Current Record – 3 – 0
Team:
Manaphy
| HP: |
100 |
|
| Attack: |
100 |
|
| Defense: |
100 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
100 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
100 |
|
| Speed: |
100 |
|
Overview
Initially, Manaphy comes off as relatively average. Its stats are good, but not great. Its Speed stat is especially mediocre, as when coupled with Manaphy’s Water typing, it causes Manaphy to get revenge killed easily by the many Electric-types in OU, including Thundurus, Manectric, and Raikou. Thankfully, the adorable Prince of the Sea has a few tricks up its sleeve that allow it to escape mediocrity and become one of the most threatening Pokemon in OU. With one use of the move Tail Glow, Manaphy’s Special Attack more than doubles. This quick access to extreme power, complemented by Manaphy’s better than average bulk, allows it to set up on and destroy many common defensive Pokemon, such as Mega Sableye, Mega Slowbro, Clefable, Mega Charizard X, Heatran, Gliscor, and Quagsire. Furthermore, Manaphy works extremely well in the rain, where it is capable of 2HKOing even Chansey, and, thanks to Hydration, instantly heals from status; it also usually has a free moveslot for Rain Dance. Manaphy can also use Rest alongside either Tail Glow or Calm Mind to take advantage of Hydration, as in the rain, Hydration allows Manaphy to instantaneously heal all of its HP while evading the sleep status, improving Manaphy’s performance against defensive teams even more.
Tornadus-Therian
| HP: |
79 |
|
| Attack: |
100 |
|
| Defense: |
80 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
110 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
90 |
|
| Speed: |
121 |
|
Overview
With access to an amazing offensive ability in Regenerator, Tornadus-T returns to OU as a fantastic offensive pivot. Regenerator offsets both Life Orb and Stealth Rock damage, reducing the overall damaging effect of entry hazards, and works fantastically with U-turn. With its blazing Speed stat and good movepool, Tornadus-T is able to outspeed most of the unboosted metagame and hit hard with its good Special Attack stat. The main downside to using Tornadus-T is its over-reliance on rain if it wants to use its most powerful STAB, Hurricane. Also, while Flying may be a fantastic offensive typing, it is fairly lackluster defensively, limiting the amount of Pokemon Tornadus-T can switch into. While Tornadus-T can do a lot of damage once its on the field, it requires proper team support and planning to get in, limiting its overall use in the metagame.
Weavile
| HP: |
70 |
|
| Attack: |
120 |
|
| Defense: |
65 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
45 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
85 |
|
| Speed: |
125 |
|
Overview
Weavile is a great revenge killer in OU due to its good Speed and Attack, further supplemented by the now legal combination of Knock Off and Icicle Crash. This allows Weavile to remove the opposing Pokemon’s item while also having an Ice-type STAB far stronger than Ice Punch. Weavile also has access to priority Ice Shard, allowing it to finish off fast and frail offensive enemies. However, Weavile is very frail and is weak to Stealth Rock. Priority moves such as Mach Punch and Bullet Punch hit Weavile hard, especially given its 4x weakness to Fighting-type attacks.
Ampharos
| HP: |
90 |
|
| Attack: |
75 |
|
| Defense: |
85 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
115 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
90 |
|
| Speed: |
55 |
|
Mega Ampharos
| HP: |
90 |
|
| Attack: |
95 |
|
| Defense: |
105 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
165 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
110 |
|
| Speed: |
45 |
|
Overview
Ampharos never shined in the higher tiers in the past generations, but with the advent of XY, Ampharos gained a Mega Evolution. This brought with it many new things, most notably a huge raise in its Special Attack. Better yet, it got a boost to its overall bulk and now has an Electric / Dragon typing, allowing it to switch into threats such as Rotom-W and Talonflame. It is now one of the best counters to Electric-types in OU, and it is an especially good counter to Pokemon such as Thundurus and Mega Charizard Y. Mega Ampharos is also not weak to Pursuit, which is great, as most Mega Charizard Y counters are. After Mega Evolving, Ampharos gains the ability Mold Breaker, which is helpful for bypassing Skarmory’s Sturdy, negating Dragonite’s Multiscale, and hitting Thundurus-T with Thunderbolt. However, after Mega Evolving, it’s weak to common attacking types such as Dragon and Ground, and its base Speed drops down to 45. Despite it being a Dragon-type, it doesn’t get Draco Meteor, limiting its Dragon STAB move to Dragon Pulse. However, if Mega Ampharos’s great Special Attack and defensive stats are used correctly, it can be a huge threat.
