Asphalt Cocktail
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]lanturn[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate]
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]lanturn[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate]
intro
Asphalt Cocktail (I like that name.) Was written by John Mackey, and that song suits this team almost perfectly. When first listening to it, it appears to be absolute mayhem; random melodies with no common purpose, and no plot behind the song. That was what this challenge was like for me. All of my go-to Pokémon were not allowed for the challenge, so I was at a complete loss with where to start. Eventually, the song begins to make sense, and you can see that despite the weird timing and obscure sounds, it actually forms a coherent song, and that's what this team was really designed for. Using the obscure Pokémon that nobody likes, and making a coherent strategy around it.
So this challenge I speak of was a rather unique UU challenge on Smogon. The goal was to climb the ladder using all of the lesser-known threats in UU play. Now me, always having idolized [member]gamercal[/member] in my n00b days, loved the idea of this challenge, as it would test unique teambuilding strategies, and we would all be forced to use Pokémon nobody really sees in UU play. This was also a challenge for me because I tend to use a lot of the same Pokémon when I build successful UU teams. I could no longer rely on Snorlax to switch into Chandelure and Raikou 100% of the time. The challenge rules were as follows:
1. Climb the ladder as high as you can. (lol obviously.) highest rating wins.
2. You may not use Pokémon that were in the Top 30 of the UU tier for September's usage statistics.
3. You may not use any Pokémon that were in the Top 10 of the RU tier for September's usage statistics.
4. You may not use BL2 Pokémon (fuuuuu Venomoth.)
5. You may not use any of the new drop downs (Tornadus, Virizion, Mew, and Meleotta.)
Here are the UU stats for refrence, just so everybody knows what i was and wasn't allowed to use. I'd post to RU, but I only wasn't allowed to use 10 mons, and the only important ones were Slowking, Sceptile, Uxie, Nidoqueen, and obviously, Cofagrigus.
2. You may not use Pokémon that were in the Top 30 of the UU tier for September's usage statistics.
3. You may not use any Pokémon that were in the Top 10 of the RU tier for September's usage statistics.
4. You may not use BL2 Pokémon (fuuuuu Venomoth.)
5. You may not use any of the new drop downs (Tornadus, Virizion, Mew, and Meleotta.)
kokoloko said:
Here are the UU stats for refrence, just so everybody knows what i was and wasn't allowed to use. I'd post to RU, but I only wasn't allowed to use 10 mons, and the only important ones were Slowking, Sceptile, Uxie, Nidoqueen, and obviously, Cofagrigus.
I peaked at a rating of 1808 with this team which was inside Top 10 at the time (lol ladder resets.) Today that would JUST miss the top 25, which is still kinda good. The team finishes with an overall record of 48-16, with a rating of 1774 (so not too far off of my peak.), grabbing me the victory in the challenge. Anyways, onto the temabuilding process!
Teambuilding
[animate]sharpedo[/animate]
I started with Sharpedo. I knew the team would have to be offensive, there simply weren't enough walls left in the UU tier to make a successful stall team. (unless you're named Pride.) I started with Sharpedo just because it has the potential to turn entire matches around, even when you've been losing the entire time.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate]
I added Froslass to use Spikes. The only other spikers that I could use were Qwilfish or Omastar, neither of which are decently suited for all-out offensive teams when they waste moveslots on hazards. After experimenting, I am at a total loss of words as to why Froslass is not within the top 30.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate]
I added Gligar for Stealth Rock. The only reason I added Gligar was because it was better than Claydol as far as Stealth Rock was concerned, and it was still a more than good switch-in for Heracross.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate]
I added Mismagius because I am not smart enough to have Froslass spinblock for itself. I know with Pain Split it is possible, I just don't have the skillset to pull it off. I'd rather just throw a 2nd ghost on and go suicidal with Froslass.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]weavile[/animate]
I knew I needed priority, and I wanted something to help break through tough physical walls, so I knew I needed another physical Pokémon. I immediately thought of Arcanine, but of course I can't use it. I threw weavile on just because I was starting to get Zapdos weak and Togekiss weak.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]weavile[/animate]
Sableye is the bane of physical offense's existence. So I knew I needed a special attacker that could scare it off, or straight out KO it. I added CutTom because Leaf Storm hit hard.
This was the first version of the team that I used extensively before the double ladder reset, which actually worked to my advantage.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate]
I didn't like weavile (granted I was probably using it wrong.) but I switched to honchkrow because I noticed that Honchkrow's STAB Sucker Punch has just as much base power as a super effective Ice Shard from Weavile. So with Honchkrow's base 125 Attack compared to Weavile's 120, it actually hits everything harder except for Flygon. I also liked that Honchkrow could put a decent dent into Bronzong.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate][animate]lanturn[/animate]
I was still weak to Zapdos, so I switched CutTom to Lanturn. It took me a few tries, but I got a decent set, and it has worked wonders for me. A great pivot that can keep momentum going in my favor, and grabs many unsuspecting victims.
