Well, I am back once again in ΩRAS OU, and I have been experimenting with a Pokémon which has been getting a lot of much-deserved hype: Hoopa Unbound. I have been experimenting with this monster of a Pocket Monster, and I've tried every combination of every OU Pokémon that I have in my PC in Alpha Sapphire, and yet I have yet to come across the one team I'm willing to call "perfect" for Hoopa. For this reason, I'm resorting to the RMT thread in order to see what the community thinks of my team. This current team is my most recent build, and as I have tired myself just trying to think up a good team, I won't delve too much into the teambuilding process. Instead, it's all analysis and threatlist this time. So, without further ado (that should be my new catchphrase), here is my team at a glance:
Analysis:
Djinnius (Hoopa-Unbound) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
The main Pokémon of the team, Hoopa Unbound is a powerful force, yet at the same time too frail to function on its own. Everything about this set is uncertain, so I will go through the logic behind each of the variables. I chose to run with the Physical Scarf variant, as Hoopa is not fast enough to deal with the faster threats without a scarf, and there are plenty of specially defensive Pokémon in the tier to tank hits from Hoopa's Special moves. I gave Hoopa an Adamant nature, for in my playtesting I noticed that Hoopa was able to nab some crucial KOs that it otherwise could not if running Jolly.
The moves themselves are also chosen with the utmost scrutiny, with all details analyzed and accounted for. For the primary STAB, I analyzed both Hoopa Unbound's signature move and the most commonly used Dark-type STAB move, and I ultimately decided that Hyperspace Fury's infiltrators abilities and 2.5/35 Base Power advantage overshadow Knock Off's item removal ability just enough to merit being Hoopa's main offensive option. Gunk Shot, while being bestowed an accuracy worse than Meteor Mash's chance to not raise the attack stat, is the only option available to take down the Fairy types that threaten the Djinn. Drain Punch is mainly for coverage and longevity, but it leaves me in a tighter spot against the likes of Mega Scizor and Ferrothorn. On the other hand, Fire Punch, while giving Hoopa the upper hand against the aforementioned Pokémon, leaves Hoopa with zero recovery options, and makes dealing with Tyranitar all the more onerous. In the final slot, I initially went with Trick as a means to cripple item-reliant Pokémon, but I realized that there was no time that was truly optimal to use Trick. Moreover, there were many cases in which I desperately wished for a Psychic-type STAB, and I lost a few matches due to not having one, so I decided to ultimately run Zen Headbutt as its fourth move.
Balboa (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball
Hoopa's main Achilles' heel is its virtually nonexistent Defense; Ferrothorn is the remedy to that problem. Everything about Ferrothorn screams "Hoopa's best bud;" his typing gives him key resistances to Hoopa's Fairy weakness, his EVs and nature are perfect for sponging physical hits aimed at Hoopa, and at times I believe he just stays awake at night, dreaming for a Pokémon to make contact with his Iron Barbs and Rocky Helmet. He is arguably the best teammate for which Hoopa Unbound can ask.
As for the moves, Ferrothorn is a great defensive utility Pokémon, providing the ever-necessary Stealth Rock entry hazard for my team. As he runs Rocky Helmet over Leftovers, Leech Seed is a great move for providing recovery, not only for Ferrothorn, but also for any of my other Pokémon that can benefit from the HP drained from a foe that refuses to switch out. Power Whip and Gyro Ball are the STAB moves of choice, with Power Whip hitting many common Water- and Ground-type Pokémon for weakness and Gyro Ball taking advantage of a Speed stat lower than Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench.
Genbu (Blastoise-Mega) (M) @ Blastoisinite
Ability: Mega Launcher
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Water Pulse
- Dark Pulse
- Aura Sphere
Mega Blastoise seems like an odd choice on this team; it uses up the Mega Evolution for my team, and there are plenty of Pokémon, both Mega Evolutions and hazard clearers, that can easily replace Blastoise. So why did I choose Mega Blastoise for this role? One simple reason: I've used Blastoise on a few teams before, and the Shellfish Pokémon (not the fossils) has not let me down at all. It's bulky, it spins, its speed is in a good spot, and it just does its job.
