For the Isle of Armor Metagame, I decided to create a stall team that counters the majority of the meta, such as Cinderace. Credit for the Transform Mew moveset goes to Cheesey, the creator of the original Transform Mew Stall Team.
The Team:
Clefable (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Protect
- Teleport
- Moonblast
Coalossal's weakness to Stealth Rock kind of forces it to wear Heavy Duty Boots, as it is also the hazard remover of this team. As such, this team needs a Wish passer to allow Coalossal to regain health. I decided to use Clefable due to its ability to check strong special attackers like Hydreigon and set-up sweepers like Volcarona due to its Fairy type and Unaware ability, respectively. The Leftovers are for steady recovery throughout a match. I run special defense on this mon because Quagsire, my other unaware wall, already has physical defense. I do not run Stealth Rock on Clefable because Coalossal already has it and besides, Clefable needs those four moveslots for Wish support.
Quagsire (M)
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Scald
- Earthquake
- Recover
- Toxic
Quagsire serves as my physical Unaware Wall and a great check to set-up sweepers like Hawlucha, Cloyster, Gyarados, and Azumarill as well as Alolan Marowak by not carrying an item. It is definitely hilarious to watch opposing Marowak use poltergeist only for it to fail. Its lack of an item actually benefits it further by making it less vulnerable to annoying Knock Off users like Scizor and Bisharp. It also decently counters Iron Defense Kommo-O by using Toxic against it. I have been using this instead of Toxapex because a +6 Knock Off from Azumarill can easily kill Toxapex. Quagsire’s Unaware ability negates Azumarill’s boosts.
Blissey @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 200 HP / 252 Def / 56 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Soft-Boiled
- Toxic
- Heal Bell
Blissey is here to check almost any special attacker in the metagame. It also serves as a good cleric with Heal Bell, as Toxic from opposing mons can be annoying. I put Shadow Ball here because this team struggles with special ghost types, specifically Aegislash, and Aegislash’s ghost typing and frailty leave it vulnerable to shadow ball. However, I am considering getting rid of shadow ball and replacing it with flamethrower or fire blast in order to threaten Venusaur and Aegislash at the same time. This team notably struggles against growth Venusaur due to Sludge Bomb maiming Clefable. Toxic is here to punish Volcarona as it sets up. I usually toxic Volcarona then switch to Unaware Clefable, leaving Volcarona under the radar. Soft-Boiled is here for obvious recovery purposes.
Tangrowth (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder
- Leech Seed
I needed a solid check for rain teams, specifically for Barraskewda and Rapid Strike Urshifu. Tangrowth fulfills this role perfectly with its phenomenal physical bulk and grass typing. It also counters grass knot Zeraora, which Quagsire definitely struggles with. I run Knock Off on Tangrowth because of Heavy Duty Boots switch-ins such as Cinderace and Mandibuzz. When those two lose their boots, they are in big trouble when switching into Stealth Rocks, especially since Cinderance has no recovery. Leech Seed also punishes switchins with slow yet steady chip damage over the course of the battle. Giga Drain is for even more recovery, especially against frail mons like Zeraora.
Coalossal (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Rapid Spin
- Will-O-Wisp
Coalossal, despite being in RU, is one of the best mons on this team. Why is this so? It is able to check Rillaboom and Cinderace lacking High Horsepower and High Jump Kick, respectively. It also sets Stealth Rocks, removes hazards with Rapid Spin, pressures Corviknight and Ferrothorn with Fire Blast, and threatens physical attackers and U-turners with burns from Will-O-Wisp and Flame Body. This teamslot was originally used for Galarian Weezing to counter Urshifu, but I realized that Cinderace is much more common and needs a proper check. Most Cinderace do not run High Jump Kick, so Coalossal counters Cinderace pretty well. I understand that Hippowdon could also fill this teamslot, but it lacks the role compression Coalossal provides; it cannot remove hazards nor spread burns.
Mew @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Block
- Imprison
- Transform
- Soft-Boiled
Last but not least, Mew serves as a cornerstone for this team by checking Magearna, specifically Stored Power Magearna. It makes an absolute fool out of set-up Magearna by forcing it to Struggle and has extreme counter-sweeping potential. For those of you who have not seen this set before, Block prevents the opponent from escaping, Imprison prevents the opponent from using moves common between Mew and the opponent, and Transform copies all the opponent’s moves. The opponent is forced to struggle, as it cannot move nor escape. This set proves to be effective against passive walls like Toxapex, Chansey, Blissey and Amoonguss (although Spore from Amoonguss can be obnoxious). However, I am considering changing Soft-Boiled to either U-turn, Volt Switch, or Teleport to prevent Mandibuzz, Magnezone, Chansey, Blissey, and Clefable from escaping, but I am not sure if sacrificing recovery is worth it.
