Introduction
Hi all! I really wanted to share this team since this is maybe the most successful mad science experiment I've ever done. As I've mentioned in my previous RMT, I am a really experimental player and generally a middle-of-the-road ladderer, so when I not just broke top 50 but hit #10 on the ladder, I had come up with something genuinely serious. While this team is a bit gimmicky in some regards, it's extremely fun and I was very happy to see it succeed.
This idea came to me thanks to Duckular's Sticky Web Discord. The server's participants were experimenting with Leavanny Sun, and I was extremely curious about the concept since Leavanny getting a huge surge in Speed had some interesting applications to me on paper. What really convinced me to go forward with it, though, was me recalling Ceruledge's combined synergy with Sun and Webs. Not only can it spinblock, a necessity for the composition, but it also offensively benefits a massive deal from having access to Sun thanks to Bitter Blade and its little-known access to Solar Blade. Funnily enough a huge reason I built Leavanny the way I did was because of my partner fontie. We were discussing designs and she brought up that Leavanny gets Leaf Storm, which I had recalled alongside a very fun Amoonguss set on Rain featuring Eject Pack Leaf Storm when I began building. Once I labbed and thought through the interactions (including determining its last two moveslots), I was set to go.
With that said, let's get into discussing this very unique and mechanically nuanced team.
Team Breakdown
Ceruledge @ Focus Sash
Ability: Weak Armor
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 28 SpD / 228 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Solar Blade
- Bitter Blade
- Shadow Sneak
The first heat option: Ceruledge. A little known fact about this very underrated Pokemon is that it has access to Solar Blade, which completely turns the tides into Alomomola, Hisuian Samurott, and Dondozo, which are massive pestilences for Roaring Moon and Walking Wake to an extent. Tera Grass accentuates the strength of Solar Blade while also giving it more resilience into them and Thunderclap from Raging Bolt. However, I think the real star of the show has to be Adamant. Since we are running Sticky Web, it's a lot easier to get away with Adamant, as even with Weak Armor standard SD Ceruledge prefers Jolly for ease of clicking Bitter Blade into Gholdengo and such. Under Sun, with Adamant, and at +2, Bitter Blade is an absurdly repulsive move that even most stalwart resists like Dragonite get really chunked by. With Weak Armor it also has the capacity to outright win games with or without Sticky Web, but with Sticky Web it has far more leverage to wallbreak which it excels phenomenally at. It being immune to Extreme Speed from Dragonite also means it has the capacity to 1v1 it in tandem with Bitter Blade's ludicrous strength even without a Ghost-type STAB, which really puts into perspective how powerful this set can be.
To give you an idea of this monster's strength, here are some vile calcs:
Shadow Sneak is my preferred last, as priority is a necessary evil on even naturally fast Pokemon. Being able to usurp Raging Bolt Thunderclap, Hisuian Samurott Sucker Punch and Tera'd Kingambit Sucker Punch is pretty nice and if we need to revenge kill a chipped threat, it's a nice option. Adamant at +2 also still makes it sting like a motherfucker, 2HKOing Raging Bolt being the major threshold, also meaning we aren't as reliant on Sticky Web and Weak Armor to potentially clean games.
The EV spread lets us outspeed Iron Moth at +2, with the rest going into Special Defense as our effective physical bulk is heavily impeded by Weak Armor. This lets us lean into checking Iron Moth and special Iron Valiant just a smidge better, which this team appreciates.
Ninetales @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 248 HP / 20 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Weather Ball
- Scorching Sands
- Encore
- Healing Wish
Ninetales is this team's preferred Sun setter. While Torkoal's compression of Stealth Rock and Rapid Spin may seem far more important due to this team's lack of the former and the latter being utilized primarily by offensive Great Tusk, Ninetales is a far more proactive Sun setter thanks to its access to Encore, Healing Wish, and a meaningful Speed tier. Imo Ninetales is far more valuable and pragmatic regardless of what Torkoal could hypothetically provide for this team, and honestly in general. Healing Wish in particular is a game-changing asset for hyper offense, especially as this team makes use of Roost Roaring Moon, the stat blob of Walking Wake, and Focus Sash Ceruledge.
Another appeal of Ninetales is its ability to ease the matchup into Glimmora, which this team really detests. It can tank a Power Gem and 2HKO with Scorching Sands, outright OHKOing if you choose to expend your Tera and if the Glimmora is not Sash. While Will-O-Wisp is typically preferred on Ninetales, I think this team has a lot of emergency failsafes into offense such as Leavanny, Ceruledge, and Ninetales itself via Encore, and pressuring Glimmora without setting off Toxic Debris is very valuable.
