This team is an update from my past team which takes into consideration the recent bans in SV OU and the following development of the metagame, being currently the only Stall Sample Team in the tier.
Index:
1- Team Introduction and Core Ideas.
2- Individual Roles of Team Members.
3- Hard Match-ups list and Counterplay.
4- A few Replays.
5- Join my Discord!
1- Team Introduction and Core Ideas:
Gholdengo Hazard Stack Stall (pokepast.es)
The core idea of this team is to always win the hazard war by enforcing hazards to stay up through
´s ability and ghost typing, while being immune to oppositing hazards due to Heavy-Duty Boots Spam, in a generation where very few pokemon get knock off to remove them.
´s ghost typing makes it immune to Rapid Spin, while the "Good as Gold" ability blocks oppositing defog, it´s steel typing also walls the new "Mortal Spin", meaning that the only way you can remove hazards in front of
is by using Mold Breaker defog
or through the use of "Tidy Up", which is only learned by
, with neither being a consistent method.
In order to remove hazards from the field, the opponent would need a rapid spinner that can threaten
in some manner, (
). All off the pokemon capable of doing so can get worn down by hazards, status, or being damaged on a switch, meaning that long term the team can win the hazard war.
A key aspect to note, is that
is the knock off absorber in the team, and that there are a few Pokemon that learn knock and are capable of threathening it, like mixed Iron Valiant or Choice Band Great Tusk, which can be problematic when these pokemon are paired with hazard setters + gholdengo or hazard setters who threaten Corviknight.
The hazards available to this team are
´s Stealth Rocks and
´s Spikes, which can be set up against any pokemon that doesn´t represnt a threat to them. It is important to note that there are very few Spikes Immune Pokemon added in this generation, as there are no dominant flying types/levitate users/ Magic Guard Pokemon in OU.
With hazards up, oppositing offensive pokemon, either carry Heavy-Duty Boots , meaning they can´t carry Energy Boosters, Choice bands, Life Orbs etc; or take hazards damage on every switch, making defensive counterplay effective, as the opponent has less possibilities to double switch and pokemon will be at lower HP to begin with.
2- Individual Roles of Team Members.
Now that the core idea of the team has been explained in detail, I will explain the roles of each member of the team, as well as how to choose your tera based on Match-up accordingly.
Starting with one of the best Defensive Pokemon introduced in this generation:
is a physical Unaware Wall, that unlike
or
, keeps enough Special Bulk in order to deal with Special set up sweepers like Nasty Plot
, Calm Mind
and even
and
. On the Physical Side, Clodsire walls
in the early game or after it gets burnt , Physical versions of
, some
and
sets, SD
,
, and
, among others. What truly is impressive about
is the new amount of pokemon you can wall by using Tera Water; suddenly, you are a counter to SD
(excluding Tera dark or electric),
and
while also dealing better with
,
,
and
, even allowing you to get a safe toxic against +1 boosted
.
You need to be carefull with your recover PP, as this pokemon can switch into many different threats, and you should use it to deal with only the threats the rest of your team can´t cover, especially if you need to PP Stall
´s Salt Cure.
´s ability does not only block defog, it´s usefullness might even be superior to
´s Magic Bounce in past generations.
Good as Gold makes this pokemon immune to spore, which combined with its defensive typing, makes this pokemon a hard counter to
(excluding bulldoze which Tera Flying still deals with).
It can also deal with
if you nasty plot on a predicted protect, although if it calm minds as you nasty Plot, it will calm mind again and Tera, forcing some mind games.
is the team´s win condition, carrying both recover and nasty plot in order to set up and break bulkier teams or revenge kill some pokemon against offensive teams. Tera flying allows you to stay in on non poison jab Unaware
and spam shadow ball, with the same apllying to
in situations where you don´t need
´s HP, as ruination will bring you down to low health but will never be able to faint
. It also allows you to click make it rain as +1
goes for Earthquake, although you should only spend your Tera there in case it gets out of control.
is also able to block trick from oppositing
or
although you have to be carefull because they can 2hko you with shadow ball. Only make this more aggressive play when you either don´t need
in the match-up or lack trick fodder.
is obviously the main special wall of the team.
This Pokemon walls Choice Specs
and
, Nasty Plot
(due to Calm Mind), offensive
and
,
(although you should scout trick) as well as other lower tier threats like
or
.
