SS OU The Kingdom: First balance RMT featuring Leek Sirfetch'd and Bulky Aegislash [1500 ELO]

:ss/mandibuzz::ss/toxapex::ss/garchomp::ss/blacephalon::ss/sirfetchd::ss/aegislash:
1. Intro:
Hello, this is my first team I tried to make with my experience playing in OU with tweaked teams I have been yoinking from this forum, but using some Pokemon I really enjoy and am looking for some pointers to improve the team in any way. I really wanted to use the combination of Sirfetch'd and Aegislash not only because they are Pokemon that don't get a lot of love, but they also match a central theme of being Sword/Shield and I built the team from there. The peak of this team has been around ~1500 and I'm looking to improve, but I think that's gonna devolve to a slightly tighter team and just more skill.
Edit: I mainly put this team out here to get my idea out and improve on it from people who are probably much better than me, and after reading and trying some comments, I have changed the team and I am going to change it for any prying eyes looking at this team now, if I see you on the ladder with this team, I'll give a lil happy cry to you.

This team sort of has two phases, the weaken phase and the attack phase; during the weaken phase you will send out :sirfetchd: or :blacephalon: very rarely if at all. During the weaken phase you use your utility and tankiness to cripple opposing teams and blow holes in their offenses. Once a one or two of your utility mons are low enough to be sacrifice fodder or dead you go into the attack phase, using the previously listed mons, and :garchomp: or :aegislash: to clean up the rest of the team and win.
2. Team:
:ss/mandibuzz:
Hawk (Mandibuzz) (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 248 HP / 244 SpD / 16 Spe
Careful Nature
- Defog
- Roost
- Foul Play
- U-turn

General Role:

The "scout bird" of the kingdom, you will primarily only use this mon for safe switch-ins and to remove hazards; it's a pretty standard Mandibuzz set that you are probably familiar with at this point.
Moveset:
Defog for hazard removal, roost to keep them healthy, foul play for good STAB as well as a devastating counter to d-dancers, and the main move u-turn to pivot into the other mons of this team.

:ss/toxapex:
Fortress (Toxapex) (F) @ Eject Button
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 144 Def / 112 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Haze
- Recover
- Knock Off
- Scald

General Role:

The "fortress" of the kingdom that can deploy your troops and protect the team from devastating offense. Running eject button for another form of safe switching besides :mandibuzz: u-turn. Once the eject button is used up to "deploy a troop", pex is just used for standard utility and the main tank of the team; all moves here should be pretty standard for mixed defense pex.
Moveset:
Haze to stop prominent stat boosting sweepers like d-dancers, beast boosters, and basically anything that boosts stats for a wincon; a lot of people seem to forget this move exists. Recover to keep Toxapex healthy in action and Regenerator to keep them healthy out of action basically. Not running knock off on :sirfetchd: at all anymore so running it on pex to have item removal on the team, with scald for a decent chip damage STAB with burn if you need it.

:ss/garchomp:
Siege Tower (Garchomp) (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Roar Endure
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake

General Role:

The siege weapon, i.e, chip damage, the pokemon; use this beast to be annoying as possible and weaken teams as much as you can. Lead and set rocks, switch into something other than :sirfetchd: or :blacephalon: if you need to (unless they have :weavile:, which :sirfetchd: perfectly counters) and evaluate from there. Spread toxic and as much contact physical damage with him as possible and try to bait extra damage with the unexpected endure. Also be a little more careful with this mon, his earthquake can still go a long way in the late game for a tank.
Moveset:
Running endure for surprise extra chip damage from contact or to counter triple axel from :weavile:. Spread toxic to as many members of the enemy team as you can to cripple them, as well as setting hazards for extra damage. Earthquake is earthquake, still good with only 4 points of investment into atk.