Leavanny @ Eject Pack
Ability: Chlorophyll
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 100 Atk / 176 SpA / 232 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Sticky Web
- Leaf Storm
- Low Kick
- Triple Axel
The true star of the show: Leavanny! As a Sticky Webs setter, Leavanny has a very powerful tool that is not able to be utilized by any other setter: Eject Pack Leaf Storm. While on paper this seems insignificant, being able to quickly reposition into a powerful Webs abuser while also flat out OHKOing Great Tusk is an immense asset, as it not only midgrounds the forcing out of Great Tusk, but also has the capacity to outright remove it if it chooses to contest you. This interaction alone makes Leavanny a viable Webs setter since it doesn't have to predict and choose between momentum or damage. However, with Chlorophyll in stow, it can outspeed the entire metagame without a boosting nature being necessary outside of Choice Scarf Meowscarada, Iron Boulder, and Darkrai, letting it set Sticky Web multiple times if need be. Also because of its potent coverage profile, it can actually use its ability for more than guaranteed Sticky Web: mainly, threatening boosted Roaring Moon, Dragonite, and Kyurem. Unlike other Sticky Web setters, it can also threaten Kingambit. If it runs into Gholdengo, Slowking-Galar, Corviknight or another Pokemon that generally walls it, having the big pivot of Eject Pack Leaf Storm still lets it create one-of-a-kind early-game value by generating potentially game-winning momentum, while still having the emergency Speed tier in case things hit the fan (such as if Sticky Web get cleared or if a dangerous setup sweeper enters the field). An underrated quality is its defensive synergy with Ninetales, letting us lead with Ninetales itself to get our Speed boost going right away and enabling a relatively clean switch into Leavanny.
Ghost has multiple roles here as a Tera type. Blocking Rapid Spin is the obvious one, but the more noteworthy interaction is being able to block Dragonite Extreme Speed and thus more capably beating it 1v1. Also because of Low Kick, Tera Normal isn't enough. The EV spread is designed to let Leavanny outspeed Roaring Moon at +1, OHKO Max HP Great Tusk with Leaf Storm, and the rest going into attack to maximize the power of its coverage. While you could do a positive Speed nature for Darkrai and Meowscarada, securing the 1v1 into the aforementioned threats is far more pertinent imo.
Overall while extremely selective, Leavanny does have a niche as a Sticky Web setter. I'm fairly sure with some tinkering to its EVs you could grant it a niche outside of Sun since it naturally can outpace Great Tusk and Landorus-T, but I think Eject Pack Leaf Storm is 100% the way to go about giving Leavanny an actually practical, one-of-a-kind niche.
Great Tusk @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Ice Spinner
- Temper Flare
- Rapid Spin
Great Tusk is a fairly standard pick on offense compositions like this and for a good reason, thanks to Protosynthesis, Rapid Spin, and its amazing defensive profile. However I wanted to take a bit of a different route with its moveslots, mainly slotting in Temper Flare. This move with Protosynthesis, under Sun, and with Tera is comically strong and a super easy click, chunking resists rather significantly. Since Temper Flare's secondary effect activates on immunities, it means we can blow something up really hard if Rapid Spin or Headlong Rush flukes, even if it's not the most desirable target. This strength is important as it pairs superbly with Sticky Web and also means we can click Rapid Spin more easily into non-Dragapult compositions thanks to Temper Flare's strength almost completely removing the need to predict once it's powered up. Furthermore, with Tera this move achieves a whole new height, which is accentuated by the fact that Great Tusk is already holding Heavy-Duty Boots to alleviate the new Stealth Rock weakness and granting us a better matchup into Iron Valiant/Moltres.
The rest of the moveset is fairly standard. Ice Spinner may seem redundant given Temper Flare's strength but having a safe click into Landorus-T and Roaring Moon felt pertinent to me since Temper Flare is reliant on us getting a turn "wrong". We don't click it a lot, but we rarely click anything but our other three moves no matter what the slot is. This situation just happens to be the most common.
Roaring Moon @ Covert Cloak
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Knock Off
- Tera Blast
- Roost
This set concept I hugely attribute toward violet river. While she didn't really intend for it to be used under Sun, Adamant with a Protosynthesis boost is very meaningfully strong, and the combination of Roost and Covert Cloak is a great way to convert debilitating Pokemon like Alomomola and Pecharunt into setup opportunities to really help accentuate that disgusting aforementioned offensive combination. Fairy Tera Blast is a great way to complement the core of this set, as it offensively rounds off Knock Off very well in a single moveslot while also letting us use a valuable defensive Tera in Fairy. This Roaring Moon set has the capacity to commandingly win games and puts into perspective to me how underexplored Roaring Moon is and how absurd its heights can be.
