Kevin Garrett Stall
Written by: Kevin Garrett
Introduction:
As you know, I have been a defensive minded player for a long time and realized I have not posted a stall team yet. A lot of stall teams look similar. This has probably been used by other people, including people I have forwarded this team to. The main reason why I am posting this RMT is to share my battling philosophy with the community. I have undoubtedly spent the most amount of time using this and tweaking it than anyone else over the years. Don't think because I put my name in the title means I came up with this combination first because I don't know the answer to that question. This is a showcase for how to form and play stall, though suggestions are welcomed since stall is constantly a work in progress. There is always a different trend in the metagame that demands slight alterations in the team. I will be giving a full analysis of the team because I want anyone to be able to succeed with it. You don't have to read it all if you find it tiring, but I didn't want to spare any details.
For battling strategy, when I play a game of Pokémon I like to have the advantage. A lot of times you hear players talking about needing better prediction. My style in DPP does not demand prediction. If I execute properly I will have the advantage. Having a poor team matchup will result in me having to execute at a higher level. To look at it another way, if you need to predict every move then you don't have the advantage. You are just guessing. By executing at a high level you can know what you are doing because it is less reliant on what move your opponent makes. Then it comes down to moving according to best move your opponent can possibly make. If they move that way, you will maintain the advantage. If they do something else, it is not the best move they could have made anyway and doesn't change the tide of the battle.
I will present you with a successful formula for making stall. In Battling 101, I give users a formula for making teams that breaks it down into Pokemon #1-2, #3-5, and #6. The same idea holds true to form for stall, but the roles are slightly different. Pokemon #1 should be a Pokemon that can lay down Stealth Rock and/or Spikes. You want to keep the opponent off balance from the first turn and that is the best way to do it. Pokemon #2 should be your Spin blocker in order to fulfill functional synergy between the two in your lineup. Pokemon #3-5 is the core of your synergy and more importantly for stall, the backbone of your team. Within this part of the team, you should have another Pokemon to lay entry hazards, depending upon what you had on your lead, a cleric for keeping the team healthy and free of status, and at least one phazer. I prefer having two to minimize the amount of time the opponent can set up. Pokemon #6 is a Pokemon that fills the needs of whatever your team struggles against. This is the piece that changes most drastically between stall teams.
The basic concept of this team is to lay down entry hazards while I deal with the opponent's threats. The reasons why I chose each Pokémon to fill a certain role will be explained in the Closer Look section. Especially in the case of Pokemon #6, I will explain the various changes that have been made throughout my use of this team. I will also show the different EV spreads and move sets I have used for each Pokemon. This team has been very successful for me. I used quite a few versions of this team in Smogon Frontier, where I had an all-time high 90 wins out of 127 games as a Frontier Brain in the last season alone. It also did well on ladder by climbing to #1 on Smogon University's leaderboard with a CRE over 1650. It would have been much higher if my deviation and volatility weren't so low. Disregarding the peak numbers, I have been a fixture in the top 5 of the leaderboard for the last two years and this team has been a major part of my continued success in DPP. Since BW is right around the corner, I figured this would be the perfect time to share my thoughts on this with the community. Enough of the intro, though. Here is the team!
Closer Look:
Hippowdon @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful nature (+SpD, -SpA)
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Roar
- Slack Off
Hippowdon is a good lead for this team to start the game with because it handles all the common leads in conjunction with the rest of the team. Stealth Rock is the most limiting of the entry hazards because it instantly makes players avoid going to Pokémon with a Rock-type weakness early. If they do decide to go to one early, it will have to contend with a stall team at full health. That is far from ideal for sweeping. I generally switch out against leads like Azelf and Aerodactyl since they usually use Taunt on the first move. In certain situations I will stay in since it is not a guarantee they will use it. It depends upon the person I am playing.
For Azelf, Tyranitar is the Pokémon of choice to switch in because Stealth Rock versions will be forced into a corner by the threat of being out sped and the loss of their Focus Sash from Sandstream. I move a similar way for both Aerodactyl and Machamp. The first move I make is a switch to Gyarados. For Aerodactyl, I will use Waterfall as they either use Stealth Rock or a damaging Rock-type move. On the next turn I will go to Forretress for Rapid Spin, in which they will be killed on the same turn if they stay in. For Machamp, I go back to Hippowdon for what is usually Stone Edge since Dynamicpunch only gets 8 PP and they won't waste them so hastily after Gyarados comes in to take one for less than a fifth of its health. After which, I proceed to Stealth Rock.
I like Hippowdon as opposed to Swampert to use Stealth Rock because of Slack Off and bulk. I don't mind losing the ability to hit Flying-types and Levitators to be able to recover the whole game. I am able to depend on it to take more hits than just about anything else on this team. What this set lacks in attacking ability it makes up for in support. Hippowdon is important to have down the stretch of games against offensive teams because it can PP stall weak sweepers to the point where they Struggle and take hits to force switches that will give me the edge in the final moves. Having an extra Sandstream user is also helpful in eliminating Hail teams as well.
Most of the time I used this team I used an EV spread of 252 HP / 146 Def / 108 SpD / 4 Spe with an Impish nature (+Def, -SpA). The first thing you probably noticed when you saw this set is that I am running a lot of Special Defense. I recently switched to it to mess around with lead Heatran, which have increasing begun to hold Choice Specs and Life Orb. The team has been more successful with it overall. The more I used it, the more useful I found it to be. Pain Split Gengar doesn't come close to beating this, which lessens the amount of critical switching I need to make in order to defeat them. Switching into Jirachi is also a lot easier since boosted Psychic attacks do such a small amount. LO Dragonite is now a lot easier to handle as well since it can't 2HKO it at full health without Outrage.
The final point I will make is that this team has a good amount of Defense and Hippowdon's value is still big enough to fend of Dragon Dance Tyranitar as long as it isn't holding Life Orb. Life Orb is easily beaten down by repeated Intimidates on turns it boosts in conjunction with entry hazards, especially with Toxic Spikes out. I am not losing much coverage on physical Dragonite because my normal protocol for defeating it involves a combination of Gyarados, Forretress, and Blissey. The details of which will be explained later. Choice Band Dragonite will manage a 2HKO on Hippowdon, even if it has more Defense EVs, so it's not like I'm losing an option to switch in on it. And finally, Breloom is undoubtedly a common physical attacker in the metagame right now. I rarely used Hippowdon on Breloom due to the amount of damage Seed Bomb would do. In general, Hippowdon sees more opportunities using this spread than it would otherwise.
Rotom-H @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
These days there isn't much of a question who your Spin blocker should be on a defensive team. Rotom-H is perfect for the role because it is immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes and has a movepool that is threatening to a lot of the Rapid Spinners out there. I prefer Shadow Ball over Will-O-Wisp for several reasons. It makes a great switch into other Rotom-A with Will-O-Wisp since they can't do anything to touch you. It is helpful against opposing Stall teams because for most of the game Rotom-A is one of, if not, the most important member of the team. Another reason is because it allows Toxic Spikes to take effect on everything that sensitive to it. The luxury of running two STAB attacks on Rotom-H is that when you use Sleep Talk there is not as much risk involved seeing as though you are more likely than not to use one of them.
