So this is my dual weather team, and I was hoping for some feedback. I wanted to run dual weather as it's difficult to counter as you're essentially running two distinct components on one team, and I thought it would be fun.
I would go into the making of this team, but I tend to produce teams whole hog so I've only made a few minor changes from the beginning: originally I was using Dragonite instead of Salamence and Dugtrio instead of Crustle. I found Dragonite was just too slow and didn't have the sweeping potential I wanted, and Dugtrio was a bit too frail and didn't seem to cause as much havoc as Crustle. Anyway, onto the main event...
Tornadus (M) @ Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Focus Blast
- Hurricane
- Taunt
- Rain Dance
Tornadus is here to mainly set up Rain Dance (one half of the dual weather effect) and to prankster Taunt any pokemon trying to set up or stall. Hurricane allows him to hit fighting types hard in the rain, and compliments Focus Blast nicely. I would normally run Tailwind on Tornadus, but Kingdra in the rain fills that niche anyway - countering scarfed dragons or dragon dancers hard. The Damp Rock is there to obviously let the rain persist for as long as possible.
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dragon Pulse
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Kingdra is a very nice pokemon, having great neutral coverage and being weak to only Dragon moves (along with x4 resistances to Fire and Water moves). He walls rain teams hard and is no slouch against sandstorm teams either, two common obstacles that prevent regular sun teams from prevailing. He also deals nicely with opposing dragons, Heatran and a whole host of other threats. A life orb was chosen over leftovers to make sure Kingdra hits that bit harder as his special attack is quite sub-par, the same reason why Hydro Pump was favoured over Surf (if Kingdra misses, he can usually handle a hit with his nice resistances and considerable bulk). Dragon Pulse was picked over Draco Meteor to allow for a more sustained sweep, as once Kingdra is out he'll likely remain out until he faints. Though HP fire may seem like a bit of an odd choice, the rain has to end some time and if for whatever reason I can only produce sun in a given situation it means Kingdra can still be of use to the team.
Salamence @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Hasty Nature
- Outrage
- Aqua Tail
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Salamence is a bit of a filler, I wanted another sweeper and scarfed Mence fills this role nicely. I don't ever intend to bring him out early, hence the lack of Dragon Claw, and both Aqua Tail and Fire Blast are there to capitalise on whatever the prevailing weather is if needs be (plus take out Steel types who would normally wall him with regards to Fire Blast). There's not much else to say here, of all my team he is the one I would most readily swap for something else if anyone else has any good suggestions?
Crustle @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Shell Smash
- Stealth Rock
- X-Scissor
Crustle makes for a very good lead, and allows me to scope out the opposing team quite nicely. As long as the opposing pokemon does not have Taunt or Fake Out, Stealth Rock or Shell Smash (depending on what seems more important - damaging the opposition or setting up SR) is guaranteed with Sturdy and Shell Smash can allow for a mini-sweep if the opponent is taken by surprise. With X-Scissor, Magic Bouncers are hit hard as well as Tyranitar; Stone Edge hits Flying or Fire types for good damage. With Crustle's Rock typing, you have the added bonus of a special defense boost in sandstorm conditions.
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 76 Atk / 252 SAtk / 180 Spd
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Growth
A pretty standard Venusaur set. Attack EV's were favoured over more bulk to secure OHKO's on bulky non-ballooned Heatrans (a bit of an odd niche, but Heatran can otherwise destroy Venusaur in the sun) - and it's nice to hit for more damage regardless. Once set up and with opposing dragons either weakened or eliminated, Venusaur is more than capable of a sweep.
Ninetales @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- SolarBeam
- Nasty Plot
- Roar
And unsurprisingly, here's Ninetales. Nasty Plot was favoured over Sunny Day as rain is not a problem for this team and Nasty Plot bolsters Ninetales' special attack. Roar is there just in case there's anything I desperately need to phase out, a useful utility if the need arises.
So that's the team. Having two weather systems in one team gives me the advantage in terms of out-speeding the vast majority of the metagame with Kingdra and Venusaur and making the opponent play on my terms. As for threats Blissey, Chansey and Rotom-W are probably the worst of it - but they're still unlikely to cause me horrendous troubles as long as long as Mence has a moxie boost under his belt. I've yet to square up to Latios and Latias too, who might cause Kingdra difficultly with their substantial bulk, but Salamence should be there to finish them off if the need arises.
Feedback is appreciated, let me know what you think. Below is the importable team list in case you want to give it a whirl:
I would go into the making of this team, but I tend to produce teams whole hog so I've only made a few minor changes from the beginning: originally I was using Dragonite instead of Salamence and Dugtrio instead of Crustle. I found Dragonite was just too slow and didn't have the sweeping potential I wanted, and Dugtrio was a bit too frail and didn't seem to cause as much havoc as Crustle. Anyway, onto the main event...