The spread is simple, as we are simply going for outspeeding Iron Crown. Sticky Web and Dragon Dance Speed boosts leverage our invest super hard so we can lean into squeezing in a bit of extra bulk on top of Adamant itself.
Walking Wake @ Choice Specs
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fire / Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Steam
- Draco Meteor
- Dragon Pulse
- Flamethrower
This is mostly standard Choice Specs Walking Wake, but the blend of Special Attack Protosynthesis and Modest creates an extra boost that lets us just barely obtain astonishing heights, like 2HKOing standard spreads of AV Hisuian Samurott and 2HKOing Galarian Slowking if it attempts to Tera after switching in initially, making Tera Water unnecessary for hitting the thresholds we want outside of stuff like OHKOing Dragapult. Flamethrower itself becomes a nuke of a move that can be used as a wallbreaking option even into neutral targets, letting it act as an effective midground despite not being STAB-boosted, which is vital given that we're running Sticky Web. This is why Fire is a great Tera choice, but Water is a classic on Choice Specs Walking Wake and is what I've used quite a bit. Ogerpon-Wellspring is the only actual switch-in to its Hydro Steam and it can be very easily melted by Flamethrower thanks to the extra boost we get from Modest and Protosynthesis. Sticky Web leverages Modest quite a bit, but even without Webs it's a decent enough Speed tier that lets us Speed tie Kyurem and still outspeed major targets like Landorus-T.
This slot I've experimented with a good deal and I've found Raging Bolt is actually a great substitute here as well since Zapdos can be situationally pretty annoying, and the powerful priority option is nice to have. If this Walking Wake set isn't to your tempo, this set is a great alternative:
Threatlist
+ 
Darkrai itself cannot be defensively accounted for very reliably as is, but the increasingly common Heavy-Duty Boots variants are, fittingly, a nightmare for us to deal with. While we can pivot around it with Ninetales, Great Tusk, Leavanny, and Roaring Moon, keeping it in check almost guarantees that we need to expend our Tera. The best way to handle it is mainly an aggressive Tera with Roaring Moon and/or trading a Pokemon for HP/item removal. Non-HDB Darkrai are still very annoying but are far more manageable thanks to Sticky Web.
Annoying for very similar reasons as Darkrai, but because it has a high power Knock Off and access to strong priority for Roaring Moon, it can be nightmareish if not removed ASAP.
As eluded to earlier, Glimmora is really annoying. Not only do we not have any kind of Mortal Spin immunity and something to fully account for its offensive profile, but Toxic Debris can be debilitating if the opponent is smart about how they activate the ability and maneuver around Great Tusk. Thankfully, Great Tusk can keep hazards mostly in check and we have Healing Wish if we really need the health to account for the combination of Poison + the opponent. Ninetales is designed in part to deal with it, being able to tank Power Gem and 2HKO with Scorching Sands without procing Toxic Debris, as mentioned earlier, while also having Tera at its disposal. Covert Cloak Roaring Moon also lets us set up on non-Dazzling Gleam variants (most of them) if we can't remove it early on, but Toxic Spikes need to be off the field first.
Without Raging Bolt, Zapdos's paralysis and defensive profile is a lot more annoying to handle. As I mentioned already Raging Bolt is a great substitute over Walking Wake in part because of Zapdos, but without it you really have to respect Static, Thunder Wave, and Volt Switch. Thankfully Sun makes Hurricane more inaccurate, so RNGesus can save your tail if push comes to shove, and it can be overwhelmed pretty easily provided you are conscientious with Healing Wish and the Pokemon you choose to inevitably let get paralyzed.
+ 
While weather isn't a major problem thanks to Walking Wake/Raging Bolt, Ceruledge losing access to Solar Blade makes Tyranitar Sand extra annoying since it's stone-walled (ahaha get it) without a Swords Dance Boost. You either have to trade Ceruledge or play against its Knock Off spam. Defensively we don't have a ton for Excadrill but Great Tusk and Walking Wake can trade with it semi-reliably. This matchup is one of the reasons I'm more partial to Walking Wake on this build since Excadrill, an already threatening Pokemon, outright takes advantage of it to become near unstoppable in the long run.
