SM OU It's a Trap! Magnezone & Mega Latios Balance

[Ceros]

Intruduction

So this team is based around the Magnezone + Latios Core.
A core like this would probably work well in HO but since i don't enjoy that playstyle very much i've opted for balance.
I will try my best to explain my choices in terms of team members and sets.

Offensive Core

These 2 are what i decided to build the team around and i'd say the synergy is pretty obvious.
Magnezone disposes of steels so that Latios can run rampant.
I have choosen Latios over the likes of Mega Alakazam for it's superior defensive capabilities which is value more over destructive power since this is balance.

Mega Latios Set

Latios-Mega @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Psychic
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Roost

Magnezone Set

Magnezone @ Electrium Z
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]

I don't have much to say on the Latios set since it's just the standart one but i will explain my choices on Magnezone.
So the reason as to why i choose Z over scarf is mainly because i think Magnezone is a pretty poor scarfer due to it's low speed and the scarf set lacks a lot of power.
The Z set gives me some more power and also lets capitalize on the steels i trap not to mention my team only has one more mon that could make good use of a Z crystal that being Heatran who i decided to give leftovers from the moment i added him which will be explained later.


Defensive Core

So for the defensive backbone of this team i decided to go with Rotom w and Tapu Bulu.
I mainly choose these for their amazing type synergy but also because they provide volt switch and terrain respectively which influenced the latter choices.
Another quality i value about them is that they are less passive then other defensive pivots because Rotom can generate or keep up momentum and bulu can even become an offensive threat late game.

Rotom-W Set

Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 204 Def / 56 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Volt Switch
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split

Tapu Bulu Set

Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Protect

Rotom-W is running it's standard physically defensive set with the exception of Pain split over Defog this is because i want to keep Rotom healthy throughout the game because this is a balance team and i don't want to take away it's ability to cripple switch ins for it but don't get me wrong both Stealth Rock and Defog are mandatory on a team like this and will be included on the last 2 members.
As for Bulu it uses the it's bulky sd set so it can take on specially offensive threats, i prefer this set over AV because i like the recovery on this set and i think it's ability to function as a late game cleaner in combination with that gives it much more utility on this team. I choose Protect over Synthesis because Bulu's speed in my opinion doesn't allow it to use Synthesis that well and i like the extra utility protect provides outside of free recovery that being scouting of choice sets and Z moves.


Supplements

So i have 2 slots left and i still need Stealth Rocks, Defog and so much more.
Then my eyes fell on those 2.
Heatran is a great addition to my defensive core thanks to bulu's terrain making the bulk from it's utility set really shine not to mention it also provides stealth rocks acts as a Stall breaker and forms a Fire/Water/Grass core with the defensive core.
Lando on the other Hand gives me a Scarfer that can revenge kill a lot of the Mons that would otherwise destroy this team, provides a fast defogger that can beat a decent amount of Stealth rock setters and completes a Volturn core with rotom.

Heatran Set

Heatran @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock

Landorous-T Set

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 80 HP / 148 Atk / 84 Def / 196 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Rock Slide
- Defog

As said before Heatran using it's utility set with leftovers was planned from the start because of the Gliscor levels of passive recovery and extra bulk terrain provides it, taunt over toxic tho since i really wanted a Stall breaker on this team.
Lando uses his usual scarf set with the only change being Rock Slide over hp ice this choice is pretty much necessary because mons such as volcarona can proof to be very dangerous to this team so it needs this move in order to revenge kill threats like it.

Threats and Tricky Match ups

Latios can deal with Zygarde but the set has to be properly scouted first due to the threat of Outrage scouting it with Tapu bulu is possible but could enable Zygarde to set up or hit Bulu with Iron Tail, tho unless it's coil zygarde Bulu usually wins and if it's coil latios can outspeed and kill with ice beam.

Honestly this thing is a pretty big issue because it can set up on Rotom, Eq Heatran and Dragon Claw Latios. The main answer to it is Landorous T and it's one of the reasons he's in this team. Lando can come in take a flare blitz and outspeed with eq to kill, however if this thing got up two dd's or landorous is dead the game might as well be over.

This one isn't as problematic as it's edgy counterpart but it still deserves a mention because it can break through the entire defensive core. Here the plan is to switch between Rotom, Heatran and Bulu to bring in Latios safely who can 1v1 this at full health, if that fails lando can revenge kill it with Rock Slide. Still once Latios is down this thing can get a kill everytime it comes in and switch out against lando so preserving his health in that match up is key.

