So the other day I was just thinking about how Lance is a really cool guy and stuff. So for a bit of fun I decided to throw together a team based on his. In the beginning it was just for a bit of fun, but it ended up being much more effective than I expected.
At a Glance (get it? Ahaha... I'm so lame...):
The Lead: ...The Vanguard: ..........The Core:...................The, um... Charizard:
Up Close and Personal...
The Lead
Aerodactyl @ Focus Sash
Ability: Pressure
Jolly - 4HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
This one was a no-brainer. Lance has an Aerodactyl. Aerodactyl is a decent lead. Hmmm....
Far from original or complex, but very effective. Taunt stops my opponent from setting up rocks and the like while the Sash almost guarantees my own rocks getting up, helping my sweepers with their KOs. And if it doesn't get killed, you never know when Taunt will come in handy later. Stone Edge is obviously for Stab, Earthquake for coverage. He doesn't attack often though - if he does his job he dies happy... or at least, I'm happy.
The Vanguard
The purpose of the Vanguard is to do damage, but also, by being similar in use to the pokemon which make up the core, they also serve to lure in the counters of those pokemon.
Feraligatr @ Life Orb
Ability - Torrent
Adamant - 28 HP / 252 Atk / 230 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
This is your standard Dragon Dance Gyara- wait a second, this isn't Gyarados, it's his inferior cousin Feraligatr! Yes, Gyarados outclasses Feraligatr greatly, but the old Reptile still packs quite a punch, sometimes sweeping entire teams by itself. That's doesn't happen often, but he's only a small taste of what's to come. Plus, it can sometimes draw out Gyarados' counters, giving the Dragon-who-isn't-a-dragon an easier time later on.
Earthquake and Waterfall are shared with his fellow Dancing Water-Type, however Gatr's access to Ice Punch gives him one little bonus over Gyarados, taking out pokemon with ease that Gyra himself might not have such a great time against.
Oh, and if you're thinking "Wait, Lance enver had a Feraligatr!", I've got two words for you: Pokemon Stadium.
Dragonite @ Leftovers
Ability: Inner Focus
Adamant - 224 HP / 84 Atk / 200 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- ThunderPunch
- Roost
How could I run a Lance based team without his Signature Pokemon? Again, This is a pokemon outclassed by a similar one, in this case Salamence, and although I've made this one follow the DD Strategy, I've opted to play on Nite's advantages and go for the bulky set.
The damage isn't is as immediate or as devastating as a DDMence's, but with roost and Leftovers he can be difficult to take down, and can deal damage over a greater period of time. I decided I had enough Earthquakes on the team and gave him ThunderPunch instead.
A bonus of Dragonite is that lures in all manner of Ice attacks and Dragon counters. If only they knew there was still a Mence waiting in the shadows...
The Core
This is the offesnive core, the main sweepers in my team. I'm not alone - lots of teams ustilise one or both of the following in their teams, and with good reason.
Gyarados @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
Adamant - 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Watefall
- Stone Edge/Bounce
- Earthquake
Ok, this IS the standard DD Gyarados (Except 4 HP instead of 4 Def... if this actually matters, please tell me). In Lance's day, the only kind of dance this guy could - and in Lance's case, did - utilise was Rain Dance.
LOL.
After one DD, Gyarados is powerful, after two, close to unstoppable. Some might use Leftovers over Life Orb, but for me once Gyara gets out I'm in the mood for tearing things to pieces. The moveset is a standard, it explains itself.
Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
Adamant - 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
Deaj Vu? These two are practically twins - almsot identical with everything but their STAB move (Too similar? Any better ideas?). But what can I say? It works.
So basically this guy replaces and outclasses one of Lance's many Dragonites.
Actually, he's so similar to Gyarados that I accidentally had Gyaras picture instead of his a few seconds ago. Whoops.
The Charizard
Sometimes, he's a dead weight. Sometimes, he's the weakest link.
Sometimes, he doesn't even see the light of day as the rest of the team ploughs through the opponent's team without him.
But sometimes, when the field is clear of rocks and the opponent is sufficiently harmless.....
It's Charizard time.
Charizard @ Salac Berry
Ability: Blaze
Adamant - 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Substitute
- Belly Drum
- Fire Punch
- Brick Break
Sub. Belly Drum. GG. It doesn't always work but when it does... oh yeah, if you thought a Feraligatr sweep sounded satisfying, you've gotta give this a shot.
Fire Punch is for EVERYTHING! while Brick Break is for... everything else. Ok, this sounds ill thought out, but seriosuly, at +6 attack (Plus Blaze) and +1 Speed, not much can stand up to this guy - you can take your resistances and stick them up your-
Lance's Zard was... a failure. But in the right circumstances, this guy is a real beast.
So anyway, that's the team. It's not perfect - no team is - but it's doing quite well for me.
I might do a proper threat list later, but here's a summary:
BoltBeam fucks me up good. Everything that's not weak to one is weak to the other... Theme teams often have such issues unfortunately.
Cresselia also seems to be screwing me up badly.
That's all I can think of now, and my fingers are hurting.