Replays & Proof of Peak
Offense:
vs. Araquanid Sticky Web
Ceruledge utterly rips and tears and shows how Bitter Blade's ludicrous strength under Sun, its shockingly good Special bulk, and the neutralizing of Water can let it still 1v1 resistances like Araquanid and Raging Bolt, as well as showing how Weak Armor can be a great tool into a Sticky Web mirror. Also some Temper Flare Great Tusk action!
vs. Lead Hisuian Samurott + Galarian Slowking Offense
You ever just casually see Roaring Moon autowin into a team with Great Tusk? Watch this replay to find out how ludicrous it can be.
vs. Brute Bonnet + Glimmora Sun
A great exhibition of how the Glimmora matchup tends to pan out if it manages to set Toxic Spikes. Roaring Moon lasts long enough to potentially win in its own right thanks to Roost but I make a misplay that thankfully is salvaged by Raging Bolt.
vs. Hydreigon Dark Spam
This is an extremely aggressive matchup, so Leavanny's fast Sticky Web and matchup into Landorus-T in the early game is a nice asset. I thought I could snipe Kingambit with Low Kick since Sucker Punch would be a really low-value click otherwise, so that didn't pan out. However the threat of its offensive profile definitely had merit in this matchup, and it still successfully laid Webs. Past that point, this is a wonderful Great Tusk and Roaring Moon game.
vs. Serperior Iron Valiant Bulky Offense
This is a solid game for showing how Leavanny can help position teammates with Eject Pack Leaf Storm, getting Roaring Moon in a disgusting position to utterly demolish the game once Ting-Lu is removed. This also is a great exhibition of Healing Wish's utility.
Balance:
vs. Ogerpon-Wellspring + Zamazenta Balance
While Leavanny's role appears minimal, its type synergy with Ninetales and Chlorophyll let Sticky Web go up without a hitch and Sun is active for Roaring Moon and Ceruledge to punch serious holes. Once Dragonite and Ting-Lu are removed, Walking Wake's Flamethrower cleans the game despite Clefable still being fully healthy, showing that it's an amazing click in its own right.
I fought this person twice, with a better Leavanny exhibition.
vs. HDB Darkrai + Rotom Balance
I should not have won this game at all, as I got really lucky with some Will-O-Wisp misses, but this is a nice game to show how awful HDB Darkrai can be to handle. Decent exhibition of Walking Wake and Roaring Moon otherwise.
vs. CB Weavile Balance
I try to remove Weavile ASAP, which works since Ninetales is a bulkier variant and lures Choice Band Weavile into attacking. In general though this is an amazing Leavanny game, as its unique access to Triple Axel and defensive profile lets it be a threat to Gliscor and Hydrapple. I was expecting Gliscor to click Protect or switch, so I go for Leaf Storm which doesn't pan out as I wanted, but shows how effective of a midground it can be.
vs. Keldeo Balance
Witness and behold the ultimate Leavanny game. Not only would it have successfully beat Iron Treads 1v1 if Leaf Storm landed, letting Sticky Web stay, but even past that point it also snipes and removes Dragonite after getting a momentum advantage into it initially with Leaf Storm. Leavanny also has a dope defensive profile in this matchup.
vs. Palafin Tyranitar Balance
A wonderful Ceruledge game that feels like it shouldn't have been a wonderful Ceruledge game since my opponent super misplayed into it, but it does show that Ceruledge can trade or force damage really well into matchups it maybe would not excel too naturally in. Decent Leavanny showcase.
Fat/Stall:
vs. Weezing Pecharunt Fat
This game is Ceruledge paradise. At this point I was still experimenting with Knock Off Leavanny, which has its merits, but Ceruledge utterly commands a win with Tera Solar Blade and Bitter Blade, utterly shredding this poor soul and demonstrating its strength into fat.
__
Overall, I hope this was a fun read, and hopefully is inspirational to an extent. Experimenting in this tier is genuinely a blast and I really encourage it as it's a great way to engage with the tier even if you personally think it needs some work done.
Thanks for reading, and let me know if you have any questions/feedback.
Hi all! I really wanted to share this team since this is maybe the most successful mad science experiment I've ever done. As I've mentioned in my previous RMT, I am a really experimental player and generally a middle-of-the-road ladderer, so when I not just broke top 50 but hit #10 on the ladder, I had come up with something genuinely serious. While this team is a bit gimmicky in some regards, it's extremely fun and I was very happy to see it succeed.
This idea came to me thanks to Duckular's Sticky Web Discord. The server's participants were experimenting with Leavanny Sun, and I was extremely curious about the concept since Leavanny getting a huge surge in Speed had some interesting applications to me on paper. What really convinced me to go forward with it, though, was me recalling Ceruledge's combined synergy with Sun and Webs. Not only can it spinblock, a necessity for the composition, but it also offensively benefits a massive deal from having access to Sun thanks to Bitter Blade and its little-known access to Solar Blade. Funnily enough a huge reason I built Leavanny the way I did was because of my partner fontie. We were discussing designs and she brought up that Leavanny gets Leaf Storm, which I had recalled alongside a very fun Amoonguss set on Rain featuring Eject Pack Leaf Storm when I began building. Once I labbed and thought through the interactions (including determining its last two moveslots), I was set to go.