The moves on Blastoise are fairly self-explanatory. Rapid Spin gets rid of hazards; Water Pulse hits for good damage with Mega Launcher and confusion chance, Dark Pulse takes out Ghost-types trying to block Rapid Spin, and Aura Sphere puts a nice dent in defensive Steel-types like Ferrothorn. Not much else to be said about Blastoise.
Ron Swanson (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Smack Down
Now that the roles of hazard setter and hazard clearer have been removed, I now turned my attention to Pokémon that could provide both offensive and defensive support for the rest of my team. I immediately thought of all of the annoying Thunder Waves that plagued me one too many times, and my eyes naturally fell on Therian Forme Landorus. Not only is he immune to Thunder Wave; Landorus stops Volt Switch users in their tracks (Mega Manectric only to some extent), and he provides further insurance against potential physical threats through Intimidate. He can also soften up physical attackers so that Ferrothorn can poke foes even more. I gave Landorus-T an Assault Vest to give him an even greater shock value, although I think Rocky Helmet and Choice Scarf are equally viable options for its item.
Earthquake and U-turn are almost mandatory for Landorus-T: Earthquake is his most powerful STAB move, and U-turn provides a great way to carry momentum, and it can also give a free switch into Hoopa. Knock Off is another great utility move in removing items from the Pokémon that rely upon them to succeed. In the last moveslot, I went with a rather unorthodox Rock-type move in Smack Down, but the fact that opponents are unprepared for it, combined with its synergy with Landoge's STAB, I see it merits use on the Abundance Pokémon. Not only that, but compared with the other viable two Rock-type moves, Rock Slide and Stone Edge, there seemed to be a general trend where for every 25 units of increase in Base Power, there is a 10% loss of accuracy and an even greater loss of secondary effect chance, so I decided to stick with the move that is guaranteed to hit and do something.
HeatCis (Heatran) (M) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Toxic
Heatran is another Pokémon that pairs really well with Hoopa-Unbound. It has a 4x resistance to both of its weaknesses, and its plethora of roles leave the opponent guessing as to what it will do. When deciding on the set, I though, if we're traversing the stall-breaking route, we might as well go stall-breaking all the way, and so I settled on Stall-Beaker Heatran. I gave Heatran an Air Balloon to create a double bluff for opponents that try to predict a switch in and use Earthquake prematurely.
Magma Storm helps trap undesirable Pokémon, leaving them at Heatran's mercy. Taunt and Toxic work really well with Magma Storm, with Toxic and Magma Storm damage wearing down the opponent slowly and painfully, while Taunt prevents the foe from trying any particularly appalling tricks. Earth Power is a nice, accurate secondary attack, and it's what the Smogon Dex told me to use, so I went with it.
Fairy Ball (Clefable) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
- Moonblast
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave
- Heal Bell
Ah, Clefable. Such a nice little...what is that thing in the first place? Anyway, Clefable is the last Pokémon on my team, but certainly not the least. This set is a typical Physically Defensive Clefable, yet another team member to patch up Hoopa's physical weakness, with Unaware replaced by Magic Guard due to incompatibility with Heal Bell (or Soft-Boiled, I can never remember which).
I consider Clefable to be the glue of my team, patching up any spots my team was missing. Moonblast is a nice STAB attack that hits Fairy-weak Pokémon for decent damage. Soft-Boiled is the most reliable recovery move, having twice the PP of Moonlight without having to resort to the unpredictability of the weather. Thunder Wave cripples opposing Pokémon that rely on their speed to succeed (internal rhyme ftw). Heal Bell helps cure teammates of unwanted status conditions, which is especially useful considering how crippling they are for Hoopa.