Tornadus (M) @ Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Focus Blast
- Hurricane
- Taunt
- Rain Dance
Tornadus is here to mainly set up Rain Dance (one half of the dual weather effect) and to prankster Taunt any pokemon trying to set up or stall. Hurricane allows him to hit fighting types hard in the rain, and compliments Focus Blast nicely. I would normally run Tailwind on Tornadus, but Kingdra in the rain fills that niche anyway - countering scarfed dragons or dragon dancers hard. The Damp Rock is there to obviously let the rain persist for as long as possible.
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dragon Pulse
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Kingdra is a very nice pokemon, having great neutral coverage and being weak to only Dragon moves (along with x4 resistances to Fire and Water moves). He walls rain teams hard and is no slouch against sandstorm teams either, two common obstacles that prevent regular sun teams from prevailing. He also deals nicely with opposing dragons, Heatran and a whole host of other threats. A life orb was chosen over leftovers to make sure Kingdra hits that bit harder as his special attack is quite sub-par, the same reason why Hydro Pump was favoured over Surf (if Kingdra misses, he can usually handle a hit with his nice resistances and considerable bulk). Dragon Pulse was picked over Draco Meteor to allow for a more sustained sweep, as once Kingdra is out he'll likely remain out until he faints. Though HP fire may seem like a bit of an odd choice, the rain has to end some time and if for whatever reason I can only produce sun in a given situation it means Kingdra can still be of use to the team.
Salamence @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Hasty Nature
- Outrage
- Aqua Tail
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Salamence is a bit of a filler, I wanted another sweeper and scarfed Mence fills this role nicely. I don't ever intend to bring him out early, hence the lack of Dragon Claw, and both Aqua Tail and Fire Blast are there to capitalise on whatever the prevailing weather is if needs be (plus take out Steel types who would normally wall him with regards to Fire Blast). There's not much else to say here, of all my team he is the one I would most readily swap for something else if anyone else has any good suggestions?
Crustle @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Shell Smash
- Stealth Rock
- X-Scissor
Crustle makes for a very good lead, and allows me to scope out the opposing team quite nicely. As long as the opposing pokemon does not have Taunt or Fake Out, Stealth Rock or Shell Smash (depending on what seems more important - damaging the opposition or setting up SR) is guaranteed with Sturdy and Shell Smash can allow for a mini-sweep if the opponent is taken by surprise. With X-Scissor, Magic Bouncers are hit hard as well as Tyranitar; Stone Edge hits Flying or Fire types for good damage. With Crustle's Rock typing, you have the added bonus of a special defense boost in sandstorm conditions.
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 76 Atk / 252 SAtk / 180 Spd
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Growth
A pretty standard Venusaur set. Attack EV's were favoured over more bulk to secure OHKO's on bulky non-ballooned Heatrans (a bit of an odd niche, but Heatran can otherwise destroy Venusaur in the sun) - and it's nice to hit for more damage regardless. Once set up and with opposing dragons either weakened or eliminated, Venusaur is more than capable of a sweep.
Ninetales @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- SolarBeam
- Nasty Plot
- Roar
And unsurprisingly, here's Ninetales. Nasty Plot was favoured over Sunny Day as rain is not a problem for this team and Nasty Plot bolsters Ninetales' special attack. Roar is there just in case there's anything I desperately need to phase out, a useful utility if the need arises.
So that's the team. Having two weather systems in one team gives me the advantage in terms of out-speeding the vast majority of the metagame with Kingdra and Venusaur and making the opponent play on my terms. As for threats Blissey, Chansey and Rotom-W are probably the worst of it - but they're still unlikely to cause me horrendous troubles as long as long as Mence has a moxie boost under his belt. I've yet to square up to Latios and Latias too, who might cause Kingdra difficultly with their substantial bulk, but Salamence should be there to finish them off if the need arises.
Feedback is appreciated, let me know what you think. Below is the importable team list in case you want to give it a whirl:
Tornadus (M) @ Damp Rock
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Focus Blast
- Hurricane
- Taunt
- Rain Dance
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dragon Pulse
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Salamence @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Hasty Nature
- Outrage
- Aqua Tail
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Crustle @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Shell Smash
- Stealth Rock
- X-Scissor
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 76 Atk / 252 SAtk / 180 Spd
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Growth
Ninetales @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- SolarBeam
- Nasty Plot
- Roar
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Focus Blast
- Hurricane
- Taunt
- Rain Dance
Kingdra @ Life Orb
Trait: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Dragon Pulse
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Salamence @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Moxie
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Hasty Nature
- Outrage
- Aqua Tail
- Fire Blast
- Earthquake
Crustle @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Stone Edge
- Shell Smash
- Stealth Rock
- X-Scissor
Venusaur @ Life Orb
Trait: Chlorophyll
EVs: 76 Atk / 252 SAtk / 180 Spd
Naive Nature
- Earthquake
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Growth
Ninetales @ Leftovers
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fire Blast
- SolarBeam
- Nasty Plot
- Roar