With that said, let's get into discussing this very unique and mechanically nuanced team.
Team Breakdown
Ceruledge @ Focus Sash
Ability: Weak Armor
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 28 SpD / 228 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Solar Blade
- Bitter Blade
- Shadow Sneak
The first heat option: Ceruledge. A little known fact about this very underrated Pokemon is that it has access to Solar Blade, which completely turns the tides into Alomomola, Hisuian Samurott, and Dondozo, which are massive pestilences for Roaring Moon and Walking Wake to an extent. Tera Grass accentuates the strength of Solar Blade while also giving it more resilience into them and Thunderclap from Raging Bolt. However, I think the real star of the show has to be Adamant. Since we are running Sticky Web, it's a lot easier to get away with Adamant, as even with Weak Armor standard SD Ceruledge prefers Jolly for ease of clicking Bitter Blade into Gholdengo and such. Under Sun, with Adamant, and at +2, Bitter Blade is an absurdly repulsive move that even most stalwart resists like Dragonite get really chunked by. With Weak Armor it also has the capacity to outright win games with or without Sticky Web, but with Sticky Web it has far more leverage to wallbreak which it excels phenomenally at. It being immune to Extreme Speed from Dragonite also means it has the capacity to 1v1 it in tandem with Bitter Blade's ludicrous strength even without a Ghost-type STAB, which really puts into perspective how powerful this set can be.
To give you an idea of this monster's strength, here are some vile calcs:
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Multiscale Dragonite in Sun: 122-144 (37.7 - 44.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon in Sun: 312-367 (88.8 - 104.5%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu in Sun: 387-456 (75.2 - 88.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Alomomola in Sun: 195-230 (36.5 - 43%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Great Tusk in Sun: 372-438 (85.7 - 100.9%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
Genuinely nasty shit.
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon in Sun: 312-367 (88.8 - 104.5%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu in Sun: 387-456 (75.2 - 88.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Alomomola in Sun: 195-230 (36.5 - 43%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252+ Atk Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Great Tusk in Sun: 372-438 (85.7 - 100.9%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
Genuinely nasty shit.
Shadow Sneak is my preferred last, as priority is a necessary evil on even naturally fast Pokemon. Being able to usurp Raging Bolt Thunderclap, Hisuian Samurott Sucker Punch and Tera'd Kingambit Sucker Punch is pretty nice and if we need to revenge kill a chipped threat, it's a nice option. Adamant at +2 also still makes it sting like a motherfucker, 2HKOing Raging Bolt being the major threshold, also meaning we aren't as reliant on Sticky Web and Weak Armor to potentially clean games.
The EV spread lets us outspeed Iron Moth at +2, with the rest going into Special Defense as our effective physical bulk is heavily impeded by Weak Armor. This lets us lean into checking Iron Moth and special Iron Valiant just a smidge better, which this team appreciates.
Ninetales @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 248 HP / 20 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Weather Ball
- Scorching Sands
- Encore
- Healing Wish
Ninetales is this team's preferred Sun setter. While Torkoal's compression of Stealth Rock and Rapid Spin may seem far more important due to this team's lack of the former and the latter being utilized primarily by offensive Great Tusk, Ninetales is a far more proactive Sun setter thanks to its access to Encore, Healing Wish, and a meaningful Speed tier. Imo Ninetales is far more valuable and pragmatic regardless of what Torkoal could hypothetically provide for this team, and honestly in general. Healing Wish in particular is a game-changing asset for hyper offense, especially as this team makes use of Roost Roaring Moon, the stat blob of Walking Wake, and Focus Sash Ceruledge.
Another appeal of Ninetales is its ability to ease the matchup into Glimmora, which this team really detests. It can tank a Power Gem and 2HKO with Scorching Sands, outright OHKOing if you choose to expend your Tera and if the Glimmora is not Sash. While Will-O-Wisp is typically preferred on Ninetales, I think this team has a lot of emergency failsafes into offense such as Leavanny, Ceruledge, and Ninetales itself via Encore, and pressuring Glimmora without setting off Toxic Debris is very valuable.
