THE DROWNED WORLD
Hi everyone, welcome to my OU RMT. This team was my main team during the BW1 metagame and I've since updated it for BW2. As the thread title suggests, The Drowned World is an offensive Rain team. It's primarily based on sweeping with SubCM Jirachi, my absolute favorite Pokemon. Most teams based on SubCM Jirachi use a more Stall/Balanced approach. However, I've decided to take a much more offensive approach, using heavy hitters like CB Terrakion, LO Latias, and Scarf Moxie Salamence, to soften the opponent for Jirachi or act as alternate win conditions. This offensive core works well because they can weaken each or eliminate each other's counters.
This has definitely been my favorite team to use because it suits my play-style perfectly. I don't have any major ladder accomplishments with this team but I've peaked in the lower 100s of the ladder several times with it. I know that's nothing spectacular but it's decent for me considering I suck at laddering. The team's name comes from the post-apocalyptic fiction novel by J. G. Ballard.
IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS
POLITOED @ Choice Specs
Drizzle | Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
216 HP / 252 SpA / 40 Spe
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power Grass
Politoed is one of the most important team members when facing opposing weather teams, especially Sun teams because Chlorophyll sweepers are difficult for this team to handle. This is the main reason I chose to use the Choice Specs Politoed set. Its typing and natural bulk make it a decent switch-in for Ninetales and Tyranitar while the threat of a Specs Hydro Pump prevents them from switching in safely. Thus, it's arguably the most effective set for winning the weather war. Against weatherless teams, Politoed is definitely the least valuable player so I usually use it as death fodder once Rain is active. I usually lead with Politoed against Weatherless teams. However, against opposing weather teams, I tend to be more picky with my lead depending on what my opponent has in their party.
The moveset is fairly standard. Hydro Pump is the STAB move of choice due to sheer power under the Rain. It puts massive dents in just about anything, including Water resists. The remaining moves provide extra coverage against things that commonly resist Hydro Pump. Ice Beam nails Grass and Dragon types while Focus Blast hits Ferrothorn. HP Grass rounds out coverage against Jellicent, Rotom-W, and Gastrodon. In particular, taking out Gastrodon makes things much easier for Jirachi and Latias. Special attack is maxed to hit as hard as possible while the remaining EVs are allocated to HP for some extra bulk. The small speed investment allows Politoed to outrun most Jellicent and Skarmory.
JIRACHI @ Leftovers
Serene Grace | Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Thunder
- Flash Cannon
Jirachi is my favorite Pokemon so I just had to build a team around it. It has so many viable sets that it keeps the opponent on his or her toes wondering how to counter it. The SubCM set has always been my favorite Jirachi set, even in Generation 4 where I built several teams around it. It's one of the best stallbreakers in the game since it can setup on several weaker Pokemon, such as Ferrothorn which Politoed commonly lures in. Thus, many Stall teams, especially Rain Stall, cringe at the sight of SubCM Jirachi because not even Blissey and Chansey can wall it. What's even better is that Jirachi's common checks, such as Gliscor and Skarmory, all fall to this set. This makes it easier for Salamence to clean up once Jirachi finishes them off.
Substitute protects Jirachi from debilitating status effects and revenge killers, allowing it to safely use Calm Mind or attack. Thunder and Flash Cannon provide decent coverage together. Thunder is also great for spreading paralysis thanks to Serene Grace doubling the paralysis probability. Flash Cannon is the STAB move of choice for its ability to dent Tyranitar, making Jirachi less reliant on the Rain in comparison to Water Pulse. Flash Cannon also has a nice chance to reduce the opponent's special defense, making special walls like Blissey easier to handle. 252 HP EVs are crucial since they create 101 HP Substitutes that are unbreakable by Seismic Toss/Night Shade. I opted to run max Speed to tie with opposing +speed base 100s.
LATIAS @ Life Orb
Levitate | Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
- Dragon Pulse
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Roost
I originally had SubHydreigon in this spot. While it was great at catching opponents off guard, I needed a more reliable check to Rotom-W, Keldeo, and Terrakion. Latias was the perfect remedy to these issues. It also has excellent offensive synergy with the rest of the team. Together with Salamence, the two form a formidable double-Dragon offensive core that is capable of weakening each other's counters for a sweep. Likewise, Latias has great synergy with Jirachi since they cover a lot of each other's elemental weaknesses. It can also lure in Ferrothorn for Jirachi to setup on and it can weaken special walls, such as Gastrodon and Blissey, with Psyshock. Furthermore, Latias lures in Tyranitar which Terrakion can switch-in on, possibly gaining a Justified boost in the process.
Besides being a threatening offensive force, Latias is also my main check to several Pokemon. It's my main answer to Rotom-W which can be a nuisance to this team, especially the Choice Scarf variants. Latias is capable of avoiding a 2HKO from Rotom's rain-boosted Hydro Pump, even after Stealth Rock damage, and threatening to 2HKO it with Dragon Pulse. Latias is also a solid answer to Volt-Turn in general since it easily checks Rotom-W and non-Scarf Landorus, while Scizor risks being 2HKO'd by Surf. Thundurus-T, Keldeo, Virizion, Terrakion, Mienshao, Venusaur, and Infernape are also easily checked by Latias.
The moveset is fairly straightforward. Dragon Pulse is Latias' primary STAB move. I prefer it over Draco Meteor for reliability and consistency. Psyshock provides secondary stab, capable of denting special walls like Blissey and Gastrodon. Surf is actually Latias' strongest attack under the Rain and it's a great move to spam while opposing Steel types are still present. Roost significantly increases Latias's survivability and offsets Life Orb's recoil damage.
