Team Sensei
The sensei is the master of ninjas, not attacking but using defence to counter the opponent's actions. All in the dojo look up to him, and he is respected as a great warrior. Like a sensei, my team maximizes on the stall of Generation 5. After tutoring with Steadfast, I have thought out and created my very own unique stall team. They, like the sensei, use defence as their offence, with masterful switching and movesets that any warrior should respect.Team Building:
[Tyranitar]
Sandstorm is one of the deadliest presences in offence teams of Generation 5. However, in defence, Sandstorm is an amazing way to slowly whittle down the opponents HP. Tyranitar was the ideal candid, getting the 50% Sp. Defence boost from Sandstorm, and proving to be amazingly bulky hitting hard and setting up the Rocks.
[Tyranitar][Skarmory]
I wanted Spikes as well as Stealth Rock Up, and Skarmory is the ideal choice. With his great defence, instant Recovery, phazing, and Sandstorm immunity, he was the perfect fit.
[Tyranitar][Skarmory][Jellicent]
I needed a spin blocker, and Jellicent (or Burungeru) was a great fit to my team. He can spread Toxic and Will-o-wisp, crippling sweepers and stallers alike.
[Tyranitar][Skarmory][Jellicent][Umbreon]
I wanted Heal Bell support. Umbreon was my choice, as he can switch in on status, sychronize it right back, and then Heal Bell off the status. He also provided invaluable Wish Support.
[Tyranitar][Skarmory][Jellicent][Umbreon][Excadrill]
I wanted a spinner, and Excadrill (or Doryuuzu) was an amazing candid. He can spin, and attack with incredible power. He is a great surprise on any stall team.
[Tyranitar][Jirachi][Skarmory][Jellicent][Umbreon][Excadrill]
In this Generation, a Conkeldurr and Machamp counter is almost essential. Jirachi was a great option, using Hax to slowly wear any opponent down.
[Tyranitar][Reuniclus][Skarmory][Jellicent][Umbreon][Excadrill]
Jirachi didn't work as well as I had expected, not stopping as many pokes as I would've liked. The extra ground weakness killed me. Reuniclus (or Rankurusu) still did the job of countering Roobushin and Machamp, and also added a bit of surprise power to my team.
[Tyranitar][Reuniclus][Skarmory][Jellicent][Chansey][Excadrill]
However, with the addition of Reuniclus, a Bug weakness was added. I needed a Wall, both physical and special, that wasn't weak to bug. Chansey fulfilled this duty, and still provided Wish Support.
The Team
Tyranitar (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 SDef
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Crunch
- Protect
To start off my team, I chose Tyranitar. Tyranitar is a beast of a pokemon, shrugging off any neutral hits like they were nothing and stalling the heck out of the opponent. The auto-weather is a huge asset as well on my team; the gradual damage is a huge plus and works extremely well with Toxic Stall. Ttar also lures out any Fighting types that I need to be aware of early on.
I use a fairly unique set on my Ttar. Stealth rock is an obvious choice on any Stall team, and Tyraniar almost always them up. Fire Blast is my teams way of dealing with Ferrothorn (Nattorei) and always OHKO's standard Nattorei after Spikes. I chose Crunch over Payback because I needed a solid counter to slow Reuniclus. The last moveslot is fairly unique, but serves a valuable purpose. Protect is my way of dealing with Mienshao (Kojondo) and Blaziken leads. Tyranitar uses protect on a turn where Mienshao or Blaziken use High Jump Kick. And, bye bye Jojo and Blazy!! Also, in the later game I can ToxicStall much more effectively. I used this EV spread to maximize Tyranitar's bulk, as Sandstorm increases Tyranitar's Special defence by 50%. Tyranitar has almost no problem with any leads. However, Fighting types such as Mienshao, Blaziken, Machamp, Breloom, and Conkeldurr (Roobushin) still give Ttar problems. For this reason, I chose Reuniclus as my lead synergy pokemon.
Reuniclus (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Guard
EVs: 100 HP / 172 Def / 56 SAtk / 180 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Reflect
- Recover
- Focus Blast
- Psychic
As said before, Reuniclus (or Rankurusu) was chosen as a way to counter the most common fighting pokemon of the generation that annhiliate Tyranitar. With Reuniclus' ability, Magic Guard, Reuniclus can switch in on Machamp's Dynamic Punch without being confused. Also, Reuniclus is my way of countering Whimsicott (Erufuun), Voltros, Ferrothorn (Nattorei), and any statusers or subseeders that try to set up on my other pokemon. Also, the Sandstorm immunity is extremely helpful.
This set is designed so that Reuniclus can counter Ferrothron, Conkeldurr, and other fighting types to its full potential. Reflect maximizes Reuniclus' extreme bulk. For example, Reuniclus takes 46-53% (approx)with Reflect from a +2 Garchomp's Outrage. With lefties, thats a 2HKO, and allows Reuniclus to KO after Spikes or switch to Skarmory. Recover further increases Reuniclus' longetivity, and lets him Sandstall and Toxicstall even longer. Psychic deals with those ever annoying Fighting types that ruin tyranitar's day, and deals HUGE damage to anything that takes neutral damage. Focus Blast deals with Steel types such as Ferrothorn that make things difficult for my team. My EV spread gives Reuniclus huge bulk, while taking him up to 300 Sp Attack.
