I was inspired by Smogon post I saw a few weeks back on Facebook saying that the new wombo-combo in OU was, in fact, Flying type. After all the Drag-mag and multiple fighting type offensive cores from Gen V, the new Fairy type really put a hindrance on dragon/fighting/dark offensive cores. So, I took the Smogon Overlord's advice and made a team based around a double-Flying offensive core. The wonderful thing about this core is that it is not slowed down by Sticky Web, which a lot of hyper-offensive teams struggle with.
By the way, whoever is posting for Smogon on Facebook is doing a wonderful job! And sorry for lack of pictures, I can't seem to get them to upload properly.
Caw. (Talonflame) @ Choice Band
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 Atk / 6 HP / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Flare Blitz
- U-turn
- Will-O-Wisp
Standard Choice-Band Talonflame. This is the central core of the team, and I can't imagine he'll get banned any time soon. The goal with Talonflame is to save him for late game when everything is worn down by Stealth Rock, Bisharp and Staraptor and to spam Brave Bird. I run U-Turn to fake out people mid-game (as long as they don't have rocks up) and to switch to appropriate counters for momentum. I have replaced Steel Wing with W-o-W as a last resort option for now. I will experiment with Tailwind later as it helps half of this team out late game. I maxed speed to get priority over Pinsir.
CAW. (Staraptor) @ Choice Band
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 6 HP
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Close Combat
- Double-Edge
- Quick Attack
Staraptor was never really that relevant after his initial release back in Gen IV, but with the release of Reckless, he is a beast Choice-Band user. He's the "lure" of this offensive core, although he's more like a kamikaze while Talonflame comes in as recon/clean up. Double-Edge alone demolishes a lot of common physical tank switch-ins.
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Hippowdon: 235-277 (55.9 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 184+ Def Gliscor: 237-279 (66.9 - 78.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
252+ Atk Choice Band Staraptor Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 232+ Def Skarmory: 117-138 (35 - 41.3%) -- 75.8% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Staraptor Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 242-286 (68.7 - 81.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 246-291 (62.4 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Landorus-T: 267-315 (69.8 - 82.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Double-Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Rotom-W: 252-297 (82.8 - 97.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (likely OHKO after Stealth Rock).
So yeah, he dents things hard, minus Skarmory. You see now why Adamant Choice Band is important for the purposes of this team. The only thing I might change is U-Turn > Quick Attack, but Quick Attack has actually saved me a few times as a clutch priority dent on things that couldn't be OHKO'd.
Deoxys-Speed Ban Please (Deoxys-Speed) @Life Orb FOCUS SASH
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 HP / 6 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Punch
- Knock Off
(I plan on changing Life Orb to Focus Sash) This is more often than not my default lead. I think its pretty standard; get up rocks, Taunt anything that thinks it can set up on me, Knock Off early game, Fire Punch to dent steel walls that otherwise mess up my offensive flying core. He also makes amazing synergy with Bisharp, who turns an enemy Defog into a free Swords Dance and becomes a backup offensive core.
(Fortunately) I anticipate Deoxys-S being banned as a result of the suspect test, so I might need to start considering replacement options soon.
B# (Bisharp) @ Life Orb
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
- Iron Head
- Brick Break
Get the musical reference? Good. Bisharp deserves OU with the abundance of Defogging going on and his STAB Knock Off coming from 125 attack. The goal here with Bisharp is to come in mid-game, cripple and dent tanks with Knock Off, absorb Defog when necessary (and possibly clear the way for Talonflame), threaten Sucker Punch, and, if absolutely needed, Brick Break away other steel types and clear screens. Though the steel-killing job is best left to Heatran.
Meta Laundromat (Rotom-Wash) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 6 SDef
Bold Nature
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
Obligatory washing machine. This thing is practically a staple on any OU team as it absorbs STAB flying attacks and walls opposing Talonflame to hell and back. This is nice considering it hurts 4/6 of my team extremely badly. The goal with Rotom-W is to scout/dent things early, burn major threats, and provide a slower switch to the birds late game. Its nice to lure in Grass types only to Volt Switch out to Talonflame or Staraptor.
Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 Spd / 6 HP / 252 Atk
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide
- Iron Head
Heatran has been replaced with this guy. I needed an electric/rock resist, something to Rapid Spin, and another option to take hits. I'm not quite sure on how to EV this guy, or if Heatran was the correct choice to replace. I can always run this guy as my rocks user over Deoxys, but then I lose out on speedy rocks. Suggestions, comments? I'm running Air Balloon to get the jump on other Excadrill or pokemon that rely heavily on Earthquake on taking Excadrill out, which lets me Rapid Spin better.
This team, as a whole, as quite a few problems with offensive Rotom forms. I'm considering making Heatran specially defensive, or replacing him altogether for a grass type (Mega Venusaur?), which would give my team a FWG core of sorts. Speaking of Mega Venusaur, I'm also lacking a Mega Pokemon. I feel like I'm wasting a potential mega slot this way, but that's why I've made this post -- for help.