Rotom-H is usually my first option against Breloom. I prefer to have Gyarados kept awake for a few reasons. One of those reasons being that it can Roar Breloom out right after it uses Substitute, which is the best way to damage incompetent Breloom users. Another reason is because Gyarados is my first option to go to for a slew of threats and if I am unable to clear Stealth Rock from the field, I have more control over what I can cover when Gyarados is awake or only stuck with a two turn sleep from Rest. Once again, the concept of having dual STAB helps having Rotom-H asleep for more turns because it generally isn't crucial if I get either move. In contrast to Gyarados, who sometimes desperately needs to pull off a Roar. I can't let it roll on a 1/3 chance.
Rotom-H is my first or second option for switching into Gyarados. The reason why I say second is because when my opponent doesn't have Stealth Rock up against me and I see their Gyarados isn't holding Leftovers, I will typically go to my own Gyarados and switch around with Forretress to build up Spikes or Toxic Spikes while their health whittles away. If anything else, it eliminates the possibility of boosted Gyarados 2HKOing Rotom-H with Waterfall after a first turn flinch. I won't go into any more detail over it because Rotom-H is as close to a sure thing of a Gyarados counters as you can get on this team. Just like with Gyarados, Rotom-H is also an optional second option for switching into Scizor. Gyarados is the best if there is no Stealth Rock since it can get off an Intimidate, which comes in handy if they are a Swords Dance set. When Stealth Rock is up and I am holding out on switching Gyarados in, I will go to either Rotom-H or Forretress to take a hit.
The biggest thing Rotom-H does for this team is pose a major threat to opposing Skarmory. A lot of times in stall vs. stall matchups, Rotom-H is crucial for down the stretch. When I keep it healthy and force it on my opponent late game, there is no way they can win. And there have been times I have had it taken out from a critical hit or flinch and I found I really wanted it back late game. That's not to say this team can't beat Skarmory with Rotom-H, it just takes a lot more effort on my part and it results in a longer game. It comes down to keep entry hazards off my side of the field and having it use up all its Roosts while not allowing it to set up anymore Spikes. For other defensive Pokemon it can handle, if Rotom-H is Rested and I still have Forretress around, Taunt Toxic Gliscor isn't a problem at all. And yet another usefulness of Shadow Ball is being able to threaten defensive Celebi.
In more risky business, sometimes when there is a skilled player using a strong offensive team, I will need to use Rotom-H to handle some threats in unconventional ways. The most notable is that if I have shown that I have Scarf Tyranitar and they have shown they have Pain Split Gengar, I will Shadow Ball on the first turn because they don't want to be caught attacking for little damage. Following that, I will switch out to Tyranitar. The temptation for them to use Shadow Ball at this point is great. If they should Substitute again, it's just a matter of biding more time with Hippowdon or Blissey and having it Pain Split the weakest Pokemon at the time. I don't understand how people say Pain Split Gengar beats Blissey because not everyone plays linearly. If you never switch it will, but it's very clear what Gengar needs to do and to move accordingly.
Forretress @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful nature (+SpD, -SpA)
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Payback
Forretress is a vital member of the team because it is the main source of entry hazards. The reason why I use Forretress over Skarmory in this team is because it has two things Skarmory doesn't have: Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin. The team functions worse without Forretress around. It does a little bit of everything between setting up Spikes, taking a resisted attack, or keeping my side of the field clear with Rapid Spin. Payback is obviously there for Rotom-A, but I don't tend to overuse it. I only use it in certain situations because it's not like this team can't beat Rotom-A and in the short and long term I will benefit more from an extra layer or squeaking out a Rapid Spin when they expect me to predict a Rotom-A switch. Sometimes I will even stay in on Rotom-A if they show Leftovers because they will likely just Thunderbolt or Will-o-Wisp and I can get an extra layer in for free and only take a minimal amount of damage. Blissey can take care of the burn with Aromatherapy.
One of my favorite ways to use Forretress is against Taunt Toxic Gliscor. They always think they have this team beat until I start switching around and wasting their PP. The ideal combination against Gliscor is Gyarados and Forretress since Gyarados gets Intimidate on it to drop its Attack to the point where it will run out of Earthquake PP before Forretress is anywhere near weak. Since Gliscor has to stay in to Taunt Forretress, getting off a Rapid Spin is easy. The reason why they stay in is because you can potentially get one or more layers set up for free if they don't. Worst case scenario is that I don't have anything Rested to switch around with against Gliscor. In that case I use a larger combination of Pokemon, usually including Hippowdon, Rotom-H, and Blissey. Forretress is always the centerpiece to this strategy because it requires Gliscor to use Earthquake eventually.
I like to run max Special Defense on Forretress because it gets so much more out of it than if I had a bunch of Defense EVs. Just like Hippowdon, Forretress is naturally a defensive wall even without much additional support. The Steel-typing makes it even better at this than Hippowdon. The things I gain out of having max Special Defense are more opportunities to use Spikes or Rapid Spin. A standard defensive Vaporeon becomes bait for Forretress to come in and do whatever it wants. It also lives most Hidden Power Fire attacks from things like Shaymin, Celebi, and Roserade. Magnezone is obviously a problem, but if they are Substitute with only Thunderbolt, I usually end up getting the advantage out of the situation because I get to set up multiple layers. You might ask why I would stay in on those. I would if I critically need one more layer of something or need to Rapid Spin. Other benefits are being able to switch into Choice Specs Jolteon for anything but Thunderbolt and setting up whatever I need.
In terms of Defense, Forretress is no pushover. My protocol for handling Kingdra is by going to Gyarados for the initial Intimidate drop and then switching out to Forretress to take the Outrage. Sometimes they will Dragon Dance again if they don't think I will Roar, but I'm still not in a bad position against a +1 Kingdra with Forretress. Depending upon the circumstances of the game, I can do a number of things. Usually I just go back and forth between it and Gyarados until its health is low enough to finish it off or for them to Rest. If they have Leftovers, I can't entirely depend on Forretress unless Toxic Spikes are out since Payback doesn't do a lot of damage. Forretress is also my first option for switch to against Choice Band Dragonite since everything else would be taken out in two hits by Outrage.
You can't measure Forretress' achievements in this team by how many kill it gets or how many things it walls. Forretress basically assists on every kill this team gets because the Spikes and Toxic Spikes are invaluable. That's its primary function. I like to lay down Spikes first because they are generally more useful. There are only a few things that require you to lay Toxic Spikes first: against Rain Dance teams or when the opponent has Shaymin or Blissey. The defensive attributes it has are only a bonus to what it does for team support. Forretress is a very important piece to keep healthy in a game against another stall team. You can't win unless they are taking more damage than you. That's why when you use this you need to make sure you are bringing it in at the right time and doing the best thing in the long term. It may look good to Rapid Spin a lot because you can crush an opposing team if you have entry hazards and they don't, but you don't want to end up having less or none in the long run. It's not Forretress' life that is crucial to your success against other stall teams, but it's what it accomplishes and leaves the rest of your team with to fight.
