Damage: 576 - 680 of 714 HP
80% - 95%
Conkeldurr got STAB on Mach Punch
252Atk Guts Conkeldurr (+Atk) Mach Punch vs 252HP/4Def Blissey (+Def): 80% - 95% (576 - 680 HP). Guaranteed 2HKO.

...Blissey has 4 HP EVs and 252 Def EVs:

Spoiler

It's super effective (2x)!
Damage: 276 - 326 of 652 HP
42% - 50%
Conkeldurr got STAB on Mach Punch
252Atk Guts Conkeldurr (+Atk) Mach Punch vs 4HP/252Def Blissey (+Def): 42% - 50% (276 - 326 HP). Guaranteed 3HKO.

You should probably be able to see what I mean now. If Conkeldurr used Mach Punch, it would have to do so 3 times in all likelihood, dealing about 45% each time on average. That means that Blissey could use Softboiled and constantly regain health, surviving unless a critical hit happened to land on it. I now I am leaving out many factors, such as possible Guts activation and Blissey running out of PP, but, looking at just the numbers, you can see that 252 Defense EVs is definitely worth it. Although it can be argued that Special Attacks will deal more damage now due to less HP, Special Attacks still are no threat, even if boosted because we are talking about Blissey, who seriously thinks Blissey has any reason to be afraid of Special Attacks? Stored Power from an Espeon with maximum Special Attack, +4 Speed, +2 Special Defense and +2 Special Attack almost brought Blissey down to half health, almost. So, Blissey will be adequately prepared if it runs 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef EV spread.