Preparing for Take-off

[Archstaraptor]

I've always been a fairly mediocre battler,particularly when it comes down to wifi single battles.
Recently I've been fighting to change that,but I'm still stuck over deciding how to round off my team:

;398;Staraptor
@Normal Gem
#Intimidate
#252Speed,attack+defence investment
-Brave Bird
-Roost
-Close Combat
-Retaliate
Mainly for revenge killing,since retaliate has a massive kick behind it with no drawbacks.Close Combat is used to deal with steels and Brave bird is a great attack overall.Roost can be used against an intimidated physical attacker as an effective method of recovering damage.

;445;Garchomp@Persim Berry
#Sand Veil
#252 Attack+Speed
-Sword Dance
-Outrage
-Earthquake
-Dragon claw
I use him purely because he's one of few lv100s I have; I've been considering testing a DW Druddigon,as I can breed for decent natures.
The set's a simple OU battering ram-Garchomp really isn't my style,but hey,it works on occasion.

;346;Cradily@Leftovers
#Storm Drain
#Defensive inclination;some Sp.attack investment.
-Giga Drain
-Ancient Power
-Stockpile
-Recover
Cradily can be a monster once set up.Giga Drain restores HP and is relatively powerful after some boosts from storm drain or ancient power.Ancient power also helps to deal with Ice,Fire and Flying type foes which would have the capability of countering it.

;291;Ninjask@Liechi Berry
#Speed Boost
#No EV training(Unnecessary)
-Protect
-Substitute
-Mud-slap
-Baton Pass
This is where the team starts to appear shaky:4 ice weaknesses.
My Ninjask focuses on baton passing speed boosts:mud-slap prevents set-up sweepers from getting too carried away.I've been considering replacing protect with X-scissor to threaten its foes a bit more.

;359;Absol@Dark Gem
#Super Luck
#252 Attack,252 HP(Don't know why this is more useful than defensive investment)
-Substitute
-Swords Dance
-Sucker Punch
-???
Strong priority to end opposing sweepers that fly out of hand.This one's all about prediction,or super luck
His presence normally pays off,saving games normally beyond saving.



What I really need currently is something that can fend off/counter ice type attackers.I've been contemplating a fire or water to deal with this:

;395;?Empoleon?@???
-Surf
-Roar
-Ice Beam
-Toxic
I would really appreciate some suggestions for these two in particular,but the general plan is to switch in on an ice type and deal with them somehow.Empoleon could spread toxic across the opponent's team and theoretically deal with dragons and special sweepers(which the team is currently weak against.

Alternatively,

;078;?Rapidash?@Life Orb
-Morning Sun
-Sunny Day
-Solar Beam
-Flamethrower/Fire blast

A fast fire type which -with some defensive investment-could take a couple of water hits in the sun.I like the look of both,but would I would appreciate your opinion.

Thank you for your time ^ ^
As a side note,the less OU replacements(top-end titans), the better.Please bear that in mind:it's how I roll

 

[Aura Sensei™]

o hai der.

Your Team is 4/6 weak to Ice with only one resist. I see that as a potential problem. Maybe you could replace Staraptor for another Revenge Killer that isn;t weak to Ice, but know you love Staraptor. Anyways, my suggestion;

Azumarill @ Choice Band
Trait: Huge Power
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
- Aqua Jet
- Waterfall
- Ice Punch / Return
- Superpower / Return

You mentioned how you didn't want too many OU pogeys, so I present to you Azumarill. He can Revenge Kill with Aqua Jet and in combination with Pure Power and CB it hits like a truck. He also resists Ice. Alternatively, you could use another variant of Azumarill.

Azumarill @ Leftovers
Trait: Huge Power
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
- Focus Punch
- Substitute
- Aqua Jet / Waterfall
- Ice Punch / Return

Basically, this Azumarill sacrifices power for being able to change Moves and block status. The Moves are basically preferences, though Aqua Jet would be nice for Revenge killing.

For the last slot on Absol, I'd personally run Superpower. Sure, you lower your Attack and Defense by one stage afte reach use, but it hits hard and you get Dark + Fight coverage. Alternatively, I'm pretty sure Absol gets Megahorn.

If you have an extra Leftovers, you coudl give that to Empoleon, he'll appreciate the recovery. Not sure how important Stealth Rock is in Wifi, but that could be an option instead of Roar. So, this is my suggestion;

Empoleon @ Leftovers
Trait: Torrent (unless you want to use DW)
Nature: Calm / Bold
EVs: 252 Hp / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Roar / Stealth Rock
- Toxic

Scald would be used for the Burn chance, since certain things are better off being burnt than poisoned.