Threats:
Despite the counter-nearly-everything theme of this team, I have noticed that it has quite a few weaknesses. This list is definitely longer than I expected. This list is tentative and will be edited as I experiment with this team further. Any feedback on how to counter these mons would be very helpful!
Feel free to take this team for a spin. I know this was a long read, but thank you for your time.
EDITS (due to recent bannings) PLEASE READ BEFORE REPLYING:
The Team:
Clefable (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Protect
- Teleport
- Moonblast
Coalossal's weakness to Stealth Rock kind of forces it to wear Heavy Duty Boots, as it is also the hazard remover of this team. As such, this team needs a Wish passer to allow Coalossal to regain health. I decided to use Clefable due to its ability to check strong special attackers like Hydreigon and set-up sweepers like Volcarona due to its Fairy type and Unaware ability, respectively. The Leftovers are for steady recovery throughout a match. I run special defense on this mon because Quagsire, my other unaware wall, already has physical defense. I do not run Stealth Rock on Clefable because Coalossal already has it and besides, Clefable needs those four moveslots for Wish support.
Quagsire (M)
Ability: Unaware
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Scald
- Earthquake
- Recover
- Toxic
Quagsire serves as my physical Unaware Wall and a great check to set-up sweepers like Hawlucha, Cloyster, Gyarados, and Azumarill as well as Alolan Marowak by not carrying an item. It is definitely hilarious to watch opposing Marowak use poltergeist only for it to fail. Its lack of an item actually benefits it further by making it less vulnerable to annoying Knock Off users like Scizor and Bisharp. It also decently counters Iron Defense Kommo-O by using Toxic against it. I have been using this instead of Toxapex because a +6 Knock Off from Azumarill can easily kill Toxapex. Quagsire’s Unaware ability negates Azumarill’s boosts.
Blissey @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 200 HP / 252 Def / 56 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Soft-Boiled
- Toxic
- Heal Bell
Blissey is here to check almost any special attacker in the metagame. It also serves as a good cleric with Heal Bell, as Toxic from opposing mons can be annoying. I put Shadow Ball here because this team struggles with special ghost types, specifically Aegislash, and Aegislash’s ghost typing and frailty leave it vulnerable to shadow ball. However, I am considering getting rid of shadow ball and replacing it with flamethrower or fire blast in order to threaten Venusaur and Aegislash at the same time. This team notably struggles against growth Venusaur due to Sludge Bomb maiming Clefable. Toxic is here to punish Volcarona as it sets up. I usually toxic Volcarona then switch to Unaware Clefable, leaving Volcarona under the radar. Soft-Boiled is here for obvious recovery purposes.
Tangrowth (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder
- Leech Seed
I needed a solid check for rain teams, specifically for Barraskewda and Rapid Strike Urshifu. Tangrowth fulfills this role perfectly with its phenomenal physical bulk and grass typing. It also counters grass knot Zeraora, which Quagsire definitely struggles with. I run Knock Off on Tangrowth because of Heavy Duty Boots switch-ins such as Cinderace and Mandibuzz. When those two lose their boots, they are in big trouble when switching into Stealth Rocks, especially since Cinderance has no recovery. Leech Seed also punishes switchins with slow yet steady chip damage over the course of the battle. Giga Drain is for even more recovery, especially against frail mons like Zeraora.
Coalossal (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Blast
- Rapid Spin
- Will-O-Wisp
Coalossal, despite being in RU, is one of the best mons on this team. Why is this so? It is able to check Rillaboom and Cinderace lacking High Horsepower and High Jump Kick, respectively. It also sets Stealth Rocks, removes hazards with Rapid Spin, pressures Corviknight and Ferrothorn with Fire Blast, and threatens physical attackers and U-turners with burns from Will-O-Wisp and Flame Body. This teamslot was originally used for Galarian Weezing to counter Urshifu, but I realized that Cinderace is much more common and needs a proper check. Most Cinderace do not run High Jump Kick, so Coalossal counters Cinderace pretty well. I understand that Hippowdon could also fill this teamslot, but it lacks the role compression Coalossal provides; it cannot remove hazards nor spread burns.
Mew @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Block
- Imprison
- Transform
- Soft-Boiled
Last but not least, Mew serves as a cornerstone for this team
Threats:
Despite the counter-nearly-everything theme of this team, I have noticed that it has quite a few weaknesses. This list is definitely longer than I expected. This list is tentative and will be edited as I experiment with this team further. Any feedback on how to counter these mons would be very helpful!
