Hey, everyone!
I've been laddering for OLT andsurprisingly having a lot of success (23-2 with this team and at 1500!), so I wanted to share the team that's helped me get this far with you all in case some of you would like to ladder for OLT too! :)
Slowking-Galar @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpA
Relaxed Nature
- Flamethrower
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Future Sight
I really love using Glowking in Gen 8 OU, and I think Assault Vest is probably its best set. It can generate offense while still being very hard to break through. Glowking on my team helps wall a number of Special attackers, while still providing that punch to threaten HO and stall teams alike. Future Sight makes opposing offense have to carefully consider which Pokémon switch in/attack when. Flamethrower hits hard mostly bulky Steels, like Corviknight, Ferrothorn, Melmetal, etc. Earthquake is aimed squarely at Heatran, which it's quite helpful against. Overall, a very valuable member of the team!
Blissey (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 8 HP / 248 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Soft-Boiled
One of my favorite Pokémon––Blissey! This is my favorite set to use in the current metagame. It's extremely solid and resilient. Blissey is a very reliable Stealth Rocker, and it's also the best SpD wall out there, easily handling most Volcarona sets, Specs Magnezone (watch out for Body Press, though), Nasty Plot Tornadus, etc. The combination of Toxic and Seismic Toss I also think is really effective, as it's quite damaging to many offensive builds. One of the backbones of this team!
Clefable @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Thunderbolt
- Soft-Boiled
Although I really like this team a lot as it is, if there's one Pokémon on it that I would change, it would likely be Clefable. I'm fond of this set on stall teams because it helps generate offense while already having a great defensive backbone around it. However, I find I don't use Clef all that often in battles, making me wonder if something else would be optimal (I'd probably use Quagsire over it, since a good Unaware Pokémon and Electric-immune on this team could be very helpful). In any case, while it is on the team, Clef can be useful in breaking through opposing stall or just really bulky teams. A lot of people use Moonblast/Flamethrower, but there are too many Toxapex around for me to justify that. Besides, if the opposing team has Ferrothorn or something, I can easily switch to Corviknight or Glowking.
Buzzwole @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 144 Def / 112 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Drain Punch
- Ice Punch
- Roost
Anyone who's followed the Gen 8 OU metagame in the past several months undoubtedly is aware of just how good Buzzwole has become. It can comfortably wall Weavile, which is and has been a big threat in the metagame. Additionally, it has a sizable Atk stat, enabling it to really hurt Pokémon like Lando, Garchomp, Dragapult, Ferrothorn, etc. As with a lot of Pokémon on this team, I just used the EV spread given in the analysis. I wouldn't be opposed to just changing the Speed EVs to all Def, though, particularly with crazy HO shit like Shell Smash Cloyster lurking around.
Toxapex @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Knock Off
- Scald
- Recover
- Haze
Toxapex is a hugely important member of the team, and this is my favorite set to use. Although there was a Shed Shell Toxapex craze for a little while, I think Rocky Helmet is its best item. Chipping offensive Pokémon like Urshifu is wonderful, and you can get a lot of chip damage on stuff like Melmetal too. Scald + Knock Off is a combination of moves that most HO teams absolutely do not want to take. And lastly, Haze is great for CM Clef (without Thunder/Thunderbolt) and also for Hawlucha (Toxapex can always survive a +2 no-item Acrobatics). I had initially considered Toxic Spikes, but I had a hard time fitting it here, particularly since the other moves are so critical.
Corviknight @ Shed Shell
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 168 Def / 92 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Iron Defense
- Body Press
- Roost
- Defog
Corviknight is one of the MVPs of this team. I love this set because it really helps combat a lot of cheese HO stuff, like Sub, Swords Dance Lando. In fact, Swords Dance Lando was one of the reasons I opted for this set; Pressure stalls out Stone Edges very quickly, and barring significant hax, this set just walls it. Defog handles hazards well, with Pressure again there to pp stall, so you can switch into Lando time and time again. The EV spread I just got from one of the Smogon analyses, and it seems to have worked well. I can comfortably always wall Lando while still being able to check Specs Lele decently well (between Blissey and Corviknight). Shed Shell is so that I don't get trapped by Magnezone, which still sees a decent amount of usage. (Also, I guess it escapes from Block Toxapex too. lol) Iron Defense + Body Press is a combo that most offense doesn't want to absorb, also.
Here's an importable for the team: https://pokepast.es/7b5af26dd181b16f
Weaknesses
Here are just a few weaknesses I noticed while laddering. Nothing so major as to suggest not using the team, but some things to keep in mind.
-Watch out for Glowking + Weavile offensive cores. Future Sight and Teleport with a Band or Swords Dance Weavile is an annoying pairing to handle, since the main check to Weavile here––Buzzwole––obviously can't handle taking Future Sight attacks. Corviknight helps here, but if it's at low health, it's a dangerous situation. This isn't an automatic loss, certainly, but just a tricky matchup to watch out for/play carefully around.
-Specs Tapu Lele can be a problem, particularly if Corviknight is at low health or if a player catches it and uses Thunderbolt. Overall, I haven't had too many problems with it, but just play carefully around it, and watch out for Psyshocks on Blissey.
And here's my team! I'm sure this isn't perfect by any means, but it's felt very solid as I've been laddering so far. Undoubtedly, once I get into the higher sections of ladder, it'll get harder and I'll have to switch up my team. But, I really wanted to share this team because of how it's excelled in low ladder. I've gotten to 1500 pretty quickly, so feel free to use this if you need something to get through to higher ladder in OLT!