Both of these 2 can be dealt with with by either Bulu or Heatran but the danger comes from not knowing which one you're facing. If you predict it being Protean and it's actually Ash Gren and you switched into Heatran it's for sure dead and the same can go for Bulu because Protean carries Ice beam and Gunk shot. However once the set has been scouted both of these can be dealt with easily tho the same doesn't apply to the Protean Life Orb Greninja which is a big threat to this team and is pretty much unwallable.

Closing Words

I'm currently at the 14-- range of ratings so it's pretty fair to say that i'm bad at this game tho with that being said this team is what brought me there to begin with so there might be some potential here if get's adjusted properly. Please be honest with my rate and feel free to tell me why my team could be lacking in certain areas. Oh and keep in mind that there might be more threats to this team i simply wasn't aware of when writing this.

Thanks for Reading this.

importable

https://pokepast.es/31122eb42a839573

 

[DKM]

Hi Ceros, very nice team. M-Latios + Magnezone is a brilliant core to build a balance team around. It seems very well supported, with only a few notable threats.

I think you did a good job of explaining the teams weaknesses, and I don't see the need to do it myself. So now I'll suggest a few changes to help improve the team.


Major change

> : The main change I suggest is using Toxapex over Rotom. This helps alot against really strong fire types such as Charizard (X and Y) and Volcarona since you can Toxic them or Haze them if they try to setup. It also helps against Greninja, as unlike Bulu you take on most protean sets. Even if they're Ash-Greninja and they go for Dark Pulse you can simply switch into Bulu the next turn to take it on better. The set is standard with Payapa berry to help you take on Psychium Z Volcarona, take a HJK into Zen Headbutt from M-Medicham (thanks to defense EVs), not get OHKOd by the rare Psychium Z Greninja and even take a hit from Tapu Lele or M-Alakazam in an emergency. ​

Minor Changes

> Modest > Timid: On Heatran I suggest running an offensive set with Firium Z, Max SpAtk and a Modest nature. This set is alot better at pressuring stall which I believe is necessary since this is your only stallbreaker. Modest Inferno Overdrive OHKOs Gliscor most of the time and pressures M-Sableye from switching in which allows you to get up rocks easier. It also nukes Landorus, Zapdos and Greninja (after rocks/chip damage), punishing teams that don't have very good Heatran answers.

> : Lastly, since I made Heatran the Z-move user you can run Choice Specs on Magnezone. You still have immediate power, so unlike the scarf set you don't risk getting 1v1d by Leech Seed Ferrothorn or Celesteela. This set obviously runs Volt Switch over Sub, giving you another way to gain momentum since Rotom was removed.



~~~~



This looked like a very solid team just from the pokemon that were on it, so I only wanted to make a couple of changes (and changing Magnezone to specs was kind of a given). I hope you like the changes and that the new version of the team does well if you choose to use it.

Below I'll leave the importable along with a few threats to be cautious of.
​

Threatlist

: Kartana can be annoying to deal with if you don't know the set. M-Latios can check it offensively but can't switch into banded Smart Strike/Knock Off very well. Magnezone can trap it if it locks itself into the wrong move, but SD variants blow it back.

: M-Medicham typically threatens Bulu + Heatran balance teams thanks to its amazing power and coverage. Bulu can always live a hit from full but can never switch in. Toxapex can also take a hit thanks to its berry, but the best it can do is Toxic to limit Medicham's opportunities. M-Latios and Landorus can both outspeed but can't switch into Ice Punch.

: Reuniclus with Acid Armor + Calm Mind is always a pain to deal with. Although Heatran can taunt it, trap it, and nuke it with Inferno Overdrive if it hasn't set up multiple CMs. SD Bulu can also pressure it if it hasn't set up Acid Armors.

Importable

Latios-Mega @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Psychic
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Roost

Magnezone @ Choice Specs
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Flash Cannon
- Volt Switch

Toxapex @ Payapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 164 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Scald
- Haze
- Recover

Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Protect

Heatran @ Firium Z
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 80 HP / 148 Atk / 84 Def / 196 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Rock Slide
- Defog

 

[Ceros]

Hi Ceros, very nice team. M-Latios + Magnezone is a brilliant core to build a balance team around. It seems very well supported, with only a few notable threats.

I think you did a good job of explaining the teams weaknesses, and I don't see the need to do it myself. So now I'll suggest a few changes to help improve the team.


Major change

View attachment 132684> View attachment 132683: The main change I suggest is using Toxapex over Rotom. This helps alot against really strong fire types such as Charizard (X and Y) and Volcarona since you can Toxic them or Haze them if they try to setup. It also helps against Greninja, as unlike Bulu you take on most protean sets. Even if they're Ash-Greninja and they go for Dark Pulse you can simply switch into Bulu the next turn to take it on better. The set is standard with Payapa berry to help you take on Psychium Z Volcarona, take a HJK into Zen Headbutt from M-Medicham (thanks to defense EVs), not get OHKOd by the rare Psychium Z Greninja and even take a hit from Tapu Lele or M-Alakazam in an emergency. ​

Minor Changes

View attachment 132688View attachment 132689> View attachment 132690Modest > Timid: On Heatran I suggest running an offensive set with Firium Z, Max SpAtk and a Modest nature. This set is alot better at pressuring stall which I believe is necessary since this is your only stallbreaker. Modest Inferno Overdrive OHKOs Gliscor most of the time and pressures M-Sableye from switching in which allows you to get up rocks easier. It also nukes Landorus, Zapdos and Greninja (after rocks/chip damage), punishing teams that don't have very good Heatran answers.

View attachment 132691View attachment 132692> View attachment 132693: Lastly, since I made Heatran the Z-move user you can run Choice Specs on Magnezone. You still have immediate power, so unlike the scarf set you don't risk getting 1v1d by Leech Seed Ferrothorn or Celesteela. This set obviously runs Volt Switch over Sub, giving you another way to gain momentum since Rotom was removed.