Jellicent (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Water Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 200 Def / 56 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Toxic
- Taunt
- Recover
- Boil Over
My team uses the regular defensive core: 2-3-1. Jellicent (Burungeru) is the first member of my core, and is the spin blocker of my team. Jellicent has proven himself to be a valuable member of my stall team, despite critisism from some pokemon experts. The double status is invaluable. The Boil Over burn rate really helps against Sandstorm abusers like Excadrill, Garchomp, and Gliscor. And Toxic is great for stalling in general. Then with auto-recovery and decent Sp. Attack, Jellicent is an invaluable member of my team.
As said before, Jellicent serves as a spin blocker on my team. Boil Over helps the cause, as most Spinners carry a Dark type attack (such as Hitmontop with Sucker Punch, Forretress with Payback etc.), the burn rate greatly increases Jellicent's physical bulk against these pokemon and any physical sweeper in general. Toxic helps me stall out pokemon like Chansey, who would otherwise wall me. My team is mostly centered on Toxic Stall as well, so Toxic is invaluable. Taunt is for slow Spikers like Ferrothorn (Nattorei) and Forretress, and helps against boosting Reuniclus and suicude leads like Azelf and Deoxys S.
Skarmory (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SDef
Impish Nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
- Brave Bird
- Roost
The monstrous physical wall of Generation 4 makes an appearance on my team as the second member of my defensive core. Skarmory's main job is to set up layers of Spikes, then phaze repeatedly to gradually damage the opponent. However, when necessary Skarmory can pack a punch with Brave Bird, a neat surprise that often catches the opponent off guard.
Skarmory's main job, as said, is to set up the rocks. With the synergy of Chansey and Jellicent, Skarmory usually gets up at least 2 layers of Spikes. Skarm can switch in on any Fighting type, and set up a layer of Spikes as they switch out. Then, they send in their Special Sweeper and I send in either special wall, and the cycle carries on like that. Roost is the instant recovery, helping with Toxic Stall. Whirlwind helps against boosting sweepers, and hits the opponent with entry hazards to do residual damage. Brave Bird is a surprisingly power move, hitting common Fighting and Grass types very hard. The EV spread and nature is to maximize Skarmory's physcial bulk.
Chansey (F) @ Evolution Stone
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Wish
- Protect
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
In generation 4, Chansey was completely outclassed by Chansey, and never given a thought in OU. However, with the introduction of the Evolution Stone, Chansey got some thought, and now argueably outclasses Blissey as a Special Wall. Chansey is the third and fianl member of my defensive core. Chansey's defences are boosted by 1.5x. With this boost, Chansey can actually take physcial hits well, while laughing off any special attack, Super Effective or not. Also, with the new Wish mechanics, Chansey can pass about 300 HP to any weakened teammate.
This is a very typical Chansey Wish support set. With the new Wish mechanics, Chansey now passes half of her HP, instead of half the receivers HP. In other words, Chansey can fully revive a weakened teammate easily. Also, the Wish Protect stall combo help Toxic stall last as long as possible. Toxic slowly wears the opponent down, and works really well with Sandstorm. Seismic Toss is my way of dealing extra damage, and makes sure that Chansey isn't Taunt bait. I chose this spread to maximize Chnasey's general bulk, she takes hits amazingly well.
Excadrill (M) @ Balloon
Trait: Sand Throw
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin
Excadrill has proven to be one of my favourite pokemon in Generation 5. With that amazing attack, incredible ability, and Rapid Spin, he plays the part of spinner on my team. However, with that amazing ability, massive attack, and Swords Dance, I couldn't resist putting some offence on my team, so Balloon Excadrill plays the role of spinner and a finisher, easily cleaning up any weakened pokemon that couldn't be brought down by stall.
Excadrill's main purpose is to spin. He does this very well, as with the Balloon Excadrill is immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, and 4x resists Stealth Rock. He takes virtually no damage switching in on fully set up hazards. Rapid Spin is obviously essential on my Excadrill. Excadrill can also take down any spin blockers (such as Shandera and Gengar) easily, but Jellicent is a problem. To make up for this (and to maximize Excadrill's sweeping ability), I equip my Excadrill with Swords Dance. Even pokemon that resist should watch out for a +2 Earthquake or Rock Slide. However, I have considered X-Scissor insetad of Swords Dance to cover Serperior (Jalorda) and Whimsicott, so comments are appreciated. Rock Slide deals with Flying types, and any Balloon users that get on the way of my sweeping. The EV spread is or max power and speed, although I'd like some suggestions for a bulkier spread.
Team Sensei, with a great flash, disappears into the darkness and awaits your feedback and challenges!