Lastly, friendly reminder to ban King's Rock. It contributes nothing to all metagames and is an uncompetitive item.
I've been laddering for OLT and
Slowking-Galar @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpA
Relaxed Nature
- Flamethrower
- Sludge Bomb
- Earthquake
- Future Sight
I really love using Glowking in Gen 8 OU, and I think Assault Vest is probably its best set. It can generate offense while still being very hard to break through. Glowking on my team helps wall a number of Special attackers, while still providing that punch to threaten HO and stall teams alike. Future Sight makes opposing offense have to carefully consider which Pokémon switch in/attack when. Flamethrower hits hard mostly bulky Steels, like Corviknight, Ferrothorn, Melmetal, etc. Earthquake is aimed squarely at Heatran, which it's quite helpful against. Overall, a very valuable member of the team!
Blissey (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 8 HP / 248 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Soft-Boiled
One of my favorite Pokémon––Blissey! This is my favorite set to use in the current metagame. It's extremely solid and resilient. Blissey is a very reliable Stealth Rocker, and it's also the best SpD wall out there, easily handling most Volcarona sets, Specs Magnezone (watch out for Body Press, though), Nasty Plot Tornadus, etc. The combination of Toxic and Seismic Toss I also think is really effective, as it's quite damaging to many offensive builds. One of the backbones of this team!
Clefable @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Thunderbolt
- Soft-Boiled
Although I really like this team a lot as it is, if there's one Pokémon on it that I would change, it would likely be Clefable. I'm fond of this set on stall teams because it helps generate offense while already having a great defensive backbone around it. However, I find I don't use Clef all that often in battles, making me wonder if something else would be optimal (I'd probably use Quagsire over it, since a good Unaware Pokémon and Electric-immune on this team could be very helpful). In any case, while it is on the team, Clef can be useful in breaking through opposing stall or just really bulky teams. A lot of people use Moonblast/Flamethrower, but there are too many Toxapex around for me to justify that. Besides, if the opposing team has Ferrothorn or something, I can easily switch to Corviknight or Glowking.
Buzzwole @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 HP / 144 Def / 112 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Drain Punch
- Ice Punch
- Roost
Anyone who's followed the Gen 8 OU metagame in the past several months undoubtedly is aware of just how good Buzzwole has become. It can comfortably wall Weavile, which is and has been a big threat in the metagame. Additionally, it has a sizable Atk stat, enabling it to really hurt Pokémon like Lando, Garchomp, Dragapult, Ferrothorn, etc. As with a lot of Pokémon on this team, I just used the EV spread given in the analysis. I wouldn't be opposed to just changing the Speed EVs to all Def, though, particularly with crazy HO shit like Shell Smash Cloyster lurking around.
Toxapex @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Knock Off
- Scald
- Recover
- Haze
Toxapex is a hugely important member of the team, and this is my favorite set to use. Although there was a Shed Shell Toxapex craze for a little while, I think Rocky Helmet is its best item. Chipping offensive Pokémon like Urshifu is wonderful, and you can get a lot of chip damage on stuff like Melmetal too. Scald + Knock Off is a combination of moves that most HO teams absolutely do not want to take. And lastly, Haze is great for CM Clef (without Thunder/Thunderbolt) and also for Hawlucha (Toxapex can always survive a +2 no-item Acrobatics). I had initially considered Toxic Spikes, but I had a hard time fitting it here, particularly since the other moves are so critical.
Corviknight @ Shed Shell
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 168 Def / 92 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Iron Defense
- Body Press
- Roost
- Defog
Corviknight is one of the MVPs of this team. I love this set because it really helps combat a lot of cheese HO stuff, like Sub, Swords Dance Lando. In fact, Swords Dance Lando was one of the reasons I opted for this set; Pressure stalls out Stone Edges very quickly, and barring significant hax, this set just walls it. Defog handles hazards well, with Pressure again there to pp stall, so you can switch into Lando time and time again. The EV spread I just got from one of the Smogon analyses, and it seems to have worked well. I can comfortably always wall Lando while still being able to check Specs Lele decently well (between Blissey and Corviknight). Shed Shell is so that I don't get trapped by Magnezone, which still sees a decent amount of usage. (Also, I guess it escapes from Block Toxapex too. lol) Iron Defense + Body Press is a combo that most offense doesn't want to absorb, also.
Here's an importable for the team: https://pokepast.es/7b5af26dd181b16f
Weaknesses
Here are just a few weaknesses I noticed while laddering. Nothing so major as to suggest not using the team, but some things to keep in mind.
-Watch out for Glowking + Weavile offensive cores. Future Sight and Teleport with a Band or Swords Dance Weavile is an annoying pairing to handle, since the main check to Weavile here––Buzzwole––obviously can't handle taking Future Sight attacks. Corviknight helps here, but if it's at low health, it's a dangerous situation. This isn't an automatic loss, certainly, but just a tricky matchup to watch out for/play carefully around.
-Specs Tapu Lele can be a problem, particularly if Corviknight is at low health or if a player catches it and uses Thunderbolt. Overall, I haven't had too many problems with it, but just play carefully around it, and watch out for Psyshocks on Blissey.
And here's my team! I'm sure this isn't perfect by any means, but it's felt very solid as I've been laddering so far. Undoubtedly, once I get into the higher sections of ladder, it'll get harder and I'll have to switch up my team. But, I really wanted to share this team because of how it's excelled in low ladder. I've gotten to 1500 pretty quickly, so feel free to use this if you need something to get through to higher ladder in OLT!
Lastly, friendly reminder to ban King's Rock. It contributes nothing to all metagames and is an uncompetitive item.
