SS OU First competitive team - any suggestions/criticism welcome :)

[emmars66]

This is my first shot at creating my own competitive team... I've had decent luck with it so far but I would like criticism on it.

Goodra @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sap Sipper
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dragon Pulse
- Ice Beam
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast

I love goodra so decided to make it the focus of my team. I was having trouble between deciding to put an assault vest on him or a choice scarf, but there may be something better I'm not thinking of. Any ideas? Besides that, he has great coverage and I've found him to be extremely useful in most battles I've had with this team.

Dracovish @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Strong Jaw
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fishious Rend
- Ice Fang
- Psychic Fangs
- Crunch

Not sure I have to say much about Dracovish... this thing is a beast. Great coverage, its attack stat is ridiculous, and popping a scarf on him makes fishious rend ridiculous.

Dracozolt @ Choice Band
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Bolt Beak
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang
- Outrage

I really just need more coverage and couldn't think of anything else besides dracozolt, maybe a conkeldurr would work better though now that I think about it. But there's really not much else to say about him... once again, his attack is crazy high with the choice band but the accuracy bc of hustle gets annoying if I have bad RNG.

Corsola-Galar @ Eviolite
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strength Sap
- Substitute
- Will-O-Wisp
- Hex

Great staller overall. I can tank most hits and set up a substitute easily, hex is useful if i want to set up a will o wisp or switch in from mandibuzz after he uses toxic.

Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Moonblast
- Protect
- Wish

Healer of the team and sets up hazards. Covers a good chunk of my team's weaknesses, but another mon may fit better here, I'm not sure.

Mandibuzz (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Knock Off
- Roost
- Toxic
- Defog

Mostly have him to clear opposing team's hazards and knock off items, though it does great stalling due to the combination of roost, toxic, and his bulkiness.

 

[chimp]

Hey, in my opinion, Goodra is definitely overlooked. It's definitely inferior to Hydreigon in most ways, unfortunately, but it can make a pretty good breaker thanks to its usable speed, great bulk and coverage.

However, I think the best item for Goodra is actually Choice Specs. Goodra's Sp.A isn't super high on its own, so a Choice Specs helps maximize its breaking power. Especially since you have Clefable to soak special hits and Dracovish to be a scarfer. In addition, I would swap Dragon Pulse to Draco Meteor to further bolster its power. The stat drop after every usage sucks for sure, but Goodra really appreciates the extra power (especially when using its coverage moves). Speaking of, I would also swap Focus Blast for Sludge Wave. Focus Blast doesn't hit anything that other coverage moves would hit (Draco Meteor for Hydreigon, Fire Blast for Ferrothorn, etc) and it allows you to not be walled by Fairies.

A few examples:

vs.
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Mandibuzz: 211-249 (49.7 - 58.7%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Mandibuzz: 138-163 (32.5 - 38.4%) -- 98.2% chance to 3HKO

vs.
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Toxapex: 208-246 (68.4 - 80.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Toxapex: 136-162 (44.7 - 53.2%) -- 0.4% chance to 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery

vs.
252 SpA Goodra Sludge Wave vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sylveon: 148-176 (37.5 - 44.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Sludge Wave vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sylveon: 220-260 (55.8 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

With that said, one major change I'd suggest:
Swapping Dracozolt with Rotom-Heat.
Dracozolt is powerful, and a good wall-breaker, even if the meta has been unkind to it. However, I feel as if Goodra and Dracovish accomplish its goal fine on your team. Rotom-Heat maintains an Electric-stab, while also serving as a much needed pivot to help bring your wallbreakers in safely. It also helps cover against Fairies, which threaten Goodra, Dracovish, Mandibuzz (and in many cases, Corsola-G).

Hope this helps!

 

[emmars66]

Hey, in my opinion, Goodra is definitely overlooked. It's definitely inferior to Hydreigon in most ways, unfortunately, but it can make a pretty good breaker thanks to its usable speed, great bulk and coverage.

However, I think the best item for Goodra is actually Choice Specs. Goodra's Sp.A isn't super high on its own, so a Choice Specs helps maximize its breaking power. Especially since you have Clefable to soak special hits and Dracovish to be a scarfer. In addition, I would swap Dragon Pulse to Draco Meteor to further bolster its power. The stat drop after every usage sucks for sure, but Goodra really appreciates the extra power (especially when using its coverage moves). Speaking of, I would also swap Focus Blast for Sludge Wave. Focus Blast doesn't hit anything that other coverage moves would hit (Draco Meteor for Hydreigon, Fire Blast for Ferrothorn, etc) and it allows you to not be walled by Fairies.

A few examples:

vs.
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Mandibuzz: 211-249 (49.7 - 58.7%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Mandibuzz: 138-163 (32.5 - 38.4%) -- 98.2% chance to 3HKO

vs.
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Toxapex: 208-246 (68.4 - 80.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Toxapex: 136-162 (44.7 - 53.2%) -- 0.4% chance to 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery

vs.
252 SpA Goodra Sludge Wave vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sylveon: 148-176 (37.5 - 44.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Goodra Sludge Wave vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sylveon: 220-260 (55.8 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

With that said, one major change I'd suggest:
Swapping Dracozolt with Rotom-Heat.
Dracozolt is powerful, and a good wall-breaker, even if the meta has been unkind to it. However, I feel as if Goodra and Dracovish accomplish its goal fine on your team. Rotom-Heat maintains an Electric-stab, while also serving as a much needed pivot to help bring your wallbreakers in safely. It also helps cover against Fairies, which threaten Goodra, Dracovish, Mandibuzz (and in many cases, Corsola-G).

Hope this helps!

Hey there, thank you so much for your suggestions! I agree with all of them & will try the new team out. I knew I just wasn't thinking of some obvious solutions for my team, but you put it into words perfectly. Much appreciated : )