It bothers me that the lack of an animated Urshifu sprite makes the header awkward, but it'll have to do. Anyway, I previously made a different RMT featuring Galarian Weezing, and it was pretty well received, so I decided to try to make another for this post-DLC meta. I think that Galarian Weezing has as big of a niche in OU as ever and it's still one of my favorite Pokemon to use, so I'm pretty happy with how this team turned out. To be honest, I didn't test it too extensively, because laddering has been stressful and not terribly fun for me lately, but I still wanted to share my ideas and the experiences I've had with it. For transparency as well, I was partially inspired by the Obstagoon team built by 100P that Luthier mentions here, which is why the teams ended up a little similar, but even then they only share 3 Pokemon in common. I'll also try to keep this RMT a little shorter than my previous ones.
The Team:
Weezing-Galar (M) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Neutralizing Gas
EVs: 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
- Aromatherapy
I love Galarian Weezing because its unique typing, and particularly its ability Neutralizing Gas, present interesting situations to play around with. Before the Isle of Armor DLC, Galarian Weezing's claim to fame was mainly as the best Conkeldurr check in the game since Neutralizing Gas removes Guts, and also as one of the better answers to Hawlucha and Zeraora. Even though Conkeldurr isn't as common as it once was (although personally I think it's still good and a little undervalued at the moment), Galarian Weezing also happens to be one of the best answers to the current top Fighting type in Urshifu-Single Strike, provided it doesn't have Iron Head. Poison Jab has been more commonly run on Urshifu than Iron Head (35.949% had Poison Jab and 25.372% had Iron Head at 1695 in August) but you still need to be wary of Iron Head. Galarian Weezing is also a very good switch into Rillaboom. The only Rillaboom variant that threatens Galarian Weezing too much is SD High Horsepower, and only 22.433% of Rillaboom had High Horsepower in August at 1695. Galarian Weezing is still a great defensive answer to some of the same threats from before the DLC, like the aforementioned Conkeldurr, Obstagoon, Terrakion without Earthquake, and most importantly, Hawlucha and physical Zeraora (which is by far the most common type of Zeraora at the moment). Finally, the last thing I want to add about Galarian Weezing is that since you're not Levitate if you're Neutralizing Gas, he can act as a Toxic Spikes absorber.
Now while Galarian Weezing is a good defensive check to an array of important threats, it is still largely outclassed by other defensive Pokemon with better longevity, like Tangrowth. However, by negating opposing abilities, Neutralizing Gas gives Galarian Weezing additional utility. There are numerous applications for Neutralizing Gas, and I know that I'm not knowledgeable enough to talk about them all, so I'll just mention a few important ones I can think of at the moment. The biggest one I can think of right now is probably switching in to prevent Regenerator recovery. This can be huge to keep Toxapex, Amoonguss, and Tangrowth low - keeping them in range to be KOed if they switch back in later to sponge a hit. Many people are annoyed by Regenerator (and particularly Pex), so it's really nice to be able to prevent it. Neutralizing Gas can also be helpful in preventing weather or terrain from being set, and removing Magic Guard from Clefable can help in it getting worn down as well. Natural Cure doesn't activate while switching out, so you can keep status on Blissey. It's also nice to be able to Burn Xatu and Hatterene with a Wisp and not fear Magic Bounce. Azumarill without Huge Power is walled by Galarian Weezing. Like I said, there are countless ways to use Neutralizing Gas and I'm sure I'm overlooking some important ones, but the point is that it's a great and applicable ability.
As for the set itself, it's pretty straightforward. Max HP and near-max Physical Defense to help switch into the physical attackers I talked about that Galarian Weezing is meant to take on. I run 12 Speed to creep uninvested Tyranitar, and by extension, uninvested Clefable (both of which most commonly are uninvested). This can help get off a Pain Split or potentially pick one of them off while they're at low health before they can go for Rest (Tyranitar) or Soft-Boiled (Clef). I also don't think that allotting 12 EVs into Speed really changes any damage rolls, but someone please correct me if I'm wrong about that. For moves, Strange Steam gives you a nice Fairy STAB and the 20% confusion chance can be big. Will-O-Wisp is crucial to cripple physical attackers, especially since that's largely what Galarian Weezing will be switching into. Pain Split is really good right now because there are a good amount of common Pokemon slower than Galarian Weezing that have huge HP stats and make easy targets to heal up on, like Blissey, Tangrowth, Clefs without Speed investment, and Hippowdon (especially if you can Burn it first). Pain Split is also really nice to provide you some longevity after taking hits, while simultaneously weakening your target. The last move on G-Weezing is pretty flexible and I tried a Taunt variant with Speed to outrun uninvested Skarmory, and I do think that's a good option that destroys some stall teams, but it felt a little too specific for me and I missed some of the lost bulk. In the past I just used Flamethrower for coverage, but it didn't feel as useful on this team. So, I went with Aromatherapy. There is a lot of status going around with how common things like Blissey, Pex, and Hex Dragapult are, so it's convenient to be able to mitigate that. Finally, Black Sludge is just to give some passive recovery and provide an option for a potential Trick-receiver, although G-Weezing doesn't really want to ever be tricked anything.
