Hi there! First, a quick shoutout to a ladder fiend named kaikkienaikojen. They had extremely creative teams, and playing them late at night forced me to constantly revise my team, which ended up improving it in the long run. This team took a lot of work to get done, with me having multiple versions of this team, and constantly changing it in order to stack up well against most of the changing meta, but I am satisfied with my current product.
Teambuilding
I have a few prototype versions of this team I never want to see the light of day due to how ashamed of them I am, but this is the first version I was successful and proud with. The idea was a Ghost-type breaker, a Fighting resist, a Rocker, a stallbreaker/fatkiller, and two filler slots that could round out the team. Ghostvally was my initial choice due to its popularity and speed tier. Aromatisse and Gigalith formed a decent defensive core with their resistances synergizing well enough to wall half the tier at worst. Centiskorch was a decent stallbreaker due to Knock, Fire Lash, and solid coverage options that hit everything not named Qwilfish. Tsareena and Ribombee were just the filler slots, but they synergized well with each other and provided the team with hazards removal and speed control, respectively.
I didn't hate the version I used above, but after recent meta shifts caused it to struggle against popular teams, I realized it didn't feel like I built the team; rather, I simply looked at the A-Ranks, slapped on what I liked, and called it a day. So instead, I decided to scrap most of the team, keeping only Gigalith because it's amazing glue, and tried another approach. Haunter was something I built with in the past, but never got around to using, so I decided to make that my Ghost-type breaker. I found Defog Rotom (itemless or Colbur) to be a great hazards removal option, as it spinblocked most Tsareena, threatened it with a Wisp, and the most popular Defog deterrent (Galarian Articuno) was not switching into a STAB option. Weezing is a solid physically defensive mon that switches into a ton of popular stuff, and the ability to run useful utility moves like Taunt and Toxic Spikes wasn't bad either. Gallade seemed like a cool Fighting-type with insane coverage, decent STABs, and priority to pick stuff off. Finally, Jolteon was picking up in usage during SCL and seasonals, so I ended up using that as my speed control.
The last change I made was switching back from Rotom to Tsareena as my hazards removal. It wasn't a big change, but with Tsar running Adamant more and more, and clerics becoming more popular, I couldn't justify Rotom as much as before because trading it for a temporary Burn on Tsareena and Rocks up on the other side wasn't worth it. Tsareena just seemed like a better choice here. Plus, the team was struggling against Specs Jellicent, so having a switch-in to Water Spout was nice.
I'm laddering with this team with an alt, except I replaced Weezing with Gourgeist-XL just to try it out. All of my replays have Weezing so this isn't an official replacement, but I think both have their various pros and cons. Hopefully, I can showcase my ladder peak with this version soon!
The Team
midnight sun (Haunter) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Ball
- Dazzling Gleam
- Trick / Energy Ball
Haunter is insanely cracked as an offensive mon. Tons of teams lack Ghost resists, and the ones that do use pseudo-Ghost resists like itemless SpDef Togedemaru. If Haunter gets a free turn versus these types of team, it WILL pop off. Despite its near-zero defensive utility, getting Haunter in via a double switch or a Volt from Jolteon isn't the hardest thing in the world, especially when the TsarBee balances popping up heavily telegraph when they switch into Tsareena or Regirock, which Haunter can OHKO with the proper coverage. And even its typing is useful in at least one scenario. The 3 immunities mean it dissuades Magmortar from using Focus Blast or Scorching Sands to hit Gigalith, and unless the Magmortar team has an Audino in the back, a free Haunter turn = bye-bye something on the other team. The 4th moveslot I've found to be malleable in practice. I used Trick for the longest time because fuck Kee Berry Uxie and other random setup sweepers, but I was recently recommended Energy Ball in the second slot, and being able to 2HKO a slightly chipped Gigalith after Rocks (86% to be exact) is an amazing source of endorphins. Idk what else to say, Haunter clicks funny buttons, and sometimes, it just wins.