Leavanny @ Eject Pack
Ability: Chlorophyll
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 100 Atk / 176 SpA / 232 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Sticky Web
- Leaf Storm
- Low Kick
- Triple Axel
The true star of the show: Leavanny! As a Sticky Webs setter, Leavanny has a very powerful tool that is not able to be utilized by any other setter: Eject Pack Leaf Storm. While on paper this seems insignificant, being able to quickly reposition into a powerful Webs abuser while also flat out OHKOing Great Tusk is an immense asset, as it not only midgrounds the forcing out of Great Tusk, but also has the capacity to outright remove it if it chooses to contest you. This interaction alone makes Leavanny a viable Webs setter since it doesn't have to predict and choose between momentum or damage. However, with Chlorophyll in stow, it can outspeed the entire metagame without a boosting nature being necessary outside of Choice Scarf Meowscarada, Iron Boulder, and Darkrai, letting it set Sticky Web multiple times if need be. Also because of its potent coverage profile, it can actually use its ability for more than guaranteed Sticky Web: mainly, threatening boosted Roaring Moon, Dragonite, and Kyurem. Unlike other Sticky Web setters, it can also threaten Kingambit. If it runs into Gholdengo, Slowking-Galar, Corviknight or another Pokemon that generally walls it, having the big pivot of Eject Pack Leaf Storm still lets it create one-of-a-kind early-game value by generating potentially game-winning momentum, while still having the emergency Speed tier in case things hit the fan (such as if Sticky Web get cleared or if a dangerous setup sweeper enters the field). An underrated quality is its defensive synergy with Ninetales, letting us lead with Ninetales itself to get our Speed boost going right away and enabling a relatively clean switch into Leavanny.
Ghost has multiple roles here as a Tera type. Blocking Rapid Spin is the obvious one, but the more noteworthy interaction is being able to block Dragonite Extreme Speed and thus more capably beating it 1v1. Also because of Low Kick, Tera Normal isn't enough. The EV spread is designed to let Leavanny outspeed Roaring Moon at +1, OHKO Max HP Great Tusk with Leaf Storm, and the rest going into attack to maximize the power of its coverage. While you could do a positive Speed nature for Darkrai and Meowscarada, securing the 1v1 into the aforementioned threats is far more pertinent imo.
Overall while extremely selective, Leavanny does have a niche as a Sticky Web setter. I'm fairly sure with some tinkering to its EVs you could grant it a niche outside of Sun since it naturally can outpace Great Tusk and Landorus-T, but I think Eject Pack Leaf Storm is 100% the way to go about giving Leavanny an actually practical, one-of-a-kind niche.
Great Tusk @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Ice Spinner
- Temper Flare
- Rapid Spin
Great Tusk is a fairly standard pick on offense compositions like this and for a good reason, thanks to Protosynthesis, Rapid Spin, and its amazing defensive profile. However I wanted to take a bit of a different route with its moveslots, mainly slotting in Temper Flare. This move with Protosynthesis, under Sun, and with Tera is comically strong and a super easy click, chunking resists rather significantly. Since Temper Flare's secondary effect activates on immunities, it means we can blow something up really hard if Rapid Spin or Headlong Rush flukes, even if it's not the most desirable target. This strength is important as it pairs superbly with Sticky Web and also means we can click Rapid Spin more easily into non-Dragapult compositions thanks to Temper Flare's strength almost completely removing the need to predict once it's powered up. Furthermore, with Tera this move achieves a whole new height, which is accentuated by the fact that Great Tusk is already holding Heavy-Duty Boots to alleviate the new Stealth Rock weakness and granting us a better matchup into Iron Valiant/Moltres.
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon in Sun: 212-249 (60.3 - 70.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Dragonite in Sun: 167-196 (51.7 - 60.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tera Water Ogerpon-Wellspring-Tera in Sun: 185-218 (61.4 - 72.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
-1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Landorus-Therian in Sun: 233-274 (60.9 - 71.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Moltres in Sun: 175-206 (45.6 - 53.7%) -- 53.1% chance to 2HKO
And bear in mind this is without Tera. With Tera this move becomes a whole new beast.
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Dragonite in Sun: 167-196 (51.7 - 60.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tera Water Ogerpon-Wellspring-Tera in Sun: 185-218 (61.4 - 72.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
-1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Landorus-Therian in Sun: 233-274 (60.9 - 71.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Protosynthesis Great Tusk Temper Flare vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Moltres in Sun: 175-206 (45.6 - 53.7%) -- 53.1% chance to 2HKO
And bear in mind this is without Tera. With Tera this move becomes a whole new beast.
The rest of the moveset is fairly standard. Ice Spinner may seem redundant given Temper Flare's strength but having a safe click into Landorus-T and Roaring Moon felt pertinent to me since Temper Flare is reliant on us getting a turn "wrong". We don't click it a lot, but we rarely click anything but our other three moves no matter what the slot is. This situation just happens to be the most common.