Dragapult (F) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Shadow Ball
- Fire Blast
- U-turn
Alright I said I was going to keep this briefer than my previous RMTs, but I couldn't help but rave about Galarian Weezing, so I'll do my best to be more concise going forward. I feel like Dragapult is a great "glue" Pokemon on a lot of teams, even though that term is more often applied to utility picks like Clef. What I mean by that is Dragapult can fill a few important roles that hold the team together and can prevent you from outright losing some games that you may have otherwise. Pult can function as a Special breaker against teams that don't have a designated Special wall like Blissey, or Specially Defensive Clef or Mandibuzz, a revenge killer thanks to its excellent speed tier, insurance against some substitute sweepers like Gengar thanks to Infiltrator, and its typing often allows it to live one hit and threaten out a difficult to handle opposing Pokemon in an emergency.
For the set, I went with Specs because I wanted Pult to be immediately threatening and come in to collect a kill as often as possible. Draco Meteor is obviously your strongest STAB but I've noticed that a good number of teams haven't been carrying Ghost resists and can be swept by Shadow Ball after some chip. Fire Blast is great coverage against Steels like Corviknight, Ferrothorn, and Excadrill. Finally, U-turn is for momentum against obvious switch-ins like Blissey, and Specially Defensive Mandibuzz and Clefable, so that I can bring in my other breakers in Urshifu and Excadrill. I like Modest to squeeze as much damage as possible out of the big hits you're looking to come in and drop, and I don't feel like you lose out on much by not going Timid. The only things you really miss out on by not being Timid are positive nature Talonflame and opposing Dragapult. Talonflame isn't very common (only 1.067% usage at 1695 in August) and can't really do much against my Hippowdon anyway, and most other Dragapults are neutral nature regarding Speed as well.
Hippowdon (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
I went with a Specially Defensive Hippowdon as my main check to Volcarona. Rock Slide should OHKO any Volcarona that doesn't have significant bulk investment and Hippo isn't really threatened by Volc unless it has Giga Drain (which only 20.343%) did in August. Even then, +1 Modest Giga Drain "only" does 69.0% max against fully Specially Defensive Hippo, so you should usually be OK regardless. Maybe it's just because I'm not too high on the ladder either, but many people don't expect Rock Slide from Hippo and let their Volc get caught by it. SpDef Hippo is also nice to better check Specially offensive Grass Knot Zeraora, as well as some other threats like Gengar, Aegislash, and Toxtricity, which Special walls like Blissey can't really touch and just get set up on. Hippo still has enough natural Physical bulk that it's still a good check to things like Excadrill, but it isn't nearly as good of an answer as it would be if it was Physically invested. The moves are straight forward; Earthquake, Stealth Rock, and Slack Off are all mandatory on Hippo. The last thing I'll mention about Rock Slide is that it's helpful to not be completely walled by Xatu and to also give you some (typically not a ton though) immediate damage against ground resists like Rotom-Heat and Hydreigon. Finally, Leftovers is the obvious pick for added longevity, especially because you don't want this Hippo to be taking many physical hits with a Rocky Helmet.
Excadrill (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Sand Rush Excadrill pairs with Hippowdon to give me a potential late-game wincon. There are a couple parts of this set I wasn't completely sure on, but I'll explain my reasoning. I like Jolly a lot better than Adamant because it lets you outrun a few key Pokemon that you otherwise couldn't without Sand being up, like Modest Volcarona, Rotom-Heat, Adamant Urshifu, Modest Kyurem, Gyarados, and Togekiss. Jolly Drill in Sand also outruns +2 Modest Volcarona, +1 Adamant Dragapult, and +2 Jolly Gyarados, whereas Adamant Drill wouldn't even with Sand. The added damage of Life Orb can be nice but I've found Drill to get worn down too quickly without Leftovers. Probably the most "controversial" part of this set is selecting Rock Slide over Rapid Spin. Rapid Spin is always nice to remove hazards while keeping your own, but this team isn't really hazard-focused (it only has Rocks from Hippo) and since Corviknight is usually such a reliable Defogger, I don't think Spin on Drill was necessary for hazard control. Admittedly, the biggest part about not having Rapid Spin that I miss is not being able to get to +1 Speed, which can open up late-game sweeps, but if you can time your Sand right, you shouldn't need the Speed boost from Spin. Obviously you can't always get as many Sand turns as you need, and that's where you miss Spin the most, but Rock Slide can also punch holes and allow you to keep sweeping without being stuffed by things like Rotom-Heat and Mandibuzz after some chip (especially if it's Specially Defensive Mandibuzz). The 30% Rock Slide flinch rate also gives you a better chance of sometimes getting by things like Corviknight or Skarmory, thanks to the better damage rolls than Iron Head. Finally, maybe I'm just paranoid because I really don't like Volcarona, but I like having the added insurance of Rock Slide in case my Hippo can't handle it.