- Adaptability users
- Crawdaunt and Porygon in particular give this team lots of trouble, as Crawdaunt has swords dance while Porygon has nasty plot and trick. Crawdaunt is able to muscle through Quagsire and even Tangrowth, although it must be at +2 to KO Tangrowth. Furthermore, Porygon is able to cripple Blissey with Trick and set up on it, as it is immune to Shadow Ball.
- Single Strike Urshifu
- As I began to focus on countering Cinderace rather than Urshifu due to the former’s higher frequency, my team became notable weaker to Urshifu after I axed Galarian Weezing. So far, I have been attempting to burn Urshifu by tanking a Close Combat and praying that Flame body activates or by using Will-O-Wisp.
- Alakazam
- Please note that Alakazam is only threatening if it has Shadow Ball. If it does not have Shadow Ball, Mew traps it with ease. However, if it has Shadow Ball, I am forced to switch to Blissey or Clefable, which are crippled by psychock. The fact that Alakazam targets both defense and special defense makes it extremely difficult for this team to counter.
- Sun
- Venusaur at +2 is extremely threatening, as it severely damages the passive Blissey and Mew and deals super effective damage to Clefable. That’s all three of my special walls gone.
- Hazard Setters
- This team does not appreciate hazards and greatly benefits from Coalossal’s Rapid Spin. However, on occasions that Coalossal is killed, I have no way of removing hazards. Toxapex is extremely threatening, as it can use Scald on Coalossal if it attempts to Rapid Spin Toxapex’s Toxic Spikes.
- Taunt users
- Taunt, as one would expect, severely cripples any stall team. As for this team, Mew is pretty much Taunt bait, preventing it from trapping opposing pokemon effectively. Of all the Taunters I have come across, Talonflame has proved to be the most annoying, as it has Roost as well, so Quagsire cannot threaten it effectively with Scald.
- Substitute users
- I’m looking at you Dragapult (o ) _ (o ). Substitute users are particularly annoying because my team lacks a phaser. Using Skarmory or Hippowdown instead of Coalossal prevents hazards from being removed and makes this team more vulnerable to Cinderace, which is one of the most popular mons in the meta. Dragapult is the scariest of them all, as it has the power to muscle through Quagsire with Dragon Darts.
- Mold Breakers
- Excadrill and Haxorus ignore Quagsire’s Unaware, allowing them to dish out heavy damage against my team. I usually use Tangrowth to counter them, but their naturally high attack stats make them difficult to deal with.
- Gengar
- Even with Shadow Ball on Blissey, Nasty Plot Gengar still poses a huge threat, as it can muscle through Blissey and hit both Clefable and Mew super effectively. Just like Venusaur, it counters all three of my special walls.
High Jump Kick Cinderace
High Jump Kick just deals way too much damage, muscling through Quagsire and hitting Coalossal super effectively. With this move, Cinderace counters Quagsire, Tangrowth, and Coalossal, all three of my physical walls.
- Specific Rillaboom sets
- With High Horsepower and Acrobatics, Rillaboom eats Coalossal and Tangrowth for breakfast, and it can already hit Quagsire super effectively.
- Guts mons
- Conkeldurr, Heracross, and to some extent, Obstagoon, receive astronomical attack levels from Flame Orb, allowing them to muscle through my entire team, even Tangrowth.
- Trick users <-------(not anymore)
- Tricking Choice items cripples many of my mons by locking them into one move per switch. This may be the hardest threatlist item for this team to counter.
- Togekiss
- Similar to Cheesey’s original Transform Mew Stall team, this team is extremely weak to Togekiss flinching it to death. I understand, as GoodGame1324 pointed out on Cheesey’s thread, that some speed investment could allow Mew to outspeed Togekiss, but most Togekiss are scarfed anyways.
Feel free to take this team for a spin. I know this was a long read, but thank you for your time.
EDITS (due to recent bannings) PLEASE READ BEFORE REPLYING:
- I crossed out Cinderace from the threatlist.
- I made note that Magearna no longer threatens this team with Trick due to its banning.
- For those of you who are going to suggest reverting the Coalossal slot back to Galarian Weezing to counter Urshifu, I have decided against it, as Galarian Weezing's niche (checking Urshifu) is way too specific, and this team just needs a hazard setter to work at its maximum potential.
I will be experimenting between Coalossal and Skarmory to see which mon is better at both setting and removing hazards.Edit: I decided that Skarmory has a huge issue of removing its own hazards and not being able to threaten Corviknight. Hence, I let Coalossal stay. - I noted that Mew's niche no longer contains checking Magearna.
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