———————————————
Threat List:
EDIT: Before I forget, here's an importable:
Analysis:
Djinnius (Hoopa-Unbound) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
The main Pokémon of the team, Hoopa Unbound is a powerful force, yet at the same time too frail to function on its own. Everything about this set is uncertain, so I will go through the logic behind each of the variables. I chose to run with the Physical Scarf variant, as Hoopa is not fast enough to deal with the faster threats without a scarf, and there are plenty of specially defensive Pokémon in the tier to tank hits from Hoopa's Special moves. I gave Hoopa an Adamant nature, for in my playtesting I noticed that Hoopa was able to nab some crucial KOs that it otherwise could not if running Jolly.
The moves themselves are also chosen with the utmost scrutiny, with all details analyzed and accounted for. For the primary STAB, I analyzed both Hoopa Unbound's signature move and the most commonly used Dark-type STAB move, and I ultimately decided that Hyperspace Fury's infiltrators abilities and 2.5/35 Base Power advantage overshadow Knock Off's item removal ability just enough to merit being Hoopa's main offensive option. Gunk Shot, while being bestowed an accuracy worse than Meteor Mash's chance to not raise the attack stat, is the only option available to take down the Fairy types that threaten the Djinn. Drain Punch is mainly for coverage and longevity, but it leaves me in a tighter spot against the likes of Mega Scizor and Ferrothorn. On the other hand, Fire Punch, while giving Hoopa the upper hand against the aforementioned Pokémon, leaves Hoopa with zero recovery options, and makes dealing with Tyranitar all the more onerous. In the final slot, I initially went with Trick as a means to cripple item-reliant Pokémon, but I realized that there was no time that was truly optimal to use Trick. Moreover, there were many cases in which I desperately wished for a Psychic-type STAB, and I lost a few matches due to not having one, so I decided to ultimately run Zen Headbutt as its fourth move.
Balboa (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball
Hoopa's main Achilles' heel is its virtually nonexistent Defense; Ferrothorn is the remedy to that problem. Everything about Ferrothorn screams "Hoopa's best bud;" his typing gives him key resistances to Hoopa's Fairy weakness, his EVs and nature are perfect for sponging physical hits aimed at Hoopa, and at times I believe he just stays awake at night, dreaming for a Pokémon to make contact with his Iron Barbs and Rocky Helmet. He is arguably the best teammate for which Hoopa Unbound can ask.
As for the moves, Ferrothorn is a great defensive utility Pokémon, providing the ever-necessary Stealth Rock entry hazard for my team. As he runs Rocky Helmet over Leftovers, Leech Seed is a great move for providing recovery, not only for Ferrothorn, but also for any of my other Pokémon that can benefit from the HP drained from a foe that refuses to switch out. Power Whip and Gyro Ball are the STAB moves of choice, with Power Whip hitting many common Water- and Ground-type Pokémon for weakness and Gyro Ball taking advantage of a Speed stat lower than Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench.
Genbu (Blastoise-Mega) (M) @ Blastoisinite
Ability: Mega Launcher
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Water Pulse
- Dark Pulse
- Aura Sphere
Mega Blastoise seems like an odd choice on this team; it uses up the Mega Evolution for my team, and there are plenty of Pokémon, both Mega Evolutions and hazard clearers, that can easily replace Blastoise. So why did I choose Mega Blastoise for this role? One simple reason: I've used Blastoise on a few teams before, and the Shellfish Pokémon (not the fossils) has not let me down at all. It's bulky, it spins, its speed is in a good spot, and it just does its job.
The moves on Blastoise are fairly self-explanatory. Rapid Spin gets rid of hazards; Water Pulse hits for good damage with Mega Launcher and confusion chance, Dark Pulse takes out Ghost-types trying to block Rapid Spin, and Aura Sphere puts a nice dent in defensive Steel-types like Ferrothorn. Not much else to be said about Blastoise.
Ron Swanson (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Smack Down
Now that the roles of hazard setter and hazard clearer have been removed, I now turned my attention to Pokémon that could provide both offensive and defensive support for the rest of my team. I immediately thought of all of the annoying Thunder Waves that plagued me one too many times, and my eyes naturally fell on Therian Forme Landorus. Not only is he immune to Thunder Wave; Landorus stops Volt Switch users in their tracks (Mega Manectric only to some extent), and he provides further insurance against potential physical threats through Intimidate. He can also soften up physical attackers so that Ferrothorn can poke foes even more. I gave Landorus-T an Assault Vest to give him an even greater shock value, although I think Rocky Helmet and Choice Scarf are equally viable options for its item.
