Featured NU RMT

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Introduction

With the release of Pokemon Black and White 2, as well as the tier changes at the start of July, the NU metagame has undergone a massive change. Released Dream World abilities have thrust Amoonguss and Cinccino into the spotlight as two of the most prominent Pokemon currently; meanwhile the tier changes brought a new spinblocker to the tier in Golurk, while simultaneously robbing NU of Cryogonal, Magmortar and Quagsire. These changes have made NU as a tier even more offensive (if that was possible) and also made hazards an even more viable proposition. FLCL has taken advantage of these changes, building an offensive hazard stacking team that is both successful and representative of the current metagame. At the time of writing, FLCL holds both of the top two ladder positions on the Pokemon Showdown! NU ladder, with over 200 wins between them.

The Team

FLCL has taken the new changes to NU and built a very potent hazard stacking offensive team. The Spikes setter of choice is Cacturne, who has risen to become the one of the most popular Spikes users in NU, vying for a place against Garbodor due to the utility Sucker Punch has gained in such an offensive metagame. Cacturne also gets a few other fun tools to make it useful, on this occasion making use of Bullet Seed to deter Sturdy users from setting up Stealth Rock, as well as Encore to hinder set up sweepers and make room to set up Spikes at the same time. Beyond Spikes, Stealth Rock is almost mandatory on every team now. Probopass has gained a useful niche as a Stealth Rock user with the meteoric rise of Cinccino; Probopass is one of its most reliable checks, especially now that Cinccino doesn't use Wake-Up Slap often. It also remains a solid check to the numerous Flying-types in the tier, such as Swellow. Being a very slow user of Volt Switch also comes in handy for setting up Swellow with Toxic Orb, as well as maintaining momentum throughout a match. Sharing a Fighting-type weakness with Cacturne may seem like a disadvantage, but it does come in handy when luring attacks for Golurk to switch into. Golurk is the team's spinblocker, and outside of that role it also serves as an important wallbreaker, particularly potent when combined with hazards. With new tutor moves in Drain Punch and Ice Punch, virtually no physical wall (not even Tangela) is safe from Golurk's Choice Band set. Notably, Golurk does a great job in beating most of the prominent Swellow checks in NU, primarily Regirock and Probopass. It is only natural then, that FLCL chose to use Swellow on this team. Swellow has changed very little, in stark contrast to the tier around it. These changes to the environment have actually been of great benefit to Swellow; the fact that it can revenge kill Cinccino with ease is a great asset, and the resurgence of Spikes usage is perhaps an even bigger boon. Not only is Swellow immune to Spikes, but all of its counters and checks are weakened significantly by them, making Swellow a much more dangerous threat in this metagame. Once Swellow comes out in a game, the contest is often all but over, with any counters to it crippled and unable to combat the onslaught. If this is not the case however, FLCL has an ace up his sleeve. The unique Samurott set (made along with DTC) is a unique twist on Samurott's role as a late game sweeper, and turns the tables on many common checks such as Amoonguss. It makes great use of the recently released Salac Berry, outspeeding much of the unboosted metagame at +1, and the threat is twofold as Samurott becomes incredibly powerful when in Torrent range. This beast will often clean up the remains of an opposing team, with only the shaky accuracy of Hydro Pump to worry about. With the incredibly offensive nature of NU at the moment, any team would be foolish to go without a revenge killer. This team is no exception, and what better Pokemon to use then the recently released catch all revenge killer that is Ditto. This pink blob patches up many holes in almost any team, and can prevent an entire opposing team from setting up just by existing. Its presence in team preview is often enough to help the team, and it can easily sweep given the right opportunity.

Threats

As with any offensive team, it is hard to cover any threat defensively. As such, many hard hitters in NU such as Emboar and Zangoose can get a kill almost every time they switch in. FLCL has to cleverly play around these threats, wearing them down with hazards damage and then either revenge killing them with Ditto or Swellow where appropriate. If he does not, Emboar can easily spam Flare Blitz with Samurott being the only resist, who will not enjoy taking them more than once. Samurott also loses much of its effectiveness if it takes damage before attempting to sweep. Rotom-F also poses a significant threat to this team with its unique STAB combination, outspeeding the whole team bar Swellow, and being able to KO the majority of it. Opposing Golurk can also cause a significant headache, as it troubles every member of the team with its coverage moves, and becomes even more dangerous when it uses Substitute and cannot be revenge killed by Ditto.

Conclusion

FLCL has captured the current NU environment incredibly well, and manages to be successful at the same time. While his team does have trouble with a few common threats, notably Zangoose, he can play around it effectively, as is clearly shown by the consistent results achieved with this team. There has never been a better time to get into NU, and hopefully this snapshot will help you to do so!

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