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Introduction

Upon first look, it's apparent that this team was created for the Deoxys-D metagame. This, however, does not mean it became unusable the moment the alien was banished to BL. In fact, the opposite is true, as without this threat looming over him, reachzero is free to play a bit more carelessly with the Pokemon meant to shut it down: Xatu. One of the cool things about this team is that it manages to keep almost every threat in the metagame in check while still using some innovative sets... or at least they were innovative until everyone caught on. Well anyway, let us examine the team in more detail.

The Team

reachzero's Fire and Brimstone team is a balanced team with a consistent goal, and each team member plays its part in accomplishing said goal. Xatu is there to prevent entry hazard setters such as Hippopotas, Gligar, and especially Roserade from setting up. He then has Qwilfish and Bronzong set up his own entry hazards in order to weaken the opposing team. Between these three Pokemon, reachzero ensures he has control over entry hazards against most teams. He then takes advantage of this by using two offensive Pokemon that become even more devastating with this support: Choice Specs Chandelure and Choice Scarf Krookodile. Chandelure is best described as a nuke, since its job is simply to come in as many times as possible and launch ridiculously powerful attacks to blow holes in the opponent's defenses. Krookodile, on the other hand, plays the role of a cleaner with its dangerous Moxie ability. The reason it works so well here is because, with a couple layers of entry hazards down, it becomes incredibly hard to switch into it while still avoiding a 2HKO, potentially allowing for the snowball sweep to begin.

Another interesting thing to note is that, aside from Porygon2 and maybe Chandelure, reachzero chooses to use various Pokemon that excel at their specific jobs rather than having more general utility. The two most obvious examples of this are Xatu and Qwilfish. Both of them have below-average stats across the board, and yet, they are so good at their specific niche that they are on par with the rest of the tier under the right circumstances. This utilization of niche Pokemon works out great for reachzero because he frequently creates the said circumstances, not to mention the great synergy his team possesses with them. Defensively speaking, there are a few synergistic pairs which can switch into various threats by luring certain types of attacks. For example, if Krookodile is out, the opponent is most likely going to want to force it out with their Heracross, or maybe their Choice Scarf Darmanitan or Victini. This gives reachzero an opportunity to switch to Qwilfish, force out the opposing threat, and set up yet another layer of Spikes. Another one of these synergistic pairs is Porygon2 + Chandelure. The former is so bulky that you almost have to hit it with a Fighting-type attack to bring it down, but doing this gives Chandelure a chance to come in and nuke something. Try to Pursuit Chandelure or Xatu? Sure. Krookodile is right there to mess you up as soon as you do.

That's not all though. As good as its defensive synergy might seem, the offensive synergy this team possesses is what makes it truly excellent. Not only does reachzero take advantage of the paralysis Qwilfish and Porygon2 provide by using a slow nuke like Chandelure, he's also able to weaken his Pokemon's counters with their teammates. The most obvious example of this comes from the two most offensive Pokemon on this team: Chandelure and Krookodile. When you think about it, almost every single Pokemon that checks Krookodile gets messed up by Chandelure in one way or another. Heracross can barely scratch Chandelure without proper prediction, Bronzong may as well scream for Chandelure to switch into it, and bulky Water-types are likely to be so weakened after dealing with it that they simply won't be able to stand up to Krookodile when the time comes. It's really quite terrifying when you think about it.

Threats

That said, every team has its weak points, and this one is no exception. Without doubt, a well-played Offensive Calm Mind Suicune is the number one threat to this team, as it can set up on Chandelure and just go to town on reachzero's team from there. Specially offensive Kingdra variants are also a huge threat, especially Choice Specs variants, which can simply fire a Hydro Pump and 1-2HKO anything as it switches in. Bulky Water-types are also slightly annoying, but their low offensive presence keeps them from doing too much damage. Swords Dance and Nasty Plot Mew can cause some trouble, especially bulky variants, which can stay out of Krookodile's KO range much more easily. Finally, there's Froslass, which can set up Spikes without fear of Xatu switching in thanks to its STAB Ice Beam.

Conclusion

Nevertheless, despite some notable weaknesses, this team is still one of the better ones out there, as evidenced by its success on the ladder. reachzero manages to keep this heavily offensive metagame in check through the use of some creative sets and smart play. So if you're looking for a solid team to go out and ladder with, why not try this one?

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