Hello everyone, this will be my second post of a Gen-6 Team and I've come across something extraordinary. That is, of course, if it hasn't been mentioned before. It seems like, to me anyway, the legendary Skarmory-Blissey defensive core just... isn't what it used to be. As the generations progress the duo seem less and less viable, and while still good I could never get them to work on any of my teams properly. I've spent a lot of time dicking around with various known defensive cores as well as experimenting with ones of my own, most of which failed. THEN. SUDDENLY. FLORGES. Florges and Skarmory form a truly brilliant core, and let me explain why. While Florges' HP is by no means bad, it doesn't even come close to Blissey's, and the higher SpDef doesn't quite amount to the special walling abilities of the pink blob, HOWEVER, Florges has something Blissey can only dream of: Fairy typing.
Fairy is, arguably, one of the best defensive types in the game. And paired with Skarmory the synergy between the two is extremely solid. Florges only bears weaknesses to the Poison and Steel types, one which Skarmory resists and the other to which he is immune. Blissey bears one crippling weakness in the fighting type, something Florges does not, and with neutral damage done by fighting to Skarmory a well-timed focus blast could be the end for the steel bird, and any sort of physical fighting type attack the end for Blissey. Since I've given my little rant here, I think it's time to move on to the team, which there will be no pictures of because I'm fairly certain you all know what they look like:
Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 236 SDef / 252 HP / 20 Spd
Calm Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Flamethrower
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roar
These first three pokemon here form the famous defense-based core from Team Tabloo. One of the best cores ever made in my opinion, while it was more viable when weather-based teams ran rampant it still holds its own very nicely. I've given it a little more speed over the standard specially defensive Heatran to make sure I can outspeed other Heatran, which is necessary since they will likely be running Earth Power, which I am not, noticably. Will-o-wisp is there for nerfing powerhouses that would normally threaten my team rather than going for residual damage. When a powerful water type threatens the steel brute, simply switch into:
Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
- Recover
GASTRODON. Gastrodon works wonderfully with Heatran for obvious reasons, Storm Drain and Flash Fire together are an absolutely fantastic pair. Which is good, since I love Gastrodon and will probably always find a place for him on my team even if he becomes useless one day. Anyway, whatever threatens Heatran and Gastrodon both can be easily dealt with by:
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 216 Def / 252 HP / 40 Spd
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Whirlwind
The almighty steel bird himself. The fire types that threaten him Heatran absorbs, and the electric moves get walled by Gastrodon. These three work beautifully, but three pokemon alone does not a good team make. My original thought was, "If I pair the Skarmory from this core with Blissey, surely I will have one of the most unbreakable teams around," but sadly this was not the case. Blissey pairs horribly with Heatran. Absolutely horribly. And it just doesn't get the job done with Skarmory like it did in the good old days. Plus, it's offensive ability is pathetic, which isn't its job of course but it needs to be to work well here. So I was delighted when I discovered the boon Skarmory received when paired with the amazing (albeit horribly designed):
Florges (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flower Veil
EVs: 176 SDef / 252 HP / 80 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Moonblast
- Aromatherapy
- Wish
- Protect
FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORGES. I spent enough energy on these two in the intro so I'll save you some time and move on to the offense.
Scizor-Mega @ Scizorite
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 136 Def / 112 Atk / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- Superpower
- U-turn
- Roost
While Mega-Scizor doesn't pack the same punch of its choice-banded counterpart, the increased bulk, STILL monumental attack stat, and access to Roost make Mega-Scizor one bad bug. I do hate his design, but hey. Gotta do what you gotta do.
Kingdra @ Leftovers
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 180 HP / 224 Atk / 76 Spd / 28 Def
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Rain Dance
- Outrage
- Waterfall
A classic. While the Kingdra-Scizor core has been long forgotten, I thought it deserved a revival. Overshadowed by Rotom-W, I personally feel as though Kingdra has some key advantages that shouldn't be forgotten. With only two weaknesses, Dragon and Fairy, Skarmory and Scizor both make excellent switch ins to the water drake. Plus, I felt as though my team was lacking in the physically-offensive category and needed a dragon, and this one fits the best here. I think. Dragon Dance is quite the boon here, and rain dance does just enough to temporarily neuter BOTH mega 'Zards and allow Gastrodon to shine.