Blissey @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Def / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Calm nature (+SpD, -Atk)
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Aromatherapy
- Toxic
When you are looking for a cleric on your stall team, it's hard to look past Blissey. Its bulk is incredible to put it simply. You don't have to concern yourself over special attacking threats. The only things Blissey can't defeat on its own are ones that have recovery like Suicune and Jirachi, which they don't all the time. The only one I have to worry about getting too many boosts in is Jirachi because if it becomes too powerful I have no way of phazing it. Gyarados can always switch into Suicune and pull of a Roar if it only has Surf or is asleep. That is why I usually leave Calm Mind Jirachi for Hippowdon because it can finish it off easy enough if it hasn't been able to set up. The only other special sweeper Blissey can't beat on its own is Pain Split Gengar seeing as though I only have Seismic Toss and Toxic.
There is one Pokemon in particular that you never need to worry about as long you maintain the entry hazards on your side of the field and make sure you keep Blissey alive. That Pokemon is Empoleon. Even with Torrent and Petaya Berry, Empoleon can't 2HKO Blissey with Hydro Pump. I do like to keep Blissey healthy against Empoleon users because there have been a few rare occurrences of critical hits leading to a 2HKO. As long as you have at least three quarters of your health, Blissey is in fine shape. Empoleon is an important threat for stall to cover because it is one of those threats that can slip your mind, but if you aren't prepared for it, it can annihilate you. As you will read later in the Past Members section, there was a time I used Shaymin over Blissey and Empoleon was one of things that made me face palm when it would get set up.
One thing you might notice about this Blissey moveset is that I use Softboiled and Aromatherapy instead of Wish and Protect. This is just my personal preference. Wish may work better with Forretress and setting up Spikes, but I find so much use for Aromatherapy that I stick with it. If I didn't use it as much, I would likely switch because Wish and Protect can stall out Gengar on its own. However, by having Aromatherapy, it helps Forretress set up because it can take a Will-o-Wisp and I will get a free layer up for just 12% damage. It also supports Tyranitar if there should be some kind of status inflicted on it. If Blissey had Wish and Protect, it would require me to be a lot more conservative when it comes to letting my team switch into Toxic Spikes and other things. As it stands now, I can switch in whatever I want, use Rapid Spin, and heal the status of the team.
Blissey's major defensive assignment, besides those already mentioned, is to deal with pesky Grass-types like Shaymin and Celebi. They irritate the rest of the team, especially Shaymin since I have nothing that is super effective against it. My main defense against them is poison, whether it be from Toxic or Toxic Spikes. I prefer to have it come from Toxic Spikes because it puts them on a timer right away and doesn't require any additional moves from me, which they can use to get healthy with Leech Seed. I could go on and on about how Blissey stop every individual special sweeper, but I'll save the rest of them for the threat list. What I will say in closing this thought is that I like to go to Blissey against defensive Rotom-A and Heatran since neither of them threatens Blissey's life. I specifically mention those two because their other sets can ruin Blissey if misplayed.
Blissey's defensive merit goes beyond that of the special spectrum, though. It can take on Choice Scarf Flygon like a champ as long as it doesn't switch into an attack. It can successfully recover against Earthquake or Outrage, forcing a switch. Toxic is one of my favorite moves to use with Blissey because it can cripple opposing Dragon Dance Dragonite. Make sure its Attack isn't boosted when you do this. That won't work out for obvious reasons. Other things I like to get Toxic on that I haven't mentioned are Swampert and Hippowdon. Blissey can take both of their Earthquakes like it's nothing. As I have already mentioned, some lesser experienced players switch their Breloom into Blissey on a Seismic Toss and get 2HKO'd while only doing about 50% damage with one Seed Bomb.
Gyarados @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Impish nature (+Def, -SpA)
- Waterfall
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Roar
Gyarados is arguably the most valuable player on this team. It handles a bulk of the defensive responsibility. Intimidate is one of the best abilities in the game. Couple that with Gyarados' excellent defensive potential and you have a real menace on your hands. Gyarados is my best answer to most of the heavy sweepers in the OU metagame. Swords Dance Lucario with Life Orb falls short of dealing 40% damage to Gyarados at +1 Attack. I only see Stone Edge on variants with four attacks so that is never a concern for me. Gyarados is also my first option to go to for Infernape. Depending upon its moves, my next course of action can vary. For Swords Dance sets, I will switch to Hippowdon since Stone Edge is the obvious move on their part. Depending upon my health, I do different things against Nasty Plot sets. If I am below 75%, I have to consider going to Blissey and scouting for Close Combat. If they do have Close Combat, then they most likely lack Vacuum Wave, which means Tyranitar can finish it off. For mix sets, I stay in to Waterfall.
I also like to go to Gyarados against Dragon Dancers. The first one I will mention is Dragonite. Depending upon the item, I handle it different ways. If it has Lum Berry, which I assume it has if it doesn't show Leftovers or Life Orb, then I either try to trap it into Outraging Forretress or Roar it away. If it is a Life Orb set, I will not just settle for a Roar. If Dragonite has Leftovers and Roost, then I will usually limit its damage through the game and get some Toxic on it with Blissey at the end of the game. Opposing Gyarados is a slightly different story because I only go to my own Gyarados if they show no Leftovers, as I already stated in the summary for Rotom-H. Kingdra I will only go to if Gyarados is in good enough shape to drop an Intimidate on it since Forretress can do a pretty good job handling them. Tyranitar is the only one I am leery about sending Gyarados into since it can do some significant damage if I don't do it right. I only go to Gyarados if the attack they would use on the Pokemon I have out would be resisted by Gyarados and then I would switch to Hippowdon immediately.
The reason why I say Gyarados is so valuable is not only because of its ability to handle a majority of offensive threats, but because of its function on the team. It is the fastest user of Roar on this team. There are obviously faster in the game, but for the purpose of creating a great niche, Gyarados works like a charm. Its defensive attributes compliment those of Hippowdon nicely. The things they can use Roar on are typically different, although there is an overlap of what they cover. Just to point out another great aspect of this set, when Gyarados is asleep and selects Roar with Sleep Talk, it takes place before the opponent's move if Gyarados outspeeds. This has come in handy countless times. Just like with Rotom-H, I feel confident in Sleep Talk selecting a move I need because Roar is usually just as good as, if not better than, Waterfall.
Another one of the significant threats Gyarados can take on is Breloom. I usually like to let Rotom-H take the Spore so Gyarados can come in before the Substitute to get Intimidate on Breloom and Roar it out before it can recover too much of the damage it took from forming the Substitute with Poison Heal. There are circumstances that I like to have Gyarados asleep for it, though. The way I decide it is by what I can see of the opponent's team at the time. If I need to be using Gyarados a lot in that game, I will let them put Rotom-H asleep. If the situation somehow changes, I can use Aromatherapy with Blissey and alter my strategy. The same thing goes for if I see Rotom-H would be better suited to take on Breloom with its moveset. By this I mean if Breloom has Facade or Stone Edge for some reason, then I would switch things up as I already stated.