~~~~



This looked like a very solid team just from the pokemon that were on it, so I only wanted to make a couple of changes (and changing Magnezone to specs was kind of a given). I hope you like the changes and that the new version of the team does well if you choose to use it.

Below I'll leave the importable along with a few threats to be cautious of.
​

Threatlist

View attachment 132698: Kartana can be annoying to deal with if you don't know the set. M-Latios can check it offensively but can't switch into banded Smart Strike/Knock Off very well. Magnezone can trap it if it locks itself into the wrong move, but SD variants blow it back.

View attachment 132699: M-Medicham typically threatens Bulu + Heatran balance teams thanks to its amazing power and coverage. Bulu can always live a hit from full but can never switch in. Toxapex can also take a hit thanks to its berry, but the best it can do is Toxic to limit Medicham's opportunities. M-Latios and Landorus can both outspeed but can't switch into Ice Punch.

View attachment 132701: Reuniclus with Acid Armor + Calm Mind is always a pain to deal with. Although Heatran can taunt it, trap it, and nuke it with Inferno Overdrive if it hasn't set up multiple CMs. SD Bulu can also pressure it if it hasn't set up Acid Armors.

Importable

Latios-Mega @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Psychic
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Roost

Magnezone @ Choice Specs
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Flash Cannon
- Volt Switch

Toxapex @ Payapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 164 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Toxic
- Scald
- Haze
- Recover

Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Protect

Heatran @ Firium Z
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magma Storm
- Earth Power
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 80 HP / 148 Atk / 84 Def / 196 Spe
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Rock Slide
- Defog

Yo this is exactly the kind of feedback i was hoping for, thanks for your amazing suggestions i'll most likely give them a try.

 

[vso]

hey, nice team. while having slightly dropped off because of the influx of steelium z tran and mega alakazam being overall more useful in the tier, mega latios is still a good pokemon. magnezone is a fantastic partner to it as it helps trap many pokemon that would otherwise threaten mega latios. i can also completely understand the rest of your team. however, i feel like it is redundant to have both heatran and magnezone on the same team as both pressure similar steels immensely. i also feel like magnezone and rotom-wash cover overlapping roles as a flying resist, and rotom is used more on teams like mega mawile offenses than mega latios balances. more than anything else, your team struggles with toxic spikes, ice beam greninja, protean greninja (heatran is not a check as they are all z water, z fighting, or z ground), and volcarona. it also struggles with breaking fatter builds, however, these are all easily remediable and often outplayable. i do not completely agree with the rate DKM posted as while I think that the team improves, i feel as if heatran + magnezone is overall extremely redundant on that build, acid armor reuniclus was a major pain, hazards could also continue to be an annoyance, and a well played kartana could also prove to be an issue.

