Hi guys, relatively new to comp. Got back into it about a month ago after taking a huge break. Last time I played was maybe B2W2 OU.
This is my first post so bear with me if stupid. Feel free to give advice unrelated to the team such as formatting, etc.
I would love to refine this team so please give me any feedback and suggestions as you see fit.
I'll explain the sets and the teambuilding process:
Hippowdon @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Atk
Relaxed Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Whirlwind
Playing sand and I had the choice of Hippowdon or Tyranitar. Chose Hippowdon because it has more bulk than Tyranitar and allows me more switches into it. It blanket checks physical mons not carrying some super effective coverage. Also serves as my rock setter, and has Whirlwind because it's my only means of defense against bulky setup mons like Garchomp. EVs ensure maximum physical bulk.
Dracozolt @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 48 Atk / 252 SpA / 208 Spe
Rash Nature
- Bolt Beak
-Earthquake Substitute
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
Next choice was the abusers. I knew I wanted to use Sand Rush Dracozolt to abuse Bolt Beak. Speed EVs allow it to outrun positive natured Scarf Lele. Fire Blast lets me hit Ferro/Scizor whom otherwise I have a hard time breaking.
Edit: Changed the EV spread and item to allow me more reliable KOs on offensive Landorus-T. Changed Earthquake to Substitute. Putting Substitute up infront of Zapdos/Toxapex/Corviknight/Ferro makes Dracozolt really easy to pilot.
Relevant calcs:
Excadrill @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
Excadrill is self explanatory. The main abuser on Sand, Earthquake and Iron Head hit everything that isn't a steel bird or bulky water hard. It is able to clean up late game or dent things early for Dracozolt or Diancie to do a similar job. Swords Dance enables me to bluff those who think I'm Banded until they see the Life Orb, at which point it may be too late. Rock Slide is to hit Corviknight neutrally, and at +2 Excadrill can sometimes break it.
Diancie @ Diancite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Rock Polish
- Moonblast
- Diamond Storm
- Earth Power
When I made the team I knew I wanted to use Diancie as a generic favourite mon of mine. It helps my matchup against certain stall mons such as Sableye-M and can Magic Bounce lots of leads and setup Rock Polish on the switch. In Sand, non-Mega it boasts 504 SpD which means it can freely switch into any weak neutral Special Attack, or resisted Specs/Scarf moves, and Rock Polish non-mega followed by Mega Evolve and start punching holes.
Moonblast is self explanatory as a strong STAB. Diamond Storm is a strong STAB and allows me to fish for +2 Def in order to take at least one Earthquake from bulky attackers that I 2HKO in return (eg. Mega Swampert). Speed EVs need to be edited but I will probably go 176+ to outrun +2 Volcarona which can 3HKO me at best in Sand without Giga Drain.
I had my Sand core finished at this point with a setter, two physical abusers and a special abuser. At this point I saw my team was extremely Rillaboom and Kartana weak, so I added Buzzwole as hard counter to both.
Buzzwole @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Roost
- Ice Punch
- Drain Punch
Buzzwole gives me strong counter to Rillaboom and Kartana, while also being able to Roost off damage from non-Flyinium Z Landorus-T and Ice Punch in return. It also blanket checks a lot of physical mons that do not carry Flying coverage. Rocky Helmet means that Rillaboom and Lando-T chip themselves on the U-Turn, but has the benefit of also allowing it to accumulate free damage along with Sandstorm against other fast pivots like Lopunny-M's Fake Out and U-Turn. It can singlehandedly beat weakened late game teams that lack a sufficient answer, and at +1 Def it is capable of Roosting off Corviknight's Brave Bird due to Rocky Helmet and recoil giving it free occasional free turns.
Rillaboom @ Choice Band
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Grassy Glide
- Wood Hammer
- Superpower
- U-turn
Lastly, I saw I was quite Water weak and lacked recovery on all my Sand abusers. I was also extremely Ground weak, with all three abusers being unable to take an Earthquake well. So, I added Rillaboom as an answer to both Water and Ground, with the added benefit of Grassy Terrain halving the power of Earthquake.
Standard Rillaboom set. I choose to run Banded to minimize the amount of time that Rillaboom needs to be switched in, so I can take advantage of as much Sand as possible. I chose Superpower over Knock Off to hit Ferrothorn and Scizor-M a bit harder. Wood Hammer is full monke and has the added benefit that I can KO myself on recoil in matchups where Rillaboom is not as necessary to get to abusers while Sand is still up.
Final Team + Paste
Things I may wish to change
This is my first post so bear with me if stupid. Feel free to give advice unrelated to the team such as formatting, etc.
I would love to refine this team so please give me any feedback and suggestions as you see fit.
I'll explain the sets and the teambuilding process:
Hippowdon @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Atk
Relaxed Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Whirlwind
Playing sand and I had the choice of Hippowdon or Tyranitar. Chose Hippowdon because it has more bulk than Tyranitar and allows me more switches into it. It blanket checks physical mons not carrying some super effective coverage. Also serves as my rock setter, and has Whirlwind because it's my only means of defense against bulky setup mons like Garchomp. EVs ensure maximum physical bulk.