When I see a lead Machamp, the first thing I do is switch to Gyarados. They always use Dynamicpunch or Substitute, normally the former. From there I go back to Hippowdon to Stealth Rock. I also use Gyarados as part of the protocol for beating Taunt Toxic Gliscor as I already stated in the Forretress summary. I use it whether it's asleep or not because Intimidate is invaluable for stalling out Gliscor's Earthquake PP. Besides being able to Rest at a later time, I could also squeeze in Aromatherapy with Blissey if it should become poisoned. Gyarados is one of my first options for Jirachi because most of them pack physical moves. If they Calm Mind, then I will go right to Hippowdon. Finally, I like to switch Gyarados into Heatran because it is a more dynamic answer than Blissey. Blissey has to worry about Explosion, but Gyarados doesn't have to worry about dying to it thanks to Intimidate and all its Defense EVs.
Tyranitar @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly nature (+Spe, -SpA)
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
- Superpower
Tyranitar acts as the failsafe to the rest of the team. In some instances, where taking another hit could upset the defensive balance of the team, so Tyranitar can step in and either scare or finish off a threat. A good example to illustrate this point is Mix Dragonite. If I had something slower then I would have to do some careful switching, but with Tyranitar I can just proceed to Stone Edge, Crunch, or Pursuit, depending upon the situation. The same thing applies to Choice Band Dragonite, which can still hit like a truck even when the attack is resisted. The only form of Dragonite Tyranitar can't take on is Dragon Dance if Dragonite already has a boost. I should note that Tyranitar can finish off Dragonite with Dragon Dance, Roost, Outrage, and Fire Blast as long as I get an Intimidate on it.
Aside from late game sweeping, Tyranitar plays a crucial role in the middle of a game with its typing and Speed. If someone has a Life Orb Heatran and I am expecting them to use Fire Blast or Overheat, then Tyranitar is a really good switch in this position. Between entry hazards and Life Orb, Heatran gets to within range where I can consider using Stone Edge, which would completely ruin a switch out to Gyarados, Dragonite, Gengar, Rotom-A, etc. Additionally, I don't have to worry about an Explosion since I outspeed it. If I were to go with Blissey or Gyarados in this situation, I would be playing a risky game of determining the amount of time I can stay in. It greatly depends on the Pokemon the opponent has already seen and what they need to get rid of in order to win. With Tyranitar, that is one position I can avoid.
The most notable thing Choice Scarf Tyranitar does in the current metagame is check and revenge kill Lucario. Obviously, some people use Bullet Punch knowing this, but the majority of players still use Extremespeed. There is much less merit using Bullet Punch on Swords Dance Lucario when you consider the amount of things you can take out with Extremespeed. Aside from Bullet Punch, Tyranitar completely owns Lucario as long as it has a decent amount of health remaining. Another Fighting-type threat I use Tyranitar to revenge kill is Infernape. However, unlike Lucario, I am less comfortable sending Tyranitar in against Infernape since moves like Mach Punch and Vacuum Wave are way more common. As I already stated, I use Gyarados are my primary option. Once I have seen some of its moves I can get a good feel for whether or not it has priority.
I have yet to mention my favorite part of Tyranitar on this team, though. The best thing it does is eliminate opposing Rotom-A. This isn't always done by blindly sending it in the first time I see it. That will lead to you taking a lot of burns from Will-o-Wisp. The first thing I look for against a Rotom-A is what its item is. Sandstorm is extremely valuable in this department. If I see it doesn't have Leftovers, then Tyranitar is my first option. It is possible it could have Will-o-Wisp; I have seen it before. More often than, not they either attack or use Trick, leading to their instant removal by Pursuit. The other thought that contributes to the decision is what form it is. If it is Rotom-W, I may be more leery to send it in on the first sight of it. That would depend on the game's circumstances. As for Rest Talk Rotom-A, what I like to do is uncover its moveset. If it doesn't have Shadow Ball, I can just leave it to Rotom-H. Otherwise, what I will do is get some damage on it either by attacking or getting some Toxic on it with Blissey. Once it's either nearing a Rest or asleep from it, I will spring Tyranitar on it. Keep in mind you have Aromatherapy on Blissey, so switching into a burn is not the end of the world. It's just ideal to back it into a corner and trap it.
There are many things Tyranitar can snipe when they are not entirely healthy. I will go over them all later. For this last part, I will touch on the significance of having two Sand Streamers on a team. First of all, Hippowdon and Tyranitar make great partners against opposing Azelf leads. As I have already said, most of them will run Taunt with Stealth Rock. Focus Sash Azelf are in for a lot of trouble with this combination. Gengar is another important Pokemon Tyranitar can pick off with some smart switching. As I have said before, I can bait it to Shadow Ball with Rotom-H or switch in when it has to use Pain Split to force the issue. Another thing to consider is the amount of success generated by these two against opposing weather teams. Having a backup Sand Streamer is useful beyond words. It makes it virtually impossible for the standard Rain Dance team to win, which can sometimes give stall teams difficulty. Hail and Sun are not seen as much as Rain, but the same idea applies to them as well. It is hard to maintain any form of whether against this team and attempting to set it up usually results in me being able to set up more entry hazards.
Past Members:
I have used Celebi and Shaymin in the 6th slot of this team. Celebi was the original member before I switched to Tyranitar. I used two different movesets with it: Perish Song and Calm Mind. Celebi was a Bold nature (+Def, -Atk) with an EV spread of 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD. On the Calm Mind set I used Energy Ball and Thunder Wave. Shaymin is something I have experimented with more recently. I used it in place of Blissey and Tyranitar, preferring the latter version. For Shaymin, I ran a Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk) with an EV spread of 252 HP / 36 SpA / 220 Spe. The move set was Seed Flare, Earth Power, Leech Seed, and Rest. This team was used for a portion of Smogon Frontier. The idea behind it was that there were a lot of people running Earthworm's latest stall team with Heatran so I figured I would throw in a little surprise for them. Ultimately, Tyranitar proved to be the most valuable 6th member, but both of these Pokemon served their purpose at the time.
Conclusion:
As I stated before, the main reason why I am posting this now is to showcase my favorite team of DPP. I have used more successful teams in the short term with peak numbers, but nothing has been as consistent over a long period of time. I get people asking if I'm still using the same team as I was when they saw me playing a year ago. I tend to stick with success teams for as long as they are good and I am using this all the way to the end of the generation. That says the most about this team. I encourage everyone give stall a chance because it's a wonderful playstyle. Even though this team is almost entirely defensive, you can apply the team building structure I explained in the Intro and build a more balanced version of stall if that suits your interests. I would just like to say thank you to a few people here. I could give a shout out to all my friends, but I will just keep them relevant to the team at hand. Mainly I would like to thank august because we always spent a good amount of time chatting about strategies and team structure. I would also like to thank imperfectluck because watching him play and subsequent practice helped mold me into a proficient stall user. Finally, I would like to thank for Cartoons! for supplying me with some outstanding artwork and Pride and twash for helping me proofread this team.