And there you have it. I am very pleased with this team. If there are any recommendations, advice, etc., please let me know! Thanks everyone for your time. Cheers.
Fairy is, arguably, one of the best defensive types in the game. And paired with Skarmory the synergy between the two is extremely solid. Florges only bears weaknesses to the Poison and Steel types, one which Skarmory resists and the other to which he is immune. Blissey bears one crippling weakness in the fighting type, something Florges does not, and with neutral damage done by fighting to Skarmory a well-timed focus blast could be the end for the steel bird, and any sort of physical fighting type attack the end for Blissey. Since I've given my little rant here, I think it's time to move on to the team, which there will be no pictures of because I'm fairly certain you all know what they look like:
Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 236 SDef / 252 HP / 20 Spd
Calm Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Flamethrower
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roar
These first three pokemon here form the famous defense-based core from Team Tabloo. One of the best cores ever made in my opinion, while it was more viable when weather-based teams ran rampant it still holds its own very nicely. I've given it a little more speed over the standard specially defensive Heatran to make sure I can outspeed other Heatran, which is necessary since they will likely be running Earth Power, which I am not, noticably. Will-o-wisp is there for nerfing powerhouses that would normally threaten my team rather than going for residual damage. When a powerful water type threatens the steel brute, simply switch into:
Gastrodon @ Leftovers
Ability: Storm Drain
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Toxic
- Recover
GASTRODON. Gastrodon works wonderfully with Heatran for obvious reasons, Storm Drain and Flash Fire together are an absolutely fantastic pair. Which is good, since I love Gastrodon and will probably always find a place for him on my team even if he becomes useless one day. Anyway, whatever threatens Heatran and Gastrodon both can be easily dealt with by:
Skarmory @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 216 Def / 252 HP / 40 Spd
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Whirlwind
The almighty steel bird himself. The fire types that threaten him Heatran absorbs, and the electric moves get walled by Gastrodon. These three work beautifully, but three pokemon alone does not a good team make. My original thought was, "If I pair the Skarmory from this core with Blissey, surely I will have one of the most unbreakable teams around," but sadly this was not the case. Blissey pairs horribly with Heatran. Absolutely horribly. And it just doesn't get the job done with Skarmory like it did in the good old days. Plus, it's offensive ability is pathetic, which isn't its job of course but it needs to be to work well here. So I was delighted when I discovered the boon Skarmory received when paired with the amazing (albeit horribly designed):
Florges (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flower Veil
EVs: 176 SDef / 252 HP / 80 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Moonblast
- Aromatherapy
- Wish
- Protect
FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORGES. I spent enough energy on these two in the intro so I'll save you some time and move on to the offense.
Scizor-Mega @ Scizorite
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 136 Def / 112 Atk / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- Superpower
- U-turn
- Roost
While Mega-Scizor doesn't pack the same punch of its choice-banded counterpart, the increased bulk, STILL monumental attack stat, and access to Roost make Mega-Scizor one bad bug. I do hate his design, but hey. Gotta do what you gotta do.
Kingdra @ Leftovers
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 180 HP / 224 Atk / 76 Spd / 28 Def
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Rain Dance
- Outrage
- Waterfall
A classic. While the Kingdra-Scizor core has been long forgotten, I thought it deserved a revival. Overshadowed by Rotom-W, I personally feel as though Kingdra has some key advantages that shouldn't be forgotten. With only two weaknesses, Dragon and Fairy, Skarmory and Scizor both make excellent switch ins to the water drake. Plus, I felt as though my team was lacking in the physically-offensive category and needed a dragon, and this one fits the best here. I think. Dragon Dance is quite the boon here, and rain dance does just enough to temporarily neuter BOTH mega 'Zards and allow Gastrodon to shine.
And there you have it. I am very pleased with this team. If there are any recommendations, advice, etc., please let me know! Thanks everyone for your time. Cheers.