:ss/blacephalon:
Jester (Blacephalon) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Trick
- Shadow Ball
- Flamethrower
- Mind Blown

General Role:

The jester of this kingdom: speed control and sweep potential plus much need special attack coverage for the team. I generally save this silly lil guy until very late game to potentially end the game. I only send him out early to try and surprise cripple tank switch-ins like :toxapex: and :blissey: with trick.
Moveset:
Trick is just here to cripple tanky mons that may ruin your day with this team like, but be careful against :ferrothorn: because most players will definitely switch out of a Blacephalon staring them in the face. Shadow ball and flamethrower for your main sweeping moves to lock into and I take mind blown in the niche situations that I had to send out Blacephalon and can't switch out and the best play is to sacrifice him to get the most damage possible.


:ss/sirfetchd:
Sir Fetch'd (Sirfetch’d) (M) @ Choice Band Leek
Ability: Scrappy
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- First Impression
- Close Combat
- Brave Bird
- Knock Off / Leaf Blade

General Role:

Changed from a prediction based role to a overall dps role for the team with leek and it feels pretty good compared to before. First impression is still just as potent and crits 50% of the time and can OHKO common psychic and dark types. He can tank a few hits but don't ever try to risk him for a greedy play.
Moveset:
First Impression is the main button you will be pressing against weakened offensive mons, with the other moves mainly being for aggressive predictions such as close combat into :ferrothorn: and :kartana: or knock off into anything really. As stated before, close combat hits pretty much all steel types that plague the tier with either an OHKO or serious damage. Brave bird is mainly here for teams with :buzzwole: and hoping to god they switch into him knowing full well you probably have brave bird, every hp point counts with this birb though, so I'd recommend to avoid chip damage if at all possible. Knock off is pretty standard to hit ghost types switching in or anything switching in that losing an item would be beneficial, I put leaf blade here because Sirfetch'd doesn't really need knock off due to his ability, but this team does struggle against any water/ground tanks such as :swampert: or :quagsire:, so it is an option to replace if you have been struggling against them, but I definitely prefer knock off.

:ss/aegislash:
Sir Slash (Aegislash) (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Stance Change
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 220 SpD / 36 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- King's Shield
- Toxic
- Substitute
- Shadow Ball

General Role:

The shadow of the star of the team, no pun intended, if all steel types and :toxapex: have been accounted for, this thing is a monster and I have on several occasions sweeped teams with them. You generally want to send them into a support mon on the enemy team or a favorable switch. If you can can substitute up on him, he becomes incredibly hard to kill and can wittle down any Pokemon that can be poisoned. Pretty safe switch in from any of our offensive mons and can survive an earthquake from :garchomp: and :landorus: in shield form if switching from Zeraora.
Moveset:
King's shield is just better protect that works with Aegi's ability, no reason not to take, can but used to bait out contact moves as a pseudo intimidate user kinda. Toxic and substitute are the main moves you will be clicking with him out to keep him alive as chip damage kicks in. Finally, due to his ability, shadow ball is still an incredible potent STAB move to throw out in sword form as toxic takes over or for switch ins.

Pokepaste: https://pokepast.es/a5c3def9143fde67

3. Teambuilding Process:
:sirfetchd::aegislash:
I started with these two because I wanted to due to their shared theme to make an OU team around.

:sirfetchd::aegislash::blacephalon:
I then added a good sp atk scarf user for speed control and special damage that I knew the team was going to inevitably need going into this.
:sirfetchd::aegislash::blacephalon::xatu:
I then knew I was going to need a wish/teleport user to keep Sirfetch'd healthy because in a good scenario he can realistically tank one hit if you aren't using first impression. I settled on Xatu for the magic bounce support mainly, but the defog option is nice too.
:sirfetchd::aegislash::blacephalon::xatu::garchomp:
I went into the Pokemon list and looked at who I could use to double up on contact damage with rocky helm and settled on Garchomp, the ground coverage, rocks, toxic, and force switching is the perfect set for this team. Druddigon could possibly be used for a tankier mon, but I think I would prefer the speed of Garchomp.
:sirfetchd::aegislash::blacephalon::xatu::garchomp::zeraora:
I sat and looked at my team and determined what attacking type it despritely needed to be able to succeed in this metagame and I settled on electric and Zeraora respectively to cover other types that resist fire, ghost, or fighting. Good coverage moves for other types the team doesn't hit well.
:sirfetchd::aegislash::blacephalon::garchomp::toxapex::mandibuzz:
Changes mainly described above from ideas from comments.