Written by: Kevin Garrett
Introduction:
As you know, I have been a defensive minded player for a long time and realized I have not posted a stall team yet. A lot of stall teams look similar. This has probably been used by other people, including people I have forwarded this team to. The main reason why I am posting this RMT is to share my battling philosophy with the community. I have undoubtedly spent the most amount of time using this and tweaking it than anyone else over the years. Don't think because I put my name in the title means I came up with this combination first because I don't know the answer to that question. This is a showcase for how to form and play stall, though suggestions are welcomed since stall is constantly a work in progress. There is always a different trend in the metagame that demands slight alterations in the team. I will be giving a full analysis of the team because I want anyone to be able to succeed with it. You don't have to read it all if you find it tiring, but I didn't want to spare any details.
For battling strategy, when I play a game of Pokémon I like to have the advantage. A lot of times you hear players talking about needing better prediction. My style in DPP does not demand prediction. If I execute properly I will have the advantage. Having a poor team matchup will result in me having to execute at a higher level. To look at it another way, if you need to predict every move then you don't have the advantage. You are just guessing. By executing at a high level you can know what you are doing because it is less reliant on what move your opponent makes. Then it comes down to moving according to best move your opponent can possibly make. If they move that way, you will maintain the advantage. If they do something else, it is not the best move they could have made anyway and doesn't change the tide of the battle.
I will present you with a successful formula for making stall. In Battling 101, I give users a formula for making teams that breaks it down into Pokemon #1-2, #3-5, and #6. The same idea holds true to form for stall, but the roles are slightly different. Pokemon #1 should be a Pokemon that can lay down Stealth Rock and/or Spikes. You want to keep the opponent off balance from the first turn and that is the best way to do it. Pokemon #2 should be your Spin blocker in order to fulfill functional synergy between the two in your lineup. Pokemon #3-5 is the core of your synergy and more importantly for stall, the backbone of your team. Within this part of the team, you should have another Pokemon to lay entry hazards, depending upon what you had on your lead, a cleric for keeping the team healthy and free of status, and at least one phazer. I prefer having two to minimize the amount of time the opponent can set up. Pokemon #6 is a Pokemon that fills the needs of whatever your team struggles against. This is the piece that changes most drastically between stall teams.
The basic concept of this team is to lay down entry hazards while I deal with the opponent's threats. The reasons why I chose each Pokémon to fill a certain role will be explained in the Closer Look section. Especially in the case of Pokemon #6, I will explain the various changes that have been made throughout my use of this team. I will also show the different EV spreads and move sets I have used for each Pokemon. This team has been very successful for me. I used quite a few versions of this team in Smogon Frontier, where I had an all-time high 90 wins out of 127 games as a Frontier Brain in the last season alone. It also did well on ladder by climbing to #1 on Smogon University's leaderboard with a CRE over 1650. It would have been much higher if my deviation and volatility weren't so low. Disregarding the peak numbers, I have been a fixture in the top 5 of the leaderboard for the last two years and this team has been a major part of my continued success in DPP. Since BW is right around the corner, I figured this would be the perfect time to share my thoughts on this with the community. Enough of the intro, though. Here is the team!
Closer Look:
Hippowdon @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful nature (+SpD, -SpA)
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Roar
- Slack Off
Hippowdon is a good lead for this team to start the game with because it handles all the common leads in conjunction with the rest of the team. Stealth Rock is the most limiting of the entry hazards because it instantly makes players avoid going to Pokémon with a Rock-type weakness early. If they do decide to go to one early, it will have to contend with a stall team at full health. That is far from ideal for sweeping. I generally switch out against leads like Azelf and Aerodactyl since they usually use Taunt on the first move. In certain situations I will stay in since it is not a guarantee they will use it. It depends upon the person I am playing.
For Azelf, Tyranitar is the Pokémon of choice to switch in because Stealth Rock versions will be forced into a corner by the threat of being out sped and the loss of their Focus Sash from Sandstream. I move a similar way for both Aerodactyl and Machamp. The first move I make is a switch to Gyarados. For Aerodactyl, I will use Waterfall as they either use Stealth Rock or a damaging Rock-type move. On the next turn I will go to Forretress for Rapid Spin, in which they will be killed on the same turn if they stay in. For Machamp, I go back to Hippowdon for what is usually Stone Edge since Dynamicpunch only gets 8 PP and they won't waste them so hastily after Gyarados comes in to take one for less than a fifth of its health. After which, I proceed to Stealth Rock.
I like Hippowdon as opposed to Swampert to use Stealth Rock because of Slack Off and bulk. I don't mind losing the ability to hit Flying-types and Levitators to be able to recover the whole game. I am able to depend on it to take more hits than just about anything else on this team. What this set lacks in attacking ability it makes up for in support. Hippowdon is important to have down the stretch of games against offensive teams because it can PP stall weak sweepers to the point where they Struggle and take hits to force switches that will give me the edge in the final moves. Having an extra Sandstream user is also helpful in eliminating Hail teams as well.
Most of the time I used this team I used an EV spread of 252 HP / 146 Def / 108 SpD / 4 Spe with an Impish nature (+Def, -SpA). The first thing you probably noticed when you saw this set is that I am running a lot of Special Defense. I recently switched to it to mess around with lead Heatran, which have increasing begun to hold Choice Specs and Life Orb. The team has been more successful with it overall. The more I used it, the more useful I found it to be. Pain Split Gengar doesn't come close to beating this, which lessens the amount of critical switching I need to make in order to defeat them. Switching into Jirachi is also a lot easier since boosted Psychic attacks do such a small amount. LO Dragonite is now a lot easier to handle as well since it can't 2HKO it at full health without Outrage.
The final point I will make is that this team has a good amount of Defense and Hippowdon's value is still big enough to fend of Dragon Dance Tyranitar as long as it isn't holding Life Orb. Life Orb is easily beaten down by repeated Intimidates on turns it boosts in conjunction with entry hazards, especially with Toxic Spikes out. I am not losing much coverage on physical Dragonite because my normal protocol for defeating it involves a combination of Gyarados, Forretress, and Blissey. The details of which will be explained later. Choice Band Dragonite will manage a 2HKO on Hippowdon, even if it has more Defense EVs, so it's not like I'm losing an option to switch in on it. And finally, Breloom is undoubtedly a common physical attacker in the metagame right now. I rarely used Hippowdon on Breloom due to the amount of damage Seed Bomb would do. In general, Hippowdon sees more opportunities using this spread than it would otherwise.
Rotom-H @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
These days there isn't much of a question who your Spin blocker should be on a defensive team. Rotom-H is perfect for the role because it is immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes and has a movepool that is threatening to a lot of the Rapid Spinners out there. I prefer Shadow Ball over Will-O-Wisp for several reasons. It makes a great switch into other Rotom-A with Will-O-Wisp since they can't do anything to touch you. It is helpful against opposing Stall teams because for most of the game Rotom-A is one of, if not, the most important member of the team. Another reason is because it allows Toxic Spikes to take effect on everything that sensitive to it. The luxury of running two STAB attacks on Rotom-H is that when you use Sleep Talk there is not as much risk involved seeing as though you are more likely than not to use one of them.