Tera Dark allows this pokemon to use calm mind in order to beat Stored Power abusers, most importantly
and
, since you are immune to the exponential boost of Stored Power and Psyshock and can eat up all of
´s Draining Kisses or
´s Dazzling gleams with 8 Soft Boiled PP.
Although in
´s Case you have the risk of getting crit Ohkod by dazzling gleam,
will never break you, so only use Tera on
as a response to
when the rest of your team could not handle it.
Tera Dark Calculations:
0 SpA Tera Fairy Espathra Dazzling Gleam vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey: 122-146 (17 - 20.4%) -- possible 5HKO
+6 0 SpA Tera Fairy Espathra Dazzling Gleam vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey on a critical hit: 732-864 (102.5 - 121%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Hatterene Draining Kiss vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey: 102-120 (14.2 - 16.8%) -- possible 6HKO
+6 0 SpA Hatterene Draining Kiss vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey on a critical hit: 594-702 (83.1 - 98.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Blissey is naturally faster than Hatterene, so even if you get Crit at full HP, you can survive the threat. (You can run additional Spd Evs to be guaranteed to live regular draining kiss into Critical Hit although that is up to you).
is the only Regenerator Pokemon on the team, it can force progress through the use of whirlpool although water absorb clodsire will wall it.
It generally switches into u-turns to neutralize the damage with regenerator but it can deal with a variety of Dragon Dance, Bulk up or Curse users through the use of Chilling Water such as Dragon Dance
(kind of),
, Bulk up
and curse
(carefull with Body Press). It also passes wishes to teammates which come of a big 160 base hp stat, resulting in the regeneration of 267 Health Points.
can also scout which move Choice Band
or
lock into due to Regenerator.
Tera Ghost can be used for spin-blocking against
or for a neutrality to electric and grass, which is usefull against
and
.
is the only member of the team which does not carry Heavy-Duty Boots, due to its spikes and toxic spikes immunity. This also makes it the team´s knock off absorber, although some knock users may threathen it, like Choice Band
. Rocky helmet is usefull to punish uturn, and other attacks, especially
´s Population Bomb. This pokemon walls
, although taunt can be annoying. It is also able to reliably block
´s Mortal Spin, since the other Steel type on the team,
is weak to Earth Power. Defog is generally useless, although it can be helpfull in scenarios where your opponent does not have
and has knocked off your pokemon´s boots. Tera fairy can be used in an emergency against strong Dark types.
is the new member of the team, initially replacing
due to
´s ban and the lack of consistent
and
answers on the team.
´s qualities go much beyond expected. It´s main purpose is to wall
and
consistently, which it does perfectly despite relying on rest, since:
252 Atk Sword of Ruin Tera Dark Chien-Pao Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tauros-Paldea-Fire: 77-91 (21.7 - 25.7%) -- 1.5% chance to 4HKO
+2 252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 4 allies fainted Kingambit Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tauros-Paldea-Fire: 144-169 (40.6 - 47.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
claims the 6th slot on the team over it´s brother
or defensive
due to the combination of Will-o-Wisp + a strong STAB Body Press and Raging Bull which guarantee
or
will never risk absorbing the Will-o-Wisp, an issue
had in the past version of the team.
This Pokemon also walls the annyoing Stall-breaker Taunt Jaw Lock
Sets since Body Press hits it super effectively while Raging Bull nukes Tera Bug versions.
Tera Fighting Guarantees a 2HKO on Specially defensive Garganacl with Body Press still having a chance to 2hko Physically Defensive after Stealth Rocks. It also removes the fire type
which can be helpfull against
.
3- Hard Match-ups list.
This Section is divided into 2 parts:
-Problematic Sets.
-Problematic Combos and Team Structures.
Problematic Sets:
This team answers
by switching between regenerator
and
until Garganacl runs out of salt cure, using recover and wish when necessary. However, the block set limits this possibility, as it can trap both
and
beating them 1v1.
As Counterplay, you will need to use Tera Ghost on
to escape block and take less damage from salt cure, while wishing into either
or
depending on which is less usefull in the specific match-up. If you pick
you are immune to block and can always switch back into
to repeat the cycle until
runs out of PP. The same happens with
, except that you will need to rely on u-turn to do so, which can be exploited by flame body or rocky helmet users, although you also Pressure Block and Salt Cure.
With the removal of
from the team and