So, to summarize my suggestions;

Staraptor • CB Azumarill or FP Azumarill
Absol • Superpower or Megahorn in the last slot
Empoleon • Change to Leftovers if you can get another one, Scald > Surf and Stealth Rock as an option alongside Roar.

Hope this helps.

 

[Archstaraptor]

Hope the advice helped

As for your's,thank you,it looks good.Azumarill could add some additional priority and power,which could be useful.I could try Thick Fat/Huge power if I want to trade some offense away and favour its defensive capabilities more(thus I wouldn't be as predictable).

The Empoleon set looks much better:I'd love the DW ability,but it will be difficult to find without a doubt.Torrent still works well though.

 

[KillerDraco]

I could try Thick Fat/Huge power if I want to trade some offense away and favour its defensive capabilities more(thus I wouldn't be as predictable).

Nonono, Azumarill NEEDS Huge Power or it's not worth using at all. Base 50 attack is outright awful without Huge Power to boost it. Azumarill already resists both Fire and Ice anyway, so Thick Fat is just plain overkill for sacrificing A LOT of power. Don't consider Thick Fat at all.

I'd also consider switching some things up on Garchomp.

First thing's first, replace Outrage or Dragon Claw with Fire Fang. You don't need both attacks in all honesty, and without Fire Fang Skarmory walls it into oblivion, and Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Forretress become more of an issue as well. Which you replace it up to you; Outrage is more powerful, but Dragon Claw has no drawbacks. For an SD set though, I'd stick with Dragon Claw, since being locked into Outrage may force you to switch, which can cost you your boosts.

And if Outrage goes, you'll want to replace Persim Berry with Lum Berry. This would prevent Garchomp from being shut down entirely by a burn.

 

[Aura Sensei™]

^ I'd at least like to defend Arch by saying he likes to try unorthodox things. However, I agree with Draco as well. Azumarill's Attack is terrible without Huge Power.

 

[Archstaraptor]

Fire Blast/flamethrower if anything,since the fang is much weaker in comparison.Besides,Most steels resistant to quake(Bronzong,Skarmory,Forretress) are defensively invested anyway,and Ferrothorn will be hit much more easily if it runs the curse set.
I'll happily take the substitution into account,thanks Draco-good point about Outrage
I was only brainstorming ideas-I realise that 50 base attack is rediculous,of course,but 2 4x(must be something along those lines) resistances could prove useful alongside great bulk,no?
I'd have to explore it further:it looks interesting ^ ^

 

[KillerDraco]

Fire Blast/flamethrower if anything,since the fang is much weaker in comparison.Besides,Most steels resistant to quake(Bronzong,Skarmory,Forretress) are defensively invested anyway,and Ferrothorn will be hit much more easily if it runs the curse set.

Depends on the circumstances. The damage between Fire Fang and Fire Blast is actually comparable after a SD, since unlike Salamence, Garchomp's special attack isn't quite as usable... it's not bad but it's unspectacular. Before an SD though, Fire Blast will be better. So it comes down to the individual circumstance, of course. It also depends a little bit what the nature is, too.

I was only brainstorming ideas-I realise that 50 base attack is rediculous,of course,but 2 4x(must be something along those lines) resistances could prove useful alongside great bulk,no?

The problem is that it becomes setup bait since it has no offensive presence without Huge Power. And if you opt for something more passive like Toxic stalling, then it becomes outclassed by things like Milotic, which has more reliable Recovery. It also has no access to things like Entry hazards, Roar, or Dragon Tail, either, so the best it could hope for is Encore/Toxic or something, in which case it's shut down by taunt due to being so slow.

 

[Macroboom]

Doesn't Cradily only take neutral damage from Ice,Fire ,and Flying due to it beng Rock type. And half of the Pokemon weak to Ice have a move against it and so will Garchomp if you give it and Fire move.

I'd use Empoleon just cuz I like it so much.

 

[KillerDraco]

Doesn't Cradily only take neutral damage from Ice

No.

Fire

Yes.

and Flying due to it beng Rock type.

Yes.

Rock adds resistances to normal, fire, flying, and poison. So it mitigates the latter three, while not affecting the ice weakness or bug weakness, and adding weaknesses to fighting and steel.