Rotom-H is usually my first option against Breloom. I prefer to have Gyarados kept awake for a few reasons. One of those reasons being that it can Roar Breloom out right after it uses Substitute, which is the best way to damage incompetent Breloom users. Another reason is because Gyarados is my first option to go to for a slew of threats and if I am unable to clear Stealth Rock from the field, I have more control over what I can cover when Gyarados is awake or only stuck with a two turn sleep from Rest. Once again, the concept of having dual STAB helps having Rotom-H asleep for more turns because it generally isn't crucial if I get either move. In contrast to Gyarados, who sometimes desperately needs to pull off a Roar. I can't let it roll on a 1/3 chance.
Rotom-H is my first or second option for switching into Gyarados. The reason why I say second is because when my opponent doesn't have Stealth Rock up against me and I see their Gyarados isn't holding Leftovers, I will typically go to my own Gyarados and switch around with Forretress to build up Spikes or Toxic Spikes while their health whittles away. If anything else, it eliminates the possibility of boosted Gyarados 2HKOing Rotom-H with Waterfall after a first turn flinch. I won't go into any more detail over it because Rotom-H is as close to a sure thing of a Gyarados counters as you can get on this team. Just like with Gyarados, Rotom-H is also an optional second option for switching into Scizor. Gyarados is the best if there is no Stealth Rock since it can get off an Intimidate, which comes in handy if they are a Swords Dance set. When Stealth Rock is up and I am holding out on switching Gyarados in, I will go to either Rotom-H or Forretress to take a hit.
The biggest thing Rotom-H does for this team is pose a major threat to opposing Skarmory. A lot of times in stall vs. stall matchups, Rotom-H is crucial for down the stretch. When I keep it healthy and force it on my opponent late game, there is no way they can win. And there have been times I have had it taken out from a critical hit or flinch and I found I really wanted it back late game. That's not to say this team can't beat Skarmory with Rotom-H, it just takes a lot more effort on my part and it results in a longer game. It comes down to keep entry hazards off my side of the field and having it use up all its Roosts while not allowing it to set up anymore Spikes. For other defensive Pokemon it can handle, if Rotom-H is Rested and I still have Forretress around, Taunt Toxic Gliscor isn't a problem at all. And yet another usefulness of Shadow Ball is being able to threaten defensive Celebi.
In more risky business, sometimes when there is a skilled player using a strong offensive team, I will need to use Rotom-H to handle some threats in unconventional ways. The most notable is that if I have shown that I have Scarf Tyranitar and they have shown they have Pain Split Gengar, I will Shadow Ball on the first turn because they don't want to be caught attacking for little damage. Following that, I will switch out to Tyranitar. The temptation for them to use Shadow Ball at this point is great. If they should Substitute again, it's just a matter of biding more time with Hippowdon or Blissey and having it Pain Split the weakest Pokemon at the time. I don't understand how people say Pain Split Gengar beats Blissey because not everyone plays linearly. If you never switch it will, but it's very clear what Gengar needs to do and to move accordingly.
Forretress @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful nature (+SpD, -SpA)
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Payback
Forretress is a vital member of the team because it is the main source of entry hazards. The reason why I use Forretress over Skarmory in this team is because it has two things Skarmory doesn't have: Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin. The team functions worse without Forretress around. It does a little bit of everything between setting up Spikes, taking a resisted attack, or keeping my side of the field clear with Rapid Spin. Payback is obviously there for Rotom-A, but I don't tend to overuse it. I only use it in certain situations because it's not like this team can't beat Rotom-A and in the short and long term I will benefit more from an extra layer or squeaking out a Rapid Spin when they expect me to predict a Rotom-A switch. Sometimes I will even stay in on Rotom-A if they show Leftovers because they will likely just Thunderbolt or Will-o-Wisp and I can get an extra layer in for free and only take a minimal amount of damage. Blissey can take care of the burn with Aromatherapy.
One of my favorite ways to use Forretress is against Taunt Toxic Gliscor. They always think they have this team beat until I start switching around and wasting their PP. The ideal combination against Gliscor is Gyarados and Forretress since Gyarados gets Intimidate on it to drop its Attack to the point where it will run out of Earthquake PP before Forretress is anywhere near weak. Since Gliscor has to stay in to Taunt Forretress, getting off a Rapid Spin is easy. The reason why they stay in is because you can potentially get one or more layers set up for free if they don't. Worst case scenario is that I don't have anything Rested to switch around with against Gliscor. In that case I use a larger combination of Pokemon, usually including Hippowdon, Rotom-H, and Blissey. Forretress is always the centerpiece to this strategy because it requires Gliscor to use Earthquake eventually.
I like to run max Special Defense on Forretress because it gets so much more out of it than if I had a bunch of Defense EVs. Just like Hippowdon, Forretress is naturally a defensive wall even without much additional support. The Steel-typing makes it even better at this than Hippowdon. The things I gain out of having max Special Defense are more opportunities to use Spikes or Rapid Spin. A standard defensive Vaporeon becomes bait for Forretress to come in and do whatever it wants. It also lives most Hidden Power Fire attacks from things like Shaymin, Celebi, and Roserade. Magnezone is obviously a problem, but if they are Substitute with only Thunderbolt, I usually end up getting the advantage out of the situation because I get to set up multiple layers. You might ask why I would stay in on those. I would if I critically need one more layer of something or need to Rapid Spin. Other benefits are being able to switch into Choice Specs Jolteon for anything but Thunderbolt and setting up whatever I need.
In terms of Defense, Forretress is no pushover. My protocol for handling Kingdra is by going to Gyarados for the initial Intimidate drop and then switching out to Forretress to take the Outrage. Sometimes they will Dragon Dance again if they don't think I will Roar, but I'm still not in a bad position against a +1 Kingdra with Forretress. Depending upon the circumstances of the game, I can do a number of things. Usually I just go back and forth between it and Gyarados until its health is low enough to finish it off or for them to Rest. If they have Leftovers, I can't entirely depend on Forretress unless Toxic Spikes are out since Payback doesn't do a lot of damage. Forretress is also my first option for switch to against Choice Band Dragonite since everything else would be taken out in two hits by Outrage.
You can't measure Forretress' achievements in this team by how many kill it gets or how many things it walls. Forretress basically assists on every kill this team gets because the Spikes and Toxic Spikes are invaluable. That's its primary function. I like to lay down Spikes first because they are generally more useful. There are only a few things that require you to lay Toxic Spikes first: against Rain Dance teams or when the opponent has Shaymin or Blissey. The defensive attributes it has are only a bonus to what it does for team support. Forretress is a very important piece to keep healthy in a game against another stall team. You can't win unless they are taking more damage than you. That's why when you use this you need to make sure you are bringing it in at the right time and doing the best thing in the long term. It may look good to Rapid Spin a lot because you can crush an opposing team if you have entry hazards and they don't, but you don't want to end up having less or none in the long run. It's not Forretress' life that is crucial to your success against other stall teams, but it's what it accomplishes and leaves the rest of your team with to fight.