i agree with dkm that toxapex's defensive utility is too much to pass out on in this team. over here, it is superior to rotom-wash as pivotting is not necessary as the team does not have a super strong breaker and is a balance build. rotom-wash has little going for it here as it overlaps as a flying resist too. payapa berry toxapex helps beat all volcarona sets, check protean greninja, and ice beam greninja. payapa berry helps against psychics like mlatios and mzam and it also helps against rare sets like psychiumz volcarona and psychiumz greninja.

next, i think running a choice specs ash-greninja > heatran will give the team some speed, spikes, and heatran was generally not useful given that its role on this team was shadowed by magnezone. greninja also gives the team a way to beat acid armor reuniclus + toxic spikes consistently, and general priority and having more measures against heatran and blacephalon is always nice since when either of these are played well theyre a pain. ash greninja pairs well with magnezone as magnezone traps checks like ferrothorn and celesteela. this does remove stealth rock though.

next, i suggest running flyiniumz rocks on landorus-t. given that the team already has some solid speed control and just lost stealth rock, flyinium z landorus-t provides a fantastic rocker that can lure in fat grasses like tangrowth and tapu bulu to aid greninja, magnezone, and your own tapu bulu. it can also ohko mons like tornadus-t, which often think that they have nothing to fear and have a free defog and get chip with rocky helmet.

finally, i suggest running choice scarf on magnezone to help with kartana and provide more speed control. the team does not have a z slot anymore and while this does make the team weaker to mons like protect ferrothorn, i think the ability to outspeed potential threats like pinsir and kartana is well worth it. however, you can also run choice specs to more easily break protect ferrothorn and celesteela.

import

import

Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Latios-Mega @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Psychic
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Roost

Toxapex @ Payapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 164 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Haze
- Scald
- Recover
- Toxic

Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Water Shuriken
- Spikes

Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Protect

Landorus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 Atk / 232 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Fly
- Stealth Rock

 

[Ceros]

hey, nice team. while having slightly dropped off because of the influx of steelium z tran and mega alakazam being overall more useful in the tier, mega latios is still a good pokemon. magnezone is a fantastic partner to it as it helps trap many pokemon that would otherwise threaten mega latios. i can also completely understand the rest of your team. however, i feel like it is redundant to have both heatran and magnezone on the same team as both pressure similar steels immensely. i also feel like magnezone and rotom-wash cover overlapping roles as a flying resist, and rotom is used more on teams like mega mawile offenses than mega latios balances. more than anything else, your team struggles with toxic spikes, ice beam greninja, protean greninja (heatran is not a check as they are all z water, z fighting, or z ground), and volcarona. it also struggles with breaking fatter builds, however, these are all easily remediable and often outplayable. i do not completely agree with the rate DKM posted as while I think that the team improves, i feel as if heatran + magnezone is overall extremely redundant on that build, acid armor reuniclus was a major pain, hazards could also continue to be an annoyance, and a well played kartana could also prove to be an issue.

i agree with dkm that toxapex's defensive utility is too much to pass out on in this team. over here, it is superior to rotom-wash as pivotting is not necessary as the team does not have a super strong breaker and is a balance build. rotom-wash has little going for it here as it overlaps as a flying resist too. payapa berry toxapex helps beat all volcarona sets, check protean greninja, and ice beam greninja. payapa berry helps against psychics like mlatios and mzam and it also helps against rare sets like psychiumz volcarona and psychiumz greninja.

next, i think running a choice specs ash-greninja > heatran will give the team some speed, spikes, and heatran was generally not useful given that its role on this team was shadowed by magnezone. greninja also gives the team a way to beat acid armor reuniclus + toxic spikes consistently, and general priority and having more measures against heatran and blacephalon is always nice since when either of these are played well theyre a pain. ash greninja pairs well with magnezone as magnezone traps checks like ferrothorn and celesteela. this does remove stealth rock though.

next, i suggest running flyiniumz rocks on landorus-t. given that the team already has some solid speed control and just lost stealth rock, flyinium z landorus-t provides a fantastic rocker that can lure in fat grasses like tangrowth and tapu bulu to aid greninja, magnezone, and your own tapu bulu. it can also ohko mons like tornadus-t, which often think that they have nothing to fear and have a free defog and get chip with rocky helmet.