So there you have it. As usual, I'm perfectly open to any suggestions and replacements beyond the core (unless you mention another flying type). Thanks in advance, and stay classy, Smogon.
By the way, whoever is posting for Smogon on Facebook is doing a wonderful job! And sorry for lack of pictures, I can't seem to get them to upload properly.
Caw. (Talonflame) @ Choice Band
Ability: Gale Wings
EVs: 252 Atk / 6 HP / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Flare Blitz
- U-turn
- Will-O-Wisp
Standard Choice-Band Talonflame. This is the central core of the team, and I can't imagine he'll get banned any time soon. The goal with Talonflame is to save him for late game when everything is worn down by Stealth Rock, Bisharp and Staraptor and to spam Brave Bird. I run U-Turn to fake out people mid-game (as long as they don't have rocks up) and to switch to appropriate counters for momentum. I have replaced Steel Wing with W-o-W as a last resort option for now. I will experiment with Tailwind later as it helps half of this team out late game. I maxed speed to get priority over Pinsir.
CAW. (Staraptor) @ Choice Band
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 6 HP
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Close Combat
- Double-Edge
- Quick Attack
Staraptor was never really that relevant after his initial release back in Gen IV, but with the release of Reckless, he is a beast Choice-Band user. He's the "lure" of this offensive core, although he's more like a kamikaze while Talonflame comes in as recon/clean up. Double-Edge alone demolishes a lot of common physical tank switch-ins.
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Hippowdon: 235-277 (55.9 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 184+ Def Gliscor: 237-279 (66.9 - 78.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Poison Heal
252+ Atk Choice Band Staraptor Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 232+ Def Skarmory: 117-138 (35 - 41.3%) -- 75.8% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Staraptor Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Ferrothorn: 242-286 (68.7 - 81.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 246-291 (62.4 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Landorus-T: 267-315 (69.8 - 82.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Reckless Staraptor Double-Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Rotom-W: 252-297 (82.8 - 97.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (likely OHKO after Stealth Rock).
So yeah, he dents things hard, minus Skarmory. You see now why Adamant Choice Band is important for the purposes of this team. The only thing I might change is U-Turn > Quick Attack, but Quick Attack has actually saved me a few times as a clutch priority dent on things that couldn't be OHKO'd.
Deoxys-Speed Ban Please (Deoxys-Speed) @
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 HP / 6 SDef
Jolly Nature
- Taunt
- Stealth Rock
- Fire Punch
- Knock Off
(I plan on changing Life Orb to Focus Sash) This is more often than not my default lead. I think its pretty standard; get up rocks, Taunt anything that thinks it can set up on me, Knock Off early game, Fire Punch to dent steel walls that otherwise mess up my offensive flying core. He also makes amazing synergy with Bisharp, who turns an enemy Defog into a free Swords Dance and becomes a backup offensive core.
(Fortunately) I anticipate Deoxys-S being banned as a result of the suspect test, so I might need to start considering replacement options soon.
B# (Bisharp) @ Life Orb
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 6 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
- Iron Head
- Brick Break
Get the musical reference? Good. Bisharp deserves OU with the abundance of Defogging going on and his STAB Knock Off coming from 125 attack. The goal here with Bisharp is to come in mid-game, cripple and dent tanks with Knock Off, absorb Defog when necessary (and possibly clear the way for Talonflame), threaten Sucker Punch, and, if absolutely needed, Brick Break away other steel types and clear screens. Though the steel-killing job is best left to Heatran.
Meta Laundromat (Rotom-Wash) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 6 SDef
Bold Nature
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
Obligatory washing machine. This thing is practically a staple on any OU team as it absorbs STAB flying attacks and walls opposing Talonflame to hell and back. This is nice considering it hurts 4/6 of my team extremely badly. The goal with Rotom-W is to scout/dent things early, burn major threats, and provide a slower switch to the birds late game. Its nice to lure in Grass types only to Volt Switch out to Talonflame or Staraptor.
Excadrill @ Air Balloon
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 Spd / 6 HP / 252 Atk
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Slide
- Iron Head
Heatran has been replaced with this guy. I needed an electric/rock resist, something to Rapid Spin, and another option to take hits. I'm not quite sure on how to EV this guy, or if Heatran was the correct choice to replace. I can always run this guy as my rocks user over Deoxys, but then I lose out on speedy rocks. Suggestions, comments? I'm running Air Balloon to get the jump on other Excadrill or pokemon that rely heavily on Earthquake on taking Excadrill out, which lets me Rapid Spin better.
This team, as a whole, as quite a few problems with offensive Rotom forms. I'm considering making Heatran specially defensive, or replacing him altogether for a grass type (Mega Venusaur?), which would give my team a FWG core of sorts. Speaking of Mega Venusaur, I'm also lacking a Mega Pokemon. I feel like I'm wasting a potential mega slot this way, but that's why I've made this post -- for help.
So there you have it. As usual, I'm perfectly open to any suggestions and replacements beyond the core (unless you mention another flying type). Thanks in advance, and stay classy, Smogon.
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