Blissey @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Def / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Calm nature (+SpD, -Atk)
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Aromatherapy
- Toxic
When you are looking for a cleric on your stall team, it's hard to look past Blissey. Its bulk is incredible to put it simply. You don't have to concern yourself over special attacking threats. The only things Blissey can't defeat on its own are ones that have recovery like Suicune and Jirachi, which they don't all the time. The only one I have to worry about getting too many boosts in is Jirachi because if it becomes too powerful I have no way of phazing it. Gyarados can always switch into Suicune and pull of a Roar if it only has Surf or is asleep. That is why I usually leave Calm Mind Jirachi for Hippowdon because it can finish it off easy enough if it hasn't been able to set up. The only other special sweeper Blissey can't beat on its own is Pain Split Gengar seeing as though I only have Seismic Toss and Toxic.
There is one Pokemon in particular that you never need to worry about as long you maintain the entry hazards on your side of the field and make sure you keep Blissey alive. That Pokemon is Empoleon. Even with Torrent and Petaya Berry, Empoleon can't 2HKO Blissey with Hydro Pump. I do like to keep Blissey healthy against Empoleon users because there have been a few rare occurrences of critical hits leading to a 2HKO. As long as you have at least three quarters of your health, Blissey is in fine shape. Empoleon is an important threat for stall to cover because it is one of those threats that can slip your mind, but if you aren't prepared for it, it can annihilate you. As you will read later in the Past Members section, there was a time I used Shaymin over Blissey and Empoleon was one of things that made me face palm when it would get set up.
One thing you might notice about this Blissey moveset is that I use Softboiled and Aromatherapy instead of Wish and Protect. This is just my personal preference. Wish may work better with Forretress and setting up Spikes, but I find so much use for Aromatherapy that I stick with it. If I didn't use it as much, I would likely switch because Wish and Protect can stall out Gengar on its own. However, by having Aromatherapy, it helps Forretress set up because it can take a Will-o-Wisp and I will get a free layer up for just 12% damage. It also supports Tyranitar if there should be some kind of status inflicted on it. If Blissey had Wish and Protect, it would require me to be a lot more conservative when it comes to letting my team switch into Toxic Spikes and other things. As it stands now, I can switch in whatever I want, use Rapid Spin, and heal the status of the team.
Blissey's major defensive assignment, besides those already mentioned, is to deal with pesky Grass-types like Shaymin and Celebi. They irritate the rest of the team, especially Shaymin since I have nothing that is super effective against it. My main defense against them is poison, whether it be from Toxic or Toxic Spikes. I prefer to have it come from Toxic Spikes because it puts them on a timer right away and doesn't require any additional moves from me, which they can use to get healthy with Leech Seed. I could go on and on about how Blissey stop every individual special sweeper, but I'll save the rest of them for the threat list. What I will say in closing this thought is that I like to go to Blissey against defensive Rotom-A and Heatran since neither of them threatens Blissey's life. I specifically mention those two because their other sets can ruin Blissey if misplayed.
Blissey's defensive merit goes beyond that of the special spectrum, though. It can take on Choice Scarf Flygon like a champ as long as it doesn't switch into an attack. It can successfully recover against Earthquake or Outrage, forcing a switch. Toxic is one of my favorite moves to use with Blissey because it can cripple opposing Dragon Dance Dragonite. Make sure its Attack isn't boosted when you do this. That won't work out for obvious reasons. Other things I like to get Toxic on that I haven't mentioned are Swampert and Hippowdon. Blissey can take both of their Earthquakes like it's nothing. As I have already mentioned, some lesser experienced players switch their Breloom into Blissey on a Seismic Toss and get 2HKO'd while only doing about 50% damage with one Seed Bomb.
Gyarados @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
Impish nature (+Def, -SpA)
- Waterfall
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Roar
Gyarados is arguably the most valuable player on this team. It handles a bulk of the defensive responsibility. Intimidate is one of the best abilities in the game. Couple that with Gyarados' excellent defensive potential and you have a real menace on your hands. Gyarados is my best answer to most of the heavy sweepers in the OU metagame. Swords Dance Lucario with Life Orb falls short of dealing 40% damage to Gyarados at +1 Attack. I only see Stone Edge on variants with four attacks so that is never a concern for me. Gyarados is also my first option to go to for Infernape. Depending upon its moves, my next course of action can vary. For Swords Dance sets, I will switch to Hippowdon since Stone Edge is the obvious move on their part. Depending upon my health, I do different things against Nasty Plot sets. If I am below 75%, I have to consider going to Blissey and scouting for Close Combat. If they do have Close Combat, then they most likely lack Vacuum Wave, which means Tyranitar can finish it off. For mix sets, I stay in to Waterfall.
I also like to go to Gyarados against Dragon Dancers. The first one I will mention is Dragonite. Depending upon the item, I handle it different ways. If it has Lum Berry, which I assume it has if it doesn't show Leftovers or Life Orb, then I either try to trap it into Outraging Forretress or Roar it away. If it is a Life Orb set, I will not just settle for a Roar. If Dragonite has Leftovers and Roost, then I will usually limit its damage through the game and get some Toxic on it with Blissey at the end of the game. Opposing Gyarados is a slightly different story because I only go to my own Gyarados if they show no Leftovers, as I already stated in the summary for Rotom-H. Kingdra I will only go to if Gyarados is in good enough shape to drop an Intimidate on it since Forretress can do a pretty good job handling them. Tyranitar is the only one I am leery about sending Gyarados into since it can do some significant damage if I don't do it right. I only go to Gyarados if the attack they would use on the Pokemon I have out would be resisted by Gyarados and then I would switch to Hippowdon immediately.
The reason why I say Gyarados is so valuable is not only because of its ability to handle a majority of offensive threats, but because of its function on the team. It is the fastest user of Roar on this team. There are obviously faster in the game, but for the purpose of creating a great niche, Gyarados works like a charm. Its defensive attributes compliment those of Hippowdon nicely. The things they can use Roar on are typically different, although there is an overlap of what they cover. Just to point out another great aspect of this set, when Gyarados is asleep and selects Roar with Sleep Talk, it takes place before the opponent's move if Gyarados outspeeds. This has come in handy countless times. Just like with Rotom-H, I feel confident in Sleep Talk selecting a move I need because Roar is usually just as good as, if not better than, Waterfall.
Another one of the significant threats Gyarados can take on is Breloom. I usually like to let Rotom-H take the Spore so Gyarados can come in before the Substitute to get Intimidate on Breloom and Roar it out before it can recover too much of the damage it took from forming the Substitute with Poison Heal. There are circumstances that I like to have Gyarados asleep for it, though. The way I decide it is by what I can see of the opponent's team at the time. If I need to be using Gyarados a lot in that game, I will let them put Rotom-H asleep. If the situation somehow changes, I can use Aromatherapy with Blissey and alter my strategy. The same thing goes for if I see Rotom-H would be better suited to take on Breloom with its moveset. By this I mean if Breloom has Facade or Stone Edge for some reason, then I would switch things up as I already stated.