Urshifu (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Unseen Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wicked Blow
- Close Combat
- Bulk Up
- Sucker Punch
I initially tried Obstagoon and Conkeldurr in this spot, but I wanted to use Aromatherapy on Galarian Weezing and that didn't synergize well with it removing their Burns (especially with Switcheroo Obstagoon losing its Flame Orb), so I ended up going with the Fighting type that largely outclasses them anyway. I wanted to go with an Adamant Life Orb variant because it takes away a lot of the prediction of Choice Band and can be more destructive late-game with some select chip. The downside to Life Orb Urshifu is that it gets worn down pretty quickly, especially with how much Rocky Helmet users there are running around, and for this reason I think it's usually best run alongside Wish-Teleport Clef to keep it healthier. However on this team, I think it does its job as a physical breaker and potential late-game sweeper fine. I like the added damage from Adamant over Jolly, especially with Sucker Punch priority. Wicked Blow and Close Combat are the mandatory STABs, but I've had a really hard time choosing between Bulk Up and Poison Jab/Iron Head for the last spot. I ended up deciding on Bulk Up because I like the way to enhances Urshifu's ability to sweep late, particularly with how a +1 Sucker Punch hits most things that would revenge kill you extremely hard (+1 252+ Atk Life Orb Urshifu Sucker Punch vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Zeraora: 308-364 (97.1 - 114.8%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO), while also making sure that your attacks pack as much punch as possible without taking more Life Orb chip. The problem with forgoing Poison Jab/Iron Head obviously is that you get walled by Fairies like Physically Defensive Clefable, opposing Galarian Weezing, and Primarina. Wicked Blow is so strong though that you can still sometimes muscle through those Fairies at +1 if you've already chipped them. A common way people try to deal with Urshifu is first going to a Regenerator Pokemon like Toxapex, Amoonguss, or Tangrowth to sponge a hit/deal Rocky Helmet damage before switching into their Dark resist (usually Clef) if necessary. If you've already chipped the Regenerator Pokemon/Dark resist a little, and you Bulk Up on their switch, you can just win on the spot. Bulk Up Urshifu should also usually beat Mandibuzz as well, which otherwise I have a very hard time breaking. The Defense boost from Bulk Up also lets you usually blow through some would-be checks like Kommo-o. The last thing I'll say about Urshifu is that it being 4 times resistant to Dark makes it an excellent Bisharp answer, which my team would otherwise be very weak to since I went with full SpDef on Hippo and Corviknight.
Corviknight (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 29 Spe
- Body Press
- Roost
- Defog
- U-turn
Finally, I went with Corviknight as my Defogger. Corviknight is usually a very dependable Defogger and Pressure stalling can decide some games as well. I went with full Special Defense to give me some sort of switch into Choice Specs Kyurem, which I'm otherwise extremely weak to. I need Leftovers on Corviknight to attempt to Pressure stall out Kyurem's Ice Beams and Aegislash's Shadow Balls. I would like to have had the option to run Shed Shell because getting trapped by Magnezone is annoying, but Leftovers is necessary for some rolls, like I mentioned with Specs Kyurem and Aegislash. Fortunately, since this isn't a Physically Defensive Corviknight and we have Galarian Weezing, you probably won't be switching it into U-turns from stuff like Rillaboom that are frequently looking to trap you with Zone, although I do have a tough time dealing with Scizor, so sometimes it's necessary to come in on a potential U-turn from that. Roost and Defog are necessary on Corviknight, but I wasn't too sure about the last two moves. First, I went with Body Press because I thought with being Specially Defensive Hippo, I opened myself up too much to being swept by opposing Excadrill after some chip. Iron Head would be nice against Calm Mind Clef and Primarina (which I'll talk about more in a minute, but I'm really weak to it as well) so I've heavily considered that option, but Excadrill felt like the more pressing threat to me. I also thought that my own Excadrill would probably be fine against most CM Clefs. I could run Body Press and Iron Head, and maybe that would be best, but I really like U-turn on Corviknight to pivot into the heavy hitters like Dragapult, Urshifu, and Excadrill. This is also why I use 29 Speed IVs on Corviknight; to attempt to get the slower U-turns out against opposing Corviknights. U-turn also affords you a little more leeway against Magnezones that try to raw switch into your Corviknight.