Earthquake and U-turn are almost mandatory for Landorus-T: Earthquake is his most powerful STAB move, and U-turn provides a great way to carry momentum, and it can also give a free switch into Hoopa. Knock Off is another great utility move in removing items from the Pokémon that rely upon them to succeed. In the last moveslot, I went with a rather unorthodox Rock-type move in Smack Down, but the fact that opponents are unprepared for it, combined with its synergy with Landoge's STAB, I see it merits use on the Abundance Pokémon. Not only that, but compared with the other viable two Rock-type moves, Rock Slide and Stone Edge, there seemed to be a general trend where for every 25 units of increase in Base Power, there is a 10% loss of accuracy and an even greater loss of secondary effect chance, so I decided to stick with the move that is guaranteed to hit and do something.
HeatCis (Heatran) (M) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Toxic
Heatran is another Pokémon that pairs really well with Hoopa-Unbound. It has a 4x resistance to both of its weaknesses, and its plethora of roles leave the opponent guessing as to what it will do. When deciding on the set, I though, if we're traversing the stall-breaking route, we might as well go stall-breaking all the way, and so I settled on Stall-Beaker Heatran. I gave Heatran an Air Balloon to create a double bluff for opponents that try to predict a switch in and use Earthquake prematurely.
Magma Storm helps trap undesirable Pokémon, leaving them at Heatran's mercy. Taunt and Toxic work really well with Magma Storm, with Toxic and Magma Storm damage wearing down the opponent slowly and painfully, while Taunt prevents the foe from trying any particularly appalling tricks. Earth Power is a nice, accurate secondary attack, and it's what the Smogon Dex told me to use, so I went with it.
Fairy Ball (Clefable) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
- Moonblast
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave
- Heal Bell
Ah, Clefable. Such a nice little...what is that thing in the first place? Anyway, Clefable is the last Pokémon on my team, but certainly not the least. This set is a typical Physically Defensive Clefable, yet another team member to patch up Hoopa's physical weakness, with Unaware replaced by Magic Guard due to incompatibility with Heal Bell (or Soft-Boiled, I can never remember which).
I consider Clefable to be the glue of my team, patching up any spots my team was missing. Moonblast is a nice STAB attack that hits Fairy-weak Pokémon for decent damage. Soft-Boiled is the most reliable recovery move, having twice the PP of Moonlight without having to resort to the unpredictability of the weather. Thunder Wave cripples opposing Pokémon that rely on their speed to succeed (internal rhyme ftw). Heal Bell helps cure teammates of unwanted status conditions, which is especially useful considering how crippling they are for Hoopa.
———————————————
Threat List:
- Bisharp
- Keldeo
- Mega Charizard X (with Earthquake)
- Mega Manectric
- Belly Drum Azumarill
- Black Kyurem
- Mega Gardevoir
- More to come as I discover them
EDIT: Before I forget, here's an importable:
Djinnius (Hoopa-Unbound) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
Balboa (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball
Genbu (Blastoise-Mega) (M) @ Blastoisinite
Ability: Mega Launcher
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Water Pulse
- Dark Pulse
- Aura Sphere
Ron Swanson (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Smack Down
HeatCis (Heatran) (M) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Toxic
Fairy Ball (Clefable) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
- Moonblast
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave
- Heal Bell
Ability: Magician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Hyperspace Fury
- Zen Headbutt
- Gunk Shot
- Drain Punch
Balboa (Ferrothorn) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball
Genbu (Blastoise-Mega) (M) @ Blastoisinite
Ability: Mega Launcher
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Water Pulse
- Dark Pulse
- Aura Sphere
Ron Swanson (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Smack Down
HeatCis (Heatran) (M) @ Air Balloon
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Toxic
Fairy Ball (Clefable) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
- Moonblast
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave
- Heal Bell
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