When I see a lead Machamp, the first thing I do is switch to Gyarados. They always use Dynamicpunch or Substitute, normally the former. From there I go back to Hippowdon to Stealth Rock. I also use Gyarados as part of the protocol for beating Taunt Toxic Gliscor as I already stated in the Forretress summary. I use it whether it's asleep or not because Intimidate is invaluable for stalling out Gliscor's Earthquake PP. Besides being able to Rest at a later time, I could also squeeze in Aromatherapy with Blissey if it should become poisoned. Gyarados is one of my first options for Jirachi because most of them pack physical moves. If they Calm Mind, then I will go right to Hippowdon. Finally, I like to switch Gyarados into Heatran because it is a more dynamic answer than Blissey. Blissey has to worry about Explosion, but Gyarados doesn't have to worry about dying to it thanks to Intimidate and all its Defense EVs.
Tyranitar @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly nature (+Spe, -SpA)
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
- Superpower
Tyranitar acts as the failsafe to the rest of the team. In some instances, where taking another hit could upset the defensive balance of the team, so Tyranitar can step in and either scare or finish off a threat. A good example to illustrate this point is Mix Dragonite. If I had something slower then I would have to do some careful switching, but with Tyranitar I can just proceed to Stone Edge, Crunch, or Pursuit, depending upon the situation. The same thing applies to Choice Band Dragonite, which can still hit like a truck even when the attack is resisted. The only form of Dragonite Tyranitar can't take on is Dragon Dance if Dragonite already has a boost. I should note that Tyranitar can finish off Dragonite with Dragon Dance, Roost, Outrage, and Fire Blast as long as I get an Intimidate on it.
Aside from late game sweeping, Tyranitar plays a crucial role in the middle of a game with its typing and Speed. If someone has a Life Orb Heatran and I am expecting them to use Fire Blast or Overheat, then Tyranitar is a really good switch in this position. Between entry hazards and Life Orb, Heatran gets to within range where I can consider using Stone Edge, which would completely ruin a switch out to Gyarados, Dragonite, Gengar, Rotom-A, etc. Additionally, I don't have to worry about an Explosion since I outspeed it. If I were to go with Blissey or Gyarados in this situation, I would be playing a risky game of determining the amount of time I can stay in. It greatly depends on the Pokemon the opponent has already seen and what they need to get rid of in order to win. With Tyranitar, that is one position I can avoid.
The most notable thing Choice Scarf Tyranitar does in the current metagame is check and revenge kill Lucario. Obviously, some people use Bullet Punch knowing this, but the majority of players still use Extremespeed. There is much less merit using Bullet Punch on Swords Dance Lucario when you consider the amount of things you can take out with Extremespeed. Aside from Bullet Punch, Tyranitar completely owns Lucario as long as it has a decent amount of health remaining. Another Fighting-type threat I use Tyranitar to revenge kill is Infernape. However, unlike Lucario, I am less comfortable sending Tyranitar in against Infernape since moves like Mach Punch and Vacuum Wave are way more common. As I already stated, I use Gyarados are my primary option. Once I have seen some of its moves I can get a good feel for whether or not it has priority.
I have yet to mention my favorite part of Tyranitar on this team, though. The best thing it does is eliminate opposing Rotom-A. This isn't always done by blindly sending it in the first time I see it. That will lead to you taking a lot of burns from Will-o-Wisp. The first thing I look for against a Rotom-A is what its item is. Sandstorm is extremely valuable in this department. If I see it doesn't have Leftovers, then Tyranitar is my first option. It is possible it could have Will-o-Wisp; I have seen it before. More often than, not they either attack or use Trick, leading to their instant removal by Pursuit. The other thought that contributes to the decision is what form it is. If it is Rotom-W, I may be more leery to send it in on the first sight of it. That would depend on the game's circumstances. As for Rest Talk Rotom-A, what I like to do is uncover its moveset. If it doesn't have Shadow Ball, I can just leave it to Rotom-H. Otherwise, what I will do is get some damage on it either by attacking or getting some Toxic on it with Blissey. Once it's either nearing a Rest or asleep from it, I will spring Tyranitar on it. Keep in mind you have Aromatherapy on Blissey, so switching into a burn is not the end of the world. It's just ideal to back it into a corner and trap it.
There are many things Tyranitar can snipe when they are not entirely healthy. I will go over them all later. For this last part, I will touch on the significance of having two Sand Streamers on a team. First of all, Hippowdon and Tyranitar make great partners against opposing Azelf leads. As I have already said, most of them will run Taunt with Stealth Rock. Focus Sash Azelf are in for a lot of trouble with this combination. Gengar is another important Pokemon Tyranitar can pick off with some smart switching. As I have said before, I can bait it to Shadow Ball with Rotom-H or switch in when it has to use Pain Split to force the issue. Another thing to consider is the amount of success generated by these two against opposing weather teams. Having a backup Sand Streamer is useful beyond words. It makes it virtually impossible for the standard Rain Dance team to win, which can sometimes give stall teams difficulty. Hail and Sun are not seen as much as Rain, but the same idea applies to them as well. It is hard to maintain any form of whether against this team and attempting to set it up usually results in me being able to set up more entry hazards.
Past Members:
I have used Celebi and Shaymin in the 6th slot of this team. Celebi was the original member before I switched to Tyranitar. I used two different movesets with it: Perish Song and Calm Mind. Celebi was a Bold nature (+Def, -Atk) with an EV spread of 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD. On the Calm Mind set I used Energy Ball and Thunder Wave. Shaymin is something I have experimented with more recently. I used it in place of Blissey and Tyranitar, preferring the latter version. For Shaymin, I ran a Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk) with an EV spread of 252 HP / 36 SpA / 220 Spe. The move set was Seed Flare, Earth Power, Leech Seed, and Rest. This team was used for a portion of Smogon Frontier. The idea behind it was that there were a lot of people running Earthworm's latest stall team with Heatran so I figured I would throw in a little surprise for them. Ultimately, Tyranitar proved to be the most valuable 6th member, but both of these Pokemon served their purpose at the time.
Conclusion:
As I stated before, the main reason why I am posting this now is to showcase my favorite team of DPP. I have used more successful teams in the short term with peak numbers, but nothing has been as consistent over a long period of time. I get people asking if I'm still using the same team as I was when they saw me playing a year ago. I tend to stick with success teams for as long as they are good and I am using this all the way to the end of the generation. That says the most about this team. I encourage everyone give stall a chance because it's a wonderful playstyle. Even though this team is almost entirely defensive, you can apply the team building structure I explained in the Intro and build a more balanced version of stall if that suits your interests. I would just like to say thank you to a few people here. I could give a shout out to all my friends, but I will just keep them relevant to the team at hand. Mainly I would like to thank august because we always spent a good amount of time chatting about strategies and team structure. I would also like to thank imperfectluck because watching him play and subsequent practice helped mold me into a proficient stall user. Finally, I would like to thank for Cartoons! for supplying me with some outstanding artwork and Pride and twash for helping me proofread this team.