Reuniclus
| HP: |
110 |
|
| Attack: |
65 |
|
| Defense: |
75 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
125 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
85 |
|
| Speed: |
30 |
|
Overview
Due to its good overall bulk and power, Reuniclus is one of the premier Psychic-types in the tier. Most walls can’t touch it after it gets a Calm Mind under its belt, as its access to recovery and good bulk let it set up on a large portion of the tier, and it is unaffected by residual damage thanks to Magic Guard, which also benefits Trick Room sets greatly, as Reuniclus won’t have to worry about taking recoil from Life Orb. Reuniclus also has a huge base 125 Special Attack, which complements its bulk nicely and makes it dangerous for offensive teams to face if it sets up Trick Room. However, there are a good number of flaws that hold Reuniclus back, as its Speed is horrendous outside of Trick Room, which makes it vulnerable to common offensive Pokemon such as Hydreigon and Heracross when coupled with its mediocre defensive typing.
Cobalion
| HP: |
91 |
|
| Attack: |
90 |
|
| Defense: |
129 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
90 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
72 |
|
| Speed: |
108 |
|
Overview
Cobalion is very diverse, being able to attack or support with equal efficiency given its well-rounded stats. Its dual base 90 offenses and great Speed combined with its access to Swords Dance and Calm Mind means it is perfectly equipped to sweep both physically and specially. Its Steel / Fighting typing gives it a STAB attack to deal with Fairy-types, which few other Fighting-types can boast. It also gives Cobalion a resistance to Dark-type moves, which combined with its fantastic Defense stat and ability Justified makes Cobalion an excellent Knock Off absorber. Furthermore, Cobalion is 4x resistant to Stealth Rock and immune to Toxic Spikes, which makes it easy for it to switch in multiple times throughout the match.
On the downside, base 90 / 90 offenses are average at best, so although Cobalion is capable of boosting both, it lacks significant immediate power. It is also hampered by a poor base 72 Special Defense and weaknesses to common attacking types such as Fire, Fighting, and Ground.
Amoonguss
| HP: |
114 |
|
| Attack: |
85 |
|
| Defense: |
70 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
85 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
80 |
|
| Speed: |
30 |
|
Overview
Amoonguss has access to many great traits, most notably its Grass / Poison typing, which makes it a great answer to most Electric-, Water-, and Grass-types in the tier, and also means it can absorb Toxic Spikes. It also has access to a 100% accurate sleep move in Spore, allowing it to easily cripple a member of the opposing team. Not only that, but Regenerator allows Amoonguss to heal just by switching out, meaning it can create Regenerator cores with Pokemon such as Tangrowth and Alomomola. Combine this with really good overall bulk and moves such as Stun Spore, Synthesis, and Foul Play, and it’s easy to see why Amoonguss sticks out as one of the best defensive Grass-types in the tier. Unfortunately, Amoonguss has a very low Speed stat, meaning it will almost always move last. It also has common weaknesses to Fire-, Ice-, Psychic-, and Flying-type attacks, limiting the amount of Pokemon it can wall.
Accelgor
| HP: |
80 |
|
| Attack: |
70 |
|
| Defense: |
40 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
100 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
60 |
|
| Speed: |
145 |
|
Overview
Accelgor’s access to Spikes along with its incredible base 145 Speed makes it an effective suicide lead for hyper offense teams. In addition to Spikes, Accelgor also has access to useful moves such as Final Gambit, which lets it prevent entry hazard removal for a turn to keep momentum on your team’s side, and Encore, which heavily discourages foes from trying to set up against Accelgor. Its offensive movepool is decent as well, with useful coverage options such as Focus Blast, Giga Drain, and Sludge Bomb, which gives it good late-game cleaning potential alongside its high Speed. In fact, with a Timid nature, Accelgor naturally outspeeds base 80 Speed Choice Scarf users, notably Medicham, as well as anything slower. However, Accelgor faces stiff competition for a teamslot from other Spikes setters such as Omastar, Mega Glalie, and Qwilfish. In addition to this, Accelgor is quite frail, especially physically, leaving it vulnerable to being revenge killed by strong priority moves and fast Choice Scarf users.