Dracozolt @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 48 Atk / 252 SpA / 208 Spe
Rash Nature
- Bolt Beak
-
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
Next choice was the abusers. I knew I wanted to use Sand Rush Dracozolt to abuse Bolt Beak. Speed EVs allow it to outrun positive natured Scarf Lele. Fire Blast lets me hit Ferro/Scizor whom otherwise I have a hard time breaking.
Edit: Changed the EV spread and item to allow me more reliable KOs on offensive Landorus-T. Changed Earthquake to Substitute. Putting Substitute up infront of Zapdos/Toxapex/Corviknight/Ferro makes Dracozolt really easy to pilot.
Relevant calcs:
- 48 Atk Life Orb Dracozolt Bolt Beak (170 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Toxapex: 265-315 (87.1 - 103.6%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
- 48 Atk Life Orb Dracozolt Bolt Beak (170 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 351-413 (87.7 - 103.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
- 252+ SpA Life Orb Dracozolt Draco Meteor vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-Therian: 265-312 (83 - 97.8%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
- 252+ SpA Life Orb Dracozolt Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Garchomp: 502-593 (119.5 - 141.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
- 48 Atk Life Orb Dracozolt Bolt Beak (170 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Lele: 317-374 (112.8 - 133%) -- guaranteed OHKO
- 252+ SpA Life Orb Dracozolt Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Ferrothorn: 322-385 (91.4 - 109.3%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
Excadrill @ Life Orb
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
Excadrill is self explanatory. The main abuser on Sand, Earthquake and Iron Head hit everything that isn't a steel bird or bulky water hard. It is able to clean up late game or dent things early for Dracozolt or Diancie to do a similar job. Swords Dance enables me to bluff those who think I'm Banded until they see the Life Orb, at which point it may be too late. Rock Slide is to hit Corviknight neutrally, and at +2 Excadrill can sometimes break it.
Diancie @ Diancite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Rock Polish
- Moonblast
- Diamond Storm
- Earth Power
When I made the team I knew I wanted to use Diancie as a generic favourite mon of mine. It helps my matchup against certain stall mons such as Sableye-M and can Magic Bounce lots of leads and setup Rock Polish on the switch. In Sand, non-Mega it boasts 504 SpD which means it can freely switch into any weak neutral Special Attack, or resisted Specs/Scarf moves, and Rock Polish non-mega followed by Mega Evolve and start punching holes.
Moonblast is self explanatory as a strong STAB. Diamond Storm is a strong STAB and allows me to fish for +2 Def in order to take at least one Earthquake from bulky attackers that I 2HKO in return (eg. Mega Swampert). Speed EVs need to be edited but I will probably go 176+ to outrun +2 Volcarona which can 3HKO me at best in Sand without Giga Drain.
Buzzwole @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Roost
- Ice Punch
- Drain Punch
Buzzwole gives me strong counter to Rillaboom and Kartana, while also being able to Roost off damage from non-Flyinium Z Landorus-T and Ice Punch in return. It also blanket checks a lot of physical mons that do not carry Flying coverage. Rocky Helmet means that Rillaboom and Lando-T chip themselves on the U-Turn, but has the benefit of also allowing it to accumulate free damage along with Sandstorm against other fast pivots like Lopunny-M's Fake Out and U-Turn. It can singlehandedly beat weakened late game teams that lack a sufficient answer, and at +1 Def it is capable of Roosting off Corviknight's Brave Bird due to Rocky Helmet and recoil giving it free occasional free turns.
Rillaboom @ Choice Band
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Grassy Glide
- Wood Hammer
- Superpower
- U-turn
Lastly, I saw I was quite Water weak and lacked recovery on all my Sand abusers. I was also extremely Ground weak, with all three abusers being unable to take an Earthquake well. So, I added Rillaboom as an answer to both Water and Ground, with the added benefit of Grassy Terrain halving the power of Earthquake.
Standard Rillaboom set. I choose to run Banded to minimize the amount of time that Rillaboom needs to be switched in, so I can take advantage of as much Sand as possible. I chose Superpower over Knock Off to hit Ferrothorn and Scizor-M a bit harder. Wood Hammer is full monke and has the added benefit that I can KO myself on recoil in matchups where Rillaboom is not as necessary to get to abusers while Sand is still up.
Final Team + Paste
Things I may wish to change
- Excadrill Jolly to Adamant because it outruns almost everything that isn't another Sand Rush Excadrill. Rock Slide to Giga Impact + Normalium-Z to OHKO most Lando-T at +1 with Breakneck Blitz.
- Diancie Rock Polish to Calm Mind/Stealth Rocks. Mega Diancie already has a great speed tier and the team already has good speed control between double Sand Rush and Rillaboom. Calm Mind would turn a lot of 2HKO into OHKOs (eg. +1 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper: 360-424 (111.4 - 131.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO would ease the rain matchup a lot) but makes the team more Scarf Kartana vulnerable. Stealth Rock would mean Diancie can practically set them in every situation combined with Magic Bounce.
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