Any comments and contructive criticism are welcomed and appreciated, but try not to twist the theme too much please.
At a Glance (get it? Ahaha... I'm so lame...):
The Lead: ...The Vanguard: ..........The Core:...................The, um... Charizard:
Up Close and Personal...
The Lead
Aerodactyl @ Focus Sash
Ability: Pressure
Jolly - 4HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
This one was a no-brainer. Lance has an Aerodactyl. Aerodactyl is a decent lead. Hmmm....
Far from original or complex, but very effective. Taunt stops my opponent from setting up rocks and the like while the Sash almost guarantees my own rocks getting up, helping my sweepers with their KOs. And if it doesn't get killed, you never know when Taunt will come in handy later. Stone Edge is obviously for Stab, Earthquake for coverage. He doesn't attack often though - if he does his job he dies happy... or at least, I'm happy.
The Vanguard
The purpose of the Vanguard is to do damage, but also, by being similar in use to the pokemon which make up the core, they also serve to lure in the counters of those pokemon.
Feraligatr @ Life Orb
Ability - Torrent
Adamant - 28 HP / 252 Atk / 230 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
This is your standard Dragon Dance Gyara- wait a second, this isn't Gyarados, it's his inferior cousin Feraligatr! Yes, Gyarados outclasses Feraligatr greatly, but the old Reptile still packs quite a punch, sometimes sweeping entire teams by itself. That's doesn't happen often, but he's only a small taste of what's to come. Plus, it can sometimes draw out Gyarados' counters, giving the Dragon-who-isn't-a-dragon an easier time later on.
Earthquake and Waterfall are shared with his fellow Dancing Water-Type, however Gatr's access to Ice Punch gives him one little bonus over Gyarados, taking out pokemon with ease that Gyra himself might not have such a great time against.
Oh, and if you're thinking "Wait, Lance enver had a Feraligatr!", I've got two words for you: Pokemon Stadium.
Dragonite @ Leftovers
Ability: Inner Focus
Adamant - 224 HP / 84 Atk / 200 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- ThunderPunch
- Roost
How could I run a Lance based team without his Signature Pokemon? Again, This is a pokemon outclassed by a similar one, in this case Salamence, and although I've made this one follow the DD Strategy, I've opted to play on Nite's advantages and go for the bulky set.
The damage isn't is as immediate or as devastating as a DDMence's, but with roost and Leftovers he can be difficult to take down, and can deal damage over a greater period of time. I decided I had enough Earthquakes on the team and gave him ThunderPunch instead.
A bonus of Dragonite is that lures in all manner of Ice attacks and Dragon counters. If only they knew there was still a Mence waiting in the shadows...
The Core
This is the offesnive core, the main sweepers in my team. I'm not alone - lots of teams ustilise one or both of the following in their teams, and with good reason.
Gyarados @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
Adamant - 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Watefall
- Stone Edge/Bounce
- Earthquake
Ok, this IS the standard DD Gyarados (Except 4 HP instead of 4 Def... if this actually matters, please tell me). In Lance's day, the only kind of dance this guy could - and in Lance's case, did - utilise was Rain Dance.
LOL.
After one DD, Gyarados is powerful, after two, close to unstoppable. Some might use Leftovers over Life Orb, but for me once Gyara gets out I'm in the mood for tearing things to pieces. The moveset is a standard, it explains itself.
Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
Adamant - 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
Deaj Vu? These two are practically twins - almsot identical with everything but their STAB move (Too similar? Any better ideas?). But what can I say? It works.
So basically this guy replaces and outclasses one of Lance's many Dragonites.
Actually, he's so similar to Gyarados that I accidentally had Gyaras picture instead of his a few seconds ago. Whoops.
The Charizard
Sometimes, he's a dead weight. Sometimes, he's the weakest link.
Sometimes, he doesn't even see the light of day as the rest of the team ploughs through the opponent's team without him.
But sometimes, when the field is clear of rocks and the opponent is sufficiently harmless.....
It's Charizard time.
Charizard @ Salac Berry
Ability: Blaze
Adamant - 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Substitute
- Belly Drum
- Fire Punch
- Brick Break
Sub. Belly Drum. GG. It doesn't always work but when it does... oh yeah, if you thought a Feraligatr sweep sounded satisfying, you've gotta give this a shot.
Fire Punch is for EVERYTHING! while Brick Break is for... everything else. Ok, this sounds ill thought out, but seriosuly, at +6 attack (Plus Blaze) and +1 Speed, not much can stand up to this guy - you can take your resistances and stick them up your-
Lance's Zard was... a failure. But in the right circumstances, this guy is a real beast.
So anyway, that's the team. It's not perfect - no team is - but it's doing quite well for me.
I might do a proper threat list later, but here's a summary:
BoltBeam fucks me up good. Everything that's not weak to one is weak to the other... Theme teams often have such issues unfortunately.
Cresselia also seems to be screwing me up badly.
That's all I can think of now, and my fingers are hurting.
Any comments and contructive criticism are welcomed and appreciated, but try not to twist the theme too much please.