TERRAKION @ Choice Band
Justified | Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- X-Scissor
- Earthquake
Say hello to one of the best wall-breakers in the game. Thanks to its monstrous power and STAB moves, only a handful of walls can take repeated hits from it. Thus, it shouldn't be surprising that Terrakion's purpose on this team is to crush opposing walls. It eliminates special walls like Blissey/Chansey, Tyranitar, and Gastrodon that would wall Latias and Jirachi. Likewise, it muscles through physical walls so that Salamence has an easier time finishing them off for a late-game Moxie sweep.
Terrakion also makes a great switch-in to opposing weather inducers since Ninetales, Tyranitar, and Abomasnow are all weak to one of its STABs. Close Combat and Stone Edge have excellent coverage so they are usually the only moves I use. However, X-Scissor and Earthquake have their uses. For example, X-Scissor can revenge kill Celebi while Earthquake can revenge kill CM Jirachi and Toxicroak. There's not much else I can say about Terrakion. It does what it needs to do and it does it very well.
SALAMENCE @ Choice Scarf
Moxie | Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
- Outrage
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Brick Break
Salamence's primarily role is to act as my revenge killer. It's crucial for checkings things like Terrakion, Starmie, Latios/Latias, and other speedy threats that would otherwise plow through this team. It also helps a lot against Sun teams since its typing grants it key resistances to the Fire, Grass, and Bug attacks that they commonly carry. However, since Salamence has a Stealth Rock weakness, I try to play conservatively with it early game, only bringing it out if absolutely needed.
Revenge killing is not all that Salamence is capable of doing. It is also one of the deadliest late-game cleaners in the metagame thanks to its destructive ability, Moxie. After a Moxie boost, Salamence essentially has the equivalent of 1 Dragon Dance boost thanks to Choice Scarf. Even though the Choice Scarf set is very popular these days, some opponents still don't suspect it, so getting a free Moxie boost against something like Latios isn't uncommon at all. Moxie also punishes opponents that use death fodder in order to bring in their Salamence check safely.
Outrage is the move I spam late game when cleaning up. However, Dragon Claw is useful early game to prevent locking myself in or if I cannot risk getting confused by Outrage. Earthquake and Brick Break aren't used often but they are useful for revenge killing certain threats. Brick Break is particularly useful for breaking Dual Screens. I opted for a Jolly nature over Adamant to speed tie with things like Offensive Volcarona and opposing Scarf/+1 DD Salamence, as well as outspeeding Jolly Scarf Darmanitan/Haxorus.
SKARMORY @ Leftovers
Sturdy | Careful (+SpD, -SpA)
252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Whirlwind
- Stealth Rock
Skarmory is the team's defensive backbone as it covers many threats that the rest of the team cannot handle. Using a Specially Defensive EV spread allows it to function as an effective mixed wall, especially when Rain nullifies its Fire weakness. This allows Skarmory to check a myriad of threats on both sides of the spectrum. On the special side, it can easily check Tornadus-T, NP Celebi, Hydreigon, CM Reuniclus, SubDisable Gengar, and CM Virizon, among others. Skarmory is also surprisingly good at taking unboosted Rotom-W's Volt Switch so it can also handle VoltTurn teams effectively. Despite the lack of physical defense investment, Skarmory is still very capable of checking many common physical attackers. These include non-Taunt variants of Gliscor, Mamoswine, Scizor, and LumDD/CB Dragonite. Furthermore, Skarmory can wall a variety of mixed attackers, such as Mixed Salamence (assuming Rain is up), Expert Belt Landorus, Tyranitar, and Abomasnow.
Besides checking the aforementioned threats, Skarmory has the all-important duty of setting up Stealth Rock. In addition to securing certain KOs, Stealth Rock is also crucial for weakening Volt-Turn cores as well as keeping deadly sweepers like Dragonite and Volcarona at bay. I would have liked to use Spikes but Skarmory is the only Pokemon on this team that has room for Stealth Rock in its moveset. Besides, Spikes usually goes to waste if my opponent has a Rapid Spinner. The EVs are entirely oriented towards Special Defense since Skarmory's Defense is already naturally high.
THREAT LIST
Fast special attackers like Tornadus-T, LO Latios/Latias, LO Alakazam, and Starmie are difficult to play around. Salamence can revenge kill them but something has to be sacrificed to bring it in safely. Latias can usually tank a hit from the aforementioned special attackers if it's healthy enough. Jellicent, Scarf Rotom-W, and Gastrodon aren't huge threats but they can be annoying if played correctly.
Politoed (F) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 216 HP / 252 SAtk / 40 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SAtk
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]
Terrakion @ Choice Band
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- X-Scissor
- Earthquake
Salamence (F) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Outrage
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Brick Break
Latias (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dragon Pulse
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Roost
Skarmory (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Whirlwind
- Stealth Rock
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Thunder
- Flash Cannon
Trait: Drizzle
EVs: 216 HP / 252 SAtk / 40 Spd
Modest Nature
IVs: 2 Atk / 30 SAtk
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]
Terrakion @ Choice Band
Trait: Justified
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- X-Scissor
- Earthquake
Salamence (F) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Outrage
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Brick Break
Latias (F) @ Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dragon Pulse
- Psyshock
- Surf
- Roost
Skarmory (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SDef
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Whirlwind
- Stealth Rock
Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Thunder
- Flash Cannon