I started with Sharpedo. I knew the team would have to be offensive, there simply weren't enough walls left in the UU tier to make a successful stall team. (unless you're named Pride.) I started with Sharpedo just because it has the potential to turn entire matches around, even when you've been losing the entire time.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate]
I added Froslass to use Spikes. The only other spikers that I could use were Qwilfish or Omastar, neither of which are decently suited for all-out offensive teams when they waste moveslots on hazards. After experimenting, I am at a total loss of words as to why Froslass is not within the top 30.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate]
I added Gligar for Stealth Rock. The only reason I added Gligar was because it was better than Claydol as far as Stealth Rock was concerned, and it was still a more than good switch-in for Heracross.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate]
I added Mismagius because I am not smart enough to have Froslass spinblock for itself. I know with Pain Split it is possible, I just don't have the skillset to pull it off. I'd rather just throw a 2nd ghost on and go suicidal with Froslass.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]weavile[/animate]
I knew I needed priority, and I wanted something to help break through tough physical walls, so I knew I needed another physical Pokémon. I immediately thought of Arcanine, but of course I can't use it. I threw weavile on just because I was starting to get Zapdos weak and Togekiss weak.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]weavile[/animate]
Sableye is the bane of physical offense's existence. So I knew I needed a special attacker that could scare it off, or straight out KO it. I added CutTom because Leaf Storm hit hard.
This was the first version of the team that I used extensively before the double ladder reset, which actually worked to my advantage.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate]
I didn't like weavile (granted I was probably using it wrong.) but I switched to honchkrow because I noticed that Honchkrow's STAB Sucker Punch has just as much base power as a super effective Ice Shard from Weavile. So with Honchkrow's base 125 Attack compared to Weavile's 120, it actually hits everything harder except for Flygon. I also liked that Honchkrow could put a decent dent into Bronzong.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate][animate]froslass[/animate][animate]gligar[/animate][animate]mismagius[/animate][animate]honchkrow[/animate][animate]lanturn[/animate]
I was still weak to Zapdos, so I switched CutTom to Lanturn. It took me a few tries, but I got a decent set, and it has worked wonders for me. A great pivot that can keep momentum going in my favor, and grabs many unsuspecting victims.
The Team in-depth
[animate]froslass[/animate]
WhiteQueen (Froslass) @Focus Sash
Trait: Cursed Body
Timid Nature
4 HP/252 SpAtk/252 Spe
~Spikes
~Ice Beam
~Taunt
~Destiny Bond
Froslass is what I lead with against every single team that doesn't use Sableye. I even lead it against Ambipom because it's easier to switch Gligar into Payback than it is to let it eat a Fake Out, potentially boosted by either Silk Scarf, Choice Band, or Life Orb. Froslass with a Focus Sash is guranteed a layer of spikes against anything that can't taunt it, which is only Crobat, Azelf, Sableye, and Tornadus, 2 of which are weak to Ice Beam. I also chose Froslass because the only thing that can keep Hazards away in UU is Xatu, which is also weak to Ice Beam. Anyways, Froslass is guranted 1 layer of Spikes against everything, and normally gets 2 because a maximum invested base 110 Speed is not beaten by much. I would also like to note that most Froslass don't run max speed, so I can actually Taunt them before they Taunt me most of the time. Spikes is vital for almost all of my games, the difference between 1 and 2 layers has cost me multiple matches. Ice Beam is there because, like I said, it hits Tornadus, Crobat, and Xatu. I chose Destiny Bond in the last slot because it gives me the opportunity to bring down multiple threats that can sometimes be too bulky to wear down normally, like Swampert, Bronzong, or Blastoise. It also forces switches sometimes, and can land me a few extra layers of Spikes. It also works well with Taunt, sometimes forcing Pokémon to attack and KO.
[animate]gligar[/animate]
Batman (Gligar) @Eviolite
Trait: Immunity
Impish nature
252 HP/252 Def/4 SpDef
~Stealth Rock
~Earthquake
~Toxic
~Roost
This is a boring ol' standard Gligar, but it does its job flawlessly. Switches into all Heracross that aren't Guts + Swords Dance, and sets up Stealth Rock consistently. Toxic is cool to nail Blastoise as it switches in, thinking it's just going to get a free Rapid Spin. Roost is for instant recovery, and it also nukes Gligar's 4X weakness to Ice temporarily, which saves its skin on a lot of occaisons. Earthquake is just because there wasn't much else to put in here. I originally had U-turn to try and maintain momentum, but I found myself predicting too much and getting Stealth Rock up too little. Earthquake is also a decent attack, even when uninvested, and it still hits Cobalion, Darmanitan, and Arcanine for a good amount. It's also good for taking that last chunk of health off of things like Swampert or Blastoise who often don't invest in Speed. Gligar's nice base 85 speed lets me outrun quite a few really slow threats.