Dugtrio
| HP: |
35 |
|
| Attack: |
80 |
|
| Defense: |
50 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
50 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
70 |
|
| Speed: |
120 |
|
Overview
Being the only fully evolved Pokemon to have the ability Arena Trap gives Dugtrio a niche, it can pick off and revenge kill many threats, as Arena Trap renders them unable to escape. It also has an excellent base 120 Speed stat, only being outsped by few select Pokemon and Choice Scarf users. However, not all is well for Dugtrio, as it has a relatively low Attack stat for an offensive Pokemon and is extremely frail, failing to survive even some resisted attacks. Because of this, Dugtrio is a high-risk, high-reward Pokemon that only works well if used correctly. Dugtrio also has a shallow movepool, making it extremely predictable.
Rhydon
| HP: |
105 |
|
| Attack: |
130 |
|
| Defense: |
120 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
45 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
45 |
|
| Speed: |
40 |
|
Overview
Rhydon is an incredible Pokemon in NU. With stats rivaling those of many fully evolved Pokemon, which are further bolstered by Eviolite, Rhydon can be really difficult to take down. It also has a fantastic Attack stat and STAB EdgeQuake, which make it difficult to switch into, even without much investment. Great boosting moves allow it to function as a setup sweeper in addition to its more common role as an offensive tank. Still, Rhydon’s typing can work both for and against it. While Rhydon’s typing allows it to check common Normal-, Flying-, Electric-, and Fire-types, it also leaves Rhydon vulnerable to the many Water- and Grass-types in the tier. In fact, many special attackers run Hidden Power Grass just to break through Rhydon, which leaves it from checking a lot of Pokemon that it would otherwise be able to manage. Finally, while Rhydon’s Eviolite makes it incredibly difficult to beat through conventional means, it also leaves Rhydon prone to being worn down easily by repeated attacks, entry hazards, and status.
Claydol
| HP: |
60 |
|
| Attack: |
70 |
|
| Defense: |
105 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
70 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
120 |
|
| Speed: |
75 |
|
Overview
Claydol is one of the few Pokemon in NU with access to Rapid Spin, and it is one of the better users of the move. Its resistance to Stealth Rock plus immunity to Spikes, Toxic Spikes, and Sticky Web make it downright impervious to the entry hazards it tries to remove. These qualities also grant Claydol a rare resistance to Rock + Ground, shared only by Torterra in NU. Claydol boasts good defenses as well as a wide movepool to hit various threats, particularly entry hazard setters and spinblockers, meaning it is quite capable of performing its job. However, Claydol’s most notable flaws include mediocre offenses and lack of reliable recovery, and most of all its typing leaves it with a huge amount of weaknesses, making it susceptible to the majority of Pokemon in NU, so it needs to be heavily accounted for from a defensive standpoint.
Audino
| HP: |
103 |
|
| Attack: |
60 |
|
| Defense: |
86 |
|
| Sp. Atk: |
60 |
|
| Sp. Def: |
86 |
|
| Speed: |
50 |
|
Overview
Audino sports impressive bulk before Mega Evolving and even better bulk after Mega Evolving, making it the bulkiest Pokemon in the tier. Its bulk allows it to fulfill many offensive and defensive roles on a team. Its offensive set has Fire Blast, Surf, and Psychic as good coverage alongside Mega Audino’s Fairy-type STAB move. The physically defensive set can wall many unboosted physical attackers such as Hariyama, Archeops, and Kangaskhan, while the specially defensive set can wall powerful special attackers such as Samurott, Magmortar, and Pyroar a lot easier. Audino has Regenerator before Mega Evolving, which can allow Audino to stay healthy throughout the match; however, the Fairy typing it gains from Mega Evolving makes it the best answer to Knock Off in the tier. Defensive sets are easy setup bait, meaning that any attacker with a boosting move such as Samurott or Lilligant can overpower Audino. The defensive sets also get shut down very easily by Taunt, preventing Audino from ridding the team of status or providing Wish support. Lastly, its Speed stat leaves much to be desired as it is part of the most crowded Speed tier in the current metagame.
United Championship League 