Roaring Moon @ Covert Cloak
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Knock Off
- Tera Blast
- Roost
This set concept I hugely attribute toward violet river. While she didn't really intend for it to be used under Sun, Adamant with a Protosynthesis boost is very meaningfully strong, and the combination of Roost and Covert Cloak is a great way to convert debilitating Pokemon like Alomomola and Pecharunt into setup opportunities to really help accentuate that disgusting aforementioned offensive combination. Fairy Tera Blast is a great way to complement the core of this set, as it offensively rounds off Knock Off very well in a single moveslot while also letting us use a valuable defensive Tera in Fairy. This Roaring Moon set has the capacity to commandingly win games and puts into perspective to me how underexplored Roaring Moon is and how absurd its heights can be.
The spread is simple, as we are simply going for outspeeding Iron Crown. Sticky Web and Dragon Dance Speed boosts leverage our invest super hard so we can lean into squeezing in a bit of extra bulk on top of Adamant itself.
Walking Wake @ Choice Specs
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fire / Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Steam
- Draco Meteor
- Dragon Pulse
- Flamethrower
This is mostly standard Choice Specs Walking Wake, but the blend of Special Attack Protosynthesis and Modest creates an extra boost that lets us just barely obtain astonishing heights, like 2HKOing standard spreads of AV Hisuian Samurott and 2HKOing Galarian Slowking if it attempts to Tera after switching in initially, making Tera Water unnecessary for hitting the thresholds we want outside of stuff like OHKOing Dragapult. Flamethrower itself becomes a nuke of a move that can be used as a wallbreaking option even into neutral targets, letting it act as an effective midground despite not being STAB-boosted, which is vital given that we're running Sticky Web. This is why Fire is a great Tera choice, but Water is a classic on Choice Specs Walking Wake and is what I've used quite a bit. Ogerpon-Wellspring is the only actual switch-in to its Hydro Steam and it can be very easily melted by Flamethrower thanks to the extra boost we get from Modest and Protosynthesis. Sticky Web leverages Modest quite a bit, but even without Webs it's a decent enough Speed tier that lets us Speed tie Kyurem and still outspeed major targets like Landorus-T.
This slot I've experimented with a good deal and I've found Raging Bolt is actually a great substitute here as well since Zapdos can be situationally pretty annoying, and the powerful priority option is nice to have. If this Walking Wake set isn't to your tempo, this set is a great alternative:
Raging Bolt @ Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 60 HP / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 20 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Weather Ball
- Thunderclap
- Dragon Pulse
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 60 HP / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 20 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Weather Ball
- Thunderclap
- Dragon Pulse
Threatlist
+ Darkrai itself cannot be defensively accounted for very reliably as is, but the increasingly common Heavy-Duty Boots variants are, fittingly, a nightmare for us to deal with. While we can pivot around it with Ninetales, Great Tusk, Leavanny, and Roaring Moon, keeping it in check almost guarantees that we need to expend our Tera. The best way to handle it is mainly an aggressive Tera with Roaring Moon and/or trading a Pokemon for HP/item removal. Non-HDB Darkrai are still very annoying but are far more manageable thanks to Sticky Web.
Annoying for very similar reasons as Darkrai, but because it has a high power Knock Off and access to strong priority for Roaring Moon, it can be nightmareish if not removed ASAP.
As eluded to earlier, Glimmora is really annoying. Not only do we not have any kind of Mortal Spin immunity and something to fully account for its offensive profile, but Toxic Debris can be debilitating if the opponent is smart about how they activate the ability and maneuver around Great Tusk. Thankfully, Great Tusk can keep hazards mostly in check and we have Healing Wish if we really need the health to account for the combination of Poison + the opponent. Ninetales is designed in part to deal with it, being able to tank Power Gem and 2HKO with Scorching Sands without procing Toxic Debris, as mentioned earlier, while also having Tera at its disposal. Covert Cloak Roaring Moon also lets us set up on non-Dazzling Gleam variants (most of them) if we can't remove it early on, but Toxic Spikes need to be off the field first.
Without Raging Bolt, Zapdos's paralysis and defensive profile is a lot more annoying to handle. As I mentioned already Raging Bolt is a great substitute over Walking Wake in part because of Zapdos, but without it you really have to respect Static, Thunder Wave, and Volt Switch. Thankfully Sun makes Hurricane more inaccurate, so RNGesus can save your tail if push comes to shove, and it can be overwhelmed pretty easily provided you are conscientious with Healing Wish and the Pokemon you choose to inevitably let get paralyzed.