[animate]honchkrow[/animate]
Snipe (Honchkrow) @Life Orb
Trait: Moxie
Adamant Nature
252 Atk/4 Def/252 Spe
~Sucker Punch
~Brave Bird
~Superpower
~Pursuit
Despite being named after the affectionate creature from the movie "Up", Honchkrow is quite the opposite in matches. Honchkrow is a phenomenal physical attacker in UU. Brave Bird off of Adamant and maximum Attack will hit as hard as an atom-bomb, and Superpower covers the types that resist it. Honchkrow's defenses are already so pitiful that it doesn't really mind the drop. Sucker Punch also provides STAB, and is the key to defeating many Pokémon like Crobat or Flygon, who think they have a free kill. Pursuit was a rather custom addition to the set, most of the time you see either Roost or Heat Wave. I originally had Heat Wave to nail Bronzong as well as Roserade and Shaymin without taking Brave Bird's recoil, but Xatu was harassing my team. Even with Froslass, if played right, it could switch in and out and potentially deflect hazards. Like I said earlier, the difference between 1 and 2 layers of spikes could cost me the game. So I implemented Pursuit on Honchkrow to make sure that Xatu stayed away. It was also a unique move for taking out Chandelures that mindlessly lock themselves into Energy Ball. Honchkrow definitely wins the title of "opportunist supreme." Multiple times, off of one simple play mistake by my opponent, Honchkrow would grab an extra Moxie boost that turned what i expected to be 1 KO into 3 or 4. It feeds off of play mistakes. Honchkrow also deserves to be much higher than 32nd in usage stats, I really do hope to see this thing rise. I have no clue how this started in RU.
[animate]mismagius[/animate]
Siren (Mismagius) @Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
Timid Nature
4 HP/252 SpATk/252 Spe
~Nasty Plot
~Shadow Ball
~Thunderbolt
~Taunt
I hijacked gamercal's old nickname for Mismagius, we use the same set of Nasty Plot/Shadow Ball/Thunderbolt. I'm not sure if he used Taunt or HP Fighting for DPP OU though with Tyranitar being present and all. Either way, I hijacked the nickname and Mismagius proved itself. Nasty Plot seems like a terrible idea, what with Cofagrigus being released and such. I did however appreciate the fact that Mismagius didn't need to waste a 2nd turn to get up Trick Room...and besides, it's not like I was going to use Dusclops. With 3 immunities and a key resistance (bug), Mismagius finds multiple opportunities to set up Nasty Plot and run through a few Pokémon. Much like Honchkrow, Mismagius's goal wasn't neccessarily to sweep through the opposing team, just to put a dent in some bulky Pokémon. (Like porygon2, Snorlax, or Bronzong.) But often, my opponents made play mistakes that I could capitalize on and then proceed to sweep. Shadow Ball is the obligatory STAB move. Ghost really needs a base 95 power move, like Thunderbolt and Surf and whatnot. Or at least a 120 with shaky accuracy. (screw Hex.) Thunderbolt was to cover Water-types who expected me to have HP Fighting instead. It was pretty good for nabbing KO's on Empoleon and Blastoise who didn't expect it. Taunt was just because I didn't want to use HP Fighting, I didn't feel it did enough to Umbreon or Snorlax to really be worthy of a moveslot. I just threw Taunt on to prevent stuff like Porygon2 from using Recover, although it did often prevent surprise Spikes and Toxic Spikes from getting set up late-game. Mismagius was originally just thrown on as something to spinblock after Froslass was KO'd, but it has proved to be much more valuable than I realized.
[animate]lanturn[/animate]
Blake (lanturn) @Choice Specs
Trait: Volt Absorb
Modest nature
136 HP/252 SpAtk/120 Spe
~Volt Switch
~Thunderbolt
~Ice Beam
~Hydro Pump
Lanturn nabs many surprise KO's, including against Sableye, which is potentially the most important. It does upwards of 80% with Hydro Pump, so with just 1 layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock, I can reliably OHKO it. Hydro Pump also does not a huge amount, but a respectable amount to Pokémon like Bronzong and Snorlax as they come in. Volt Switch is huge, I can switch out of an incoming Roserade or Shaymin, and get Honchkrow in for free (which is kind of important considering the apalling defenses it has.) Volt Switch has a surprise factor to it as well, most people don't expect Lanturn at all, let alone one that is offensive. Ice Beam nails Roserade and Shaymin if they try to switch in, it also nails Virizion which is a big deal. Thunderbolt is just there because it's more powerful than Volt Switch and I have nothing better to add. I considered Hidden Power Grass, but the only thing it hits is Swampert and Quagsire (lol), and I figured Hydro Pump would do enough damage to them anyways. Specs Lanturn is a very surprising threat to people that expect weak Scalds and maybe a Cleric. Substitute + Charge Beam at worst. Lanturn has won me quite a few games, and it was the exact Zapdos counter I was looking for.