now lacking Tera Fairy, the Heavy-Duty-Boots Will-o-Wisp
set becomes a threat to the team.
The member replacing
, :Tauros-Paldea-Fire: can not burn Dragapult in case it clicks uturn unlike the Kalos Bird, while being extremely weak to hex after resting.
can not touch
with Shadow Ball being removed from it´s arsenal and Tera Dragon Dragon Darts 2hkos
.
As Counterplay, you can either sacrifice
to Will-o-Wisp and wish into
withouth being able to use Tera Ghost or be hazard pressured after a knock-off, or you can make risky moves going to
predicting any move but Hex.
Additionally, if your opponent ever predicts Hex Correctly and
is in range of the second hit you can Tera Flying avoiding super-effective damage and fainting
in return.
is a big problem for this team, as every form of counterplay the team has is flawed.
Chilling Water spam with
does not work, as +1 Glaive Rush deals 66% damage.
can switch in and trade itself if it predicts DD, but is 2hkod by Earthquake if it is hit on the switch.
can not take on Tera Ice Loaded Dice versions and struggles to beat Tera Dragon Icicle Crash variants due to the removal of the Ice type which no longer makes
weak to Body Press. Even if Bax chooses not to Tera, a snow defense boost can ruin Corviknight´s plans of trading itself for damage.
can try to take it on but it can´t burn it and acts as a one time switch-in at best.
As so, the best Counterplay to this threat is going
and wishing into
, making use of Tera Water the following turn to remove the ice weakness and trading a Glaive Rush hit for a permanent toxic. From there you try to switch stall it with your team until the mighty dragon faints to poisoning.
Problematic Combos and Team Structures:
Specially Defensive Poison Jab
+ Double Regenerator Stall
This one is straightforward, in a Stall vs Stall match-up, if one side has 1 regenerator Pokemon and the other has 2, in a game where hazards make no difference due to boots spam, the only way the single regenerator side could avoid losing would be by breaking the oppositing team with their win condition.
is the team´s win condition, and while it can use Tera Flying to beat
, poison jab shuts that strategy down completely.
So, you may be wondering, what form of counterplay is there?
The only way to win in this match-up is by baiting
´s Earthquakes and
´s Shadow Balls into
which can Pressure them.
The odds are not in your favor, but you can wish into
with
and have 8 recovers of your own. Make sure to spend Nasty Plot PP correctly and bait the right moves at the right time, if you run out of Nasty Plot PP attempting to break though or run out of recovery you will no longer be able to win.
Trick Spam + Hazards
Out of all the problematic combos and team structures this might not be the deadliest but is surely the most common. 3 out of the 4 Pokemon shown have access to trick and can run it viably, while this specific combination of 4, belongs to 2 OU sample teams and their multiple versions.
Trick is deadly against this team, not only because it is a Stall team but also because of the demand for Heavy-Duty Boots in this generation. Each pokemon that gets tricked on your team in a scenario where hazards are up is essentially worth as much as a late game sacrifice. You can try to outplay trick with
but each attempt at doing so can be met with a nuclear shadow ball prediction from
or
.
As Counterplay, you should identify the least usefull member on the team except for
and sacrifice it to trick. Attempting to sacrifice
, the only member that does not carry
to trick is a big mistake, since your opponent is just going to trick back their newly received Rocky Helmet for Heavy-Duty Boots on a different team member.
LECHONK ARMY! YOU CAN NOT STOP THEM!
4- A few Replays:
Vs Ayevon Balance Sample https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1770743624
Vs CB Chien-Pao Balance https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1770762877-lzsqppzlfmks4tg9romyfhitjw9r8b3pw
Vs Pinkacross Balance Sample https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1776135747-3lxas0rq7ee0qvs0ozx1vwbmrazdflfpw
Epic Tauros Comeback https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1776147057-wjpnj86wfy5sp1ojz79km0okzjbterypw
Tera Dark Blissey vs Tera Water Hatterene https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1773641465-q9uo6p4f06prum882q7ywbe25ok5ld1pw
1000 Turn Tie vs Stall https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1768673664-lw6pt2e27ykdrqbrqvxuwlwiyfxyed2pw
5- Join my Discord!
https://discord.gg/W23AaUMZ
The Biggest Stall Community of Pokemon Showdown!
Index:
1- Team Introduction and Core Ideas.
2- Individual Roles of Team Members.
3- Hard Match-ups list and Counterplay.
4- A few Replays.
5- Join my Discord!
1- Team Introduction and Core Ideas:
Gholdengo Hazard Stack Stall (pokepast.es)
The core idea of this team is to always win the hazard war by enforcing hazards to stay up through





