How can I help UU, King Dedede?
I need some monsters to clobber that there Kirby!
That's what we do best at RMT.
You'd better get it with a rating-back guarantee.
Note: In OU, I tend to get tired of seeing the same old pokemon over and over, so I like my teams to be different to the norm, so I won't use stuff like Scizor or Salamence or Metagross for example. In UU, I am willing to use any pokemon on the team, no matter how common it is in UU, as long as it does the job and doesn't result in the team losing something.
Origins and Development of Team Dedede
After becoming tired of OU's monotony and constantly winning one battle, losing the next, winning the one after, etc. I decided to return to UU now that Crobat, Shaymin and Honchkrow among others are out of the picture. The first thing I had to do was think of a pokemon that could wreak havoc in UU. Having used Sub Punch Hariyama to great success in OU, simple logic would dictate that he would absolutely own in UU. More on the realities of that later, but that was where I started my team:
Of course, no pokemon can sweep an entire metagame. There's always going to be something out there to put a stop to the carnage, and for Hariyama, the first things that come to mind are Claydol and Slowbro, physically-defensive psychic-types, Moltres and Toxicroak, pokemon that resist Focus Punch and are neutral to all of Hariyama's weaker attacks, and Spiritomb, a nuisance to just about every UU team conceived. Most of the former can actually be covered by UU's newest special attacker Yanmega, and if need be, Yanmega can perform a bit of sweeping himself to make things easier for the rest of the team. Not to mention that a previous UU team I created was absolutely raped by one, and if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
However, Yanmega doesn't solve the problem with Spiritomb. In fact, because of Spiritomb's absence of weaknesses and fairly good defences for UU, there are only two pokemon that might have a hope of triumphing against him: Kangaskhan and Miltank. Both of these can hit with super effective Hammer Arms due to their ability Scrappy. Miltank's Hammer Arms lack the power required to take Spiritomb down, but Kangaskhan's are powerful enough to 2HKO and the speed drop doesn't matter too much against something with 35 base speed. Thus the third member of my team was chosen.
Although it has been a while since I played UU, I do recall rain dance teams being a huge threat thanks to Ludicolo among others. I also recall bulky waters like Milotic and Slowbro putting a damper on offensive teams like this one. So, I had to ask myself, what is the best bulky water counter and rain dance team counter? The answer popped into my head immediately: Ludicolo. A 4x resistance to water-type moves and neither of the weaknesses that most water-types have, as well as Swift Swim and a decent special defence all made Ludicolo a worthy addition to my team, even without my own rain.
Looking at Hariyama's analysis, I picked up on what I thought was a crucial point:
With five pokemon on the team, I decided it was a good idea to check how my team's resistances and weaknesses were doing. The first thing that struck me was that three of my pokemon are weak to flying and neither of the other two resist it. I also didn't have a resistance to normal, dragon, poison or electric, so I would need a pokemon that would resist all five of those types, and as far as I am aware, only one pokemon in UU does this: Steelix. Thus my team of six was complete.
... Or was it?
Not one pokemon on the team likes status, but not one pokemon on the team can get rid of it. Thunder Wave, Hypnosis, Toxic, Will-o-Wisp ... all of these spelled trouble for my team. I needed an Aromatherapy or Heal Bell user, but all six pokemon had vital roles on the team already. Surely if I replaced any of them, I'd be losing something valuable.
Except, it seems, for Ludicolo. Chansey takes special hits much better, even those from rain dance teams, and can toxic stall any bulky water that lacks rest (which appears to be all of them). Best of all, Chansey gets Aromatherapy to remove any status that might be afflicting the team. Now those pesky Clefable cannot status me to death!
The six monsters that Dedede ordered
Tinkerbell (Uxie) @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/200 Def/58 Spd
Change to Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- New move: Psychic
- U-turn
There's a reason why standard sets are standard sets: they have a habit of working. That's not to say that one can't deviate from the standard set, but on this occasion, it is perhaps better that I stick with the standard Dual Screen set. Because I want Uxie to stick around, however, I have dropped Memento. Also, I have tweaked the EVs a little because 76 speed EVs (the amount suggested on Smogon) doesn't outspeed anything significant that 58 speed EVs wouldn't. Because this Uxie is geared more towards physical defence than special defence, it usually sets up Light Screen first, especially if the lead happens to be a Scarf Typhlosion or another Uxie. This set used to have Stealth Rock but with fighting-types like Hitmonlee and Toxicroak causing problems (especially once Yanmega goes down), Psychic appears to be a better choice, especially since the next guy on this team can set up Stealth Rock anyway.
Iron Worm (Steelix) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Rock Head
New EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/6 SDef
Change to Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- New move: Stealth Rock
- New move: Stone Edge
- Roar
Unlike Uxie, this Steelix does not run an entirely standard set. The mostly-unresisted combo of Earthquake and Stone Edge along with the 252 attack EVs ensure that Steelix does pack a punch, while Stealth Rock helps to defeat foes like Yanmega and Moltres (especially the latter). Roar phases Sub Punchers (none can OHKO Steelix) and most stat-uppers, which would otherwise cause this team real grief. Gyro Ball was not put on this moveset because it does not offer anything in the way of type coverage and, even with Steelix's low speed helping to boost its base power, it's a pretty weak move. The attack EVs are more useful than EVs in special defence because I have a Chansey to take special hits, and more useful than in defence because, well, Steelix already survives any physical attack except possibly a Choice Band Close Combat from a strong enough fighting-type.
Nightingale (Chansey) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
New EVs: 252 Def/20 Spd/238 SDef
Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Aromatherapy
- Softboiled
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
The new kid on the block, this set is also bog standard. Toxic is the preferred status here because, as I mentioned earlier, I want to take down bulky waters fairly easily and since all of them are special attackers and forego Rest in favour of Recover or Slack Off, Toxic should keep them at bay at worst, and wear them down to the point of fainting at best. Neither Thunder Wave nor Sing would achieve the same effect. Aromatherapy is why I am using this special wall over any other. The fact that its special walling abilities are second to none in UU is actually just a bonus. Without Aromatherapy, every single status move is the bane of this team.
Big Momma (Kangaskhan) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 42 HP/252 Atk/216 Spd
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Return
- STOP! Hammer Arm!
- Sucker Punch
- Avalanche
The perfect way to deal with Spiritomb. Once again, a standard set, but invaluable to the team. Not only does this tear Spiritomb up, even if it gets a Calm Mind boost, but it can also help to a certain extent against other ghosts like Mismagius. Even Steelix won't like two or three hits from Hammer Arm. Sucker Punch is useful for finishing off choice-locked pokemon or Swellow and once OHKO'd a Hitmonlee after it had used Close Combat four times. Avalanche is for the occasional Altaria as well as providing type coverage that works fairly well alongside Hammer Arm (though I can't remember the last time I actually used it).
Swarmling (Yanmega) (F) @ Wise Glasses
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 6 Def/252 Spd/252 SAtk
Modest nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Bug Buzz
- Air Slash
- New move: Protect
- Original Hidden Power: [Ground]
Given that Yanmega's not the main sweeper on this team, one would expect me to use the ability Tinted Lens and the item Choice Specs. However, Speed Boost has helped a great deal in wearing whole teams down, rather than just one pokemon (which, knowing my luck, will have some sort of recovery move anyway). After one boost, Yanmega is faster than Scarf Roserade, and after two, I'll be damned if there is a pokemon in UU that can outspeed it. Protect ensures that Yanmega gets at least one speed boost, while Hidden Power Ground makes Steelix think twice about switching in. It's not really like Yanmega had much else to use outside of a seriously unreliable Hypnosis anyway.
Smash Sumo (Hariyama) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
New EVs: 60 HP/172 Atk/252 Def/26 Spd
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Focus Punch
- Ice Punch
- Payback
The main man. The top gun. The guy who can't be replaced. There are probably only five or six pokemon in UU who won't mind coming up against this guy, and between then, the above members of this team can wipe them all out. Once Hariyama finds a nice opportunity to switch in, such as against Scarf Typhlosion's Eruption or some other choice-locked resisted move like Sucker Punch, it's time to let the carnage begin. And if Uxie's screens are still up when he comes in, wreaking havoc is twice as easy. Ice Punch has been chosen over Stone Edge for two reasons: accuracy and Nidoking. As long as Hariyama can hit with a neutral Focus Punch or a 4x effective Ice Punch, he has little to worry about. This set is a standard, and while the speed EVs allow Hariyama to outspeed Chansey and Registeel, I am considering moving some HP EVs to speed because 60 speed EVs will allow Hariyama to outspeed 8 speed Clefable.
I can't be bothered with a threat list right now
Here are a couple of thoughts I've had about this team:
No spinner, a pokemon with a dual weakness to Stealth Rock and nobody to absorb Toxic Spikes. While the Stealth Rock weakness has sometimes failed to stop Yanmega and Toxic Spikes appear to be rather rare, the lack of a spinner is rather unsettling.
Hariyama tends to get very little action despite being the main man on this team. Short of coming in on choice-locked resisted attacks and after another pokemon has died, Hariyama doesn't have much opportunity to come in. However, I don't want to get rid of the pokemon that I have based my team around, so what I really want to solve this problem is something that lures in the sorts of pokemon that Hariyama can come in on, such as dark-types not named Spiritomb.
I'm sure I've forgotten about a particular threat but I can't think of which one (or ones) it might be, so I'm hoping that by posting this RMT, someone will think of it for me, and if they propose a solution, so much the better. Bear in mind, however, that I won't implement a solution if I suspect that it'll open holes in my team.
I need some monsters to clobber that there Kirby!
That's what we do best at RMT.
You'd better get it with a rating-back guarantee.
Note: In OU, I tend to get tired of seeing the same old pokemon over and over, so I like my teams to be different to the norm, so I won't use stuff like Scizor or Salamence or Metagross for example. In UU, I am willing to use any pokemon on the team, no matter how common it is in UU, as long as it does the job and doesn't result in the team losing something.
Origins and Development of Team Dedede
After becoming tired of OU's monotony and constantly winning one battle, losing the next, winning the one after, etc. I decided to return to UU now that Crobat, Shaymin and Honchkrow among others are out of the picture. The first thing I had to do was think of a pokemon that could wreak havoc in UU. Having used Sub Punch Hariyama to great success in OU, simple logic would dictate that he would absolutely own in UU. More on the realities of that later, but that was where I started my team:
Of course, no pokemon can sweep an entire metagame. There's always going to be something out there to put a stop to the carnage, and for Hariyama, the first things that come to mind are Claydol and Slowbro, physically-defensive psychic-types, Moltres and Toxicroak, pokemon that resist Focus Punch and are neutral to all of Hariyama's weaker attacks, and Spiritomb, a nuisance to just about every UU team conceived. Most of the former can actually be covered by UU's newest special attacker Yanmega, and if need be, Yanmega can perform a bit of sweeping himself to make things easier for the rest of the team. Not to mention that a previous UU team I created was absolutely raped by one, and if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
However, Yanmega doesn't solve the problem with Spiritomb. In fact, because of Spiritomb's absence of weaknesses and fairly good defences for UU, there are only two pokemon that might have a hope of triumphing against him: Kangaskhan and Miltank. Both of these can hit with super effective Hammer Arms due to their ability Scrappy. Miltank's Hammer Arms lack the power required to take Spiritomb down, but Kangaskhan's are powerful enough to 2HKO and the speed drop doesn't matter too much against something with 35 base speed. Thus the third member of my team was chosen.
Although it has been a while since I played UU, I do recall rain dance teams being a huge threat thanks to Ludicolo among others. I also recall bulky waters like Milotic and Slowbro putting a damper on offensive teams like this one. So, I had to ask myself, what is the best bulky water counter and rain dance team counter? The answer popped into my head immediately: Ludicolo. A 4x resistance to water-type moves and neither of the weaknesses that most water-types have, as well as Swift Swim and a decent special defence all made Ludicolo a worthy addition to my team, even without my own rain.
Looking at Hariyama's analysis, I picked up on what I thought was a crucial point:
Knowing Uxie to be quite good in the lead position (albeit rather common in said position), it seemed an obvious decision to put him on the team.
With five pokemon on the team, I decided it was a good idea to check how my team's resistances and weaknesses were doing. The first thing that struck me was that three of my pokemon are weak to flying and neither of the other two resist it. I also didn't have a resistance to normal, dragon, poison or electric, so I would need a pokemon that would resist all five of those types, and as far as I am aware, only one pokemon in UU does this: Steelix. Thus my team of six was complete.
... Or was it?
Not one pokemon on the team likes status, but not one pokemon on the team can get rid of it. Thunder Wave, Hypnosis, Toxic, Will-o-Wisp ... all of these spelled trouble for my team. I needed an Aromatherapy or Heal Bell user, but all six pokemon had vital roles on the team already. Surely if I replaced any of them, I'd be losing something valuable.
Except, it seems, for Ludicolo. Chansey takes special hits much better, even those from rain dance teams, and can toxic stall any bulky water that lacks rest (which appears to be all of them). Best of all, Chansey gets Aromatherapy to remove any status that might be afflicting the team. Now those pesky Clefable cannot status me to death!
The six monsters that Dedede ordered
Tinkerbell (Uxie) @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP/200 Def/58 Spd
Change to Bold nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- New move: Psychic
- U-turn
There's a reason why standard sets are standard sets: they have a habit of working. That's not to say that one can't deviate from the standard set, but on this occasion, it is perhaps better that I stick with the standard Dual Screen set. Because I want Uxie to stick around, however, I have dropped Memento. Also, I have tweaked the EVs a little because 76 speed EVs (the amount suggested on Smogon) doesn't outspeed anything significant that 58 speed EVs wouldn't. Because this Uxie is geared more towards physical defence than special defence, it usually sets up Light Screen first, especially if the lead happens to be a Scarf Typhlosion or another Uxie. This set used to have Stealth Rock but with fighting-types like Hitmonlee and Toxicroak causing problems (especially once Yanmega goes down), Psychic appears to be a better choice, especially since the next guy on this team can set up Stealth Rock anyway.
Iron Worm (Steelix) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Rock Head
New EVs: 252 HP/252 Atk/6 SDef
Change to Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Earthquake
- New move: Stealth Rock
- New move: Stone Edge
- Roar
Unlike Uxie, this Steelix does not run an entirely standard set. The mostly-unresisted combo of Earthquake and Stone Edge along with the 252 attack EVs ensure that Steelix does pack a punch, while Stealth Rock helps to defeat foes like Yanmega and Moltres (especially the latter). Roar phases Sub Punchers (none can OHKO Steelix) and most stat-uppers, which would otherwise cause this team real grief. Gyro Ball was not put on this moveset because it does not offer anything in the way of type coverage and, even with Steelix's low speed helping to boost its base power, it's a pretty weak move. The attack EVs are more useful than EVs in special defence because I have a Chansey to take special hits, and more useful than in defence because, well, Steelix already survives any physical attack except possibly a Choice Band Close Combat from a strong enough fighting-type.
Nightingale (Chansey) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
New EVs: 252 Def/20 Spd/238 SDef
Calm nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Aromatherapy
- Softboiled
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
The new kid on the block, this set is also bog standard. Toxic is the preferred status here because, as I mentioned earlier, I want to take down bulky waters fairly easily and since all of them are special attackers and forego Rest in favour of Recover or Slack Off, Toxic should keep them at bay at worst, and wear them down to the point of fainting at best. Neither Thunder Wave nor Sing would achieve the same effect. Aromatherapy is why I am using this special wall over any other. The fact that its special walling abilities are second to none in UU is actually just a bonus. Without Aromatherapy, every single status move is the bane of this team.
Big Momma (Kangaskhan) (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 42 HP/252 Atk/216 Spd
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Return
- STOP! Hammer Arm!
- Sucker Punch
- Avalanche
The perfect way to deal with Spiritomb. Once again, a standard set, but invaluable to the team. Not only does this tear Spiritomb up, even if it gets a Calm Mind boost, but it can also help to a certain extent against other ghosts like Mismagius. Even Steelix won't like two or three hits from Hammer Arm. Sucker Punch is useful for finishing off choice-locked pokemon or Swellow and once OHKO'd a Hitmonlee after it had used Close Combat four times. Avalanche is for the occasional Altaria as well as providing type coverage that works fairly well alongside Hammer Arm (though I can't remember the last time I actually used it).
Swarmling (Yanmega) (F) @ Wise Glasses
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 6 Def/252 Spd/252 SAtk
Modest nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Bug Buzz
- Air Slash
- New move: Protect
- Original Hidden Power: [Ground]
Given that Yanmega's not the main sweeper on this team, one would expect me to use the ability Tinted Lens and the item Choice Specs. However, Speed Boost has helped a great deal in wearing whole teams down, rather than just one pokemon (which, knowing my luck, will have some sort of recovery move anyway). After one boost, Yanmega is faster than Scarf Roserade, and after two, I'll be damned if there is a pokemon in UU that can outspeed it. Protect ensures that Yanmega gets at least one speed boost, while Hidden Power Ground makes Steelix think twice about switching in. It's not really like Yanmega had much else to use outside of a seriously unreliable Hypnosis anyway.
Smash Sumo (Hariyama) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
New EVs: 60 HP/172 Atk/252 Def/26 Spd
Impish nature (+Def, -SAtk)
- Substitute
- Focus Punch
- Ice Punch
- Payback
The main man. The top gun. The guy who can't be replaced. There are probably only five or six pokemon in UU who won't mind coming up against this guy, and between then, the above members of this team can wipe them all out. Once Hariyama finds a nice opportunity to switch in, such as against Scarf Typhlosion's Eruption or some other choice-locked resisted move like Sucker Punch, it's time to let the carnage begin. And if Uxie's screens are still up when he comes in, wreaking havoc is twice as easy. Ice Punch has been chosen over Stone Edge for two reasons: accuracy and Nidoking. As long as Hariyama can hit with a neutral Focus Punch or a 4x effective Ice Punch, he has little to worry about. This set is a standard, and while the speed EVs allow Hariyama to outspeed Chansey and Registeel, I am considering moving some HP EVs to speed because 60 speed EVs will allow Hariyama to outspeed 8 speed Clefable.
I can't be bothered with a threat list right now
Here are a couple of thoughts I've had about this team:
No spinner, a pokemon with a dual weakness to Stealth Rock and nobody to absorb Toxic Spikes. While the Stealth Rock weakness has sometimes failed to stop Yanmega and Toxic Spikes appear to be rather rare, the lack of a spinner is rather unsettling.
Hariyama tends to get very little action despite being the main man on this team. Short of coming in on choice-locked resisted attacks and after another pokemon has died, Hariyama doesn't have much opportunity to come in. However, I don't want to get rid of the pokemon that I have based my team around, so what I really want to solve this problem is something that lures in the sorts of pokemon that Hariyama can come in on, such as dark-types not named Spiritomb.
I'm sure I've forgotten about a particular threat but I can't think of which one (or ones) it might be, so I'm hoping that by posting this RMT, someone will think of it for me, and if they propose a solution, so much the better. Bear in mind, however, that I won't implement a solution if I suspect that it'll open holes in my team.