imperial sword (Tsareena) (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Queenly Majesty
EVs: 92 HP / 252 Atk / 164 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Power Whip
- Knock Off
- Synthesis
I still think this mon is overrated af, but I can't deny when it's immensely useful on a team. Spin + Knock + powerful STAB is a great combo for breaking utility that provides a lot to teams, with Knock and Whip synergizing well with Spin to prevent anything from spin blocking it, for the most part. Synthesis simply rounds out the set by capitalizing on Tsareena's decent bulk and making it a more consistent hazards removal option, as well as a Water resist. Tsar has malleable EVs and this team didn't really need a very fast or bulky Tsareena, so all I really did was EV it to outspeed Timid Jellicent and added one extra point to outspeed Whimsicott at +1. It's very useful into fatter builds, as it constantly removes itself so chip damage from Gigalith's Rocks or other forms of damage adds up fast, even versus Pokemon that do not have an item like Togedemaru. The best part is when their Tsar switch-in is something like an itemless Cofagrigus and it's heavily telegraphed, which means I can double switch to Haunter and abuse a free turn. Valuable mon, fun mon, please don't ban it (also the nickname is wrong in the replays, I thought it was imperial strike instead of imperial sword).
shield rondo (Gigalith) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Rock Blast
- Toxic
- Protect
lol, I've had this exact same set on my past 3 RMTs, down to the tiniest detail (the 4 Spe EVs, the moves being in the same order, it being shiny), but what can I say? It's great, love it a lot. I hate Earthquake on this mon with a burning passion because it does 0 damage to the stuff it wants to hit half the time, so I just use Toxic to hit stuff like Tsareena or Jellicent on the switch and force a predictable option. Protect scouts stuff, stalls out moves, lets you regain HP, lets damage stack, and best of all, helps control the field better. Most of the time, you can control when Sand ends by using a sequence of switching into something it beats (like Charizard), using a move, Protect, switching out unless it's something that doesn't threaten you (and if it doesn't you can click Toxic most of the time), Protect again if you didn't switch out, and finally switching out into whatever since Gigalith doesn't like staying in when Sand isn't up. Something I also like about this sequence is that it forces 50/50s between the Protect and another move/switching out (for example, that LO Gallade SDing on a predicted Protect is in for a rude awakening when it gets slapped by Toxic).
escorpión (Weezing) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Neutralizing Gas
EVs: 252 HP / 182 Def / 74 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sludge Bomb
- Toxic Spikes / Taunt
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
WeezLith is an old but reliable core that deals with most of the meta pretty well, especially if you have a healthy Tsareena in the back for stuff like Sandaconda. It's really obvious what this thing does: be a catch-all physical wall that sometimes 6-0s teams with TSpikes or annoys stall with Taunt. Wisp is sometimes Flamethrower but it can be hard to justify at times. The EV spread is a relic from the Drampa days (unban it btw), it was to outspeed Drampa and creep anything that tries to creep Drampa by 1 point. After the Drampa ban, I couldn't think of a reason to change it back, so I just kept it, and I end up outspeeding 90% of the other Weezings. One of my favorite interactions with this team is whenever a Toxic Charizard comes it. What I like to do is keep Weezing in (or if something like Tsareena is out then switch Weezing in) and fish for Sludge Bomb poison. If it wasn't already poisoned, then I lay TSpikes during the turn Weezing is in, then switch to Gigalith. Why does this work? Because all the good players ALWAYS click Toxic when they see a Gigalith in the back, so I can abuse that free turn to get more chip/TSpikes up. When the Zard realizes it can't click Toxic, it either Roosts for a free Gigalith turn, or clicks Flamethrower/Hurricane and Gigalith gets a free turn while being too low to switch into anything else.
assault rave (Gallade) (M) @ Muscle Band
Ability: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Close Combat
- Leaf Blade / Knock Off
- Shadow Sneak
I like clicking buttons. Gallade clicks broken ones. It's like a match made in heaven. Muscle Band Gallade is the best set imo and the broken one that should be banned. Scarf is bad, Band is annoying but fishy, and while I think SD is great, I prefer the immediate power and coverage that Muscle Band provides. The standard set runs Thunder Punch over Leaf Blade, but I usually run Leaf Blade because I hate predicting and like taking down Quagsire immediately. Knock Off is useful from time to time, especially with defensive Ghosts rising, but I find Zen Headbutt is adequate at dealing with them. Speaking of which, Zen is 100% the suboptimal choice here because of contact stuff like Helmet and Barbs being annoying, but having an 18% chance to beat standard switch-ins like Aromatisse or Cofagrigus is absolutely hilarious, and I have seen multiple instances where Gallade wins even without getting lucky. Sneak picks off annoying stuff like Galarcuno and is generally hard to punish. It's also the perfect partner for Haunter, considering what few genuine Ghost resists the tier does have get destroyed by Gallade, and it's not hard to double switch it in on one of them.
