*cue dramatic music* [mono-Dark RMT]

[Eon Master]

Yeah... bored again. Have some free time before school starts. So I decided to do a Dark-monotype team. More or less just for postgame. Rate at your leisure.

Oh yeah, and here's a shocker: no Umbreon.

...*drumroll*

Crawdaunt @ Leftovers
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Ability: Adaptability
- Crunch
- Waterfall
- Dragon Dance
- Substitute

Standard DD Crawdaunt here. Maximum Speed with a Jolly Nature allows it to outspeed all Pokemon with Base 105 Speed or lower after a Dragon Dance, which is almost everything in-game. Crunch is the primary STAB because nothing is immune to it and it has fewer 4x resists than Waterfall, which provides excellent neutral coverage and really makes a coverage move unnecessary, especially since Adaptability makes both moves equivalent to a 160 BP attack. Substitute protects from status, gives Crawdaunt some leeway against Priority and weaker attacks, and lets it build up some Lefties recovery a bit more easily.

Cacturne @ Leftovers
Nature: Modest
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Ability: Water Absorb
- Giga Drain
- Dark Pulse
- Focus Blast
- Nasty Plot

Yeah, this is a Nasty Plot Cacturne. Why? Because I said so. Cacturne's bulk is pretty sad typically, but with max Hp investment it makes a decent enough Tank in-game. Water Absorb is pretty cool, and turns most in-game Water-types into setup fodder. Giga Drain is Cacturne's best Special Grass-type attack because it lets Cacturne restore health and be an offensive presence at the same time. Dark Pulse packs slightly more oomph, while Focus Miss is for Steel-types.

Scrafty @ Leftovers
Nature: Careful
EVs: 252 Hp / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Ability: Shed Skin
- Drain Punch
- Crunch
- Bulk Up
- Rest

Scrafty says: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall know no fear, for I am the baddest mother-f*cker in the valley!

No, this is not an exaggeration. Bulk Up Scrafty is an absolute monster, capable of tanking even super-effective STAB attacks after just one Bulk Up. Drain Punch and Lefties keep it healthy, Crunch grants him excellent coverage, and Rest + Shed Skin is just downright cool. Furthermore, his typing is excellent, allowing him to tank just about anything sans STAB Fighting-type attacks from the most powerful Fighting-types. This ghetto-lizard thing isn't something to be trifled with.

Houndoom @ Life Orb
Nature: Hasty
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Ability: Flash Fire
- Sucker Punch
- Fire Blast
- Dark Pulse
- HP Grass

Houndoom is one nasty threat, capable of demolishing almost anything in-game even without boosting. Sucker Punch is honestly just for picking off faster targets or finishing off things that are weakened. Fire Blast 2HKOs practically everything that doesn't resist it in-game, while Dark Pulse provides a stable secondary STAB. HP Grass is for picking off annoying things like Palpitoad that might try to wall me, plus the SE coverage it grants against Pokemon that resist his other attacks. Hasty > Naive because Houndoom really can't take physical hits anyway, and it's better to put his 75/80 Hp/Special Defense to work. This hellraising hellhound deserves a spot on pretty much any mono-Dark team.

Spiritomb @ Leftovers
Nature: Calm
EVs: 252 Hp / 144 Def / 116 SpD
Ability: Pressure
- Shadow Ball
- HP Fighting
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split

Spiritomb is my Fighting counter, pure and simple. Shadow Ball and HP Fighting provide perfect neutral coverage, W-o-W allows me to cripple enemies and wear them down, while Pain Split provides a bit of healing when Spiritomb is running low. EVs maximize overall defenses, and Leftovers increases recovery. All of this should be pretty damn obvious.

Zweilous @ Eviolite
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
Ability: Hustle
- Outrage
- Crunch
- Fire Fang / Thunder Wave
- Substitute

Behold, the mightest non-uber Outrage in the game, and technically the greatest if you're not talking B2W2. Thanks to Hustle, Zweilous has an effective Attack stat of 152, higher than Haxorus and even Rayquaza. You heard me. Higher. Than. Goddamn. RAYQUAZA. Unfortunately, it also means that all of Zweilous' moves are reduced to 80% or lower accuracy, but the power is more or less worth it. Outrage and Crunch are both STAB, while Fire Fang nets coverage on Steel-types. Sub makes missing with your attacks less painful, and using Eviolite grants it an effective defensive stat spread of 72 / 114 / 114. The only thing up in the air is whether or not I want to use Thunder Wave over Fire Fang. It'd make plowing through teams easier, but I'd lose out on the coverage that allows me to beat Steel-types.


So that's it. Fire away guys, I'm looking forward to this.

 

[hyacinth]

You could consider switching Leftovers on Scrafty for life orb as you already have drain punch and rest also if used in-game potions.
On Zweilous i'd go with thunderwave as Houndoom can handle steels well already. It also allows you to be more protected if your locked in outrage and are confused.

 

[Aura Sensei™]

I've never seen a Zweillous used by someone who would know how to , but I must say it'll work.

I'm thinking Calm Mind > Pain Split on Spiritomb. You have Potion's , amiryte?

I'd roll with Adamant > Jolly on the Dragon Dancing Fish. DD is already boosting Speed.

The rest is all , standard...

 

[peacemaker987]

it's shit do it again. I don't see anything really worth changing besides maybe putting a choice band or scarf on Zweilous for fun.

 

[Eon Master]

You could consider switching Leftovers on Scrafty for life orb as you already have drain punch and rest also if used in-game potions.

If I was using DD Scrafty, I'd consider using a Life Orb. As it is, Bulk Up Scrafty is intended to be more of a sponge than an attacker. I'll stick to Lefties.

On Zweilous i'd go with thunderwave as Houndoom can handle steels well already. It also allows you to be more protected if your locked in outrage and are confused.

Sounds good to me. Even better, Thunder Wave isn't affected by Hustle, so that's reliable status as well.

I've never seen a Zweillous used by someone who would know how to , but I must say it'll work.

Good then.

I'm thinking Calm Mind > Pain Split on Spiritomb. You have Potion's , amiryte?

Yeah, but I also have three setup abusers. I'd prefer to avoid making it four.

I'd roll with Adamant > Jolly on the Dragon Dancing Fish. DD is already boosting Speed.

Nope. Crawdaunt is abysmally slow, and it needs the speed. With one DD and an Adamant nature, you only get to outpace +Natured Base 95's. I'd rather outspeed everything in-game and still manage to 2HKO practically everything than add more power for little or no reward. Wasting time setting up extra DDs every time I want to have a battle doesn't appeal to me.

The rest is all , standard...

Because everybody uses Nasty Plot Cacturne, amiryte?

it's shit do it again. I don't see anything really worth changing besides maybe putting a choice band or scarf on Zweilous for fun.

i refuse. you want it redone, do your own K, cool. I'd rather not put a Scarf on Zweilous (Band isn't smart) because then missing is even more annoying. At least with Sub + TWave, I have a decent chance to hit stuff and sweep.

 

[Purple_Tangrowth]

The music really helped me get into the mood