In order to remove hazards from the field, the opponent would need a rapid spinner that can threaten



A key aspect to note, is that

The hazards available to this team are


With hazards up, oppositing offensive pokemon, either carry Heavy-Duty Boots , meaning they can´t carry Energy Boosters, Choice bands, Life Orbs etc; or take hazards damage on every switch, making defensive counterplay effective, as the opponent has less possibilities to double switch and pokemon will be at lower HP to begin with.
2- Individual Roles of Team Members.
Now that the core idea of the team has been explained in detail, I will explain the roles of each member of the team, as well as how to choose your tera based on Match-up accordingly.
Starting with one of the best Defensive Pokemon introduced in this generation:























You need to be carefull with your recover PP, as this pokemon can switch into many different threats, and you should use it to deal with only the threats the rest of your team can´t cover, especially if you need to PP Stall



Good as Gold makes this pokemon immune to spore, which combined with its defensive typing, makes this pokemon a hard counter to

It can also deal with












This Pokemon walls Choice Specs








Tera Dark allows this pokemon to use calm mind in order to beat Stored Power abusers, most importantly




Although in




Tera Dark Calculations:
0 SpA Tera Fairy Espathra Dazzling Gleam vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey: 122-146 (17 - 20.4%) -- possible 5HKO
+6 0 SpA Tera Fairy Espathra Dazzling Gleam vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey on a critical hit: 732-864 (102.5 - 121%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Hatterene Draining Kiss vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey: 102-120 (14.2 - 16.8%) -- possible 6HKO
+6 0 SpA Hatterene Draining Kiss vs. 252 HP / 0+ SpD Tera Dark Blissey on a critical hit: 594-702 (83.1 - 98.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Blissey is naturally faster than Hatterene, so even if you get Crit at full HP, you can survive the threat. (You can run additional Spd Evs to be guaranteed to live regular draining kiss into Critical Hit although that is up to you).

It generally switches into u-turns to neutralize the damage with regenerator but it can deal with a variety of Dragon Dance, Bulk up or Curse users through the use of Chilling Water such as Dragon Dance











Tera Ghost can be used for spin-blocking against


















252 Atk Sword of Ruin Tera Dark Chien-Pao Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tauros-Paldea-Fire: 77-91 (21.7 - 25.7%) -- 1.5% chance to 4HKO
+2 252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 4 allies fainted Kingambit Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tauros-Paldea-Fire: 144-169 (40.6 - 47.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO






This Pokemon also walls the annyoing Stall-breaker Taunt Jaw Lock

Tera Fighting Guarantees a 2HKO on Specially defensive Garganacl with Body Press still having a chance to 2hko Physically Defensive after Stealth Rocks. It also removes the fire type
which can be helpfull against

3- Hard Match-ups list.
This Section is divided into 2 parts:
-Problematic Sets.
-Problematic Combos and Team Structures.
Problematic Sets:
This team answers





As Counterplay, you will need to use Tera Ghost on







With the removal of



The member replacing




As Counterplay, you can either sacrifice



Additionally, if your opponent ever predicts Hex Correctly and



Chilling Water spam with





As so, the best Counterplay to this threat is going


Problematic Combos and Team Structures:
Specially Defensive Poison Jab

This one is straightforward, in a Stall vs Stall match-up, if one side has 1 regenerator Pokemon and the other has 2, in a game where hazards make no difference due to boots spam, the only way the single regenerator side could avoid losing would be by breaking the oppositing team with their win condition.


So, you may be wondering, what form of counterplay is there?
The only way to win in this match-up is by baiting



The odds are not in your favor, but you can wish into



Out of all the problematic combos and team structures this might not be the deadliest but is surely the most common. 3 out of the 4 Pokemon shown have access to trick and can run it viably, while this specific combination of 4, belongs to 2 OU sample teams and their multiple versions.
Trick is deadly against this team, not only because it is a Stall team but also because of the demand for Heavy-Duty Boots in this generation. Each pokemon that gets tricked on your team in a scenario where hazards are up is essentially worth as much as a late game sacrifice. You can try to outplay trick with



As Counterplay, you should identify the least usefull member on the team except for



LECHONK ARMY! YOU CAN NOT STOP THEM!
4- A few Replays:
Vs Ayevon Balance Sample https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1770743624
Vs CB Chien-Pao Balance https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1770762877-lzsqppzlfmks4tg9romyfhitjw9r8b3pw
Vs Pinkacross Balance Sample https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1776135747-3lxas0rq7ee0qvs0ozx1vwbmrazdflfpw
Epic Tauros Comeback https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1776147057-wjpnj86wfy5sp1ojz79km0okzjbterypw
Tera Dark Blissey vs Tera Water Hatterene https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1773641465-q9uo6p4f06prum882q7ywbe25ok5ld1pw
1000 Turn Tie vs Stall https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-1768673664-lw6pt2e27ykdrqbrqvxuwlwiyfxyed2pw
5- Join my Discord!
https://discord.gg/W23AaUMZ
The Biggest Stall Community of Pokemon Showdown!
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