4. Threats:
:ss/barraskewda:
OHKOs the entire team in rain basically if reckless, the only reasonable strategy I have for it is to sac Garchomp (which is really bad) for the double chip damage and hope you they don't switch out of the Sirfetch'd first impression.
:ss/melmetal:
You're probably not going to take this thing out without losing something important first but is definitely doable to work around.
:ss/kartana:
Have checks for this monster but if scarfed, which he will be, he outspeeds everything on the team and you will have to play really smart around what moves he locks into and expect to lose a few items from knock off.
:ss/bisharp: / :ss/weavile:
These two share a slot for the same reason, they will mess up your ghost type carries if you allow them, play carefully.
:ss/clefable:
I just don't have a coverage move for fairy types and this is the main offender that will feel the pain, play smart and hope you can make it the last mon on the team and that you can wittle down its PP and win.
:ss/zapdos:
Hardish to kill with this team, but I swear to god every Zapdos that has switched into my Sirfetch'd has ALWAYS triggered Static.

5. How to use:
1. Lead Garchomp unless they have Weavile or Mamoswine: Set rocks and evaluate, getting toxic from a Lando does not really matter in the end. If you can safely throw out a toxic without much risk or know they will switch, do it. Otherwise, switch to Xatu to slow pivot around the team.
2. Make aggresive plays and predictions with Sirfetch'd and Blacephalon: Use your choice users to dismantle a crippled team and clean house with their strongest attack or making aggresive predictions.

3. Switch out and keep advantage with the rest of the team
 
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My only worry with switching Zeraora for a defensive mon is that I won't have enough offensive pressure anymore, Zeraora has really been covering my attacking coverage.
With a sirfetched and a blacephalon, I think your offensive is covered. DD Dual Wingbeat Dragonite is gonna be a pain along with the other threats..

(Also, you need a bulky mon. Rain looks unplayable like this)
PS: Love the team though. Pretty nice to see none OU mons flexing their power
 
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With a sirfetched and a blacephalon, I think your offensive is covered. DD Dual Wingbeat Dragonite is gonna be a pain along with the other threats..

(Also, you need a bulky matchup. Rain looks unplayable like this)
PS: Love the team though. Pretty nice to see none OU mons flexing their power
Yeah that's fair, rain def is the biggest struggle, I'll try it out and see how I like it
 
Hey there, nice Team! I really like the concept of it and it's refreshing seeing Sirfetch'd get some use.

I've tried this team for 10-15 games at 1600-1800 and I had to note down some major flaws besides the obvious ones that you named already.

First off, a set of Pokemon which you did not include in the Threat List are offensive ghost types like :Dragapult: or :blacephalon:. Nothing on your team switches into those, especially not a Dragapult. To fix this I put a :Mandibuzz: over :Xatu:. Wishpass is not all too consistent and on this team I found it to barely get the job done well. You can try out this SpD set since it helps wall these and still provides the team with a ground immunity and hazard control.
Mandibuzz @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 248 HP / 244 SpD / 16 Spe
Careful Nature
- Foul Play
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog

Without changing the team structure too much I'd suggest a different set on :Sirfetch'd:. I found a Leek set to be way more consistent and not as prediction reliant, which made it win me more games than CB did. Also I would suggest making it Max Speed since 166 is otherwise insanely mediocre. the additional HP doesn't let it live many major calcs either (according to my calcs with your set).
Sirfetch'd @ Leek
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Brave Bird
- First Impression
- Leaf Blade
The Leek Set I provided does great damage too (you can change Nature to +Atk if you want to), including a 100% critical hit chance on Leaf Blade which is really useful in breaking down stuff like Tapu Fini etc.