[animate]sharpedo[/animate]
Jaws (Sharpedo) @Life Orb
Trait: Speed Boost
Adamant Nature
252 Atk/4 Def/252 Spe
~Crunch
~Waterfall
~Earthquake
~Protect
So when I heard we weren't going to use the top 30 threats in UU, I assumed I would have no extremely threatening sweepers. Then I realized that this was not just outside of the top 30, but was sitting at 48th. This is a true waste of extreme potential. Why this Pokémon is not sitting even inside the top 45, when pitiful Pokémon like Ambipom and Dusclops are will never cease to amaze me. This Pokémon has singlehandedly turned entire matches in my favor. I know of at least two cases where I was down 2-6 and won 2-0, and a third where I came back from 3-6 to 3-0. Don't waste potent offensive threats like Sharpedo. Anyways I picked an adamant nature because with Adamant, I have enough speed to outrun all base 80 and higher, aka Chandelure and Togekiss. (and I guess Milotic with base 81 rofl.) I knew I was going to lose to Rotom and Heracross, but I needed as much power as possible. Besides, I still beat them if I could get to +1 before they came in. Crunch hit Ghost-types, and it also hits Meleotta and Mew, two of the newer dropdowns, so it was vital. Waterfall is a backup STAB that hits fire-types, Rhyperior, Gligar, and has a random 20% flinch rate that has won me games. (which I am not proud of. But still.) Earthquake is the option I selected for my coverage move, as it hits Cobalion and Raikou. Ice Fang is sometimes used for Flygon, Shaymin, and other Flying-types, but I figured that Stealth Rock and just a tad of support would be enough for Waterfall to KO. Protect is obviously the last move as it grabs a free +1 from Speed Boost. Sharpedo is a threatening sweeper, and it should not be overlooked for any team. Seriously, 48th is just a disgrace to the good name of Sharpedo.
Conclusion and Exportable
So there you have it. The challenge team. Once again, I'll give you all an exportable version of the team if you wish to use it. I only ask that you keep the nicknames. Also note that Gligar, Honchkrow, and Lanturn are all in their Shiny versions on my team, so please keep those the same as well. Overall this was a very unique challenge to participate in. I'd love to bring similar challenges to PokeBeach for the OU tier or other tiers, as it would promote activity and we could potentially get good discussion going about underrated threats. Lastly, I think this team proves how awesome of a metagame UU is. Even without the top 30, it is still possible to create a consistent team that can ladder to great heights. UU is a great tier, and has a vast metagame that allows for many varying team styles. I won't unfortunately be doing a threatlist for this RMT, because most of it would read "set up 2 layers of spikes, stealth rock, and then KO with Sharpedo." and it would be rather boring.
Exportable:
Jaws (Sharpedo) @ Life Orb
Trait: Speed Boost
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Earthquake
- Protect
White Queen (Froslass) (F) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Cursed Body
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 6 SDef
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Ice Beam
- Taunt
- Destiny Bond
Batman (Gligar) @ Eviolite
Trait: Immunity
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 6 Spd
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Blake (Lanturn) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Volt Absorb
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 136 HP / 252 SAtk / 120 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 Def
- Ice Beam
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Hydro Pump
Siren (Mismagius) @ Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 6 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Taunt
Snipe (Honchkrow) @ Life Orb
Trait: Moxie
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 6 SAtk
Naughty Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Brave Bird
- Superpower
- Pursuit
Trait: Speed Boost
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Waterfall
- Crunch
- Earthquake
- Protect
White Queen (Froslass) (F) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Cursed Body
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 6 SDef
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Ice Beam
- Taunt
- Destiny Bond
Batman (Gligar) @ Eviolite
Trait: Immunity
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 6 Spd
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Earthquake
- Toxic
Blake (Lanturn) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Volt Absorb
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 136 HP / 252 SAtk / 120 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 Def
- Ice Beam
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Hydro Pump
Siren (Mismagius) @ Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 6 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Taunt
Snipe (Honchkrow) @ Life Orb
Trait: Moxie
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 6 SAtk
Naughty Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Brave Bird
- Superpower
- Pursuit