+ While weather isn't a major problem thanks to Walking Wake/Raging Bolt, Ceruledge losing access to Solar Blade makes Tyranitar Sand extra annoying since it's stone-walled (ahaha get it) without a Swords Dance Boost. You either have to trade Ceruledge or play against its Knock Off spam. Defensively we don't have a ton for Excadrill but Great Tusk and Walking Wake can trade with it semi-reliably. This matchup is one of the reasons I'm more partial to Walking Wake on this build since Excadrill, an already threatening Pokemon, outright takes advantage of it to become near unstoppable in the long run.
Replays & Proof of Peak
Offense:
vs. Araquanid Sticky Web
Ceruledge utterly rips and tears and shows how Bitter Blade's ludicrous strength under Sun, its shockingly good Special bulk, and the neutralizing of Water can let it still 1v1 resistances like Araquanid and Raging Bolt, as well as showing how Weak Armor can be a great tool into a Sticky Web mirror. Also some Temper Flare Great Tusk action!
vs. Lead Hisuian Samurott + Galarian Slowking Offense
You ever just casually see Roaring Moon autowin into a team with Great Tusk? Watch this replay to find out how ludicrous it can be.
vs. Brute Bonnet + Glimmora Sun
A great exhibition of how the Glimmora matchup tends to pan out if it manages to set Toxic Spikes. Roaring Moon lasts long enough to potentially win in its own right thanks to Roost but I make a misplay that thankfully is salvaged by Raging Bolt.
vs. Hydreigon Dark Spam
This is an extremely aggressive matchup, so Leavanny's fast Sticky Web and matchup into Landorus-T in the early game is a nice asset. I thought I could snipe Kingambit with Low Kick since Sucker Punch would be a really low-value click otherwise, so that didn't pan out. However the threat of its offensive profile definitely had merit in this matchup, and it still successfully laid Webs. Past that point, this is a wonderful Great Tusk and Roaring Moon game.
vs. Serperior Iron Valiant Bulky Offense
This is a solid game for showing how Leavanny can help position teammates with Eject Pack Leaf Storm, getting Roaring Moon in a disgusting position to utterly demolish the game once Ting-Lu is removed. This also is a great exhibition of Healing Wish's utility.
Balance:
vs. Ogerpon-Wellspring + Zamazenta Balance
While Leavanny's role appears minimal, its type synergy with Ninetales and Chlorophyll let Sticky Web go up without a hitch and Sun is active for Roaring Moon and Ceruledge to punch serious holes. Once Dragonite and Ting-Lu are removed, Walking Wake's Flamethrower cleans the game despite Clefable still being fully healthy, showing that it's an amazing click in its own right.
I fought this person twice, with a better Leavanny exhibition.
vs. HDB Darkrai + Rotom Balance
I should not have won this game at all, as I got really lucky with some Will-O-Wisp misses, but this is a nice game to show how awful HDB Darkrai can be to handle. Decent exhibition of Walking Wake and Roaring Moon otherwise.
vs. CB Weavile Balance
I try to remove Weavile ASAP, which works since Ninetales is a bulkier variant and lures Choice Band Weavile into attacking. In general though this is an amazing Leavanny game, as its unique access to Triple Axel and defensive profile lets it be a threat to Gliscor and Hydrapple. I was expecting Gliscor to click Protect or switch, so I go for Leaf Storm which doesn't pan out as I wanted, but shows how effective of a midground it can be.
vs. Keldeo Balance
Witness and behold the ultimate Leavanny game. Not only would it have successfully beat Iron Treads 1v1 if Leaf Storm landed, letting Sticky Web stay, but even past that point it also snipes and removes Dragonite after getting a momentum advantage into it initially with Leaf Storm. Leavanny also has a dope defensive profile in this matchup.
vs. Palafin Tyranitar Balance
A wonderful Ceruledge game that feels like it shouldn't have been a wonderful Ceruledge game since my opponent super misplayed into it, but it does show that Ceruledge can trade or force damage really well into matchups it maybe would not excel too naturally in. Decent Leavanny showcase.
Fat/Stall:
vs. Weezing Pecharunt Fat
This game is Ceruledge paradise. At this point I was still experimenting with Knock Off Leavanny, which has its merits, but Ceruledge utterly commands a win with Tera Solar Blade and Bitter Blade, utterly shredding this poor soul and demonstrating its strength into fat.
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Overall, I hope this was a fun read, and hopefully is inspirational to an extent. Experimenting in this tier is genuinely a blast and I really encourage it as it's a great way to engage with the tier even if you personally think it needs some work done.
Thanks for reading, and let me know if you have any questions/feedback.
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