Threats:
I'm probably going to overlook some key threats because like I said in the introduction, I haven't laddered too extensively with this team, but here's what I've come across/can think of:
Replays:
I just have a few replays to show the team in action. They're all in or just outside of the 1600s, so it's not really high ladder or anything, and I know I didn't play optimally, but they at least show the team off a little. Also, for the record too, the highest I've ever peaked in SS OU was like 1735 (which I think is decent but obviously not like the top of the ladder or anything) and I feel like it was my play, not my teams, that held me back, so please keep that in mind if you watch the replays to see how the team functions - I'm sure I don't do the best possible job of piloting it.
Replay 1 - You see SpDef Hippo effectively wall the opposing Dragapult and get Rocks up. You can also see that the offensive trio of Dragapult, Excadrill, and Urshifu enable me to make double switches and keep the pressure up fairly easily. That's important as it keeps Corviknight low and allows my Excadrill to KO it with a +2 Rock Slide on turn 22, illustrating some of the worth of that move choice. Galarian Weezing also contributes by using Aromatherapy to remove the Burn on Hippo and surviving a Life Orb Haxorus Earthquake and OHKOing it back with Strange Steam after Rocks and Life Orb damage. I also should have just Pain Split on the Blissey on turn 32 instead of trying to force it to keep a Burn when it came back in and that EQ from Haxorus wouldn't have been so close, but it didn't end up mattering.
Replay 2 - This replay shows how big of a threat Primarina is to my team, as I'm pretty much forced to just pivot around it and end up sacing both Hippo and Drill to it. I probably should have just attacked it with Hippo turn 1 to keep it lower instead of trying to get up Rocks. Anyway, U-turn on Corviknight is nice on Turn 14 when I catch my opponent trying to go for a greedy sub with Alolan Marowak, which allows me to pick it off with Dragapult's Infiltrator. Fire Blast coverage on Dragapult is also really good in this game because it KOs Tangrowth and Toxtricity on turns 24 and 25. Finally, Galarian Weezing comes through again by stuffing and then Burning the Urshifu to end the game.
Replay 3 - This was an interesting game against a Trick Room team. I like this replay a lot because Galarian Weezing is huge once again in this game, as it does its original job from before the DLC of checking Conkeldurr and also ends up Burning the Rillaboom to end the game. Sucker Punch on Urshifu is big on Turn 11 because it takes out the +2 Alolan Marowak which would have nabbed another KO in Trick Room. You can also see the importance of Pain Split on G-Weezing on turn 17 because it allows it to recover up after living a +2/Burned High Horsepower from Rillaboom, while significantly damaging the Rillaboom as well. Grassy Terrain and Black Sludge recovery actually allows Galarian Weezing live another High Horsepower and the confusion from Strange Steam lets it take down the Rillaboom 1-on-1 to finish the game.
Conclusion:
So I said that I would try to make this RMT shorter than my previous ones, and I guess that was a lie lol; I'm just really long-winded while writing about this stuff. I've said this a few times throughout, but playing lately hasn't been too fun for me so I don't really feel like laddering more with this team, but I wanted to share my ideas anyway in case it can benefit anyone else - plus I do enjoy writing my thoughts out in-depth. Thank you very much to anyone who actually reads this or looks it over, and have a great day everyone!
Weezing-Galar (M) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Neutralizing Gas
EVs: 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
- Aromatherapy
Dragapult (F) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Shadow Ball
- Fire Blast
- U-turn
Hippowdon (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
Excadrill (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Urshifu (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Unseen Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wicked Blow
- Close Combat
- Bulk Up
- Sucker Punch
Corviknight (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 29 Spe
- Body Press
- Roost
- Defog
- U-turn
Ability: Neutralizing Gas
EVs: 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Strange Steam
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
- Aromatherapy
Dragapult (F) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Shadow Ball
- Fire Blast
- U-turn
Hippowdon (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Stealth Rock
- Slack Off
Excadrill (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
Urshifu (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Unseen Fist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wicked Blow
- Close Combat
- Bulk Up
- Sucker Punch
Corviknight (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 29 Spe
- Body Press
- Roost
- Defog
- U-turn
Last edited: