SS OU WCoP Qualifiers: Spikes Primarina Balance

[Ruft]

DISCLAIMER: This team dates from before the Isle of Armor DLC. I've put together an updated version below.

Hello! I'm Ruft and I was the co-captain and one of the players for team Belgium in this year's World Cup of Pokemon qualifiers. While I did lose my game, I'm still happy with the team I prepared and since we're unfortunately out of the tournament now, I figured I might as well share it.

Before I get into it, I have to say thank you to Finchinator and Trosko. Both were tremendously helpful when I asked for ideas, thoughts, and suggestions concerning this team and without their help I might've just given up on building my own team and went with someone else's. Thank you so much again!

Building Process

I didn't know too much about my opponent, but from looking at their replays I noticed that they tend to use fairly standard, reliable balance teams. I've been high on Substitute + Calm Mind Primarina for a while now and since it's a great anti-balance win condition it was the perfect candidate for me to build a team around.

The first partner I had for Primarina was Zeraora with Toxic. Substitute Primarina enjoys Toxic being spread and since it sets up on Seismitoad Grass Knot on Zeraora isn't that needed. It also provides necessary speed control.

The next Pokemon is WishPort Clefable. It can bring in the other two safely with Teleport and can heal them up with Wish to give them second chances.

From here on I made three different builds:

After testing and deliberation, I settled on the third build as it has the strongest defensive backbone. Also, Ferrothorn synergizes very well with Primarina, as Spikes can go a long way in chipping down its switch-ins.

Because I did end up missing the presence of a Ghost-type to pressure threatening Fighting-types like Conkeldurr, I ended up changing one more Pokemon:

→

Now, I'll go into more detail on the team itself.

The Final Build


Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 248 HP / 68 Def / 44 SpD / 148 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Scald
- Moonblast​

The star of the show and the main win condition of the team. It also serves as an emergency check to Nasty Plot Hydreigon. Substitute protects Primarina from being crippled by status or Knock Off, allowing it to set up with Calm Mind on many passive Pokemon like Clefable, Seismitoad, and non-Power Whip Ferrothorn. Scald is very important for burning potential switch-ins like Ferrothorn and Toxapex, as well as physical threats like Zeraora from behind the Substitute. Some people run Draining Kiss, but with Wish support I definitely prefer Moonblast for the immediate firepower. 148 Speed EVs is enough to outspeed Adamant Conkeldurr + sufficient creep to also outspeed Pokemon that are invested to outspeed the aforementioned Conkeldurr, like potential Seismitoad, Clefable, and Corviknight, as well as opposing Primarina. Maximum HP investment alongside a Calm nature with 44 SpD EVs allows Primarina's Substitute to always survive uninvested Clefable's Moonblast, making non-Calm Mind Clefable safe setup fodder. The rest of the EVs are dumped into Defense for more overall bulk and to give it a very good chance of living Fishious Rend from Choice Band Dracovish.

Calcs

0 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 44+ SpD Primarina: 76-90 (20.9 - 24.7%) -- possible 6HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Strong Jaw Dracovish Fishious Rend (170 BP) vs. 248 HP / 68 Def Primarina: 312-368 (85.9 - 101.3%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

Dragapult @ Spell Tag
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Hex
- Draco Meteor
- U-turn​

​

Dragapult provides speed control, has the ability to revenge kill threats like Dracovish and Conkeldurr, and provides a Ghost-type to deter the spam of Fighting- and Normal-types moves like Close Combat and Facade from Conkeldurr for instance. Modest doesn't miss out on outspeeding anything major other than opposing Dragapult and with a Spell Tag equipped it allows it to 2HKO even specially defensive Clefable with a status-boosted Hex after Knock Off/chip damage. It also gives it a very good chance of OHKOing burned Conkeldurr. I went with Will-O-Wisp over Thunder Wave to be able to cripple Pokemon like Excadrill, Ferrothorn, Terrakion, and potentially even Zeraora.

Calcs

252+ SpA Spell Tag Dragapult Hex (130 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clefable: 180-213 (45.6 - 54%) -- 46.9% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Spell Tag Dragapult Hex (130 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Conkeldurr: 330-388 (94 - 110.5%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO

Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 7 Spe
- Moonblast
- Wish
- Protect
- Teleport​

The most ubiquitous Pokemon in the metagame. It can bring in its teammates safely with Teleport and can restore their health (or its own) with Wish, which is greatly appreciated by Primarina, Rhyperior, and Ferrothorn, as they lack reliable recovery of their own. Special Defense investment allows it to serve as a check to Dragapult, (non-Modest NP) Hydreigon, and most importantly Kyurem, which would run through this team otherwise. 7 Speed IVs allows it to underspeed opposing Clefable for a slower Teleport while still outspeeding 4 Speed EVs Hippowdon.

Calcs

252+ SpA Spell Tag Dragapult Hex (130 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clefable: 180-213 (45.6 - 54%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 SpA Life Orb Hydreigon Flash Cannon vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clefable: 341-403 (86.5 - 102.2%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Kyurem Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Clefable: 169-201 (42.8 - 51%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Mandibuzz @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 248 HP / 64 Def / 20 SpD / 176 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Foul Play
- Defog
- Roost
- U-turn​

Mandibuzz serves a number of notable roles. It's the Defogger of the team, removing hazards that could devastate the other members of the team. It's also the Ground immunity, making Earthquake from the likes of Excadrill and Hippowdon not so free. As a Ghost resist, it also provides a check to threats like Aegislash and Chandelure. Foul Play allows it to check certain physical attackers other than Aegislash as well. A Jolly nature with 176 Speed EVs allows it to outspeed Modest Chandelure and get the jump on Jolly Bisharp. Maximum HP investment alongside 64 Defense EVs hits a useful benchmark of always surviving +2 Sky Attack from Hawlucha as well as Plasma Fists from Zeraora even if it takes Stealth Rock damage after its Boots get removed. The remaining 20 EVs are dumped into Special Defense to be safer against Choice Specs Aegislash, Chandelure, and Gengar. In the initial build, it had Brave Bird over U-turn as the team was quite weak to Conkeldurr. With the implementation of Dragapult over Zeraora I gave it U-turn instead, allowing it to pivot on a Clefable switch-in for instance and giving Primarina a setup opportunity in the process. Keeping Brave Bird is still a valid option.

Calcs

+2 252+ Atk Hawlucha Sky Attack vs. 248 HP / 64 Def Mandibuzz: 357-421 (84.3 - 99.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252+ Atk Mandibuzz Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Hawlucha: 169-200 (56.9 - 67.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Zeraora Plasma Fists vs. 248 HP / 64 Def Mandibuzz: 266-314 (62.8 - 74.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Mandibuzz Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Zeraora: 198-234 (62.4 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Mandibuzz Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Zeraora: 178-210 (56.1 - 66.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Rhyperior @ Leftovers
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 248 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Rock Blast
- Swords Dance​

Rhyperior serves as the team's Stealth Rock setter and patches up the team's weakness to Rotom-Heat and Togekiss. It is also able to check physical threats like Zeraora and Excadrill in a pinch. I opted for Rock Blast over Stone Edge or Smack Down to minimize the risk of being screwed over by bad luck against Substitute Togekiss. Swords Dance is necessary for breaking through the likes of Clefable and Corviknight. An Impish nature allows it tank a +2 Earthquake from Sand Rush Excadrill, while 252 Special Defense EVs makes it survive even an Expert Belt-boosted Grass Knot from Zeraora and further improves the matchup versus Rotom-Heat, Togekiss, and Clefable. Lastly there's a tiny bit of Speed creep to outspeed other Rhyperior.

Calcs

+2 252 Atk Excadrill Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 4+ Def Solid Rock Rhyperior: 366-432 (84.5 - 99.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
4 SpA Zeraora Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 300-354 (69.2 - 81.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
4 SpA Expert Belt Zeraora Grass Knot (120 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 360-425 (83.1 - 98.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 0 SpA Rotom-Heat Overheat vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Rhyperior: 165-194 (38.1 - 44.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 SpA Togekiss Air Slash vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Rhyperior: 131-154 (30.2 - 35.5%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 252 SpD Rhyperior: 111-132 (25.6 - 30.4%) -- 1% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 0 Atk Rhyperior Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Clefable: 372-438 (94.4 - 111.1%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after Leftovers recovery
0 Atk Corviknight Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 4+ Def Solid Rock Rhyperior: 85-100 (19.6 - 23%) -- possible 6HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 0 Atk Rhyperior Rock Blast (3 hits) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 153-183 (38.2 - 45.7%) -- approx. 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Body Press
- Knock Off
- Power Whip​

Ferrothorn's Spikes are very much appreciated by Primarina, as the chip damage it inflicts onto its switch-ins can be very beneficial. It serves as a soft check to Dracovish as well as Zeraora. Rocky Helmet in conjunction with Iron Barbs means that any contact move onto Ferrothorn is doing 29.2% back to the attacker. This is very helpful on this team, as the other team members tend to bait Zeraora into using Plasma Fists or Grass Knot (one of the few special moves that make contact), resulting into an almost free 29.2% chip damage if you switch to Ferrothorn on its attacks. Body Press threatens the likes of Excadrill and Bisharp, while Knock Off provides great utility in crippling Pokemon like Clefable and Corviknight and also threatens Ghosts wanting to switch in. I opted for Power Whip over Leech Seed as to not lose to an opposing Primarina. Maximum Defense investment is needed to check the aforementioned physical threats. There's also a little Speed creep for opposing Ferrothorn.

Calcs

252+ Atk Choice Band Strong Jaw Dracovish Fishious Rend (170 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 158-186 (45 - 52.9%) -- 31.3% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Strong Jaw Dracovish Fishious Rend (170 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 105-125 (29.9 - 35.6%) -- 30.3% chance to 3HKO
252 Atk Zeraora Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 142-168 (40.4 - 47.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 Atk Expert Belt Zeraora Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 170-202 (48.4 - 57.5%) -- 92.2% chance to 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Excadrill Earthquake vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 201-237 (57.2 - 67.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Def Ferrothorn Body Press vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Excadrill: 290-342 (80.3 - 94.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252+ Atk Black Glasses Bisharp Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 243-286 (69.2 - 81.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Bisharp Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 263-309 (74.9 - 88%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Def Ferrothorn Body Press vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Bisharp: 384-456 (141.6 - 168.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Ferrothorn Power Whip vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Primarina: 314-372 (86.5 - 102.4%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

Threatlist

Toxic Spikes Toxapex is a struggle for this team, as both Primarina and Rhyperior hate being poisoned. Smart play with Mandibuzz is required, or you can stack your own hazards in return.

Iron Head Corviknight can put you in a bad spot, as with some luck it can flinch through Rhyperior and it doesn't allow Clefable to safely Wish pass.

Will-O-Wisp and Thunderbolt variants can both beat Mandibuzz.

Rocky Helmet Ferrothorn and Rhyperior both do a decent job at keeping it in check but a well-played Zeraora remains a threat, especially Calm Mind variants.

While the team has two Fairy-types, they're both weak on the physical side so physically offensive Fighting-types are threatening and require smart counterplay. Brave Bird over U-turn on Mandibuzz is a valid option if you don't feel comfortable against them.

Conclusion

I figured I'd take this opportunity to say thanks to all the people I've interacted with in recent times. I've greatly enjoyed being part of both the OU and tournament community lately and they've definitely brightened these dark times of quarantine for me. I want to thank the OU moderation team in particular for taking a chance on me. And to my Belgian brethren, our time as a team was short but sweet and I'm sure we'll all succeed elsewhere, if not in next year's qualifiers!

Importable​

 

[Rotten]

Wow Ruft, this team is amazing! I hardly see any real threats to it and I just like the overall outcome.
As I am not a skilled team rater myself, I will feel free to ask a question. Have you had any encounters with Zeraora and what were your ways and strategies of dealing with it?

 

[Ruft]

Wow Ruft, this team is amazing! I hardly see any real threats to it and I just like the overall outcome.
As I am not a skilled team rater myself, I will feel free to ask a question. Have you had any encounters with Zeraora and what were your ways and strategies of dealing with it?

I mentioned this in the post; Rocky Helmet Ferrothorn goes a long way. Zeraora wants to be clicking Plasma Fists against Primarina, Mandibuzz, and Clefable and Grass Knot against Rhyperior, both of which result in 29.2% chip damage on Zeraora without any real damage on my side if I go Ferrothorn. Even Close Combat from Zeraora is usually only a 3HKO, which means Ferrothorn wins the 1v1 (if Zeraora is not setup). Even disregarding Ferrothorn, Rhyperior itself tends to live Grass Knot from full and KOs it back with Earthquake, while Mandibuzz can also eat a Plasma Fists and do major damage with Foul Play.

I have to admit Calm Mind Zeraora is a major threat however. I suppose a similar strategy of baiting Grass Knot onto Ferrothorn and taking it on from there could do the trick.

 

[gnarwal]

Hey, I know it's been around for a while, but I've been really enjoying this team lately. Thank you!

It's been very flexible against exotic and balanced comps, while also managing to check a lot of aggro lists pretty much effortlessly. (You don't mention Volcarona, but Rhyperior survives a +1 hit to OHKO, and you've already got a cure the Substitute set!) I don't get a lot of wins via the Primarina setup, which could mean I'm piloting it badly. But revealing Primarina's moveset forces predictable switch-ins and that does get me wins, which is also a great reason to bring a sweeper.

You covered most of the key threats: wallbreaking Toxapex is brutally slow to do safely, but it can't do very much in return. Zeraora still gives me lots of trouble, but mostly from Volt Switch sets that force Ferrothorn to come in too often or check multiple threats. The only thing I don't quite follow is handling CM Clefable: at +1 it's a 3HKO on Rhyperior, which means that above ~65% Defensive Clefable will beat Rhy with even 1 turn to set up as I switch him in. Magic Guard means no easy chipping, and the rare Unaware makes SD useless, so I'm not quite sure how else to react?

Beyond that, I wonder if you have any thoughts on updating this team for the Isle of Armor? Obviously these matchups aren't 'flaws' since they didn't exist yet, but I'm trying to work out a variation to handle the current meta.

• Urshifu does incredibly painful neutral damage with either Wicked Blow or Iron head, forcing a sacrifice to get Clefable or Primarina in safely and then just switching out. Mandibuzz is a reasonable check to both, but doesn't like neutral Close Combat and hates switching in predictably.
• Rillaboom has made Hawlucha into a dire threat, with U-Turn entry guarding it against burns and +1 Defense crippling Mandibuzz and Rhyperior as counters. Brave Bird helps, but even combined with Ferrothorn taking a hit it's not enough. Pure SpD Clefable can't take even a single hit, so it usually eats about half the team before dropping, or sweeps if it has Roost.

Defensive Clefable handles both situations, so that's my best fix so far, with Mandibuzz handling Dragapult. But it puts a lot of pressure on Primarina, since the water typing is much worse for checking threats like Giga Drain bugs. And I don't have any good answer to Kyurem. (Maybe Gyro Ball on Ferrothorn, which also helps against CM Clefable?)

 

[Ruft]

Hey, I know it's been around for a while, but I've been really enjoying this team lately. Thank you!

It's been very flexible against exotic and balanced comps, while also managing to check a lot of aggro lists pretty much effortlessly. (You don't mention Volcarona, but Rhyperior survives a +1 hit to OHKO, and you've already got a cure the Substitute set!) I don't get a lot of wins via the Primarina setup, which could mean I'm piloting it badly. But revealing Primarina's moveset forces predictable switch-ins and that does get me wins, which is also a great reason to bring a sweeper.

You covered most of the key threats: wallbreaking Toxapex is brutally slow to do safely, but it can't do very much in return. Zeraora still gives me lots of trouble, but mostly from Volt Switch sets that force Ferrothorn to come in too often or check multiple threats. The only thing I don't quite follow is handling CM Clefable: at +1 it's a 3HKO on Rhyperior, which means that above ~65% Defensive Clefable will beat Rhy with even 1 turn to set up as I switch him in. Magic Guard means no easy chipping, and the rare Unaware makes SD useless, so I'm not quite sure how else to react?

Beyond that, I wonder if you have any thoughts on updating this team for the Isle of Armor? Obviously these matchups aren't 'flaws' since they didn't exist yet, but I'm trying to work out a variation to handle the current meta.

• Urshifu does incredibly painful neutral damage with either Wicked Blow or Iron head, forcing a sacrifice to get Clefable or Primarina in safely and then just switching out. Mandibuzz is a reasonable check to both, but doesn't like neutral Close Combat and hates switching in predictably.
• Rillaboom has made Hawlucha into a dire threat, with U-Turn entry guarding it against burns and +1 Defense crippling Mandibuzz and Rhyperior as counters. Brave Bird helps, but even combined with Ferrothorn taking a hit it's not enough. Pure SpD Clefable can't take even a single hit, so it usually eats about half the team before dropping, or sweeps if it has Roost.

Defensive Clefable handles both situations, so that's my best fix so far, with Mandibuzz handling Dragapult. But it puts a lot of pressure on Primarina, since the water typing is much worse for checking threats like Giga Drain bugs. And I don't have any good answer to Kyurem. (Maybe Gyro Ball on Ferrothorn, which also helps against CM Clefable?)

Your post got me thinking about how I could update this team concept for the current metagame and I ended up with this:

(click sprites)

I changed its spread so that it outruns Azumarill (and Mandibuzz that are EV'd to outrun Azumarill) and since Dracovish is gone I invested the remaining EVs into Special Attack rather than Defense.

Skarmory serves as a more reliable check to Rillaboom than Ferrothorn since it's not weak to Fighting coverage and has reliable recovery in Roost. Additionally, it has an easier time keeping up Spikes thanks to Taunt (it has 201 Speed to outrun 200 Speed Mandibuzz).

In a similar vein, Gastrodon is a more reliable check to Zeraora, Rotom-H, and Volcarona than Rhyperior is thanks to its reliable recovery in Recover. Sticky Hold also means its Leftovers can't be removed through the ubiquitous Knock Off and Trick.

I've made Clefable physically defensive to counteract opposing Urshifu among other physical threats like Hawlucha which you mentioned. Since most of its teammates got reliable recovery now, it doesn't have to run Wish anymore and is now free to run both Stealth Rock and Knock Off, which were previously provided by Rhyperior and Ferrothorn respectively.

Aegislash, Chandelure, and Bisharp are much less relevant now (and Skarmory covers Bisharp well regardless), so I've invested the majority of Mandibuzz's Speed EVs into mixed bulk instead (making it unable to get 2HKO'd by Choice Specs Dragapult's Draco Meteor from full).

Choice Scarf Jirachi fits well in the last slot to provide a solid check to Kyurem and Calm Mind Clefable, some good speed which the team was lacking, and Healing Wish which Primarina should often enjoy in the late game. While Dragapult's Ghost typing was often useful on the previous version of this team, there is now physically defensive Clefable to deal with Fighting-types instead.

I haven't tested this new version out yet, so I'm sure you can find more things to change and optimize it further. I hope this helps for now!