terminal flash (Jolteon) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Shadow Ball
- Heal Bell / Toxic / Wish
Whenever I think of PU ladder, my mind immediately goes to Jolteon (well, Specs Jolteon to be exact, but who cares). For the longest time, it was considered unviable garbage, yet saw high usage on ladder because fast Speed + Volt go brrr + all our Grounds and Volt immunes had no reliable recovery or were weak to Shadow Ball + ratio. But now, Jolteon has seen a resurgence with hazards stacking teams becoming popular, so I can finally use Jolteon on a team without looking like an 1100 ELO player. Anyway, moveset is standard. You got your STAB, pivot move, coverage, but the 4th moveslot is interesting. I used Toxic a lot in the past because you can force predictable options like a recovery move or Heal Bell, but Wish is also decent for providing Gallade with emergency recovery as well as Weezing in a pinch. However, Heal Bell ended up being the option I chose because a lot of fat teams nowadays have a ton of status-inducing moves, and I don't want a Charizard Toxicing my Gigalith Turn 5 to cost me the game because I can't heal. Jolteon also forces a lot of switches versus fast mons like Archeops and Charizard when it gets in, so being able to capitalize on these turns in a way that provides for the team is very cool.
Threatlist
Swords Dance Lum Berry Gallade
Other sets have ways to limit them via smart doubles or timely status, but the moment this thing gets an SD up, just click X. You aren't winning unless you sack 2-3 mons and they don't have Sneak to pick off Jolteon before Gallade gets into Shadow Ball range. Gallade is broken anyway so I wouldn't consider losing to a broken mon to be a massive deal.
Swords Dance Sandslash with Poison Jab/Leech Life
Like Gallade, this is a fast Swords Dance user that's difficult to deal with because of its great coverage, and since your Tsareena is not outspeeding an unboosted Jolly one, it can easily 6-0 you. However, PJab and Leech Life are rare options; they generally prefer Knock Off or Spin. It's not unbeatable considering Sand is limited, and the occasional Life Orb variant hates TSpikes but it might leave your team in a garbage state otherwise.
Belly Drum Charizard
A lot of teams that have this mon build around supporting it with hazards removal, so just getting Rocks up is rarely an option. Keeping Rocks up is an important part of the counterplay The two main ones are Sitrus and Salac. If you think it's Sitrus, it's a 50/50s between Flame Charge or immediate Belly Drum depending on what is currently out. Versus Haunter and Gallade, it tends to go for the Flame Charge, while versus Weezing, it often goes for the Belly Drum (if it's out versus Tsareena click X, and it's generally not coming in on Jolteon or Gigalith). If you think it's Salac, do not give it a free turn, it will click Sub and Belly Drum and you will lose if Gigalith is within unboosted Earthquake range. Luckily, Salac is easier to deal with via Rocks because it has no recovery and has to commit to Belly Drum, whereas Sitrus can mix up its options more. It's a bad matchup but doable if you play well.
Replays
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8pu-1453310857-dw8koqdgi3fzj0i4jhwnfcqt146vol7pw (vs Lyra SS)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8pu-1471864221-93jd135cg8yrqfupwcrjzmhn2ur3n6npw (vs P.Otaku)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8pu-1477054595-rqgosiy16afmzdnhvofcvy1c2flwbv8pw (vs eifo)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8pu-1477211369-tvdtuid6s6m4ravca2g1mzhdfcfuz3apw (vs Roonie217)
Apologies that these replays aren't better, considering I wasn't picked for PUWC and the Fall Seasonal ended before I optimized this team, but I think these are solid replays that show the team's gameplan versus a variety of players (except eifo, I got bailed out but the game was competitive before that). The team's general gameplan is to get the funny breakers in, have them click their buttons while supported by a good defensive backbone, have said defensive backbone slowly wear down the opponent via chip damage, and either win with one of the breakers or wear down the opposing team so much that the defensive core outlasts them. It's a very unique balance that preys on standard cores, and that's why I enjoy it so much.
Importable
Have a happy new year, and thanks for reading!
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