Finally I made :blacephalon: to be Modest Nature over Timid, simply for the damage output that it in my opinion really needs (you have like a 10% chance for SBall to kill regular Defog Tornadus which sucks for this team).

Other than that the team is really cool, I love the concept behind it and it does put in some work on the ladder. Good Job!
(Also please include a Pokepaste next time, thank you! ^^)
 
Hey there, nice Team! I really like the concept of it and it's refreshing seeing Sirfetch'd get some use.

I've tried this team for 10-15 games at 1600-1800 and I had to note down some major flaws besides the obvious ones that you named already.

First off, a set of Pokemon which you did not include in the Threat List are offensive ghost types like :Dragapult: or :blacephalon:. Nothing on your team switches into those, especially not a Dragapult. To fix this I put a :Mandibuzz: over :Xatu:. Wishpass is not all too consistent and on this team I found it to barely get the job done well. You can try out this SpD set since it helps wall these and still provides the team with a ground immunity and hazard control.
Mandibuzz @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 248 HP / 244 SpD / 16 Spe
Careful Nature
- Foul Play
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog

Without changing the team structure too much I'd suggest a different set on :Sirfetch. I found a Leek set to be way more consistent and not as prediction reliant, which made it win me more games than CB did. Also I would suggest making it Max Speed since 166 is otherwise insanely mediocre. the additional HP doesn't let it live many major calcs either (according to my calcs with your set).
Sirfetch'd @ Leek
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Brave Bird
- First Impression
- Leaf Blade
The Leek Set I provided does great damage too (you can change Nature to +Atk if you want to), including a 100% critical hit chance on Leaf Blade which is really useful in breaking down stuff like Tapu Fini etc.

Finally I made :blacephalon: to be Modest Nature over Timid, simply for the damage output that it in my opinion really needs (you have like a 10% chance for SBall to kill regular Defog Tornadus which sucks for this team).

Other than that the team is really cool, I love the concept behind it and it does put in some work on the ladder. Good Job!
(Also please include a Pokepaste next time, thank you! ^^)
Thank you so much for the tips, I wanted to use the Leek initially since it is core to the "fetch'd" identity, but I figured crit wasn't going to be reliable in OU, so I switched to band figuring it was better, so I'm surprised to hear that lol. I'll try out these changes, with these changes implemented, would you recommend :toxapex: > :zeraora: like the above commenter said, or to keep it?
 
I would suggest running Endure over Roar on Garchomp, it can be used to get a ton of chip on many physical attackers, especially weaviles that think they can safely axel.

Also if you decide to run Toxapex, which I generally agree with, i would suggest running eject button, your two main offensive mons greatly appreciate free switchins, and this gives you an extra way to pivot them in.
 
I would suggest running Endure over Roar on Garchomp, it can be used to get a ton of chip on many physical attackers, especially weaviles that think they can safely axel.

Also if you decide to run Toxapex, which I generally agree with, i would suggest running eject button, your two main offensive mons greatly appreciate free switchins, and this gives you an extra way to pivot them in.
Honestly, didn't know gar could learn endure lmao, that's not a bad idea, I've been playing the updated team with zeraora and it's better, but I do think toxapex would be good, would you think baneful bunker for stalling or t-spikes to spread poison more?
 
Honestly, didn't know gar could learn endure lmao, that's not a bad idea, I've been playing the updated team with zeraora and it's better, but I do think toxapex would be good, would you think baneful bunker for stalling or t-spikes to spread poison more?

Honestly, neither
Scald/Knock/Recover/Haze should prob be your go to, if you really want you can sub scald or knock with toxic tho.

I'd also recommend running a spdef set, checks pult and blace much better.
 
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