finally, i suggest running choice scarf on magnezone to help with kartana and provide more speed control. the team does not have a z slot anymore and while this does make the team weaker to mons like protect ferrothorn, i think the ability to outspeed potential threats like pinsir and kartana is well worth it. however, you can also run choice specs to more easily break protect ferrothorn and celesteela.

import

import

Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]

Latios-Mega @ Latiosite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Psychic
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Roost

Toxapex @ Payapa Berry
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 164 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Haze
- Scald
- Recover
- Toxic

Greninja-Ash @ Choice Specs
Ability: Battle Bond
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Water Shuriken
- Spikes

Tapu Bulu @ Leftovers
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Horn Leech
- Superpower
- Protect

Landorus-Therian @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 28 Atk / 232 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Fly
- Stealth Rock

Wow man thanks for the great Feedback. I think your argument of Heatran being invalid on this team is really solid and i see the addition of Ash-Gren as pretty good because it gives the team a breaker that hits really hard without any set up. But i do not fully agree with sd lando because i think scarf Magnezone just doesn't provide enough speed to reliably act as a revenge killer. Like yeah we have Water Shuriken but i just don't see that as enough along side a slow scarfer. So i think bulky scarf Lando should stay. Also the way the team is it doesn't have defog which means it gets worn down by hazards a lot and scarf lando can cover for that. Like don't get me wrong i see the appeal of trapping and killing kartana with Magnezone but i feel like the team would get overun way too quickly like this.

 

[vso]

Wow man thanks for the great Feedback. I think your argument of Heatran being invalid on this team is really solid and i see the addition of Ash-Gren as pretty good because it gives the team a breaker that hits really hard without any set up. But i do not fully agree with sd lando because i think scarf Magnezone just doesn't provide enough speed to reliably act as a revenge killer. Like yeah we have Water Shuriken but i just don't see that as enough along side a slow scarfer. So i think bulky scarf Lando should stay. Also the way the team is it doesn't have defog which means it gets worn down by hazards a lot and scarf lando can cover for that. Like don't get me wrong i see the appeal of trapping and killing kartana with Magnezone but i feel like the team would get overun way too quickly like this.

i honestly strongly believe the team is more than just fast enough. its been common for a while now for balance teams to not have a particularly fast scarfer. having 2 mons which are over 110 base speed and 1 mon at 110 base speed makes the team, in all honesty, mildly fast for a balance. right now, barring landorus-t, there arent really any spammable fast scarfers which dont have quite a few drawbacks and therefore, most other fast scarfers see little usage. there have been plenty of slower teams that have been used so i dont think this a huge issue.

regarding hazards, i think you overrate scarf landos ability to fog completely. it is far from a way to beat spikes and in fact id say that the team after my rate has a better matchup against hazards by a decent amount as spikes on greninja help force out a defog, when you will be able to win many spikestacking wars as magnezone can trap ferrothorn. the team also has toxapex, which provides solid tspikes removal. the original team did not have super solid tspikes removal. hope you understand.

 

[Ceros]

i honestly strongly believe the team is more than just fast enough. its been common for a while now for balance teams to not have a particularly fast scarfer. having 2 mons which are over 110 base speed and 1 mon at 110 base speed makes the team, in all honesty, mildly fast for a balance. right now, barring landorus-t, there arent really any spammable fast scarfers which dont have quite a few drawbacks and therefore, most other fast scarfers see little usage. there have been plenty of slower teams that have been used so i dont think this a huge issue.

regarding hazards, i think you overrate scarf landos ability to fog completely. it is far from a way to beat spikes and in fact id say that the team after my rate has a better matchup against hazards by a decent amount as spikes on greninja help force out a defog, when you will be able to win many spikestacking wars as magnezone can trap ferrothorn. the team also has toxapex, which provides solid tspikes removal. the original team did not have super solid tspikes removal. hope you understand.

Yeah i would say your arguments are pretty solid here, tho i still believe anything at +1 speed can be a threat to this team if handled poorly. And i still see an issue with rocks and spikes because a lot of hazard stacking teams don't even run defog because it goes against their main win condition but after your explanation i see the logic behind the teambuilding process more clearly. Anyways thanks for your response.